"Do you three have any idea how long it takes for these peach trees to grow this big? They've been here for over a thousand years!" Ethan Lu demanded. "And more importantly, there's a Spirit-Gathering Array in the orchard! You broke several array nodes at once! This whole patch of peaches probably won't bear fruit again!"
The three of them hung their heads in silence, looking like a trio of guilty quails.
"Go reflect at Repentance Cliff! You’re not allowed out for at least a year!"
"Big Brother!" the two wailed in unison.
"Young Lord Adrian Drake, if you want to join them in reflection, you may stay. If not, please leave." Ethan Lu turned to go.
Adrian Drake called out, "High God Ethan Lu!"
Ethan Lu turned back to look at him.
"Actually—" Adrian was about to confess that he was the one who destroyed the peach trees.
"Actually, he can repair the array underneath." Damian Black suddenly spoke up.
Ethan Lu looked at him, frowning. "Who are you?"
"He's my relative!" Adrian Drake quickly shielded Damian behind him. "Um... High God Ethan Lu, actually, I was the one who wrecked the peach grove, but I can repair the Spirit-Gathering Life Array! Could you please not punish them?"
"The array in the peach grove is the Spirit-Gathering Life Array. It uses the vitality of the peach trees as its nodes. If the trees are cut down, how can it be repaired?"
Adrian glanced at Damian Black for help.
Hearing Damian's transmitted instructions, Adrian repeated, "You can change the flow of the array at the damaged nodes, bypass those spots, and reactivate the formation."
Ethan Lu asked suspiciously, "Haven't you always studied medicine? Since when did you start researching arrays?"
"I'm just broadly interested—I like to learn a little bit of everything," Adrian replied with a grin.
"Then try it. If you really can restart the array..." Ethan shot a dark look at Ryan Lu and Lucia Lu but said nothing.
"To restart the array, it has to be done at sunrise tomorrow," Adrian added. "I promise, it'll work!"
Ethan Lu finally relented and didn't send them off to reflect in isolation. He glanced at Ryan Lu and Lucia Lu, then left.
The two let out a huge sigh of relief, as if they'd just dodged a bullet.
That evening, the Lu family held a home banquet. Adrian Drake finally got to taste the Peach Blossom Brew he’d been dreaming about, and pulled Damian Black to sit beside him so they could drink together.
Lucia Lu saw Adrian’s proud, treasure-showing expression and asked Damian, “Is it good? Is it good?”
Damian Black gave her a faint smile and nodded.
It was the first time all day Lucia Lu had seen Damian Black smile.
It really did clear the haze, as if it could slice through fog and obstacles—her wine-fogged head felt much sharper.
Is there really such a dazzling little immortal in this world? He could almost rival Qilin Divine Lord Soren Lann, she thought to herself.
"Sis, Lucia’s already nine hundred years old, and now she’s home for good. Isn’t it time to arrange a match for her?" Her aunt Tanya Lu, who spends half the year living with them, brought up her marriage again.
High Goddess Vivian Lu said, "It really is about time for her to get engaged!"
Ordinary demigods and God-tier beings live for thousands or even tens of thousands of years.
So, there’s an unspoken norm for marriage age in the Divine Realm too.
Usually, once a child reaches around a thousand years old, families start looking for a divine partner.
Damian Black put down his wine cup and glanced unobtrusively at Lucia Lu.
She was sitting with her sister Luna Lian.
Luna Lian was a beautiful Saint Maiden.
But maybe it was Lucia’s striking red Divine Robe—tonight, all the light in the hall seemed to gather around her, leaving Luna Lian dim by comparison.