Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryu's eyes shot open, his heart beating erratically. He almost instantly realized that his head was resting on someone's lap. But, when his vision cleared and he saw who it was, his stomach dropped. 

His body rose like a shot out of a canon, his arms wrapping around the figure with almost too much strength. If not for the strength of the individual, they might have been torn directly in two by his grip. 

"Hoho, dear. Haven't you grown too much to still be acting so spoiled, Little Ryu?"

Ryu's grip tightened, his jaw clenching so hard that even his own teeth began to crack, on the verge of shattering completely. 

Ryu hardly registered the world of white around him, all he could sense and feel was the woman in his arms right now. Compared to the last time he had seen her, she seemed to have aged considerably. From a city toppling beauty, the wear of age had left its mark on her. 

The last time Ryu had seen his Grandma Kukan, she looked like a middle-aged woman with a beauty that could put even a 20 year old to shame. Her hair was a bright, shimmering white and her eyes twinkled with a youthful blue. 

Now, however, his grandmother looked aged. Her bright white hair had dulled to grey. Her shimmering blue eyes had become murky. Her usually powerful, confident movement had become shaky and slow. Just seeing her like this made Ryu feel as though his heart was being torn from the inside out. 

What hurt the most was the fact he knew that his grandmother was gone. This was at most a final strand of her soul holding on for the day he would finally make it to this place. And yet, he had almost not come at all. 

For the second time that day, Ryu's tears threatened to spill over. The only reason they didn't was because he was caught between fury and sadness. This gaze reddened to the point his blood vessels threatened to pop. Any calmness that he had gained over the past several weeks vanished like the wind. 

He wanted to kill, to rip his enemies limb from limb… he wanted the whole world to suffer. 

Ryu almost lost control entirely and maybe he would have had his soul not suddenly been invaded by a spring breeze. It was cool, but not too much so. Almost like a spritz of water on a blazingly hot day. Even if Ryu didn't want to, he had no choice but to calm down. When it came to a comparison of his soul versus his grandmother's, strand of soul or not, he had no course to resist even if he wanted to. 

Ryu felt some light pats on his back.

"There's no need to be like this, Little Ryu. Your grandma's time was bound to come at some point. With your talent, you would have outlived me anyway."

There was a slight teasing tone in Mistress Kukan's voice as she gripped Ryu's shoulders, pushing him back so she could get a good look at her grandson's face. Ryu was just the same as she remembered him, except his frame was far fuller now. 

Ryu was no different from a scholar in his first life and his body was quite weak. He had an obscene level of talent but lacked the foundation to sustain them. This resulted in him practically cannibalizing himself. If not for the precious Spiritual Fruits he had everyday, he wouldn't have lived nearly as long. 

But, the current Ryu exuded a vitality that made the air tremble. His frame wasn't just broad, but he had filled it out with a toned layering of muscle that added to his charm. 

"Now there's my handsome baby boy. Come on, give grandma a smile, you're not going to make an old woman like me sad, right?"

Ryu's eyelashes trembled, his nose reddening. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Eventually, thanks mostly to his grandmother's help, he managed to reach a more even state. A bit of his edge was still there, but he realized that his grandmother was right. She wasn't his enemy. Being enraged now and ruining what was maybe the last time he would see his grandmother… Wouldn't he be too foolish?

Ryu thought of all sorts of ways to try and save his grandmother, but ultimately, he realized without a complete soul, there was little he could do. 

His mood sank, but he tried to squeeze out whatever positivity he could muster for his grandmother's sake. 

Mistress Kukan smiled lightly, not exposing Ryu's poor attempt at a smile. For such a handsome young man, he definitely had the ugliest fake smile she had ever seen. The result made her chuckle as she pinched Ryu's cheeks. 

"There you go. See, isn't that better?"

Ryu forced out a bitter smile but didn't respond to his grandmother's question directly. 

"Grandma… Can you tell me what happened?"

Mistress Kukan sighed. She knew that she would have to explain these things. But, in her own selfishness, she would much rather hear about how her grandson's life had been in her final moments rather than reliving such horrible events. But, she also knew that there wasn't much of a choice. These were things that Ryu deserved to know. 

"Oh, Little Ryu. Even now, I cannot decide whether your disappearance was a blessing or a curse. In hindsight it was necessary, but it was difficult for a lot of us to accept. At the same time, it also helped us take notice of some things that had been blatantly in our faces for the longest time, but had been ignored by us due to various other reasons. 

"I will not try to sugarcoat things for you. As of now, you are the torchbearer of our family. There's nothing I can say that will lighten this blow for you and there will be many things in the future that you will have to carry the burden of on your own. 

"Whether it is me, your Grandpa Kukan, and your Grandma and Grandpa Tatsuya… 

"We are no longer of this world."