After washing up, he entered the side room to the left of the main courtyard—a space reserved for family meals. A round table sat in the center of the hall with seven or eight dishes already placed on it.
Seated at the head was a white-haired elder with the face of a middle-aged man. He was his grandfather—tall and lean, energetic, with a calm and composed air. His clothes were immaculate, his hair neatly groomed, and he bore a six- or seven-tenths resemblance to the future Chen Xin (Sword Douluo), but even more refined, like a spring breeze.
To the left sat his mother, Ye Xiuxin. To the right was a robust boy of about eleven or twelve—his elder brother Chen Jianjun, standing over 1.6 meters tall.
Side Note: In Douluo Dalu, people value bone age, so ages are given in full years.
"Grandpa, Mother, Big Bro."
Chen Xiaojun greeted them with a bright smile.
Grandpa Chen Yu responded warmly, "Sit down, let's eat."
The family sat down to dine. Chen Yu ate slowly and deliberately. Ye Xiuxin dined with elegant grace. As for big brother Chen Jianjun, "wolfing it down" was about right.
Jianjun took after their father Chen Xun—tall, strong, and built like a mountain. It puzzled Xiaojun how such a refined man like Grandpa Chen Yu could have fathered someone as burly as Chen Xun. If not for the similar facial features, he would've suspected Chen Xun wasn't his son.
As for Chen Xiaojun, he resembled his mother more—gentle facial features and a well-proportioned body, neither too fat nor too thin.
Ye Xiuxin was a beauty in her youth, still graceful in her forties. As a Soul Emperor, her spirit power slowed aging and preserved her beauty. Being a support-type soul master, she hadn't suffered the hidden injuries that battle-types often accrued. Her soul power was mild, promoting health and longevity.
Xiaojun had overheard her rank once—it wasn't hidden in their family.
In this household, it was customary not to speak during meals. Once the food was finished, everyone set down their bowls and chopsticks, and Ye Xiuxin began cleaning up.
"Xiao'er, your father went out on business and should be back in five or six days—just in time for your birthday on June 20th," said Chen Yu. "He'll bring the awakening stone so you can awaken your martial spirit in the ancestral hall."
"Got it, Grandpa," Chen Xiaojun nodded.
"Let's hope you inherit our ancestral martial spirit. Then the Chen clan will have one more heir to the legacy. My greatest accomplishment in this life is fathering your dad, Chen Xun, and your second uncle, Chen Zhang.
"Our family line is thin. Your father had two sons, and your second uncle had Chen Feng. When I go to meet our ancestors, I'll be able to say I haven't let the Chen Clan down!" Chen Yu said proudly.
"Grandpa, how many people are in our clan?"
Xiaojun took the opportunity to ask a question that had been bothering him.
"Our Chen Clan has a history stretching back nearly two thousand years. We've been destroyed and rebuilt more than once. Excluding side branches, the main line that inherits our clan's martial spirit has thirty-two people alive today.
"In the village, there's our family, your second grand-uncle's, Grandpa Hong's, Grandpa Chao's, and Grandma Xin's families.
"The rest are scattered—some traveling, some working, some employed by other factions, some serving as guest elders, and some even in the military. Many have been gone for decades."
Chen Yu was the clan patriarch and, publicly, also the village chief of Chenlin Village.
"Destroyed and rebuilt?" Chen Xiaojun asked, puzzled.
His grandfather knew the boy was precocious and figured it was time to reveal a bit more.
"You'll be awakening your martial spirit soon, so it's time you knew. You already know what our family's spirit is, don't you?" Chen Yu asked seriously.
"Yes. I've read biographies, martial spirit records, and historical documents. If I'm not wrong, our family holds one of the top-tier martial spirits—the Seven Kill Sword. And our real surname should be Chen (尘)—the 'dust' character." Xiaojun's tone was full of admiration.
"Smart boy."
"The Seven Kill Sword… it's both our rise and our ruin," Chen Yu sighed.
"The Seven Kill Sword is the strongest offensive martial spirit on the continent—on par with the Clear Sky Hammer. It naturally exudes killing intent, and it can absorb killing aura to boost its power.
"But the sword also needs killing aura to grow stronger. The higher your level, the more killing energy it demands.
"Where does that come from? From killing soul beasts… or people. But the killing has its price.
"That's why outsiders fear our martial spirit—it's soaked in malice and murderous aura. At one point, people even called it an 'evil' spirit."
"For centuries, we formed sects, built families, sought alliances, all to survive—but every time, we were destroyed.
"Thankfully, our ancestors were wise. They laid hidden paths and preserved our lineage through turmoil and hardship.
"Eventually, our forebears Chen Xili and Chen Feiyi developed our two signature techniques: the Upright Sword Qi Method and the Seven Kill Aura Convergence Technique.
"These allowed us to refine our killing aura into usable energy, doubling our combat power while softening our aura, making us less intimidating to outsiders.
"To this day, we keep a low profile. We hide our martial spirits, use the surname 'Chen,' and live quietly in this mountain village. Only when we travel or do business outside do we reveal our true surname and restore the name of the Seven Kill Sword."
"So… people aren't afraid of the Seven Kill Sword anymore?" Xiaojun asked solemnly.
"There's still wariness, but we've been re-accepted by mainstream soul master society, thanks to our strength and martial prowess.
"We no longer form sects or challenge existing power structures. Even when we work as guest elders or allies, we do so as individuals—not as representatives of the Chen Clan.
"This disperses suspicion and lets us grow. You could say we've mastered the art of living across all four seas…"
"Sigh… but that's enough for now. I'll tell you more when you're older," Chen Yu said, switching to a lower, more introspective tone.
"The Seven Kill Sword… wounds others, but wounds its wielder first.
Its soul power is filled with sharpness and ferocity.
"Only once you've mastered the Seven Kill Aura Convergence can you safely marry and have children. That's why most of our clan members marry after thirty. Even then, our population grows slowly.
"Top-tier martial spirits are often hard to pass down. But we've managed to reduce losses over the past few centuries. Even so, we only have thirty-two main-line descendants.
"It's also likely that the sword's soul power hinders fertility. Thankfully, our lineage tends to produce more males—around 80%. And our Seven Kill Sword awakenings are relatively stable."
"In the original Douluo, our clan only had one person shown—Sword Douluo Chen Xin—and he was just a guardian for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. No family was mentioned, aside from my dad and cousin.
My second uncle doesn't exist?
Am I a reincarnated soul? Or just transmigrated? Did I die later?
Something went wrong.
Did the clan get wiped out?" Xiaojun wondered.
At that moment, Ye Xiuxin gently said, "Father, don't be upset. Things will get better. Look at these two boys—they're both doing well. Especially Jianjun—strong and healthy. You'll live to see four or five generations under one roof."
"Haha, yes, yes!"
Chen Yu turned to Chen Jianjun and asked, "Jianjun, have you chosen which academy you'll attend in two months?"
Jianjun, always a bit reserved, replied seriously: "Not yet. I've been focused on training, trying to break through to Soul Elder. I want to defeat Jian Zun during the clan celebration on July 15th, so I haven't looked at academy options yet."
Clan tradition: Awaken martial spirit at 6, home education for 6 years, then at 12, go off to an academy. The clan has several long-time partner schools.
With the potential of the Seven Kill Sword, most kids are born geniuses. Very few have innate soul power under level 6. Academies fight to recruit them.
The "Jian Zun" mentioned was Chen Jianzun, grandson of Grandpa Hong. He was about a year older than Jianjun, and slightly less talented, but they were close cousins and friendly rivals.
Their names—Jianjun and Jianzun—made it obvious. Their grandfathers often bickered over whose grandson was better.
By the way, Jianjun had innate level 9 soul power, and Jianzun was level 8, or maybe 8.8—just shy of 9.
Jianjun had been stuck at level 29 for a few months. Jianzun had already broken through to Soul Elder.
"Alright then. Once you hit level 30, Grandpa will help you find a good soul beast. Make me proud—so that old man Hong will finally shut up!" Chen Yu said with a spirited grin.
"Grandpa, I've already reached level 30," Jianjun suddenly said in a loud, proud voice.