Deception is an Art

Mu Tianye rarely ventured out, but he had a feeling that Chen Chang'an should be arriving around now. To his surprise, Chen Chang'an actually showed up right on cue.

However, what truly caught him off guard was hearing his precious son shouting loudly the moment he stepped out of the Xiao Yun Tian.

Even more shocking was the declaration—his son wanted to become the "Most Shameless in the Ancient Immortal Realm"!

What kind of ridiculous goal was that? And how would it sound if word got out?

The Mu Family, one of the Nine Great Immortal Clans, producing the "Most Shameless in the World"?

Wouldn’t that be a disgrace to their name?

"G-Greetings, Family Head..."

The other members of the Mu Family were also sweating bullets, hoping Mu Tianye hadn’t overheard their earlier conversation.

But after carefully observing Mu Tianye’s expression, it seemed… he hadn’t.

Chen Chang'an also turned his gaze toward Mu Tianye. So this was the head of the Mu Family—his master’s father?

"Junior Chen Chang'an greets Family Head Mu."

"Wow, since when did our sworn father become so polite?"

"Rare sight. Extremely rare."

"You guys don’t get it, do you? Do you know who Family Head Mu is? He’s Big Bro’s master’s biological father."

"Out of respect for his master, Big Bro has to show some courtesy, right?"

Rather than angering Mu Tianye, the chatter from Da Huang and the other two actually made him preen a little.

It seemed Chen Chang'an had quite the prideful nature—he wasn’t this polite to just anyone. Did that mean he held Mu Tianye in special regard?

This thought made Mu Tianye swell with pride. After all, he knew Chen Chang'an had visited the Qilin Clan.

Even the Qilin Clan’s patriarch probably didn’t receive this level of respect, did he?

Mu Tianye gave Chen Chang'an an approving look and smiled. "As expected of someone that girl Yun Yao took a liking to."

"Truly extraordinary in bearing, standing apart from the rest."

"At such a young age, you’ve already reached…"

"Peak Immortal King?"

Ah!

Here we go again!

Mu Tianye’s stunned expression was identical to Mu Yunhai’s—father and son truly were cut from the same cloth, their reactions eerily similar.

"No need to be so surprised."

"I’m well aware of my own excellence," Chen Chang'an said with a faint smile.

Er…

Mu Tianye chuckled awkwardly. Just then, Mu Yunhai came rushing back in a fluster.

"Dad, why did you hit me?" Mu Yunhai demanded indignantly.

"Didn’t you deserve it?"

"How did I deserve it?"

"Standing right outside our family’s gates, shouting about becoming the 'Most Shameless in the World'—aren’t you afraid of dragging the Mu Family’s name through the mud?" Mu Tianye roared.

"How is that dragging our name through the mud?"

"Only the mediocre fear shamelessness."

"Why do people call me shameless? Because I’m outstanding, and they’re jealous!"

"Dad, have you ever thought about what it takes to become the 'Most Shameless in the World'?" Mu Yunhai asked passionately.

What it takes to become the 'Most Shameless in the World'?

Did that even need thinking? Just…

Huh?

Wait, how does one actually become the 'Most Shameless in the World'?

Mu Yunhai’s question stumped Mu Tianye. He pondered for a long moment but couldn’t come up with an answer.

"Fine, you tell me—how does one become the 'Most Shameless in the World'?" Mu Tianye snapped.

"Dad, when the entire Ancient Immortal Realm is jealous of me, I’ll have made it."

"Their jealousy will make them slander me."

"Doesn’t that prove I’ve become someone everyone envies?"

"Isn’t that… a good thing?"

Mu Yunhai’s words left Mu Tianye speechless.

Something about this logic felt off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on why.

"I get the envy and the slander part."

"But what does that have to do with shamelessness?"

"I…"

"Come on, Dad, don’t overthink it. Just know this—when I become the 'Most Shameless in the World,' you’ll be the happiest father alive!"

"Won’t that bring you glory too?"

Chen Chang'an had successfully bamboozled Mu Yunhai, and now Mu Yunhai was leading Mu Tianye down the same rabbit hole.

"That makes sense!"

"Son, I believe in you."

"You can do it!"

"In the future, you’ll be the 'Most Shameless in the World,' and I’ll be the father of the 'Most Shameless in the World'!" Mu Tianye said proudly, patting Mu Yunhai’s shoulder.

"Don’t worry, Dad. I won’t let you down."

"That title is as good as mine!"

"Good! That’s the spirit! A true son of Mu Tianye!"

Watching this scene unfold, Chen Chang'an felt a swell of satisfaction. These two were truly promising material.

"Big Bro, are these really your master’s father and brother?"

"They… don’t seem anything like your master at all."

"Was your master adopted by the Mu Family or something?" Da Huang couldn’t help but send a mental message to Chen Chang'an.

In Da Huang’s eyes, Mu Yunyao was a ruthless powerhouse—decisive, brilliant, and brimming with authority.

But Mu Tianye and Mu Yunhai? They seemed… a few screws loose. The contrast was staggering.

"No mistake about it."

"Maybe it’s because my master grew up in the Tai Xuan Realm, so she didn’t inherit their… unique traits."

"A small mercy, I suppose," Chen Chang'an mused.

"Wasn’t this all your doing, though?"

"If you hadn’t spouted nonsense, would these two have fallen into the trap?"

Just as Chen Chang'an and Da Huang were silently bantering, Chen Qingqing suddenly cut into their mental conversation.

"Wait, you can hear our telepathic messages?"

"And just jump in whenever you want?" Chen Chang'an shot her a surprised look.

"Is it that hard?"

"Oh, right. There’s something I forgot to mention."

"I have this ability—I can hear people’s thoughts."

"Of course, whether I listen or not depends on my mood."

Chen Qingqing’s revelation stunned Chen Chang'an again. Such an ability existed?

Wasn’t that downright overpowered?

She could turn it on and off at will?

"Dad, we should invite Brother-in-law inside first."

"Oh, and Brother-in-law just shared some big news."

"The Ye Family is fine."

"He helped them overcome their crisis."

Mu Yunhai’s words jolted Mu Tianye. The Ye Family had survived their ordeal?

And Chen Chang'an was the one who helped them?

"Don’t spout nonsense."

"There’s been no word from the Ye Family. Are you sure they’ve really overcome it?"

The latter half of his question was directed at Chen Chang'an.

"The crisis has indeed been resolved."

"This time, the demonic clan sent two peak Immortal Emperor experts, leading tens of thousands of their kin to invade the Ye Family."

"But fortunately, at the critical moment, my big bro arrived."

"My big bro turned the tide single-handedly, slaughtering demons left and—"

"Alright!"

"Enough!"

Mu Tianye hastily cut off Da Huang’s enthusiastic storytelling, feeling a headache coming on. Even the dog loved to exaggerate!

Two peak Immortal Emperors? How could Chen Chang'an possibly stop that?

"Are you certain it was truly two peak Immortal Emperor experts?"