"But the Demon court is essentially my word alone!" Fengxiu paused slightly and said offhandedly.
"..." Bai Yue was choked by these words, but upon careful thought, her father seemed to be right.
Yet this presented a hidden danger! In her past life, if it hadn't been for her father's arbitrary and dictatorial ways, which caused the Moon God Agares to lose trust in him, Agares would not have chosen at the final moment to cooperate with Haochen and seek a path of survival for the Demon race!
Bai Yue could not judge whether Agares's choice was right or wrong, but in this life, she would do her utmost to avoid repeating the same mistakes and leading the Demon race to destruction.
"Father, although you hold the lofty position of Demon God Emperor, you cannot act like a tyrant. Being arbitrary and dictatorial will only cause public grievance and discontent among the officials," Bai Yue earnestly advised.
Fengxiu nodded with gratification, smiling as he said, "Yue'er, you are well-versed in the ways of governance. It seems my choice was correct; appointing you as Crown Princess and heir is entirely fitting!"
"Father, I cannot cultivate right now. Surely the heir to the Demon race cannot be a half-demon without any cultivation!" Bai Yue said frankly.
Fengxiu didn't think this was an issue at all. He waved his hand and said, "If you want to cultivate, it's very simple. You just need to soak in the blood pool within the Heaven-Defying Magic Dragon Pillar for a period of time to awaken the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon bloodline within your body."
"Father, there must be certain taboos to soaking in the blood pool, right?" Bai Yue remembered System Liuliu mentioning that if she went to awaken her bloodline at this time, it would very likely lead to a miscarriage.
Fengxiu smiled. "Awakening your bloodline in the blood pool will cause the vital energy and blood in your body to surge. It will only benefit your health with no side effects."
"Surging vital energy and blood? Wouldn't that affect the child inside me?!" Bai Yue said, feigning shock.
"Clatter—" Fengxiu had been holding a teacup to drink tea, but upon suddenly hearing the news of Bai Yue's pregnancy, the teacup dropped to the floor and shattered into eight pieces—just like his heart as an aging father, shattered into tiny fragments.
"Yue'er, what did you just say? Say it again, I didn't hear clearly." Fengxiu's pupils constricted slightly as he asked with a tremor.
"Father, I am pregnant. You are going to be a grandfather," Bai Yue said gently, her hand softly stroking her lower abdomen.
Seeing Bai Yue's expectant expression and knowing that she loved and looked forward to this child, Fengxiu naturally breathed a sigh of relief.
He hesitated and asked, "Is this child... Long Xingyu's?"
"Yes! Half of the bloodline belongs to him, but Haochen is my child, and he will also be Father's grandson," Bai Yue said resolutely.
She was making her attitude clear to Fengxiu. Although Haochen carried the bloodline of the man she loathed, he was indeed the child she looked forward to bringing into the world. She hoped that Fengxiu could extend his love for her to Haochen.
"Since you wish to give birth to him, then let him be born. The imperial bloodline of our Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon Clan is still somewhat too thin," Fengxiu said with a sigh.
"Yue'er, since you are pregnant, it is indeed unsuitable to awaken your bloodline. It would be better to wait until the child is born and three years later, after you have nourished your body and recovered from the loss of vital energy and blood, before proceeding with the bloodline awakening."
"Your body was neglected in the Human realm all these years; you look malnourished and really need proper nourishment to increase your bloodline compatibility with the Heaven-Defying Magic Dragon Pillar. Back then, my own compatibility with the Heaven-Defying Magic Dragon Pillar was ninety-nine percent—the demon with the best talent among all generations of the direct lineage." Fengxiu tilted his head up and began recounting his exceptional talent during his cultivation days.
This speech lasted a full hour, leaving Bai Yue somewhat exhausted. However, this interaction did draw the father and daughter closer together.
...
Bai Yue spent her time nourishing her fetus and raising her baby, living each day quite contentedly.
Upon learning that she was pregnant, Moon Demon Consort Yun Xi frequently came to keep her company, passing on various pregnancy-nurturing tips she deemed useful, which helped Bai Yue avoid many missteps.
Pregnancy was hard enough for a woman, and childbirth was practically walking through the gates of hell.
Another pregnant palace maid in the Demon God Emperor Palace was carrying the Demon God Emperor's bloodline, but because her status was humble, she received no attention.
When Bai Yue learned of this, she had the maid brought over to live with her.
The maid was named Luoniang, and the child she carried was none of other than the future Princess Leng Xiao.
Seeing Bai Yue with her prominent belly, Luoniang assumed she was the Demon God Emperor's new favorite, looking at her with envy yet without a shred of jealousy.
As the day of childbirth approached, Luoniang sent a demon to invite Bai Yue over, as she had something to entrust to her.
When Bai Yue arrived, Luoniang disregarded her soon-to-be-delivered state and knelt, pleading, "Lady Yue, I know you are kind-hearted and possess His Majesty's favor. You will certainly give birth safely, but I am afraid I won't make it past this hurdle."
"Nurturing the bloodline of the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon imperial family is a trial of nine deaths and a live. If I die, could you help me raise my child?"
"You can have the child recognize you as mother, or even—if you harbor any misgivings about my existence—you can erase everything related to me. Then the child will be entirely your own flesh and blood."
"..." Bai Yue listened to Luoniang's pleading entrustment with a bewildered expression.
She moved her lips and said with a wry smile, "Have your child recognize me as mother?"
"Lady Luoniang, did you misunderstand my identity?"
"Haven't you seen A Bao call me sister? How could you still think I am a concubine of this harem?"
Luoniang paused slightly, looking startled as she asked, "You are not His Majesty's concubine? Then how could you be pregnant and openly living in the harem? And why are you so deeply favored by His Majesty?"
Well, Bai Yue finally understood completely—Luoniang had assumed she was a favored concubine all along!
No wonder Luoniang's gaze towards her had been so strange during this time.
"Actually, I am not His Majesty's concubine. I am his daughter," Bai Yue stated bluntly.
"Ah?" Luoniang's eyes widened in incredulous exclamation.
"But I can sense that you carry human bloodline, and it even has the attribute of light!"
"How could the attribute of the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon imperial family be light? It can only be darkness!"
"Lady Luoniang, what place is the courtyard where our Princess lives? You have been in the Demon God Emperor Palace for years; you should know," the maid attending Bai Yue couldn't help reminding her.
Luoniang was not a foolish demon; she had previously thought Bai Yue was favored and thus elevated on account of her child, hence being granted residence here.
"The most prosperous palace on the east side of the Demon God Emperor Palace is the Eastern Palace. Could this be the Eastern Palace? But clearly, everyone calls this place the Yue Palace."
Bai Yue scratched her head and said sheepishly, "I previously felt the name Eastern Palace was too casual—just because it's on the east side, they named it Eastern Palace—so I told Father to rename the palace Yue Palace."
The corners of Luoniang's mouth twitched slightly. So Bai Yue had no idea at all that the Eastern Palace was the Crown Prince's residence.
To be precise, it was the palace of the Demon race's primary heir. For her to move in and even rename the palace, with His Majesty going along with Bai Yue's arrangements—didn't that mean Bai Yue was very likely to surpass Prince A Bao and become the primary heir? Yet she was a half-demon who couldn't even cultivate!