Towering ancient trees stood amidst the forest, their branches growing inward toward the middle of the trunks in a protective embrace, like a mother shielding a child in her arms.
Looking closer, nestled in the middle of the tree trunks were two wooden houses and a palace. Outside their doors, the lush branches naturally formed balconies, railings, and wooden ladders...
As Meng Haize stepped out of the palace, this was what met his eyes:
Mu Jian was holding a little celestial child, pinching his chubby little cheeks. Mu Jian wore a faint yet deeply genuine smile, while Yan Xiaosan sat to one side with a bitter, life-weary expression.
What a scene of domestic harmony (?)!
He couldn't have been in closed-door cultivation for a hundred or eighty years, could he? They already had a child? Whose child was it?
Before he could process it, Qingshu—who had broken free from Mu Jian's clutches—spoke in a milky voice, taking the lead to greet Meng Haize: "Hello, Uncle!"
Meng Haize: "!"
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah! Splendid, splendid! How could it not be splendid!
Yan Xiaosan clenched his teeth. This little guy learned how to call someone "uncle" just like that.
Meng Haize asked, "Old Yan, what is going on? You get a kid overnight... No wait, where did this kid even come from?"
Qingshu raised a little hand to answer first, "Qingshu came out of Daddy's egg."
Daddy? Meng Haize stared at Yan Xiaosan in shock.
Yan Xiaosan said, "...Qingshu, from now on, if anyone asks where you came from, you are not to answer them. Do you remember?"
Qingshu replied, "Remembered!"
"The Taiping Chamber of Commerce, do you still remember?"
Meng Haize understood. Just now, he had been too shocked to remember yesterday's events. He knew Qingshu's background and origins were extraordinary; even with his prominent family background, he couldn't see through that seal in the slightest.
"Does Old Yan have a way to handle Qingshu's background?"
Yan Xiaosan replied, "Externally, we'll just say that Mu Jian obtained a spirit beast egg within the Divine Miracle, which happened to match my spiritual root attribute, so he gave it to me."
Seeing that his boss already had a plan, he no longer needed to worry about it. He pulled out a glittering Storage Ring filled with low-grade spirit talismans, spirit artifacts, spirit stones, and a pile of crystal agate—pretty things with little practical value.
"Come, this is Uncle Meng's welcome gift for little Qingshu. I don't know if little Qingshu will like it."
Since the Storage Ring had no owner and no Restriction set upon it, Meng Haize deliberately revealed the contents so Qingshu could see them, worrying the child might not like it.
Qingshu swept the inside with his divine sense, and a brilliant flash burst from his eyes. There were so many shiny things inside! Even the ring itself was so pretty!
He broke free from Mu Jian's embrace, jumped down to the ground, and looked up at Daddy. His yearning was impossible to hide, and he tucked his hands behind his back, fingers nervously twisting together.
The corners of Yan Xiaosan's mouth twitched slightly. The dragon clan had a natural love for gemstones and all things glittering and translucent, and Qingshu was naturally no exception. Meng Haize had inadvertently hit the mark right in Qingshu's heart.
Since the child liked it so much, what could he do? He could only nod in agreement.
Seeing Daddy agree, Qingshu happily took the ring and put it on his own finger, as if he now possessed half the world. He turned to Meng Haize and thanked him sweetly, "Thank you, Uncle, Qingshu likes it very much!"
Meng Haize smugly patted Qingshu's little head. "As long as Qingshu likes it."
Mu Jian—who had already given Qingshu countless treasures to arm him to the teeth before Meng Haize came out, but had helplessly opted for a low-key, understated, unflashy route—stood to the side: "..."
For the first time in his life, he hated his own taste.
Sensing Mu Jian's mood, Qingshu turned back and threw himself into Mu Jian's arms, ensuring equal distribution of affection. "I super-duper love the one Papa gave me too!"
Meng Haize's smugness was shattered into pieces right then and there.
L... Little Papa? Why did he get stuck being just an "uncle" while they got to be Daddy and Little Papa! Why?!
Was it just because he woke up late?!
Qingshu did not understand Uncle Meng's sorrow. The soul of an Azure Dragon was mysterious and powerful, possessing many unfathomable abilities.
His dragon soul intuition told him that the auras of Daddy and Little Papa were intimately and closely connected, while those vast and ancient memories told him that this closeness was not a matter of blood ties.
Since they were not blood relatives, yet someone shared an aura close to Daddy's, calling him "Little Papa" was completely correct, right?
***
Li Xinghuai hurried toward the Penglai Market with his close friends. Today, he swore he would claim his very own Put Chai Ko.
Although his friends weren't the same group of junior martial brothers and sisters from yesterday whose brains weren't working too well, he still warned them not to casually start conflicts with anyone, even if the boss looked like an exceptionally gentle ordinary person.
Then, he saw—
Fellow Taoist Mu, holding a cute child, his expression softened and no longer cold.
Fellow Taoist Meng, standing to the side teasing the child with an aurora diamond, while occasionally drawing a look of disdain from Fellow Taoist Mu.
And Boss Yan, standing in front of his stall drumming up business.
What a bizarre scene!
Yet it did not affect him standing in line to buy Put Chai Ko.
"Boss, I want two metal-attribute Put Chai Ko."
Yan Xiaosan looked up and saw a familiar face, accompanied by newcomers. Amidst his touched feelings, he remembered something and spoke with a trace of awkwardness, "Uh, Brother Li, you see... my luck has been a bit too good lately, and I accidentally had another tiny breakthrough, so... um, the Put Chai Ko has gone up in price again."
By the end, he sounded almost resigned, but fearing his regular customers would misunderstand, he quickly added, "Fellow Taoist, rest assured, the taste and effects of the Put Chai Ko have definitely improved. I won't stoop to the tricks of a black-hearted capitalist!"
Although Li Xinghuai did not understand what a "black-hearted capitalist" was, it was a good thing that the taste and effects of the Put Chai Ko had improved, and he wasn't short on those few spirit stones. "It's fine, of course I trust the Boss."
He immediately signaled his friends behind him to step forward and make their purchases. "I told you, I brought you here to buy good stuff. Today you're buying one metal-attribute one for me first—consider it my good deed thinking of you."
This was the first time there had been a street stall in the Penglai Market, and with Li Xinghuai emphasizing it so much, his friends naturally couldn't wait to buy one suited to their own attributes, while also helping Li Xinghuai grab a metal-attribute Put Chai Ko.
"Hm!?"
"The Boss did not deceive me; the taste and effects really have improved."
"Actually, it's not like I couldn't eat two metal-attribute Put Chai Ko."
"Get lost."
"Brother Li, you're not playing fair, only bringing us here today."
"Be content. The Boss hasn't set up stall very many times; last time I waited for nearly a full month."
One friend asked doubtfully, "Why does the Boss limit customers to buying only two? Wouldn't it be the best of both worlds for him to sell more and make more?"
Before Li Xinghuai could answer, another friend retorted, "With such pure spiritual qi, and the ability to additionally imbue the five elements, someone with methods like this wouldn't lack money. The Boss probably doesn't even set up his stall for the money. I just wonder if the Boss can refine Put Chai Ko suitable for mutated spiritual roots."
Yan Xiaosan wanted to say: he did lack money! He lacked it terribly!
Li Xinghuai said, "The Boss probably comes out to set up his stall to undergo trials. The purchase limit is to let more people taste them. As for the specifics, we shouldn't ask too many questions; asking too much is bound to offend him."
Everyone nodded like pounding garlic.
Every cultivator's cultivation path was a private taboo, and they weren't about to offend the Boss just to satisfy a bit of idle curiosity.
If the Boss flew away, where else could they find such delicious Put Chai Ko?