Fatherhood at a Young Age, with a Wee Bit Too Many Children

The Fenggui Kingdom was frail and small, holding merely three cities. These three cities were the very ground the ten generals of Fenggui had bathed in blood to defend. Now, seven of those ten generals were gone, leaving only three. A burly general with a head full of white hair gazed into the distance, his eyes weathered by countless trials. "General Qi, how fares the situation?" A slightly youthful voice sounded as the queen, in the bloom of her eighteenth year and dressed in unadorned robes, stepped gracefully over. "The Moluo army outnumbers us several times over. It will be grim!" General Qi replied with a heavy heart. In a siege, having fewer defenders than attackers was normally no great issue. Yet their foes were the Moluo Clan. Every member of the Moluo Clan was a formidable warrior, rivaling a Realm One cultivator. Ever since the world underwent its great upheaval and martial arts flourished, Wangyue Continent had produced exceptional figures in abundance. Even so, the gulf between them and the Moluo Clan remained far too wide. The entire Fenggui Kingdom possessed merely a handful of Realm Three cultivators, along with Luo Xi, who had achieved Realm Four and returned from the Moon Dynasty. By the classification of the Canglan Realm, Realm Three was equivalent to the Origin Core stage. Among the common foot soldiers, barely one in ten was even a martial artist. "I wonder if Luo Xi managed to bring back reinforcements." The young queen looked bleak. At her words, General Qi fell silent. The terms Luo Xi could offer were hardly enough to entice people from another world. Besides, what sort of benevolent saviors could outsiders be? At best, they were merely a weaker version of the Moluo Clan. The young queen's expression hardened with resolve. "Even without reinforcements, this monarch shall defend the realm to the death!" "I am willing to die for Fenggui, and willing to die for Wangyue!" General Qi said in a deep voice. The war before them was not just a battle over the survival of their kingdom, but a war for the survival of their entire realm. The people of Wangyue Continent had become choice morsels in the mouths of alien races. Only by fighting with all their might would they have the faintest glimmer of hope. Right then, an ethereal voice drifted over. "I have no need for you to die for me." A party of five dropped out of thin air onto the ramparts. General Qi's heart tightened, his hand instantly clamping down on the hilt at his waist. However, upon catching sight of Luo Xi, his wariness eased slightly, though his hand remained poised on his sword. "Reporting to Your Majesty, these are our allies from the Canglan Realm," Luo Xi hurried to introduce them. Hearing this, the queen showed a trademark polite smile on her youthful face. "Greetings to you all." Qi Yuan spared the queen a glance. For some reason, she reminded him of Jin Li. Back then, Jin Li must have been around this age as well. "Hmm. That's all the Moluo Clan amounts to?" Qi Yuan looked out past the city walls. As far as the eye could see, an unbroken expanse of military camps stretched out, looking exceptionally formidable. General Qi was baffled. What did he mean, that's all they amount to? "May I ask when Senior's sect forces will arrive? We are willing to serve as the vanguard to slay these fiends!" General Qi piped up. The young queen also looked with fervent anticipation at Qi Yuan, who looked absurdly young. "I'm pressed for time. Once I finish off the Moluo here, I still have six other kingdoms to visit." A look of bewilderment flashed through General Qi's eyes. The young queen turned to Luo Xi as well, eager to understand what was going on. Meanwhile, Qi Yuan's gaze pierced across dozens of li, falling upon the hideous, beast-like figures of the Moluo Clan. Standing three meters tall, their skin was a mottled patchwork of black and blue, their spines heavily armored in scales. Green fluid dripped from the teeth inside their agape jaws. Most striking of all was a crimson mark on their foreheads, burning like a tongue of fire. A blood-red sword appeared in Qi Yuan's hand. Qi Yuan's eyes seemed to gaze across the river of time. Amid fluttering heavy snow, he had led Yue Nü and annihilated the Hundred Cities Alliance. The mysterious Black-Robed Guards had been reduced to dead dogs beneath his blade. Now, the Moluo Clan had dared trespass into his Wangyue Continent. As the Heavenly Dao of this world, Qi Yuan naturally would not show any mercy. Qi Yuan brushed his hand over the blade as if wiping away bloody dust. Everyone present turned toward the sword in Qi Yuan's grasp, their eyes involuntarily filling with dread and shock. It felt as though they were gazing upon an archdemon who had slaughtered tens of thousands! The killing intent radiating from this otherworldly figure shook heaven and earth. Could such a god of slaughter truly be the savior of Fenggui? Yet, as his hand wiped the crimson hue from the blade, radiant light surged forth by ten thousand fathoms. When the people of Fenggui beheld that white brilliance, an inexplicable warmth washed over them, stirring a sense of deep kinship in their hearts. It was as if they had laid eyes upon their sovereign, their god! A majestic voice rang out like that of a deity. "I hold a sword; as dust clears, light is born. To cleanse the Moluo, ten thousand verdant peaks bloom." The crimson sword broke free from Qi Yuan's hand, shooting straight into the vault of the heavens. Boundless light erupted from the blade, and an incomparably fierce sword glow plunged directly into the encampment of the Moluo Clan. "Enemy attack!" an urgent shout had barely carried across the camp before boundless radiance and sword light submerged them all. Almost every single Moluo was dissolved by the sword light before they could even react. A full eight thousand Moluo warriors, including several Divine Infant cultivators, were reduced to ashes beneath this single stroke. It took merely three breaths. The endless sword light flashed, and the Moluo encampment was leveled to the ground! Before anyone could even register their shock, crimson blossoms pushed up through the soil of the charred, ravaged earth. In the blink of an eye, the former battlefield transformed into an ocean of flowers. A tapestry of luxuriant blooms clustered together, forming a stark, breathtaking contrast to the devastation from moments before. A smile touched Qi Yuan's eyes. "Since you dared step into my home, you might as well stay behind to serve as fertilizer!" True Monarch Dazhi gave a thumbs-up. "Your Excellency is truly well versed in the art of recycling waste." Beside them, Jiang Ya stared at Qi Yuan, lost for words for a long time. As for General Qi and the youthful queen, their eyes went wide and their bodies trembled faintly. Such power... what realm could it possibly be? Could it be the legendary Realm Five? Luo Xi, however, kept his gaze fixed on the sword Qi Yuan had just unleashed, stormy waves crashing in his heart. "Your sword technique... feels familiar!" Indeed, in Qi Yuan's strike, he had seen traces of the Grand Priest's sword art. "Is that so?" Qi Yuan glanced at Luo Xi, myriad thoughts flitting through his mind. "Let's go. On to the next kingdom." With a flick of his wide sleeve, Qi Yuan did not linger. He departed alongside Jiang Ya, True Monarch Dazhi, Xu Tongchen, and the others, vanishing in an instant. All that remained was the dumbfounded young queen and General Qi. "He just left like that?" the young queen asked in bewilderment. This person had arrived swiftly and departed just as abruptly. It all felt like a dream. Like sparks struck from stone, like an illusion in sleep. Had it not been for the vibrant ocean of flowers stretching before the city, she might have believed the entire spectacle to be a mirage. "National Preceptor Luo Xi, what kind of price did you have to pay to invite this senior here?" General Qi asked, filled with worry. The youthful queen's heart tightened as well. How could a powerhouse from another realm possibly cooperate with them without a steep cost? "No... no price at all." Luo Xi's answer left everyone present utterly astonished. No price? Who among them did not know that the cultivators of the Canglan Realm placed profit above all else? Earlier, when another kingdom had sought the aid of those Divine Infant cultivators, they had not only ceded several cities, but also surrendered multiple princes and princesses to become servants. Could that young man truly be... so noble? "He said that Wangyue Continent is his home." "When foul guests come to his house, he will naturally see them out himself!" Everyone on the wall was stunned. A curious light flashed in the young queen's eyes. "Could it be that this senior hails from our Wangyue Continent?" General Qi was equally shaken. Such a thing was possible? Luo Xi's eyes grew profound. "His sword just now... felt familiar to me. "Just who... is he?" *** Streaks of light sped across the firmament. Everyone flew in silence, seemingly dazzled by the display of Qi Yuan's sword. Jiang Ya looked at Qi Yuan and couldn't help saying, "May I offer a suggestion?" Qi Yuan paused in surprise. "Suggest away." This was a wealthy patron; he had to hold tight to her golden thigh. "Could we have them hand over their cultivation manuals before we leave?" A large reason Jiang Ya had come along was to gather the techniques of this world. Hearing this, Qi Yuan instantly felt he had suffered a massive loss and was filled with regret. For every technique Jiang Ya missed out on, he missed out on five! "You should have reminded me sooner." Qi Yuan took a deep look back toward Fenggui, though it was already out of sight. Turn back, he would not. He needed to keep slaying the members of the Moluo Clan. He had discovered that killing Moluo also shortened the time required for him to retake control of this world's Heavenly Dao. In that case, kill, kill, kill—let blood flow like rivers! He would strive to retake control of this realm's Heavenly Dao before the Moluo Clan's Yin Gods noticed. Once he did, he would possess far greater confidence. *** Five days flew by in a flash. Qi Yuan led the group on a relentless march, slaughtering across the land without pause. Across the seven kingdoms, nearly a hundred thousand Moluo were wiped out by Qi Yuan's single-sword strikes. This time, he no longer left in a rush. Instead, the moment he arrived, he had the local ruler begin gathering cultivation techniques. Once he finished slaying the Moluo, he would linger for a few hours until the bulk of the manuals were collected, before moving on to the next kingdom to continue the purge. Truth be told, slaughtering the Moluo Clan gave Qi Yuan the familiar feeling of grinding a game back in Wangyue Continent. With every Moluo he slew, he felt himself draw one step closer to becoming this world's Heavenly Dao once more. This sensation of progress and a filling bar was thoroughly rewarding. Standing inside the royal palace of the last of the seven kingdoms, Qi Yuan wore a blood-red robe, appearing exceptionally eerie and otherworldly. Even Jiang Ya looked at him with an odd gaze, thinking he was practically a colossal fiend. Xu Tongchen felt the same way. True Monarch Dazhi had even asked him plainly on the road, "Senior, your blood aura is terrifyingly thick. Just how many living beings have you slaughtered?" Qi Yuan had replied at the time, "I don't remember. Too many to count." This made Jiang Ya all the more certain that the Blood-Robed Sword God was a genuine arch-fiend. Whenever such a monster stood anywhere, cultivators would instinctively feel dread, and mortals would be plagued by nightmares and flee in terror. Yet here, the scene Jiang Ya witnessed was completely contrary to her expectations. Those mortals, those nobles and officials, looked at Qi Yuan with eyes full of reverence and intimacy. True, the Blood-Robed Sword God had saved them! However, deep-seated terror and trembling could never be hidden. Yet Jiang Ya could not detect the slightest shudder from any of them. As they looked upon the blood-shrouded Blood-Robed Sword God, what they saw was not a monster, but a hero. "Senior, here are all the manuals, including our royal family's ancestral techniques and closely guarded secrets!" The King of Wei offered the manuals with a flattering expression. Within the grand hall, the civil and military officials all gazed upon Qi Yuan with starry-eyed admiration. Jiang Ya even noticed several young children peeking out from behind curtains, gazing at the Blood-Robed Sword God with sheer awe in their eyes. Confusion filled her heart. Was something wrong with these people, or was something wrong with her? Qi Yuan took the manuals and handed them to Jiang Ya. Jiang Ya hurried to stow them into her storage bag. Holding a map, Qi Yuan asked, "Are there many Moluo in the Chuang Kingdom?" The Chuang Kingdom was nearly a thousand li from the capital of the State of Wei. To reach the Moon Dynasty, Qi Yuan had to pass through the Chuang Kingdom. "Many!" The King of Wei nodded, then cautioned softly, "Senior, in the Chuang Kingdom, there are quite a few cultivators from the Canglan Realm. Those cultivators are not selfless like Senior. If Senior goes to slaughter the Moluo in the Chuang Kingdom, it might... offend them." The King of Wei's warning was well-founded. The Chuang Kingdom had paid a heavy price to hire a group of Divine Infant cultivators to deal with the Moluo. If Qi Yuan barged in, demanded no territory, asked only for a few manuals, and wiped out the Moluo in one go, he would naturally provoke the Divine Infant cultivators who had previously helped, perhaps even earning their bitter hatred. "No matter. I am a reasonable man. I will certainly convince them with reason," Qi Yuan said nonchalantly. "Senior's reason is the supreme and true reason. I fully agree," True Monarch Dazhi chimed in. Jiang Ya was struck speechless. Could this be called reasoning? This was plainly killing people and chopping off heads! She deeply suspected that True Monarch Dazhi, traveling alongside the Blood-Robed Sword God, would inevitably be corrupted. If his master saw him straying so far off course, the old man would probably be angry enough to storm out of secluded cultivation. At this moment, Qi Yuan looked at the civil and military officials present and said casually, "Farewell!" The King of Wei's fierce eyes instantly welled with reluctance to part. "Senior... may you enjoy ten thousand blessings of good health!" The nobles, officials, and even the palace guards all looked at Qi Yuan in unison, some with tears brimming in their eyes, others utterly loath to see him go. It was as if their own biological father were leaving—no, it was deeper than to any biological father! The scene turned... thoroughly bizarre, at least to Jiang Ya. Goosebumps crawled across her back. She couldn't fathom why this was happening. These people's emotions... were far too abundant! And... it didn't look like an act. Was all this really necessary? "Let's go." Qi Yuan didn't look at the crowd below, taking his leave alongside Jiang Ya and the others. A chorus of weeping erupted throughout the palace, even more spectacular than before. Jiang Ya's heart was teeming with questions. "Senior... why do they treat you like that?" She couldn't resist asking in the end. It was simply too bizarre. "Because I saved them," Qi Yuan said as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Jiang Ya didn't believe it. If a terrifying fiend saved her, she would be grateful, but she would feel far more dread. Yet these people of Wangyue Continent looked upon this arch-fiend, the Blood-Robed Sword God, with eyes full of adoration... as if he were their father. Seeing that Jiang Ya didn't believe him, Qi Yuan's expression grew somewhat melancholy. "I never imagined that at such a young age, not even twenty, I would become a father, and... have just a wee bit too many children." He was the Heavenly Dao of this world. Therefore, in a certain sense, the living beings of Wangyue Continent truly did count as his children. Jiang Ya was thoroughly stupefied. True Monarch Dazhi spoke up at this moment: "According to my years of research, the factors of life's inheritance number in the hundreds of millions. "Theoretically speaking, if conditions between Dao companions are ideal, one could produce a hundred million children all at once. "I have been researching this subject continuously. "If my Dual Core Method cannot advance in the future, then I shall let my tens of thousands of descendants venture forth into the world." Hearing this, Qi Yuan admired True Monarch Dazhi all the more. This was no mere Great Wisdom—this was the Foolish Old Man moving mountains; great wisdom disguised as folly! "True Monarch Dazhi truly knows a great deal," Qi Yuan couldn't help praising. True Monarch Dazhi replied softly, "Truth is hidden in daily life, so long as you have eyes to discover it and learn to summarize. "For instance, I have discovered that if I practice abstinence for half a day every day, I have actually practiced abstinence for half my life. "Therefore, those who seem lecherous aren't truly lecherous at all; rather, they have simply abstained for quite a long time." "The Great Dao is simple!" Qi Yuan couldn't help offering another word of praise. In truth, he had also discovered many profound truths. For example, in the mortal realm, those who lived long lives were usually old people. Jiang Ya had no desire to speak. At this moment, the doubt in her heart remained unresolved. "Senior... is Wangyue Continent truly your home?" she couldn't help asking, steering the conversation back on track. Otherwise, the two of them would start spouting grand philosophies again. "Yes." Qi Yuan nodded firmly, making no attempt to hide it. "Could it be that Senior... hails from Wangyue Continent?" Jiang Ya couldn't help recalling their first meeting with the Blood-Robed Sword God, when she had sensed that his origin divine ability seemed entirely out of place with the Canglan Realm. "Half of me, you could say. Here, I achieved... Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment!" Qi Yuan looked up at the sky. "Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment?" Jiang Ya was bewildered upon hearing this. She studied Qi Yuan closely, hoping to detect something, but alas, she could discern nothing. *** In the Chuang Kingdom. A young prince was carrying foot-washing water, his expression neither joyful nor sorrowful. A young girl beside him couldn't help speaking up: "Royal Brother, why didn't you listen to Senior Zhang Yan's suggestion? You wouldn't have to endure such humiliation." Half a year ago, the Chuang Kingdom had faced a crisis when the Moluo army invaded. The Emperor of Chuang had personally gone to plead for aid from the Divine Infant cultivators of the Canglan Realm. In the end, they ceded five cities and selected nine princes and princesses to serve as servants. Among them, a Divine Infant cultivator named Zhang Yan had taken a liking to Zhao Ci and wanted to take him as a disciple. Yet Zhao Ci had refused, infuriating Zhang Yan and subjecting himself to all manner of humiliation. "Imperial Sister, you know that the one I admire most is the Faceless Sword God. "I have already joined the Faceless Cult and am one of its members. I cannot turn to another!" Five thousand years ago, the Faceless Cult had begun its rise. The Faceless Cult worshipped the Faceless Sword God. Legend had it that in ancient times, extraterrestrial demons had invaded Wangyue Continent. Back then, the people of Wangyue Continent had lived in utter misery. Beneath the Ancient Qi Toon Tree, millions of corpses of Wangyue Continent's citizens who had resisted the extraterrestrial demons had been hung. Unwilling to see the common people suffer, the Faceless Sword God, with one person and one sword, had fought alone against three thousand extraterrestrial demons. In the end, he had perished alongside them. Hearing this, the girl's gaze turned dejected. "Wangyue Continent does not have a second Faceless Sword God." The legends concerning the Faceless Sword God were far too ancient; the girl did not even believe they were real. Yet thinking of something, a spark of excitement lit up in her eyes. "Royal Brother, do you know of that Blood-Robed Sword God who has been slaughtering the Moluo Clan? Do you think... he could help our Chuang Kingdom weather this crisis?" Zhao Ci did not reply, merely letting out a long, quiet sigh. Through Zhang Yan, he had already gleaned the division of power in the Eastern Lands of the Canglan Realm through roundabout inquiries. The three Venerables were the absolute pinnacle of power. Beneath them were well over a hundred Realm Five cultivators. That Blood-Robed Sword God, according to their descriptions, was merely at Realm Five as well. Carrying the foot-washing water, he knocked on the door and stepped into the room. The Divine Infant cultivator named Zhang Yan looked at Zhao Ci, a contemptuous sneer on his lips. "Does your Chuang Kingdom truly believe that the Blood-Robed Sword God can help you?" Zhao Ci's heart skipped a beat, but he remained silent.