Qi Yuan squatted on the ground, intently watching the ants.
They marched out in neat lines and returned bearing breadcrumbs.
A figure in a bridal gown stood quietly within Qi Yuan's shadow, utterly still.
"Cousin, are ants really that interesting to watch?"
A tender, childish voice called out.
A plump young woman walked over, resting her hands on her swollen belly. Her gaze as she looked at Qi Yuan was particularly complicated.
"It depends... on who is watching the ants with you." Qi Yuan did not look up, continuing to observe them, learning the story behind every single ant.
"Xiao Fang, don't learn from your cousin. In the future, you're going into business," the woman said, stroking her belly.
From inside her swollen belly came that same tender voice, laced with dissatisfaction and defiance.
"I don't want to do business! I want to cultivate!"
Evidently, the one speaking with Qi Yuan just now had been... the embryo within the woman's womb.
Indeed, children in this Ancestral Land developed astonishingly fast; even embryos possessed consciousness and could speak.
Thus, Qi Yuan—who at three years old was still watching ants, playing in the mud, and playing house with a bridal gown—appeared exceptionally peculiar.
"All right, cultivate it is. In the future, my little Fang'er will surely become a god and an ancestor," the woman laughed, immensely pleased.
About the time it took for an incense stick to burn passed.
The embryo Qi Fang's eyelids twitched. *Strange. On this timeline, this cousin of mine should have died prematurely... How is he still alive?*
Qi Fang was a reincarnator, returned to his childhood.
In the future, he would walk out of the Tianlong Firefly Constellation and become an Ancestor-level being.
He had been merely a single step away from becoming a true First Ancestor.
Yet before he could break through to First Ancestor, a terrifying disaster struck.
All living beings were obliterated in an instant.
This obliteration was in no way inferior to Returning to Nothingness—or rather, it was another expression of Returning to Nothingness.
In that moment, all the First Ancestors offered themselves as sacrifices, instantly reversing the timeline, turning cause into effect, and rewinding the mortal world.
Because of that, he had been reborn.
At the same time, he also knew that... this might not be the worldline's first reset.
Yet every single cycle ended at spirit annihilation.
*Could it be that there is also an Ancestor-level powerhouse nearby who altered the timeline, indirectly affecting Cousin Qi Yuan and allowing him to survive?*
*Even if he survived, his development is terribly slow. He's already three years old and still watching ants.*
*I heard Uncle fed him vast quantities of nutrient fluid, but it still had no effect.*
...
"Xiao Jia, this is the Golden Light Jade Dendrobium Orchid. Before the Divine Wood Universe was opened, back when there was only chaos, one grew there.
"A pity that you had no consciousness then, so you couldn't see it bloom or smell its fragrance... Can you see it now?"
Beneath the cliff, molten liquid churned like magma, and a Golden Light Jade Dendrobium Orchid jutted out at an angle.
Its stem was like shattered jasper and fine jade, each joint giving rise to faint green mist; its leaves were long and narrow like swords, with seal script drifting along the veins.
When it bloomed, gold-edged petals bathed in purple surrounded pink stamens, layer upon layer, with a golden garland resting at the center.
"The orchid... smells nice..."
The voice was ethereal and halting.
Qi Yuan seemed to see Xiao Jia close her eyes and breathe in the air of this world with all her might.
Clasping Xiao Jia's chilly little hand, Qi Yuan's face lit up with pleasant surprise. "You can smell the flower's fragrance?"
"Mm..."
Xiao Jia nodded timidly, her body leaning a little closer into Qi Yuan's embrace.
She seemed to want to commit Qi Yuan's scent to memory.
"It looks like it won't be long before I can take you to the movies, to amusement parks, to the Milky Way, to black holes..." Qi Yuan said.
He needed to walk across every corner of this world, familiarizing himself with every layer of soil and every living being.
As his familiarity deepened and Samsara drew closer to completion, Xiao Jia would truly return to normal, emerging from nothingness into being.
The magma-like fluid leapt up, scattering like ten thousand blooming flowers or sparks of molten iron.
"H-Hole... b-bridal chamber..."
Xiao Jia stammered, looking somewhat anxious.
Seeing this, Qi Yuan laughed. "Hey, what on earth is running through your head!"
He held Xiao Jia, just as he once had while gazing at the vast desert from atop the walls of the City of No Return, or while digging a pit to sleep in the dirt.
The years were already wondrous.
Yet just then, a voice shattered the tranquility.
"Human... can you trade that Golden Light Jade Dendrobium Orchid to me?"
Qi Yuan looked over and saw a faint silhouette in the nearby mist.
The figure watched him warily, its gaze sweeping over the orchid with a hint of longing.
Qi Yuan was slightly surprised to be addressed as "Human."
"Ming, you're really spoiling the mood here."
The creature concealed in the mist belonged to the Ming clan.
Since the other party called him "Human," he called the creature "Ming."
It was just like a cat calling out "Human," and a human calling back "Cat."
"I really need this Golden Light Jade Dendrobium Orchid. Our clan chief is injured and needs it for healing," the Ming youth said. "Please, help me. I can trade for it."
The Ming clan was gentle by nature.
Otherwise, had it been any other race encountering such a situation, they likely would have launched a sneak attack against Qi Yuan outright.
"By the way, does your companion have something wrong with her body? She seems to lack the five senses. I am willing to give my five senses to her!" the Ming youth offered.
Qi Yuan looked at the young man and smiled faintly. "I appreciate the sentiment."
This youth's five senses were indeed precious, comparable to certain ultimate principle treasures.
Yet simply giving them to Xiao Jia was impossible.
"Is it not enough?" The Ming youth grew disheartened, anxiety knotting in his chest.
For a moment, he had no idea what to do.
Just then, Qi Yuan's clear voice caught him completely off guard.
"How about this? You won't need the Golden Light Jade Dendrobium Orchid. I'll personally help you heal your clan chief. What do you say?" Qi Yuan chuckled.
That flower carried a portion of Xiao Jia's memories.
If it were damaged, it would slow the reconstruction of Xiao Jia's true spirit to some degree.
Moreover, the flower itself possessed a hazy consciousness of its own.
"This..." The Ming youth stared blankly.
This man could not even cure his own companion, yet he claimed he could save their clan chief?
He was rather skeptical of Qi Yuan's medical skill.
"All right." After struggling internally for a long while, the Ming youth finally nodded.
"Let's go, Xiao Jia. We'll pay a visit to the Ming clan. Another new place checked off our list."
Holding Xiao Jia's chilly little hand, Qi Yuan vanished alongside the Ming youth.
Later, an ancient text recorded:
*A Ming youth sought medicine and found it kept by a wondrous man. He offered to trade for it, but the wondrous man said, "Why rely on an herb? I can cure him myself."*
*Led back to the clan grounds, the crowd fell into an uproar, only to witness the wondrous man tap Elder Ming's divine terrace, whereupon all foul miasma receded completely. His art concluded, he drifted away with the woman in the bridal gown, leaving the Ming folk astounded.*
Chapter 635