Thank you, quayA, for the ko-fi~
Qiong Qi had never met Li Sheng, nor had he heard of him.
As he watched the little guy trying to clarify things, a thought flashed through his mind.
“Has the Phoenix found someone new?”
Though Qiong Qi phrased it as a question, his tone suggested he had already made up his mind: “He’s abandoned Bai Ze.”
“No wonder.”
Qiong Qi began talking to himself: “No wonder Bai Ze isn’t in a hurry to find the Phoenix, and the Phoenix isn’t in a hurry to find him either.”
“So they’ve already separated.”
After saying this, Qiong Qi looked at Feng Yuan with a meaningful glint in his eyes.
“This time, Bai Ze appeared near you. He must be trying to take you away.”
“Little chubby, they’re fighting over your custody.”
Feng Yuan: “!”
Feng Yuan stared in disbelief as Qiong Qi spun this entire story out of thin air, his mouth agape in shock.
A few seconds later.
Feng Yuan snapped back to reality. He had just been portrayed as the child of a divorced and remarried family!
“That’s not true at all!”
“My real father is Li Sheng, not Uncle Bai Ze.”
“Big Dad and I even got tested!”
Feng Yuan still remembered when he first found his big dad, how his big dad had doubted he was his biological son because he was a bald little chick.
They had even gone to the hospital for a paternity test.
It was only after his big dad saw the test results that he acknowledged Feng Yuan as his own.
But Qiong Qi didn’t believe a word of what Feng Yuan said.
Qiong Qi’s stubbornness was exhausting the little guy.
This was the first time the chubby little kid realized how difficult it could be to reason with someone!
No matter how much he tried to explain, Uncle Qiong Qi remained unmoved, firmly convinced that Feng Yuan was Bai Ze’s child.
By the end, Feng Yuan was so frustrated he nearly collapsed backward.
He sprawled his little limbs across Qiong Qi’s belly, his round eyes staring blankly at the sky, his chubby face a picture of utter despair.
“Yuan Yuan doesn’t want to talk to you anymore.”
Feng Yuan felt that communicating with Uncle Qiong Qi was just too exhausting.
After lying on Qiong Qi’s belly for a while, he got up to go play.
This illusory realm was just like the real World of Mountains and Seas.
Feng Yuan hadn’t finished exploring it yet.
Carrying his little basket, he headed out once more.
This time, he was going to gather some mushrooms to eat.
Feng Yuan was a restless little one. Once he decided to go, he quickly disappeared from Qiong Qi’s sight.
Qiong Qi watched him leave, then settled back into his nest without moving.
It wasn’t laziness that kept Qiong Qi still.
He was lost in thought again.
Just as Qiong Qi was deep in contemplation, a black stone in his nest suddenly shifted.
After moving, the black stone emitted a sound.
“I sense the Phoenix’s aura.”
“Qiong Qi, kill the Phoenix.”
The words from the black stone darkened Qiong Qi’s eyes.
Qiong Qi did not respond.
Seeing his silence, the black stone’s eerie, raspy voice suddenly rose in volume.
It was furious: “Have you forgotten who gave you back your freedom?!”
“Qiong Qi, are you content to be sealed away again?!”
“The Phoenix is your nemesis.”
“Believe my prophecy. The Phoenix will take your life in the future.”
The black stone was like a brainwashing master from a pyramid scheme.
It meticulously worked on Qiong Qi’s mind.
As it spoke, it insisted that the world should return to how it was before!
In the past, it was survival of the fittest, where the strong ruled.
In the past, humans were like ants, nowhere near the lofty status they hold now.
How much better the world was back then.
The black stone continued its litany, just as Yu Yi, who had woken from his nap and come looking for Feng Yuan, happened to overhear every word.
His feet froze in place. It took a long moment before he regained his senses.
The black stone in the den was still speaking.
But Yu Yi had already quietly slipped away. At first, he walked step by step. But after a few steps, he broke into a run.
He didn’t know whether the Qiong Qi would listen to the black stone.
But he had common sense.
Qiong Qi was a fierce beast. It couldn’t possibly be so kind-hearted as to let him and Yuan Yuan stay here indefinitely.
If he and Yuan Yuan continued to stay, danger would inevitably find them sooner or later.
He couldn’t trust a fierce beast to overcome its inherently malicious nature and show them mercy.
He had to take Feng Yuan and leave!
At the very least, they needed to get out of Qiong Qi’s sight.
Yu Yi didn’t dare to linger for even a second. He searched everywhere for Feng Yuan, calling out his name.
His footsteps were swift as he ran.
In his heightened state of tension, he accidentally tripped over a loose stone.
In the past, with his quick reflexes, even if he stumbled, he could have regained his balance.
But now, during his egg-laying period, his reaction speed had significantly decreased.
He fell to the ground.
A fluffy creature, somewhat resembling a small fox, rushed over to cushion his fall.
But Yu Yi still felt the pain of the impact.
Sitting on the ground, cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.
The Feifei, who had cushioned his fall, saw his pale face and the sweat, and hesitated for a moment before speaking.
Feifei could speak human language.
Back in the imperial palace, when he was kept as a pet, Feifei had often spoken with his owner.
His owner had adored him. Upon discovering he could speak, the owner hadn’t feared him but had grown even more affectionate.
His owner, having no children, had treated Feifei like a son.
“Wh-what’s wrong with you?”
Feifei hadn’t spoken in a long time. His voice sounded a bit rough at first, but gradually smoothed out as he continued: “Are you in a lot of pain?”
From Yu Yi’s reaction, it seemed like he was trying to endure the pain.
“It hurts.”
Yu Yi’s hands clenched the grass beneath him. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead and splattered onto the ground.
He felt like he was about to give birth.
But now was not the right time to lay eggs.
“Little egg, don’t come out just yet.”
Yu Yi tried to reason with the egg: “Daddy needs to find your brother first.”
Yu Yi didn’t want to lay an egg at this moment.
But the egg couldn’t hold back any longer.
Hearing that Yu Yi was about to lay eggs, Feifei was stunned: “H-how are you about to lay eggs?! Oh no, Bai Ze isn’t here!”
Even Feifei knew that laying eggs required Bai Ze’s presence.
But Bai Ze wasn’t here now.
Feifei, who didn’t know how to assist with egg-laying, thought of the great fierce beast Qiong Qi nearby.
“M-maybe you should go find Qiong Qi.”
“When Bai Ze helps with egg-laying, Qiong Qi often sneaks a look!”
“He might know how to do it, too.”
As he spoke, Feifei transformed into human form. He was a young boy who looked about thirteen or fourteen years old.
In his human form, he picked Yu Yi up and started carrying him back toward Qiong Qi’s den.
Yu Yi: “…”
Yu Yi had struggled so hard to escape.
His face was pale. He wanted to tell Feifei to stop, not take him back.
Although he was human, the egg inside him was a dragon egg.
The voice he had heard earlier clearly held strong malice toward divine beasts.
It had urged Qiong Qi to kill the phoenix.
If the owner of that voice saw his little dragon egg, they would surely encourage Qiong Qi to destroy it as well.
Yu Yi clutched his stomach, unwilling to let his egg fall into danger.
This was the egg he had been carefully nurturing for several months.
He had to protect his egg.
Yu Yi’s desire to protect his egg was incredibly strong, but his body was no longer under his control.
The Feifei ran extremely fast.
Before Yu Yi could struggle free from Feifei’s embrace, he was already carried to the entrance of Qiong Qi’s den.
Feifei was also afraid of Qiong Qi.
He didn’t dare to go inside and face the Qiong Qi directly.
He simply set Yu Yi down and shouted at the entrance, “Qiong Qi! Someone is about to lay an egg!”
After shouting, Feifei immediately fled.
He transformed into his original form and vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye.
When Qiong Qi emerged, all he saw was Yu Yi clutching his stomach.
Qiong Qi: “…”
Qiong Qi’s expression shifted.
He strode over to Yu Yi, observing his pained, agonized state as he held his stomach.
He asked, “Can you hold it in for a while?”
Bai Ze, who knew how to deliver eggs, hadn’t arrived yet!
Yu Yi also wished he could hold the egg back.
But given the current situation, it seemed nearly impossible.
The pain in his stomach was growing increasingly intense.
Seeing his condition, Qiong Qi’s expression shifted repeatedly. In the end, he carried Yu Yi to the bed in the wooden cabin.
“Wait here. I’ll fetch some hot water.”
Feifei was right.
With Bai Ze absent, Qiong Qi was the only one who might know how to deliver an egg.
He had observed Bai Ze assisting with egg deliveries many times before.
Now.
Qiong Qi was following Bai Ze’s procedures step by step.
Hot water could cleanse the blood, and cloth could be used to wipe or wrap the newly laid egg.
There were also medicinal herbs, pain-relieving herbs.
Qiong Qi found it inconvenient to work in his beast form. While preparing these items, like Feifei earlier, he transformed into a human form.
Qiong Qi’s human form was strikingly handsome.
But Qiong Qi had always held humans in contempt, so he rarely appeared in this form.
He much preferred his beast form.
As Qiong Qi was imitating Bai Ze’s methods to help Yu Yi deliver the egg, Feng Yuan, who had been outside hoping to play with little beasts, was approached by Feifei.
“Feifei!”
Feng Yuan’s eyes lit up. He tried to grab Feifei again.
The Feifei took a step back, maintaining a safe distance.
“Stop trying to catch me. I won’t be raised by you. I already have an owner.”
Although Feifei’s owner had long since passed away, in Feifei’s heart, that person would always be his one and only master.
He would never allow anyone else to raise him.
Feng Yuan adored Feifei immensely. In his soft, childish voice, he coaxed, “I won’t raise you, I just want to hold you.”
Feifei: “No.”
Feifei: “You should hurry back.”
The Feifei had sought him out to deliver a message: “The person who came in with you, the one brought by Qiong Qi, he’s about to lay an egg.”
Feng Yuan: “!!!”
Feng Yuan: “Lay an egg!!!”
The words “lay an egg” echoed in Feng Yuan’s mind.
He stood frozen in shock for a few seconds before sprinting back as fast as he could.
“Godfather!”
Feng Yuan called out for his godfather as he ran.
He ran incredibly fast.
On his way back, he stumbled and fell.
But since he didn’t have an egg in his belly, the fall didn’t harm him.
After falling, he scrambled back up and continued running.
It took him over twenty minutes to reach the small wooden cabin.
When he arrived, he saw a lot of blood.
Yu Yi had lost a great deal of blood while laying the egg.
Seeing so much blood, Feng Yuan, still a young child, was deeply shaken.
He rushed to the bedside and grasped Yu Yi’s hand.
When Yu Yi saw him return, a flicker of pain crossed his eyes.
He didn’t want Feng Yuan to return.
Wouldn’t that little phoenix Feng Yuan be walking right into a trap if he came back?
Yu Yi was worried about the egg and also about the little one.
“Swallow it.”
Just as Yu Yi was in too much pain to speak, Qiong Qi suddenly pried open his mouth and fed him something unknown.
After swallowing the mysterious substance, Yu Yi’s pain instantly eased considerably.
He labored through the entire night to lay the egg.
From dusk until dawn the next day, Feng Yuan’s small figure remained steadfast by his bedside, not moving an inch.
Qiong Qi also stayed the entire time.
The morning light of the next day streamed through the window, illuminating the room brightly.
Finally, Yu Yi’s little dragon egg was born.
His egg was very small. This egg would continue to grow after being laid.
It was this little black egg that had exhausted Yu Yi completely.
The actual laying wasn’t painful. It was the pre-labor period, before he took the medicine, that had been unbearable.
After laying the egg, Yu Yi fell into an exhausted sleep.
His little black egg was wrapped up and placed on the bed. Feng Yuan, who hadn’t slept all night, carefully wiped the egg clean and pressed his little cheek against it.
“Eggy, I’m your big brother.”
Feng Yuan leaned close to the egg and whispered, “Hello there, welcome to the world.”
The little black egg heard Feng Yuan’s welcome.
It shifted slightly, returning the gesture by nuzzling against its brother.
The two siblings snuggled affectionately.
Qiong Qi raised a hand and cleaned up the area.
He glanced at Yu Yi on the bed. His condition was stable now, needing only rest to recover.
Without lingering further, he turned and returned to his own den.
Feng Yuan watched him but didn’t follow.
The little guy was utterly exhausted from staying up all night.
Holding the little black egg, he climbed onto the bed.
The bed was spacious enough to accommodate one more chubby little guy.
Feng Yuan cradled the egg, snuggling close to Yu Yi. He fell asleep almost as soon as he touched the bed.
The egg, nestled in his embrace, quieted down upon hearing his steady, strong heartbeat.
Time passed slowly.
The little guy, who had stayed up all night and even been soaked twice in cold water the previous day, grew increasingly feverish as he slept.
His flushed cheek pressed against the egg, which, feeling the heat, managed to roll away.
The egg, having spent extra time in its father’s womb, seemed quite sturdy.
Not only was it sturdy, but it was also full of vitality.
After rolling out of Feng Yuan’s embrace, it began actively bumping against him.
It wanted to wake Feng Yuan up.
But Feng Yuan was sleeping too deeply. At this point, not even being jostled could rouse him. He wouldn’t wake even if someone picked him up and carried him away.
Seeing that it couldn’t rouse its feverish, unconscious brother, the little black egg finally stopped.
It paused for a moment, then—
It leaped straight off the bed.
This dangerous act went unnoticed, so no one intervened.
Fortunately, dragon eggs are tough.
The little black egg landed safely without cracking.
It rolled along the wooden cabin floor, trundling away.
It remembered Qiong Qi’s scent.
It was Qiong Qi who had facilitated its birth, so the little black egg was very familiar with his smell.
The little black egg made its way all the way to Qiong Qi’s den.
Qiong Qi had just closed his eyes.
He was a light sleeper and noticed the egg’s arrival immediately.
After rolling in, the little black egg rolled back out.
It was clearly trying to lead Qiong Qi to follow it.
Qiong Qi, who hadn’t yet fallen asleep, his beastly face stern, followed the egg.
Upon entering the wooden cabin, Qiong Qi discovered that Feng Yuan was running a fever.
Feng Yuan’s body temperature had become scorching hot.
He was likely running a high fever, his small body even starting to convulse.
Qiong Qi watched the feverish little guy, feeling utterly overwhelmed.
Neither the adult nor the child was easy to deal with!
Since Qiong Qi had brought this trouble upon himself, he naturally had to handle it.
He reached out and picked Feng Yuan up.
Gently, he drew out the excessive heat from Feng Yuan’s body.
The principle was similar to physical fever reduction.
He also cooled his own body slightly, so that holding the little guy would help dissipate the heat.
Perhaps because his coolness felt comfortable.
Feng Yuan’s tiny hands and feet clung to him. Finally, his chubby little face pressed close as well.
Qiong Qi brought him to the den, continuing to help reduce his fever.
This illusory realm was under Qiong Qi’s control.
He usually didn’t interfere much here, making it seem like the former World of Mountains and Seas.
But now, at this critical moment, Qiong Qi had no choice but to break his own rule.
With a slight thought, he selected the nearest beast and took control of its will.
Then, he sent it to find herbs that could reduce fever and detoxify.
Besides the fever, Feng Yuan’s stomach issues had flared up again.
After his fever subsided, he began vomiting.
This was Qiong Qi’s first time caring for a sick young one.
He had to constantly monitor the child’s temperature and condition.
Fever, vomiting, crying loudly—
All of this left Qiong Qi at his wits’ end.
“Little chubby, stop crying. If you stop, I promise I’ll never eat you!”
“Alright, I won’t call you little chubby anymore.”
“Please don’t cry.”
Qiong Qi’s ferocity was nowhere to be seen in the face of the wailing child.
He was coaxing Feng Yuan to stop crying.
But what child doesn’t cry when they’re sick?
Feng Yuan’s chubby little arms wrapped around his neck, sobbing uncontrollably.
“Don’t… be mean to Yuan Yuan.”
“I’m not being mean to you!”
After saying this, Qiong Qi noticed the little guy crying even harder and immediately softened his tone: “I’m not being mean to you.”
Feng Yuan was still unsatisfied with his newly adjusted tone.
Qiong Qi was worn out by his demands.
The tone he ended up using was so gentle that if anyone heard it online, they’d surely call him a big softie.
The mighty fierce beast, who had only ever been tricked once by Bai Ze’s feigned death—
This was the second time he had completely lost control of the situation!
This chubby little phoenix had somehow managed to grind down the terrifying fierce beast Qiong Qi into obeying his every whim.
One had to admit that was quite a skill.
The adult laying eggs, the sick child—
Qiong Qi hadn’t slept for two days and two nights.
On the third day, Bai Ze finally found them.
Bai Ze knew about this illusory realm.
Aside from Qiong Qi himself, Bai Ze was the only one who could freely enter and leave this realm.
Bai Ze didn’t come alone.
He had brought along a small portion of his circle of friends and family.
The phoenixes and dragons were a given.
The fellow fierce beast Taotie also came.
The most impartial and strict Xie Zhi, the ever-acquisitive Taotie, who only took and never gave, the rather useless dream god who insisted on showing up to lend support, and Xuan Wu, who had just resolved a seismic event.
The nine-tailed fox living next to Feng Qi also arrived with his partner and child.
In the past, Bai Ze could have gathered even more friends and family.
But given the major upheavals that had occurred, managing to rally this many was already quite an achievement.
A large group of friends and family arrived in a grand procession.
They entered without any trouble.
Qiong Qi looked at the finally arrived group, his expression as calm as death.
“Bai Ze, you’re too late.”
Qiong Qi’s words caused all the beasts except Bai Ze to instantly change their expressions.
“What do you mean by ‘too late’? Qiong Qi, what have you done to my son?!”
Feng Qi was the first to demand answers.
His true phoenix form had already manifested: “Return my son to me!”
Feng Qi was absolutely furious with Qiong Qi.
“If you have issues with Bai Ze, that’s one thing, but why involve my son? Are you out of your mind?”
Feng Qi simply couldn’t comprehend Qiong Qi’s actions of kidnapping his son to threaten Bai Ze.
Bai Ze kept his gaze fixed straight ahead.
He hadn’t told Feng Qi about the rumors circulating in the World of Mountains and Seas.
He found the rumors too absurd and frankly, too filthy.
Now that Feng Qi had a partner, hearing these rumors would likely cause unnecessary complications.
So, before Feng Qi could press for the truth, Bai Ze quickly intervened.
“Qiong Qi, first give me Little Chubby Yuan back.”
“Then we can discuss the rest.”
As Bai Ze demanded the child back, someone poked him from behind.
It was Wu Jin.
Bai Ze then added, “And Little Chubby Yuan’s godfather, bring him out, too.”
Bai Ze wanted both the child and the man.
In his expectation, Qiong Qi should have been furious by now.
Yet strangely, from the moment they met until now, Qiong Qi hadn’t uttered a single sharp remark.
Even his earlier statement had sounded remarkably calm.
The friends and family behind Bai Ze were ready to fight, but temporarily found no opening.
Just as Bai Ze was growing suspicious, Qiong Qi finally spoke again.
“Bai Ze, I can give Yuan Yuan back to you, but you must relinquish custody rights.”
“You must swear never to reclaim and raise him as your own.”
Bai Ze: “…”
Feng Qi: “What?”
Li Sheng, who had come with Feng Qi, furrowed his brows, equally confused.
Neither Feng Qi nor Li Sheng understood what he was talking about.
But the other beasts’ expressions became somewhat subtle.
Even the nine-tailed fox, holding his little fox, let out a thoughtful “Hmm.”
Seeing that it was impossible to keep hiding the truth, Bai Ze’s eyelid twitched. Facing the crowd of beasts, he decided to clarify matters himself.
He pulled Li Sheng forward.
“Qiong Qi, look clearly! This is Little Chubby Yuan’s biological father! Let me repeat. Feng Qi and I are completely innocent!”
Bai Ze felt he was getting tired of using the word “innocent”.
When Li Sheng heard Bai Ze’s clarification, he belatedly realized what Qiong Qi had meant from the beginning.
His expression darkened slightly. Under Qiong Qi’s scrutinizing gaze, he maintained a dignified posture and said, “Hello, Mr. Qiong Qi.”
“I am Li Sheng, Feng Qi’s partner and Feng Yuan’s father.”
Li Sheng emphasized his relationship with both Feng Qi and Feng Yuan.
He didn’t appear to be a cuckolded spouse, nor did he seem like someone Feng Qi had recently taken up with.
After a long silence, without any prompting from Bai Ze’s supporters, Qiong Qi simply conceded.
“Yuan Yuan will be returned to you now.”
Qiong Qi kept calling him “Yuan Yuan”, which finally made Bai Ze lose his patience.
Bai Ze was currently in his beast form.
He flew forward slightly and asked, “Why aren’t you calling him ‘Little Chubby’ anymore?”
Calling him “Yuan Yuan” like that was far too intimate!
Qiong Qi: “…”
Thinking back on his experiences over the past two days, Qiong Qi refused to answer that question.
He turned around to fetch Feng Yuan.
Before he even entered the den, Feng Yuan, who had just woken up inside, was already calling out to him loudly.
“Qiong Qi, Yuan Yuan is thirsty! Give Yuan Yuan some water to drink!”
Qiong Qi: “…”
The other beasts: “…”
The other beasts, including Feng Qi, all wore complicated expressions.
When they had arrived earlier, they were quite certain that Yuan Yuan and Yu Yi would be fine.
But they never expected that in just two short days, Yuan Yuan would already be bossing Qiong Qi around.
This was truly unbelievable.
Feng Qi was waiting for Qiong Qi to return the child first, then the person, when the anxious Wu Jin suddenly caught a fleeting glimpse of a small, blurry shadow.
It seemed like an egg had whizzed past swiftly in the distance.
The egg’s sliding shadow was very fast.
But Wu Jin had seen it.
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152