## AST 450 - Distraction From Loneliness, A Child?

Mingyue Gelous’s eyes had turned red. She laid on Qing Shui’s chest and began sobbing. He didn’t push her away even when her clothes were stained by the blood on his armor.

“Does it hurt?” Qing Shui gently caressed the wounds on her face.

“No, it doesn’t hurt. But it’s more painful looking at you like this.” Mingyue Gelou touched the bloodstain on Qing Shui’s armor.

“It’s dirty!”

“It’s not dirty at all….”

“Just wait for a while, I will go take a bath and change my clothes!” Qing Shui hugged Mingyue Gelou while whispering in her ear softly.

“But your wounds...”

“It doesn’t matter!”

When Qing Shui lifted his head, he noticed that the ladies were nowhere to be found. The two ladies had already gone back to the living room. Qing Shui rubbed his nose and proceeded towards the living room as well. He felt quite uncomfortable wearing the bloodstained clothes.

As expected, as soon as he entered the living room, Huoyun Liu-Li gazed at him intriguingly. Suddenly, he realized he had been ignorant about a lot of things before.

Qing Shui felt like he might have neglected them for some reason. He recalled about his relationship with Huoyun Liu-Li; they had never gone to the next step of their relationship, yet she has never kept any secrets from Qing Shui. Huoyun Liu-Li was able to bare her soul for him openly.

As for Mingyue Gelou, they were in an intimate relationship before, which happened a long time ago. Qing Shui showed a pained expression and a subtle smile towards the two ladies before he went upstairs.

He went into an unfamiliar room and locked the door. After that, he went into the Realm of Violet Jade Immortal; he washed his face and changed into his casual clothes. Qing Shui also washed the battle armor he took off before he came out into the room once again.

When he came downstairs, Canghai Mingyue and Huoyun Liu-Li were playing with Yuchang while Mingyue Gelou went upstairs to change her clothes because of the bloodstains. As soon as Little Yuchang saw Qing Shui, she quickly ran up and gave him a hug.

“Daddy!”

“Hehe!” Qing Shui laughed out heartily as he hugged Little Yuchang. Huoyun Liu-Li was surprised at his expression, as she had never seen him laughing with sincerity. Canghai Mingyue was also shocked, fixing a stare at them.

Canghai Mingyue reminisced about the days when she would cling to her father like Yuchang. She would always be by her father’s side whenever she saw him. Even when she grew older, she would often cling to him like she would as a child.

She used to have her parents at home to greet and support her whenever she went back. But now, she had lost everything; her heart felt empty. She couldn’t help but reminisce about the precious memories of her parents as she saw Yuchang’s happy face.

“Qing Shui, don’t you think our future daughter will be this cute too?” Huoyun Liu-Li asked Qing Shui with a calm expression.

Qing Shui was startled by her question, but he managed to pull off a smile and said: “Of course, our daughter will be the cutest….”

Just then, he noticed Canghai Mingyue’s blank expression. He felt an ache in his heart as he held Yuchang in his arms. Then he walked to stand in front of her.

When Canghai Mingyue felt Qing Shui’s presence as he got closer, she finally snapped back to reality. She looked at both Qing Shui and Huoyun Liu-Li while showing an awkward smile. She had a pretty smile nonetheless, but it harboured an unspeakable pain and sorrow.

“Mingyue, everything will be fine. You still have Liu-Li and I. We are a family now.” Qing Shui said in a serious tone while looking into her eyes.

“Yeah, sis. You won’t feel lonely anymore once you give birth to an adorable baby girl with Qing Shui, hehe!” Huoyun Liu-Li looked at Canghai Mingyue and Qing Shui playfully.

Qing Shui felt helpless as he stared at this she-devil. She took her previous sentences and replaced them with Canghai Mingyue’s name. Regardless, Qing Shui was actually grateful to Huoyun Liu-Li, because she always knew the exact words to say to Canghai Mingyue.

Qing Shui would never give up on Canghai Mingyue, regardless of the circumstances. However, her heart had been filled with loneliness due to the death of her parents. In order for Canghai Mingyue to recovery quickly and adapt to her new environment, it may be the best idea for her to conceive a child as a distraction….

It may not be an appropriate idea, but it was the same with Mingyue Gelou. Qing Shui understood the situation very well in his real world. There was a girl who grew up not realizing her parents were not her biological parents. When she found out the truth, she felt lonely, even though she knew how much her adoptive parents loved her. Still, she felt extremely lonely. But when she got married and conceived a child, she realized that the world was not as lonely a place as she initially thought.

Bloodline and legacies would not be possible without passing them down to the descendants. A descendant wasn’t just a result of a sacred gift from the Heavens, but it was the result of love. However, no matter how much two people loved each other, they would eventually feel a gap between their relationship; it would not be perfect if they didn’t have a child to conceive.

Canghai Mingyue did not disprove what Huoyun Liu-Li said. While she was looking at Qing Shui, her cheeks gradually turned red. She blushed with an expression full of shyness, panic, and anticipation.

Just then, Cang Wuya and Fei Wuji walked in!

“Grandfather!”

“Elder!”

“Elder!” At that moment, Mingyue Gelou came down from upstairs and softly called out.

“Hello, martial uncle!”

……...

“Haha, hello to you too!” Cang Wuya laughed out happily!

“Hello, grandfather!” Yuchang said in a clear childish tone.

Cang Wuya was startled by the child’s voice. He picked her up happily and asked: “Hello, what’s your name?”

“My name is Yuchang. Mmm, wait. My name is Qing Yuchang. I follow daddy’s surname.”

Everyone was shocked at her words. They tried to look for a reaction from Mingyue Gelou. Qing Shui was the only one smiling as he asked Yuchang: “Why does Yuchang want the surname Qing?”

“I don’t know. I don’t have a surname. Someone said my surname is Tan, but I don’t want to have the same surname as the bad people. I want to be a Qing like daddy.” Yuchang looked at Qing Shui with a serious expression.

“Haha, you are my daughter, of course you will always be a Qing.” Qing Shui chuckled as he patted Yuchang’s head. He was the one who saved her life, so naturally, he had already treated her as his own flesh and blood. Qing Shui would give everything he had for Yuchang.

The two ladies laughed as they thought of Yuchang as a funny girl. Who knew she would be so devilishly clever.

“Father, Gelou will be staying at your place for a while!” Since Canghai Mingyue was present, Qing Shui had to refer to Mingyue Gelou as “Gelou” to avoid confusion.

“There are so many rooms here, so feel free to stay. The more the merrier. Plus, old people like me love the lively atmosphere.” Cang Wuya chortled.

Afternoon had just passed. Cang Wuya chuckled, “I will go make food, stay here and have a chat with everyone. ”

“Grandfather, since we are here, we can do that. You can go and rest.” Huoyun Liu-Li tugged Cang Wuya’s arm and halted him from going further. After that Huoyun Liu-Li, Canghai Mingyue, and Mingyue Gelou went into the kitchen together.

Meanwhile, Yuchang ran up and down playing by herself. Once in awhile, she would run into the kitchen to check up on the ladies!

“Qing Shui, when did you break through to the Pinnacle of Martial King?” Fei Wuji chuckled. Only three people remained in the living room.

“Just recently. I can feel my powers have greatly increased, but I am still uncertain about the level of my strength and what kind of power I have.” Qing Shui said truthfully.

“Well, you have to be careful from now on under these circumstances. Keep on training as well. Those people from Sword Tower will never let you go, but you don’t have to worry about them too much.” Cang Wuya was proud of his disciple. Mingyue was blessed to have Qing Shui by her side...

“Hmm, father, what do you think of Tan Clan’s power? Do they have a big influence on Sword Tower?” Qing Shui knew Heavenly Palace would guard over him after the incident with Sword Tower. Although being watched all the time by other people felt uncomfortable, at least he was well-protected.

Qing Shui decided to increase his power and strength as soon as possible. As long as he became powerful enough, everything else would be effortless. Power meant everything to this world. Justice and morals would not be possible without the foundation of power; no one would follow a man devoid of power and control.

One part of achieving victory would be justice. However, power would be the determinant regardless of the sentiments and support from other people.

Moreover, there were evidence of history records that detailed how the evildoers monopolized the entire nation back then.

20,000 years ago, the “Dark Emperor” ruled the world of nine continents together with his Black Wing Sect for about 300 years. They were evil and merciless, and they would kill anyone regardless of their innocence. Because of their enormous power and authority, many people who disobeyed them either ended up dead or were forced to submit under their abuse.

No matter what angle one looked from, as long as they were able to defeat their opponents to achieve their goals, they would regard themselves as the strongest warriors in the continent. Most people would focus on the result instead of the progress in achieving the said result. Regardless how diligent or hardworking one was during their progress, it would be nothing if they were defeated or lost in a battle.

“Tan Clan is one of the strongest clans in Sword Tower. There are about 20 Tan members as Supreme Elders, and a few as Elders. They are all descended from a pure lineage. I am sure Tan Yang knows about it. They do have a high influence on Sword Tower, but there’s someone else holding them down.” Fei Wuji said.

“Those people holding them down, do you think they are like the old ancestors of Heavenly Palace?”

“More or less. But since the defeat of Tan Yang, everything has changed. Tan Yang is the most outstanding young disciple of Tan Clan who will take over as the clan master one day. Tan Clan is very ambitious, and the one who will decide the future of their clan is none other than Tan Yang.”

The idle chat continued for a while. An aromatic smell filled the air from the kitchen. They couldn’t wait for the food to be served.

“Qing Shui, come with me and meet someone this afternoon. He wants to see you.” Fei Wuji said unexpectedly.

Meanwhile, Cang Wuya only flashed a smile and remained silent.

“Who?” Qing Shui was curious, because he felt odd about the situation.

“The old ancestor of Heavenly Palace - the real master of Heavenly Palace.” Cang Wuya laughed out heartily.

“The real master of Heavenly Palace?” Qing Shui asked with a surprised tone. Wasn’t he one of the top martial warriors of Greencloud Continent?

“Yes. Just go and meet him. He might be able to benefit you in some ways.” Cang Wuya smiled.

However, Fei Wuji remained silent. He appeared perplexed. Cang Wuya sighed when he saw Fei Wuji’s expression!

“Okay!”

…….

Lunch was sumptuous. It was all thanks to Mingyue Gelou’s culinary skills and the procurement of the freshest ingredients. Everyone had a delightful meal, especially Qing Shui. The cord in his heart seemed to have loosened quite a bit. At least he won’t be suffering like he used to.

It still pained Qing Shui to remember the scenery where Mingyue Gelou and Little Yuchang left him, especially the words Mingyue Gelou said to him before she went away with Yuchang. However, it was never too late to mend things with them now that the three of them were back together again.

“Qing Shui, let’s go and pay him a visit!” After lunch was over, Fei Wuji smiled as he stood up and called out to Qing Shui.