"Cai Lin, it's been a long time."
After Chen Xiao spoke, Little Fairy Doctor followed up with a light laugh and greeting.
Before leaving the Black-Corner Region, she had a private, in-depth conversation with Cai Lin and made some promises.
Therefore, even though her relationship with Chen Xiao had undergone a qualitative change, she didn't feel guilty.
This outcome was something she could foresee, and Cai Lin was also mentally prepared.
"Sister Cai Lin, I'm Qing Lin."
Qing Lin spoke immediately after, with a friendly smile.
In front of unfamiliar people, Qing Lin was somewhat aloof and rarely showed her emotions.
But it was different when facing Cai Lin. She knew about Chen Xiao and Cai Lin's relationship, and by proactively calling her sister now, she was putting herself in a humble position.
A faint smile appeared on Cai Lin's cold, alluring, and beautiful face as she nodded in response.
"Hua She'er, you may go first and arrange some accommodations."
Hua She'er bowed slightly and quietly withdrew from the Divine Hall.
"Cai Lin, since you're back, Qing Lin and I will look around first. You two can chat, and we'll talk properly later."
Just as Cai Lin was about to greet them, Little Fairy Doctor spoke first.
She was quite familiar with Cai Lin, having spent over two years together in the Black-Corner Region. Now that their relationship had progressed further, many pleasantries were unnecessary.
Knowing that the two had a lot to talk about upon reuniting, she immediately gave them space to be alone.
Cai Lin nodded gently, "Alright, if you need anything, you can find Hua She'er."
After watching Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin leave the Divine Hall, Cai Lin then slowly walked over and sat beside Chen Xiao, leaning back in her seat with a languid posture, unafraid of the chair tipping over.
Although this was unlikely for someone in cultivation, Chen Xiao was still startled and worried. He quickly pulled over a chair and sat beside her, steadying her.
Cai Lin chuckled softly but didn't stop him.
"Just returned from the Central State?"
"I stayed in the Black-Corner Region for a few days to handle some minor matters for the Inner Academy, and then I rushed back immediately."
"It's rare for you to have such consideration."
"What do you mean by that? I'm keeping track of time. If I said I wouldn't miss the birth of our child, I absolutely won't. Let me check your body first."
Chen Xiao took Cai Lin's hand, and his soul perception quietly released, carefully sensing the condition of Cai Lin and the fetus in her womb.
It had been nearly three years since Cai Lin became pregnant. According to the usual gestation period of the Medusa bloodline, the birth of the fetus was very close.
Cai Lin let him fuss over her, "It's just a matter of these few days. The Four Great Elders check on me every day, and my condition is very good. Tell me about your trip to the Central State with Little Fairy Doctor, and about Qing Lin."
Chen Xiao remained unmoved. Those Four Great Elders were only Dou Huangs, with limited strength, and couldn't examine her as meticulously as he could. He then divided his attention and said, "Qing Lin is also from the Jia Ma Empire. The first time I met her..."
After recounting Qing Lin's past to Cai Lin, Chen Xiao began to narrate his experiences after arriving in the Central State.
Meeting Cao Ying in Holy Pill City, condensing a poison pill for Little Fairy Doctor in Ye City, asking the Cao family in Vast Sea City to help contact the Void Ancient Dragon's affiliated races, breaking through to Dou Zong in Falling God Ravine, Zi Yan being taken back to Dragon Island by the Ancient Dragon race, and then heading to the Extreme Northern Land to seek opportunities, and so on.
Chen Xiao didn't hide much, recounting everything in broad strokes.
Even so, by the time he finished, it was already dusk.
"So, how long do you plan to stay this time?"
"Let's wait for our child to be born first. After this, I plan to establish ourselves in the Central State. With our current strength, we are enough to gain a foothold there. The Purple Firmament Pavilion can move there, as can the Snake-People Race. Tagor is not suitable for the survival of the Snake-People Race."
A soft color flashed in Cai Lin's eyes.
Leading the Snake-People Race out of this desert was something she had been striving to achieve for a long time.
"Let's take it step by step. So many years have passed, there's no rush for three to five years."
For the next few days, Chen Xiao accompanied Cai Lin throughout, even putting aside his cultivation temporarily. At most, during his leisure time, he would browse ancient books and scriptures, refreshing the progress of his unfinished precognitions in his mind.
Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin appeared and disappeared intermittently, showing up daily to chat with the two for a while before disappearing again.
Chen Xiao didn't ask any questions about this.
With the strength of Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin, let alone this small Jia Ma Empire, even the entire Northwest Continent couldn't find many people who could threaten them.
It's worth mentioning that on the second day of Chen Xiao's return to the Holy City, the Four Great Elders of the Snake-People Race, upon receiving the news, arrived aggressively to demand an explanation.
Back then, Cai Lin had followed Chen Xiao to the Black-Corner Region and to Jia Nan Academy in order to eliminate the influence of the Little Heaven Swallowing Python and quickly fuse with her soul.
Who would have thought that when their Queen returned, she would already be pregnant? If it weren't for the fact that Cai Lin had already consumed a Heaven Soul Blood Fusion Pill, and the incredibly generous resources she brought back, they would have likely been unable to resist demanding an explanation from Chen Xiao long ago.
Therefore, with Chen Xiao's return, the Four Great Elders were bound to seek an explanation.
However, when they saw Chen Xiao again, the harsh words they had prepared immediately softened.
The reason for this was their strength.
Facing a Dou Zun expert, even if they were given ten times the courage, they wouldn't dare to say much.
On the eighth night after returning to Tagor.
Night fell, and the bright moonlight flowed like silver gauze.
In an instant, the void churned like a boiling cauldron, and the energies of heaven and earth converged like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, rushing towards the Holy City at the heart of the Tagor Desert. Within the dense torrent of energy, sand and gravel floated in mid-air, refracting faint light under the moonlight, as if a river of stars had poured onto the mortal realm.
This celestial phenomenon was exceptionally striking against the silent desert night sky. However, within a radius of a thousand miles, the area had already been sealed off by Chen Xiao and the others, ensuring that no one outside the Snake-People Race's Holy City was aware of it.
In the Medusa Shrine, Chen Xiao held Little Fairy Doctor's hand, his expression tense. Only when he felt the aura emanating from the inner chambers behind him, an aura comparable to that of a peak Dou Zong, did he finally relax and smile with relief.
At this moment, Chen Xiao felt a peculiar sensation, as if an invisible thread had extended from him, reaching into the inner chambers behind him, taking root and growing, constantly tugging at his heart and mind.
This strange feeling of becoming a father for the first time was both foreign and unsettling.
The surging energies of heaven and earth lasted for less than fifteen minutes before gradually subsiding into calm.
With a thought, Chen Xiao retracted his soul perception that had been enveloping the Holy City.
It was at this moment that the Grand Elder of the Snake-People Race emerged from the backyard and bowed to Chen Xiao. A smile was undeniable on his deeply wrinkled face.
Upon seeing this, Chen Xiao understood instantly. Without a word, he flickered and entered the inner chambers behind him.
Inside the chambers.
Cai Lin, drenched in sweat, leaned against the headboard, her gaze fixed on the child in the swaddling clothes that had just been tidied. The smile radiating maternal love was gentler than ever before.
The other three Great Elders of the Snake-People Race stood by the bedside, all beaming with joy, filling the entire chamber with a celebratory atmosphere.
Chen Xiao appeared in a hurry. Sensing his arrival, the three Great Elders shifted slightly, and Cai Lin also looked up.
With a mix of apprehension and unconcealed excitement, Chen Xiao sat down next to Cai Lin.
"It's a girl," Cai Lin said, holding the swaddling clothes closer to Chen Xiao so he could see more clearly.
"A daughter is wonderful, I love daughters!"
"Cai Lin, thank you! You've worked hard these past three years."
Cai Lin shook her head slightly. At this moment, she had none of the sternness of a queen; only the joy and tenderness of a new mother.
"Let me hold her."
Chen Xiao's gaze returned to the swaddling clothes, his impatience growing.
Previously, he had been filled with apprehension, fearing he wouldn't adapt to the change of becoming a father, especially since he was only in his early twenties.
But now, seeing the child and feeling the wondrous connection of blood, his apprehension vanished instantly, replaced by an unprecedented sense of fulfillment and affection.
Cai Lin chuckled and handed the swaddling clothes to him. She watched as Chen Xiao, with a somewhat clumsy and unpracticed posture, carefully took the child, her smile deepening.
The Snake-People elders beside them displayed smiles of those who had experienced this before.
"This is my daughter, so cute!"
Chen Xiao couldn't be bothered with what they were thinking; his attention was completely captivated by the child.
Normally, newborns are wrinkled and far from cute when they first arrive.
However, the little one in Chen Xiao's arms was different. To this day, Chen Xiao hadn't heard a single cry. Her face and skin were rosy, and her clear, bright eyes blinked from time to time, taking in this new world and the strange adults before her.
As Chen Xiao doted on his daughter, a small, seven-colored snake suddenly emerged from the swaddling clothes and coiled up the child's arm. It was none other than the familiar Little Heaven Swallowing Python!
Under their gaze, a hint of human-like nervousness flitted through the Little Heaven Swallowing Python's beautiful eyes. Then, under their watch, it transformed into a seven-colored beam of light and landed on the child's brow, leaving a faint seven-colored mark.
Seeing this, Chen Xiao and Cai Lin were not particularly tense.
"Just as you said, the Little Heaven Swallowing Python's soul wasn't completely fused by me. Its remaining soul has been reborn through the child's body. In return, its power can be fully borrowed by our daughter. In other words, its power is equivalent to our daughter's power, allowing her to possess the strength of a Dou Zong expert from birth," Cai Lin said softly.
Chen Xiao had told her long ago about a way to revive the Little Heaven Swallowing Python.
Today, it had been proven.
Because she had been mentally prepared, Cai Lin wasn't overly surprised when the Little Heaven Swallowing Python appeared alongside the child.
"This is a good thing, but our daughter is still too young to control this power. We need to seal the Little Heaven Swallowing Python's strength for now."
As he spoke, Chen Xiao's expression shifted, and he quickly checked the pre-payment information in his mind.
A moment later, he flipped his palm and produced a perfectly round elixir, carefully placing it into the child's mouth.
The elixir dissolved instantly, so there was no need to worry about any issues.
Cai Lin and the elders watched, not interfering. They didn't believe Chen Xiao would do anything to harm the child.
However, they were curious.
"What elixir is this?" Cai Lin asked softly.
"Bodhi Foundation Establishment Pill. Its effects are similar to the Heaven Soul Blood Fusion Pill, but it's more effective and of a higher grade."
Chen Xiao did not conceal anything and replied truthfully.
Upon hearing this, Cai Lin and the elders were astonished.
The Heaven Soul Blood Fusion Pill was already a seventh-grade elixir. A higher-grade elixir than this, the Bodhi Foundation Establishment Pill, was most likely eighth-grade!
In fact, this was indeed the case.
Chen Xiao had just searched his mind for better foundation establishment elixirs, and the Bodhi Foundation Establishment Pill was the highest grade he could pre-pay for at the moment. Perhaps only individuals like the three giants of the Pill Tower could refine it.
It was fortunate that Chen Xiao's pre-payment opportunities were relatively abundant now; otherwise, pre-paying for it would not have been so easy.
After pre-paying for this elixir, Chen Xiao had only one pre-payment opportunity left.
"Will an eighth-grade elixir be too much to handle?"
"No need to worry. Elixirs that aid in foundation establishment have a common characteristic: their energy is extremely gentle. Their effects are gradual, not immediate."
Hearing Chen Xiao say this, Cai Lin and the elders were completely reassured.
Crisp footsteps approached from outside; it was the Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin.
Coming closer, the two women first greeted Cai Lin with a nod before turning their gaze to the child in Chen Xiao's arms.
Looking at how unusually quiet the little one was, a hint of envy flashed in the Little Fairy Doctor's eyes.
It had been a long time since her relationship with Chen Xiao had reached a substantial breakthrough. By rights, they should have blossomed and borne fruit by now.
However, to this day, there had been no sign of it.
This wasn't due to her poor luck with conception, nor was it because Chen Xiao had issues. It was simply because the Little Fairy Doctor felt there was no need to rush.
After all, once she became pregnant, she would definitely need proper care and wouldn't be able to travel around with Chen Xiao as she had before.
So, it was a matter of give and take.
"Young Master, what's the little one's name?"
Qing Lin leaned down and poked the child's cheek, asking curiously.
At the same time, Cai Lin, the Little Fairy Doctor, and the elders of the Snake-People Race also looked towards Chen Xiao.
Chen Xiao met the clear eyes of the little one in his arms and smiled dotingly.
"Her name shall be Yao Yao, Chen Yao!"
The others murmured the name a few times in their hearts, finding it increasingly fitting.
...
Jia Ma Empire, Imperial Capital.
A battle at the Peak Dou Huang level had just concluded outside the city, but its outcome was known to very few.
However, the two sides engaged in the battle could easily be distinguished by their aura fluctuations.
One of them was the guardian of the Jia Ma royal family, Jia Xing Tian, who had remained at the Peak Dou Huang realm for many years.
The other was the renowned Ice Emperor, Hai Bo Dong.
At this moment, the two, having concluded their fierce battle, had quietly arrived deep within the imperial palace.
"Hahaha, old fellow, don't be so dejected. I only beat you by a small margin."
Hai Bo Dong sat opposite Jia Xing Tian, laughing heartily as he watched Jia Xing Tian drink dejectedly.
In the past, Jia Xing Tian had been quite arrogant in front of him. But now, Hai Bo Dong could make Jia Xing Tian unable to lift his head without even getting serious.
"Seriously, old man, you should get out and see the world. How can you possibly advance if you keep hiding in the Jia Ma Empire? I'm worried that by the time I return, you'll have already taken the final step."
After teasing Jia Xing Tian a bit, Hai Bo Dong didn't go too far and offered some serious advice.
Unfortunately, Jia Xing Tian just rolled his eyes at the suggestion.
"Do you think I can just leave whenever I want, like you? I couldn't break free before, and now that Yun Shan has advanced to Dou Zong, it's even harder to leave."
This was the helplessness of the royal family.
Jia Xing Tian sighed and glanced in the direction of the Yun Lan Sect.
"Yun Shan's talent was not much different from mine, but fate is unpredictable. Now that he has advanced to Dou Zong, what about me..."
"There's no way to break through to Dou Zong!"
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