294: Chapter 295 My child with Nangong Zili is still alive!

Ye Changge turned back and looked at her with some confusion.

Lu Shiyin's cheeks flushed slightly, and she lowered her gaze, whispering softly,

"Husband... please stay with me a little longer."

Her voice was as thin as a mosquito's buzz, carrying a hint of coquettishness, making her seem like a completely different person from the usually dignified and steady Lu Shiyin.

Ye Changge's heart softened. He sat back down beside her, pulled her into his arms, and said gently,

"Alright, I'll stay with you a little longer."

Lu Shiyin gave a satisfied "mm," buried her face in his chest, closed her eyes, and the corners of her lips curved into a beautiful arc.

The two lingered affectionately for about another half-hour before Ye Changge finally stood up, walked to the other side of the Immortal Cave, and sat cross-legged on a prayer mat.

He casually set up a soundproofing Restriction to separate himself from Lu Shiyin, so as not to disturb her cultivation.

Lu Shiyin said no more. She sat cross-legged, closed her eyes, and sank her mind into her Dantian, focusing on refining her Spiritual Qi.

Ye Changge looked at her quiet and focused profile, the corners of his lips curving slightly before he withdrew his gaze.

With nothing else to do, his mind stirred, and he opened the long-neglected System panel.

A semi-transparent light screen unfolded before his eyes, densely listing various types of information. Ye Changge's gaze skipped over the complex data and landed on a small line at the very bottom—

[Total Progeny: 73]

Ye Changge looked at this number, his eyebrows twitching slightly.

Ye Changge looked at the newly added names, his heart stirring slightly as his gaze fell to the very bottom—

[73rd Child: Unnamed (Mother: Nangong Zili)]

His gaze lingered on this line for a moment.

Then, he let out a soft sigh of relief.

His child with Nangong Zili was still there.

The heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settled back into his chest.

Ye Changge leaned against the wall, staring at the stone ceiling of the Immortal Cave, his mind filled with a thousand thoughts.

The System would not make a mistake. Since the child's name was still on the list, it meant that Nangong Zili had indeed not terminated the pregnancy. Although she had a fiery temper and an eccentric personality, she ultimately chose to give birth to the child.

Thinking of this, Ye Changge's feelings were somewhat complicated.

There wasn't much deep affection between him and Nangong Zili. Their encounter that night was an accident—he had been drugged, and she had been poisoned. Having a relationship under those circumstances could hardly be called mutual love.

But regardless, the child in her womb was his flesh and blood.

Ye Changge sighed softly and rubbed his brow.

He wondered how Nangong Zili and Shen Li were doing now, and if they had safely returned to the Five Gu Sect.

The intelligence report said that Nangong Zili had gone missing while fleeing with her Disciple Ling Xiaotang. Had she escaped safely by now, or was she still being pursued by the people of the Qingshui Sword Sect? He did not know.

Thinking of Nangong Zili's temper, a hint of worry welled up in Ye Changge's heart.

He had experienced that woman's personality firsthand—fiery, domineering, and stubborn; she would strike at the slightest displeasure. If she were within the Five Gu Sect, protected by her Revered Master at the Core Formation Stage, naturally no one would dare bully her child. But the problem was—would a child growing up in such an environment really turn out well?

The Five Gu Sect was a Demonic Path Sect. The Disciples within the Sect mostly cultivated methods like Gu Arts and Poison Techniques, and their way of doing things was completely different from Righteous Path Sects. Although Ye Changge didn't care about the distinction between righteous and demonic—in his view, the so-called Righteous Path and Demonic Path were essentially the same, both being worlds where the weak are prey to the strong. He had seen plenty of Righteous Path Sects committing murder, arson, and plunder; and there were Demonic Cultivators who cultivated quietly and were kind to others.

But that place was, after all, a demonic Sect.

Ye Changge was somewhat worried that his child growing up in such an environment would be influenced by what they saw and heard, developing some kind of twisted personality.

It wasn't that he looked down on the Demonic Path, it was just—

He thought of Nangong Zili's fiery temper and her saying, "I'm happy to do it, what's it to you?" and his mouth couldn't help but twitch.

If the child took after the mother's personality...

Ye Changge shook his head, not daring to think further.

Forget it.

No matter what, that child was his flesh and blood. He would go see them when he had the chance in the future.

He withdrew his thoughts, his gaze falling on the System panel once again as he calculated his next plans.

He already had forty-three children; he was only seven away from the fifty-child milestone.

According to the System's patterns, every time he reached a certain number of progeny, there would be an additional lottery chance. Fifty people should be no exception.

He wondered what he would draw then.

Ye Changge felt a faint sense of anticipation.

He closed the System panel, shut his eyes, and began to circulate the Yin Yang Creation Art, slowly regulating his breathing.

The Immortal Cave was silent.

Lu Shiyin was focusing on refining her Spiritual Qi, and Ye Changge was meditating.

Time flowed slowly in the tranquility.

Meanwhile—

Tens of thousands of miles away, on a mist-shrouded green mountain.

The mountaintop was covered in mist and thick Spiritual Qi, looking like a fairyland. However, deep within that mist, a huge purple figure could be vaguely seen lying quietly on a protruding rock.

It was a Purple Jade Spider.

Its body was massive, the size of a calf, with eight spider legs as sharp as spears, emitting a cold metallic luster. Its body was translucent, as if carved from a single piece of Purple Jade, glowing faintly against the backdrop of the mist. Its eight compound eyes were tightly closed, seemingly in a deep sleep, and it occasionally let out a low hiss from its mouth, carrying a hint of pain.

There was a shocking wound on the Purple Jade Spider's abdomen.

The wound stretched from the abdomen to the joint of the third leg, the flesh turned outward, revealing the purple flesh inside. Faint traces of black mist could be seen writhing at the edges of the wound; it was some kind of evil power preventing the wound from healing. Although it had been treated with Spirit Medicine, wisps of purple blood still seeped out from time to time, dripping onto the rock and making a "chi-chi" corrosive sound.

This Purple Jade Spider was clearly severely injured.

And below that Purple Jade Spider, on a flat blue stone, a young girl dressed in a goose-yellow dress sat quietly, hugging her knees.

The girl looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, small and delicate in stature, with a fair and tender oval face, curved eyebrows, and red lips against white teeth. Her jet-black hair was casually tied back with a pale yellow hair ribbon, with a few stray strands falling by her cheeks, making her look even more pure and lovely.

Only now, that bright and sunny face was shrouded in a layer of faint sorrow.

She gazed at the calm lake before her, her face reflected in the water—that young and beautiful face now had slightly furrowed brows and empty eyes, as if she were looking at something, yet looking at nothing at all.