328: Chapter 328 The door to room number fifteen was quietly closed.

Her belly had grown to the point where bending over was difficult, and she walked like a slow penguin.

After Su Yuling gave birth, Li Ran became the pregnant woman with the largest belly on the The Ark.

She didn't really like people staring at her belly, but everyone couldn't help but steal a glance. One day, Su Yuling sat next to her and asked softly, "Mom, are you nervous?"

Li Ran was silent for a moment before saying, "A little bit."

Su Yuling reached out and held her hand. She didn't say "don't be nervous," she just held it.

Li Ran's fingers were cool, but they warmed up after being held for a while.

Han Qing's due date was in two months.

Her belly was smaller than Li Ran's, but she had recently started experiencing morning sickness.

She had always claimed she wouldn't vomit, but now, every morning like clockwork, she would lean over the sink and dry heave.

Han Yurou stood at the door watching her, handing her a towel and water with movements as practiced as a professional nurse's.

"Mom, when you used to deliver babies for others, did you ever wonder what it would be like when you gave birth yourself?" Han Yurou asked.

Han Qing looked up from the sink, wiped her mouth, and looked at her daughter in the mirror. "Never. There was no point in thinking about it."

Han Yurou handed her the water cup. "What about now? Now you know."

Han Qing took the cup and had a sip, then handed it back to Han Yurou and said, "It's alright. It's not that scary."

The infusion in the Transformation Room was still ongoing.

A lot of blessing points on the The Ark had already been used, but there were still some left.

Qin Lin decided to raise everyone's cultivation before they reached the next star system.

There weren't enough blessing points, but they could save them up slowly.

Anyway, there were still pregnant women on the The Ark, and once they gave birth, they could keep having more. The supply of blessing points wouldn't stop.

After Su Yuling finished her postpartum confinement, she also entered the Transformation Room.

When she stood on the platform, Qin Nian fell asleep in Han Qing's arms.

Golden light washed over Su Yuling's body. Her expression was very peaceful, and the corners of her mouth curled up as if she were having a sweet dream.

Li Ran only entered the Transformation Room after her daughter was born.

Li Ran's daughter was born later than Su Yuling's, but earlier than Han Qing's due date.

The delivery went very smoothly. Han Qing delivered the baby. Li Ran barely made a sound, only biting her lip and gripping the bedsheets until her knuckles turned white.

When the baby's cry echoed from the delivery room, Qin Lin was holding Qin Nian in the hallway.

Qin Nian was startled by the crying, her little mouth pouting, but she didn't cry.

Han Qing poked her head out, a smile on her face. "Both mother and daughter are safe."

Li Ran's daughter was named Qin Ci, after the character for loving-kindness.

Su Yuran asked her why she chose this name. Li Ran looked at the daughter in her arms and said softly, "Because I hope she won't have to work as hard as her mother in this life, and that she can be treated with loving-kindness."

Su Yuran didn't say anything. She squatted by the bed and rested her head on Li Ran's shoulder.

Li Ran reached out and stroked her eldest daughter's head.

A month later, Han Qing gave birth.

Her delivery was the swiftest, taking only a few hours from the start of contractions to the birth of the child.

She insisted on delivering her own baby. Lying on the delivery bed, a mirror hung above her head, allowing her to see her own birth canal through its reflection.

Han Yurou paced around anxiously beside her, saying, "Mom, can't you let someone else deliver the baby?"

Han Qing replied, "I know my own body best."

Han Yurou said, "You're the patient, not the doctor," but Han Qing ignored her.

The baby's cry rang out from the delivery room, loud and clear, just like Qin Xu's had been back then.

Han Qing gave birth to a son.

Qin Lin stood at the door of the delivery room holding Qin Nian, while Qin An stood at his feet, tugging on his pant leg and looking up at the door.

The door opened, and Han Yurou walked out carrying a baby wrapped in a blue blanket. Her eyes were red, but the corners of her mouth were turned up.

"Brother Qin Lin, my mom gave birth. It's a boy." She handed the baby to Qin Lin.

Qin Lin took his son and looked down at him.

The little guy's face was wrinkled, his hair was black, and his fingers were curled with nails like translucent scales.

He closed his eyes, his mouth moving as if searching for milk.

"What is his name?"

Han Yurou glanced back into the delivery room. Han Qing was leaning against the headboard drinking water, pale but in high spirits.

Hearing the question, she set down her cup and said, "Qin Mu. The 'Mu' as in shepherd, or pastor."

Han Yurou was taken aback. "Why that name?"

Han Qing thought for a moment and said, "Because 'Mu' also means to nurture and provide. I hope that when he grows up, he can sustain many people."

Han Yurou looked at her mother and wanted to say, "You're a doctor, not a pastor," but she kept it to herself.

The number of cribs on the The Ark had grown from fourteen to fifteen—fifteen children: seven boys and eight girls.

Standing in the living room and looking at the fifteen neatly lined up cribs, Qin Lin felt that the The Ark was looking more and more like a home.

After the The Ark had sailed through deep space for a long time, Qin Lin marked their final destination on the star chart.

A solid planet about eight light-years away from the The Ark.

This planet had no Spiritual Qi, but it had a stable core that could provide geothermal energy to maintain the The Ark's basic energy needs.

More importantly, this planet was located outside the expansion range of the dimensional rift, making it relatively safe.

Qin Lin set the coordinates for the subspace jump.

The The Ark's protective shield turned from light purple to deep blue. A blinding white light flashed outside the window, and then everything returned to calm.

[Jump complete. Current location: Target system, fourth planet's orbit.]

Outside the window was a grayish-white planet. Its surface was covered in craters, with no atmosphere, no liquid water, and no signs of life. Desolate, but safe.

The The Ark landed on the planet's surface. The gravity was only one-fifth of Earth's, and every step caused one to float.

The children loved this sensation, floating around inside the cabin as their laughter echoed throughout. Qin Lin stood on the Observation Tower, gazing out at the grayish-white landscape.

The distant horizon was curved, and there were no stars in the black sky because the star's light was blocked by the back of the planet.

Footsteps sounded behind him. Su Yuling walked up holding Qin Nian and stood beside him.

"Brother Qin Lin, there's nothing here."

Qin Lin nodded. "Yeah, nothing at all."

"Then why did we come here?"

"To rest and reorganize. We will replenish our supplies, raise our cultivation, and wait for the rift to pass."

Su Yuling was silent for a moment. Looking down at Qin Nian in her arms, she asked softly, "Then how long will we stay here?"

Qin Lin thought about it. "I don't know. Maybe a year, maybe longer."

Su Yuling didn't ask further.

She turned and walked away holding Qin Nian, her footsteps soft, gradually fading down the corridor.

The The Ark came to a halt on this grayish-white planet.

The glow of the protective shield was like a lamp that would never go out in the darkness.

The women lived, cultivated, and raised their children on the The Ark, their days as peaceful and plain as water.

Every morning after waking up, the first thing Qin Lin did was go to the Bridge to check their route, and the second was to stand outside the door of Room No. 15 for a while.

He didn't open the door or go inside; he just stood there.

The white crystal stone in his pocket was perfectly quiet, not glowing, yet warm.

The woman in Room No. 15 was still asleep.

Qin Lin leaned against the door and closed his eyes, listening to the hum of the The Ark's life support system.

Laughter from the children echoed from the end of the corridor. Qin An was chasing Qin Yuan, who was running, with Qin Yue running right behind them. The chaotic footsteps of the three children sounded like a pack of little animals.

Qin Lin opened his eyes, turned around, and glanced at the tightly closed door.

"When on earth are you going to wake up?"

No one answered him.

Su Yuran's voice came from the end of the corridor: "Qin An, don't run, you'll fall."

Qin An didn't stop, running even faster.

Qin Lin smiled, turned, and walked toward the end of the corridor.

The door to Room No. 15 remained quietly closed.