When Xuan Yuan   fed the unknown liquid to the Little Dragon Maiden, the previously howling infant immediately quieted down, smacking her lips contentedly. The three females—one old, two young—exhaled in unison.

«Brother Xing, what is that?» Huang Rong asked curiously, eyeing the now-empty little glass bottle in Xuan Yuan  ’s hand.

«It’s a nutrient solution,» Xuan Yuan   explained. «Nuwa said we’ll have to make do with this for now. She’ll prepare something more suitable for Long’er to eat soon.»

Huang Rong nodded but couldn’t help glancing at him again. Her gaze carried a touch of suspicion.

Why did Brother Xing seem like he had experience taking care of children?

What she didn’t know was that, before transmigrating into this world, Xuan Yuan   had indeed spent some time looking after a relative’s child. That little one was far more of a troublemaker than the Little Dragon Maiden and had forced him to build up plenty of experience, whether he liked it or not.

«This young master…»

Granny Sun quietly observed Xuan Yuan  , growing more and more satisfied as she watched—especially at the way he doted on the Little Dragon Maiden. Eventually, she made a decision in her heart.

«What is it, Madam?» Xuan Yuan   asked.

«I don’t dare be called ‘young master,’» Granny Sun waved her hand with a modest smile. She glanced at Li Mochou, then at Huang Rong. Her face flushed, and finally, driven by concern for Li Mochou, she gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, and spoke up. «May I ask… where you two are headed next?»

Xuan Yuan   didn’t answer immediately. Huang Rong’s heart gave a jolt, her instincts raising an alarm. She responded cautiously, «What do you mean by that, Madam?»

Granny Sun wiped the corners of her eyes, squeezing out two tears for effect. She pulled the utterly confused Li Mochou to her side and spoke sorrowfully:
«This young lady might not know, but the young master surely does—Mochou has been expelled from the Ancient Tomb by her mistress. She’s now all alone in the world with nowhere to go.»

«She’s still not fully skilled in martial arts, and the Jianghu is filled with danger. This old woman truly can’t rest easy…»

Li Mochou puffed her cheeks, unconvinced. «Who says I’m not skilled—mmph!»

Don’t interrupt!

Granny Sun slapped a hand over her mouth and shot her a look.

Then, turning to Xuan Yuan   and Huang Rong, the old lady forced a brittle smile that looked as tight as a dried chrysanthemum. «Mochou has been raised by the Ancient Tomb since childhood. She has no parents, no relatives… her mistress won’t take her back… Forgive this shameless old woman, but I beg you both—please let Mochou follow along with you two… just… just let her stay near…»

By the end, even Granny Sun realized how brazen her request was, and her voice faltered. She couldn’t bring herself to finish.

But she truly couldn’t let Li Mochou fend for herself. The child was still so young—how could she survive alone in the chaotic martial world?

Originally, Li Mochou was supposed to be expelled a few years later, after her martial skills had improved. But now, she’d been cast out prematurely. Granny Sun didn’t even dare to imagine what the consequences might be.

She’s such a pure, kind girl—yes, a little stubborn, but if she ran into someone untrustworthy and got her heart broken or betrayed… Would she even survive?

This young man before her—he was practically glowing with nobility. He clearly wasn’t an ordinary mortal. His martial skill was frightening, his appearance like that of a Celestial painting, and the way he held the baby showed he had a gentle heart.

Someone like him was rarer than gold dust.

The only downside? He already had someone by his side—and that girl, according to Sun Bu’er, was the daughter of one of the Five Supremes, the Eastern Heretic himself.

Still, Granny Sun trusted her own judgment. Although Li Mochou and Huang Rong had just clashed, when the girl had burst into tears, Huang Rong had looked truly flustered. After Xuan Yuan   left, Huang Rong had even worked with her to comfort the Little Dragon Maiden, laughing together at times.

Clearly, this girl wasn’t the type to bully the weak.

«Young master, young lady, I beg of you… Please take care of Mochou. I’m not asking for riches or glory—just that she be safe and not be bullied…»

Xuan Yuan  : «……»

Huang Rong: «……»

                                              …Scene transition…

They had arrived as two.

Now, they were leaving as three.

Wait, no—four.

Xuan Yuan   carried the sleeping Little Dragon Maiden in his arms. Huang Rong bounced along beside him cheerfully.

Following behind them was Li Mochou, dressed in a pale apricot-yellow dress, carrying a bulging travel bag stuffed with the belongings Granny Sun had packed for her.

Her eyes were still red from crying, but now that they were walking, she couldn’t stop peeking around curiously.

Ahead of her, Xuan Yuan   and Huang Rong appeared silent, but were in fact communicating through their thought-linked neural terminals.

Xuan Yuan  : Rong’er, why did you agree to this?

Huang Rong: You don’t like her, Brother Xing?

Xuan Yuan  : …

Huang Rong: Hmph!

Xuan Yuan   was surprised. With Huang Rong’s sharp wit and temper, she could have easily found an excuse to brush Li Mochou off. Why didn’t she?

As he pondered, her voice sounded in his mind again.

Huang Rong: Because Rong’er isn’t the first either. Sister Nuwa was the one who’s always been by your side.

Xuan Yuan  : She’s an AI! She doesn’t even have a physical body!

Huang Rong: But who knows if she won’t someday?

Based on her observations these past few days, Huang Rong had noticed that although Nuwa could only appear as a projection now, it wasn’t impossible for her to eventually gain a physical form.

Huang Rong: Rong’er believes Sister Nuwa will definitely build herself a body someday.

Xuan Yuan   wasn’t sure where she got that idea, but deep down, he had a vague feeling that something might’ve happened between the two women when he wasn’t looking.

He glanced back at Li Mochou.

The girl seemed incredibly sensitive to his gaze. The moment he looked, she seemed to sense it, and when their eyes met, she quickly turned away, her cheeks turning pink.

This was the pure, untainted Li Mochou—before heartbreak would transform her into the infamous Scarlet Serpent Fairy.

«U-Um…»

After a beat, she looked up again, hesitant and unsure.

«Where… where are we going?»

Huang Rong exchanged a look with Xuan Yuan  , and saw thoughtful intent flicker in his eyes.

«Brother Xing, do you have a plan?»

«I do, actually.» Xuan Yuan   paused, then shared what he had been pondering.
«When the Xuanguang Pendant first activated, Nuwa believed it was due to the villagers of the Li family village worshiping me as Taiyi.»

«While it’s possible to trigger it with internal force now, I suspect that kind of reverence—the will to venerate a Celestial—may carry some special use.»

«The villagers near Mount Zi had it. What about here?»

Huang Rong blinked in surprise, then quickly understood his meaning.

As clever as she was, she hadn’t thought along these lines before—bound by the usual logic of the martial world.

«Brother Xing, you mean to do here what you did in Mount Zi?»

Xuan Yuan   nodded, gazing down toward the foot of Mount Zhongnan.
«That’s right. There’s no rush to collect more martial arts manuals. We already have the full set of Shaolin’s Seventy-Two Arts and all Quanzhen’s manuals except for the Xiantian Gong. That should be enough for Nuwa to analyze for now.»

Their conversation was completely lost on Li Mochou, who grew frustrated and stomped her foot.
«What are you talking about!?»

Huang Rong’s bright black eyes sparkled mischievously. She looked Li Mochou up and down until the girl squirmed awkwardly, and then—suddenly giggling—she turned to Xuan Yuan   and said:

«Brother Xing, Rong’er has an idea…»