CHAPTER 582: 582 STARRY EYES, WAIT FOR ME!

"I’m taking this child with me!"

Shen Xingmou, her embarrassment fading away, suddenly blurted out these words, surprising Yun Xiao, who immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum.

"No way, Little Dragon is my son, of course he should stay with me!"

Although Yun Xiao had no idea where Little Dragon had appeared from, the boy had helped him out immensely, and he had genuinely taken a liking to him, speaking out firmly in opposition.

Yun Xiao was well aware that Shen Xingmou hailed from the Li Yuan Realm, a higher plane than the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud. If she took Little Dragon away, who knows when the "father and son" would see each other again.

"Hmph, so he should stay with you on the Hidden Dragon Continent and scrape by?"

Shen Xingmou wasn’t the slightest bit concerned with Yun Xiao’s demeanor, merely snorting in response. Her words clearly meant that the Hidden Dragon Continent was too small and insignificant for Little Dragon’s growth and cultivation.

Indeed, it was the truth, and Yun Xiao couldn’t refute it. However, turning his gaze to Little Dragon, he spoke softly, "Little Dragon, you tell us, do you want to follow Daddy or Mommy?"

With these words, Shen Xingmou also stared at Little Dragon with anticipation, and soon both of them saw the beautifully sculpted boy make a sour face, seemingly torn.

"Daddy, Mommy, can’t you just stay together forever? That way Little Dragon wouldn’t have to choose!"

Little Dragon, who had been nibbling on his finger and thinking, finally came out with such a statement, prompting Yun Xiao to glance at Shen Xingmou with some expectation.

To be honest, Yun Xiao had indeed developed strong feelings of affection for Shen Xingmou. Even though she had been hostile from the moment they met, hadn’t he managed to stand here just fine?

Moreover, after spending some time together, Yun Xiao realized that Shen Xingmou wasn’t a cruel woman; she approached him for some reasons, not some baseless personal vendetta.

Besides, now that there had been intimate contact, Yun Xiao felt an unusual emotion towards Shen Xingmou. If she could stay for Little Dragon, wouldn’t that be wonderful for everyone?

"No, I can’t stay in this low-level plane for too long!"

A flicker of hesitation crossed Shen Xingmou’s eyes, but it soon vanished as she spoke firmly. She was confident that Yun Xiao, with a sister like Yun Wei, would surely understand her implications.

Even though Shen Xingmou came from Star-picking Tower and had more privileges than Yun Wei, as a cultivator of Heavenly Rank Third Realm, she could not possibly remain in the Lower Five Realms perpetually. Doing so would inevitably attract unwanted trouble for herself and even for Star-picking Tower.

"You mean if you could stay on the Hidden Dragon Continent indefinitely, you would choose not to go back?"

Yun Xiao was contemplating a completely different aspect. After he had spoken, Shen Xingmou’s heart tensed, silently questioning whether that was indeed what she meant, and why she hadn’t realized it herself.

"Enough nonsense; it’s definitely better for Little Dragon to follow me than to follow you!"

Suppressing her inner thoughts, Shen Xingmou coldly stated a fact. She, coming from Li Yuan Realm, a plane higher than the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud, and being from Star-picking Tower, had access to far more cultivation resources than the entire Hidden Dragon Continent combined.

"While you’re not wrong, have you considered what your teacher and the other powerhouses of Star-picking Tower will think if you suddenly bring a child home?"

Yun Xiao was clearly thinking more deeply than Shen Xingmou, and he also knew about her status in Star-picking Tower from Yun Wei. It was unpredictable what might happen if she suddenly returned with a child after a short time away.

"This..."

Hearing Yun Xiao’s words, Shen Xingmou’s expression changed slightly, and she shuddered as she was suddenly reminded of the rules of Star-picking Tower, realizing that she had indeed oversimplified the situation.

Bringing back a child suddenly wasn’t a big deal, but if the child’s father was just a late-stage Spirit Vein Realm cultivator from the Hidden Dragon Continent, a low-level plane, that would be a serious matter.

The illustrious Tower Master of Star-picking Tower, who might even succeed the leadership of the Tower, had mingled with a nobody from the Lower Five Realms and had a child.

When the time came, not only would Shen Xingmou face severe punishment, but Star-picking Tower might even go down to the Lower Realm, determined to turn Yun Xiao, the ant that had tainted their Holy Daughter, into ashes.

Perhaps even Shen Xingmou herself didn’t realize that ever since that night of intimacy and after having Little Dragon as a "child," her attitude towards Yun Xiao had fundamentally shifted.

"Don’t worry, Xingmou, Little Dragon will not suffer with me, and I assure you that I will reunite you and your son as quickly as possible!"

Seeing Shen Xingmou’s hesitation, Yun Xiao could guess the cause and effect. His expression turned serious, and his words were firm and resolute, no longer jesting.

"Alright, I’ll wait for you... and Little Dragon in the Li Yuan Realm. I hope you won’t disappoint me!"

When Shen Xingmou said "you," a faint blush colored her face, but she added the words "Little Dragon" at the end. Then she fondly stroked Little Dragon’s head, her expression filled with reluctance to part.

"Mommy, don’t worry, I will protect Daddy well!"

Knowing that the parting was imminent, Little Dragon planted a kiss on Shen Xingmou’s face, clenched his little fists, and said something that made both adults unable to suppress their smiles.

"This guy does not need your protection, Little Dragon. You just need to take care of yourself!"

Reluctantly setting Little Dragon down on the ground, Shen Xingmou glanced at Yun Xiao, then her figure shifted slightly and she disappeared at the entrance of Hot Spring Valley, leaving only a lingering fragrance in the air.

"Xingmou, wait for me!"

For some unknown reason, Yun Xiao suddenly shouted towards the valley’s entrance, causing the silhouette of the girl in black to tremble slightly before finally vanishing from sight.

For a moment, in the valley, the "father" and "son" stood hand in hand in silence, a shared sense of inexpressible melancholy rising between them, making Yun Xiao’s heart feel slightly sour.

The encounters between Shen Xingmou and Yun Xiao might not have been pleasant, but all that unpleasantness had dissipated today. A series of fortunate and unfortunate events had bound them to each other in such a way that they could no longer cast each other aside.

Yet, due to the reincarnated Long Xiao Battle God and the genius girl from the Star-picking Tower of the Li Yuan Realm, the gap between them was immense. To be together in this life, they would likely have to go through countless trials and tribulations.

"Little guy, now you can probably tell me where exactly you sprang from, right?"

After a long while, Yun Xiao took a deep breath, dispelling the weight of melancholy, and suddenly looked down to ask this question, still holding Little Dragon’s small hand.

It seemed that although Yun Xiao had just emphasized that Little Dragon was his and Shen Xingmou’s son, he was well aware that a son couldn’t simply appear out of nowhere. The little guy’s origin remained a mystery that he wouldn’t rest until it was solved.

"You guess!"

Little Dragon blinked his tiny eyes, the ponytail on his head resembling a small tree, constantly swaying as he spoke, which made Yun Xiao even more certain he had seen it somewhere before.

"Wow, to think that as soon as I woke up, I would encounter a ’Dragon Tree Spirit Little Dragon’ that had been bred. My luck is really not bad!"

Just as Yun Xiao felt a strong sense of déjà vu with the tree-shaped ponytail, a very familiar voice sounded from somewhere within his body, indicating that the Golden Snake Worm, awakened by Yun Xiao’s bizarre breakthrough, was finally conscious.

"Dragon Tree Spirit? Yes, that’s what the Dragon Summoning Tree looks like!"

Prompted by the Golden Snake Worm, Yun Xiao slapped his thigh, finally connecting Little Dragon’s tree-shaped ponytail with the Dragon Summoning Tree he had once acquired within the Meridian Treasure.

"But... how could the Dragon Summoning Tree turn into a child?"

Thinking about this, Yun Xiao was once again at a loss. In his past life as the Long Xiao Battle God, he had seen the Dragon Summoning Tree, and the one planted in the Emperor Canglong Mansion had towering branches. Having lived for thousands, if not tens of thousands of years, it still maintained the appearance of a large tree.

"Do you remember that colorful stone I had you acquire at the Treasure Pavilion of the Lingtian Empire?"

The Golden Snake Worm seemed to have guessed Yun Xiao’s thoughts and reminded him again, "That colorful stone is actually a ’Dragon Breeding Stone,’ a rarity even in the Li Yuan Realm. The combination of the Dragon Breeding Stone and the Dragon Summoning Tree has a ten percent chance of producing a Tree Spirit, which is this little guy!"

Listening to the Golden Snake Worm’s explanation, Yun Xiao’s Meridian Qi probed into his Waist Storage and saw that both the Dragon Summoning Tree and the colorful stone he had acquired from the Treasure Pavilion were gone.

Now Yun Xiao understood completely; the Dragon Summoning Tree and the Dragon Breeding Stone had met within his Waist Storage, resulting in a miraculous reaction.

According to the Golden Snake Worm, the chances of producing a Tree Spirit were less than ten percent. However, due to the intimate contact between Yun Xiao and Shen Xingmou, two other divine items had produced a special aura, ultimately leading to the birth of the Dragon Tree Spirit Little Dragon—a chance encounter that could not have been sought after.

"Dragon Tree Spirits are entirely different from ordinary Strange Spirits; they possess the Spiritual Wisdom of a grown human from the moment of birth, and their cultivation speed is countless times faster than that of ordinary Strange Spirits, almost comparable to that of top human geniuses."

The Golden Snake Worm offered another explanation, strictly speaking, he himself was a type of Strange Spirit, and a very formidable one at that. However, even he felt that his talent could not significantly outshine that of the Dragon Summoning Tree, hence his contemplative tone.

"Wow, so it turns out you, little guy, are a Strange Spirit!"

Having obtained the answer he sought, Yun Xiao’s right hand, which was holding Little Dragon’s, tightened instinctively as he chuckled aloud, but this remark made Little Dragon show a hint of disdain.

"Don’t compare me with those low-level, annoying things. It’s simply demeaning!"

Little Dragon pursed his lips, and his words left Yun Xiao dumbfounded. Was this really just a little creature that had just developed its Spiritual Wisdom? Its intellect seemed even more terrifying than an extraordinary human.