Many children, many blessings: Stealing the offspring of powerful figures to cultivate immortality.

"Your daughter is speaking up for you even in her dreams, how far do you intend to push me away?"

Jiang Yining didn't turn around, but pushed his palm, which was pressed against her lower back, away a little.

"Just because she dreamt that your hands were big enough doesn't mean she wants you to stay here and get in her way."

Fan Chenxin withdrew her hand, her fingertips gripping her pale palm as she pulled back half an inch.

"Then I'll stay where I am, hoping you can regulate your breathing smoothly."

"If you can stay quiet until dawn, I won't send you out to the cave entrance to be exposed to the cold wind."

"With your words, tonight won't be so hard for me."

The cave returned to silence, with only the lingering light of Leichi casting dappled shadows on the stone walls.

Guided by the dark golden Buddhist aura, Jiang Yining forcefully suppressed the last wisp of chaotic lightning power into her dantian.

Fine purple veins appeared on the branches of the Myriad Spirits Divine Tree, and the newly condensed Qi and Blood Essence stopped vibrating completely.

As dawn broke, a very faint sound of stone cracking came from outside.

The noise wasn't loud, but it carried a sharp, unspoken tension.

As soon as Jiang Yining stood up, Fan Chenxin withdrew his palm strike that had been hovering three inches below her lower back.

"Lou Xiaotian has woken up. Judging from the noise, this young master is not in a good mood."

"Put your hand back completely, and don't cause trouble for no reason."

Fan Chenxin's long eyelashes drooped, and her fingertips slowly swept across the hem of her robe.

"From last night until now, I do not believe I have overstepped the bounds in the slightest."

"If you're truly respectable, then put away this feigned innocent and compassionate act now."

As soon as the two stood firm, Lou Xiaotian's slightly hoarse chuckle drifted in from outside.

"While I was unconscious all night, you guys had quite a lively time in the cave."

Jiang Yining lifted the rattan curtain and stepped out of the inner cave, her eyes meeting Lou Xiaotian's gaze.

The young master of the Lou family leaned against the stone platform, his face pale and sickly, but his hands were digging into the blue stone beneath him.

On the hard bluestone tabletop, he had forcefully pinched out several fine cracks.

Lou Xiaotian's gaze passed over her shoulder and landed on Fan Chenxin, who was walking out of the cave.

"Ning'er, is it perhaps a little inappropriate of me to have woken up?"

"You've woken up at just the right time. I need to check if your heart meridian is still functioning properly."

Jiang Yining picked up a glass of clear water from the stone table and held it to his chapped lips.

"First, take a couple of sips of water. If your pulse is normal, then drink the rest."

Lou Xiaotian did not take the rough stone bowl; his gaze was fixed on the inside of her fair wrist.

There was a ring of pale gold lines encircling the skin, like a Buddhist mark.

His gaze lingered slightly, and as he reached for the bowl, he directly gripped her wrist.

Jiang Yining didn't move her wrist at all, only coldly staring at his pale, paper-like fingertips.

"Your heart has just been pulled back from the brink of death, so don't waste your energy in front of me."

"How did you preserve this Buddhist essence on your wrist?"

Lou Xiaotian spoke in a very low voice, so low that even the sound of the wind blowing through the green leaves in the outer cave was louder than his voice.

Not far away, Fan Chenxin gripped the black knife tightly, his gaze also falling on the pale gold patterns.

"Her foundation was unstable when she attempted to break through to the Condensation Realm last night, so I used Buddhist energy to protect her meridians, leaving this mark."

Lou Xiaotian increased the force of his grip on the wrist by two points.

Jiang Yining flipped her wrist and used a hidden wood-elemental force to push away Lou Xiaotian's sickly five fingers.

"Drink this bowl of water first; I specially left it for you last night."

"So I can do whatever I want to you..."

"You're even out of breath when you speak, do you think I'm counting on you?"

Jiang Yining raised an eyebrow, facing Lou Xiaotian's questioning with an air of self-assurance.

"The blood of the Buddha of the Brahma Heart is the most effective counter to the Heavenly Thunder of No Regrets, and your heart meridian was shattered in three places last night."

Lou Xiaotian slowly loosened his tense fingers and held the stone bowl in his soft palm.

"I know I can't win, and it's only when I see this scene clearly that I feel it's unbearable."

Fan Chenxin's brows furrowed slightly as he was about to speak when Jiang Yining's cold gaze swept over him.

"Don't play the victim in front of me."

Fan Chenxin immediately pursed her lips and obediently lowered her eyes.

"I never intended to argue with him, but the situation was critical last night and I had no other choice."

Lou Xiaotian finished the cold water in his bowl and turned his head to look at the old monk's robe in the corner.

"You may say you were trying to save her, but you've left too many marks on her."

"The essence of those Buddha blood sources is only for guiding thunder and energy, not for asserting sovereignty over anyone."

Just then, the sound of light running could be heard at the cave entrance, and Wu Bao ran in carrying a large, white bird egg.

The Fire Spirit Falcon, dragging its tattered feathers, followed behind her, wanting to snatch the egg but timidly shrinking its neck.

"Uncle Planting Flowers has finally opened his eyes! In April, he stole the little life that the big red chicken had just hatched."

Lou Xiaotian's acrid aura was dispelled by the impact, and he silently looked at the strange beast egg on his leg.

Wu Bao climbed onto the stone platform using both hands and feet, and stuffed the egg into his hand as if protecting a precious treasure.

"Mother said you have a hole in your body, and if you eat this egg, you probably won't die."

Firefly jumped and screamed at the corner of the table, heartbroken over the loss of its tonic for no reason.

Lou Xiaotian touched the top of Wu Bao's fluffy hair, and his tight chest relaxed.

"Please thank you for the big red chicken on my behalf. I will accept this life-saving tonic."

"I'll go get them for you again tomorrow in April. There are still a few hidden inside the big red chicken's butt."

Jiang Yining gave him a half-smile, half-smile, and the Fire Spirit Falcon immediately tucked its head under its wing.

Lou Xiaotian lifted Wu Bao's small body with one hand, showing no sign of discomfort despite the pain in his heart.

"It seems that last night, only we April were truly keeping Uncle company."

"He feeds me a sip of water every fifteen minutes in April. Uncle Chenxin says that if I feed him any faster, he'll drown."

Lou Xiaotian stroked the child's soft back, a cold glint in his eyes as he glanced to the side.

"His methods of bribing these mischievous kids have improved quite a bit."

"She is Ning'er's own flesh and blood, so it is only natural for me to respect her."

"If you two are really strong, get out of here right now."

Jiang Yining casually lifted the child down and placed him steadily on the bird's back.

"I'll restore the meridians of this man surnamed Lou, and in April, I'll take the birds to the door to keep watch and spread the wind."

Wu Bao gripped the Fire Spirit Falcon's long, beautiful neck feathers tightly and nodded obediently.

"In April, I'll take the chickens out to catch little bugs outside, and I promise I won't listen to my mother or uncle."

Once the man and bird had gone far away, Jiang Yining slammed her palm down on Lou Xiaotian's heaving chest.

The purple-gold primordial energy and blood flowed straight in, and her calm brows slowly turned frosty.

Lou Xiaotian noticed her gloomy expression and a hint of self-deprecating humor welled up in his heart.

"It seems my life will be more difficult than I imagined."

"You're spraying your vital essence like cold water; those three deep pits in your heart meridian haven't closed yet."

"Take out the key to my private treasury, and you may freely buy and sell any medicinal herbs in the city."

"Those are just ordinary things to fill a gap in your teeth; they can't save your essence, which is about to wither completely."

Lou Xiaotian unconsciously scratched the stone slab with his fingertips, making the bloodstains on his palms even more visible.

"If I want you to survive these three days, I need to find the blood crystals of high-level alien beasts to extend your life."

"The powerful families in Tianhuang City hate me to the bone, and none of them will give you anything good."

"If I can't buy it, I'll use a magical artifact to exchange for it. If that doesn't work, I'll raid their stronghold."

Jiang Yining's tone was as casual as if she were discussing what to eat for dinner, yet it carried an inexplicable chilling undertone.

"I don't like having a dying person in my hands, and I especially don't like your gun lying useless in front of the secret realm."

Lou Xiaotian's gloomy mood cleared up, and a warm flush appeared deep in his eyes.

"You don't need to make a life-or-death feud with the local bully for someone who's half crippled."

"You protected the formation and saved me half a quarter of an hour for the pill to be formed. This is just me settling this karmic debt with Heaven."

"Jiang Yining, do you really have to make such a clear distinction between life and death between us?"

"If I don't distinguish between them, do you expect me to wait until you die so I can bring another handful of bones into the secret realm?"

Fan Chenxin listened for a long time without saying a word, then reached out and untied the dusty storage bag at his waist.

He threw it directly onto the bluestone table, which perfectly suppressed the faint glint of blood.

"Here are some rare blood crystal materials that I accumulated in the past. Perhaps they can forcibly fill 30% of his main vein."

Lou Xiaotian's pale face turned completely black, and even his breathing faintly carried the aura of blood and iron.

Fan Chenxin paid no attention to his sickly appearance, focusing instead on staring into Jiang Yining's eyes.

"These belongings are not exactly rare or valuable. Let me know if he needs them or not."

Jiang Yining glanced down at the heavy cloth bag, showing no intention of immediately getting the medicine.

"Fan Chenxin, these are all the resources and trump cards you risked your life to protect in the void."

"He is the protector who broke the deadlock for you."

Lou Xiaotian bit his dry lips and crushed a corner of a pebble into powder with a flick of his fingers.

"You have such a hypocritical face, trying to repay evil with kindness? You think you can just take my life?"

Fan Chenxin clasped his hands together in front of his chest, his tone as calm as if he were reciting a pure Buddhist scripture.

"I don't need you to incur any karmic debts; I just don't want to see Ning'er take risks again because of resources."