Chapter 30: The Dragon Gives Birth to a Phoenix in Flight, the Demonic Flower Blooms!
Page 1 of 3
Sensing Mo Liuli’s distance, Qiu Xuexin’s heart sank. He did not try to explain himself, but followed behind her anxiously, no longer daring to let his gaze linger on her belly.
Mo Liuli could never remember when she had first become pregnant. From time to time, she would murmur several names and ask whether he knew them, but the answer she received was always an ambiguous shake of the head—neither admitting that he knew nor denying it.
The Valley Cliff was a peculiar place, where snow fell only occasionally. She found it soothing to tread barefoot upon the icy pebbles.
“Oh? When did a flower bloom there? I’ve been here so long—how could I have never noticed it?”
Mo Liuli pointed toward the darkness in a crack along the cliff and cried out.
The flower was still only a bud. Though black, it was extraordinarily conspicuous. Its entire stalk was black, with no leaves or branches—only a smooth, slightly curved stem crowned by a tiny black bud, its petals tightly closed around the heart.
Qiu Xuexin looked up toward the spot she indicated and was startled as well. He had never seen anything like it in the Valley Cliff, nor had he ever encountered such a thing on the continents beyond.
When Qiu Xuexin failed to answer, Mo Liuli began observing it herself. The longer she looked, the stranger it seemed. The movement of the child within her grew far more violent than before, exhausting her until she felt weak and weary.
“I’m tired. I’m going to rest for a while. You should go back too. You seem rather busy, and there are maids here to look after me. You needn’t keep coming all the way here.”
As she spoke, Mo Liuli began walking back, her steps slow and her face fatigued.
Qiu Xuexin’s attention was immediately drawn away. He stopped looking at the black flower and carefully supported Mo Liuli as they returned.
“Ah! Ah! Ah!”
The cries of a woman in labor spread through the Valley Cliff. The black bud growing from the crevice also began to show signs of blooming. At that moment, all the women of the Blood Alliance had gathered in the Valley Cliff, and the place, once so quiet, was suddenly thrown into commotion by the birth.
“Quick! Push! Harder! I can see the head!”
“Breathe in, breathe out, and push! That’s it! Give it one more effort!”
Inside the little wooden house, the midwife’s trained shouts rang out in an orderly rhythm, adding several degrees of tension to the atmosphere. Then came the woman’s gritted cries as she strained with all her might.
Page 1 of 3
Page 2 of 3
The maids nearby, preparing water and clothing and assisting wherever needed, blushed crimson at the sight, waiting nervously and excitedly.
Outside the house, Qiu Xuexin’s heart twisted at every shrill cry. He paced back and forth, glancing toward the room every second.
He had thought that, judging from Mo Liuli’s condition, she would need at least several more months before giving birth. He had never expected it to happen so soon. And now, with three hours already gone and no sign of the child’s arrival, he feared that something might go wrong.
As the midwives entered one after another, he had already made his instructions clear through discreet hints: if there was any danger, save the mother, not the child.
The midwives were all startled by the order. Under ordinary circumstances, the wealthy and powerful on the continents chose to save the child rather than the mother. Clearly, this particular patron was no ordinary one.
The midwives exchanged knowing glances, each forming her own judgment, before entering the birthing room one after another.
By then, Mo Liuli was drenched in sweat, even the ends of her hair soaked through. Her delicate face was flushed, and she struggled on with uneven breaths.
She had no experience of childbirth and did not know whether her condition was normal. All she knew was that the stabbing pain in her abdomen was worse than having her heart pierced. After three hours, she had almost no strength left. If the child did not come soon, then perhaps—
“Miss, hold on a little longer! We can already see half the baby’s head. Give it one more push, and the baby will be born safely!” Xiaoyue, the maid who had always attended to Mo Liuli’s daily needs, encouraged her joyfully.
Hearing Xiaoyue’s words, Mo Liuli suddenly found renewed strength. She gripped the hands of the two midwives supporting her and cried out with all her might.
“Ah!”
“Wah! Wah! Wah!”
A powerful cry rang out just as Mo Liuli’s consciousness began to fade. In her daze, she heard Xiaoyue’s excited voice.
“He’s born! Miss, he’s born! It’s a young master! Miss, he’s a handsome little young master!”
Xiaoyue leaned closer to the midwife’s hands and saw a sturdy, healthy baby bawling loudly in her arms. His cry rang through the room, filling the blood-scented chamber with a breath of fresh life and bringing renewed energy to the exhausted midwives.
Outside, Qiu Xuexin’s eyes gleamed with joy, and he could not put the excitement and emotion in his heart into words.
In the past, the Great Lord Mo Li had been framed by others until her soul was scattered, leaving her unable to have descendants. Now, at last, she had a child of her own. The feeling was truly marvelous.
The moment the baby’s cries rang out, the black bud opened in an instant. Its color was as dark as the hue belonging only to elves, and it stood dazzlingly within the crevice, beautiful beyond compare.
High above the lands outside the Blood Alliance, two enormous phoenixes suddenly appeared, circling and calling to one another. Around them, clouds faintly resembling dragons danced in unison, forming a strange and wondrous sky.
Page 2 of 3
Page 3 of 3
Xiao Junwang, who had just returned to the snow mountains, was momentarily bewildered by the sight. With one hand behind his back and the other clutching his robe, he gazed up at the boundless, magnificent spectacle.
The cries of phoenixes and roars of dragons rang together like the resonant strains of an epic masterpiece, reaching the ears of those with profound cultivation.
“How beautiful! Young Master, look! Those clouds look just like a dragon! There hasn’t been a dragon anywhere on the continents for hundreds of years!”
Green Sprout hugged the white fur cloak. Seeing Xiao Junwang standing motionless and staring at the sky, she tilted her head back to look as well. When she saw that the clouds resembled a dragon, she excitedly pointed upward and cried out. Then, with feigned nonchalance, she tried to draw closer to Xiao Junwang, edging her face toward his shoulder.
…
Green Sprout’s question was answered only by silence. Before she could come any closer, Xiao Junwang had already flown several miles away, keeping a clear distance between them.
Phoenixes dancing, dragons roaring… Could this mean that the Dragon Child had been born?
Xiao Junwang calculated the time on his fingers, yet it did not seem right.
“Could it have come early?”
Once this doubt arose, Xiao Junwang quickly took out an ancient book and leafed through it. Unfortunately, aside from records concerning how to activate the forbidden art and conceive the Dragon Child, it contained only information about how the birth of a Dragon Child could aid cultivation. There was nothing else.
The old leaders of the four continents also emerged from seclusion when they heard the sound, turning their attention toward the sky.
A dragon…
That was a species that had vanished one after another over the many years since Mo Li had been eliminated. How could it have appeared again after all this time? Even phoenixes had become divine kings among beasts, existences of the highest order. How could they possibly be dancing alongside dragons, creatures that should have gone extinct long ago?
These thoughts led all of them to think of Mo Li.
Could Mo Li have returned?
Three of the lords were so terrified by the possibility that they could no longer remain calm enough to cultivate. Fear instantly enveloped their hearts.
The vengeful oath Mo Li had uttered before her body and soul were reduced to nothing had rung in their ears all those years ago.
“This… this is truly divine retribution! What is meant to come will come. I should never have allowed greed to cloud my judgment back then. I should never have joined them in harming the Great Lord Mo Li!”
Page 3 of 3