Inside the city, Shen Tanqi experienced the prosperity of an ancient city for the first time. He had never seen such a beautiful and luxurious place.
Everywhere there were candles, and just these candles alone must cost a fortune. The city of Shuoxia seemed as bright and lively as the city that never sleeps.
Holding Goldfish, Shen Tanqi aimlessly walked through the streets.
Xiao Qingyu said that he was here to submit the list of participating disciples to the city lord. In that case, they should go to the city lord’s mansion first.
Little Black nodded and followed him, looking around. “I heard from Chick Brother that your family is the biggest boss in this city, surnamed Shen. You’re quite something.”
Shen Tanqi lowered his eyes and glanced at him, “You guys even started calling each other brothers?”
The system rubbed its round belly and said, “Host, I’ve found out that actually, Dog Brother is a good demon. He has a good heart and is very kind.”
Praised by the system, Little Black’s walk became more spirited.
“I am not a good demon. I just can’t be bothered to argue with you noobs.”
Ignoring his nonsense, Shen Tanqi looked into the distance at the palaces and towers of the Shen family. The cold wind pierced through, and he muttered softly, “I wonder when I’ll find Taro Ball. Hopefully, I won’t run into Yu Ce ahead of time.”
“Why?”
Shen Tanqi put his hands in his pockets and began to scold, “Encountering him is never a good thing. He’s naturally against me. Once we find Taro Ball, we’ll send them back.”
At these words, someone nearby seemed to chuckle.
It was this chuckle, tinged with a hint of mockery, that made Shen Tanqi’s heart skip a beat. He turned abruptly to look, only to run into Yu Ce’s enigmatic eyes, which were filled with an ambiguous smile.
“Senior brother, I never knew I had been against you at any point.”
Shen Tanqi instinctively tried to turn away, but Yu Ce caught his wrist and effortlessly pulled him back.
Yu Ce calmly took the sleeping Goldfish from his arms, gently brushing the child’s slightly sweaty forehead with his hand, looking puzzled. “Why is he so hot?”
Shen Tanqi, who had been prepared to run away with the child, halted abruptly at these words. A disturbing thought flashed through his mind. He quickly turned around, reached out his hand, and touched Goldfish’s forehead.
It was a little warm!
But compared to human body temperature, it didn’t seem like much.
He lifted his head and locked eyes with Yu Ce.
Yu Ce frowned slightly. “He’s sick. Probably caught a cold.”
Removing his coat, Yu Ce wrapped Goldfish tightly, his voice serious. “Dragon physiology is different from humans. They naturally have extremely low body temperatures. This temperature is already very high for them.”
It was clear that Goldfish seemed fine just before getting on the carriage, but after sleeping on the carriage, he developed a fever.
Shen Tanqi didn’t know how to describe his current mood.
When Yu Ce was taking care of the little one, the kid was fine—plump, cute, and healthy. But when it was Shen Tanqi’s turn to look after the child for half a day, the little one fell ill. No wonder Goldfish seemed restless all the time; turns out, he wasn’t feeling well. Being a small kid, he didn’t know he was sick, so he could only resist the discomfort by sleeping.
He lowered his head, feeling extremely sorry, and gently touched Goldfish’s flushed little face. He felt like his heart was being cut with a knife. He wanted to say something several times but ended up just urging, “Hurry, go find a doctor.”
Yu Ce looked at him with a simple glance, just one look, yet it made Shen Tanqi suddenly feel ashamed and guilty.
At times like this, the one who must be most frustrated and anxious was undoubtedly Yu Ce.
After all, he had raised Goldfish with his own hands.
Hearing Shen Tanqi’s words, Yu Ce responded with a faint “Hmm” and, turning to leave, suddenly stopped. In a low voice, he said, “It’s not your fault.”
Having said that, Yu Ce continued walking ahead, under the clear moonlight, draped in thin clothes, his figure slender.
Watching his retreating back, Shen Tanqi felt like he was shaken for a moment.
There was a sudden, sour pain in his heart. He lowered his head, quickly wiped his eyes, and then grabbed the system and Little Black, immediately catching up with Yu Ce. The two of them dared not delay, holding Goldfish, they quickly rushed to the medical clinic, inquiring about the way without wasting any time.
Fortunately, there were medical clinics scattered all over Shuoxia City, not far from where they were. When they arrived, the doctor at the clinic had just finished examining the last patient.
“He caught a bit of cold. Innkeeper, go to the back room and fetch the medicine,” the doctor said, lifting the strands of hair on top of Goldfish’s head, revealing the pair of snowy-white dragon horns. He understood immediately, “A dragon clan, quite rare. I’ll start with the medicine for the deer clan. If it doesn’t work, we’ll switch to another prescription. The herbs are mild, and if it doesn’t have an effect, we’ll try a different one.”
Hearing the doctor’s words, Shen Tanqi felt somewhat relieved. He had been worried that the doctors in the city wouldn’t treat members of the demon clan, but now it seemed that there were indeed many demon clans in Shuoxia City.
The doctor quickly diagnosed Goldfish’s illness and complained a bit, “But how did it get burned like this? Do you all bring up children like this?”
At these words, Shen Tanqi lowered his head even more. Throughout the journey, he had been vigilant for lurking demonic forces, too preoccupied to notice the changes in Goldfish. Along the way, he did sense that Goldfish’s body had become warmer, but the physiology of dragon clans was different from that of humans. Dragons naturally had a cold body, so what felt scalding to them might only be slightly warm to Shen Tanqi.
While waiting for the innkeeper to fetch the medicine, Shen Tanqi silently reached out and gently touched Goldfish’s face, which was warm. Thinking of Goldfish, half-asleep, using a banana as a sword, wanting to protect him in a serious way.
Shen Tanqi’s heart felt increasingly uneasy, and his eyes became slightly red.
I don’t know how much Goldfish has endured. In terms of being a father and raising children, he is indeed inferior to Yu Ce, far inferior.
Yu Ce slowly raised his eyes, his gaze falling on Shen Tanqi’s furrowed brow due to guilt. He calmly lowered his eyes and placed Goldfish in Shen Tanqi’s arms.
“Hold onto him.”
Shen Tanqi hesitated for a moment, looking at Yu Ce’s expression, which seemed no different from usual, and there was no hint of blame in it.
Seeing his hesitation, Yu Ce added, “My arms are sore. Hold him.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Tanqi quickly and cautiously reached out, gently taking Goldfish from Yu Ce’s arms. He treated him as if he were the most precious treasure in the world, feeling extremely sorry, “It’s my fault, making Goldfish suffer.”
At these words, Yu Ce raised an eyebrow slightly, “Goldfish?”
“Yu Jin, isn’t that Goldfish?” Shen Tanqi gently patted the little one’s back, hoping to make Goldfish feel a bit more comfortable.
Yu Ce shook his head and said, “His name is Dandan.”
Shen Tanqi managed to forcibly hold back the tears in his eyes. He snorted and said, “I know, Dandan and Erdan, the names you gave are too unpleasant, they don’t like them.”
Yu Ce retorted quietly, “The names you gave may not be any better. Dandan sounds better than goldfish.”
Being retorted, Shen Tanqi’s mood strangely improved. He squinted slightly and said, “I will call him Goldfish.”
Seeing him relax, Yu Ce lightly chuckled, as if not wanting to argue with him further, “Fine, let him choose when he wakes up. He will definitely prefer the name I gave.”
“Tch,” Shen Tanqi disdainfully whispered. After a pause, he suddenly found that he didn’t feel so bad anymore.
Shuoxia City, with spring all year round, embraced them with a slightly cool night breeze, as soft as feathers, brushing away the restlessness in their hearts.
Shen Tanqi suddenly understood something. He lowered his eyelashes and softly said, “Thank you.”
“You’re thanking too early.”
Shen Tanqi lifted his head in surprise, seeing Yu Ce’s expression suddenly turn cold. Swiftly drawing his sword from his waist, a metallic hum filled the air as Yu Ce forcefully shielded Shen Tanqi behind him, sternly commanding the doctor who was about to close up and settle accounts, “Close the door!”
Confused, Shen Tanqi looked at Yu Ce. It was the first time he had seen Yu Ce draw his sword. “What’s going on?”
Seeing the doctor utterly bewildered, Yu Ce quickly instructed, “Watch over Dandan. There are demons nearby. I’ll be back in a moment.”
With that, he lightly tapped the ground with his toe and disappeared in the blink of an eye. The door of the clinic was tightly shut by the sword wind left in his departure.
“Demon?” Shen Tanqi recalled the demons lurking outside Shuoxia City and suddenly realized something. Perhaps tonight, he had stumbled upon the demons’ conspiracy. Their ambush outside the city was meant for some action against Shuoxia City today!
Just as he was about to take Goldfish to a safe place in the back room, he suddenly sensed a trace of chilly dragon breath from Goldfish’s clothes. Shen Tanqi reached in and discovered a silver token, a voice transmission token. It was Yu Ce’s outer garment, which meant it was Yu Ce’s token.
“Father, where are you?”
“I encountered an evil creature with no cultivation at all. If you come across it too, hide in a house and close the door!”
“Whatever you do, don’t open the door, don’t answer!”
Shen Tanqi instantly recognized the voice as Taro Ball’s. He urgently asked, “Taro Ball, where are you? How are you? What happened?”
Upon hearing Shen Tanqi’s voice, it seemed like a long exhale of relief from the other side. Then Taro Ball said, “Daddy, as long as you’re with Father, it’s fine. I’m safe here with Uncle Xiao.”
After a pause, Xiao Qingyu’s voice appeared on the transmission token, trembling as he spoke, “Senior Brother, you must protect yourself. This evil creature is too strong. I’ve sent a signal to the sect elders for assistance. Whatever you do, do not go out.”
Shen Tanqi had long known from the system that this journey was perilous. However, he feared nothing when he was alone. Now, with Goldfish and Taro Ball, his heart felt like it was hanging in mid-air.
He responded, earnestly instructing Xiao Qingyu, “Qingyu, please take good care of Taro Ball. He’s young, and nothing should happen to him. I’ll find a way to come to you.”
On the other end of the transmission token, Xiao Qingyu glanced at the powerful infant stage cultivator who was meditating with closed eyes, took a deep breath, and said, “Senior Brother, your son can take care of me.”
Shen Tanqi: ?
What on earth.
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