Chapter 358 - Father and daddy

Chapter 358: Chapter 358 - Father and daddy

Yunfeng had been pacing outside the operating room for so long that Jinju finally told him he was going to wear a path into the floor.

He couldn’t sit. Every time he tried, his mind immediately returned to the blood on Muchen’s clothes and Qiu Yue’s warning that their baby might not survive. His body was already exhausted from using Void Break repeatedly, but nervous energy kept him moving. The dried blood at the corner of his mouth had gone dark, and his hands still trembled occasionally from the strain.

When the operating-room door finally opened, Yunfeng stopped so abruptly that Jinju nearly walked into him.

Qiu Yue appeared in the doorway.

"You can come in."

Yunfeng was past him before he finished speaking.

"Muchen—"

He made it three steps into the room and froze.

Something was floating directly in front of him.

A transparent sphere of liquid hovered at chest height, gently moving through the air. Yunfeng stared at it blankly, unable to understand what he was seeing.

Then something inside moved.

His eyes widened.

A tiny baby floated in the clear liquid.

The little boy was so small Yunfeng could have held his entire body in one palm. Stark white hair covered his tiny head, and a pair of bright blue eyes stared directly back at him.

The baby had one foot pulled toward his mouth and was happily sucking on his toes.

Yunfeng forgot about everything else.

Muchen. Qiu Yue. Yuki. The operating room.

All of it disappeared.

There was only that tiny child looking at him.

The baby released his foot.

His little head tilted slightly.

Then the entire sphere began drifting toward Yunfeng.

Yunfeng’s hand rose before he even realized what he was doing.

"Don’t touch!"

The warning came from almost everyone in the room at once.

Too late.

Yunfeng’s fingertips had already reached the membrane.

Qiu Yue moved forward sharply, but then stopped.

The sphere hadn’t ruptured.

Instead, it moved closer.

The little baby pressed his head against the inside of the membrane directly beneath Yunfeng’s palm. A tiny bubble slipped from his mouth and floated upward through the liquid.

Yunfeng’s breath caught.

The baby’s eyes slowly closed.

His entire little body seemed to relax beneath Yunfeng’s touch.

Something in Yunfeng’s chest broke open.

His other hand came up, and he carefully cradled the floating sphere between both palms. It weighed almost nothing. The membrane was soft beneath his fingers, strangely warm and yielding without losing its shape.

"This..."

His voice failed.

He swallowed and tried again.

"This is our child?"

Muchen watched from the operating table with wet eyes.

Yunfeng looked at him, completely overwhelmed.

"Why was he born already? What happened? Why is he inside this?" Panic started creeping into his voice as the shock wore off. "Is something wrong with him? Has this happened before?"

Qiu Yue immediately came closer.

"Yunfeng. He’s stable."

That was the only sentence strong enough to cut through his panic.

Yunfeng looked at him.

Qiu Yue briefly explained what had happened during the surgery: the strange membrane, the baby’s apparent ability, and the fact that neither he nor Yuki had removed him deliberately. The sphere had formed around the baby and emerged on its own. For now, the child showed no signs of distress.

Yunfeng listened without interrupting.

By the end, disbelief covered his face.

None of it sounded possible.

But the proof was sitting between his hands.

His son.

His and Muchen’s child.

Alive.

Yunfeng slowly brought the sphere closer to his face.

The little boy opened his eyes again and stared at him.

Blue met blue.

Yunfeng smiled.

It was a shaky smile at first, his eyes already burning as he took in the tiny nose, little hands and impossibly small body. Only minutes ago he had been standing outside believing he might never get to see his child alive.

Now the baby was looking straight at him.

"My beloved son," Yunfeng whispered. "Welcome to the world."

The little boy blinked.

Yunfeng laughed softly through the tightness in his throat.

"I’m your father."

He carried the sphere carefully toward the operating table.

"And this is your mommy."

Muchen’s emotional expression disappeared instantly.

"Why am I the mommy?"

Yunfeng blinked.

"I want to be his daddy too."

Qiu Yue turned away before either of them could drag him into that argument.

Yunfeng’s lips twitched. "Fine. You can fight with him about what he calls you when he learns to speak."

Muchen ignored him and eagerly reached out.

His hands trembled slightly as Yunfeng transferred the sphere to him. Qiu Yue watched closely, but after seeing the membrane tolerate Yunfeng’s touch, he didn’t stop them.

Muchen cradled the little ball against his chest.

His expression softened immediately.

"Hello, little one."

The baby turned toward him.

Muchen’s eyes filled again.

"You’re a little impatient, aren’t you? Rushing out like this when you’re not even supposed to meet us yet."

He lowered his head and gently kissed the membrane.

The surface trembled beneath his lips.

Inside, the baby blinked.

Then his tiny mouth curved.

Muchen gasped.

"He smiled."

The little boy kicked both feet and rolled over inside the sphere, apparently delighted by the movement.

"Oh my god."

Muchen’s entire face lit up.

"He’s so adorable!"

Yunfeng laughed and leaned over the bed, wrapping one arm around Muchen while carefully supporting the sphere between them.

For the first time since he’d received Shinju’s call, the crushing fear in his chest finally eased.

Muchen was alive.

Their son was alive.

He didn’t understand how. He didn’t understand what kind of power could allow a three-month-old baby to survive outside the womb, and judging from Qiu Yue’s expression, nobody else understood either.

Right now, Yunfeng didn’t care.

He kissed Muchen’s temple and looked down at their child.

"He looks like you."

Muchen slowly turned his head.

His expression was deeply unimpressed.

"Did you hit your head when you jumped through that portal?"

Yunfeng frowned.

Muchen pointed at the sphere.

"Look at him."

Yunfeng did.

Stark white hair floated gently around the baby’s head.

His eyes were an almost luminous blue.

Muchen looked at Yunfeng’s white hair, then at his bright blue eyes.

Then back at the baby.

"You contributed absolutely nothing subtle to this child."

Yunfeng stared.

The resemblance became painfully obvious now that Muchen had pointed it out.

Even the tiny shape of the baby’s brows reminded him of himself.

Muchen snorted.

"He came out looking like you photocopied yourself."

Yunfeng couldn’t even argue.

A ridiculous amount of pride immediately replaced his confusion.

"Of course he looks like me. He’s my son."

"Two seconds ago you said he looked like me."

"I was emotional."

Muchen rolled his eyes, but his smile remained.

The baby floated closer to the side of the membrane nearest Yunfeng and stretched one tiny hand toward him.

Yunfeng’s teasing expression disappeared.

He placed one finger against the membrane.

The tiny palm pressed against it from the other side.

Yunfeng’s eyes immediately reddened.

Muchen saw it but said nothing.

He simply leaned into Yunfeng when Yunfeng wrapped his arm tighter around him.

Their little boy rolled between them, perfectly content inside his strange protective sphere.