Chapter 363 - Happy family

Chapter 363: Chapter 363 - Happy family

Once Qiu Yue was satisfied that the baby could be fed safely, he stopped hovering over the family quite as much.

He prepared several bags of carefully measured nutritional solution, wrote down exactly how much should be given at each feeding, and showed both Yunfeng and Muchen how to insert the tiny catheter without damaging the membrane. The opening sealed itself afterward, which made the process far less dangerous than they had initially feared.

With the immediate crisis under control, Qiu Yue finally returned to the research facility.

Professor Jian had been waiting for him.

The old professor nearly crushed Qiu Yue in a hug when he arrived, then immediately began scolding him for disappearing for so long. Qiu Yue endured it for less than a minute before pushing him away and demanding to see the laboratory.

There was too much work waiting for them.

The serum Qiu Yue had created could stop the zombie infection, but permanently destroying a person’s power was still too high a price. With the facility’s equipment, preserved samples and Professor Jian’s research, they finally had a chance to turn that crude treatment into something closer to the cure Yunfeng remembered from his future.

For the first time since the apocalypse began, the possibility didn’t feel impossibly distant.

Back at the villa, however, Yunfeng and Muchen had discovered another problem.

They were sitting in their bedroom after feeding their son when Yunfeng noticed the weakness first.

The baby floated happily between them, completely restored after receiving both the nutritional solution and a small amount of Yunfeng’s blue energy. His sphere had regained its clear shimmer, and he was currently occupied with catching his own foot.

Yunfeng wasn’t nearly as energetic.

He flexed his hand.

Usually his power responded before he even consciously called for it. A thought was enough for blue flames to gather around his fingers.

This time, only a thin flicker appeared.

Yunfeng frowned.

Muchen noticed. "What?"

"My power feels strange."

He tried again.

Blue flame spread across his palm, but it was noticeably weaker than usual. It lasted only several seconds before flickering out.

Muchen immediately looked at their son.

Neither needed to say it.

Qiu Yue had already suspected that maintaining the baby’s strange environment required more than nutrients. Now they had proof.

"He took that much?" Muchen asked quietly.

"I don’t think he took it permanently." Yunfeng could still feel his power inside himself. It simply felt depleted, similar to the exhaustion after using too much during a fight. "It’ll probably recover."

Muchen lifted his own hand.

A small metal cup sat on the bedside table. He concentrated on it.

The cup trembled.

Normally it would have risen immediately.

Instead, it barely lifted an inch before dropping back onto the table.

Muchen’s expression fell.

His power had already weakened during the pregnancy, but this was different. He could feel the connection clearly now. Every time their son floated around the room, some of the ability sustaining that movement had come from him.

Yunfeng reached for his hand.

"You okay?"

Muchen looked at the tiny child between them.

"I liked flying."

It was a simple admission, but Yunfeng understood.

Their powers had become part of their lives. They weren’t merely weapons. Losing even part of that strength felt like losing a piece of themselves.

The baby released his foot and floated toward Muchen.

The sphere bumped softly against his chest.

Muchen looked down.

His son pressed both tiny hands against the inside of the membrane, blue eyes bright and completely trusting.

Whatever sadness had been sitting on Muchen’s face softened.

He wrapped his arms around the sphere.

"It’s fine."

Yunfeng watched him.

Muchen kissed the membrane. "He can have it."

Yunfeng smiled faintly and leaned against him, wrapping an arm around both of them.

"So can mine."

Neither of them knew whether their powers would fully recover between feedings or whether supporting their son’s development would keep them weaker until he finished growing. It worried them, especially in a world where strength could mean survival.

But there was never really a choice.

Their son needed them.

That was enough.

By afternoon, the three of them joined the others in the garden.

The overgrown land behind the mansion had changed dramatically over the past few days. Most of the weeds had been cleared, the soil had been turned, and neat rows were being prepared for planting. Jinju had brought down the seeds Yunfeng stored before the apocalypse, and nearly everyone who wasn’t assigned to guard duty had been dragged into helping.

Jai was using his earth ability sparingly to loosen sections of hardened soil while Shao worked beside him with a shovel. Shinju and Kailun were arguing over the spacing between vegetable rows, and Zei had somehow managed to spend more time complaining about manual labor than actually planting anything.

Hana was kneeling beside Jinju, carefully pressing seeds into the earth.

The baby immediately abandoned his parents.

His sphere floated straight toward the activity.

Muchen watched him go. "Yesterday we couldn’t get him to leave us alone."

"He discovered other people exist."

"Traitor."

Yunfeng laughed.

Hana noticed her nephew approaching and immediately sat up.

"There you are."

The sphere floated around her head before drifting lower to inspect what she was doing.

"Don’t eat those," Hana warned, covering the seeds with her hand. "We need them."

The baby stared at her fingers.

Jinju smiled. "He doesn’t even have teeth."

"That hasn’t stopped him from putting his feet in his mouth."

The little boy kicked as if personally offended.

Hana laughed and dipped her fingers into the watering bucket. She flicked a few drops toward the sphere.

The water splashed harmlessly across the membrane.

The baby’s eyes widened.

He kicked excitedly.

Hana did it again.

This time the sphere bounced toward her.

"Oh, he likes it."

Zei immediately joined in, splashing a little more water toward him. The baby rolled through the air, following every glittering droplet that fell past him.

Muchen pointed a warning finger at them. "Don’t soak my son."

"He literally lives in water," Zei said.

"That doesn’t mean you get to throw things at him."

Despite the complaint, Muchen was smiling.

The baby continued weaving between everyone until Yuki appeared from the house with her little monkey perched on her shoulder.

Yuki giggled.

She sat down beneath the shade, and the sphere immediately settled beside her. The monkey climbed from her shoulder and pressed one tiny hand against the membrane.

The baby pressed his own palm against it from inside.

Even Yunfeng couldn’t help laughing.

"He likes them more than us."

Muchen leaned against him. "Especially the monkey."

"That hurts."

For a while, they simply stood together and watched.