Shifting from the land to the seabed, Cheng Ying’s appetite finally found its equilibrium. It was, after all, a realm of pure tranquility.

When one lives for an extended period, they invariably seek sources of amusement; Chi Wu was precisely the sort of person who felt compelled to conjure diversions for himself.

The spatial dimension was cluttered with useful and useless possessions aplenty. Clad in diving gear, the two could frolic underwater as they pleased. Encountering danger was irrelevant; did they not possess the space?

Chi Wu even charted an underwater map, marking locations with idyllic scenery, treacherous reefs, and swift currents. Every path they traversed, Chi Wu meticulously documented. Cheng Ying sighed, “If we never returned to the surface, who would know the world outside is overrun with monsters?”

Chi Wu replied, “Remember to tell the children when we get back that the ocean remains as it always was.”

There he was, a man constantly concerned for his progeny. The energy cores collected by Cheng Ying and Chi Wu were being absorbed by the massive stone within the spatial realm. At least, that was Cheng Ying’s deduction, observed when the absorption of cores ceased. She witnessed a brilliant, shimmering light, which, before her very eyes, transformed with blinding speed into the form of a plump little child.

Cheng Ying slapped her chest, “Thank heavens it wasn't a monkey.”

Chi Wu calmly stepped forward and patted the plump child’s tiny hands and feet. Truthfully, having spent decades focused solely on procreation, Chi Wu possessed almost no resistance to cute babies.

Cheng Ying asked, “Can you speak? Are you human?”

The plump child’s lips immediately pursed—this person’s conversational skills were sorely lacking. “I am a god.”

Cheng Ying scoffed, “What kind of god? The one in charge of making babies?”

Well, Cheng Ying had basically offended a deity.

Chi Wu pulled out a set of delicate little clothes, “No matter what you are, put these on first. You look quite cold to me.”

The plump child’s demeanor toward Chi Wu was significantly warmer than toward Cheng Ying. “Finally, someone capable of normal conversation. I simply cannot abide his chaotic disposition. How can such an elegant space, such a lofty and refined domain, tolerate such a vulgar individual? It is truly beyond what I—no, what a god—can endure.”

Blah blah blah. This seemingly centenarian child, with a beautiful little mouth, allowed no room for interruption. He proceeded to critique Cheng Ying from head to toe, inside and out, top to bottom, from soul to essence—an all-encompassing, merciless denouncement.

Not just Cheng Ying, but even Chi Wu, so fond of children, was rendered utterly speechless, his jaw slack.

Half an hour later, Cheng Ying calmly waved her hand, signaling a return to the courtyard house. “Forgive the poor child; he hasn't had a chance to open his mouth in years. He must have been severely repressed.”

Chi Wu truly struggled to remain calm, because this child, no matter what they did, what they were engaged in, or what they said, would hover just above their shoulders like an angel, floating freely, his mouth ceaselessly running.

Any family saddled with such a child would surely find a place like this to deposit them—it was exhausting.

Chi Wu asked, “Can’t you activate an automatic mute function?”

Cheng Ying rubbed her reddening ears. “That works on others, but not on him. Just treat it like listening to an opera; if you tune out the content and just appreciate the sound, it’s quite pleasant. The child has a truly excellent voice.”

Chi Wu conceded that his wife was probably less capable in the spatial realm than this child. As the saying goes, no person is perfect; the same must apply to gods. What a sweet, adorable child, yet burdened with such a compulsive habit of chatter.

It took three full days—an absolute seventy-two hours calculated precisely by Cheng Ying’s electronic watch—before the child was permitted to communicate normally again.

Cheng Ying declared, “I truly believe you are a god now. A mortal couldn't sustain that for so long.”

Chi Wu added, “A human would have been foaming at the mouth long ago.”

The child looked at them with an expression of exquisite grievance. Both Cheng Ying and Chi Wu felt a pang of regret; the child was quite nice when silent.

The child finally spoke: “Can you understand the agony of watching you two behave foolishly while being unable to utter a word?”

Well, that statement certainly detached the child from the label of 'cute.'

Cheng Ying pressed, “Um, can we discuss serious matters? I don’t meet your standards, perhaps, but I painstakingly built this space with my own labor to its current state. If I have no merit, I certainly have hard work behind it. Setting that aside, look at the state of the outside world—does that have anything to do with you? Why would a benevolent god like yourself rely on such vile things to evolve?”

The little fat boy’s expression instantly crumpled into misery. “How could you think that of me? I am such a holy god! Could I possibly bring about such wicked calamities? I was forced into this state by relying on that thing! If I had sufficient Immortal Stones, would I need that garbage?”

Cheng Ying cut in sharply, “Stop right there. If you confirm the outside world isn't the result of your specific needs, you can omit the rest.”

The little fat child was truly afraid of loneliness. There were only three beings here; if Cheng Ying ignored him, he’d be left talking only to himself. So, he reluctantly accepted Cheng Ying’s terms. “I’ve just been too lonely here for too long.”

Cheng Ying asked, “Then how did I end up with this thing?”

The big stone chimed in, “I don’t know either. By the time I became aware of anything, it was already you; I couldn’t change anymore.”

Cheng Ying narrowed her eyes. “You considered changing? Did you think about replacing me?”

This time, the little fat boy truly kept his mouth shut. Chi Wu figured the child was just experiencing divine misfortune, running into someone who would even bully their own offspring. Aside from the spatial child, “Alright, what is your current state? Can you make the outside world return to normal?”

Chi Wu, as expected, was still concerned about his descendants outside.

Cheng Ying looked at the child too. A return to mainstream life would be best. The child smiled shyly, a small, inward movement of his lips. “I can make them look a little prettier, and perhaps make their eating motions more graceful. I don't have that much power yet.”

Cheng Ying queried, “And when will you possess that much power?”

The little fat boy’s face darkened. “Never, in all the futures to come. I am merely a small god who enjoys beauty. Why would I possess such capability? Aren’t you quite selfish? Why concern yourself with so much?”

Chi Wu understood. Alright, so the child simply lacked that level of ability.

Cheng Ying retorted, “If you don’t have the ability, just say so. Why be so vague? Giving people hope and then failing to deliver on that level of power is terribly immoral.”

The child looked wronged and clutched Chi Wu’s lapel, acting coquettishly—a display guaranteed to tug at one’s heartstrings with irresistible appeal. “Forget it, Yingzi, this is fine as it is.”

The child then announced, “I’m hungry.”

Cheng Ying asked, “You’re hungry? What do you eat?”

Chi Wu interjected, “We have formula here. I’ll go prepare some milk powder for you.”

The child declared, “I eat stones. All sorts of beautiful stones. If there are none, those other things will suffice too.”

Well, raising a child is never easy, but Cheng Ying genuinely couldn't fathom why the two of them had taken on the task of rearing such a defective child.

Chi Wu’s undersea expedition was abruptly cut short; there was no choice, as the child was crying hysterically about being starved.

When this child spoke, he wasn't endearing, but when he cried, he was even less so.

Chi Wu and Cheng Ying harbored no grand ambitions of saving the world, but they did have a child who could weep earth-shatteringly, and whom they could not abandon.

Having no alternative, upon re-landing, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu became harvesters for the Grim Reaper.

Starting from the forgotten corners of the world, for the sake of the child, they began collecting the stones inside the heads of beautiful monsters. This became a vicious cycle, a legend of forced deification.

A perpetually hungry, wailing child drove the pair to become the most legendary monster-slaying duo. Many years later, when Cheng Ying and Chi Wu killed the final monster needed to sustain their child, the world slowly recovered its former prosperity, and they were lauded by the remaining survivors.

But Cheng Ying remained busy, because the child was still crying that he was hungry.

Furthermore, the ceaseless, mind-piercing wail hadn't subsided. Cheng Ying dared not enter the spatial realm. Chi Wu’s ears were ringing too. “Just whose unlucky child is this? We’ve been raising someone else’s baby for years, why isn't it stopping?”

The child threatened, “Feed me quickly, or I’ll come into your stomach!”

That single sentence sent a wave of terrifying nausea through Cheng Ying, and in a moment of panic, she woke up. Oh my goodness, how horrifying.

Chi Wu and their little fat boy were nearby. “Mom, what are you doing?”

Cheng Ying shivered violently. “I don’t want you as my son!”

The little fat boy moved over and grabbed Cheng Ying’s throat. “How could you say that to me? I am your son!”

Cheng Ying frowned; this little fat boy had grown up.

Chi Wu chided, “You’re being less and less like a mother.”

Cheng Ying looked at Chi Wu. “You’ve aged a lot.”

Chi Wu’s face darkened. “I’ve only matured a bit. Am I not pleasing to your eyes anymore? Do you prefer that high school student who was more agreeable to your tastes?”

Cheng Ying felt a chill. Right, that temper, that (ao jiao) demeanor—it had to be Chi Wu. “I haven’t woken up properly yet. Just pretend I didn't say anything.”

Then she pulled away her son’s hand and kissed the chubby cheek of her other boy. “I told you I wasn't that cold-blooded, didn’t I? I said I couldn't help but adore my grandson!”

Chi Wu scoffed, “You’ve completely lost it, still talking about a grandson.”

Cheng Ying grabbed her shy son and walked away. When evening came, the only thing Cheng Ying saw in the spatial realm was that same dark stone.

Cheng Ying addressed the stone, “I truly dare not provoke you again. You’d best stay right here and behave.”

Outside, Chi Wu was changing the water for the fish with the children. Cheng Ying closed her eyes, sensing the city's warm air. Let the apocalypse go to hell. Looking at the son and the man beside her, she only wished for peaceful years ahead.

Cheng Ying mused that in the future, she would source train carloads of saplings every year for reforestation, to green the world for future generations.

Chi Wu asked, “Still spacing out?”

Cheng Ying replied, “No, I was just thinking that you, at thirty, look devastatingly handsome.”

The little fat boy nearby chimed in, “Do you have to be so sickening? What’s so good-looking about a thirty-year-old uncle? Mom, you should look at someone prettier, like our new classmate, she’s gorgeous!”

Well, having a son who constantly undermined him made Chi Wu quite displeased. He gave the boy a light kick on the backside. “Go play somewhere else.”

Cheng Ying said sincerely, “I think being able to grow old with you is truly wonderful.” Honestly, Cheng Ying never considered immortality a good thing. Being able to see Chi Wu not perpetually eighteen was a true joy. She suspected neither of the men would understand her feelings if she voiced them.

Chi Wu put a single arm around his wife. “Being able to stay with you always has been what I’ve hoped for since I was small, since I first understood things.”

Cheng Ying felt that happiness was always within reach—not in eternal life, but simply in having Chi Wu by her side.