| The Paternity Guard (PATERNITY) |
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The Shadow Guards abandoned their names as soon as they entered the Shadow Guard Camp and only used numbers to identify each other.
The youngest among them, Ying Ba, was carried back by Ying Yi without even having a name. The last one to join, Shi Qi, wouldn't have abandoned his name and past if it hadn't been necessary. Now, he was a Shadow Guard without a name, hidden in the shadows.
———
"Hello, I'm Cheng, Luo Cheng."
"From now on, you are Shi Qi, one of the Shadow Guards. Remember your name, Shi Qi."
———
Those words from years ago echoed clearly in his mind. He thought his Master wouldn't care but he was surprised...
There were many unexpected things and the biggest surprise was right in front of him.
Shi Qi stared at the sleeping baby round-faced and looking like a freshly baked bun with a bit more flour. The baby's small body was wrapped in cloth, revealing only two sturdy little hands that could be completely covered by one of his own hands.
The baby might be dreaming as a big smile suddenly appeared on his face while his hands trembled slightly. Shi Qi found it amusing and couldn't help but poke the baby's soft cheek with his finger. The chubby face turned into a small pit with each poke, making Shi Qi chuckle.
He poked a few more times until the baby's face turned red then reluctantly pulled back his finger.
"What are you doing? Why are you so happy?" A drowsy voice came from behind him, followed by arms wrapping around him and a gentle nudge. Shi Qi's hand, which had been pulled back, was held.
"I'm watching the baby, Master. His face is so soft." Shi Qi's voice still carried a smile. Since his Master's leg hadn't recovered, he had been resting in the fortress since returning from Lihai City. All the fortress matters were handled by Steward Cheng Bo and Ying Er, allowing Xing Beiming to relax for a while.
"Where isn't he soft? But indeed, he's much cuter, unlike that black coal ball." Xing Beiming calmly spoke ill of other children.
Shi Qi suppressed his laughter.
The black coal ball referred to Chef Fang's child, who had just started crawling. He was quite cute and resembling his father, black and sturdy. After seeing the two kids, his Master often compared them, clearly proud.
"Master, how's your leg?" Shi Qi struggled to sit up, before lifting the blanket to check Xing Beiming's tightly bandaged leg. Even Master Gu's expression turned serious when he saw the wound on his Master's leg.
Fortunately, he didn't say much in the end, only giving medicine for him to recover. Although worried, Shi Qi was ultimately grateful. His Master only injured his leg; if it had been...
He dared not to think further and just get the medicine to apply it again.
Xing Beiming looked displeased as the person in his arms struggled to get free and then pulled him back down. "Alright, I can run and jump now. Forget about it! How about your injuries? Let me see."
Shi Qi pushed him away and insisting on taking care of his legs.
How could he not care?
However, he was pressed down on the bed, and suddenly his pants were pulled down... "Master!"
Feeling warm fingers lingering behind, Shi Qi's face flushed. He turned his head and saw the sleeping baby beside him, feeling embarrassed.
In front of the child... it was too embarrassing...
Xing Beiming's expression darkened. Although the wound on his leg had healed, the visible scars reminded him of the painful scene when Shi Qi had screamed in agony. If possible, he wouldn't let Shi Qi suffer anymore.
He gently caressed the sensitive folds, watching the deep red entrance uncontrollably contract. Xing Beiming's eyes darkened but he suppressed the surging desire in his heart and just put on his pants then hugged Shi Qi close. "Stay with me for a while and we'll deal with my leg after eating."
Shi Qi relaxed as instructed but his mind wandered to another matter. "Master, what happened with the explosion in the valley? Young Master Ke said you were supposed to be with Yin Ji. And that Luo Wenjing..."
That day, Xing Beiming's ambush should have been easily avoided but his damn leg couldn't move. Of course, Xing Beiming would never let his Shadow Guard mention such an embarrassing matter. But talking about falling into the sea with Luo Wenjing...
Well, that damn Luo Wenjing, unable to protect himself with his energy, got injured by the blast and grabbed Xing Beiming's injured leg tightly when they fell into the sea. This was why his leg still hadn't recovered till now.
In a desperate attempt, Luo Wenjing cruelly tortured the injured leg but since he couldn't exert much force, Luo Wenjing vomited blood from the beating but still didn't let go and wanted to drag Xing Beiming down with him.
Xing Beiming had to use all his strength to float to the surface and paddle towards the distant shore with him. He had almost no internal energy left and if he had solved Luo Wenjing's in the sea, they both would have ended up at the bottom of the sea.
He struggled to crawl onto the shore before collapsing on the beach while gasping for air to breath. Luo Wenjing with a malicious smile on his face, struggled to get up. "Xing Beiming, your failure to kill me was your mistake. I should thank you for dragging me ashore. Now you can go to hell and regret it!"
Xing Beiming sneered. He knew this scum would react like this.
If Luo Wenjing had succeeded, Xing Beiming would have wasted his many years in the Martial Arts World and his reputation as the Fortress Master. He untied his jade belt and his clothes opened, revealing the well-defined muscles outlined by the wet inner garment. His wet hair fell in front of him and his already handsome face looked even more enticing. Luo Wenjing inexplicably swallowed a mouthful of saliva, but quickly masked his surprise and shouted, "What are you doing! Are you trying to seduce me?"
Startled, Xing Beiming couldn't understand why this old man suddenly had such thoughts. "Are you even qualified?" His tone was light but it made Luo Wenjing's blood boil. His head, already dizzy and swollen from the explosion, became even dizzier. He only had one thought in his mind—to kill him!
"You're asking for death, Xing Beiming!" Luo Wenjing's face twisted as his hand turned into claws reaching for Xing Beiming's heart. Unable to see clearly, he didn't notice the dense cold air emanating from Xing Beiming's right hand.
Thud—
The sound of something piercing flesh echoed, and Luo Wenjing widened his eyes, unable to believe as he looked down at his heart pierced by something like an ice sword, still emitting cold air. On top of it was a familiar jade buckle—it was the belt from earlier. Xing Beiming still had enough internal energy to turn ordinary belt into ice swords.
He underestimated him...
Luo Wenjing spat out a mouthful of blood then Xing Beiming with a slight force, knocked him into the sea, with his eyes wide open in death.
Afterwards, Xing Beiming exhausted all his strength to stand up and took two steps but gloriously collapsed on the beach, his clothes disheveled. He was rescued by Taohua who carried a fish basket on her back and was brought back home.
Perhaps things were not as simple as Shi Qi thought. Before Luo Wenjing died, he must have struggled fiercely, although Master didn't mention it... Well, as long as Master is safe now.
Thinking of the awkward expression on Xing Beiming's face when he mentioned the lifesaver Taohua, a scene replayed in Shi Qi's mind: "Master, that Taohua told me to take good care of you! Do you think she's..."
The unfinished words disappeared into tightly sealed lips. Xing Beiming gnashed his teeth in annoyance and pinched Shi Qi's resilient buttocks while saying angrily, "You dare to joke about this Lord? Be careful, or else, I make this place hurt! Speaking of which, what about the task I assigned you before leaving?"
Huh?
Shi Qi was puzzled.
What task?
Xing Beiming's face darkened. He sat Shi Qi on his lap with a meaningful movement, hinting at something as he moved below, "Remember it now? If you don't then we try all the positions in that book but don't beg for mercy later."
Shi Qi's mind had long drifted to the task Xing Beiming had assigned him before leaving. He had even placed the book containing the instructions prominently on the desk, fearing he might forget. But amidst the chaos, he truly forgot.
"Yi yi ya ya~" The baby, who had been asleep for most of the day, woke up at the right time, waving little hands and babbling. The discordant actions of the two fathers stopped and Shi Qi quickly got off Xing Beiming then carried the swaddled baby and said with a happy expression, "Master, I'll take the baby to the wet nurse first and come back immediately to change your medicine."
Xing Beiming waved his hand, watching Shi Qi disappear behind the door and then slumped onto the bed. He could feel that Shi Qi had changed, a change he liked but he felt something was missing.
What could it be?
Xing Beiming, the Master of World's Supreme Fortress, felt melancholic.
Lately, Ke Weiqing had been coming more and more frequently, treating the World's Supreme Fortress as his own. The reasons were obvious, and now, with something interesting in his arms, his eyes sparkling as he came again. "Little Baozi~ Godfather's here~ Give me a kiss~" His puckered mouth was about to approach the baby's tender face when Shi Qi swiftly moved and avoided him, saying, "Young Master Ke, what's on your face?"
Ke Weiqing wiped his face and saw that his fingers were stained with a bit of rouge and with a mischievous smile, he approached Sho Qi, "Shi Qi, don't you know what this is? Come, let me tell you."
"No need." Shi Qi said before handing the baby to the wet nurse and went to the Shadow Guards Camp. With Luo Wenjing's death, Ying Ba naturally returned to the camp.
However, when he came in, he didn't find anyone. After waiting for a while, Ying Qi came out from a dark room around the corner. "Brother Qi."
"Why are you here?" Ying Qi smiled and hid the note he was holding in his sleeve.
"I take the baby to the wet nurse," Shi Qi whispered, "Where's Xiao Ba?"
"Dealing with something. Why do you look so guilty?" Ying Qi found Shi Qi's cautious behavior amusing.
Shi Qi looked uncomfortable as he explained in a low voice, "Brother Qi, I'm not a member of the Shadow Guards now, so I can't just come and go here easily to gather some information. But I still want to ask, is there any news about Yan Yunsheng's whereabouts?"
Although Xing Beiming only mentioned Yan Yunsheng briefly, he was involved in almost everything, even causing Xing Beiming's leg injury this time. Luo Wenjing is dead but Yan Yunsheng isn't and until he's dealt with, who knows what else he might do in the future.
Ying Qi shook his head, "This is also something that Master wants to know. As soon as we have any information, we'll notify Master immediately to decide how to deal with him. Don't worry, Yan Yunsheng is just one of Luo Wenjing's pawns and not capable of causing much trouble. Brother knows you want to avenge Master, but don't rush. The baby's full moon celebration is coming up, right? Aren't you going to prepare?"
The reason why they were hurrying back to the World's Supreme Fortress so fast is to celebrate the baby's full moon. "Then Brother Qi, please keep an eye out for me." Shi Qi's eyes pleaded and Ying Qi naturally understood what he meant, he patted his shoulder, "Go back now. Brother promises you."
After Shi Qi left, Ying Qi clenched the note in his hand, silently saying, "I'm sorry, Shi Qi but this is my only chance.”