63: Chapter 63 Xiaoxiao's Birthday Celebration

Time flew by in a flash, and Hun Muxiao was now six years old.

The sky of the Soul Realm remained its usual unchanging shade of gray, but the East Courtyard was exceptionally lively today.

Yao Yao had been directing Hun Qian to decorate the courtyard since early morning, draping red silk from the pillars to the branches of the Dark-Leaf Osmanthus. A long table was set up beside the stone table, laden with various snacks and a large two-tiered cake.

The cake was made by Yao Yao herself; the cream was spread unevenly, and a small piece of the edge had collapsed, but the words "Mu Xiao's Birthday" were scrawled in jam, clearly in her handwriting.

Hun Muxiao was wearing a brand-new little red dress today, which Lin Qingwan had spent nearly half a month stitching together, one needle and one thread at a time. A circle of dark orchids was embroidered along the hem, appearing as if the petals were fluttering in the wind when she ran.

Her braided pigtails were tied with four ribbons of different colors—gold from Gu Xun'er, purple from Medusa, silver-white from Xiao Yi Xian, and red from Yao Yao.

The four ribbons swayed back and forth on her braids, making her look like a colorful butterfly as she ran wildly around the courtyard.

"Daddy!"

Hun Muxiao dove into the arms of Hun Feng, who had just come out of the study, nearly knocking him back through the door.

The six-year-old girl had grown quite a bit, and her strength had also increased; this collision made Hun Feng grunt.

He bent down to pick her up and planted a firm kiss on her cheek: "Happy birthday, little ancestor."

"Daddy, look! Aunt Yaoyao made this cake for me! She said she whisked the cream until midnight to get it right!"

Hun Muxiao pointed at the lopsided two-tiered cake on the stone table, her face full of pride.

Yao Yao stood nearby, arms crossed, and huffed: "That's right, my arms were nearly ruined last night because of this thing. Your father, on the other hand, slept like a dead pig and didn't even send me a helper."

Hun Feng guiltily averted his gaze. Medusa walked out of the room carrying a pot of freshly brewed tea, her tone calm as she helped him out of the situation: "You were whisking cream in the kitchen in the middle of the night; did you expect him to go help you eat it?"

Everyone at the table laughed.

Over the past year or so, life in the East Courtyard had been simple and steady.

Hun Feng spent a great deal of time on companionship, spending his time outside of daily cultivation with the four women and Hun Muxiao. As time passed, their mutual understanding and familiarity gradually deepened.

Medusa remained the backbone of the East Courtyard, Yao Yao was still the one to liven up the atmosphere, Xiao Yi Xian was quiet but no longer shut herself in her room, and Gu Xun'er was slowly integrating into this home—the four of them had gone from initial polite distance to now being able to sit at the same table to eat, chat, and play wildly with Hun Muxiao. Hun Feng saw this, and the ledger in his heart was finally balanced.

Medusa's gift was a tiny nine-colored snake scale, shed from her own body, which she had sealed inside a transparent Soul Crystal using the Soul Clan's artifact refinement techniques.

Hun Muxiao took it and held it up to the light; the scale shimmered with nine-colored halos within the Soul Crystal, as beautiful as a miniature rainbow.

Medusa put the necklace on her daughter, her movements very gentle. She said nothing extra, but her fingertips paused for a moment on the side of Hun Muxiao's neck, as if confirming that the length of the necklace was just right.

Xiao Yi Xian's gift was a hand-woven safety cord. The light purple silk thread was twisted by her own hands, and the weaving method, while not complex, was exceptionally neat.

Hun Muxiao took it and slipped it onto her wrist; the size was just right.

Seeing her turning the safety cord over and over to examine it, Xiao Yi Xian softly said, "It's for protection, don't lose it."

Hun Muxiao nodded vigorously and then pounced on her, hugging her waist. Xiao Yi Xian was slightly startled by the pounce, then immediately raised her hand to gently pat the back of Hun Muxiao's head.

Over the past year or so, she was no longer the guarded purple-robed Heaven Poison Girl of the past. In the East Courtyard, she was just an ordinary wife, occasionally teased by Yao Yao, occasionally bickering with Medusa, but more often than not, she was quiet and gentle, as if the medical girl from Qingshan Town had returned a little, only having shed her initial naivety and gained the composure settled by time.

Gu Xun'er's gift was the last one to be presented.

She hadn't prepared anything expensive, simply placing a very thin jade slip gently into Hun Muxiao's palm.

The jade slip contained a soul projection—it was the four characters "Peace and Joy" written by Gu Xun'er in the void using the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame. Each stroke burned with a faint golden flame, and when the last character was finished, the flames condensed into a tiny golden butterfly that paused for a moment on the tip of Hun Muxiao's nose before dissipating.

Hun Muxiao watched, dumbfounded, and it took a while before she snapped out of it, grabbing Gu Xun'er's sleeve and clamoring to learn it.

"When you're a little older, Auntie will teach you."

Gu Xun'er bent down and reached out to gently flick the tip of Hun Muxiao's nose.

Hun Feng stood by, watching this scene, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

Over the past year or so, the relationship between him and Gu Xun'er had undergone a subtle change—not a rapid leap forward, but a gradual loosening.

At first, she simply stopped avoiding his gaze, then she began to take the initiative to talk to him, with topics slowly extending from daily trifles to cultivation insights, the situation on the continent, and even occasionally chatting about interesting things from her childhood in the Ancient World.

He discovered that she was actually an extremely intelligent woman, with her own insights on problems, speaking neither too fast nor too slow, but with every word perfectly placed.

She would also smile—not that polite, courteous, faint smile from before, but the kind where her eyebrows curved when she was truly amused by him. Although it was rare, he remembered every single time clearly.

Their relationship now was more like that of mutually respectful friends, maintaining a delicate balance, with neither rushing to take a step forward.

Hun Feng was not in a hurry; he knew Gu Xun'er was different from the other three—Medusa had slowly fallen for him after being snatched back, Yao Yao had decided on him since childhood, and Xiao Yi Xian had been pulled from despair by him.

But Gu Xun'er had walked into this courtyard on her own, carrying her reluctance to let go of Xiao Yan and her responsibility to the Ancient Clan, but lacking any love for him.

A woman like this could not be rushed.

The gifts had been given, the cake had been cut, and Hun Muxiao was dragged away by Yao Yao to open other gifts before the cream on her face had even been wiped clean.

Hun Feng leaned against the pillar, watching the commotion in the courtyard, his gaze sweeping over his four wives one by one.

Yao Yao was squatting next to Hun Muxiao, helping her open a wooden box, with a piece of cake in her mouth, her cheeks bulging.

Medusa sat on the stone bench holding tea, occasionally lowering her head to say something to Xiao Yi Xian in her arms. Xiao Yi Xian tilted her head slightly to listen, still holding the unfinished safety cord in her hands—she had also woven one for Yao Yao, a red one, saying it was to ward off evil.

Gu Xun'er stood by the stone table, helping Hun Qian clear the plates left over from cutting the cake, her movements as natural as if she were a part of this family.

Hun Qian walked in hurriedly from outside the courtyard, holding a small sandalwood box carved with dark orchid patterns, with the long-extinct family crest of the Lin family engraved on the lid.

That was the gift Lin Qingwan had prepared for her granddaughter—a Cold Jade Amulet, almost identical to the one she had given Hun Feng back then, only a size smaller, just right for Hun Muxiao to wear.

Hun Muxiao took it, hung it carefully around her neck, and then turned and ran out of the courtyard, saying she was going to thank her grandmother in person.

Twilight deepened, and the plate of honey cakes on the stone table had been replaced for the third time.

Yao Yao lay on the table, using her fingers to dab some cream and launch a sneak attack on Gu Xun'er. Gu Xun'er tilted her head to dodge, and the cream smeared on her earlobe. She picked up her teacup, pretending to splash it back, while Yao Yao raised her hands, begging for mercy repeatedly.

Medusa and Xiao Yi Xian watched this scene from across the table, each holding a teacup, different expressions on their faces but both curling their lips at the same time.

When Hun Muxiao ran back from her grandmother's place, she had a small bag of freshly made candies in her hand, stuffing them into her mouth as she ran, candy crumbs falling all along the way.

Hun Feng leaned against the pillar, looking at everyone in the courtyard, unable to suppress the curve of his lips.

Three years had passed; from the Young Master of the Soul Clan to Hun Muxiao's daddy, from a madman whose head was only filled with Heavenly Flames and the path to Emperor, he had become the husband who would accompany his daughter for her birthday.

He suddenly remembered a sentence he had seen on the internet in his past life—life is lived, not thought out.

Now, he finally understood.