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Xuanyuan Tianyi's words were like an icicle, piercing through the solidified sorrow in the room and bringing an even more eerie silence.
Inducing labor?!
Everyone was stunned by her sudden, almost insane decision. The baby was less than eight months along, and inducing labor at this time was extremely dangerous, posing a huge challenge to both the mother and the child.
"No!" Zhao Zhen was the first to object. He pushed away Rong Wei's support, staggered forward two steps, his face full of regret and disapproval. "Tianyi! Calm down! The baby is not yet full-term. To induce labor at this time is like walking on a knife's edge! If Zhan Zhao were alive, he would never want to see you and the child in such danger!"
Looking into Xuan Yuan Tianyi's eyes, burning with a dark flame, he felt a profound sense of powerlessness. He had initially pushed for this marriage partly because he understood Zhan Zhao's intentions, but primarily because he knew Xuan Yuan Tianyi's capabilities and hoped she could become Zhan Zhao's strongest support in the treacherous court and martial world, protecting him. But he never imagined it would end this way, at such a high price!
“Tianyi, listen to my advice,” Zhao Zhen’s voice carried a hint of pleading. “Zhan Zhao is… is gone. You still have a child, the continuation of your bloodline, the most precious memory Zhan Zhao left in this world! You must take care of yourself and give birth to him safely! This is the best way to comfort Zhan Zhao. Defying fate is intolerable to Heaven. How will Zhan Zhao accept this when he wakes up?”
His words were earnest.
Xuanyuan Tianyi listened quietly, her face expressionless, until Zhao Zhen finished speaking. Only then did she slowly raise her eyes, her gaze so calm it was chilling.
“Zhen,” her voice was still hoarse, but it carried a resolute determination, “precisely because this is his bloodline, our child, I must do this.”
Her hand, which was stroking her abdomen, tightened slightly, as if she could feel the restless throbbing of the little life inside.
"The 'Return of the Star Soul' requires the bloodline of a close relative as a catalyst. This child is the continuation of his life and the only hope that can awaken his dormant vitality at this moment. If we wait until he is full-term, Zhan Zhao's body will already be cold and stiff. Even if I can bring his soul back from the underworld, he can only exist between heaven and earth like a walking corpse. That would be the real hopelessness."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over everyone before finally settling on Zhao Zhen's face, which was etched with pain: "As for safety... I know what I'm doing. Jiang Yuan is here; he won't let anything happen to me or the child."
Her tone was so calm, as if she were simply stating a given fact.
Zhao Zhen met her gaze and saw an unwavering resolve in her eyes—a conviction that transcended life and death, beyond reason. He understood her, just as she understood him. Some decisions, once made, cannot be changed. To defy fate—only Xuan Yuan Tianyi in this world could achieve that.
A profound sense of powerlessness overwhelmed Zhao Zhen once again. He slumped back a step, closed his eyes, and fell silent. He knew he couldn't stop her.
Seeing this, Bao Zheng and the others were also deeply saddened, but they had nothing to say. This was Xuan Yuan Tianyi's choice, a matter between him and his wife, and even Zhao Zhen could not dissuade him, let alone others.
Jiang Yuan gave Xuan Yuantian a deep look and saw determination in her eyes. He sighed softly and stopped trying to dissuade her. As a doctor and a friend, all he could do was to do everything in his power to protect everything she wanted to protect.
"Alright." Jiang Yuan's voice returned to its usual gentle and calm tone. "I need to make some preparations. Yin'er, go and boil some water immediately, and prepare clean cloths and scissors. Qingluan, go and fetch the medicine box. Everyone else, please leave the room and wait outside."
His instructions were clear and concise, carrying a reassuring power.
With tears in her eyes, Yin'er agreed and hurriedly ran off to prepare.
Zhao Zhen, Bao Zheng, and the others silently left the room and gently closed the door. Leng Moyan remained leaning against the doorframe, not leaving, simply giving the three people inside the room space.
The room was quickly prepared. Jiang Yuan had Xuan Yuantian lie down on the soft couch that had been prepared beforehand. He washed his hands and took out golden needles and several kinds of herbs with peculiar smells.
"The process will be a little painful, you'll have to bear with it," Jiang Yuan said gently, his fingertips already picking up a slender gold needle.
Xuanyuan Tianyi nodded calmly, but his gaze remained fixed on Zhan Zhao on the couch not far away, as if he could draw strength from him.
Without another word, Jiang Yuan moved with lightning speed, precisely inserting several golden needles into several acupoints around Xuan Yuan Tian's abdomen and lower back. At the same time, he mixed the ground herbs with a specially prepared medicinal liquid and had her take it.
The medicine and the stimulation from the acupuncture needles quickly took effect. Intense contractions surged like waves, far more rapid and painful than natural childbirth. Large beads of sweat instantly appeared on Xuan Yuan Tian Yi's forehead, her face grew even paler, and she bit her lip so hard that blood seeped from it, yet she didn't utter a single cry of pain.
She simply gripped the mattress beneath her tightly, her knuckles turning white from the effort, her gaze never leaving Zhan Zhao.
Time passed slowly amidst extreme pain and torment. Yin'er stood by, constantly wiping away her sweat, her eyes red and swollen.
Jiang Yuan was completely focused, constantly monitoring her pulse and fetal position, and adjusting the gold needles from time to time to guide the medicinal effects.
Leng Moyan stood outside the door, able to clearly hear the suppressed breathing and the occasional muffled groans that were being desperately held back. He leaned against the doorframe, looking up at the dark night sky, his eyes filled with heaviness.
About an hour later, just as Xuanyuan Tianyi was almost exhausted and his consciousness began to fade—
A faint yet exceptionally clear cry from a newborn baby suddenly pierced the tense silence in the room!
"It's born! It's born! It's a little boy!" came Yin'er's joyful cry, choked with tears.
Jiang Yuan quickly and skillfully cut the umbilical cord, cleaned the red and wrinkled baby, and wrapped it in soft swaddling clothes.
Although the child was less than a month old and a little small, his cries were very strong, as if announcing his arrival to the world.
Jiang Yuan brought the child to Xuan Yuan Tianyi.
Xuanyuan Tianyi weakly opened his eyes and looked at the tiny child in the swaddling clothes, whose features were vaguely recognizable as Zhan Zhao's. Finally, a faint, maternal light appeared in his eyes.
She reached out her trembling hand and gently touched the child's warm cheek. Then, she lowered her head and placed a tender, blood-and-tears kiss on the child's smooth forehead.
"Nianchen..." she whispered the name she had already chosen, her voice as soft as a sigh.
Immediately, the soft light in her eyes vanished, replaced by a deeper, more resolute calm. She looked at Yin'er, her voice weak:
“Take the child out and let Mo Yan help me set up the formation.”
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