Outside in the courtyard, a crowd of children craned their necks and whispered excitedly. Mo Que'er was pushed forward unwillingly, surrounded on all sides. The children were dying to ride the flying transport spirit ship and see the sky for themselves. Everyone knew Mo Xuan doted on Que'er, so they unanimously chose her as their spokesperson.
Reluctantly, Que'er was shoved into the hall.
The children peered in from the doorway, whispering urgently: "Que'er-jie, hurry! Just act cute! What's the big deal?"
Que'er bit her lip lightly, walked up to Mo Xuan, and stood there silently.
The children at the doorway nearly collapsed in despair.
Mo Xuan smiled and gently patted Que'er's head. Since he had nothing pressing to attend to, he took her small hand and walked toward the threshing ground.
The children blinked—then erupted in cheers.
"Yes! We're going to fly!""We're riding the flying ship!"
The Threshing Ground
The crowd was ten layers deep. Even villagers from far away had come to see the legendary flying vessel. It was livelier than market day.
Mo Xuan squeezed through the parted crowd and reached the transport spirit ship. Entry wasn't simple—there was no door. Access was via teleportation arrays located twenty meters above ground on both sides.
Taking children up one by one would be too troublesome.
Mo Xuan took out a piece of spirit paper slightly larger than A4, folded it into a small boat, breathed immortal energy onto it, and tossed it gently to the ground.
The tiny boat instantly expanded into a massive vessel over twenty meters long.
Gasps rose from adults and children alike.
"Children, get on," Mo Xuan instructed.
The kids scrambled aboard. Even older teens shamelessly climbed up. Adults could only watch enviously. Some visiting parents shoved their own children forward to squeeze in.
The boat was slightly overloaded.
"Sit tight. Don't move," Mo Xuan snapped his fingers.
The boat lifted into the air.
Children screamed and clutched at everything around them.
Mo Xuan scooped Que'er into his arms and flew alongside, guiding the enlarged teleportation array so the entire boat passed through.
They landed inside the ship.
The children looked around.
"This is it?""It's so small!"
Mo Xuan activated the vessel. "You may move around now."
With a casual gesture, the interior expanded to over one thousand square meters.
The children gasped in awe and ran everywhere.
"Immortal Grandpa! When are we going up into the sky?" a runny-nosed boy asked.
"We're already in the sky," Mo Xuan replied.
The hull turned translucent.
Clouds drifted around them. White cranes glided by.
Then they looked down—
Screams.
Several children burst into tears. Some even wet themselves.
Mo Xuan hesitated—but soon the braver children began rolling and laughing. Gradually, the others stopped crying, stood up carefully, and began inching around.
"It's so fun!"
"Will we fall?" one child shouted near the edge.
"You'll hit the wall first," Mo Xuan chuckled.
The boy promptly ran into the invisible barrier and bounced backward.
Laughter filled the air.
Little Eight Appears
"Master, I'm hungry," Xiao Ba complained.
Mo Xuan blinked. He had converted all the meteor cores into points—forgot to save food for the glutton. Xiao Ba had grown from palm-sized to doll-sized after devouring countless cores.
"Bear with it. I'll find something later. Go play with the kids."
He released Xiao Ba from the beast pouch.
"What kind of spirit beast is this?""So cute!""So soft!"
Xiao Ba was immediately surrounded.
Meanwhile—
Que'er froze.
Her eyes locked onto Xiao Ba's forehead.
That olive-shaped vertical eye.
Her face turned deathly pale.
"Demon Devourer Beast!"
Mo Xuan turned. "What?"
Que'er trembled violently, drenched in cold sweat.
"Kill it! Kill it now! It's a Demon Devourer Beast!"
Children nearby stared in shock.
Xiao Ba puffed up defensively, sensing hostility.
"What is a Demon Devourer Beast?" Mo Xuan asked calmly.
"It's the most terrifying monster in the universe! When it matures, it devours suns, moons, stars—everything! My world was destroyed by one! My mother was devoured!"
Mo Xuan blinked.
Reincarnated?
Que'er realized she had said too much.
Mo Xuan's thoughts raced. The empty void beyond… could it be consumed?
He stared at Xiao Ba's eye.
"If it were truly that powerful," he murmured, "I wouldn't still be alive."
Xiao Ba now lay lazily while children climbed all over it.
Mo Xuan smiled faintly.
"Even if it is what you say… a creature that plays gently with children can't be wholly evil."
Que'er stared in disbelief.
The Question
Mo Xuan looked at the sky.
"Que'er, have you heard of Earth?"
She shook her head blankly.
He pointed downward.
"What do you see?"
She gazed at the flourishing fields and mountains.
"A thriving, beautiful world."
"Answer again."
He lowered the ship.
Children shouted excitedly.
"That's my house!""There's mine!"
Que'er's face went pale.
She understood.
This world wasn't abstract.
It was home.
Mo Xuan gently patted her head.
She flinched, expecting soul-searching or death.
Nothing happened.
The ship descended peacefully.
Aftermath
The children reluctantly left at noon.
Later, Mo Shi proposed holding an ancestral ceremony. Mo Xuan agreed and chose an auspicious date five days later.
Married daughters returned home. The Mo family estate filled with laughter.
Mo Xuan distributed more gifts—though more modestly this time.
Finally—
The day of ancestor worship arrived.