Swimming closer for a look, she realized it was a naked little baby!
Yun Li rubbed her eyes, making sure she wasn’t seeing things, and instantly felt unsettled.
If it weren’t for the gentle rise and fall of the baby’s chest as it breathed, she would have thought it was just a lifelike doll…
Good heavens, it was both terrifying and thrilling. Countless questions flooded her mind—how could there be someone else in this space besides her? And a baby at that, looking less than a year old, maybe eight or nine months.
It was a little girl with a round head and chubby cheeks, her skin fair and delicate. Her eyes were closed, her long lashes fan-like, her face rosy, and a faint smile lingered at the corners of her mouth. She looked just like a little fortune baby from a New Year painting, unbearably adorable.
"Mother, hurry and pick me up… hehe, I’ve finally waited for you!"
Suddenly, a voice echoed in her mind. Yun Li looked around in panic. "Who? Who’s speaking?"
"Mother, it’s me! The little cutie right in front of you!"
Yun Li was stunned once more, her eyes wide as she stared at the baby lying in the water.
"Was that you speaking? But your mouth didn’t move."
"Yes, Mother! Hurry and carry me out, and I’ll explain everything!"
With trembling hands, Yun Li lifted the little baby and surfaced from the water. The baby in her arms remained exactly as before, eyes tightly shut.
"Are you human or a ghost?"
Yun Li couldn’t help but ask.
"Mother, to be precise, you gave me new life. I am one with you! I am the artifact spirit of this space. I’ve waited for a thousand years, but it seems your ancestors only treated me as a family heirloom, passing me down through generations. Yet, no one could open or enter the space. Only someone with a bloodline connection to me could unlock it!
And I’ve finally waited for you, Mother! I never expected you to find me so quickly. As expected of my mother!"
Yun Li listened in confusion. How had she suddenly become a mother? Although the little girl in her arms was unbearably cute and she didn’t dislike her, becoming a mother out of the blue was something she hadn’t anticipated…
"Why are you calling me Mother?"
"Of course I call you Mother! I can’t wake up yet, but in ten months, I’ll be able to…"
"What do you mean? Explain clearly…"
"Because Mother is pregnant, that’s why you brought me into this world. Oh, and Mother, there’s another little baby in your belly—it’s my older brother! I’m the younger sister. Even though I look this big now, it’s because I sensed Mother’s health isn’t great and was worried my brother wouldn’t get enough nutrients to develop properly. So, I stayed in the Spiritual Spring Water to nourish myself.
I absorb the spiritual power of the Spiritual Spring Water quickly, so I grew fast and reached this size ahead of time. When Mother is about to give birth, I’ll return to your belly, and once you give birth to me, I’ll be able to open my eyes!"
After such a long explanation, Yun Li grasped the key point. "You said I’m pregnant? Why can’t I feel my pulse?"
As she spoke, Yun Li placed her right hand on the pulse of her left wrist. No signs of pregnancy…
"Mother, of course you can’t feel it yet. My brother has only been in your belly for a few days, about the size of a sesame seed. You’ll need to wait a bit longer to detect it through your pulse! My brother and I arrived together!"
At that moment, Yun Li’s heart felt as if a bottle of mixed flavors had been overturned—complex and overwhelming. After a long silence, she asked one more question.
"Then how did you two come to be?"
"Mommy is silly! Of course, it's you and Daddy who gave birth to us…"
Yun Li was stunned. She had been careless—it was that night with that man…
"You mean you're a child of my bloodline? Then why did you say earlier that you're the artifact spirit of the space?"
"Of course! Although I am an artifact spirit, I’ve never had a physical body. You could say it’s because Mommy and Daddy allowed me to be reborn in Mommy’s womb to become your child! So Mommy gave me life, and I carry the bloodline of both Mommy and Daddy! Just like my brother! But when I’m born from Mommy’s belly, I won’t remember anything about the space anymore. I’ll just be an ordinary child."
After this explanation, Yun Li finally understood, and the doubts in her heart vanished. She herself had died and been reborn, traveled through time… and now had a space…
Having a child now wasn’t something she couldn’t accept…
It just felt incredibly magical. Looking at the little baby in her arms, maternal love overflowed—this was her child, such a miraculous baby…
She couldn’t get enough of looking at the baby, holding the little one in her arms and cherishing every moment.
"Mommy, do you think I’m pretty? Am I the kind of baby you like?"
The little baby in her arms asked with a giggle.
So adorable, it melted Yun Li’s heart!
"Pretty! Absolutely adorable! Just like the baby I imagined!"
"Hehe~ That’s good! I was afraid I’d be ugly and Mommy wouldn’t like me."
"How could that be! No matter what you look like, you’ll always be Mommy’s treasure! By the way, baby, how do I take care of you? Should I put you back in the Spiritual Spring Water? Or feed you milk?"
"Mommy can just leave me in the space. I can’t go back into the Spiritual Spring Water anymore, or I’ll grow too big and make it hard for Mommy to give birth to me later! I don’t need milk right now either. The nourishment from the Spiritual Spring Water is enough to sustain me for a while. During this time, I’ll slowly shrink, and when my brother grows up, around nine months, I’ll return to Mommy’s belly!"
Yun Li’s ability to accept things was now incredibly strong. The baby in her arms was like a magical treasure, full of surprises and unexpected twists. Though some of the words still left her a bit confused, she couldn’t help but ask.
"How will you return to my belly?"
"I’ll revert to my artifact spirit form and 'whoosh' right into Mommy’s belly! How about that, Mommy? Surprised? Shocked? You have such a clever and amazing little treasure…"
The little one’s proud and narcissistic voice echoed in her mind. She could already imagine how lively, cheerful, and optimistic this little girl would be when she grew up…
"Alright, Mommy’s little treasure, one last question. You said earlier that after you’re born, you’ll forget everything about the space. Does that mean you won’t be able to talk to Mommy like this anymore?"
"Mhm, I won’t be able to communicate with Mommy like this anymore then!"
"Oh, okay!"
Learning this, Yun Li wasn’t disappointed at all. With such an adorable little treasure, she was overjoyed!
She then asked the baby about some things she didn’t understand regarding the space. From the little one, she learned that the space could preserve freshness—anything placed inside would remain exactly as it was when first put in, no matter how long it stayed. She also found out that she could bring other people into the space.
Having stayed by the river for so long, Yun Li finally realized she wasn’t wearing any clothes and hurriedly put on a set of dry clothes.
She dressed the little girl in a baby onesie.
"Mother is going out, how about I put you on the bed in the space?"
"Don't do that, Mother, take me out with you! I want to sleep with Mother! I want to kiss Mother… You can put me back in the space when it's inconvenient for you."