Taichu awoke from her deep slumber, feeling as though she had just emerged from an incredibly long dream. In her dazed and confused state, she finally gained a faint understanding of the world.
The Heavenly Dao at this moment: I'm alive!
That was so close, so dangerous—my little one almost vanished!!
Though unclear, she vaguely sensed someone chattering away about something. She first raised her head and carefully examined the two figures before her. One was an unfamiliar old man who looked every bit the grandfatherly type. Taichu didn't like him much; she thought he wasn't particularly good-looking. Then she turned and saw Tong Tian, whose grace and beauty resembled that of an immortal jade tree.
Dressed in green robes, he was indescribably handsome. Without hesitation, Taichu stretched out her hand and called out firmly, "Daddy, hold me!"
Tong Tian: …
Demon beast: …
Laozi: ?
Though he very much wanted to ask what "daddy" meant, Laozi instantly sensed it must be something similar to "father." He watched as his younger brother and the child stared at each other in silence.
At this moment, Laozi was also: …
He had no idea where this child had come from, and her words seemed rather peculiar. Out of caution, Laozi earnestly inquired, "Little friend, could you tell us your origins?"
Taichu couldn't understand what Laozi was asking at all, and she really didn't like the old man. Though he appeared quite amiable, he wasn't as handsome as her daddy!
He wasn't as handsome as her daddy!
Taichu sprang up and scurried to Tong Tian's side, wrapping her arms around his leg before immediately eyeing Laozi warily.
Laozi: …
Seeing this, the demon beast couldn't help but remark, "She really seems to like Lord Tong Tian."
Tong Tian silently observed everything. After a long while, he finally reached out and picked up the child before him. His slender hands were as smooth as jade. Once lifted, the child seemed much more spirited—whether due to Laozi's earlier healing or something else, her large eyes and round, chubby face now appeared even more endearing than before.
"Daddy!"
Taichu called out.
Tong Tian fell silent for a moment.
Taichu tilted her head and couldn't resist calling again, "Daddy!"
Laozi still intended to advise Tong Tian. "This child…" After all, she had a Karmic Connection with him, and she didn't seem to be practicing Cultivation. Something about her felt rather strange. For safety's sake, he didn't recommend Tong Tian spend too much time with her.
Moreover, even he couldn't deduce this child's origins.
"Perhaps we should inform Yuanshi about this…"
At this, Tong Tian slightly furrowed his brows. Holding the child, he said, "No need."
Laozi was taken aback. In that moment, he truly sensed something different about Tong Tian. In the past, though Yuanshi often lectured Tong Tian, the latter had never been overly resistant—mainly because Yuanshi always acted out of concern for him. His younger brother had always been willing to discuss matters with the two of them. Now, however, Tong Tian seemed to have formed his own opinions.
"Very well, if you have your own thoughts on the matter, it's fine."
Though it remained puzzling, as long as he was by Tong Tian's side, there shouldn't be any major deviations.
Yes, as long as he was by this child's side…
As soon as Laozi reached out his hand, Taichu pouted. As a self-proclaimed lover of beauty, she really wasn’t fond of grandpas…
Laozi: …
Though he didn’t know why, he could sense that the child before him was rejecting him. Taichu, still sticking her bottom out, decided to cling to her father a bit more—mainly because her father was just too good-looking.
Tong Tian silently glanced at Laozi. Though he didn’t understand why, he felt a strange sense of satisfaction. He reached out and patted the child’s back before falling quiet.
Laozi watched Tong Tian holding the child with a hint of smugness and couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile. It seemed he had overthought things—Tong Tian was still the same person whose emotions were written all over his face.
There was no need to worry too much about what had happened to him recently. However, seeing Tong Tian holding the child, Laozi couldn’t resist adding a jab, “Though the child seems fine for now, her origins remain unclear. Who knows if something like what just happened might occur again in the future?”
He glanced at the pair and noticed Tong Tian’s lips drooping slightly, his entire demeanor turning less cheerful. Meanwhile, the child in his arms happily wrapped her arms around Tong Tian’s neck, looking carefree as she stared at Laozi.
Laozi: …
In that moment, he suddenly had a strange premonition—that after the heavy responsibility of raising his younger brother, he now had to care for one more person.
Tong Tian, of course, knew what Laozi was wondering about. At this time, the Human Race had yet to be born, so Laozi naturally felt puzzled, suspicious, and wary of Taichu, whose identity remained unclear. However, Tong Tian had no intention of revealing Taichu’s true identity and origins to Laozi, as doing so would raise questions about how he knew such things.
He turned his head and carefully examined the seemingly harmless child before him. Taichu couldn’t help but flash him a big, bright smile.
“I have my own judgment in this matter.”
By now, Taichu had grown bored and started playing with Tong Tian’s hair ribbon. Tong Tian, whose hair was being tugged by the child, was momentarily speechless. In truth, Taichu was more interested in the glittering golden hair crown on Tong Tian’s head and had already begun reaching for it.
Tong Tian instinctively reached out to stop the child, but she immediately burst into giggles.
Laozi couldn’t quite make sense of the situation either. He also glanced at the little girl and tried reaching out to her, only for the child to immediately turn her back to him.
No way—only the good-looking ones.
Taichu had principles about this.
A strange sense of pride made Tong Tian’s lips curl into a faint smile.
Compared to before, Taichu now felt as though she understood a lot more. After patting her stomach, she immediately said to Tong Tian, “Daddy, hungry.”
Tong Tian: His smile vanished in an instant.
Heavenly Dao: Ahhh, I told you it was hunger! No one believed me! You really treated it as overeating!
Noticing the silence from the person before her, Taichu patted her stomach again and loudly declared, “Daddy, hungry!”
“Hungry, want food.”
Tong Tian’s smile was almost completely gone. He now felt the fear of being controlled by a child, his mind racing with thoughts: Why is she hungry again? What should I feed her? Wait, what can she even eat?
Though he really didn't want to admit it, he couldn't help but glance at Laozi.
At this moment, Laozi was also: …
I couldn't even figure out what she actually is, how could I possibly know what she eats?
The two future Heaven-appointed Sages of the Primordial World had never felt so troubled before.
The demon beast, however, felt that the little girl before them was indeed much easier to communicate with than before. Sensing Tong Tian's dilemma, he proactively raised his hand, "Why don't you ask her, masters?"
Upon hearing this, Tong Tian couldn't help but give an approving look. Although this guy was completely clueless about taking care of children, he didn't seem entirely useless.
Taichu, who was asked what she wanted to eat, immediately raised her hand again, "McDonald's."
"McSpicy Chicken Burger!"
Tong Tian: …
Laozi: …
Demon beast: … Ah, why did I have to open my mouth? I should've just kept quiet.)
Laozi was truly troubled. He now felt that his conversation with the child was completely on different wavelengths. Not only could he not deduce her identity, but he had also never even heard of what she wanted to eat. The origins of this child were truly a mystery.
It was just too intriguing.
Meanwhile, Tong Tian began to zone out. He had sensed that she came from the future, but as a Sect Leader confined Beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens, he had to admit that he didn't know what McDonald's was either.
At this moment, the Heavenly Dao, seeing Laozi's cautious expression, wished it could burst into tears on the spot. It had truly intended to bring a diligent and capable person to become Tongtian Jiaozhu's disciple. Originally, Tongtian Jiaozhu was supposed to have an outstanding and wise eldest disciple, but now he had ended up with a daughter with the intelligence of a three-year-old.
Heavenly Dao: I really want to die right now.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, Taichu couldn't help but reach out and tug on Tong Tian's hair again. The future Sage didn't find the tug particularly painful, but he still couldn't help turning to look at her. The child seemed to find it amusing and giggled as she gave another tug.
Tong Tian stared at the child before him for a long time.
Their staring contest was broken by Taichu's continued declaration, "Daddy, eat!"
Her dad: This is truly painful…
Taichu didn't understand why, after calling out for so long, there was still no food. She figured it must be because Daddy didn't have any either. After some thought, she decided to be considerate of her father. Even though she was really hungry, she patted Tong Tian's shoulder and said, "It's okay if there isn't any."
Tong Tian: …
Laozi: …
Demon beast: Uh…
At this moment, Tong Tian had only one thought in his mind: As a future Heaven-appointed Sage, forget about the whole Investiture of the Gods mess—could he not even manage to get this child something to eat?
How could that be?!
It shouldn't be this way!
Heavenly Dao: … Watching as he silently placed his hand on the Zhu Xian Sword.
Just as Tong Tian was thinking about whether he should go find Nüwa instead, planning to drag her out right now and already contemplating which mountain sect in the Primordial World to search for her, they suddenly noticed a book falling before them. On it was written, "Three-Year-Old Childcare Handbook."
At this moment, Tong Tian and Laozi should have been suspicious about why such a thing had fallen, wondering what conspiracy was at play. But now, they both couldn't help but let out a long, collective sigh of relief.
Never mind how this thing got here for now—solving her food problem was more important.
The two of them quickly flipped through the book, precisely locating the page on foods suitable for three-year-old toddlers…
At this moment, Tong Tian raised an eyebrow.
【Hello, new parents! For the healthy growth of your child, please avoid feeding them heavily oily and salty foods like takeout. Children are still in a crucial stage of growth and development. Please prepare a nutritious and loving meal for them with your care.
Starting today, let’s cook together! (Image + TikTok video + Shopping link)】
The two future Sages: …
Huh?
Author’s Note:
[Fist salute] Even Sages have to start learning how to cook today.