الشطرنج الخالد - Book 04 Chapter 042

Everyone focused on the painting. No one listened to Purple Subtlety and Longevity’s conversation.

Xi Yan rushed ahead and looked at the painting.

Just as everyone else rushed over, Xi Yan glared furiously as he demanded, “What is this?”

Xi Yan did not see any map on the parchment, only an egg. That was right; there was only a painting of an egg.

Xi Yan could not make out what egg this was. However, as he looked at it, a vibrant lifeforce suddenly appeared in his body.

“Hey, that’s not right. Why do I feel something in my body as I look at this painting?” Xi Yan appeared confused.

Feeling surprised, Xi Yan took a second look.

Buzz!

A second wave of vibrant lifeforce appeared in his body.

“Scram!” The Bi-An King extended his hand and knocked Xi Yan away, immediately grabbing the painting.

An egg?

Why is there an egg? Isn’t it a treasure map?

“You bastard, what do you mean by this?” The Bi-An King tossed the painting to the ice mountain sealing Gu Hai.

Flap!

The parchment stuck to the ice mountain with its content facing everyone. Gu Hai and Fairy Waner were on the other side of the painting.

“What is the painting?” A trace of curiosity appeared on Gu Hai’s face.

“How would I know? Quickly think of a way to get out,” Fairy Waner said anxiously.

The instant the Bi-An King tossed out the painting, he suddenly noticed something off. Somehow, a vibrant lifeforce had appeared in his body.

“Something’s wrong. What’s happening to my body?” The Bi-An King’s expression changed.

“Something’s wrong. What’s going on? Why does my stomach hurt?” Xi Yan’s expression changed.

Xi Yan had looked twice earlier. Now, two clumps of vibrant lifeforce burgeoned in his body, apparently drawing forcibly on his energy to form something.

“Is something wrong with that painting?” Xi Yan’s expression changed. Then, he turned his head to check.

The surrounding one hundred thousand cultivators rushed over to take a look.

“Let me see!”

“You bastard! Don’t block me! Let me see!”

“How is this a treasure map?!”

“What nonsense treasure map? There is only an egg in this painting?!”

“Let me see! Let me see!”

The surrounding cultivators swarmed over. If there were people in front, the others would push them away.

“It’s over! What a sin!” Purple Subtlety said with an unsightly expression.

“So many people are looking? I don’t think there is enough lifeforce contained in my painting?” Longevity said with a frown.

“Lifeforce, my ass! Don’t say that you painted it!” Purple Subtlety said anxiously.

“Oh no! Ah! Argh! Hey! My stomach?” Xi Yan suddenly held his abdomen in horror.

Then, Xi Yan’s abdomen slowly enlarged.

“A transformation?” Gu Hai, who was sealed in the ice mountain, was startled.

“Argh! My stomach hurts!”

“Me too! Why is it suddenly hurting?”

“Ah! I’m feeling some pain too!”

Everyone who saw the painting held their abdomen.

“Argh! It hurts! Save me! What’s wrong with me?!”

“Ah! My stomach is getting larger! Why is this happening?”

“My stomach! No!”

The various cultivators held their abdomens in horror.

“Is it that painting?” Xi Yan turned his head to look at that painting.

With people constantly checking, the color of the painting seemed to fade as time went on, becoming increasingly indistinct.

With each look, the painting became fainter.

When Xi Yan took his fourth look, a fourth clump of lifeforce appeared after the first three clumps of lifeforce.

What’s going on? What’s happening with my stomach?

Is this an assassination?

“Oh no! Lord Qin, Mister Dongfang! It’s not good! Hurry! Save me!” Xi Yan staggered and quickly flew into the distance. As his abdomen grew larger, the horror on his face intensified.

“Ah! Save me! My stomach! My stomach!” The surrounding one hundred thousand cultivators held their abdomens as they slumped to the ground in horror.

A strange energy in their abdomen seemed to be drawing their energy to strengthen that lifeforce.

“It’s that painting? It’s that painting’s fault!” someone exclaimed.

Now, sweat covered the Bi-An King’s forehead. He sat cross-legged at a mountain summit, sending his consciousness into his body to investigate why this energy made his abdomen grow larger.

After his consciousness entered his body, he immediately checked the changes to his abdomen. He saw that an egg had appeared in his abdomen at some point in time.

This egg was connected to his internal organs, to every vital part of his body, apparently absorbing energy from various places to nourish itself.

Why is there an egg in my body?

Something’s wrong. The shape of this egg is the same as the one in the earlier painting. The painting?

What egg is this?

The Bi-An King used his consciousness to investigate the egg further.

Finally, he saw the insides of the egg.

The Bi-An King felt completely stupefied.

“How can it be like this? How can it be like this? What is this?!” the Bi-An King cried out in shock.

“My consciousness looked into that egg. That egg…egg…egg…ah!”

“No! No! How can it be like this?!”

The one hundred thousand cultivators held their abdomens in horror. All of them had investigated their bodies with their consciousness. When they saw the egg and looked inside, they saw something terrifying.

“That is not an egg. I painted an embryo, the origin of life,” Longevity whispered.

“There is an embryo in the egg?!”

“I-I-I’m pregnant?”

“I’m a man, alright?!”

The one hundred thousand cultivators around the ice mountain fell silent, their eyes dazed.

This situation also left Gu Hai and Fairy Waner at a loss.

“Why did these people all fall over? Why are their stomachs growing larger?” Fairy Waner said in confusion.

“I don’t know, either. They look shocked,” Gu Hai said in surprise.

Silence…

Silence…

Silence…

After ten breaths:

“No!”

“Argh!”

“No! Save me!”

“I don’t want to be pregnant! I don’t want to give birth!”

“Sect Master! Sob! Sob! Sob! I have not taken a wife yet. What am I to do now that I’m pregnant?”

“Clan Head! Sob! Sob! Sob! I keep begrudging my wife for not giving me a child. However, I don’t want to be the one giving birth! Clan Head! What should I do?”

“Father, you are going to have a grandson soon. Ah? I’m going to have a younger brother? No!”

Suddenly, miserable cries rose around the ice mountain.

One hundred thousand cultivators roared in despair. This was not just a physical injury but also mental torture. I’m pregnant?

Screw your grandfather! I’m pregnant?

“That painting! Where’s that painting?!” a pregnant cultivator suddenly cried out anxiously.

Everyone turned their head towards the painting. The lifeforce in that painting had vanished along with the painting of the egg.

“What a sin! Everyone who sees it gets pregnant!” Purple Subtlety said in despair.

“One hundred thousand people getting pregnant together. What a magnificent sight!” Longevity said excitedly.

“Are you stupid? Won’t they kill you since you got them all knocked up?” Purple Subtlety glared at Longevity.

“Pregnancy is a good thing,” Longevity insisted.

Purple Subtlety lowered his head, not daring to say anything. They were currently bound. They could only shuffle away slowly if they wanted to escape.

“Clan Head, my stomach is growing larger!”

“What is this embryo? It is connected to my dantian, five apertures, and more. If I destroy the embryo, I will destroy my dantian and five apertures along with it!”

“What should I do? Am I really going to give birth to it?”

The surrounding male cultivators showed terrified expressions.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

The group of large-bellied cultivators before the ice mountain continuously slapped themselves, hoping that this was a dream.

——

On the other side:

Xi Yan dragged along his increasingly larger abdomen while flying in Qin Zibai’s direction.

“Lord Qin, Mister Dongfang, save me! Save me!” When Xi Yan arrived, he landed abdomen first.

“Huh?!” Qin Zibai caught the falling Xi Yan.

“Xi Yan, who made your stomach so big?” Qin Zibai’s expression changed.

“Hurry! Save me! There’s something in my abdomen. Hurry! Hurry! Mister Dongfang!” Xi Yan said anxiously.

“Lie flat,” Mister Dongfang instructed.

Xi Yan immediately lay flat.

Mister Dongfang extended his hand to take Xi Yan’s pulse at Xi Yan’s right wrist. Then, he closed his eyes to investigate while frowning.

“Xi Yan, your abdomen is growing larger. Can you not feel it? Ah! It grew larger again?” Qin Zibai’s expression fluctuated.

“These four things are absorbing all the energy in my body. All my energy is being drained. What is happening to me? Mister Dongfang!” Xi Yan looked at Mister Dongfang anxiously.

Mister Dongfang took Xi Yan’s pulse for a while before suddenly opening his eyes.

“Mister Dongfang, what’s happening to Xi Yan?” Qin Zibai asked in amazement.

“Mister Dongfang, what is in my abdomen?” Xi Yan asked, feeling horrified.

After some silence, Mister Dongfang showed a strange expression.

“Go on. What is in my abdomen? Speak!” Xi Yan roared anxiously.

Mister Dongfang remained silent for a while longer before finally announcing, “Quadruplets.”

“Huh?” Qin Zibai was stunned, unable to comprehend immediately.

“What? Say that again?!” Xi Yan’s expression turned stiff.

Although Xi Yan had guessed it along the way, he still could not accept it when someone verified it.

“You are pregnant with quadruplets,” Mister Dongfang elaborated, feeling conflicted.

Qin Zibai’s mind spun, unable to catch up with the development. What is going on? Pregnant? Quadruplets? Quadruplets of what? Xi Yan is pregnant?

The three remained silent, digesting this strange fact.

After some time, Qin Zibai’s mind finally caught up. He gaped in shock as he looked at Xi Yan. “You…you…you are pregnant? Furthermore, with quadruplets?”

“No! No! I don’t want to be pregnant! Mister Dongfang, save me. I don’t want this! No!” Xi Yan roared in despair.

Xi Yan used to be an emperor ruling over a nation. Furthermore, he was a man. You say that I am pregnant? What are my former officials going to think of me?

Oh! His Majesty submitted to the Yuan Nation for a reason. It is because he is going home to give birth.

That scene was too bizarre. Xi Yan felt stupefied just thinking about it.