Chapter 451 - 449: A Daughter is Born
"The Exalted One, my Lady."
As he spoke, the elder at the head of the group came forward to greet them. He stopped a short distance from Celeste Grant, his gaze falling on her stomach.
"Wonderful! The Exalted One finally has an heir."
"You look quite far along. You must be due soon, right? This must be difficult for you, my Lady."
Celeste Grant glanced at him.
This elder had a rather distinctive sense of style.
A green bamboo hairpin the length of a chopstick was stuck in his hair, and a long, thick braid hung down one side of his chest. The elder also leaned on a long, slender bamboo pole. A single glance revealed that the pole was a refined Magic Treasure; from its aura, it had to be an Immortal Treasure.
"Soon," she said with a faint smile. "Just a little while longer."
Seeing them, Javier Sinclair began to introduce them to Celeste Grant. "This is the First Elder, Leo Forrest. Beside him are the Third Elder, Silas Reed, and the Fourth Elder, Poppy Fletcher. Behind them are the Fifth Elder, Tate, and the Seventh Elder, Arthur Sawyer."
As Javier Sinclair made the introductions, Celeste Grant’s gaze swept over each of the elders in turn. The Third and Fourth Elders were female cultivators; the rest were male.
After Javier Sinclair finished, Celeste Grant spoke up to greet them. "It’s a pleasure to meet you, elders. My name is Celeste Grant, and I am the wife of your Exalted One. As I’ve just arrived in the Demonic Domain and am unfamiliar with things here, I hope I can rely on your guidance in the future."
’This woman shows no trace of fear in our presence. Excellent, truly excellent. As expected of the woman our Exalted One chose. This is how the matriarch of our Demonic Domain should be. If she were timid and afraid just from meeting us, how could she ever command respect in the future?’
The elders looked utterly flattered, bowing slightly in return.
"You’re too kind, my Lady."
"Indeed. It would be our honor to be of service. It could never be a bother."
"From now on, if you need anything, my Lady, just say the word. We guarantee we’ll handle it for you perfectly."
"Thank you."
Javier Sinclair: "..."
’Why have these elders never been this enthusiastic with me? It seems my status in this family is only going to drop lower and lower.’
Before he could say a word, the Fourth Elder stepped forward and took Celeste Grant’s arm. "You must be tired, my Lady. Allow me to show you to your quarters to rest."
And just like that, his wife was led away.
Javier Sinclair stood where he was and chuckled softly.
"This scene is so damn familiar."
He thought of Nerida.
’Nerida is still in the Lower Realm; I wonder when she’ll be able to ascend. When our daughter is born, I’ll need Nerida to help raise her. She’s very experienced with children—I can certainly vouch for that.’
At this thought, he spoke up. "One more thing. Have the disciples of the Demonic Domain keep an eye on the ascension channels connecting the Lower Realm to the Immortal and Demonic Realms. If a female cultivator named Nerida appears, bring her back here."
He meant it as a simple instruction: bring her back. However, the elders standing opposite Javier Sinclair did not see it that way. They were already imagining a bloody drama of hunting someone down to the last.
Killing intent flared from their bodies, and a vicious light gleamed in their eyes. One of the elders let out a sinister cackle, licking a wicked-looking weapon that had just materialized in his hand.
"Who does the Exalted One want us to kill?"
’Normally, the Exalted One wouldn’t bother with anyone specific. Since he named her, she must be someone who has to die.’
"Should we break her arms and legs before we bring her back?"
Javier Sinclair: "..."
’Do I really seem that cruel and bloodthirsty?’
Javier Sinclair waved his hand dismissively and said in a low voice, "Nerida is one of us. If she loses her arms and legs, your Lady will be the first one to have my head."
Hearing this, the killing intent radiating from them vanished instantly.
"Oh, so she’s one of us!"
He gave them a look.
"I’m leaving."
He offered no further explanation.
His figure vanished from before them.
A palace was nestled on the mountaintop, complete with winding corridors and ornate, jade-like architecture. Within its courtyards were pavilions, terraces, small bridges over flowing streams, and surrounding protective Arrays. This was Javier Sinclair’s residence, and it even housed Teleportation Arrays leading to various locations.
Celeste Grant was familiarizing herself with her new surroundings, wandering all around the palace. After a while, she walked out of the spacious bedchamber and onto a terrace.
The sun was now setting.
The afterglow of the sunset bathed the area in a golden light. She glanced at the terrace floor; the wooden planks paving it were all made from thousand-year-old Spirit Wood. Walking barefoot on it, she could feel a stream of Spiritual Energy slowly entering her body, warm and comfortable.
She walked to the edge of the terrace and rested her hands on the railing, which was covered in green vines. From this vantage point, she could see all of Ashkaron.
"The view is beautiful."
She took out her phone and found the perfect angle.
Snap, snap, then a few selfies.
"Perfect."
A figure appeared beside her.
Even without looking, Celeste Grant knew it was Javier Sinclair. He took a step forward, wrapping his arms around her from behind and resting his head gently on her shoulder. "Do you like it here, my dear?"
"I do," Celeste Grant nodded slightly. "Yes, this place is wonderful."
He chuckled softly. "I’m glad you like it, Celeste. I was worried you wouldn’t be able to get used to it."
At his words, Celeste Grant smiled. She turned and wrapped her arms around his waist. "How could I not? We’re Taoist Companions. Wherever you are is our home. As long as it’s our own home, it doesn’t matter where it is."
The evening glow washed over the two of them.
The saying, "The most romantic thing is to watch the sunset with you," was indeed quite romantic.
She handed him the phone. "Here, let’s take a couple."
He hummed in agreement.
He took pictures of the two of them from different angles.
Celeste Grant said, "My phone from the Cultivation World doesn’t really work here. I can only take pictures. None of the other functions will open. I can’t even scroll through videos."
Because this world lacked that complete Array System, the phone was useless here. Not only that, but the Cultivators here didn’t even know what a phone was.
Thinking of this, she said under her breath, "A new world means starting everything all over again." As she said this, she placed a hand on her hip.
"I kind of miss Elder Lawson and the others."
’I could try to redevelop it myself, but progress would be too slow; I’m not a professional. It was only possible in the Lower Realm because Elder Lawson and his team were so brilliant. When it comes to R&D, you really need them. If they ascended and came here, we wouldn’t have to start from scratch. We could just launch the project directly.’
"Elder Warren, Elder Lawson, please hurry up and get here."
’The chosen ones, the ultimate workhorses.’
「Meanwhile, in the Lower Realm.」
Elder Lawson, who was in meditative Cultivation, suddenly sneezed.
"Who’s talking about me?"
He had a feeling.
"It must be the Lady talking about me."
"Cultivate! I must cultivate harder!"
"The Exalted One, my Lady, wait for me!"
’A workhorse that doesn’t work hard is not a good workhorse.’
’Pah! Why am I even having thoughts like this...?’
After arriving in the Demonic Domain, Celeste Grant’s days consisted of daily meditative Cultivation and wandering around Ashkaron. Heavily pregnant, she couldn’t do much else. For now, her main focus was to have a healthy pregnancy and give birth safely.