Your Daughter

Mu En's grand promises were out of reach; for now, he could only settle for simple meals.

He and Huo Yuhao walked side-by-side into the cafeteria, scanning the area before concluding they could only afford the cheapest options.

Huo Yuhao was fine with it, but Ji Siyuan found it difficult to swallow, having previously been accustomed to meals prepared by Rong Nianbing.

There was already a massive gap in culinary skill, and now, there was an equally vast disparity in the quality of ingredients.

"I'm suddenly tempted to open a restaurant," Ji Siyuan remarked, comparing the fare; the cooks preparing these meals couldn't even match his own culinary standards.

"That sounds great, Siyuan. I can come help out when the time comes," Huo Yuhao blinked. He might not be as good as Ji Siyuan, but he was certainly better than the others.

Tang San felt helpless; could one really blame the children for wasting time?

No, it only meant that they, the elders, had failed to do their part.

They were forcing the children to go out and earn money themselves.

The two discussed it for a while and decided on what they would make.

Staple foods were out of the question since the school already provided them, so they would have to stick to snacks.

They also had to be simple to prepare.

Ji Siyuan added, intentionally or otherwise, "It's a pity my Martial Soul is fire-based rather than ice-based. Otherwise, I could sell iced drinks. I'm quite skilled at making beverages, too."

Although he hadn't formally learned his father's bartending techniques, he still knew a thing or two.

He couldn't make top-tier cocktails, but he could certainly whip up some decent drinks.

Huo Yuhao kept his head down, eating his meal in silence.

Because his second Martial Soul was ice-based.

And so, the two decided that their primary business would be selling barbecue.

This was their specialty.

However, something like this certainly wouldn't make much money.

He had read the books; if you wanted to make it big, you had to get into Soul Fighting.

Selling barbecue was purely to scrape together some starting capital.

Otherwise, they wouldn't even be able to enter the Soul Fighting arena. It cost 10 Gold Soul Coins, and the two of them were truly short on funds.

He began to calculate in his heart who would be the best target to fleece.

Some well-known wealthy marks were good candidates.

Unfortunately, those wealthy marks were usually quite strong, and he wasn't certain he could pull it off.

Huo Yuhao: "Siyuan, I'm finished. Shall we go?"

Ji Siyuan had finished long ago and had just been waiting for Huo Yuhao.

The two tidied up and prepared to leave.

A young girl with long, powder-blue hair passed by their table.

Looking at the girl, Ji Siyuan suddenly wondered if she might be Wang Dong'er.

"Uncle, suppose you had a daughter about my age."

"Then she would have already been ruined by you."

"No, I mean, would you split her soul?"

"I am a human, not a beast. Even a beast wouldn't do that to its own daughter."

"Then would you put a lock on her, where even her boyfriend isn't allowed to hug her? And only guarding against the boyfriend at that?"

"If I really had a daughter, she would only be snatched away by a brat like you early on."

"Then take a look at this."

Wang Dong'er stood before Ji Siyuan, and Tang San sighed: "Her father did this? Who is her father? What kind of beast is he?"

Looking at that familiar face, Tang San felt a constant sense of shock and suspicion in his heart.

"She and Xiao Wu... they look so much alike. Truly, they look incredibly similar."

"She is likely your daughter. But Uncle Tang, you can see it too, can't you? She isn't whole."

Tang San: "It isn't a memory seal; it is a missing piece of her soul. This kind of deficiency is hard to mend. It is only the divine power suppressing her injuries that allows her to live in peace. As time passes, her condition will only worsen. Because that divine power isn't just suppressing the injury; it is suppressing her soul's natural ability to heal itself.

You are telling me the person who did this is her biological father? That is to say, [I] in this timeline?"

No matter who it was, they couldn't accept that [themselves] could commit such an act.

But the trident pattern hidden between the girl's brows could deceive others—how could it possibly deceive Tang San?

He was also the Sea God; he understood this divine power better than anyone.

"The [Tang San] of this world is an absolute beast. Did he grow up without parents, believing children are nothing but tools? His heart must have been eaten by dogs. His own daughter, and he could actually split her soul. Regardless of the reason, this is unforgivable!

This person has already invited his own death!

One day, I will surely kill him!"

Ji Siyuan: "Uncle Tang, why is it that every time you see a daughter, you want to kill her biological father?"

"Why shouldn't I? This child looks perfectly fine, yet I suspect she has never experienced fatherly love in her entire life. Or rather, everything she perceives as fatherly love is a lie."

"There is a saying that if one is born but not raised, one can repay the debt by severing a finger, but she is far too pitiful. Her parents cannot be considered parents at all. I believe there is no need to sever any fingers; she should strike back whenever she can! Vengeance is the only color that should define her."

Tang San continued to lash out at her father over and over again.

Huo Yuhao poked him: "Siyuan, have you taken a fancy to her?"

Wang Dong'er heard this and also looked up at the two of them.

Ji Siyuan replied to Huo Yuhao: "No, I was just checking what kind of meat they have in the cafeteria. We could import some from there."

Ji Siyuan tried to find a way to change the subject.

Huo Yuhao, however, was a bit displeased: "But you were staring at her face the whole time just now."

"Can't you wait until we leave to talk about this?"

Wang Dong'er: "What exactly are you two trying to do? Can you go somewhere else to critique me? Stop ruining my mood here."

Ji Siyuan: "Uncle Tang, if she really were your daughter, I'd be fighting her for her food right now."

If only she were.

Tang San: "If all else fails, find a way to take this girl in."

"What did you say?" Ji Siyuan couldn't help but shout out loud in reality.

Wang Dong'er: "I told you to get lost! Don't stand here! Just because you're eating here, does this place belong to you?"

Ji Siyuan felt even worse; that sentence wasn't directed at her.

"Classmate, if I told you that what I just said wasn't aimed at you, would you believe me?"

"Do you care if I believe you or not? Stop getting in the way of my meal."

"My apologies."

The two left, and Huo Yuhao still felt a bit uneasy: "Siyuan, you didn't fall for that girl at first sight, did you? We don't have any money."

Wang Dong'er looked like she was eating much better than the two of them.

"If you want to pursue her, we can't afford it."

Ji Siyuan: "She just happens to look like an elder of mine. It doesn't mean I like her. Though, if she had grown up with me as a childhood sweetheart, that would be a different story."

"Are you the type to develop feelings over time?"

"No, I'm the type to forget all righteousness at the sight of beauty."

Huo Yuhao: "Oh, so that's what you were waiting for."

The two chased and played around, then began preparing various things.

Tang San sighed repeatedly in his mind: "Siyuan, why do you think that person treats his child like that?"

"Do you want me to say it?"

"Go ahead."

Tang San thought he was going to offer a guess, but he spoke of something else entirely.

"I found a book in the God Realm, and it is very similar to what we are experiencing now. But there are a few differences: first, that book doesn't have me in it; second, in that book, Huo Yuhao is a man; third, Wang Dong should currently be in a state of cross-dressing as a man. She is a trap laid by [you], a trap waiting for Huo Yuhao to step into."

At this moment, everything became clear, including the things Ji Siyuan had asked him earlier.

He did not ask Ji Siyuan why he had hidden this; it was normal for a child to have secrets.

What he felt was rage that the version of him in this world could be so shameless and so devoid of humanity.

"To give birth without raising, to use one's own child as bait for mere petty gains—he has already invited his own death!"