Qian Renxue (49)

Time flowed on. In the God Realm, flowers bloomed and withered, clouds gathered and drifted away. Under the nourishment of the Lake of Life, Tang Wulin's meridians were gradually rebuilt, but progress was slow. Every day, he had to soak in the lake for six hours, and spend the rest of his time sitting quietly to regulate his breathing, absorbing the gentlest spiritual energy. Since all his divine power was gone, he could not even manage the most basic flight, and needed someone to support him in everything he did. At first, the children were careful to the point of anxiety, afraid they might hurt their father, but Tang Wulin always smiled and waved them over, letting them sit beside him as he listened to them talk about amusing things in the God Realm, or rumors from the lower realm.

Tang Xuanyu was already a tall, straight-backed youth. He had inherited his father's blonde hair and blue eyes, but his personality was more like Qian Renxue's, steady with a sharp edge beneath it. Every day after finishing his cultivation, he would come and keep his father company, and sometimes he would even try to use the healing divine arts he had just begun learning to ease Tang Wulin's pain—though the effect was almost negligible, Tang Wulin always smiled and praised him. Tang Yilin was a lively girl who had inherited Xiao Wu's rabbit-ear traits. She bounced about all day, often picking strange flowers and rare herbs from the God Realm to cheer her father up. The youngest, Tang Nianxue, was still clingy, always nestling in Tang Wulin's arms and saying in her soft, sweet voice, "Daddy, get better soon."

Qian Renxue almost never left his side. She pushed aside all her divine duties and focused entirely on accompanying Tang Wulin.