What? The Qian Family's Only Heir Had Triplets?

His cheat had finally arrived.

Qian Renchuan shuddered with delight.

He quickly grasped exactly how the system worked.

He could form a bond with anyone.

From then on, whenever they made progress in cultivation, he would receive ten times the gains.

Once he understood,

Qian Renchuan could only marvel.

The two beside him had both become gods in their previous lives.

Their potential was undeniable.

Better yet, they already had a lifetime of cultivation experience and astonishing fortune.

If he bonded with both of them, why would he need to work himself to the bone?

He could sleep all day

and still watch his cultivation soar.

Bond.

He gave the command silently.

The next moment,

the bond formed without a flash or any other fanfare.

[Ding—]

[Congratulations, host! Bond formed successfully!]

Just then, urgent voices rose outside, punctuated by the occasional panicked shriek from a maid.

"Quick! The Saintess is giving birth!"

"Get hot water! Hurry, and tell the healing-type soul master to come faster!"

"And the midwife..."

Qian Renchuan froze.

She's giving birth?

Already?

Then,

before he could gather his thoughts,

a crushing pressure swept in from every direction.

The warmth around him churned violently, and a force propelled him toward a narrow passage.

He understood at once.

It's time to get out.

I can't fall behind.

Qian Renchuan reacted instantly.

If Qian Renxue or Huo Yuhao gets out first, won't I end up their little brother?

Spirit Hall.

Rain fell steadily.

The sky was dark.

"Waaah—"

"Waaah—"

"Waaah—"

Three cries pierced the air in quick succession.

A moment later, the delivery room doors were flung open from within.

A maid in white stumbled out, sweat covering her forehead.

She even forgot her manners and shouted to everyone waiting in the corridor,

"Your Holiness! Grand Priest! Elders!"

"The Saintess has given birth!"

"Two boys and a girl—triplets!"

At those words,

Qian Xunji, Qian Daoliu, and all the assembled elders and priests stood stunned outside the door.

What?

Triplets?

Qian Xunji froze, his mind blank.

Then fierce, disbelieving joy surged through him, and he threw back his head and laughed.

"Good, good, good!"

"Triplets! Hahahaha!"

"For generations, the Qian Family has had only one heir at a time. Our numbers have always been few."

"I never imagined that in my generation, our family would finally grow. Three children at once!"

The elders around him snapped out of their daze and hurried forward with congratulations.

"Your Holiness, this is wonderful news!"

"At my age, I never thought I'd see the Qian Family have triplets!"

"This proves Spirit Hall's fortune is flourishing. One day, we'll rule the entire continent!"

"Heaven bless Spirit Hall! Heaven bless the Qian Family!"

"May your good fortune know no bounds, Your Holiness!"

The maid then led Qian Xunji and Qian Daoliu into the delivery room.

Inside,

steam rose through the air.

The smell of blood mingled with incense.

Bibi Dong lay motionless on the bed, her face drained of color.

Sweat soaked her beautiful face, and strands of purple hair clung to her cheeks. The Saintess, usually so lofty and untouchable, was now so weak that her breathing was barely perceptible.

Her eyes were shut.

Her brows were drawn together.

Only her long lashes still trembled faintly.

Exhaustion and pain had overwhelmed her, leaving her unconscious.

Qian Xunji looked at the woman on the bed.

His gaze lingered for two seconds.

There was little concern for his wife in his eyes.

Instead, they held the satisfaction of a task completed and a possessive desire for control.

To him,

keeping this woman

and making her bear children of the Qian Family was his crowning achievement.

Only then did he turn toward the three swaddled infants lying side by side on soft cushions.

Qian Daoliu stared at them just as intently.

The maid hurried over

and pointed to the bundle on the far left.

"Your Holiness, this is the eldest. He's a boy and was born first. Such a strong little one."

Beaming, Qian Xunji picked up the leftmost bundle.

Qian Renchuan opened his eyes and found himself looking straight into Qian Xunji's handsome but faintly sinister face.

So this is Qian Xunji?

The infamous Pope of Spirit Hall from the original story.

He caused that whole secret-chamber incident and kept insisting it was to make Bibi Dong stay.

But he was the Pope of Spirit Hall.

If he wanted to keep Bibi Dong, he had countless ways to do it.

Yet he chose the vilest, most extreme one.

In the end, the bastard lusted after his own disciple and insisted on dressing it up as a noble cause.

Meanwhile, Qian Xunji turned to Qian Daoliu with Qian Renchuan in his arms.

"Father, please give this child a name."

Qian Daoliu studied Qian Renchuan's bright eyes.

Pleased, he stroked his beard and smiled.

"His eyes are clear and bright, and he hasn't cried or fussed. He has the mettle of a son of the Qian Family."

"Our family's generational character is 'Ren,' and he is the eldest son. Let's call him Qian Renchuan."

"May he flow onward like a mighty river and carry the glory of our angelic line through the generations."

Qian Xunji repeated the name softly.

"Qian Renchuan."

"A mighty river that never stops flowing. A fine name."

He handed Qian Renchuan to a maid, then picked up the slightly smaller bundle in the middle.

"Your Holiness, the second child is a girl,"

the maid added quickly.

She was, of course, Qian Renxue.

In her swaddling, Qian Renxue opened her eyes too.

Looking at her father, she was overcome by conflicting emotions.

Father...

In my previous life, I mourned you for so long. I kept missing you.

I hated Mother. I thought she was heartless, that she had no regard for you as her husband and had destroyed our family.

Only at the very end did I understand how much she had suffered—and what monstrous thing you had done to her!

You ruined her life.

And indirectly, you ruined mine.

Seeing you again, I don't even know whether to hate you or pity you...

Qian Renchuan heard Qian Renxue's thoughts, fraught with conflict.

They made one thing clear.

Her feelings toward her father were deeply complicated.

Qian Xunji, of course, heard none of it. Still smiling, he turned to Qian Daoliu.

"Father, this little girl looks like her mother. She'll surely be a beauty one day. What should we name her?"

Qian Daoliu studied the baby girl for a moment.

"She should grow up as pure as snow. Let's call her Qian Renxue."

Qian Xunji handed Qian Renxue to the maid as well. Rubbing his hands together, his face aglow, he picked up the third bundle on the far right.

"Father, please choose a name for the youngest too."

Qian Daoliu stepped closer.

He examined the third child.

"Since the eldest is Renchuan, let's call the youngest Qian Renhao. May his noble spirit endure, as befits the renown of Spirit Hall."

But to their surprise,

the moment he finished speaking,

the youngest, who had been quiet until then, burst into a heart-rending wail.

"Waaah..."

"Waaah, waaah, waaah, waaah, waaah..."