He inhaled deeply and decided he didn't want to ruin a peaceful moment by thinking about everything that could go wrong.Instead, he licked his lips and looked towards the waterfall.“Is it safe to bathe there?”Murong Wuque nodded.That was all the encouragement Alvin needed.He quickly polished off the remaining chicken, not even bothering to hide his enthusiasm. After spitting out the final bone, he stood and patted his belly with satisfaction.“Let's go bathe.”Murong Wuque nodded and began clearing the area while Alvin hurried towards the waterfall, stripping off his clothes and leaving them scattered along the way.By the time Murong Wuque looked up again, Alvin had already reached the water's edge.Without a moment's hesitation, he leapt in.A loud splash echoed across the tranquil landscape alongside Alvin's excited child-like scream.“So cold! Ah! Mmm!”His startled exclamation soon dissolved into a contented hum.Murong Wuque shook his head, amusement lingering in his eyes a

When Murong Wuque entered the house again, almost everyone was already downstairs.Tiffany had changed into respectable slacks, flat ballet shoes, and a T-shirt. She stood nearby, waiting anxiously.The Shi siblings were also downstairs, probably awakened by the commotion earlier.Alvin, who had changed into fresh casual clothes, was descending the stairs with Aurelio in his arms. The little boy was happily playing with a jingling toy, seemingly oblivious to the tension surrounding him.The aroma of Martha's cooking had begun to permeate the house. Without the tension hanging in the air, it might have looked like a normal, chaotic morning at Villa Number Seven.Murong Wuque's gaze swept across the sitting room before settling on Oliver. His damp face suggested he had only just finished washing up.He was holding a sachet of morning vitamins, sipping from it leisurely.Murong Wuque's gaze shifted to Alvin, who was still making his way downstairs with the baby."Boss, are you alright?"

Alvin's nostrils flared dangerously. Oliver wasn't even showing the slightest sign of remorse. Instead he was biting back like a feral dog."If you loved the Nightblood Organisation so much, why did you let me risk my life to cure you? If you were going back to them anyway, why the fuck did you make me suffer so terribly just to keep you alive? You should have gone straight to them!"Oliver chuckled and said nothing.Back then, he had been a helpless teenager. Broke, powerless, and with zero connections, he would have become nothing more than another pawn had he gone to the Nightblood Organisation at the time.Besides, he hadn't yet seen how boundless the future could be with absolute power. How could someone on survival mode afford to dream big?But after staying at the villa, his resentment had gradually grown. He had begun to want more, to crave more than the comfortable life Alvin had given him.Now, he was a powerful cultivator on a planet dominated by mere mortals. Naturally, he

Alvin began to laugh against his chest, a shaky, wet laugh. And Murong Wuque felt it — the distinct, warm wetness soaking quickly into his shirt that told him Alvin was crying.Alvin hit him several times, his shoulders shaking while he pretended to laugh.In Murong Wuque's head, one of Alvin's songs began to play on its own. ‘Loving You Was a Beautiful Wound.’He tightened his arm around him, remembering his favorite line.‘The more it hurts, the more I love you.’Alvin had called it his favorite line during an interview after his second album.Love is not perfect. It's holding that one hand firmly even when the path forward becomes filled with thorns.Murong Wuque licked his dry lips and took a deep breath.In the corner, Aurelio, who had been doodling with crayons, stopped playing. He had been staring at them for a while, his baby eyes solemn, as if he could understand everything.Murong Wuque pulled away from Alvin and stood up to fetch something from his workstation.He returned

Alvin turned to Murong Wuque, shock flashing across his face.“You have a baby to take care of. I won't let you handle a potential threat.”Elena shook her head frantically, clutching Alvin's legs.“Boss, please, save my brother. He's going to kill him!”Oliver's face darkened as he watched his sister continue to cry and beg on his behalf.Alvin looked at the silver-haired man. “Wuque, maybe we could—”“No!” Murong Wuque cut him off, his refusal swift and absolute. “He's coming with me to the Celestial Realm. Nightblood doesn't forgive deserters. Taking him with me is the only way to protect him and ensure he doesn't return to them. If he stays here, they'll find a way to get their hands on him again. And when they do, he'll suffer a fate worse than death. By then, he will harm you even more than he'd already done.”Shi Wei nodded in agreement. “He's right. Oliver can only change if they can no longer find him. Otherwise, both he and everyone around him will be in danger.”“No…”“I'll