I cosplayed as the battle-damaged Azure Sparrow and got caught by the Immortal Boat!

Chapter 73 Qingque's Mother: Tell me, who is Qingyuan!

Three days have passed since the Star Train left the Luofu Immortal Ship, and the Taibu Si Library is so quiet that only the rustling sound of turning pages can be heard.

As Qingque stared at the mountain of celestial records before her, her head began to nod off.

This was all due to Lord Fu Xuan's "special attention"—re-archiving all her records related to unusual celestial phenomena in foreign lands over the past three months.

Qingque knew perfectly well that this was not some kind of "tempering of character" at all, but clearly retaliation for her previous dereliction of duty to go to the card room and failure to report the strange things about "Qingyuan" in time.

She forced herself to open a record about "abnormal energy fluctuations on Azure Star," but her eyelids grew heavier and heavier.

Just as she was about to drift off to sleep and reunite with her beloved Imperial Jade Pendant, a hard little corner of her sleeve poked her.

Qingque dazedly pulled out a small, inconspicuous gray paper bag.

She squinted for several seconds before suddenly remembering what it was—a few days ago, after the earth-shattering battle in Lin Yuan Realm, when Qing Yuan left with the train, a few strands of her hair, shimmering with light, were left on the edge of the battlefield.

As if possessed, she picked it up.

Later, when she passed by the Wanxiang Authentication Center in Changletian, which claimed to "test the movement of the Milky Way above and verify the blood relationship between parents and children below," she stuffed these few strands of hair, along with one she had secretly plucked from her father's head—who even let out a "ouch" at the time—into the center and filled out an express form.

"It's just a few patrol arrows anyway," she told herself at the time. "Just to be sure! They look so alike, what if they're long-lost relatives?"

Then she completely forgot about it until the paper bag reappeared in her hand.

The drowsiness vanished instantly.

Qingque's heart started pounding for no reason. She carefully unsealed the paper bag and pulled out the report inside, which was printed with complicated charts and official seals.

Skipping over the incomprehensible analyses, my gaze fell directly on the bolded text at the bottom:

[Determination of Phylogenetic Relationships in Biological Material]

Sample A (labeled: Qing Mouren) and Sample B (labeled: Unknown) were submitted for testing.

Multiple sequence alignment and original spiritual energy resonance testing showed that it conformed to the characteristics of direct kinship inheritance.

Probability: 99.9987%

Conclusion: This supports the existence of a biological father/daughter relationship between the provider of sample A and the provider of sample B.

Qingque blinked.

He blinked hard again.

She held the report further away, then closer, and even rubbed her eyes.

The text remained perfectly still, each character clearly visible.

"Father...daughter...relationship?" she murmured, her voice ethereal, like a dream.

Qingyuan... and her father... are they father and daughter?

That mysterious girl who looks about his age, always joking around, yet can casually "entertain" the Great Lord of Annihilation, is actually his father's biological...daughter?

With a "whoosh," Qingque felt as if ten thousand Di Ting (a mythical beast) were simultaneously stampeding through her head. Countless images flashed before her eyes:

Qingyuan's face, so strikingly similar to his own; those strange clones; those ambiguous words; and that inexplicable interest in him...

So they might actually be... sisters?

The conclusion was so shocking that Qingque's hand, clutching the report, trembled slightly.

She forced herself to calm down: "This report must be wrong..."

That authentication agency has a shady past... and their rush orders are even less reliable...

Or perhaps Qingyuan isn't an ordinary person at all; her hair is an energy entity, which is why the test results are so outrageous...

No matter how she tried to comfort herself, the report bearing the official spiritual seal weighed heavily on her hands, making it impossible for her to simply categorize it as a "mistake."

A powerful impulse gripped her. She had to find Qing Yuan! To ask her face-to-face! Now! Immediately!

"Splash—"

Qingque suddenly stood up, knocking over a stack of files next to her.

Without bothering to tidy up, she haphazardly stuffed the report into her bosom and dashed out of the library like a startled rabbit.

"Qingque? Where are you going? Fu Taibu told you to make sure today—" A passing colleague exclaimed in surprise.

"Urgent! Extremely urgent!" Qingque's voice came from afar, but she had already disappeared.

She rushed out of the Taibu Si at the fastest speed of her life—faster than when she heard that a mahjong game was missing one player—and down the long steps of Changle Tian, ​​heading straight for the port of Xingcha Hai Central Hub.

"The Star Train!" she gasped, grabbing a construction worker. "Is that train still there? Where is it stopped?"

The other person was startled by her anxious appearance and pointed to the empty VIP berth: "You mean those heroes? They left three days ago, I think they went to Pinocchio."

"Gone...gone?" Qingque was struck dumb, collapsing onto the railing beside her.

He's gone. Just like that, he's gone.

The mysterious girl, who might be her sister, carrying a host of secrets and the ability to unsettle her, followed the train into the depths of the starry sky.

A wave of immense disappointment and confusion washed over her, mixed with a hint of resentment she herself didn't even realize. Leaving behind such a "bomb" without even a word?

She stared blankly at the empty berth, as if she could hear again the long whistle of a train starting up, and Qingyuan's carefree farewell: "Qingque~ I'll find you to play cards again next time I come to Xianzhou!"

At the time, I just thought it was polite talk, but now that I think about it... was there a deeper meaning behind it?

Just as she was gazing blankly at the starry sky, her jade pendant began to vibrate rapidly.

Caller ID: [Mom]

Qingque jumped in surprise, hurriedly answering the call. Before she could even adjust her tone, her mother's voice came through: "Qingque, where are you now?"

"Mom, I'm at the port, something's come up..." Qingque tried to make her voice sound normal.

"Mom's asking you," Qingque's mother paused, "did you take the family register and jade tablet to a kinship testing center a few days ago?"

Qingque's heart skipped a beat—she had forgotten that the verification workshop would check the information and keep a record!

"Mom, how did you know...?"

"How could I not know?" Qingque's mother raised her voice slightly. "Copies of the appraisal workshop's bill and notice have been sent to our home!"

"The person who submitted the sample is you. Besides your father, is your other name 'Qingyuan'?"

The mother's voice was full of doubt and inquiry: "Que'er, tell me the truth, who is this 'Qingyuan'? Why did you have this identification done?"

"It's someone... who looks a lot like me..." Qingque explained dryly, "I was just curious..."

"They look so alike? So alike that a kinship test is needed?" Qingque's mother's keen senses were not something her daughter could fool. "And this notification has a high level of confidentiality... Que'er, are you hiding something from the family?"

Holy crap!!

Qingque's mother saw the test results.

Just as Qingque was stammering, her father's curious voice came from the other end of the phone: "What appraisal? What Qingyuan? Mom, what are you holding?"

"Oh, Dad, you're still asking? I've got yours!" Qingque covered her forehead, already imagining what was about to happen.

Then came the sound of the mother holding the phone further away and speaking to the father, her tone already accusatory: "See for yourself!"

My daughter secretly took the family's jade certificate and had it appraised! There's another name on it: 'Qingyuan'! Old man, tell me honestly—who is this?!

Qingque's heart leaped into her throat. A storm was about to erupt in her own little courtyard.

The atmosphere in Qingque's courtyard was heavy at this moment.

With one hand holding the copy of the notice and the other on her hip, Sparrow Mom stared intently at Sparrow Dad, who was at a loss for what to do.

Sparrow's father is an honest and simple former Yunqi Army veteran who now manages the warehouse in the Industrial Construction Department. He has a gentle and somewhat dull personality and dotes on his wife and daughter.

He was completely bewildered by his wife's sudden questioning. He took the notice, looked at it again and again, and was utterly confused.

"Qingyuan? Who's that? I don't know her," Sparrow's father answered honestly. "Why would Sparrow go and have her kinship checked? Are you sure you haven't made a mistake?"

"A mistake?" Sparrow's mother pointed to the clear address and household registration information on the notification. "The record of the family's genealogy being accessed is here! Sparrow personally submitted the sample for testing! How could the forensic laboratory make a mistake like this?"

She took a step closer, her voice lower but even more forceful: "We've been husband and wife for so many years, and I've always believed you're a decent person."

But about today... you have to explain yourself clearly! What exactly is going on with this 'Azure Kite'?

Was it when you were young, out there...?

She didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning in her eyes was crystal clear—she suspected that her husband had a secret love affair in his early years, and that he might even have had a child with her.

Upon hearing this, Sparrow's father turned pale and waved his hands repeatedly: "No!"

Mom! I swear to God! You are the only one I have ever loved in my life!

What do you mean, "did I ever spend my youth outside..." Absolutely not!

I swear! If I've ever done anything to wrong you, may I be struck by lightning and my soul return to the void!

In his desperation, he even uttered the solemn oath he had learned in the Cloud Cavalry.

Seeing her husband's intense reaction, which seemed genuine, the sharpness in Sparrow's mother's eyes softened slightly, but her doubts deepened:

Then explain this to me: why did Que'er suddenly go to test a stranger's kinship?

And of all people, it has to be you?

"I...I don't know either!" Sparrow's father was speechless, sweat beading on his forehead. "I really don't know anyone named Qingyuan!"

Male or female? What did they look like? How old were they? I have absolutely no recollection of them!

She sighed, her tone softening, even adding a touch of comfort: "Old man, don't worry."

If... if there really was something, it was because you were young and naive, or because you had some unavoidable hardship...

Now that you've said it, I can understand. We've been married for so many years, what obstacle can't we overcome together?

She paused, a hint of heartache in her voice: "I can forgive you for everything else, but old man, put your hands on your conscience—you at least have a responsibility to them, mother and child!"

This was already the biggest concession and compromise she could make; there's no way around it, that's just how love makes you blinded by affection.

However, when Sparrow's father heard this, he was not relieved at all, but instead felt even more fearful and aggrieved.

Because he really doesn't know anything! There's no "bad behavior from his youth," no "unavoidable hardship," he's completely innocent, how can he explain himself?

"Mom, believe me, I really didn't!" He could only repeat this sentence over and over again.

Seeing her husband's "determined to hide it" attitude, the anger that had just subsided in Que Ma's heart suddenly flared up again, mixed with the sadness and disappointment of being deceived.

"Fine, fine! Dad! You still won't tell the truth, huh?" Mom's voice rose again, grabbing the rolling pin beside her. "You think I can't do anything if you don't tell me?"

"I didn't! I really didn't!" Dad said, dodging and trying to explain.

"You still dare to argue!" Sparrow Mom chased after him all over the yard, wielding a rolling pin. "The evidence is right in front of you!"

Your daughter secretly got tested! And you're still pretending to be innocent! I'll teach you to pretend!

I let you have your wild and carefree youth! I'll show you how you dare to hide it from me now!

"Ouch! Sparrow Mom, let me explain! Ouch! Don't hit me! I really don't know any Qingyuan!"

The courtyard erupted into chaos, with the sound of rolling pins whistling through the air, the father's aggrieved cries, and the mother's angry rebukes all mixed together.

Neighbors peeked out, curiously watching this rare sight.

"Wow, what happened at Lao Qing's house?"

"How could someone as honest as Sparrow's dad make Sparrow's mom this angry?"

"I heard it's related to something called 'Blue Kite'..."

"Qingyuan? Who's that? Never heard of her..."

At the heart of this storm, the girl named "Qingyuan" is currently lying on a sofa on the Starry Sky Train, countless light-years away.

He leisurely sipped the coffee that Himeko had just brewed (she had no sense of taste, only the texture and spiciness), while listening to interstellar rock music.

Unaware that a few strands of hair that he casually dropped had already triggered a family earthquake in the distant fairy boat Luofu.

Yes, she does shed, but it grows back quickly.

Perhaps this is what is meant by "though she is no longer in the martial world, her legend lives on"?

However, this legend begins with a hardcore story of "becoming a father unexpectedly".

Qingque stood at the harbor, listening to the faint background noises of her home—the sounds of chickens and dogs running around—and her mother's words, "I'll settle the score with you later!"

The busy signal kept interrupting my conversation. Gazing at the vast starry sky, I felt that the future was bleak and life was full of hardships.

She silently tucked the burning report into her arms even deeper.

In her memory, her parents were so loving, how could this happen...?

But with irrefutable evidence laid out before her, how could she possibly refute it?

Finally, she found Fu Xuan, explained the situation, and said she needed a few days to calm down.

She'd be furious if she didn't get to the bottom of this.

But if she really understood, would she feel at ease?

Looking at the absent-minded Qingque, Fu Xuan knew without investigating that it was probably true, especially given the similarity between Qing Yuan and Qingque.

She could only sigh inwardly, "Qingque, your mother has had a terrible experience with men..."