As a Father, I Just Want to Watch You Achieve Immortality Chapter 1: The Birth of the Beloved Daughter and the Joy of Obtaining a Dao Fruit

The dilapidated city had been draped in a silver mantle by a night of heavy snow, and the freezing air bit deep into the bone.

Beneath a leaden sky, a frigid wind sliced through the air like a sharp blade, cutting to the marrow.

Li Che clutched his thin cotton garment tightly against his body. In his hand, he carried a stiff, frozen carp—a luxury that had cost him a significant sum during the winter months.

Its purpose was to provide nourishment for his pregnant wife.

Gently touching his rough beard, he exhaled a cloud of white mist into his palms. Braving the biting gale, Li Che navigated the snow-choked streets of Fei Lei City, hurrying toward his residence.

Having spent nineteen years in this world, transitioning from an infant to a struggling laborer, Li Che had long since abandoned his fantasies of possessing a Golden Finger.

Memories of skyscrapers and neon lights had faded into a dreamlike haze, remnants of a past life to which he could never return.

This realm resembled ancient times but was far more perilous; it was a place where natural disasters, human cruelty, and malevolent spirits ran wild, making existence a constant struggle for the common folk.

Accepting his lot in life, Li Che desired nothing more than to safeguard his modest home and family, seeking a stable existence and making the most of his second chance at life.

Following a marriage arranged by his family at eighteen, a successful wedding night led to this moment—ten months later, his wife was on the verge of labor.

The vast expanse of Fei Lei City was split into the Inner and Outer Cities. The Inner City was reputedly the domain of noble clans and Official Masters, characterized by wide avenues, lavish living, and rigorous security.

Only those possessing high status were permitted to live within the Inner City.

In contrast, the Outer City served as the dwelling place for the vast majority of the laboring masses.

After trekking several miles along the main road, he turned into a cramped alleyway, where rows of low-slung, dark-tiled earthen dwellings came into view.

His rapid footsteps made a crunching sound against the fresh snow.

“Che! Oh, Che, you’ve finally returned from your work!”

“Your wife is in labor, get inside and see her quickly!”

“You’re about to become a father!”

Neighbors who recognized Li Che began calling out to him from a distance as soon as he appeared.

Li Che was jolted by the news.

Filled with tension and urgency, he increased his speed, racing toward his earthen house as snow sprayed behind him!

The sky had already grown dark. When Li Che reached his front door, the weathered wooden entrance stood open. From within, he could hear the sounds of his wife’s labor pains mingled with the midwife’s encouraging words.

“You’re back?”

In the modest yard outside the house, an Old Scholar sat upon a worn bench. He wore a cotton jacket beneath an old scholar’s robe, puffing on a dry pipe with a rhythmic “clack.”

This man was Li Liang, the uncle of Li Che.

Li Che had been orphaned at the age of eight when his parents succumbed to illness, and his uncle had taken him in. Under his family’s care, he had grown up, married, and was now on the cusp of fatherhood.

“Don’t fret. Grandma Lei is the finest midwife in a ten-mile radius. Xiao Ya will be alright; both mother and child are sure to be safe,” the Old Scholar remarked while holding his pipe.

Despite having lived two lives, this was Li Che’s first time becoming a father, and his nerves were understandably frayed.

Still gripping the frozen carp, he paced restlessly in front of the house.

His uncle eventually grew annoyed. “What are you pacing for, you brat? A man becoming a father should display some composure!”

“Can’t you put that frozen fish down first?”

Li Che looked at him without responding. He didn't put the fish down, but he did stop his pacing.

Suddenly, a piercing cry erupted from inside the house!

Li Che’s gaze sharpened, and he felt as though his heart was being squeezed by an invisible hand.

Li Liang, the Old Scholar, immediately stood up and extinguished his pipe, staring toward the house with anticipation.

At that moment, a thunderous roar echoed across the darkening sky!

The Old Scholar trembled, whispering something under his breath.

Li Che looked up instinctively, catching a glimpse of something in the clouds that looked like a flickering dragon.

Was this some kind of omen tied to the birth?

Did he think he was a character in a fantasy novel?

Li Che dismissed the thought. Hearing the midwife call out, he rushed into the house.

A charcoal stove was burning inside, cutting through the chill and providing a touch of warmth.

The midwife held a rosy-cheeked infant in her arms. She looked at Li Che and said, “Congratulations, Master Li, and many blessings. You have a beautiful daughter.”

A wide smile spread across Li Che’s face. His hand, still clutching the frozen carp, seemed lost for a moment before he managed to stammer, “Thank you, thank you…”

After quickly thanking the midwife, he finally remembered to toss the fish aside.

With trembling hands, he carefully took the child and gazed at her.

The sight triggered an immediate sense of a blood bond forming. Though the newborn’s skin was wrinkled and her beauty was yet to bloom,

Li Che felt she was the most exquisite creature in existence.

Simply because she was his daughter!

While Li Che was immersed in this joy, unable to take his eyes off the infant,

His vision suddenly shifted as if a mirage were appearing. He saw a vast, desolate land where the ground split apart, and a sprout as green as jade shot upward with incredible vitality.

In a heartbeat, it transformed into a massive tree with sprawling branches.

“This is…”

Li Che was completely stunned.

As myriad leaves rustled, they seemed to catch the light and form an image. He saw himself standing outside the house, listening to the cries of his daughter’s arrival.

The vision flickered and then contracted like a whirlpool, eventually settling upon a branch and solidifying into a shimmering, translucent fruit of many colors.

...

[Joy of a precious daughter, bonds are bound]

[With the birth of your beloved daughter, the Dao Tree bears fruit]

[Your daughter was born safely, you have obtained a Dao Fruit]

...

Li Che suddenly returned to reality, the "wa wa" cries of his daughter still filling the room.

“Husband, let me see our daughter…”

The faint voice came from the pale but lovely young woman on the bed. Li Che moved closer, cradling the baby with extreme care.

“Wife, look, it's our child!”

Li Che beamed with a radiant, joyful smile.

For the moment, he had no room in his mind to ponder the Dao Fruit; his heart was entirely occupied by his wife and child.

His wife, Zhang Ya, was his partner and the woman who had chosen to trust him with her life in these turbulent times.

“Husband, the baby’s nose is just like yours, so straight,” Zhang Ya noted. Though weak, she was filled with happiness as she reached out a slender finger to touch the infant's tiny nose.

Li Che looked at her with deep affection. “Wife, are you in pain?”

Zhang Ya pressed her pale lips together and gave a soft laugh, shaking her head. “It doesn’t hurt. I’m just happy.”

“Husband, what name shall we give her?”

Zhang Ya asked with expectation, but then, as if remembering something, her eyes shifted past Li Che toward the Old Scholar standing in the doorway.

Li Che looked back at his uncle, seeing him with furrowed brows, uncharacteristically quiet and not attempting to flex his scholarly knowledge or claim the right to name the child.

Li Che understood what was likely on his mind.

However, he didn't let it bother him. He took his wife’s cold hand and whispered, “I’ve already decided on a name over the past few days.”

“This winter is so bitter, and I only wish for our little one to remain warm; let us call her Li Nuanxi…”

“Warm like the fire of the morning sun, protected from sickness and pain, growing up in safety and joy.”

Li Che spoke with a gentle tone.

Zhang Ya smiled brightly. “Nuanxi, that is a beautiful name…”

In Zhang Ya’s arms, little Xi Xi seemed to recognize her name, ceasing her crying to show a tiny, smiling face.

A moment later, however, she opened her mouth and began to wail again.

The midwife moved forward quickly. “The child must be hungry; she needs to be nursed…”

Upon hearing this, Li Che and the Old Scholar promptly stepped out of the house.

...

...

In the courtyard, heavy flakes of snow drifted down from the heavens.

The cold intensified as the harsh winter tightened its grip.

The smile remained fixed on Li Che’s face. He finally understood the feeling of fatherhood, and a fierce protective instinct for his wife and child grew within him.

Conversely, the Old Scholar seemed somewhat dejected as he prepared his pipe once more.

Li Che frowned at the scent. “Uncle, put that out. The baby is here.”

The Old Scholar sighed and extinguished the pipe, though he grumbled, “It’s just a girl. Why couldn’t it be a boy? Our Li Family…”

Li Che chuckled at the remark. “Does it really matter if it’s a boy or a girl?”

“Does the Li Family have some royal throne to pass down?!”

The Old Scholar heard this, and while his traditional preference for sons wasn't easily shaken, he fell silent, continuing to mutter quietly to himself.

Li Che shook his head and said nothing more.

He retrieved the frozen carp and made his way to the kitchen, intending to prepare a hot bowl of carp and tofu soup for his wife’s recovery.

As the fish soup simmered,

Li Che finally allowed himself to sit down and examine the Dao Fruit that had manifested at the moment of his daughter's birth.