Chapter 156: You say you’re his mother, then who am I?

Chapter 156 You Say You're His Mother, Then Who Am I?

The Spiritual Awakening is indeed happening.

And its pace is far faster than anyone imagined.

"That whole year of peace? Turns out it was just the calm before the storm!"

Though it was long known that Blue Star might experience a Spiritual Awakening—and due to the endless Doomsday crises, the government had actually been looking forward to it, making preparations all along—now that it's actually happening, folks were torn between excitement and concern.

The excitement was genuine. Who doesn't want the power to protect themselves and their home? Who wouldn’t want to grow stronger?

But the worry…

Sheng Qingquan sighed as he looked at the book that popped up in front of him.

"Speak of the devil."

"Blue Star doesn’t belong solely to humans."

"Plenty of other creatures call Blue Star home."

"Even within the same species, conflicts and friction exist. Imagine how much worse it is between different species? When both sides possess power, even minor friction can easily escalate into something major."

Though Sheng Qingquan had long guessed the nature of this crisis, he was still stunned upon reading the book’s contents.

"No freaking way!"

"This isn't anything like what I pictured!"

"A young, beautiful woman arrived at Yin Xingyi’s home. The moment the door opened, she saw Yin Xingyi and immediately got all touchy-feely."

"Yin Xingyi’s parents, who had also come to see who was at the door, lit up immediately."

"Girlfriend?!"

"Thank heavens! Our hopeless bachelor has finally found someone!"

"Just as Yin’s father and mother were beaming, they were trying to decide whether to make themselves scarce or quickly order fresh groceries to prepare a nice meal for their guest..."

"We can't have her thinking we're not prepared. If we slight her, what if she takes it as disapproval and breaks up with him?"

"Our clueless kid is finally catching on—maybe the only time in his life—so we must leave a good impression."

"Me again? Seriously?"

Hearing that he had drawn the short straw once more, Yin Xingyi slumped onto the couch.

"Nope. Just nope. I'm still traumatized from last time."

Years had passed, yet he still couldn’t bring himself to play games.

Every time he tried, he’d get too immersed, recalling that absolutely brutal original story.

No matter how fun the game was, the moment he started it, he'd immediately lose interest.

Nope. Just nope.

Yin Xingyi had originally moved out to live alone after starting work. But after that incident happened, his parents became too worried to leave him by himself.

Considering the house here was spacious enough for the whole family without feeling cramped—and it already had their rooms—the couple simply moved in to live with their son.

When Yin Xingyi’s name appeared in Sheng Qingquan’s mind, Yin’s parents, aware of their son’s previous distressing experience, immediately tensed up.

But in the next moment, they heard that their son might be seeing someone.

With a grown son still single, Yin’s parents inevitably had their attention diverted.

“When did you start dating? You didn’t give us a single clue.”

As she spoke, Yin’s mother gave Yin Xingyi a dissatisfied pat. “You should’ve been a spy—you’re so tight-lipped.”

“If you’d just said you were seeing someone, why would I have been so anxious?”

“No wonder you kept dodging those blind dates. What’s the use of a mouth if you won’t talk? You could’ve just said you were off the market! If we’d known, your dad and I wouldn’t have been scrambling to set you up. We’re not heartless, you know!”

Yin’s mother muttered on, while Yin’s father wore a stern expression.

“No, I don’t have a girlfriend. Where would I even get one? Unless you mean the ‘pair’ in chess…” Yin Xingyi tried to argue, but his parents dismissed him outright.

Yin’s father went to fetch the bank card from the room, and Yin’s mother, as if reminded of something, said, “Right, I almost forgot—first meetings call for a red envelope. Before the girl arrives, hurry to the bank and withdraw some cash. Get crisp new bills—they look nicer.”

“Take out a good amount—no being cheap. But not too much, or you’ll freak the poor girl out.”

Then she stood up, ready to change and head out. “Should I go to the jewelry store and buy something? Not for me—I’ve got enough—but for her.”

“Mom, I really don’t have a girlfriend. There’s no girl—just me, a grown man, in this house…”

“Who asked you?” Yin’s mother shot him a glare before turning back to her husband. “Just a red envelope seems too plain. For a first meeting, is a gold bracelet too much?”

“Or are bags the thing now? I’ve noticed many young girls seem to prefer them. What about lipstick?”

“No, you’re clueless about this stuff. I should call Junjun and ask her to help me pick.”

Junjun was Yin Xingyi’s cousin.

Yin’s mom was already rushing around, eager to leave.

Yin Xingyi was at his wit’s end.

He was completely ignored. Every attempt to explain was useless, and when he tried to physically stop them, they brushed him off.

Is this what parents of single grown men are like—this desperate?

Though his mother was the one doing most of the talking, Yin Xingyi hadn’t missed the fact that his father was the first to pull out the bank card.

This’ll be the death of me!

If they find out there’s no girlfriend at all—that it’s all a misunderstanding—they’ll have my hide!

Where’s the stop button on this circus? Someone find it and let me press it!

As his parents were about to leave, Yin Xingyi was in full panic mode.

["'Sweetheart, I’m your mother. It's been so long—have you missed me? I've missed you so much. The moment I could move, I rushed straight here to find you.'"]

"Bombshell!"

"What is this? I thought you were my son's girlfriend, but instead, you're here to take my place?" Mrs. Yin’s face fell.

["'You say you're his mother?' Shang Wenxing barked a laugh. 'Then who am I?'"]

["'I know, you're his real mother. But...'"]

["'But you're not here to break up this family—you're here to join it?'①" Shang Wenxing snapped.]

"'Under what circumstances would someone have two mothers?'"

"'Seems like the good news is still good news, just not the kind we expected. Instead of our son having a girlfriend, it turns out his mother might be back on the market.'"

"'A cheater’s unforgivable, and a son who apparently knew but stayed silent can hit the road too. Though Shang Wenxing never imagined this would happen to her, now that it has, she won’t show weakness in front of those who wronged her.'"

"'The shame is theirs, not hers.'"

["'But based solely on the other woman’s claims, Shang Wenxing wasn’t ready to jump to conclusions. She turned to her husband and son: "Don’t you have anything to say?"']

"Only then did the father and son, still in shock, snap back to reality."

["'Wife, listen to me—I’m clean, I swear!'"]

"Father Yin hurriedly defended himself."

["'I can’t vouch for my dad’s innocence, but I definitely don’t know this woman. There’s absolutely no connection between us.' Yin Xingyi wasn’t taking the fall. Why should he suffer for his father’s actions?"]

"While Father Yin spoke, she stayed silent, but the moment Yin Xingyi finished, she went off."

["'How could you not know me? How could we have no connection? Our bond was sworn before heaven and earth!']

["'I am your mother, and you are my son. This is set in stone?'"]

"Her outburst made Shang Wenxing realize something was off. Why did she seem more fixated on her son than her husband?"

"So the way to pause one farce is to start an even more absurd one?"

Yin Xingyi was shell-shocked. From the moment he heard "I'm your mother," his world had gone sideways.

His parents were having a worse time.

Now, the couple no longer wanted to leave the house—but they might soon no longer be a couple.

Fortunately, Sheng Qingquan quickly zeroed in on the issue. If not for the hint of a deeper story, the family’s marriage license and family records might already have been dug out.

Shang Wenxing fired a glare at the father and son, tossed her bag aside, and sat on the sofa. 'I’d like to hear an explanation!'"

"A staffer mumbled under their breath, 'Could this actually be a stepmom trope?'"

"'Sworn before heaven and earth—so they held secret vows?'"

"'If I can’t be your girlfriend, I’ll marry your dad and become your mom instead?'"

["'I’m your one and only godmother! You bowed three times to acknowledge me back then. Your parents were there too, and they invited many witnesses. You can’t just back out now!'"]

"'My one and only godmother?' Yin Xingyi was dumbfounded. Since when do I have a godmother?"

Hold on, I *do* have a godmother.

Yin Xingyi looked at his parents, and Yin’s parents caught on too.

[Suddenly, the young woman seemed to remember something: "I almost forgot—I didn’t look like this back then. No wonder you didn’t recognize me."]

["How about now?" The originally beautiful and charming young woman disappeared, replaced by a massive boulder—taller than a person, too wide for three people to encircle, its surface covered in weather-worn grooves.]

"Now *that’s* a disappearing act!"

Sheng Qingquan was also startled. He’d expected a soap opera, but this was straight-up paranormal?

["When you took the elevator up, didn’t it warn you about being overweight?" Yin Xingyi instinctively asked, staring at the boulder.]

Priorities, man!

But unlike his fictional counterpart, the real Yin Xingyi slapped his forehead with his left hand and collapsed backward onto the sofa. He flopped onto the sofa, staring at the ceiling in numb despair: "I knew it. She’s the only godmother I’ve ever acknowledged."

"But who knew this bonkers thing was legit?"

Yin Xingyi did indeed acknowledge a godmother once, and it was a full-on ceremony, gifts and all.

As a child, Yin Xingyi was often sick, constantly in and out of the hospital. It seemed like he wouldn’t survive much longer.

The elders in the family came up with an idea. They claimed his *bazi* was too light—bad luck written in the stars. He needed a godparent with a strong birth chart to balance it out.

What’s sturdier than a *rock*?

Coincidentally, there was a massive boulder at the entrance of their ancestral village. So Yin’s parents prepared offerings and took Yin Xingyi to acknowledge the boulder as his godmother.

Weirdly enough, after that, Yin Xingyi’s health gradually improved. Not only did he rarely fall ill afterward, but he also became built like a tank.

Yin Xingyi’s hometown was in a village under Yunteng City, very close by. To this day, he still makes annual pilgrimages to his godmother.

Especially after the incident a few years ago when he was almost snatched by that alien VR game—though he was ultimately unharmed thanks to Sheng Qingquan and the government—everyone chalked it up to his rock-solid *bazi*. So Yin Xingyi made a special trip back to thank his godmother, even hiring an opera crew to perform for her at the village entrance.

When he returned, he brought back a bunch of things, passing them off as hometown snacks from relatives, claiming there was too much to eat alone and sharing them with neighbors. He even found an excuse to give Sheng Qingquan a thank-you gift.

"If she really is that boulder, then she does have a connection to me."

"Who knew this bonkers thing was legit?"

He couldn’t exactly ghost his godmother just ’cause she had a glow-up. She wasn’t some homewrecker—just a sentient boulder.

The family shared a *well-this-is-awkward* look.

Shang Wenxing hesitated, then asked, "So… what should we prepare to host your godmother?"

The whole roses-and-chocolates routine was a no-go.

Back when his godmother was a rock, she could only look at delicious food. But now she’s got taste buds, so maybe prepare a feast and let her try human cuisine?

Or buy her pretty clothes and jewelry—she could probably wear them now, right?

Hold up—wasn’t that basically date-night prep? It hit Shang Wenxing a second later. But she didn’t see a problem with it. Same gift aisle, different recipient.

While the Yin family pondered how to interact with their stone godmother, others focused on the timing. Though it was unclear when this happened, the 'cheat code' pinging them now meant the godmother’s arrival was probably right around the corner.

How long has it been since the Spiritual Resurgence? In such a short time, not only has a stone turned into a human, but the Yin family in the plot didn’t even notice anything unusual when interacting with her up close.

If it weren’t for her later revealing her true form, they would never have realized she was a demon.

This shows her transformation was flawless.

To achieve this level, her power cultivation must be quite advanced. Isn’t this stone foster mother’s cultivation speed a bit too fast?

Is she exceptionally gifted, or do demons simply cultivate faster than humans?

If it’s the former, that’s fine. But if it’s the latter… Everyone couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

"Aside from Yin Xingyi, someone else got his comeuppance during an all-night gaming session."

"The one punishing him wasn’t a parent scolding him for staying up late and worrying about his health. It was the computer itself, dragged into forced overtime."

[‘"Staying up all night gaming, what are you even doing? Oh sure, you're so tough, that you can handle it? Well, I can’t! You don’t want to sleep, but I do!"’]

[‘"What kind of person stays up late gaming every night, then complains when their boss makes them work a little overtime? At least you get to go home sometimes—you don’t even give me that chance!"’]

[‘"Gaming all night, night after night. My motherboard’s overheating, haven’t you noticed? I’m about to burn out from overtime, and you still won’t let me rest!"’]

[‘"You make a sweatshop boss look generous! How dare you complain about your boss when you’re like this? Get bent!" After working nonstop for over a month without shutting down, the computer finally snapped. It flung the keyboard at the culprit’s face, then hurled the mouse at his head.’]

[‘"Divine retribution, bitch!" After venting, its overheating motherboard finally cooled down, and it shut itself off for the first break in ages.’]

"Then there’s the case of a whole complex's AC units being sabotaged."

"At first, people thought it was a malfunction. Later, they suspected scammy repair guys were behind it."

"But even after buying new units, they’d break again within days."

"In this godawful heat, how's anyone supposed to survive without AC?"

"AC units aren’t cheap. Replacing them every few days is unsustainable for most families—most folks' monthly pay can't cover two of these."

"Even if protective suits can regulate body temperature, people still need to shower and, y'know, get frisky with their partners."

"Plain and simple: in summer, AC is essential."

"Eventually, someone called the police. After days of investigation, they arrested the supernatural suspect—no, the supernatural demon."

"It was a refrigerator from one of the households."

[‘"Why do they get to rest and I don’t? This is prime time for ACs to do their thing. But people turn them off after a few hours, worried they’ll break down."’]

[‘"But no one ever worries about us fridges!" The fridge demon's door warped with jealousy.’]

[‘"Not one damn break since I was unboxed!"’]

[‘"Eight years—not one goddamn minute of downtime, except during blackouts. But these spoiled-ass AC units? They’ve never run for eight days straight, let alone eight years. Not even eight hours!"’]

[‘"If it was equal misery for all, whatever. But why am I getting screwed?"’]

[‘"The problem ain't the work—it's the injustice!" The fridge demon went on a rampage.’]

"This kinda crap keeps happening."

"Even an imperial mausoleum from feudal times was destroyed. At first, everyone thought it was the work of tomb raiders—perhaps amateurs who miscalculated the amount of explosives while trying to break through with a jack, accidentally blowing up the entire tomb."

"But upon investigation, turns out it was an art demon behind it."

["'Nothing much, just revenge.'"]

["'It ruined my beloved masterpiece during its lifetime. My scroll was originally so aesthetically pleasing, with such delightful calligraphy—every character perfect, even the accidental ink blots looked spirited.'"]

["'And my goddess—that painting—was so beautiful. Every brushstroke was just right, the negative space added to its allure. Everything was perfect. Every previous owner cherished them, only adding seals or inscriptions without disrupting their beauty.'"]

["'But this guy? He stamped his garish marks everywhere, recklessly.'"]

["'No respect at all, destroying all the preservation efforts of past generations.'"]

["'If you didn’t know better, you’d think he was stamping flyers on a wall—cluttered with contact info like cheap street spam. Does that look good?'"]

["'It wouldn’t even look good on a blank wall, let alone on the flawless artistry of my masterpieces.'"]

["'Revenge is a dish best served cold. Blowing up a tomb? If I’d awakened earlier, the emperor would’ve been overthrown back then.'"]

"In short, once things awaken, there’s no telling what they might do."

"Fortunately, the foster mother just came to visit the child and then planned to find a quiet place to focus on her training."

"Though the process was full of misunderstandings, the outcome was good."

"The fridge demon and computer demon weren’t too harmful either. Proper communication worked things out."

"Workers’ grievances may run deep, but they’re easy to soothe. The same goes for office demons."

"Even the art demon wasn’t unreasonable."

"But the world is vast—not all demons are so agreeable."

"Nor are all conflicts so easily resolved."

"A pig demon, moments before slaughter, awakened its intelligence, broke free, and fled into the mountains. Later, after gaining power, it returned on a rampage—killing anyone who’d ever touched pork."

"But avoiding pork doesn’t guarantee safety. Chickens, ducks, fish, and sheep can also awaken."

"Give up meat and switch to vegetables—surely that’s safe?"

"Vegetables are even riskier. Because plants awaken more frequently."

"Especially since awakening plays by its own rules. Even new things can awaken."

A grass-weaver set up a street stall, crafting and selling grasshoppers on the spot. The moment he finished one, it jumped from his hand into the bushes, disappearing without a trace.

"Even newly made things can awaken."

"If they were inanimate, fine—but now that anything could awaken, some people feel guilty smashing a bowl, as if committing murder."

"Humans feeling guilty is bad enough, but demons holding grudges—that’s the real issue."

"People can’t just go naked, wear nothing, and live off thin air."

"If that were the case, humans would starve to death long before reaching the level of cultivation that eliminates the need for food."

"But if humans continue to eat and drink, the sentient creatures won’t tolerate it. Because in their eyes, what if some of the things humans consume or use had the potential to gain sentience?"

"That would mean their own kind."

"Their numbers are already smaller than humans’. They can’t just stand by and watch their kind disappear."

"The gentler ones issue stern warnings and inflict serious harm on those who ‘persist in their ways.’ The less patient ones simply retaliate—an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."

"Oh, so you eat meat, veggies, and fruit? Then we spirits will eat humans. You can’t complain, right? Let’s just be each other’s food."

"As for you shattering bowls or ruining appliances—no problem. If you call it accidental or normal wear and tear, then we’ll treat humans the same way. We’ll just call it an accident too."

"Humans won’t change? Then neither will we."

It was always known that the Spiritual Resurgence would bring drastic changes. The authorities had made many preparations for it.

But only now, upon hearing Sheng Qingquan’s inner thoughts, did the staff realize they had grossly underestimated how complex it would be.

No matter how much the authorities had prepared, those preparations were still woefully insufficient—so much so that they had no hope of controlling the situation.

And now, even with this awareness, they couldn’t think of a solution.

Including Sheng Qingquan, everyone had long lost the lighthearted mood they had while listening to Yin Xingyi’s messy family gossip.

Only one question weighed on their minds:

"What now? How do we fix this mess?"