[ATTENTION!

THIS IS A SECTION OF THE PROLOGUE. EVENTS THAT OCCUR IN THIS CHAPTER GIVE CONTEXT TO SOME FUTURE EVENTS IN THE STORY, BUT IT IS NOT IMPORTANT TO START READING WITH THIS CHAPTER. ALL THE EVENTS THAT UNFOLD IN THIS CHAPTER ARE LEGENDS IN THE MAIN STORY.]

In unison, the three men snapped their attention in the direction of the surprise visitor. There, resting on the banyan tree, cradling the baby yakshi in her embrace like a protective new mother, was a woman of mesmerizing beauty. Her posture exuded a lazy authority, akin to a queen reclining on her woodland throne. She wore silken white robes adorned with the silver insignia of a tall mountain, and waves of silver-streaked amber hair cascaded past her shoulders like a waterfall of honey, flowing into the tastefully exposed skin peeking from a rather deep and full neckline. Her face, meticulously painted like an artist's canvas, remained devoid of emotion, yet her auburn eyes blazed with a fury so intense it threatened to ignite the surrounding air.

"And who, might I add, is this little bundle of joy?" She inquired, the hint of sarcasm in her tone adding to the already tense atmosphere as she stroked the baby yakshi's cheek with tender care.

Ao Jun's already impossibly pale skin lightened another shade as he turned to Ea, his eyes wide with fear. El conjured another flagon of wine from his invisible stores and shakily poured himself a cup. Ea visibly gulped, a bead of sweat trickling down his forehead as the threat of impending doom hung over him like an executioner's ax.

Ea forced a placating smile and spoke, "Nin Nin, it's been a while. I'm genuinely delighted you're here, my darling. I was just about to..."

"Yes, darling," her voice dripped with sarcasm, "it has been quite a while. Please refrain from using pet names in public, my love. You know how embarrassed it makes me. Ninmah, or the Mountain Queen, will do. Now, do answer my questions, my dear. You know how much I hate to be kept waiting, especially when my curiosity is piqued."

Ea felt an invisible noose tighten around his throat. "Of course, my queen, as you wish." He almost choked out the words, his voice strained with apprehension. "First, I will address the child. If you'll permit it, I'd like us to call her our daughter."

"I will not permit this; I do not remember ever giving birth to such a thing. Where did you pick up this stray, or should I ask from whom?" Ninmah raised an accusatory eyebrow in Ea's direction.

Ea massaged his forehead; he felt a headache brewing. "It's not whom or where. It's from what." He said with a tinge of uncertainty.

El spat his drink and started coughing heavily, while Ao Jun's mouth dropped in disbelief. Ninmah's eyes widened in horror.

"Husband," she began softly, her voice tinged with caution, "explain yourself immediately, and choose your words extremely carefully, or I fear Tendo's Wise Ocean will lose his heavenly spear today."

El's coughing fit intensified, forcing him to gasp for air between the violent spasms. Ao Jun, quick to react, offered a supportive pat on the back as he took a shaky swig from the almost-empty flagon of wine, his brow creased with concern.

Ea's mind drifted back to the fateful day he confronted the primordial in a cataclysmic clash of otherworldly energies. Despite the fatal wounds inflicted and the potent toxin crafted with an exceedingly rare and authentic dream dao flowing through the primordial's body, that celestial eye, which should have been sealed in an eternal slumber, defied all expectations and opened, a glaring defiance of logic and reason. Ea vividly recalled thrusting his weapon towards that eye, only to watch in astonishment as it liquefied and melted away from the man's skull, leaving behind nothing but a single tear of essence. As that final tear descended, it merged with a puddle of his own spilled blood, and a miraculous event unfolded—a tiny sapling sprouted forth, the genesis of an unknown life form in the world. The last vestiges of power drained from the primordial's body, and he dissolved into an endless crimson tide, flowing away to the farthest reaches of the earthly realms. All that remained amidst the fading echoes was the sapling and a flat piece of jade.

Ea knew he couldn't tell this story, so he did the only thing he could in the situation:

"When the primordial passed, he left behind a peculiar banyan seed among his possessions." He lied through his teeth, "Acting with utmost prudence and caution, I decided to seal it using my divine icon and my blood as a catalyst for the seal. Employing your clan's revered technique, the Eightfold Path of Naraka's Frozen Hell, I attempted to imprint the seal on the seed. However," he continued, his voice tinged with awe, "to my astonishment, instead of sealing, the seed miraculously sprouted into a sapling, which swiftly grew into the magnificent tree upon which you now recline."

Pausing for effect, he continued, "Just yesterday, this tree gained sentience, birthing the nascent divine soul you now cradle in your arms." His shoulders lifted in a helpless shrug. "That is why I propose we call her our daughter. She may be unconventional, but born from my blood, she is no less my child. And from the conversation I had with her just yesterday, I can assure you that she is nothing more than an exceedingly talented and confused little girl in need of a lot of guidance."

With a deep bow and a tone of sincere supplication, he concluded, "I ask that you take her into your care and raise her as if she were one of our own while I am away. I, your husband, would be eternally indebted to you, and I know a great mother like yourself would never leave a weak and defenseless child to fend for herself in this miserable chaos. Please, my queen, I beg you to accept her into your heart and care for her with the love and compassion that only you can provide."

Ninmah's eyebrow arched at the subtle flattery Ea wove into his final plea. Something felt amiss about the tale he spun, but she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. Glancing down at the slumbering infant, her heart softened at the sight of the child's unique features—porcelain skin as soft as silk, and strawberry-blond hair with hints of vibrant emerald green. Despite the uncertainty shrouding her husband's words, one thing rang undeniably true: children were her weakness. She would never abandon a child, especially not in the current infernal landscape.

"I retract my prior statement; I will accept this child as my own, but I do have one condition," she declared firmly while gently pinching the little girl's foot between her fingertips. She waited for Ea to nod his head in agreement before continuing.

"When you return you will tell me her true origins. I'm no primordial, and I'm not an expert with incantations like you, but I can proudly say no one knows my clan's sealing techniques better than me, not even Tendo's Wise Ocean," she stated, looking at Ea as if he were a fool, "I know the extent of those techniques capabilities far too well to believe that whole story and any backwater sage could feel the dharma's influence on this child's body, let alone an empyrean. Did you conveniently omit the fact that she is facing two tribulations at once, or did you simply forget? I don't know why you're hiding her origins, but I do know there's a lot more to them than what you just told me."

She gestured a sharp swipe of her finger towards Ea's groin. "If you lie to me again, I will chop it off. Do you understand?"

Ea's lip quirked at the threat, but his mind breathed a sigh of relief. She was still the woman he'd fallen in love with. Her mind was sharp as a blade, and her heart was warm as a summer breeze. Ninmah was a beautiful person inside and out.