《Don't Discriminate Against Species》 Chapter 1 - No Degree

Chapter 1 - No Degree

It was a particrly hot summer day. The green nts lining both sides of the road stood weakly. The chirping of insects was anxiety inducing. When a grand car collided with a motorcycle under the glittering, sunlit road, the people who usually enjoyed watching lively scenes hid underneath the shade of the trees. For once, they didn¡¯t budge. On such a hot day, even if their husbands or wives ran off, they wouldn¡¯t be willing to step out of the door and chase after them. The person riding the motorcycle had rammed into the headlights of the grand car and had also fallen off from the motorcycle. The zipper of the duffel bag that had been ced at the back of the motorcycle broke and the items inside spilled out, rolling all over the ground messily. ¡°Hey!¡± A delicate, rowdy-looking youth alighted from the car and crossed his arms, looking down at the young man who was picking up the things from the ground. ¡°Bro, you¡¯re here to swindle me?¡± He had been driving perfectly fine, yet this motorcycle had rushed out from the corner for no reason and knocked against his car directly. How could he not feel wronged? Fortunately, he had been driving normally and had even installed a recording device. Otherwise, he would be swindled again. ¡°Sorry, I wasn¡¯t paying attention while driving,¡± The young man didn¡¯t have the time to pick up the scattered items and stood up, apologizing to the youth. ¡°I will definitely take responsibility for what I did.¡± The youth looked askance at the young man as he sized him up. He had rather delicate features, but who in this age still wore t-shirts with holes in them? There was also that mess of twigs and nts on the ground. He even saw a lump of pink mud. Someone who could even treat this junk as treasure probably wasn¡¯t right in the head. ¡°Do you know how much the headlights on my car costs?¡± He kicked at a small stone beside his foot. It seemed to have also dropped out of the duffel bag. ¡°I don¡¯t, don¡¯t know,¡± The young man stared fixedly at the headlight for a few seconds before opening his mouth hesitantly. ¡°How, how much?¡± The youth inhaled deeply and told himself not to haggle with a poor ghost. He waved a hand impatiently. ¡°Scram, scram, scram. You know you don¡¯t have the money topensate yet still don¡¯t want to quickly run off?!¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want me topensate?¡± The young man scratched his head. He stooped and picked up the copsed motorcycle with one hand before forcefully pounding the top with his bare hands twice. The originally bent motorcycle head... straightened. The youth nced at his own thin arms and legs and then looked at the other party¡¯s arms which didn¡¯t seem very well-built yet contained a lot of strength. Swallowing, he stealthily took a few steps back and ced a hand on the car handle. F*ck. This, this was considered threatening him with violence, right? ¡°No, no need forpensation. Go, go,¡± A wise man knew better than to fight when the odds were against him. There was absolutely no need for him to be too firm when the moment came for him to be terrified. ¡°How would that be proper?¡± The young man shook the motorcycle. With a bang, quite a few motorcycle parts fell out. He pushed the motorcycle to the side, stooped and rummaged in the duffel bag for a while, and then presented a ck thing to the youth. ¡°Compensation should be given after breaking something. Consume this Ranyi meat and evil spirits will be warded off, allowing one to sleep peacefully. Take it aspensation.¡± The youth burned with rage internally yet didn¡¯t dare to express it out loud. He took the thing that had a fishy smell and squeezed out a wisp of a smile. ¡°Thank you.¡± So, not only did this bastard threaten him with violence, he also wanted to dupe him with fake medicine. Was he even human? No, those who sold fake medicine never had any humanity to begin with. Anyone with the slightest bit of conscience and morality wouldn¡¯t do this sort of thing. The young man selling fake medication was about to leave on his motorcycle when the youth summoned his courage and asked, ¡°Can that motorcycle of yours be ridden?¡± Don¡¯t ride halfway, run into some issue, and deceive yourself and others. He didn¡¯t dare to voice this statement. ¡°That won¡¯t happen again. I wasn¡¯t familiar with motorcycles just now, so I didn¡¯t control my strength well,¡± The young man moved his long legs and straddled the ragged motorcycle before wobbling off. He hadn¡¯t made it very far when another piece of metal dropped from the motorcycle. The youth watched dumbstruck as the young man rode the motorcycle into the distance. He sat back in his car, regaining his wits only after a long while. It was his first timeing into contact with a motorcycle and he dared to ride it on the main road. Which one of them was more like an undisciplined rich second generation?! Fu Li rode the raggedy motorcycle all the way into a tiny alley. Motorcycles and bicycles were parked in the alley, causing the originally notrge alley to be even more narrow. He carefully avoided a motorcycle that had beenin down t and crossed over an overturned motorcycle, stopping in front of a wooden door with the sign ¡®Nurturing and Rxation Club for Elderly¡¯ hanging on it. There was mottled red paint on the dpidated wooden door. The dull grey doorstep hadn¡¯t been swept in who knew how long; a thickyer of dust had umted on it. Fu Li parked the motorcycle at the side, patted the dust off himself, hoisted the duffel bag on his back, and then stepped forward, knocking on the half-open wooden door. He rapped on the door thrice, paused for a while, and then continued to knock another three times. The cycle continued in this way. Only after a long while did a short and plump old man open the door. He was dressed in a white vest that had turned yellow from being washed too many times and was holding onto arge palm leaf fan. He looked Fu Li up and down very slowly. ¡°Name?¡± ¡°Hello senior, this younger generation is called Fu Li.¡± ¡°Fu Li?¡± The old man stared at the palm leaf fan for a while before nodding. ¡°Your name¡¯s on it. Come in and register.¡± He entered the small courtyard house. Two mahjong tables had been set up inside. Several elderly men and women were ying mahjong at that moment. Not a single person looked up upon seeing Fu Li enter. As Fu Li followed the plump elderly man into the house, two elderly women started quarreling. In a fit of anger, one of the elderly women dressed in a cheongsam smashed the table into pieces with a p of her palm. ¡°Wang Cuihua!¡± The old man whose movements had been exceedingly slow since opening the door suddenly turned around swiftly and roared at the elderly woman wearing a cheongsam, ¡°You smashed the table again. Remember to pay for the damage.¡± Fu Li saw the elderly woman who had still been swearing with her hands on her hips a moment ago dete in an instant. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± The plump elderly man saw that Fu Li was still in a daze and shook his head. ¡°Young people just haven¡¯t seen the world.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± The inside of the house was a little dark. Fu Li nearly tripped as he walked in. ¡°Doesn¡¯t your fox n have night vision?¡± The plump old man shook his head even harder. ¡°The generations nowadays get progressively worse; even this sort of n instinct can be forgotten. You¡¯re really losing face for your n. Several thousand years ago, all of you could still run amuck around the world, but look at you now, not even able to see the road clearly.¡± ¡°But senior, I¡¯m not from the fox n,¡± Innocence was written all over Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Why are you called Fu Li if you¡¯re not from the fox fox n?¡± The plump old man wasn¡¯t at all embarrassed about his mistake. He calmly switched on the lights in the room and sat down in front of a shabbyputer. He pointed at a stool opposite. ¡°Sit there, straighten your back. I need to take your picture first.¡± The old man filled in every registration segment before pointing to thest nk and asking Fu Li, ¡°What is your ideal job?¡± ¡°Civil servant. Serving the people,¡± Longing filled Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯ll be even better if I can leave my name in historical records.¡± Hearing this, the elderly man nearly plucked clean the buttons on the keyboard. He shook therge palm leaf fan and looked at Fu Li as if he was a weirdo. ¡°Do you have a university degree?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°How are you going to be a civil servant without a degree?¡± The plump old man stared nkly for a long time and then asked helplessly, ¡°Who told you to enter the city?¡± ¡°Seventh Uncle Sun,¡± Fu Li answered. ¡°I don¡¯t know where Seventh Uncle Sun went either. I couldn¡¯t find him today.¡± ¡°Doggie Sun?¡± The old man took his time answering Fu Li¡¯s question. ¡°He was arrested a few days ago for making and selling fake identification.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected Seventh Uncle Sun, who had just returned to the mountain in a very dazzling manner before the year ended, to have actually broken thew. He stared nkly for a long while beforementing, ¡°When I came out, everyone told me that living in the big city isn¡¯t easy. It looks like that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have a university degree. What about a high school certificate?¡± Fu Li continued shaking his head. The plump man took out a small book from a drawer and scribbled a few words on it. He told Fu Li, ¡°It¡¯s better for you to do physicalbor at this construction site. The chiefbor contractor is one of us. Whether good or bad, you can still make ends meet.¡± Fu Li took the slip of paper from the elderly man¡¯s hand. An address not too far from this location was written on it in crooked letters. After thanking the old man, Fu Li turned and left the house. The plump man shook therge palm leaf fan. Only after Fu Li left did he take out Fu Li¡¯s information and look at it for a very, very long time. The damaged motorcycle that had been parked at the entrance to the club had already disappeared without a trace. All that was left lying on the ground was a rotten leaf. Zhou Chang had stayed at home for a full two days ever since sending the headlight of his beloved car for repair; he wasn¡¯t in the mood to go out. As usual, he slept till nearly ten o¡¯clock in the morning before getting up. He went downstairs and was then given a shock by his father, who was apanying his mother to watch television in glowing spirits. His father¡¯s sleep had been poortely and would scold Zhou Chang every time he saw him. Usually at this time, his dad would have already left for thepany. Why was he apanying his mother to watch television today? It wasn¡¯t like it was their birthday or wedding anniversary. ¡°Son,e sit here,¡± Father Zhou smiled, urging his son to take a seat. ¡°The smell of that medicine you bought for me may not be very good, but its effects are not bad. I¡¯ve been sleeping very well the past two days and haven¡¯t dreamed even once.¡± Zhou Chang stared nkly for a long while before recalling the supplements he had bought at the pharmacy two days ago to curry favor with his dad. Did those things actually have a soothing effect on sleep? ¡°I¡¯m just not sure what that fishy-smelling, ck-colored medicine is called. Buy a bit more of that back and send some of it to your grandparents too.¡± Fishy smelling? ck? Hadn¡¯t he bought ginseng and lingzhi? At that time, he had even specially told the housekeeper auntie that the medicine was good for his father and that she had to make sure to boil soup with it for his father to drink. How did a perfectly good ginseng turn ck and have a fishy smell? No. This wasn¡¯t right. Could that fishy smelling thing be the fake medicine that the person who had knocked into his car given him? He wasn¡¯t selling fake medicine, but authentic medicine? Zhou Chang looked at his father¡¯s rosy face and high spirits. He didn¡¯t dare to tell him that the medicine was a product of dubious origin that had identally mixed into the bunch of medication. As for him buying more of it, where was he supposed to go to buy it? Fortunately, he still remembered the name of this medicine. It seemed to be called... Ranyi meat? Yup, that was the name. T/N: This is one of my favorite novels, so I hope I can do it justice¨q( ???)? Despite the modern setting, it has strong elements of Chinese folklore, so be prepared for many, many trantor notes~ Chapter 2 - Good-Hearted Masses

Chapter 2 - Good-Hearted Masses

When Fu Li found the chiefbor contractor Zhao Sanxiang, he and a few other well-built men from the construction site were crowding around a small table with arms bared, drinking beer. There were several stic bags on the table containing braised beancurd, pork, peanuts, and so on. Seeing that he had arrived, Zhao Sanxiang put down his chopsticks and dragged out a not-very-clean stic stool from the corner. He enthusiastically beckoned to Fu Li, ¡°Comeee, sit and eat with us.¡± The few men saw Fu Li¡¯s fair, clean appearance and his slender physique and couldn¡¯t help teasing him. ¡°Zhao ge, which younger generation of yours is this? Such handsome looks.¡± ¡°Hi!¡± Zhao Sanxiang pulled Fu Li to the seat and told the men, ¡°We¡¯re from the same hometown. He came over to make a living with me.¡± ¡°Can he do our type of work?¡± The men burst intoughter. Clearly, they were used to joking around. They were originally even thinking of saying a few vulgar statements but for some reason, after seeing Fu Li obediently sit curled up on the stic stool, they felt somewhat embarrassed to voice them. ¡°Don¡¯t be fooled by his fair looks. His strength isn¡¯t little,¡± Zhao Sanxiang patted Fu Li¡¯s shoulder and pointed at a stone at the side. ¡°Come, give these uncles a show.¡± Fu Li looked at Zhao Sanxiang, wanting to say something yet hesitating. These few people hadn¡¯t even lived as long as him, wasn¡¯t it a little improper for him to be calling them uncle? ¡°Don¡¯t just stare at us. Go, let them broaden their horizons,¡± Zhao Sanxiang ced a chicken foot at the edge of his mouth and gnawed on it, a pleased expression on his face. ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li got up and walked over, looking at the stone on their left. It seemed to be on the small side. He turned his head and nced at the stone to the right that was half a sizerger before looking back at Zhao Sanxiang. Seeing his encouraging gaze, he stooped and grabbed the stone on the right, lifting it up from the ground. The few men were struck dumb. Even after a long time, they still they couldn¡¯t gather their wits. ¡°Zhao ge, this fellow townsman of yours should be in the weightlifting team winning glory for the nation.¡± Looking at the stone, it had a weight of several hundred catty! Zhao Sanxiang was also shocked. He had merely wanted Fu Li to lift up the smaller stone at the side for fun, not break the world record! Their yao world had its rules ¨C yao could not participate in human sports and would be hauled off to prison if they were discovered by the yao world¡¯s management bureau. ¡°Haha,¡± Zhao Sanxiang gave a hollowugh and changed the topic. ¡°This child has had a lot of strength since young. He couldn¡¯t make it in his studies, not like your kids who score in the top five every test.¡± The moment they heard someone praising their children, the few men immediately broke out into conversation, using a modest tone of voice to show off. By the time Fu Li threw away the gigantic stone and sat back down beside Zhao Sanxiang, Zhao Sanxiang was already gnawing on duck feet. If he hadn¡¯t seen wrongly, Zhao Sanxiang¡¯s original form was a mard. Zhao Sanxiang polished off the duck¡¯s feet both quickly and cleanly. The bones he spat out didn¡¯t have the slightest bit of meat on it. Fu Li couldn¡¯t help thinking that he was indeed a yao from the countryside who hadn¡¯t seen the world. It turned out that ducks not only ate their own kind but didn¡¯t let pigs, cows, sheep, and rabbits off either. After everyone finished drinking and consuming all the meat, Zhao Sanxiang brought Fu Li back to his rented house, warned him a few times, and then fell asleep snoring thunderously. Fu Li didn¡¯t sleep very well that night. Because within the span of one night, Zhao Sanxiang went to the toilet at least five times. When the sun rose, Fu Li stood by the window and paid his respects to the sun. Upon turning around, he saw that Zhao Sanxiang was still asleep. He couldn¡¯t help shaking his head and sighing. Times were progressing, humanity was advancing, yet the yao was on an increasing decline. The bird yao that he knew in the past were diligent and capable, paid respects to the moon before sleeping, and weed the sun at dawn. But now... Sadly, the hearts of the yao had degenerated. A good-looking person would have an advantage no matter where one was, even if it was a construction site. Within a short span of a week¡¯s time, Fu Li won over quite a few people due to his good looks, diligence, and habit of hiding in the work shed even after work had ended to read. Even the plump auntie at the construction site who made their meals would specially add two more slices of meat into his bowl when he came for his meal. ¡°Little Hu, reading again?¡± Uncle Zhang who hade up to greet him was from Sichuan and would asionally mix up ¡®h¡¯ and ¡®f¡¯ when speaking. But his character was quite good; seeing that Fu Li had given up on studying at such a young age ande out to work, he even specially got his son who was on summer vacation to bring over a few second-hand books and notes from home. ¡°These are my son¡¯s notes, you can take a look and see if they¡¯re useful,¡± Uncle Zhang ced the second-hand books and notebook in front of Fu Li. Fu Li nced through the books. Although they were a little old, they were very clean, and the handwriting inside was neat. He could tell that the owner cherished them. ¡°Thank you, Uncle Zhang,¡± Fu Li carefully ced the books and notebook aside. ¡°I¡¯ll return them to you when I¡¯m done reading.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, my son alreadypleted his university entrance exams this year. He won¡¯t need these books anymore,¡± Uncle Zhang¡¯s face brimmed with happiness. ¡°He received an admission notice from the capital¡¯s University of Science and Technology a few days ago. Me and his mom are preparing to bring him to the capital in two days and help him settle in and familiarize himself with the environment there.¡± With an admission notice to a university, one would be able to attend university and uponpletion, be a civil servant. Thinking of this, admiration filled Fu Li¡¯s eyes. ¡°Uncle Zhang, your son is so impressive.¡± Humans were truly amazing life forms. They only lived for a few short decades but could remember so much knowledge and attend university, unlike him who had wasted the past few years. ¡°No, no,¡± Uncle Zhang was greatly pleased by Fu Li¡¯s respectful attitude and insisted on dragging him to the ce he lived for a meal. Fu Li couldn¡¯t find any way to decline and thus could only follow him. Uncle Zhang¡¯s family members were surnamed Wang and also worked at the construction site. The work at the construction site was both tiring and bitter, but as long as the constructionpany didn¡¯t dy their wages, they could save quite a bit of money every year. The couple were often very frugal with their meals and hated that they couldn¡¯t split a cent for separate spending. Fu Li lifted the curtain and entered, realizing that quite a few different types of dishes had been ced on the table, including arge tter of roast duck. A bespectacled youth was arranging the bowls and chopsticks. Seeing the stranger Fu Li, he stared nkly for a moment before revealing a somewhat shy smile and turning to help Auntie Wang tidy up the kitchen counter. The rented house was quite small. There were two beds and a simple table. The kitchen counter situated outside on the balcony was put together from several wooden nks. The gas tank at the corner was covered in putty. ¡°Little Hu is here. Quickly sit, quickly sit,¡± Auntie Wang noticed Fu Li and stooped to wipe a stic stool before cing it in front of Fu Li. ¡°There¡¯s one more dish, it¡¯ll be ready soon.¡± Fu Li thanked her and sat on the stool. The electric fan on the floor emitted ¡®kacha, kacha¡¯ sounds, thought it didn¡¯t bring a slight chill to the rented house. They hadn¡¯t even started eating but Uncle Zhang¡¯s back and head was already covered in sweat. Fu Li, whose entire body was dry and clean, seemed disparate in front of them. Realizing this point, Fu Li tried very hard to make his face flushed, adding a bit of perspiration onto his forehead along the way. Many middle-aged men became chatterboxes after drinking; Uncle Zhang was no exception. Despite the fact that he was now living in a worn-out rental house, his heart remained strongly attached to the nation¡¯s ground, air, and sea territories and he hated that he couldn¡¯t abolish hegemony in the name of the Moon. Uncle Zhang¡¯s son didn¡¯t seem very fond of talking; all he did was eat silently. Fu Li observed him secretly and realized that he was already on his third bowl of rice. After the meal, Uncle Zhang and Auntie Wang went out to buy watermelon, allowing the two young people to interact. Zhang Peng stole a few peeks at Fu Li. Seeing the other party beam at him, his face instantly turned red and he choked up for quite a while before managing to speak. ¡°My dad said you¡¯re self-studying to enter university?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Exactly. You humans... The books now are too hard, I don¡¯t understand a lot of it.¡± ¡°Someone who didn¡¯t build a good foundation when young will indeed find senior high school content a bit more difficult,¡± Zhang Peng started to talk more when the topic shifted to studying. ¡°Why don¡¯t you study junior high school content first before looking at senior high school content? That would be a lot easier.¡± ¡°So, you mean that my knowledge of junior high school content is too poor?¡± Fu Li widened his eyes and stared fixedly at Zhang Peng. Worried that his words had hurt Fu Li¡¯s self-esteem, Zhang Peng looked up at hisrge, bright eyes and regretted it even more. ¡°Not, not really, just that... Maybe... It¡¯s been too long since you learnt the content, so you forgot it. I¡¯m not saying that you¡¯re bad at studying.¡± The Zhang Peng who was this old rarely lied, so for him to have thought of a perfect excuse within the short span of a few seconds was practically a breakthrough for him. ¡°No, I think what you said makes a lot of sense,¡± Fu Li nodded with understanding. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the bookstore now and buy junior high school books.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Zhang Peng stopped him. ¡°The weather is so hot, and the bookstore may not have the textbooks either, why don¡¯t you buy it online?¡± ¡°Online?¡± Fu Li stared nkly. ¡°You mean inte cafes sell these things?¡± Zhang Peng had thought that his knowledge of the world was already poor enough. Unexpectedly, there was someone who had seen even less of the world than him and was unaware of even online shopping. From what his father had said, this Fu Li didn¡¯t have parents and had always lived in a remote mountain vige. He wanted to study yet could only do manualbor at a construction site. His life must have been very hard. ¡°Don¡¯t buy them. I¡¯ll call my friend and get him to mail over past-year textbooks,¡± Zhang Peng was full of sympathy towards Fu Li. ¡°Anyway, there isn¡¯t much use in keeping these old books.¡± ¡°How could I ept that?¡± Fu Li said this but didn¡¯t reject Zhang Peng¡¯s good intentions. Because. He. Didn¡¯t. Have. Money. Just as they were talking, Fu Li heard a groaning sound from the gas tank on the balcony. He asked Zhang Peng curiously, ¡°What¡¯s in that tank, why is it ringing?¡± Zhang Peng¡¯s expression changed drastically. Standing up, he grabbed Fu Li¡¯s arm and dragged him out. ¡°Quickly, run!¡± When Uncle Zhang and Auntie Wang came back from buying watermelon, they saw a mass of people in front of their rented house. Shocked, the two people pushed through the crowd. ¡°What happened?¡± The tenants nearby were all workers from the construction site. Seeing that the husband and wife had returned, they broke into chatter. Something about how the weather had been too hot, the gas tank exploding, and whatnot. Auntie Wang was frightened into bawling. ¡°Mum!¡± Zhang Peng¡¯s sses were broken, so when he walked out from the crowd, his eyes seemed somewhat spiritless. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± In the instant the gas tank exploded, Fu Li had positioned himself in front of him, so he waspletely fine apart from some broken skin on his knee. Zhang Peng¡¯s eyes reddened as he recalled how the parentless young man who was passionate about studying had been brought away by an ambnce covered in blood. He owed the other party his life. At the yao world¡¯s management bureau, a certain administrator received a report from a good-hearted yaoguai. ¡°A good-hearted yaoguai called to say that there was an explosion at a construction site in the western part of the city. There was spige of yao qi, so there is suspicion that a yaoguai is causing trouble.¡± T/N: Please read the notes on yao-rted terminology because it¡¯s important background info in understanding the setting! Chapter 3 - Degenerated

Chapter 3 - Degenerated

There were quite a few hospital beds in the not-so-spacious hospital room. Patients squeezed together with their family members as they discussed their daily lives ¨C whose family¡¯s son was disappointing, whose family¡¯s daughter was unwilling to marry, whose family¡¯s son got into a good university... Fu Li sat on a hospital bed crunching on an apple in his hand. Zhao Sanxiang, who was seated opposite him, had already been silent for ten minutes. The average person would have long felt ufortable after being stared at for so long, yet Fu Li¡¯s ability to adapt was quite good. Not only did he not feel a single bit of difort, he even polished off a banana, a peach, and a bunch of grapes. Kacha kacha. The apple was almost about to bepletely consumed. Zhao Sanxiang finally couldn¡¯t take it any longer and spoke up, ¡°You¡¯re quite hardy, even ying the hero.¡± Fu Li tossed the apple core into the dustbin one meter away and replied leisurely, ¡°It¡¯s not like I can watch him die right in front of me.¡± Although that family did not have any great merits or virtues, they were not bad either. In any case, it had gone smoothly. To prevent ordinary people from realizing that there was something fishy, he had even specially used an illusion technique to create an effect and make it seem like his entire body had been riddled with injuries. He had already thought it through very thoroughly. ¡°Sh*t,¡± Zhao Sanxiang flushed out a packet of cigarettes from his pocket. Before he could even light it, he was given a death stare by the auntie at the neighboring bed. ¡°Brother, look at the wall.¡± Zhao Sanxiang looked up. A sign stating ¡®smoking is prohibited in hospital rooms¡¯ was hung on the wall. He pinched the cigarette in his hands and then stuffed it back into the box. Agitated, he stood up and told Fu Li, ¡°Stay in the hospital for another two days. I¡¯m going back to the construction site.¡± As he walked out of the hospital room, he vaguely heard the people in the hospital room asking Fu Li a question. ¡°Young man, the man that left just now was your father?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I thought he didn¡¯t seem like it either.¡± Zhao Sanxiang chuckled coldly. Ignorant humans. He was a duck that had lived for two thousand years; he was incapable of having such a foolish son. But what type of yaoguai was this Fu Li exactly? He actually couldn¡¯t tell despite having nearly two thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation. When he reached the entrance of the hospital, he looked up and immediately saw a man and woman with ordinary looks walking in his direction, prompting him to take two steps back instinctively. As the man and woman passed by Zhao Sanxiang, they turned and nced at him. He hurriedly presented a small booklet to them. He was an innocent yao who had never done any bad things since the founding of the nation. ¡°No need to be so anxious,¡± The middle-aged woman nced at the proof of innocence in Zhao Sanxiang¡¯s hand and smiled mildly. ¡°We¡¯re just passing by.¡± Zhao Sanxiang heaved a sigh of relief. A thought suddenly rose in his mind after he exited the hospital. Were those two searching for Fu Li? With a turn of his head, he looked towards the entrance of the hospital as he hastened his footsteps. As they say, it was better for someone else to die than for one to die. He should make his escape quickly. Zhang Ke and Xu Yuan walked into Fu Li¡¯s hospital room and was just in time to see an elderly woman stuffing fruits into Fu Li¡¯s arms. Xu Yuan sized Fu Li up carefully. The other party had a well-proportioned physique and an elegant appearance. It was impossible to tell what breed of yaoguai he was from appearance. The other party didn¡¯t even have a tiny bit of yao qi. If she hadn¡¯t already confirmed the other party¡¯s yao identity, she would have assumed that he was an ordinary human. It was said that certain yao who were bestowed a chance by the Heavens could easily cultivate a human form despite having low cultivation. Their abilities didn¡¯t differ much from ordinary people, so such yao were very easily mistaken by human cultivators and yao as ordinary humans. One other possibility was that he was a formidable yao who had already reached a higher realm and returned to his natural state, so no one could see beyond his facade nor sense the yao qi on him. But... it was impossible for a yaoguai who could only make a living on a construction site to be a formidable yao at the level of a leader in the yao world. When they first received the report, they had thought that it was a yaoguai causing trouble. But in the end, they realize after investigating the scene that this yaoguai had protected a human at the final moment. The reason why the two of them were here was so that they could give him the money awarded to him for his heroic act. The money wasn¡¯t much, but it was still a form of appreciation from the management bureau. After listening to them exin their purpose foring, Fu Li happily epted the prize money of one thousand yuan, stuffed it into his pocket, and even patted it with a hand. He had finally broken away from the state of being utterly penniless. ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li was all smiles as he thanked the two people. He picked up two apples from the side of the bed and shoved it at them. ¡°Come, have some fruits.¡± These fruits were delivered by Uncle Zhang¡¯s family, who had also paid for the medical bills during the past few days of his hospitalization. Uncle Zhang had even wanted to give him a thank-you fee but was rejected by him. He was a yao who prized education; how could he ept the money that Uncle Zhang had saved for Zhang Peng¡¯s school fees? There was a very good human saying ¨C no matter how poor one was, one could not neglect education; no matter how tough things were, children could not be allowed to suffer. Zhang Ke didn¡¯t ept the apple, but Xu Yuan epted it with a word of thanks. ¡°You¡¯re wee,¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face was as broad as ever. Zhang Ke and Xu Yuan didn¡¯t intend to spend too much time on a single little yao. After confirming that Fu Li was a harmless yao, they prepared to report back to the bureau. Dragon qi was richest in the capital, thus attracting congregations of yao. With many yaoguai came many weirdos; some became inte celebrities and were then arrested for selling fake facial masks, while some became thieves and even dared to use their yao abilities to escape from the police after being discovered. There were also those who cheated others¡¯ feelings and absconded after receiving gifts, those who used confusion techniques to swindle elderly people into buying supplements, those who sold fake medicine, and those who created fake identification. Any kind of illegal means that could be thought of existed. These types of yaoguai were still all right; all they did was scam people of their money without harming them. The most savage were evil yao who murdered humans and yao; such yao had to be put on global wanted lists and would be killed without room for discussion. The two people had just walked out of the hospital room when they received news from headquarters about the appearance of a heart-devouring yao who had already taken the lives of two people and was currently on the run. ¡°Damn, did all these yaoguai conspire or what. They know that Captain Zhuang went out of the country recently, so they¡¯re alling out one after another,¡± Zhang Ke looked at the murder scene, an extremely ugly expression on his face. In the current world, there were already not many yaoguai who dared tomit crimes so brazenly. In the hospital room, Fu Li had gathered together with everyone to watch television. The news was reporting on a murder case that had urred at a certain location, warning residents to take note of safety when out. ¡°Aiyoyo, the deceased is only twenty years old.¡± An auntie pped her thigh and cursed, ¡°Murderers are really good-for-nothings. Imagine how sad the rtives of this child are.¡± While listening to the uncles and aunties curse the unknown murderer, Fu Li, who hadn¡¯t watched much television, paid very serious attention to the television. He smoothly grabbed a peach from the bedside cab and started nibbling on it. Fu Li stayed at the hospital for another two days before making arrangements for his own discharge. Uncle Zhang¡¯s family didn¡¯t allow him to leave the hospital, but he didn¡¯t want to waste money, so he could only leave the hospital on the sly. Whilepleting the discharge procedures, he was even chastised by the principal doctor for not taking his health seriously. Fu Li heaved a sigh of relief after leaving the hospital. Humans were truly impressive life forms. He remembered how a very long time ago, the physician¡¯s legs would tremble upon seeing him. Now, they even dared to criticize him. Furthermore, not even a single statement of criticism was repeated. He nced at the sky. The setting sun painted the entirend a red so intense that it was a little strange. Fu Li switched to carrying the stic bag with one hand and then walked into a small alley. Quite a few people were seated in front of a food stall, including middle-aged men in flower shirts, elderly men in sleeveless garments, and even dolled-up youngdies. Fu Li¡¯s appearance caused many of these youngdies to steal countless peeks at him. Those with more courage even took out their phones to take photos of him. Fu Li was aware of these girls¡¯ gazes. He held fast to the principle of not looking at what was contrary to propriety and silently ate his noodles with a lowered head. The food made by humans was also bing more and more delicious. They were truly an extraordinary race; forever improving and raising the respect yao had for them to a whole new level. Fu Li held up the huge bowl and drank all of the noodle soup, down to everyst drop. Then, he took out a shoddy paper napkin from the napkin box and wiped his mouth. He had just stood up to pay when a bowl flew to the side of his foot. Fu Li turned around. Several youths with multi-colored hair were surrounding the girls and saying something, even going so far as to snatch one of the girls¡¯ handphones. ¡°Ge just wants to make friends with you, yet you don¡¯t give us any face. Isn¡¯t that a bit too unreasonable?¡± The girls were scared into sobbing. The boss at the side let out a few words of persuasion, but the few hooligans turned a deaf ear to him. Adle clutched in his hand, the boss wanted to step up and stop them, yet was somewhat fearful. The other diners didn¡¯t dare to provoke the hooligans either, causing the atmosphere to be iparably rigid. ¡°You already lost all your face by doing something like bullying girls, what more face do you want?¡± Fu Li stepped in front of the girls who had been scared into trembling and pped aside the fingers the hooligans were pointing at the girls. ¡°A civilized person should behave civilly.¡± ¡°Where did this nosy idiote from? Scram,¡± The hooligan in the lead just finished cursing when his entire body rolled out. The color of Fu Li¡¯s eyes was very light. Under the mandarin yellow light of the streetlights, there seemed to be a faintyer of gold light over his pupils. He smiled broadly at the few hooligans. ¡°Scram in this way?¡± The hooligans who only dared to bully girls took a few steps back in fear. Two minutester, the hooligans were all tied up awaiting the arrival of the police. Out of all the rescued girls, the girl with the most courage was called Ting Ting. Seeing that Fu Li was leaving, she hurriedly stopped him. ¡°Handsome, what¡¯s your name?¡± The corner of Fu Li¡¯s mouth curved upwards. He raised his chin and said profoundly, ¡°Please call me Lei Feng.¡± Ting Ting, ¡°What?¡± By the time she came to her senses, the handsome guy calling himself ¡®Lei Feng¡¯ had long since disappeared to who-knows-where. Fu Li walked through the dimly lit alleys, his head swimming from theplicated roads. He rifled through his pockets and took out a Migu Branch. He tapped the edge of the branch and the branch turned, pointing towards a direction. The Migu Branch seemed to have pointed Fu Li towards a shortcut, so certain roads he passed by were extremely narrow and had practically zero signs of human habitation. Bang. When a human suddenly fell in front of him, he halted his footsteps and stooped over to take a look. Wasn¡¯t this the person who gave him the prize money two days ago? Why did he fall from above? He looked up. A tall and sturdily built person was standing on the fence, a strange red light in both eyes. ¡°Quickly, go!¡± Zhang Ke recognized Fu Li. He forced himself to stay calm as he stood up and blocked Fu Li. ¡°You aren¡¯t his opponent.¡± ¡°Nobody is allowed to leave. All will remain and be my dinner,¡± The evil yao let out a joyfulugh and jumped off the fence. There even streaks of blood on his white, furry face. Fu Li cocked his head, once again sighing at how the yao world had degenerated. In this age of peace and prosperity, even a Zhuyan dared toe out and bully others. They had degenerated, truly degenerated. The yao world¡¯s face had beenpletely lost by these disappointing things. Chapter 4 - Face?

Chapter 4 - Face?

In the dark alley illuminated only by moonlight, the evil yao¡¯s peculiar appearance appeared even more terrifying. Zhang Ke spat out two wads of blood in session and nced at the slender-limbed Fu Li standing in front of him. A wave of despair rose in his heart. Never had he thought that he, an outstanding disciple of the magnificent Qingxiao Sect, would perish in this derelict alley and even have his heart dug out by an evil yao. No wait. Hadn¡¯t he been blocking Fu Li? How had he appeared in front of him in a blink of an eye? He still wanted to y hero at this time? ¡°Stop putting up a pretense. The blood you spat out can even fill a bowl, aren¡¯t you tired of standing?¡± Fu Li looked back at Zhang Ke and pointed at some stone steps. ¡°Is sitting bad?¡± Sit your ass. They were about to lose their lives and he still wanted him to sit? Zhang Ke was nearly angered into spitting out yet another mouthful of blood. Did this little yaoguai know exactly what danger was? Just as he thought this, the evil yao¡¯s hands suddenly transformed into ws. The sharp ws attacked Fu Li¡¯s chest with a swiftness that left him with no chance to even let out a ¡®ah¡¯ sound. The next second, he felt his body lifting off the ground as something hooked around his belt. By the time he regained his wits, he was already standing on the fence. ¡°The human rules here promote civilized behavior and good social practices. Making a move without a single word doesn¡¯t seem to align to the rules,¡± Fu Li was carrying Zhang Ke as if he was a small chick. Zhang Ke looked down at the unstable fence beneath his feet, not daring to move recklessly. If the fence copsed, he would be med for it after going back. Forget it. It would be a miracle if he could still make it back to be med at this juncture. He wiped away the blood at the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and took out a pile of talismans from his chest. He spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Go call for help, I¡¯ll hold him off here.¡± Fu Li shot a nce at the talismans in Zhang Ke¡¯s hands. The humans had simplified their style of writing, but had talismans also been simplified? Why were they all not drawn topletion? There was only so much power that could be in those talismans. It was no wonder that national advancement through science and technology was the catchword of the humans today. With thezy attitude of the cultivation world towards even things like drawing talismans, they couldn¡¯t be relied on even if something major were to ur. ¡°I don¡¯t have any helpers,¡± Fu Li flung Zhang Ke towards the area outside the fence and spoke to him as he towered above him. ¡°You can call for help. I¡¯ll handle him here.¡± ¡°Nobody¡¯s allowed to leave,¡± The Zhuyan saw that these two humans were actually treating him as if he was invisible and advanced forward swiftly, aiming straight for Fu Li¡¯s mingmen. Seeing him rush over, Fu Li flipped off the fence and grabbed Zhang Ke. ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s just escape together.¡± Zhang Ke had just opened his mouth upon hearing the word ¡®escape¡¯ when wind poured into it. He could feel himself hanging off Fu Li and the bounds and leaps that they were taking while he was lugged along. The speed at which they moved was so quick that he was on the verge of vomiting. This Fu Li jumped so quickly, was his original form a rabbit? Every time the evil yao caught up to them, Fu Li would coincidentally dodge the evil yao¡¯s attacks. Zhang Ke¡¯s originally panicked breathing morphed into silence afterwards. His ears were filled with the whistling sound of the wind while the crescent moon shone brightly above him. Zhang Ke had never before felt so unconcerned whether he lived or died. Just as Zhang Ke was thinking that Fu Li would continue running, he came to a stop and threw Zhang Ke onto the ground. Zhang Key sprawled on the ice-cold ground, raising his head to nce at their surroundings. There was a not-very-clean stream behind, and uncultivatednd stretched all around them. Very good, the both of them would die here. At least there was one advantage about this ¨C they wouldn¡¯t arouse panic among the ordinary civilians. ¡°Continue running, why aren¡¯t you running anymore?¡± The evil yao¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t very pleasant to the ears. Its voice even carried an ent. At this moment, the thought that shed through Zhang Ke¡¯s mind was that this yao definitely wasn¡¯t local. ¡°Zhuyan, what are you doing running out here and not staying properly in your Xiaoci Mountain?¡± With a wave of Fu Li¡¯s hand, the cap on the Zhuyan¡¯s head fell to the ground, revealing his white head. A human-like face on its furry white head made for an unspeakably terrifying sight. Zhang Ke nearly thought that something had gone wrong with his ears upon hearing the word ¡®Zhuyan¡¯. Wasn¡¯t that a yaoguai that existed in legends, it actually existed in this world? The Zhuyan hadn¡¯t expected anyone to actually recognize him. He stared at Fu Li for a very long time with narrowed eyes. After confirming that he hadn¡¯t seen this yaoguai before, heughed strangely. ¡°You know who I am, and you still dare to run?¡± In the myths, the Zhuyan was a famous fiend that yao fled from on sight. As a human cultivator, Zhang Ke had naturally heard of the legends surrounding the Zhuyan. The him now wasn¡¯t even moving anymore; he was ready to change to afortable position to wait for death. ¡°Isn¡¯t it you who¡¯s good at running away?¡± Doubt appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face, as if he was seriously discussing this issue with the Zhuyan. ¡°You even forgot your own nature after all these years?¡± This statement of Fu Li¡¯s made the Zhuyan recall the days when he had been bullied by the ancient yaos into hiding. A fierce exmation erupted from his mouth immediately, ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°I am but a nameless little yao who just happened to hear of king Zhuyan¡¯s story,¡± Fu Li looked down at Zhang Ke, who was lying motionlessly on the ground. He touched the prize money in his pocket and decided that it was still better for him to be a good yao who repaid kindness. ¡°The spirit qi in the human world is muddy. Why did the king abandon Xiaoci Mountain ande here to eat people?¡± ¡°Xiaoci Mountain, how is there still a Xiaoci Mountain now!¡± The Zhuyan flew into a rage. ¡°I merely went to wander the sea for a while but when I returned, Xiaoci Mountain had already been hollowed out by two beasts. Even this king¡¯s red copper and white jade bed was not let off!¡± Fu Li nced down at Zhang Ke. Zhang Ke covered his face in silence. This wasn¡¯t any of his business. ¡°The two beasts destroyed my territory, so I ate their hearts. That is only right and proper.¡± ¡°This matter doesn¡¯t have any rtion to this human. Why don¡¯t you give me some face and let this matter go...¡± ¡°Give you face? There are many little yao who have fawned over this king the past few years. I really haven¡¯t seen anyone with skin as thick as yours. Who are you to dare to ask this king to give you face?¡± The Zhuyan mocked. ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t have any territory now because of those two beasts, so he¡¯ll be a nice feast!¡± ¡°At first, I thought that this human was at fault, so if Ipensate you with some things on behalf of this human, you¡¯ll smoothly go back into hiding in the mountains,¡± Fu Li tugged on the sleeve of his shirt. ¡°But your refusal to give me any face has made me unhappy.¡± ¡°Hahahahaha,¡± The Zhuyan only felt that it was veryughable. ¡°You¡¯re just a tiny yao. What can you do even if this king doesn¡¯t give you any face?¡± Zhang Ke suddenly saw Fu Li leap. He hadn¡¯t managed to even get a clear glimpse of the other party¡¯s movements when the Zhuyan was sent flying. He fell into the foul stream with a huge ssh. Bo-Boss? ¡°Take this and tie him up,¡± Fu Li stuffed a whip into Zhang Ke¡¯s hands. Zhang Ke took the whip that neither looked old nor new and rushed into the filthy stream without looking back. A momentter, he finished tying up the Zhuyan. ncing at the Zhuyan who was obediently following after him, Zhang Ke couldn¡¯t help suspecting his identity as the fiend in the legends. Fu Li smelt the stinky scent on Zhang Ke and took two steps back. It looked like it was a wise choice to let this human tie the Zhuyan up. ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware that senior was an ancient yao. This younger generation failed to recognize this esteemed senior, may senior please forgive me,¡± Zhang Ke¡¯s first statement after climbing back ashore was an apology to Fu Li. Fu Li nced at him in confusion. ¡°What ancient yao. All I did was rely on this yao-beating whip to control him.¡± ¡°You¡¯re... not an ancient yao?¡± Zhang Ke scrutinized Fu Li skeptically. From his appearance, he didn¡¯t seem like the type to lie. Only then did he heave a sigh of relief. ¡°Then what yao-beating whip is this?¡± ¡°Oh, this?¡± Fu Li gave a brief description, ¡°Two yao kings in the past were fighting. In the end, one of them was beaten to death and the other died after being struck by thunder. So, I conveniently picked it up.¡± Zhang Ke, ¡°...¡± That was sure convenient. The Zhuyan who was bound by the yao-beating whip let out a pained chuckle. Because of the yao-beating whip¡¯s restriction, his original form was revealed. He had a snowy white head, an ape-like figure, and four red feet. He grimaced as he kneeled on the ground. ¡°You¡¯re yao, yet you wallow in the mire with two-legged creatures,¡± His scarlet eyes stared fixedly at Fu Li as his corners of his mouth pulled back, revealing sharp teeth. ¡°The emperor of my yao race has finally awoken and will seize thend that belongs to us.¡± Half the moon in the sky was obscured by clouds. Zhang Ke didn¡¯t know if it was just his misperception, but he felt that the moon seemed faintly red. ¡°Stop thinking about groundless things,¡± Fu Li rapped the Zhuyan¡¯s furry head heavily. ¡°A feudalistic society governed by imperial power has long since been overthrown, what emperor are you talking about? All you yaoguai whoe out from deep within the mountains just haven¡¯t seen the world. Don¡¯t you know that times have progressed and that society is improving?¡± He might be a yaoguai from the countryside, but he had already started to learn human knowledge, so he harbored a strange kind of pride in this area. The moment Fu Li voiced this, the frightening aura emitting from the Zhuyan instantly vanished without a trace. Zhang Ke told the Zhuyan, ¡°Evil yao Zhuyan, you have vited the first and third regtion of the yao world by ruthlessly murdering four humans and vited the eighth and twelfth regtion by using humans as food. You will be arrested and brought to justice by the yao world¡¯s management bureau. Come with me.¡± The Zhuyanughed coldly, taking exception to these words. In the past when he feasted on thousands of people, these two-legged creatures had even obediently sent him offerings. ¡°Hey, wait a moment,¡± Fu Li called after Zhang Ke. ¡°Rx, after we lock up the Zhuyan, our bureau will return the yao-beating whip to you,¡± Although Zhang Ke felt that the yao-beating whip was quite a rare item, he didn¡¯t have any intention to steal others¡¯ treasures. ¡°Who cares about that toy,¡± Fu Li waved a hand. ¡°I wanted to say that I can be considered to have helped you out tonight. Will there be... prize money or something?¡± Zhang Ke was silent for two seconds. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I will help you apply for it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Fu Li was reassured. He hadn¡¯t busied himself this night for nothing. At this moment, a girl called Ting Ting was walking out from a police station with her friends. She found the photo she had secretly captured on her phone and clicked open an online social tform. Hopefully with the power of the inte, she could find this kind person who had helped her and her friends. Although in the picture the young man wearing a shirt was seated on the inside of the food stall, his elegant appearance couldn¡¯t be covered up. The weibo post that Ting Ting sent out in search of this person was forwarded by the local official police¡¯s weibo, which praised his willingness to help others while simultaneously calling for men to respect women. Before two days had gone by, this weibo post had garnered the attention of manyizens. Many people were guessing the identity of the young man who called himself Lei Feng. ¡°Little Hu, push this cart of cement over, quick!¡± ¡°Kay,¡± Fu Li dragged the cart over. He moved at lightning speed the entire way, causing dust to fly all over the construction site. Chapter 5 - My Emperor Has Finally Returned

Chapter 5 - My Emperor Has Finally Returned

The liveliness on the inte couldn¡¯tpare to the construction site¡¯s chiefbor contractors who had managed to secure work. Many chiefbor contractors had a group of men under them and also had to acquire some connections on the constructionpany¡¯s end. The asional drinking and eating for the sake of securing work was unavoidable. Zhao Sanxiang was very good at this. It hadn¡¯t been long since thepletion of the work at this construction site, but he had already received the sry. At the same time, he had also bagged a new project. The men who followed him very willingly called him Zhao ge. Ever since the matter about Fu Li rescuing Old Zhang¡¯s son spread throughout the construction site, Fu Li had be quite familiar with the older workers. He didn¡¯t know if it was because Old Zhang¡¯s error had spread, or if everyone had the same issue with pronunciation as Old Zhang, but the entire construction site was now calling him little Hu. Fortunately, Fu Li didn¡¯t mind such things; there was no difference whether it was little Fu, little Hu, or little Hua. At noon that day, Fu Li was drinking the pig trotter soup Zhang Peng had sent over when a loud siren sounded outside. He lifted up the curtain to the shed curiously and saw that the rest were running outside. He asked at the top of his voice, ¡°Where are all of you going?¡± ¡°There¡¯s someone attempting suicide at the construction site in front, do you want to take a look?¡± The man who replied Fu Li was surnamed Chen. He was fast approaching the age of forty but hadn¡¯t wedded a wife, so he was called Old Empty Chen by everyone else. He didn¡¯t mind it either, even happily responding when others called him that. He had good rtions with the people at the construction site. Fu Li happened to be bored, so seeing that everyone else was going to join in the action, he figured that he should also behave in a way that was consistent with the crowd. ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go together.¡± A middle-aged woman in a flower-patterned shirt and ck cks was sitting at the edge of the top floor of an iplete building. The ground that was overgrown with weeds was jam-packed with people. Peng Hang, who had rushed over after receiving the alert, tugged at his sweatden police uniform as he instructed the rest to ready the intable cushion. The ground at this abandoned construction site was craggy and uneven, and some grass had grown so tall that they were even taller than a person. The ambnce couldn¡¯t enter, so the rescue equipment could only be carted in by people. Dajie, look at the hot weather, if you have something to saye down first. As the saying goes, find the police in times of trouble. As long as youe down, we will definitely help you,¡± Peng Hang gestured at his colleagues from other departments, indicating for them to stealthily enter the building. The woman¡¯s emotions were very unstable. She sobbed while apologizing to Peng Hang, saying that she didn¡¯t want to trouble everyone but didn¡¯t have any choice. As she was too emotional, her body constantly leaned forward. A moment of carelessness could cause her to fall from the building. It turned out that the woman¡¯s partner had passed away from illness two years ago and she had a child who was still schooling. Shecked a specialized skill and thus could onlye to the construction site and work as if she was a man. Who would have expected that after working half a year, the chiefbor contractor took the money and fled. Now, her child was severely ill and the hospital had started to press her for the hospital fees. Even after pleading with every person she could find, she still didn¡¯t manage to pool enough money. With no other choices, it was impossible for her to live on. The woman who wasn¡¯t even forty years old had a dark-skinned, thin, and shriveled appearance, her entire body resembling pickled radish drained of all its moisture. The sound of her weeping was both mournful and intense, making Peng Hang feel a little upset. He wiped the sweat on his face and ranted in a low voice to his colleagues. ¡°The capitalists today are really good-for-nothings!¡± Then, he turned and nced beyond the police cordon. Putting his hands on his hips, he gave a mocking smile. ¡°Such a hot day, yet there are still people whoe to watch the excitement. Tell all those watching not to jeer. It¡¯ll be bad if they stimte the person involved and cause the loss of a life.¡± ¡°Boss, the people outside are temporary workers at the nearby construction site. They usually don¡¯t have much entertainment, so now that something like this is happening, how can they not join in on the excitement?¡± His colleague Xiao Yang made a sound of agreement and went to speak to the onlooking workers. Old Empty Chen ced his palm against his head, sighing as he spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Ai, this sort of chiefbor contractor who runs after taking the money really isn¡¯t anything good.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t say anything, because he really didn¡¯t understand why humans would sacrifice their everything for the sake of others. ¡°Fellow countrymen, we¡¯re currently attempting to convince the person involved, please take care not to say anything provocative,¡± A very young police officer walked over, his face and head dripping with sweat as if he had just been dunked in water. ¡°She still has a child who is severely ill. If anything happens to her, the child will be in a pitiful position.¡± The scene quietened. Only after a long while did one of the workers speak up, ¡°This sister doesn¡¯t have it easy either. Fellow officer, you must arrest that person who ran with the money.¡± Xiao Yang smiled bitterly. Faced with the various faces smeared with ck grease, he nodded and replied, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we will definitely put in our best efforts.¡± The negotiations didn¡¯t seem to have gone very well. It was unknown what the woman had thought of, but she stood up. It was evident that she genuinely didn¡¯t intend to continue living. rm swept through the people present and Peng Hang roared in a moment of desperation, ¡°Dajie, think of your son. He¡¯s still waiting for you to go back and see him.¡± The woman covered her face and sobbed, ¡°It was me who let him down. I¡¯m useless.¡± After saying these words, she wiped dry her tears, closed her eyes, and prepared to jump. ¡°I have a panacea passed down from my ancestors that can cure your son!¡± This voice was loud, clear and extremely piercing. It was unknown if it was everyone¡¯s misconception, but they could feel these words prating their eardrums, drilling into the depths of their hearts. The woman opened her eyes again. She cast a searching gaze all around her as if attempting to find the person who had spoken. Peng Hang heaved a temporary sigh of relief. Lying at this moment wasn¡¯t considered cheating but tactics. Fu Li squeezed over the police cordon and looked up at the woman, his gaze meeting hers. ¡°Come down. I guarantee that your son will be cured.¡± Peng Hang nced at the youth in front of him. The youth was wearing an Aidadas t-shirt with a mountain on it and flower-patterned shorts. There was ayer of dust on his slippers. He was probably one of the workers at the nearby construction site. But this child was truly too honest. It would be strange if this bald-faced lie of his actually seeded in coaxing the woman toe down. Who would have expected the woman standing at the top floor to sway and then turn around the next instant, heading down. The firefighters hiding by the windowsill downstairs hadn¡¯t even reacted at this time. Two minutester, a dark and thin woman ran out from the corridor. Her dried up palms clung tightly to Fu Li, a raging me in her eyes. If this me was extinguished, she probably wouldn¡¯t be able to live on. ¡°Of course,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°I never lie.¡± Xiao Yang moved closer to Peng Hang, not knowing whether tough or cry at this scene. ¡°Boss, what should we do now?¡± ¡°What else can we do? Apany them to the hospital first. The woman¡¯s emotions aren¡¯t stable yet. If we leave now, she might not be able to pull herself out of it,¡± He took a deep breath, the hot sun causing him to grimace. ¡°Let¡¯s go. Saving people should be done to the end; Buddhas should be sent to the West. We¡¯re already under the sun, making one more trip isn¡¯t anything much.¡± He turned around and nced at the youth who was being held in a death grip by the woman. Worry was written all over Peng Hang¡¯s face. Where were they supposed to go to help the youth find the ¡®panacea passed down from ancestors¡¯? The yao world¡¯s management team and cultivator management team were located in the same office building. One was responsible for managing non-human entities, while the other managed humans. From time to time, they would encounter a sh in opinions in private, although they didn¡¯t dare to make too huge of a fuss. Zhang Ke¡¯s arrest of the evil yao attracted the attention of the entire building. The workers in this office building consisted of humans and yao. However, quite a few workers had suffered injuries the past few days in order to capture this evil yao. Zhang Ke was an outstanding disciple of the Qingxiao Sect, but his cultivation was shallow. When had he be even more powerful than the pirs of the management bureau? ¡°May the Three Pure Ones bless me,¡± When the cultivator management team¡¯s Old Huang saw the evil yao¡¯splete form, he took two or steps back in session. ¡°The white head, human face, and red feet seems like one of the fiends in the legends.¡± ¡°Seems like what?¡± Xu Yuan wasn¡¯t ustomed to Old Huang ying the profound thinker. She scoffed, ¡°Who cares what he is. Anyway, he was captured by our yao world¡¯s management team.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious, Miss Xu,¡± Old Huang chuckled gently as he stroked the sparse strands of hair on his chin. ¡°This type of fiend is called a Zhuyan. It¡¯s reportedly said to be extremely powerful. However, records of it came to a stop after the Han and Tang Dynasty. I didn¡¯t expect such a yao to actually exist in this world.¡± ¡°I was still wondering who you are; turns out you¡¯re nothing more than a weasel,¡± The Zhuyan was bound so tightly that his entire body couldn¡¯t move. His eyelids drooped as he shot a nce at Old Huang, the arrogance of an ancient yao king inly visible. ¡°Such a ything is only fit for this king to kill for fun.¡± Old Huang wasn¡¯t angry. He continued speaking with a huge smile, ¡°Rumors say that the Zhuyan has an extremely vicious nature. In the unofficial records of the Han Dynasty, the Zhuyan once fought with the armies of two countries in a moment of unhappiness, causing a death toll of several hundred thousand.¡± The audience sucked in a breath. Were the lives of several hundred thousand people a trifling matter in the eyes of this yao beast? The next time they looked at the Zhuyan, there was an extrayer of fear in their eyes. ¡°Mister Zhang, did you encounter the help of an expert?¡± Old Huang pointed at the ck whip binding the Zhuyan. ¡°What are the origins of this whip that can restrain even a fiend?¡± Zhang Ke nced at the whip in his hands. ¡°The yaoguai who lent me this whip called it a yao-beating whip.¡± Old Huang thought for a very long time but couldn¡¯t recall the origins of the yao-beating whip. He sighed with emotion, ¡°So, it¡¯s an expert doesn¡¯te out often. We should be grateful to him.¡± ¡°The expert said that there¡¯s no need for thanks. It¡¯s enough for us to send him the prize money for carrying out a heroic act,¡± Zhang Keughed dryly. ¡°And he¡¯s no expert. He picked up this yao-beating whip by chance.¡± What true expert would be so concerned about this little bit of prize money and even need to do manualbor at a construction site to earn money? From what he knew, true humans or yao who had high cultivation only needed to absorb the essence of the sun and moon without needing to consume ordinary food. Only those with imperfect cultivation needed to ingest food to ay hunger. After voicing everything he knew, everyone was in agreement with giving the good-hearted yaoguai the prize money, even wanting to add on a spirit cultivation pill. Cultivation was a difficult process; although the actions of this good-hearted yao weren¡¯t enough to warrant the pill, this sort of utterly fearless, daring to help even in the face of danger mentality was worthy of praise. Nobody dared to release the Zhuyan from the yao-beating whip. In the end, they decided to temporarily shut it in the spirit lock formation and wait for Boss Zhuang to return before dealing with it. In the spirit lock formation, the Zhuyan¡¯s red eyes glowered at the people outside of the formation. ¡°My emperor has finally returned.¡± Hearing him repeat this statement in a foreign ent, Xu Yuan cracked open two melon seeds andmented, ¡°I didn¡¯t think that yaoguai with eighth-grader syndromes existed.¡± In television dramas, viins who harped about their bosses turning the tables often didn¡¯t live past the third episode. Chapter 6 - EaChapter Generation Couldn’t Compare To The Previous

Chapter 6 - EaChapter Generation Couldn¡¯t Compare To The Previous

In the train station bustling with activity, there were fashionably dressed young people as well as middle-aged people carrying bags of all sizes. Their pace was hurried, as if isted from the surrounding people yet still a member of the dense crowd. People of all walks of life could often be found in train stations. Although they were managed extremely strictly now, and cameras could be found everywhere, there still existed people who sought to obtain ill-gotten wealth through their ¡®daring skills¡¯. The train had just arrived at the station when an elderly man asked loudly if anyone had seen his carry bag. The passengers moved hastily; some left without even looking back while others nced at him with pity, though they too did not stop for him. The elderly man¡¯s skin was dark, and his face was lined with wrinkles left by years of hardship. The clothes he was wearing had been washed so often that the color had been washed out and the edges of the fabric had roughened. One could tell that his life was not a prosperous one. The sounds of his cries attracted the attention of the train station¡¯s security guard. Fearing that the elderly man would copse from anger, the security guard helped him to a seat at the side. Amidst the busy crowd, someone passed a paper napkin over while another handed a bottle of water to him. Their footsteps continued to remain hurried, unable to find the time to take a few more looks back. An idle person stood a distance away, watching the excitement. Turning, the person prepared to follow the stream of people out. However, he hadn¡¯t even managed to take two steps when someone pped his shoulder. A tremble shook through the person¡¯s body, and the person ran forward without a single look back. ¡°What are you running for?¡± A man in a suit and tie aimed a kick at the person¡¯s ankle, causing the person to bang into the wall uncontrobly. A few wallets and handphones fell out. Seeing that he had been exposed, the person forgot about crying out in pain and instead scrambled frantically in a bid to escape the scene. But this handsome, elite-looking man with neatlybed hair who had popped out from nowhere actually used a single leg to press him down, preventing him from even crawling up. ¡°Daring to steal even an old man¡¯s money, aren¡¯t you afraid of losing hidden virtue?¡± Zhuang Qing hauled the thief up and passed him, along with the wallets and handphones on the ground, to the security guard who had rushed over. A small stic bag amidst the bunch was especially eye-catching. Zhuang Qing patted the dust off him before walking to the elderly man. ¡°Daye, does this belong to you?¡± The elderly man took the stic bag and opened it, trembling. Other than a few negative invoices, the rest were ten or single dor bills. They formed arge pile, but in truth, the money was not much. ¡°Thank you, thank you!¡± Moved, the elderly man thanked Zhuang Qing continuously. Even the passersby apuded in excitement. Zhuang Qing squeezed out of the crowd watching the excitement, shook the branded suit he was wearing, and then walked to the lobby of the train station. ¡°Boss, need a taxi?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Handsome, you¡¯re going to Dongcheng? That¡¯ll be seventy-five yuan. I¡¯ll send you to the doorstep of your house.¡± ¡°Not going.¡± Zhuang Qi ignored the numerous drivers who were soliciting customers. His gaze swept through the ce before he headed towards a ck car. With a knock on the car window, the window opened, and a bald head stretched out. ¡°Boss, you¡¯re finally back.¡± ¡°The train was a bitte,¡± Zhuang Qing threw his luggage into the back of the car before pulling open the car door and sitting down. Immediately, his brows furrowed. ¡°How can cultivators seek enjoyment? Switch off the air-conditioner.¡± Baldy turned around and looked at Zhuang Qing hesitantly. ¡°Boss, it¡¯s almost the end of the month. Our department¡¯s transportation expenses for this month haven¡¯t been used up yet, is there a need to be so stingy?¡± ¡°What does this have to do with being stingy?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was solemn. ¡°Cultivators do not fear the cold or the heat, that is the great Dao!¡± ¡°But I¡¯m just a heat-fearing fish...¡± All of a sudden, a frightening pressure barreled towards him. Swallowing, Baldy switched off the air-conditioner. ¡°You¡¯re right, I need to ovee my natural instincts in order to be a strong cultivator.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing closed his eyes and leaned against the backseat. His handsome features resembled that of a god cast in metal, so perfect that not a single w could be picked out. They ran into a traffic jam halfway. In the almost-forty degrees heat, not a single bit of sweat could be seen on the two people inside the car, as if the sun hanging in the sky was merely a light bulb that emitted no heat. ¡°Has the evil yao you reported to me a few days ago been captured?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Chu Yu had a mild disposition, so he didn¡¯t have much of a reaction despite the traffic jam. ¡°That youngster Zhang Ke caught it, reportedly with the help of an expert. The yao-beating whip is still binding that evil yao. Our cultivation isn¡¯t high enough; we didn¡¯t dare to move him rashly, so we waited for you to return.¡± Chu Yu couldn¡¯t help asking at this point, ¡°Boss, why did you take the train back?¡± ¡°There wasn¡¯t a direct flight from that ce.¡± ¡°Then you could¡¯ve transferred to a ne after reaching the Ocean City.¡± Chu Yu then offered him a tiny bit of ttery, ¡°If not for all the radar and surveince cameras, given Boss¡¯ cultivation, flying back from overseas can be done in a blink of an eye.¡± The car was quiet for a moment. Zhuang Qing opened his mouth leisurely, ¡°There¡¯s no reimbursement for ne tickets from the Ocean City.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± In the hospital, Peng Hang watched Fu Li simply and crudely throw a weird-colored object into a cup. He casually poked it twice with a spoon, poured water in, and then prepared to give it to the patient in the hospital room. Shocked, Peng Hang stopped Fu Li. ¡°Littlerade, you¡¯ll be sent to jail if something happens after feeding someone cheap counterfeit medicine.¡± ¡°But this is real medicine,¡± Fu Li shrugged off Peng Hang¡¯s hand. ¡°A gentleman¡¯s promise weighs more than a thousand catties; I never go back on the promises I make.¡± Was this young man not right in the head? ¡°There¡¯s a malignant tumor in his stomach. It can¡¯t be cured with any flower or nt,¡± Peng Hang caught up to him and pulled on the corner of Fu Li¡¯s clothes. ¡°Brother, stop joking around. Let us police handle this matter. I¡¯ve already called the station; we¡¯ll help contact her household members, charities, and apply for a special financial assistance fund. Don¡¯t behave foolishly, you won¡¯t be able to bear the responsibility if anything happens.¡± Fu Li hesitated. He had practically zero contact with humans the past few years and had only asionally ventured into human society in recent years. Moreover, he had mainly gone to human houses so that he could steal a few peeks at . If there had been a change in the human constitution, it was possible that the medicine might not have an effect. But suddenly, the door to the tearoom banged open. The dark, skinny woman who had been ready to jump off the building caught sight of the cup giving off a medicinal scent in Fu Li¡¯s hands and snatched it at one go before turning and running in the direction of the hospital room. ¡°Ai, wait!¡± Anxiety was about to overwhelm Peng Hang. He wanted to stop the woman but was held back himself. ¡°Don¡¯t be so anxious, it might be effective.¡± ¡°There is no ¡®might¡¯ when ites to human life!¡± Peng Hang roared in anger and irritation. ¡°The person lying on the hospital bed is just a child!¡± He pushed Fu Li aside and rushed ahead inrge strides. Fu Li nced down at his hand that had been fiercely pushed aside. He had seen the bailiffs in the human world before, did all those bailiffs have such guts? The strength of a mother in despair could not be underestimated. By the time Peng Hang reached the hospital room, half the medicine had already been consumed by the child. He didn¡¯t know if it was his misperception, but he felt that the fake medicine did indeed smell quite fragrant. Perhaps some voring that was detrimental to the body had been added to it. Faced with the woman¡¯s expectant gaze, Peng Hang was unable to say that the medicine was fake. He turned and gestured to his colleague to call a doctor over. In case anything happened, they would still be in time to rescue the child. The principal doctor received quite a bit of shock upon hearing that someone had fed a patient unknown medicine. Immediately, the doctor threw away the bento box that he had only managed to eat two mouths of and raced towards the hospital room. It wasn¡¯t that they were making a fuss over nothing. In the past, the rtives of a patient had heard about the effectiveness of some home remedy and brought it over for the patient to try. In the end, the patient couldn¡¯t be rescued in time and lost their life. The principal doctor reached the entrance to the hospital room while panting. Leaning against the doorframe, he hadn¡¯t even wheezed out a breath when he heard the nine-year-old patient say something. ¡°Mummy, my stomach doesn¡¯t seem so painful anymore.¡± The principal doctor thought, could the medicine have painkilling effects? The drug swindlers nowadays really weren¡¯t anything good; everything they did was full of evil. He panted twice and then walked over to the bed to give the child patient a basic check-up. There were no abnormalities in the child¡¯s heart, pulse, or pupils. When he pressed lightly on the patient¡¯s abdominal area, the patient didn¡¯t reveal a pained look either. ¡°What did you feed the child?¡± The principal doctor looked at the skinny and small woman. The woman shook her head nkly. She looked out the door yet didn¡¯t see the youth from just now. Where was he? ¡°Boss!¡± Driver Chu Yu¡¯s expression changed abruptly. He asked the man seated behind, ¡°Did you smell that?¡± His original form was that of a fish, so his sense of smell wasn¡¯t very impressive. But he wouldn¡¯t be able to ignore such a rich meat lingzhi scent even if he wanted to. Zhuang Qing, who was resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened his eyes. Turning, his gaze fixed on the hospital at the side. He uttered in a low voice, ¡°Taisui...¡± Meat Lingzhi ripened once every thousand years and could cure any illness. Unfortunately, most humans and yao could not enjoy it. Among those who consumed it, the less severe cases were stricken with serious illness while the more severe cases resulted in death. As time passed, a rumor spread in the human world ¨C someone with bad fortune would be teased for having offended Taisui. However, the Taisui that he was smelling had a very strange scent. There was no resentment, balefulness, or even karma in it. The cultivation world was in decline now and every generation of cultivators could notpare to the previous. Anyone who had this sort of Taisui that didn¡¯t carry any karma would definitely be chased by innumerable people. Yet, why was it taken out so easily? The scent of the Taisui dissipated very quickly. No trace of it could be found in a matter of a few whiffs. Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t someone who had never seen good stuff, so he very quickly lost interest in such a thing. ¡°Ai, our yaorades don¡¯t have it easy now either,¡± Chu Yu snapped out of the shock and pointed at the young man near the hospital entrance who was picking up stic water bottles. ¡°They¡¯ve even fallen to the point where they need to pick up stic bottles in exchange for money.¡± Zhuang Qing looked up and saw a youth wearing a t-shirt picking up stic water bottles and throwing them into a stic bag he was carrying. ¡°If you don¡¯t cultivate well and end up being expelled from the bureau, you¡¯ll have topete with him for work.¡± The scent of dragon? Fu Li looked up at the blisteringly hot sun. In the past, when dragons passed by and found that the weather was hot, they would still summon a few droplets of rain and give themon people a good period of rain. The dragons now were bing more and more stingy. Even an intrinsic characteristic like being able to call down rain had been forgotten by the dragons. Each generation truly couldn¡¯tpare to the previous. Chapter 7 - Changing Jobs

Chapter 7 - Changing Jobs

Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t return home; he got Chu Yu to drive directly to the Bureau. Upon hearing that their boss was returning, the bureau¡¯s people put away the tables and shifted the stools. The disorderly documents fluttered in the air, very quickly bing neat and tidy. The workers who were sprawled over their tables all sat up straight as if they were soldiers waiting for an inspection by a senior official. Tap tap tap. As the sound of footsteps grew louder and louder, the expressions on everyone¡¯s faces became more and more serious. The moment Zhuang Qing appeared, everyone called out ¡®Hello, Captain¡¯ in unison. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze swept across everyone. Only a whileter did he open his mouthzily. ¡°All of you know how to be scared now?¡± Everyone lowered their heads in shame. Quite a few people had died this time in the chaos caused by the evil yao. Ultimately, it was their fault for not having cultivated well enough. The nation was vast and there was a great number of people, but that didn¡¯t mean they could be treated as rations for yao. Chu Yu thought about the girl whose heart had been eaten and how she had only been twenty over years old. After that girl¡¯s mishap, her family members had nearly fainted from crying. Thinking of this, Chu Yu felt exceedingly distressed. ¡°I¡¯ll go see this ancient yao,¡± Compared to when he was scolding people, Zhuang Qing was even scarier when he showed no emotion. There was not a single person in the management teams who breathed loudly. Hearing that Zhuang Qing was going to interrogate the Zhuyan, Old Huang hurriedly revealed a fawning smile and walked in front, leading the way. There was a spirit lock formation in the basement of the bureau that was specially meant for imprisoning cultivators who had broken thew. This formation was drawn using Zhuang Qing¡¯s blood and talismans that suppressed yao qi were also ced at all four corners. Yao who had poor cultivation would feel difort all over even if they entered this ce, much less enter the spirit lock formation. The Zhuyan had been locked in this ce for quite a few days, but his arrogant attitude hadn¡¯t diminished. Seeing people enter, he proceeded to mock, ¡°Ipetent humans and yao.¡± Zhuang Qing took off his zer that was suffused with the scent of the elite and handed it to Chu Yu, who was behind him. ¡°Hold it properly, don¡¯t let blood get onto it.¡± Chu Yu was very obedient. Carrying the zer, he took multiple steps back. Fortunately, a barrier had been set up in front, thereby guaranteeing that no dirt wouldnd on this branded suit. ¡°Zhuyan,¡± Zhuang Qing stepped into the spirit lock formation, looking at the Zhuyan who couldn¡¯t maintain his human form nor move a single finger. ¡°Ancient yao.¡± ¡°Even the dragon n¡¯s younger generation dares to show off their ws in front of this king,¡± The Zhuyan nced at him from the corner of his eyes, contempt emanating from him. ¡°All you ignorant young ones have truly caused the might of my yao n to degenerate.¡± Zhuang Qing turned a deaf ear to his nonsense and stretched out a hand, tugging on the yao-beating whip. The whip fell off the Zhuyan¡¯s body. Seeing that the thing binding him had been released, the Zhuyan¡¯s body morphed into a ray of light, about to fly out of the spirit lock formation. The Zhuyan had always been very confident in his speed. During those years when ancient yao were as numerous as dogs, he had relied on his exceptional escape ability to survive to this day. Yet, he miscalcted. Just as he was about to fly out of the door, golden light shed past, locking him heavily back into the spirit lock formation as if his entire body had been struck by a thunderbolt. ¡°Did I say you could leave?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s arms were crossed across his chest as he towered over the Zhuyan. ¡°ording to the neww of the yao world¡¯s management bureau, you havemitted a huge offence by consuming humans as food.¡± The Zhuyany slumped on the ground. The single attack just now was too powerful; he still hadn¡¯t fully regained his senses. The Zhuyan was a yao with plenty of tact; whenever he encountered an opponent he really couldn¡¯t defeat, he would always choose one of two choices ¨C kneel and acknowledge the opponent as king or turn and flee. Now that he couldn¡¯t flee, he could only very tactfully concede defeat. He no longer side-eyed Zhuang Qing, the icy smile on his face disappeared, and he obedientlyid curled up on the ground and pretended to be an ordinary ape, albeit one whose appearance was a little strange. ¡°Who is the yao emperor?¡± Seeing that the Zhuyan had be well-behaved, Zhuang Qing patted the leg of his pants, his mood taking a turn for the better. The Zhuyan¡¯s eyes met Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes before evading his gaze somewhat guiltily. ¡°Act- Actually, I haven¡¯t seen that yao either.¡± Chu Yu spoke from the corner, ¡°Boss, he¡¯s lying to you. Before you came back, he was still harping about how his emperor had returned. How could he have never seen this emperor before?¡± Bang. The Zhuyan mmed into the wall beforending heavily on his original spot. Somebody who didn¡¯t know what was going on would even assume that Zhuang Qing was ying a game of boomerang. Heavens¡¯ Justice, how was the dragon n cultivating now, why was their cultivation so profound? The Zhuyan spat out a mouthful of blood. Fearing that Zhuang Qing would continue to hit him, he said hastily, ¡°I didn¡¯t lie, I really haven¡¯t seen the yao emperor before. I¡¯ve only heard of the rumors surrounding him.¡± ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°A long time ago, the Zhongdiao and Zheng didn¡¯t get along and got into a fight at the Wei River. Unexpectedly, they enraged the yao emperor, and in one move, the yao emperor stripped the two yao kings of their near ten thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation. From that moment onwards, these two yao kings vanished without a trace, never appearing again in the human world. It is rumored that the yao emperor has profound cultivation and an unstable mood. Nobody has ever seen his original form, but those who have either lost their lives or didn¡¯t dare to mention a single word rted to it. To express our reverence towards him, our yao world addresses him as emperor. A thousand years ago, a rumor spread in the yao world that a thousand yearster, the fate of the country on thisnd will prosper and the yao emperor will reappear.¡± ¡°This rumor... why have I not heard of it?¡± Old Huang retorted. ¡°Hehe,¡± The Zhuyan side-eyed him. ¡°What does a tiny youngster like you know?¡± Old Huang stroked his beard and smiled mildly. ¡°Boss, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s saying the truth. Give him another beating.¡± ¡°Everything I said was the truth!¡± The Zhuyan looked down on Old Huang, but feared Zhuang Qing very much. ¡°Oh right, I remembered something else. Two thousand years ago, there was a dragon who went down south and caused countless rainstorms. At that time, he didn¡¯t know the yao emperor was nearby. He flooded the localnds and even the yao emperor¡¯s immortal residence. Subsequently, the yao emperor broke the ends of that dragon¡¯s horns and scraped off his dragon scales. After that, multiple people from the dragon n went to seek revenge for him. In the end...¡± He shot a nce at Zhuang Qing. Thinking that he was also of the dragon n, he chose to phrase his words more tactfully, ¡°In the end, they suffered quite a few losses.¡± How could it just be a few losses? The dragon n had practically been subjected to extraordinary shame and humiliation. It was said that the dragons who went to fight with the yao emperor came back bald and didn¡¯t have the nerves toe out of the sea even after a hundred years had passed. In the Nurturing and Rxation Club for Elderly, Fu Li was seated beside the not-new-yet-not-old wooden table with a bag on his back as he watched a few elderly men and women y mahjong. These elderly men and women were the cultivation world¡¯s retirees. When they yed, they even resorted to pinching their fingers together to tell the future and using the Heaven and Earth Great Shift. ¡°Little Fu,¡± Wang Cuihua was in a good mood frompleting a winning hand. Ever since Fu Li sat beside her, she felt that her luck had be quite good, so she gave a melon seed to Fu Li. ¡°I heard you don¡¯t want to work at the construction site anymore?¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°I used medicine from the mountain and helped cure a human child of illness. I¡¯m scared it¡¯ll invite trouble, so I resigned.¡± Wang Cuihua suddenly understood. It was very normal for countryside yao who lived deep in the mountains to have some good medicine like ginseng, but it was indeed inconvenient to be asked about it. She picked up a few good tiles consecutively and said, ¡°One of my n¡¯s younger ones is a manager at arge supermarket. I¡¯ll help you ask if he has any good job openings there.¡± She nced at Fu Li. ¡°You¡¯re good looking; finding a job shouldn¡¯t be very difficult.¡± ¡°Zhao ge said that yao like me who don¡¯t even have a high school certificate will have difficulty making a living,¡± Fu Li recalled how Zhao Sanxiang had asked him to return to the countryside when he left the construction site, and felt that he had been looked down on. ¡°You have good looks; you can go learn from those little yao and be...¡± Wang Cuihua suddenly paused andy down the tiles in her hand. ¡°Same suit.¡± Amidst theints of the people at the same table, Wang Cuihua was a little delighted. She pressed the money she had won under the tablecloth and turned, continuing to speak to Fu Li, ¡°It¡¯s said that those inte celebrity things can earn quite a bit. All you yao have lived for at least a few hundred years and should know some of the four arts. Even if you¡¯re no good at them, you can still identify antiques. That¡¯s also a way to make a livelihood.¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°In the past, there were some yaoguai around me who knew those, but I don¡¯t know them.¡± Wang Cuihua stared nkly for a while. She sighed meaningfully. ¡°Young yao should learn a few different skills. As the saying goes, more skills will never hold one back; one will be able to live well no matter where one lives. You can¡¯t continue like this.¡± Fu Li pressed a hand to his face in distress, hisrge eyes staring straight at Wang Cuihua. His obedience didn¡¯t allow her to say a single angry word. ¡°You can¡¯t be med for that either. Perhaps the ce you lived at was an old forest deep in the mountains. You didn¡¯t have the opportunity toe into contact with such things, yes?¡± Wang Cuihua patted Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Leave the job-finding to me, I¡¯ll get someone to open the back door for you.¡± ¡°Thank you, cultivator Wang,¡± Fu Li nced at the table and smiled broadly. ¡°I hope you¡¯ll win every day for the next few days.¡± ¡°A piece of cake, a piece of cake,¡± Wang Cuihua¡¯s smile became even more kindly. After growing older, she couldn¡¯t stand seeing these good-looking and obedient youngsters being wronged. It was no wonder that there were sayings of ¡®yao-like enchanters¡¯ in ancient texts. Even she, an olddy in her seventies, had no resistance against them. The news of a child patient with a malignant tumor in the stomach making a full recovery after consuming some unknown medicine started to circte within the hospital. However, anyone who had even a bit of understanding of medicine knew that such a thing was impossible. There was a probability of eight or nine tenths that there had been an error in the hospital¡¯s check-up, and they were now intentionally releasing this sort of news to deceive themon people so that they could retain the hospital¡¯s dignity. The doctors from other hospitals secretly cursed this hospital for itsck of moral principles. Coming up with such a lie just for fame; they didn¡¯t have any medical ethics nor moral standing! Peng Hang also nearly believed that the youth had fed the child some mysterious spiritual medicine. But when he went to the construction site in search of him, he realized that the youth had already slipped away. Moreover, after the exnation a doctor-friend gave him, he too felt that this was just a coincidence. Perhaps the real reason was that the damned hospital had made an error in its examination, while that youth was aware that he had cheated others, so he fled out of guilt. If that medicine was truly so magical, why would he run off? He could casually take out a bunch to sell and he would be a millionaire, why would he still need to do manualbor? Wang Cuihua deserved to be called a senior of the cultivation world. Within two days, she helped Fu Li find a new job as a security guard at a hotel set up by one of the cultivation world¡¯s younger generations. Because the cultivation world had a policy of assisting job-finding yaoguai from the countryside, Fu Li¡¯s sry was the same as the other security guards despite not having a high school graduation certificate. On the first day of work, Fu Li put on his uniform and stood in the lobby of the hotel. Immediately, the security guard opposite him looked like a pumpkin in contrast. Chapter 8 - Zoujiao

Chapter 8 - Zoujiao

After a few days of work at the hotel, Fu Li still hadn¡¯t seen the younger generation cultivator boss of the hotel. However, he did receive quite a few tips. This hotel was a top-grade one and many service staff or security guards had to help customers carry their luggage as part of their service duties. Fu Li had considerable strength and protected the customers¡¯ luggage very well, so he had received numerous tips. Many customers even specially praised Fu Li in the suggestion book when they left. Thus, despite working for only half a month at the hotel, he was named and rewarded by the lobby manager during the staff meeting. After the meeting ended, Fu Li faintly heard statements like ¡®boy toy¡¯ and ¡®bedwarmer¡¯. When he turned around, those people didn¡¯t dare to open their mouths anymore. The manager of the security department came over and patted him on the shoulder, smiling. ¡°Little Fu, little He¡¯s wife is going to give birth. Help him cover his shift tonight.¡± The reproduction of a species was a major event; Fu Li agreed without even thinking. The manager smiled even more happily. As a superior, he was naturally very satisfied with this neer who was steadfast, capable, and obedient. For top-grade hotels like Affinity Moon, checking-in of guests took ce twenty-four hours on a daily basis, including the provision of food, beverage, leisure, entertainment and amodation. Therefore, the employees at this ce worked ording to a three-shift system in order to ensure the customers could enjoy service of the highest quality at any time. After night fell, the sky became somewhat gloomy. Fu Li nced at the sky and told the cleaner auntie who was in a rush to get home, ¡°The weather isn¡¯t very good. Go home earlier, don¡¯t tarry on the way back.¡± ¡°Ai, okay,¡± The cleaner auntie took out a box of sweets from her bag. These were the leftover sweets from the wedding in the hotel today. The customers didn¡¯t want them, so they were distributed to the workers. ¡°Little Fu, eat some sweets and let the happiness rub off on you. Quickly find a girlfriend that¡¯s to your liking.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t reject her. He took the box of sweets and stuffed it into the pocket of his pants. Then, he went to the front counter and loaned an umbre, passing it to the cleaner auntie. ¡°Use it on the way back.¡± The cleaner auntie didn¡¯t intend to bring it along, but seeing Fu Li insist on it, she felt that she shouldn¡¯t waste the kindness of a young man and thus brought it along. Midway, the cleaner auntie saw that the nearby supermarket was giving a discount on vegetables and fruits, and thus went in to buy some. She had just walked out of the supermarket when a gale abruptly arose outside. Rain and hail pitter-pattered as it struck the ground chaotically. This ce was only a few hundred meters away from her house. She opened the umbre Fu Li lent to her, blocked the frightening hail, and brisk walked towards her house. The her who was anxious to return home didn¡¯t realize that therge hailstones thatnded on her umbre all transformed into rainwater. Neither did the strong winds overturn the seemingly poor-quality umbre. The longer the rain went on, the stronger it became. The entire city was immersed in torrential rain. The Affinity Moon hotel was on higher ground, so no rainwater had seeped in for now. But outside, there was a dense mass of gale, sudden ps of thunder, heavy rain, and hail. It was a somewhat frightening sight. The fewdies at the front counter huddled together and beckoned Fu Li, who was standing at the entrance, toe over and hide from the rain. They were all aware that Fu Li didn¡¯t have high academic qualifications and hade from the countryside, but because he was good-looking and polite, their good opinion of Fu Li wasn¡¯t affected. ¡°Do you think some almighty figure is undergoing a tribtion?¡± One of the front counterdies joked. ¡°This weather is too abnormal.¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s zoujiao?¡± ¡°What¡¯s zoujiao?¡± The front-counterdies were all young and had a strong sense of curiosity. ¡°Jiao who want to transform into dragons will attract thunder and rain. Then, he will find a fated person by the road to confer him a title by asking him if there are dragons or snakes in the waters,¡± Fu Li observed that thedies seemed to be very interested in this, so he continued. ¡°If the fated person answers snake, then the Jiao will fail to transform into a dragon. If the fated person answers dragon, then the Jiao will be able to soar into the skies as a dragon.¡± ¡°What about the fated person then?¡± The front-counterdies grew even more interested. ¡°Will Jiao who be dragons repay the act of kindness?¡± ¡°A kind Jiao turned dragon will naturally repay the debt of gratitude, but if it¡¯s an evil Jiao...¡± Fu Li suddenly stopped. ¡°What will happen?¡± The front-counterdies continued to ask. ¡°The fated person will be eaten, concluding the circle of cause and effect.¡± The revolving door was pushed open, and a man wearing a ck top and pants walked in withrge strides, soaked from head to toe. His gaze swept across Fu Li and the rest. ¡°The rain is very heavy, I¡¯ll book a room.¡± The front-counterdies took the identification card he handed over and started on the amodation procedures. The ck-shirt man looked at Fu Li and teased, ¡°The rain today is so heavy, could a dragon have soared into the skies?¡± ¡°There are no dragons,¡± Fu Li looked at the man with a calm expression and nced at the thunder and lightning that flickered unceasingly outside. ¡°This is a scientific society. All myths are scams.¡± The ck-shirt man was originally smiling very cheerfully, but the next moment, hisplexion darkened. He snatched back the identification card from the front-counterdy, his pitch-ck eyes staring fixedly at Fu Li. He turned around and left. The front-counterdies were very puzzled by this change. Wasn¡¯t he going to stay in the hotel? Why was he still running outside when there was such heavy rain? ¡°Maybe he forgot to bring his wallet,¡± Fu Li stood up and picked up the mop at the corner, mopping the wet footprints the customer had left behind till there wasn¡¯t a single speck of dust left. The rainstorm continued for an entire night. When Fu Li got off work in the morning, the rain still hadn¡¯t stopped. The rented house he lived in was quite a distance away; he still had to walk for another twenty to thirty minutes after taking public transport. Practically no one would walk along a narrow alley when there was heavy rain in the morning. Fu Li wasn¡¯t the least bit surprised when he saw the man in ck clothes standing in the alley. The man¡¯s face was filled with anxiety. Staring at Fu Li, he repeated, ¡°The rain today is so heavy, a dragon must have soared into the skies.¡± ¡°No,¡± Fu Li was a principled yao. If he said there wasn¡¯t, then there wasn¡¯t. A gale rose immediately, producing dreadful whistling sounds in the alley. The man¡¯s eyes turned red and a frightening ck-veined pattern appeared on his face. ¡°I¡¯m going to eat you.¡± He had cultivated for a thousand years and consumed countless virgin girls and boys in his early years for the sake of bing a Jiao. All his days were spent hiding from monks and Taoist priests, yet all of it had been ruined by this one human. Once he failed to be a dragon, he would need to cultivate for a few more centuries. Who knew whether he would lose his life to a human cultivator in this several hundred years? The yao transformed into a ck Jiao and moved to attack him, prompting Fu Li to stretch out his umbre to block it. He was the least fond of this sort of furless animal whose entire body was smooth and cold. Just a few nces at it was enough for goosebumps to rise on his skin. The urrence of a yao who transformed into his form and started creating havoc caused anxiety to form in the hearts of all the yao in the city. The cultivators¡¯ management bureau had rushed around for an entire night. They hadn¡¯t even had the chance to pant a few times when they realized that the flickers of thunder and lightning in the western part of the city had already exceeded the scope of natural phenomena. ¡°This is bad, a yao¡¯s zoujiao failed and it¡¯s having difficulty calming down its fury. It¡¯s about tomit evil,¡± Xu Yuan put her fingers together and calcted. Pulling open the window, she jumped down from the fourth floor. In the alley, Fu Li held up the umbre, not a single raindrop on his body. The ck Jiao transformed back into his human form, a bruise on its forehead. There was a few meters¡¯ distance between the two people. Nobody moved. ¡°So you¡¯re also a yao. Since we¡¯re both yao, why didn¡¯t you lend me a helping hand?¡± Fury filled the ck Jiao¡¯s eyes. ¡°Why should I help you?¡± Fu Li was bewildered. Transforming into a dragon through zoujiao was inherently an opportunity given by heavenlyw. This human-eating evil Jiao had identified him as his fated person and failed to be conferred a title, meaning that heavenlyw was unwilling to help him. ¡°You used human flesh and other little yao as food. There is no chance for you to be a dragon.¡± ¡°That was hundreds of years ago!¡± The ck Jiao wasn¡¯t resigned to this oue. ¡°Even if I didn¡¯t eat those people, they would have died very early on. The yao world has always been about the survival of the fittest. They deserve to be eaten by me.¡± Since the founding of the nation, he had never again eaten any humans. For what reason should all that boring old stuff from his early years be investigated? ¡°Heavenlyw is just. It will not erase the things you havemitted in the past just because it happened a long time ago,¡± Fu Li looked up at the continuously roiling ck clouds in the sky. ¡°Leave, you won¡¯t be a dragon.¡± If he still didn¡¯t leave, all the buns at his favorite steamed bun stall would sell out. ¡°Ignorant yao, don¡¯t spout rubbish,¡± The ck Jiao could no longer hold back his rage and wild nature. ¡°I will eat you.¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°I really can¡¯t understand all you city yao. In the past, you would kill yao for saying one sentence that you disagree with. Now, if you can¡¯te to an agreement within a few sentences, you still want to eat yao. Are you trying to bully us countryside yao for not having seen the world?¡± Fu Li believed that he was good-tempered and reasonable. However, he disliked others bullying him without any cause or reason. Countryside yao had their limits and face too. Xu Yuan¡¯s driving skills were quite good. But no matter how good her driving skills were, she couldn¡¯t contend with the traffic congestion in the capital. The situation at the western part of the city was changing by the minute. Stricken with anxiety, she hated that she couldn¡¯t step onto her flying sword and directly fly over. ¡°It¡¯s no use being anxious,¡± Zhang Ke advised. ¡°Xu jie, the capital is thend where national fate prospers. Moreover, it is overseen by a golden dragon. That evil Jiao shouldn¡¯t have enough guts toe out and create a ruckus.¡± ¡°I¡¯m scared that he failed at obtaining his title and vented by killing the fated person,¡± Xu Yuan looked back at the silent Zhuang Qing seated at the back. ¡°Boss, what should we do now?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the skies over the western area of the city. The yao qi there was overflowing, and ck clouds were roiling, as if a sudden p of thunder could arise at any point in time. He took out his handphone and called the local police station in charge of public security at the western areas of the city. ¡°Little Peng,¡± The chief walked out and spoke to Peng Hang, who was drinking soy milk and eating steamed buns. ¡°Bring a team to search through all the alleys immediately. The masses have reported a suspected murderer there.¡± ¡°Murderer?¡± Peng Hang stuffed the remaining half bun into his mouth and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ¡°Chief, are you joking with me?¡± The masses now could even tell using their naked eyes which passerby was a murderer? Most importantly, their station didn¡¯t seem to have taken on any huge case recently? ¡°Don¡¯t talk so much rubbish, quickly go over and take a look,¡± The chief couldn¡¯t say that it was a call from national security, so he could only let the masses shoulder the pot. Anyway, the massesprised of so many people, who would know which person it was? Peng Hang and his colleagues went to multiple ces without finding the supposed murderer. Although along the way, they did encounter two men and a woman with stern expressions who were racing towards a certain alley. After thinking about it, he and his colleagues went over as well. A young man carrying an umbre stood in the alley, a ck snake as thick as the rim of a bowl lying beside his feet. It wasn¡¯t clear if the snake was dead or injured; ity in a puddle of rainwater motionlessly. The young man noticed their appearance and pointed at the snake. ¡°There¡¯s an injured python here, does it need to be sent to the zoo?¡± Peng Hang propped himself up against the wall. F*ck, wasn¡¯t this the stinky brat that scammed someone using fake medicine? Chapter 9 - Reward

Chapter 9 - Reward

Zhang Ke recognized Fu Li as the little yao who had lent him the yao-beating whip. He was about to happily go up when Zhuang Qing stretched out a hand and held him back. ¡°Boss?¡± Zhang Ke looked at Zhuang Qing in confusion. He didn¡¯t understand why he would hold him back. Zhuang Qing paid no heed to him. His gaze swept across the long and smooth ck python lying on the ground as he spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Many thanks to this friend for lending a helping hand.¡± ¡°What happened here?¡± Peng Hang wasn¡¯t clear on the origins of the two men and woman, but subconsciously felt worried that the youth who had lied and used fake medicine to rescue someone would be at a disadvantage. Thus, he fished out his police identification. ¡°May I know what happened here?¡± ¡°Police uncle, it¡¯s you,¡± Fu Li pointed at the ck python which hadn¡¯t even twitched from start to finish. ¡°I passed by this ce after work and realized that there was a snake lying on the ground.¡± Peng Hang: Who¡¯s your uncle? He took a few steps forward and stood beside Fu Li. The entire body of therge snake was jet-ck, and there were wounds on its tail and abdominal section. It had probably been struck by thunder; its wounds were a scorched ck. Peng Hang hurriedly took out his phone and contacted the forestry bureau, arranging for them to send people over. After hanging up, Peng Hang turned and nced at Zhuang Qing¡¯s group of three not too far away. Furrowing his brows, he asked, ¡°Who would you be?¡± Zhang Ke and Xu Yuang were a little stunned. They hadn¡¯t at all expected for the evil Jiao to have been struck by thunder to this extent. Its cultivation had practically been dispersed. It would probably be unable to change into a human form without cultivating for a couple more centuries. What evil deeds had this Jiao done in the past to have been so ruthlessly struck by thunder? Anyway, the yaoguai that they were going to catch was going to be taken away by the forestry bureau. How should they deal with this? Fu Li looked at Zhang Ke. Recalling how the other party had promised to apply for the special reward for him, he told Peng Hang. ¡°They¡¯re my friends. They heard that I ran into arge snake, so they came over to join in the fun.¡± ¡°The rain is very heavy now. Even if you want to take a look at the fun, you should still pay attention to safety,¡± Peng Hang had long grown ustomed to themon people¡¯s natural fondness for going where the fun was. After ¡®educating¡¯ Zhuang Qing¡¯s group for a while more, he spoke to Fu Li again, ¡°Wait here for the people from the forestry bureau. I still need to patrol nearby.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded obediently. Peng Hang wanted to give Fu Li a few more words of advice so that he wouldn¡¯t give others anymore so-called panacea passed down from his ancestors to drink. But out of consideration that Fu Li¡¯s friends were present, he restrained himself from doing so. Young people always wanted to present a good image of themselves in front of their friends; these words could be saidter on. After Peng Hang left, the atmosphere in the alley started to be awkward. Zhang Ke wiped the rainwater on his face. Seeing that his boss didn¡¯t have any intentions of speaking, he smiled dryly and introduced them. ¡°Boss, this is the daoyou that lent me the yao-beating whip.¡± Zhuang Qing cast several interested nces at Fu Li before thanking him, ¡°Many thanks to this daoyou for your help.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wee,¡± Fu Li shook his head, unconcerned. ¡°When will my prize money be sent to me?¡± ¡°Two dayster,¡± Zhuang Qing took a few steps forward. The raindrops thatnded on him slid to the ground directly; not a single part of his clothes was wet. His legs were extremely long and slender. Within a few steps, he reached Fu Li. ¡°I¡¯ll write out an invoice for youter.¡± The yao qi on Fu Li was very weak, which seemed to have given him the opportunity to take on the form of a human being. Although this sort of yao had low cultivation, heavenlyw had bestowed them a gift, so unless they voluntarily told someone their identity, they would be considered an ordinary human in the eyes of human cultivators. In the early years when humans and yao did not co-exist, this sort of yao could escape from the pursuits of religious orders, hide among the humans, and peacefully live their lives. Although humans and yao were already in harmonious co-existence in the current cultivation world, yao like Fu Li who were formed through the cause and effect of heavenlyw were still an extremely rare existence. Even Zhuang Qing could barely sense the yao qi on the other party. Only then could he be sure that the other party wasn¡¯t human but yao. A ck python without cultivation was no different from an ordinary snake. Zhuang Qing took a mere two nces at it before losing interest. He turned towards Fu Li. Fu Li tilted the umbre backwards, a pair of limpid eyes meeting his. His dark eyes were reminiscent of a night sky without moonlight or starlight. ¡°This is an evil Jiao. It was lying here when you arrived?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the surrounding environment. There were no traces of a fight. ¡°He was still in his human form when I came,¡± Fu Li shook his head honestly. ¡°He said he wanted to eat me and was struck by thunder.¡± Hearing this, Zhang Ke who was standing at the side revealed a somewhat nervous expression. ¡°Are you okay?¡± This person was his savior; cold sweat couldn¡¯t help seeping out of his back as he thought about how the other party had nearly lost his life in an evil Jiao¡¯s mouth. ¡°Why did he want to eat you?¡± ¡°He asked me yesterday night whether a dragon could have soared into the skies since the rain was so heavy,¡± Fu Li squinted his eyes in a smile. ¡°I said that this was a scientific society and that there was no such thing as dragons soaring into the skies.¡± For a moment, Zhang Ke didn¡¯t know what he should say. During zoujiao, humans had to be the ones to confer the title. This ck Jiao¡¯s vision was a little dull; after choosing here and there, he actually asked a yao. Even if Fu Li had replied that there were dragons soaring into the skies, he wouldn¡¯t be able to transform into a dragon. This Fu Li was also so honest. What was wrong with saying that dragons were soaring into the skies? In any case, it wouldn¡¯te true. As a young human cultivator, he still didn¡¯t quite understand how the minds of these yao worked. ¡°You¡¯re right, there hasn¡¯t been any Jiao who transformed into a dragon in the past few decades,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone of voice was very t when speaking about dragons, as if this n had no rtion to him. ¡°There¡¯s no longer any use for this ck python, sending it to the zoo is also a good choice.¡± Xu Yuan sneezed. This yao who had a millennium¡¯s worth of cultivation not only had all of its cultivation stripped but would even be regarded by the humans as an ornament to marvel at, as if it was an animal without intellect. This was practically a double whammy to the heart and the body. ¡°It can even generate revenue for the zoo,¡± Fu Li nodded. Bringing joy to humans would also allow it to redeem some of its past sins. The ck Jiao lying on the ground slowly raised its head. It had an innate reverence towards those of the dragon n, so when it sensed Zhuang Qing¡¯s existence, the head that hadn¡¯t yet beenpletely raised shrank back, and its forked tongue withdrew back into its mouth. ¡°Looks like it really didn¡¯t die,¡± Fu Li crouched down, picked up a tree branch from the side, and prodded the ck snake¡¯s head. ¡°Behave well when you¡¯re at the zoo and you may be able to obtain better food and lodging conditions.¡± There was no reaction from the evil Jiao with ck history as it allowed Fu Li to poke it here and there. The people from the forestry bureau rushed over very quickly and confirmed that the ck python still had vital signs. Coupled with the fact that it was a rank one protected animal in the country, they specially rewarded Fu Li, Zhuang Qing, and the rest. They even took a photo with them before leaving with the ck python. Two dayster, the capital¡¯s forestry bureau posted on weibo. Two pictures were attached to the post ¨C one was a group photo with a group of warm-hearted bystanders, and the other was a picture of the ck python curled up in a ss tank. However, the forestry bureau didn¡¯t have many fans, so other than the routine likes given by their own staff members, not a single passerby had forwarded ormented on it. Fu Li didn¡¯t know that he had been thanked by the forestry bureau. He had to transfer thrice on public transport before finding the office building of the cultivation world¡¯s management bureau. However, the sign hung on the outside of the building didn¡¯t list the bureau but some Chang Long biotechnology researchpany. The signboard was done up in a very dazzling manner. Even the front of the building contained shiny ss that refracted dazzling light under the rays of the sun. The guards at the entrance were two ordinary-looking young men whose advantagesy in their sturdy physiques; they had a lot of attitude. But, Fu Li could tell in one nce that their original forms were that of a sea prawn and a crab. Anyone with a dream was extraordinary. Who said that a sea prawn¡¯s human form had to be short and small? After entering, he met quite a few ¡®people¡¯ along the way, though among these few ¡®people¡¯, some were yao and others were human cultivators. Fu Li had the bureau¡¯s signed invoice, so he found the finance department of ¡®Chang Long biotechnology¡¯ without encountering any obstacles along the way. The mixed-blood dragon he met a few days ago had said that he could use this signed invoice to receive his reward at the finance department. The yao world had always paid particr attention to the purity of their lineage. A dragon who was part human and part dragon like the one a few days ago was very much not weed. Fu Li was a little moved as he thought of this. That mixed-blood dragon must have put in a lot of effort to have be a ¡®small ringleader¡¯ in the cultivation world today. The employees of the finance department were all human cultivators who had studied ountancy professionally. Their cultivation might not be high, but their ability to bnce the ounts was very impressive, thus they were very respected within the management bureau. Upon seeing Fu Li enter, they asked a few questions in a very careless manner. However, the moment they saw the name signed on the invoice, all of them immediately sat up straight. ¡°Is this the reward Boss specially wrote out?¡± Employee A of the finance department got up and poured Fu Li a cup of water. ¡°Please wait a moment, we will fetch the prize money and goods right this moment.¡± Fu Li looked at the steaming-hot tea in front of him and only then realized that the mixed-blood dragon who had signed his name for him two days ago was this ce¡¯s boss. He turned around and nced at the finance department¡¯s very imposing furnishings, feeling somewhat envious. During the times he concealed himself and went to human houses to watch news broadcasts, he had heard humans mention that all people who worked in an office were top-ss talents. Many young humans put in their blood, sweat, and tears all for the sake of bing a civil servant. They worked even harder than those schrs in the past who took the imperial examination. The employee in charge of attending to Fu Li saw him remain silent, so he smiled cooperatively. ¡°We weren¡¯t aware that you were specially sent over by the boss. If we offended you in any way just now, please don¡¯t take it to heart.¡± Fu Li stared nkly for a moment before realizing what the other party meant. However, he hadn¡¯t taken such a minor thing to heart at all. He had encountered even more excessive incidents in the past where there was no space to even negotiate. As long as they could hand him the prize money, no other issues existed. The prize money was very quickly delivered by the employee. Other than the money, there was also a certificate of merit with the words ¡®Outstanding Good-hearted Yao¡¯ written on it, an unremarkable sandalwood box, as well as a ck wooden box containing his yao-beating whip. Fu Li opened up the sandalwood box and found that it contained a pellet emitting spirit qi. ¡°This is a Spirit Cultivating Pellet. Make sure to keep it close to you,¡± The employee was a little envious. This was a Spirit Cultivating Pellet; even his annual sry would only be enough to pay for half of it. Feeling somewhat doubtful, Fu Li ced the pellet emanating a medicinal scent back into the box. What was a Spirit Cultivating Pellet? Was that the term of address for the product produced when the Spirit Gathering Pellet failed in the process of fire refining? The cultivation world nowadays was really frugal. Even this sort of pellet created from a refining failure was also taken out to consume. Fu Li casually threw the yao-beating whip and Spirit Cultivating Pellet into his bag, nced into the envelope containing the prize money, and then uttered a word of thanks with a wide smile. He kept the money and certificate properly before walking out of the finance department¡¯s office. He had just reached the entrance when he saw Zhuang Qing walk towards him. He thought about it and decided to halt his footsteps. Chapter 10 - Shameless

Chapter 10 - Shameless

¡°Fu daoyou.¡± Zhuang Qing still had an impression of Fu Li. A yaoguai who could transform into human form by the will of the heavens and even pick up the yao-beating whip could be considered the darling of heavenlyw. Heavenlyw had always favored humans. Inparison to humans, the yao were merelyplimentary products that came along with the humans. So, their fate and fortune were much poorer inparison to human cultivators. This Fu Li could probably be counted as an unusual existence among the yao. ¡°Zhuang daoyou,¡± Fu Li revealed a smile. ¡°Many thanks for the prize money given by Zhuang daoyou.¡± Although the Spirit Cultivating Pellet didn¡¯t have much use, the prize money was equal to two months of his sry. ¡°No need for thanks. It was taken from the funds allocated by the country; it¡¯s not my money,¡± Zhuang Qing was very calm. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t lent a helping hand then, my teammate would have lost his life to the Zhuyan.¡± ¡°This is a harmonious society; help should be given proactively during moments of injustice,¡± Fu Li tugged on his backpack. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded and took a step to the side. Just as Fu Li was about to walk to the stairs, he stopped Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t let others know about Fu daoyou¡¯s yao-beating whip.¡± This sort of formidable magic tool had enormous allure in the cultivation world. If someone were to have the intentions of snatching this treasure, this yaoguai called Fu Li might not necessarily be able to protect it. ¡°You mean this thing?¡± Fu Li took out the yao-beating whip and presented it to Zhuang Qing after a moment of contemtion. ¡°For you.¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows, not quite understanding Fu Li¡¯s intentions. ¡°I heard from a yaoguai before entering the city that your bureau functions as a bailiff in the cultivation world. I don¡¯t have much use for this yao-beating whip even if I carry it on me, so I might as well give it to you and let it be put to good use,¡± Fu Li stuffed the whip into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. ¡°Morality in this world is much better nowpared to the past, but bad humans and yao will never go out of existence.¡± For this mixed-blood dragon to have reached such a high position, he must not have had it easy either. Seeing as how he had specially given him the prize money, he would give him the whip and help him attract the will of the people. ¡°I don¡¯t need it,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t quite understand the way this little yao thought. He was so poor that he even needed to pick up stic bottles in exchange for money, yet he so readily gave away this priceless magic weapon. Was he right in the head? ¡°If you don¡¯t need it, you can give it to your teammates to use,¡± Fu Li felt that this mixed-blood dragon was a little slow. Without giving his underlings some benefits, would his position be stable? In the mountain he had resided in a few hundred years ago, the king of the mountain was a pig yao. After the pig yao became the king, he still knew to let the yaoguai on the entire mountain drink and nibble on some sheep meat every few days. ¡°Take it.¡± This mixed-blood dragon must have put in significant effort in order to climb to this position. Fu Li admired this sort of yaoguai who possessed such energy and vigor. Zhuang Qing silently held onto the yao-beating whip for a long time before plucking two strands of hair from his head. When the strands of hairnded on his palm, they morphed into two dragon¡¯s beards that emanated golden light. The dragon¡¯s beards flew onto Fu Li and very quickly vanished without a trace. Fu Li could vaguely feel a strand of dragon qi attached to his body. There was even a nearly imperceptible wisp of virtue. No wonder he couldn¡¯t make out this dragon¡¯s cultivation base. It turned out this mixed-blood dragon had not only taken on a leader¡¯s position in the cultivation world but had even secretly joined with the fate of the nation. He really hadn¡¯t realized that Zhuang Qing was a cunning dragon! Humans were the darlings of heavenlyw, the chief of all living creatures. Therefore, no matter whether one was human or yao, one¡¯s cultivation base would increase by arge amount if one received human recognition and worship. But, the number of yao within the past five thousand years who had received the recognition of the fate of the nation didn¡¯t amount to even a few. If this sort of major chance actually appeared, the dragon n would definitely have fought for it till blood flowed. How would a mixed-blood dragon have obtained the chance? So, what was so extraordinary about that dragon n that turned up their noses to the yao and acted wantonly in public? At that time, they had even mocked him for having an ugly appearance and low cultivation. If they were so capable, why did they still lose to a mixed-blood dragon when it came to vying for this major opportunity? Fu Li, who had originally only admired Zhuang Qing for his dauntless spirit, had now kicked Zhuang Qing out of the dragon n¡¯s circle. ¡°With the protection of my dragon qi, other yaoguai won¡¯t dare to touch you,¡± Zhuang Qing decided to ept the yao-beating whip. ¡°Just regard our management bureau as having borrowed this yao-beating whip. We¡¯ll return it to you again when you need it.¡± With a flip of his hand, an additional jade box appeared in Zhuang Qin¡¯s hands. ¡°This is the rent.¡± Fu Li took the jade box. The box contained a Spirit Gathering Pellet of the highest quality, which was emanating lines of golden light. He thought about it and handed the jade box back to Zhuang Qing. ¡°I don¡¯t want pellets, give me money instead.¡± Zhuang Qing, ¡°...¡± Did this little yao have such low cultivation not due to ack of knowledge but because there was an issue with his brain? Nowadays, panacea was rare and refining a top-quality Spirit Gathering Pellet was also difficult. Yet, the other party didn¡¯t want the pellet, but instead wanted money? Zhuang Qing, who was rarely this generous, couldn¡¯t help doubting internally if it was him who was the fool, or if was this little yao who was the fool. Fu Li noticed the odd look on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face and assumed that he couldn¡¯t bear to part with the money, so he heaved a sigh. ¡°Forget it, forget it.¡± The yaoguai were all keeping up with the times, only the dragon n¡¯s stinginess hadn¡¯t changed no matter the number of years that had passed. Out of the ten dragon ns, nine of them were stingy, and one out of these nine was immensely stingy. It wouldn¡¯t be good for him to haggle with this sort of younger generation. Moreover, the other party had already joined with the national fate; he couldn¡¯t afford to provoke him. For some reason, Fu Li¡¯s ¡®won¡¯t haggle with you¡¯ expression caused Zhuang Qing to choke up till he nearly couldn¡¯t breathe. Zhuang Qing turned and left, not wanting to continue talking with this sort of little yao who didn¡¯t want to work hard and only thought of using human money to enjoy a life of debauchery. Fu Li didn¡¯t sense the abnormality in Zhuang Qing¡¯s attitude. He exited Chang Long biotechnology researchpany through the main entrance and then went in search of the nearest public transportation station. Zhou Chang had been very gloomytely. After much difficulty, he had finally done something praiseworthy in the eyes of his family members. But in the end, he didn¡¯t manage to find the so-called Ranyi meat even after going to the variousrge medicinal stores, causing his family members to think of him as an unreliable liar. In all honesty, he might not attend to his proper duties and was happy to partake without doing any work, but he wouldn¡¯t make fun of his family members. He was so angry that it became unbearable, so he specially invited an expert in Chinese medicine and inquired if there was indeed something like the Ranyi meat in this world. The expert finished listening to Zhou Chang¡¯s description and remained silent for a long while before saying, ¡°Mister Zhou, there is indeed a fish called Ranyi in our country¡¯s ancient texts. The legends say that this type of fish meat has the mysterious effect of warding off evil spirits and calming the spirits.¡± ¡°It really exists?¡± Zhou Chang was shaken. ¡°Where can it be bought?¡± The expert was very tolerant towards such ignorant rich second generations, because the reward the other party gave was very high. Thus, no matter how stupid the question the other party asked, he would still reveal a mild and polite smile. ¡°Mister Zhou, this type of medicine cannot be bought.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Zhou Chang was unhappy again. If it couldn¡¯t be bought, then what was the thing he received the other time? ¡°Because Ranyi fish meat doesn¡¯t exist; it only exists in the legends. There is no such mystical animal in this world,¡± The expert pushed the sses on the bridge of his nose, a trace of sympathy concealed in his eyes. ¡°I think you might have met a liar peddling fake medicine. The effect that you assumed it had was merely the effect caused by other medicine, and not the supposed Ranyi meat.¡± ¡°The fake medicine peddlers nowadays have particrly huge guts. They dare to say anything ¨C their bragging can turn beef into dragon meat, a mountain chicken into a phoenix, and any roadside grass into a product of the Jade Lake,¡± The expert sighed. ¡°In recent years, there were countless people who fell for such things, so the country has started to take severe measures against these illegal acts during the past few years. Information on such things has also been disseminated torgemunities, so very few of such liars have been seen the past two years.¡± Of course, there were very few fools who fell for it in the first ce. Unaware that the expert had felt sorry for his IQ, Zhou Chang walked out of the expert¡¯s office withplex feelings. He didn¡¯t want to admit that he had mistaken fake medicine as a panacea yet couldn¡¯t persuade himself that such a mystical object actually existed in this world. He drove aimlessly all over the ce. After the gloominess in his heart had finally dispersed a little, Zhou Chang parked the car at the roadside and took out his phone in preparation to give his parents a call and exin that such medicine couldn¡¯t be bought. He still felt somewhat unwilling to admit that he had been cheated. His call hadn¡¯t gone through yet when he caught sight of a person along the sidewalk. That person was the one who had given him the Ranyi meat. Hanging up, Zhou Chang pulled open the car door and chased after him. He didn¡¯t even have the time to lock the car. ¡°Wait!¡± Zhou Chang ran for a while before he started to gasp for breath. This young man didn¡¯t seem like he was walking very quickly, but why was it so hard to catch up to him? Fu Li had just reached the public transportation station. The bus hadn¡¯t arrived. Fu Li was just thinking about sitting down to wait when his shoulder was grabbed a hold of. Turning around, he realized that it was the young man he had bumped into when he first entered the city. ¡°It really is you,¡± Zhou Chang held onto Fu Li and refused to let him go. He panted a few breaths before telling Fu Li, ¡°Come with me.¡± ¡°Young man, kidnapping is illegal,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t move a single bit. With just that bit of strength, kidnapping him wasn¡¯t very probable. ¡°What would I kidnap you for? To cut out your kidneys and use it for stir-fried kidneys?¡± Zhou Chang pointed at the car parked in the distance. ¡°My car is still over there. I wanted to talk to you about something.¡± ¡°But I need to take public transport back...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send you back!¡± Zhou Chang cut him off. ¡°Go go go. If we still don¡¯t leave, the police wille over and give me a vition ticket.¡± Fu Li was dragged into the car by Zhou Chang and then given a cold smile. ¡°You really dare to get into the car. Aren¡¯t you scared that I¡¯ll drag you to the police station?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand him. The thoughts of humans were truly difficult to guess. A long time ago, he had rescued a human. Afterwards, that human remained in his cave dwelling and refused to leave. Fu Li had always been magnanimous and easy to deal with, so he didn¡¯t chase him away and simply thought of him as a pet he was raising. Then, the human fell ill. Perhaps his lifespan was up, because the medicinal herbs the human physician found for him didn¡¯t have much effect. That human did not fear death. Even when the medicine was ineffective, he didn¡¯t cry or make a fuss. Yet, he uttered a fewints as he was facing death¡¯s door, seemingly dissatisfied with the fact that Fu Li was yao. Yet in the end, he said that he hoped he would not be human in his next life. That was several thousand years ago. Fu Li could no longer remember what the person looked like or what his name was, but still remembered the fickleness of humanity. However, human males were also quite strange. They were clearly as fickle as females, yet they were most fond of calling women the ficklest creatures. Human men were probably the most practiced at hypocrisy. ¡°You cheated me using fake medicine and still have the nerve to ask me why?¡± Zhou Chang was stupefied by the other party¡¯s calm shamelessness. ¡°I don¡¯t do things like cheating other people,¡± Fu Li was very confident in his moral conduct. ¡°Then why did you lie to me about that Ranyi meat. The expert told me that there¡¯s no such thing as Ranyi meat in this world!¡± Zhou Chang stepped onto the brakes, stopping the car along the roadside. ¡°You knocked into my car and I didn¡¯t ask you topensate me. But you can¡¯t be so shameless as to use fake medicine to cheat me. What would happen if something happened to the person who ate the medicine?¡± Fu Li furrowed his brows without uttering a word. The other time he looked at this young man¡¯s facial features, he had seen that his family¡¯s elder would be... stricken with disaster, which was why he gifted him the Ranyi meat. Now that he took another look at his facial features, the disaster characterized by illness had already been eliminated. The medicine was effective, yet he still lied through his teeth. Humans could be said to be bing more and more shameless. ¡°Are the words of an expert always trustworthy?¡± T/N: Fu Li: *says something* Everybody else: ????? Chapter 11 - Who Are You?

Chapter 11 - Who Are You?

Zhou Chang was stumped by Fu Li¡¯s question. For a long time, he was speechless. ¡°The world is very big, and also very mysterious,¡± There seemed to be countless secrets hidden in Fu Li¡¯s pitch-ck eyes. Zhou Chang had parked the car by the roadside and was gazing into Fu Li¡¯s eyes. To him, it felt like he was gazing into the abyss. ¡°Certain things you assume don¡¯t exist are actually hidden by your side,¡± Fu Li nced behind Zhou Chang. ¡°You will never know how many unseen things are hidden by your side.¡± Someone who looked very likable was saying such hair-raising things. Struck by an indescribable fear, Zhou Chang¡¯s neck shrank back. He seemed to feel a slight chill. ¡°Handsome, can we have a proper conversation. I-I¡¯m someone who believes in materialism.¡± ¡°Materialism is good, it can promote the advancement of science, technology, and production capability,¡± Fu Li shifted his line of sight and straightened his body. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Go where?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you would send me home?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Zhou Chang nodded and obediently drove ording to the roads Fu Li mentioned. The area Fu Li lived at was very remote and didn¡¯t have a very good environment. On the way there, Zhou Chang¡¯s car was jolted from left to right. He couldn¡¯t help mocking, ¡°Handsome, if you really have so much panacea, why don¡¯t you take it out and sell it for money? Why are you still living at this kind of lousy ce?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who to sell it to,¡± Fu Li cocked his head and looked at him. ¡°I didn¡¯t take any money when I gave you the medicine.¡± Zhou Chang stared nkly for a short while but very quickly understood the meaning behind Fu Li¡¯s words. The medicine was given to him free of charge, and he hadn¡¯t forked out anything either. It seemed like he didn¡¯t have any qualifications to call the other party a fake medicine swindler. No, the headlight of his beloved car was broken by this youngster, didn¡¯t he not ask him for reimbursement? The car stopped outside a shabby alley once again. Zhou Chang told Fu Li sincerely and earnestly, ¡°Brother, I know your life might be a bit more tough. An idle, rich second generation like me doesn¡¯t have the right to lecture you. But you¡¯re still young. Some things can¡¯t be done, you won¡¯t be able to turn back once you do them. Things like medicine can save lives but can also do harm. Sometimes, fake medicine can take someone¡¯s life. You look even younger than me, and neither are you a bad person. Don¡¯t step onto the wrong path for the sake of money.¡± Fu Li looked at this solemn-looking young human and took out a stalk of ginseng from his backpack. ¡°You make a lot of sense, but I never lie.¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± Zhou Chang looked at the stalk of ginseng, feeling somewhat disappointed in the young man. He had spoken this much, yet he still refused to change. Was there any meaning in cheating people this way? ¡°Car fee,¡± Fu Li pulled open the car door and got off. Standing on the steps, he looked at Zhou Chang. ¡°Although your natural disposition is azy one, your moral conduct is pure. By nature, you will lead a happy and prosperous life. A human like you is very cute.¡± ¡°Ai!¡± Zhou Chang wanted to reject it, but the young man walked off so quickly that it seemed a little strange. He had merely spaced out for an instant, but the young man had already walked a great distance, very quickly vanishing into the alley. The scent of ginseng permeated the inside of the car. Zhou Chang gritted his teeth and made a U-turn. He went to find an elder in his family who knew how to examine traditional Chinese medicine products. What if... this person hadn¡¯t lied? Even if the possibility of this was so small that it was pitiful, Zhou Chang still wanted to give it a try. Perhaps it was because the other party¡¯s gaze was too serious. So serious that he felt that it would be a sin to not trust in him. The elder received the ginseng Zhou Chang handed to him with trembling hands. The elder¡¯s look of excited infatuation couldn¡¯t help but make Zhou Chang doubt whether he had brought a stalk of ginseng or some bewitching monster. ¡°Little Zhou, where did you find this high-quality ginseng?!¡± The elder cautiously ced the ginseng onto a tray. ¡°Although its been sitting for a number of years, it¡¯s pure ginseng from the wild mountains. Moreover, it¡¯s a product of the highest quality that can¡¯t be bought with money. Tell me, where did you get such a good thing?¡± ¡°Uncle, this thing... is real?¡± Zhou Chang swallowed, feeling that the way he had carried this hundred-year-old ginseng might have been a bit too casual. The elder nodded. ¡°Some time back, a fifty-year-old stalk of ginseng from the wild mountains was auctioned for a high price of nearly one million. This thing of yours is good stuff that can¡¯t be bought even with money. Bring it back and show some filial respect to your parents. But only use a bit every time, this thing has very concentrated medicinal properties.¡± Zhou Chang sat there in a daze. Only after a long period of time had gone by did he realize that his face was extremely flushed. He was a hedonistic son who had unted himself as a rich second generation, yet he had taken advantage of someone and even called someone else¡¯s things fake medicine. At five o¡¯clock in the afternoon, Fu Li appeared at the hotel punctually to take over from the previous shift¡¯s security guard. After putting on the uniform, Fu Li walked out of the changing room. The corridor was extremely quiet. He looked around his surroundings without seeing anyone. Ding, ding, ding. A ringing sound that seemed to exist yet not exist echoed from the ground. Fu Li came to a halt, not walking forward any longer. There was a saying in the human world that there were soul-catching yinchai in the underworld. With a Soul-Pulling Bell and Soul-Locking Chain in their hands, they would guide living souls whose lives hade to an end towards the underworld. Fu Li had seen yinchai twice previously. Perhaps this would be the third time. The ringing sound grew louder and louder. Fu Li turned and saw a young man dressed in a ck uniform with a belt around his waist walking in his direction hastily. In his hands was a rectangr object that was four fingers wide. It looked like the handphone that humans liked to use. His other hand held onto a metal rope, which was looped around a young man wearing a bathrobe. The man was shrieking about how he ¡®didn¡¯t want to die¡¯, had a ¡®lot of money¡¯, and other simrly meaningless things. Yet, the young yinchai was preupied with ying with his handphone while walking,pletely disregarding the man. Ding. The yinchai came to a stop and the ringing sound vanished. He raised his head and saw Fu Li, who was three steps away from him. Stuffing his handphone into the pocket of his pants, he fished out his identification document. ¡°Yinchai¡¯s working. Idlers should not disturb.¡± Fu Lu nced at the yinchai¡¯s identification document. The two words Niu Zhen was written on it in calligraphy. ¡°You can see me?¡± The young man who was locked up pounced onto Fu Li. ¡°Save me, save me. I have plenty of money, I can give you lots of money.¡± Niu Zhen sneered. ¡°Anyone wanted by our underworld has to go. It¡¯s no use no matter who you plead with.¡± He didn¡¯t umte merit or do good deeds while alive, nor did he cherish his body. Only after his corpse had turned stiff did he know how to fear death. This sort of human was also interesting. ¡°You¡¯re a security guard at this hotel, you should be protecting the people inside the hotel!¡± The young man had already lost all reason. He clutched at the leg of Fu Li¡¯s pants. ¡°Save me!¡± Fu Li took a step back and gently removed the man¡¯s hand. ¡°I only protect the customers in this hotel who are alive. You are already dead.¡± ¡°No, no. I don¡¯t want to die,¡± The man¡¯s struggles intensified. The Soul-Locking Chain around his wrist grew increasingly tight, to the point where it seemed like it had fused with his bones and flesh. The man howled in pain, his facial features contorting into a mass. ¡°Fu Li, what are you doing still standing there!¡± A colleague from the security department walked over, his tone of voice unfriendly. ¡°It¡¯s almost time for you to start work. Don¡¯t assume that you can ck off just because a few female customers praised you.¡± Fu Li looked at this colleague who was unknowingly stepping on the wailing man¡¯s soul and nodded silently. The security guard touched his lower leg doubtfully. Wasn¡¯t the air-conditioning along the corridor a little too low? Upon looking up, he saw Fu Li still remaining silent, so he said unhappily, ¡°You...¡± At this moment, the walkie-talkie at his waist sounded. ¡°Team two, emergency gathering now. Popr artist Lu Renjia met with a mishap in our hotel!¡± Holding the walkie-talkie, the security guard ran towards the stairs. Just as he reached the staircase, his legs weakened all of a sudden and hended smack on the ground. He climbed up and nced back at Fu Li who was still standing along the corridor, before running off in embarrassment. Niu Zhen tightened the Soul-Locking Chain, nodded at Fu Li, and then dragged the young man¡¯s soul into the distance. After the ringing sound vanished, Fu Li turned around, brushed his sleeves, and cut open the barrier. ¡°You can leave, don¡¯t casually enter the men¡¯s changing room next time.¡± A young girl wearing a short skirt walked out of the room. She shot a smile at Fu Li, two lines of blood dripping down the sockets of her eyes. ¡°Many thanks to this Daoist priest for lending a hand.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t reply. He still couldn¡¯t understand humans. That man was clearly already nearing the end of his life, so why did this female ghost still risk acquiring baleful qi just to let that man die in advance? ¡°Although no yinchai hase to ferry you, this can help you find the path to the underworld,¡± Fu Li ced a Migu Branch in the female ghost¡¯s hands. ¡°I hope your next life will be peaceful.¡± ¡°I am ipetent and powerless and can only hope to be able to repay this Daoist priest in my next life,¡± The female ghost solemnly swore an oath. ¡°If not for this Daoist priest, I would have been regarded as an evil ghost and taken away. I wouldn¡¯t have had a chance to be reincarnated.¡± ¡°No need, this is merely something done in passing,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I dislike raising humans as pets.¡± The female ghost was astounded. Seeing that the Daoist Priest wasn¡¯t making a joke, she bowed deeply towards him before leaving with the Migu Branch. An hourter, the news of the popr artist Lu Renjia¡¯s death spread widely through the various major entertainment media tforms. Soon after, the police reported the cause of his death. It wasn¡¯t suicide or homicide, but an idental death caused by a drug overdose. The entire country went into an uproar the moment the cause of his death was reported. What was even more shocking was that the police once again announced something two dayster ¨C Lu Renjia was linked to the death of a certain female university student who had fallen to her death half a year ago. This female student was a fan of Lu Renjia. Seeing that she was pretty, Lu Renjia intentionally invited her out and not only got her onto drugs but also wanted to r*pe her. His original intention was to get her hooked onto drugs so that she would bepletely submissive towards him. However, he hadn¡¯t expected for the girl to have an unyielding personality. As she was grappling with him, she unexpectedly fell from the building. After the girl¡¯s death, some said that she deserved it for getting a room at a hotel even after consuming drugs, and that she received her due retribution by losing her footing and falling to her death. The pervasive insults from bystanders and her parents¡¯ tears prevented the girl from resting in peace even after her death. In the end, she transformed into a resentful ghost and bothered Lu Renjia every day as revenge for that day¡¯s grudge. The only thing Fu Li did was to hide her behind a barrier he erected while she was evading the yinchai. During the night shift, Fu Li was listening to the front-counterdies gossiping about Lu Renjia and gazing into the night outside the hotel when he heard a familiar ringing sound. He stood at the main entrance and saw the yinchai who had just passed by. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± Although this yinchai was wearing a ck uniform, his hair was done up in a bun reminiscent of a style from many years back. It looked a little out of ce. ¡°It¡¯s been so many years. You¡¯re actually still alive?¡± Fu Li¡¯s jet-ck eyes stared at the yinchai. ¡°Who are you?¡± The yinchai didn¡¯t speak. Footsteps sounded from the other end of the street. Chapter 12 - Ghost Messenger

Chapter 12 - Ghost Messenger

The footsteps grew louder and louder. The yinchai and Fu Li nced in the direction of the footsteps simultaneously. A handsome man dressed in a suit appeared at the corner of the street. An expression of reverence unraveled on the yinchai¡¯s face upon seeing the man¡¯s appearance. ¡°Mr Zhuang Qing.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded, his gaze sweeping across Fu Li. He came to a stop, not intending to join their conversation. The underworld and management bureau had dealings with each other. With Zhuang Qing present, the yinchai became much more reserved. However, seeing Fu Li had made him recall the events that had happened many years ago. At that time, he had just be a yinchai and hadn¡¯t gotten used to witnessing separations caused by death. The asional grief and sadness of a ghost¡¯s loved ones had made it difficult for him to relieve the tension in his heart. He had a time when he had even encountered a yaoguai with a cultivation base who attempted to forcibly seize the soul of the deceased from him, preventing him from taking the soul to the underworld. Upon knowing that he had to fetch a human soul at a mountain where yao cultivators resided, he was extremely fearful the entire way there. When he rushed to the ce, the yao cultivator was sitting beside the deceased¡¯s corpse, having helped cover the corpse with a pretty brocade quilt. It was said that such brocade quilts weaved from silk produced by spirit silkworms could prevent the corpse from rotting for a hundred years. The moment the yinchai saw this attitude, he felt a sense of doom. Even this sort of quilt had been taken out; it would probably be somewhat difficult for him to take the soul away this day. Fortunately, the soul didn¡¯t weep or raise a fuss about not wanting to die. The yao cultivator didn¡¯t appear to demand anything of him either, not uttering a single word from start to end. Only when he tightened the Soul-Locking Chain did the yao cultivator tell him to make his actions a little gentler. He did so ordingly. The soul didn¡¯t say anything along the way. Only after they passed through the entrance to the underworld did tears of blood drip from the soul¡¯s eyes, forming two bloody lines. The image of scarlet tears paired with an expressionless face was truly too shocking, which was why the yinchai could still remember that soul and yao cultivator even after so many years had passed. ¡°Two thousand years ago, this humble one had the chance to meet you,¡± The yinchai didn¡¯t mention that human soul, fearing that this yao cultivator would ask him who that human had reincarnated as. ¡°Two thousand years ago...¡± Fu Li thought about it for a very long time and then recalled the first time he had met a yinchai. ¡°You¡¯re the yinchai that was sent by the underworld?¡± The yinchai smiled awkwardly. He had indeed been verycking in courage that year. ¡°This humble one is called Li Xu. It is also fate that we can meet again after many years.¡± He noticed the uniform Fu Li was wearing. He was... a security guard in the human world? Fu Li noticed that the uniform Li Xu was wearing differed from the yinchai he saw in the evening andmented with understanding, ¡°It seems you¡¯ve been promoted in these two thousand years.¡± Li Xu smiled and fished out a cigarette from his pocket, handing it to Fu Li. After Fu Li declined, he lit it for himself. ¡°I thought, like the other yao on that mountain, you had also...¡± He nced at Zhuang Qing not too far away and swallowed his words. He had only gone to that mountain once to guide that soul. Only after he asked the other yinchai a hundred yearster about the yao cultivators on that mountain did he learn about the incident that had taken ce in the eightieth year of his soul-ferrying. At that time, several azure dragons had caused repeated rainstorms from ying with water. The yao cultivators on that mountain couldn¡¯t bear to see the humans suffer and so pleaded for leniency with those few dragons. Yet, who would have expected for the azure dragons to fly into a rage? In the end, some of those yao cultivators perished while others were wounded. Even the entire mountain was razed to the ground. Li Xu had assumed that this yao cultivator had also died. Yet, despite these vicissitudes of life, this yao still managed to survive till this day. Fu Li¡¯s eyelids drooped. There wasn¡¯t much fluctuation in his tone of voice despite the mention of this past event. ¡°I had already fallen asleep at that time.¡± Li Xu was struck by a sudden realization. It was probably because of this that this yao had escaped death. ¡°Bang!¡± A loud sound echoed in the distance. Fire shot towards the sky. Li Xu threw the cigarette, stamping it out firmly beneath the heel of his shoe. ¡°I should do my work.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li called after him. Li Xu¡¯s heart tightened. Was the other party going to ask him about that human? ¡°Don¡¯t litter,¡± Fu Li pointed at the cigarette butt beside his foot and then shifted his finger towards abeled rubbish bin not too far away. Li Xu, ¡°...¡± Resigned, he lowered his head and picked up the cigarette butt before throwing it into the rubbish bin a few meters away. ¡°Little handsome Fu, who are you talking to?¡± The front-counterdy saw Fu Li speaking to the air outside. She couldn¡¯t help feeling a shiver snake down her back, thinking that she had finally seen a legendary supernatural event. Almost every hotel would have some strange stories circting internally. This sort ofw was simr to the premise that schools were always built on top of ces like cemeteries and temples. ¡°A friend,¡± Fu Li¡¯s gazended on Zhuang Qing. ¡°He came to find me for something.¡± Under Fu Li¡¯s attentive gaze, Zhuang Qing came closer and appeared within the front-counterdy¡¯s field of vision. With one nce, the front-counterdy felt she had been listening to too many ghost storiestely. What ghost would look this handsome and elite? She very honestly bowed down to the power of beauty. At this moment, someone came to do the lodging procedures, so even if the front-counterdy wanted to drool at the handsome guy¡¯s good looks, she still had to finish her work first. ¡°Mr Zhuang, please sit,¡± Fu Li fetched Zhuang Qing a drink and then led him to sit down at the sofas in the public resting area. ¡°An artist died in your hotel today?¡± Zhuang Qing got right to the point. ¡°Were you at the scene?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m a neer. Unless the customer requires it, I don¡¯t have the qualifications to go to the VIP room.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up. Seeing Fu Li sit up straight in his uniform, the him who had never liked to meddle in other people¡¯s business couldn¡¯t help but ask another question, ¡°You¡¯re just going to be a security guard?¡± ¡°No. My dream is to be a civil servant,¡± Fu Li saw that Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t drinking, so he simply lifted it up and drank it himself. ¡°Unfortunately, I¡¯m stillcking something.¡± ¡°Lacking what?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°A university degree.¡± Zhuang Qing felt an indescribable sullenness. He wanted to ask him about a few more things, but Fu Li had already gone to help customers carry their luggage. Zhuang Qing turned and walked out of the hotel. He looked into the distance and saw a chain ident that had urred a few hundred meters away. A long string of souls was hooked up to the yinchai¡¯s Soul-Locking Chain. The scene was full of chaos. Police cars, fire engines, and ambnces shuttled back and forth, while the private cars squeezed to the side to make way for them. The entire scene was a tragic sight. An ambnce swooshed past him. He stuck a hand into the pocket of his pants expressionlessly, till the yinchai leading the souls appeared in front of him. The night wind arose, carrying with it the faint scent of blood. ¡°Mr Zhuang?¡± Li Xu saw Zhuang Qing standing on the spot motionlessly. Thinking that he was looking for him, he stopped and asked, ¡°Are you looking for me for something?¡± Zhuang Qing saw that there were males, females, elderly, and the young among the souls. After a short nce, he retrieved his line of sight. ¡°Were there any unusual circumstances when your underworld came to ferry a soul at Affinity Moon Hotel this afternoon?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve not heard of any. The boss of Affinity Moon Hotel has rtions to the cultivation world. No average person would dare to do anything in the hotel,¡± Li Xu replied. ¡°That celebrity is a good-for-nothing. The evil deeds hemitted in his life is enough to form a huge mountain. It is very likely that he will be put into forcedbor in the underworld for a few centuries. He didn¡¯t umte fortune in his past life, and didn¡¯t cultivate morality in this life; who knows what he¡¯ll be reincarnated as in his next life.¡± ¡°Boss!¡± Chu Yu drove the car over. Upon seeing Li Xu, he smiled and said, ¡°Oh, yinchai chief daren, why did you personallye out to ferry souls today?¡± ¡°My colleagues are too busy, so I helped make a trip,¡± Li Xu knew that the two people had things to do, so he said very tactfully, ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave first. Please do as you wish.¡± When Li Xu left, Chu Yu shook his head at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing sat inside the car and leaned his head, looking at the tall building not too far in the distance. The lighted signboard was very dazzling. The three words, ¡®Affinity Moon Hotel¡¯ could be seen from a huge distance away. ¡°I made one round around the Affinity Moon Hotel, but didn¡¯t sense even a bit of baleful qi. I contacted Wang Han just now. He said there¡¯s only one yao among this hotel¡¯s employees, called...¡± ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing opened his mouth. When he recited these two words, his manner of speaking was both strange and rigid, as if he was speaking about a stone by the roadside, or an unremarkable tiny flower. ¡°I already saw him just now.¡± Chu Yu was very sensitive towards yao qi and baleful qi. He could very easily catch on to smells that others couldn¡¯t. If not for his original form being a fish and not a dog, he would definitely be able to make a living as a police dog. He didn¡¯t sense anything near the hotel, which could only mean that an error had appeared in their calctions. Lu Renjia¡¯s death had nothing to do with anyone else. ¡°There¡¯s no need to investigate this matter any longer, conclude the case as a natural death,¡± Zhuang Qing closed his eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s go home.¡± Zhuang Qing had an exceedingly luxurious vi under his name. The style of the interior decorations could be described as ¡®gold and jade in glorious splendor¡¯. Anyone who saw his house would be stupefied by its furnishings. There were all kinds of sparkling gemstones, corals, pearls and simr items. Even the most ridiculous television dramas featuring aristocrats didn¡¯t have the nerve to film in such a ce, out of fear of being scolded for being pompous. An immense natural crystal chandelier was hung in the living room. There was an implied meaning in every ray of light that shone from every angle. That it was expensive, very expensive. The curtains on the windows were decorated with pearls, all of which were violet pearls the size of a thumb that would shake slightly whenever the night wind blew. The brilliant rays of light emitting from the various gemstones made Chu Yu¡¯s eyes hurt. He ced the fruits he was carrying in his hand onto the table. ¡°Boss, I¡¯m going back.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded and agreed. He didn¡¯t have the habit of having other people stay over in his house. Chu Yu hurriedly went out of the door and got into a taxi. A whileter, he realized that the car wasn¡¯t going in the right direction. ¡°Sir, the route you¡¯re taking doesn¡¯t seem right.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no issue,¡± The taxi driver chuckled. ¡°A moonless, windy night is suitable for killing fishes.¡± The driver¡¯s smile stiffened upon seeing Chu Yu attempt to escape. ¡°I specially built this car for you. It can block yao qi and ghost qi, so naturally it can also imprison yao. It is quite fitting for a fish like you that boasts of having outstanding spiritual sensitivity to be buried with it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a painted skin ghost?¡± Cold sweat seeped out of Chu Yu¡¯s palms. A while back, he had discovered a painted skin ghostmitting ckmail while masquerading as an ordinary human. He had brought along his teammates to capture it, but that painted skin ghost had attempted to escape, only to die from the bolt of thunder that Boss had called down. Was this painted skin ghost here to avenge her? He might be outstanding when it came to spiritual sensitivity, but hisbat strength couldn¡¯tpare to even a goose. This time, he was doomed. The taxi sped rapidly. The painted skin ghost had already taken off theyer of fake skin and flesh on his face, revealing dense white bones. Chu Yu thought somewhat despondently, if this scene was captured by the surveince cameras, how were they going to convince people that the driver was not a human skeleton, but merely a joke? No wait, he was about to lose his life, who cared about that? He looked out the window with despair, wanting to take another look at this world, when he saw a massive advertisement with the three words ¡®Affinity Moon Hotel¡¯. He hated advertisements. The roads deep into the night had few cars and even less people. When someone standing by the roadside persisted in gging down a car without fear of the driver¡¯s skeletal appearance, the atmosphere became very strange. The painted skin ghost stopped the car and allowed this reckless person to get on. ¡°All you white bone spirits even need to drive taxis to earn money at night?¡± Fu Li sat at the front passenger seat and buckled his seatbelt. ¡°It really isn¡¯t easy to make a living.¡± Painted skin ghost, ¡°...¡± Chu Yu: All hope is lost. Chapter 13 - Diamond

Chapter 13 - Diamond

Heavy rain suddenly poured from the skies. Raindropsnded on the car¡¯s windshield with pitter-patter sounds. Sensing another yao in the car, Fu Li smiled. ¡°Sorry, I saw that the empty car sign was lit up, so I thought that the taxi was empty.¡± ¡°No problem,¡± There was a coldness to the painted skin ghost¡¯s voice. ¡°Two for the price of one; I¡¯m not losing out.¡± Chu Yu covered his face, feeling that this new yao was a fool. Even if a white bone spirit really did drive a taxi at night, why would it reveal its original form?Surveince cameras were located all over the city; a headline like ¡®shocking, a human skeleton actually drove a taxi to earn money¡¯ would probably appear on the various major tforms tomorrow. ¡°This is my first time taking a taxi,¡± Fu Li nced out the window at the streemps shrouded in a curtain of rain. ¡®It¡¯s quite interesting.¡± The rain grew even heavier. When the taxi ran a red light, Fu Li furrowed his brows. ¡°As the saying goes, it¡¯s better to be safe than sorry. Running a red light is very dangerous behavior.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯ll be doing even more dangerous thingster,¡± It had been a very long time since the painted skin ghost had met such a foolish yaoguai. It sneered, ¡°The faster I drive, the earlier I can send you home.¡± ¡°But I haven¡¯t even told you the address, how would you know where I live?¡± Idiot, because he¡¯s going to ughter you! Chu Yu yelled internally. The moment Fu Li got onto the taxi, the painted skin ghost had used some strange method to prevent him from speaking. Like a speeding arrow, the car very quickly drove out of the urban district and came to a stop at an abandoned construction site. The painted skin ghost didn¡¯t open the car door. It turned and nced at Chu Yu, sharpening its five ws as if they were knives. An eerie cold light shed off its ws. ¡°Brother.¡± A hand so fair that it resembled jade gently pulled on its bony hand. ¡°This passenger at the back has virtue and intelligence; he¡¯s a yao cultivator that walks on the right path. Isn¡¯t it a bit too much to make a move on him?¡± ¡°Laozi walks the path of evil cultivation,¡± The painted skin ghost smiled icily. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be next after I finish eating this fish¡¯s internal core.¡± ¡°Our yao world has its rules ¨C no feeding on living creatures with intelligence, excluding evildoers,¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected to encounter this sort of yao-killing scene during the first taxi ride of his life. He had merely woken up after a nap, realized that the world had already progressed rapidly after watching , and decided toe out and experience human life. Why was he always running into things like killing humans and yao? No wonder those famous bards in the past liked to live in seclusion in rural areas. It turned out that it was because there were too many annoying things in the human world. ¡°Scram!¡± The painted skin ghost didn¡¯t feel like spouting rubbish with Fu Li and moved to take Chu Yu¡¯s life with a flip of its hand. Its nails lengthened dramatically within the blink of an eye, reaching Chu Yu¡¯s chest. Kacha. Just as Chu Yu thought he was toast, the joints of the fingers in front of his chest snapped off cleanly, and then transformed into finger bones, dropping into the car. ¡°You¡¯re courting death!¡± The painted skin ghost raged. The hands that had snapped off grew back again. Disregarding Chu Yu, the painted skin ghost vaulted against the windshield, turned, and attacked Fu Li. In Fu Li¡¯s eyes, the movements of this white bone spirit were as slow as a snail. Its magic power was even more feeble; even the sparrow spirit who lived at the entrance of his cave dwelling in the past had greater prospects than it. In a very rxed manner, he pinched the bone dagger the white bone spirit thrust at him. With a quick palm motion, the white bone spirit¡¯s skeletal structure instantly came apart, transforming into a pile of shattered white bones. Seated in the backseat, Chu Yu pinched his neck, his eyes asrge as bells. Fu Li wiped the raindrops on his face and nced at the windshield behind him that waspletely smashed to bits. Without any better option, he pulled open the car door to the backseat and squeezed together with Chu Yu. Seeing that Fu Li was about to sit with him, Chu Yu was so frightened that he started trembling. His buttocks inched towards the car door at the side. The Three Pure Ones above, he was just a yin-yang fish from a thousand-year-old temple that had taken on a human form. Although he had the ability to distinguish qi and appearances, this tiny ability was all he had. He couldn¡¯t even forward a photo of his original form for a change in fortune. The rain became heavier and heavier. Rain seeped from the front of the car to the back, very quickly wetting the bottom of their seat. ¡°Do you have rtives or friends? Why don¡¯t I help you send out a Thousand Mile Sound Transmission and let them fetch you?¡± Fu Li saw that this fish had received quite a huge shock, so he very warm-heartedly proposed to help. Chu Yu shook his head and pointed at his throat. ¡°You were struck with a voice silencing skill?¡± Only now did Fu Li realize that Chu Yu couldn¡¯t speak. How low was this fish¡¯s cultivation base for this sort of trivial skill to actually be effective on him? After releasing the silencing skill on Chu Yu, Fu Li said, ¡°Done. Tell me your rtive or friend¡¯s address and name, I¡¯ll help you contact them.¡± ¡°No-no need,¡± Chu Yu¡¯s neck shrank back. He cautiously took out his handphone and then stole another peek at Fu Li. Only after seeing that he didn¡¯t object to his actions did he dial his boss¡¯ handphone number. After finishing the call, Chu Yu felt that Fu Li looked more and more familiar to the eye. He thought carefully. Wasn¡¯t this that little yao who was picking up stic bottles at the hospital entrance? At that time, he had even sympathized with the other party for not leading a good life. Now that he thought about this, his face really did turn a bit red; he didn¡¯t have that much face. Chu Yu stuck out his head and nced at the pile of smashed white bones outside, saying to Fu Li, ¡°Many thanks to senior for saving my life. This painted skin ghost uses very ruthless means and is wily and deceitful. If not for senior, this younger generation would have beenid to rest at this ce tonight.¡± ¡°Painted skin ghost?¡± Fu Li was astonished. ¡°So it was just a ghost cultivator, I even thought it was a white bone spirit.¡± Chu Yu smiled dryly. ¡°The average painted skin ghost can only walk in this world by borrowing human skin. This painted skin ghost has profound cultivation and had already produced a skeleton through refinement. Even without the support of human skin, flesh, and blood, it can still walk on this earth.¡± ¡°It dares to walk in this world just by relying on those fragmented, rotten bones?¡± Fu Li was starting to wonder if he had misunderstood the phrase ¡®profound cultivation¡¯. ¡°Senior¡¯s cultivation base is profound, why...¡± Chu Yu wanted to ask why he had fallen to such dire straits, but feared angering the other party into smacking him, so he inquired in a very tactful manner, ¡°Why live in such a lowkey manner?¡± Now that he was hearing the two words ¡®profound cultivation¡¯ again, Fu Li didn¡¯t feel like he had been praised at all. He answered very casually, ¡°Ever since birth, I lived on a small mountain. asionally, I¡¯ll hear the other yaoguai on the mountain mention those yao kings outside. However, my cultivation was ordinary, so I never went out of the mountain. On a normal day, I¡¯ll either cultivate or sleep. Many years ago, something happened and I lost my cave dwelling. I didn¡¯t dare to snatch another great yao¡¯s territory, so I found a forest deep within a mountain and went to sleep.¡± ¡°When did you wake up?¡± Chu Yu felt that this yaoguai lived quite a dull life. ¡°Three years ago,¡± Fu Li still hadn¡¯t fully adapted to this new society. ¡°I went to a human house and secretly watched and then found out that society outside had already changed.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± Daring to join society after watching , he had such huge guts that it put the average yao cultivator to shame. ¡°You¡¯ve lived for so many years and should have some good things. You can sell those in exchange for money,¡± Chu Yu felt that he wouldn¡¯t need to sell stic bottles if he did this. ¡°No. If I did that, how would I have the sense of aplishment thates with starting from scratch?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Moreover, those things of mine are of little value.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± This yaoguai even wanted to specially start from scratch, was he sick in the head? Half an hourter, the water in the car had already reached their ankles. Fu Li curled up his legs as he sat on the seat, asking somewhat doubtfully, ¡°Is your friend reallying to fetch you?¡± If he had known that the person wouldn¡¯te even after this long, he wouldn¡¯t have sat here and waited foolishly. He had merely thought of taking slight advantage of this situation to get a free ride, why was it so hard? Chu Yu nced out the window. ¡°Probably?¡± Just as he said these words, a man wearing a ck shirt walked to the car and looked at the two of them through the broken windshield. ¡°Boss!¡± Upon seeing Zhuang Qing appear, Chu Yu straightened his waist and no longer shrank his neck back. Without caring about the raindrops wetting his clothes, he pulled open the car door and ran over. ¡°Boss, I¡¯m really sorry for calling you out in the middle of the night.¡± Zhuang Qing shot a nce at him and took a step back, concerned that the rainwater on him would ssh onto his body. ¡°Hundred fifty for petrol.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°Sure...¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li who was in the car and asked Chu Yu, ¡°He saved you?¡± Chu Yu nodded shamefully. ¡°I think he¡¯s more suited to be my assistant.¡± ¡°What about me then?¡± Chu Yu asked. ¡°You can pick up stic bottles,¡± Zhuang Qing strode to the car door and spoke to Fu Li through the window, ¡°Mr Fu, I didn¡¯t expect us to meet again so soon.¡± Fu Li pushed the car door open till a small slit formed and told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Excuse me, move the umbre over a little.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t understand what he meant, but still shifted the umbre over slightly. Fu Li took the chance to make his way out from the car door, hiding under Zhuang Qing¡¯s umbre. A few raindrops on him sshed onto Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeves. Zhuang Qing looked down at the few raindrops on his branded shirt, his expression icy. Chu Yu turned his head, pretending not to have seen anything. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice was so cold that it was nearly dripping shards of ice. The three people had only taken a few steps when Zhuang Qing stopped and turned to nce at the discarded taxi and the pile of bone fragments. Raising his head, he nced at the sky. Suddenly, lightning shone, and two bolts of lightning struck down. The taxi and bone fragments vanished in a puff of smoke and ash, yet the surrounding flowers and nts werepletely unharmed. Fu Li eximed in admiration, ¡°Mr Zhuang has a good cultivation base.¡± ¡°Not as good as Mr Fu¡¯s natural state.¡± Fu Li¡¯s arm bumped against him by ident, creating yet another water mark on Zhuang Qin¡¯s sleeve. The tip of his brows moved slightly. ¡°Has Mr Fu ever sent clothes to the dry-cleaning store?¡± ¡°No. My clothes are very cheap,¡± Fu Li tugged at his shirt. ¡°This piece is only thirty yuan, it doesn¡¯t need to be dry-cleaned.¡± ¡°The member fee for my shirt to be dry-cleaned is sixty-eight yuan,¡± Zhuang Qing said expressionlessly. ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li blinked hisrge eyes. A whileter, he had a sh of realization. ¡°Mr Zhuang, you¡¯re very rich.¡± Zhuang Qing ignored him. He pulled open the car door and got in while Fu Li sat at the back. Looking up, Fu Li caught sight of a few perfectly cut diamonds on the roof of the car. The refracted rays of light from the streemps caused the diamonds to give off an enchanting radiance. Fu Li stretched out a thumb, wanting to give it a small touch. Just a small one. But before he could extend his hand, he saw Zhuang Qing turn around and stare at him with a severe expression. Rich people truly had strange hobbies; they could even think of iying diamonds into their car to unt their wealth. Chapter 14 - Benefactor

Chapter 14 - Benefactor

Silence filled the car. Chu Yu shrunk into a corner, not daring to speak. Zhuang Qing was focused solely on driving, seemingly not intending to speak at all. Zhuang Qing stopped the car at a red light and suddenly spoke, ¡°Mr Fu¡¯s cultivation is profound, have you ever considered a change of career?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°When I finish self-studying and obtain a university degree, I¡¯ll be a civil servant.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t understand why this yaoguai who had lived for several thousands of years had suddenly appeared in the human world and was even working as a security guard. As for the other party saying that he wanted to be a civil servant, he didn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Benefactor, your cultivation is so high, why would you want to be a civil servant?¡± Chu Yu said in a low voice. ¡°Our management bureau recruits once every five years. Our recruitment period just so happens to be this year, why don¡¯t you participate in our bureau¡¯s appraisal? The treatment here isn¡¯t bad and the material benefits are good. The country will even allocate you an apartment after ten years.¡± ¡°Are the people working at your ce considered civil servants?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°We¡¯re considered, considered... civil servants in the cultivation world. We also belong to government administration,¡± Chu Yu felt that it was too much of a waste for someone as powerful as his benefactor to be a security guard at a hotel. Therefore, he made a supreme effort to persuade him to job-hop. ¡°Not only will you need to conceal your abilities within the human civil system, maintaining your form will also drain magic power. But in our cultivation world management bureau, it¡¯s no problem if we stay in our original forms as long as the doors to the office are closed. I¡¯m just not very sure howrge benefactor¡¯s original form is? If it¡¯s too big, that office of ours may not berge enough for you.¡± Noticing that Fu Li¡¯s expression was a little odd, Chu Yu realized that he had gone slightly overboard with his words. Talking about someone else¡¯s original form in front of a yao cultivator was the human equivalent of discussing somebody¡¯s three measurements ¨C it was considered discourteous behavior. He hurriedly said, ¡°Benefactor, this younger generation made an indiscreet remark.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°My original form is very ordinary.¡± Chu Yuughed dryly, feeling too ashamed to continue talking. The atmosphere in the car became awkward again. The windshield wiper swiped lightly at the rainwater on the windshield. Zhuang Qing nced at the oil gauge and continued to drive expressionlessly. By the time he found Fu Li¡¯s dpidated rental house, the expression on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face was very cold. ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± ¡°Thank you, cultivator Zhuang,¡± Fu Li recalled that his umbre had already turned into ash together with the taxi and could only pluck a strand of hair, turning it into an umbre. Opening the umbre, he blocked the rainwater falling from above. ¡°Benefactor,¡± Chu Yu stuffed a few pieces of paper into Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°This is our recruitment application form, you muste!¡± ¡°If I work at your bureau, will I get any extra credit when attempting to be a civil servant?¡± In order to be a civil servant, Fu Li had done plenty of homework, especially when it came to the extra credit policies. He remembered those very clearly. For a moment, Chu Yu was at a loss. He shook his head and replied, ¡°No.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li casually put the registration form into his pocket. ¡°Be careful on the road, I¡¯ll go back now.¡± Chu Yu watched Fu Li gradually vanish into the distance, an indescribable feeling in his heart. The image of his back was particrly lofty and imposing, brimming with mystery and power, giving rise to a feeling of subdued strength that was grand yet ssy. ¡°Stop looking. Even if you cultivated for five thousand years, you wouldn¡¯t be able to make out the original form of this kind of yao cultivator who depended on Heaven¡¯s Will to take on a human form,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the shabby alley as well as the worn-out and rotten rental houses at the end of the alley. ¡°You¡¯re not the only one. Li Jin wouldn¡¯t be able to do it either.¡± ¡°With that little bit of cultivation, how can Li Jinpare to me?¡± Chu Yu protested. ¡°He just stayed at a lotus flower pond in a temple for a while during his early years, and that temple was even torn down not long after. Yet, he still has the cheek to say that he took on a human form by listening to Buddha. He even shamelessly posted a photo of his original form online, saying something about how forwarding it can bring luck and cheat the humans of their faith. Pui, I¡¯ve seen so many fish, but I¡¯ve have never seen anyone as shameless as him.¡± While listening to Chu Yu mock Li Jin, Zhuang Qing turned the car around and stepped on the elerator. ¡°That¡¯s why I picked you as my assistant.¡± ¡°I just knew that Boss is a knowledgeable, wise yao,¡± Chu Yu started to suck up to Zhuang Qing instantly, even slipping in a few of his own selfish motives along the way and giving his opponent a few kicks. There was mutual jealousy amongst those of the same profession ¨C a purebred fish like him hated those hypocritical fishes who used the teachings of Buddha to glorify themselves. ¡°How did you meet Fu Li along the way?¡± Despite the ton of boot-licking that Chu Yu did, Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t moved at all. Instead, he inquired about how this incident had came about. Chu Yu knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid receiving a scolding this day, so he had no choice but to obediently recite everything that had happened. ¡°You have a thousand years of cultivation but can¡¯t even beat a painted skin ghost with two hundred plus years of cultivation,¡± Zhuang Qing uttered expressionlessly. ¡°Will the Head of Changan Monastery be ashamed to say that you are a fish from their monastery?¡± Chu Yu felt his knees hurting slightly. ¡°Boss, I-I¡¯m just not so good atbat.¡± ¡°En, you just happen to be good at defense and escaping.¡± Chu Yu could feel his knees breaking down, along with hisrge ego. ¡°When was Fu Li¡¯s entry into the human world registered?¡± This was the first thing Zhuang Qing asked after driving into the neighborhood Chu Yu lived in and cutting the gas. Chu Yu fished out his office phone and searched for Fu Li¡¯s registration information in the cultivation management system. The system disyed that he originally lived deep within an unknown mountain. He had obtained his residence permitst month, and his age was recorded as four thousand years old. ¡°The historical records of our country only go back five thousand years, yet the benefactor has lived for four thousand years; truly impressive.¡± After reading Fu Li¡¯s registration information to Zhuang Qing, Chu Yumented with reverence, ¡°No wonder his cultivation base is so high. Given his age, he can already apply for our bureau¡¯s Honor Subsidy.¡± The cultivation world¡¯s management bureau offered a special benefit targeted exclusively at cultivators who were more than two thousand years old. As long as the cultivator¡¯s cultivation period had exceeded two thousand years and was registered in the cultivation world census, the cultivator could receive a special subsidy of one thousand yuan per month. If these yao cultivators donated past cultural relics or ancient texts, the country would grant them an additional reward. ¡°Ai, why did I forget to tell this to senior!¡± Chu Yu pped his thigh, feeling incessantly remorseful. He registeredst month, yet was four thousand years old... Zhuang Qing thought about the conversation between the ghost world¡¯s yinchai chief and Fu Li several hours ago. It was certain that they had met in the past. ¡°Boss, work a little harder and after a hundred years, you¡¯ll also be able to apply for this special subsidy,¡± Chu Yu smiled mischievously as he helped Zhuang Qing calcte when he would receive the special subsidy. ¡°If you¡¯re going to help me calcte that, why don¡¯t you cultivate well instead?¡± Zhuang Qing threw a Spirit Gathering Pellet at Chu Yu and said expressionlessly, ¡°Remember to give me the petrol fee.¡± ¡°One hundred fifty, I remember,¡± Chu Yu hugged the Spirit Gathering Pellet with tion. ¡°It¡¯s not one hundred fifty, it¡¯s three hundred.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Chu Yu didn¡¯t understand why the price had increased. ¡°That¡¯s the cost for two people,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at the car door. ¡°You can get off now.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± A night of heavy rain washed away the heat. The next day at noon when Fu Li went to the hotel for work, he no longer heard the front counterdyining about the excessive heat outside, how the heat had nearly melted their makeup, and so on. Fu Li put on the security guards¡¯ uniform and realized that a female customer was secretly taking pictures of him, though he didn¡¯t take it seriously. Quite a number of people hade to eat at the hotel at noon. Fu Li and his colleagues were required to constantly take note of the public security situation inside. If someone caused a fuss after drinking, or if an altercation were to ur, the security guards were responsible for pulling apart both parties. However, as this ce was a high-end consumer site, the customers were more restrained. In the half a month Fu Li had worked here, he hadn¡¯t yet encountered a scuffle. Ting Ting had just attended a ssmate¡¯s wedding reception and was walking out of the restaurant with a friend when she realized that the security guard standing upright at the entrance looked a little familiar. She drifted closer and immediately grew excited. ¡°Handsome!¡± Her friend stopped her in embarrassment. ¡°Ting Ting, I know he¡¯s handsome. Control yourself a little.¡± ¡°No,¡± Ting Ting was anxious and no longer cared how others viewed her. ¡°Do you still remember that incident some time ago when I was harassed and then rescued by someone? The person who saved me was him.¡± ¡°You mean that handsome guy who calls himself Lei Feng?¡± Her close friend looked at the security guard at the entrance in astonishment. He had long legs, a slender waist, and handsome looks. When worn by him, even the security guard¡¯s uniform exuded the aura of a high-ranking uniform. The post Ting Ting had made on weibo to search for him had been forwarded nearly ten thousand times, and countless people had asked about the identity of the handsome guy. That weibo post had even be a hot topic, yet no one had contacted Ting Ting. When a human girl suddenly rushed up to him with a red face, Fu Li met her gaze and then took a step back. ¡°May I know if you need any help?¡± ¡°Handsome, I¡¯ve finally found you!¡± Ting Ting was so excited that the rims of her eyes had turned red. If not for this handsome guy who called himself Lei Feng, who knew what she would have ended up as that night. Therefore, she had always been very grateful to him. The passersby all raised their brows. Seeing the handsome looks of the security guard and the young girl¡¯s sweet and cute appearance, their minds couldn¡¯t help visualizing a scene of gratitude intermingled with hatred. ¡°You are?¡± Fu Li was a bit confused. Did this human girl recognize the wrong person? ¡°Half a year ago in front of a food stall at Wutong alley, you helped me to beat back a few hoodlums. Do you remember now?¡± Ting Ting took out her handphone and pointed at weibo. ¡°I¡¯ve been trying to find you all this while and even pleaded with the police to get in touch with you. Unfortunately, I never managed to find you.¡± Fu Li thought for a very long time before recalling the incident. ¡°You¡¯re one of those fewdies?¡± ¡°En, en,¡± Ting Ting nodded excitedly. ¡°So sorry, I posted your photo on weibo without your permission because I wanted to find you too badly. If it brought you any trouble, I¡¯m very sorry for it.¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°It didn¡¯t.¡± Because he had no idea what weibo was. Ting Ting removed that weibo post in front of Fu Li and made a new post. Ting Ting Yu Li: Thank you everyone, I¡¯ve found my benefactor. Ting Ting wanted to give Fu Li a fee of gratitude, but Fu Li felt that he was a yao of moral integrity and had merely resolved this trivial matter with a lift of his hands, so he couldn¡¯t take this human girl¡¯s money. In this way, the two people were stuck in a stalemate. ¡°Lady, there really isn¡¯t any need...¡± ¡°Our hotel¡¯s employees are prohibited from dating during work hours~¡± Fu Li turned around. A man wearing a suit stood at the entrance with both hands tucked in his pockets, appearing somewhat sloppy. There were even a few people by the man¡¯s side, one of which was Zhuang Qing who was standing at the front of these few people. Chapter 15 - Niubi

Chapter 15 - Niubi

T/N: Niubi ¡°Please don¡¯t misunderstand, I don¡¯t have a romantic rtionship with this gentleman,¡± Fearing that she would create trouble for Fu Li, Ting Ting briefly narrated the whole incident and emphasized Fu Li¡¯s willingness to help others without reciprocation. ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± The smile on the suit-d man¡¯s face became more proper. ¡°This miss, I am the boss of this hotel. Ourpany will definitely reward our employees who have such noble conduct.¡± Ting Ting knew that it would be detrimental to Fu Li if she continued to persist at this time. Anyway, she now knew the other party¡¯s workce. Feeling much less anxious, Ting Ting praised Fu Li a few more times in the presence of the suited man before leaving reluctantly. The other employees at the side witnessed this scene and was both envious and respectful. They were envious because Fu Li managed to make a good name for himself in front of the boss and respectful because he dared to step out and help the youngdy put the hoodlums in order. The colleagues who had originally found Fu Li unpleasing to their eyes raised their opinion of Fu Li a few notches. It turned out that it was only his looks that were like a boy toy¡¯s and his way of doing things was quite forthright. ¡°That what¡¯s-your-name,¡± Wang Han pointed at Fu Li. ¡°Follow me to my office, I want to know what happened in detail.¡± ¡°Director Wang,¡± The Head of the security guards saw that Fu Li didn¡¯t react, so out of concern that he would offend the hotel¡¯s boss, he hurriedly went up and smiled. ¡°His name is Fu Li. He¡¯s a new worker but does things very diligently. Fu Li, this is Director Wang, the boss of our hotel.¡± ¡°Hello, Director Wang,¡± Fu Li nced at Wang Han. So this was Wang Cuihua¡¯s disciple grandson ¨C his cultivation base was no good, but his natal chart was not bad. ¡°Hello, hello,¡± Wang Han chuckled as he led Fu Li and the rest into his office. Upon closing the door, he deferentially offered the VIP seat to Zhuang Qing. He was always very courteous when faced with the bureau¡¯s people. Fu Li had seen most of these people from the bureau, except for the old man dressed in a Chinese tunic suit whom he was seeing for the first time. As the hotel¡¯s security guard, he sat at a corner and very professionally kept silent. ¡°Mr Zhuang, you specially came today for...¡± Wang Han meticulously thought through all the things he had done recently. There didn¡¯t seem to be anything worthy of a personal visit from the bureau¡¯s boss. This hotel of his didn¡¯t serve as a starting point for those in the cultivation world who were looking for employment; apart from Fu Li who was a yao cultivator, everyone else in thepany were ordinary humans. He had only arranged for a position for this Fu Li because of a call from his shishu. Moreover, he had followed the cultivation world¡¯s employment assistance guidelines and paid him the sry of an official employee. It didn¡¯t seem like he had done anything wrong? ¡°Nothing much. We just heard that Director Wang¡¯s food here is not bad, so the few of us came over for a meal,¡± Old Huang smiled. ¡°We just happened to recall that Director Wang was the boss of this hotel, so we wanted to ask you to join us for a meal. We¡¯re all fellow colleagues in the cultivation world, there¡¯s no harm fostering good feelings.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too polite,¡± Seeing Old Huang¡¯s beaming smile, the concern in Wang Han¡¯s heart grew even stronger. Who in the entire cultivation world didn¡¯t know that the bureau¡¯s Huang Can was an expert at duping people? He could make the living sound dead, and the dead sound as if they had entered the Heavens. ¡°You¡¯re too kind,¡± Old Huang turned to look at Fu Li with happiness all over his face. ¡°You must be the Mr Fu who saved our two colleagues from the bureau. Nice to meet you, nice to meet you.¡± Seated at the corner, Fu Li looked up and was met with the glittering smile on Old Huang¡¯s face. He suddenly understood. ¡°You¡¯re here to give me the thank-you money?¡± ¡°Haha,¡± Old Huang smiled dryly. ¡°Mr Fu¡¯s cultivation base is profound. Speaking about such a thing in your presence would be in poor taste.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, I don¡¯t mind,¡± Fu Li waved his hands. ¡°Besides, my cultivation base is really ordinary. It can¡¯t measure up to the word ¡®profound¡¯.¡± Chu Yu, who was seated beside Old Huang, shrank his neck back a little. The him who had almost been killed by the painted skin ghost was very quickly not recognizing the word ¡®ordinary¡¯. ¡°Mr Fu,¡± Zhuang Qing met Fu Li¡¯s gaze. ¡°I came today because I have a request.¡± Wang Han who was listening from the side was inwardly stunned. What kind of abilities did this Fu Li who came to his hotel to be a security guard have? He could actually make Zhuang Qing use a word like ¡®request¡¯. Could he have recruited some great figure as a security guard for his hotel? For a moment, he didn¡¯t know if he should be pleased or scared. ¡°Mr Zhuang, please speak,¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t very fond of smooth, furless creatures, but given the profound virtue on Zhuang Qing and his motivation to advance, he didn¡¯t have much prejudice towards him. ¡°We learned that Mr Fu is a formidable yao with a few thousand years of cultivation, so we wanted to invite Mr Fu to resolve a doubt that we have,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression became solemn. As a golden dragon who was implicitly tied to the fate of the nation, he might not regard the ¡®yao emperor¡¯ the Zhuyan had mentioned with much importance on the surface, but he still secretly kept his guard up. The yao world had already been on a gradual decline when he was born. As human science and technology advanced, humans also increasingly held up the notions of freedom and creation and no longer held much reverence towards supernatural sayings. The current management bureau was a symbol of peaceful co-existence between the cultivation world and humans. If the yao emperor were to start a rebellion in the current world, not only would the existing bnce be broken, it was possible for it to even bring about an immense catastrophe. All living things were innocent and should not have to undergo such suffering. ¡°Mr Zhuang, please speak,¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing this solemn, Fu Li also sat up straight. ¡°Has Mr Fu heard of any legends regarding the yao emperor?¡± ¡°Yao emperor?¡± Fu Li scrutinized Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression carefully. Only after confirming that he wasn¡¯t joking did he respond, ¡°You¡¯re referring to the yao emperor in the human world¡¯s huaben?¡± Zhuang Qing was silent. ¡°It was probably fabricated by the humans for fun,¡± Fu Li put in great effort to rummage through the little knowledge in his brain. ¡°The mountain I stayed at was more remote, and the king of that mountain was called King Ganglie. He had a very tolerant personality. ording to him, the various yao kings have their own territory and will asionally sh over the sacrifices offered by humans. However, I¡¯ve never heard of the title of ¡®yao emperor¡¯.¡± ¡°We won¡¯t conceal this from Mr Fu ¨C we have also never heard of the might of the yao emperor,¡± Old Huang sighed. ¡°But that Zhuyan vowed that the yao emperor would descend on the human world soon and bring disaster to all living creatures.¡± ¡°Would Mr Fu be willing to make a trip with us to the bureau and see the Zhuyan?¡± Zhuang Qing added, ¡°There will be a cash subsidy.¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes lit up a little. He nced at Wang Han. ¡°Boss, will my wages be deducted if I take leave during work hours?¡± Everyone¡¯s gazended on Wang Han. The poor Wang Han was just a younger generation of the cultivation world, how could he endure so many gazes? ¡°This will be considered public service, so your wages won¡¯t be deducted. You¡¯ll be given a bonus this month.¡± Fu Li was immediately put at ease. He looked towards Zhuang Qing again. ¡°Let¡¯s leave then.¡± ¡°No, boss, didn¡¯t we gather here for...¡± Chu Yu reminded him in a low voice. ¡°Practitioners ought to quash their desire for good food early on and tread on the path of fasting,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Mr Zhuang seldomes to this humble one¡¯s hotel. I would like to invite Mr Zhuang to fulfill my meager sensibilities and allow this humble one to treat Mr Zhuang to a simple meal,¡± Wang Han said. ¡°May everyone rest at ease. The dishes are made using spiritual grain and vegetables obtained from the cultivation world. They are green vegetables without chemicals, fertilizer, or harmful substances.¡± Zhuang Qing came to a stop and nodded aloofly. ¡°Since Mr Wang has extended such great hospitality, then this Zhuang will humbly ept it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re most wee, most wee. Please follow me,¡± Hearing that the boss of the cultivation world was willing to stay behind for a meal, Wang Han was so ecstatic that creases formed from the smile on his handsome face. Fu Li also managed to freeload a meal by relying on the face orded to the bureau. After the meal, he asked Chu Yu who was closest to him, ¡°Is this considered taking advantage of the masses?¡± Chu Yu was drinking natural fruit juice and replied with a broad smile, ¡°This is called being ¡®unable to decline great hospitality¡¯. We can¡¯t disappoint themon people.¡± He put down his ss. ¡°Oh right, benefactor, I forgot to tell you about something.¡± He told Fu Li about the special assistance money. ¡°This sort of procedure is approved very quickly. If you apply for it this month, you¡¯ll be able to start receiving the welfare money next month.¡± This could also be considered one of the country¡¯s appeasement methods; money wasn¡¯t important, what was important was letting them see the respect that the country had towards them. Most of these thousands of years old yaoguai had profound cultivation bases. If they were to get close to humans, it could also be profitable to both sides under certain special circumstances. ¡°En, en. I¡¯ll apply for itter.¡± Fu Li asked happily, ¡°Will the money go directly to my card, or will I have to go to the bureau to receive it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the digital age now, there¡¯s no need for you to personally make a trip,¡± Chu Yu replied. ¡°What¡¯s your handphone number? I¡¯ll inform you when your application¡¯s been approved.¡± ¡°If there¡¯s anything, just use the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission. Why is there a need for an additional object like a handphone?¡± Fu Li felt that the handphone¡¯s call function was extremely simr to the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission. Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± ¡°Benefactor, the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission... not every human cultivator knows how to use it.¡± For example, he didn¡¯t know how to use it. ¡°Then what about the Flying Talisman Transmission?¡± Fu Li felt that he should lower his standards for the current cultivation world. Chu Yu continued shaking his head. ¡°Then... Exchanging Good for Good?¡± Chu Yu was still shaking his head, so ashamed that he couldn¡¯t even lift his head. ¡°Then what do you guys know?¡± Chu Yu was too embarrassed to say anything. ¡°Fortunately, there are few yaoguai now and the human cultivators are friendly,¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°If it was a thousand years ago, little yao like you probably wouldn¡¯t be able to survive for more than three months in the human world.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been to the human world in the past?¡± Chu Yu felt that they couldn¡¯t continue along this line of conversation. If they were to continue talking, he might as well change back to his original form and let the kitchen turn him into a tter of braised fish. ¡°No. King Ganglie said that humanity was facing crisis after crisis, and even Daoist practitioners were taking it upon themselves to hang yao cultivators. My cultivation base was poor, so I didn¡¯t dare to leave the mountain,¡± Fu Li himself also found it embarrassing. ¡°I¡¯ve been watching the past two years and saw that the outside world had good morals, so I dared toe out.¡± Chu Yu wondered despondently how weak their batch of human cultivators had to be for a yaoguai who dared not leave the mountain to think that their cultivation bases were poor. After finishing their meal, their party rushed back to the bureau and Zhuang Qing directly led Fu Li to the area where the Zhuyan was locked up. After being locked up for half a month, the aura of arrogance on the Zhuyan had diminished by quite a bit. In particr, he would immediately be as obedient as a rabbit after seeing Zhuang Qing. ¡°Zhuyan, what does the yao emperor in the legends look like?¡± ¡°It is said that the yao emperor daren has a pair of wings on his back, a body of golden fur, eyes as big as the moon, a nose like that of a divine ox, feet like red clouds, a body as huge as a mountain, a hiss that can shake mountains and rivers...¡± Fu Li asked in a low voice, ¡°Isn¡¯t it only the dragon n who have noses like oxen and look all kinds of strange?¡± Zhuang Qing turned back and looked at him silently. Fu Li, ¡°...¡± Silence was the best reply. T/N: HAHAHAHAHAHA Chapter 16 - Strength Of A Great Yao

Chapter 16 - Strength Of A Great Yao

Amidst the strange atmosphere, Zhuang Qing was the first to shift his line of sight. He looked at the Zhuyan. ¡°You¡¯re saying you¡¯ve never seen the yao emperor before?¡± ¡°I may not have seen him before, but I¡¯ve heard of his outstanding prowess inbat,¡± The Zhuyan didn¡¯t know how powerful the yao emperor was, but in front of his captors, he couldn¡¯t wait to describe the yao emperor as a heavenly, omnipotent, super great yao. ¡°His Majesty the yao emperor appears and disappears unpredictably. If he knew you were treating the yao race this way, he would definitely seek justice for my yao race.¡± ¡°That may not be the case,¡± Xu Yuan was scribbling on a book with a pen. Hearing the Zhuyan¡¯s words, she retorted, ¡°It¡¯s not like you represent the entire yao race. The number of yao cultivators we have here aren¡¯t few either, what if the yao emperor stands on our side?¡± ¡°Yao emperor daren is of utmost respectability, how could he wallow in the mire with all of you?¡± The Zhuyan gave an arrogant, cold smile. ¡°All of you had best wish for more fortune. Enraging the yao emperor could cause tsunamis, the leveling of mountains, and the destruction of the entire nation in a blink of an eye.¡± ¡°Is that yao emperor an idiot? Does he have nothing better to do than cause tsunamis and level mountains? Thend under the Heavens is huge and possesses its own principles. If some great yao really dared to do such a thing, would heavenlyw allow it?¡± Fu Li mercilessly called out the Zhuyan for the bullsh*t he was spouting. ¡°King Zhuyan, you¡¯ve lived for almost ten thousand years, how can you so shamelessly cheat the younger generation with such words?¡± ¡°It¡¯s you again,¡± The Zhuyan was angered just from seeing Fu Li. If it wasn¡¯t for this yaoguai, he wouldn¡¯t have been shut in this ce. ¡°What kind of mountain were you staying at in the past, I¡¯ve never seen a yao who meddled so much in someone else¡¯s business.¡± ¡°Only through mutual help can a harmonious homnd be built,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t mind the Zhuyan¡¯s mocking tone of voice either. Turning, he spoke to Zhuang Qing, ¡°My apologies, I won¡¯t be able to help you. I¡¯ve never seen any strange great yao whose appearance matches the Zhuyan¡¯s description.¡± ¡°Mr Fu, you can¡¯t be med for that,¡± Xu Yuan brought a sketchbook over. She had sketched out the yao emperor¡¯s appearance ording to the Zhuyan¡¯s words and then realized that thebination of these elements made for an extremely odd appearance. ¡°I suspect that the truth was distorted in the yao world that year. By the time it reached the Zhuyan¡¯s ears, it had long since changed.¡± Zhuang Qing took the sketchbook, shot a nce at it, and then shoved it at Fu Li. Fu Li held it up. A mountain-like body, sharp golden fur, and two pairs of wings ¨C what kind of hideous mess was this? This appearance looked way too haphazard. ¡°With this appearance, using his original body to fight probably wouldn¡¯t give him much of an advantage,¡± Fu Li turned the sketchbook around multiple ways, examining it quite a few times. ¡°Fights in the yao world revolve around speed, ferocity, and precision. Although this legendary yao emperor has a huge body, the four wings are in disharmony with the body. I don¡¯t know what his tail looks like, but if his body can be asrge as a mountain, then the flexibility of his tail is probably extremely low. He has no advantage in battle.¡± ¡°Given his cultivation, if he fought with other yaoguai using his human form, the other yaoguai wouldn¡¯t be able to tell what his original form is either. How would they be able to describe his appearance?¡± Fu Li handed the sketchbook back to Xu Yuan before turning to speak to the Zhuyan. ¡°So, you must be lying.¡± The Zhuyan swallowed. Looking up, he saw Zhuang Qing staring straight at him and immediately shrunk into a ball from the fright. ¡°I didn¡¯t lie. I al-also heard this from other yaoguai.¡± ¡°Tch,¡± Xu Yuan threw the sketchbook onto the desk. ¡°After an eternity, it turned out to be a waste of time.¡± Despite not having obtained the answer he wanted, there wasn¡¯t much disappointment on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. He turned and looked at Fu Li. ¡°I¡¯ve troubled Mr Fu for this matter today.¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re too polite. It¡¯s quite interesting to listen to the yao world¡¯s gossip.¡± ¡°Mr Fu really won¡¯t consider joining our bureau?¡± Zhuang Qing intended to cherish talent. Recalling the dpidated rented house that Fu Li lived in, he couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°The bureau will arrange staff lodging for you. Communications and transport costs will be reimbursed every month.¡± ¡°Benefactor, our bureau usually isn¡¯t very busy, and we get off work at set times. You can even read when you have nothing to do. That way, you¡¯ll easily get into university when the timees,¡± Chu Yu walked over. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, the sry is definitely higher than a security guard¡¯s.¡± Upon hearing about the wages and staff lodging, Fu Li was a little tempted. Behind him in the spirit locking formation, the Zhuyan who appeared to have been frightened into keeping even his head down used a sharp w to sh open his palm. Blood dripped bit by bit onto the talisman formation. He thought that his movements had gone unnoticed, but the moment he shed his palm, Fu Li suddenly looked back. ¡°You want to cast a spell using blood?¡± Fu Li raised an arm all of a sudden. His arm passed through the spirit lock formation¡¯s barrier and dragged the Zhuyan out of the spirit lock formation. The moment Fu Li acted, Zhuang Qing¡¯s dark brown eyes were suddenly suffused by a golden light and countless golden rays pressed down on the fresh blood seeping out of the Zhuyan. The golden light and baleful qi collided, emitting crackling sounds. His hands moved rapidly, and a thick barrier formed in front of them. A violent explosion sounded. However, other than the empty space in the spirit lock formation, there was not even a tiny bit of movement anywhere else, as if the explosion was merely everyone¡¯s misconception. Zhuang Qing closed his palm and smiled coldly. ¡°You deserve to be called an ancient and famous fiend-yao, actually knowing how to use blood-triggering spells.¡± Chu Yu and the rest were so frightened that theirplexions had changed. The wave of immense yao qi just now was practically an ultra-energy bomb. If not for their Boss swiftly setting up a barrier, the entire building would have been razed to the ground. ¡°Zhuyan.¡± The spirit lock formation was forcibly torn open. Fu Li walked in easily, though at this moment the Zhuyan didn¡¯t dare to move rashly. He watched Fu Li, concealed rm in his eyes. This sort of blood-triggering technique could not be terminated once it started. If someone interrupted it midway, they would definitely be attacked by baleful qi. Even if they didn¡¯t die, they would lose up to a thousand years of cultivation. Yet, why was this yaoguaipletely unharmed? The spirit lock formation was only ever used to contain evil-doing, man-eating great yao. For nearly a century, no yao had ever managed to escape from it, let alone counterattack it. The bureau was secretly shocked. How strong were these ancient yao? If the Zhuyan was capable of destroying the spirit lock formation, then how terrifying was the yao emperor he spoke of? Thinking of this, the expressions of the bureau¡¯s people and yao turned rather ugly. They looked towards Zhuang Qing simultaneously. However, Zhuang Qing was watching Fu Li and the Zhuyan expressionlessly. Even though Fu Li had once rescued Zhang Ke and Chu Yu, his harmless appearance and mild, nearly human-like aura prevented everyone from viewing him as an ancient yao. Only at this moment did they clearly realize that the other party was a great yao who had lived for four thousand years. ¡°Who exactly are you?¡± Seeing Fu Li approach him, the Zhuyan was so frightened that he retreated again and again. However, the wall was behind him; there was already no way out for him. ¡°This little yao is called Fu Li,¡± Fu Li nced at the Zhuyan¡¯s still-bleeding arm in puzzlement. ¡°The moment this sort of blood-triggering explosive formation seeds, the activator of the formation will be punished severely by heavenlyw. Why would you give yourself that kind of trouble?¡± ¡°Heavenlyw?¡± The Zhuyan turned back into his human form andughed icily. ¡°Heavenlyw is unjust; it actually allowed humans to be the most intelligent of all living creatures. These few years, humans have been upying all the mountains, rivers, and oceans without the slightest scruple. Aren¡¯t they doing so by relying on the heavenlyw¡¯s bias towards them? I was a dazzling existence for ten thousand years, why should I bow my head to the humans?¡± Fu Li looked at the Zhuyan¡¯s deathly whiteplexion and shook his head a long whileter. ¡°I may not know how dazzling the yao ns were in the past, but I¡¯ve heard of the various kings¡¯ fighting prowess. They consumed human flesh as food and supplied themselves with the pleasures of life by frequently ordering humans to sacrifice virgin males and females to them. Even the river yao used the threat of floods to obtain young human women. When all of you were treating humans as fish meat, you never felt that heavenlyw was unjust, so whyin now?¡± ¡°Evil-doing yao willpletely lose their virtue. The moment Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual influence is exhausted will be the moment humanity prospers,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand why the Zhuyan couldn¡¯tprehend this one point. ¡°Humans may have weak bodies, but they are intelligent. They can create their own culture, ideologies, and know how to pass them down from generation to generation. Just by relying on their own capabilities, they have invented many new things. With such spirit, isn¡¯t it fair that they can now be the most intelligent life forms?¡± ¡°The humans have a good saying ¨C thirty years of the eastern river, and thirty years of the western river,¡± Fu Li patted the Zhuyan. ¡°Why don¡¯t you take your time to ponder over it?¡± ¡°Then what about those humans? They wantonly exploited mother earth and poured toxic waste products into the rivers andkes,¡± The Zhuyan retorted. ¡°They¡¯re merely the most intelligent of all living things, not the master of all living things. Don¡¯t tell me the rivers,kes, and mother earth can only belong to the humans?!¡± For some strange reason, Xu Yuan, Zhang Ke, and the other human cultivators turned a little red after hearing these words. Fu Li smiled. ¡°That¡¯s why you don¡¯t need to worry. If the humans continue to court disaster, they will end up even more miserable than our yao race. Why don¡¯t we wait and see for a while longer? Don¡¯t go out and cause trouble. Maybe after a few hundred years, the humans will be as equally out of luck as our yao race.¡± The two human cultivators Zhang Ke and Xu Yuan, ¡°...¡± Was this Fu Li helping them or was he here to watch human drama? ¡°Really?¡± The Zhuyan wasn¡¯t resigned yet and continued to ask. Swish. A golden dragon tail swept past and the Zhuyan smashed heavily against the wall, reverting to his original form upon falling to the ground. ¡°So much nonsense, do you think you¡¯re facing a hundred thousand clueless kids?¡± Zhuang Qing fished out a magic device expressionlessly and absorbed the Zhuyan into the magic device. Since he was so capable at blood-triggering techniques, then he would seal him at the bottom of the ocean tonight. Even if he bled himself out, he wouldn¡¯t be able to harm a single living creature. Fu Li turned his head, nced at the deep hole in the wall, and silently shifted to the side. This sort of virtuous golden dragon who had joined with the national fate was truly too scary. Fu Li resolved to never let the other party know that he wasn¡¯t very fond of the dragon n. King Ganglie said before that it was most important for a yao to know how to give and take. Although all he had been doing the past years was cultivating in seclusion or sleeping, he still remembered this statement. ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Zhuang Qing noticed that Fu Li was looking at him, so he turned and looked towards him after handing the magic device to Chu Yu. ¡°Nothing much,¡± Fu Li shook his head. He was just a bit curious whether Zhuang Qing¡¯s pants would drop or tear when his dragon tail came swinging out. If it didn¡¯t drop or tear, then how did he do it? Did he manifest it using some technique? Zhuang Qing turned and walked out, telling Chu Yu in a cold voice, ¡°Take him to fill in the application form for the special welfare money.¡± Fu Li was a perfectly good male yao, what was he doing staring at the area below someone else¡¯s waist?! T/N: Well&#k2026; at least FL didn¡¯t say it out loud this time. Is he making progress? &#k1U914; Chapter 17 - Fundamental Laws

Chapter 17 - Fundamental Laws

Only after everyone at the bureau calmed down did they realize in rm that they had narrowly avoided the gates of hell. If the Zhuyan¡¯s spell formation had seeded, no one present would have survived. The spell formation hadn¡¯t seeded, yet it had caused such arge explosion. Then, what kind of terrible power would it have if the spell had seeded? Chu Yu was in such fear that even his fish scales had made an appearance. He still couldn¡¯t quite react upon hearing Zhuang Qing speak to him. ¡°Boss?¡± ¡°Take him toplete the procedures for the subsidy,¡± Although Zhuang Qing felt that Fu Li¡¯s gaze was a bit offensive, he might not have been able to protect everyone in the building if Fu Li hadn¡¯t discovered the Zhuyan¡¯s movements in time. Zhuang Qing regarded himself as someone who drew a very clear line between gratitude and resentment. Within the span of a few breaths, he suppressed the tiny bit of dissatisfaction at the bottom of his heart. ¡°Benefactor,¡± Chu Yu nced at Fu Li as if he was an almighty figure of fortune. Even if he had to carry Fu Li over, he would do so with utmost willingness, much less speak of leading the way for him. ¡°Please follow me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so polite, it¡¯s fine to just call me Fu Li.¡± Fu Li shifted his gaze away from Zhuang Qing with some regret and spoke to Chu Yu, ¡°I¡¯ll have to trouble you to lead the way then.¡± ¡°It¡¯s only right that I do so, only right,¡± Chu Yu led Fu Li out. Just as they passed by a small room, Fu Li suddenly came to a stop. ¡°Benefactor, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Seeing Fu Lie to a halt, Chu Yu nced at the room in curiosity. This room appeared tiny, but in reality was equipped with a space system. Several yao who had broken thew were imprisoned inside. As long as they repented properly, they would be released in six months¡¯ time at the earliest, or up to ten years¡¯ time. Fu Li looked past the door and caught sight of a field dog inside who was puffing and blowing while working at a sewing machine. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I just saw someone familiar.¡± Chu Yu¡¯s gaze followed Fu Li¡¯s line of sight. ¡°You¡¯re referring to Seventh Uncle Sun?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°He told me about entering the city at that time, although he was already arrested by the time I went in.¡± ¡°Fortunately, he was already captured when you entered the city. This Seventh Uncle Sun is a habitual swindler who often cons those little yao who just entered the city,¡± Chu Yu shook his head. ¡°Everyone says that yao cultivators from the dog n are honest and considerate, but to me, the only honest and considerate thing this Seventh Uncle Sun has is his face. He¡¯s been in and out of here multiple times; a frequent visitor.¡± Fu Li could tell from the other party¡¯s practiced movements that Seventh Uncle Sun must have frequentlye to this ce to do physicalbor as part of rehabilitation. ¡°This time, he did something a bit more major ¨C he helped a little yao from the fox n create fake identification. The fox yao became some inte celebrity and was reported for selling face masks of dubious origin. In the end, investigations by the police revealed that the fox yao¡¯s degree and residence permit were all fake. The entire matter caused a hugemotion that evensted on the inte for two days.¡± ¡°Seventh Uncle Sun helped create fake identification for this sort of illegal yao immigrant, so he won¡¯t be able to leave for three to five years.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± So, the many connections, grand residences and cars that Seventh Uncle Sun told him he had in the human world was all a lie? As a yao from the countryside who hadn¡¯t seen the world, Fu Li felt that modern yaoguai had more and more vanity. The yao in the past most liked to brag about how great their cultivation base was and how many little yao they had under them, but the yao today even used their houses as something to boast about. Really, they hadn¡¯t learnt the human spirit of actively pursuing advancements nor their proficiency at inventing and innovating, yet they had mastered the art of bragging. The field dog turned his head and saw Fu Li standing there with Chu Yu. He walked to the gate and spoke through the barrier, ¡°Little Fu, you came in too?¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± ¡°Ai,¡± Human speech came out of the field dog¡¯s mouth. ¡°I told you long ago that the outside world isn¡¯t good to live in. You just watched a few days of news broadcasts and wanted to rush out, aren¡¯t you here now? Tell me, what did you do? Did you steal, swindle, or misuse spells and cause panic among the humans?¡± Seeing that Fu Li still wasn¡¯t speaking, Seventh Uncle Sun thought that Fu Li had little courage and was still frightened. Therefore, he directed a fawning smile at Chu Yu. ¡°Great immortal Chu, this is one of my juniors from the countryside. He didn¡¯t see much of the world in the past and doesn¡¯t know about the rules andws of the human world. Why don¡¯t you shut him in this prison cell of mine and let me give him a good talking to about the human world¡¯sws. He¡¯s an honest yao and definitely won¡¯t re-offend in the future.¡± ¡°An old fox like you still wants to teach others not tomit crime, why not count how many times you¡¯ve been here?¡± As a fish, Chu Yu wasn¡¯t very fond of cats and dogs by nature. His eyelids twitched. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Mr Fu is an esteemed guest of our bureau. You won¡¯t be able to stay together with him.¡± ¡°Esteemed guest?¡± Seventh Uncle Sun¡¯s eyes shone. He looked at Fu Li as if he was a treasure. ¡°Little Fu, you¡¯ve matured, even stepping on the path of the bureau?¡± The cultivation world¡¯s bureau was in charge of all cultivators in the human world, regardless of whether they were human or yao. As long as one walked the path of cultivation, they would have to bow their heads to those from the bureau to some extent. Thinking of this, Seventh Uncle Sun told Fu Li in a low voice, ¡°Little Fu, why not you speak to the bureau¡¯s people and ask them to reduce my sentence. When Seventh Uncle is out, I¡¯ll definitely let you lead a plentiful life with an abundance of food and drink.¡± ¡°Seventh Uncle, those who say such things in television dramas usually don¡¯t have very good endings,¡± Fu Li had been watching television in the security guards¡¯ restroom for the past few days and had already obtained some experience in this area. For instance, those who spoke toocently would usually encounter terrible luck. Seventh Uncle Sun, ¡°...¡± A yao from the countryside who had never seen the world now also knew how to keep up with television dramas? ¡°The society today is awful one. Since you¡¯vemitted a crime, then it should be handled as such.¡± Fu Li then added, ¡°But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely visit you in the future.¡± ¡°Forget it, forget it,¡± Seventh Uncle Sun was also open-minded. Seeing that he couldn¡¯t get out through Fu Li, he settled for the next best option. ¡°The next time you visit me, bring more pig trotters. Gnawing on pig thigh bones are the best.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li watched Seventh Uncle Sun maintain his original form and return to his seat by the sewing machine. He turned and asked Chu Yu, ¡°Why do they need to make clothes?¡± ¡°Re-education throughbor. There are so many convicts locked up in the prisons and they still need to be fed and clothed after all. Our bureau isn¡¯t rich either, right?¡± Chu Yu exined with a broad smile. ¡°This was learnt from the humans. It¡¯s quite a good method.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, work is the worthiest of respect,¡± Fu Li nodded in approval of Chu Yu¡¯s statement. Seeing that Fu Li hadn¡¯t pleaded for leniency on Seventh Uncle Sun¡¯s behalf, Chu Yu didn¡¯t mention this matter anymore. He brought Fu Li to the office to fill in the application form, and uponpletion took out a medicinal bottle of pellets from the drawer. ¡°Benefactor, take this bottle of Spirit Gathering Pellets.¡± He would remember his benefactor¡¯s grace for as long as he lived. He didn¡¯t have anything else that was of much use, and since the spiritual qi nowadays was sparse, it might be better for him to give his benefactor Spirit Gathering Pellets. Perhaps they would be of help towards his cultivation. Fu Li took the medicine bottle, wondering somewhat dubiously if the bureau¡¯s people had a habit of gifting medicinal pellets. Rather than giving him this sort of tiny pill that wasn¡¯t very effective, it would be better if they gave him a few university textbooks. After coting the application forms Fu Li had filled in, Chu Yu couldn¡¯t resist asking, ¡°Benefactor, did you bring your registration form?¡± ¡°What registration form?¡± Fu Li asked in confusion. ¡°The registration form for our bureau¡¯s recruitment. There were quite a few cultivators who signed up today; there were a total of more than a thousand registration forms. But if you were to put yourself forward, there definitely won¡¯t be a problem,¡± Chu Yu presented a registration form to Fu Li. ¡°Whether or not you¡¯re willing toe here, you can count it as participating in an exam. Just treat it as a way of adapting in advance to the atmosphere of the university entrance exams.¡± The moment Fu Li heard that it would increase his exam experience, he picked up a pen and smoothly filled in the form. He inquired lightly, ¡°How many of the more-than-thousand applicants are you guys going to ept?¡± ¡°We¡¯re recruiting two times more the number of people this yearpared tost year.¡± Fu Li, ¡°How many was eptedst year?¡± ¡°One.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± So, was he here to make up the number? Afterpleting everything, Chu Yu insisted on sending Fu Li home. It wouldn¡¯t be good for Fu Li to decline, so he could only agree. When they passed by a bookstore on the way back, Fu Li caught sight of specially discounted books, and thus went in to pick out a few university textbooks. Chu Yu nced at the list of books ¨C , , and so on. He could feel a headacheing on just from looking at them. It was no wonder that the humans advanced so rapidly; not only were they hard on themselves, they were also hard on their children. They clearly only had a life span of approximately a hundred years, yet they spent the majority of their time on learning and working. They would investrge amounts of capital for the purpose of enabling theirter generations to amass even greater knowledge. This sort of thirst for knowledge would not manifest in any other race other than the humans. However... Chu Yu stole a peek at Fu Li, who was carrying the books and exam papers into the car. A yao cultivator who had the courage topete with the humans to enter university was probably also an oddity in the yao world. He remembered that the younger generations of the cultivation sects all had poor grades, so any sect with a disciple who managed to enter an undergraduate course couldn¡¯t wait to hold a ten-day grand banquet and announce the news to the entire cultivation world. In the depths of the night, many people had already sunk into dreand. At the coast, the tide beat against the sand, the seemingly bottomless water appearing as if it would engulf everything. The bottle gourd in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands shook violently as if something wanted to break out of it. The sea breeze blew against Zhuang Qing¡¯s hair. The next moment, an extremelyrge wave surged forth. An iparablyrge golden dragon swiftly shed across the surface of the sea. Very soon, the surface of the sea regained its calm, leaving only a tiny tortoise that persisted in its slow climb towards the sea. After entering the water, the golden dragon moved at the speed of lightning. All it took was a mere few minutes for it to plunge into the deepest valley of the sea. The floor of the valley was pitch-ck without a single speck of light. The only ray of light was the golden radiance of virtue emanating from the golden dragon. Several casual-looking deep sea creatures didn¡¯t seem to be able to adapt to the presence of light and fled into the distance with a flick of their tails. Zhuang Qing changed into his human form, threw the Zhuyan out of the bottle gourd, and then sealed him in a formation at the bottom of the ocean. The Zhuyan was an aggressive beast onnd, but when it was at the bottom of the ocean, itcked even the strength to struggle free of the seal, much less wreak havoc. Roaring, its eyes red at the man in front of it whose entire body was shrouded in the golden radiance of virtue. It hated that it couldn¡¯t swallow him into its belly in one mouth. ¡°Zhuyan,¡± A jade ornament appeared in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand, emitting two rays of soft, violet light. ¡°You have a predestined total life span of 23121 years. You have ughtered countless yao, eaten millions of people, and incited the chaos of war in nearly a hundred cities. Today, you will be imprisoned at the bottom of the sea. You will be able to leave the city when the seal has dissipated.¡± The Zhuyan¡¯s gazended on the jade ornament in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands, extreme fear appearing on his face. This was... the Heavenly Book of Virtue? Exactly how many hundreds of lifetimes of supreme virtue did this golden dragon umte to dare to use the Heavenly Book of Virtue? Not only that, he could even use his less than two thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation to suppress an ancient fiend till he waspletely unable to resist? In the current cultivation world, did the levels of cultivation not even adhere to the fundamentalws anymore? Despair filled the Zhuyan¡¯s heart and face. Was he going to be stuck at the bottom of the sea for an eternity? ¡°So what if you have the Heavenly Book of Virtue? I am still an ancient fiend recognized by heavenlyw. So what if I ate millions of people? You can only imprison me, not dare to kill me.¡± Thinking of the possibility that he would have to remain at the bottom of the sea for countless years on end, the Zhuyan¡¯s immense fear morphed into infinite rage. Chapter 18 - Waiting For His Return

Chapter 18 - Waiting For His Return

¡°Humans are weak, base creatures from birth. Eating them is just that ¨C eating.¡± In the eyes of the Zhuyan, only those species stronger than him had any sense of existence. The rest could be ughtered or eaten at will. Human lives were brief and frail; if not for the increasingly weakening spiritual qi in recent years, as well as the appearance of some management bureau, there would be no need for him to resist his innate tendencies. ¡°You¡¯re yao, yet you rush about for the humans. Truly a disgrace to my yao world.¡± The Heavenly Book morphed into a beam of light and entered Zhuang Qing¡¯s body. He was silent upon hearing the Zhuyan¡¯s scoldings. ¡°What, you have nothing to say now?¡± ¡°Did no one tell you that I was born to a human mother and have human blood running through my veins despite having the shell of a dragon?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was serene. ¡°Not only do I protect humans, I also protect the entire yao race. Do you think the situation now is like that of several thousand years ago?¡± ¡°Humans possess formidable weapons and ubiquitous monitoring devices. Unless human cultivators don¡¯t ever appear in the human world, there wille a day when they are discovered by humans,¡± Zhuang Qing smiled coldly. ¡°You¡¯re an ancient yao. Perhaps you don¡¯t fear human weapons, but what about the yao cultivators whose cultivation aren¡¯t high enough?¡± ¡°Survival of the fittest ¨C if they can¡¯t ovee human weapons, then death is what they deserve.¡± The Zhuyan¡¯s vicious,rge mouth opened, letting out a roar, ¡°There is no need for you to talk so much. A sordid creature like you who is tainted with human blood isn¡¯t fit to talk to this king.¡± After uttering these words, the Zhuyan was struck by a beam of blue light, immediately rendering his entire body painful and numb. Without any other choice, he could only lie at the bottom of the ocean and wail in pain. ¡°I¡¯m not fit to talk to you, but I can hit you.¡± ¡°Kill me if you have the ability!¡± ¡°You must be joking,¡± Zhuang Qing raised a hand and yet another bolt of blue lightnded on the Zhuyan. The expression on his face was exceedingly solemn. ¡°You are savage and brutal; the number of human and yao cultivators who have died at your hands cannot be counted. Death will not be able to eliminate your crimes. Heavenlyw dictates that I cannot kill you.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°I can hit you.¡± The Zhuyan was beaten till he broke out into loud wails. Afterwards, he no longer talked back, and his temper was also no longer that explosive. Hey on the ground curled in a ball. ¡°Laozi has long wanted to beat you up,¡± Zhuang Qingposed his expression, as if he wasn¡¯t the one who had just spouted profanities. ¡°Reflect on yourself here, got it?¡± The Zhuyan¡¯s massive body trembled. He didn¡¯t dare to speak. At this moment, he was somewhat d that there weren¡¯t other yaoguai present at the bottom of the ocean to witness his miserable appearance, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be left with any face. He looked up and borrowed the golden radiance of virtue from Zhuang Qing¡¯s body to look around stealthily. What were those iparably hideous creatures, why were they forming a huge circle in the distance? Those fish whose eyes grew on their stomachs, why were their mouths split open? Their tummies were so huge, and they had such ugly looks. Could they still be looked upon if their mouths were split open? Only at this instance did the Zhuyan realize that being shut inside the bureau¡¯s spirit lock formation wasn¡¯t anything scary. What was truly scary was being imprisoned within the deep sea without any knowledge of the year and month he would be able to leave. Turning, Zhuang Qing transformed into a dragon and vanished before the Zhuyan¡¯s eyes in the blink of an eye. The bottom of the ocean was an expanse of darkness, without a single hint of light. Only when light was lost would one realize how beautiful it was. When Zhuang Qing was about to reach the shore, he transformed into his human form and jumped out of the water. Several drunk fishermen in the distance were crooning some undecipherable song lyrics. With a shake of his body, his originally wet clothes instantly became dry, albeit with some wrinkles. He looked down at his clothes for quite a while with some dissatisfaction. ¡°Young man.¡± An elderlydy stood behind him and persuaded him somewhat worriedly, ¡°If there¡¯s something bothering you, avoid dwelling on it. Don¡¯t walk in. It¡¯ll be high tide a whileter, go home soon so that your family members won¡¯t worry.¡± Zhuang Qing looked back. The elderlydy was dressed in a ck shirt and pants. She was wearing a green cloth official-like hat as well as green cloth shoes. Her ck and white hair wasbed very neatly. Under the reflection of the moon, herplexion appeared a little pale. The sea waves beat gently against the sandy shore, gentlypping the back of her feet before slowly retreating. ¡°Auntie, who are you waiting for here?¡± Zhuang Qing patted the wrinkles on his clothes and took a few steps towards the shore. Seeing him move away from the seawater, a smiling expression appeared on the elderlydy¡¯s face. ¡°I¡¯m waiting for my child. He¡¯s been out at sea for a very long time. He said he would be back in June, but it¡¯s already July; I can¡¯t feel at ease.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gazended on a spot behind her. Thrusting both hands into his pockets, he let out a sigh. ¡°You¡¯ve been waiting here every day?¡± ¡°I¡¯m scared he doesn¡¯t know the way.¡± The elderlydy seemed resentful, but in fact she was a little proud. ¡°He¡¯s had good grades since young. After joining the navy, he even rescued many people at sea. But he has one shoring ¨C his memory isn¡¯t very good; he even forgot the way home.¡± Zhuang Qing turned and nced at the sea that stretched as far as the eye could see. A bright lighthouse could be seen in the distance, illuminating the direction back for the ships far from home. ¡°Your son wille back,¡± Zhuang Qing shifted his line of sight. When he reached the carpark, he met an acquaintance ¨C a yinchai from the underworld. ¡°Mr Zhuang,¡± When Wang Zhen caught sight of Zhuang Qing, a few hints of deference unwittingly appeared on his face. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°I came out to see the nightscape and just happened to bump into an elderlydy waiting for her son to return home.¡± ¡°She...¡± Wang Zhen wanted to say something but hesitated. ¡°The heart of a caring mother is evesting. Perhaps her son will return soon.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, he¡¯ll definitely return soon,¡± Wang Zhen kept his Soul-Locking Chain and Soul-Pulling Bell, smiling at Zhuang Qing. ¡°This humble one wille again three dayster.¡± ¡°Many thanks,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded at Wang Zhen. ¡°You¡¯re too polite,¡± Wang Zhen morphed into smoke, vanishing at his spot. Zhuang Qing turned and cast a nce in the direction of the beach before turning back and vanishing into the dim light of the night. The news of Fu Li¡¯s heroic act very quickly circted among the hotel¡¯s security guards. The colleagues who originally bore some dislike towards him were now much gentler towards him. Before two days had even gone by, the colleagues working the same shift as him took the initiative after work had ended to invite him to a night gathering to drink and eat grilled skewers. Although Fu Li wanted to rush back to study, this was the first time his new colleagues had invited him out for a night gathering, so he still cheerfully agreed. The four men changed out of their security guard¡¯s uniform and then brought Fu Li to a well-known snack street. ¡°Little Fu isn¡¯t local, right?¡± Li Shi pried off the cap of the beer bottle using his teeth. He filled the four cups to the brim and told Fu Li, ¡°If we¡¯re talking about authentic snacks, the ones in this alley are still the most authentic. Two certain well-known snack streets are meant to deceive foreigners. Come, have a drink.¡± The taste of iced beer during a summer night was particrly fresh and crisp. However, the four people didn¡¯t dare to drink too much. They still needed to work tomorrow night and feared making a mistake. Several skewers of mutton and chicken wings went into their tummies, while several bottles¡¯ worth of beer went into their intestines. These people then started calling Fu Li brother, with Li Shi even jokinglymenting about introducing a girlfriend to Fu Li. Another colleague pulled the rug out from under his feet. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to his nonsense. He himself is a single dog, how is he going to introduce a girlfriend to someone else.¡± ¡°That¡¯s hard to say. With this face of mine, finding a girlfriend is a bit more challenging. But our little Fu has no need to worry about that,¡± Li Shi downed a cup of beer. ¡°Look at this face and legs. Didn¡¯t you see how those little girls at the front counter like to distribute snacks to him? Has any one of you ever received that kind of treatment?¡± Fu Li listened to them teasing each other with overflowing doubt in his heart. In the past, he had seen dogs who wanted to cultivate into humans, but he had yet to see any human call themselves a dog. Sure enough, the times were progressing, and society was advancing; even the humans had started to ord importance to the equality of all living things. After finishing the skewers and beer, the four men each went back to their respective homes. Fu Li walked along a quiet trail, bathed in gentle moonlight. His mood was especially good. ¡°This mister, may I know the way to Sixth Month Road?¡± A man dressed in a white military uniform stopped Fu Li. The uniform the man was wearing was very neat; it could be seen that he was an extremely strict person. ¡°Sixth Month Road?¡± Fu Li blinked. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of such a road.¡± The man rubbed his head, his face filled with distress. ¡°My house is very close to the ocean, but for some reason, I couldn¡¯t find the way home after getting off the ship.¡± The moonlight shone on him. There was no shadow under his feet, though there was a faint golden light in the space between his brows. ¡°This is the capital. There¡¯s no sea nearby,¡± Fu Li came to a stop. ¡°Are you in a rush?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been at sea for more than a year and managed to get two days off with much difficulty, so I thought ofing back to apany my mum. She¡¯s suffered a lot the past few years for the sake of raising me, and her health isn¡¯t good either.¡± For some reason, in front of Fu Li, the man in the military uniform felt a longing to speak. ¡°I promised her that I would definitely rush back this month. I don¡¯t know if she¡¯s anxious from waiting by now.¡± He shook his head, seemingly confused about why he hade to the capital. Fu Li cocked his head in thought. This was human affection between mother and son. Could even death not severe the fetters between them? He moved closer to the man in military garb and smelt the subtle fishy smell of the sea on him. Closing his eyes, he saw the man¡¯s course of fate after death. A few men dressed in military uniform walked off a ne, a ck-colored wooden trunk in their hands. The man¡¯s photo was stered on the side of the trunk. A military uniform and a model of a ship was ced on the wooden trunk. The military uniform on the trunk was identical to the one the man was wearing. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back,¡± Fu Li was suddenly interested in this soldier¡¯s mother. Human emotions were truly strange. But they were also very interesting. Zhuang Qing, who was swimming in a luxurious vi¡¯s swimming pool, suddenly broke past the surface of the water and looked up at the sky. There was a faint instability in the spiritual qi in the air. It seemed as if some formidable yao was using the Thousand Mile Technique? He slipped on his clothes and chased after the source of the yao qi. Fu Li brought the man in military uniform to his house, yet the house waspletely empty. The mother he had talked about was not home. The man walked through the house before telling Fu Li, ¡°My mum must be waiting for me by the sea. When I was studying in the past, I liked going to the seaside to y, so she would often go to the coast to bring me home. After I became a soldier, going out to the sea was my duty and ever since then, she liked waiting by the seaside. She said that she could be closer to the sea that way and feel more reassured about me.¡± He ran out while speaking. Fu Li looked back at the house. A photo of an elderly woman was hung on the wall. Her smile in the photo was gentle and she looked extremely kindly. The man seemed like he would vanish into the distance very soon, so Fu Li followed after him. He had just stepped out of the door when someone blocked his way. ¡°Mr Fu.¡± Fu Li looked up and thought somewhat doubtfully, why was the mixed-blood dragon whose pants didn¡¯t tear when flicking his tail here? Chapter 19 - Orphan Yao

Chapter 19 - Orphan Yao

T/N: Sorry this is a bitte! Bonus ko-fi chapter, thank you Janeine and a few anonymous somebodies! Zhuang Qing¡¯s sudden appearance made Fu Li somewhat confused. He took a step to the side. ¡°Mr Zhuang, why are you here?¡± ¡°I sensed fluctuations in yao qi just now and thought that a formidable yao was roaming about, so I came to take a look. I wasn¡¯t expecting it to be Mr Fu,¡± d in a branded suit, Zhuang Qing seemed a little out of ce when standing in the corridor of this old-fashioned private house. His gaze looked past Fu Li¡¯s shoulders,nding on the photo hung on the wall behind the door. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I used a concealment method when using the Thousand Mile Technique. Human monitoring devices won¡¯t be able to capture me,¡± Fu Li¡¯s understanding of the human world wasn¡¯t very robust, but the him who had been a hotel security guard for the greater part of a month knew just how impressive the monitoring devices in the human world were. For a moment, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t know whether he should praise Fu Li for his attentiveness, or whether he himself was making a big fuss out of a minor issue. Perhaps the Zhuyan¡¯s ¡®yao emperor¡¯ that had yet to appear had already caused fear to bud in his heart. This country had a poption of over a billion. If the yao emperor were to suddenly rise in revolt, there would be countless deaths. He could not take this bet. Fu Li turned and shut the door. ¡°Mr Fu, since there¡¯s nothing wrong, why don¡¯t we take a look?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t express his attitude. Seeing Fu Li walk downstairs, he followed after him silently. The sea breeze carried the unique smell of the ocean. The waves beat against the seawater, producing the sound of gurgling water. Zhou Mu ran the entire way without resting for even a moment, till he caught sight of a familiar silhouette by the sea. ¡°Mum!¡± He called out the term of address he had been using for twenty-eight years. He ran to the elderly woman just like a young bird returning to its nest. ¡°You¡¯re back?¡± The elderly woman stood on tiptoe and arranged the military cap on her tall son¡¯s head. Seeing the military medal on his chest, a proud smile appeared on her face. ¡°You did a meritorious deed for the army again?¡± ¡°What meritorious deed,¡± The man nearing thirty years old revealed a bashful smile. He removed the cap and held it in one hand, while gripping the elderly woman¡¯s hand with the other. Smiling, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s go back. This ce is cold, don¡¯t harm your health.¡± ¡°Okay, okay, okay, let¡¯s go home,¡± The elderlydy beamed at Zhou Mu as she walked slowly. The man who was ustomed to taking wide strides bent his back and took small quick steps. His posture was a bit funny. The tide surged ahead, sshing against their ankles before slowly retreating. Not even half a footprint was left behind at the areas they passed by. ¡°Mr Zhuang, the time limit of three days is up,¡± Wang Zhen walked to Zhuang Qing¡¯s side and nced at the crescent moon in the sky. ¡°This humble one has a duty to fulfill, may Mr Zhuang please understand.¡± With drooping eyelids, Zhuang Qing watched the mother and son slowly make their way along the sand hand-in-hand. After a long while, he opened his mouth, his voice so apathetic that it nearly seemed void of emotion. ¡°Many thanks to yinchai daren for your flexibility.¡± ¡°How can this be considered flexibility? A soldier defending his country lost his life in the prime of his life. It is only right to allow mother and son to meet one more time,¡± Wang Zhen took a deep breath. ¡°This mother and son can support each other on the way; they won¡¯t be lonely.¡± He turned and noticed Fu Li beside Zhuang Qing. Though he had seen the other party at the hotel when he went to gather souls, he wasn¡¯t very clear of the other party¡¯s identity. Thus, after nodding at Fu Li, he made his way to the mother and son pair. Fu Li didn¡¯t utter a word from beginning to end, neither did he stop Wang Zhen when he walked forward. His clear and limpid eyes were wide open, and he watched the mother-son pair extremely seriously, as if wanting to understand something out from them. Wang Zhen appeared in front of the mother and son. The elderly woman didn¡¯t express the slightest confusion and greeted Wang Zhen with a smile. Wang Zhen had always been very harsh towards souls who cried and kicked up a fuss. Instead, it was this sort of rational, virtue-possessing soul that made his heart soften a little. ¡°Lin Cuirong, Zhou Mu, I¡¯m here to fetch you. It¡¯s time for you to leave.¡± Zhou Mu stood in front of Lin Cuirong, his expression vignt. ¡°Who are you?¡± His gaze swept across the chain in Wang Zhen¡¯s hands, and his expression instantly became stern. ¡°The sentence for the crime of kidnapping is very harsh. I suggest that you hold yourself back before acting, don¡¯t harm thetter part of your life.¡± ¡°Zhou Mu, you already died twenty days ago,¡± Wang Zhen took out the Soul-Pulling Bell and shook it lightly. The memories that had been forgotten due to death swarmed into Zhou Mu¡¯s mind. Twenty days ago, a passenger ship ran into difficulties at sea. As soldiers, him and hisrades-in-arms chose to rescue people without the slightest hesitation. Later on, as he was rescuing a tiny child, he encountered a shoal of fish at the seabed. All he remembered was the sensation of countless fish tails mming against him and not what had happened after that. ¡°That child...¡± Zhou Mu rubbed his head and looked at Wang Zhen. ¡°Is that child still alive?¡± ¡°Yes. After you were washed away by the shoal of fish, you used your teeth to hold tightly onto the rope and tied the child to the life-saving rope. Yourrades-in-arms pulled the child up,¡± Wang Zhen smiled faintly. ¡°She¡¯s living very well.¡± With a wave of his hand, a scene appeared before Zhou Mu. A little girl dressed in a white dress with white flowers on her head wasying flowers in front of a tombstone. Zhou Mu looked at his mother beside him. There was no shadow beneath her feet. At this moment, the rims of Zhou Mu¡¯s eyes reddened. In the end, he had failed to rush back while his mother was still alive. ¡°Your remains were not found, so the things buried in the memorial park were... your remnants,¡± Wang Zhen¡¯s tone of voice was heavy. The expression on his face wasn¡¯t sloppy either. ¡°But that girl calls you godfather and said she will visit you every year.¡± ¡°So much sentiment. I¡¯m just a bachelor who¡¯s lived for twenty-eight years, yet I now have such a pretty maiden,¡± A clear and bright smile took shape on Zhou Mu¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s a steal.¡± Wang Zhen lit a cigarette and held it in his hands without puffing on it. For some reason, heughed first. ¡°It wasn¡¯t that great a steal.¡± ¡°Mum,¡± Zhou Mu gripped the elderly woman¡¯s hand tightly. ¡°This son wasn¡¯t filial...¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Lin Cuirong extended a hand covered in wrinkles. She took the military cap in his hands, stood on tiptoe and ced it on his head. ¡°My son is a soldier. I am honored that he can be buried in the memorial park.¡± The coarse hand pinched his ear gently, just like the times during his childhood when he was disobedient and was hauled back home by the ears by his mother. ¡°You just refuse to listen. When you were young, the fortune-teller said your bazi was averse to water, yet you refused to believe him and said that it was just feudalistic superstition. Now do you understand?¡± Though Lin Cuirong was smiling, the rims of her eyes were red. She turned and bowed to Wang Zhen. ¡°You should be the legendary yinchai daren. Many thanks for letting us mother and son reunite.¡± Wang Zhen cleared his throat and forced out a smile. He stamped out the cigarette using his foot and then smoothly picked up the cigarette butt, stuffing it into his pocket. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Bridges return to bridges; roads return to roads. Souls of the dead cannot turn back. Before life, umted merit will turn into virtue. In your next life, you¡¯ll be a marquis...¡± The ringing sound of the Soul-Pulling Bell gradually drifted into the distance. Wang Zhen and the mother-son pair morphed into mist, vanishing into the night. Wang Zhen¡¯s out-of-tune song could still be vaguely heard. Fu Li crouched on the sand without any care for his image, an extremely perplexed expression on his face. There wasn¡¯t a human he could ask, so he had no choice but to pose the question to the mixed-blood yao beside him. ¡°They¡¯re clearly very upset, so why were they still smiling?¡± Fu Li recalled Lu Renjia, who refused to follow the yinchai even in death, and then thought about this mother-son pair. He felt that human emotions were truly veryplex; crying and smiling did not simply reflect unhappiness and happiness. Zhuang Qing looked at the scene of Fu Li crouching and felt that the other party seemed a little like a confused and ignorant stupid dog. He gave a kick using the tips of his feet. ¡°Get up, don¡¯t squat.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Fu Li simply sat down in a cross-legged position. He looked up at Zhuang Qing. ¡°If I can crouch or sit, why would I bother standing?¡± His gaze seemed to be asking, are you an idiot? Zhuang Qing inhaled deeply and reminded himself that this yaoguai had four thousand years of cultivation and had identification of his status as a good yao. Impulsive behavior easily destroyed cultivation, so he chose to answer the previous question instead. ¡°Because of emotion.¡± ¡°What emotion?¡± ¡°The mother¡¯s love and protection towards her son, and the son¡¯s admiration of the mother.¡± Fu Li pondered over it for a very long time before shaking his head. ¡°That mother¡¯s soul stayed in the human world for so many days. Did she not think about how her next life would be affected if she angered the yinchai?¡± ¡°Therefore, this is motherly love,¡± Zhuang Qing stooped over slightly, his gaze meeting Fu Li¡¯srge eyes. ¡°Do you not have a mother?¡± Even a yao had to be bred by a mother. Fu Li shook his head and said confidently, ¡°I¡¯m an orphan yao who doesn¡¯t know that all this was very normal. You seem to understand this sort of human emotion very well. It is because your mother was very good to you?¡± Zhuang Qing straightened his body, not looking at Fu Li¡¯s face that was brimming with curiosity. Just as Fu Li thought that he wouldn¡¯t reply, Zhuang Qing nodded slightly. ¡°She was a very good woman and a very good mother.¡± Zhuang Qing stuffed his hands into the pockets of his pants, saying impatiently, ¡°You¡¯re an old yaoguai who¡¯s lived for four thousand years, why is your sense of curiosity still so strong? Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°So what if I¡¯m an old yaoguai?¡± Fu Li touched his face. ¡°My human form is even younger than yours.¡± Zhuang Qing turned around and looked expressionlessly at Fu Li. ¡°Do you know what kind of old person is most liked by others?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°A person of good moral standing and reputation who isn¡¯t talkative,¡± Zhuang Qing threw down this statement, turned and strode ahead. Fu Li stood at his spot and blinked. He replied without thinking, ¡°Human society even knows how to pay careful attention to respecting the old and cherishing the young.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m human!¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s steps quickened. Fu Li caught up to him and shook his head helplessly. ¡°Nowadays, all you young yao really have poor tempers; getting angry the moment somebody disagrees with you.¡± Zhuang Qing halted his footsteps, turned and shot a nce at him. The next moment, he used the Thousand Mile Technique and vanished in front of Fu Li. ¡°Exactly, this explosive temper. If it was those years...¡± Fu Li recalled the sparkling golden light of virtue on Zhuang Qing and swallowed his words reminiscing those times. ¡°Seems like nobody will dare to do much to him either.¡± He lowered his head, wanting to pick up several shells and whatnot by the sea. In the end, he found that the amount of rubbish far outnumbered the number of shells. Moreover, they even gave off a faint stinky smell. ¡°The people nowadays,¡± Fu Li shook his head. Using a technique, he gathered all the rubbish on the sand into one pile, forming a tiny mountain of rubbish. The next day, City Wu¡¯s television station reported a piece of news that attracted the attention of quite a few people. It turned out that the rubbish at a certain beach had actually been picked up by someone in the span of one night, and the rubbish had been piled up into a mountain. There was even a sign erected beside the mountain of rubbish, with nine crooked words written on it. Everyone has a responsibility to protect the environment. Chapter 20 - Environmental Protection Incident

Chapter 20 - Environmental Protection Incident

The news of someone picking up all the rubbish at the beach in one night very quickly created a sensation. It had originally just been reported on by the local media as a novel incident, but for some reason, it attracted the attention of many when it was circted on the inte. Some busybodies even specially went to interview residents living near the beach. These residents confirmed the incident ¨C it was not fake news fabricated by the local television station in order to promote themselves but had truly urred. After the incident¡¯s authenticity was confirmed, aizen with arge brain hole suggested that this could have been caused by a yaoguai from the sea who could no longer tolerate humans throwing trash into the sea and thus warned these silly humans. There was even someone who suggested that it was a performance sneakily put up by an environmental protection organization. When the incident caused amotion, it would then raise the overall level of awareness of the need to protect the environment. However, how could the mediocre guess that was the second suggestion bepatible with theizens¡¯ mentality of wanting to watch a show without any concern for how big a ruckus that was caused? They had already gotten to the bottom of the matter and were deliberating whether it was done by a dolphin spirit or shark spirit, with both sides throwing out multiple scientific papers. In the end, it was the dolphin with the more pleasing appearance and who was by nature more intimate with humans, who led the vote count the entire way. ¡°Is there something wrong with them? They¡¯re using scientific papers to campaign for votes for nonexistent yao. All they¡¯re doing is joining in on the fun yet they¡¯re treating it with so much authenticity. How bored are theizens nowadays?¡± Zhang Ke finished reading the various remarks on the inte and turned to speak to Chu Yu, ¡°Yu ge, was this really done by you fishes?¡± ¡°I am a freshwater fish. I¡¯m not in the same group as the saltwater fishes,¡± Chu Yu patted the folder in his hands and side-eyed Zhang Ke. ¡°Both you and the monkey are primates, but are the both of you the same?¡± ¡°Yu ge, I was wrong!¡± Zhang Ke felt that his mouth was really terrible. How could he have forgotten that many living creatures had a tendency to dislike outsiders. This Daoist fish even disliked a Buddhist freshwater fish, let alone those of the saltwater variety. Xu Yuan covered her face with to conceal the scoffing smile on her face. Only when Zhang Ke and Chu Yu shot a re at her did she sit up straight and cough dryly, putting on an act. ¡°It¡¯s best that we investigate this matter as soon as possible. If it was really done by a yao cultivator, we¡¯ll have to give that person a warning.¡± Appealing for everyone to protect the environment was the right thing to do, but doing it in such a way and so suddenly was still a little frightening. ¡°There¡¯s no need to search anymore,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed open the door and walked in. He nced at the news channel that was currently being broadcast on theputer. The host of the channel was describing just howrge and tall the mountain of trash was in a very exaggerated tone of voice, as well as how clean the surrounding beach was. The camera even zoomed in multiple times on the sign stating ¡®everyone has a responsibility to protect the environment¡¯. ¡°Boss,¡± Chu Yu went up to wee him, using his sleeves to wipe a chair. ¡°You¡¯re here? Please sit.¡± Creatures of the water n had an innate reverence for the dragon n. Therefore, even though the current society was one where humans and yao were equal, Chu Yu still subconsciously kissed up to Zhuang Qing when faced with him. Xu Yuan and the rest had long seen grown used to Chu Yu¡¯s behavior and were toozy to offer any superfluous expressions. ¡°Boss, do you know what¡¯s going on with this matter about a water yao cherishing the environment?¡± Xu Yuan was a little curious. She pressed the pause button and the scene on theputer stopped on the sign stating ¡®everyone has a responsibility to protect the environment¡¯. ¡°I was at the beach the night before yesterday.¡± ¡°You were the one who did this?¡± Xu Yuan looked at the sign incredulously. Boss¡¯ handwriting had always been beautiful and elegant. These words... Did he write them using his toes? Zhuang Qing nced at Xu Yuan. Xu Yuan shrank her neck back. Did she say something wrong? ¡°Arrange for the publicity department to handle this matter,¡± Zhuang Qing sighed. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on everyone the past two days. Tidy up the ounts; I¡¯ll be submitting the ounts to the higher-ups.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Xu Yuan was brimming with vitality the next instance. Every time Boss went to submit the ounts, allowance would be sent down to them. Thus, Xu Yuan swiftly fished out the various financial bills and prepared to shove all of them to the finance departmentter on. ¡°Chu Yu, how many application forms are there this recruitment?¡± Zhuang Qing flipped through the applicant list and saw Fu Li¡¯s name in a single nce. ¡°Boss, we¡¯ve already received more than two thousand forms from all over the country. There are a total of 1656 human cultivators, 302 yao cultivators, and more than a hundred ghost cultivators.¡± ¡°What are the ghost cultivators doing running over to our side instead of finding work in the underworld?¡± Old Huang heaved a sigh. Sure enough, their yao n was in decline. The number of yao applicants wasn¡¯t even one-fifth of the human cultivators. ¡°The underworld emphasizes data management or something now; they don¡¯t need much manpower. Besides, who doesn¡¯t want to join this ce of ours? What if they manage to enter?¡± Chu Yu was extremely pleased that he had managed to join the bureau. Unlike certain fishes who wasted several decades trying to no avail. Zhuang Qing put down the name list and got up to return to his office. ¡°What did Bosse here for?¡± Zhang Ke stretched out his neck and stealthily peeked over. Only after confirming that Zhuang Qing had already left did he ask a colleague, ¡°Was it just to ask about recruitment?¡± But during the past few years, when had Boss ever cared about it? It wasn¡¯t like nobody had ever tried to get the boss to open the back door during the past few years, but... nobody had ever seeded. ¡°Ai, look, there¡¯s a new development on the environmental protection incident,¡± A colleague seated at another side was pointing at theputer. ¡°Our capital even made an appearance.¡± There was a river in the western suburbs of the capital, of which a certain section was particrly dirty. Although a considerable amount of money had been poured into cleaning it every year, there still remained people who threw their rubbish into the river. However, all the trash at the bottom of the river had now been returned to shore. Moreover, a sign had once again been erected at the corner. The words were still as crooked as ever. ¡°This doesn¡¯t seem like something Boss would do.¡± Chu Yu nced at the new video and said with certainty, ¡°Boss isn¡¯t this idle.¡± ¡°You mean to say that the boss is covering up for someone else?¡± Zhang Ke asked. The moment this question of his was uttered, all the living creatures in the room revealed a shocked expression, as if Zhang Ke had said something extremely scary. The atmosphere became iparably awkward and quiet. Zhang Ke twisted his head and looked around beforeughing dryly. ¡°What did I just say?¡± ¡°Nothing, hahaha.¡± At the front counter of Affinity Moon Hotel, there weren¡¯t many customers who did the check-in procedures in the depths of the night, so the security guards as well as the people manning the front counter were all a little tired. The front-counterdy stuffed two dried plums into her mouth to raise her spirits. She watched Fu Li spray the money tree at the main entrance with water from a spray bottle. ¡°Fu Li, do you want some?¡± ¡°What is this?¡± Fu Li put down the spray bottle and nced curiously at the thing in the front-counterdy¡¯s hand. ¡°Dried plums.¡± Fu Li tried one and his brows furrowed till they formed a clump. This appearance of his incited a fewughs from the few girls at the front counter. A handsome-looking person would still remain good-looking even if they furrowed their brows and made faces. Fu Li never oncemented about the effects of their snack-eating, so they were most fond of sharing their snacks with him. ¡°So sour,¡± Fu Li covered his face. Seeing the happy looks of the few human girls, he realized that human females were extremely casual when it came to eating. They would asionally eat sweet things, asionally eat sour things, and asionally eat spicy things; their tastes in food were tooplicated. ¡°You¡¯re on the night shift today?¡± The front-counterdy who gave him the dried plum nced at the traditional court clock hanging on the wall. It was almost twelve o¡¯clock ¨C the time when Fu Li should be getting off work. Yet, the person taking over from him hadn¡¯t arrived. ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. The sound of chatter echoed from the main entrance. A fashionably dressed man wearing a mask walked in with a middle-aged man. The middle-aged man was holding onto some things, his pace hurried. ¡°Come here,¡± The middle-aged man pointed at Fu Li. ¡°Help us bring our luggage up.¡± ¡°All right, mister.¡± Fu Li took the suitcase from the middle-aged man, effortlessly lifting it up with one hand. Seeing his rxed movements, the middle-aged man stared nkly for a moment and didn¡¯t say anything more. After finishing the procedures, the two people walked towards the lift. Fu Li followed behind them with the suitcase. The fashionable man removed his sunsses, nced back at Fu Li, and spoke to the middle-aged man, ¡°On what basis is that She Weilong the lead actor? Such a sharp chin andrge eyes. Someone who didn¡¯t know any better would think that he¡¯s a snake spirit who debuted. When I was the first male lead, he wasn¡¯t even fit to put the heels of my shoes on my feet.¡± ¡°Yi ge, cool your temper,¡± The manager looked back at Fu Li. ¡°We can talk more in the room.¡± The fashionable man called Yi ge nced back at Fu Li and snorted coldly. ¡°Even a hotel¡¯s security guard is better looking than him. With those morals and conduct, how does he have the nerve to pressure others using his looks. Such utter shamelessness.¡± The manager gave two dryughs. The moment the lift came to a step, he took out tworge bills from his wallet and stuffed it into Fu Li¡¯s hands as a tip. Hopefully, the other party would keep his mouth tightly shut and not leak out his artist¡¯s brainless remarks. ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t this teacher Yi?¡± A young man wearing a purple top walked over from the other side of the corridor. His eyes wererge, his chin sharp, and even the way he walked gave off a subtle seductive allure. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you bring a few more assistants?¡± ¡°Teacher She must be joking. I¡¯m responding to the call of my country and leading a simple life of hard work,¡± Yi ge turned and snatched the suitcase from Fu Li¡¯s hands. He strode into his room and closed the door heavily in front of She Weilong. When Yi ge and his manager left, the smile on She Weilong¡¯s face disappeared. He raised his chin and shot a nce at Fu Li. Pinching his nose, he took a few steps back. ¡°Stay away from me.¡± He most disliked humans who frequently carted heavy things; their bodies were constantly covered in stinky sweat. Fu Li silently looked at this snake yao. Snakes didn¡¯t breathe through their noses, so what was he doing pinching his nose? Putting on artificial airs and y-acting ¨C who knew where he had learnt these bad habits? He stuffed the tip from the manager into his pocket and said unhurriedly, ¡°Close your mouth a little tighter if you don¡¯t want to smell anything. What use is there in pinching your nose?¡± He had already sent the previous not-so-sensible python to the zoo to turn over a new leaf. A hint of embarrassment appeared on She Weilong¡¯s face. He was a fellow yao? He was a yao cultivator with such good looks, yet he still ran over to the hotel to be a security guard. What breed of yao was he, was his level of intellect not very high? Just as he was thinking this, the lift doors opened once more. The person who walked out caused She Weilong to take three steps back on reflex. Could the bureau have found out that he used a bewitching spell to snatch the role of male lead in a television drama? Was this offence so huge that even the boss of the bureau had to personally step out? T/N: It¡¯s my trantion anniversary, so here¡¯s an extra chapter to celebrate~ here¡¯s to more pit digging &#k1U389; Chapter 21 - Fine

Chapter 21 - Fine

She Weilong propped himself up against the wall and raised his head, ncing at the surveince camera not too far away. He tried very hard to make himself appear less terrified. If the camera wasn¡¯t present, he would definitely have kneeled in front of Boss Zhuang without demur. Zhuang Qing stepped out of the lift. His gaze swept across She Weilong. He hadn¡¯t even uttered a single word when She Weilong¡¯s legs grew weak and he slumped to the floor, supported by the wall. Fu Li saw that the person who had arrived was Zhuang Qing and couldn¡¯t help feeling somewhat envious. ¡°You really have lots of money.¡± The price of a room in this hotel was very high. ¡°I came to find you,¡± Zhuang Qing ignored Fu Li¡¯s envious gaze. ¡°Come with me.¡± ¡°How did youe up without a room card?¡± Security at the hotel was extremely tight. If one didn¡¯t swipe the sensor in the lift with a room card, the lift wouldn¡¯t go up at all. Fu Li stared at Zhuang Qing, looking him over. ¡°You used a magic technique to conjure it up?¡± ¡°Is that what you¡¯re concerned about?¡± Zhuang Qing restrained his temper. ¡°Come.¡± ¡°Wait a moment,¡± Fu Li very magnanimously didn¡¯t quibble over Zhuang Qing¡¯s attitude. He turned and looked at She Weilong, saying with furrowed brows, ¡°As a proper male snake, why is it that even after painstakingly cultivating a human form, you still act like a snake? The image of you sitting on the ground for no reason isn¡¯t very nice to look at. Get up.¡± Feeling very wronged, She Weilong propped himself up against the foot of the wall and stood up. ¡°Stand firm. Your legs shouldn¡¯t tremble. Your waist and back should be straight,¡± Fu Li saw that She Weilong still seemed afraid of the slightest thing and gave up on teaching him. If this were the past, no leader would want this sort of yaoguai even if they took on the role of mountain scouts. So, he wouldn¡¯t waste his good intentions either. Zhuang Qing nced silently at the snake yao seated on the ground. She Weilong was originally already very scared, so when Zhuang Qing nced over, he nearly burst into tears from terror. It had only been more than twenty years since he cultivated a human form. If he hadn¡¯t encountered this good situation where the management bureau¡¯s control of the cultivation world prevented formidable yao from bullying other tiny yao, he wouldn¡¯t even have dared to leave his cave with his tiny bit of cultivation. Coupled with the snake species¡¯ innate reverence and allegiance to dragons, he couldn¡¯t help wanting to kneel with just one nce from Zhuang Qing. Get a grip, this isn¡¯t a feudalistic era where emperors rule. Even among yaoguai, it¡¯s no longer popr to kneel here and there. She Weilong continuously encouraged himself internally. However, his legs that were as soft as noodles told him through its realistic actions that this sort of mental suggestion wasn¡¯t of any use. ¡°Children cannot be taught.¡± Fu Li shook his head and turned, speaking to Zhuang Qing, ¡°I happen to be getting off work, let me change my clothes first.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing made a t sound of agreement. She Weilong watched the two people leave with his hands held against his chest. Even after a long while, he still couldn¡¯t breathe easier. So the boss of the cultivation world wasn¡¯t here for him? Also, who was that security guard? He could actually see through his original form in one nce, and was so calm even when faced with the boss of the cultivation world? Could he also be a senior with profound cultivation? Recalling his rude words towards the other party, She Weilong was so regretful that he almost failed to maintain his human form. Wasn¡¯t it good to be content with being a flower vase of a male actor? Why did he have to run to a senior of the cultivation world and court disaster? After a change of clothes, Fu Li stepped out of the hotel and sniffed. ¡°So fragrant.¡± His divine consciousness searched around their surroundings and discovered arge food stall in a small alley not too far away. Bright red crayfish were boiling in a pot, emitting an alluring fragrance. Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li suddenly head towards a path and asked with creased brows, ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you have something to say to me? It¡¯s only meaningful to eat while talking,¡± Fu Li waved a hand at Zhuang Qing as if he was beckoning to a dog. ¡°My treat.¡± ¡°Roadside stalls aren¡¯t sanitary, who wants to eat at those things?¡± His voice grew even colder. Ten minutester, the two people were seated at a copsible table. The sizzling sounds from the wok behind them could be heard, as well as the owner¡¯s out-of-tune humming. The crayfish were stir-fried in hot oil and then seasoned with chili, Sichuan peppers, and garlic. Right before they were poured out of the wok, bits and pieces of chopped onion were sprinkled on top. The iparably enticing fragrance that wafted from it soon afterwards automatically evoked a longing to polish it off. They put on disposable stic gloves, broke open the front ws of the crayfish, and lightly sucked on it with their lips and tongue. The m taste was apanied by the sweetness of the tender crayfish. When paired with a mouthful of ice-cold beer, the summer night became cool, refreshing, and pleasant. Seeing the lively manner in which Fu Li was eating and how there were three or four crayfish less within a short span of time, Zhuang Qing pulled up the sleeves of his shirt and also dug in. When it came to eating aquatic products, no one could eat faster or cleaner than the dragon n. Very soon, the number of crayfish on the tter became less and less. Fu Li pretended to identally pull the tter towards him. Looking up, he asked Zhuang Qing, ¡°What did you want to talk to me about?¡± ¡°Boss, anotherrge portion of m crayfish,¡± Zhuang Qing noticed Fu Li¡¯s movements and called out to the owner. ¡°Sure.¡± Fu Li used his chopsticks to jab the remaining few skinny crayfish and suddenly had an indescribable feeling that he was being ¡®taken advantage of for food¡¯. This Zhuang Qing was covered head to toe in famous brands and was even the boss of some bureau. Surely he wouldn¡¯t do this kind of embarrassing thing? Zhuang Qing stretched out his chopsticks and grabbed the fattest crayfish in the tter before asking, ¡°You recently helped to gather trash?¡± ¡°Trash?¡± Fu Li stared nkly and nodded. When he realized what he meant, he shook his head and sighed. ¡°The earth and water are the origins of all living things, yet some people don¡¯t cherish them the slightest bit. When I saw the trash in disarray, I couldn¡¯t resist helping them to gather all of it.¡± Zhuang Qing threw the peeled crayfish shells onto the te for waste. ¡°Tidying trash is a good thing, but because you tidied so much of it in one night, it caused a hugemotion on television. Everyone¡¯s even guessing if a yaoguai was protesting.¡± ¡°Their guess is on point.¡± ¡°To human knowledge, there exists no yaoguai in this world,¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his voice. ¡°Can¡¯t you be a bit more discrete in your actions?¡± ¡°Then the next time, I¡¯ll tidy up the trash on three separate asions?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°These two handsome guys, yourrge portion of m crayfish is here,¡± The stall owner ced arge tter of crayfish in front of the two people. His standard Mandarin was a bit off and he had a southwestern ent. ¡°Handsome, this crayfish is quite spicy. Do you want another two cans of herbal tea?¡± Fu Li nodded. Two cans of herbal tea with condensation on it was very quickly ced on their table. ¡°Your actions can easily cause panic among the humans,¡± Zhuang Qing peeled off his gloves and handed his phone to Fu Li. ¡°Look at how severe themotion is on the inte.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t have a handphone. Although he didn¡¯t quite understand how to operate one, he still knew how to scroll throughments. He started to read the poprments on weibo. Baby is only seventeen: Even yao spirits know how to protect the environment, what face do us humans have to pollute the environment? Single ball ice-cream: Humans are inferior to yao ¨C will the faces of those who litter turn red upon seeing this news? Chestnut: No matter who did this, I believe he had good intentions. Look at this mountain of trash ¨C all of this was created by us. Everyone has a responsibility to protect the environment ¨C it¡¯s easy to write out these eight words, but how many can truly do it? There were still manyments below. In essence, everyone was discussing matters rted to the environment. Fu Li didn¡¯t see any words rted to ¡®fear¡¯ or ¡®rm¡¯. Was this... also considered bringing about panic? After reading all of the poprments, Fu Li felt a faint tion. To him, doing these things was still very meaningful. He put down the handphone and nced at the tter. Why was there only half of the crayfish left? ¡°Mr Zhuang, you¡¯re very fond of eating crayfish?¡± ¡°No,¡± Zhuang Qing spoke while taking the crayfish. There was a mountain of crayfish shells on the te for waste in front of him. Fu Li, ¡°...¡± Forget it. It was very normal for young yao to be a little hypocritical; it was a minor shoring. In the end, the two people ate three tters of crayfish. Fu Li paid for it and then looked back at Zhuang Qing, who was seated at the table and gracefully wiping his mouth. ¡°Mr Zhuang, let¡¯s go.¡± Zhuang Qing nced up at Fu Li and got up, heading out. In this slightly warm alley, the Zhuang Qing who was wearing a white shirt and suit pants, and the Fu Li who was dressed in a tee-shirt and jeans, unexpectedly didn¡¯t seem like people from different backgrounds. The footsteps of the person wearing leather shoes was steady and firm, while there was a subtle gaiety and buoyance to the footsteps of the person wearing sports shoes. Suddenly, the feet d in leather shoes came to a stop. Zhuang Qing turned and looked at Fu Li. ¡°ording to the 131st rule of the bureau¡¯s public security regtions, cultivators who casually use magic techniques and arouse panic among the humans will be fined a minimum of a thousand yuan. There is no maximum amount.¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing in disbelief. He didn¡¯t say so just now and only asked him to pay the fine after finishing the crayfish he treated him to. Was he still a yao? Zhuang Qing touched a hand to his nose. He could still smell the fragrance of the m crayfish on the tips of his fingers. He looked up and took another look at Fu Li¡¯s wide-eyed appearance. Turning, he continued walking ahead. ¡°But given that your actions this time have increased the importance humans ce on the environment, I¡¯ll allow a special exemption of the punishment.¡± Fu Li heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that this meal of crayfish he had treated him to hadn¡¯t been for naught. ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll send you back,¡± The Zhuang Qing who had eaten and drank his fill was in a very good mood. Fu Li recalled how Zhuang Qing had asked Chu Yu for the petrol fee the previous time and stood beside the car door with some hesitation. ¡°Will you ask me for petrol fees?¡± ¡°Tch,¡± Zhuang Qing smiled coldly. ¡°What rare treasure does my magnificent dragon not have? Am I so miserly that Ick this tiny bit of petrol fees?¡± Fu Li came to a sudden understanding. True, the dragon n had always lived in the depths of the ocean. What they leastcked was all kinds of treasures. He certainly wouldn¡¯t fancy his bit of money. The car traveled at a moderate pace along the road. The crescent moon gradually sunk into theyers of clouds. Thick clouds filled the sky; it seemed like it would rain soon. A tiny cat scampered out of a street. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t brake in time and used a magic technique to stop the car. ¡°Meow,¡± The tiny cat flicked its tail ignorantly and without fear. It crossed the street at an exasperatingly slow pace before vanishing at a run into the other side of the street. The car set off once again. Fu Li turned and looked at Zhuang Qing. The other party hadn¡¯t shown any expression from start to end. Fu Li couldn¡¯t help but suspect that he hadn¡¯t transformed from the body of a sea dragon, but from a Jindiao dragon along the corridors of the pce. Only a statue didn¡¯t have expressions. There were shes of lightning in the sky¡¯s horizons. Within the thickyers of clouds, something enormous seemed to have flitted across, though it soon vanished within the clouds. Fu Li and Zhuang Qing nced up at the sky. Hailstones suddenly rained down with pitter-patter sounds. Theck of prior warning meant that the windshield took several consecutive hits. Zhuang Qing¡¯s face darkened. Fu Li set up a barrier, preventing the hail from smashing down on the car. After sending Fu Li home, Zhuang Qing drove the car back into his garage. Stretching out a hand, he touched the area on the windshield that had been hit by the hail. His ck pupils turned golden with hints of fury. He fished out his phone and added a penalty to the bureau¡¯s internal system. The Northern Lake azure dragon vited the rules by causing hail to rain down, thereby resulting in countless losses to themon people ¨C to be sentenced to ten years of prison and fined two million yuan. Chapter 22 - Provocation

Chapter 22 - Provocation

The next day at work, not a single bit of surprise could be seen on the faces of the bureau employees after they saw the penalty notification sent out by the system and knew of the penalty target. Since ancient times, the dragon n had conducted themselves in an ostentatious and arrogant manner due to their noble lineage and strong innate magic power. They had always held ordinary yao cultivators in contempt. At birth, the majority of the dragon n possessed the ability to freeze and summon rain, thunder, and frost. Not only did they receive human sacrifices, many yao also had to bow to them on sight. And it was precisely because of this that certain brash dragons would cause heavy rain or snow to descend if they were in a bad mood or were ying around, bringing misery to the humans and animals in the human world. This sort of situation had only gradually taken a turn for the better after the boss took charge of the cultivation bureau. They had originally thought that the boss would definitely side with the dragon n because of his ties to them, but who would have expected that it would be the exact opposite in reality? Not only was the boss not biased towards them, he was very harsh towards them. In the past close to ten years, the sum of the vition tickets the boss had issued to the dragon n was even enough to buy real estate in the capital. They had previously guessed that the boss might not be on very good terms with the dragon n, but other than fining them ording to the regtions, the boss had not gone to the dragon pce at the bottom of the ocean to look for trouble, so there was still no proof to substantiate this way of thinking. After deliberating about it from all angles, they could only arrive at one conclusion ¨C that the boss was upright and inspoken and would definitely not be biased against any one side because of race. ¡°Two million is a tiny amount to the dragon n. It¡¯s just that this Northern Lake azure dragon appears to be the Dragon King, who would be able to take him away?¡± Chu Yu turned and looked at everyone in the room. Everyone turned their heads simultaneously, not meeting Chu Yu¡¯s gaze. It wasn¡¯t like they disdained their lives for being too long; who would want to go up against the dragon n? ¡°Lin Gui, I remember that you¡¯re from the sea...¡± Chu Yu¡¯s line of sight eventuallynded on a youth at the corner wearing a checkered jacket. ¡°Yu ge, my family¡¯s ancestor was once even the deputy of the dragon n. With just my little ability, how would I dare to capture a dragon? That Northern Lake azure dragon is a freshwater dragon; I think you¡¯re more suited to handle this matter,¡± Lin Gui shook his head vigorously. ¡°Let me off, okay?¡± ¡°What would I go there for? Deliver myself to the azure dragon to be eaten?¡± Chu Yu conceded defeat instantly. Coughing dryly, he said, ¡°Capturing the dragon isn¡¯t important. Let¡¯s first send this penalty to the dragon n. What if this Northern Lake azure dragon feels remorseful and gives himself up?¡± ¡°If you think about it, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re breaking thew,¡± Zhang Ke mumbled in a low voice. The past few years, a certain dragon n hadmitted numerous misdeeds at their own pleasure, which had caused natural cmities to strike certain areas. There was no end to the damage done. If not for the boss pressuring the dragon n the past few years and teaching this dragon n who didn¡¯t take other living creatures seriously a thing or two, they would probably be even more unbridled in behavior. ¡°Don¡¯t assume that us fishes have bad hearing just because we don¡¯t have ears on the surface of our original forms,¡± Chu Yu turned to look at Zhang Ke. ¡°Our hearing is perfectly fine. I heard your muttering very early on; if you¡¯re so capable, go ahead.¡± Zhang Ke: He might be a man, but he couldn¡¯t be capable at this moment. ¡°Why not...¡± Xu Yuan¡¯s voice was a little weak. ¡°Why not let the boss personally capture him?¡± Everyone, ¡°...¡± If everything had to be done by the boss, then what use were they? Half an hourter, shes of thunder and the sound of lightning could be heard from outside the windows. A downpour ensued, and a man in a ck shirt pushed open the door, walking in directly. Chu Yu and everyone else turned around simultaneously. Although this man had a somewhat handsome appearance, his pretentious brows and eyes made it clear to everyone present that he was a person ustomed to being arrogant. Suddenly, a powerful wave of dragon pressure emanated from the ck-clothed man, preventing most of the yao cultivators present from suppressing their natural instincts. Some sat while others squatted ¨C they cut rather sorry figures. ¡°You want to imprison me for ten years just like that?¡± The ck-clothed man raised his chin slightly, his arrogant gaze sweeping across all the living creatures in the room. ¡°A bunch of useless creatures.¡± ¡°Sir azure dragon, even if you are the dragon deity in charge of ake, you shouldn¡¯t provoke our bureau,¡± Chu Yu was protected by the Fate of Dao, and wasn¡¯t in too terrible a state before the might of the azure dragon. He nced back at his fellow colleagues. Although they bickered with one another all the time, he couldn¡¯t bear to see them being bullied by an outsider. ¡°Even a fish dares to challenge me?¡± The azure dragon smiled coldly. With a wave of his arm, Chu Yu whose fighting strength was equivalent to one half of a goose, flew out and mmed into a table. The table turned over and hended beside Zhang Ke¡¯s feet. ¡°Yu ge, are you all right?¡± Zhang Ke helped Chu Yu up from the floor. Xu Yuan and a few other human cultivators stood in front of Chu Yu ¨C some held magic weapons while others held onto a string of talismans. A fight could break out at any moment. Tap. Tap. Tap. At this tense moment, the sound of footsteps that were neither too fast nor too slow could be heard. Everyone in the room came to a stop and looked towards the entrance at the same time. ¡°Bang.¡± The door that was half-closed was pushed open and Zhuang Qing, who should have been on leave this day, appeared in front of everyone. ¡°I was wondering how impressive the legendary Boss Zhuang is, but it turns out that you¡¯re nothing more than a mixed-blood dragon,¡± The left corner of the Northern Lake azure dragon¡¯s mouth hooked up, his voice filled with ridicule. ¡°What bureau? All you¡¯ve done is set up a small theatrical troupe with a few human and yao cultivators who can¡¯t make it onto the stage. What do you think my dragon n is?¡± Zhuang Qing cast a nce at the office. With a wave of his hand, all the things regained their original appearances, and even the pressure intentionally released by the azure dragon was suppressed by him. ¡°Fifty years ago, the previous Dragon King of the Northern Lake also spoke to me in this way. After that, you became the Dragon King of the Northern Lake.¡± Seeing that Zhuang Qing could actually suppress his dragon power, the Northern Lake azure dragon¡¯s expression turned somewhat ugly. ¡°I am a dragon whose cultivation is ranked in the top ten of the azure dragon n. I might be the Dragon King of the Northern Lake, but it¡¯s a position beneath my status.¡± ¡°Heh,¡± Zhuang Qing smiled. The smiling him was iparably handsome, just like fresh flowers that bloomed amidst winter snow. Yet, all the creatures with the exception of the Northern Lake azure dragon broke into shivers. The human cultivators originally shielding Chu Yu took a few steps back, heartlessly leaving Chu Yu at his spot. Chu Yu patted his chest in an attempt to force out a mouth of blood to no avail. ¡°I am very appreciative of confident creatures,¡± Zhuang Qing had acted very quickly, so quickly that everyone hadn¡¯t yet reacted. Not long after, the abnormally arrogant Northern Lake dragon was trodden on by Zhuang Qing¡¯s foot, unable to budge. ¡°The previous Dragon King of the Northern Lake still has another fifty years to go before he can leave the spirit lock formation. If I only sentenced you to ten years of prison, I¡¯m afraid the other dragon ns might lodge aint against me for being biased.¡± Zhuang Qing was expressionless as he said selflessly, ¡°So, I¡¯ve changed my mind. You vited the cultivation world¡¯s management regtions by entering the bureau without permission and deliberately harmed the bureau¡¯s employees. After adding up these crimes, the punishment will be altered to a hundred fifty years of prison and a fine of five million.¡± ¡°The previous Dragon King was only sentenced to a hundred years of prison, on what basis should I be given fifty years more than him? This isn¡¯t fair!¡± The Northern Lake azure dragon asked in fury. ¡°The previous Northern Lake Dragon King was a white dragon,¡± Zhuang Qingmented leisurely. ¡°The color white puts me in a good mood.¡± The azure dragon, ¡°...¡± Only then did he realize that he had provoked someone difficult to deal with. He gnashed his teeth in anger. ¡°Zhuang Qing, aren¡¯t you scared that your actions will cause my uncle to me you?¡± Zhuang Qing released his foot and used spiritual qi to bind the northernke azure dragon. He stooped and looked down at the azure dragon. ¡°Who¡¯s your uncle?¡± ¡°You!¡± The azure dragon brimmed with hatred. ¡°Zhuang Qing, are you not afraid that your conduct will cause you to be alienated by the entire dragon race?¡± Zhuang Qing took a piece of wet tissue from the office table to wipe his hands and shot a nce at the azure dragon. ¡°Drag him off and lock him inside the spirit lock formation.¡± Zhang Ke and Old Huang were very obedient subordinates. They pulled on the azure dragon¡¯s legs and forcibly dragged him away. ¡°All of you...¡± Only after the azure dragon was towed away did Zhuang Qing turn and look at everyone who had their heads lowered and necks shrunk back. ¡°If you still don¡¯t cultivate well, it¡¯ll spread outside that my bureau doesn¡¯t have a single person who can fight. Don¡¯t you find that embarrassing?¡± No one dared to speak. ¡°Boss, Ning Xuan and Chao Yun are still very powerful,¡± Xu Yuan said softly. ¡°And with you around, how can we not have a single person who can fight?¡± Ning Xuan was the incarnation of an ancient famed sword whose main purpose was to ughter; one blow could behead a thousand people. Chao Yun was an extremely pretty Feng hairpin and was the favorite item of the only female emperor in the history of China. After the death of the female emperor, the Feng hairpin transformed into a human. Having received the Fate of this regent, Chao Yun¡¯s cultivation was very profound. In recent times, both of them had gone chasing after great yao and still hadn¡¯t returned. If the two of them were around, they wouldn¡¯t be this embarrassed. There was no way around it, who asked them to all be administrative workers and not military officials? Zhuang Qing stared at them for a long time before leaving silently with a displeased expression. It was necessary to recruit two people capable of fighting during this recruitment. It was fine even if their cultural achievements were a little poorer; the bureau already had enough administrative staff. ¡°Little Fu, you¡¯re solving problems again?¡± In the security guards¡¯ restroom, Zhang Shan walked in with a lunchbox. Seeing that Fu Li was writing at a tremendous speed, he went forward and took a few looks before noiselessly shaking his head and sitting on a chair at the side. Little Fu¡¯s passion for studying was indeed worthy of praise, but the way he wrote really couldn¡¯t be considered nice-looking. ¡°En,¡± Fu Li rubbed his dizzy head, feeling that he had wasted too many years of his life. How were human heads wired to be able to think up such difficult questions? The elderly man mopping the floor at the side drifted over and looked at the questions. Then, he continued bending his waist and mopping the floor. ¡°Isn¡¯t the answer to this question 86.957?¡± ¡°Really?¡± Fu Li looked in amazement at the elderly man who was mopping the floor. When he flipped to the attached answer sheet at the back of the book, the correct answer really was 86.957. ¡°This is just a simple question on probability. Although numbers appearplicated, the solving process is not difficult,¡± He patted Fu Li on the shoulder. ¡°Young man, continue working hard.¡± Although from the way Fu Li looked, he didn¡¯t seem like someone who could enter university by self-studying. However, his spirit wasudable. Fu Li watched the elderly man¡¯s back as he slowly made his way out of the rest room. Once again, he had witnessed humanity¡¯s intelligence and greatness. Their status as the most intelligent of all living creatures had not urred by chance. Rather, it was inevitable. ¡°Scared?¡± Zhang Shanughed. ¡°That elderly man was once a math teacher in a reputable high school. He has been working for many years after retirement. ording to him, his memory isn¡¯t very good now and he¡¯s afraid of holding the students back, so he came here to search for something to do.¡± ¡°Why does he still want to go out and do something?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°Isn¡¯t the retirement pay for teachers said to be quite good?¡± ¡°This uncle has a good heart and couldn¡¯t stay idle. It was said that he provided financial aid to multiple poor students living in the mountains,¡± Zhang Shan opened his lunchbox and shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not very clear on this either, but this uncle¡¯s character is very good. If you don¡¯t understand anything, you can ask him. It¡¯ll still be better than scratching your head on your own and making wrong guesses.¡± Fu Li looked towards the entrance. The elderly man was mopping the corridor outside, seemingly in great spirits. A long whileter, Fu Li¡¯s brows furrowed slightly. T/N: You¡¯re not the only one FL, sometimes I wonder whether my head¡¯s screwed on right as well... Chapter 23 - Borrowing Money

Chapter 23 - Borrowing Money

¡°Uncle, let me help you carry that,¡± When Fu Li got off work, he saw the schrly, learned, and reserved cleaner uncle with a mop in his left hand and a cleaning bucket in his right hand. Concerned that he would trip and fall, Fu Li went up and helped him to carry the cleaning bucket. ¡°Thank you, young man,¡± The uncle shed a grateful smile at Fu Li. ¡°You¡¯re that newbie Little Fu?¡± ¡°Yup,¡± Fu Li nodded. After helping the uncle to ce the cleaning tools in the room for misceneous items, the two people walked to the main entrance only to realize that it was still raining outside. ¡°It was still okay just now, how did such heavy raine about in the short time that passed?¡± The unclemented and then turned around, heading back in. Fu Li nced up at the sky. Not too longter, he saw the uncleing back out with an old umbre. ¡°Teacher Yao, you¡¯re rushing back even when the rain¡¯s this heavy?¡± ¡°The cat at home is still waiting for me to return,¡± The uncle responded with a chuckle, his manner extremely kindly. ¡°Teacher Yao,¡± Fu Li saw that the uncle was about to walk out into the rain and called after him. ¡°I didn¡¯t bring an umbre, let¡¯s squeeze together.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Teacher Yao turned again and walked to the entrance. ¡°Quick,e over. Don¡¯t get wet.¡± Fu Li squeezed under the umbre and matched Teacher Yao¡¯s pace as they walked slowly. Teacher Yao smiled and asked, ¡°I heard you¡¯re self-studying. Are you preparing to enter university?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°It¡¯s good to love studying. Being human means living till old age and learning till old age,¡± The smile on Teacher Yao¡¯s face grew even gentler. The two people had to cross an overhead bridge; Fu Li extended a hand and supported the elderly man. Teacher Yao looked down at his arm that was being supported and smiled. ¡°Youngsters who don¡¯t voice their kind intentions will lose out.¡± ¡°You saw that the rain was too heavy and couldn¡¯t feel at ease about an old man walking alone outside, so you said that you didn¡¯t bring an umbre, right?¡± Teacher Yao patted Fu Li¡¯s arm. ¡°If you chase after a girl in the future, don¡¯t ever do this. If the other party doesn¡¯t know how good you are to her, won¡¯t your thoughts go to waste?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. Why did he have to let others know about the things he did?It was merely a matter of raising a hand, was it necessary? Besides, didn¡¯t the human world think highly of Lei Feng¡¯s spirit ofmitting good deeds without iming credit? But this aged human was a teacher. His words... shouldn¡¯t be wrong? Teacher Yao knew from Fu Li¡¯s nk expression that this youngster hadn¡¯t understood him clearly from the start, nor had he ever liked anyone. Otherwise, he certainly wouldn¡¯t show this sort of nonchnt demeanor. Teacher Yao simply ced an arm on Fu Li¡¯s arm. ¡°The rain is very heavy today; have a meal at my ce this afternoon before going back.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li, who still didn¡¯t know about the artificial courtesies of the human world, didn¡¯t even decline and instead directly epted Teacher Yao¡¯s invitation. Teacher Yao¡¯s house wasn¡¯t very far. The neighborhood was just a bit on the old side and the buildingcked a lift. Uncle Yao lived on the fourth floor and needed to climb up the stairs floor by floor. The already-peeling metal door appeared a little shabby but had been cleaned very well. Teacher Yao retrieved the keys tied at his waist and opened the door to a tiny shaggy creature which walked out from behind the door meowing. It was a very fat cat, so fat that it resembled a ball. Seeing the unfamiliar Fu Li behind Teacher Yao, the fat cat¡¯s cries grew a few notches higher. After circling Fu Li¡¯s feet, it revealed its belly andy down in front of Teacher Yao. ¡°Aiyo, our family¡¯s Tuan Tuan is hungry. Grandpa will immediately make you something to eat.¡± Teacher Yao cated the fat cat before telling Fu Li, ¡°Little Fu, make yourselffortable. I¡¯ll get some food for my family¡¯s Tuan Tuan.¡± ¡°All right,¡± Fu Li nced down at the cat who was rolling around on the floor. He walked over to the old-fashioned sofa and sat down. A fruit dish was ced on the tea table,pletely empty with the exception of a few ckening bananas. Many photos and prize certificates were hung on the wall. A photo disyed in the center depicted Teacher Yao with a woman. Yet, Fu Li realized that the house contained the smell of only Teacher Yao and no other humans. ¡°Meow,¡± The fat cat jumped onto the tea table. Its round eyes stared at Fu Li, seemingly inspecting him. Fu Li lowered his head and their gazes met. Reaching out a hand, he rubbed the fur on its head. The fat cat... fat cat realized in despair that it couldn¡¯t move and could only be touched all over by this human as if it was a furry ball. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m a colleague of your owner. I won¡¯t harm him.¡± ¡°Meow!¡± That¡¯s my servant, not owner. ¡°Little Fu, have a ss of water,¡± Teacher Yao carried a bowl of cat food out and poured a ss of water for Fu Li. ¡°Have a seat first, I¡¯ll make lunch.¡± Fu Li saw the spots and wrinkles on the back of this human¡¯s hand. He stood up and said, ¡°Teacher Yao, allow me to learn how to cook from you.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Teacher Yao nodded. ¡°It¡¯s good for youngsters to know how to cook. The girls nowadays are career-minded and the majority of them aren¡¯t able to cook. It would be a bonus for a boy to know how to cook when pursuing a girl.¡± Fu Li listened to Teacher Yao¡¯s nagging and couldn¡¯t help thinking in his heart that humans really did ce a lot of importance on reproduction. In order to be in the woman¡¯s good graces, they were willing to do anything. While the two people ate, the fat-as-a-ball caty on Teacher Yao¡¯s knee and acted coquettishly, even revealing its belly from time to time. Fu Li watched the fat cat¡¯s tiny swinging tail and lowered his head, continuing to dig into his food. After the meal, Fu Li helped Teacher Yao to tidy up the kitchen. Just as he was preparing to leave, Teacher Yao gifted him a pile of studying-rted books and notebooks. ¡°These are the reference books and materials that the school often used when I was still a teacher. The notebooks contain some of my teaching notes. Bring it back and have a look through it, it might be of help to you,¡± Teacher Yao touched the sides of the books fondly. These books were very old, yet very clean. ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li epted the books and thanked Teacher Yao seriously. ¡°I have no use for these books even if I keep them. Their greatest value lies in the knowledge you glean from them,¡± Teacher Yao¡¯s smile was kindly. He looked at Fu Li as if he was looking at the cleverest younger generation. After this incident, Fu Li frequently sent Teacher Yao home. asionally, he would even drop in with some fruits and vegetables. Every time he appeared to freeload a meal, Teacher Yao would be very happy. He would speak about studying methods, his deceased wife, how capable his former students were, and the contributions he had made to the country. Whenever Teacher Yao spoke, Fu Li would listen to him very seriously. He would rub the fat cat¡¯s head asionally, inciting a few meows from the cat. Until one morning when he encountered thezy and gluttonous fat cat at the main entrance of the hotel. His cries were mournful and anxious, as if something major had happened. Fu Li couldn¡¯t wait any longer for the colleague who was working the next shift and ran with the fat cat to Teacher Yao¡¯s house. If someone had observed him carefully, they would have realized that the speed at which Fu Li was running had already exceeded a sprinting champion. However, people were just that busy; who would care why someone else was running and how fast they were running? Teacher Yao had passed away. Despite the fact that Fu Li had secretly ced a Peace Branch in his house, it still hadn¡¯t altered his fate. If Yama wanted someone to die at midnight, that person wouldn¡¯t be alive at 3am. Teacher Yao didn¡¯t have children and his family members had already passed away more than ten years ago. He had aided many impoverished children financially in his years, so apart from a house¡¯s worth of books and this shabby house, he hadn¡¯t left much behind. In ordance with Teacher Yao¡¯s will, the house would be sold off by the relevant department and the money would be donated to Project Hope, while all the books would be donated to school libraries. Many people came to the funeral ¨C the children Teacher Yao had helped financially, their parents, as well as the students he had taught. These people wept sorrowful tears. Teacher Yao may not have had children, but his funeral wasn¡¯t the least bit cold or cheerless. The cat Teacher Yao was raising wanted to enter the funeral hall as well but was chased out because traditional social customs dictated that cats could not be present at human funerals. Fu Li stood at a corner, looking at the thin cat whose coat of fur was in a mess. He squatted down. ¡°You¡¯re just a cat who hasn¡¯t cultivated a human form.¡± The scent of joss paper drifted out from the funeral hall. Teacher Yao walked out in a ck shirt and pants. The one leading him forward was the yinchai called Wang Zhen. For some reason, Fu Li couldn¡¯t stop himself from taking a few steps forward, blocking the way of the yinchai. ¡°Cultivator, every human has their own fate. It cannot be changed by anyone,¡± Wang Zhen saw that it was Fu Li who had stepped forward, and his tone of voice lightened a little. ¡°Forcefully changing a human¡¯s fate will only harm the human¡¯s virtue in his following lives. There is no benefit to him.¡± Fu Li was silent for a moment. He said in a somewhat downcast voice, ¡°I know human destiny can be changed, but fate can¡¯t.¡± He looked up at the benevolent and kindly Teacher Yao. ¡°I wish you a smooth trip.¡± One¡¯s fate was determined by the Heavens and could not be changed. Nobody under these skies could do as they wished. Teacher Yao didn¡¯t seem to have expected Fu Li to be able to see him. After a few seconds of astonishment, he revealed a smile. ¡°Meow,¡± The cat walked over on its short legs and waved its shaggy tail at Teacher Yao. ¡°Little Fu, please help me take care of him,¡± Teacher Yao crouched down, wanting to touch the cat¡¯s tiny belly, yet his hand passed through its body. ¡°Meow~¡± The cat appeared unaware. Just like the past, it rubbed against Teacher Yao¡¯s palm and rolled over on the ground. Teacher Yaoughed and stood up, speaking to Wang Zhen, ¡°Let¡¯s go. It¡¯s also time for me to find my family¡¯s wife. I made her wait alone below for so many years; I¡¯ll definitely be scoldedter when I see her.¡± Fu Li¡¯s gaze followed after Teacher Yao and the yinchai as they departed. He nced down at his chest. That area didn¡¯t seem very happy. But he had already done his best. It was just that the Heavens determined human fate, so the Peace Branch could not save Teacher Yao¡¯s life. Then why was he unhappy? Could he have interacted with too many humans and acquired their wed tendency to be unreasonable? Zhuang Qing was in the middle of reviewing the exam questions for the recruitment three dayster. When he heard that Fu Li hade searching for him, a guess surfaced in his mind: Could he be here to enter by the back door and request for the exam questions? That person shouldn¡¯t even think about it. He wasn¡¯t such a dragon. It was a shameful thing to cheat in an exam. But when the two people sat face to face, Zhuang Qing realized that he had truly thought too simply. ¡°Mr Zhuang,¡± Fu Li looked at the mixed-blood, golden dragon seated behind theputer whose imposing presence exerted a sense of pressure. A sincere smile appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Can I borrow two hundred thousand yuan from you?¡± ¡°What?!¡± Zhuang Qing suspected that something had gone wrong with his ears. Chapter 24 - Times Were Bad

Chapter 24 - Times Were Bad

T/N: Thank you to Remember and Casey for helping to edit this chapter~ Fu Li didn¡¯t hear the rejection in Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice and thought that he hadn¡¯t heard the amount clearly. ¡°Two hundred thousand.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent. He looked at Fu Li like he was watching a preposterous television drama. ¡°I don¡¯t know many yao. The mard said he doesn¡¯t have money, while the other is locked inside your bureau,¡± Fu Li held up the paper cup and drank a mouth of in water. ¡°You have the most money among the yao I know.¡± Zhuang Qing: So, where did you get the false impression that I would lend you money? ¡°Actually, I¡¯m a yao who doesn¡¯t like borrowing things from others,¡± Fu Li smiled with embarrassment. Zhuang Qing picked up his teacup and drank a mouth of tea. Then it¡¯ll be better for you to not force yourself to do something you dislike. ¡°I got to know a very good human this month,¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face dimmed. ¡°He passed away a few days ago.¡± ¡°Humans will always sumb to death. That is the nature of their life cycle.¡± The indifference on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face lessened a little. He ced the teacup down and said, ¡°Don¡¯t grieve too much.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sad,¡± Fu Li raised his head and directed a smile towards him. ¡°Still, thank you.¡± Faced with Fu Li¡¯s pitch-ck eyes, Zhuang Qing felt an inexpressible difort. He shifted his line of sight away from him. ¡°You¡¯re just one yaoguai, what do you want with so much money?¡± The amount was too little for the purposes of marriage or house-purchasing but was too much for meals or clothing. ¡°I heard from the cat raised by the human that he once mentioned wanting to be buried with his deceased wife. Butter on, he donated his savings to a severely ill child, so there isn¡¯t enough money now for a couples¡¯ grave.¡± Fu Li pursed his lips and continued speaking, ¡°The relevant department heard of his past deeds and prepared a grave for them. I¡¯ve already taken a look at the grave. If the couple were to be buried there, there would be no chance for them to be husband and wife again in their next life.¡± ¡°So you intend to dip into your pockets and buy a grave for them?¡± Zhuang Qing realized that he didn¡¯t understand this yaoguai. He seemed to asionally ce great importance on money, yet didn¡¯t seem to regard money as important when it came to spending it. After pondering over it, he could only say that this yaoguai had interacted with too small a number of humans, so he viewed this world too simply and optimistically. ¡°Mr Fu, it isn¡¯t easy to earn money now either. Our bureau often does overtime, the higher-ups don¡¯t always reimburse us for travel expenses, and there are times when our wages are dyed...¡± ¡°Mr Zhuang, I understand what you mean,¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression was grave. Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression lightened. It was good if he could understand his tactful rejection. ¡°I¡¯ll go over to Mr Chu Yuter and retrieve my recruitment form,¡± Mr Fu sighed. ¡°How could wages be dyed?¡± Did this yao understand dragon speech? Was he deliberately feigning stupidity? Zhuang Qing took a deep breath in his heart. ¡°I meant to say that I didn¡¯t...¡± ¡°Boss!¡± Chu Yu pushed open the door and entered, a hint of anxiety in his voice. ¡°A few azure dragons barged in!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t panic.¡± Zhuang Qing stood up and told Chu Yu, ¡°I¡¯ll go over.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s legs were very long. He left the office within a few steps. ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li stopped Chu Yu. ¡°Did you say azure dragon?¡± Facing the savior of his life, Chu Yu¡¯s attitude couldn¡¯t be any better. ¡°Benefactor, you might not be aware of this, but the dragon race has always been arrogant with their conduct, especially the azure dragon n. Last year, a few humans went missing around the Northern Lake. They had clearly been devoured as food by the Northern Lake azure dragons, yet the dragon race covered it up, preventing any evidence from being found at the site. Apart from imposing an insignificant punishment on them, we could only let this matter go.¡± ¡°This time, the Dragon Lord of the Northern Lake came knocking on impulse, injured our colleagues, and even resisted the penalty. Boss finally has a reason to lock the Dragon Lord of the Northern Lake in the spirit lock formation,¡± Chu Yu smiled bitterly. ¡°But you¡¯ve seen the situation in reality ¨C the Dragon Lord of the Northern Lake hasn¡¯t even been imprisoned for a month, but the azure dragon n has alreadye knocking.¡± ¡°Are their actions considered an attack against police?¡± Fu Li wrinkled his brows. Chu Yu stared nkly for a moment before nodding. ¡°P-probably?¡± ¡°How can they carry out this sort of uwful behavior?¡± Fu Li¡¯s wrinkled his brows till they almost formed a knot. ¡°Not only are your wages so low, they¡¯re even dyed now and then. Despite the harsh conditions, all of you still persist in safeguarding the order of the cultivation world. Even then, there are still yao who give all of you trouble. These yao reallyck character.¡± ¡°Not exactly. No. Not right...¡± Their management bureau had very good benefits, since when had their wages been dyed? If they were really so miserable, why would there be so many human, yao, and ghost cultivators who came running to snatch a position? What exactly had caused his benefactor to have the misconception that they were destitute? The several azure dragons who had arrived were seniors of the azure dragon n. Their human forms were dignified and upright and their behavior was also a lot more staid. After arriving at the bureau, they didn¡¯t start fighting at the first sign of dispute. However, the fact that they were seated there was already enough to induce feelings of reverence. The oldest azure dragon among this group was called Qing Yan. He differed from the other few azure dragons, because not only was there a smile on his face, he had also restrained his Dragon Might. Upon seeing Zhuang Qing appear, he ced down the teacup in his hand and stood up, saluting him. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing.¡± Despite the fact that Zhuang Qing did not control any ocean orke and was a mixed-blood dragon, he had joined with the nation¡¯s fate, so it was not too much for him to be given the respected title of Dragon Lord. However, other than Qing Yan, the other Dragon Lords present all disyed extremely haughty attitudes. Clearly, they didn¡¯t attach any importance to Zhuang Qing, the golden dragon whose bloodline had been tainted with human blood. ¡°Dragon Lord Qing Yan,¡± Zhuang Qing returned his salute. His gaze swept calmly across the several azure dragons. ¡°I¡¯m unsure what matters these sirs have foring to my bureau?¡± ¡°Zhuang Qing, I heard you used your authority for personal motives and locked my dragon n¡¯s younger generation in your bureau?¡± An old man looked at Zhuang Qing with a dignified look. ¡°I know that there were disagreements between you and the dragon n in earlier years, but don¡¯t think that you can act as you please just because you¡¯re the head of the bureau.¡± ¡°The Dragon Lord of the Northern Lake vited the rules by causing hail to descend. Countless vehicles were damaged, and the humans who were injured at that time are still lying in the hospital today recuperating. The losses to the crops in the suburbs were even greater,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze turned icy. ¡°To your dragon n, hail might only be a carefree act after the passing of anger, but to many farmers, the destroyed crops are worth one year¡¯s ie.¡± The old man¡¯s expression underwent a subtle change. He immediately responded, ¡°Even then, you shouldn¡¯t imprison him for a hundred and fifty years!¡± ¡°ording to the regtions of the cultivation world, any yao cultivator who harms themon people will be sentenced to ten to fifty years of imprisonment. If they refuse to ept the punishment and even attack the bureau, they can be imprisoned for a hundred to a thousand years,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t back down at all in the face of the old man¡¯s might. ¡°Elder Qing Yuan, this length of time is already a light sentence. If these Sirs are dissatisfied with anything, you may proceed to the Yao Union and file aint ording to the usual procedures. This Zhuang will not have any objections.¡± ¡°You!¡± Elder Qing Yuan¡¯s expression turned even uglier. The Yao Union wasn¡¯t on good terms with their dragon n. If they were to seek them out, the Yao Union would definitely be on the bureau¡¯s side. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, I don¡¯t seem to see any injured people in your bureau, why don¡¯t all of us take a step back?¡± Qing Yan spoke up with a smile on his face. ¡°The Dragon Lord of the Northern Lake hasmitted an offence. We will definitely bring him back and educate him well. As for the fine, we are willing to double thepensation for the losses suffered by the humans. Would this be enough for you to release him from the spirit lock formation?¡± It was difficult for the dragon n to have heirs. After adding up all the dragon ns, their numbers didn¡¯t even reach fifty. How could they bear to have a younger generation imprisoned in the spirit lock formation for a hundred and fifty years? ¡°Dragon Lord Qing Yan, not everything can be resolved with money,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t back down. ¡°If everyone could behave without the slightest scruple just because they had money, this world would not have a heavenlyw, much less rules.¡± The smile on Qing Yan¡¯s face faded. ¡°It looks like Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing is unwilling to give our azure dragon n this face.¡± ¡°My apologies, this Zhuang abides by the management bureau¡¯s rules and regtions,¡± The hand behind Zhuang Qing¡¯s back curved slightly. Faint dragon scales shed on his wrist. The atmosphere in the room immediately heated up. Bang bang bang. Knocks sounded on the door. Everyone in the room looked towards the door simultaneously, wanting to know which creature who wasn¡¯t right in the head wanted to deliver themselves to the firing squad at this time. ¡°Sorry to disturb,¡± A head stretched in from outside the door. This person had shaggy hair, neat brows, and red lips. It was an extremely good-looking human face. T/N: If you guys haven¡¯t heard, rainbowturtle is holding a fanfiction and fanart event for all their novels tranted on CG! Do check out the event details here. Chapter 25 - Peace Branch

Chapter 25 - Peace Branch

Seeing that it was Fu Li who had opened the door, Zhang Ke put his all into signaling him with his eyes, so as to prevent him from entering at this moment. Benefactor Fu Li had not only saved his life but had even given him the yao-beating whip; he should not be dragged into thisplicated and messy fight when the current situation was of mutual hostility. However, Fu Li didn¡¯t seem to have understood why the corner of his eyes was twitching. He directly pushed open the door and walked in. On top of that, he ignored the several azure dragons who were continuously emanating Dragon Might and spoke to Zhang Ke, ¡°I came to retrieve my application form.¡± ¡°Wh-What application form?¡± The moment Zhang Ke opened his mouth, he felt the gazes of every living creature in the roomnding on him. ¡°Your bureau¡¯s recruitment application form,¡± Fu Li wanted to get closer to the office table. Seeing that an old dragon was blocking his way, he said, ¡°Grandpa, shift a little to the side, you¡¯re blocking my way.¡± Chu Yu, who had followed Fu Li in, shrank his neck back and did his best to conceal himself behind Xu Yuan. In a soft voice, he said, ¡°Benefactor,e over here.¡± Although he didn¡¯t know how high his benefactor¡¯s cultivation was, it wouldn¡¯t be at all wise to take on four dragons with one of him. Qing Yuan looked up and silently nced at Fu Li without moving. Fu Li looked at him with a lowered head as he waited for Qing Yuan to shift his chair. Qing Yuan didn¡¯t move. Neither did Fu Li. Their eyes met ¨C it was a silent confrontation. All of a sudden, Zhuang Qing extended an arm from his position at the side. With exceptional speed, he pulled Fu Li behind him. The palm of his other hand stretched out, receiving the Northern Icy Palm that Qing Yuan had suddenly attacked them with. Faint blue light radiated from the ice at the point at which their palms met. Sh*t! Zhang Ke nearly broke out into cold sweat from the fright. The azure dragon n was also too treacherous in the way they made a move the instant there was a disagreement. There was practically no leeway for others to defend. ¡°Elder Qing Yuan¡¯s habit hasn¡¯t changed even after many years,¡± Zhuang Qing stood protectively in front of Fu Li, not yielding the slightest bit. ¡°It¡¯s admirable.¡± ¡°I was educating the rude younger generation on some of the rules, yet you want to protect him?¡± Seeing that his strike hadn¡¯t hit the mark, Qing Yuan withdrew his hand. ¡°Your management bureau really doesn¡¯t have any capable people, even recruiting this sort of little yao to be protected. It looks like you haven¡¯t had it easy after leaving our dragon n.¡± F*ck, this shot was a little too big. Zhang Ke cursed darkly in his heart and turned to look at Chu Yu, Lin Gui, and the aquatic yao cultivators. Their expressions didn¡¯t seem particrly great either. ¡°No matter whether they are human or yao, as long as they live on this earth, I will protect them,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the few azure dragons who disyed casual stances, but in fact was on guard. ¡°I never belonged to the dragon n, so there is no need to say things like ¡®leaving the dragon n¡¯. The dragon n¡¯s lineage is an honorable one. I, Zhuang Qing, will not im to have such connections.¡± Fu Li revealed a slightly sympathetic look from where he was standing behind Zhuang Qing, very tightly protected. It appeared that this mixed-blood dragon had not only been bullied by his fellow nmates in his early years but had also been bullied quite severely. ¡°How can Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing say such a thing? Your bloodline may not be pure, but you are still considered a part of our dragon race,¡± Qing Yan smiled. ¡°ording to reason, you are the only descendant of the golden dragon n. I shouldn¡¯t be saying so much, but you are now the only remaining member of the golden dragon n. I¡¯m from the same generation as you, and the only thing I have more than you is an extra thousand years of age. As a result, I can only educate you on seniority in the dragon race on behalf of the elders of the golden dragon n.¡± ¡°Among the seven dragon colors, the golden dragon has seniority. You¡¯re an azure dragon, how do you have the qualifications to teach a golden dragon the rules?¡± Fu Li stretched out his head from behind Zhuang Qing, looking entirely like a little yao who spoke freely and without any qualms after obtaining the support of Zhuang Qing. ¡°Golden-Red-Purple-White-ck-Blue-Azure. You guys are rankedst. Isn¡¯t it a joke for someone rankedst in the ss to be teaching the top student how to solve problems?¡± Everyone in the room was astounded. Why hadn¡¯t they heard of such a ranking in the dragon n? The human cultivators stole looks at the only aquatic yao cultivator in the room, Lin Gui. Lin Gui shook his head slightly; he wasn¡¯t clear on the levels of seniority in the dragon n. ¡°Rubbish!¡± A younger azure dragon responded with fury. ¡°In the entire dragon n, my azure dragon n has the most heirs. Most of China¡¯s drainage system is under my azure dragon n¡¯s control, yet you im that my azure dragon n is right at the bottom?!¡± Fu Li was somewhat unconvinced. He tugged on the back of Zhuang Qing¡¯s shirt. ¡°Are his words true?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded wordlessly. Fu Li, ¡°That would truly be a case of ¡®eastern river for three millennium, western river for three millennium¡¯. A few thousand years ago, your golden dragon n was the most well-regarded, most powerful, and was worshiped by emperors for many generations. King Ganglie told us that ¡®monarchs change like water, but the golden dragons are as unshakable as iron¡¯. With such good cards in your n¡¯s hands, how did things turn out this way?¡± Zhuang Qing, ¡°...¡± Was this the right time to look down on their golden dragon n¡¯s low birth rate? The two younger azure dragons were in a towering rage, but Qing Yuan and Qing Yan revealed somewhat grave expressions. The golden dragon n had indeed been the most illustrious several thousand years ago. However, a great cmity had urred at the seabed more than two thousand years ago, resulting in the burial of many members of the dragon race at the bottom of the ocean. The weakest azure dragon n had the greatest survival rate. 1900 years ago, the azure dragon n also suffered a huge attack, leading to the passing of many of their elders. The only surviving elder had hidden in the dragon pce for the past few years, never once seeing visitors. Because of their high survival rates, nobody had used this incident to mock them. In the past few years, the azure dragon n had relied on their numbers to gain influence and was already gradually seizing the right to speak among the dragon ns. Few cultivators this day knew that the azure dragons were once ranked at the bottom of the dragon n. Yaoguai with this knowledge also shunned the world and would not be interested in others¡¯ business. This little yao Zhuang Qing was protecting actually knew of such dated affairs, who exactly was he? They were not afraid of offending this kind of little yao. What they feared was offending the elder of the little one ¨C a great yao who shunned the world. An ancestral rule had been passed down in the azure dragon n two thousand years ago, warning against rashly provoking yaoguai who appeared ordinary yet had immense courage. Qing Yan smiled and cupped his hands at Fu Li. ¡°I¡¯m not sure which senior this daoyou studies under? As a younger generation, it is only right for this humble one to pay respects.¡± Fu Li ignored this azure dragon who appeared rather good looking when he smiled, and shrank his head behind Zhuang Qing once again. His attitude made it clear that he would handle the meaningless chatting, while Zhuang Qing would handle the fighting. ¡°Step back a bit,¡± Zhuang Qing noticed that the four azure dragons were already standing at all four directions. He transmitted his voice to Fu Li, ¡°I will lure them out of the bureauter, you stay with Chu Yu. Chu Yu has the protection of the Fate of Dao; cultivators won¡¯t dare to take his life.¡± ¡°No, isn¡¯t the society of today awful one? Why must fights break out the moment there is a disagreement?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°Is it considered illegal for an ordinary yao like me to fight?¡± ¡°You¡¯re still in the leisurely mood to say that to me at this juncture? Quickly hide somewhere. For every day you have proof of being a moral yao, our management bureau will protect you for that day,¡± Zhuang Qing easily picked Fu Li up and flung him over to Chu Yu¡¯s side. Turning, he spoke to the four azure dragons, ¡°This isn¡¯t a ce for conversation, how about switching to another ce?¡± Qing Yuan didn¡¯t speak and only looked at Qing Yan. With a smile like the spring wind, Qing Yan turned and shot a nce at Fu Li who was standing beside Chu Yu. Raising a hand, he made a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, please.¡± At four o¡¯clock in the afternoon, passersby had to find areas to avoid a thunderstorm. At one market crammed with many people hiding from the rain, everyone was spiritedly discussing the recent weather. ¡°Who knows what¡¯s been going ontely? Thunder and hailstones are urring at the drop of a hat.¡± ¡°The weather forecast hasn¡¯t been urate even once.¡± ¡°Who knows? Some dragon lord might be fighting, and we have to join in the suffering as well.¡± ¡°If dragons really exist, shouldn¡¯t we quickly make a wish? Our wishes might reallye true.¡± A pretty woman in a red skirt and thin heels was slowly walking in the rain, holding up a traditional umbre with a picture of a courtdy on it. Despite the heavy rain, even the back of her shoes was not dampened. The man walking beside her was wearing a ck t-shirt. Even his umbre ¨C a ck and grey checkered cloth umbre ¨Ccked any sense of aesthetics. Both people seemed to havee from two separate worlds, yet the image of them standing together didn¡¯t seem very out-of-the-ordinary. ¡°The rain is a bit heavy,¡± Chao Yun stretched out a hand, catching a few droplets of rain. The sparkling, translucent droplets of rain slid down her fingers before she flung them off. ¡°An expert seems to have erected a barrier up there.¡± On certain asions when cultivators wanted to resolve issues using force yet feared being discovered by ordinary humans, they would erect a barrier and fight in the sky. ¡°En,¡± Ning Xuan nced up. Suddenly, his footsteps came to a halt and he nced around their surroundings. ¡°I seem to have sensed something.¡± ¡°What?¡± Chao Yun was somewhat interested. Ning Xuan didn¡¯t answer her. Turning, he walked towards a tiny neighborhood. After a moment of hesitation, Chao Yun followed after him. There was no trace of human qi in the chilly house. A caty on the sofa in the living room. Seeing them enter, it let out a cry. ¡°Hush,¡± Chao Yun spoke to the cat. ¡°We¡¯re from the cultivation management bureau; we mean no harm.¡± Although this cat couldn¡¯t transform into its human form, it had already cultivated divine consciousness and was even aware of the management bureau¡¯s existence. It could not be considered an ordinary animal. Sure enough, after she uttered this statement, the cat stopped calling out and merely opened its round eyes, monitoring their every movement. ¡°Found it,¡± Ning Xuan picked up an object the size of a fingernail from the bottom of the table. Appearance-wise, it looked like trash that had been casually dropped onto the floor. ¡°What is this?¡± Chao Yun could smell a mysterious scent from the fingernail-like object. The scent appeared to be capable of soothing one¡¯s mind as well as cleansing one of despondent qi. However, the object very quickly dispersed into nothingness in Ning Xuan¡¯s hand. In the end, not even a speck of ash remained. ¡°I once heard of a rumor. Someone mastered the Art of ughtering Dragons and eliminated evil dragons in the western sea. The dragon horns obtained from them were then used to create incense that could ward off cmities and illness, but would disperse when in contact with metal,¡± Ning Xuan¡¯s original form was an ancient famed sword, so such things would swiftly disappear when in his hands. ¡°This sort of thing was originally called the Dragon Horn Fragrance. But for some reason ¨C perhaps it was to prevent incurring the dissatisfaction of the dragon n ¨C its name waster changed to Peace Branch.¡± ¡°Grinding dragon horns to create incense?¡± Chao Yun felt that such a thing was a little absurd. How sturdy was a dragon horn? How could someone be capable of grinding it into powder? ¡°There is another saying ¨C burning incense that was created from a base of dragon horns and scales can illuminate the road to life for souls of the deceased who have yet to be reincarnated, as well as bless the departed spirit for a peaceful next life. That¡¯s why it¡¯s called the Peace Branch.¡± Chao Yun was struck dumb by this sort of saying. Only after a long while did she ask, ¡°How did you get to know of such secret matters?¡± ¡°I read it in a novel on cultivating to immortality,¡± Ning Xuan pped his hands. With his solemn face, he didn¡¯t seem at all like someone addicted to novels. ¡°The scent of this thing is quite special though. For all we know, this might be a Peace Branch.¡± Chao Yun sneered. She just knew all this was nonsense. Aware that Chao Yun was mocking him for indulging in his fantasies, Ning Xuan coughed dryly. ¡°Let¡¯s bring this cat to the Yao Union to be registered, in case he¡¯s mistaken as an evil yao and brought away.¡± Chapter 26 - Underage

Chapter 26 - Underage

Heavy rain was pouring from the skies. At the Yao Union that had the sign ¡®Nurturing and Rxation Club for Elderly¡¯ hanging from its door, it was a rare moment where no one hade over to y mahjong or cards. The only people inside was the plump elderly man and his few assistants. Just as Ning Xuan and Chao Yun entered, they heard the plump elderly manining to his assistants. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s a matter of race, but it¡¯s been thousands upon thousands of years, yet the dragon n still hasn¡¯t gotten rid of their damned habit of provoking people and picking fights. One moment it¡¯s thundering and the next moment it¡¯s raining. How can anyone go out like that?¡± Ning Xuan and Chao Yun¡¯s gazes met. It turned out the dragon n was fighting. If that was the case, it was no wonder that the battle array was sorge. ¡°Meow,¡± The cat¡¯s vitality was a little on the low side. As the old man was registering the cat, he suddenly reached out a hand and tapped its forehead. ¡°Fate binds all things. Since your fate with the human has been cut off, don¡¯t continue to hold on to it. Cultivation is not easy. It is your good fortune that you were able to gain intelligence. If you cultivate well, you might be able to meet him in his next life.¡± ¡°Meow,¡± The cat shook its head. This life and the next life were two different things. One might appear to have the same soul in both lives, yet the appearance, way of thinking, and personality had all changed. How could they be the same person? Fate could only be cultivated in this life; one could not hope for it in the next life. Excessive attachment was a sin. ¡°It seems you understand,¡± The elderly man passed the moral yao identification to the cat. The cat extended its tongue and swallowed the identification into its stomach. ¡°Many thanks to these two for taking the trouble to bring him here. For the time being, this cat won¡¯t be able to transform, so our Yao Union will arrange a ce for him to stay at and cultivate,¡± The plump elderly man waved his worn-out fan, making a ¡®please¡¯ motion towards the door. Chao Yun and Ning Xuan saluted, turned, and left the Yao Union. Ever since entering the management bureau, they were no longer just members of the Yao Union, but represented the interests of the entire cultivation world. Therefore, having too intimate a rtionship with the Yao Union would very likely breed misunderstandings among the human cultivators. ¡°Benefactor, they¡¯ve been fighting for almost two hours,¡± Chu Yuy slumped on the windowsill as he gazed up at the sky. ¡°The azure dragon n is fighting four against one, I¡¯m worried that Boss will be at a huge disadvantage.¡± Fu Li looked at the entire roomful of people who only knew how to look up but didn¡¯t dare to go forward and help. He couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°You have so many people, why don¡¯t you guys go help?¡± Everyone stared nkly. They had long since grown ustomed to the Boss¡¯ omnipotence these few years. This was the first time someone asked them to render help together. ¡°It¡¯s a fight after all, it¡¯s all about the numbers,¡± Fu Li felt that the cultivators in this age simply had too little knowledge and experience. ¡°Even if all of you aren¡¯t a match for the dragon n, just standing there will create apprehension in their hearts. In the past when King Ganglie vied for the mountain with other yao, even our mountain¡¯s little birds who haven¡¯t transformed will go and cheer for him. The more people there are, the more imposing it¡¯ll seem ¨C this is the most basic rule of a group fight.¡± Chu Yu could not imagine the kind of grand asion where yaoguai covered the mountains and ins, nor could he understand the effort that yao cultivators back then had to put into snatching territory. He looked up at the sky and imagined the fierce battle taking ce up there. Fear of the dragon n¡¯s imposing manner once again rose within him ¨C this was the instinctual fear that was carved into his body. ¡°Th-then have you guys fought with dragons before?¡± Chu Yu licked the slightly dry corners of his lips. Both his hands were clenched into fists. His heart was on the edges of a tough struggle. ¡°Yes,¡± Fu Li looked up at the foggyyers of clouds, the tone of his voice wavering a little. ¡°Did you win?¡± Fu Li turned and nced at Chu Yu before continuing to look up at the sky. ¡°Probably?¡± Thunder boomed. The lightning that seemed to rip through the entire sky was shockingly bright, sending a stabbing pain through Fu Li¡¯s eyes. He turned to look at Chu Yu, ¡°Does your boss like to use thunderbolts and lightning while fighting?¡± Chu Yu shook his head. ¡°Our boss is a bit more lowkey, he never does such garish tricks.¡± ¡°Understood,¡± Fu Li nodded. With a sh, he streaked towards the sky like a gale. ¡°Wait!¡± Chu Yu yelled loudly. ¡°Benefactor, don¡¯t throw your life away!¡± He circled the spot twice before gritting his teeth and taking out his magic weapon. Standing on it, he flew towards the sky. ¡°Wait for me,¡± Zhang Ke took out a retractable sword from an office drawer, stood on it, and flew out. ¡°It¡¯s a fight between the dragon race, going there is just asking to die,¡± Xu Yuan berated as she took off the silver bracelet on her hand. The silver bracelet morphed into a small boat. With a flip, she leapt onto the small boat and swiftly chased after them. ¡°F*ck, stop bullsh*tting, let¡¯s teach those guys a lesson.¡± Countless magic weapons were taken out ¨C bamboo flutes, writing brushes, tortoise shells, and even bird feathers. For a moment, splendid rays of light filled the room. As everyone knew, for every hundred meters above sea level, the temperature would drop 0.6 degrees Celsius. Xu Yuan¡¯s first thought upon flying up was that she was wearing too few clothes on this day. In the distance, she could see the currently roiling smell of gunpowder among the five people enclosed by the barrier. They couldn¡¯t even push past the barrier, much less enter and help. Xu Yuan turned and spoke to her colleagues who had caught up to her. ¡°Everyone, take care to hide yourself. Don¡¯t be found by the radars, and even more importantly, don¡¯t affect the flight path of the airnes.¡± ¡°Benefactor, don¡¯t go over, there¡¯s a....¡± Chu Yu stared nkly as he watched Fu Li squeeze past the barrier. He muttered thest word, ¡°Barrier.¡± ¡°Do you guys want toe in and y?¡± Fu Li propped up the opening in the barrier and turned to beckon towards Chu Yu and the rest. Chu Yu and the rest of the living creatures looked at the glistening flickers of light inside and simultaneously shook their heads, taking a step back. Fu Li nced at the situation inside the barrier and decided to give up. ¡°Forget it, you guys had better note in.¡± With such low cultivation, it was enough to just stand outside and watch the show. He really hadn¡¯t expected the cultivation world to have declined so rapidly. Great yao were everywhere during those years, yet now, even he was considered a great yao. Upon entering the barrier, killing intent and Dragon Might shot towards him. The two younger azure dragons were already wounded and were seated at a corner nursing their wounds. Seeing Fu Li enter the barrier, their eyes widened, seemingly in disbelief that someone could actually tear apart the barrier that their dragon n had erected. ¡°I know your dragon race hasrge eyes, stop staring,¡± Fu Li used a technique to fix the two dragons in ce and then walked over and sat down between them. The soft clouds had a moist and ice-cold feel to them. ¡°Who do you think will win?¡± The two azure dragons who couldn¡¯t speak, ¡°...¡± ¡°Aiya. The way your dragon n fights is to spit out dragon pellets the moment there¡¯s a disagreement.¡± ¡°Does that something-elder of yours usually like to y assassin games, why is he so fond of making sneak attacks?¡± ¡°Look, that sneak-attacker received his retribution,¡± Fu Li watched Zhuang Qing send Qing Yuan flying with a swat of his tail. ¡°Comparing anything else would be better, yet he insisted on fighting a golden dragon with power. How embarrassing now that he was sent flying with just one swipe of a tail.¡± The two azure dragons yearned to shut the mouth of this prattling yaoguai who hugged Zhuang Qing¡¯s thigh. However, their inability to move meant that they were forced to continue listening to him. There were four people from the dragon n, and three were wounded. Qing Yan and Zhuang Qing¡¯s palms collided, the impact sending them flying back by more than ten meters. Dragon scales could already be seen on Zhuang Qing¡¯s body. A pair of young forked dragon horns extended from his forehead, giving off a dazzling golden light. Only then did Fu Li recall that in ordance with the dragon n¡¯s way of calcting age, one would only be considered an adult two thousand years after leaving their shells. Zhuang Qing was still an underaged dragon. ¡°Bullying even an underaged dragon, how shameful,¡± Fu Li stood up and patted his clothes that had gotten wet from the clouds and mist. ¡°Help should be rendered in the face of injustice. Bullying minors is not right.¡± ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, the dragon race has controlled the waters for innumerable years. Forming clouds, summoning rain, and calling down frost and ice are our natural abilities. Humans will encounter countless tribtions in their lives, why do you make things difficult for your race for the sake of another race?¡± Qing Yan halted his offense and stood opposite Zhuang Qing. ¡°No matter the kind of creature one is, support from their race will always be needed. Even if you¡¯ve joined with the national fate, it¡¯s impossible for you to be unrivaled in all thends under the heavens. Certain things will lose its beauty if you nitpick too much.¡± ¡°Human lives are short and their desire to live is strong, so they should bear greater torment?¡± Zhuang Qingughed coldly. ¡°I¡¯m afraid Dragon Lord Qing Yan¡¯s words are a little unreasonable.¡± ¡°Whether or not its reasonable, there is one thing that is a fact ¨C in the past millions of years, humans have progressed in such a manner,¡± Qing Yan¡¯s face wore a noble-like smile, yet the words he spoke were cold-hearted. ¡°Moreover, the humans are numerous in number and have strong reproduction capabilities. So what if a few of them get injured or die?¡± ¡°There is no need for Dragon Lord Qing Yan to speak of such things to me. Before the end of the Northern Lake Dragon Lord¡¯s prison sentence, I will not let him out,¡± Zhuang Qing would not waste spittle discussing this sort of issue with Qing Yan. One could never attempt to use speech to persuade someone with differing views. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, don¡¯t fault me for being rude,¡± Qing Yan saluted with a smile. ¡°Please.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my first time seeing someone bully a minor so politely.¡± Qing Yan turned his gaze towards the direction of the voice and saw the little yaoguai who said that the azure dragons ranked at the bottom of the dragon ns. He was lying across theyers of clouds. Almost no yao qi could be sensed from this little yao ¨C he seemed like a yaoguai who had low cultivation and was easy to bully. If this was the past, Qing Yan wouldn¡¯t care about him. But at this moment, all he felt was an iparable sense of strangeness. How could an ordinary little yao dare to tear apart the barrier and watch their fight at such close proximity? The average yao cultivator couldn¡¯t bear the dragon qi they emitted duringbat at all. ¡°Hey,¡± Fu Li jumped off the cloud and walked over to stand beside Zhuang Qing. ¡°A yao should be reasonable. Isn¡¯t it a bit shameless for four adult dragons to be bullying an underaged dragon?¡± Qing Yan stared nkly. Only after he looked at the not-yet-fully-formed dragon horns on Zhuang Qing¡¯s head did he recall that Zhuang Qing really was a minor. It was just that Zhuang Qing¡¯s rapid growth in cultivation the past few years and his position as the leader of the management bureau caused this fact to slip everyone¡¯s minds. ¡°Although you guys look down on humans, the human world has a ,¡± Disapproval colored Fu Li¡¯s solemn expression. ¡°You guys aren¡¯t evenparable to humans, where do you find the shame to look down on others?¡± The smile on Qing Yan¡¯s face stiffened. He had never thought that there woulde a day when other yao would say that his dragon race couldn¡¯tpare to the humans, and the reason was even that they didn¡¯t have a . But no matter how preposterous this saying was, Qing Yan understood very well in his heart that this day¡¯s fight could no longer be continued. Turning, he looked at his three other injured nsmen with a bitter smile. If he carried on fighting and today¡¯s matter were to get out, it would only lead others into believing that four azure dragons couldn¡¯t beat the management bureau¡¯s Zhuang Qing. Their azure dragon n¡¯s face would be lost if that happened. If they carried on fighting, other yao ns would also only say that their group of four dragons were bullying a dragon who hadn¡¯te of age. This saying wasn¡¯t much better than the previous one and was perhaps even more embarrassing. Most importantly, he couldn¡¯t make out the limits of this yao cultivator who stood with Zhuang Qing. He didn¡¯t want to provoke him rashly. After a period of contemtion, Qing Yan cupped his hands and said, ¡°There is sense in this daoyou¡¯s words. Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, we can discuss this matter again at ater date,¡± He prepared to leave, but Qing Yuan, who had been sent flying by Zhuang Qing¡¯s tail, let out a roar and transformed into a dragon, shooting directly towards Zhuang Qing. In a split second, the world changed color. Thunder rumbled and the clouds in the sky roiled violently in a dense mass, resembling a giant creature that engulfed everything. ¡°Crap!¡± Outside the barrier, Lin Gui¡¯s expression changed drastically. ¡°This can cause a tornado! Everyone, quickly set up a barrier, do your best to keep the surrounding airflow within the barrier!¡± Chapter 27 - Unable To Bear

Chapter 27 - Unable To Bear

The fact that Qing Yuan had been sent flying by the tail of a younger generation likely made him feel that he had lost face. As he charged towards Zhuang Qing in his original form, he was using nearly seven to eight-tenths of his original form¡¯s power. ¡°Elder Qing Yuan!¡± Qing Yan had a very bad feeling about this turn of events. He moved swiftly ahead in an attempt to block Qing Yuan, but the enraged Qing Yuan paid no heed to Qing Yan¡¯s obstruction and directly shot past him, apanied by a cold chill. ¡°Quick, leave,¡± Slight panic appeared on Zhuang Qing¡¯s eternally rigid statue face. He wanted to push aside Fu Li who was beside him and transform into his original form to block Qing Yuan, but not only did Fu Li not leave, he even took a step forward and stood in front of him. ¡°My cultivation might be average, but I won¡¯t let an underaged yao stand in front of me at such a moment,¡± Fu Li very shamelessly forgot that he had not too long ago let Zhuang Qing go up to fight while he shot his mouth off and pulled aggro at the side. The chilled air approached. Some of it had even morphed into ice des sheathed in a piercing might. It was a terrible, abnormal phenomenon. Ding. The azure dragon¡¯s offense was suddenly halted by a single slender, fair palm that had grabbed hold of his dragon horn. ¡°Have you considered the kind of oue that would result from using ice techniques here?¡± Ayer of thick ice had formed on Fu Li¡¯s face, hair, and even body. In front of the azure dragon, his body seemed particrly small. Roar. The azure dragon let out a roar of rage and started thrashing about in an attempt to fling Fu Li off his dragon horns. With a turn of his body, Fu Li flew into the skies. His right palm turned over and an ancient scarlet sword appeared in his hand. With a wave of the sword, the ice swooping towards him was blocked. ¡°A divine sword refined by the true fire of a Fenghuang?¡± At the side, Qing Yan¡¯s expression became extremely ugly. He wanted to go up and help but was blocked by Zhuang Qing. In reality, neither of them had any intention of fighting at this moment. Zhuang Qing was worried that Fu Li, the yaoguai who hadn¡¯t left the mountains much, would be at a disadvantage, while Qing Yan was worried that Qing Yuan would be defeated by the divine sword refined by the Fenghuang¡¯s true fire. Both of them guarded against each other with very tacit understanding, yet neither took action. After watching for a while, Qing Yan secretly heaved a sigh of relief. This yaoguai didn¡¯t seem to have walked the path of sword cultivation. Although the sword itself was powerful, his skill with the sword was so-so. Hence, he could only restrain Qing Yuan, but not suppress him. After not more than ten minutes had passed, Qing Yuan, who was so exhausted he was panting for breath, already had the intention of retreating. In contrast, Fu Li was still waving the sword around untiringly, making chopping and cutting motions as if the sword was a hatchet. But even if this was the case, Qing Yuan was still unable to hold his own against him and was made to retreat step by step. Injuries had already appeared on his body. The swordnded on Qing Yuan¡¯s body, prompting a pained wail from him. In the end, he could only change back to his human form and take consecutive steps back. He stared hatefully at the sword in Fu Li¡¯s hands, his heart brimming with a very strong unwillingness to ept the situation. He hadn¡¯t lost to an unknown yao cultivator, but to the sword in his hands. The excessive anger caused Qing Yuan to spit out blood. Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected the sword to have such powerful destructive ability. When he grabbed the azure dragon¡¯s horns, he had felt that the cold air was a little ufortable. In addition, there was only this one weapon in his Qiankun Pouch, so he simply made do with it. ¡°Leave!¡± Qing Yuan turned and nced at Qing Yan with an ugly expression, preparing to leave. ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li stopped Qing Yuan and pointed the sword at his forehead. ¡°You guys bullied an underaged dragon, and now you want to leave just like that?¡± Unable to bear his tone of voice, Qing Yuan was about to curse him when someone grabbed the chance to speak first. Qing Yan took a step forward and cupped his hands at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, we have offended you.¡± Zhuang Qing held his hands behind his back and looked at Qing Yan expressionlessly without saying anything. Seeing that Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t appear to want to continue pursuing the matter, Fu Li turned his hand and drew the sword back, sheathing it. ¡°Many thanks to Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing for your mercy, this humble one will take my leave!¡± Qing Yan heaved a sigh of relief, bowing deeply to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Turning, he picked up his two motionless juniors and then transformed into a beam of light with Qing Yuan, vanishing into the clouds. The speed at which he did this was so quick that he appeared to be running for his life. Fu Li dragged the sword he was carrying along the ground. Without any care for maintaining his image, he walkedzily to Zhuang Qing and said with a face full of resentment, ¡°This sword is too heavy. It isn¡¯t nice to use at all.¡± ¡°This sword...¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li drag the divine sword that induced fear in the azure dragons as if it was scrap iron. ¡°How did you obtain it?¡± ¡°All the yao cultivators on our mountain who can transform have one,¡± Fu Li put the sword back into his Qiankun Pouch. ¡°This was forged by King Ganglie and the sparrow spirit at the entrance of my cave who can¡¯t transform no matter how much they cultivate. But this sword is heavy, ugly, and isn¡¯t even practical for cutting trees, so no one likes to use it.¡± ¡°It not for the bone-chilling air on that dragon¡¯s body and the fact that I didn¡¯t have any other suitable weapon with me, I wouldn¡¯t have used this,¡± Fu Li nced at his open palm. ¡°My hand¡¯s even red from the extreme cold. Are those nsmen of yours so shameless that they even like bullying their juniors?¡± Zhuang Qing coughed. ¡°I¡¯m not on very good terms with the dragon n.¡± ¡°I can tell,¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing standing there majestically. He hesitated for a moment but still decided to say, ¡°Let me be honest, don¡¯t force it if you¡¯ve suffered internal injuries. I¡¯m already so old anyway, it¡¯s not like I¡¯ll make fun of you.¡± It was unknown if Fu Li¡¯s words had angered him, but the moment these words left his mouth, a trace of blood dripped out of the corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. When he reached out a hand to wipe it, Fu Li stopped him. ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± Fu Li took out a jade bottle and collected the blood at the corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°Dragon blood is good stuff for refining pills.¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li¡¯s jade bottle. It was a type of jade bottle that had been enhanced by a magic array. Regardless of the kind of liquid that was poured in, it would remain in the freshest state. All pill cultivators coveted such a bottle, even if they were dreaming. Unfortunately, good jade was hard toe by and many drawing methods for magic arrays were lost during the earlier years. Therefore, other thanrge and influential ns who were in possession of a few of such bottles, other people didn¡¯t have any. Even Zhuang Qing... didn¡¯t have one. Why would a yaoguai who had this sort of rare item want to be a civil servant and even be in such poor financial straits that he had to borrow money from him? ¡°Eat one,¡± Fu Li rummaged through his Qiankun Pouch and fished out a small medicinal pill. ¡°Nurse your internal injuries.¡± This Hunyuan pill was clear, sweet, and rich in spiritual qi. It was an extremely rare panacea of the highest quality. Even refining a thousand medicinal pills would not guarantee the production of one such pill. That was why the starting price of this pill at auctions in the cultivation world would be at least two million yuan. Zhuang Qing pinched the medicinal pill and thought about how he had to swallow this two-million-yuan Hunyuan pill just because he had suffered minor internal injuries. Instantly, grief felt as if it was tearing through his heart. ¡°What are you doing staring into space foolishly?¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand and the Hunyuan pill smoothly entered Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth, rolling into his esophagus. Zhuang Qing very quickly felt a gust of warmth within his five internal organs. The internal injuries he had suffered from the collision of palms gradually healed. ¡°I forgot that this bottle¡¯s Hunyuan pill has been sitting for nearly three thousand years. Do you feel okay after eating it?¡± Fu Li looked worriedly at Zhuang Qing. If he poisoned the only golden-national fate dragon to death, would heavenlyw strike him with lightning till he turned into dregs? ¡°Many thanks,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯splexion looked even worse than before. ¡°I¡¯m fine now.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Fu Li looked doubtfully at Zhuang Qing. Hisplexion was this terrible looking, yet he still said he was fine. Truly a considerate child. How was Zhuang Qing fine? His heart was aching so much that he nearly couldn¡¯t breathe. But in addition to the heartache, he also felt an unfathomable happiness. This feeling of happiness came out of nowhere. Even he himself didn¡¯t understand what was going on. Outside the barrier, Xu Yuan and the rest realized that the cold air had vanished without a trace. Even the barrier erected by the dragon n had also dispersed, so they rushed in with a deeply worried heart. ¡°Oh right.¡± Zhuang Qing wiped the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth and asked Fu Li, ¡°Didn¡¯t you need money to change the human¡¯s grave?¡± ¡°Oh, that.¡± Fu Li waved his hands. ¡°Isn¡¯t your management bureau also having a tough time getting by? I¡¯ll find another way.¡± ¡°No, I was joking with you that time,¡± Zhuang Qing pursed the corners of his lips. He attempted to squeeze out a smile, though the curved corners of lips appeared a little stiff and strange, likely due to the fact that he didn¡¯t usually smile. ¡°As part of the dragon n, how can Ick money?¡± He took out his handphone. ¡°I¡¯ll send a million to your bank ount first, let me know if it isn¡¯t enough.¡± He tapped the screen for a very long time, yet there was no response from the bank¡¯s application. Only then did he recall that this ce was a little far from the ground. Handphone signals didn¡¯t yet reach the sky. ¡°What would I do with a million? I don¡¯t need that much,¡± Fu Li rubbed his hands. ¡°Moreover, I won¡¯t be able to return the money in a short time.¡± ¡°To my dragon n, this bit of money is merely a drop in the ocean. There are many ces in the capital to spend money. You¡¯ve just left the mountain and don¡¯t understand many things. Having money will give you more confidence,¡± Zhuang Qing stuffed his handphone back into his pocket. ¡°You¡¯re belittling me if you bring up returning the money again.¡± ¡°Mr Zhuang, I think the outside world has misunderstood your dragon n,¡± The more Fu Li looked at this mixed-blood dragon, the more he felt that he was different from the other crafty and unruly dragons. He was magnanimous and reasonable, had character and was kind-hearted ¨C as expected, the mind of a minor was still the most pure and virtuous. ¡°What misunderstanding?¡± ¡°The yao cultivators who lived with me on the same mountain said that nine out of ten dragons in your n are stingy.¡± Zhuang Qing raised his chin slightly and shed a careless smile, his attitude like that of an extremely generous person. ¡°I¡¯m probably the exception.¡± But the remaining one was especially stingy. Fu Li pondered over it and felt that he had better not utter this statement. It was rare for a generous dragon to be in existence, he couldn¡¯t lead him astray. Beneath theyers of clouds, Chu Yu and Lin Gui, who had very good hearing, met each other¡¯s gazes and saw the shock in each other¡¯s eyes. Where did the boss find such thick skin, even thinking that he was an exception in the dragon n? If he wasn¡¯t considered stingy, then there were no stingy people in this world. After returning to the management bureau, Zhuang Qing sent a million yuan to Fu Li. In the many years Fu Li had lived, it was his first time having so much money. He took out a natural diamond from his Qiankun Pouch and ced it in front of Zhuang Qing. ¡°The other time I took your car, I saw that the stone on the car roof resembled this. Since your dragon n likes bright things, take this back and embed it into your wall.¡± The fist-sized natural diamond was thrown onto the table as if it was just a pebble. Zhuang Qing looked at the natural diamond, took a deep breath, and asked hoarsely, ¡°Mr Fu, did all yao in the past give people things so casually?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, I¡¯m not particrly generous,¡± Fu Li poked the diamond, letting it roll back and forth on the table. ¡°This stone seems to be scrap material left behind after the sparrow spirit refined the sword. Although it¡¯s valuable in today¡¯s society, it¡¯s not like I can sell this off, so treat it as my way of paying you back for the one million.¡± ¡°This stone of yours is worth far more than a million,¡± Zhuang Qing thought about how Fu Li could have casually gifted all sorts of valuable items to other people and felt his entire body from head to toe aching, despite the fact that these things clearly had no rtion to him. ¡°You were the only one out of so many yao who was willing to lend me money. Since you happen to like these things, isn¡¯t it appropriate to give it to you?¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder consolingly. ¡°These are merely worldly possessions, don¡¯t take them to heart.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at this old yaoguai who was smiling splendidly. After a long while, he sighed. ¡°I will ept Mr Fu¡¯s good intentions. If you still want to give people things in the future, you can consult me about it.¡± To avoid him giving rare objects away as if they were two-yuan wholesale goods. ¡°How could I inconvenience you?¡± Fu Li gave a somewhat embarrassed smile. His understanding of the human world was extremelycking. If a yao residing in the human world could teach him how to handle human rtions, it would indeed make things much more convenient for him. ¡°No, it¡¯s not inconvenient at all!¡± Zhuang Qing stood up and told him resolutely, ¡°Come with me.¡± He, the sole descendant of the golden dragon n, truly could not tolerate Fu Li¡¯s wasteful way of gifting items. Even if he had mountains of gold and silver, it wouldn¡¯t be enough to supplement his ways. It was necessary for him to understand what the human world was like! Fu Li felt that his negative impression of the dragon n would change very soon because of one Zhuang Qing. Chapter 28 - Examination

Chapter 28 - Examination

After dragging his two juniors back to the ocean, Qing Yan spat out arge mouth of blood. ¡°Uncle!¡± The two azure dragons had just reached adulthood and were used to acting in an oppressive manner. Never once had they thought that Zhuang Qing would have the guts to make things difficult for their azure dragon n. ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Qing Yan waved his hands. He hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing¡¯s cultivation to have reached such a level of profoundness. The only reason he persisted was so he could prevent Zhuang Qing from seeing through him, but now, he was unable to hold on any longer. He was just about to transform into his dragon form and swim back to the dragon pce when he caught sight of a submarine moving ahead furtively. Upon focusing spiritual qi at his eyes, he realized that the people inside differed in skin tone and hair color from their human forms. The him who was in a bad mood merely flung his sleeves and the submarine was sent hurtling above the surface of the water. In recent years, these ships had constantly been floating back and forth above their dragon pce, forcing them to set up a concealment barrier throughout all four seasons in a year. It was practically an endless source of frustration for the dragons. The chief of the submarine whose head was spinning from the hurtling had just regained his wits when he saw arge motionless warship not too far in the distance. The warship and submarine looked at each other in dismay. The warship reacted very quickly and politely invited the submarine back to its country as a guest. The four dragons had just reached the dragon pce when Qing Yuan suddenly clutched his head and rolled about on the ground howling, without any care for the surrounding shrimp and crab soldiers. ¡°Elder!¡± Seeing that Qing Yuan was so pained that he nearly couldn¡¯t control his spiritual qi, Qing Yan changed into his original form and ordered the surrounding shrimp and crab soldiers, ¡°Everyone is to retreat!¡± The thunderous dragon hiss tormented the shrimp and crab soldiers with low cultivation. Some even fainted dead away on the spot. Hearing themotion, the other dragons in the dragon pce all came out to see what had urred. Qing Yuan was jolting around chaotically in the ocean. If Qing Yan hadn¡¯t reacted swiftly and set up a barrier in front of the pce gate, he would even have rammed into the gate. ¡°Qing Yan, weren¡¯t all of you going to find Zhuang Qing? How did things turn out like this?¡± The Head of the azure dragon n walked out. His expression turned grave upon seeing Qing Yuan, who had lost his mind from pain. ¡°Qing Yuan¡¯s cultivation may not be the highest among the azure dragons, but he still has a few thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation. Who is capable of harming him to this extent?¡± ¡°E-Elder¡¯s horn!¡± An underaged azure dragon disyed an expression filled with shock, horror, and amazement as he pointed at Qing Yuan, who was still struggling in pain. He couldn¡¯t even utter aplete sentence. Qing Yan shifted his line of sight towards Qing Yuan, his expression heavy. A frightening scene greeted his eyes. Elder Qing Yuan had left his shell at a hundred years old and transformed into his human form at the age of five hundred. His dragon horns were formidable and beautiful and had always been a source of pride for him. Yet, cracks had appeared on one of his two beautiful and impressive dragon horns. Furthermore, these cracks were widening as Elder Qing Yuan howled uncontrobly. One crisp snapping soundter, the dragon hornnded on the ground in a few chunks. ¡°The d-dragon horn broke...¡± A young dragon covered the tiny forked horns on top of his head, scared speechless. All of a sudden, several senior azure dragons recalled the utterly humiliating matter from many years back that they dared not even mention. A silent dread assaulted their hearts. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Fu Li followed behind Zhuang Qing and got into the car. Putting on his seatbelt, he swung his arms and told Zhuang Qing, ¡°That old azure dragon¡¯s horn was really hard, my hand still hurts.¡± ¡°The hardest ce on a dragon¡¯s body is their horns. Grabbing it with your bare hands will definitely leave injuries,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the red patch on Fu Li¡¯s palm. He found a bottle of medicine in the car and threw it to him. ¡°This is a medicinal ointment made from seaweed. Apply some and test it out.¡± Fu Li smelt something upon opening the cover. ¡°The smell is a bit bad.¡± ¡°Great lords shouldn¡¯t argue so much. This medicine is for external injuries, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m asking you to eat it,¡± Zhuang Qing started up the car. ¡°I¡¯ll take you to buy a handphone first. In this age, even seventy, eighty-year-old elderly men and women have handphones. You can¡¯t evenpare to them.¡± ¡°I¡¯m older than them,¡± Fu Li applied the ck-green ointment onto his palm, not minding Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone of voice. He had lived for so many years and most assuredly would not bicker with a minor. By the time they alighted from the car, all the ointment had already been absorbed. Barely any traces of the scar could be seen. Fu Li nodded and praised, ¡°This medicine is not bad.¡± Zhuang Qing snorted coldly. ¡°Of course it¡¯s not bad. It¡¯s the dragon race¡¯s secret medicine and is capable of regenerating flesh.¡± If not for the fact that he had swallowed the other party¡¯s two-million-yuan medicinal pill, he would not have been able to bear taking it out. The technology city was very crowded. Many brands were carrying out shopping campaigns or whatnot. In any case, during the Chao dynasty, there were major discount campaigns ten out of the twelve months in a year. This was amon method for those selling electrical appliances, dishes, or nkets. Modern technological devices were practically alien species to Fu Li. During the entire process of selecting a handphone, he didn¡¯t speak a word and when Zhuang Qing asked him a question, he would say that anything was fine. In the end, Zhuang Qing bought him a good quality handphone made within the country with generally good public opinion. Because they bought this particr model, there would be a reimbursement of fifty yuan in call rates for a period of twelve months. Fu Li held the mug given to him by the sales employee and watched Zhuang Qing install various social media applications on the phone. Only then did Zhuang Qing hand the phone to him. ¡°Read the news more often, increase your knowledge.¡± ¡°I often watch news broadcasts,¡± Fu Li put the handphone into the pocket of his trousers. He told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Actually, there¡¯s no need to make things so inconvenient. I can just use the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission to contact you; it¡¯s very convenient for any kind of conversation.¡± Zhuang Qing took a deep breath and told Fu Li, ¡°A lot of yao cultivators now don¡¯t know how to use the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission. Besides, since you entered human society, you should adapt to the way of living ¨C use the handphone when you should be using it. News channels don¡¯t only consist of . I¡¯ve downloaded a few social media tforms for you; they have many interesting news pieces, so take your time to y around with them when you go back.¡± Oh,¡± Fu Li fished out his handphone and took a few nces at it. He tapped on a square box titled ¡®contacts¡¯ ¨C there was only Zhuang Qing¡¯s contact. He shot a nce at Zhuang Qing, deeply moved. This mixed-blood dragon was truly cordial and generous. After sending Fu Li to his rented house, Zhuang Qing called out to him, ¡°When you have money, stay somewhere else.¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t someone who had very high requirements for his dwelling. Hearing Zhuang Qing say this, he agreed easily. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°And,¡± Zhuang Qing added. ¡°Don¡¯t forget about the written examination three dayster.¡± ¡°What examination?¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t reacted. Zhuang Qing¡¯s fairly expressionless face darkened at a speed visible to the naked eye. ¡°The management bureau¡¯s recruitment exam.¡± From the way Fu Li looked, he clearly hadn¡¯t taken this matter to heart. ¡°Ah, that. I remember it,¡± Fu Liughed dryly. ¡°I¡¯ll definitely make preparations to go for it when the timees.¡± Zhuang Qing turned the car, spraying Fu Li in the face with exhaust. ¡°Such a bad temper,¡± Fu Li wiped his face and touched the handphone in his pocket. His temper might be a bit on the bad side, but he was still a good person at heart. Ning Xuan and Chao Yun returned to the management bureau and distributed the local specialties they had brought back. Not seeing Zhuang Qing, they asked somewhat curiously, ¡°Where¡¯s Boss?¡± Lin Gui was locking up a pile of information in the archives and replied without even turning his head, ¡°He went out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s rare,¡± Chao Yun found her seat. Not long after she switched on hisputer, she involuntarily let out a curse. She hadn¡¯t logged into the game in a month and had been kicked out of her guild. ¡°ying games immediately after returning,¡± Chu Yu stretched his neck and nced at her screen. ¡°Watch out for Boss¡¯ scoldingter.¡± ¡°Oh right, we found a cat yao on our way back who hadn¡¯t transformed into its human form yet. We took it to the Yao Union,¡± Chao Yun took a bag of melon seeds from Chu Yu¡¯s desk and talked while cracking the seeds. ¡°The little yao didn¡¯t know how to suppress its yao qi yet; we could smell its yao qi from a great distance away.¡± ¡°That idiot Ning Xuan found some rubbish incense the size of a tiny fingernail in a crack below the table and insisted that it was a Peace Branch or something,¡± Chao Yun shook her head helplessly. ¡°Have you heard of this Peace Branch thing?¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t a Peace Branch, why did it dissipate the moment I touched it?¡± Ning Xuan didn¡¯t think there was an issue with his reasoning. ¡°Ice held in a hand will also dissipate,¡± Chao Yun put down the melon seeds. ¡°The exhaustion from hunting down great yao for more than a month has dulled my original form. I¡¯m going to rest for a few days.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t be able to,¡± Chu Yu stated. ¡°It¡¯s the recruitment examination three dayster. You and Ning Xuan will be thebat examiners.¡± ¡°We¡¯re recruiting this year?¡± Ning Xuan gathered his thoughts. ¡°It¡¯s about time for recruitment. I hope we¡¯ll recruit someone who can fight this time around. Every time we meet a great yao, it¡¯s always me and Chao Yun pursuing it. Thanks to this, the de of my sword has be a lot blunter.¡± Everyone who was incapable of fighting, ¡°...¡± The day after Fu Li received the money, he went to purchase the grave he had set his sights on. Aftermunicating with the relevant department, Teacher Yao and his wife were eventually buried together. Upon finding out that Fu Li was merely Teacher Yao¡¯s colleague and not his rtive, the employees of the relevant department all felt that he was amazing. What kind of friendship did they share for a colleague to spend over two hundred thousand yuan? One of the younger employees voiced out the doubts in his heart to Fu Li directly. ¡°Money is merely a worldly possession. What¡¯s priceless is knowledge,¡± Fu Li ced a bundle of gold ingots in front of the grave. ¡°Teacher Yao did numerous good deeds throughout his life. His heart¡¯s desires ought to be realized.¡± The employee left. Fu Li looked at the photograph of the couple on the grave and then turned, speaking towards the underbrush. ¡°Come out.¡± ¡°Meow,¡± A calico cat climbed out of the underbrush. It stood upright on its hind legs like a human and raised its sped paws towards the grave. ¡°They will have a good lot in their next life. You can cultivate with peace of mind, don¡¯t keep worrying about Teacher Yao,¡± Fu Li lightly kicked the cat¡¯s tail. ¡°Don¡¯t run about recklessly. Be careful not to be taken away by people who think you¡¯re a stray cat.¡± ¡°Who says I¡¯m worried about that human?¡± The cat spat out human words, arrogance brimming in its voice. ¡°I just came to take a look since it was convenient for me.¡± After stating this, it turned and made to move, but even after walking for an eternity, it still remained at its spot. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back to the Yao Union,¡± Fu Li stooped over and picked the cat up by its nape. cing it in the crook of his arm, Fu Li turned and walked out of the cemetery. Three dayster, many people gathered at Chang Long Biotechnology Company. Passersby who thought that there was a fight happening at this ce inquired about it out of curiosity and found out that thepany was merely recruiting. Instantly, they left in disappointment. Who knew how good thispany¡¯s benefits were for there to be these many applications? But why did those people with dyed red and yellow hair also run over to join in the fun? Clearly, they were an unconventional lot. Fu Li stood at the entrance and nced at the densely packed cultivators inside. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from taking two steps back. ¡°Ouch,¡± Somebody behind him let out a miserable shriek. ¡°Sorry,¡± Fu Li realized that he had stepped on somebody¡¯s foot and hurriedly turned to apologize. ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine,¡± The person grimaced in pain and smiled. ¡°You also came topete for the job?¡± Fu Li looked at the green cap of hair on his head fluttering in the wind and nodded silently. ¡°Ai, everyone went crazy after hearing that there are two recruitment spots this year,¡± The green-haired yao pointed at the mass of people hiding under the shade. ¡°Even the ghost cultivators came. Brother, are you a human or yao cultivator? You came to join in the fun even with such low cultivation?¡± The green-haired yao observed the weak qi that Fu Li gave off and kindly advised him, ¡°It¡¯s all right for little yao like us to join in the fun, but our hopes must not be too high.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li listened to the green-haired yao report the number of applicants and experts this year as he followed the long queue to receive his examination number. ¡°What a coincidence, we¡¯re in the same examination room,¡± The green-haired yao nced at Fu Li¡¯s examination seat number. ¡°I¡¯m seated in front of you.¡± He lowered his voice and said, ¡°If there¡¯s something you don¡¯t knowter, I can let you sneak a peek.¡± ¡°That...¡± A hint of distress appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Isn¡¯t cheating not very good?¡± ¡°How is that considered cheating? That¡¯s called being willing to help others,¡± The green-haired yao ced a hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Come, let elder brother bring you to the examination venue.¡± Fu Li was struck by a realization. This yao was of the carefree and optimistic type. There was a special formation in the examination venue set up by the management bureau. Regardless of their race, anyone who stepped into this ce would be simr to ordinary people, unable to use any skill. Other than several general knowledge questions on humans, the main bulk of the examination paper was focused on the various management regtions. Fu Li had recently broadened his knowledge of human decrees and thus didn¡¯t have to strain too hard to answer these questions. However, the various major questions at the back were a littleplicated and touched on many races. Fu Li, who hadn¡¯t seen much of the world, could only randomly answer them based on the rumors he had heard from other yao in the past. After they handed in their papers, Fu Li realized that many cultivators were sighing in despair. Even the green-haired yao who had talked about letting him copy the answers was also somewhat dejected. ¡°The questions this year are a bit difficult,¡± The green-haired yao¡¯s head drooped weakly. ¡°The written examination alone might eliminate nine out of ten people.¡± ¡°Thenpared to the human university entrance exam, which one is more difficult?¡± ¡°They can¡¯t bepared. Those human test questions have no humanity at all. To our yao n, they¡¯re full of malice,¡± The green-haired yao shook his head. ¡°Do you know who among our yao n has the highest academic qualification in the human world?¡± Fu Li shook his head. Someone who wanted to gossip would most prefer their conversational buddy to disy confusion and ignorance. Only then would gossiping give them a sense of aplishment. ¡°The management bureau¡¯s Dragon Lord. He has a PhD from the National Capital University. I heard he was once a teacher at the Imperial College during the times when emperors still existed.¡± Fu Li was tongue-tied. To think that Zhuang Qing was a mixed-blood dragon of culture... ¡°Then the human world¡¯s civil servant examination...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even think about that,¡± The green-haired yao said. ¡°You have to know that it isn¡¯t easy to enter university. The civil servant examination is apetition between university students. What rtion do you think something like that has with us yao cultivators?¡± ¡°No yao has ever been a civil servant in the human world?¡± Fu Li was struck dumb by the green-haired yao¡¯s way of speech. ¡°There was.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes brightened. ¡°A couple years back, the management bureau¡¯s Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing was themander of the imperial court guards. He can be considered a civil servant.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± This mixed-blood dragon had really made his mark. ¡°Benefactor,¡± Chu Yu squeezed through the throng of people, an enthusiastic smile on his face. ¡°It¡¯s been a difficult test. I¡¯ve booked a nourishing meal outside, you must give me some face and have a meal with me.¡± Fearing that Fu Li would decline, he pulled Fu Li by the hand and ran out. The green-haired yao who had recognized Chu Yu stood dazedly at his spot. A good whileter, he spat out one statement, ¡°Aiyo, damn!¡± ¡°Turns out he¡¯s someone with f*cking connections.¡± Chapter 29 - Backdoor?

Chapter 29 - Backdoor?

Upon reaching the eating location, Fu Li realized Zhang Ke was also present. The two people had ordered many dishes for Fu Li; the entire table was covered in all sorts of dishes, from fried to steamed to stewed. ¡°Senior, please sit,¡± Zhang Ke stood up and poured a drink for Fu Li. ¡°Thebat test is in the afternoon, so I didn¡¯t prepare any wine for you. This is freshly squeezed fruit juice. It¡¯s quite tasty, give it a try.¡± ¡°Many thanks,¡± Fu Li took the cup and drank a mouth. The juice was sweet, tasty, and even contained a hint of spiritual qi. ¡°This is a restaurant specially for the cultivation world, it only receives customers from the cultivation world,¡± Zhang Ke knew that Fu Li didn¡¯t have a very robust understanding of the cultivation world and thus informed Fu Li of the sects within the cultivation world. ¡°The Fields Sect manages this restaurant. Their sect is very fond of nting things. Whether its flowers, grass, or vegetables, there isn¡¯t anything they can¡¯t grow, only something that we can¡¯t think of. A while back, one of their sect¡¯s juniors ran over to Africa for vacation and nted a huge heap of cucumbers out of boredom. In the end, this matter was discovered by a reporter and made it onto the news.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible to get on the news by nting cucumbers?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t quite understand. Didn¡¯t the humans of this country rely mainly on agriculture? ¡°The people nowadays are all idle. nting cucumbers in Africa can be considered a novel affair.¡± Zhang Ke didn¡¯t know what Fu Li¡¯s original form was, so out of fear of viting a taboo, he held up a bowl of beef soup. ¡°Senior, do you eat beef?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t really have foods I abstain from.¡± A spoon of the exceedingly tasty beef soup entered his stomach. There was no foul smell, only a fresh aroma. Seeing that Chu Yu wasn¡¯t drinking, Fu Li asked, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you drinking?¡± Chu Yu shook his head. ¡°Benefactor may not have known, but I transformed after obtaining the Fate of the Dao, so I can¡¯t consume beef.¡± The cow was of extremely lofty status in Daoism, so no Daoist cultivator would consume beef. Fu Li was struck by sudden understanding. It turned out that he was a Daoist fish. It was no wonder his scent was so pure, and even had several strands of virtue mixed in. After their meal, Fu Li rested for half an hour in thepany of Zhang Ke and Chu Yu before returning to the bureau. Using his examination number on the bulletin board as a guide, he found the exam venue he should be going to. Under the guise of a biotechnologypany, the management bureau didn¡¯t seem to upy much space, but in actual fact, it contained a Qiankun within. The moment the examinees entered the formation, they found scores ofbat stages lined up inside. The moment they stepped into their corresponding exam room, the formation in the exam room would automatically transport them to differentbat stages. Fu Li¡¯s first opponent was a monkey spirit with a head of yellow hair. He had just made his move when the monkey copsed on the ground. He nced at his own palm, wondering if he would be suspected of bullying a child. Afterwards, Fu Li defeated a peacock yao, tiger yao, bear yao, pigeon yao, chicken yao, an unknown yao belonging to the bird species, a donkey yao, and so on. The fact that every fight was won by him with ease made Fu Li doubt the overall level of this era¡¯s yao cultivators. He thought of a proverb spoken in the human realm ¨C in the absence of a tiger in the mountain, the monkey would be named king. In his current situation, he was possibly the monkey. It wasn¡¯t him who was powerful, but the modern yao cultivators who were too disappointing. During his tenth fight, Fu Li¡¯s opponent was a crested ibis. He had seen on news broadcasts that this type of bird was a national endangered animal. Hence, regardless of the fact that this crested ibis was covered from head to toe in sturdy muscle, Fu Li only defended and didn¡¯t go on the offense in fear of harming this endangered animal. The crested ibis¡¯ attacks didn¡¯t hit its target, putting it in such anger that it violently struck the ground with the meteor hammer in its hand. The crested ibis ced a hand on its hips and swore at Fu Li, ¡°You who¡¯s obstructing this Laozi, what exactly is the meaning of this? You¡¯re messing around with Laozi?¡± Fu Li thought, it seemed this crested ibis had once stayed in Sichuan. But the news broadcasts had never once mentioned that Sichuan was a suitable ce for a crested ibis to live in. ¡°F*ck your ancestors¡¯ coffins, Laozi isn¡¯t going to continue ying around with you,¡± The crested ibis spat at Fu Li. ¡°Fool, if Laozi ever meets you outside, I¡¯ll definitely put you in a whole world of pain.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± Did all endangered animals have such explosive tempers? The crested ibis angrily conceded defeat and Fu Li continued his fight with the next opponent. ording to thepetition regtions, one would be able to enter the next round as long as they won twenty rounds within the stipted time. ¡°Captain Ning Xuan,¡± A bureau worker walked in with an A4 paper in his hands and a somewhatplicated expression on his face. ¡°A crested ibis yao reported his opponent for intentionally humiliating him during their battle.¡± The crested ibis could be considered a known creature in the cultivation world. It was said that his race had nearly been exterminated in the earlier years. After that, who knew what kind of dog sh*t luck they had, but they were upheld as a &#k2018;national treasure¡¯ by the humans. As a result, they became a rarity to be treasured in the next instant. As the only crested ibis yao in the cultivation world, this extremely irascible yao directly gave himself the name of Crested Ibis. A few years ago, Crested Ibis deliberately hid inside the house of a yaoguai who had offended him and then reported the yaoguai to the human police for illegal capturing of crested ibis. In the end, this yaoguai had no choice but to be powerlessly led off by the police and then sentenced to several years of jail. At this moment, the yaoguai was still squatting in the human prison. ¡°There¡¯s someone who actually dares to provoke him,¡± At the side, curiosity could be seen on Chao Yun¡¯s face. ¡°I respect him for being a man with a sense of justice. Who is the person who¡¯s so fearless?¡± ¡°Examinee number 1356.¡± The worker said in a low voice, ¡°I heard Captain Chu Yu say that this examinee number 1356 saved his life.¡± ¡°Then ignore him. These few years, the crested ibis has been using thebel of ¡®national treasure¡¯ as a symbol of authority to do many yao-infuriating things. Let the examinees y among themselves, we won¡¯t care about them,¡± Chao Yun drank a mouthful of water. ¡°With that petty character of his, he¡¯ll suffer losses sooner orter.¡± Narrow-minded, overly-jealous, and vengeful ¨C this crested ibis was practically the cultivation world¡¯s most outrageous creature. The crested ibis saw that the panda, who was simrly a national treasure, received more favor from the humans than him. Thus, he learnt how to speak in a Sichuan ent just like the panda, as if doing so would make him that much more noble. Hadn¡¯t he thought to consider if the panda¡¯s ability to speak in the Sichuan ent was the reason why it was favored by humans? It was clearly because the humans liked how fat the panda was! The fatter the panda, the more the humans loved them to an unfathomable degree. The humans even tamped down their conscience and called pandas who were peeing and pooping cute. Who knew what was wrong with these humans? Fu Li won twenty rounds consecutively. When he left thebat venue, he noticed many cultivators crowding outside the exam venue. He stood on tiptoe and nced over. Wasn¡¯t that noisy and verbally abusive yaoguai in the crowd the bad-tempered crested ibis? Did someone provoke him again? ¡°Brother!¡± The extremely noisy green-haired yao from the afternoon squeezed out of the crowd. He patted Fu Li on the shoulder enthusiastically. ¡°You also lost too many rounds and decided to just withdraw?¡± Fu Li blinked. He looked at the top of the green-haired yao¡¯s head; he seemed to be missing a tuft of hair. ¡°Hey!¡± The green-haired yao noticed Fu Li¡¯s gaze and smiled with some embarrassment. ¡°I encountered a hen spirit just now who grabbed my feathers the moment the fight started. Too savage.¡± Fu Li shot a sympathetic nce at him. That really was quite pitiful. ¡°You¡¯re also watching the excitement surrounding the crested ibis?¡± The green-feathered parrot yao saw that Fu Li was interested in the drama the crested ibis was kicking up and started to summarize the outrageous acts the crested ibis hadmitted the past few years. ¡°Guess what he¡¯s kicking a fuss about this time?¡± ¡°What?¡± Fu Li was stupefied by the green-haired yao¡¯s summary. It was his first time realizing that yaoguai could actually survive in such shameless ways. If this were the past, he would probably have been killed by some great yao in one p? The times were good; all these yaoguai had been spoiled. ¡°He lost to someone else in a fight yet insists that the person was humiliating him. He¡¯s been making a fuss here for almost half an hour,¡± The green-feathered yao spoke in a slightly sour tone of voice. ¡°We all belong to the bird species, and the colors of my feathers are so much brighter than his. Who knows where he gets the confidence that he¡¯s a higher-ss bird? Just because he¡¯s called a national treasure by the humans, he really thinks he¡¯s a national treasure? The real national treasure, the panda, doesn¡¯t even act the way he does.¡± Fu Li was silent. The examinee that the crested ibis made amotion about wanting to report couldn¡¯t be him, right? ¡°You!¡± The crested ibis suddenly rushed out of the crowd and grabbed thepel of Fu Li¡¯s clothes. ¡°It¡¯s you. Follow me to see the bureau¡¯s staff member, I want to report you.¡± The crested ibis was so annoyed that he stopped speaking with a Sichuan ent. Smooth standard Mandarin let slip from his mouth. Fu Li looked down at the tightly grippedpel. In the yao world, this sort of behavior was called ¡®provocation¡¯. As he listened to the crested ibis¡¯ unending jabbering, Fu Li turned his head, wanting to ask the green-haired yao if all bird yao were this noisy. However, when he shifted his gaze, the green-haired yao had already retreated back into the crowd, his demeanor entirely as if he ¡®didn¡¯t recognize¡¯ him. It was then that Fu Li understood. It turned out that the bird yao these day not only had low cultivation and were noisy but were also very skilled at adapting to the situation. Compared to these bird yao, Fu Li felt that the sparrow yao at the entrance of his cave dwelling was much more reliable, despite the fact that it constantly churned out a bunch of ugly and useless items. ¡°Can you release my clothes before we continue this conversation?¡± Fu Li sighed helplessly. ¡°This set of clothes is newly bought; the tags are still on it.¡± He had specially bought these new clothes for this exam. ¡°Then tell me honestly why you only defended and didn¡¯t attack. Is it because you look down on me and deliberately wanted to taunt me?¡± The crested ibis¡¯ voice was a little shrill. Unable to stand this sort of voice, the little yao at the side covered their ears and retreated a few meters. ¡°I was afraid that my attack would cause your feathers to fall out,¡± Fu Li replied seriously. ¡°ording to our country¡¯s endangered speciesw, you are an endangered animal in our country. I don¡¯t want to vite thew.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk big in front of Laozi. What endangered speciesw are you talking about in the yao world? If you have the ability, let me see the feathers falling out. Bragging without taking any responsibility; aren¡¯t you scared of it backfiring!¡± The crested ibis had just finished speaking when he felt something swat him. When hended on the ground, he was still somewhat dazed. Several strands of hair dropped off his head and floated to the ground, transforming into ckish-red feathers. Fu Li walked to the crested ibis and picked up the fallen feathers on the ground. Squatting, he held them out towards the crested ibis. ¡°Look, haven¡¯t they fallen out now?¡± He stuffed the feathers into the crested ibis¡¯ hand before standing up and tugging at the slightly wrinkledpel of his clothes. Shaking his head, he sighed, ¡°It¡¯s my first time encountering such a silly yaoguai who voluntarily asked to be hit by other yao.¡± The crested ibisy slumped on the ground and watched Fu Li slowly walk into the distance. He was unable to get up even after half a day had passed. ¡°I-I¡¯ll f*ck your ancestors¡¯ coffins.¡± ¡°Brother, brother,¡± The green-haired yao caught up to Fu Li. ¡°Our encounter is fated. It¡¯s almost time for dinner, let me treat you to authentic Hong Kong healthy hotpot. It¡¯s particrly tasty.¡± Fu Li looked at the electronic disy screen on the wall and shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t go.¡± The green-haired yao thought that Fu Li was disappointed by his failure and thus patted his shoulder, saying consolingly, ¡°Brother, be a bit more open-minded. It¡¯s normal to be unable to join the management bureau. Seeding means you have both luck and virtue. What¡¯s more, you might not have joined the bureau, but you¡¯re on good terms with the bigshots inside. In our yao world, you would be considered a yao with connections.¡± Which was why he wanted to hug the thigh of this yao with connections. It would be a task of herculean difficulty if he attempted to build a rtionship with the management bureau now. ¡°That¡¯s not it, I still need to participate in the next stage of thepetition,¡± Fu Li pointed at therge screen. ¡°It¡¯s starting in half an hour.¡± The green-haired yao, ¡°...¡± This person who walked through the backdoor was someone with strength! ¡°Big brother, I¡¯ll treat you to drinks!¡± The green-haired yao¡¯s attitude became even more cordial as he jogged out. In the short span of half a day, the green-haired yao¡¯s way of addressing Fu Li changed from brother to big brother. The pace of this development could even be termed incredible. The next stage of thepetition was a mass battle with only fifty spots for advancement. Perhaps Fu Li¡¯s action of pping the crested ibis had etched itself too deeply in the hearts of the yao, but when the mass battlemenced, almost no yao took the initiative to challenge Fu Li. Even at the end of thepetition, his position hadn¡¯t changed much. ¡°The second stage of thepetition has ended, the third stage willmence in an hour¡¯s time,¡± Chao Yun appeared on thebat stage. A few yao cultivators who had attained spots for the third stage of thepetitionined upon hearing Chao Yun¡¯s words, ¡°One hour isn¡¯t enough for us to regain our strength, how are we supposed topeteter?¡± ¡°The evil yao you will need to catch won¡¯t give you an hour¡¯s time to rest,¡± Chao Yunughed coldly. ¡°If you want to join the management bureau, you had better be mentally prepared to fight to the death with evil spirits at any time. If you can¡¯t even endure apetition at this level of intensity, you had better withdraw from thepetition sooner rather thanter. That way, you can avoid losing your life for some obscure reason when facing evil spirits.¡± Cultivators who had obtained the fifty spots didn¡¯t dare to utter any moreints after hearing Chao Yun¡¯s remarks. They saluted Chao Yuan respectfully before leaving thebat stage. Chao Yun cocked her head slightly, her gazending on the yao cultivator who was walking right at the back. Since the start of the second round of thepetition, her attention had always remained on the stage, so she had realized that this yao cultivator hadn¡¯t attacked much from start to end. The other cultivators didn¡¯t seem to dare to provoke him either. Turning, she headed back to the refereeing counter. Chao Yun flipped through the examinees¡¯ registration information and found the examinee¡¯s information. Her gaze swept across the information. ¡°Fu Li?¡± This name was not bad. ¡°Chao Yun,¡± Chu Yu drifted over. ¡°Is there anyone outstanding in this batch of examinees?¡± Chao Yun was preupied with looking through the information and didn¡¯t have the inclination to answer Chu Yu¡¯s question. Just as she was about to answer half-heartedly, she saw Zhuang Qing standing behind him. Her expression became a bit more solemn. ¡°There are a few good candidates this year. The more interesting one is an examinee called Fu Li. Almost no yao cultivators dared to pick him as an opponent on thebat stage.¡± She stood up and picked out Fu Li¡¯s information, passing it to Zhuang Qin. ¡°I suspect he has more than three thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation, since neither me, Ning Xuan, nor the other colleagues can make out his original form.¡± Zhuang Qing took the registration form filled in by the examinee himself and nced at the crooked letters written on it. He handed the form back to Chao Yun. ¡°En.¡± What did ¡®en¡¯ mean? Chao Yun carefully ran her eyes over the form once again and saw the examinee¡¯s number at the corner of the form. 1356? Wasn¡¯t this Chu Yu¡¯s benefactor? Chao Yun raised her head and looked at Chu Yu somewhat suspiciously, ¡°Chu Yu, you didn¡¯t use your authority to open the backdoor for this examinee, right?¡± ¡°Even if you want to insult me, don¡¯t insult my benefactor. Is he the kind of person who needs to go through the backdoor?¡± Chu Yu was furious. ¡°Who knows...¡± ¡°He won¡¯t,¡± Zhuang Qing interrupted Chao Yun. ¡°He doesn¡¯t need to.¡± T/N: As someone guilty of cooing over cute pandas, I¡¯m feeling a strange sense of embarrassment >.> Chapter 30 - Strange Bird

Chapter 30 - Strange Bird

Chao Yun hadn¡¯t expected the boss to speak up for an examinee. She looked at Zhuang Qing in astonishment, only to find a solemn expression on his face. She was struck by sudden understanding. It seemed the Boss regarded this Fu Li¡¯s abilities highly. After the third round of exams ended, only five out of the fifty people remained. At this moment, the moon was already shining brightly, apanied by a gentle night breeze. Apart from Fu Li, the remaining four peopleprised of the fifth disciple Wei Cang of the Qing Xiao Sect, the second disciple Zhong Ze of the founder of the Fields Sect, Daoist priest Qing Xu of the Lin An Monastery, and a yellow pond turtle yao. The Lin An Monastery had some connection to Chu Yu, as the monastery had been built on the former site of the Chang An monastery. Thus, Chu Yu could be considered an honorary elder of the Lin An Monastery. In addition, Wei Cang of the Qing Xia sect was Zhang Ke¡¯s senior brother from the same sect. It was said that he had entered the sect based on his identity as a yao cultivator. The yellow pond turtle was also on friendly rtions with Lin Gui and was an expert at divination. If they were to really discuss background, Fu Li was probably the one with least background among them. Those who could make it to this round were all well-known figures among the younger generation in the cultivation world. Seeing their faces filled with youthful energy, Fu Li¡¯s old face couldn¡¯t help reddening. Was this considered bullying children? ¡°All five of you performed very well, thank you for...¡± Chao Yun hadn¡¯t finished her statement when a rumbling sound echoed from the horizons all of a sudden. It resembled thunder, yet also sounded like the roar of some creature. A sense of foreboding rose in her heart and she hurriedly turned to look at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing looked up. With a wave of his sleeves, the ceiling turned transparent, revealing the roiling ck clouds in the sky to everyone at thepetition venue. The entire sky seemed like it was about to copse. Fortunately, it was already veryte at night and many people had already gone to bed. Even if they heard the sound, the most they would do was assume that it was thunder. The strangely monstrous appearance of a gigantic bird shed within the clouds. Due to her exposure to a regent¡¯s qi as well as her profound cultivation, Chao Yun could faintly make out thisrge bird¡¯s strange appearance. A snake¡¯s tail, more than one pair of wings, and... three feet? Could it be the Golden Crow? Ever since she joined the management bureau, there had constantly been many yaoguai and human cultivators wreaking havoc, but their looks, cultivation, and skills were allmonce. She had never once encountered this sort of ancient-looking yao cultivator. Recalling the ancient fiend Zhuyan that her colleague had captured a few days ago, the unease in Chao Yun¡¯s heart intensified even further. These ancient yaoguai hadn¡¯t appeared in the human world for many years, yet they had appeared time after time this year. Was this a coincidence or an omen? ¡°This bird seems to have three feet. Could it be the legendary... three-legged Golden Crow?¡± Chu Yu swallowed a mouth of saliva, his throat feeling a little dry. ¡°It¡¯s not the Golden Crow,¡± Fu Li looked up and meticulously scanned the strange creature in the sky. ¡°The Golden Crow is as bright as the day. It would light up the entire earth as if it were daytime.¡± ¡°Boss, it¡¯s a call from the national security department,¡± Lin Gui handed a phone to Zhuang Qing. It would be strange if the national security department didn¡¯t find out about such arge bird in the sky. Zhuang Qing took the phone, spoke a few words, and then hung up. Turning, he nced at his colleagues. ¡°Set up a barrier.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The sloppy-looking bureau people were iparably serious at this moment. They moved forward quickly and set up an enormous formation in ordance with their respective positions. At least for a short while, no country or ordinary citizen would realize that there was arge, strange, and extremely ugly bird flying in the sky. In a certain house, a tiny child dazedly got up from the bed to go to the toilet. After returning, he nced out the window and caught a glimpse of a strange bird circling within the clouds. This image shocked him awake. Upon stering his face to the window to get a careful look, he realized that it wasn¡¯t a bird at all, but just some odd-looking ck clouds. Had he seen wrongly because it was too dark? The child picked up the nket on the floor and went back to sleep. But for some reason, he dreamt of something extremely scary, making his sleep a very uneasy one. He tossed and turned on the bed yet didn¡¯t wake up. As the bureau people set up the barrier, the remaining five examinees looked at each other, momentarily unsure if they should help or wait for them to return. ¡°The cries of that thing sound a bit strange,¡± Zhong Ze from the Fields Sect broke the awkwardness between them. ¡°It¡¯s like a mocking sigh, who knows what that¡¯s supposed to mean?¡± Fu Li suddenly recalled something that the white ape yao on the mountain had told him ¨C at a ce called Jingshan, there lived an extremely disgusting-looking bird with a snake-like body, four wings, and six eyes. It seemed to be called... Suanyu? The white ape had been most fond of telling him about the more frightening great yao outside. There were some that he could no longer recall, but he remembered the Suanyu because the description of its appearance had truly been too nauseating. Terrible things would ur where the Suanyu appeared. If it was severe, the ce would overflow with evil qi. If the effect was light, people would encounter frightening things in their nightmares. ¡°Boss!¡± Chu Yu flew in front of Zhuang Qing. He wore a grave expression on his pale face. ¡°I remember the Zhuyan saying that the yao emperor has two pairs of wings and a body asrge as a mountain. Could this strange bird... be the yao emperor?¡± ¡°How could that be possible!¡± Xu Yuan¡¯splexion wasn¡¯t much better than Chu Yu¡¯s. She looked down at the city aze with lights beneath the clouds. Cold sweat seeped out of her palms. If it was truly the yao emperor, how many people would be afflicted with suffering? It was unknown if she was trying to console herself, or if she truly felt that it wasn¡¯t the yao emperor, but Xu Yuan¡¯s voice was a bit sharp. ¡°The Zhuyan said that the yao emperor has a body of golden fur, eyes as big as the moon, a nose like that of a divine ox, feet like red clouds, a body as huge as a mountain, and a hiss that can shake mountains and rivers. This yao has a snake-like body, where¡¯s the golden fur?¡± ¡°The Zhuyan hasn¡¯t seen the yao emperor, what if his description was riddled with errors?¡± Chu Yu spoke while increasing the pace at which he weaved the barrier. He smiled bitterly. ¡°If this is really the yao emperor, I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll have to fight to our deaths.¡± The air seemed somewhat chilly. Xu Yuan¡¯s face was as pale as snow. ¡°We cannot lose...¡± More than twenty million people lived in this city. They couldn¡¯t afford to lose. Chu Yu lowered his head and looked at the scene below his feet as well. This city¡¯s night scene was very beautiful; the twinkling lights were as pretty as the milky way. The barrier was very quickly formed, epassing a vast stretch of the sky. All the various airlines received an emergency notification stating that nasty weather conditions had appeared in the sky above the capital, so airnes were to temporarily avoid using the air routes into the capital. Severalmercial nes didn¡¯t believe this and ended up circling the area in confusion after flying into the capital¡¯s air space. They then flew back out. There were even pilots who felt that this situation was a little odd. Why was flying in so difficult but flying out so easy? But there were no strange weather condition that pilots had never seen before, so this thought merely shed across their minds before it was very quickly forgotten. ¡°Boss, the barrier has beenpletely set up. The country has also notified other relevant departments. What should we do now?¡± The weapon Chao Yun was holding in her hand was a lotus sword. It was rumored that the empress she had apanied in those years was a believer of Buddhism. Therefore, she had let a craftsman engrave the image of a lotus flower on her Feng hairpin. Following the demise of the empress, the magic weapon Chao Yun carried in her human form was a sword with a lotus pattern. ¡°Don¡¯t act rashly,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the strange bird pping its wings in the clouds. ¡°The intentions of this yao beast are not clear, I¡¯ll scout it out first.¡± He took off his branded suit and prepared to change into his dragon form. A fair hand pulled on the sleeve of his shirt, causing several deep wrinkles to form on his sleeve. Zhuang Qing instantly looked back. It turned out Fu Li had approached him soundlessly. ¡°Mr Fu, what is the meaning of this?¡± Zhuang Qing pulled his sleeve back and turned his head, continuing to examine the strange bird. He was clearly ready to transform into his original form at any moment and engage the strange bird in a fight. ¡°This strange bird might be the Jingshan¡¯s Suanyu bird. The number of years it has lived is more than ten times yours,¡± Fu Li sighed. As an old yaoguai who had even applied for special welfare, he had no choice but to stand forward. Although the Suanyu¡¯s smooth snake body was goosebump-inducing, he couldn¡¯t possibly let a minor challenge a great yao at such a moment. If he had known such a thing would ur this day, he wouldn¡¯t have worn his new clothes. It would be a waste if they ended up damaged from the fight. ¡°Wait, what are you doing?¡± Zhuang Qing saw Fu Li preparing to put the strange bird in its ce and hurriedly stopped him. ¡°This is our management bureau¡¯s issue...¡± ¡°Every person has a responsibility to care for minors,¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. ¡°Little children shouldn¡¯t interrupt when grownups do things.¡± Minor... Who? Zhuang Qing ordered with a straight face, ¡°Nobody¡¯s allowed to be absent-minded. Guard the barrier well. Make sure not to let anything from the Suanyu fall into the human world.¡± The management bureau¡¯s employees felt that they seemed to have heard something they shouldn¡¯t have. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Suanyu, Suanyu...¡± The Suanyu spun around in the clouds. He had merely slept for a few thousand years, so why had the whole worldpletely changed? The humans now had money to ce night pearls everywhere. Who knew where all these strange light beams came from? The way they shook back and forth in the air made him dizzy. He had simply awakened from his sleep due to hunger and wanted to go to the sea to eat some sea creatures but ended up dizzy from all the strange lights. If this were the past, all he had to do was emit a sound in the sky and little yao or humans would be automatically sent up as offerings. As long as he was willing to leave, the humans were willing to give him any kind of food. But he had been turning about in the air for a good half day now, and not only had no humane to kneel and worship him, there was not even a single yao in sight. Could the humans and little yao be more daring during the time he was sleeping? The Suanyu nced towards the ground. The splendid lights on the ground irritated his six eyes till tears dripped from them. He used one pair of wings to hurriedly cover his eyes as he flew a distance towards the upperyers of the clouds. What kind of terrifying magic weapon was that to emit such bright light? ¡°Is this Jingshan¡¯s King Suanyu?¡± As long as it was a yao with some fame, adding the title of ¡®king¡¯ would never be wrong. The Suanyu released his front wings. He looked around for a very long time before finally finding a person behind a cloud. His six eyes blinked, and human speech came out of his mouth. ¡°That¡¯s me, who are you?¡± ¡°This humble one is a little yao from Weishui,¡± Fu Li replied courteously. ¡°May I ask what the King is here for?¡± ¡°Weishui?¡± The Suanyu who had little sense of direction pondered over it for a while but was still at a loss as to where Weishui was. ¡°You little yao are quite discreet. Quick, quick, hand this king the offerings.¡± ¡°The king might be unaware, but the humans of today no longer give offerings to yao cultivators. It would be best for you to leave quickly,¡± Fu Li looked at the Suanyu with hazy, teary eyes, and did a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. ¡°What?!¡± The Suanyu raged. ¡°How hateful are the humans? It¡¯s fine if they don¡¯t give this king any offerings, but they even used magic weapons to blind this king¡¯s eyes. I need to go down and give them a scare; I¡¯ll let them know just how powerful I am.¡± He refused to believe this. In the past, as long as he appeared, he didn¡¯t have to do anything and the humans would kneel and bow to him in hopes that he would leave as soon as possible. No matter how daring the humans today had be, they were still human. There was no way they were more powerful than him. ¡°King,¡± Fu Li stood in front of the Suanyu. ¡°You should go back.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t,¡± The Suanyu¡¯s eyes blinked again and again. ¡°I want to scare them to death.¡± Fu Li felt ufortable all over just from seeing his smooth body. Coupled with the Suanyu¡¯s six simultaneously blinking eyes, Fu Li couldn¡¯t help but turn his head to the side to avoid facing him directly. ¡°King, you haven¡¯t been in the human world for a very long time and may not be aware of the customs of the humans today. Nowadays, they promote the belief in science, and oppose feudalistic superstitions.¡± ¡°What are feudalistic superstitions?¡± ¡°Our existence is feudalistic superstition.¡± ¡°Preposterous!¡± The Suanyu was so furious that his tail nearly mmed into the barrier. ¡°This king will give them something to look at.¡± He was about to shut his eyes and rush down, but he hadn¡¯t even flown far when his wings were held back. ¡°Little yaoguai, release me, if not I¡¯ll eat you!¡± The Suanyu opened its mouth, revealing sharp teeth. ¡°This king has gone hungry for a few thousand years. Padding my stomach is my current concern.¡± How could Fu Li really let it rush out? If he really allowed him to rush out of the barrier, everyone in the city would probably have nightmares tonight. The supernatural newspaper would then have content to write about tomorrow. Seeing that Fu Li was still unwilling to let go, the Suanyu bit at Fu Li with snake-like flexibility. With its overlyrge body, the image of it opening its mouth resembled a gigantic shark wanting to swallow a tiny fish; biting Fu Li to death should be a matter of ease. Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected the Suanyu to want to eat him the moment they disagreed. Fortunately, he reacted quickly. He did a backflip instantly, both feetnding heavily on the Suanyu¡¯s back. The Suanyu released an anguished howl, scattering the clouds nearby. The Suanyu might not be an expert atbat, but as an ancient great yao, he still had a survival trick. He opened his mouth and spat out green smoke, which flew straight towards Fu Li. If yaoguai were struck by this sort of confusion smoke, they would lose their rationality and obediently be the Suanyu¡¯s prey. During those years, the Suanyu had eaten many great yao by relying on this method. But he had underestimated Fu Li¡¯s abilities. Watching Fu Li fly directly towards him without evading the smoke, the Suanyu inwardly mocked this little yao for being too green and not being aware of the might of the skill he was adept at. However, Fu Li passed through the green smoke without fainting, not did he reveal any signs of confusion. On the contrary, he fished out a fan and fiercely swatted the Suanyu¡¯s face with it, immediately putting the Suanyu in such pain that tears overflowed from his eyes. The Suanyu gave a shrill cry, the sound piercing through the clouds. With a flip of his body, his three ws widened, and he attacked Fu Li ruthlessly. ¡°B-Boss!¡± Chu Yu listened nervously to the movements in the clouds. ¡°Has the f-fight started up there?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s face was calm. He took out an ornament, changed it into a divine sword, and flew into the depths of the clouds. Chu Yu watched the clouds with rm. After less than three seconds of hesitation, he took out his own weapon and rushed ahead as well. Fu Li had saved him from the ws of the painted skin ghost. Now that his benefactor was facing difficulties, he could not remain still despite his fear of death. ¡°Ning Xuan, let¡¯s assist them in the fight,¡± Chao Yun flew up, sword in hand. Ning Xuan, Zhang Ke, and Lin Gui were slightly closer to the area. They nced at one another and rushed up. ¡°Suanyu, Suanyu...¡± The Suanyu¡¯s piercing cries were dripping with yao qi. Its killing intent brought with it a slight breeze that blew straight into everyone¡¯s hearts. The closer they got, the louder and more resounding the strange bird¡¯s cries were, while the fear in everyone¡¯s hearts grew even heavier. Zhuang Qing puffed out a breath and theyers of clouds blocking everyone gradually dispersed. The Suanyu¡¯s enormously ugly body was revealed to everyone. ¡°Suanyu!¡± Before everyone could react, they saw this Suanyu bird shrieking mournfully as its entire body was thrown out by something before it was mercilessly dragged back. Its immense head mmed against its snake tail, producing a loud thumping sound. Chu Yu looked over with rapt attention and saw Fu Li lifting one of the toes on the Suanyu¡¯s ws, tossing it back and forth. This Suanyu... was actually an intable toy, right? Or was their understanding of certain things wed? Fu Li realized that Zhuang Qing and the rest hade over. Thus, he flung the Suanyu towards the clouds and smiled guilelessly. ¡°Fortunately, the Suanyu wasn¡¯t very good at fighting. I¡¯ll be in trouble otherwise.¡± He kicked the Suanyu¡¯s tail. ¡°What matter can¡¯t be discussed nicely? Eating people and yao at the drop of a hat, wanting offerings the moment you open your mouth ¨C this kind of behavior is not good. Which person doesn¡¯t put in effort for their food?¡± In trouble? Everyone looked at the feathers fluttering everywhere and silently put away their favorite magic weapons they had been holding in their hands. T/N: I¡¯ve changed the term of address ¡®Dragon King¡¯ to ¡®Dragon Lord¡¯. This change should be reflected in the earlier chapters. Sorry for the change, I have no idea why I thought it made sense for them to be casually throwing the title of king around >.< Chapter 31 - Good Temper

Chapter 31 - Good Temper

Seeing that everyone was silent, Fu Li looked down at the Suanyu sprawled on the floor ying dead. He beckoned to Zhuang Qing. Everyone simultaneously turned to look at Zhuang Qing, the word ¡®minor¡¯ inadvertently surfacing in their minds. Pretending not to have seen his colleagues¡¯ gazes, Zhuang Qing strode over to Fu Li with his long legs and asked expressionlessly, ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your dragon n lives in the water all year round, so you should be very good at catching fish?¡± ¡°I live in the human world most of the time,¡± Zhuang Qing kept his divine sword. He reached out and caught a feather fluttering in the sky. The feather in his palm very quickly turned into a wisp of ck smoke, vanishing into nothingness. As the fated dragon of the nation, Zhuang Qing possessed virtuous and auspicious qi, and was the nemesis of evil beasts like the Suanyu. ¡°Forget it then,¡± Fu Li looked at the Suanyu¡¯s teary and snot-filled face and turned his head in disgust. With a wave of a hand, all the fluttering feathers gathered in his palm as if they had grown eyes. As Fu Li was stuffing the feathers into a sackcloth bag, he noticed that everyone was still looking at him. He paused. ¡°Can I take these?¡± ¡°Yes yes yes,¡± Everyone nodded in unison. They wouldn¡¯t have any objections even if he said that this Suanyu was his pet, much less him gathering a few feathers. ¡°That¡¯s good then.¡± Fu Li joyfully ced the sackcloth bag into his Qiankun Pouch before turning and speaking to the Suanyu, ¡°Change into your human form, I¡¯ll take you out to eat.¡± The Suanyu¡¯s tail trembled. Tears overflowed from his sixrge eyes as he remained motionless. Fu Li asked, ¡°You can¡¯t change into a human form? Or do you want me to help you?¡± The Suanyu¡¯s body shook and he rolled on the ground, turning into a simple-looking bald man. The wound on his face made him appear a little pitiful. The clothes he was wearing were identical to those on Fu Li. With a plop, he kneeled in front of Fu Li and offered Fu Li a Qiankun Pouch. ¡°King!¡± In the yao world, those who lost to other yao would either have their yao core taken or have to obediently offer up all their treasures and respectfully address the other party as boss. A bad life was better than a good death; for the sake of protecting his little life, the Suanyu was extremely tactful. ¡°What are you kneeling for? It¡¯s not fashionable in this new society to kneel here and there,¡± Fu Li pulled the Suanyu up from the ground. ¡°Got it, boss,¡± The Suanyu obediently stood behind Fu Li, looking exactly like a junior who obeyed whatever his boss said. In the bureau¡¯s staff canteen, the Suanyu sobbed while holding up the rice bowl and digging into the food as if his life depended on it. Everyone in the bureau silently watched this legendary evil yao eat pitifully, suddenly feeling as if the mysterious veil surrounding the ancient great yao had been torn apart. The person in charge of managing their meals was a ghost cultivator. In the past, he was the top chef in the imperial pce¡¯s kitchen. After his death, he became a ghost cultivator through a fortuitous opportunity. He had been with the bureau these few years and was most dissatisfied with the cultivators¡¯ tendency of not eating their meals on time just because they could abstain from food. After several tens of bowls of rice had entered his stomach, the Suanyu looked timidly at Fu Li and put down therge scoop. ¡°Full?¡± Fu Li asked. The Suanyu touched his stomach. ¡°Not as hungry now.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already informed the security department about the Suanyu. He¡¯ll live at the bureau for now.¡± Zhuang Qing asked the Suanyu, ¡°Do you have any objections?¡± The Suanyu ignored him, merely turning to look at Fu Li. Fu Li coughed dryly. ¡°His name is Zhuang Qing. He¡¯s in charge of managing us yao, so you can discuss any concerns you have with him.¡± ¡°Boss Zhuang,¡± The Suanyu turned his face and directed a fawning smile at Zhuang Qing. ¡°As long as the boss has no objections, I¡¯ll listen to anything you say.¡± Everyone: Bootlicker! Shameless! Due to this unexpected incident, the sky was about to turn bright by the time everything was settled. The management bureau provided the five examinees breakfast before informing them to check on the eptance oue five dayster. They needed time to evaluate their exam papers. When Fu Li left, nearly every bureau employer went out to send him off. On behalf of the bureau, Chu Yu gave Fu Li a thick red packet, and even used a mobile application to call a taxi for Fu Li. Fu Li was ecstatic &#k2013; he could finally sit in a real taxi. Without returning home, he directly rushed to work at the hotel, and was even given a fresh, soft, and juicy honey peach by the front-counterdy. As the most popr male security guard in the whole hotel, Fu Li fully experienced everyone¡¯s envy, jealousy, and hate. Zhang Shan nibbled on a dry bun as he snatched half of the peach from Fu Li. ¡°There will be a production teaming to our hotel to film a show today. They¡¯ve rented a luxurious suite on the top floor. The manager arranged for us to go up and guard them. If you meet an artist you liketer, make sure not to get excited.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li nodded. The production team finished decorating the space at half past nine in the morning and prepared tomence filming. Since no media outlet had received the news, their filming progressed very smoothly. The employees of Affinity Moon Hotel had seen all sorts of celebrities and had long since grown ustomed to this. It was only Fu Li who couldn¡¯t quite understand why the actress would break out into exaggerated screeches upon seeing scary creatures. If her fear had reached the pinnacle, then wouldn¡¯t she not even be able to emit a single bit of sound? A short whileter, an actor raced into view in the camera lens. He shielded the female lead, rolling and crawling around on the carpet. He cut an extremely sorry figure. One filmed scer, She Weilong sat along the corridor re-applying his makeup. After seeing Fu Li in a corner, he involuntarily stood up from the chair. The lip gloss drew a long line across the corner of his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Teacher She. I didn¡¯t react quickly enough,¡± Frightened, the makeup artist apologized repeatedly. This She Weilong was very popr recently. He appeared easy to talk to in front of fans but in reality, he was a very high-maintenance male artist. Moreover, he had even more vanity than female artists. ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine,¡± She Weilong wiped it away casually. He walked over to Fu Li and bowed to him. ¡°Senior, you¡¯re working again today?¡± Fu Li: ? If he didn¡¯t work, what was he going to eat? ¡°You must be tired after standing for so long,¡± She Weilong ced his chair in front of Fu Li. ¡°Please sit, please sit.¡± ¡°No need. ording to the hotel employee¡¯s manual, I will be fined if I sit down at this time,¡± Fu Li pointed at the surveince camera. ¡°Continue filming, it¡¯s quite interesting.¡± She Weilong nodded. ¡°Yes yes yes, senior is right. I will definitely film well.¡± Since the most popr artist in the film wanted to continue filming, the director was naturally happy to hasten the speed of filming. The director wasn¡¯t sure if it was just his misconception, but he felt that ever since filming started, She Weilong¡¯s terrified expressions were particrly well done, as if there was truly a homicidal maniac chasing after him. However, apart from the production team, there was only a handsome security guard outside of the range of the camera lens. It seemed it was still his good directing and precise exnations that allowed She Weilong to break out his acting skills. Because of the male lead¡¯s unusually good performance, the scenes that would usually take a day to be filmed ended up beingpleted in half a day. After filming, She Weilong removed his makeup and then went in search of Fu Li. His assistant was somewhat puzzled. ¡°Teacher She, is that security guard a distant rtive of yours? It¡¯s not necessary for you to personally deal with such rtives, you can just hand them over to me.¡± ¡°What distant rtive, that is...¡± She Weilong paused and used a moisturizing spray on his pointed chin. ¡°That isn¡¯t any ordinary security guard.¡± ¡°Could he be a rich second generation who deliberately came to be a security guard so he could experience life?¡± The assistant recalled She Weilong¡¯s politeness and enthusiasm towards the little security guard today and couldn¡¯t help thinking of certainmonly used tropes in television dramas. Given She Weilong¡¯s fawning personality, if he really met with a distant rtive from the countryside, he would probably itch to roll his eyelids till they reached the top of his head. How could he be this cordial? ¡°S-something like that,¡± She Weilong stammered. ¡°He really knows how to have fun,¡± As a poor person, the assistant felt that he truly couldn¡¯t understand the brain circuits of wealthy people. ¡°Fu Li, it¡¯s been hard on you ¨C only managing to eat now,¡± The front-counterdy passed the takeaway to Fu Li. Fu Li handed cash to her with a smile, thanking her, ¡°It¡¯s all right, the production team gave us a red packet.¡± Fu Li carried the boxed meal back to the restroom to eat before continuing to patrol the area he was responsible for. Along the corridor of the sixth floor, he caught sight of a red packet emitting a subtle ominous aura. ¡°Who dropped this red packet?¡± Zhang Shan, who was with Fu Li, was about to stoop and pick it up when he was stopped by Fu Li. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhang Shan was confused. ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with this red packet,¡± Fu Li bent over and picked it up. Upon opening the tiny red packet, he found a ten-dor bill, a talisman folded into a triangle, as well as a rusted de. Zhang Shan sucked in a breath. ¡°Fu Li, this thing looks very strange. Quick, throw it away.¡± ¡°It is indeed a little strange,¡± Fu Li put the ten-dor bill into his pocket and opened up the talisman, ncing at it. ¡°This is called a Transfer Fortune Talisman, though it doesn¡¯t transfer good fortune but misfortune or diseased qi. The implication of cing money and metal inside is that they will be given in exchange for good luck. As long as you pick it up and open it, it¡¯ll represent your willingness to exchange luck with him.¡± ¡°So immoral?¡± Zhang Shan looked at the talisman and metal in Fu Li¡¯s hand, his whole body feeling somewhat numb. ¡°Then what should someone do if they pick it up by ident?¡± ¡°Simple, just wrap the money in red paper and then donate it. It¡¯s best for the donation to be double the amount. Remember, the money must not be ced inside your pocket or wallet,¡± Fu Li tore the talisman to shreds and wrapped the metal in toilet paper, throwing it into the bin. ¡°It¡¯s all right to donate to Daoist temples or charities. Wash your hands clean, stand under the sun for two hours, and there shouldn¡¯t be any major issues.¡± ¡°Then shouldn¡¯t you quickly take leave and donate the money...¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s okay for me to pick it up and spend it,¡± Fu Li patted his pocket. ¡°The witness will have a share as well. I¡¯ll buy two popsiclester after work and give you one.¡± ¡°Fu little Li, those words you said just now was meant to fool me, right?¡± Zhang Shan reached out to grab Fu Li¡¯s shoulder, wanting to snatch the money in his pocket. ¡°What transferring of fortune? You clearly just want to snatch the red packet. Make sure you buy five slices of cake for me, not any less.¡± Fu Li was all smiles as he covered his pocket, preventing Zhang Shan from snatching it. After work, Zhang Shan and Fu Li went to the nearby market and bought two frozen treats to eat before heading to their respective homes. Midway, Zhang Shan saw a tiny packet wrapped in red paper on the ground. For some reason, he recalled Fu Li¡¯s words. After a moment of hesitation, he fished out a few pieces of paper from his pocket and wrapped them around his hands. Stooping over, he picked up the red packet and threw it into the nearby dustbin. He was a good man who wouldn¡¯t bend over for a scant benefit. At the bureau, the Suanyu had finished eating eight bowls of rice and was seated obediently in front of everyone, ready to answer everyone¡¯s questions. ¡°How long have you slept?¡± Lin Gui opened up the form for archiving and started to record his data. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± The Suanyu shook his head. ¡°Before I slept, the n of the king on the ground seemed to have the surname of Ji.¡± ¡°Zhou dynasty?¡± Lin Gui filled in ¡®approximately 3000 years¡¯ on the form. ¡°Why did you suddenly wake up after sleeping for so long?¡± Seated at the side, Chu Yu continued asking, ¡°Were you summoned by something?¡± ¡°What summon?¡± Confusion was written all over the Suanyu¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m a dragon or Fenghuang who needs to show their face every few days and y the role of a mascot. Maybe it¡¯s because I slept too long and got hungry?¡± After finishing his statement, he shot a smile at Zhuang Qing, who was seated at a corner. ¡°I was talking about other dragons, not you.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyelids rose a little. He didn¡¯t speak. ¡°Have you heard of the legend of the yao emperor?¡± Chu Yu continued questioning him. ¡°What is the yao emperor?¡± The Suanyu was at an even greater loss. Did their yao race have such a thing? ¡°It refers to the emperor of your yao race.¡± ¡°What is an emperor of the yao race? Aren¡¯t emperors for humans? What does it have to do with us yao?¡± The Suanyu looked at Chu Yu in bewilderment. He had merely taken a nap, so why was it that after he woke up, he couldn¡¯t understand the words of all these yaoguai? ¡°The term ¡®emperor¡¯ originated from Qin Shihuang,¡± Zhuang Qing shot a nce at Chu Yu and Lin Gui. ¡°Both of you, go back and study the high school history textbook.¡± Chu Yu, Lin Gui, ¡°...¡± Upon confirming that he hadn¡¯t answered wrongly, the Suanyu heaved a sigh of relief. Turning, he asked Zhuang Qing, ¡°You guys want to ask who was the strongest in our yao race at that time?¡± Zhuang Qing raised his chin, indicating for the Suanyu to continue speaking. ¡°There were quite a few well-known fiends at that time,¡± The Suanyu grinned in embarrassment. ¡°I¡¯m not good at fighting, so I never dared to appear before all the great yao. It was said that the Qiongqi, Kunpeng, Taotie, and Taowu, and so on were all quite powerful.¡± ¡°The Qilin, Fenghuang, and dragons weren¡¯t considered powerful?¡± Lin Gui wasn¡¯t very convinced. ¡°They¡¯re divine beasts with innate auspicious qi. They¡¯re different from us fiends,¡± The Suanyu stole a nce at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Several thousand years ago, the Kunpeng even ate dragons. After that, for some unknown reason, all these great yao gradually withdrew from worldly affairs. As someone with little courage who saw that King Qiongqi and Kunpeng weren¡¯ting out, I felt that something wasn¡¯t right, so I simply filled my stomach and went to sleep. Perhaps those great yao would have returned by the time I woke from my sleep.¡± Lin Gui and Chu Yu¡¯s gazes met. In each other¡¯s eyes, they saw a tinge of rm. However, ever since the start of the Zhou dynasty, records of yao had increasingly dwindled. In the early periods, there were still legends of dragons and Fenghuang, but even these decreasedter on. ¡°Don¡¯t doubt me, I¡¯m saying the truth.¡± The Suanyu thought that they weren¡¯t convinced and hurriedly spoke, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s not just the fiends who withdrew from worldly affairs. Even auspicious creatures like the Baize, Qilin, Fenghuang, and Dangkang vanished. With my weakbat ability, how would I have the guts to go out?¡± ¡°Then why did you dare toe out now?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to either. When I woke up, my stomach was growling so badly I couldn¡¯t stand it. Also, there were many people singing and dancing above my head. I don¡¯t know who was singing those songs, but they weren¡¯t tastefully chosen. Their voices were so loud, and they just kept singing those few songs. It was so terrible to listen to that I nearly couldn¡¯t stop myself from turning over,¡± The Suanyu felt a bit aggrieved. ¡°I endured it for almost two months, but couldn¡¯t stand it any longerst night, so I snuck out while it was still dark.¡± Chu Yu, ¡°...¡± So, he was woken up by square dancing? ¡°A mountain-like formation in a park at Sanjin copsedst night. Fortunately, no one was injured,¡± Xu Yuan pushed open the door and walked in with her phone in hand. At a certain corner of an online media outlet, there was indeed a piece of news on the copse of a certain mountain-like formation in a park at Sanjin. But toizens, this sort of news had no appeal at all. There wasn¡¯t even a singlement. An open-air party was held at that park yesterday night. More than ten thousand people had reportedly been at the party. It seemed this Suanyu¡¯s temper was quite good. Despite being disturbed to that extent, he had still endured it tillte at night when there was no one around to crawl out. At this moment, Chu Yu and Lin Gui had some sympathy for him. If the people at this park had encountered the Zhuyan instead of the Suanyu, the consequences would be unthinkable. T/N: I¡¯ve done up a list of mythological creatures! For easy ess, it will be linked on the contents page. Chapter 32 - Face As A Yao Cultivator?

Chapter 32 - Face As A Yao Cultivator?

Just as everyone thought that the questioning wasing to an end, Zhuang Qing abruptly fixed his gaze on the Suanyu. ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± The Suanyu¡¯s entire body stiffened. His gaze was a little evasive. ¡°I-I¡¯m not lying.¡± ¡°What you said might be true, but you left out some of the facts,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over and stood beside the Suanyu. He reached out a hand and tapped the table in front of the Suanyu. The table was made out of real wood, yet it emitted a dull sound upon the rapping of Zhuang Qing¡¯s fingers. The Suanyu stared at Zhuang Qing¡¯s slender fingers, his head dipping even further. ¡°There¡¯s murderous qi on you. Even if you didn¡¯t eat any humans in your earlier years, there is a possibility that you¡¯ve killed other yao,¡± Zhuang Qing circled the Suanyu. The Suanyu unconsciously drew his arms towards his ribs. ¡°But all this urred several thousand years ago, there¡¯s no benefit in pursuing it any further,¡± Zhuang Qing watched the Suanyu secretly heave a sigh of relief before changing the topic. ¡°But a fiend who was worshiped by humans and even recorded in the humans¡¯ ancient texts would not endure human noise underground for so long. What are you apprehensive about?¡± Only then did the bureau¡¯s people see the light. They had been fooled by the Suanyu¡¯s simple and honest appearance. This was a famous fiend who had even been worshiped by humans, how could it have tolerated the humans¡¯ unbridled behavior? Unless, he had misgivings. Were the yaoguai now... all so scary? Subjected to the stares of so many pairs of eyes, the Suanyu shook his head unceasingly. ¡°I can¡¯t say it.¡± ¡°En?¡± Zhuang Qing stretched out a hand, divine sword already in hand. ¡°Speak nicely if you have something to say, how can you break out into violence the moment there¡¯s a disagreement? The Suanyu was already aware that he wasn¡¯t a match for Zhuang Qing. ¡°I can still consider it.¡± Fifteen minutester, the Suanyu who said he would ¡®consider it¡¯ honestly voiced the truth he had concealed. ¡°Heavenlyw doesn¡¯t tolerate the existence of great yao in this world,¡± The Suanyu swallowed. ¡°I once saw with my own eyes a Feiyi suddenly melting under strong sunlight, as well as a great yao who suddenly contracted an incurable disease, causing it to rot. In the end, that great yao suffered till its death. What fiend? What auspicious beast? When the timees, we are merely sacrificial victims of heavenlyw.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it said that a Feiyi would bring about terrible drought? Why would such a great yao fear strong sunlight?¡± A chill wracked Chu Yu¡¯s entire body. Suddenly, he recalled the yao-beating whip Fu Li had lent to the management bureau. ording to senior Fu Li, the yao-beating whip hadnded in his hands because two great yao had died from thunderbolts in the midst of their fight. ¡°I thought of a creature,¡± There was a slight tremble to Xu Yuan¡¯s voice. ¡°Dinosaurs.¡± During the Jurassic period, dinosaurs were the hegemons of the whole world, just like the humans today. Yet now, other than a few fossils that served as proof of their existence, who had ever seen their true appearance? If the ancient yao race ended up as such, then what about them humans... Would they one day tread the same path as the dinosaurs and ancient yao race, vanishing within the long river of history? ¡°What are dinosaurs?¡± The Suanyu looked at Zhuang Qing in confusion. ¡°Rtives of your dragon n?¡± ¡°Our boss doesn¡¯t have such old rtives,¡± Chu Yu patted the records in his hands. ¡°Tell us about the great yao in the past. Are there any great yao who had a pair of wings on its back, a body of golden fur, eyes as big as the moon, a nose like that of a divine ox, feet like red clouds, a body as huge as a mountain, and a hiss that can shake mountains and rivers?¡± ¡°There are many great yao who fit those conditions individually, but for a great yao to have all of them...¡± The Suanyu thought carefully. ¡°Then how ugly would he be?¡± Speechless, Chu Yu rolled his eyes towards the sky. This Suanyu was also quite shameless.When he called others ugly, did he ever think about his own appearance? Didn¡¯t all these ancient great yao have a bit too much confidence in their looks? At the Affinity Moon Hotel, Fu Li changed out of his work attire and was on his way out when he was called to a stop by one of the girls at the front counter. ¡°Fu Li, wait a moment, let¡¯s leave together,¡± The little girl slung her bag over her shoulder and chased after Fu Li. An ambiguous smile appeared on the faces of several workers in the hall. Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. ¡°Our homes are in different directions, how are we going the same way?¡± The little girl¡¯s face turned red. Her fingers clutched the straps of her bag tightly. ¡°I heard from Zhang Shan that you have some knowledge on the supernatural. I¡¯ve been having nightmares very oftentely, and even experienced sleep paralysis. Can you send me home and help me think of a way to resolve it?¡± Fu Li meticulously examined the girl¡¯splexion but didn¡¯t discover any bad luck on her. However, a small number of boys these days didn¡¯t follow good examples and wouldmit bad deeds upon seeing pretty girls. Since it was thiste, it would still be safer for her if he sent her back. Thus, he nodded in agreement. ¡°All right.¡± The little girl heaved a sigh of relief and revealed a brilliant smile. With a distance of two to three steps between them, they walked out of the hotel¡¯s main entrance together. The moon shone brightly in thete August night. The night couldn¡¯t be considered too hot. The little girl stole a look at the good-looking boy beside her and tried very hard to find a conversational topic. ¡°Did you always live in the countryside in the past?¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°This is my first time entering the city.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine even if it¡¯s your first time in the city. You¡¯ll gradually get used to it,¡± The hand clutching the straps of her bag rxed and then tightened again. ¡°Have your family members ever thought about the kind of girlfriend you should look for?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t have family.¡± ¡°S-Sorry,¡± The little girl looked upset. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have spoken to you about such things.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Fu Li felt that humans were very likable. Their bodies were clearly very frail, yet they had a miraculous brain and an adorable spirit. The little girl was silent for a moment before taking out a piece of chocte from her bag. ¡°For you to eat.¡± A slight flush colored her cheeks. The advertisement said that this chocte represented the emotion of love. Would Fu Li understand her intentions? ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li, who practically had zero understanding of the mechanisms behind advertisements, tore open the packaging and swallowed the candy that was so sweet it bordered on greasy. Turning, he saw the little girl¡¯s eyes still fixed on him. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± The little girl tucked her hair behind her ears and pursed her lips into a smile. ¡°I wanted to ask what kind of girl you like.¡± Fu Li felt that he quite liked most humans, but he wasn¡¯t very sure why this human girl would ask such a question so directly. The little girl was a bit disappointed at not receiving an answer from Fu Li. After walking for a distance, they reached her house. She couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Do...do you think I would be suitable as your girlfriend?¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected this human to desire to make love with him. He shook his head, replying, ¡°We¡¯re not suitable.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Tears welled up in the girl¡¯s eyes. She¡¯d had to muster all her courage before daring to say this statement, so the instant she was rejected, the entire world felt like it was crumbling. ¡°We¡¯re just not suitable. I¡¯ve never thought about spending a lifetime with someone,¡± Their life expectancy and age differed too greatly; they wouldn¡¯t be happy together. It was simr to how humans admired butterflies for their beauty but would never fall in love with one. In his eyes, these cute humans were akin to beautiful butterflies. The thought of making love with one had never crossed his mind. ¡°You¡¯re very good. You have cute looks and a kind heart. It¡¯s me who doesn¡¯t want to have sexual rtions.¡± ¡°Did I just receive a good person card?¡± The little girl rubbed her eyes, forcing her tears back. She smiled and chided, ¡°Unless a person is frigid, who wouldn¡¯t have sexual rtions throughout their lifetime? Even if you want to reject me, you have to find a nice-sounding reason.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± He was speaking the truth. ¡°I have a registered residence in the capital and I¡¯m an only child. My family¡¯s houses and cars are all mine. You really won¡¯t consider it?¡± The little girl asked once again. She was already at her baseline. Fu Li continued to shake his head. ¡°How silly are you?¡± The little girl was both angry and amused. ¡°Another boy might have already agreed.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Fu Li recalled the words the female lead in a television drama had said when rejecting a man and decided to put it to practical use. ¡°Because I sell my abilities, not my body.¡± This statement caused the little girl to break out into a smile. ¡°What is this about selling your abilities and not your body, you really are shameless...¡± She had just started speaking when someone behind her called her name. She nced back and saw a wizened, unfamiliar old man who was walking somewhat unnaturally. ¡°Lu Yi.¡± The old man¡¯s footsteps were unsteady, and his tone of voice contained longing and eagerness, as if the little girl was someone very important to him. Only, his ability to walk wasn¡¯t quite there, so he couldn¡¯t chase after her. Seeing the little girl turn her head, the old man revealed a grin. For some reason, the little girl felt that this old man¡¯s smile appeared a little frightening. Moreover, the way he walked bore some resemnce to the baboons at the zoo. A fear difficult to put into words besieged her heart. ¡°Ignore him,¡± Fu Li pulled on the straps of her bag. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back.¡± ¡°O-Okay,¡± The little girl regained her wits and hastened her pace, walking towards her neighborhood. As she entered the entrance to her neighborhood, she nced back. That old man was still calling out to her continuously. The shadow reflected on the road resembled a strange monster who was making threatening gestures. ¡°Fu Li, you better rest at my ce tonight,¡± She lowered her voice. ¡°There¡¯s... something fishy about that old man.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, it¡¯s just an ordinary old man. You can go back,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°I have a strong and sturdy body, why would I be afraid of an old man who can¡¯t even walk steadily? But...¡± He wiped the shoulder strap of the girl¡¯s bag. ¡°If someone calls your namete at night or in the early morning, don¡¯t be too quick to respond.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± The little girl wanted to say something but hesitated. Thinking that Fu Li didn¡¯t want to get too close to her, she could only enter her neighborhood dejectedly. After walking a distance, she gazed in the direction of the area outside the gate. Both Fu Li and that strange old man were no longer around. Fu Li walked in front while the staggering old man followed him at a moderate distance away. His not-too-quick legs didn¡¯t seem to affect the speed at which he advanced. When Fu Li reached an area without people, he came to a halt and turned to look at the old man who had followed him over. The old man approached him bit by bit. His huge lips made up almost one-third of his entire face. Strands of saliva hung at the corner of his mouth, giving off a faint fishy stench. All of a sudden, the old man¡¯s mouth gaped open. He rose steeply from the ground and lunged at Fu Li¡¯s throat. Fu Li dodged, turned, and thrust out a palm. The old man mmed into the wall andnded on the ground, turning into a ck-furred monkey. The monkey crawled up in an attempt to escape, but Fu Li stepped on its tail and picked it up. ¡°Mountain Imp?¡± Fu Li shook the extremely ugly monkey in his hands. ¡°What did a mountain-dwelling yaoguai like you run out for?¡± Kacha. There was movement on the wall. Fu Li looked up and saw someone lying on top of the wall. The two people¡¯s gazes met, and Fu Li lifted the ugly monkey in his hands a little higher. ¡°You wanted to catch this thing?¡± Ning Xuan leapt off the wall, trussed up the babbling ugly monkey, and then thanked Fu Li. ¡°No need for thanks, are the results of your recruitment out yet?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t stand the smell of the Mountain Imp¡¯s fur, so he used a purification skill on himself and even cordially purified Ning Xuan¡¯s hand. ¡°We¡¯re still evaluating the examination papers. The recruitment this time ces a lot of emphasis onbat results, so given your cultivation, you¡¯ll be epted as long as the results of your written exam aren¡¯t too poor,¡± Ning Xuan stuffed the Mountain Imp into a sack. ¡°This Mountain Imp moves especially quickly; I¡¯ve been chasing after it since yesterday. Fortunately, he was blind today and coincidentally ran into senior.¡± As someone whose original form was a sword, Ning Xuan had an innate reverence for great yao with highbat ability. Therefore, he forcibly dragged Fu Li to eat grilled skewers and then took a picture together before contentedly bidding goodbye to Fu Li. While Ning Xuan and Fu Li were blissfully eating grilled skewers, the bureau employees who were in charge of evaluating the exam papers were about to go crazy. Yao cultivators in the cultivation world paid very little attention to cultural lessons. The majority of their answers to the exam questions were in a mess, filled with incorrectly written characters. Huang Can took a sip of concentrated tea and continued to thumb through the next exam paper. The answers written on it were so wrong he didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry. What should one do if they encountered evil qi? The correct answer was to sit and meditate, yet ¡®wear jade from Mountain Mi¡¯ was written on this paper. What kind of thing was jade from Mountain Mi? This examinee probably had a simr ailment as Ning Xuan and liked to read those messy Xuanhuan novels. What should a yao cultivator do if they were unable to expel a highly toxic poison? The correct answer was to invite someone with profound cultivation to clear their meridians; the poison could be expelled by circting spiritual qi borrowed from them. However, ording to the paper, the answer was to... consume either a mouse¡¯s ear or Yansuan grass. So, this examinee wasn¡¯t here to take an exam but to make fun of them? This paper¡¯s answers to questions on handling certain emergency situations in the human world wasn¡¯t too unreasonable. But other than those, any answer to a question rted to the cultivation worldcked suchmon sense that it would put one betweenughter and tears. After reading through this exam paper, his spirits lightened. ¡°Old Huang, what are youughing about?¡± The colleague beside him saw Huang Canughing unceasingly. ¡°Did you find a once-in-a-millennium genius?¡± ¡°Not a genius, but a lover of novels,¡± Huang Can passed him the exam paper. ¡°The little yao today really have no ambition. Not only are their answers all over the ce, they even have an abundance of imagination.¡± The colleague finished looking through it andughed along with him. The colleaguemented, ¡°During the times we cultivated to take on a human form, who didn¡¯t conceal themselves for fear of being caught by the Buddhist monks or Daoist priests and losing their lives? Unlike the yao cultivators these days who be inte celebrities, great stars or whatnot. If our management bureau didn¡¯t have rules, there might even be people who earn a living by being a sports celebrity.¡± The Buddhist and Daoist cultivators in the room raised their eyebrows one after another. ¡°I¡¯m talking about the past, the past! This is a historical legacy and has nothing to do with everyone, please don¡¯t misunderstand,¡± The colleague hurriedly waved his hands, indicating his innocence. The Buddhist and Daoist cultivators continued evaluating the exam papers with lowered heads, though with pricked ears. ¡°The little yao lead such good lives now. As long as they have intelligence, the Yao Union will protect them. If they can cultivate a human form and aren¡¯t evil, they can receive the good yao identification and a human identity card. As long as they don¡¯t break thews, they can live their daily lives in a carefree manner,¡± The colleague shook his head as he handed the exam paper back to Huang Can. ¡°How long has it been? Yet they¡¯ve already forgotten the skills to survive.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that why it¡¯s important for the management bureau and the Yao Union to exist?¡± Huang Can was quite open-minded. ¡°It isn¡¯t an easy thing for the cultivation world to have the current peaceful days. Everything is fated. There is no basis for envy.¡± Saying this, he drew a fewrge crosses on the exam paper and wrote the number 28 in the box for the total score. He had originally wanted to award some points for handwriting and help this examinee to get a round figure. However, the characters were simply too ugly ¨C he had no way of going against his conscience to give out those two marks. Two dayster when the eptance list was ced in front of Zhuang Qing, Zhuang Qing asked one question after ncing at it, ¡°Why is Fu Li not on it?¡± Fu Li was number one in thebat test, so why had he failed to enter even the top ten? ¡°Maybe... he scored too badly in the written exam?¡± Xu Yuan also hadn¡¯t expected Fu Li to fail to make it to thest round. This was truly tooical. Two hourster, Zhuang Qing found Fu Li¡¯s paper among a pile of sealed papers. Upon seeing the total score on the paper, Zhuang Qing was silent. With such ugly handwriting that people couldn¡¯t even look straight at, as well as this kind of exam results, how did Fu Li have the confidence to participate in the university entrance exam and civil servant exam? By relying on illegal confusion methods? At this instant, Zhuang Qing finally believed that Fu Li truly was a countryside yao who hadn¡¯t seen the world. He had lived to a ripe old age of 4000, yet he couldn¡¯t even write well. Did he still want face as a yao cultivator? Chapter 33 - Where Did You Live?

Chapter 33 - Where Did You Live?

Fu Li¡¯s handwriting was as stiff as a child who had just learnt to write ¨C when put together, every stroke just barely managed to form aplete word. It could be said that there was no sense of aesthetics. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze swept across one of the answers to the questions. He was left stunned. Question: How should one increase their cultivation? Answer: Listen to your heart. Breathe in Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi. Pray to the moon. Absorb the essence of moonlight. Take in the vitality of the Four Seas. There was a huge discrepancy between this answer and the current cultivation methods. However, Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t draw his gaze away from the phrase ¡®breathe in Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi¡¯. A few hundred years ago, using the identity of a human, he had taken on an official¡¯s post in the imperial court. Due to this, he was able to get close to the archive of books and found many unpublicized ancient texts. Many books were badly damaged and made oundish, illegal ims, but certain supernatural stories had indeed been recorded in these books. For example, the story of nine-tailed foxes praying to the moon, nts transforming into yao by absorbing the essence of moonlight, bird yao transforming into their human forms during a full moon, and other such sayings. At that time, he felt that these sayings were thought up by human schrs. Yet for some reason, he had always kept them in his heart. Now that he suddenly glimpsed a simr saying written on Fu Li¡¯s exam paper, besides astonishment, he also felt that these methods might truly be the way the ancient yao cultivated. The cultivation methods of that time appeared simple and crude, but embodied reverence towards nature. Strategies made up a greater proportion of modern cultivation methods, so the influence of nature on cultivation naturally decreased as well. As the times progressed, yao and humans also gradually reduced their dependency and reverence towards nature. It was unknown if this was good or bad. ¡°Boss, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Chu Yu and Xu Yuan had also apanied Zhuang Qing to search for the exam paper. Seeing Zhuang Qing¡¯s grave expression, Chu Yu thought that he was angered by his benefactor¡¯s written exam results. Thus, he spoke up, ¡°Benefactor might have been cut off from the world for too long. This... his poor results are pardonable.¡± Zhuang Qing ignored him. He took out his handphone and dialed Fu Li¡¯s number. Fu Li was currently studying. Even after hearing the phone¡¯s ringtone, he didn¡¯t have much of a reaction. This was because it hadn¡¯t rung ever since its purchase. Only after staring at the handphone for more than ten seconds did he answer the phone. ¡°Mr Fu,¡± Zhuang Qing ced the exam paper on the desk after Fu Li picked up. ¡°I would like to consult Mr Fu on some things, do you happen to be free at the moment?¡± Fu Li nced at the half-memorized in his hands. ¡°I¡¯m studying now.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll only take up a few hours of your time. I¡¯ll drive over and pick you up,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice softened a little. ¡°Is that okay?¡± Hearing the other party¡¯s softer tone, Fu Li recalled that the other party was merely an underaged, parentless dragon. Unable to utter words of rejection again, Fu Li could only nod and reply, ¡°All right.¡± On the other end of the call, Xu Yuan and Chu Yu looked at Zhuang Qing in shock. What was up with the boss today? He was actually willing to take the initiative to pick someone up, did his heart no longer ache from the petrol cost of a round trip? ¡°Many thanks,¡± Zhuang Qing hung up. Noticing his two colleagues staring at him, he handed Fu Li¡¯s exam paper to Chu Yu. ¡°Put this in my office.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Chu Yu nodded. Had his benefactor¡¯s answers taken the boss¡¯ breath away? ¡°Mouse¡¯s ear?¡± Xu Yuan¡¯s gaze casually swept over it. Seeing those two words on the paper, she spoke without much thought, ¡°I remember that it was recorded in an ancient text that eating the meat of a mouse¡¯s ear can confer immunity to a hundred poisons. It¡¯s just a pity that after so many years, mice ears that possess such miraculous effects have long vanished.¡± Chu Yu looked at the answer and couldn¡¯t help sighing with emotion. This was probably the gap in knowledge between the ancient great yao and the new age of yaoguai? One hourter, Fu Li was seated in a small meeting room in the management bureau. The bureau¡¯s elite were also present. Zhuang Qing handed Fu Li¡¯s exam paper to him. Fu Li took it and nced at it, asking in puzzlement, ¡°Why do I only have 28 marks?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Huang Can. Huang Can stroked his beard andughed awkwardly. If he had known that the paper was senior Fu Li¡¯s, he would have given a round figure even if he had to have a guilty conscience. For many of the questions he had been marked wrong, Fu Li didn¡¯t feel that he had answered incorrectly. He looked at everyone in suspicion. ¡°I heard them say that people will go through the back door for certain exams nowadays. Have you guys already decided on the candidates internally, and deliberately gave me a low score because mybat test results were good?¡± Everyone: How much confidence did he have to say such words out loud? As the person responsible for grading the exam paper, Huang Can made a supreme effort to conceal his nervousness, inwardly telling himself that he could never let Fu Li know that he was the person who had given him the grade. Just think about how Fu Li had flung that Suanyu about like it was a toy, what more a Siberian weasel like himself? ¡°You¡¯re thinking too much. It¡¯s not our intention to give you a low score. It¡¯s just that your answers aren¡¯t consistent with the current knowledge in the cultivation world,¡± There was no change in Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression. After inviting Fu Li to take a sit, he continued speaking, ¡°I¡¯ve lived for 1900 years, yet I¡¯ve never seen the essence of moonlight or Yansuan grass, so I¡¯m unaware that they have such miraculous effects.¡± ¡°Essence of moonlight is a rare thing thates by only once in a thousand years, it¡¯s normal to not have seen it. But Yansuan grass is verymonly seen, how can you guys not have it?¡± Fu Li took the exam paper and pointed at his answer. ¡°All the yao cultivators nowadays like to ck off. It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t pray to the moon, but how can you have the nerve to say that my answer is wrong?¡± ¡°Praying to the moon isn¡¯t of any use,¡± Ning Xuan who was fond of reading cultivation novels said in a low voice. ¡°I¡¯ve tried it.¡± ¡°Then the way you did it must have been wrong. It will only work if you meditate after praying on the night of a full moon,¡± Fu Li said seriously. ¡°If it can be done so simply, why would we still cultivate?¡± Ning Xuan abruptly understood. Nodding repeatedly, he fished out a small book and noted this down. ¡°Ai, all you yao these days don¡¯t know anything,¡± Fu Li sighed helplessly. ¡°What exactly are your seniors doing, why didn¡¯t they tell you anything?¡± They werepletely unlike that white ape on his mountain who constantly jabbered on every day about everything under the sun. If there was something he couldn¡¯t remember, the ape would nag him about it yet another time. Huang Can felt that these words were somewhat familiar. They seemed to have uttered simr words while marking the paper. ¡°As for the Yansuan grass...¡± Fu Li dug around in his Qiankun pouch before pulling out a long and slightly strange-looking nt. The dry branch was square-shaped, and there were even small yellow flowers between its leaves. What was most mystical was that despite the number of years the flowers had been in his Qiankun pouch, when Fu Li took it out, it seemed as if it had just been plucked from the earth. ¡°I¡¯ll gift these to you.¡± The yao nowadays didn¡¯t have it easy. They hadn¡¯t even tasted any good things, no wonder their cultivation was so low. Did the Yansuan grass capable of detoxifying a hundred poisons look like this? Everyone looked at the strange nt on the table with wide eyes. No, wasn¡¯t the main point the fact that such a precious medicinal herb had been flung onto the table as if it were a weed? ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li observed their shocked expressions as they stared at the table. Thinking that they were worried about there being too little of the medicinal herb to go around, he took out yet another handful of it. ¡°Take these and distribute them amongst yourselves. Come find me for more when you¡¯ve eaten all of them.¡± ¡°Their cultivation isn¡¯t high enough yet, my concern is that they¡¯ll attract trouble if they bring this sort of rare medicinal herb out,¡± Zhuang Qing collected all the Yansuan grass and gave each member a few leaves, only leaving a few for the other bureau employees. ¡°Finish those first. It¡¯s still better for the rest to be ced with you, you can give more to them when they need it.¡± Zhuang Qing shifted his gaze away from the Yansuan grass and stuffed them back into Fu Li¡¯s hands with clenched teeth. Fu Li wanted to say that they weren¡¯t rare items and that he had a huge pile of it. However, the current era was different. Since Zhuang Qing said so, there was definitely a reason for it. With these thoughts, he stuffed the Yansuan grass back into his pouch. Xu Yuan silently stuffed the leaf into her mouth and realized that despite the nt¡¯s strange appearance, the taste was a pleasant meld of sweet and sour. Upon entering her tummy, her body seemed to loosen up; the effects were profound and significant. Aftering back to her senses, she stood up and bowed deeply to Fu Li. ¡°Many thanks, senior.¡± The rest also followed after her to thank Fu Li, especially Huang Can, whose face was so flushed that it could be taken as a redntern. ¡°Such a minor thing isn¡¯t worthy of thanks,¡± Fu Li shifted their discussion back to their original topic. ¡°I didn¡¯t answer this question wrongly, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right,¡± Huang Can nodded again and again. Even if Fu Li were to say that the earth wasn¡¯t round and that the sky was round and the ground t, he would simply nod and agree. This round of yao face-pping came both quickly and viciously. The shame was so great that he was on the brink of bing a red-furred weasel. Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing from the corner of his eyes. Zhuang Qing took out a red pen from a pen holder and added the marks from the two questions to his score. Afterwards, the people from the management bureau watched on nkly as Fu Li took out oddity after oddity to prove that his answers were correct, and it was them who simply didn¡¯t have these items. By the end of it all, everyone was looking at Fu Li with admiration. With so many good things, why did he need to be a bureau employee or security guard? Just casually selling something to the Pill Refinement Sect would be enough to make him a rich and powerful person in the yao world. ¡°Benefactor, did the yao cultivators in the past all have such good things?¡± Chu Yu secretly regretted not being born a few thousand years earlier. That was and brimming with good stuff, a glorious time when divine spiritual grass was as plentiful as dogs. ¡°Probably,¡± Fu Li put item after item back into his pouch. ¡°Everybody on our mountain was an unknown little yao, yet we didn¡¯tck these things. What more of the great yao outside?¡± ¡°No,¡± Xu Yuan couldn¡¯t help saying. ¡°How do you distinguish between ¡®great yao¡¯ and ¡®little yao¡¯?¡± Great yao like the Zhuyan and Suanyu also fell to him, so she couldn¡¯t help but suspect that Fu Li had some misunderstanding of the word ¡®little¡¯. ¡°The original forms of great yao are extremely menacing. In addition, they were created by Heaven and Earth, and possess iparable divine power since their birth,¡± Fu Li smiled with embarrassment. ¡°Their original forms are all majestic and awe-inspiring, unlike us who don¡¯t look very pleasing to the eye.¡± ¡°Then your...¡± Xu Yuan nearly inquired about Fu Li¡¯s original form. Fortunately, she recalled that this was an extremely taboo matter and hurriedly suppressed it. ¡°Innate power is merely a momentary thing. Someone such as yourself would be called a brilliant younger generation who surpassed his seniors. You should be given the respected title of ¡®great yao¡¯.¡± A subtle awkwardness appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face, as if he was embarrassed to bring up the status of the past him. ¡°Let¡¯s continue talking about the exam paper.¡± Seeing Fu Li¡¯s manner, everyone instantly had a clear understanding. It seemed this senior was truly a very ordinary yao cultivator and was even the type with a very unremarkable original form. This was why he was so awkward when they raised the matter of his original form. Everyone exchanged looks. In the future, they absolutely could not mention anything rted to original forms in front of Fu Li, so as to avoid putting the other party on the spot. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back,¡± Seeing the awkward expression on Fu Li¡¯s face, Zhuang Qing stood up. ¡°About the exam paper, ourck of knowledge has inconvenienced you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t me all of you. This is what those humans often term as...¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression became a bit more natural. ¡°Generation gap? Is that the term?¡± Zhuang Qing turned and looked at the others. Everyone else nodded repeatedly. ¡°Yes yes yes. Your words make a lot of sense.¡± Fu Li revealed a smile. ¡°Humans really are very interesting. The words they create contain a lot of meaning.¡± The human cultivators present: I-It¡¯s our honor? As Zhuang Qing drove out of the bureau, he casually asked, ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten lunch, right? I¡¯ll treat you?¡± ¡°Okay, thank you,¡± Fu Li nodded. Zhuang Qing squeezed out a stiff smile. ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± He forgot that this was an older yao who didn¡¯t seem to understand human words of courtesy. There were two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, as well as a bowl of kelp soup that the restaurant had given them free of charge. There were several pieces of thinly cut kelp littered sparsely throughout the extremely clear soup that gave off steam. Fu Li caught sight of a pickled vegetable fish dish that a neighboring table had ordered. The smell was extremely enticing. He nced at the fish and then nced at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing clutched the menu tightly and remained silent for half a minute before beckoning to thedy boss of the restaurant and adding a small portion of pickled vegetable fish. Although Fu Li professed to be a yao cultivator who had been in deep sleep for nearly two thousand years, he ate in a very sophisticated manner, somewhat like a child of noble lineage. Although, the speed at which he ate wasn¡¯t slow at all. After their meal, the two people walked out and had just reached the carpark when a young fellow suddenly scuttled out from the corner and grabbed a hold of Fu Li¡¯s sleeve, refusing to let go of it. ¡°Big brother, boss!¡± Zhou Chang gripped tightly onto Fu Li, fearing that Fu Li would escape the moment he rxed his grip. ¡°This little brother was blind and didn¡¯t understand that you were an able person. Don¡¯t lower yourself to my level.¡± He stuck a hand into his pocket and fished out a check. ¡°Don¡¯t leave, I must thank you.¡± Zhou Chang had been searching for Fu Li for a very long time to no avail. The fact that they were able to run into each other despite the size of the capital indicated that they were brought together by fate. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you,¡± Fu Li took a few looks at Zhou Chang and recalled that this person had once said his medicine was fake. ¡°There isn¡¯t any issue with my medicine, right?¡± ¡°No problem, no problem at all!¡± Zhou Chang released his grip. He filled in a check for two million and stuffed it at Fu Li. ¡°This is a tiny token of appreciation for you. If I offended you in the past, please just treat me as a fart that you released on a whim.¡± Ever since he invited someone to appraise the effectiveness of the ginseng and brought it back home for his family members to eat, his entire family¡¯s health had improved considerably. His mother had said that eating the medicine he brought back was even more effective than beautifying herself a hundred times, praising him on a daily basis for his ability to handle affairs. The recent treatment he had received at home was almost equivalent to that of the two years after his birth. ¡°Big brother, where are you going now, I¡¯ll send you there,¡± In Zhou Chang¡¯s eyes, the Fu Li at this time was a golden doll that gave off a lofty radiance. Apart from him, no other person or creature existed. ¡°No need for that,¡± The ignored Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone of voice was t. ¡°We drove here.¡± ¡°Ah, is this handsome brother a friend of big brother?¡± Zhou Chang observed Zhuang Qing¡¯s imposing and dignified manner, as well as the exquisite clothes he was wearing, and knew that he couldn¡¯t offend such a person. Thus, he retreated and made another plea, ¡°Big brother, can you give me a way to contact you? When you¡¯re free, I¡¯ll definitely express my gratitude to you.¡± Fu Li turned and asked Zhuang Qing. ¡°What¡¯s my handphone number?¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t used your handphone?¡± The tip of Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows raised slightly. Fu Li nodded. Resigned, Zhuang Qing took out his handphone as hemented, ¡°Even if you don¡¯t use the call time given to you every month, it won¡¯t be brought over to the next month.¡± Wasn¡¯t this making it too cheap for the operationspany? Zhuang Qing found Fu Li¡¯s handphone number and swiftly recited it. Zhou Chang held his handphone and asked cautiously, ¡°Can you repeat it once more?¡± Zhuang Qing lifted up his eyelids and stared at him. Zhou Chang stammered, ¡°It¡¯s n-not your fault, it¡¯s my brain that¡¯s poor.¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his eyelids and recited it again at a slightly slower pace. After Zhou Chang was sent off, Zhuang Qing led Fu Li back into the car. The car was driven a distance in silence. When they were at a red light, Zhuang Qing asked, ¡°If I could be so bold as to ask you a question?¡± Fu Li turned his head, looking at him. ¡°Two thousand years ago, which mountain did you live on?¡± Chapter 34 - Processes

Chapter 34 - Processes

¡°The mountain we lived on wascking in spiritual qi and didn¡¯t have much fame. Whenever our mountain¡¯s little yao went out, they¡¯ll im to be from Weishui. That way, they¡¯ll have a bit more face,¡± Fu Li felt somewhat embarrassed upon recalling the lie they had told those years for the sake of bragging. ¡°All you modern yao may not quite understand how much importance the yao cultivators in the past ced on one¡¯s birth, how good one¡¯s followers were, how famous one¡¯s mountain was, and whether one was revered by countless evil yao. If one really didn¡¯t have all these things, then it was still good to link oneself to famous mountains or rivers.¡± Speaking about the difficult conditions of his past in front of a younger generation caused Fu Li¡¯s face to turn slightly red. ¡°Our cave dwellings were located at Weishui¡¯s river basin. The tall mountains and steep paths there meant that the area was usually deste, so we never received any offerings from humans.¡± As he spoke about not receiving any offerings from humans, Fu Li¡¯s face turned so red that blood was on the verge of dripping off it. ¡°Although that was the case, there were many little yao on the mountain, and no one felt that we were poor. The mountain we stayed on didn¡¯t have a name, but the mountain was wrapped in clouds and mist all year round, so we named it Reflecting Mist Mountain. The White Ape said that this name will make our mountain appear a bit more mysterious.¡± Zhuang Qing thought, who would have expected the yaoguai several thousand years ago to have already started paying attention to style? However, he indeed hadn¡¯t heard of the name ¡®Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯. Nor had this name ever appeared in the ancient texts he had read. ¡°But more than half of the mountain was destroyed a very long time ago due to an incident,¡± At this point, the gaze Fu Li directed at Zhuang Qing was somewhat profound, seemingly containing a subtle race-based dislike and loathing. ¡°By the time I woke up, the mountain was destroyed and the yao had perished. My pastpanions had all vanished.¡± Not expecting him to have such a bitter past, Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t bear to continue probing. He couldn¡¯t imagine how angry and sad he would be if everything he once had was gone after waking from sleep. ¡°I mustered my courage to ask a yao from the neighboring mountain, and only then found out what exactly had happened.¡± It had been two thousand years since that incident. Fu Li seemed to havee to terms with his past, yet also seemed to have never walked out from it. This was why he continued to call himself ¡®little yao of Weishui¡¯ ¨C what all the little yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain called themselves ¨C even till this day, as if doing so would safeguard his territory and mountain, symbolizing that Reflecting Mist Mountain had not been wiped out. ¡°The yao cultivator said that the azure dragon n was romping around Weishui, causing countless farmers within the radius of a few hundred kilometers to drown. Our Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s yao cultivators can¡¯t bear to see people suffer, and thus went forward to stop them. In the end, even the skeletons of the dead did not survive.¡± Fu Li¡¯s voice was so tranquil that it bordered on unreal. ¡°In the entire Reflecting Mist Mountain, only me, the little yao personally raised by them to adulthood, had slept through it and survived.¡± ¡°I apologize, I shouldn¡¯t have asked you about the past...¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly remembered that the Zhuyan had also mentioned such an incident. Only, the Zhuyan had talked about another incident ¨C that the azure dragons who created trouble at Weishui had enraged the yao emperor. In the end, some died, and others were injured; they hadn¡¯t had a good end either. Zhuang Qing hastily braked to a stop at the roadside. ¡°Then do you know who killed those few azure dragons?¡± Fu Li was awoken from his memories. ¡°Oh, it was me.¡± His tone was too serene, so serene that it seemed as if he was merely purchasing a piece of streaky pork at the food market. ¡°It was you who did that?!¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li, looking as if he had found history¡¯s greatest Godzi. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were on bad terms with the dragon n? Why still so shocked?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. ¡°When I went, those azure dragons all had broken horns and injured limbs. Some of them even had their scales plucked out and were floating on the surface of Weishui, unable to move. They were already in such wretched states, yet they still didn¡¯t forget to mock me for being a furry domesticated animal. My deep animosity towards them naturally meant that I felt no shame in hitting them while they were down. I killed some, wounded some, and then hurriedly fled before your dragon race¡¯s reinforcements arrived.¡± ¡°So what if I have fur?¡± Fu Li snorted coldly. ¡°Those with no fur are the ugly ones.¡± ¡°I can only be counted as half a dragon. There¡¯s human blood running through my veins too,¡± At this time, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t have the slightest intention of helping to redeem the dragon n. He specially mentioned his human blood to let Fu Li believe that he wasn¡¯t the same as those deranged azure dragons. But after listening to Fu Li¡¯s words, Zhuang Qing could be certain that the yao emperor the Zhuyan had spoken of had no link to Fu Li. At best, Fu Li could be considered someone who had a stroke of luck. Anyone with some brains would understand that there was no way a yao emperor capable of stirring up wind and rain would diligently study to enter university for the sake of bing a civil servant. Even the most ridiculous dramas didn¡¯t have the nerve to spin such a plot. If a yaoguai like Fu Li could be the yao emperor, then the entire yao race would probably have gone extinct two thousand years ago. Even then, the azure dragon n would still be the cause of the destruction. ¡°When I woke up three years ago, I went to take a look at the mountain I once lived on. That mountain had already nearly fused with the mountain beside it. There were even humans selling tourists tickets to view the neighboring mountain ranges,¡± Fu Li recalled the grand asion on that day and swallowed his saliva. ¡°At that time, the whole mountain was packed with people. I had never seen so many humans in the many years I¡¯d lived and was so scared that I quickly concealed myself and came back to hide.¡± Zhuang Qing thought to himself, he had probably encountered the peak period for tourists. ¡°What was the name of the mountain?¡± Zhuang Qing felt like his brain must have been submerged in water for him to have asked such a boring question. He started the car and slowly drove forward. ¡°I don¡¯t know what it was called in the past, but you humans seem to call it Qinling now.¡± Zhuang Qing, someone who had been navigating the human world for 1900 years and had mastered all six of the noble arts, finally had his first car ident in the entirety of his dragon life. He had knocked into a streemp. Zhongnan Mountain made up a part of Qinling, while it was hypothesized by many people that Qinling had been termed Kunlun Mountain many years ago. Many supernatural sayings in thend of China had originated from Kunlun. As for the current Kunlun Mountain on maps and books, it was possible that it had no rtion to the Kunlun Mountain in the supernatural sayings. This was because the legends surrounding Kunlun Mountain had broken off abruptly during a certain era. Perhaps the mountain had already vanished, or perhaps it was hidden in a location undiscoverable to the living. Zhuang Qing nced towards the boot of the car. The gem embedded in the car roof hadn¡¯t fallen off, good. He called the insurancepany and the traffic police before turning and speaking to Fu Li, ¡°You were actually born on Kunlun Mountain?¡± ¡°Kunlun isn¡¯t located in the western part of our country, what link does it have to me? Moreover, just because I lived there doesn¡¯t mean that it was my birthce,¡± Fu Li was a little doubtful whether Zhuang Qing was truly a dragon who had been a great government official in the imperial court. Why was it that he didn¡¯t even know this little bit of geographical knowledge? After all that talking, a spoilt car, and him asking a bunch of nonsensical questions, Fu Li was just a stupid four-thousand-year-old yao who didn¡¯t even know the name of the mountain he had lived on. Zhuang Qing unbuckled his seatbelt, nearly angered intoughter. ¡°Luckily you didn¡¯t leave the mountain in the past, otherwise you would even help the people who¡¯d sell you.¡± Seeing that Zhuang Qing was unhappy once again, Fu Li shook his head. That lousy temper of his really wasn¡¯t charming.Besides, his original body wasn¡¯t valuable, who would buy it? His conversation with Zhuang Qing ended with a minor car ident. Fu Li still needed to rush to work in the afternoon, so he left Zhuang Qing at the scene of the car ident and jogged to squeeze into public transport. Zhuang Qing stood on the spot and watched Fu Li¡¯s tiny body sessfully make it onto the public vehicle while mped between various elderly men and women with herculean strength. He looked back at his own car and stood foolishly at the spot for a long time beforeing back to his senses. His heart started to ache for his car. He had probably been angered by Fu Li into stupidity. There should not have been many people taking the bus at this time, but Fu Li happened to have just barely managed to squeeze onto this one, so there were quite a few people on board. The passengers¡¯ expressions were cold and apathetic. Some who saw the elderly boarding leaned their heads against the window and went to sleep. The elderly¡¯s gazes swept across the bus, fixing unrelentingly onto youngdies who were seated. These youngdies had thin skin and thus gave up their seats to them. Some received a grateful word of thanks, while others only received silence. ¡°Little girl,¡± An elderly woman who had snatched a seat suddenly beckoned towards a youngdy. ¡°Come, sit.¡± Fu Li remembered that it was this elderly woman whose movements were the fastest and whose feet were the most stable when they were boarding the vehicle. By relying on her sturdy physique, she managed to snatch the only seat on the vehicle. He turned and looked towards the youngdy the elderly woman had called out to. Herplexion was pale, and she was covering her tummy as if in difort. ¡°Thank you,¡± The youngdy uttered a soft word of thanks. She was bent over at the waist, resembling a shrimp that had just been taken off the grill. ¡°No worries, no worries,¡± The elderly woman¡¯s voice was very loud. The moment she spoke, the entire vehicle could hear her voice. Herplexion was ruddy, and her smiling, plump face wasn¡¯t particrly good looking. She prevented any other elderly person from nearing the youngdy¡¯s seat till the youngdy alighted. This was why Fu Li constantly failed to understand humans. There were times when they were selfish and refused to let go of even the smallest advantage, but they also had moments of kindness when they were willing to lend a helping hand to strangers. They were not like yao cultivators who were eitherpletely evil orpletely kind. There had never been a fiend who was benevolent, nor had there ever been a divine beast who had engaged in wanton ughter. This was because Heaven had already determined their character and fate at birth. Only humans were capable of having different emotions, oveing their biological instincts, and aplishing many things that seemed impossible. Many of the hotel employees didn¡¯t like doing night shifts. To Fu Li, there was no difference in the time he went to work. The night shift was also much more rxedpared to the day shift. As long as no one in the rooms called for service, he could sit in the restroom and quietly read books save for the need to patrol once every hour. The night shift today was no different from the previous days ¨C nothing special had happened. He was holding onto a geography textbook and reading it with keen interest. It turned out that there were so many countries in the world and so many interesting ces. When he went on vacation, he had to visit all these different ces. Zhang Shan walked into the restroom. Seeing Fu Li reading once again, he couldn¡¯t help yawning. ¡°It¡¯s the middle of the night, why are you reading again? Aren¡¯t you sleepy?¡± ¡°Slept for too long, so I¡¯m not sleepy,¡± Fu Li replied. ¡°This book is quite interesting.¡± ¡°Someone who could call a geography textbook interesting probably has an obsession with studying,¡± Zhang Shan fished out his handphone and put on earphones. ¡°Little Fu, I¡¯m not being naggy. You can read at any time; it¡¯s already the middle of the night, let your eyes rest for a while. No matter how handsome the man, having four eyes will reduce their good looks to some degree.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, my eyesight has always been the same.¡± Fu Li watched Zhang Shan y with his handphone and asked curiously, ¡°Are handphones so fun?¡± ¡°Of course they¡¯re fun. A life without a handphone is no different from being a salted fish,¡± Zhang Shan walked over to Fu Li and held out his handphone to him. ¡°During the past two days, a super glutton appeared on the inte. When he livestreams, he eats a huge pile of food, and even eats all of it with relish.¡± Fu Li looked at the bald man in the video. ¡°...¡± Wasn¡¯t this the Suanyu? ¡°He¡¯s streaming live even in the middle of the night?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t resist asking. ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s strange?¡± ¡°What part of it is strange? The super gluttons nowadays livestream a lot. Although it¡¯s obvious in thetter half that the other super gluttons are struggling to hold on, this brother is a talent who can eat with gusto from start to end. Watching him eat makes me hungry as well.¡± Of course he could eat with gusto. It was said that the Suanyu had eaten a hundred cows and hundred sheep in one mouth in those days. Just this pile of food wasn¡¯t even enough to fill the cracks in his teeth. ¡°Watching him is making me hungry.¡± Zhang Shan logged out from the livestreaming tform and told Fu Li, ¡°I¡¯ll order two portions of takeout. What do you like to eat? I¡¯ll treat you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just have the same as you.¡± Half an hourter, knocks sounded on the door to the restroom. Fu Li opened the door and saw a delivery boy wearing a safety helmet. The two people¡¯s gazes met, and the delivery boy eximed in happiness, ¡°Big brother.¡± He took off the safety helmet, revealing a head of green hair. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this to be takeout ordered by big brother, make sure to give me a good reviewter,¡± The green-haired yao nced inside the room. Seeing that there was a human present, he suppressed the excitement on his face. ¡°Is that your colleague?¡± He carefully examined Fu Li¡¯s clothes. It seemed to be a security guard¡¯s uniform? His big brother was so amazing and was even on good terms with the captain of the management bureau, yet he was reduced to being a security guard? Those bureau people were also too impartial. They didn¡¯t even know how to take care of their own people. The least they could do was find him a decent job. ¡°Come in and sit for a while. It¡¯s about to rain.¡± Fu Li took the takeout boxes and exined to Zhang Shan, ¡°This is my friend.¡± ¡°Big brother, I¡¯m called Ying Lu.¡± He didn¡¯t doubt Fu Li¡¯s im that it would rain. He shed a simple smile at Zhang Shan. ¡°You can just call me Little Green.¡± Zhang Shan, ¡°...¡± There was ¡®green¡¯ in his name, and his hair was also a lush green. It seemed he had a deep love for the color green. However, Zhang Shan had a straightforward personality. Upon hearing that the green-haired yao was Fu Li¡¯s friend, he cordially invited him to sit before opening up the takeout boxes. All three of them sat around the table and dug in. They hadn¡¯t even taken a few mouths when the gurgling sound of water could be heard outside the windows. It had started raining. ¡°This year has been an unusual one ¨C it¡¯s been raining quite a bit more than usual. There was even hail a few days ago that damaged the electric car I parked outside,¡± Zhang Shan picked up some crispy fried intestines with his chopsticks and swallowed it. He spoke to the green-haired yao, ¡°Brother, you¡¯re lucky you didn¡¯t leave at this time. If not, the rain will turn you into a drowned rat.¡± ¡°Nothing will go wrong as long as I listen to big brother¡¯s words,¡± The green-haired yao looked at Fu Li with shining eyes. Big brother was really worthy of being his big brother. For him, telling the weather was as simple as blinking. Zhang Shan had never seen anyone who kissed up to someone else to this extent. Ever since this fellow calling himself Ying Lu entered the room, he had just been praising Fu Li in all sorts of fanciful ways. Even him who was listening from the corner couldn¡¯t help turning red, yet the two people involved didn¡¯t seem to feel an ounce of shame. One of them dolled out praises in an increasingly shameless manner, and the other listened without any change in expression ¨C both of them were talents. ¡°I¡¯ll go upstairs to patrol, you guys can take your time to eat,¡± Fu Li put down his chopsticks, rinsed his mouth with water, and left through the door. Ying Lu was entertaining in conversation, so there was no need to worry about the atmosphere turning awkward even if Fu Li wasn¡¯t around and he was unfamiliar with Zhang Shan. Upon leaving the restroom, Fu Li felt that the temperature along the corridor was a little on the low side. The light indicating the safety exit gave off a faint green light. The entire corridor was so quiet that it was scary. He headed upstairs through the safety passage and proceeded to patrol level after level. The corridors of guest floors were softly carpeted, so almost no sound was produced when treading on it. At the corner, the lift door opened all of a sudden. No one was inside. Fu Li had just finished checking this floor, so upon seeing the lift door open, he walked in. Ding. He had pressed the button for the first floor, but strangely, the lift stopped for half a minute on every floor before continuing its descent. In the security guards¡¯ restroom, Ying Lu and Zhang Shan were chatting with concentrated attention when knocks suddenly sounded on the door. Zhang Shan put down his chopsticks and muttered, ¡°Did little Fu forget to bring his keys?¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Ying Lu stared at the door for three seconds. ¡°You step back, I¡¯ll open it.¡± Seeing caution written all over Ying Lu¡¯s face, Zhang Shan unconsciously retreated a few steps. Ying Lu opened the door and nced outside before turning back to tell Zhang Shan, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Big brother hasn¡¯t returned, let¡¯s continue eating.¡± Seeing that Zhang Shan was about to stretch his head over, he turned and shut the door. The lift made its way down, punctuated by stops. Just as Fu Li thought that he was finally going to reach, a partition on the right side of the lift opened abruptly, revealing a girl in a white skirt with long hair trailing down her shoulders. Fu Li cocked his head and took a few nces at her, feeling that the human sense of aesthetics was bing more and more strange. What beauty was there in shaving off all the brows and painting the lips a deathly pale color? Seeing that Fu Li ignored her, the girl in the white skirt stretched out both her hands and hopped towards Fu Li. ¡°Wait a minute,¡± Fu Li pointed at a poster at the corner on the safe use of lifts. ¡°Jumping is prohibited in lifts, such behavior is extremely dangerous.¡± The girl in the white skirt came to a halt and silently retreated to her original spot. The partition was also ced back in its original position. When the lift finally stopped on the first floor, Fu Li walked out and was surrounded by several people. One of them was even holding up a camera. ¡°Mister, I am the host of the television program . May I ask what thoughts you have on the incident that just happened?¡± The host raised the microphone towards Fu Li. ¡°Did you not feel any fear when the lift kept stopping and when our actress appeared?¡± There wasn¡¯t a single bit of yin qi in the lift, how could there be a ghost? Even if there really had been a ghost, what was there to fear about such a low-leveled spirit? Fu Li shook his head calmly. ¡°What ghost would squat in the lift for so long? It¡¯s not like the lift is a fun ce to be in. Even ghosts have brains.¡± The host of the television program, ¡°...¡± She actually had no idea what to say when faced with such a calm and collected filming target. After a period of silence, the host opened her mouth again, ¡°May I ask if we can edit the content we filmed and include it in our program?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand human processes, but he was still quite tolerant of creatures with a short life span. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Then do you have anything you would like to say to the audience?¡± ¡°For your personal safety, please do not cause a disturbance in the lift.¡± The program crew, ¡°...¡± After parting from these boring humans, Fu Li saw a man standing outside the security guards¡¯ restroom. Water was still dripping from the man¡¯s uniform. It was the colleague who hadn¡¯t turned up for work today. Chapter 35 - Progressiveness

Chapter 35 - Progressiveness

Pada pada. Water dripped onto the floorboards, producing faint sounds. Fu Li¡¯s arrival hadn¡¯t attracted the attention of his colleague, Old Luo. Old Luo stretched out a frozen-stiff hand and started knocking on the door thrice, over and over again. Bang. Bang. Bang. Even the way it sounded was stiff. There was no noticeable difference in the intervals between his knocks. Fu Li walked over to the door and told Old Luo, ¡°You¡¯re blocking my way.¡± Old Luo¡¯s movements halted. He slowly turned his head and looked at Fu Li, muttering repeatedly, ¡°ept one¡¯s payment, do one¡¯s bidding. ept one¡¯s payment, do one¡¯s bidding...¡± As he muttered, he made a grab for the edge of Fu Li¡¯s top. Fu Li leaned his upper body to the side and avoided the hand Old Luo extended. ¡°Little Fu, why were you gone for so long?¡± Zhang Shan opened the door. Seeing that Old Luo was also present, he joked, ¡°Old Luo, where did you go tonight to let loose? You¡¯re wet all over?¡± Hearing Zhang Shan¡¯s voice, Old Luo turned and nced towards Zhang Shan. A smile appeared on his face. ¡°I specially came to find you.¡± ¡°What for...¡± Zhang Shan hadn¡¯t evenpleted his statement when he was pushed by Fu Li into the room. Without any preparation, he nearly took a tumble. ng! He looked up and saw Fu Li squeeze into the room before firmly pulling the door shut. Old Luo¡¯s hand was wedged in the door crack, causing him to let out a pained yell. This scene frightened Zhang Shan till he momentarily lost the ability to speak. Only a long whileter did he ask, ¡°Little Fu, are y-you possessed?¡± He just finished uttering these words when he saw Old Luo¡¯s hand drop! ¡°Hand, hand, hand!¡± Zhang Shan pointed at the arm that had dropped onto the ground, his voice sharp and hoarse. ¡°His hand dropped off ahhh!¡± ¡°Brother, don¡¯t get too excited,¡± The green-haired yao patted Zhang Shan on the shoulder and tapped him on the forehead. ¡°You¡¯re dreaming.¡± ¡°Dreaming?¡± Zhang Shan walked to the restchair in a daze, seated himself, and then slumped over, falling asleep. ¡°A person¡¯s mind is hard to fathom,¡± The green-haired yao watched Fu Li stamp down on the broken hand with one leg. The hand instantly vanished in a puff of smoke. Shaking his head, he sighed with emotion, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect the person outside to actually have chosen this brother as a death-substitute. But this brother has quite a lot of guts, he even dared to pick up a red packet containing a death-substitute talisman.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t pick it up,¡± Fu Li stamped his foot. ¡°I picked up the red packet.¡± The green haired-yao, ¡°...¡± Their yao race really had it hard ¨C they couldn¡¯t even bear to waste that bit of money. ¡°Then what should we do now?¡± The green-haired yao didn¡¯t understand. ¡°Why did that vengeful ghost outside insist that it was this brother who picked up the red packet? Did he already choose this brother as his death-substitute while he was still alive?¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible his birthday happened to be suitable,¡± Fu Li recalled the location at which he had picked up the red packet that day. Zhang Shan would definitely pass by that area during his patrol. Perhaps at moments unknown to Zhang Shan, Old Luo had also thrown simr red packets at ces he would definitely pass by. Knowing that one might die, and thus finding someone else to die in ce of oneself ¨C did this stem from the humans¡¯ innate fear of death?Zhang Shan¡¯s life expectancy was considered long among humans. Making someone like him a death-substitute would require one to pay a debt, did these humans not understand this concept? Fu Li felt that he might never understand the way humans thought. He turned, casting a nce at Ying Lu. ¡°Keep a close eye on Zhang Shan. I¡¯ll settle that vengeful ghost outside.¡± ¡°All right, big brother,¡± Ying Lu very obediently stood by Zhang Shan¡¯s side. Yao cultivators were still easier to understand andmunicate with. Fu Li¡¯s feet stepped onto the trails of water. The water instantly turned into mist, vanishing. Old Luo¡¯s body had turned quite transparent. ¡°I can¡¯t die!¡± Tears of blood dripped from Old Luo¡¯s eyes. ¡°I still have a wife, children, and parents to look after, what will happen to them if I die?¡± ¡°Zhang Shan also has family, what basis is there for him to die on your behalf?¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression was cold. ¡°Life and death are ruled by fate. In a minute, a yinchai from the underworld wille to fetch you. Stop all this pointless struggling.¡± ¡°What do you know!¡± Old Luo¡¯s expression turned malevolent, revealing the wound on his face that was so deep bone could be seen. ¡°Would a parentless youngster like you who doesn¡¯t even have a woman know about bonds? Know about emotions? As long as I can be with them, I¡¯m willing to do anything!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand such emotions very well, but no matter how many reasons you have, they are not grounds for seizing what is others,¡± Fu Li¡¯s voice was calm. ¡°Things that belong to someone else belong to them. Snatching what is theirs is wrong.¡± ¡°It is only right for someone who owes money to repay it. He owes me, so it¡¯s time to return it now,¡± Thick baleful yin rolled off Old Luo. ¡°Get out of the way!¡± ¡°Surely that ¡®money¡¯ you mentioned isn¡¯t that ten yuan red packet?¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°Wanting to buy someone¡¯s life with just ten yuan, your imagination is a bit too rich and your behavior a bit too shameless. With your stinginess, you still want someone else to die in your ce, do you think that¡¯s appropriate?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care. He picked up the money, so he owes me,¡± Old Luo was no longer human. Delusion had already taken over him. In his eyes, Fu Li was now someone obstructing him. As for why Fu Li dared to block his path and even knew of something like death-substituting, his ghostly brain could no longer think of such things. ¡°But it¡¯s not him who picked up the red packet. That ten yuan of yours was spent by me,¡± Fu Li ced a restriction on the door. Even if Old Luo rammed into the door till his soul scattered, he wouldn¡¯t be able to enter. ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask for my lifespan?¡± Old Luo¡¯s eyes turned scarlet and he raced directly towards Fu Li. ¡°Then you can die in my ce.¡± Fu Li reached out a hand, blocking his way forward. Old Luo couldn¡¯t budge even an inch, as if his entire body had been frozen. Fu Li cocked his head and looked upon the extremely terrifying-looking Old Luo. Fu Li¡¯s distinct eyes were clear and limpid, devoid of any anger, delight, or disgust. ¡°A soul that hasmitted a wrong should be punished.¡± Ding. Ding. Fu Li blinked and turned, looking towards the end of the corridor. Li Xu¡¯s silhouette gradually appeared. Li Xu saw the vengeful ghost whose head was being held in ce by Fu Li¡¯s palm and saluted Fu Li in a manner reserved for seniors in the cultivation world. ¡°Mr Fu.¡± ¡°You¡¯re here to ferry the soul?¡± Fu Li released his grip. As if alive, the Soul-Locking Chain in Li Xu¡¯s hands bound Old Luo. No matter how much Old Luo struggled, it was to no avail. The Soul-Locking Chain was deeply embedded into his body, twisting his body into a monstrous form. ¡°Many thanks to Mr Fu for helping me to capture this vengeful ghost,¡± Li Xu pulled on the Soul-Locking Chain as he bid goodbye to Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s just a matter of raising a hand.¡± Fu Li asked curiously, ¡°Why are you ferrying souls again today?¡± ¡°Perhaps this is fate?¡± Li Xu smiled. Out of habit, he touched his pocket, wanting to light a cigarette. Then, he recalled that Fu Li didn¡¯t have the habit of smoking, so he retracted his hand. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect Mr Fu to still be working here.¡± Nobody would expect a yao cultivator who had lived for so many years to be reduced to a security guard in human society. ¡°I have a question I would like to consult you on.¡± Faced with Fu Li¡¯s clear, good-looking eyes, Li Xu subconsciously didn¡¯t dare to reject the other party¡¯s request. ¡°Please ask.¡± ¡°Do you know if the yao cultivators of Reflecting Mist Mountain 1900 years ago have already reincarnated? ¡°Mr Fu, you should know that the underworld does not control the birth and death of yao cultivators,¡± Li Xu answered apologetically. ¡°For living creatures to transform as yao, the time and conditions have to be favorable. As for the passing of life and the disappearance of Dao, whether or not one can reincarnate will also depend on these.¡± Fu Li was silent. Naturally, he had heard of these things from the White Ape. He had merely thought of it all of a sudden, so he simply asked about it. He nodded and smiled, ¡°Got it, many thanks for the information.¡± Li Xu hesitated for a moment, but still decided to convey the rumors he had heard 1920 years ago to Fu Li before leaving. ¡°During those years, I heard that the little yao of your mountain might have already been buried in the dragons¡¯ bellies, so...¡± The azure dragon n were heavyweights in the current era, so even their underworld had to yield to them to some degree. Even if Fu Li knew this, what could he do? The devastation of the yao cultivators on that mountain that year had spread widely throughout the cultivation world. Ever since then, the yao cultivators became iparably reverent towards the azure dragon n. It was just a pity that those kind little yao lost their lives because of the azure dragon n¡¯s moment of willfulness. After Li Xu left, Fu Li opened the door and returned to the restroom. Ying Lu held up a handphone and asked, ¡°Big brother, the rain¡¯s gotten smaller. I still need to do my deliveries.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu LI nodded. ¡°Be careful on the way.¡± Ying Lu nodded and jogged off. Not long after he left, Zhang Shan woke up. Rubbing his head, he asked, ¡°Little Fu, how did I fall asleep?¡± ¡°Was I too sleepy?¡± Zhang Shan saw that the takeout boxes on the table had already been cleared by Fu Li, so he stood up and told Fu LI, ¡°Then you take a rest, I¡¯ll go patrol.¡± ¡°No need, I just went,¡± Fu Li tore a few tissues and wiped the oil stains on the table. ¡°Little Fu, you¡¯re really a true friend,¡± Zhang Shan ced an arm around Fu Li¡¯s shoulders, shaking his head. ¡°Oh right, I had a dream just now about Old Luo wanting to borrow money from me. I rummaged in my pocket for a very long time, but couldn¡¯t find any money, so I didn¡¯t lend any to him.¡± His shoulders drooped powerlessly. ¡°Even in my dreams, I¡¯m a poor dog. Those who hear of this will feel hurt and those who witness this will shed tears ¨C it¡¯s a physically and emotionally hurtful thing¡± Fu Li patted his head. It was indeed quite miserable to be very poor in the human world. ¡°Little Fu, you seem like you¡¯re petting a dog?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you¡¯re a poor dog?¡± ¡°...¡± The next morning, Fu Li and Zhang Shan were ready to get off work. When they reached the front counter, several security guards were huddled around with the front-counter girls, seemingly discussing something. Their expressions were heavy. ¡°Gossiping first thing in the morning?¡± Zhang Shan yawned. ¡°Take care not to be seen by the customers. They¡¯ll lodge aint against all of you.¡± ¡°You still don¡¯t know?¡± Li Shi pulled at Zhang Shan, prompting him to speak less. ¡°Something happened to Old Luo.¡± ¡°Old Luo?¡± Zhang Shan didn¡¯t understand. ¡°He skipped workst night, so it was just me and little Fu in charge of our team¡¯s floors for the entire night. Did he fall sick?¡± Li Shi lowered his voice. ¡°He¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°Dead?¡± A certain hazy scene surfaced in Zhang Shan¡¯s mind, though it vanished when Fu Li walked over to him. He rubbed his head and thought, perhaps it was because he had dreamt of lending Old Luo money the previous night. ¡°En, I heard he fell into the sea yesterday noon and drowned. His corpse was only found in the middle of the night yesterday. It seems like his family members are currently kneeling outside the hotel and making a fuss.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t even workst night, what is his family doing making a fuss at the hotel?¡± Li Shi shrugged, a helpless look on his face. When Fu Li walked out of the hotel¡¯s main entrance, he saw two elderly people kneeling outside, two young children draped in mourning apparel, and a woman covering her face and bawling. The expressions of the two young children were panicked and helpless. Under the gazes of passersby and the countless camera shes, they who carried their deceased father¡¯s picture resembled duckweed with nothing to rely on, helpless and pitiful. A reporter waiting outside saw that a hotel worker hade out and hurriedly approached him. ¡°Hello, may I ask if you are an employee of the hotel? Can you tell us your opinion on Mr Luo¡¯s unexpected death on his way to work?¡± Fu Li blinked. Just as everyone thought that he was about to speak, he suddenly broke into a run and escaped even before the reporter could react. Only then did the cameraman realize that there was an issue with the camera, so the scene hadn¡¯t been captured. Both parties looked at each other helplessly; they could only search for the next interview target. The next day when Fu Li went to work, Old Luo¡¯s family members had already left. He heard that the hotel hadpensated the Luo family eight hundred thousand, despite the fact that Old Luo hadn¡¯t left at noon for the purpose of working despite iming that he was going to work. Fu Li didn¡¯t understand why this was so. Perhaps it was him who didn¡¯t understand the emotional rtionships of human society. At noon, he met the big boss Wang Han, who rarely made an appearance in the hotel. Wang Han very courteously called him into the office and then asked with a face full of smiles. ¡°Daoyou, I heard you participated in the management bureau¡¯s recruitment test?¡± Fu Li nodded. Wang Han¡¯s smile became even gentler. ¡°What was the oue of the test?¡± ¡°First in thebat test.¡± Wang Han gazed at Fu Li as if he was looking at an exceptional treasure. ¡°Daoyou, you have such profound cultivation!¡± ¡°In the current era, it really does seem not bad?¡± Fu Li thought of the yao cultivators he had encountered during thest three years and nodded sincerely. ¡°It¡¯s all because of the other daoyou who served as a foil.¡± Wang Han, ¡°...¡± Was this considered being modest? ¡°Good!¡± Wang Han eximed in excitement. ¡°If daoyou is epted, I will give you arge red packet on behalf of the hotel and my sect to congratte you on the great joy that is being epted!¡± Their Wanyue Sect didn¡¯t have anyone who had managed to enter the management bureau. Although Fu Li wasn¡¯t one of their sect members, he could still be considered an employee of theirs. In a very indirect way, they could still be considered to have some rtion. In this age, who would disdain themselves for having too many connections? For the sake of improving their rtions with yao cultivators, their sect¡¯s elder thickened his skin every day and went to y mahjong at the Yao Union. The amount of money he lost every month was not little. He had assumed that the yao cultivator his teacher had shoved in as a worker was a little yao with low cultivation; who knew the other party was this impressive? Wang Han felt a kind of ecstasy akin to a meat pie that dropped from the sky and into hisp. Their Wanyue Sect was filled with average cultivators, nor did they concoct pills of immortality or refine pills. However, they knew how to earn and spend their money. Any problem that could be resolved with money couldn¡¯t be called a problem. In the internal department of the cultivation management bureau, the discussion on the people to ept nearly had the yao cultivators and human cultivators pulling out their magic weapons and rolling up their sleeves. Although, they were currently very restrained, because Zhuang Qing was still in the seat of honor. The yao cultivators felt that Fu Li and the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s Wei Cang should be epted, since these two had the highest cultivation. On the other hand, the human cultivators felt that the two spots couldn¡¯t be filled entirely by yao cultivators and that they should ept Fu Li and either Zhong Ze or the Daoist Priest Qing Xu. ¡°Our management bureau is mostcking in fighters, wouldn¡¯t it be more suitable to ept Fu Li and Wei Cang?¡± Lin Gui stated. ¡°Moreover, our discussion is based on the results. Yao and human cultivators have equal standing. Why are we still distinguishing between human and yao at this time? Our management bureau¡¯s goal is for human and yao cultivators to provide each other mutual aid at an equal level.¡± ¡°Lin Gui is right, all creatures are equal,¡± Huang Can continued with all smiles. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say that when you were gnawing on chicken drumsticks this afternoon?¡± Xu Yuan shot back. ¡°If a chicken is the same as you, on what basis are you eating it?¡± Huang Can, who had eaten two chickens that afternoon, silently shut his mouth, Someone among the human cultivators muttered in a low voice, ¡°If we¡¯re basing it on results, Fu Li¡¯s written results are the worst among the five cultivators. We might as well ept the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s Wei Cang and the Fields Sect¡¯s Zhong Ze.¡± The moment these words were uttered, regardless of what they were striving for, all the cultivators in the room looked at this human cultivator as if he were a fool. Their minds hadn¡¯t gone so wrong that they wouldn¡¯t ept a yao cultivator whose fists could beat up the Suanyu and the Zhuyan, and who could exin the ancient ways of cultivating. This year, even if they had to thicken their skin and add another spot, they couldn¡¯t let go of Fu Li, okay? ¡°I hope...¡± Zhuang Qing crossed his fingers on the table. ¡°Everyone will not raise such brainless suggestions.¡± The human cultivator who suggested not epting Fu Li, ¡°...¡± At this moment, not only was he opposing the yao cultivators, he was also opposing the human cultivators. He itched to shrink himself into a ball, so as to escape everyone¡¯s death stares. ¡°I have a bit of an immature suggestion,¡± Ning Xuan spoke amidst the silence. ¡°The affiliated human departments have a policy of taking in unofficial personnel. All five of the examinees this year are outstanding and proficient atbat, so why not learn from the humans¡¯ progressiveness and recruit a few unofficial staff?¡± ¡°For example, that Suanyu can be considered unofficial staff,¡± Worry filled the face of Bao Yu, who was seated at a corner. ¡°He¡¯s about to empty the kitchen of food, we can¡¯t raise such a big eater who eats and drinks for nothing.¡± All the cultivators, ¡°...¡± ¡°What does everyone think?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze swept across the cultivators. Nobody objected. ¡°I will convey everyone¡¯s opinions to the higher-ups. If the higher-ups approve it, we¡¯ll proceed in this way,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up. Suddenly thinking of something, he spoke to the cultivators who were preparing to get up and leave. ¡°Everyone is to be a bit more polite when facing Fu Li.¡± Just as everyone thought that the boss would domineeringly say ¡®this yao cultivator is backed by me¡¯, Zhuang Qing uttered the other half of the statement. ¡°I fear that I won¡¯t be able to hold him back if you anger him into beating you up.¡± The few cultivators who had personally witnessed the scene of Fu Li giving the Suanyu a beating nodded their heads repeatedly. They wouldn¡¯t provoke him. Definitely not. Two dayster, the eptance oue was posted. Fu Li and the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s Wei Cang had been epted as formal employees. In addition, the Fields Sect¡¯s Zhong Ze, Lin An Monastery¡¯s Daoist priest Qing Xu, the yellow pond turtle yao Huang Long, and an unknown yao called Song Yu could take on the roles of unofficial personnel and sign an employment contract with the management bureau. Chapter 36 - Welcome Feast

Chapter 36 - Wee Feast

The entire cultivation world was impassioned after the release of the eptance notice, because this was the first time the management bureau had recruited so many new members. Sects with slightly less courage thought that the bureau had increased the vigor with which they recruited because something major had happened. Only after they specially asked around and confirmed that it was the examinees this year who had been particrly outstanding did they heave a sigh of relief. The instant the sects with an epted disciple received the notice, they itched to buy tens of thousands of firecrackers and set them off at their entrance. It was a pity, however, that the setting off of firecrackers was prohibited in many areas in the capital. All they could do was arrange for a huge banquet, invite various figures in the cultivation world for a meal, and show off a little. Qing Xiao Sect was the proudest, since they had a disciple who was a team leader in the bureau, while another disciple had just been epted. Moreover, this disciple was epted as an official staff member. The Qing Xiao Sect was so delighted by this sect-glorifying event that they bought a week¡¯s worth of advertisements on the cultivation sects¡¯ forum app. As long as a cultivator opened the app, they would see the huge words ¡®congrattions to the cultivators¡¯ management bureau for perfectly concluding their recruitment¡¯ looping repeatedly on the home page. Following these words was a list of the members who had been epted, of which the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s Wei Cang was ced first. The Fields Sect who had attained their fame through growing nts was also not willing to fall behind. Although their sect¡¯s disciple was only a contract worker, this was the first time the management bureau had signed contract workers, so if their performance was good, there was still a chance to be converted to permanent staff. They didn¡¯t purchase any advertisements, but anyone who congratted them was generously gifted spiritual rice and medicine. As an orthodox Daoist cultivation sect, the way in which Lin An Monastery celebrated such things was a little more restrained. Within the short span of a few days, they held two seminars on the Way of the Dao. The monastery¡¯s Daoist priests set up a long row of tables at the entrance to the monastery and told the fortunes of people who visited the monastery. Unless one was blind, there was no way of missing out the long and gigantic red banner behind them. These words were written on the red banner: Congrattions to our Monastery¡¯s Qing Xu for attaining excellent results. This banner waspletely inconsistent with the Lin An Monastery¡¯s aura of mystery and disconnect from worldly affairs. Yet, whenever these Daoist priests with profound cultivation passed by the banner, they woulde to a halt and reveal a gratified smile. This left the devout believers of the Daoist monastery in a state of bewilderment. How good was the result for such joy to fill the faces of these Daoist priests? Even the sectless yellow pond turtle yao Huang Long had the water ns¡¯ yao cultivators to help him celebrate. They set up a fewrge tables in a lively manner and celebrated for two days in a row. Inparison to these four, the Suanyu and Fu Li didn¡¯t have many people to hype things up on their behalf, nor did they treat this as something they had to announce. The Suanyu continued to livestream as a super glutton, while the money he earned was split equally between him and the tform. Fu Li was in the middle of considering whether he ought to go to the management bureau. To him, working at the hotel was quite interesting and he even got to interact with many interesting humans. He was sick of looking at yaoguai; the humans were much more interesting than them. In the afternoon, Fu Li sat with Zhang Shan as they ate their packed meals. Zhang Shan asked Fu Li in a low voice, ¡°Say, do you know how Old Luo died?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t he drown?¡± Fu Li¡¯s impression of this human was mediocre, so he had no interest in his affairs. ¡°He lied to his family members that he was going out for work, but in reality, he went to the red light district. On his way back, he lost his footing, fell into the river, and drowned,¡± Zhang Shan shook his head. ¡°I heard from the cleaner auntie who has some familial ties to his family that his family had a huge falling out. Old Luo¡¯s parents are fighting with the daughter-inw for thepensation given by the boss, along with the house. It¡¯s at the point where they¡¯re about to go to court over it.¡± ¡°But he still has two children. Raising children is costly, why do his parents want to snatch so many assets?¡± Fu Li was confused. ¡°What¡¯s a red light district?¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re still a fledgling who doesn¡¯t even know about the red light district.¡± Zhang Shan answered him in a low voice, ¡°It¡¯s a ce where you can find women.¡± Fu Li furrowed his brows. ¡°He has a wife and two children, how can he do such a thing? Don¡¯t the currentws dictate monogamy?¡± ¡°Thews state as such, but it can¡¯t restrain people who have no control over themselves. It¡¯s just a sad state of affairs for the wife and children,¡± Zhang Shan sighed with emotion. ¡°So, as humans, it¡¯s still better not to do anything that¡¯s against our conscience. If Old Luo hadn¡¯t done something that let his wife down, how could he have fallen into the river?¡± Fu Li pursed his lips in silence. He didn¡¯t understand this sort of emotion, but something like betraying one¡¯s mate should be wrong. He thought about the words Old Luo had said that night after bing a vengeful ghost. Couldn¡¯t bear to part with his family? If he really couldn¡¯t bear to part with his family, then why did hemit such wrongs? Was hypocrisy a characteristic of certain humans? ¡°Why aren¡¯t you speaking? Are you angry?¡± Zhang Shan turned and saw that Fu Li¡¯s expression seemed a bit off. Thinking that he had gone overboard with his words, he hurriedly said, ¡°I was joking with you. I was just telling you about it, don¡¯t tell others. A-Actually, I haven¡¯t had a girlfriend before either.¡± Fu Li turned and nced at the awkward-looking Zhang Shan. He blinked. ¡°It¡¯s fine even if you don¡¯t have a girlfriend now, your natal chart states that you¡¯ll have a harmonious marriage and filial children.¡± ¡°Since Fu ge has said so, I¡¯m very hopeful for my future,¡± Zhang Shan wound a hand around Fu Li¡¯s neck. ¡°Let¡¯s go. There¡¯s a single dog gathering or something for some rich second generation tonight. They booked the entire entertainment area in the hotel, so all of us will have to work overtime tonight.¡± He nced at Fu Li¡¯s face and coughed dryly. ¡°The venue will be chaotic when there are many people, be more careful.¡± In the world today, a good-looking man not only needed to guard against women, but also men. Fu Li: ? With how weak humans were, a single hand of his would be enough to beat countless numbers of them. What did he need to be careful of? When night arrived, Fu Li watched the humans on the grass drinking, singing, and dancing as he easily picked up a drunk boy who had fallen into the swimming pool. Fu Li silently looked at the beer bottles and trash bags that they had thrown into the swimming pool. The cleaners at the side picked them up as they were thrown and then swiftly withdrew to the corners to keep a watch, so as to not disturb their fun. ¡°Brother, your figure is not bad. Come over here and have a drink with big brother,¡± An intoxicated man slumped against Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. His two legs trembled continuously, his gait unsteady. Fu Li set him down onto a chair and took away the beer bottle in his hand. The man grumbled a little, curled up on the chair, and fell asleep like a young pup. Not too far away, several girls were quarreling. Someone identally spilled wine on the cleaner auntie and took out some bills from their bag, stuffing it into her hands. The cleaner auntie smiled cooperatively and thanked them before hiding in a corner with few people and carefully cing the money in the inner lining of her work uniform. Only after confirming that the money wouldn¡¯t fall out did she wipe the liquid on her face and continue stooping over to sweep up the trash on the ground. Shifting his gaze, Fu Li lowered his head and picked up the surrounding trash, throwing it into the rubbish bin nearby. Just as he was turning in preparation to leave, he caught sight of a man in a white top who was picking up the beer bottles on the ground and cing them on the tables. He had even swept all the nut shells on the table into a bag. Noticing Fu Li¡¯s gaze, the man nodded at him. Fu Li shed him a smile. Turning, he walked to the swimming pool to prevent any drunk, addled person from leaping into the pool. A light breeze blew the clouds in the night sky into motion. Fu Li nodded and nced up at the sky. His eyelids drooped. A few uninvited guests had arrived at Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi. Both parties were seated opposite each other. Zhuang Qing nced at the severalrge chests in front of him that were filled with gold, silver and pearls. The brilliant rays they gave off were enchanting. ¡°Dragon Lord...¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need to call me that. I don¡¯t control anyke or ocean, and cannot shoulder such a form of address,¡± Zhuang Qing interrupted Qing Yan. He picked up the cup of tea from the table and took a sip. ¡°A verdict has already been given for the Northern Lake Dragon Lord¡¯s case, and the cultivation world has already been informed of it. No matter how many gifts these Sirs send me, the final verdict cannot be altered.¡± ¡°Dragon Lord, you¡¯ve misunderstood,¡± Qing Yan saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression turn even colder and could only change his tone of voice. ¡°We¡¯re not here today regarding the Northern Lake¡¯s Dragon Lord. Hemitted a wrong and receiving the punishment will allow him to correct his temper. No one in our n objects to this.¡± The flesh on Zhuang Qing¡¯s cheeks moved a little, forming a somewhat mocking smile. If the azure dragon n didn¡¯t have any objections, then what was the fuss they made previously for? Seeing Zhuang Qing remain silent, Qing Yan exchanged gazes with the other people from the azure dragon n before continuing to speak, ¡°We brought these to apologize to cultivator Zhuang. We are all members of the dragon race, yet we allowed you to wander about destitute for so many years. There is immense guilt in our hearts. We hope you can ept these meager gifts.¡± Zhuang Qing took out several ck pearls from the chest and toyed with them. He raised a brow. ¡°En.¡± Unable to make out Zhuang Qing¡¯s inner thoughts, Qing Yan¡¯s tone became even more courteous. ¡°It isn¡¯t easy for cultivator Zhuang to manage such arge bureau either. The bureau was essentially single-handedly propped up by you. If not for you, the yao cultivators wouldn¡¯t be leading happy lives today. It¡¯s just that yao and humans are different. After all, strength is everything in the yao world. Ultimately, the cultivation world is willing to abide by the management bureau¡¯s orders because of your profound cultivation. Only because of that do we have the current peaceful days.¡± ¡°Who would be willing to run and hide all the time if they could live well?¡± Zhuang Qing threw the pearls back into the chests and sneered. ¡°Dragon Lord, be direct if you have something to say.¡± ¡°Has Dragon Lord ever considered that there mighte a day when a yao with cultivation even more profound than yours appears, challenges you for your position, and even snatches the fruits of all yourbor? What should those cultivators under your protection do then?¡± Qing Yan held up his cup and made a toasting motion towards Zhuang Qing. The moment the water in the cup went down his throat, Qing Yan could tell that the water was the most ordinary tap water, without even a single tea leaf. He swallowed the water and smiled patronizingly, ¡°Good water.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°Water that has gone through countless rounds of precipitation, filtering, and disinfection will naturally be good.¡± Qing Yan¡¯s smile stiffened a little. It was merely tap water, was there a need to speak of it as if it was so amazing? Tyranny was written into the dragon race¡¯s very bones from birth. Thus, status was of extreme importance to them. He refused to believe that Zhuang Qing was capable of tolerating being challenged by someone else. He had specially looked into Zhuang Qing¡¯s background ¨C he had been raised by humans after his birth. Only after his human mother passed away from illness was he taken in by the dragon race for a period of time. However, Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t on good terms with the dragon race. It was said that the white and red dragon ns had beaten him those years till blood covered his entire body and scales littered the ground. But even then, Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t let up even once. Afterwards, he left the dragon pce before even reaching the age of thirty. The world at that time wasn¡¯t as kind as it was today. Every part of a dragon was considered treasure, so not only did evil yao set their sights on the dragon race, even evil human cultivators wanted to profit from the dragons. To the dragon race, a thirty-year-old dragon was considered a baby dragon. One could imagine how dangerous it was for him to be walking about in the human world. With this sort of lousy temper where he refused to be wronged even if he had to lose his life, how could Zhuang Qing tolerate the existence of a yao cultivator who might be more powerful than him? ¡°That yao cultivator Fu Li...¡± Qing Yan examined Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression and only continued speaking after seeing no abnormalities. ¡°Fu Li¡¯s origins are unknown, and the depths of his cultivation are unfathomable. Although there were some misunderstandings between us in the past, we are both of the dragon race and our hearts are naturally aligned with our race. It would be better for you to guard against that Fu Li.¡± Zhuang Qing raised his eyes and looked at him. He raised a hand, indicating for him to continue speaking. Seeing that he was willing to continue listening, the smile on Qing Yan¡¯s face turned even warmer. ¡°I heard this Fu Li helped you to subdue an ancient great yao. However, where on earth would there be such a coincidence? On the night of your recruitment, a great yao appeared, coincidentally allowing him to take the limelight in front of all the bureau cultivators. Perhaps...¡± Qing Yan dragged out his voice. ¡°He¡¯s plotting something big.¡± Thumping sounds came from the pce crystals at the corner that extended to the ground. It was eleven o¡¯clock at night. It was nearing midnight. ¡°Dragon Lord Qing Yan might not be too clear about something,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up, towering above Qing Yan as he looked at him. ¡°I don¡¯t only rely on myself to manage the bureau well, nor do I solely depend on my high cultivation. It¡¯s because I have brains and because the cultivation world doesn¡¯t want to return to those days of ughter where life and death was uncertain.¡± He reached out and closed the treasure chests one by one. Under the azure dragon n¡¯s furious gazes, he ced the chests together in a pile. ¡°I ept your gifts. It¡¯ste, please return to the dragon pce early and rest.¡± ¡°You!¡± Someone from the azure dragon n nearly red up, but was stopped by Qing Yan. ¡°We merely came to convey the worries in our hearts. We have no other intentions. Perhaps we thought too much about all this,¡± Qing Yan stood up and gave Zhuang Qing a salute for those of the same generation. ¡°Cultivator Zhuang, have a good rest. We¡¯ll take our leave.¡± ¡°Take care,¡± Zhuang Qing made a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. Qing Yan shot a nce at his two fellow nmates before leaving Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi with a smile. Only after leaving the vi did one of his nmates let out a fierce exhale. ¡°What f*cking thing is this? He¡¯s unmoved by both force and persuasion, and even has the nerve to ept the gifts. I¡¯ve never seen such a shameless dragon!¡± ¡°All right,¡± The smile on Qing Yan¡¯s face dimmed. ¡°Zhuang Qing isn¡¯t stupid either. If he can change his mind just from those few words we said, then what use does the management bureau have?¡± ¡°Then didn¡¯t we make this trip for nothing?¡± ¡°How can this be considered nothing?¡± Qing Yan¡¯s smile was like the spring wind. ¡°The higher someone¡¯s status, the more suspicious and jealous their heart. Moreover... Zhuang Qing is a smart person. Smart people always think more.¡± That yao cultivator called Fu Li could not be allowed to remain. The azure dragons didn¡¯t know that Zhuang Qing had poured out all the pearls the moment they left. The multi-colored pearlsy all over the ground. He nced around his surroundings. After carefully setting up a barrier, he suddenly transformed into a not-toorge golden dragon and dived headfirst into the mountain of pearls, rolling about a few times. Surrounded by pearls, even the slightly mottled and dull scales on certain parts of his body became brilliant. By the time Fu Li got off work, it was alreadyte into the night. He was walking along a small quiet and empty path when he suddenly looked up at the sky. There was the smell of dragon above. He was about to fly up when he turned and caught sight of an aged human rummaging through the rubbish bin in search of something. Mosquitoes were flying about chaotically beside the stinky bin. His movements stopped and he walked to the bin. The old man was stuffing some soured buns into his mouth. Wrinkles lined his dark face. Fu Li saw the debt of sin on this person ¨C the air of sin had umted from disobedience to parents and abandonment of spouse and children. Having understood this clearly, Fu Li turned and walked in the opposite direction. People had to pay a price for what they had done. Old age was not an excuse to bury all wrongdoings. The next day at night, Fu Li had just put on his uniform when the manager of the security guards told him that the boss was looking for him. Under the envious gazes of all his colleagues, Fu Li walked out of the restroom. Upon reaching Wang Han¡¯s office, Fu Li realized that apart from Wang Han, there were also several ruddy-faced elderly men and women, one of which he recognized ¨C Wang Cuihua, the elderly woman who liked to y mahjong at the Yao Union. ¡°Little Fu, you¡¯ve really worked hard,¡± Wang Cuihua grabbed Fu Li¡¯s arm and patted him on the shoulder a few times in rapid session. ¡°I saw your potential very early on. See, it¡¯s only been this long, yet you¡¯ve already joined the management bureau. Congrattions, congrattions,¡± She took out a huge red packet while speaking and stuffed it into Fu Li¡¯s hands without any exnation. The other elderly men and woman saw this situation and also shoved red packets at him. ¡°A friend of Wang Cuihua is a friend of our Wanyue Sect, take these red packets.¡± Fu Li: The human cultivators nowadays were really generous. ¡°Yes yes yes, this is fate. Otherwise, why would you be working at a hotel started by our sect?¡± Fu Li: Wasn¡¯t it because Wang Cuihua had arranged for him to go through the backdoor? ¡°Although you won¡¯t be working at our hotel in the future, you will still belong to our hotel. If you need anything, you cane to me,¡± Wang Han also revealed a splendid smile and shoved arge red packet at Fu Li. Fu Li held onto red packet after red packet. ¡°But I don¡¯t intend to go to the management bureau yet.¡± ¡°What?¡± Everyone from the Wanyue Sect thought that something had gone wrong with their ears. There was actually someone who didn¡¯t want to go to the management bureau after managing to pass the test? Wang Cuihua pulled Fu Li to a corner and asked, ¡°Little Fu, can you tell me why you don¡¯t want to go?¡± Fu Li said, ¡°I think this job is also quite interesting, what use is there in going to the bureau?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s useful,¡± Wang Cuihua said. ¡°You¡¯ve always been in the countryside and aren¡¯t aware of theplexities of the outside world. In the past when there was no management bureau, human cultivators killed yao cultivators while yao cultivators ate humans. Innocent yao cultivators were often ughtered by human cultivators, and innocent humans were eaten by yao cultivators. Human and yao cultivators were always on opposing sides. After the appearance of the management bureau, yao cultivators didn¡¯t dare to wreak havoc wherever they wanted. Neither could the human cultivators casually use yao cultivators to refine pills or weapons, so everyone¡¯s lives improved over time. If powerful people like you aren¡¯t willing to join the management bureau, who would maintain order in the cultivation world and fight for justice when the cultivation world is wronged?¡± ¡°But...¡± Fu Li said. ¡°I still want to enter university and be a civil servant.¡± Wang Cuihua turned and looked at Wang Han. Wang Han hurriedly shook his head. He wasn¡¯t aware that this yao cultivator had such a grand dream. ¡°Working at the management bureau is equivalent to being a civil servant in the human world,¡± Wang Cuihua lowered her voice. ¡°I heard the management bureau is supervised by the nation. If you perform well in the bureau, you might even receive excellent conditions in the future when you be a civil servant.¡± Fu Li asked doubtfully, ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°At least, it¡¯ll be better than if you were to go for the exam now,¡± Wang Cuihua patted Fu Li¡¯s shoulder with a solemn expression. ¡°Trust me. I¡¯ve eaten more salt than the rice you¡¯ve eaten.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m 3900 years older than you,¡± Shock appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Do you usually eat very salty things?¡± Wang Cuihua smiled awkwardly. This youth appeared a little too obedient, so obedient that the fact that he was yao and not human had slipped her mind. ¡°R-Right. My tastes are indeed on the heavier side.¡± ¡°The health program said that excessive consumption of salty food is bad for health, you have to take care of your health.¡± Wang Cuihua, ¡°...¡± This 3900 year generation gap was toorge, she didn¡¯t think she could carry on this conversation for much longer. ¡°Ai, it¡¯s already September. It¡¯s so hot outside,¡± Zhang Ke came in from outside, picked up a cup and gulped down a few mouths of water. ¡°I¡¯ve finished the booking for the wee feast. You guys can rx this time, there¡¯s definitely no dishes with the same original form as our bureau¡¯s yao.¡± This sort ofmunal wee feast was meant to be lively. Although some yao cultivators didn¡¯t abstain from eating food of the same species, some yao cultivators still paid considerable attention to this. Therefore, the management bureau had to specially avoid these taboos when booking meals. ¡°There¡¯s definitely no fish, beef,mb, or chicken this time,¡± After catching his breath, Zhang Ke patted his chest. ¡°I specially booked an all-rabbit feast. Nobody in our management bureau is a rabbit yao, right?¡± ¡°Zhang Ke did quite a good job this time,¡± Huang Can praised. ¡°Rabbit meat is very tasty.¡± Several yao whose original forms were nts also nodded one after another, seemingly in high spirits. Putting so much effort into cultivating a human form was so that they could stand at the top of the food chain and enjoy all sorts of delicacies without lifting a finger. Otherwise, what difference was there between salted fish and nts who couldn¡¯t eat meat? The day before they officially joined, the new staff received an invitation to the bureau¡¯s wee feast. Fu Li thought about it and felt that he should leave a good impression on his new colleagues. Thus, he specially donned new clothes and spent money to take a taxi to his destination. Upon reaching the entrance of the restaurant, he saw a vivid and lifelike sculpture of a rabbit. The five words ¡®Laozihao All-Rabbit Feast¡¯ was written on the board attached to the wall. ¡°Senior,¡± Zhang Ke saw Fu Li and cordially dragged him into a private room. ¡°It¡¯s hot outside, take a seat inside.¡± Cold dishes and rabbit-shaped refreshments were already arranged on the table. Fu Li was a neer, but his status in the eyes of the management bureau was still a bit more special, so they specially arranged for him to be seated at the main table. Seeing Fu Li enter, everyone waved and called for Fu Li to sit. ¡°Benefactor, this restaurant is the best in the entire capital at cooking rabbit meat,¡± Zhang Ke poured Fu Li a drink and indicated for the waiter to begin serving the hot dishes. The dishes very quickly filled the table and everyone¡¯s chopsticks leapt into action. Zhuang Qing picked up a rabbit pastry and bit off the rabbit¡¯s head in one mouth. Raising his head, he saw Fu Li staring at the pastry in his hands. He asked doubtfully, ¡°Do you want it?¡± He stood up and ced the rabbit pastry in front of Fu Li. Fu Li stared at the plump rabbit pastry on his te. He touched his own neck as several drops of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. Chapter 37 - Carrying the Pot

Chapter 37 - Carrying the Pot

¡°Taste-wise, this restaurant¡¯s pastries are average. These fragrant and tender rabbit cubes are their ssic dish,¡± Zhang Ke picked up a rabbit head with the serving chopsticks and put it into his bowl. ¡°Give it a taste.¡± On his left was the plump rabbit pastry given by Zhuang Qing, and on his right was the m rabbit cube Zhang Ke had taken for him. Opposite him was his many future colleagues, their faces wreathed in smiles. All of a sudden, Fu Li thought of a ssical story he had once read in a literature textbook ¨C Hongmen Feast. An borate deception concealing murderous intent ¨C was this an initial show of strength from the seniors to the neers? He thought that he had concealed it very well, but had everyone actually known that he was a rabbit spirit? Many years ago when he had not reached the age of five hundred and hadn¡¯t yet known how to transform into his human form, White Ape¡¯s stories had aroused some curiosity in him towards the world beyond the mountain. Subsequently, there was a day when he yfully ran out and encountered two very strange looking snakes. Not only did they have wings, they even had two heads. Upon discovering him, not only did those strange snakes mock him for his weak and tiny appearance, they even opened their mouths and prepared to eat him. The still-young him had been so scared that he had not only broken out into shivers but even failed to prevent himself from urinating. If King Ganglie hadn¡¯t rushed over to save him, he would probably have already been swallowed by those strange snakes. Ever since then, he would feel disgusted upon seeing smooth, furless things. Only after the incident had passed did he find out that those strange snakes were called Feiyi. Even though White Ape said afterwards that eating the flesh of such snakes was good for health, he would feel disgusted just from thinking about their ugly appearance. So what if he was a r-rabbit? As long as one cultivated well, even a rabbit could contribute to the world. He pushed the bowl in front of him far away and looked pitifully at everyone from the bureau. ¡°Rabbits are so cute, can I not eat them?¡± It¡¯s fine if you guys eat. It¡¯s also fine if I sit at the corner and watch as you guys eat. But why did you have to put it into my bowl and urge me to eat? He wasn¡¯t like that mard who could even raise a hand against a fellow member of his race. ¡°Rabbits do look cute, but their meat is even more delicious, and their fur even prettier,¡± Xu Yuan said. ¡°Senior, rx. The meat definitely doesn¡¯t contain an excessive amount of veterinary drugs. This restaurant¡¯s ingredients are carefully picked for quality, and the meat is from free-range rabbits, so it¡¯ll definitely be fresh and tender.¡± Thinking that Fu Li was tenderhearted, she said, ¡°Although rabbits are cute, their main economic functions are to be eaten, skinned, and have their fur trimmed off.¡± Even more cold sweat appeared on Fu Li¡¯s face. His gaze became even more wronged. ¡°You humans aren¡¯t fond of eating humans, so why are you forcing a rabbit to eat rabbit meat?¡± ¡°What?¡± Zhang Ke thought that there was something wrong with his hearing ability. He turned foolishly and looked in a stupid and silly manner at Fu Li. The rest weren¡¯t much better than him either. With their chopsticks still outstretched, the rabbit meat in their mouths felt like it was on fire, the heat so intense that it sent continuous pulsations through their stomachs. Zhuang Qing threw the half-eaten plump rabbit pastry in his hand into a rubbish bin under the table and took a sip from his teacup as if nothing had happened. ¡°So what if I¡¯m a rabbit?¡± Fu Li said with a wooden expression. ¡°You look down on rabbits?¡± ¡°No, how can that be?¡± Xu Yuan threw aside her chopsticks. ¡°Rabbits are cute and powerful, all of us like rabbits.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. Rabbits are so cute, how could we eat them,¡± Zhang Ke, who had recovered from the shock, also threw his chopsticks aside. ¡°There¡¯s a lobster restaurant next door, let¡¯s eat crayfish.¡± The group of people switched locations and sat down. Fu Li looked at the freshly-served lobster, feeling like he had understood something. He must have beaten the Suanyu too viciously at that time and frightened them, so these people deliberately wanted to give him a scare. No wonder Zhang Shan said that performing too well would incite jealousy. He would have to take note of this in the future. None of the bureau employees had expected Fu Li, who had such highbat ability, to merely be a senior rabbit who had cultivated for 4000 years. Rabbits had short life expectancies and they had low cultivation even if they were fortunate enough to take on a human form. Someone like Fu Li... Was probably an anomaly among the rabbit yao. After two tters of lobster were polished off, Zhang Ke shifted to face Fu Li like a shy girl, ¡°Senior, this junior didn¡¯t know that your original form was a... majestic jade rabbit, and greatly offended you with the meal arrangements. I apologize.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a-also not any majestic moon-gazing jade rabbit,¡± Fu Li put down the lobster he had pinched and smiled with some embarrassment. ¡°We¡¯ll be colleagues in the future, just call me by name.¡± He used his fingers to indicate a length of not more than twenty-plus centimeters and said, smashing the cracked pot, ¡°Actually, I¡¯m a long-eared rabbit that¡¯s this big. When King Ganglie and White Ape, the mountain¡¯s elder, went fishing by the sea, they saw that I was still a baby and was without the protection of elders. So, feeling that I was very pitiful, they brought me back to the mountain and raised me.¡± Seeing everyone watching him foolishly, Fu Li¡¯s cheeks turned a little red. Hearing these words, Zhuang Qing thought of the kind little yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain who were buried in the bellies of dragons. His hatred towards the azure dragon n increased by a few more notches. ¡°Benefactor, you¡¯re amazing,¡± Chu Yu said with a face full of worship. ¡°I¡¯ve cultivated for more than a thousand years and my original form is only one finger long and two fingers wide.¡± Even if his benefactor was a paramecium and was only visible under a microscope, Chu Yu was determined to worship him, much less if he was a twenty-centimeter long rabbit. The moment Chu Yu uttered these words, everyone looked at Fu Li with even more worship. For an ordinary long-eared rabbit to cultivate to his current state, how much effort and sweat did he have to put in to achieve such profound cultivation? He was a true iron-blooded man, how awesome! They worshipped yao cultivators who were born powerful. But they had deeper veneration for unremarkable animals who cultivated till they were almighty! ¡°But the yao cultivators who raised senior are also quite impressive. If I saw a furry little rabbit, I might just bring it home to cook&#k2026;¡± Zhang Ke scratched the back of his head with embarrassment, giving a mischievous but hollowugh. Fu Li looked down and with a &#k2018;kacha¡¯ sound, bit into the lobster¡¯s head. Zhang Ke swallowed and no longer brought up the matter of eating rabbits. At the end of the wee feast, everyone knew about Fu Li¡¯s original form. In particr, the Suanyu, who was using the alias Song Yu, nearly fell apart after learning of Fu Li¡¯s original form. For good or bad, he was still an ancient fiend. How could he have been beaten by a rabbit into weeping bitter tears? No. The correct question was ¨C how could a rabbit suppress the innate reverence it had towards great yao and attacked him till he ended up in such a state? The ancient yao¡¯s face had all been lost by him. Fortunately, the ancient yao cultivators were all either dead or in hiding. No one was aware how much of a sorry figure he cut. The moment he thought this way, Song Yu felt at ease. Weren¡¯t stories about poor kids making theireback popr among humans nowadays? In the world of yao cultivators, Fu Li was the poor protagonist. This way, it also made sense that Fu Li had the ability to put him to shame. In front of the senior workers, the few neers still couldn¡¯t quite be at ease. Wei Cang was Zhang Ke¡¯s junior; although he had joined the sect as a yao cultivator, he was still very much weed by his fellow disciples in Qing Xiao Sect. Therefore, after finishing his meal, he made his way to Zhang Ke. ¡°Senior, this is my junior Wei Cang,¡± Zhang Ke had the intention of letting Wei Cang and Fu Li form good rtions, so he took the initiative to introduce Wei Cang to Fu Li. ¡°In the future, I¡¯ll have to request you to look out for him.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I say to call me by name in the future? Calling me senior sounds strange and old-fashioned,¡± Fu Li could be considered easy to get along with. Although he suspected that these people from the bureau had set up a Hongmen Feast for him, he was broad-minded and wouldn¡¯t be petty with the younger generation. However, after seeing through Wei Cang¡¯s human form and making out his original form, Fu Li was a little envious. He was actually a tiger. Perhaps it was because he had witnessed Fu Li beating the Suanyu, but the moment Wei Cang caught sight of Fu Li, he involuntarily felt reverence towards him. Without the need for Zhang Ke¡¯s guidance, he respectfully called out, ¡°Fu ge.¡± Although he appeared older than Fu Li by quite a bit. ¡°Fu ge, it isn¡¯t very convenient to hail a taxi here. Let me send you back,¡± Seeing that Fu Li wasn¡¯t fond of being called senior, he very astutely called Fu Li ge instead. ¡°No need,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over. ¡°I¡¯m more familiar with the area he lives at, I¡¯ll send him back.¡± ¡°All right, Boss,¡± Zhang Ke pulled Wei Cang back, retreating a few steps. Only after Zhuang Qing left with Fu Li did he tell his junior Wei Cang in a low voice, ¡°I heard dragons and tigers don¡¯t get along well and constantly get into fights when together. Remember to exercise restraint after joining the bureau. Boss might not have reached two thousand years old yet, but the depths of his cultivation are immeasurable. I¡¯ve worked in the bureau for ten years but have never seen the boss losing to someone in a fight.¡± ¡°Senior, you¡¯re thinking too much,¡± Wei Cang nced in the direction in which Fu Li and Zhuang Qing had left, his eyes full of worship. ¡°The supposed fights between dragons and tigers were all fabricated by humans. It¡¯s the Fenghuang who doesn¡¯t get along well with the dragon race.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t dragons and Fenghuang dual symbols of good fortune?¡± Zhang Ke felt his three views shattering. ¡°The truth isn¡¯t important, it¡¯s fine as long as you humans are happy. Anyway, I¡¯ve never seen a Fenghuang since the day I was born. They might already be extinct. Despite the humans¡¯ belief in dragons, only several tens of them are left. What fighting can there be?¡± Wei Cang thrust both hands into his pockets and shrugged, his attitude extremely nonchnt. ¡°Thisnd under the heavens has belonged to the humans since a long time ago.¡± The past splendor and glory of the yao race were akin to the humans¡¯ elegant historical records. Time could not flow backwards; they could no longer turn back. Only by raising their heads, moving ahead, and being in the present would their future have new hope. Zhang Ke gazed at his extremely indifferent junior, feeling like he was looking at an aging hero past his prime. He felt a faint sadness. ¡°Senior, what are you thinking of?¡± Wei Cang sighed. Contained in his eyes were the transformations of the world that he had witnessed. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Anyway, times change. It¡¯s okay as long as we get used to it.¡± Zhang Ke: ? As a human, he felt that his race seemed to have been cursed. Fu Li got into Zhuang Qing¡¯s car and looked all around. ¡°Has your car been repaired?¡± This question made Zhuang Qing recall the minor car ident not too long ago. His heart ached slightly. ¡°En.¡± ¡°For a dragon, you¡¯re really generous. You must have spent quite a lot treating so many people to lunch?¡± Fu Li buckled his seatbelt. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± It wasn¡¯t like the money was his anyway, since it would be reimbursed. This time, the bureau had recruited a yao with four thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation, as well as a great yao only recorded in ancient texts. The higher-ups were very happy, so they had specially sent down some funds. ¡°We didn¡¯t know about your original form and offended you in our meal arrangements,¡± Zhuang Qing scrutinized Fu Li¡¯s expression. ¡°Please don¡¯t take it to heart.¡± ¡°No worries, no worries. I don¡¯t eat rabbit meat, but it¡¯s fine if you guys do,¡± Fu Li replied. ¡°For example, the original form of the king of my mountain was a pig, but everyone still had to eat pork.¡± A very vivid scene suddenly appeared in Zhuang Qing¡¯s mind ¨C a pig was grilling rabbit meat, a rabbit was eating pork, a monkey was eating grilled sparrow, while a sparrow was eating fish on a branch. These four different animals were seated in a circle, the atmosphere friendly and harmonious. Frightened by the things his own mind had thought of, Zhuang Qing shook his head. He had been led astray by Fu Li. He hadn¡¯t had the opportunity thousands of years ago to witness grand asions in the yao world, but one thing he could be sure of was that Fu Li had lived in a simple environment. Although there were moments when he would strangely feel that Fu Li was dangerous, the qi on the other party was very clean. It was a spiritual aura distinctive to yao cultivators who hadn¡¯t eaten humans nor been affected by karma or ill-fated rtionships. ¡°Why are you still going to the hotel?¡± Zhuang Qing gave the steering wheel a smack. ¡°You¡¯re still going to work now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to tender my resignation,¡± Fu Li took out a resignation letter from his coat. ¡°Although Wang daoyou approved my resignation in advance, the regtions stipte that I have to hand in my resignation to the human resource department.¡± ¡°You really abide by regtions.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t express any opinion on this. Many of the current yao cultivators had integrated into the human world, but a yao cultivator who abided by the rules to this extent was really quite rare. When the car reached the hotel, Zhuang Qing cut the gas. ¡°Go, I¡¯ll wait for you in the car.¡± If not for Fu Li¡¯s diamond and Hunyuan pill, he wouldn¡¯t be able to bear wasting so much petrol just to act as a rabbit¡¯s free chauffeur. Truly, one who took other¡¯s things would have their hands tied, while one who ate other¡¯s things would soften their manner of speech. Moreover, he both took and ate, so his confidence was at its lowest point. After handing in his resignation, Fu Li bumped into Zhang Shan on his way out. Zhang Shan already knew that Fu Li had found a good job at a certain biologypany, so upon seeing him, he jokingly asked Fu Li to give him a treat. After a few rounds of banter, Zhang Shan pulled Fu Li to a corner and told him in a low voice, ¡°Little Fu, I specially went to investigate that Chang Long Biotechnology Company yesterday night after going home. I didn¡¯t expect thispany to actually be quite impressive. The medicinal makeup or something that they independently researched is very popr among the female poption. It seems they also produce medicinal products. Anyway, it¡¯s a low-profilepany with an established reputation. It won¡¯t be a scam, so you can go to work with peace of mind.¡± Fu Li had mentioned to Zhang Shan a few days ago that he had been epted by Chang Long Biotechnology Company but was unsure if he should join them. Zhang Shan had thought that Fu Li was worried that it was a shampany, so he specially went to investigate it. He couldn¡¯t be med for thinking so. There were too many shampanies under the name ¡®biotechnologypany¡¯, what would Fu Li do if he encountered some disorderly organization? If Zhang Shan hadn¡¯t told him, Fu Li wouldn¡¯t have known that the management bureau was really selling products in the market. It was truly... a very appropriate disguise. ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li looked at this cordial human and patted him on the shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll treat you to a meal when I¡¯m on holiday.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Zhang Shan giddily patted Fu Li¡¯s shoulder as well. ¡°Rest early. Since you¡¯re going to work at the newpany tomorrow, you must have enough energy.¡± ¡°En!¡± Fu Li nodded. However, on the first day of work at the management bureau, Fu Li didn¡¯t do anything apart from familiarizing himself with the various formations inside thepany. The next day of work, Fu Li stayed with everyone else in the huge work area and spent the entire day listening to ghost stories in the human world. He didn¡¯t understand why a group of human and yao cultivators would be so interested in ghost stories written by humans. On the third day, a senior employee gave the six neers a briefing on the staff rules and even distributed a huge pile of office materials. To the left of Fu Li¡¯s office was Wei Cang, while Song Yu was to his right. There were many rooms in Chang Long biotechnologypany since many cultivators had different habits and interests. Therefore, every person had an office to themselves. There was a public workspace and meeting room on every floor of the building. Cultivators who enjoyed a lively atmosphere usually liked to linger in the public workspace. If a human were to enter, they would merely think that this was an ordinary biologypany. Only cultivators in possession of the bureau¡¯s work pass would have a clear view of the area. The building with innumerable floors, the luxurious spiral staircase, the ancient paintings on the wall that had seen thepse of time, and the seemingly-ordinary bonsai nts at the corner of the walls that were capable of breaking out into speech or song and even transforming into vines ¨C all these was evidence of its uniqueness. Any scene in a supernatural film appeared cheap and clumsy inparison to the management bureau¡¯s true image. When Fu Li brought a thigh bone and drumstick to visit Seventh Uncle Sun, the clothes in his hands had already turned into a doll. Those ck and short dog ws of his were particrly nimble. With a whoosh, he stuck the doll¡¯s eyes on it. Seeing that Fu Li had arrived, he very happily pushed the frame containing the doll to the side andy on the ground near the entrance, his ck tail wagging. ¡°Little Fu, you finally came to visit me.¡± The formation on the door flickered, and the items in Fu Li¡¯s hands appeared in front of Seventh Uncle Sun. He leaned against his forelimbs, opened his mouth, and bit into the bone. Raising his head, he told Fu Li, ¡°I really didn¡¯t invite you into the city for nothing. You¡¯re the only one who came to visit me in the past few months I¡¯ve been locked in here.¡± ¡°Appearance is very important to humans. You gave the fox spirit fake identification and allowed her to use that to cheat humans on the inte into believing her and buying her shop¡¯s fake masks. In the end, their faces were damaged. This is called aiding the evildoer.¡± Fu Li leaned against the door frame and spoke to Seventh Uncle Sun through the barrier, ¡°Don¡¯t swindle any more people after youplete your prison sentence.¡± ¡°What would I eat if I don¡¯t swindle people?¡± Seventh Uncle Sun bit into the bone with ¡®kacha, kacha¡¯ sounds. A subtle callousness could be seen on his doggie face. ¡°Are humans worthy of my kindness and goodwill?¡± ¡°They can only me their stupidity for being fooled!¡± Seventh Uncle Sun threw down these words, turned, and used his mouth to pick up the heat-preservation tupperware. Heid down a distance away, showing his buttocks to Fu Li as he continued to gnaw on the drumstick and bone. He didn¡¯t forget to wipe the asional sshes of gravy off his face with his ws. Fu Li walked out of the prison and ran into Zhuang Qing and Chu Yu on his way to the dining hall. Chu Yu hurriedly called for him to walk with them. ¡°Fu ge, what were you doing at the prison? There¡¯s no spiritual qi there and the air¡¯s turbid,¡± Chu Yu asked curiously. ¡°I went to visit someone from the same vige.¡± ¡°Oh, that field dog,¡± Chu Yumented. ¡°I never thought that that imprisoned dog was from your mountain.¡± ¡°Not Reflecting Mist Mountain.¡± Fu Li shook his head and exined, ¡°The yao cultivators of Reflecting Mist Mountain never cheat people, and they would never do things that harm others. Seventh Uncle Sun was a yao cultivator I met at the ce I woke from my sleep.¡± Where on earth would they find a yaoguai who didn¡¯t cheat others? Chu Yu cautiously nced at Fu Li. Senior Fu Li simply hadn¡¯t been in the know when they were doing the cheating. After they returned from their meal, the management bureau received a report from a warm-hearted yao saying that a fox spirit had transformed into its human form and cheated humans of their money. The sum of money involved might have already exceeded two million. ¡°Why is it a fox spirit again?¡± Chu Yu hung up the phone and furrowed his brows. ¡°The fox race was involved in quite a few cases this year. The one from that fake mask incident hasn¡¯t even been released and there¡¯s already another fox who can¡¯t wait to break thew.¡± ¡°Zhang Ke, take Fu ge and Qing Xu out this time. It¡¯ll be good to familiarize them with the workflow too.¡± The Daoist priest was in charge of capturing the yao, while Fu ge would be responsible for beating it up; this made sense. Late into the night, Fu Li watched a yao cultivator who was aggressively pulling at a certain human. He turned to look at Zhang Ke. ¡°That¡¯s a fox spirit?¡± Who knew whether the cultivators nowadays had been influenced by television dramas? The moment they saw a yao cultivator enticing a human, they would think of fox spirits. This was clearly a lemur. Biologically, lemurs were ssified under the same category as monkeys, and had nothing to do with fox spirits. Chapter 38 - Lemur

Chapter 38 - Lemur

Hou Wei pushed the man leaning against her into the car. Closing the door, she stooped over and sent him a flying kiss, her smile sweet and beautiful. After the car moved off, she took out a cosmetic mirror from her bag and looked at her reflection, cursing, ¡°F*ck, even someone provided for by a woman has the nerve to have an extramarital affair. What a waste ofoniang¡¯s makeup.¡± After re-applying the lipstick that had been smudged by the man, she fished out her phone, took a selfie of herself pouting, and then sent it to her moments. With herrge eyes and palm-sized face, she looked very pretty in the photo even without beautification. Shortly after posting her photo, many men liked it. She sneered and ced her phone back into her handbag. Lighting a cigarette, she leaned against the streemp and puffed out clouds of smoke. When a young man wearing a white top walked over to face her, she spat out a mouth of smoke. ¡°Big sister isn¡¯t interested in tender fledglings like you, keep your distance from me.¡± Fu Li took out his work pass. ¡°Hello, I am an employee of the cultivators¡¯ management bureau. Please take out your identification for verification.¡± Hou Wei¡¯s grip on the cigarette had ckened from shock even before hearing the full three words ¡®cultivators¡¯ management bureau¡¯. She bit her fiery-red lips and said pitifully, ¡°Older brother, all I did was sleep with a few humans. I didn¡¯t absorb their vital qi or yang qi. T-That isn¡¯t illegal, right?¡± ¡°We aren¡¯t concerned about things done with mutual consent,¡± Zhang Ke walked out from behind. He took out his work pass, shaking it. ¡°What we are concerned about is your suspected involvement in cheating humans of their money.¡± ¡°Those were willingly given to me, how is it considered cheating?¡± Hou Wei blinked herrge eyes. ¡°Older brother, let me off this time, okay?¡± ¡°Save it, the fox spirit I met the other time was far better at seducing people,¡± Zhang Ke took out his magic weapon, facing Hou Wei. If Hou Wei refused to cooperate, he could only capture her by force. Seeing that these three men couldn¡¯t be moved by force or persuasion, the smile on her face vanished. ¡°Those men were asking for it by fooling around outside after marriage. So what if I cheated them! You rush to bother me after hearing that I cheated them of their money, but why didn¡¯t anyone punish those g men when they had extramarital affairs? Even if it wasn¡¯t me, there will be other women. Can you manage all of them?¡± ¡°Human affairs aren¡¯t under our control, we only manage things rted to the cultivation world,¡± Zhang Ke knew that there was some logic to Hou Wei¡¯s words, but without rules, there would be no structure and orderliness. If all yao did evil on the basis that humans also did wrong, then the entire cultivation world would be in chaos. Today, a human who littered deserved it even if he was killed. Tomorrow, it would be fine even if a human who uttered profanities was eaten. Following that, it could be ¡®humans should be eaten¡¯. ¡°But ording to humanws, half of the money you cheated from them belongs to their human wives. Those men deserve to be swindled, but the women are innocent,¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t taken in by Hou Wei¡¯s words. ¡°ording to humanws, those men¡¯s extramarital affairs are illegal. And the way you swindled them is also wrong. Just because someone else did wrong doesn¡¯t mean you aren¡¯t at fault ¨C these are two very different things.¡± Fu Li words choked Hou Wei up. A long whileter, she took a puff of her cigarette and spat out the smoke at them. ¡°None of you were even born yet the yearoniang traveled to the central ins. On what basis do you think you can capture me?¡± Seeing that the three people didn¡¯t have higher cultivation than her, Hou Wei looked up at the moon in the sky as she flicked the cigarette ash off. ¡°Why don¡¯t we allpromise a bit? I¡¯ll return half the money to those men¡¯s wives and you guys won¡¯t put me in jail.¡± She had heard that yao cultivators who were captured and made to do forcedbor in the management bureau would revert to their original forms. She would not put up with such a thing! ¡°You realize now that being in jail isn¡¯t a good thing, but what were you doing in the past?¡± Zhang Keughed irritably. ¡°Fox spirit, we do things ording to the rules. We¡¯re not running a business.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the f*cking fox spirit!¡± Hou Wei pointed at her pretty andrge eyes. ¡°Are you blind! Are a fox spirit¡¯s eyes asrge and pretty as mine?!¡± Zhang Ke didn¡¯t understand the reason behind Hou Wei¡¯s sudden outburst, her disy shocking him into retreating a few steps. Soon after, he heard a string of ssic insults known nationwide, none of which was repeated. Zhang Ke turned to nce at Qing Xu. Qing Xu¡¯s fingers were pinched together in a Daoist gesture, looking entirely like that of a lofty individual beyond worldly affairs. He immediately understood ¨C Qing Xu could not be counted on for something like arguing. Turning his head, he took another look at Fu Li. Unexpectedly, the other was listening to the insults with relish, seemingly very interested in the curse words. ¡°Fu ge,¡± Zhang Ke tugged on Fu Li. ¡°These are all curse words, don¡¯t take them seriously.¡± ¡°All these curse words were learnt from you humans?¡± Fu Li¡¯s face was filled with reverence. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you humans to also have such tremendous creativity when ites tonguage.¡± As a human, Zhang Ke didn¡¯t feel the slightest bit of pride that came with being praised. ¡°But, she really isn¡¯t a fox spirit,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°I¡¯ve seen her original form in . It¡¯s called a lemur.¡± Hou Wei, who was spouting curses at them, stared dazedly at Fu Li upon hearing the word &#k2018;lemur¡¯, as if someone had pinched her neck. As early as the beginnings of the Tang dynasty, a rumor had started circting from who-knew-where that lemurs would bring people misfortune. This resulted in many wealthy merchants specially purchasing lemurs at high prices and using them as weapons against theirpetitors. There were people who captured countless lemurs and traveled towards the central ins to exchange them for refined clothing and household utensils. As the journey was a long one, nine out of ten caged lemurs died. Even if they were fortunate enough to make it to the central ins, they would fail to escape death due to the fear humans had towards them. She was lucky. Since she had already gained intelligence, she managed to survive the journey. Afterwards, she was purchased by a rich merchant and thrown into theirpetitor¡¯s yard. However, the mistress of thepetitor¡¯s household was an extremely kinddy. She hadn¡¯t disdained her for her ugly looks, nor did she believe the rumors outside. Instead, she took her in. Yet, such a good woman was poisoned to death by her husband, all because her husband had a love affair with another woman and didn¡¯t dare to divorce her out of fear of her family¡¯s influence. Hence, he could only use this sort of ruthless means. She didn¡¯t understand why a couple who had pledged to live to an old age together could so easily cease to be faithful, even being so heartless as to want the other party¡¯s life. Were all those oaths of eternal love fake? On that night, she transformed into her human form due to resentment and killed that heartless man. She had lived for 1500 years and almost no human cultivator could see her original form. Why was this person able to state her original form so easily? Hou Wei threw away the cigarette butt and looked vigntly at Fu Li. ¡°Who are you, why can you see my true appearance?¡± ¡°You aren¡¯t even half my age, how hard can it be to make out your original form?¡± Fu Li gazed at Hou Wei with concern for the younger generation. ¡°Come, I¡¯ll give you two options. One, cooperate with our work and leave with us. Two, be taken away by us through force.¡± ¡°Senior.¡± Hou Wei straightened her body and said pitifully, ¡°I¡¯m a foreign monkey who doesn¡¯t understand the rules of the central in¡¯s cultivation world very well. Spare me this time, I won¡¯t do such a thing again in the future!¡± Zhang Ke finally understood what it meant to switch attitudes even faster than flipping through a book. This was certainly not what she looked like just now when she was puffing out smoke and cursing people. ¡°Your breed might not be native to our country, but your cultivation methods aren¡¯t any different from our country¡¯s. Moreover, you broke thew in our country,¡± Zhang Ke took out his phone, snapped a photo of Hou Wei, uploaded it into the work system and ran a check on it. ¡°Oh, you even have an identification card in our country. After living on thisnd for more than a thousand years, you still don¡¯t know our rules?¡± Hou Wei hadn¡¯t expected her lie to have been seen through so easily. Turning her head, she caught sight of the many people behind her passing by. Her eyes shifted and she instantly hatched a scheme internally. Taking a deep breath, she sank her breath to her dantian, and yelled loudly, ¡°Help, a hoodlum molested me!¡± ¡°F*ck, this woman is too shameless,¡± Zhang Ke suffered a huge shock. He hurriedly nced around their surroundings. Upon seeing that there was no reaction from the passersby, not only did he not heave a sigh of relief, he became even angrier. ¡°No reaction even after hearing a girl scream for help, what kind of people are they!¡± ¡°Sorry, I set up a barrier in passing just now, so the people outside can¡¯t see or hear us,¡± Fu Li smiled innocently. He reached out to grab Hou Wei and she immediately reverted to her original form. Arge-eyed, not-very-good-looking lemurnded in Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Zhi zhi zhi zhi.¡± The lemur struggled for a while, but in the end, its four ws stilled, and ity motionless on Fu Li¡¯s palm. Then, it curled up its tail bit by bit, hiding its shockinglyrge eyes. ¡°Quite cute,¡± Fu Li turned his head and spoke to Zhang Ke. ¡°Let¡¯s go back.¡± ¡°Zhi?¡± The lemur¡¯s tail shifted a little, revealing itsrge eyes as it looked timidly at Fu Li. It seemed she had never thought that someone would actually praise her for being cute. Hou Wei was brought to the management bureau. During the course of the investigation, it was found that she had not vited thews by using bewitching techniques while she was in a rtionship with the human men. The money was also voluntarily given to her by the human men. However, Hou Wei¡¯s actions were suspected to have damaged the human couple¡¯s rtionship. Hence, an internal disagreement resulted when it came to determining her sentence. While everyone was arguing with no end in sight, Fu Li spoke up. ¡°Hou Wei¡¯s behavior was wrong, but we realized during the investigation that she did not take the initiative to contact those men. It was those men who had deviant intentions towards her and actively courted her. From this perspective, Hou Wei would not be considered the main perpetrator,¡± Fu Li took out the documents on the investigation. ¡°Furthermore, Hou Wei expressed that she is willing to return the money to those men¡¯spanions. If any of thesepanions want a divorce, she is willing to testify and prove that the men who engaged in extramarital affairs were the parties in the wrong. This would allow the women who were negatively affected to receive more assets upon divorce.¡± ¡°If this is the situation, then I think we can reduce Hou Wei¡¯s sentence,¡± Xu Yuan snorted coldly. She didn¡¯t have much goodwill towards the men who engaged in extramarital affairs. ¡°If we think through Hou Wei¡¯s case carefully, her actions should be considered a boon and not swindling.¡± In the end, the conclusion everyone arrived at was for Hou Wei to return all the money to those men¡¯spanions. After paying a fine, she would then be exempted from serving a prison sentence. However, she would need to do two years of volunteer work in a humanmunity, so as to interact more with humans who led ordinary lives. To the management bureau, Hou Wei¡¯s case was merely an ordinary one. Not only would they punish the wrongdoer Hou Wei, they would simultaneously give those cheating men their just deserts. As for how exactly they would do that, that was the bureau¡¯s internal secret. On Fu Li¡¯s seventh day at the bureau, he suddenly exploded in poprity on the inte. It turned out that the wacky program that intentionally scared people had broadcasted the edits of the fake ghost in the lift. Among the various people who were frightened into crying or making a fuss, Fu Li was a breath of fresh air. The moment the ghost leapt out, his first thought wasn¡¯t fear, but to remind the other party not to jump in the lift. The interview that followed was also very interesting ¨C he didn¡¯t say anything other than emphasizing that wreaking havoc in the lift was not allowed. With such a security guard in the hotel, the feeling of responsibility and security was overwhelming. Of course, one other important point was that this security guard was very handsome. Aizen very quickly found out that not only was this bodyguardpletely unafraid of the ghost, he had even saved a youngdy who was being harassed by hoodlums, as well as a python who was struck by lightning. The evidence was the picture the youngdy had attached to her weibo post when she was searching for her benefactor, as well as the Forestry bureau¡¯s weibo post expressing thanks. Netizens who learnt that the security guard worked at Affinity Moon Hotel flocked to the hotel to ask about him. Only then did everyone realize that this handsome guy had already resigned one week ago. The very disappointedizens wanted to ask more about his whereabouts, but they learnt nothing no matter how much they asked around. There wereizens who felt that it was definitely somepany¡¯s way of promoting their inte celebrity. Yet, no matter how long they waited, this handsome bodyguard didn¡¯t make a weibo post or ept interviews. In the end, they had no choice but to admit that he was truly a bodyguard whose brain was wired somewhat oddly. ¡°Fu ge, you¡¯re famous,¡± Zhang Ke walked over to Fu Li, phone in hand. ¡°Many meng girls on the inte are calling you the most handsome bodyguard and want to birth your children. There are even Miss Perfects who want to take you in and support you.¡± ¡°What children? We¡¯re not the same species, we can¡¯t have children together,¡± Fu Li was doing a set of history exam papers and didn¡¯t even raise his head upon hearing Zhang Ke¡¯s words. ¡°I have a perfectly functional set of limbs, how can I be so shameless as to be supported by a human girl. How embarrassing would that be for a yao?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s not like there aren¡¯t many yao who¡¯re being raised by humans. Not long ago, I even ran into a few cat yao who wereparing whose feces-scooper was more devoted,¡± Zhang Ke smiled mischievously. ¡°What is yours whenpared to them?¡± Fu Li shook his head, sighing, ¡°In the past, it was considered shameful to be a human¡¯s pet, yet it¡¯s themon practice now. Public morals really are deteriorating with every passing day.¡± Zhang Ke gave two dry coughs and kept his phone, fearing that not doing so would turn him into a scumbag who led yao astray. ¡°Everyone¡¯s here?¡± Zhuang Qing walked in carrying a file. ¡°The cultivation world¡¯s once-in-a-decade poption census is about to start. Work a bit harder these days andplete it as soon as possible. The method of counting is a bit moreplex than the previous times ¨C registration has to include address, number of people, house, and employment.¡± ¡°Boss, isn¡¯t that the humans¡¯ criteria?¡± Chu Yu asked. ¡°Why do us yao have to follow their criteria?¡± ¡°We have to keep up with the times. Strengthening the management of the cultivation world is our responsibility,¡± Zhuang Qing handed him the file. ¡°Evil yao have been appearing more frequentlytely. Even the mountain imps hiding in the forests and mountains dare to venture into the city and cause havoc. What does this mean? This means that our work isn¡¯t good enough.¡± The representative of the evil yao, Song Yu, lowered his head a little. Everyone was aware that there were no two ways about this, so they no longer talked about whether or not they had to do it, but who would be in charge of what area. Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li. ¡°Fu Li,e to my office for a while.¡± Fu Li put down his pen, got up, and followed Zhuang Qing. After both people entered the office, Zhuang Qing tapped open a message on his handphone. ¡°You transferred this one million to me?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I borrow one million from you? Now that I have money, I naturally have to return it to you,¡± Ever since the human called Zhou Chang gave him a check, he became someone with money, although it still wasn¡¯t enough to buy a house in the capital. ¡°You...¡± Fu Li¡¯spletely unperturbed appearance stifled Zhuang Qing till his anger had no way of dispersing. ¡°Do you know that that¡¯s a million?!¡± ¡°I know, that¡¯s why I returned it to you. If I only borrowed ten yuan, it would probably have already slipped my mind a long time ago,¡± Fu Li cast a resentful nce at Zhuang Qing. This person was unhappy that he was returning him money, was there something wrong with him? He had queued up at the bank with much difficulty to transfer the check¡¯s money into his bank ount before he could return it to him, yet here he was getting angry. ¡°Then did you know that the Hunyuan pill you gave me is worth at least two million, and that the raw diamond has immeasurable worth? Do you know how to settle your ounts properly?¡± Zhuang Qing finally couldn¡¯t suppress the gloominess in his heart. He eximed in a low voice, ¡°You¡¯ve lived for four thousand years, what are you thinking of in that head?!¡± ¡°Borrowing is borrowing, of course it has to be returned,¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You¡¯re still young, don¡¯t have such a violent temper. What if your cultivation drops? I¡¯m not distressed over it, so what are you doing getting distressed on my behalf?¡± Zhuang Qing took a deep breath and swatted the hand on his shoulder. ¡°Okay, just take me as a dog that catches mice then.¡± Fu Li muttered softly, ¡°That¡¯s not true. You¡¯re a dragon who has no link to dogs.¡± Zhuang Qing tried very hard to remind himself not to re up. He took two deep breaths. ¡°Fu Li, many of the things that are worthless to you are considered rare treasures in this era. You¡¯re a yao under my management bureau now, so I can¡¯t just watch as you suffer losses. Understand?¡± Fu Li blinked. ¡°Is the current cultivation world really so miserable?¡± Those things he considered second-rate snacks were now rare goods? ¡°There are still many things you¡¯re unaware of.¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li obediently lower his head as he listened to his teachings and sighed, ¡°I told you before not to only watch news broadcasts?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t. Lately, I¡¯ve been watching and .¡± A whileter, Zhuang Qing replied with gritted teeth, ¡°Okay, as long as you¡¯re happy.¡± ¡°Zhuang Qing, you¡¯re really a good dragon. I¡¯m living my life quite happily now,¡± Fu Li smiled merrily. This dragon might be a bit bad-tempered, but his heart was very good. Zhuang Qing chuckled sarcastically. ¡°You...¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice cut off abruptly. He turned and nced out the window, his expression grave. ¡°What dense yao qi.¡± ¡°It seems to being from the direction of the East Sea,¡± The East Sea was very far from the capital, yet the yao qi still reached this ce. It was clear that it was a great yao with profound cultivation. The two people¡¯s gazes met. Morphing into streams of light, they vanished into the horizon. At the coast of the East Sea, night had already descended. In the dense mass of roiling seawater, the image of an enormous monster was faintly discernible. Shoals of fish fled in all directions. There was not a single bird in the sky. Ilyz: I see you guys are divided on whether or not FL is a rabbit~ I wish I could do a poll just to see what everyone thinks ?? Also, DDAS will be updated twice per week on Tues and Fri from next week onwards. Thank you for being so patient ^_^ Chapter 39 - Dont Underestimate Rabbits

Chapter 39 - Don¡¯t Underestimate Rabbits

¡°Bah, what is this taste?¡± The Kun spat out the foreign matter in its mouth. A pile of battered, corroded metal as well as stic bags of all colors came pouring out. With a flick of his tail, the sea waves rose massively and water surged, swirling up water and air. Perhaps the nearbynd would experience tsunamis or typhoons not too longter. His fins were veryrge, enabling him to cover a great distance in one p. By relying on its strength, it absolved itself of the rumors stating that it had the slow speed of a fatty. ¡°What is this?¡± Using his fins, he swept up an unmanned underwater surveince device, and bit into it. ¡°Bah, it¡¯s not edible.¡± The department controlling the unmanned device was baffled. Why was there suddenly no signal from the surveince device? This area of the sea was truly strange; if submarines weren¡¯t being captured, unmanned devices were destroyed for no rhyme or reason. Did deep sea devils really exist? After spitting out a mouthful of fragments, the Kun twisted its tail and shrunk its body a little. This way, at least he could see the tips of his fins by angling his eyes. His body might have be smaller, but the speed at which he swam was not slow. Within a blink of an eye, he reached the surface of the water. Upon getting a clear view of the surface of the water, his first statement was an angry one, ¡°Which bastard made my family¡¯s water so stinky?¡± A sound was heard from above his head. He nced up. A glittering bird flew across the sky. Not only was its appearance ugly, its cries were odd, and there was a long row of eyes on both sides of its body. The Kun leaped towards the surface of the water. His fish scales morphed into feathers, and his fins extended to form wings. Raising his neck, he gave a long hiss. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Zhuang Qing immediately caught sight of the Kun transforming into a bird upon rushing to the coast. With its wings extended, the bird was more than ten meters long. Its feathers gave off a red light, just like burning mes. The moment Zhuang Qing got a clear view of the bird¡¯s appearance, he instinctively went on high alert. ¡°That¡¯s a Peng. When a Kun leaves the water, it transforms into a Peng, so the birds gave it the name of Kunpeng,¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression was even more severe than Zhuang Qing¡¯s, because he had heard of the Kunpeng¡¯s deeds from White Ape. Its qi could swallow the clouds and sea, the sea was a mereke to it, and its Divine Might was iparable. At that time, White Ape was scared that he wouldn¡¯t know what the Kunpeng looked like, so he had specially drawn the Kunpeng¡¯s two forms for him and told him of the way to deal with it. Namely, to run the moment he saw it. And to run as far as he possibly could without looking back. ¡°En? The scent of dragon?¡± The Peng who was just about to fly up to take a look at the strange bird pped its wings and turned its head, looking towards the sea in search of dragon traces. ¡°You hide first,¡± Fu Li stuck a talisman on Zhuang Qing. The talisman was drawn by White Ape that year and was said to be able to conceal the qi and cultivation base of a yao cultivator. ¡°Who knows how many tens of thousands of years the Kunpeng has lived? It¡¯s said that he ate dragons during those years when the dragon race wasrge in numbers.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t reject his kind intentions. Fishing out his phone, he noticed that there was still two signal bars despite being at the sea. Thus, he hurriedly contacted the relevant department and sent them a video of the Peng. The country could make preparations in advance in the event that they were not able to hold the Kunpeng back. Netizens frequently joked about therge size of the Kun and how it wouldn¡¯t fit into a pot, but if they were to see the appearance of the Kunpeng in reality, they would be immensely fortunate not to be eaten by him, much less speak of eating him. ¡°It disappeared again?¡± The Kunpeng sniffed. pping his wings, he circled the surface of the sea and found two humans standing on the water. He swooped down, shrunk his body, and stood before the two people. ¡°Who are you?¡± Fu Li took a step forward. ¡°This humble one is a little yao from Weishui. I pay my respects to Kunpeng daren.¡± ¡°Weishui?¡± The Kunpeng pondered over it for a while. He did seem to have some impression of this ce, so he responded, ¡°I do have some impression of it.¡± Seeing the Kunpeng¡¯s rxed attitude, Zhuang Qing grew even more vignt. Only yao cultivators who were powerful to the point of not having any weaknesses would dare to be so nonchnt in front of other cultivators. ¡°Who are you?¡± The Kunpeng smelt the scent of human flesh and blood from Zhuang Qing. Turning, he spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Since you¡¯re a yao cultivator, why are you with a human?¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°This fellow daoyou isn¡¯t a human cultivator, but he does have a human mother.¡± ¡°So, he¡¯s a mixed-blood yaoguai,¡± The Kunpeng arrogantly shifted his line of sight. He no longer looked at Zhuang Qing, instead continuing to ask Fu Li questions. ¡°Let me ask you, where has the dragon race gone? Why did I not see a single one after waking up?¡± Waking up? Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyelids trembled slightly. Another one who woke up?! Could... he be the yao emperor the Zhuyan spoke about? ¡°Daren, you might not be aware, but the dragon race is already on the brink of extinction.¡± ¡°What?!¡± The Kunpeng transformed into his human form, a slightly plump man with crescent-shaped eyes. He said with fluster and exasperation, ¡°Which blind yao snatched my food and even ate them to extinction? Don¡¯t they know the logic behind giving everything some leeway for the sake of long-term growth?¡± ¡°Yup, whether human or yao, one should look from the perspective of sustainable development,¡± Fu Li strongly agreed. ¡°But the dragon race didn¡¯t go extinct from being preyed on, but from natural death.¡± ¡°Such a strange matter actually urred?¡± The Kunpeng looked pensive. Pointing at the seawater below his feet, he eximed with sudden understanding, ¡°I know the reason, there¡¯s poison in the seawater!¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Faced with the Kunpeng who had lived for who-knew-how-many-years, Fu Li finally understood what &#k2018;generation gap¡¯ meant. He watched the dolphins in the distance leaping about in the seawater and then took another nce at the Kunpeng. He didn¡¯t know what angle from which he should praise the Kunpeng. ¡°Before I fell asleep, the seawater was still clear and sweet, yet it carries a stench now. The dragon race is usually fond of staying in the water, so it¡¯s possible they were poisoned to death by the water,¡± The Kunpeng sighed. ¡°Forget it, if there aren¡¯t any dragons, I¡¯ll make do with some humans and fish.¡± At that time, he had been sealed at the bottom of the sea for nearly four thousand years by those meddlesome creatures ¨C Dangkang and Xing Xing. His mouth had be as dry as a tiny brook. He had managed to leave after much difficulty, yet there weren¡¯t any dragons for him to eat; he was really thoroughly down on luck. If he had known that life would be this hard four thousand yearster, he would have eaten a few more dragons at that time and slept a while longer. His top priority now was to prevent these two juniors from realizing that he had been sealed at the bottom of the sea, otherwise the entire Kunpeng race would be left with no face because of him. Fu Li wanted to say that the seawater wasn¡¯t poisoned but polluted. But what difference was there between polluted water and toxic water? Zhuang Qing took a few steps towards the Kunpeng and saluted him. ¡°Kunpeng daren, the humans of today are also no longer tasty.¡± ¡°En?¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s crescent-shaped eyes widened into full moons. ¡°Why is that so?¡± ¡°Nowadays, the humans don¡¯t choose what they eat carefully and even like to smear strange things on their bodies. Leaving aside their impure blood, their meat is both paltry and smelly. It¡¯s not fresh and tasty at all,¡± Zhuang Qing said with a straight face. ¡°The southerners are nd and tasteless due to excessive exposure to rain, while the northerners aren¡¯t fresh and tender due to lengthy periods of time under the sun. There¡¯s nothing edible about them.¡± ¡°Ai,¡± The Kunpeng furrowed his brows upon hearing his words. ¡°These humans, why don¡¯t they fatten themselves a bit more?¡± ¡°Daren, most of the humans nowadays are dry and skinny. In particr, the thighs of many women aren¡¯t even as thick as my arm. The chewing texture will definitely be very poor,¡± Zhuang Qing continued. ¡°Your words make a lot of sense, but...¡± The Kunpeng grinned. ¡°You smell quite good, why don¡¯t I first use you to pad my stomach?¡± The Kunpeng rose up all of a sudden. Moving swiftly, he stretched out an arm. His five ws extended, about to grab hold of Zhuang Qing¡¯s neck. With exceedingly quick reaction speed, Zhuang Qing moved sideways to evade him and started fighting with the Kunpeng. After several moves, the Kunpeng smiled. ¡°Sure enough, you aren¡¯t an ordinary human. No human has ever escaped my ws. Saying all that about humans not being tasty is nothing more than your desire to protect them. What great courage you have, actually daring to y me.¡± ¡°Daren has been asleep for so many years and isn¡¯t aware of the many delicacies in the world, how am I ying you?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. He maintained a distance of ten meters from the Kunpeng. ¡°You¡¯ve misunderstood this humble one.¡± Seeing that Fu Li was about toe over, he fished out his natal sword and stated calmly, ¡°Fu Li, this is my responsibility. There is no minor here, only the leader of the management bureau.¡± Fu Li took back the foot he had just extended. Forget it, he would make his move when Zhuang Qing could no longer hold on. Even if he was a minor, he would still want face. ¡°Misunderstanding or not, I¡¯ll know once I swallow you and have a taste,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s two hands stretched out and a divine staff of true fire appeared in his hands. Raising it, he struck in the direction of Zhuang Qing. Ding! Zhuang Qing used his natal sword to block the divine staff. The Kunpeng suddenly let out augh. ¡°Interesting, this sword smells of dragon scales. You aren¡¯t human.¡± His gaze swept across Zhuang Qing. ¡°There¡¯s something on you that can actually cover up your qi and even fool my eyes. Who did you study under?¡± Zhuang Qing drew back his sword and rose into the sky, replying coldly, ¡°This humble one has no teacher nor father.¡± Fu Li stood on the surface of the water and watched Zhuang Qing exchange close to a hundred moves with the Kunpeng without any sign of defeat. In his heart, he gained a new understanding of Zhuang Qing¡¯s strength. However, no matter how powerful Zhuang Qing was, he was limited by his age. The Kunpeng possessed supreme divine force since its birth ¨C this was a racial advantage that could not be envied by other races. Ding! There was an abrupt change in Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression. A crack had appeared on his sword. ¡°It¡¯s a good sword, but it¡¯s only this good,¡± The Kunpeng opened its mouth, about to swallow Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing¡¯s legs transformed into a dragon tail, sending the Kunpeng more than ten meters away. The talisman on Zhuang Qing also lost its effect because of his transformation. ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re a dragon?¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s brows creased. He said with quite a bit of resentment, ¡°And even a mixed-blood dragon?¡± He was least fond of eating dragons with impure blood. Their spiritual qi wasn¡¯t as good as dragons nor were they as fresh and tender as humans. They simply didn¡¯t measure up to either. Out of everyone, the dragon race had to be the most shameless creatures. They could reproduce with any type of animal and didn¡¯t let anyone off, whether it was a cow, sheep, fish, bird, or human. They just couldn¡¯t keep it in their pants. After obtaining a clear understanding of Zhuang Qing¡¯s breed, the Kunpeng¡¯s appetite was lessened by a huge amount. He turned his gaze towards Fu Li. This little yao had pure qi and seemed quite delicious. ¡°Daren, I¡¯m just a rabbit with plenty of fur and little meat. I¡¯m not tasty,¡± Fu Li took a huge leap back, nearly losing control of his spiritual qi and falling into the sea. Fortunately, Zhuang Qing nimbly pulled him back. ¡°Rabbit?¡± The resentment on the Kunpeng¡¯s face grew even stronger. ¡°Rabbits are weak and small, how did you cultivate a human form?¡± Fu Li: ... Mind your own f*cking business! ¡°Neither of you are nice to eat,¡± The Kunpeng waved a hand. ¡°Scram then. I¡¯ll eat the humans.¡± ¡°Daren, eating humans is against thew.¡± ¡°Whatw? Can thew control what I eat?¡± The Kunpeng was toozy to pay any heed to these two unptable yaoguai. Transforming into a Peng, he readied himself to fly towardsnd. In a moment of desperation, Zhuang Qing transformed into his dragon form and rammed viciously against the Kunpeng, knocking him into the ocean. Though, he himself also fell into the water due to the recoil. ¡°Bleh!¡± The Kunpeng spat out the water in his mouth, shaking the damp fur on his head. ¡°Mixed-blood dragon, don¡¯t think you can disrupt my hunt for food just because I dislike eating you. Take care not to be torn apart with one w of mine.¡± Zhuang Qing flew out of the water and flicked his tail silently. The Kunpengughed upon getting a clear view of his appearance. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen such an ugly dragon, are the scales on your body fully grown?¡± As the dragon of national fate, Zhuang Qing¡¯s body had a beautiful luster to it. However, due to the fact that many scales on his body hade off, the flesh beneath them was revealed. It was akin to a beautiful piece ofcquerware that was peeling, thereby revealing the mottled interior. Such an appearance was especially ugly, even more so than ware that was withoutcquer. The beauty of the dragon racey in their mighty horns and glittering scales. Zhuang Qing could practically be termed the ugly duckling of the dragon race with the way he looked. ¡°Hitting dragons is fine, but not their faces. Scolding dragons is fine, but not exposing their weak points,¡± Fu Li swiftly positioned himself in front of the golden dragon. ¡°Kunpeng daren¡¯s way of ridiculing the younger generation is not how the older generation conducted themselves.¡± ¡°You might be a tiny yaoguai, but you¡¯re quite sentimental,¡± The Kunpeng pped his wings a few times. ¡°Step aside and I¡¯ll spare you from death.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t move. He turned and patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s dragon horns. ¡°I¡¯m going to take out my magic weapon to fight, you stay a bit further away.¡± Human speech came out of the golden dragon¡¯s mouth. ¡°Fu Li, did you forget that I¡¯m the boss of the management bureau?¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t the time to fight over status. I¡¯m not interested in the position of boss,¡± Fu Li pushed the dragon¡¯s head till it was at an angle. He took out a soft red whip from within his body and turned back to see Zhuang Qing looking at him. He said with some embarrassment, ¡°I know this weapon isn¡¯t manly enough, but it¡¯s the natal weapon that I chose myself. I have to use it even if I¡¯m kneeling.¡± ¡°No wonder you insisted on using the sword even though your swordy isn¡¯t that outstanding,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the whip in Fu Li¡¯s hands and took two steps back. The smell of that whip made him ufortable. The whip seemed ordinary, but the moment Fu Li flung it out, it started to lengthen, emitting a strange red light in the night. Before the battle, Fu Li even erected a barrier, keeping Zhuang Qing out and preventing innocent fishes from being harmed. If the way Fu Li used the sword was clumsy and ridiculous, the whip in his hands seemed like an extension of his body. It was flexible and forever-changing. Even when faced with the Kunpeng¡¯s gigantic bird body, it didn¡¯t appear weak. A p of the Kunpeng¡¯s wings was enough to bring about a hurricane. Yet, every time he wanted to p his wings, the whip would bind his wings. Both parties were in a deadlock. The Kunpeng emitted a long cry before suddenly diving into the water. He transformed into an enormous fish, his fins mming onto Fu Li¡¯s body. Fu Li was easily sent flying, just like a ping-pong ball that knocked against a paddle. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing syed against the barrier, wanting to pull Fu Li out of the seawater. But he had no way of breaking the barrier, so he could only forcibly bang on it with his horns. ¡°Stop banging.¡± Fu Li crawled out of the water and spoke to Zhuang Qing, ¡°Your horns are already on the smaller side. If you break it from the banging, how are you going to find a wife in the future?¡± ¡°Release the barrier and let me in,¡± Zhuang Qing observed Fu Li¡¯s deathly whiteplexion and the faint traces of blood at the corner of his mouth and knew that he was injured. ¡°It¡¯s very dangerous for you to be on your own.¡± Fu Li nced at the mottled scales on Zhuang Qing¡¯s body and smiled. ¡°What, you¡¯re underestimating us rabbits?¡± He gripped the whip in his hands tightly, his expression bing solemn. ¡°I¡¯ll let you know today how almighty rabbits can be.¡± The moment he finished speaking, the whip emitted a lofty, divine light. This beam of divine light was horrifying and abnormal. If Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t reminded himself that this was his teammate, he would probably have been unable to hold himself back from escaping into the depths of the sea. Then, he saw the soft whip suddenly transform into a dense of blood that trapped the Kun. But there was no way the Kun would willingly be bound. His fishtail struggled vigorously in an attempt to rip the blood and escape from within. Fu Li¡¯splexion became increasingly pale. Countless wounds burst open on the back of his hand that was gripping the soft whip. Blood flowed along the whip into the and the¡¯s bloody light shone even brighter. ¡°Ah!¡± The Kunpeng let out a pained screech. A burn wound appeared at the spot that hade into contact with the. ¡°What demonic weapon is that?¡± Why did he hurt as if his soul was being burned by raging mes? He transformed into a bird once again. Though it wasn¡¯t convenient to have a body of a bird in the water, his bird form was resistant to fire and would not fear this strange. In the end, he exerted all his strength and struggled free of the. Transforming into his human form, he attacked Fu Li. Fu Li¡¯s whip wound around the divine staff, and their palms collided. The Kunpeng shifted backwards slightly while Fu Li directly spat out arge mouthful of blood. ¡°You¡¯re a rabbit who grew up eating toxic nts?¡± The blood Fu Li had spat out sshed onto the back of the Kunpeng¡¯s hand. Instantly, he felt a pain akin to burning fire. He tactfully withdrew his hand and said with lingering fear, ¡°It was fortunate I didn¡¯t eat you just now.¡± If not, he would be history¡¯s first Kunpeng to have been poisoned to death by a rabbit. Though it was possible he was thest Kunpeng in existence. He wasn¡¯t scared of death. It was fine if he died. But it was a major issue if the Kunpengs went into extinction because of that. ¡°Rabbit, you don¡¯t seem like you canst for much longer,¡± The Kunpeng was in a deadlock with Fu Li. ¡°Why not let it be for today?¡± ¡°If King Kunpeng can promise me to not eat humans in the future, we can let this matter be,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t loosen his grip on the soft whip. ¡°Do we have to go so far!¡± The Kunpeng shrieked in disbelief. ¡°I¡¯m just going to have a meal, why are you two yao holding me back as if your lives depend on it? Do you have feelings for a human and have children with them?¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t right either. The blood of the dragon race is special, so they can still have children even if they join with a human. You¡¯re a rabbit who hasn¡¯t received the generous love of heavenlyw, so why are you going this far?¡± The Kunpeng asked helplessly. ¡°If worstes to worst, I won¡¯t eat your wives. I¡¯ll eat other humans.¡± ¡°No,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t give an inch. The Kunpeng didn¡¯t want topromise either. That would be too embarrassing. He was a majestic Kunpeng, how could he give in to a rabbit? ¡°Don¡¯t take the face this old Kun gave you lightly.¡± ¡°I will not let go of my principles.¡± Murderous spirit pervaded the air. No one moved. It was an expanse of silence. The two yao raised their respective staff and whip, maintaining this posture till the sun rose, till the sun set, and till the bright moon once again appeared in the sky. The terror felt by the relevant department¡¯s employees in charge of monitoring the situation became anxiety, which then transitioned to worry. Eventually, the worry turned into numbness. They had stared at them for an entire day, yet there wasn¡¯t even a change in the two yao¡¯s postures. If there weren¡¯t undtions in the seawater, they would have thought that they were looking at a picture. ¡°Are they going to fight or not?¡± An employee stared at the monitor, on the brink of copsing. ¡°Why don¡¯t you help fight?¡± The leader shot him a nce. The employee obediently zipped his mouth shut. As he stared at the two people on the screen, he felt that they might maintain this posture until the end of time, when the seas ran dry and stones went soft. After two days and two nights, even Zhuang Qing, who was slumped outside the barrier, also grew numb. A bird¡¯s cry seemed to have sounded in the night sky. Zhuang Qing turned his head and nced over. All he saw was the dense mass of seawater and limitless sky. Nothing could be seen. Chapter 40 - Slander

Chapter 40 - nder

The sea breeze caressed Fu Li¡¯s cheeks, which were so pale they bordered on transparent. The bloodstains on the back of his hand had already dried up and scabbed over. ¡°Rabbit, the moon¡¯s already risen three times,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯splexion was also slightly wan. ¡°We can¡¯t stay here forever, right?¡± ¡°As long as Kunpeng daren promises not to eat humans, we can let you go and take you to eat the true delicacies of the human world,¡± The bloody light from the soft whip in Fu Li¡¯s hands flickered. ¡°Daren may not be aware, but the humans have invented many interesting things. The human world is much more interesting than it was before. Why would you abandon this pleasure just to eat a few mouths of bad-tasting human flesh?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine with not eating flesh, but you must tell me why you¡¯re going so far to protect the humans,¡± The Kunpeng wasn¡¯t actually very fond of eating humans; their many bones and little meat made them very uninteresting. He was in a deadlock with Fu Li for so long not for the sake of human meat, but for the sake of the Kunpeng race¡¯s face. Although he hadn¡¯t been able to make out Fu Li¡¯s original form, the other party definitely wasn¡¯t very old. He had lived for tens of thousands of years, yet he couldn¡¯t even defeat a rabbit with a few thousand years of cultivation ¨C if this were to circte, where would he hide his face? ¡°The humans have long been the children of heavenlyw. If daren were to eat them, wouldn¡¯t that be an act counter to heavenlyw?¡± Fu Li said. ¡°This humble one might have a poor cultivation base but has also felt the decline of the yao race. Yao cultivators aren¡¯t restricted for the sake of humans, but for the sake of us yao cultivators.¡± The Kunpeng recalled how the Baize and Qilin had told him several years ago to be cautious as changes were urring in thend under the Heavens. He wasn¡¯t ustomed to the Baize and Qilin¡¯s mild tempers and merely felt that they were intentionally scaring him, so he ignored them. Later on, these two beasts colluded with the Dangkang and Xing Xing to deal grievous injuries to him, and even allowed them to seal him at the bottom of the sea. He had been forced to remain at the bottom for more than four thousand years and only had a chance to escape recently when the seal weakened. If the Baize and Qilin hadn¡¯t lied to him and allowed him to be sealed at the bottom of the sea, wouldn¡¯t he have escaped all this? ¡°Where is the Baize and Qilin?¡± The Kunpeng wanted to question them thoroughly. Wasn¡¯t the Baize all-knowing when it came to everything under the heavens? Didn¡¯t heprehend not only the past but also the present? As long as he asked him, the truth would naturallye to light. Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Kunpeng daren, ever since my birth, I¡¯ve only heard the names of these two darens but have never seen them before.¡± ¡°Then what about the Dangkang and Xing Xing?¡± The Kunpeng loosened his grip on his divine staff. ¡°Dangkang and Xing Xing?¡± Fu Li furrowed his brows. He had never heard White Ape mention these two yao beasts, so he could only shake his head. ¡°My apologies, this humble one has never heard of these two darens.¡± They had all gone missing? The Kunpeng had bore this grudge towards them for more than four thousand years at the bottom of the sea. He hadn¡¯t expected to receive the news of them having gone missing after escaping from the seal. He raised his head, looking at Fu Li, ¡°You aren¡¯t lying to me?¡± ¡°Daren, this humble one dares to swear on my cultivation base,¡± Seeing that the Kunpeng had no intention of continuing the fight, he retrieved his whip first and took a step back, bowing to him. ¡°If Kunpeng daren doesn¡¯t mind, please try the delicacies of the human world with this humble one.¡± Outside the barrier, Zhuang Qing heard their conversation. Taking out his phone, he sent out a message. At the relevant department. ¡°Chief, Zhuang Qing sent us a message!¡± The person in charge of surveince perked up upon hearing the beep of the message. ¡°What did he say?¡± The entire department of people grew excited and squeezed in front of theputer screen, wanting to get a clear glimpse of Zhuang Qing¡¯s message. It had to be known they could only watch the scene without any sound, so they weren¡¯t very sure how far things had progressed. This was a matter of life and death, no one could lower their guard. Upon clicking open the message, everyone had a clear view of this short string of words: The Kunpeng has a strong desire for good food. He has agreed not to eat human flesh in the future, but we will need to bring him the human world¡¯s culinary delicacies. Please make arrangements at restaurants as quickly as possible. Also, the Kunpeng has formidable magic power. Guarding him will not be easy. ¡°Quickly make arrangements at restaurants. Transfer the best chefs over,¡± The chief started sending down orders. ¡°Check on the Kunpeng¡¯s food preferences at the same time. Use the animals he likes as ingredients.¡± ¡°What if he likes to eat pandas?¡± A staff member asked this detestable question in a low voice. The chief hesitated for a few seconds. ¡°Why don¡¯t we discuss if a guided missile would be able to blow this yaoguai to bits?¡± ¡°There is a fish in the Northernmost Ocean called the Kun. It is unknown how many thousands of li the Kun spans across. In its bird form, it is called the Peng. It is unknown how many thousands of li the back of the Peng spans. When it takes flight in anger, its wings resemble the clouds in the sky...¡± The staff member recited a passage from a textbook that was essential to memorize. ¡°Chief, if the explosion doesn¡¯t kill him but instead angers him into suddenly transforming into its original gigantic body, the entire world will be thrust into panic.¡± The chief was silent for a very long time. ¡°As long as he doesn¡¯t eat humans or pandas, anything else can be discussed.¡± He reached out a hand and patted the back of the chair, sighing, ¡°In addition, send a reply to Zhuang Qing immediately. As long as their management bureau can keep a close eye on the Kunpeng like they are for the Suanyu and prevent him from creating havoc, the country will promise to allocate a sum of funds to their department every year.¡± ¡°Chief, we¡¯ve already promised three sums of funds this year.¡± Employee A sent the message to Zhuang Qing, and asked the chief, ¡°If tens or hundreds of this sort of great yao appear in the future, what will we do then?¡± ¡°Shut your crow¡¯s mouth,¡± Employee B spluttered. ¡°These yao beasts haven¡¯t appeared for thousands of years, it¡¯s already scary enough that three of them appeared this year. If another ten or hundred of them were to appear, forget about mary concerns, you can directly skip to worrying about preserving your life.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t there still Boss Zhuang?¡± Employee A pointed at the screen. ¡°And this neer is also very powerful. He didn¡¯t slip up even after fighting with the Kunpeng for so long, who knows what kind of frightening beast he cultivated from?¡± ¡°It¡¯s said that there is a yao cultivator among the management bureau¡¯s batch of recruits whose original form is a white tiger. That might be him,¡± Employee B¡¯s fingers typed rapidly on the keyboard. The screen depicted the precise location of the Kunpeng. In order to ensure the safety of themon people, they had to n for the worst at all times. Zhuang Qing waited for a couple of minutes. After receiving the relevant department¡¯s guarantee that the cost of the Kunpeng¡¯s food would be paid for by them, as well as the message that they would be given funding, Zhuang Qing patted the barrier, indicating that Fu Li could bring the Kunpeng out. Noticing Zhuang Qing¡¯s movements, the Kunpeng kept his divine staff. ¡°What rtion does that dragon have to you?¡± ¡°He¡¯s our boss,¡± Fu Li stooped and washed his hands in the sea. ¡°We listen to his orders.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± The Kunpeng understood. ¡°So he¡¯s the king of your mountain.¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing, who was standing outside. ¡°Yeah.¡± The boss of the management bureau was equivalent to the king of a mountain; there wasn¡¯t much difference. ¡°Little rabbit, your cultivation is profound and your original form can¡¯t be seen by others ¨C it¡¯s clear that you were bestowed a chance by heavenlyw, allowing you to take on a human form,¡± The Kunpeng looked at Fu Li stooping over and washing his hands right in front of him. cing his hands behind his back, the Kunpeng shook his head and sighed, exuding the air of an experienced person. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that you have little experience inbat and aren¡¯t aware of how dreadful the yao heart is. Fortunately, you ran into me. If I say I won¡¯t hit you, then I won¡¯t. If it was another yao, they would have taken advantage of yourck of preparedness and gone after your life a long time ago.¡± Fu Li looked up at the Kunpeng and smiled. ¡°Because Master White Ape said before that Kunpeng daren has profound cultivation and cannot be rashly provoked, but that he is a great yao who abides by his promises.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still too young, you don¡¯t know the sinister ways of the world,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s sighs turned even heavier. ¡°The yao who taught you weren¡¯t diligent either, how did they teach you for you to end up with such a character? It¡¯s an act of harm towards you if you don¡¯t have the nature of a yao. You have to know that the hearts of humans can sometimes be even scarier than yao.¡± Zhuang Qing nced behind doubtfully. Why was there the cry of a sparrow when they were by the vast sea? Or had he misheard? Fu Li withdrew the barrier and then noticed that the Kunpeng was still wearing a gown reminiscent of the ancient periods. ¡°Daren, the clothing styles of the current human world have already changed. Why not follow their customs? That way, you can also avoid the scrutinizing gazes of others and enjoy your food in peace.¡± ¡°En, your words make sense,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s clothes turned into an exact replica of Fu Li¡¯s. ¡°Let¡¯s go then.¡± ¡°Pleasee with me,¡± Zhuang Qing made a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. The Kunpeng nodded. This dragon could still be considered sensible; knowing his fighting prowess, he personally led the way. In the deepestyers of the clouds, an enormous bird pped its wings. Stretching its head out, it nced in the direction Fu Li and the other yao had left in before concealing itself within the clouds once more. At this point in time, the hotel and chefs arranged for by the affiliated department was already preparing a variety of food in a flurry. Concerned that the main ingredients wouldn¡¯t be tempting enough to arouse the Kunpeng¡¯s interest, the employees even went to the market and purchased all sorts of snacks, arranging for someone to specially send them to the hotel. No matter the means, they had to make the Kunpeng like the delicacies of the human world. A problem that could be resolved using delicacies wasn¡¯t considered a problem. The Kunpeng was shocked stiff when he got his first clear glimpse of the capital¡¯s beautiful nightscape. The human world was actually this pretty? But who was he? He was the powerful king Kunpeng. Even if he was a bit shocked on the inside, he would never reveal it in front of the younger generation. Thus, on the surface, he appeared calmer than anyone else. Oh, this thing called streemp was much more useful than a night pearl. The humans nowadays had rather strange likes; they were actually fond of shutting themselves in boxes as they ran about. Did a yaoguai help to construct that bridge? It actually seemed somewhat grand. What was that human man ahead doing? He actually dared to hit a woman? Kunpeng daren couldn¡¯t bear to look on any longer. He shed in front of the man and kicked the man a few meters away with one foot. He patted the nonexistent dust on his trousers and snorted coldly, ¡°Actually daring to hit a woman, what a spineless coward.¡± The hit rendered the man incapable of crawling back up. He looked up, ready tounch into a scolding, when he realized that there was no one present other than the woman who was trembling with fear. The Hungry Ghost Festival was about to start, had he encountered some dirty thing? The Hungry Ghost Festival was about to start? Thinking of the ssic scenes in horror movies, the man¡¯s expression grew increasingly terrified. All of a sudden, he let out a shriek, and ran off in the opposite direction while dragging along the leg that the kick had broken. He would leave this haunted ce even if he had to crawl. Concealed in a hidden area, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing watched the terror-stricken man and then turned to nce at the Kunpeng, whose expression said ¡®just did an insignificant thing¡¯. They went up simultaneously and cupped their hands. ¡°Kunpeng daren lives up to his illustrious name.¡± ¡°Hmph, this elder just can¡¯t stand seeing someone bully a woman of the same species,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s back straightened even further. ¡°Oh right, where is the culinary restaurant you were speaking of?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not too far ahead, we¡¯ll reach after passing through this alley,¡± Fu Li pointed towards the back of the alley, where there was an enormous lighted advertisement featuring the Affinity Moon Hotel. The three yao walked into the alley. The Kunpeng couldn¡¯t help sniffing. What was it that had such a fragrant smell? It turned out a food vendor had secretly snuck into the alley to sell grilled skewers. It was unknown how long he had set up stall at this ce, but his business was quite good. The Kunpeng asked Fu Li curiously, ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°Those are grilled skewers,¡± Fu Li very tactfully fished out money for arge handful of grilled skewers before leading the Kunpeng towards the hotel. The Kunpeng epted the grilled skewers, gave them a sniff, and then opened his mouth wide, shoving the bamboo sticks as well as the grilled meat in. Kacha kacha. ¡°The taste is not bad, but the bamboo sticks are too hard. Don¡¯t skewer the grilled meat with bamboo sticks next time, eating it that way isn¡¯t satisfying,¡± The Kunpeng spat out several bamboo sticks, feeling midway through that he hadn¡¯t had his fill. At the floor above, a child pointed at the Kunpeng at the floor below and eximed loudly, ¡°Mom, mom! That fat uncle didn¡¯t spit out the skewers after eating the grilled meat. His mouth is sorge ¨C it can hold a huge bunch of grilled skewers. Did he transform from a yaoguai?¡± The mother¡¯s palmnded on the child¡¯s buttocks. She dragged the child over to the bed to lie down. ¡°Brat, you¡¯re lying again.¡± ¡°Mom, I¡¯m not lying this time,¡± The child was in despair. He had clearly spoken the truth, so why did no one believe him? The mother walked over to the window and stretched her head out, ncing around. There was nothing strange about the three men in the alley. Closing the window, she turned and spoke to the child, ¡°Not sleeping in the middle of the night, do you still want to go to school tomorrow?¡± At this moment, the child finally understood. Perhaps he wasn¡¯t his mother¡¯s biological son but a treasure left stranded in the human world by a certain immortal or yaoguai. When his biological parents came for him, he would definitely be even more powerful than Sun Wukong. As a former security guard of Affinity Moon Hotel, Fu Li¡¯s appearance was warmly weed by the front-counterdies. If not for the fact that he was apanied by other people, the girls at the front counter would definitely pull at him and jabber on for a whole half a day. The perfume the girls were wearing triggered a few sneezes from the Kunpeng. Rubbing his nose, he thought inwardly that the dragon hadn¡¯t lied to him. The quality of human flesh now indeed wasn¡¯t very good. Only after Fu Li¡¯s group of three left did one of the girls at the front counter ask curiously, ¡°I heard that the boss specially arranged for quite a few renowned chefs toe over. The cleaning department also cleaned the most luxurious of the private rooms. Are we receiving some important figure?¡± ¡°Who knows?¡± Another of the front-counter girls stretched out her neck, looking around. Seeing that Fu Li was walking in the direction of the luxurious private room, she joked, ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s to wee the two men beside Fu Li.¡± ¡°Probably not, right?¡± The front-counter girl didn¡¯t take these words to heart, instead saying, ¡°Lu Yi will be starting work in a while, I¡¯m not sure if she knows about this.¡± The moment the Kunpeng sat down, twelve cold dishes as well as the richest and most fragrant wine were served by people specially appointed for the task. Upon smelling the fragrance of the wine, the Kunpeng narrowed his eyes and took a sip of it. ¡°Interesting, very interesting.¡± He threw aside the sparkling, transparent goblet, held up the wine bottle, and directly took a giant gulp of wine from it. The waiters in the private room were not ordinary people but cultivators. Watching the Kunpeng down the wine as if it was water, their grip on the trays became somewhat unsteady. After several cold dishes, the Kunpeng¡¯s eyes brightened. Holding up a te, he poured all the food on the te into his mouth. While chewing, he smiled and said. ¡°Humans really know how to enjoy themselves, they can even use the pig¡¯s ears as a cold dish.¡± The Kunpeng narrowed his eyes as he thought of the Dangkang. What would his ears taste like when mixed into a sd? He pushed a cold vegetable dish in front of Fu Li. ¡°Here, for rabbits to eat.¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t fussy either. He epted the te of vegetables, picked up a pair of chopsticks, and dug in. The cooks were worthy of being renowned chefs specially arranged for by the government, their culinary skills were truly outstanding. Warm dish after warm dish was quickly served. The Kunpeng had already drunk ten bottles of white wine. His spot had also changed from opposite Fu Li to beside Fu Li. ¡°So there are actually so many ways of cooking eggs.¡± The Kunpeng inhaled a mouth of steamed egg with crab meat, speaking to Fu Li, ¡°If I¡¯d known earlier that the humans had this level of skill, I wouldn¡¯t have swallowed the dragon eggs I found during those years and would have let the humans cook it for me.¡± ¡°The humans probably didn¡¯t know how to cook dragon eggs four thousand years ago.¡± Fu Li asked out of curiosity, ¡°Are dragon eggs tasty?¡± ¡°Mediocre,¡± The Kunpeng shook his head. ¡°There were too many scales. The bones were hard, and there was very little meat. There wasn¡¯t much to eat.¡± ¡°Then why did you still eat them?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. ¡°Who asked an azure dragon to insist on framing me for eating his son?¡± The Kunpeng snorted coldly. ¡°Am I, a Kunpeng, someone who can be insulted by a dragon? I¡¯ll eat for them to see then.¡± ¡°That azure dragon n really is shameless every second of the day,¡± Fu Li picked up a mushroom-stewed chicken for the Kunpeng. ¡°Try this.¡± The Kunpeng swallowed half the chicken in one mouth and nodded with satisfaction. ¡°I once ate a very big type of jellyfish at the bottom of the sea. It was crispy and slippery, but the taste was quite good. When I¡¯m in a better mood, I¡¯ll catch some for you to try.¡± ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Fu Li was all smiles. ¡°Since the dragon race doesn¡¯t taste good, don¡¯t eat them in the future. With daren¡¯s power, why is there a need for you to wrong yourself by eating bad-tasting things? If worstes to worst, just give unreasonable dragons like the azure dragons a beating every time you see them. That way, you can vent your anger and let them know daren¡¯s might.¡± At the side, the cultivators disguised as waiters felt that things were bing more and more strange the more they listened. Why did these words sound like nders that a yao concubine would utter to an incapable ruler? What grudge was there between this Fu Li and the azure dragon n? After sneaking a peek at Zhuang Qing, who was also of the dragon race yet didn¡¯t speak up at all for the azure dragon n, everyone remained silent. Suchplicated dragon rtions. ¡°It¡¯s still young yao like you whose brains function well,¡± The Kunpeng polished off three mushroom-stewed chickens in session. pping the table, he said, ¡°Doesn¡¯t their dragon race have very few numbers now? If I don¡¯t eat them, I¡¯ll beat them till they cry for their daddies and mummies and call me elder at first sight.¡± ¡°Daren, although our boss is from the dragon n...¡± ¡°Rx, he can only be considered half a dragon. I won¡¯t include him in my settling of debts,¡± The Kunpeng regarded himself as a great yao who drew a clear line between his likes and dislikes. He had long since kicked Zhuang Qing out of the dragons¡¯ ranks. ¡°To this humble one, the azure dragons are still the worst among the dragons. Although the other dragons don¡¯t have very nice appearances, they aren¡¯t too loathsome.¡± Fu Li picked up a sweet and sour Mandarin fish for the Kunpeng with his chopsticks and said with a face brimming with sincerity, ¡°As the saying goes, there are no debts without creditors. This debt should be theirs.¡± ¡°En, this fish is delicious,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s human face wasn¡¯t very big, but it didn¡¯t pose any difficulty for him to swallow an entire fish. He finished eating the fish and told Fu Li, ¡°Little yao like you are to my liking. I thought you would speak up for the dragon race and didn¡¯t expect you to be so interesting. Don¡¯t follow this mixed-blood dragon, be my subordinate.¡± ¡°This humble one looks up to daren¡¯s majestic presence. However, a yao must pay careful attention to morality. Since I am now with this boss, I cannot abandon him even if his cultivation is not as profound as yours.¡± Having been boot-licked by Fu Li till his entire body was at ease, the Kunpeng revealed a kindly smile. ¡°It is right for a subordinate to be loyal, so I won¡¯t continue pressuring you. Since you¡¯re very much to my liking, I¡¯ll show you some face and let the other dragons off. I¡¯ll only give the azure dragon n a beating.¡± The cultivators who had witnessed thisrge-scale ndering: ... Was sacrificing the azure dragons a way of blessing the other dragons? Chapter 41 - Leaving Soul Syndrome

Chapter 41 - Leaving Soul Syndrome

The Kunpeng wasn¡¯t as difficult to deal with as everyone had anticipated. The mealsted till dawn, after which Zhuang Qing proposed to bring him to a resting ce. The Kunpeng didn¡¯t turn him down, his cooperative attitude allowing everyone to heave a sigh of relief. When they walked out of the private room, the hotel¡¯s boss Wang Han was waiting outside. The moment he caught sight of them, he enthusiastically greeted them, ¡°Chief Zhuang, Kunpeng daren, please take care.¡± ¡°En,¡± Seeing that everyone at the hotel had respectful attitudes, the Kunpeng was extremely pleased. After a few proud nods, he raised his head, stuck out his chest, and headed out. Wang Han gazed at his back and let out a long breath. Propping a hand against the wall, his legs trembled like vibration machines. ¡°Damn, I was almost scared to death.¡± He hadn¡¯t wanted toe at first, but had received Fu Li¡¯s message in the middle of the night stating that the Kunpeng ced a lot of importance on face; the Kunpeng wasn¡¯t moved by force or persuasion, but was very easy to deal with as long as one gave him enough face. What else could he do? Of course, he could only grit his teeth and respectfully send off the great yao. Beforeing, he had even written a will in advance. In the event that something happened to him, the hotel would still function as per normal. If he sacrificed himself for themon people, the country and cultivation world would have to give him some face and provide generous treatment to the Wanyue Sect, right? He stood there with the mentality of a ¡®warrior never to be seen again after the howling wind and frigid waters of the Yi River¡¯. Only after the danger had passed did he clearly recognize how much he feared death. ¡°Fu Li!¡± The cultivators disguised as waiters respectfully saw them off at the main entrance. Everyone was just about to rx when a young girl suddenly ran out from a corner, causing their hearts to tense once again. Lu Yi squeezed past the slightly plump man beside Fu Li and tugged on Fu Li¡¯s sleeve. Gasping for breath, she said, ¡°Even if you aren¡¯t willing to ept my pursuit, must you give up on this job? You make a living outside on your own and it¡¯s not easy for you to find a good job. There¡¯s no need for you to discard this job because of me. If you genuinely feel that it¡¯s awkward to work in the same ce as me, then I¡¯ll resign if worstes to worst. I¡¯m local, so finding a job will be easier for me than you.¡± The cultivators shot a nce at Zhuang Qing. What sort of situation was this? Zhuang Qing nced at the Kunpeng who had been squeezed aside by the human girl and gave a tiny shake of his head. How was he supposed to know that this old yaoguai had actually provoked a human girl? ¡°Nothing of that sort happened, don¡¯t overthink. You¡¯re such a nice person, why would I intentionally avoid you?¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°I really did resign because I found a job more suitable for me.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Lu Yi released her grip on Fu Li¡¯s sleeve and forced out a smile. ¡°That¡¯s good then.¡± ¡°He¡¯s my new boss,¡± Fu Li dragged Zhuang Qing over. ¡°He¡¯s magnanimous, loyal, and shows a lot of consideration to me.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Zhuang Qing shifted the hand that Fu Li had used to grab onto his arm. He nodded towards the human girl. ¡°Fu Li does indeed work at ourpany, he¡¯s not lying to you.¡± ¡°Hello.¡± Lu Yi straightened her posture and hastily replied, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for disturbing you at work. Fu Li is usually very serious when working, please don¡¯t have a bad impression of him because of me.¡± Zhuang Qing cocked his head and looked at Fu Li. ¡°I won¡¯t, please don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Lu Yi took a deep look at Fu Li before saying softly, ¡°Take care in the future.¡± Saying so, she turned and ran off without looking back. The cultivators stared at Fu Li. This was an age when romantic freedom was promoted, and there was no opposition to yao getting together with humans on the condition that the human was willing. The management bureau¡¯s neer had quite the ability to be liked by such a good girl. The Kunpeng who was bumped into wasn¡¯t angry either. On the contrary, he bumped Fu Li¡¯s waist with an elbow. ¡°I couldn¡¯t tell that you were a dishonorable yao who doesn¡¯t even let off human girls.¡± Fu Li: ... Zhuang Qing and Fu Li brought the Kunpeng to the lodging behind the management bureau where many of the yao cultivators working at the bureau resided. Arranging for the Kunpeng to stay at this ce was safer than having him stay in a residential area with ordinary humans. ¡°The bed can be consideredfortable, though the ce is a bit small,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s room was nearly two hundred square meters. The Kunpeng stood by the window and looked around for a while before shaking his head and sighing, ¡°Since the humans cook good food, I¡¯ll bear with it for now.¡± The moment he uttered these words, he transformed into a bird the size of several tens of meters with a plop. Pulling over an enormous carpet, he used it as a nket and covered his fat belly with it. ¡°You can go busy yourselves, I¡¯m going to sleep.¡± Fortunately, the building was specially constructed by the management bureau, otherwise the weight of the Kunpeng¡¯s original form might have brought the entire building down. It was just a pity that Song Yu lived on the floor below the Kunpeng. Shivers ravaged his body at the smell of the Kunpeng,pelling him to kneel on the spot and call him king. He opened the door a crack with shaking hands. Seeing that Fu Li and Zhuang Qing were heading down from the floor above, he instantly threw himself in front of them. ¡°Fu Li daren, I can smell the Kunpeng. It¡¯s a Kunpeng ahhhh!¡± Fu Li touched his bald head. ¡°En, you didn¡¯t smell wrong. He¡¯s staying on the floor above yours.¡± The screeches vanished all of a sudden. Song Yu covered his mouth, his gaze darting about in rm. ¡°Daren, are you joking with me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be scared, I¡¯ll be moving in a few dayster too. I¡¯ll be staying on the floor above the Kunpeng.¡± Seeing that Song Yu¡¯s cheeks had turned pale from fright, Fu Li said consolingly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not like he¡¯ll eat you.¡± Song Yu: But I don¡¯t feel consoled. ¡°You can have one day of leave. Go back and pack up your things. Try your best to move in within three days,¡± Zhuang Qing nced upstairs. ¡°It¡¯ll be hard on you this period.¡± ¡°We¡¯re serving the people after all,¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°It¡¯s just a pity that thendlord of the house I just rented won¡¯t give me a refund if I move out in advance.¡± ¡°You¡¯re quite generous when giving away things, but your heart knows how to ache when ites to rental eh,¡± Zhuang Qing found the car key. ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll send you back.¡± After the both of them got into the car, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°The way you were actingst night was different from your usual self.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t usually speak so much, nor was he that...crafty. ¡°That was because Elder White Ape once told me about the Kunpeng¡¯s character. The Kunpeng¡¯s magic power is endless and he can¡¯t be moved by force or persuasion, so it¡¯s best to give him face,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°When encountering a yao that can¡¯t be defeated, fight if one can win, escape if it isn¡¯t possible to win, and surrender if there¡¯s no way of escaping. Only by abiding by these can a yao not suffer losses.¡± ¡°Were these also taught to you by White Ape?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Elder White Ape said that no matter the situation, one must be alive before anything else can be done.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent for a moment before responding calmly, ¡°He taught well.¡± Learning not to surrender would lead to constant run-ins with a brick wall, leading to a world of hurt and scars. That being said, once certain habits were inculcated, it was very difficult to change them. Upon returning to his rented house, Fu Li packed up everything. When he went downstairs to find thendlord to check out, thendlord¡¯s house was in chaos. Thendlord¡¯s adorable granddaughter was lying on the sofa spouting hogwash while thendlord¡¯s daughter-inw was sobbing as she dialed the number for the ambnce. Fu Li¡¯s arrival didn¡¯t attract the attention of any of the people in the house. He had seen the little girl several times in the less than half a month he had lived at this ce. If she wasn¡¯t carrying her tiny backpack to the kindergarten, she was holding her parents¡¯ hands, hopping about on their way out to y. Every time he saw her, the little girl would beam and call him big brother in her soft voice that had a milk-like quality to it. She was an extremely cute girl. ncing at the child who was sputtering nonsense on the sofa, Fu Li made his way downstairs and found the little girl after searching all over the neighborhood¡¯s streets. ¡°Are you lost?¡± Fu Li crouched down in front of her and pinched the little girl¡¯s soft face. ¡°Big brother?¡± Tears decorated the little girl¡¯s face. Upon seeing Fu Li, she burst into tears, ¡°I can¡¯t find daddy and mummy.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll bring you to them, okay?¡± Fu Li extended his hand to the little girl. ¡°Will you lie and sell me off?¡± The little girl pointed at a man at the end of the street. ¡°That uncle wanted to take me away just now, but I didn¡¯t agree.¡± Fu Li looked in the direction the girl was pointing to. One of the man¡¯s feet was bare and he stood at the center of the intersection of the roads, seemingly searching for something. Fu Li knew what he was looking for ¨C the shoe that he had lost. Only after finding the shoe he had lost could he be reincarnated. If he really couldn¡¯t find it, he could also let his family members burn a pair of shoes ¨C which he had worn when alive ¨C at the ce of his demise. Or, he could reincarnate if he found a death-substitute. ¡°You did the right thing, that uncle is a liar,¡± Fu Li took hold of the little girl¡¯s hand. ¡°But I won¡¯t lie to you, you cane with me.¡± The little girl cocked her head thoughtfully and then nodded. ¡°Okay. You can¡¯t lie to me, okay?¡± Fu Liughed, ¡°Good girl.¡± An ambnce passed by them. One by one, the cars ahead moved out of its way, leaving a path through the congested street for the ambnce. Holding the girl¡¯s hand, Fu Li walked past the noisy crowd of people and a tranquil river. Then, he covered the little girl¡¯s eyes, wrapped his arms around her, and passed through a dark tunnel. ¡°Don¡¯t make a sound, you¡¯ll see your daddy and mummy in a while.¡± The little girl nodded obediently. Faint weeping sounds and pained howls prompted her to hug Fu Li¡¯s neck tightly with some fear. While she was distracted, the sound of bells drifted over. Very soon, the ringing sound could be heard in front of her. Feeling somewhat curious, she wanted to take a peek, yet the big brother who was carrying her covered her eyes. ¡°Mr Fu Li.¡± ¡°Yinchai daren.¡± ¡°The little girl in your arms... is that the Leaving Soul Syndrome?¡± The little girl didn¡¯t understand what a yinchai and Leaving Soul Syndrome was. ¡°Children are timid and have weak yang qi. Receiving a slight shock is enough for their spirit to leave the body. I have some affinity with this little girl, so I¡¯m sending her back.¡± ¡°Mr Fu Li is very kind.¡± ¡°I¡¯m merely doing it in passing.¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Take care.¡± The little girl once again heard the sound of bells drifting away, yet the hand covering her eyes remained where it was. A whileter, she heard the big brother¡¯s gentle voice. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived, you can go back.¡± She opened her eyes. There was no sign of the big brother. All she saw was a spotless white ceiling, a few uncles and aunties in white clothes, and her still-weeping parents. ¡°Miao Miao!¡± The child¡¯s mother saw that the little girl had awoken. She wanted to bring her into a hug but didn¡¯t dare to make any reckless moves. ¡°Are you awake?¡± ¡°Mommy...¡± The little girl sat up on the hospital bed and looked around with confusion. ¡°Where¡¯s the big brother who sent me back?¡± ¡°What big brother?¡± Concerned that the child¡¯s rash movements would pull on the needle connected to the drip, the little girl¡¯s mother hurriedly stopped her, ¡°Don¡¯t move, don¡¯t move.¡± The doctor and nurse hastily went up and checked the girl¡¯s physical condition. All of them were amazed. A moment ago, the girl¡¯s pupils were dted, and she was exhibiting life-threatening symptoms, yet why was there suddenly little to no difference between her and an ordinary person now? ¡°The brother who led me to you from the street,¡± The little girl was still slightly bewildered. She didn¡¯t understand why she was now lying on the bed with a scary needle in her hand when she was just in the big brother¡¯s arms. ¡°A bad uncle wanted to take me away, but I didn¡¯t agree. After that, big brother came and said that he¡¯ll bring me to you. We walked for a very long time, and even met an uncle on the way who was carrying a bell.¡± The doctor and nurse smiled. ¡°It¡¯s possible for children to have strange dreams when they¡¯re unconscious, there¡¯s no need for the parents to worry. Her vital signs are all normal now. We rmend staying in the hospital for observation for a few more days and doing aprehensive check-up. If there are no issues, she can be discharged.¡± ¡°Thank you, doctor. Thank you both,¡± The child¡¯s parents stood up and thanked them. There were many patients in the hospital, so the doctor and nurse proceeded with their respective work after seeing that the child was fine. Thendy often prayed and burned incense at temples and monasteries, so she asked a few more questions after hearing her granddaughter¡¯s words, ¡°Which big brother sent you back?¡± ¡°That pretty big brother that borrowed the house on the floor above ours to live in. While he was carrying me to you, he even met a daren and told that daren that I had the Leaving Soul Syndrome. Grandma, what is a Leaving Soul Syndrome?¡± These words gave thendy and the child¡¯s parents a huge shock. Leaving Soul Syndrome? They had coincidentally seen a car ident the previous night when they were bringing Miao Miao home. The person who was knocked down died on the spot and his shoe even flew quite a few meters. Miao Miao seemed to have been frightened stiff by the tragic car ident and cried continuously after returning home. No matter how much they called out to her, she didn¡¯t sober up even when morning came. Moreover, she kept uttering nonsensical words. Could the fright fromst night have caused her to lose her soul? ¡°Mom,¡± Miao Miao¡¯s mother felt a lingering fear. She was someone who believed in materialism, but this event concerned her precious daughter, so it unexpectedly caused her to have some doubts. ¡°Do you think this could be true...¡± Thendy¡¯s expression was grave. ¡°When I was young, I heard the elderly in the vige saying that some children would lose their souls after suffering severe shock. Nothing major will happen if they were called back by someone, but if no one did so, the child would be a fool.¡± Miao Miao¡¯s parents looked at their adorable and quick-witted daughter on the hospital bed, and simultaneously felt a chill run through their bodies. ¡°Mommy, I remembered what that daren was called!¡± Miao Miao eximed in delight. ¡°Big brother called him yinchai daren.¡± ¡°Yinchai?¡± ¡°Someone called yinchai, and the sound of bells...¡± Thendy¡¯s voice was hoarse. ¡°That is probably the legendary soul-catcher from the underworld.¡± The expressions of the three adults were filled with shock, horror, and amazement. Miao Miao¡¯s mother held her daughter¡¯s hand, her entire body trembling. At this point in time, they no longer had the leisure to ponder over Fu Li¡¯s identity and the reason why he had such abilities. All they could think of was expressing their gratitude to him. Without him, they might have lost their daughter. Two dayster, the local police station Peng Hang was stationed at received a police report from an ordinary citizen. The content of the report was a little on the strange side. They hadn¡¯t lost anything but had instead picked up their previous tenant¡¯s money. Unable to track down this tenant¡¯s location, they could only request for aid from the police. ¡°I¡¯ve seen so many reports of tenants not paying rental andndlords treating their tenants poorly, but haven¡¯t encountered situations where andlord insists on returning a tenant¡¯s money more than a few times,¡± The police officer taking the case searched the census register for the correct person using the information given by thendlord. ¡°Found it,¡± The police officer clicked open the information. ¡°The tenant¡¯s name is Fu Li. He¡¯s the only person listed on his bank ount. He doesn¡¯t own any property, doesn¡¯t have a car, and he was registered at Yongliang...¡± ¡°Wait, who did you say it was?¡± Peng Hang ced down his thermos bottle. ¡°What was the name of the tenant?¡± ¡°Fu Li.¡± Peng Hang squeezed beside theputer, took a clear look at Fu Li¡¯s picture, and pped his thigh. ¡°This youngster again!¡± ¡°Captain, you recognize him?¡± ¡°Of course, how could I not?¡± Peng Hang replied. ¡°It was this youngster who coaxed someone out ofmitting suicide.¡± He didn¡¯t mention the matter about the fake medicine. After all, that youngster had done it out of goodwill. ¡°What a coincidence,¡± The police officer said. ¡°Then let¡¯s think of a way to find that person.¡± After learning about the addition of a Kunpeng to the management bureau, everybody in the bureau did things much more carefully. Even when speaking, they would try as hard as possible to avoid saying the word ¡®Kunpeng¡¯, for fear of summoning the great deity by ident. ¡°Boss, how did you and Fu ge take down the Kunpeng?¡± Chu Yu¡¯s face was filled with reverence. ¡°That¡¯s a Kunpeng after all.¡± ¡°Since you¡¯re so interested, why don¡¯t you personally ask the Kunpeng?¡± Zhuang Qing stood up from the chair. ¡°T-That won¡¯t be necessary,¡± Chu Yu hastily took a few steps back. ¡°How can a little yao like me gaze upon Kunpeng daren¡¯s imposing presence?¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow. ¡°En, it¡¯s good that you understand. If you still don¡¯t cultivate well, you¡¯ll end up having to lower your head to everyone in the future.¡± Chu Yu gave a pained smile. ¡°Boss, can¡¯t you leave me some face?¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow at him. ¡°Hardworking people don¡¯t require others to give them face. People who are not hardworking...¡± ¡°I know, Boss. I know all of that,¡± Chu Yu didn¡¯t dare to continue listening to him. ¡°I¡¯ll go back right this instant and practice the way of the Dao. I¡¯ll strive to be the number one Daoist fish expert.¡± In any case, he was the only orthodox Daoist fish. Knocks sounded on the door. Fu Li stuck his head in from where he was standing outside. ¡°I came to get the keys. I¡¯ll leave after picking it up, so you guys can continue to look at each other.¡± ¡°Fu ge,¡± Chu Yu looked at Fu Li as if he was his knight in shining armor. ¡°I heard from them that you¡¯re going to be shifting in. We¡¯ll be neighbors in the future. Which floor are you staying on? I¡¯ll help you to tidy up the house.¡± ¡°Many thanks,¡± Fu Li took the keys from Zhuang Qing. ¡°I was worried that tidying up would go too slowly with one person.¡± ¡°Hand this sort of matter to me, I¡¯m an expert at tidying up.¡± However, Fu Li simply had too few things, preventing Chu Yu from fully demonstrating his abilities. Apart from a few sets of clothes, it was just set after set of reference books. He didn¡¯t even own aputer, much less any items for interior decoration. Although male yao cultivators didn¡¯t need to pay too much attention to these, Fu Li¡¯s attitude was a bit too nonchnt. After tidying everything up, Chu Yu casuallymented, ¡°There seems to be a new resident downstairs too. I¡¯m not sure who in our department moved in.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Kunpeng.¡± The book in Chu Yu¡¯s hand smashed onto his foot. At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open from outside. A slightly plump man walked in and plopped onto the sofa. ¡°Little rabbit, you moved in too?¡± Chu Yu¡¯s body swayed. With a bang, he copsed onto the floor, turning into a fish of despair. He had a white belly and ck back. ¡°What ything is this?¡± The Kunpeng picked up the half-dead fish from the floor and shook it. ¡°Dead fishes don¡¯t taste nice.¡± Saying this, he opened his mouth in preparation to swallow the fish. Fu Li hurriedly snatched the fish. ¡°Daren, this is my colleague. You can¡¯t eat him!¡± Ilyz: Poor CY can never catch a break~ Updating you guys on my personal situation because it might or not might not affect my release rate. I¡¯m done with myst semester at uni and will be starting work next year. This also means that there may be times when I may not be able to release 2 chapters per week, especially if the word count is on the higher end. I promise there will be at least 1 chapter per week though~ Sorry for this when the release rate was just recently bumped up too I will be taking the remaining time till the end of the year to trante as much as possible to keep to the release rate. I apologize in advance if I do end up only posting one chapter at times, thank you for understanding <3 Chapter 42 - Red String

Chapter 42 - Red String

Though the Kunpeng had some dislike of Chu Yu, he gave up on eating the fish after finding out that he was friends with Fu Li. A little yao who couldn¡¯t even maintain his human form upon seeing him actually dared to recklessly wander about outside. It seemed that the times were indeed different. ¡°Forget it, forget it. I¡¯ll give you this face,¡± The Kunpeng didn¡¯t snatch the ugly fish in Fu Li¡¯s hands that dared not even move. ¡°You said you¡¯ll take me to eat m crayfish the other time, when are we going?¡± He had started nning for this upon discovering Fu Li¡¯s qi. However, to not look overly anxious, he had waited in his room for ten minutes before heading up to find Fu Li. ¡°Let¡¯s go now?¡± Seeing the Kunpeng nod repeatedly, Fu Li ced Chu Yu into the bathroom sink and even kindly filled half the sink with water for him. ¡°Chu Yu, I¡¯ll bring the Kunpeng out for a meal. You can go out after we leave.¡± Chu Yu pped his tail weakly. Flipping over onto his belly, he allowed himself to float on the water. After Fu Li and the Kunpeng left, he hastily jumped out of the bathroom sink, changed into his human form, and spat multiple times in session to get all the water in his mouth out. He usually detested soaking in tap water due to the taste of bleach. Although it wasn¡¯t yet the peak period for meals, there were already many customers seated in the crayfish shop Fu Li chose. Everyone sat in twos and threes, drinking beer and tucking into crayfish. The humming of the air-conditioner didn¡¯t dispel everyone¡¯s enthusiasm. The crayfish was served. Not afraid of being scalded, the Kunpeng picked one up and threw it in his mouth before nodding. ¡°The taste is indeed quite good, although it¡¯s a bit too small.¡± When he went back, he would fish up somerge sea prawns and let the humans prepare them the same way. If he had known that there were so many delicious things in the human world, he wouldn¡¯t have eaten the humans but locked them all up to cook for him. Several lively youngsters were seated at the table adjacent to theirs. Despite the fact that they were eating crayfish, they were enthusiastically discussing whether abalone and bird¡¯s nest tasted good. In the end, they concluded that the important thing was not the taste, but their inability to afford them. ¡°Ai, do you still remember the passage in our high school textbook?¡± A girl took a sip of her drink. ¡°I think that sort of fish might taste good.¡± Upon hearing the title , Fu Li instinctively felt that these humans were about to cause trouble. ¡°You mean the Kunpeng?¡± A sses-wearing boy with e chuckled. ¡°There is a fish in the Northernmost Ocean called the Kun. With the Kun¡¯s enormous size, it can¡¯t be stewed in one pot. When it transforms into a bird, its name is the Peng. Given the Peng¡¯s enormous size, it¡¯ll need two grills ¨C one for the secret recipe, and one for m. Who knows? It might really be delicious. And there¡¯ll even be enough for many people to eat.¡± The Kunpeng who was chewing on crayfish pricked up his ears. What was this??? He didn¡¯t intend on eating humans, yet the humans wanted to take action against him? The dignity of Kunpeng daren could not be sullied by insignificant humans! He pped the table and decided on the spot that he would change into the Peng and swallow these ignorant humans. ¡°Daren,¡± Fu Li grabbed the Kunpeng¡¯s arm, bringing his impulse to change into bird form under control. He pointed towards the mostly-consumed crayfish on the table and spoke in a low voice, ¡°It is a minor thing to eat these few ignorant humans, but if it were to get out and cause a ruckus, you would not be able to eat human culinary delicacies in the future. These ignorant humans can only live a hundred years and have never even gotten a glimpse of daren¡¯s formidable figure, which is why they dare to crack such jokes. Considering that the humans invented these culinary delicacies, let it be.¡± It was indeed a minor thing to swallow the humans, but since it came with the cost of only being able to eat fishes at the bottom of the sea in the future, the Kunpeng decided there and then that he would be lenient and forgive these ignorant humans. He gave a hmph, ¡°Forget it, I¡¯ll give you this face. Come, another two more tes of crayfish!¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li beamed and agreed. Compared to the Zhuyan who didn¡¯t give them any face, the Kunpeng who had already shown him face multiple times became much cuter in Fu Li¡¯s eyes. Fu Li and the Kunpeng were eating happily on this end. But at the management bureau, Chu Yu literally had to rely on the wall to support himself in order to make it back to the office from the residential area. Seeing that he appeared on the brink of death, the other colleagues thought that he had suffered an attack by an evil yao and helped him in a disordered flurry to a chair. Old Huang saw Chu Yu¡¯s hands trembling as he held a cup of water and asked with concern, ¡°Old Chu, what happened to you?¡± What a pitiful appearance, he was so frightened that he hadn¡¯t even withdrawn the scales on his face. ¡°You might not believe me, but I was nearly swallowed by the Kunpeng just now,¡± Chu Yu downed the entire ss of water in two shots, resembling a little girl who had just been vited. ¡°The moment he opened his mouth, I thought I was done for.¡± ¡°How did you escape?¡± Everyone was very curious about the Kunpeng. Given Chu Yu¡¯s cultivation, wasn¡¯t he just talking big by saying that he managed to escape from the Kunpeng¡¯s mouth? ¡°Fu ge snatched me from the edge of the Kunpeng¡¯s mouth,¡± Chu Yu wanted to cry, but couldn¡¯t produce any tears. ¡°It looks like Boss was right. If we don¡¯t put any effort into cultivating, we won¡¯t even be able to maintain our human forms when our cultivation is suppressed.¡± The moment it came out that it was Fu Li who had saved him, everyone instantly abandoned the suspicion that Chu Yu was bragging. ¡°That scary?¡± Old Huang shivered. ¡°I live in the residential area, will I bump into him into the future?¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± Chu Yu smiled bitterly. ¡°My experience today is enough to brag about for a millennium.¡± ¡°Tsk!¡± Seeing that Chu Yu still had energy to spout such rubbish, everyone knew that he was all right. Thus, they tossed him to a corner and went back to doing their own things. ¡°I¡¯ve already split up the areas everyone is in charge of,¡± Xu Yuan had made a list of the employees conducting the census. ¡°ording to regtions, every team should have one neer, but the circumstances are a bit different now, so I allocated Song Yu and Fu Li to the same team. Does anyone have any objections?¡± Everyone simultaneously shook their heads. What objections could they have? Average people like them couldn¡¯t handle these ancient great yao. Their one meal of crayfishsted for nearly two hours. Fu Li and the Kunpeng¡¯sbat ability was so formidable that the boss took a zero off their bill and even enthusiastically asked them to return. The Kunpeng silently followed after Fu Li. He remained silent even after they had walked a long distance. Fu Li turned back with some curiosity. ¡°Daren, is anything wrong?¡± The Kunpeng stood in the street. There were tall buildings in bizarre shapes, and cars that resembled metal boxes. Pedestrians came and went, their pace hasty. The entire world seemed to be upied by humans. He lowered his voice and asked, ¡°Our yao race has already fallen to this level?¡± The spiritual qi in the world was nearly exhausted and the sky was no longer a clear dark blue. All the humans lived in narrow boxes packed closely together. Distance-wise, they seemed close, but at the same time cold and detached. Fu Li had lived for more than four thousand years and had little contact with humans. Two thousand years ago, he had not known about the rules of the human world. When the pet he was raising fell ill, he went down the mountain in his original form in search of a physician. In the end, he scared the physician into crying bitterly and begging for forgiveness. Ever since then, he never again revealed his original form to a human. At that time, he had thought that the physician feared his original form. But now, he understood that what humans feared were those who were different from them and yet spoke humannguage. He had not personally witnessed the previous majesty of the yao race. Even before that, he had not lived in the human world. His understanding of the yao world came almost entirely from White Ape, who was fond of rambling. His understanding of human culture stemmed from the human pet he had raised for a good many years. Although the human pet didn¡¯t have much fur nor a particrly cute appearance, he was able to tell stories and write, so it was quite interesting. Because he was ignorant of everything, he could not understand the Kunpeng¡¯s regretful and depressed mood. ¡°In fact, some humans are very interesting. When daren has stayed in the human world for some time, perhaps daren mighte to like living here,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t know what he should say, so he could only stand together with the Kunpeng and watch the traffic go by. ¡°That type of person is also very interesting?¡± The Kunpeng pointed ahead. Not too far in the distance, an elderly man with a head full of white hair was putting his all into pedaling a rickshaw. Some fruits were ced at the back of the rickshaw. Taking advantage of the fact that the old man was toiling at pedaling and wasn¡¯t paying attention to the back, two youngsters had secretly stolen two bunches of bananas. After taking the bananas, they each took one banana and threw the remaining into a rubbish bin. As if pleased with their conduct, theyughed out loud. Fu Li didn¡¯t reply. The Kunpeng wanted to mock Fu Li, but saw several youngsters opposite the street rush over. Not only did they help the elderly man push the rickshaw, but they also bought almost all the fruits on the rickshaw. These few youngsters were a little familiar ¨C they were the ignorant humans who had hooted about wanting to eat him. Seeing this scene, the Kunpeng snorted coldly. He walked to the two youngsters who had stolen the bananas and kicked their lower legs wordlessly. ¡°F*ck!¡± The two youngsters who had been kicked climbed up from the ground. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll hit you if I want to,¡± The Kunpeng straightened his tummy. ¡°Don¡¯t you know what you did?¡± Seeing the Kunpeng¡¯s ferocious appearance, the two people went off into the distance spitting curses, not daring to get into a real fight with the Kunpeng. The Kunpeng scolded their backs angrily, ¡°Cowards.¡± Fu Li watched the Kunpeng give off the image of a socially principled person and couldn¡¯t helpughing. In the management bureau, Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze swept across themon work area. ¡°Where did Fu Li go?¡± ¡°Boss, Fu Li brought the Kunpeng out for a meal,¡± Chu Yu answered softly. Zhuang Qing nodded. He turned and nced at Song Yu, who was seated at a corner. ¡°Song Yu, you¡¯ll be in the same team as Fu Li in the future. For work-rted things, listen to Fu Li¡¯s orders.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Song Yu agreed immediately. In his heart, Fu Li had be his boss ever since he sent his feathers flying all over the sky. It waspletely right for little brothers to follow what their boss said. Just as Zhuang Qing finished speaking, Fu Li walked in. ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± Fu Li walked in, smelling like m crayfish. Seeing everyone gaze at him as if he was a hero, he asked doubtfully, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± What a majestic yao! He dared to eat at the same table as the Kunpeng! Huang Can poured a cup of tea for Fu Li. ¡°Fu ge, it¡¯s been hard on you.¡± ¡°I do it to... serve the people?¡± Fu Li held the teacup and replied with confusion. ¡°Settle down,¡± Zhuang Qing rapped the table, attracting everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°This year¡¯s cultivation world census will be done in groups led by seniors. This will be beneficial for the neers since they can familiarize themselves with the cultivation world. Xu Yuan, give out the name lists.¡± Fu Li nced at the name list. He was in the same team as the Suanyu and Zhang Ke, and they were mainly responsible for noting down the cultivators in the provinces of Sichuan, Nanzhao, and Qian An. ¡°Everyone can rest tonight and leave tomorrow morning,¡± Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t a leader who liked to nag. After allocating the work, he prepared to return to his personal office. In the end, before he left, he received a call from the guard at the entrance saying that a police officer was looking for Fu Li. Everyone looked towards Fu Li simultaneously. Had he gone out with the Kunpeng and caused some sort of trouble? Peng Hang looked at therge golden and shiny words ¡®Chang Long Biotechnology Limited¡± and nced at the youngsters in security uniforms guarding the door. He felt that the youngster called Fu Li had pretty good prospects. He became a security guard after working as physicalbor, and then transitioned from being a security guard to an employee at argepany. ¡°Mr Police Officer, I¡¯ve already contacted our leader. Ourpany does indeed have an employee named Fu Li. We apologize, please enter,¡± The security guard opened the electronic door and invited Peng Hang as well as his colleague in. ¡°Whoa!¡± The colleague walked through the door and eximed in admiration, ¡°Thispany has such an imposing style. They¡¯re really worthy of being a famous brand within the country.¡± He was a man, but knew that Chang Long¡¯s makeup and skincare products were very famous. It was said that thispany even manufactured clothing, toys, shoes, bags; their products were extremely diverse. The pretty and politedy at the front counter invited the two people to drink tea. Arge crystal chandelier hung suspended in the hall. The floor was so bright they could see their reflections. The handrails of the stairs were made entirely out of natural wood, engraved with beautiful carvings. The employees that came and went all had outstanding looks. Standing there, Peng Hang and his colleague suddenly felt that they were the world¡¯s ugliest people. ¡°Please follow me,¡± A young woman dressed in a suit led the two people to a guest room on the second floor. She smiled elegantly at them. ¡°Please sit for a moment.¡± Her walking posture was extremely attractive, just like a rich, unmarrieddy during ancient times who had received a good upbringing. Every frown and smile exuded sophistication. All those supposeddies in television dramas appeared pretentious inparison to her. Peng Hand took another look at the wall, where several scrolls hung. Despite being an uncouth fellow who didn¡¯t understand the arts, he felt that these words were particrly good looking. There was even a certain vor to them that he couldn¡¯t put into words. Moreover, he didn¡¯t know if it was just his misconception, but he felt that the female employee who had led them in seemed to resemble the courtdy in a painting depicting a courtdy teasing a cat. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ve interrupted you. Please enjoy,¡± The female employee was carrying a tray with two tes of refreshments and two cups of tea. The teacups and tes were very pretty. Peng Hang didn¡¯t dare to use too much strength when holding up the teacup, for fear that he would squeeze them too hard and break them. His one month¡¯s worth of sry wouldn¡¯t be enough to pay it off. ¡°Do thergepanies nowadays pay so much attention to quality? They even use such good tableware to serve guests?¡± After the female employee left, Peng Hang¡¯s colleague spoke softly into his ear, ¡°Captain, do you sense something strange about this ce? Like we can¡¯t rx?¡± ¡°I heard this Chang Long Biotechnology Company was called Chang Long Cloth Workshop more than a hundred years ago. Though its name is different now, the surname of the person in power has not changed. A bigpany like this that has been passed down to future generations for more than a hundred years and still stands tall will like to emphasize a bit more on style and culture,¡± Peng Hang patted his colleague on the shoulder. ¡°When the people of our country emphasize something, they do it even more elegantly than aristocrats outside the country.¡± The colleague responded with sudden understanding, ¡°Captain is still more knowledgeable and experienced.¡± Peng Hang turned and nced at the painting of the courtdy on the wall, giving two dry coughs. Fu Li came to the second floor, passed through the barrier, and arrived at the ordinary guest room. After seeing that it was Peng Hang who was seated in the room, he knocked on the door and said, ¡°Good evening, fellow policerades.¡± ¡°Mr Fu, we apologize for disrupting you at this time,¡± Peng Hang stood up. ¡°Can we talk while seated?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li sat down. ¡°May I know what you came to find me for?¡± He paused for a moment and defended himself, ¡°I didn¡¯t sell fake medicine to anyone.¡± ¡°Mr Fu has misunderstood. We came today because yourndlord made a police report stating that they picked up the money you lost. They couldn¡¯t contact you, so they hoped that we could get in touch with you,¡± Peng Hang exined. ¡°We obtained various bits of information before finding out that you¡¯re employed at this ce.¡± ¡°Mr Fu,¡± The female employee came in carrying tea and refreshments. She bowed and ced the teacup in front of Fu Li with both hands. ¡°Please enjoy.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li gave a word of thanks. As if overwhelmed by the favor, the female employee repeatedly uttered ¡®no need¡¯ as she lowered her head slightly and retreated, even carefully helping them to close the door. Peng Hang looked at the shut door and revealed a smile. He said in a teasing tone, ¡°It hasn¡¯t been long since Mr Fu started working, but Mr Fu is already very well liked by his colleagues.¡± This couldn¡¯t even be termed well liked. In front of Fu Li, that female employee could even be called deferential, as if Fu Li¡¯s identity was very out-of-the-ordinary. ¡°No.¡± Fu Li took a sip of tea and said casually, ¡°I have some rtions to the higher-ups managing thispany, so my colleagues are just giving the leader face.¡± Peng Hang¡¯s colleague, ¡°...¡± Wasn¡¯t it a bit inappropriate for him to be telling them so tantly that he had walked through the backdoor? Peng Hangughed. ¡°Mr Fu really knows how to crack jokes. Let¡¯s move on to the lost things.¡± He fished out a wad of cash and ced it in front of Fu Li. ¡°Please count it and check if the amount is correct.¡± Fu Li stared at the cash silently. He was very clear in his heart that he hadn¡¯t lost any money. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Peng Hang saw that Fu Li wasn¡¯t moving and thought that the amount wasn¡¯t right. ¡°Did the amount decrease?¡± ¡°No,¡± Fu Li reached out and casually put the money into the pocket of his jacket. He took out a red string and passed it to Peng Hang. ¡°I am very grateful to thendlord for picking up my lost things, this is a thank you gift for her granddaughter. May I request for you to pass it on to her?¡± ¡°All right,¡± Peng Hang took the red string and stood up. ¡°We won¡¯t continue disturbing Mr Fu¡¯s work then. Goodbye.¡± ¡°Take care,¡± Fu Li stood up and sent them off. As they walked from the second floor to the main entrance, the employees took the initiative to greet Fu Li with so much enthusiasm that it bordered on eager attentiveness. Peng Hang looked at the employees whose hands and heads were lowered and looked again at Fu Li who was sending them off. He felt like he was looking at an idol drama simr to ¡®The Frog Who Turns Into A Prince¡¯ in which the main character was Fu Li. After walking out the door, Peng Hang looked back at Fu Li, who was standing at the entrance. The transparent ss door seemed to represent the two different worlds in which he and Fu Li was in ¨C the area he stood at was the ordinary human society, whereas the ce that Fu Li was standing at was a different mysterious world. ¡°Captain, what are you looking at?¡± The colleague patted him on the back. ¡°Are you envious of all these people with connections?¡± ¡°Envious your ass,¡± Peng Hang turned around, regaining his wits. ¡°Where should we eat tonight? My treat.¡± ¡°Captain is still the best! Completely unlike these rich people who express their gratitude by sending only a single worthless red string. Truly, the wealthier the person, the stingier they are.¡± The next day, the colleague who uttered this statement watched thendlord¡¯s entire family carry off the red string given by Fu Li as if it was a treasure, feeling like cracks had appeared in his worldview. Chapter 43 - Human Cultivators

Chapter 43 - Human Cultivators

Fu Li, Zhang Ke, and Song Yu got their tickets checked and then waited in line to board the train. Song Yu looked at the long andrge metal vehicle with plenty of confusion. Clearly, they could directly fly to their destination, so why did they still need to ride this so-called fastest train in the human world? Zhang Ke¡¯s luggage was in his left hand, while his right hand held onto arge bag of food. The things on the train were expensive and not tasty; buying his own snacks would allow him to save a bit more money. After boarding the train, the three of them sat down in their respective seats. Zhang Ke noticed that the woman in the seat adjacent to his was with a child and helped her to ce her luggage onto the luggage rack. Upon turning back, he saw Song Yu take out a bag of pickled pepper chicken feet to gnaw on. Even the bones were not spat out. ¡°Eh?¡± All of a sudden, Fu Li sat up straight, his expression turning somewhat odd. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhang Ke saw the change in Fu Li¡¯s expression and thought that some great yao had appeared. His entire body stretched taut from the fright and he repeatedly turned his head to look around their surroundings. ¡°I feel the force of faith,¡± As a yao cultivator, it was his first time feeling such a thing. Although the force of faith was very weak, he had never once received offerings from humans or yao, which made him very sensitive to it. ¡°Force of faith?¡± Song Yu¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. ¡°What about it?¡± As a great yao who had the potential from birth to bring terror to humans, humans would make offerings to him every year to keep him away from them. Although this way of doing things was simr to ¡®preventing disaster through financial loss¡¯, he could still be considered to have received offerings from humans, so such a thing was not at all rare for him. ¡°There¡¯s no practical usefulness to this sort of thing. What decent yao cultivator would care about it?¡± At this point, he shot a nce at Fu Li. ¡°For an ordinary yao cultivator like you, it is indeed a rarity for someone to have faith in you.¡± After finishing this statement, he didn¡¯t forget to lower his head and give the chicken feet a few more nibbles. At the side, Zhang Ke curled his lips. So what if he was a great yao? Wasn¡¯t he also scared witless by Fu ge? Song Yu had evidently also thought of this, because he instantly corrected his attitude. ¡°As expected of Boss, just your graceful bearing is enough to induce respect in humans.¡± Zhang Ke, ¡°...¡± These ancient great yao seriously had innate boot-licking skills. ¡°Fu ge, what did you do?¡± In the current ideological climate of materialism, it was truly an extremely rare urrence for someone to sincerely believe in another. ¡°I didn¡¯t do much recently,¡± Fu Li thought carefully. ¡°All I did was help a little girl to find her real body a few days ago. She suffered a fright and lost her soul. I got the police to bring her a Peace String yesterday.¡± ¡°Peace String?¡± Zhang Ke asked. ¡°Is it the one that ensures a child¡¯s safety?¡± ¡°En. I¡¯ve enhanced it with my magic to protect the child from losing her soul again from shock. The bodies of ordinary people can¡¯t bear such a thing happening too many times,¡± Fu Li¡¯s spoke as if it was as simple as eating and drinking, but to an ordinary family, he was no different from a lifesaver. Below the floor Fu Li used to stay on, Miao Miao very seriously paid her respects to the red string before letting thendy tie it around her wrist. ¡°Miao Miao. Remember, you must not remove this string,¡± Thendy clutched Miao Miao¡¯s shoulders, an unprecedented solemnity to her voice. ¡°Since you have epted this favor, we must not forget it. Whether or not you meet this big brother in the future, you must not forget the lifesaving grace he extended to you. Understand?¡± ¡°En!¡± Miao Miao nodded obediently. Her soft, tiny hands touched the red string on her wrist as she revealed an innocent smile, oblivious to what she had experienced. Despite the fact that several bureau staff had already been dispatched, the sheer size of the management bureau meant that the departure of a few people wouldn¡¯t render the ce cold and cheerless. The entire bureau was like an immense machine that functioned by its own rules. There were yao cultivators who came to register their marriage, yao cultivators who came to do divorce procedures, as well as yao who nearly got into huge fights over their heirs. Although they were yao, assimtion into the human race had led to them taking on many human habits. The crested ibis that failed to make it into the bureau also came. This time, he came to file awsuit against the person who verbally attacked him on the cultivators¡¯ forum. The cause of this incident was very simple ¨C a certain cultivator brought up the topic of the national treasure, bringing about all sorts of praise for the panda¡¯s cuteness. Someone eventually mentioned the crested ibis, and a confused cultivator asked without thinking if the crested ibis was also a national treasure. After seeing this post, the crested ibis flew into a terrible rage and ran to the bureau to kick up a huge fuss, saying that he wanted this cultivator to give him an exnation. There were constant mers in the human world, and the yao world didn¡¯tck them either. ¡°If you don¡¯t give me an exnation, I¡¯llin to your superiors of suspected racial discrimination,¡± The crested ibis mmed the table. ¡°I don¡¯t care. That cultivator must publicly apologize on the forum post, otherwise I won¡¯t leave today.¡± ¡°What¡¯s with all the fuss?¡± Zhuang Qing walked down the spiral staircase. His icy gazended on the crested ibis and his brows furrowed slightly. The crested ibis dared to disy his might as the national treasure in front of other yao cultivators, but the moment Zhuang Qing appeared, he was so frightened that he went mute. Zhuang Qing usually didn¡¯t appear for such small disputes, so why was he so out of luck today? ¡°M-Mr Zhuang,¡± The crested ibis stopped stamping his feet. His hands no longer swung about, and his voice trembled slightly. Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice was serene. ¡°You¡¯re the one making a fuss here?¡± ¡°No, I wasn¡¯t,¡± The crested ibis¡¯ thighs trembled, and he gave two dryughs. ¡°I don¡¯t have any issue, so I¡¯ll leave now.¡± Then, he turned and ran towards the door as if Zhuang Qing would swallow him whole if he ran even a bit slower. Everyone watched the panicked back of the crested ibis in confusion. The boss was usually a bit more on the severe side, but he didn¡¯t have the habit of willfully ughtering the innocent. Why was the crested ibis who often sought the limelight this frightened? In recent years, the crested ibis would join in the fun during every recruitment exercise. He didn¡¯t do so for the sake of joining the bureau, but merely to unt his status as a national treasure. As long as it was a setting where he could show off, the crested ibis definitely wouldn¡¯t miss out on it. However, when they thought a bit harder, they really hadn¡¯t seen the crested ibis kicking up a fuss in front of the boss before. The moment the crested ibis walked out of the main entrance of Chang Long Company, he scampered off in a mad rush. He ran for close to half an hour before leaning against a tree trunk to catch his breath. Many years ago when he had just gained intelligence and didn¡¯t have a human form, he had seen Zhuang Qing once. At that time, his vision was narrow and he had assumed that Zhuang Qing was an ordinary court official. He had even wanted to mix into his fleet for a meal. However, an anomaly suddenly cropped up that night. Countless yao appeared, saying that eating dragons or whatnot would increase their cultivation by five hundred years. The human official dressed in splendid attire had drawn his sword and intentionally lured the yao beasts into the forest. The yao beasts threw aside the other humans and chased after that sole human. He had assumed the human possessed royal blood, but that human official had transformed into a dragon all of a sudden and tore into the other yao. He had never seen such a ruthless fight. The dragon was attacked from multiple sides by innumerable yao, their bites leaving him drenched in blood. The yao beasts didn¡¯t end up in much better condition either. Not only had they been bitten till their intestines spilled out of their bellies, they also hadn¡¯t managed to preserve their yao cores. The terror had left him in shivers, not daring to emit even the slightest sound. The battlested for an entire night. All the yao beasts were killed by the dragon, but the multitude of attacks had also broken the dragon¡¯s tail. From head to tail, the dragon¡¯s flesh was exposed. Just as he thought that the dragon had already passed on, it suddenly opened its blood-red eyes and stared in his direction. With a long hiss, it flew off. That pair of blood red eyes had practically be the crested ibis¡¯ nightmare, which was why he couldn¡¯t help shaking all over the moment he saw Zhuang Qing, even if several hundreds of years had gone by since then. After heading downstairs to pick up information, Zhuang Qing went to the dormitory to take a look at the Kunpeng. He knocked on the door and entered. The Kunpeng was sprawled over the table, his eyes staring heatedly at a bowl of not-yet-cooked cup noodles. He gazed at the cup noodles as if it was an exceptional delicacy. Even Zhuang Qing¡¯s arrival couldn¡¯t attract his attention. Zhuang Qing was someone with a lot of patience. He leaned against the doorframe and waited till the Kunpeng opened the cover of the cup noodles and started drinking the soup. ¡°Kunpeng daren.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± With cup noodles in the Kunpeng¡¯s mouth, it wasn¡¯t very convenient for him to speak, so he turned to look at Zhuang Qing, indicating for him to continue. ¡°You¡¯ve gotten used to living here?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows were very nice to look at and his looks was also that of a ssic handsome man. If he were willing to join the entertainment scene, any snake or fox spirit would have to make way for him. ¡°Quite well,¡± The Kunpeng swallowed the food in his mouth. ¡°Human things really are very interesting.¡± He nced at Zhuang Qing. ¡°You¡¯re know very well that I have a habit of eating dragons, but you still dare toe here?¡± ¡°Kunpeng daren said that he won¡¯t eat me, so I naturally dare to,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the room that was over two hundred square meters. Apart from the bathroom at the corner and the dining table, the other areas werepletely bare. He walked over to the dining table and sat down to wait for the Kunpeng to finish his cup noodles. The Kunpeng ate at a very rapid pace. He polished off ten cups before cing down his chopsticks. ¡°You have something for me?¡± ¡°I just have some minor questions that I would like to consult Kunpeng daren on, may I know if daren would be willing to clear up my confusion?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the Kunpeng. He didn¡¯t cower from the suppression of the Kunpeng¡¯s cultivation. ¡°What do you want to know?¡± The Kunpeng very casually wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ¡°Did daren also choose to go into a deep sleep at the bottom of the ocean because daren felt that the yao race would soon face a cmity?¡± Zhuang Qing scrutinized the Kunpeng¡¯s facial expression. ¡°Quite a few great yao have reappeared this year. Is this a coincidence or is there some other heavenly mystery at work?¡± ¡°If it was a heavenly mystery, who would dare to divulge it?¡± The Kunpeng lowered his head and patted the oil stains on his tank top. ¡°I woke up when I felt like it, don¡¯t tell me I still need to consider the date?¡± He would never reveal something as shameful as being sealed at the bottom of the sea for thousands of years even if he was beaten to death. Even the Kunpeng didn¡¯t know? Zhuang Qing knew that the Kunpeng could be hiding something, but it could be seen from the Kunpeng¡¯s expression that he too was not aware of the great yao¡¯s reappearances. Was it really just a coincidence? But too many coincidences would inevitably imply something. ¡°I don¡¯t know about the rest, but you¡¯re quite interesting,¡± The Kunpeng took a few scrutinizing nces at Zhuang Qing. ¡°I was preupied with fighting the rabbit spirit that night and didn¡¯t realize that you¡¯re not only joined to the nation¡¯s fate but also possess great virtue of salvation. Did you save the world?¡± ¡°No, doesn¡¯t seem like it,¡± The Kunpeng swiftly denied his own words. ¡°Seems like it was umted throughout a few lifetimes. No wonder you can join with the nation¡¯s fate despite your young age and status as a hybrid dragon. That is your greatest destiny.¡± ¡°Why is Kunpeng daren suddenly talking about this humble one?¡± Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t interested in his so-called previous lives. The death of a human was akin to the extinguishing of amp; each had their own affinity and fate, there was no meaning in delving into them. ¡°It¡¯s hard toe by a dragon with a slightly stranger natal chart, so what if I¡¯m a bit more curious?¡± The Kunpeng tapped his eyes with his hands and attempted to see the course of Zhuang Qing¡¯s fate. But strangely, as if heavenlyw was intentionally obstructing him, he could only see a glittering golden light, as well as... the purple qi of the imperial n. ¡°Your biological mother was from a human imperial n?¡± The Kunpeng finally understood why this dragon had such an odd natal chart. He might be half human but he possessed the purple qi of an excellent human natal chart. He might be half dragon but he was a golden dragon whose power was the purest among the dragon race. Furthermore, he was the carrier of an immense virtue of salvation. He had truly encountered all the good things. ¡°What a good natal chart, no wonder you have the fortune of a yao king. You would definitely have be the king of the yao race if it was a few thousand years ago. A pity that...¡± The yao race had declined.What king? What daren? Those were all things of the past ¡°A good natal chart?¡± Zhuang Qing gave a crypticugh, as if he had just heard a joke. ¡°Many thanks to Kunpeng daren for the deceptive praise. This humble one is not concerned about how good my natal chart is. This humble one heard a rumor from the Zhuyan and wasn¡¯t sure if daren has heard of it before.¡± ¡°Zhuyan?¡± The Kunpeng replied disdainfully, ¡°What can trash that bullies the weak, fears the strong, and is the quickest to escape, know?¡± ¡°The Zhuyan said that the yao race has an emperor that cannot be trumped even if the yao kings were to join hands.¡± Zhuang Qing asked curiously, ¡°Does such a mystical yao actually exist in this world?¡± ¡°Heh,¡± The Kunpeng sneered. ¡°All living things in this world beget and restrain one another. The great yao don¡¯t even cross swords, how can they revere another yao as emperor? At that time, the strong were respected. Rebellion was also carved into our bones, so there was never a yao who could be given the title of emperor. That trash Zhuyan is lying.¡± At this point, he looked at Zhuang Qing with a smile yet not a smile. ¡°On the contrary, you are the invisible emperor among the yao race.¡± He had unified the yao race, established order, and was in possession of numerous subordinates as well as an enormouswork of rtions. Although he wasn¡¯t the yao emperor, he was no different from one. ¡°Daren, it¡¯s a free society now. Feudalism isn¡¯t fashionable any longer, don¡¯t joke with this humble one,¡± The corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth pulled up, though there was no smile to be seen. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a little yao who hasn¡¯t even lived two thousand years, but you¡¯re not even as interesting as a four-thousand-year-old rabbit spirit. Chatting with you is really boring,¡± The Kunpeng responded with resentment. ¡°If not for the rabbit being absent, I wouldn¡¯t be in the mood to chat with you for so long.¡± ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s because Fu Li has simr likes as you?¡± They were both old yao spirits with peculiar brain circuits. ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± The Kunpeng wasn¡¯t aware of the implied meaning in Zhuang Qing¡¯s words and nodded. ¡°I¡¯m going to bed. I¡¯ll wake up when Fu Li¡¯s back.¡± He transformed into arge bird andy down in a spacious and empty area. pping his wings, he said, ¡°Doesn¡¯t this put you at ease?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over to the door and saw that the Kunpeng had already closed his eyes. He stared at his enormous body for a while. ¡°Daren, this humble one did not have such intentions. It¡¯s just that the yao race has declined and heavenlyw¡¯s intentions are unclear. The yao race needs daren¡¯s help.¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s feathers moved, but he didn¡¯t emit a sound. ¡°This humble one will take his leave,¡± Zhuang Qing closed the door for the Kunpeng. The moving vehicle finally came to a stop at a train station in Sichuan. Song Yu kicked his legs that had gotten numb from sitting. They had spent more than eight hours traveling from the capital to this ce; he felt like he had forgotten how to walk. The train station was filled with humans that came and went. Some humans were petite in stature, yet they carried bags even bigger than him. Looking at them, Song Yu wondered if they would be squashed t by their bags. Upon leaving the train station, a little child came over to beg. Before Zhang Ke had the chance to remind them, he saw Fu Li ce money in the child¡¯s hands. ¡°Fu ge...¡± Very soon, they were surrounded by several tiny children who watched Fu Li with anxious eyes as they waited for him to take out money. ¡°None of you are schooling?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t continue to take out money. ¡°At your age, all of you should be enjoying the country¡¯s mandatory education system. Who are your parents? I will report them.¡± ¡°Mice-catching dog, mind your own business!¡± Two men walked out from the corner and cursed Fu Li. They swiftly walked off while dragging along the beggar children, squeezing into the crowd. ¡°You dare to call my boss a dog?!¡± Song Yu pulled up his sleeves with the intention of charging over, but was held back by Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t lower yourself to the level of those humans,¡± Fu Li said with creased brows. ¡°I looked at their facial features, those children were indeed theirs. But aren¡¯t humans the race which cares the most for their young? Why would they treat them in such a manner?¡± ¡°Fu ge, let¡¯s go,¡± Zhang Ke sighed. ¡°There exist all sorts of people in this world. Any kind of person can be found, you can¡¯t lump them all together.¡± Fu Li watched the tiny children who were dragged all over the ce by the adults as if they were bup sacks. His creased brows did not rx. Perhaps the humans were not as cute as he had thought. ¡°Where should we start?¡± Song Yu asked Zhang Ke. Zhang Ke took out a yao-force monitoring device. Densely packed tiny dots with varying degrees of light could be seen on it. ¡°Follow me.¡± ¡°You modern human cultivators even need to rely on these methods to find yao cultivators?¡± Song Yu pointed at the tiny green dot closest to them. ¡°This one is only five meters away from us.¡± Both of them turned their heads simultaneously, looking at a small convenience store not too far in the distance. A paper sign hung outside, with the tworge words ¡®Carsick Post¡¯ written on it. Song Yu and Zhang Ke took two steps before noticing that Fu Li was still in a daze. ¡°Fu ge?¡± ¡°En?¡± Fu Li regained his wits. Pointing at the convenience store, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s start with registering that vole spirit?¡± Song Yu nodded and took the chance to tter him, ¡°As expected of the boss, making out his original form in one nce.¡± ¡°What do you three handsome guys want?¡± The vole spirit very enthusiastically weed his customers. ¡°Hello, we¡¯re from the management bureau,¡± Zhang Ke held out his work pass to the vole spirit. ¡°Please cooperate with us.¡± ¡°M-Management bureau?¡± The vole spirit no longer cared about running his shop. He pulled down the shutters and knelt on the ground with a plop. ¡°I was wrong, don¡¯t arrest me!¡± Then, he started talking about how tough it was to do business and how there were some fake items among the goods he sold, but that the quality definitely wasn¡¯t a problem and wouldn¡¯t kill anyone. Zhang Ke: He had onlye to do registration for the yao census, yet he actually encountered a yaoguai selling fake goods? After settling the vole spirit, the three of them had a meal at a small restaurant nearby before continuing their search for the next yao. The areas the yao cultivators lived in was a bit more spread out. Although the majority were very cooperative, there were still many they had failed to register even after half a day had gone by. Zhang Ke looked at the green dots on the yao-force monitoring device and said dispiritedly, ¡°Are all the yao gathered here?¡± ¡°Sichuan is an ancient city with many years of history. Moreover, there are many tall mountains and rivers here, which is beneficial to the cultivation of yao. It isn¡¯t strange for there to be more yao cultivators.¡± Fu Li saw Zhang Ke¡¯s disheartened look and said, ¡°Give me a tuft of your hair.¡± Zhang Ke touched his head and used a spiritual de to cut off a tuft for Fu Li. ¡°What use is this?¡± Fu Li found some folded paper, ced the hair on top of it, and blew on it. The pieces of paper rose into the sky, rolled into a lump with the hair, and very quickly turned into many people with appearances identical to Zhang Ke. ¡°T-This is...¡± ¡°This is a very simple cultivators¡¯ doppelganger technique,¡± Fu Li gave a few orders to the doppelgangers. ¡°They inherit your memories and thoughts and will automatically vanish afterpleting the task.¡± He paused. ¡°It was said that the human cultivators in the past all knew how to use this sort of simple technique.¡± Simple? All knew? This batch of human cultivators might not be quite up to standard, thought Zhang Ke. Chapter 44 - Spiritual Essence

Chapter 44 - Spiritual Essence

Zhang Ke watched dazedly as Song Yu and Fu Li blew human figures into being. The mass of ¡®Fu Li, Song Yu, and Zhang Ke¡¯ figures morphed into green smoke and drifted out the window. Zhang Ke nearly tumbled down the hotel¡¯s bed. Were all great yao so powerful? ¡°No worries, they¡¯re simr to doppelgangers; all the things they¡¯ve done will be part of our memories when they¡¯re back,¡± Fu Li exined, thinking that Zhang Ke was worried about their work. ¡°They act on our will, so it¡¯s equivalent to uspleting the task personally.¡± ¡°Fu ge, it¡¯ll have been good if I¡¯d known you during high school,¡± That way, he could have his doppelganger attend ss while he slept in. He wouldn¡¯t have to do homework and practice magic at night either; that would practically be a beautiful paradise. ¡°Your cultivation base is too weak, forget about relying on it as a shortcut,¡± Song Yu exposed him without the slightest shred of mercy. ¡°Although you can¡¯t be faulted either. The human cultivators nowadays are all very weak.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Zhang Ke¡¯s expression was indifferent. The Suanyu was willing to ingratiate himself to Fu ge, but had never been tactful when conversing with anyone else. However, their social structure was based on strength, so he chose to ept it with a smile. Coming to terms with this, he adopted a positive attitude and changed the topic. ¡°Then what will we do now?¡± Were they just going to remain in the hotel and wait for the doppelgangers to finish registering the cultivators in Sichuan before heading to the other provinces? ¡°I have some personal things I would like to do, would you like to tag along?¡± Fu Li asked Zhang Ke, a broad smile on his face. ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Zhang Ke nodded repeatedly. He was young after all; he would have a stronger sense of curiosity. Fu Li carried Zhang Ke and flew to the top of a tall mountain. Trembling, Zhang Ke wrapped both arms around himself. Stepping on the snow beneath his shoes, he dared not move recklessly. All of a sudden, the winds grew turbulent, and the clouds in the sky seemed to turn into an immense vortex. There was a sense of terror that the sky was on the brink of copsing. ¡°S-Suanyu...¡± ¡°Call me Song ge.¡± ¡°Song ge,¡± Zhang Ke tugged on Song Yu¡¯s sleeve and watched Fu Li, who was flying in the sky. His voice shook. ¡°What does Fu ge want to do?¡± ¡°I think he wants to gather the mountain¡¯s spiritual essence. What does he want with something meant for amusing children?¡± Song Yu was confused. To yao cultivators, this sort of spiritual essence was akin to the milk favored by little children. Fu Li was nearly four thousand years old, had he still not been weaned off it? ¡°What is s-spiritual essence?¡± Zhang Ke¡¯s teeth chattered nonstop. Only after sticking multiple talismans on his body did the shivers ease. ¡°It¡¯s a spiritual liquid produced only after a mountain with spiritual qi undergoes a thousand years of change. It congeals after a thousand years and then bes a stctite if its not taken by anyone within a hundred years,¡± Song Yu observed that Fu Li¡¯s movements weren¡¯t practiced despite the fact that he had sufficient cultivation and was using the right method. From this, he could tell that Fu Li had never done such a thing in the past. ¡°Will it still have any use if it bes a stctite?¡± Zhang Ke felt that something that only formed after a thousand years had to be very impressive. It would be quite a pity if no one took it. ¡°The fruit produced by a tree bes dry and bitter if they aren¡¯t plucked. Do you think those have any use?¡± Song Yu clicked his tongue. ¡°Things past their expiration date arepletely useless.¡± Zhang Ke continued watching Fu Li gather spiritual essence in silence. Traveling with these two great yao had truly broadened his horizons. Sichuan had many mountainous areas, though it was a pity that there were virtually no yao cultivators in this age who knew how to gather spiritual essence. After so many years of change, it was unknown how much spiritual essence had gone to waste during the passage of time. To Fu Li, spiritual essence was something that he frequently drank when he was young. When he finished drinking it, the yao cultivators on the mountain would casually give him a few bottles. Nobody treated it as a rarity. Two thousand years was not considered very long to yao cultivators, but Fu Li realized that the things he was ustomed to were no longer passed on in the present era. ¡°Rise!¡± He cried out suddenly. Bluish-green drops of dew surged from all directions. It was possible for spiritual essence to turn into stctites in the blink of an eye after leaving the mountain. Thus, Fu Li swiftly used his cultivation to suck all the spiritual essence into the jade bottle in his hand. He shook the bottle with some disappointment. The spiritual essence was no longer as pure as it was in the past. The amount harvested was also poor. The current age really couldn¡¯t bepared to the past. Fu Li looked up at the sky covered with dense ck clouds and bowed deeply towards the mountain. After thanking them for the gift, he flew back to Song Yu and Zhang Ke. ¡°F-Fu ge,¡± Zhang Ke looked at the jade bottle in Fu Li¡¯s hands. There wasn¡¯t even a hundred millimeters of it, yet he¡¯d had to go through such lengths to obtain it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I set up a barrier and didn¡¯t deal any damage to nature. There aren¡¯t any humans here either, so I can¡¯t be considered to have vited thew,¡± Fu Li ced the jade bottle containing the spiritual essence into his Qiankun Pouch. ¡°I won¡¯t knowingly break thew.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant. I¡¯m just a bit curious,¡± Zhang Ke¡¯s face was filled with a yearning for knowledge. ¡°So evenrge mountains can bear fruit.¡± ¡°Human cultivators can¡¯t eat this, though this is suitable for you,¡± Fu Li spread out his left hand, revealing a jade bowl in his palm. Zhang Ke watched as countless green dots seeped out of the nts and converged in the bowl. ¡°What is this?¡± As Zhang Ke stared at the bowl, he felt an indescribable thirst coursing through his entire body. The green juice in the jade bowl seemed to be beckoning to him to drink it. ¡°There is spirit in all living things; this is their gift,¡± Fu Li handed the bowl to Zhang Ke. Unable to control his body¡¯s instinctual craving for it, Zhang Ke held up the bowl and drained the liquid in one gulp. After the liquid entered his mouth, Zhang Ke felt as if his arteries and veins were being thoroughly cleansed. Every pore was imbued with the spiritual qi of Heaven and Earth. By the time he came to his senses, he could feel that his state of mind and cultivation base had undergone major growth. Opening his eyes, he learnt from Fu Li and respectfully bowed deeply towards the vegetation around them. Only then did he bow to Fu Li as thanks. ¡°Many thanks Fu ge.¡± Improvements in one¡¯s state of mind and cultivation base was akin to the entire person having risen to another level. The world they saw was also different. Fu Li smiled. ¡°Since you know to thank them, these things haven¡¯t gone to waste.¡± The mountain breeze swept past and the trees on the mountain swayed. Their endurance was a silent one ¨C no matter whether it was summer or winter, the soil beneath them was their home. Song Yu nced at Zhang Ke and then gazed up at the sky. The roiling ck clouds had already dispersed, leaving a boundless blue. There was something he hadn¡¯t told Zhang Ke ¨C this sort of mountainous spiritual essence could only be obtained by auspicious creatures. Great yao like him who were born fiends would definitely be met with the whistling of gale, heavy rain, and even lightning bolts if they were to attempt to obtain it. The moment Fu Li took the spiritual essence, the wind and clouds in the sky had undergone a sudden change. At that time, he had thought it strange. A rabbit who took form after receiving a chance from heavenlyw and had four thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation should not be a fiend no matter how one looked at it. As expected, everything went peacefully from start to end. It seemed that the natural rapid changes in Sichuan¡¯s weather had caused him to misunderstand. ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Fu Li also took a few nces at the sky. ¡°It¡¯s not like you¡¯re the Golden Crow, do you think you can fly around the world and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the sun?¡± ¡°That wouldn¡¯t be possible even if I were the Golden Crow. Those were all fabricated by humans,¡± Song Yu had been asked many odd questions by his colleagues while he was staying at the management bureau, and only then did he realize that there were many bizarre stories surrounding yao cultivators in the human world. ¡°Boss, you¡¯re still young, don¡¯t be cheated by the stories the humans came up with.¡± Zhang Ke, ¡°...¡± If a four-thousand-year-old person could be called young, then what was he? A preschooler? When they returned to the hotel at night, Zhang Ke had just sat down on the bed when three paper people flew through the window. Uponnding on the ground, they turned into the three of them. Zhang Ke hadn¡¯t reacted when his own doppelganger directly approached him. His forehead chilled and extra memories appeared in his mind. The memories were very real, as if he had personally experienced them. ¡°How do you feel?¡± Fu Li asked with concern. ¡°I¡¯m all right, just feeling a little dizzy,¡± Zhang Ke kneaded his temples. ¡°You aren¡¯t used to it since it¡¯s your first time, so it¡¯s normal to feel a bit dizzy,¡± Fu Li looked Zhang Ke up and down. ¡°When you¡¯ve forged the body of an immortal, using such techniques will be easier.¡± As the Qingxiao Sect¡¯s most outstanding human cultivator disciple in a hundred years, Zhang Ke had built up his foundation at the age of eighteen and formed his core at thirty years old. The rate at which he progressed could already be considered amazingly rapid. Now that he heard Fu Li talk about ¡®forging the body of an immortal¡¯ as if it was as simple as going to the toilet, Zhang Ke felt that all the talk about him being a cultivation genius was merely a lie. He was clearly just someone who stood out amongst everyone else, there was no link between him and the word ¡®genius¡¯. With the use of the doppelganger technique, Fu Li¡¯s group of three very quicklypleted the census registration in Sichuan and Qian An. When they arrived at Nanzhao province, the climate was pleasant, and the scenery was not bad. Coupled with the fact that Fu Li and Song Yu had both not seen much of the world, they insisted on taking a look around the area. Thus, Zhang Ke could only admit defeat and follow after the two of them, buying tickets and forking out money. Yao cultivators had endless physical strength. Zhang Ke looked at Fu Li and Song Yu ahead of him, dressed in the attire of the local ethnic group. Panting, he said, ¡°Fu ge, Suan-Song Yu, let¡¯s eat first before walking around.¡± These two great lords had walked for an entire day without even stopping once. ¡°You¡¯re tired?¡± Song Yu looked back at Zhang Ke, his face filled with regret. ¡°You¡¯re a man, yet your physical strength is so poor, tsk tsk tsk.¡± Zhang Ke chuckled sarcastically. I can¡¯t beat you, so I won¡¯t lower myself to your level. After dinner, there was a light drizzle, so the stone pavement was wet. From time to time, couples would walk past with their hands linked as they chatted in low voices. Affection overflowed from them. While Song Yu and Zhang Ke bickered, Fu Li spoke to them, ¡°You two can take your time to talk, I¡¯ll go out for a walk.¡± Under the gorgeous lights of the streemps, the simple, unadorned buildings took on a certain distinctive vor. Fu Li hadn¡¯t walked far when he was stopped by several girls asking for a photo together. At his agreement, the girls covered their mouths andughed into their sleeves. After taking the photo, they ran off with red faces, resembling cheerful little birds. There was a tiny sparrow on a willow tree at the side. The rain had wet its wings, its damp feathers drooping in a clump. It was a very pitiful sight. Fu Li came to a halt and looked at it. Seemingly aware of his gaze, the tiny sparrow hopped a few times on the branch, yet didn¡¯t fly off. One human and one bird gazed at each other in this silly manner. Only when the sound of footsteps echoed from behind did the tiny sparrow p its wings. It flew across a brook, past the green roof tiles of a house opposite, and vanished into the night. Fu Li looked back and saw that it was a handsome man in a suit and bowtie. ¡°Hello, we meet again,¡± The man walked over and stood in front of Fu Li. His leather shoes were squeaky clean, which made the few drops of muddy water on them that much more conspicuous. Fu Li couldn¡¯t stop himself from lowering his head and taking a few more looks at it. Thinking that Fu Li didn¡¯t remember who he was, the man revealed a gentle smile. ¡°My name is Fu Si. I once saw you at Affinity Moon Hotel.¡± Fu Li suddenly remembered that some rich second generation had organized a party for singles when he was close to resigning. At that time, trash littered the ground, and only one human with outstanding looks had picked up the rubbish beside his feet. This man seemed to be that person. ¡°Hello.¡± Seeing that Fu Li could recall him, the smile on Fu Si¡¯s face brightened. ¡°For some reason, you felt very familiar the first time I saw you. Only when I asked about your name the next time I went to the hotel did I find out that you had already resigned. I didn¡¯t expect us to so coincidentally meet at a ce more than two thousand kilometers away from the capital.¡± The man was extremely graceful, as if he had received the best upbringing since young. Even in the busy streets of an old city, he stood out among the surrounding passersby. His smiling appearance was very good-looking. The girls that passed by the road even secretly took measure of him from the corner of their eyes. ¡°You might feel that certain words are ridiculous when spoken out loud. Even I feel that it¡¯s a bit inconceivable,¡± Fu Si extended a hand to Fu Li. ¡°Mr Fu, would you like to be friends?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t take his hand. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I won¡¯tugh no matter what you say.¡± Fu Si retracted his hand and turned, gazing at the running water in the brook. ¡°I seem to have met you in my dreams. We were staying in a veryrge cave and had many conversations, did many things...¡± He looked at Fu Li with some embarrassment. ¡°Has Mr Fu experienced such a thing?¡± He looked at Fu Li with a burning gaze, as if seeking an answer. Fu Li swiftly shook his head. ¡°No.¡± Silence settled between the two people once more. A hint of disappointment appeared on Fu Si¡¯s face. Only after a long period of time had passed did he squeeze out a smile again. ¡°Is that so? It seems I overthought. May I know if Mr Fu is willing to leave me a number? In the future...¡± ¡°Fu ge!¡± Zhang Ke rushed over. ¡°We¡¯ve booked a room, do we want to rest first?¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded before nodding again at Fu Si. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Fu Si smiled gently, not a trace of fury from being rejected on his face. ¡°Take care.¡± Zhang Ke felt that this person was a bit familiar. After walking a distance, he suddenly said, ¡°Fu ge, I remember now. That man is a famous youth entrepreneur in our country, how did you get to know him?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t know each other in the past,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°His aura was a bit strange, could he be a yao cultivator who took form after receiving a heavenly chance?¡± ¡°Impossible. Given his status in the human world, he would have long been registered in the book if he was a yao cultivator who received a heavenly chance. Moreover, even Chu Yu could tell in one nce that you weren¡¯t human. There¡¯s no reason why Chu Yu wouldn¡¯t be able to see through him,¡± Zhang Ke replied. ¡°He looked at you in a very strange way. Did he find out your real identity?¡± ¡°No, he thought that we met in our past lives.¡± ¡°I never expected such a famous entrepreneur to hit on someone in such an old-fashioned way.¡± Zhang Ke sneezed and joked, ¡°Maybe he really isn¡¯t joking and genuinely met you in a past life.¡± ¡°Not possible,¡± Fu Li shook his head firmly. ¡°The death of a human is akin to amp that has been extinguished. Everything is ashes to ashes, dust to dust. The human that interacted with me has long since gone to be reincarnated. Who knows how many lifetimes they¡¯ve led?¡± ¡°You¡¯re that sure?¡± Zhang Ke unconsciously nced back. Fu Si was still standing at his original spot. He seemed to have always been looking at them. In a flurry, he shifted his line of sight. ¡°Are there any simrities in their appearance?¡± Fu Li suddenly came to a stop. There was aplex expression on his face. ¡°W-What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhang Ke was a bit anxious. Did he say something wrong? ¡°Nothing,¡± Fu Li looked somewhat embarrassed. ¡°I forgot what he looked like.¡± For some inexplicable reason, Zhang Ke imagined a resentful, emotional grievance between a g yao and a deeply emotional human. ¡°I can¡¯t actually be faulted for this. Everyone on the mountain usually uses their original form. At that time, I had little contact with humans, so in my eyes, all of you have two eyes and one nose. Apart from some differences in height and size, there aren¡¯t many other differences.¡± Zhang Ke nced at Fu Li¡¯s good-looking human face and then touched his own face. How was this difference not big? Fu Li tried very hard to justify himself. He had to let Zhang Ke believe that it wasn¡¯t his memory that was poor, but the humans whocked distinguishing characteristics. ¡°Can you humans tell between cats of the same breed? After a few decades, will you still be able to remember what they look like?¡± These words... seemed to make sense? Fu Li thought about the hamster that he had raised in his childhood. After the hamster died, he cried and gave it a burial. After more than twenty years, all he remembered was that he had a pet hamster that year. As for whether or not he could distinguish it from other hamsters of the same breed, it might have been a bit fatter? In thetter half of the night, Zhang Ke woke with a start and abruptly sat up on the bed. ¡°Fu ge actually raised a human as a pet?!¡± This was the crux, how could he have forgotten to ask about it before going to bed? With the help of the doppelganger technique, Zhang Ke¡¯s waist no longer ached, nor did his legs hurt. While his other colleagues were still walking the streets and crossing alleys, the three of them had already finished buying their gifts, which they stuffed into Fu Li¡¯s Qiankun pouch. Then, they effortlessly took the train back to the capital. Song Yu, who disdained the taste of train food, didn¡¯t forget to switch on his phone and livestream a performance of him eating a bento box. Theizens tipped him while praising him for being a nouveau riche. If he wasn¡¯t a nouveau riche, how could he bear to spend so much money on the train¡¯s bento boxes and even use data to live stream? After his livestream ended, Song Yu told Fu Li, ¡°The humans nowadays are really boring, they can even get this excited from watching others eat.¡± Zhang Ke chuckled sarcastically and covered his face. He was too ashamed to face the amazed gazes of the other passengers. ¡°Boss, Fu ge¡¯s back!¡± Chu Yu raced into Zhuang Qing¡¯s office in high spirits, sneakily took a bag of Da Hong Pao from Zhuang Qing¡¯s tea box, and turned tail and ran. Hearing the joyous cries outside as well as the never-ending wave of greetings, Zhuang Qing shook his head helplessly. Turning his head, he saw his tea box that had been secretly opened. The smile on his face immediately dimmed by half. His Wuyi Da Hong Pao! The moment everyone who had endured the torment of the Kunpeng¡¯s energy saw Fu Li, their physical and mental states rxed, as if they were faced with the sun in the middle of winter or ice popsicles during summer. Although the Kunpeng had never made trouble for them, they couldn¡¯t help feeling scared just by thinking that he was living in the management bureau. In the whole bureau, Fu Li was on the best terms with the Kunpeng. Thus, Fu Li¡¯s return instantly gave them a sense of security. Thinking that these colleagues liked the gifts he had brought back, Fu Li decided to buy more back the next time he went there. After bantering with his colleagues, he epted the tea Chu Yu handed him and walked towards Zhuang Qing¡¯s office while carrying the teacup. The door to Zhuang Qing office wasn¡¯t closed. Upon reaching the door, Fu Li saw Zhuang Qing holding a tea box in a daze, his expression brimming with deep resentment. He knocked on the door. ¡°Zhuang Qing, can Ie in?¡± ¡°En,e in,¡± Zhuang Qing ced the tea box down and sat upright. ¡°How are you dealing with the new work?¡± ¡°Quite well, they¡¯re all rtively simple,¡± Fu Li had prepared a portion of the gifts for Zhuang Qing. He ced down the teacup in his hand and reached into his Qiankun pouch to fish out the presents. Zhuang Qing sniffed and then fixed his gaze on the teacup that emanated a fragrant scent. He took another look at Fu Li. His face... remained nk. ¡°These are the gifts I prepared for you,¡± Fu Li ced arge bag of items on the table. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze drilled over. There were some flower cakes, nuts, tea leaves, and whatnot. ¡°You¡¯re a rabbit, yet you¡¯re still giving me rabbit meat?¡± Zhuang Qing pulled out a vacuum-sealed package of m rabbit heads from the gifts. ¡°Don¡¯t you guys like eating rabbit meat?¡± Confusion decorated Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Anyway, the rabbit meat is already there. Even if you guys don¡¯t eat it, others will. I¡¯m a very tolerant yao. As long as I¡¯m not asked to eat it, you guys can eat rabbits however you like to eat them.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the pile of items covering his entire desk. A very, very, very slight flush quietly crept up his face. ¡°You¡¯re wee,¡± Fu Li picked up the cup of tea given to him by Chu Yu and took arge gulp of it. ¡°I¡¯ll head out then.¡± He walked to the door but turned back again. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing, who was about to tear the packaging of the m rabbit heads, swiftly drew back his hands. ¡°This is for you,¡± Fu Li gave him a gourd-shaped jade bottle. ¡°Give it a try first, see if it¡¯s to your liking.¡± Zhuang Qing took the jade bottle and opened the cover. After a moment of hesitation, he took a sip. He didn¡¯t know how to describe the taste, but his soul seemed to rejoice as he consumed it. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from consuming the strange substance in the bottle in one mouth. The tip of his tongue licked the mouth of the bottle with some reluctance. Remembering that Fu Li was still present, he hurriedly ced the bottle down and asked nonchntly, ¡°What is this?¡± It turned out Zhuang Qing really hadn¡¯t seen or drank it before. The traditions of the dragon race had not been lost, so there was no way they didn¡¯t know of the existence of spiritual essence or the way to gather it. Yet, Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t drunk it. He hadn¡¯t even seen it. What kind of bitter life had this dragon led when he was young? ¡°Spiritual essence. It¡¯s suitable for underaged yao cultivators to drink,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t dare to go too in-depth for fear of saddening Zhuang Qing. ¡°If you like it, I can help you collect it in the future?¡± ¡°Underaged?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression turned heavy. ¡°Fu Li, are you deliberately using this to make fun of me?¡± ¡°Everything was going fine, why did you get angry again?¡± Seeing that Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression didn¡¯t seem quite right, Fu Li scuttled out of the office and stuck his head through the doorway. ¡°I already told you many times that you shouldn¡¯t have such a bad temper at a young age. This was something I specially collected for you and it¡¯s beneficial for your body. It¡¯s very normal for underaged yao cultivators to drink this. In those years, I drank spiritual essence till I was more than two thousand years ago before weaning off it. It¡¯s not like drinking this will make you lose face.¡± ¡°Get out!¡± With a wave of his hand, Zhuang Qing flung the door close, shutting Fu Li out. Why did drinking spiritual essence be simr to drinking milk when he put it that way? He stood in front of his office desk for a very long time. After setting up a barrier at the door and confirming that nobody outside would barge in, his hand inched forward and slowly grabbed hold of the gourd-shaped jade bottle. And then, he ced the jade bottle into his own Qiankun pouch at a speed exceeding lightning. He inhaled. The sweet scent of the spiritual essence still seemed to pervade the air. Ilyz: Merry Christmas!????? Chapter 45 - Mala Rabbit Cubes

Chapter 45 - M Rabbit Cubes

Zhuang Qing left his office and saw all the employees in the office snacking. Seeing him appear, the employees even attempted to conceal the snacks, though all that did was make it even more conspicuous. Shouldn¡¯t they think about their oil-covered mouths and the smell in the room? It would be strange if he didn¡¯t know what they were doing. Pretending not to have seen their tiny movements, Zhuang Qing scanned the room. ¡°Where did Fu Li run off to?¡± ¡°Boss, Fu ge went to visit the Kunpeng,¡± Zhang Ke lowered his voice when saying the word ¡®Kunpeng¡¯. ¡°Why don¡¯t you wait for Fu ge to return before looking for him?¡± Zhuang Qing turned and silently went back to his office with a straight face. Fu Li walked into the Kunpeng¡¯s room and caught sight of the enormous, fat bird in the middle of the room. He called out to it twice, but there was no reaction from the Kunpeng. Left with no choice, he went up and pulled on its wings. Only after pulling out several feathers did he manage to wake the Kunpeng. Transforming into his human form, the Kunpeng sat up straight on the floor. ¡°Rabbit, you¡¯re back?¡± Fu Li sat cross-legged in front of the Kunpeng. ¡°Kunpeng daren, try the local specialties I brought back for you.¡± He fished out arge pile of things that included even spicy sticks from his Qiankun Pouch. ¡°How can there be no alcohol when there¡¯s food?¡± The Kunpeng asked Fu Li, ¡°Did you buy any alcohol? If you didn¡¯t, I¡¯ll teleport us some.¡± ¡°Daren, an ordinary person would be frightened if they realized that their things suddenly disappeared,¡± Fu Li started rifling through his Qiankun Pouch again. ¡°Stealing isn¡¯t right either. I have here a few jars of old wine from a few thousand years back; they were fermented by a yao cultivator on my mountain. I was young at that time, and the elders on the mountain refused to let me drink, so I secretly snuck a few jars into my Qiankun Pouch. If you didn¡¯t mention it today, it would have slipped my mind.¡± The earthen jar of wine that Fu Li took out was very ordinary ¨C not only was the earthen jar formed from potter¡¯s y very ugly, the soil on its surface had not been wiped off, as if it had been freshly dug out of the ground. ¡°How can a male yao not drink?¡± The Kunpeng popped open the cover. The pure, distinct fragrance of wine assailed their nostrils and spiritual qi very quickly filled the entire room. He threw the earthen jar to Fu Li. ¡°Come, I¡¯ll drink with you today.¡± Fu Li epted the earthen jar and proimed, ¡°It is this little yao¡¯s fortune to have thepany of Kunpeng daren.¡± He lifted up the earthen jar and drank a mouthful of the fruit wine that had once been the subject of infinite curiosity. There was a slight chill to it, though the sweet taste and fragrant scent took center stage. ¡°Good!¡± The Kunpeng also lifted up the earthen jar and took a big gulp from it. As the wine went down his throat, all he felt was a sensation of rxation and carefreeness, along with a floaty feeling, as if he was about to transcend the mundane world. ¡°Good wine, good wine! The elder of your honorable mountain has a pair of skillful hands. If there is a chance, I will definitely pay a visit in person.¡± Fu Liughed, wine trickling down the arc of his throat into his shirt. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that the mountain has already fallen to ruin. Among the hundreds of big and tiny yaoguai on the mountain, only I remain alive.¡± One of his hands grabbed hold of an earthen jar, clinking it against the Kunpeng¡¯s. ¡°It is their fate that Kunpeng daren could taste this wine.¡± The Kunpeng hadn¡¯t expected such an incident to have urred. Patting Fu Li on the shoulder, he said, ¡°Enjoy while you can, there is no turning back time. Come, cheers.¡± Strong alcohol fermented by humans could not intoxicate yao. However, not-so-strong wine fermented by yao could easily intoxicate yao. Fu Li, who had never consumed spiritual wine, was already drunk after drinking a few jars. He reclined on the soft carpet, one hand propped against his head, while the other hand raised an earthen jar, pouring the wine into his mouth. His pupils had turned gold. The Kunpeng bragged to Fu Li about his past grand deeds and the various emotional entanglements between the great yao. ¡°The Zhongdiao and Zheng could never get along, so those two blockheads would always get into a fight the moment they bump into each other. They had bad tempers and would eat people at the first sign of dispute. Who knows whether they¡¯re still alive now?¡± ¡°They¡¯re dead,¡± Fu Li waved his hand, pointing at the sky outside the window. ¡°They were struck to death with just one bang.¡± ¡°It seemsozi even got another chance at life while sealed in the ocean,¡± The Kunpeng pushed the empty earthen jar far away. ¡°Then would the Baize and Dangkang considered my enemies or benefactors?¡± ¡°Sealed?¡± Fu Li looked at the Kunpeng giddily. ¡°You heard wrong,¡± The Kunpeng sobered up quite a bit. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything like that. Comeee, drink.¡± ¡°Oh oh oh,¡± Fu Li lowered his head to drink the wine from the earthen jar. All of a sudden, he turned into a palm-sized ball of fur and fell into the jar with a plop, leaving a pile of clothes on the ground. ¡°How did you get that drunk?¡± The Kunpeng shook his head. ¡°Children who haven¡¯t drank before are way too weak.¡± He extended a hand into the jar and felt around. Grabbing onto two long ears, he easily pulled his hand out and gazed at the rabbit in his hand with half-lidded eyes. Wasn¡¯t this rabbit¡¯s teeth a bit too sharp? A pity that a jar of good wine had gone to waste, used as bathwater. The Kunpeng watched the wine drip from Fu Li¡¯s body onto the floor and opened his mouth in preparation to blow dry Fu Li¡¯s fur. ¡°Kunpeng daren...¡± Zhuang Qing walked in and saw the Kunpeng¡¯s wide mouth, the rabbit in his hands, and the pile of clothes in the room. There was no sign of Fu Li. His expression instantly changed drastically, and he took out his natal sword, saying with a heavy look, ¡°Kunpeng, put him down!¡± The Kunpeng looked at the rabbit in his hands and then nced at Zhuang Qing, who was shrouded in murderous intent from head to toe. His somewhat intoxicated mind didn¡¯t grasp the situation. Seeing that the Kunpeng was unwilling to release his grip, Zhuang Qing¡¯s grip on the sword tightened. He took a few steps forward, perspiration on his forehead. ¡°Kunpeng, Fu Li has always treated you with sincerity. Why do you want to eat him?¡± Seeing that Fu Liy motionless in the Kunpeng¡¯s hands, dragon scales started surfacing on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face and hands. Dragon Might emanated in all directions. ¡°Boss!¡± All theaquatic yao cultivators in the management bureau jolted. This was their natural instinct. ¡°Chu Yu, Lin Gui, what happened to the both of you?¡± Seeing that the neer &#k2013; the yellow pond turtle &#k2013; beside him had also stood up, Ning Xuan threw down the half-eaten rabbit head in his hand. ¡°Did something happen at Boss¡¯ ce?¡± The boss had gone to find Fu Li just now and returned to his office since Fu Li wasn¡¯t around. Not longter, he went out again. Could it be the... ¡°Kunpeng?!¡± With a whoosh, he transformed into a flying sword, broke through the ss windows, and flew out. ¡°You want to attack me?¡± The Kunpeng thought that Zhuang Qing was looking to provoke him. He snorted coldly, ¡°A mere insignificant mixed-breed dragon wants to show off their might in front of me.¡± He threw Fu Li in his original form to the side. Both hands transformed into human palms and thrust towards Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing nced at the motionless Fu Li, who had been thrown to a corner. Inwardly, he heaved a sigh of relief. At least, the Kunpeng was too upied now to care about eating him. Not in the mood to fight zealously, Zhuang Qing raised his sword, meeting the Kunpeng¡¯s palms heavily. Borrowing the force of the Kunpeng¡¯s palms, he turned and flew to Fu Li. In a blink of an eye, the Kunpeng¡¯s palm thrust towards him once again. He swiftly stuffed Fu Li into the pocket of his suit, gritted his teeth, and met him with both palms out. ¡°Bang!¡± His entire body enveloped in a magnificent golden glow, Zhuang Qing¡¯s one strike at full strength was unexpectedly evenly matched with the Kunpeng. Taking advantage of the lull, he retreated to the door and shouted towards Ning Xuan, Chu Yu, and the rest who had rushed over, ¡°Don¡¯te over.¡± By nature, those of the aquatic ns obeyed the orders of the dragon race. Adding on the golden light of virtue and the majestic Dragon Might, no one dared to step forward. Only Chao Yun, who had taken on a human form by borrowing the female emperor¡¯s dragon qi, didn¡¯t fear the golden light of virtue and Dragon Might. She took a few steps towards Zhuang Qing. However, the room at this moment was filled with yao qi, making it extremelyborious for her to maintain her human form. ¡°Chao Yun, take Fu Li away,¡± Zhuang Qing fished something out of his pocket and threw it to Chao Yun. Chao Yun hastily reached out her hands and caught it. Only after quickly retreating back to herpanions did she have the energy to look at the thing in her hands. Was this a rabbit? The boss seemed to have asked her to take Fu Li away just now, could it be... Chao Yun looked at the tiny rabbit that could easily be held up with two palms. This was Fu ge¡¯s original form? ¡°Are you sick in the head?¡± The Kunpeng hadn¡¯t expected the golden light of virtue on Zhuang Qing to be that strong. Thinking about heavenlyw¡¯s tendency to send down lightning bolts at the first sign of dispute, he dared not get into a real fight with Zhuang Qing. ¡°It¡¯s not even okay for the rabbit and me to drink some wine?¡± ¡°Drink wine?¡± Zhuang Qing smiled coldly. ¡°Is it necessary to put Fu Li into your mouth when drinking?¡± ¡°That tiny rabbit can¡¯t even fill the cracks in my teeth, why would I eat him?¡± Forced to carry this ck pot for no reason, the Kunpeng was on the verge of exploding from anger. ¡°He fell into the earthen jar, so I held him up to blow dry his fur! There¡¯s this pile of delicious snacks to eat, yet I insist on eating a furry rabbit ¨C am I that silly in your eyes?¡± Only then did Zhuang Qing notice several ugly and crude earthen jars rolling around on the floor. The rubbish bin was overflowing with snack wrappers. ¡°Please forgive me, Kunpeng daren. This humble one has wronged you,¡± Zhuang Qing kept his sword and bowed deeply to the Kunpeng. Given his temper in the past, the Kunpeng would definitely have pressed down the other party and given them a beating without care about whether or not it was a misunderstanding. But that wouldn¡¯t do for the mixed-breed dragon in front of him. That sparkling virtue around Zhuang Qing¡¯s body, as well as his profound cultivation made the Kunpeng decide to back down. ¡°Hmph, seeing that you did it out of concern for Fu Li, I won¡¯t pursue this matter with you today. This will be the only time,¡± The Kunpeng let out a cold snort. ¡°Leave, don¡¯t disrupt my drinking.¡± When all these yao employees left, all the wine would be left to him to savor. ¡°Many thanks for Kunpeng daren¡¯s leniency,¡± Zhuang Qing helped the Kunpeng pull the door shut before turning and walking to his colleagues, who were standing guard at the staircase. ¡°Boss, what happened to you?¡± ¡°Should we get the Yao Union to dispatch some people over?¡± ¡°What happened to Fu ge? What did the Kunpeng do to Fu ge?¡± Zhang Ke, who usually didn¡¯t dare to raise his voice when mentioning the Kunpeng, was already so furious that the rims of his eyes had turned red. ¡°That brute. Fu ge treated him so well, but he still...¡± ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong, I just misunderstood something,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over to Chao Yun, reached out, and crudely picked Fu Li up by his fur. ¡°Return to your jobs, leave Fu Li to me.¡± ¡°Ai, Boss...¡± Zhang Ke wanted to ask Zhuang Qing to be more gentle, but the moment Zhuang Qing¡¯s icy gaze shifted over, he put on a smiling expression cooperatively. ¡°The rabbit might not feel veryfortable being held that way.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Zhuang Qing threw down this statement before striding away. Zhang Ke nced at Chao Yun and asked softly, ¡°Were you really holding Fu ge just now?¡± Chao Yun hadn¡¯t returned to her senses yet. She stuttered in reply to Zhang Ke¡¯s question, ¡°M-Maybe.¡± Although they had long known that Fu Li was a rabbit yao, the other party¡¯s high cultivation prevented them from equating Fu Li to a rabbit. Only on this day did they genuinely believe that Fu Li was really only a twenty centimeter-long rabbit ¨C a furry and harmless rabbit. When Zhuang Qing reached a deserted area, he nced back and then flung Fu Li over his arm. He returned to his office and picked up a jacket to cover the rabbit in the crook of his arm. After setting up a barrier, he directly returned to his house from the office. He ced the rabbit on the couch, went to the kitchen to pour a ss of tea, and then switched on the television to watch a boring variety show. He watched the show for a while, but constantly had the nagging feeling that the rabbit¡¯s head seemed to be drooping very ufortably. So, he ced a small pillow under the rabbit¡¯s head. A whileter, he found the jacket on the floor a bit displeasing to the eye. Hence, he picked it up and threw it over the rabbit. Along the way, he pulled it down slightly, revealing the rabbit¡¯s head. Under normal circumstances, rabbit ears were pointed upwards, yet Fu Li¡¯s ears hung by the sides of his shaggy head. The tips of his ears were sharp, resembling writing brushes. His incisors weren¡¯t very obvious, though there seemed to be two sharp tiger teeth on the sides. His nose didn¡¯t look like a rabbit¡¯s nose, more like the nose of a tiny puppy. No wonder he didn¡¯t like to change forms; there were some slight variations in his original form. Zhuang Qing ced a hand at the side of his nose to find out if he was breathing. He flicked his ears as well, but there waspletely no reaction from the peacefully-sleeping rabbit. The rabbit didn¡¯t have the slightest bit of vignce. For a rabbit this silly to have lived for more than four thousand years, he must have relied entirely on his good fate, high cultivation, as well as the guileless yao cultivators on his mountain. For some reason, Zhuang Qing felt slightly aggrieved. He poked Fu Li¡¯s furry, soft belly a few times. It seemed those yaoguai had raised this rabbit quite well; it was all flesh beneath the fur. The variety show on television had already ended and a culinary program was now broadcasting. The host in the show happened to be teaching the audience how to cook m rabbit cubes. Zhuang Qing looked at the fat rabbit on the sofa and then took another nce at the rabbit meat cooking in the deep fryer. Taking out a packet of m rabbit heads that Fu Li had given him, he started munching slowly on them. Fu Li felt like he had traveled two thousand years back in time. He had told King Ganglie that he was already an adult yao and wanted to leave the mountain to take a look outside. In the end, he only managed to reach the foot of the mountain when he ran into an injured human. It was his first time seeing humans, so feeling that it was a novel affair, he rode the clouds and brought the human to a physician. Who would have expected those physicians to be so frightened upon seeing him that they lost the ability to even speak coherently? On his first trip to the human world, he had no experience, nothing on him, and didn¡¯t know that he had to change into his human form before interacting with humans. In the end, he could only bring the human back to the mountain and take some random medicine from King Ganglie for him to eat. Not only could the human he saved tell stories, they also knew how to draw and write. Fu Li¡¯s interest was piqued, and so he got the human to stay. The yao cultivators on the mountain felt that he was still young and raising a human pet would help to temper his character and relieve his boredom, hence they didn¡¯t raise any objections. Fu Li couldn¡¯t remember how many years he had raised this pet. The pet had diedter on. Before it died, it even prohibited him from raising another pet. He was a good owner, so he could only agree to his pet¡¯s request. Fu Li turned over. Feeling that he seemed to have gotten stuck in a hole, he opened his eyes and realized that his head was trapped in an enormous crack in the couch. Only after kicking his legs vigorously did he manage to pull his head out. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over and held out a dish containing three moisture-filled but uncut carrots to him. Fu Li shook his ears and then realized that he seemed to have changed into his original form. He shrunk into the sofa cushions, wanting to conceal his body. ¡°Don¡¯t bother hiding, I already saw your original form very clearly,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the dish containing the carrots towards Fu Li. ¡°Variations can ur in any species, including rabbits. In any case... you¡¯re still very good-looking.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because we have fur,¡± Fu Li shook the very fluffy fur on his body and pushed the dish to the side with dislike. ¡°I hate eating carrots.¡± ¡°What kind of rabbit are you if you don¡¯t eat carrots?¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the dish back to its original spot. ¡°Eat.¡± ¡°No!¡± Fu Li pushed it back. ¡°Even a rabbit wants to be fussy?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t push it back this time. He picked up a carrot from the dish and looked it over. These were thetest products grown by the Fields Sect that he had purchased from the cultivators¡¯ shopping app, how was it not nice to eat? ¡°Even the humans have food they don¡¯t like to eat, why can¡¯t us rabbits dislike eating carrots?¡± Fu Li swung his short tail. The variations in his original form had already been seen by Zhuang Qing anyway, so he simply went with the flow, toozy to change back to his human form. His human form might berger than his original form, but it didn¡¯t feel as natural. Zhuang Qing looked at the rabbit who was lying on the sofa with its belly up. He took the dish away. ¡°What do you want to eat then?¡± ¡°Do you have shrimp?¡¯ Fu Li¡¯s ears shook, a moist luster to his golden eyes. ¡°I eat anything apart from rabbit meat. I¡¯m not picky about food.¡± If Fu Li had asked him such a thing in his human form, Zhuang Qing would definitely have replied with a ¡®no¡¯ without even giving it a thought. However, the one speaking now was a rabbit. It was also a fat, tender, white-furred rabbit. Zhuang Qing replied with a poker face. ¡°Wait a moment.¡± Zhuang Qing had lived alone for nearly two thousand years, so his culinary skills were not too bad. The food was very quickly prepared. Fu Li fluttered around the kitchen entrance in his original form, praising Zhuang Qing while sniffing the aroma. For Fu Li, changing back into his original form was akin to recovering his identity; the way he spoke and did things became much more casual. It probably had to do with shedding theyer of human skin ¨C he no longer needed to pay much attention to humanws and ethics. As a rabbit, Fu Li¡¯s favorite food wasn¡¯t vegetables but meat. He was particrly fond of fish and shrimp, which was quite simr to Zhuang Qing¡¯s own tastes. Hearing the crunching and snapping sounds as Fu Li chewed on the fish bones, Zhuang Qing felt his bones aching slightly. Unable to help himself, he kneaded his shoulders a few times. ¡°You drank alcohol during work hours and vited staff rules. Two hundred will be deducted from your wages this month.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li already had money and wasn¡¯t very concerned about this little bit of money. Zhuang Qing watched his long ears swinging about and couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°You really don¡¯t intend to eat in your human form?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t been in my original form for nearly two thousand years,¡± Fu Li shifted his hind legs. ¡°Let me enjoy a while longer.¡± Although his original form was a bit ugly, wasn¡¯t Zhuang Qing also a mixed-blood dragon? Neither of them should resent the other. Coming to terms with this, Fu Li ate his meal with a lot of joy. Zhuang Qing endured it, silently reminding himself that he still owed the other party for the Hunyuan pill and the fist-sized natural diamond. He couldn¡¯t get angry. Someone who took other¡¯s things had their hands tied, someone who took other¡¯s things had their hands tied, someone who took other¡¯s things had their hands tied. ¡°Your house is decorated very beautifully,¡± Fu Liy on the soft chair with his belly up and looked at the gems on the walls and the natural crystal chandelier on the ceiling. He dug around in his ears and poured out a pile of multi-colored gems. ¡°Forming a rainbow out of gems on the wall will surely be very pretty.¡± Ever since the time he left the mountain without bringing anything, Fu Li developed a habit of hiding his Qiankun Pouch in his ears. ¡°Rainbow?¡± Zhuang Qing felt that Fu Li¡¯s sense of aesthetics was overly vulgar. Fu Li said, ¡°There was a very pretty seven-colored deer on our mountain.¡± His w patted the gems and the gems automatically rose into the air, formed the shape of a rainbow, and then stuck tightly to the wall, glowing resplendently. ¡°How is it? Pretty, right?¡± Fu Li pped with his two front ws. ¡°You young yao are stillcking in aesthetics.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want the gems you embedded in my wall?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the colorful rainbow on the wall with a very profound look on his face. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll juste to your house in the future to admire them,¡± Fu Li was very satisfied with his handiwork. ¡°As yao, we don¡¯t need to ce so much importance on worldly possessions. At the end of the day, they¡¯re just a pile of rocks.¡± There were enough of these toys in his Qiankun Pouch to form a mountain. ¡°Forget it, just take it that I¡¯m safeguarding them for you,¡± Zhuang Qing sighed, as if already envisioning Fu Li¡¯s future as someone who wandered the streets in ragged clothes due to his wasteful actions. ¡°Up to you, as long as you¡¯re happy,¡± Fu Li shook his ears, floated back to the sofa, andy down on it. He may have already woken up, but the effects of the alcohol hadn¡¯tpletely dissipated, so he felt sleepy again after filling his tummy. Fortunately, this Zhuang Qing had a cold appearance but warm heart; he couldn¡¯t bear to leave a drunk yao outside and carefully took care of him. These sparkling things were well-liked by little yao ¨C creating a rainbow for Zhuang Qing could be considered a way of amusing him. When he was young, he had also been fond of such things. When the adult yao cultivators on his mountain learnt of it, they would use gems to form pretty silver rivers and shining trees and roads. He closed his eyes. He seemed to hear White Ape¡¯s relentless nagging, the sparrow¡¯s chirping, as well as King Ganglie¡¯s constant roars for him to finish his food as he chased after him. The food cooked by King Ganglie was unptable and very ugly to look at, yet he insisted that he finished it. For a time, eating had been Fu Li¡¯s most feared activity. ¡°Chief Zhuang, is this rabbit your pet? It¡¯s so cute.¡± Fu Li opened his eyes, his gaze meeting that of the person who had just spoken. Oh? Wasn¡¯t this that something-or-another from the azure dragon n? He seemed to be the person who bullied Zhuang Qing the other time? He even came all the way to Zhuang Qing¡¯s house, what did he want this time? ¡°It seems the neer Fu Li¡¯s great abilities have given Chief Zhuang the leisure time to raise a pet,¡± Qing Yan shifted his line of sight away from the rabbit. To him, weak life forms like rabbits weren¡¯t any different from the cups on the table and the cushions on the sofa. He directed a gentle smile at Zhuang Qing. ¡°You truly aren¡¯t worried about Fu Li harboring evil intentions towards you?¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head and looked at the rabbit lying on the cushions. ¡°...¡± The rabbit silently crawled into a crack in the sofa, leaving only a round and short tail visible. Chapter 46 - The Kunpengs Weakness

Chapter 46 - The Kunpeng¡¯s Weakness

¡°I don¡¯t quite understand Dragon Lord Qing Yan¡¯s words,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled Fu Li out of his hiding spot behind the cushion, pinning him to his side. ¡°Fu Li is a very good colleague. I feel assured handing him things to do.¡± ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, I can be at ease,¡± Qing Yan didn¡¯t mind Zhuang Qing¡¯s cold expression and continued smiling. ¡°I came today to request for your help.¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head and rubbed the fur on the rabbit¡¯s back. Fu Li¡¯s fur was both smooth and soft, possibly because he had been raised well as a child. His fur felt exceedingly nice to the touch. Zhuang Qing had originally only intended to casually touch his fur a few times, but ended up unable to stop. As an elder, Fu Li wasn¡¯t very happy at being touched here and there by an underaged yao. He stepped on Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand with his hind legs. Impudent! His body might be small, but he had plenty of strength. Zhuang Qing rubbed his hand that was aching from being stomped on and shifted his seat, leaving a ten centimeter gap between them. Despite being ignored by Zhuang Qing, Qing Yan didn¡¯t reveal the slightest bit of dissatisfaction. He took out a jade box from his sleeves and ced it on the table. The ears drooping by the sides of Fu Li¡¯s head pricked up. This situation ¨C was it bribery? He hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing to be such a yao. ¡°I heard a rumor,¡± Qing Yan opened the lid, revealing several pearls of an unparalleled size. ¡°It¡¯s said that the Kunpeng has awoken?¡± Having just received a rainbow made out of gems, Zhuang Qing was extremely calm upon seeing theserge pearls. ¡°Why does Dragon Lord Qing Yan ask this?¡± ¡°Our dragon race is in possession of ancient records. Not only does the Kunpeng eat fish and shrimp, it also has the habit of feeding on dragons. You should pay attention to your safety,¡± Hearing Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone of voice, Qing Yan understood. It seemed the Kunpeng truly had awakened. He had assumed that all these great yao had lost their lives during the major cmity. Yet, they had actually reappeared. ¡°The Kunpeng is very reasonable, there is no need for Dragon Lord Qing Yan to worry,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at the clock on the wall. ¡°It¡¯s my rest time.¡± Qing Yan was aware that Zhuang Qing had little desire to attend to him, so he stood up. ¡°I¡¯ve interrupted Chief Zhuang¡¯s rest, goodbye.¡± ¡°Take care,¡± Zhuang Qing raised a hand and the main door to the vi opened automatically. There were even two members of the azure dragon n outside the door. Zhuang Qing sneered, ¡°The next time Dragon Lord Qing Yan brings your nmates, let them enter and sit down as well. Although I don¡¯t have good tea or water to receive guests, I can still find an area for them to sit.¡± ¡°I dare not disrupt Chief Zhuang¡¯s rest. They are young and strong, waiting outside for a while is not a problem,¡± Qing Yan walked down the steps. He nced back and saw the rabbit that had previously been lying on the sofa leap off the couch and walk over to Zhuang Qing¡¯s feet. Its golden eyes were fixed on him. There was a strange feeling in his heart. Even after setting up a barrier and flying into the sky, he still felt that something wasn¡¯t quite right. ¡°Dragon Lord, what¡¯s wrong?¡± The azure dragon nsmen saw that Qing Yan had an odd expression on his face and thus asked, ¡°Did Zhuang Qing behave unreasonably towards you?¡± Qing Yan shook his head. Zhuang Qing had never been very polite to him. What exactly was wrong? He turned his head and looked at his nmates. ¡°How do rabbits walk?¡± ¡°Ah?¡± The nmates hadn¡¯t expected Qing Yan to suddenly ask such a trivial question. After staring nkly for a moment, they answered with some hesitation, ¡°Don¡¯t they walk on four feet?¡± ¡°Really?¡± Qing Yan furrowed his brows. Had he seen wrongly? ¡°I knew it was you dragons!¡± A slightly plump man appeared in the clouds all of a sudden. He looked at Qing Yan. ¡°You¡¯re from the azure dragon n?¡± Seeing as this individual¡¯s purpose for approaching them was unclear, coupled with the fact that he couldn¡¯t make out the other party¡¯s cultivation and original form, Qing Yan went forward and bowed. ¡°May I know who this senior is...¡± He hadn¡¯t even finished his statement when he was sent flying by the Kunpeng¡¯s palm, whirling 720 degrees in the air before falling back onto the clouds. Qing Yany sprawled on the clouds and spat out arge mouth of filthy blood. Frightened, the two nsmen went forward to help him up. ¡°Dragon Lord, are you okay?¡± ¡°My grudge with your azure dragon n is tens of thousands of years old. In the future, I¡¯ll give you a beating every time I see you,¡± The Kunpeng pped his hands, his face brimming with disdain. ¡°You can¡¯t even take one p fromozi. Truly, every generation can¡¯tpare to the next. All are spineless cowards.¡± Qing Yan wiped the blood at the corner of his mouth and stood up. ¡°May I know who this senior is? Why do you consider our azure dragon n your enemy?¡± ¡°Five thousand years ago, your azure dragon n might just barely be considered my enemy. But now...¡± The Kunpeng scoffed. ¡°You had better hide your fishtails. Don¡¯t letozi see them, otherwise I¡¯ll beat you up the next time.¡± With a wave of his sleeves, the Kunpeng flew off into the clouds, leaving behind three azure dragons who had turned pale from anger. ¡°Do all rabbits walk like you?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li¡¯s tiger-like walking posture, feeling ufortable from head to toe. Didn¡¯t rabbits walk by jumping and hopping? ¡°I¡¯m a rabbit spirit, there¡¯s nothing strange about walking in a more special way,¡± Fu Li picked up arge pearl from the box given by Qing Yan. cing it on the table, he rolled it about yfully. ¡°What¡¯s so good about resembling leopards? Tigers walk so majestically.¡± ¡°The mountain you lived on even had a tiger yao?¡± Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t help suspecting that the mountain had some attractive force for all sorts of animals with different biological characteristics to gather on it. Not only that, it managed to even produce such a stupid rabbit? ¡°Yes,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°That tiger has quite the heart to be able to hold itself back from swallowing you,¡± Seeing that Fu Li was about to roll the pearl off the table, he hastily reached out a hand and caught it. ¡°The sky¡¯s dark, I¡¯m going to sleep.¡± So you should return to wherever you need to return to. ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li jumped off the side table. His front legs stood upright, and he transformed into a handsome youth wearing a white brocade gown and jade band. ¡°My mistake, my mistake,¡± Fu Li looked down at the clothes he was wearing. ¡°I still haven¡¯t changed my past habit.¡± He patted the brocade gown and it turned into a white shirt and jeans. His hair also turned into that of a modern man. The image of Fu Li in ancient attire was short-lived. For a moment, Zhuang Qing was dazzled. The Fu Li in ancient attire was much better-looking than his current appearance. Just like... a noble prince that had been pampered and spoiled since childhood, with a purity and ignorance borne from innocence. ¡°Many thanks for your care today,¡± The Fu Li in his human form seemed to have withdrawn back under the shell of human virtue andw; he became a lot more solemn. ¡°Rest early, I¡¯ll head back.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. Sending Fu Li to the door, he helped him pull open the door with a straight face. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to drink on the job in the future.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve memorized it,¡± Fu Li was in the wrong, so anything that Zhuang Qing said was right. He walked out of the luxurious vi and strolled along the streets. The streetlights lengthened Fu Li¡¯s shadow till it formed a long, long line, just like a matchstick that had taken on human form. There were few pedestrians along the roads. The residents of this area were all wealthy people who had cars to get around, so there were very few people who walked outside like Fu Li. After walking a great distance, he still didn¡¯t encounter a taxi. Pedestrians would pass by him asionally, but they were all strolling or jogging. Fu Li hadn¡¯t reached the end of the street when he realized that a young girl had already passed by him three times. Coming to a stop, he watched the girl run from the end of the road to the forest opposite. Not longter, she ran over from the end of the road once again and followed her original route, running into the forest. There was an artificialke in the forest. The scenery and air was also very good. The fourth time. The fifth time. Fu Li watched the girl¡¯s ponytail swinging back and forth at the back of her head. Sighing, he ran after her. Upon entering a tiny, shaded path in the woods, Fu Li heard the girl¡¯s frightened shrieks. He pushed aside the shrubbery and saw the girl lying in a pool of blood. She reached out a hand towards the pedestrians on the walkway by thekeside, her eyes wide. Her cries for help sounded over and over again. Her voice weakened bit by bit. Her hand slowly lowered. ¡°Save me, I don¡¯t want to die...¡± The girl lowered her hand in despair. Just as her hand was about to fall to the ground, a warm hand grabbed hold of it. Her eyes widened as she stared dazedly at Fu Li. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Fu Li crouched in front of the girl. ¡°I¡¯ll call the ambnce for you.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± The girl gripped Fu Li¡¯s hand tightly. The blood-red tinge to her eyes gradually lightened, eventually morphing into glistening, translucent teardrops. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Finally... Finally someone came to save me,¡± A glorious smile blossomed on her face. The bloodstains and wounds on her body vanishedpletely, turning her into an adorable girl with a single ponytail, dressed in a set of white sports attire. ¡°Thank you,¡± The girl bowed to Fu Li, turned, and walked out of the shrubbery. Fu Li walked out of the shaded path in the woods and stood for a while under the streemps. This time, the girl didn¡¯t appear. When he walked out of the street, he heard the faint sound of the yinchai¡¯s bells. The yinchai was ferrying souls again. Upon reaching home, Fu Li fished out his phone and searched online for the incident involving that girl, typing in a very unpracticed manner. Seven days ago, while jogging, this young human girl was dragged by a hoodlum into the shrubs and murdered. All the jewelry she had on her was snatched. Her corpse was only discovered the next morning when the cleaners went to sweep the leaves in the woods. Two dayster, the police arrested the murderer. He had robbed and murdered the girl around ten o¡¯clock at night, while the girl¡¯s time of death was approximately eleven o¡¯clock. There were also traces on the ground indicating that someone had crawled. Which was also to say that she had not immediately passed on after suffering the injuries. She simply hadn¡¯t been found by anyone. In the end, it was in the midst of despair that she stepped onto the path to death. There was less than ten meters between the shrubs and the walkway by thekeside. It was unknown how many people had passed by at that time, but this girl could only watch them pass by her one by one till... she died. Fu Li logged out of the browser and ced his phone back onto the table. It was said that the death of a person who died with resentment would y out repeatedly on the seventh day following the actual death. If someone released her from her unwillingness to ept the situation, she would be able to forget her previous fate and be reincarnated. If she couldn¡¯t, she would either be a vengeful ghost, eaten by other malicious spirits or evil yao, or turn into a malicious spirit that took revenge against innocent humans at the area of her death. The air of resentment on that girl had been extremely thick. Had she truly not been found by anyone? Or... had someone actually found her, only to leave on the sly out of fear of bringing trouble to themselves? Fu Li pushed open the windows and looked at the tiny garden outside the dormitory. The streetlights shone down on several little yao ying on the grass. These yao couldn¡¯t even make aplete transformation into their human forms. They were likely the children of internal staff. Other adult yao didn¡¯t have much courage to leave their rooms out of fear of the Kunpeng. Only these little yao feared nothing; no one could stop them from ying to their heart¡¯s content. As these thoughts ran through his mind, Fu Li saw the Kunpeng flying down from the sky with a satisfied smile on his face. ¡°Uncle, are you my father¡¯s colleague too?¡± A tiny girl with two green leaves on her headtched onto the Kunpeng¡¯s thigh, her round,rge eyes filled with curiosity. ¡°Why haven¡¯t I seen you before?¡± ¡°I¡¯m new,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s entire body turned rigid as he looked at the little ball of flesh hanging from his leg. He wanted to reach out and pick her up, yet feared harming the child due to excessive strength. ¡°I know, I know,¡± A boy with cat ears held onto the Kunpeng¡¯s other leg. ¡°My mum said that quite a few powerful, high-level staff were recruited this year. This uncle must be one of them.¡± ¡°L-Little child, release me,¡± The Kunpeng stared worriedly at the two things hanging on both sides of him. He was most afraid ofing into contact with little children and wouldn¡¯ty a hand on children even if it was his most hated azure dragon n. ¡°Uncle looks so strong, was your original form a tree?¡± ¡°As if,¡± The catboy refuted. ¡°Uncle looked so handsome when flying down, it¡¯s obvious he¡¯s a formidable yaoguai like me.¡± ¡°Tree!¡± ¡°Tiger!¡± ¡°Shameless, what link does a tiger have with you cats?¡± ¡°My mum said that tigers and cats are both feline species!¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s head ached from the children¡¯s bickering. He wanted very much to pick up a child in each hand and toss them a kilometer away. In this short span of the time, the two children actually burst into tears. The piercing devilish sound made him recall the nightmare four thousand years ago when he was awoken by crying children. If he hadn¡¯t been awoken by an unknown child¡¯s howls that year, he wouldn¡¯t have left the East Sea to get to the bottom of the matter. If he hadn¡¯t left the East Sea, he wouldn¡¯t have been caught and beaten up by the Dangkang¡¯s group of four. Everyone said that divine beasts were humane, but to him, all of them were good-for-nothings. He wouldn¡¯tin about them making use of their numbers to bully him, but they even sealed him at the bottom of the sea for four thousand years after beating him up. As a fiend, he had to bow down to this shameless manner of conduct. Who said he, the Kunpeng, had no natural enemies? These children who wailed at the drop of a hat were his natural enemies. ¡°Don¡¯t cry. If any of you continue crying, I¡¯ll eat you.¡± The two children¡¯s cries halted suddenly. After a nce at each other, they raised their necks abruptly and continued howling at the sky. Their cries were even louder than the previous time. ¡°My god, can you two children stop crying? Anyone who didn¡¯t know better would think that I was killing children,¡± The Kunpeng peeled the two children off his legs, each hand cradling a child. ¡°I¡¯ll bring you guys up to the clouds to y, deal?¡± Please, for the love of god, shut these mouths that produced the devil¡¯s sound! Sure enough, the two children stopped crying. With a shake of his giddy head, the Kunpeng erected a barrier around his entire body to prevent the wind from buffeting the two children. Just as the Kunpeng was flying into the skies with the two children, a shriek suddenly burst out from the dormitory. ¡°The Kunpeng¡¯s kidnapping children!¡± Fu Li slumped over the windowsill, hisughter nearly sending him tumbling down. The majestic Kunpeng daren was actually afraid of crying children. How interesting. The yao cultivators on the mountain had always praised him for hispetence, so he had certainly never been as annoying as these little kids. The two yao children and Fu Li testified for a whole night before everyone understood that the Kunpeng had not been kidnapping children but bringing them out to y. Though, after this incident, everyone no longer mentioned the Kunpeng with as much fear. At least, they wouldn¡¯t deliberately lower their voices when mentioning him. The Kunpeng¡¯s mighty, valiant image might have started falling apart the moment he flew around the sky carrying children. After that night, the sound of yao children knocking on the Kunpeng¡¯s door and pestering him to ¡®fly high¡¯ became a daily affair. The Kunpeng didn¡¯t dare to make them cry and could only agree time after time to their request. Eventually, all the children in the dormitory approached him and he had no choice but to transform into his bird form, throw the children onto his back, and carry them off to y after putting a barrier in ce. Nobody had expected an ancient, famed fiend to be the most weed by children. From this, it could be seen that the most powerful weapons in the world were actually spoilt, yful children. ¡°Seriously, those children are so annoying,¡± Three dayster, the Kunpeng hid in Fu Li¡¯s room and startedining. ¡°Their cultivation base is nothing great and their foundations are poor. How can they be so fond of ying?¡± Fu Li gave the Kunpeng two spicy sticks. ¡°They are indeed a little noisy.¡± ¡°Anyway, I won¡¯t care about them anymore. Just listening to their crying makes my head hurt. They¡¯re probably those ¡®bear children¡¯ that humans talk about,¡± The Kunpeng tore open the packaging around the spicy sticks and polished off the entire packet in one mouth. The spicy sticks had just entered his tummy when the sound of children crying came from the floor below. Fu Li watched the Kunpeng who imed to not care for children leap out of his window and, with an impatient face, pick up the cat-eared boy who had taken a huge tumble. ¡°Your mouth says you aren¡¯t willing, but your actions tell the truth,¡± Fu Li picked up the spicy sticks the Kunpeng had thrown onto the floor. He shut the window in passing, blocking out the sound of wailing children. At any rate, given the situation, the Kunpeng wouldn¡¯t be able to return till the children fell asleep. The next morning when Fu Li went to work, he received a report from a lower-level department stating that a Dragon Lord from the azure dragon n had been attacked by an unknown yao a few days ago. The injuries suffered were grave and they hoped that the management bureau would capture the culprit. This matter was under the jurisdiction of the cultivators¡¯ department, so it had ended up in Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°The incident happened five days ago, but they only reported it now?¡± Chao Yun felt that something was wrong after reading the report. The dragon race had always turned their noses up at the management bureau. Other than incidents where the management bureau fined them for their wrongdoings, there was virtually zero contact. ¡°Maybe they already went in search of this person, but wasn¡¯t sessful,¡± Ning Xuan read out the criminal suspect¡¯s information provided by the azure dragon n. ¡°Slightly fat. Profound cultivation. Rough voice. Also said that there was an old grudge between them...¡± The more Ning Xuan recited, the quieter his voice became. He looked at Fu Li. ¡°Fu ge, could this be...¡± Fu Li looked nkly at Ning Xuan. ¡°The information provided by the azure dragon n is too vague, I fear it won¡¯t be easy to find the individual. Do you know any yao or human cultivators who matches this description?¡± ¡°No.¡± Ning Xuan ced the information on the desk and said sternly, ¡°I¡¯ll bring a team out to investigate right this instant.¡± In the azure dragon n¡¯s Crystal Pce. The Head of the azure dragon n was looking at Qing Yan, who was lying on the bed. The Head took out a Hunyuan pill and fed it to Qing Yan. ¡°Qing Yan, rest a bit more during this period. Don¡¯t use your magic powers recklessly.¡± ¡°Head, have we reported the case to the management bureau?¡± Qing Yan struggled to sit up on the bed, saying with a pale face, ¡°I suspect that the man who attacked me is very likely the Kunpeng that was subdued by Zhuang Qing. In the current cultivation world, no one other than the Kunpeng can injure me so easily.¡± He knew that it was the Kunpeng who attacked him, but had no evidence. Thus, he could only intentionally report it to the management bureau and let Zhuang Qing keep it in mind. Since he couldn¡¯t do anything much, he could only embarrass them. Didn¡¯t the management bureau brag about being fair and just? They should pursue justice for him then. ¡°That Fu Li¡¯s identity is unknown, and now there¡¯s an extra Kunpeng,¡± The Head made a pained face. ¡°The dragon race has already reached this stage. Is heavenlyw still unwilling to let us off?¡± ¡°Fu Li is capable of breaking Elder Qing Yuan¡¯s horn, he definitely isn¡¯t an ordinary yao cultivator,¡± Qing Yan covered his mouth and coughed a few times. ¡°That hateful Zhuang Qing has such tight control over the management bureau, we can¡¯t even squeeze in one spy.¡± ¡°Since he has no intention of deliberately opposing us, let¡¯s leave this matter as it is,¡± The Head shook his head. ¡°With the Kunpeng¡¯s reappearance, our dragon race is already in a very difficult situation. Don¡¯t provoke them and create another enemy.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry Head, I definitely won¡¯t sh with Fu Li openly,¡± A smile took shape on Qing Yan¡¯s wan face. ¡°All living creatures have their weaknesses - nobody in the six realms can escape from this.¡± At the management bureau, everyone was still thinking about how to resolve the issue involving the azure dragon n. Unless the Kunpeng didn¡¯t go out in the future, the cat would be let out of the bag sooner orter. Fu Li watched his colleaguese up with all sorts of ns and cocked his head, asking, ¡°What is there to discuss? It¡¯s not like the Kunpeng is an employee of our management bureau. If there¡¯s a conflict between both parties, we¡¯ll punish whoever should be punished and mediate whatever needs to be mediated.¡± ¡°If they anger the Kunpeng and their Crystal Pce gets wrecked, that would be considered a private grudge,¡± Fu Li put down his teacup. He spoke as lightly as a feather, ¡°At that time, perhaps the azure dragon n will no longer dare to send any more reports.¡± ¡°F-Fu ge,¡± Chu Yu was scared stiff by Fu Li¡¯s words. He swallowed his saliva. ¡°You don¡¯t seem to like the azure dragon n very much?¡± Otherwise, why would thew-abiding him say such words? He seemed like an entirely different yao, with the way he so casually uttered what they dared not even think. If the azure dragon n¡¯s Crystal Pce was wrecked, not only would the azure dragon n go crazy, the other dragons probably wouldn¡¯t just sit and watch either. ¡°You might not know this, but when the Kunpeng was at his peak, dealing with these dragons was as easy as ying with a ball of string,¡± Fu Li said in a low voice. ¡°If the Kunpeng were to be enraged, not only would the dragon race be out of luck, even the humans would be implicated.¡± ¡°That is the azure dragon n¡¯s intention,¡± Zhuang Qing walked in, his tone calm. ¡°Everyone shouldn¡¯t take this matter to heart, I¡¯ll handle it.¡± He nced at Fu Li before swiftly looking away. ¡°Boss!¡± Huang Can rushed in. ¡°I just heard the Kunpeng going on and on about putting the azure dragons in their ce. Then, he suddenly changed into a huge bird and flew towards the sky. The moment his wings unfolded, half the sky turned dark!¡± Ordinary humans were not aware that the asional sudden darkening and clearing of the sky may not necessarily be caused by dark clouds blocking the sun, but could also have been caused by a gigantic bird flying past. Ilyz: Happy New Year! Wishing everyone a safe and healthy 2021 with lots of good food,ughter, and stories to read Chapter 47 - Curiosity

Chapter 47 - Curiosity

¡°Mister, may I know who you are looking for?¡± The guard at the gate stopped the vehicle that was about to drive through. ¡°My apologies, we have strict entry regtions.¡± ¡°Apologies, I¡¯m looking for Mr Fu Li,¡± Fu Si rolled up the car window and shed a smile at the young, slim-faced guard. ¡°Is he free to meet?¡± Hearing that he hade searching for Fu Li, the guard¡¯s expression turned solemn. ¡°Please wait for a moment, I¡¯ll get in touch with the front desk.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Si looked past the electronic gate at the grass and trees inside, as well as the imposing office building. Chang Long¡¯s earlier upation ofnd in an area like the capital enabled it to sit onnd that was sorge it could casually set aside a spaciouswn to ce sculptures, even though saidnd was extremely expensive in the current times. ¡°Sorry, Mr Fu. Mr Fu Li is out on field work today, he¡¯s not at thepany,¡± The slim-faced guard said politely. ¡°Pleasee at another time or contact him in advance through his phone.¡± ¡°I understand, thank you.¡± Fu Si smiled and spoke to the driver, ¡°Turn back.¡± The car made a U-turn. Fu Si looked at therge, glittering words, ¡®Chang Long Biotechnology Company¡¯, and gently smoothed out the small creases in his cuffs. ¡°Old Xia, what happened?¡± A wide-faced guard walked over and asked out of curiosity. ¡°Yet another one who wants to worm his way into being friends with Mr Fu Li,¡± Slim-Faced shook his head. ¡°Not a single way of contacting him, but still has the nerve to call himself a friend. If we went by that logic, I¡¯m also friends with those celebrities on television.¡± The wide-faced guard understood in a sh. ¡°We don¡¯t have control over these things. It¡¯s said that calling each other ¡®friend¡¯ and having a meal together is enough for those humans to be bosom-buddies. How superficial.¡± After finding out that the Kunpeng had gone to the East Sea to cause trouble for the azure dragons, the few bureau yao cultivators who were better at fighting instantly put together a group and went in pursuit of him. What a joke. If the dragon race and the Kunpeng were to fight in their true forms, wouldn¡¯t a tsunami ur? Upon arriving at the coast, Ning Xuan and Chao Yun took a look at the sea and then took two steps back. They were indeed quite good at fighting onnd, but their original forms were metal, so if they were to enter the sea, they would probably sink to the bottom of the sea before they could even make a sound. ¡°Chao Yun and Ning Xuan will protect the magic formation at the coast. Wei Cang and Fu Li will go down with me,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Wei Cang. This new employee hadn¡¯t spoken much since he joined the management bureau, though he was very dependable when it came to work. ¡°Are you scared of water?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± Wei Cang nodded. ¡°No major problems.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li. ¡°What about you?¡± Fu Li nced at the water a few times. ¡°I haven¡¯t been to the bottom of the sea to y before. Is the dragon pce nice to look at?¡± White Ape had told him that the pces the dragon ns lived in was built by stacking up gems, which made for a beautiful sight. This was why the building they lived in was often called ¡®Crystal Pce¡¯. Seeing Fu Li¡¯s eagerness and curiosity, Zhuang Qing knew that his concern was wasted. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± He took the lead and jumped into the ocean, transforming into a dragon that emitted a golden glow. He submerged himself in the seawater. In response, Fu Li and Wei Cang jumped in. Fu Li patted Wei Cang¡¯s shoulder underwater and then pointed at the golden dragon in front of them. Confusion was written all over Wei Cang¡¯s face. What did that mean? With a shift of Fu Li¡¯s legs, his entire person flew forward like an arrow. He reached out and grabbed a hold of the hair on the dragon¡¯s neck. In the water, what creature could possibly be faster than a dragon? He could save effort by hitching a ride on the dragon; there was no need to strain himself. Wei Cang: ... He thought that the boss would shake Fu Li off, but he allowed Fu Li to hold onto him after a shake of his head. He changed into his original form and chased after Zhuang Qing and Fu Li as if his life depended on it. After meeting the boss¡¯ golden, severe eyes, he hadn¡¯t dared to stretch out his ws, leaving him with no choice but to exert a herculean effort. Even then, there was still a great distance between them. At least... he didn¡¯t lose them. The water was already pitch-ck when they reached the depths of the ocean. Zhuang Qing resembled arge goldenntern that illuminated their surroundings. The asional fish would swim past them and Fu Li couldn¡¯t help but cover his eyes. He had thought that an appearance like the Suanyu¡¯s was already sufficiently ugly but hadn¡¯t expected there to be fishes in the sea that were a hundred times uglier than the Suanyu. With these ugly deep-sea fishes as aparison, the dragon race no longer seemed as ugly to Fu Li. When they were about to reach the dragon pce, Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form. Turning his head, he looked at Fu Li, who was still gripping the hair on the back of his head. ¡°You want me to carry you over?¡± ¡°There won¡¯t be a need for that,¡± Fu Li let go of Zhuang Qing¡¯s hair, even helping him to tidy it up. Zhuang Qing watched him carry out the series of small movements. ¡°Are you nning to enter only after the Kunpeng has wrecked the Crystal Pce?¡± ¡°Am I such a yao?¡± Fu Li turned and forcefully shed through the ck seawater, revealing the resplendent and mystical dragon pce behind a barrier. There were glowing jellyfish, mermaids, weapon-toting guards of the aquatic races with panicked expressions, and pretty coral agate. As well as... a monstrous fish who was battling fiercely in the air with azure dragons. Under the monstrous fish¡¯s attacks, the majestic azure dragons fell with a whoosh, like noodles thrown into the pot to cook. The monstrous fish didn¡¯t relent because of this. With a flick of his tail and a smash of his head against the pce eaves, a huge chunk of the pce crashed down at once. Under the monstrous fish¡¯s strikes, the legendary indestructible dragon pce resembled a castle made out of sand ¨C one that crumbled at a single touch. ¡°Zhuang Qing daren,¡± A few guards noticed Zhuang Qing, their faces immediately lighting up. ¡°Quick, please help rein in this monstrous fish.¡± Fu Li inwardly shook his head. The aquatic races were truly deplorable nowadays. Even after they had been beaten up to this extent by the Kunpeng, they still didn¡¯t know his true form. He stopped Zhuang Qing. ¡°Don¡¯t act, I¡¯ll go.¡± These azure dragons had never once been friendly to Zhuang Qing, yet they still wanted his help. Even he felt disgusted for Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing nced at the hand in front of his chest that blocked his way. After a moment of silence, he nodded. ¡°Zhuang Qing daren, this is...¡± The guards didn¡¯t understand why Zhuang Qing would let a person of unknown identity take action while he remained still when things had already progressed to this point. Zhuang Qing shot an icy nce at them. They tactfully shut their mouths. At this time, they were the ones requesting for help, so they couldn¡¯t go overboard with their requests. Moreover, Zhuang Qing daren¡¯s gaze was truly too scary. They feared that saying another word would enrage this Dragon Lord. ¡°Kunpeng daren,¡± Seeing that the Kunpeng was on the verge of turning the dragon pce¡¯s main door into bits and pieces, Fu Li went forward and stopped him. ¡°If you have something to say, we can talk it out. How is this necessary...¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± The Kunpeng looked at the dragons lying on the ground. Changing into his human form, he stood on top of a dragon¡¯s head. ¡°I heard you guys want to cause trouble for me?¡± The several dragons on the ground were rolling around in pain,pletely unable to answer the Kunpeng¡¯s question. The dragon that the Kunpeng was stepping on was in an even more miserable state. He had originally also been rolling around in pain, but after being stepped on by the Kunpeng, he didn¡¯t dare to move. If he continued moving, he might lose the chance to ever move again in the future. ¡°Kunpeng daren, let it be, let it be,¡± Fu Li went forward and saluted the Kunpeng. ¡°If you have something to say, we can talk it out. There¡¯s no need for force.¡± The Kunpeng pushed Fu Li to the side and released the dragon beneath his feet. ¡°Those who want to report me, stand forward.¡± Not a single dragon dared to move. At this moment, the dragon pce¡¯s entrance was so quiet the drop of a pin could be heard. ¡°Kunpeng daren,¡± A young man dressed in a white robe walked out of the pce door. He saluted the Kunpeng. ¡°Kunpeng daren, please calm down.¡± ¡°It¡¯s you?¡± The Kunpeng recognized him as the useless dragon that had been sent flying that night by a single palm. He said in disdain, ¡°Such pettiness in front of this Kunpeng. I¡¯ll give the management bureau face this time and leave you with your lives. Otherwise, your azure dragon n will look like this door.¡± He raised a palm high up into the air and the door to the dragon pce turned into dust. ¡°I can swallow tens of your ancestors in one mouth, you guys are worth nothing,¡± The Kunpeng didn¡¯t give any face to the azure dragon n. ¡°Your ancestors can still be considered somewhat courageous ¨C even if they couldn¡¯t beat the other party, they would still go all-out and risk their lives. But this generation of yours only knows how to use these small tricks. Who knows where you picked up all these tricks?¡± Qing Yan had been well-regarded for three thousand years. Not once had he been the subject of such humiliation. Even if Zhuang Qing¡¯s attitude towards the dragon n was cold, the most he would do was remain silent. When had he behaved like the Kunpeng, speaking without the slightest degree of mercy? ¡°Many thanks to Kunpeng daren for the guidance.¡± Qing Yan bowed towards the Kunpeng before turning his head and thanking Fu Li, ¡°Many thanks to Fu daoyou.¡± On the surface, if not for Fu Li extending a helping hand and holding the Kunpeng back, there was a possibility that the Kunpeng would have destroyed the entire Crystal Pce. However, the Kunpeng came looking for trouble at the dragon pce just after they reported the case to the management bureau. Clearly, their dragon n was nothing in his eyes. Had the management bureau not helped? They had. Was it effective? Of course it was. At least, no dragons had died. From the perspective of the other yao, the powerful azure dragon n had been bullied by the Kunpeng to this extent. For the management bureau to have protected them, they had to have put in considerable effort as well. However, Qing Yan understood very well that this incident was the result of the Kunpeng and Fu Li colluding with each other. Qing Yan suspected that there had to be some sort of hidden secret or link between the Kunpeng and Fu Li. Otherwise, why would the Kunpeng be so willing to remain in the management bureau? What need was there for an ancient great yao with such profound cultivation to give the management bureau face when doing things? Although Qing Yan appeared outwardly deferential, he was already inwardly thinking about the chaos the future yao world would be in. He turned his head, ncing at Zhuang Qing, who was standing at the side. Zhuang Qing raised his head and looked at him as well. Although he and Zhuang Qing were of the same race, there were past grievances between them. If not for Zhuang Qing, the dragon who joined with the nation¡¯s fate would have been him. The azure dragon n had exerted a great amount of physical and mental effort, to the point of even inviting the elder most proficient at divination to foretell the moment at which the heavenly chance would descend. However, despite foretelling it, the nation¡¯s fate had already joined with Zhuang Qing by the time he rushed there. He was the most naturally talented dragon in the azure dragon n. At the moment of his birth, there had been an auspicious light, and his features were characterized by good fortune. The entire dragon n had said that given the degree to which the humans of thisnd revered dragons, a member of the dragon race would definitely be the dragon of national fate, and this dragon would be him. Therefore, he knew how to smile in a way that would make it easier for him to obtain the humans¡¯ favor, and also knew which aspect of dragons humans were most fond of. Yet, heavenlyw was unjust and actually gave this great chance to a mixed-blood dragon. What aughable matter. He actually couldn¡¯tpare to a hybrid dragon, a dragon whose veins were filled with dirty blood. How could the lowly, powerless humanspare to the noble dragon race? ¡°Dragon Lord Qing Yan,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over and stood in front of Qing Yan. ¡°Yourplexion doesn¡¯t seem very good, take care of your health.¡± ¡°Many thanks to Zhuang daoyou for the concern,¡± Qing Yan gave him a smile. ¡°Our n¡¯s people has not been sensible and created trouble for Zhuang daoyou.¡± This time, he no longer called Zhuang Qing chief, not did he call him Dragon Lord. Instead, he merely used the term ¡®daoyou¡¯. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m used to it,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the crystals scattered on the ground, his face resembling a stone block of ice. The dark and shabby house, the dragons and aquatic yao cultivators who had mocked him, as well as the lofty dragon pce ¨C all of these made up the extremely boring parts of his memories. ¡°Zhuang Qing,¡± Fu Li walked over to Zhuang Qing. ¡°The azure drgaon n is willing to reconcile with the Kunpeng and doesn¡¯t require the Kunpeng topensate them. This matter...¡± ¡°For such civil disputes between yao cultivators, our management bureau cannot interfere if the victims are unwilling to pursue the case,¡± Zhuang Qing replied with a straight face. ¡°Since there is no more need for us to be here, then we will leave.¡± Fu Li swept his gaze across the dragons lying on the ground and realized that a dragon with one horn missing seemed a bit familiar. He wanted to give it a few more looks, yet this dragon unexpectedly shrunk behind a coral stone, as if not wanting to see him. Even dragons knew how to be shy? Fu Li shifted his line of sight and coughed dryly. ¡°Although the azure dragon n is unwilling to pursue the matter, we will still need to take the Kunpeng with us. If any conflict were to happen again, I worry that the azure dragon n will be at a huge disadvantage.¡± The arrogant azure dragon n was humiliated very badly, but no one dared to say that Fu Li¡¯s words were incorrect, since they were indeed helpless when faced with the Kunpeng. In the face of absolute power, all methods were useless. During the ancient times, great yao roamed thends. How had their ancestors survived? Was their dragon race... truly formidable and unrivaled? The Kunpeng was in a rtively good mood after wrecking the dragon pce and beating up dragons. Hearing that Fu Li wanted to bring him along, he very cooperatively nodded. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll give you face and go along with you.¡± It seemed that ¡®giving face¡¯ was the Kunpeng¡¯s catchphrase. The Kunpeng and the bureau¡¯s people left, leaving behind the disordered mess that was the azure dragon n¡¯s Crystal Pce. When the Kunpeng started creating trouble, the azure dragon n had requested for aid from the other dragon ns, but not even a single n had sent rescue troops. After the azure dragon n finished tidying up the ruined parts, the Dragon King finally dispatched a deputy apanied by a few chests of useless pearls and words of sympathy. A bad-tempered azure dragon took the initiative to say mockingly, ¡°His Majesty the Dragon King is truly kind. Even after seeing that us azure dragons didn¡¯t die, people were still dispatched to call on us.¡± ¡°This Dragon Lord¡¯s words are harsh,¡± The deputy sent by the Dragon King was a tortoise who had lived for several thousands of years. Although his cultivation couldn¡¯t be considered high, his eloquence and temper was first rate. He didn¡¯t re up after being mocked by a junior either. Instead, he said unhurriedly, ¡°His Majesty the Dragon King said that there are only fifty-eight dragons in total among the dragon race, of which half of them belong to your azure dragon n. The other ns only have a few dragons; they can¡¯t take this gamble.¡± ¡°It is a truly beneficial affair for the current cultivation world to have the protection of the management bureau. Although Zhuang Qing has some misunderstandings with our dragon n, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that he is a dragon. If everyone exercises a bit of restraint, it will be easier to get along in the future,¡± The tortoise deputy nced at Qing Yan, who was standing at a corner. ¡°Let go of past grievances.¡± Qing Yan cupped his hands, a mild smile on his face. ¡°Deputy Gui¡¯s words are reasonable.¡± Fu Li¡¯s group walked out of the barrier the azure dragon n had erected outside of the Crystal Pce. Suddenly, Fu Li looked at the Kunpeng. ¡°Kunpeng daren, don¡¯t lose controlter and eat Zhuang Qing when he transforms into his dragon form.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I already told you many times that dragon meat isn¡¯t actually tasty,¡± The Kunpeng waved his hands, the exact picture of someone who was not at all tempted by dragon meat. ¡°Transform, transform.¡± Zhuang Qing came to a stop and looked at Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t pull my hairter.¡± Fu Li: ... He couldn¡¯t hitch a ride on the dragon anymore. Zhuang Qing transformed into his original form. His tail curled around Fu Li, throwing him onto his back. With a shake of his dragon tail, he swam towards the surface of the water. The Kunpeng turned to look at Wei Cang. Instantly, he said, ¡°I don¡¯t have the habit of carrying tigers, swim back yourself.¡± Then, he turned into a fish, pped his fins, and swiftly vanished into the water. Wei Cang, who had been beaten back several tens of meters by the waves, silently changed into a white tiger. Resigned, he thrust his ws forward and swung his tail hard. He wasn¡¯t as courageous as Fu Li who dared to even ride dragons. When they reached the surface, Zhuang Qing flung Fu Li off his dragon back. In the instant he leaped into the air, he transformed into his human form. He didn¡¯t give a single nce to Fu Li, whose face had met with the water. ¡°Boss, how did it go?¡± Seeing the situation, Ning Xuan and Chao Yun hurriedly surrounded them. ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Zhuang Qing looked back. Seeing that Fu Li had already climbed out of the seawater, he continued talking to Ning Xuan. ¡°Get ready to return.¡± ¡°Rabbit,¡± The Kunpeng whispered into Fu Li¡¯s ears. ¡°Why does this dragon have a few injuries on him? Was he punished after enraging the Heavens?¡± Fu Li was silent. Seeing that Fu Li didn¡¯t speak, the Kunpeng very tactfully didn¡¯t pursue the topic. Behind them, Wei Cang asked all of a sudden, ¡°Seems like it¡¯ll be the Ghost Festival soon?¡± ¡°En?¡± Fu Li looked in confusion at Wei Cang, not understanding why he would suddenly mention such an ordinary matter. ¡°The doors to the ghost world will open during the Ghost Festival, so it¡¯ll definitely be very lively during those few days,¡± Wei Cang looked with some anticipation at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Who knows if we¡¯ll get a holiday?¡± ¡°Even if there¡¯s a holiday, it¡¯ll be the bureau¡¯s ghost cultivators who will be going on holiday. How does it concern us?¡± ¡°The Ghost Market will be open,¡± Wei Cang answered. ¡°I go to the Ghost Market every year for fun. There are a lot of interesting toys there.¡± ¡°Ghost Market?¡± It was Fu Li¡¯s first time hearing of such a thing. White Ape hadn¡¯t told him about it and he hadn¡¯t visited the ce. ¡°You¡¯ve never been there?¡± Wei Cang was in disbelief. Fu Li was a rabbit yao who was over four thousand years old, how could he not have even been to the Ghost Market? Even a countryside yao would have joined in the fun at the Ghost Market. ¡°No,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I came from a mountain and didn¡¯t know there was such a thing.¡± ¡°What are you two doing still standing there? Fishing?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the two people. ¡°Go back to work.¡± The neer Wei Cang didn¡¯t dare to continue talking, so he obediently followed after him. On the other hand, Fu Li couldn¡¯t help wondering what the Ghost Market would look like as he followed after Zhuang Qing. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice jolted Fu Li back to reality. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived at the bureau.¡± ¡°Zhuang Qing.¡± Fu Li stabilized his standing posture and asked curiously, ¡°What does the Ghost Market look like?¡± ¡°Ghostly,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. ¡°Nothing very interesting.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li¡¯s head drooped. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze remained on his head for a few seconds before he turned and returned to his office. Chapter 48 - Old Friend

Chapter 48 - Old Friend

Zhongyuan Festival, also called Ghost Festival. On this day, people would grieve for their deceased loved ones and burn paper ingots for them as a way to convey that they missed and longed for them. During the twelfth to fifteenth of the seventh lunar month, there would be people who lit incense in alleyways at night, drew a circle with limestone, and then burned paper money for their loved ones. Worried that lonely, feral ghosts would snatch the offerings burnt for their loved ones, people would voluntarily burn some paper money at the side to appease them. Therefore, this was also a good period for wandering ghosts, since they who received no offerings or incense could also have honest money to spend. Ghosts with robust physiques and nimble hands would snatch the most appeasement money. Those with poor physiques could only gather luck and keep up with those burning offerings in order to pick up some spending money. When Wang Erma was alive, he stayed indoors all day long. His childhood was spent at an orphanage, after which he made a living as a water army online. His daily meals and clothes were all purchased online. Apart from dumping the trash, he hardly went out. At the moment of his death, he was thinking about how he hadn¡¯t even touched a girl¡¯s hand despite living for nearly thirty years. It wasn¡¯t yet the date of his reincarnation and there was no one to make offerings to him. He had waited with much difficulty for the Ghost Festival, but even after the door to the ghost world opened, he couldn¡¯t out-snatch the other ghosts with his skinny arms and legs. Having been mmed against the wall by the other ghosts countless times, he had already given up on snatching ¡®appeasement money¡¯. Not toughening oneself while alive meant being bullied by a hundred ghosts after death. Wang Erma was very disappointed in the him of the past. If he had known to work out at that time, how could he have fallen to this ghostly level? Floating several tens of meters, he saw a familyprising of the old and young burning paper offerings at a corner. After the paper money was burnt, it appeared in the hands of the few ghosts at the side. He sighed and turned towards another direction. While alive, he was a single dog abused by lovers. After death, he was a single dog abused by ghosts. Seriously, he couldn¡¯t have a good time whether alive or dead. A young man walked over from across the street. His clothing was very ordinary ¨C a long-sleeved shirt and jeans. Wang Erma was a bit envious. With such good looks, he was definitely a winner at life. ¡°I¡¯ll return now. I can hurry there in five minutes,¡± Fu Li had arranged with the Kunpeng to go out for beef noodle soup. But Zhuang Qing had suddenly informed him that he would have to do overtime the whole night, so he could only hastily make his way back. Fu Li walked across the pedestrian crossing and caught sight of a bespectacled, skinny young man at the side who was watching him helplessly. Thus, he came to a stop, fished out a few yellow papers, and turned them into the shape of an ingot. After burning them in front of the young man, he rushed towards the management bureau. Wang Erma clutched the several ingots in his hand, staring dazedly at the handsome brother¡¯s back as he rushed off. There was an absent-minded look on his face. Had that person burnt money for him because he had seen him? ¡°See that ostentatious, silly idiot in front? Holding the money in his hands and showing it off just because he has a few ingots, does he think he¡¯s so great just because he has money?¡± Wang Erma came to his senses. Seeing a few ghosts in the distance pointing at him, he quickly kept the ingots. Money should not be inadvertently revealed, money should not be inadvertently revealed. When Fu Li rushed into the management bureau, his other colleagues weren¡¯t present. Only the door to Zhuang Qing¡¯s office was still lit, so he knocked on the door. ¡°Are the two of us the only ones doing overtime tonight?¡± ¡°The Ghost Market will be opening tonight; many yao cultivators and human cultivators will be joining in the excitement. Food safety and the quality of goods and materials are now orded a lot of importance. The Ghost Market is held in the human world, so if anything happens, our management bureau will have to bear the responsibility for it,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up and straightened his zer. ¡°I¡¯ll have to trouble you tonight to keep on eye on this with me.¡± ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Fu Li agreed without thinking. ¡°Are we going now then?¡± ¡°What are you so anxious for? The entrance to the Ghost Market only opens at 11pm,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at the chair opposite him. ¡°Sit down first, I¡¯ll tell you about some general knowledge regarding the cultivation world.¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing¡¯s serious look, Fu Li obediently sat down, though his heart had long flown to the Ghost Market. ¡°There is a huge difference between the current yao world and the yao world thousands of years ago. Talents are much rarer...¡± Zhuang Qing told Fu Li about the overall level of the yao world¡¯s cultivators, how precious medicinal pills were, as well as the rtions and conflicts between the various races. He strongly emphasized the rareness and importance of the items in Fu Li¡¯s possession. After living in the human world for a few months, Fu Li had already known that the current cultivation world wasn¡¯t very well off, but he hadn¡¯t expected it to be this miserable. The medicinal pills that he had consumed as snacks in the past were actually rare items now. Moreover, the spiritual qi in the pills were far from what it had been in the past. The avability of medicinal ingredients now depended heavily on manualbor. How could ingredients that were ntedpare to panacea that absorbed the essence of Heaven and Earth? The passing down of cultivation techniques had broken off, much of the panacea had been lost, the human race had flourished, and the spiritual qi in the world was gradually vanishing. The yao world was practically surviving in a crevice. It was no wonder that the majority of the current yao cultivators had low cultivation. It wasn¡¯t that they didn¡¯t want to progress, but that the environment didn¡¯t permit it. ¡°You should be a bit more discerning. Although the cultivation world seems peaceful now, I don¡¯t dare to guarantee that we can preserve this peace if a great yao appears,¡± Zhuang Qing sighed. ¡°Those yao cultivators on your mountain raised you to be too na?ve. You don¡¯t understand the ways of the world. The human world isn¡¯t as perfect as you imagine.¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing nkly, at a loss for words. ¡°Seemingly innocent children can take advantage of a moment of inattention to steal your things. Weak and helpless elderly can also be swindlers. The weak may not necessarily be weak, and the strong may not necessarily protect others,¡± Zhuang Qing met Fu Li¡¯s gaze straight on. ¡°Selfishness is carved into our bones, regardless of whether one is human or yao.¡± Fu Li blinked. His eyes locked on Zhuang Qing¡¯s pretty eyes. His eyes were too pure. Zhuang Qing felt like an evildoer ripping apart what was beautiful. However, Fu Li was already in the human world. Sooner orter, he would understand these principles. Rather than wait for Fu Li to suffer greatly before achieving this understanding, he would rather take on the role of viin. Zhuang Qing reached out a hand and covered Fu Li¡¯s eyes. He let out a mockingugh. ¡°In the eyes of others, your goodness may just be foolishness.¡± Long eyshes brushed lightly against his palm. It was a little ticklish. ¡°Do you also think that way?¡± Fu Li asked curiously. Zhuang Qing was silent for a moment. ¡°It¡¯s not that I think that way, but that the world today is like that.¡± He lowered his hand and nced out the window. ¡°It¡¯ll be 11pm soon, let¡¯s go.¡± Fu Li looked out the window before ncing at Zhuang Qing again. A glorious smile appeared on his face. ¡°Let¡¯s be quick then.¡± Looking at his bright, almost dazzling smile, Zhuang Qing felt that the words he had uttered hadn¡¯t had the slightest effect. Yet for some reason, not only did he not feel any anger, he even felt vaguely d. It had just reached 11pm. A hole seemed to have been torn in the sky, revealing faint images of the pavilions and kiosks inside. Soon after, the resplendent rays of light and the buildings in the sky vanished. An extra bustling market appeared at a certain mountainous forest. There was a saying in the human world that anyone who saw the grand opening of the door to the Heavens would obtain innumerable wealth. Any courageous person who wanted to listen to the voices of phantoms could lie beneath a grape trellis and sounds would emit from the ground. But legends were just legends. The humans who had seen this didn¡¯t know that it wasn¡¯t the door to the Heavens that had opened, but the door to the ghost world. When Fu Li and Zhuang Qing rode the clouds to the mountain, the market had already started to bustle with noise and excitement. They had just reached the entrance to the market when a ghost messenger dressed in historical bailiff attire stopped them to ask for their identities. Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing. The clothing worn by these ghost messengers dated back to hundreds of years ago and they didn¡¯t even recognize Zhuang Qing. Had Zhuang Qing never patrolled the Ghost Market? ¡°I am the chief of the human world¡¯s cultivators¡¯ management bureau. He is my employee,¡± Zhuang Qing handed a jade tile to the ghost bailiff. The bailiff took a look at it and shock appeared on his face. He said repeatedly, ¡°So it¡¯s Zhuang Qing daren, this humble one is blind. Please excuse me for theck of greeting.¡± ¡°May these two daren please pardon me. The Ghost Market has a rule that anyone who enters has to be dressed in Chinese clothing, with a headband. You see...¡± The ghost bailiff¡¯s tone of voice was a little nervous, out of fear of angering Zhuang Qing. ¡°Local customs should be followed upon entry; we should do the same,¡± Fu Li only wanted to participate in the liveliness; what he wore wasn¡¯t important. The moment he uttered these words, the shirt and jeans he was wearing disappeared, reced by the jade band and brocade gown of a noble man. Zhuang Qing nced at him, silently manifesting a long robe. Fu Li was wearing white, while he was in a ck brocade robe. At a nce, Zhuang Qing was the mature, steady elder brother, and Fu Li was the little brother brought out by the elder brother to increase his worldly experience. They passed through the main entrance of the Ghost Market. Inside,nterns hung suspended, the flow of people was continuous, and there were countless beauties. There were beautiful female ghosts from the Song dynasty, mighty generals in military garb, as well as yao cultivators with animal ears. ¡°Zhuang Qing daren!¡± Each and every one of the yao cultivators who saw Zhuang Qing revealed slightly frightened yet reverent expressions, seemingly not expecting Zhuang Qing to appear at such a ce. A rat yao even wanted to shove his stall¡¯s items at Zhuang Qing, his two hands shaking so badly that he couldn¡¯t hold the items steadily. ¡°This daoyou doesn¡¯t need to be so anxious. We are just doing our routine patrolling, please don¡¯t misunderstand,¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing remain silent with a displeased expression, Fu Li hurriedly scooped out the items the rat yao had stuffed into Zhuang Qing¡¯s arms and ced them back at the stall. ¡°Everyone can continue doing what you should be doing.¡± The yao cultivators looked at each other in dismay, a subtleplexity to their expressions. ¡°Why are your expressions so strange?¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression turned solemn. ¡°Are low-quality counterfeit goods being sold?¡± ¡°No no,¡± The yao cultivators shook their heads simultaneously, not a single one of them daring to look at him recklessly. Only after they walked past the yao cultivators¡¯ stalls did Zhuang Qing say, ¡°Those yao cultivators barely leave the mountain and they don¡¯t have identification indicating that they are moral yao. That¡¯s why they were a bit more nervous when they saw us.¡± ¡°So they¡¯re unregistered,¡± Fu Li looked back at those yao cultivators. They were whispering into one another¡¯s ears. Seeing him look back, their discussion came to a halt. ¡°Some yao like the bustle of the human world, but there are also yao who aren¡¯t willing to interact with humans,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice was calm. ¡°The management bureau exists to allow these cultivators to choose the way they want to live. Fu Li looked down the street. The end of the street nearly couldn¡¯t be made out. Suddenly, he said, ¡°You¡¯re really amazing.¡± Zhuang Qing cocked his head as he looked at him. A long whileter, he raised a brow. ¡°Even if you tter me, I won¡¯t let you through the backdoor during the end-of-year evaluation.¡± Saying so, he strode ahead. ¡°Don¡¯t have such extreme thoughts at a young age. Can¡¯t I genuinely praise you?¡± Fu Li hastily caught up with him. Not too far in the distance, a ghost was performing ¡®frying in oil cauldrons¡¯ and ¡®walking on a board of nails¡¯. The ghost had even removed his head and was tossing it about like a ball. It was extremely intense, yet the number of ghosts and yao surrounding him was not small. ¡°This is an educational performance on the eighteen levels of Hell. It¡¯s a warning to humans and yao not tomit evil, otherwise this will be the oue,¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li stand on tiptoe to watch these unimaginative performances. His expression was apathetic. These performances were simr to the ones he had seen a very long time ago when he visited the Ghost Market. But now, the performing ghosts had changed. ¡°This is indeed quite educational,¡± Fu Li saw a ghost who had removed its head and even stuck its intestines onto its neck. He quickly turned his head. ¡°Just that it¡¯s a bit on the intense side.¡± Not too far from the Hell-educational performances was a wonton store. Fu Li watched the old man who was cooking the wontons cut off a section of his beard and throw it into the soup. The ghost cultivators and little yao at the side instantly surrounded him, fighting to purchase the wontons. In a sh, Fu Li understood. So ginseng spirits relied on this method to be rich in the cultivation world? Several female ghosts were performing the Dance of Rainbow Skirt and Feathered Dress opposite the street. The sign outside stated ¡®Dance of Rainbow Skirt and Feathered Dress ¨C the mostplete in the world, the most simr to the original. Tuneposed by the Emperor of Tang. Choreography by Imperial Consort Yang¡¯. Although it was unclear whether this was true or not, their dance was indeed not bad. There was even arge group of male ghosts and yao apuding for them off-stage. A few male ghosts¡¯ robes were crooked, and they even wore spectacles, making for a rather funny sight. ¡°While you¡¯re passing by, make sure not to pass over our Hua Tuo brand painkillers. Even Guan Yu said they¡¯re good to use!¡± ¡°Come take a look at our Diaochan brand beautification cream, Diaochan¡¯s favorite beautification cream.¡± ¡°This daoyou, take a look at this Mo Mo sword. How do you find it? What, you actually called my sword worthless? Do you know who its older brother is? Have you heard of Mo Ye?¡± ¡°Selling pipas, selling pipas ¨C men can gift it to their girlfriends; women who buy it are beautiful and mysterious. It¡¯s been enhanced by a magic formation and is capable of warding off a mega attack by a cultivator at the Demigod Stage...¡± Fu Li looked at the various messy goods along the street and pointed at the iron sword called Mo Mo. ¡°Zhuang Qing, the Mo Ye sword has a younger brother?¡± ¡°That¡¯s just to cheat ghosts,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled Fu Li back. ¡°Don¡¯t look.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li took two steps before pointing at a fan carved out of sandalwood. ¡°Is that really Empress Wu¡¯s favorite fan? Why don¡¯t we buy it for Chao Yun? She¡¯ll definitely be very happy.¡± ¡°This sort of fan hadn¡¯t yet appeared during Empress Wu¡¯s reign,¡± Zhuang Qing grabbed Fu Li¡¯s belt to prevent him from wandering off rashly. ¡°Ah, another one meant to cheat people,¡± Fu Li¡¯s shoulders drooped. ¡°Why are all these ghosts and yao so dishonest?¡± ¡°En,¡± A smile could be seen at the corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth, though it was fleeting. ¡°Do you know now how dark this society is?¡± Fu Li suddenly pointed at a signboard ahead, his expression containing some excitement. ¡°Human sugar eyes. Eating humans isn¡¯t allowed now!¡± ¡°Those are candy fruits made with longans,¡± The hand gripping Fu Li¡¯s belt didn¡¯t move a jot. Fu Li: ... ¡°That ce sells grilled fish, let¡¯s get two portions,¡± Another wave of energy filled Fu Li. Zhuang Qing sighed helplessly. As a dragon over the age of 1900, he could only apany the 4000 year old Fu Li to walk while eating grilled fish. The asional yao passing by would steal peeks at Zhuang Qing, but those gazes would instantly vanish with one sweeping gaze from Zhuang Qing. After finishing the grilled fish, Fu Li threw the bamboo stick into a rattan basket along the side of the street meant for trash. Turning, theic dialogue along the old street had him holding his sides inughter. He fished out a pearl and tossed it into the bowl the other party stretched over. The performer wondered gleefully which wealthy person was so generous. Upon looking up, he nearly overturned the bowl. Why was Zhuang Qing here? Had his giarism of theedians from the period he was alive been discovered? Zhuang Qing nced at the pearl in the bowl. Turning, he saw Fu Li, who was smiling till his eyes curved into crescents. He spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Let¡¯s go to the front to look.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li nodded obediently and followed Zhuang Qing to squeeze through the crowd of ghosts. Several performer ghosts were on stage warbling away as they sang about the vicissitudes of life and death, and love and hate. Fu Li didn¡¯t understand but seeing that they didn¡¯t have much of an audience off-stage, he took out another pearl and threw it into the other party¡¯s bowl. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t stop himself from asking, ¡°You have a lot of pearls?¡± ¡°Human currency can¡¯t be used here, and you said that those medicinal nts are all rare items. These sea pearls are the items I have with the least value,¡± Fu Li was a bit anxious. Had he done something wrong? ¡°They would prefer loose changepared to sea pearls,¡± Zhuang Qing handed Fu Li a bag of loose change. ¡°Give them these.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s how it is, thank you,¡± Fu Li epted the loose change and happily rewarded the performing yao and ghosts. Zhuang Qing stood behind him expressionlessly, his gaze on the tipping bowl particrly cold. After walking and ying for two to three hours, Fu Li¡¯s excitement finally decreased by a small bit. The bag of loose change Zhuang Qing had given him was nearly empty. ¡°These two daren, why don¡¯t you take a rest at this old woman¡¯s ce? Fu Li looked in the direction of the voice. A woman wearing purple Chinese clothing was looking at him, all smiles. There was a stall set up in front of her, though there were no customers. A signboard was erected next to the stall, with the three words ¡®Five vor Soup¡¯ written on it. ¡°What is Five vor Soup?¡± Fu Li walked to the stall and discovered a row of y potsid out. Each y pot contained soup of a different color. ¡°There are five vors in a lifetime. The soups I have here are happiness, anger, love, hatred, and sorrow,¡± The woman¡¯s gaze shifted past Fu Li, stopping on Zhuang Qing. ¡°Which one would you two like to drink?¡± Seeing that Fu Li didn¡¯t reply, shedled out a bowl of soup from the happiness pot and held it out to Fu Li. ¡°You can try this, it¡¯ll bring you supreme joy.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s outstretched hand blocked the bowl. ¡°What does the Dragon Lord mean by this?¡± The woman smiled at Zhuang Qing. Her grip on the hot orange soup remained steady; there was not the slightest spige. ¡°How can the five vors of a lifetime be sampled through a bowl of soup?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I think there¡¯s no need for it.¡± ¡°Forget it then,¡± The woman ced the bowl down after Fu Li rejected it. Shedled out a bowl of colorless soup for Zhuang Qing. ¡°Dragon Lord, ghosts who drink this soup will forget their current life, but if living people were to drink it, there is a possibility they can recall their previous lives. Does the Dragon Lord want to give it a try?¡± ¡°Meng Podaren really knows how to joke,¡± Although he spoke about joking, Zhuang Qing¡¯s face waspletely nk. ¡°I have no interest in my illusory past lives. I don¡¯t want to pay the price of drinking this bowl of soup.¡± ¡°This old one was joking with Dragon Lord daren, may Dragon Lord daren please not take it to heart,¡± The woman was the legendary Meng Po. She bowed respectfully to Zhuang Qing. ¡°It¡¯s been 1500 years since west met. The dignity of the Dragon Lord today humbles all creatures beneath the Heavens.¡± Zhuang Qing returned her bow. ¡°Meng Po daren¡¯s jokes haven¡¯t changed.¡± Meng Po smiled. ¡°The next time we meet, this old one may make such a joke again.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t speak. No emotion could be seen on his face. Meng Po¡¯s smiling expression deepened. She turned and looked carefully at Fu Li, bowing solemnly to him. ¡°May this daoyou not take offense to this old one¡¯s joke.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Fu Li shook his head and smiled. ¡°Although I won¡¯t drink the soup, these soups are very pretty.¡± ¡°This old one has been making soup in the underworld for thousands of years. Practice makes perfect, that¡¯s all,¡± Meng Po responded. ¡°A good half of the Ghost Market has already gone by. You two should not waste time; continue your fun.¡± Only after hearing the word ¡®fun¡¯ did Fu Li recall that he was here tonight to apany Zhuang Qing to patrol, and not Zhuang Qing apanying him to y. He nced somewhat guiltily at Zhuang Qing. Seeing that Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t have much of an expression, he secretly heaved a sigh of relief. After leaving Meng Po¡¯s soup stall, Zhuang Qing pointed at a moderate-sized store ahead. ¡°Let¡¯s take a seat at that store ahead.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Thinking that Zhuang Qing was tired, Fu Li hurriedly nodded in agreement. They entered the store. It was a food store that prepared all sorts of seafood dishes. The chef was a whale yao, while the waiters inside were ghost cultivators. Zhuang Qing¡¯s arrival caused a small stir, but in front of culinary delicacies, everyone¡¯s courage seemed to be slightly greater. At the least, no one threw down their chopsticks and ran off from fright. The dishes they ordered were very quickly served. Zhuang Qing took a bite and then put down his chopsticks with an unclear expression. The store was still that same store, and the chef was still the whale. It was only him who no longer felt that year¡¯s indecisiveness and fear. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li tried the fish Zhuang Qing had eaten. The taste was clearly very good, even better than the food cooked by Bao Yu, the self-proimed head chef of the imperial kitchen. ¡°Nothing,¡± Zhuang Qing shook his head. Turning, he looked at the people outside the stall that came and went. He took out a brocade pouch filled with money and passed it to the waiter at the side. ¡°Daren, y-you gave too much,¡± The waiter didn¡¯t recognize Zhuang Qing, but understood from the attitudes of the surrounding customers that his identity was not simple. Looking at the many things the other party suddenly gave, he felt a slight fear. ¡°It¡¯s not much,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at the whale cooking at the back of the kitchen. ¡°This is 1500 years of interest.¡± ¡°You owe the boss of this store money?¡± Fu Li was amazed. He hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing to have debts. ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing raised his chopsticks and pinched arge shrimp. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sensible when young. Left the house without money and ate the boss¡¯ food without paying.¡± He had thought that he would never appear at this ce again, nor did he want to think of the sorry figure he had cut that year. But only after he stepped into this ce again did he realize that all his previous assumptions were merely that ¨C assumptions. ¡°Boss,¡± The waiter walked into the back of the kitchen and handed the brocade pouch filled with pearls and spiritual pearls to the whale yao. ¡°This was given by a customer. He said... it¡¯s 1500 years of interest?¡± The Ghost Market had its rules ¨C money and goods had to be dealt with to the satisfaction of both parties, and no purchases could be made on credit. If any infringements were discovered, they would be pursued and killed by the yao world. That customer¡¯s majestic presence was not ordinary, how could he owe the boss money? ¡°1500 years ago?¡± The aged whale yao took the brocade pouch. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°That customer,¡± The waiter pointed across the curtain at the person who had given the money. ¡°Wreathed in dragon qi, extraordinary virtue...¡± The whale yao looked at the man dressed in ck robes and suddenly thought of the half-grown child 1500 years ago. The bloodstain-covered child with chaotic spiritual qi had ordered a vitality-replenishing soup from him. Following that, the child ran off in a flurry after finishing the soup. As for him, he had watched the child escape without calling after him. After so many years had gone by, he had thought that the mixed-blood, parentless dragon had long perished in the mouth of some yao race. Unexpectedly, they met after a gap of 1500 years. Fu Li realized that there was an extra bowl of soup on the table. He looked up. ¡°Waiter, we didn¡¯t order this.¡± The waiter smiled. ¡°The boss said it¡¯s a gift to an old friend.¡± Chapter 49 - God

Chapter 49 - God

¡°Old friend?¡± Fu Li turned at an angle, speaking to Zhuang Qing in a low voice, ¡°Seems like the creditor recognized you.¡± Zhuang Qing picked up the spoon made of bone from the bowl of soup anddled out a bowl of hot soup for himself. The soup neared his mouth, the hazy, hot mist blocking his vision. He lowered his head and took a sip. The taste was exactly like it had been that year; there was not the slightest difference. Seeing that Fu Li was staring at him with wide eyes, he ced the bowl down. ¡°This soup was cooked with a lot of skill, are you not going to give it a taste?¡± ¡°I am,¡± Fu Li gulped down half the bowl in one mouth. He nodded. ¡°Delicious.¡± After the two people finished their meal, Zhuang Qing paid the bill and left. He didn¡¯t suggest meeting with the boss, nor did the boss make an appearance. By the time his feet met the stone steps, the mountain was already shrouded in mist, adding ayer of celestial yet yao-like mystery to the Ghost Market. A tiny ghost scampered through the crowds with a charred redntern in hand. A hint of innocence could be seen on his bloodless face. If not for the fact that some yao at this ce still maintained some of their original features, an ordinary human who entered by ident might merely think that it was a mystical utopia and not a Ghost Market. ¡°Handsome, we have here jam made from natural, wild fruits deep in the mountains. No human chemicals and it¡¯s far from pollution sources. Whether it¡¯s for consumption or gifting friends, it¡¯s the best of the best,¡± A female yao stuffed a leaflet into Fu Li¡¯s hands and shed a seductive smile at him. ¡°Make sure to visit.¡± But the moment she got a clear view of the man beside Fu Li, the smile on her face instantly disappeared. Lowering her head, she ran off in a flurry. Fu Li shoved the leaflet into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. ¡°Help me see if the fruit jam really is fresh, I¡¯m going to buy a bag of nuts.¡± Then, he hurriedly went back the way they came. Zhuang Qing stared at the leaflet in his hands that had undergone zero typesetting. He furrowed his brows tightly. They had just finished a meal, and he still wanted to eat nuts. With such a small original form, where did all the food go? The waiter put away all the tes and bowls in the rear kitchen. Seeing the whale yao¡¯s agedplexion, he said worriedly, ¡°Boss, the Ghost Market¡¯s already been open for a long time. There won¡¯t be many more customers, why don¡¯t we close shop?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve opened this store for 1500 years. It remains open till dawn every year,¡± The whale yao looked out at the empty lobby and sat on a wooden stool. ¡°Who knows how many more years this store can remain open?¡± He was old. Since he was unable to break through the Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing Stage, his lifespan was limited. To him, it was his fortune to have gained intelligence and yao status. It was just a pity that hecked the talent to go beyond the Nascent Soul stage. In the current era, humans flourished and certain people would even kill whales without restraint. If he died, who would protect those ignorant whales? The waiter felt a bit upset. Thinking of the customer with the exceptional identity, he asked, ¡°Boss, that customer seemed to be extremely influential in the yao world. If you are friendly with him, why not request him to help you search for a Spirit Transformation Pill...¡± ¡°Silly child, the Spirit Transformation Pill is worth cities, how can it be so easily obtainable?¡± The whale yao stood up to clean the kitchen stove. ¡°He merely owes me one meal. This bag he gave as remuneration is already enough for 1500 years¡¯ worth of meals.¡± That year, it was his first time opening a store at the Ghost Market. After encountering the dragon that had barged into the Ghost Market, a momentary softening of his heart resulted in him not pursuing the matter of the unpaid meal. Perhaps this was fate. ¡°Is the boss around?¡± The whale yao and waiter stood up, and saw the handsome man who had previously eaten at the store walking back. Unable to make out the other party¡¯s identity or cultivation base, the whale yao stood up very cautiously. ¡°May I enquire what teachings this gentleman has? Or was this old one¡¯s dishes not to your liking?¡± ¡°The taste of your food was very good. Would the boss be able to help me cook the fish dish I had just now? I¡¯ll bring it back to eat.¡± ¡°Cooked fish shouldn¡¯t sit for too long, this...¡± The whale yao hesitated. Bad-tasting food was detrimental to his brand. ¡°That¡¯s not an issue, my Qiankun pouch can maintain freshness and taste. You can do as you always do. But try to be a bit faster, my friend is still waiting for me ahead.¡± The whale yao was inwardly startled. This gentleman was actually in possession of the rare Qiankun pouch, what exactly were his origins? He moved swiftly, de light dancing in the air. What used to be a lively fish had already turned into thin slices of fish that boiled in hot oil. The fish meat was very quickly cooked. Fu Li took out a tiny brocade box from behind him and delivered it to the whale yao¡¯s hands. ¡°Many thanks.¡± The whale yao hadn¡¯t even gotten a clear glimpse of the item the other party had given when he vanished in a puff of green smoke. The waiter stared nkly for two seconds. ¡°Leaving without paying?¡± The whale yao opened the brocade box. Upon seeing the medicinal pill lying inside, he stared in a daze. ¡°S-Spirit Transformation Pill?¡± The waiter saw the object in the box. Only after a long period of time had gone by did he stammer out, ¡°Is this a Spirit Transformation Pill?¡± Although relying on medicinal pills to stack cultivation was the worst thing a cultivator could do, using medicinal pills was the only way to extend one¡¯s lifespan if one was nearing the end of their life. Slight trembles ran through the hands cupped around the brocade box. Suddenly, the whale yao understood. The true reason behind the handsome gentlemen¡¯s return wasn¡¯t the fish, but to give him this item because he had sensed that his life wasing to an end. ¡°Boss, why would he give you this?¡± At this moment, the waiter felt like the other party had returned his one peanut with a carload of gold bricks. The whale yao stood up and walked over to the entrance of the store, bowing deeply towards the umbre-carrying youth in the distance. He turned back and took out the brocade sack given by Zhuang Qing. When he poured out the spiritual stones and pearls inside, a brown-colored medicinal pill rolled out as well. It was a Spirit Transforming Pill, exactly like the one given by the handsome gentleman. It started drizzling. Fu Li opened his jade bone umbre and saw Zhuang Qing standing a distance away from the fruit jam store. He hastened his footsteps as he made his way forward. Along the way, he shifted the umbre so that it covered Zhuang Qing¡¯s head. ¡°Is the fruit jam fresh?¡± Zhuang Qing looked up at the umbre over his head and nodded. ¡°Not bad.¡± The ghost cultivator manning the fruit jam store was on the brink of weeping. Ever since this Dragon Lord stood at the entrance to his store, no other customers dared toe over. What was this situation? ¡°Then let¡¯s buy some back?¡± Although Fu Li asked for Zhuang Qing¡¯s opinion, his eyes were already fixed on the fruit jam. ¡°En,¡± From the way he looked, Zhuang Qing knew that it was useless to suggest not buying it. ¡°Five jars for each of us, one jar each for the other bureau colleagues...¡± Fu Li counted the number of people in the bureau before getting the boss to retrieve the stock. Zhuang Qing wanted to say that he didn¡¯t like to eat such things, but seeing how serious Fu Li was, he grew toozy to bicker with him over such things. At any rate, it was just a few jars of fruit jam. They wouldn¡¯t take up a lot of his money. Compared to throwing tips along the road, this was definitely better. Fu Li¡¯s Qiankun pouch was akin to a bottomless pit; it could take any amount that was stuffed in. After throwing the purchased fruit jam into his Qiankun pouch, Fu Li once again opened the umbre and covered their heads. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Fine rainnded gently on the umbre, yet not a single drop of rain fell onto Zhuang Qing. Only then did he realize that the umbre in Fu Li¡¯s hands had a strange characteristic ¨C the simple embroidery on the umbre contained auspicious qi. It was no wonder the surrounding ghosts didn¡¯t dare to get close to them. The handle of the umbre was as glossy as jade, but it wasn¡¯t real jade. On the contrary, it seemed like an animal¡¯s bones. There were remnants of the animal¡¯s auspicious qi when it was still alive. This auspicious qi was very familiar. It seemed to be... unique to the dragon race? Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression turned a bit strange. To hide from the rain, he and a rabbit was sharing an umbre made from dragon bones. There seemed to be something wrong somewhere. At the corner, the erhu yed by a woman in a veil was weeping with grief. Drops of rainwater sttered onto her skirt. Yet, as if oblivious, she used the erhu to sing a story of sorrow. Those who were despondent turned sorrowful upon hearing the tune, while those who were happy wore smiles as they hastily walked past. Opposite the woman, a ghost couple was putting on a y. Bystanders were sent into loud bursts ofughter and the apuse won by the y was never-ending. Fu Li nced to his left, and then looked towards his right. With a toss of his hand, an extra ingot appeared in the tipping bowls on both sides. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t help saying, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be called Fu Li.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± ¡°It would suit you better to change your name to Scattering Money Boy.¡± Fu Li, ¡°...¡± In the crowd, Wei Cang tugged on his senior brother Zhang Ke¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Senior brother, look at those two in front sharing an umbre. Don¡¯t they look like Boss and Fu ge?¡± ¡°I would believe you if you said that Fu ge came to join in on the fun, but how can it be possible for the boss to do the same,¡± Zhang Ke was d in a robe, yet his hair was only an inch long. This made him appear a little out of ce. However, there were many ghosts who appeared out of ce, so he didn¡¯t stand out much in the throng of people. On the contrary, it was the elegant, carefree noble gentleman wearing a jade band and brocade robe that drew more eyes. The more Wei Cang looked, the more simr he felt they were. After all, not just anyone could have their surroundings ghost-free in a crowded street. Although that person was wearing a brocade robe, his back view so good looking that it left female yao infatuated, he was certain that the white-robed gentleman was Fu ge. ¡°Senior brother, that really is the boss and Fu ge.¡± ¡°Junior brother, stop joking around,¡± Zhang Ke sighed. ¡°You¡¯re new, so you don¡¯t understand the boss¡¯ habits. He never visits the Ghost Market. Even Chu Yu, who has followed him for more than a hundred years, said that he¡¯s never seen the boss make an appearance at the Ghost Market. How can he be strolling about the Ghost Market and sharing an umbre with Fu ge...¡± Zhang Ke¡¯s voice became softer and softer, before eventually vanishing. ¡°Aiyo f*ck, is that really Boss?!¡± Zhang Ke and Wei Cang were about to move forward to look into it when the dull sound of drums suddenly rang throughout the entire Ghost Market. It sounded again and again, loud and anxious, as if an emergency had urred. ¡°What happened?¡± Wei Cang looked at Zhang Ke, whose expression was extremely ugly. ¡°Someone forced their way into the Ghost Market.¡± Among the pedestrians along the streets, some directly vanished on the spot upon hearing the drums, while others transformed into animals and fled in a panic. Lofts and houses turned into rough stone or trees. In the blink of an eye, the noisy streets became a deserted mountain without any signs of human habitation. The great disparity between the mor and silence left Fu Li momentarily stunned. Seeing the confusion on his face that indicated he knew nothing about what was happening, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°A foreign enemy might be invading. The yinchai can¡¯t fight against it, so they informed everyone to leave.¡± Since the yao and ghosts who had set up the stalls were gone, the items manifested through their magic power naturally also reverted to their original appearance. Fu Li discovered the two fellow disciples Zhang Ke and Wei Cang not too far away. He waved a hand at them. ¡°You guys also came to y... also came to patrol?¡± Zhang Ke stole a nce at the ck-robed Zhuang Qing wearing a jade band. Pulling on his junior brother, he drifted to Fu Li. ¡°Fu ge.¡± A gale erupted abruptly, sending soil flying and stones rolling. Zhang Ke gripped Wei Cang¡¯s hand tightly, preventing him from being blown away by the wind. Several ghost bailiffs blown over from who-knew-where copsed in front of Fu Li¡¯s group, unable to get up even after a great deal of time had passed. Worried that they would be blown away again, Fu Li flung the jade bone umbre in his hands. The umbre suddenly turned into an immense imperial canopy, shielding everyone within. The imperial canopy was equivalent to a separate world; no matter how intense the wind and rain, none of it would blow in. A somewhat miserable-looking person flew out of the strong winds. Uponnding, the person backed up quite a few steps before managing to gain stable footing. In one nce, he saw Fu Li underneath the imperial canopy. Both eyes instantly lit up and he ducked under the imperial canopy in a series of rolls and crawls. ¡°Fu daoyou, what a coincidence,¡± Li Xu patted the dust on his clothes and saluted Fu Li. ¡°We meet yet again.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on outside?¡± Seeing the wretched state this chief ghost messenger was in, he cast a few looks in the direction of the wind. An enormous bird appeared at the point where the wind was sharpest. The bird¡¯s gigantic human face along with therge green snakes under its feet made for an image beyond terrifying. With a p of his wings, ck gale arose and the surroundings nts instantly withered, losing vitality. ¡°W-What is that?¡± Faced with such a monstrous creature and the dried up nts littering the ground, fear overflowed from the yinchai¡¯s eyes. Li Xu¡¯s expression turned grave as the strange creature made for the direction in which the yao and ghosts had fled in. He cursed, ¡°F*ck him,ozi will ughter him!¡± Fu Li grabbed Li Xu. ¡°You¡¯re not a match for him.¡± Li Xu eximed anxiously, ¡°But there are so many yao and ghosts on this mountain. If they were caught by him, how would they preserve their lives?¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression was extremely ugly. He swiftly performed a series of hand gestures, adding an extra barrier to the imperial canopy. Without his permission, no one inside would be able to leave. ¡°Fu ge, what is that?¡± Zhang Ke had seen the Suanyu and Zhuyan¡¯s appearance, but even those two couldn¡¯tpare to the terrifying appearance of this strange creature. The two flying green pythons beneath his feet were particrly scary. ¡°That is...¡± Sweat seeped out of Fu Li¡¯s forehead. ¡°That¡¯s what you humans call a ¡®god¡¯.¡± ¡°God?¡± Zhang Ke looked at the strange bird in the sky that was no different from a monster. ¡°Don¡¯t gods save people? Why would it...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you humans have a song about how there is no savior, and that immortals or emperors shouldn¡¯t be counted on?¡± Fu Li opened his right palm, and a red whip appeared. ¡°The so-called god is merely a figure of speech. You humans call him the Wind God, Emperor of the Sea, and... God of Pestilence. He was born with that ability. In the yao world, he has another name ¨C Oujiang.¡± ¡°Then we...¡± ¡°None of you are a match for him, including you,¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing before abruptly flying out. The red whip in his hands suddenly lengthened, morphing into a that attempted to hold Oujiang back. However, the two snakes hanging on Oujiang¡¯s ears suddenly widened their mouths and used their toxic teeth to bite through the approaching red whip. ¡°Petty creature, scram,¡± Oujiang looked at Fu Li arrogantly. In his eyes, perhaps all living creatures were beneath him. Fu Li didn¡¯t speak. With a flick of the whip in his hands, he engaged Oujiang in battle once more. Beyond this mountainy a densely-popted city with nearly eight million permanent residents. If he allowed Oujiang to bring disease to that city, the consequences would be unthinkable. Inside the imperial canopy and obstructed by the barrier, Zhuang Qing had a very unpleasant look on his face. He knew Fu Li had the habit of first reporting his family n before fighting with yao. Yet on this day, he didn¡¯t utter a single unnecessary word. This could only mean one thing ¨C that this god called Oujiang was an arrogant creature who wouldn¡¯t listen to words. What odds of sess would a yao who fought with a god have? He ced his hands against the barrier, attempting to break through it. Yet, who knew what method Fu Li had used when erecting the barrier, but he was unable to seed.. Seeing the tactless behavior of the little yao before it, Oujiang was enraged right there and then. ¡°This king has merely slept for several years, yet vulgar creatures like you actually dare to block my way?!¡± The two green pythons beneath his feet widened their venomous mouths. Coiled in poisonous smoke, they bit at Fu Li. The green pythons moved too rapidly, so much so that they seemed like lightning bolts. Before anyone could react, one of them had already swallowed Fu Li. Under the imperial canopy, Zhuang Qing let out a dragon roar. Both his hands transformed into dragon ws and dragon scales covered his entire body. He attempted to tear apart the barrier with brute force, but in the span of a few short seconds, his dragon ws began to bleed, staining the entire barrier red. Zhang Ke dazedly watched the green pythons circling gleefully in the sky. From his red eyes dropped a man¡¯s tears. He stood up and made his way behind Zhuang Qing. Wiping the tears on his face, he pushed the entirety of his magic power into Zhuang Qing. ¡°Boss, I¡¯ll lend you a hand.¡± Wei Cang silently followed after Zhang Ke. Mimicking Zhang Ke, he injected his magic power into Zhuang Qing. Li Xuughed bitterly. His outstretched palm pressed against Zhuang Qing¡¯s back. Zhuang Qing could care less about the people nearing his back. His dragon transformation became increasingly distinct as blood flowed continuously down his five dragon ws. Finally, a crack appeared. He didn¡¯t know what thoughtsy in his mind; it was just a nk space. His body screamed for him to ughter that green python, to sh open its belly. ¡°Ridiculous,¡± Oujiang had noticed the imperial canopy in the midst of the ck wind. pping his wings, he stamped down on the canopy. All of a sudden, a green python beneath his feet let out a hiss. Itnded on the ground in a crazy manner, rolling about in pain. But rolling about wasn¡¯t enough to save him. His abdomen dissipated into ashes bit by bit, as if he was being corroded. In the end, the entire green python became a pile of ck ashes that vanished into the huge gale. ¡°My beloved!¡± Oujiang bellowed, no longer paying heed to the imperial canopy. Fu Li¡¯s entire body heated up the moment he was swallowed by the green python. He had thought that the green python¡¯s gastric acids were digesting him, but the python actually vanished. Did his body have some sort of mysterious power? He shook the fur on his body, After allowing his natal whip on the ground to integrate with his body, his hind feet kicked out, sending the other green python flying. Roar! Fu Li mimicked the long cry that White Tiger had done that year on the mountain and let out a roar. His body might be tiny, but he personally believed that he had quite the imposing manner when shouting in such a manner. Sure enough, upon hearing this roar of his, the green python he had kicked away became too scared to approach. The python and rabbit ¨C one in the sky and another onnd ¨C actually gave off a murderous sensation as if it was a battle between giants. ¡°Sir, that daoyou didn¡¯t die!¡± A yinchai pointed outside the barrier with an excited expression. ¡°He turned into a rabbit!¡± Rabbit? Hearing this word, Zhuang Qing instantly looked up. Instantly, he caught sight of a palm-sized rabbit who was actively vaulting towards the green python, kicking at it. As for the green python... it was sent flying a great distance away. ¡°My god, is Fu ge a violent King Kong rabbit?¡± Zhang Ke stared stupidly at therge-scale Xuanhuan drama taking ce outside, starring a tiny rabbit cruelly beating up arge green python. He even forgot to continue transmitting his magic power. Seeing that the two pets he had personally raised had died in Fu Li¡¯s hands, Oujiang was enraged. He pointed at Fu Li. ¡°Lowly livestock, this king will punish you.¡± He spread out both wings and an immense vortex appeared in the sky. Berserk wind swept through the entire mountain and forest. A cyclone rose from level ground, swooping madly towards him. The god was in a rage. Kacha. Zhuang Qing finally broke through the barrier. He transformed into a golden dragon, his dragon hiss resonating throughout the mountain and forest. The Four Seas responded, imbuing his body with spiritual qi. His dragon body erged dramatically as he hovered in front of Fu Li. ck clouds roiled in the sky as if thunder and lightning would soon appear. Fu Li nced at the golden dragon shielding him and then gazed up at the sky. Ilyz: King Kong rabbit... Chapter 50 - Heavens Will

Chapter 50 - Heaven¡¯s Will

Roar. Fu Li¡¯s hind legs kicked out. With a shout, he leaped andnded on the head of the golden dragon. Underneath the moonlight, his tiny body emanated a dark red light. He looked down at the golden dragon beneath his feet. ¡°How can I let a minor like you throw your life away at this juncture?¡± ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s tail moved at will, attempting to hook Fu Li back. But as a rabbit that had cultivated till he gained intelligence, the speed at which Fu Li leaped was too quick, so quick that Zhuang Qing was unable to grab a hold of him. Inparison to the gigantic cyclone, Fu Li¡¯s body seemed as small as dust. When he leaped into the sky, everyone was looking at the iparablyrge cyclone in a daze. A feeling of powerless despair surged in their hearts. Wei Cang transformed into a white tiger with nted eyes. In one jump, he arrived at Zhuang Qing¡¯s side. The tiger lowered its body slightly, its posture indicating extreme vignce. The moment Fu Li charged into the cyclone, his body felt as if it was about to be torn apart. All his strength went into breaking past the cyclone¡¯s resistance. His front ws pped against the ground and the dust and rocks on the ground rose up, forming a four-sided wall in an attempt to trap the cyclone. Oujiang paid no heed to Fu Li¡¯s struggle with the cyclone. He changed into his human form, a huge pair of wings still on his back, and stopped in front of his green pythons. These two green pythons were pets he had raised for over ten thousand years. At the same time, they were also his attendants. Yet today, they were killed by an unknown little yao. Not only did his heart ache for his attendants, he was infuriated that the other party had caused him to lose face. The two green snakes hanging by his ears opened their mouths and hissed, revealing mouths full of poisonous teeth. Oujiang gently stroked their icy heads. As he looked at the cyclone he had created, he let out a suddenugh. ¡°It seems I haven¡¯t made an appearance for too many years, allowing these inferior creatures to forget my existence.¡± He raised his hand lightly. The cyclone broke through the walls surrounding it as if it was a living dragon and directly barreled towards the golden dragon at the side. Roar! Fu Li flew into the sky and transformed into his human form. He flung a magic weapon at Oujiang. Fu Li had heard from White Ape that Oujiang¡¯s elemental attribute was water. He feared fire the most, so he could only use a fire magic weapon against him. Even if it dealt him no harm, it could at least disrupt his actions. Zhuang Qing and Wei Cang saw the cyclone sweeping towards them. Wei Cang¡¯s body expanded once more as he raced towards the cyclone with increasing speed, attempting to use his head to push against the cyclone¡¯s advance. On the other hand, Zhuang Qing directly hissed. Widening his mouth, he spat out countless drops of seawater. In the instant the seawater made contact with the cyclone, it turned into ice. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhuang Qing moved forward, winding his body around the cyclone to bind it. ¡°Thanks to the universalmunications infrastructure, there¡¯s a signal even in the depths of the mountains,¡± Zhang Ke fished out his phone and started getting in touch with the security department so that they could contact the local weather department. The weather department could then release a cyclone warning so that everyone would know to hide in their houses. They would have to let the health department know to prepare as much medicine as possible for treatment of gues as well. Li Xu was half-kneeling on the ground. Hearing Zhang Ke reporting the situation to the person-in-charge on the other end of the call, he took the Soul-Pulling Whip from his waist and told his bailiff underlings. ¡°You guys stay here, I¡¯ll go take a look.¡± ¡°Sir, it¡¯s dangerous outside, you...¡± ¡°As a cultivator, how can I look on as a city full of people perishes? At that time, won¡¯t the millions of souls tire us yinchai to death?¡± Li Xu stood up and looked at Fu Li, who was entangled in battle with Oujiang. ¡°Even the yao are protecting the humans. I was a human when alive, how can I not even measure up to the yao?¡± Zhuang Qing brought the cyclone temporarily under control. Looking back, he saw Fu Li and Oujiang battling. Changing into his human form, he unsheathed a long sword and said with a face of displeasure to Wei Cang, ¡°Hold the fort here, I¡¯ll assist Fu Li.¡± Wei Cang shook his tiger tail and his hind paws dug a deep hole in the ground. He wondered somewhat despondently whether the cyclone would strip his head of hair. When he next turned into his human form, he would probably have to wear a wig. Zhuang Qing¡¯s swordy was very polished. When he joined hands with Fu Li, they were actually an equal match for Oujiang. Narrowly evading the toxic wind sent by Oujiang¡¯s pping wings, Zhuang Qing¡¯s lower body changed into a dragon tail, helping Fu Li to p back the green snake that had mounted a sneak attack. He told Fu Li with a cold face, ¡°I reached adulthood a long time ago.¡± Fu Li: ... Was this the right time to be arguing over this matter? Fu Li¡¯s palm gripping the whip gradually heated up as he started to recall the information White Ape had told him that year about Oujiang. He had only himself to me for not sitting still when young and constantly not listening to White Ape¡¯s words. Now that it was a crucial point, he finally experienced what it was like to ¡®wish to read more only when using what was learnt¡¯. Oujiang was a yao cultivator revered by humans as a god. In reality, he was simr to Zhuang Qing in that human blood also coursed through his veins. However, he didn¡¯t possess even a single bit of humanity. In his eyes, the lives of all creatures were worthless. Life and death was up to his whim and fancy. In those years, there might have been great yao who were capable of putting a stop to Oujiang¡¯s behavior. But the yao world of this day had withered. Even he was considered an expert among experts; what yao would be able to hold Oujiang back? No, not right. Perhaps there was still one yao who could. Fu Li¡¯s hands moved swiftly. It was his first time using the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission. Ever since arriving in the human world, the Kunpeng¡¯s favorite hobby was eating and sleeping. When he was abruptly woken in the middle of the night by Fu Li¡¯s voice, he replied with closed eyes, ¡°Rabbit, what are you doing using the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission in the middle of the night?¡± ¡°Kunpeng daren, this humble one has something to request of you.¡± The Kunpeng opened his eyes and nced out at the somewhat gloomy sky. ¡°It¡¯s definitely not anything good for you to seek me out at this time. Speak.¡± ¡°Oujiang has reappeared. May I request Kunpeng daren to lend us a helping hand?¡± Fu Li used his whip to help Zhuang Qing block a blow from Oujiang. Hovering midair, he took out a vermilion-colored feathered fan. When fanned, what was produced wasn¡¯t wind but raging fire. Oujiang failed to dodge in time and a great half of the feathers on his left wing was burned off. ¡°Vermilion Bird?¡± Hints of loathing and fear appeared within Oujiang¡¯s eyes. He turned and gazed at the vermilion fan in Fu Li¡¯s hands. Which hole had this little yao popped out from? Why did he have so many magic weapons? He had the greatest loathing for yao cultivators like the Vermilion Bird, ck Tortoise, and Baize who bemoaned the state of the universe and pitied mankind all day long. Wasn¡¯t it very normal for weaklings to be killed or eaten? Whether yao or human, there was no difference between weaklings and trash, so why not give them a quick death? ¡°Who?¡± Upon hearing the name Oujiang, the Kunpeng nearly thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. ¡°Heavens, you guys provoked that maniac?¡± In his eyes, Oujiang was a maniac. When happy, he ate humans and yao. When he was unhappy, he would even tear apart his own subordinates for fun. The only long-lived creatures by his side were probably the four venomous snakes he raised. ¡°Rabbit, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help you. A yao like Oujiang doesn¡¯t give any yao face. Isn¡¯t it a bit inappropriate for a fiend like me to help you beat up another fiend?¡± Fu Li waved the vermilion fan in his hands. This red fan had been given to him by King Ganglie for self-protection after the Feiyi scared him into wetting himself. It was a pity, however, that he hadn¡¯t used it even once these few years. Only now did he realize that this fan consumed a significant amount of spiritual power. ¡°Daren, look at the times, why would there be a need to be so conscious of sides?¡± Seeing a gust of poisonous wind heading towards him, the fan in Fu Li¡¯s hands instantly expanded, shielding himpletely. ¡°If the human world was destroyed and Zhuang Qing and I lost our lives, how would you eat your delicacies?¡± The Kunpeng responded, ¡°What a joke. Would a yao like I, a Kunpeng, change sides because of human food?¡± ¡°Brother,¡± An underworld bailiff patted Zhang Ke dazedly. ¡°Where did that master of a rabbit yao pop out from? How does he have so many magic weapons?¡± Despite the fact that he had low cultivation and hadn¡¯t seen much of the world, the formidable power emanating from the magic weapon was so oppressive that he nearly couldn¡¯t breathe. Zhang Ke shook his head foolishly. He was just an ignorant human cultivator who held them back. He wasn¡¯t capable of answering such a profound question. Wind rammed against the fan. The next instant, it was beaten back by the fan, sending Oujiang two steps back. ¡°No wonder this king found you so loathsome on sight. You¡¯re actually a disciple of the Vermilion Bird.¡± The fan had clearly been enhanced by the Vermilion Bird¡¯s magic power. If this little yao hadn¡¯t received the Vermilion Bird¡¯s acknowledgement, how could he be capable of using it? What was a disciple of the Vermilion Bird? The fan in Fu Li¡¯s grasp shrunk into a convenient weapon. The brain of a yao cultivator who had slept too long wasn¡¯t very good; to argue with him over the exact nature of a weapon would be a decision of extreme stupidity. Oujiang transformed into a bird. Its gigantic wings pped and three immense cyclones took shape in the sky. He let out a coldugh. ¡°So what if it¡¯s a vermilion-feathered fan? I would feel no fear even if the Vermilion Bird were in front of me, much less a mere fan.¡± Fu Li looked at the three raging cyclones in the sky. His expression turned heavy. Oujiang¡¯s weakness... what exactly was it? ¡°Oujiang was born ugly. It can manipte water and wind and its wings naturally carry pestilence. It is a yaoguai of utmost cruelty.¡± ¡°Then what should I do if I run into him?¡± ¡°If you run into him...¡± White Ape¡¯s voice trailed off as he stroked the tiny rabbit¡¯s soft fur. ¡°Then run. The vermilion fan King Ganglie gave you can block one or two blows from him.¡± Fu Li opened his eyes and gazed at the approaching cyclones. His heart sank bit by bit. He remembered now. White Ape had not told him at that time how to deal with Oujiang. All he told him was to run upon seeing Oujiang. He had wanted to question White Ape more, but it was shelved because the pheasant yao hade looking for White Ape. But with countless living creatures living beyond the mountains, how could he run? Fu Li cast a nce at the already-injured Zhuang Qing. His hand gripped the vermilion fan tightly. King Ganglie had once said that those born yao should revere all creatures in the universe and have a benevolent heart. Only then would one receive the care of heavenlyw. ¡°What god? He¡¯s nothing great,¡± Zhuang Qing wiped the blood at the corner of his mouth and smiled coldly. ¡°After living for so many years, he¡¯s still as ugly as ever. Clearly a creature abandoned by heavenlyw.¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Ever since Oujiang¡¯s birth, he had never received his father¡¯s liking due to his brutal nature. Yet, he didn¡¯t exercise any restraint in his behavior. On the contrary, he became even more vile to humans and yao. If he was in a bad mood, he would cause an epidemic onnd, striking fear in the hearts of humans and yao. However, veneration was borne from fear. Ever since then, virtually no one dared to provoke Oujiang, but there was also no yao who was on good terms with him. Oujiang bore the greatest grudges towards those whomented on his appearance, so Zhuang Qing¡¯s words incited him into directly mming a palm towards him, no longer in the mood to continue manipting the cyclones in the sky. A mere underaged dragon dared to mock him! The Kunpeng rolled around on the ground a good few times. He flung off the nket with some vexation and opened the window, preparing to leave. But before the ws on his feet had even stretched out, the ck clouds in the sky were already roiling. There was a glimpse of lightning. Some strange force seemed to be bearing down from the skies. He thought about it and then retracted his ws. Not only did he do this, he even closed the door and windows and pulled the thick curtains close. ¡°Zhuang Qing!¡± Fu Li watched Oujiang aiming a strike at Zhuang Qing with all his strength. He hurriedly flung out his red whip in an attempt to block Oujiang. But Oujiang forcibly broke the red whip, his palm mming heavily against Zhuang Qing¡¯s chest. The force of this palm was reduced by four-tenths due to Fu Li¡¯s obstruction, but to Oujiang, the six-tenths of power contained in this one palm was enough to end Zhuang Qing¡¯s life. Rumble. The re of lightning shed in the sky. A huge bolt of lightning streaked across the vast sky, as if tearing countless holes across the sky. Fu Li seemed to have thought of something. He transformed into a white rabbit, swiftly picked up the still-dazed Wei Cang, and took consecutive steps back. In his immense nted-eye tiger form, Wei Cang looked down at the tiny rabbit beneath his feet. He still hadn¡¯t came to his senses. He seemed to have been dragged away by a tiny rabbit? Boom! A gigantic purple bolt of lightning rained down,nding squarely on Oujiang. Oujiang looked up in shock and realized that there were several bolts of lightning descending from the skies. The magic weapon he had manifested was very quickly destroyed in its entirety by the lightning. Sensing that he was in a bad situation, he spread out his wings in preparation to flee. But how could heavenly lightning permit him to escape? An iparablyrge scarlet bolt of lightning mmed down. Oujiang fell head-first from the sky with a blood-curdling screech. As Oujiang fell, another nine bolts of divine lightning plunged down from the sky. Oujiang wasn¡¯t even in time to shriek miserably before the lightning reduced him to a scorched, ck skeleton. The moment he died, the churning cyclones also lost their power and gradually morphed into a mountain breeze that blew towards the city at the foot of the mountain. Not far from him, Zhuang Qing, who waspletely untouched by the lightning,y sprawled on the ground as he spat out two mouths of blood consecutively. He staggered up from the ground. Someone behind him helped him up and then a medicinal pill appeared in his mouth. He turned his head. The person supporting him also had a face covered in grime, along with a few gashes caused by the wind. ¡°Complete extermination of a god¡¯s soul...¡± Li Xu didn¡¯t dare to get too close to Oujiang¡¯s skeleton. Swallowing, he turned towards Fu Li. ¡°Daoyou, what was with the lightning just now?¡± Fu Li looked up at the still-roiling ck clouds in the sky. There still seemed to be shes of lightning within. His voice shook slightly. ¡°It¡¯s heavenly lightning.¡± If Oujiang only ate, drank, and slept like the Kunpeng after his sudden reappearance, perhaps heavenlyw would have tolerated his existence. But the instant he appeared, it was all wind and chaos. He incited gales and pestilence and even wanted to beat up the dragon of national fate that heavenlyw had acknowledged. How could heavenlyw tolerate him? At that time when the Zhongdiao and Zheng were battling in the mountains, their momentum had been too great, attracting the attention of heavenlyw. Their eventual oues were simr to Oujiang ¨Cplete extermination of their godly souls via lightning, vanishing from the realms of Heaven and Earth. ¡°F-Fu ge, did those great yao you said were killed by lightning die in this way?¡± Zhang Ke ran over. Stretching out his neck, he took a few nces at Oujiang¡¯s scorched skeleton. It really did look very miserable. The fright caused him to take a few steps back. ¡°That lightning left only a pile of carbon.¡± Zhuang Qing covered his chest as he asked Fu Li, ¡°You okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Fu Li fished out a bottle from his Qiankun pouch and stuffed it into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. ¡°These medicines can restore vitality, remember to eat them. Oujiang¡¯s strike wasn¡¯t light; if not for the fact that you¡¯ve joined with the nation¡¯s fate, you might not even be alive. Didn¡¯t I tell you to stay inside the barrier? What are you doing running out?¡± Zhuang Qing clutched the medicinal bottle tightly. ¡°You¡¯re my colleague, there¡¯s no such thing as letting you face danger alone.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it only right and proper for a senior to protect a junior?¡± Fu Li took out yet another colored ss bottle that contained a light green liquid. He pried open the cover. ¡°Come, quickly drink it.¡± He ced the medicinal bottle by Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. Seeing that Zhuang Qing was motionless and was even dazedly staring at him, Fu Li touched his face and discovered ayer of dust on it. Thinking that Zhuang Qing was looking at the dust, he lifted up Zhuang Qing¡¯s chin and directly poured the medicine into his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s just a bit of dust. If you¡¯re a guy, don¡¯t care so much about small things like this.¡± ¡°Fu ge, what¡¯s that medicine you fed the boss?¡± Zhang Ke watched as Fu Li doled out medicinal pills one moment and medicinal liquids the next. He feared that even if the boss wasn¡¯t beaten to death by Oujiang, he would eventually be driven to death by Fu Li¡¯s medicine. ¡°This is Duheng. It¡¯s used to improve blood cirction and treat toxins,¡± Fu Li crudely fed Zhuang Qing the entire bottle of medicine. ¡°Oujiang is poisonous by nature, and the wind it wields also contains quite a bit of poison.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case.¡± Zhang Ke saw that Zhuang Qing¡¯splexion had indeed improved considerably and couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Fu ge, you really have a lot of good items.¡± Zhuang Qing took the empty medicine bottle from Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°We¡¯re all fellow brothers, saying thank you would be a courtesy,¡± Fu Li smiled brightly, his eyes curving. He shone like starlight. Zhuang Qing looked at his eyes before lowering his head silently. At this moment, the ck clouds in the sky dispersed. Light rainnded gently on everyone¡¯s heads. Only then did everyone slowlye to their senses. The night¡¯s crisis had finally passed. Fu Li nced at the dusky mist in the mountains and forests. He took out a jade bottle from his Qiankun pouch and overturned it. A lot of green mist poured out of it abruptly, following the path of the wind out. Upon looking back, Fu Li saw Zhang Ke looking at him like a curious baby. ¡°That was morning dew from the mountains. I used spiritual qi to make it evaporate into the air. It¡¯s good for removing the toxins Oujiang released.¡± ¡°Fu ge, do you have a hundred treasure bags on you? Why do you have everything?¡± Zhang Ke felt that the ce Fu Li lived at previously had to have many good things. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t be able to casually take out all these rare things. Li Xu, who was standing at the corner, couldn¡¯t help ncing at Fu Li. He had indeed seen many good things in Fu Li¡¯s cave dwelling two thousand years ago when he went to Reflecting Mist Mountain for soul-ferrying. Treasures and spiritual nts had been aplenty. Even the bed had been made out of spiritual jade. ¡°Those were all given to me by the yao cultivators on the mountain,¡± The light rain had dampened the hair on Fu Li¡¯s forehead, leaving them drooping over his forehead. He looked both harmless and dejected. ¡°They stayed together and constantly had this delusion that I would run into so-and-so yaoguai. When they thought of one, they would shove things at me, telling me to throw magic weapons and run if I can¡¯t beat them.¡± Zhuang Qing observed his dispirited expression and interjected abruptly, ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you run today?¡± ¡°What would happen to you guys if I ran?¡± Fu Li noticed that Zhuang Qing was still a little pale, so he supported him by the arm. ¡°There¡¯s no way you would look on unfeelingly as Oujiang destroys a human city. Without me, wouldn¡¯t you be risking your life against Oujiang?¡± ¡°Fu Li.¡± ¡°En?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at him. Suddenly, he let out a mockingugh. ¡°The fact that you were able to live for so many years was entirely because of the kindness of those yaoguai on your mountain.¡± If not, given his character, he would have long died eight hundred times over. ¡°That¡¯s true. Our mountain¡¯s yao cultivators were really nice,¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes shone at the mention of his mountain¡¯s yao cultivators. Seeing Fu Li¡¯s appearance, Li Xu recalled the subsequent tragedy that had urred on the mountain. There was a bit of distress in his heart. Taking a few steps forward, he bowed and said, ¡°Tonight¡¯s incident is a serious one. Now that the danger has been resolved, this humble one will proceed to report to Yama.¡± ¡°Please, yinchai chief,¡± Zhuang Qing returned a half-bow. After Li Xu¡¯s departure, Fu Li told Zhuang Qing mysteriously, ¡°Zhuang Qing, I discovered a huge secret.¡± The faces of the two brothers, Zhang Ke and Wei Cang, tensed up. ¡°What?¡± There was a faint bad premonition in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. He had a nagging feeling that Fu Li¡¯s so-called secret differed from what he was thinking. ¡°I feel like...¡± Fu Li cleared his throat. ¡°I¡¯m definitely not an ordinary rabbit yao. When I entered the green python¡¯s body, my entire body suddenly started heating up, and then the green python just vanished. Say, do you think I have some mysterious bloodline that even I am not aware of?¡± Zhuang Qing stared nkly. Seeing the anticipation brimming in Fu Li¡¯s eyes, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from nodding. ¡°P-Possibly?¡± Wei Cang: ? Zhang Ke: ? What did that mean? At this juncture, the Kunpeng finally made ate entrance, looking like a heroic policeman in a movie. Immediately upon arrival, he heard Fu Li saying that he might not be an ordinary rabbit yao and instantly broke out intoughter. ¡°Rabbit, did you watch too many Xuanhuan dramas? From the moment of a great yao¡¯s birth, they possess an innate legacy. Do you have such a thing in you?¡± Indeed, Fu Li didn¡¯t possess an innate legacy. His walking posture and cries were all learnt from the tiger yao on the mountain. His skills were also all taught to him by other yao on the mountain. His knowledge on the various aspects of the yao world was also told to him by White Ape. He didn¡¯t have any innate capabilities from birth. Thinking of this, he replied unwillingly, ¡°Maybe I¡¯m the darling of heavenlyw, an exception among yao cultivators?¡± ¡°The darling of heavenlyw is this one beside you. There¡¯s no link to you,¡± The Kunpeng walked over to Oujiang¡¯s skeleton. The smiling expression on his face slowly faded. Ancient great yao like them once experienced a period of glory when they fully experienced heavenlyw¡¯s favor. In this age where yao were swapped out for humans, their lives were also taken by heavenlyw. This was the so-called Heaven¡¯s Will. The next morning, a certain city¡¯s residents started to curse their local weather bureau online for being idiots. Netizen A: The dishonest weather bureau anxiously notified our city in the middle of the night about some cyclone, warning us not to step out of our homes. Because of this, our entire family was so frightened that we didn¡¯t even dare to sleep. After waiting fearfully for an entire night, we opened the windows in the morning, and what f*cking cyclone? What is that sun hanging in the sky? Does the weather bureau have a conscience? Netizen B¡¯s reply: Friend, you¡¯re overthinking. They don¡¯t have a conscience to speak of. Chapter 51 - Shen

Chapter 51 - Shen

An employee of the management bureau¡¯s intemunications team took notice of this piece of news on the inte. The employee spoke to their colleague, ¡°The weather bureau seems to have also been scolded byizens the other time for not announcing the sudden downpour in the southern region?¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t they pitted by the dragon n at that time?¡± The colleague wasbing the inte for various supernatural incidents. All sorts of supernatural urrences would frequently circte on the inte, so theirmunications department had to keep a lookout at all times. If there was really a yao or ghost creating trouble, their department would then have to respond swiftly. In reality, however, there was basically not a single true rumor among a hundred of such supernatural rumors. Certain youngsters nowadays would summon ghosts for fun out of boredom. If their summons didn¡¯t seed, they would disdain theck of stimtion. But if they were to really summon an evil ghost, the stimtion might be so intense that they would lose even their lives. Themunications departmentprised entirely of human cultivators. Their cultivation was just so-so, but their expertise inputer operations and in handling public opinion emergencies on the inte meant that they were also the bureau¡¯s technical staff. Even the upkeep for the cultivation world¡¯s forum was done by them. ¡°Didn¡¯t something happenst night? A ghost cultivator friend called me in the middle of the night saying that the Ghost Market closed midway due to an emergency,¡± The employee looked at a video online depicting something that looked suspiciously like a dragon absorbing water. ¡°Did you guys join in the fun yesterday night?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same old thing every year at the Ghost Market, what fun is there?¡± The colleague sneezed. ¡°Look at the time, there¡¯s still no news from the higher-ups. Even if something happened, it wasn¡¯t major.¡± ¡°Oh, monitoring online activity?¡± Zhang Ke stood behind the two people. Seeing the short video on theputer of a dragon inhaling water, he smiled. ¡°Isn¡¯t this a cyclone at sea? Theseizens really know how to guess, they even cooked up the appearance of a real dragon and said that they¡¯re identical.¡± With the speed and altitude at which dragons flew, they wouldn¡¯t be visible to the naked eye even if a dragon really had been present. What¡¯s more, the current rules were extremely strict. Anyone in the sky who dared to not conceal themselves with a barrier would receive a pile of penalties the next day. ¡°Zhang ge,¡± The two employees instantly straightened. ¡°What are you here for?¡± ¡°I took a video yesterday night. Touch it up and do a bit of editing. You¡¯ll be creating an educational piece for the cultivation world,¡± Zhang Ke passed a video-recording stone to the two of them. ¡°You guys can take a look first.¡± The two people inserted the video-recording stone into a notch and the images it contained were automatically transferred to theputer. Upon clicking open the video, they saw a sky filled with ck wind, flying sand, and tumbling rocks. The strange creature that subsequently appeared in the video left the two people drenched in cold sweat. Was this the thing that barged into the Ghost Marketst night? ¡°Zhang Ke, what is this?¡± ¡°Oujiang,¡± Zhang Ke patted the two people on the shoulder. ¡°Trouble you to remember to edit the video in a way that showcases the intensity and hot-bloodedness. A close-up of Oujiang¡¯s bitter end must also be shown from all angles. Let everyone in the cultivation world understand the result of recklessly doing evil.¡± What a miserable end this strange creature called Oujiang had; even in death, it was used as a bad example to educate the entire cultivation world. Even the ancient, famed great yao Zhuyan hadn¡¯t received such treatment. ¡°Oh right, after editing it, remember to send the azure dragon n two extra copies,¡± Zhang Ke raised a brow. ¡°I think they need to watch it a bit more.¡± After Zhang Ke left, the two people directly skipped to the end of the video. The continuous bolts of heavenly lightning raining down from the sky seemed to bending on them, causing them to involuntarily touch their own backs. No wonder the higher-ups wanted to use this as a warning. Thosecking in courage would probably suffer psychological trauma just from seeing the lightning and rain-filled sky. ¡°Editing videos is what we¡¯re best at after all. Do close-ups, exaggerate the atmosphere, adjust the brightness, and add appropriate background music. The heroic, gant appearances of the boss and Fu ge has to be the most prominent. Oujiang¡¯s viciousness and unrestrained behavior must be thoroughly brought out,¡± The employee chatted idly as he yed the video from the beginning. Ssh. The instant Fu Li¡¯s actual form was swallowed by the green python, the two employees sucked in a breath of cold air. This breath of air was only released when Fu Li tore his way out of the python¡¯s belly. Only after watching the entire video did they realize how dangerous the situation had beenst night. A moment of silence ensued. No longer were they in the mood to joke around. Their yao cultivator colleagues had practically fought with their lives on the line for the civilians at the foot of the mountain. If they as human cultivators were still able tough, then how were they any different from brutes? Prominent details? Background music? These were merely methods to create emotional fluctuations. But this video had no need for close-ups or editing, because it was already enough to scare people witless. Although a yao cultivator as formidable as Oujiang had already been killed by lightning, the management bureau still had to hand in a report to the affiliated security department. Xu Yuan arranged the various data while grabbing a hold of Zhang Ke, who had returned from themunications team, so that they could write the report together. ¡°My beautiful sister, I wasn¡¯t the only person who was at the scene yesterday night, why am I the only one being pestered?¡± Zhang Ke sat down with a bitter look on his face and started discussing with Xu Yuan how they would write the report. ¡°I don¡¯t dare to look for the boss and Fu ge. Wei Cang didn¡¯te to work today,¡± There was the sound of banging as Xu Yuan typed on the keyboard. ¡°You watched the whole thing from the sidest night without even leaving the barrier. If you don¡¯t help, who will?¡± Did those with low cultivation have no human rights? Zhang Ke looked around their surroundings before casting a nce at Wei Cang¡¯s single-person office. The lights were switched off; it didn¡¯t seem like anyone was inside. What happened to his junior brother? Had he suffered an injuryst night? But he had specially brought Wei Cang back to the sectst night to be looked over and he wasn¡¯t found to have any internal injuries. Just as he was in a daze, he saw Fu Li walking in with a bottle of yogurt in his hands. He took the chance to slip away from Xu Yuan. ¡°Fu ge, you¡¯re here?¡± Fu Li took two steps back. He jabbed the straw into the bottle of yogurt, only replying after he took a sip. ¡°What¡¯s with the enthusiasm so early in the morning?¡± No matter how enthusiastic he was, he wouldn¡¯t give him any yogurt to drink. Yogurt was the greatest human invention; it was way too delicious. ¡°A day apart is as long as three years,¡± Zhang Ke smiled in an ingratiating manner. ¡°My junior brother didn¡¯te to work today and I¡¯m worried that he fell ill. Could I trouble you to help me take a look at him? You know as well that my junior brother has never arrivedte or left early since joining the bureau. For him not to have arrived at this time, he could have suffered internal injuries&#k2026;¡± ¡°Fu ge, senior brother, why are you standing at the door?¡± Wei Cang tugged at the cap on his head, looking at the two people doubtfully. Fu Li turned to look at him before speaking to Zhang Ke, ¡°Isn¡¯t he perfectly fine?¡± Wei Cang lowered his head with some uneasiness, evading Zhang Ke and Fu Li¡¯s measuring gazes. ¡°Junior brother, what happened to you?¡± Zhang Ke couldn¡¯t help asking upon noticing that Wei Cang was still wearing the peaked cap. ¡°It¡¯s an early September morning, and there isn¡¯t any sun, what are you wearing a cap for?¡± He took the cap off Wei Cang¡¯s head. Seeing a startling bald patch on Wei Cang¡¯s head, he swiftly put the cap back on his head. ¡°That¡¯s nothing, our bureau has quite a few baldies. You have much more hair than them, don¡¯t feel inferior.¡± Wei Cang was downcast. ¡°Are you asking me topare myself with Chu Yu, Lin Gui, and Song Yu?¡± Zhang Ke gave two dry coughs. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, yours will grow back. For them, they don¡¯t even have a chance in their lifetime.¡± Wei Cang looked behind Zhang Ke and suddenly revealed a profound smile. ¡°What are you smiling at?¡± Zhang Ke looked back. Chu Yu was standing behind him, his face icy. Fu Li covered his pocket as he avoided the battle behind human and fish, slowly making his way into Zhuang Qing¡¯s office. Zhuang Qing was in the middle of a call with the security department. Seeing Fu Li enter, he pointed at a chair by the side before turning his head and continuing the call. ¡°Matters rted to heavenlyw are understood only by the Heavens,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice was never too fast or too slow, as if there was no emotion in it. ¡°My colleagues were even injured. I will send you the video of the incident in a while.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing hung up. He turned towards Fu Li. ¡°Something wrong?¡± ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong, I just wanted to see the state of your injuries,¡± Fu Li threw the empty yogurt bottle into the rubbish bin. ¡°You should recuperate at the bottom of the sea. Though the elders of your golden dragon n encountered misfortune and perished, the dragon pce at the bottom of the sea is bound to still be around.¡± ¡°They¡¯re just minor injuries, nothing major,¡± Zhuang Qing ced his phone on the desk. ¡°You can return to your work, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t take care during puberty, you¡¯ll regret it when the timees for your dragon body to undergo the transformation into adulthood,¡± Fu Li concentrated spiritual qi at his eyes, wanting to see the condition of Zhuang Qing¡¯s original form. Sadly, the other party had the enhancement of the nation¡¯s fate, preventing him from getting a clear view. ¡°Looking at you, you shouldn¡¯t be very far from the transformation into adulthood. I heard that the dragon race¡¯s transformation period is extremely important. If you don¡¯t pay careful attention, it will influence your cultivation in the following years.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so knowledgeable of our dragon race¡¯s affairs?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li. ¡°Did you specially look into it?¡± Fu Li nodded honestly. ¡°En.¡± He had specially looked into the dragon race¡¯s strong and weak points that year. If not for the fact that he had watched the Zhongdiao and Zheng die from lightning right in front of him, he wouldn¡¯t have given up on his original n. Zhuang Qingughed ambiguously. ¡°Busybody.¡± Fu Li looked up in confusion. What did that mean? ¡°Actually, I came today because I have a very serious matter to discuss with you,¡± Fu Li dragged his stool towards Zhuang Qing¡¯s office desk, closing a bit of the distance between him and Zhuang Qing. ¡°After going back yesterday night, I spent half the night thinking. I still feel that I¡¯m not an ordinary rabbit.¡± Seeing that Fu Li had such a thought, Zhuang Qing ced his sped hands on the desk. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Do you still remember how I was swallowed by the green python yesterday night?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s index finger twitched. ¡°So?¡± ¡°The green pythons raised by Oujiang cannot transform, but they¡¯ve already lived over ten thousand years. Over these years, they¡¯ve been burnt incense and worshipped by humans together with Oujiang. How can they just mysteriously turn into ashes after swallowing me?¡± Fu Li¡¯s brows furrowed as he recalled the incident. ¡°I remember my entire body heating up at that time. By the time I came to my senses, I¡¯d already crawled out of the green python¡¯s belly. That feeling... was as if something had encased me, making it very difficult for something to harm me from the outside.¡± ¡°Could it be heavenlyw...¡± ¡°Impossible. You¡¯re the dearest son of heavenlyw, not me,¡± Fu Li firmly denied it. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see how I only dragged Wei Cang away yesterday night when the lightning came down without even caring about you?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s index finger tapped against the back of his hand. ¡°I thought you felt that my cultivation was higher than Wei Cang¡¯s.¡± ¡°No matter how high our cultivation, no one can survive lightning. The Zhongdiao and Zheng had such high cultivation, but were they able to escape when heavenlyw wanted to strike them down with lightning?¡± Fu Li thought of the scene when the Zhongdiao and Zheng were turned into dust by lightning, a shiver snaking down his back. ¡°At that time, I nearly thought the lightning would alsond on me, so I hid within a barrier without daring to leave.¡± ¡°The Zhuyan said that the Zhongdiao and Zheng were killed by the yao emperor,¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly figured out a key point. All of this seemed to be inextricably tied to heavenlyw. The great yao were dormant because of heavenlyw. Then, was their awakening... also linked to heavenlyw? ¡°In the legends, the Zhuyan was never much of an honest yao,¡± Fu Li cocked his head in thought. ¡°If things had really urred like what he said, I would be the yao emperor he was talking about, save for the mismatch in appearance.¡± He was merely a little yao who was supervised and urged to cultivate day in and day out by the yao cultivators on the mountain, a little yao who couldn¡¯t even return a blow from any random yao on the mountain. Zhuang Qing nearly couldn¡¯t hold back hisughter. There was logic to Fu Li¡¯s words. Fu Li did happen to be at the scene of the incident the Zhuyan had spoken of, so if he wasn¡¯t the yao emperor, who was? But Fu Li¡¯s appearance... He shook his head. Fu Li was clearly a yao whocked understanding of the world¡¯s dangers and had been spoiled rotten by other yao cultivators. Those yao cultivators had raised Fu Li till he developed a character this innocent and upright. After their departure from the world, how had Fu Li lived? ¡°In the past two thousand years, you¡¯ve never interacted with other humans?¡± Zhuang Qing wondered if Fu Li would still remain the way he was now aftering into contact with the dark side of humanity. ¡°I thought about going to the human world two thousand years ago, but after seeing the Zhongdiao and Zheng die in front of me, I... got scared,¡± Fu Li always kept in mind the words the mountain¡¯s yao cultivators had conveyed to him. No matter the time and location, protecting his life was the most important. If he encountered something he couldn¡¯t make sense of, he could just find some ce to hide and sleep. When he awoke, perhaps everything would be fine. He was protected from childhood to adulthood, never once suffering. In the end, he could only follow the method taught by the mountain¡¯s yao cultivators. He found a remote mountain, set up a barrier, and went to sleep. ¡°Two thousand years passed. I secretly watched the news broadcasts at a peasant household at the foot of the mountain, and then found out that the entire world had changed,¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyelids drooped, his eyshes trembling slightly. ¡°I couldn¡¯t just continue sleeping, so I eventually decided toe out.¡± He would never be able to return to Reflecting Mist Mountain. No longer was there a White Ape to nag him day and night. No longer was there other yao to pressure him to eat. The sparrow at his entrance would never again chirp ceaselessly. Even the fiery-tempered pheasant would never again drag him off to cultivate. He had at longst started a life of true solitude, a life where he would never be subjected to the restrictions of others. The him of two thousand years ago had constantly proimed loudly that he was an adult yao. Now that he could truly make his own decisions, he realized that there was no longer any yao who would crouch by his side and apud him when he broke a tree with a kick or exhibited perfect technique with the whip. Only when one truly experienced loss would they understand the beauty of that which they had once possessed. Fu Li looked up, smiling at Zhuang Qing. ¡°I think the yao world might not have a so-called yao emperor in the first ce. Those great yao might simply have hoped for the appearance of a yao with unparalleled strength that would resist heavenlyw for them and once again oppress the humans, thereby resulting in this rumor.¡± ¡°If there was really a yao emperor, how could heavenlyw tolerate him?¡± ¡°You...¡± Zhuang Qing had an unspeakable feeling that Fu Li was smiling somewhat sadly. He had just opened his mouth when Lin Gui came knocking. ¡°Boss, Fu ge really is at your ce.¡± Lin Gui told Fu Li, ¡°Fu ge, a man calling himself Fu Si came looking for you. He says he¡¯s an old acquaintance.¡± ¡°Him?¡± Fu Li was a bit surprised. Why was that person looking for him? He stood up and spoke to Zhuang Qing, ¡°I¡¯ll go down and take a look.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. After Fu Li left, Zhuang Qing asked Lin Gui, ¡°Is he the Fu Si who coborates with ourpany in the human world?¡± ¡°That¡¯s him.¡± Lin Gui responded with confusion, ¡°I heard from the shrimp guard that he came looking for Fu ge many times, just that Fu ge wasn¡¯t around every time. Over time, it was dyed till today.¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows silently. ¡°Mr Fu, please sit,¡± The receptionist poured a cup of tea for Fu Si. Suddenly, Fu Si pointed at the painting of a courtdy on the wall. ¡°Does that painting have a tiny mechanism? I seem to see her eyes blinking.¡± The pretty receptionist smiled. ¡°Mr Fu has very sharp eyesight. We¡¯ve done some artistic edits to enhance the realism of the paintings on the walls.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case. Looking at it in the day is still bearable, but if it was nighttime, it would be a bit scary,¡± Fu Si smiled, his tone teasing. ¡°Fortunately, I have quite a bit of courage, otherwise I would probably have been startled.¡± The receptionist smiled wordlessly. A few secondster, she suddenly spoke, ¡°Mr Fu Si, Mr Fu Li has arrived.¡± Fu Si stared at the door curiously. Was there a person? Why didn¡¯t he see anyone? Fu Li walked into the guestroom. Seeing Fu Si¡¯s gaze on the door, Fu Li nced behind him. ¡°What was Mr Fu looking at?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Fu Si smiled gently, shifting his line of sight. ¡°Yourpany¡¯s staff has excellent hearing ability. She could make out the sound of your footsteps from such a distance.¡± The receptionist directed a small bow at Fu Li. ¡°Mr Fu, I¡¯ll leave first. Please call for me if you require anything.¡± Fu Li nodded and sat in front of Fu Si. ¡°May I know what Mr Fu came looking for me for?¡± There was a hint of absent-mindedness in Fu Si¡¯s smile. He picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip from it. ¡°Has Mr Fu really not dreamed of anything rted to your past life?¡± ¡°Mr Fu still believes in such a thing?¡± The hand Fu Li stretched towards the pastries came to a halt. He looked up and examined the unfamiliar human before him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t believe in things like past and current lives. Even if there really was such a thing as reincarnation, matters rted to past lives should belong to that life, how can one see their previous life in their current life?¡± Fu Si¡¯s smile turned bleak upon hearing Fu Li¡¯s words. He stared at the steaming cup of tea. ¡°I too am aware that such words are ridiculous, but ever since I saw you at the hotel, I¡¯ve continuously been dreaming of the same person. And that person¡¯s appearance is identical to Mr Fu, just that he¡¯s dressed in a light-colored brocade gown and is a bit younger than Mr Fu. My rtionship with him seemed like, seemed like... lovers.¡± A hint of self-deprecation could be seen on Fu Si¡¯s face. ¡°I also feel that such thoughts are absurd. Who would like someone from their dreams, and a man at that? Gender isn¡¯t the only thing that lies between us; time might be another factor. I live in an era of tall buildings, whereas he lived in a time hundreds or thousands of years ago.¡± Fu Li stood up. He approached Fu Si¡¯s head and sniffed his body. Fu Si¡¯s expression turned panicked upon seeing Fu Li¡¯s nearing face. ¡°You smell like the sea,¡± Fu Li suddenly said. ¡°Did you go to the coast recently?¡± Fu Si nodded in confusion. ¡°The friend who organized the bachelors¡¯ party at Affinity Moon Hotel held their wedding on a ship at sea. Is there something wrong?¡± ¡°Have you heard of illusions?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°Science exins it as a natural figment of imagination caused by reflections within the atmosphere. In reality, there exists an organism in the sea that is capable of creating illusions. He can even lure creatures into dreams, preventing them from distinguishing between reality and fantasy.¡± Fu Si¡¯s brows creased. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°In the depths of the sea lies a type of yaoguai called Shen. Their appearances are simr to dragons but they are not dragons. They frequently create false fantasies at sea to lure petrels into their snares before eating them in one mouth,¡± Fu Li suddenly reached out. From Fu Si¡¯s mind, he grabbed hold of a bubble as transparent as a jellyfish. Ignoring Fu Si¡¯s utterly shocked expression, he burst the bubble. A blurry scene appeared in the air. The him in the scene was dressed in a magnificent brocade gown. He ate with Fu Si at the same table and slept with him on the same pillow; these scenes were intimate beyondpare. Seeing these scenes, Fu Li couldn¡¯t help but scoff. With a wave of his hand, all scenes in the air vanished. ¡°As long as the Shen is willing, he can fabricate countless beautiful past lives. But what is fake is fake. They will never be real.¡± ¡°W-What are you?¡± The gentle smile on Fu Si¡¯s face disappeared. He simply couldn¡¯tprehend why he had a favorable impression of this unfamiliar man. ¡°Why do you have so many strange means?¡± With a wave of Fu Li¡¯s hand, Fu Si fainted. Fu Li extracted all the memories rted to him from Fu Si¡¯s mind. It wasn¡¯t unusual for the Shen to be capable of fabricating false memories for humans, but this sort of yao had little courage. Despite living in the great sea, it only dared to consume petrels as food. Why would he create false memories and nt them into a human¡¯s mind? Or, did someone know that he had raised a human pet in the past and deliberately created this situation? But when had he ever eaten and even slept on the same bed as his pet? He would let it be if they weren¡¯t mindful about the means through which they deceived yao. But this human even came to him asking him to acknowledge their past and current lives. What were they plotting? Did they want him to raise another pet? Looking down at the sleeping human on the couch, Fu Li sighed. This human had also suffered harm for no good reason. Who knew why the mastermind had chosen him? Fu Li called over the receptionist. ¡°Send this person back, take care not to let him discover anything fishy.¡± ¡°All right, Mr Fu,¡± The female receptionist saw that Fu Li¡¯s expression was a bit peculiar, so she asked another question, ¡°Where are you rushing off to?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never been to the underworld in the more than four thousand years I¡¯ve lived. I would like to pay it a visit today,¡± Fu Li took out his jade bone umbre from his Qiankun pouch and flung it, tearing open a passage to the underworld. ¡°Mr Fu,¡± The female receptionist said anxiously. ¡°The yin qi in the underworld is thick, you...¡± ¡°No worries,¡± Fu Li opened the jade bone umbre. ¡°I just want to consult someone regarding a few questions I have. I¡¯ll be back very soon.¡± Then, he leaped into the pitch-ck passage. The female receptionist stared nkly for a moment before running out. The others had to be informed of this matter. Chapter 52 - What is Love?

Chapter 52 - What is Love?

Fu Li was regretful immediately after jumping through the passage connected to the underworld, because he didn¡¯t know the way. In the minds of humans, the underworld ought to be a dark nook surging with resentment, where filth stained allnd and every kind of torture tool hung suspended. In fact, the underworld was simr to the human world ¨C there wasn¡¯t a shortage of pavilions and kiosks. The only difference was that ghosts walked the streets, not humans. There was no sun to be seen in the sky of the underworld, but the moon and stars were visible when night came. Fu Li arrived at a street where ghosts came and went. On the LED board of a certain multilevel building, he saw a host calming the fans of a certain performing artist by criticizing his evil conduct when he was still alive. Fu Li had seen this artist before. When he was still a security guard at Affinity Moon Hotel, this male artist¡¯s soul had refused to go to the underworld no matter what. In the end, he was still forcibly brought away. ¡°Brother, you¡¯re not a fanboy of this Lu Renjia, right?¡± A young male ghost walked over. ¡°Let me tell you, this guy is scum who was sentenced to a hundred years in the oil cauldron. He¡¯s already dead, does he think he¡¯s still some big celebrity?¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s a good punishment,¡± Fu Li saw the surrounding ghosts stare at him as if he was a youngster who had stepped onto the wrong path, and immediately made his stance clear. ¡°I don¡¯t chase after celebrities.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. There was a little ghost not long ago who insisted that this Lu Renjia was wrongly used. To get Lu Renjia released, she threatened the yinchai, saying that she would jump into the Wangchuan River if they didn¡¯t set him free.¡± The male ghost shook his head, sighing. ¡°Who would have expected her to lose her footing and actually fall into the Wangchuan River. By the time the yinchai pulled her out, she could only be reincarnated as an animal in her next life.¡± Seeing that the male ghost¡¯s desire to gossip was growing stronger and stronger, Fu Li had no choice but to interrupt him. ¡°Little ge, may I know the way to the yinchai¡¯s official building?¡± ¡°Why are you looking for the yinchai?¡± The male ghost responded. ¡°Let me tell you, you may not understand the rules since you just died, but there¡¯s a queue for reincarnation. Going to the yinchai building to get through the backdoor won¡¯t get you anywhere.¡± Seeing that Fu Li hadn¡¯t listened to the great deal of prattling he¡¯d done, he sighed, ¡°Walk along the left side of this street. After crossing the bridge over the Wangchuan River, walk straight ahead a few hundred meters and you¡¯ll see it.¡± ¡°Many thanks,¡± Fu Li passed through the crowds bustling with activity. The veryrge public square to the right of the street was packed with men and women twisting their waists and swaying their buttocks in what seemed like dance. There were no traffic lights along the street, but there were bailiffs wearing red armbands who were maintaining order. After bypassing the intersection, Fu Li took out his Migu Branch, and then realized that it wasn¡¯t usable in the underworld. ¡°Brother, you must be a new ghost. The No. 13 Handphone Shop on Wangchuan River is open for business, there¡¯s a fifty percent discount for new ghosts,¡± A ghost stuffed a leaflet into Fu Li¡¯s hands before turning and doing the same to the ghosts behind him. A few leaflets that had dropped onto the ground were blown by the chilly wind to Fu Li¡¯s feet. Fu Li stooped over and picked up the publicity leaflets before throwing them into the rubbish bin opposite the street. A dark red river could be seen not too far away. Brilliant red flowers bloomed with dazzling beauty on both sides of the river. White Ape had once told him that there were many ferries on the Wangchuan River. These ferries would bring souls to the opposite bank of the river so that they could wee their new lives. However, while there were indeed several boats on the Wangchuan River at this moment, they were not ferries but sightseeing boats. An arched bridge with a curve like that of a crescent moon stood upright on the surface of the river. The splendid rednterns hung on the bridge gave off the brightest light on the river. Fu Li walked to the bridge and saw a yinchai keeping order. Therefore, he cast a skill on himself to deflect attention, and swaggered onto the bridge over the Wangchuan River. Upon crossing the bridge, there was a cart driver at the side pulling guests over. Many ghosts that had just arrived were pulled over in confusion while the senior ghosts looked at them as if they were idiots that had just been ripped off. Fu Li squeezed past the crowd of ghosts and stepped onto a road made of green stone. The increasingly strong icy wind continuously scraped against his face. After stepping past the barrier erected around the yinchai¡¯s official building, the clothing on his body turned into ashes. He once again became a noble gentleman wearing a brocade gown and jade band. ¡°Whoes here?¡± Eight gatekeepers stood beneath the enormous sign of the yinchai¡¯s official building. Each and every one of them had terrible, fearsome appearances as well as strong yin qi. ¡°This humble one is called Fu Li. I would like to request to meet the chief of yinchai, Li Xu.¡± The gatekeepers chortled. ¡°There are many ghosts in the underworld who want to see the yinchai chief. If you need to contact him, please dial his personal number or send an email to him through an official yinchai tform. A staff member will attend to your email within three days.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t take the gatekeepers¡¯ nasty attitudes to heart. He cast his voice towards the area beyond the door, ¡°Yinchai chief, I, Fu Li, request for a meeting.¡± His voice prated the main entrance of the yinchai¡¯s official building and was directly transmitted inside. The gatekeepers¡¯ expressions changed dramatically. They clutched their weapons, each wearing a guarded look on their faces, for fear that Fu Li would suddenly turn violent. What they had not expected was for the main door behind them to open all of a sudden and for the yinchai chief to walk out in a haste. ¡°Fu daoyou,¡± Li Xu saw that Fu Li had actuallye to the underworld. ncing at the gatekeeper behind him, he strove to maintain a normal expression on his face. ¡°It is always a pleasure to have friendse from afar. Fu daoyou, please.¡± The gatekeepers nced at one another, somewhat regretful that they had demonstrated a bit too much malice. It turned out this person really did know the yinchai chief. Li Xu tookrge strides as he led Fu Li into his office. Only after erecting a barrier at the office door did he say, ¡°Fu daoyou, the living and the dead have their respective paths, you should not havee to this ce.¡± ¡°There is something I am not clear about,¡± Fu Li stared at Li Xu. ¡°That year, was it you who brought my pet¡¯s soul away?¡± Li Xu was a bit confused. Two thousand years had passed since then. When the human died that year, Fu Li hadn¡¯t exhibited any extreme reaction, so why was he bringing up this old matter? He hadn¡¯t had many dealings with Fu Li, but he didn¡¯t feel that Fu Li was the type of person who would trespass on the underworld. ¡°Did something happen?¡± Li Xu very quickly thought of this. If nothing had urred, Fu Li would not have appeared at this ce. ¡°A Shen nted fake memories in a human¡¯s mind, leading that human to think that he was the pet I had raised that year,¡± Fu Li¡¯s gaze was on Li Xu. ¡°Other than you, who else knew of the matter that year?¡± Li Xu opened his mouth. This question was not an easy one to answer. A human raised by yao, and who possessed the bloodline of the imperial family as well as ten lives of virtue should have been reincarnated as a monarch after death. Yet, the human had stayed in the underworld for a full eighty years, unwilling to reincarnate. When news got out that all the yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain had perished in the hands of the azure dragons, the ghost with immense virtue drank Meng Po¡¯s soup while crying tears of blood, and then jumped into the pond of reincarnation. No one knew who exactly he had reincarnated as. Because he had missed the optimal timing for reincarnation, the monarch he was fated to be was also lost. Whether his next life was good or bad was known to no one. The number of ghost cultivators in the know was not little. Now that Fu Li asked him who else knew of this, he really couldn¡¯t recall who they were, because there were truly too many people in the underworld who knew of it. The king of the underworld, the eighteen Yama Kings, Cheng Huang... ¡°Is this question very hard to answer?¡± Fu Li observed theplex expression on Li Xu¡¯s face, an ominous premonition in his heart. ¡°I¡¯m calcting the number of people who know,¡± Li Xu gazed into the distance as he did the calctions. ¡°Excluding the ones who have already reincarnated or whose lives have already run their course, there should be roughly several tens of people who know about this matter.¡± Fu Li narrowed his eyes at Li Xu. He couldn¡¯t tell that this yinchai chief was actually so fond of gossiping. One look at Fu Li and Li Xu knew that he had been misunderstood. He smiled bitterly. ¡°Fu daoyou, it really wasn¡¯t me who spread this matter. It¡¯s hard to exin the incident that year in a few words. Bringing it up now will only bring you more sorrow. This humble one thinks that you should start from the Shen yao if you want to investigate the person who is secretly scheming against you.¡± ¡°I will definitely call on the Shen yao,¡± Fu Li knew that he wouldn¡¯t glean much even if he continued asking, so he stood up. ¡°I have no intention of making things difficult for the underworld, but nobody will be happy about such a thing urring.¡± ¡°Please rest assured, Fu daoyou, I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly,¡± Li Xu also understood that this matter had definitely leaked out from the underworld. Other than the underworld, no one else knew of that year¡¯s happenings. ¡°Fu daoyou, the underworld¡¯s roads are rugged and difficult to navigate, let me send you back,¡± Concerned that Fu Li would directly tear open a passage from the underworld to the world of the living and cause a stir, he took the initiative to send him off. ¡°I¡¯ll be troubling you then,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t turn him down. The two people left the yinchai¡¯s official building. The instant they walked out of the barrier, the clothes Fu Li was wearing reverted to his modern garb. He nced at the exquisite building behind the yinchai¡¯s official building. ¡°Is that Yama¡¯s pce?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Li Xu smiled. ¡°Fu daoyou¡¯s cultivation base has already reached a profound level, transcending the three realms. You will never need to go to that ce.¡± No matter how well-decorated Yama¡¯s pce was, it was merely a ce where departed spirits were put on trial. Yao cultivators whose strength had already transcended the three realms would no longer have their survival or death governed by the underworld. Li Xu was unable to discern Fu Li¡¯s cultivation base, but he was certain that his cultivation base had already reached a profound level. After they had walked a distance, Fu Li pointed at a small bridge. ¡°What is that ce? Why are there so many ghosts queuing up?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the Naihe Bridge. After the ghosts drink Meng Po¡¯s soup and cross the Naihe Bridge, the karma of their previous life will bepletely dispersed and they will be a new soul,¡± Li Xu stood beside Fu Li. ¡°Those queueing ghosts are waiting to be reincarnated.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to reincarnate, I don¡¯t want to forget her,¡± A man in a green jacket ran out from the queue. His thin and weak body seemed to contain infinite strength as he fled from the ghost messengers chasing after him, running in Fu Li¡¯s direction. Li Xu kicked the ghost to the ground with a single leg and used his Soul-Locking Chain to bind the man in a green jacket. ¡°I beg you, please let me off. I promised to wait for her so that we can leave together. We promised.¡± The Soul-Locking Chain was already firmly embedded in the body of the male ghost d in the green jacket. The chain strapping him had wound around him multiple times, yet he continued to struggle ceaselessly in an attempt to break free from the restrictions of the Soul-Locking Chain. ¡°Please, please,¡± Ghosts had no tears by nature, yet a stream of bloody tears flowed out from the man¡¯s eyes. He looked towards Naihe Bridge in despair, as if hoping for a certain silhouette to appear, yet fearing her premature appearance. Li Xu expressionlessly allowed a yinchai to drag the ghost away. The male ghost¡¯s hands scraped against the ground as he put the entirety of his strength into struggling free from the ghost messenger¡¯s restraints. But other than leaving two bloody lines on the ground, he aplished nothing. Fu Li looked a bit bewildered as he stared at the traces of blood left by the two hands that had grabbed at the earth. A chance to reincarnate was hard toe by, why was this male ghost unwilling to leave? What else could be more important than that? The death of a person was akin to the extinguishing of amp; all previous karmic ties would be severed. What else was there that could not be let go? ¡°We see this sort of infatuation every year. The person will be unwilling to reincarnate, saying that they want to wait for the person they loved dearly,¡± Li Xu waved a hand and the traces of blood on the ground vanished. ¡°So what if they wait? In their next life, the two might never meet. Perhaps their meeting will be one of hatred. They might even be enemies in life and death. That saying in human huaben about ¡®never parting throughout lifetimes¡¯ was just a way to deceive people. I¡¯ve been a yinchai for two thousand years and have never seen any couple who could continue the strands of karma from their previous lives.¡± ¡°Humans really are strange,¡± This was the conclusion Fu Li arrived at after a long period of silence. This so-called love couldn¡¯t be seen or touched. What about it was worth persevering for? Li Xu turned and saw the indifferent look on Fu Li¡¯s face. Thinking of the human who had also shed tears of blood that year, he slowly nodded. ¡°Yeah, humans really are strange.¡± Forever making absurd demands for things that could never be obtained. Even when they knew the end result, they still continued to cling onto hope. Howughable, howmentable. He sneered, ¡°Once seen through, love is nothing much.¡± Fu Li looked thoughtfully at Li Xu. ¡°You... seem to feel very strongly about this?¡± Li Xu stared nkly for a moment. Then, he let out augh. ¡°I see people part for eternity every day, how can I not have any feelings about it?¡± ¡°You were also human before bing a ghost messenger, right?¡± Fu Li walked onto the Naihe Bridge and looked over the railing at the dark-red river. ¡°You should have had feelings towards other humans as well. Can you tell me what love is?¡± ¡°Love...¡± Li Xu fished out a cigarette, lit it, and spat out a gigantic cloud of smoke. ¡°Is sh*t. It¡¯s not worth a single cent.¡± Fu Li nced at Li Xu¡¯s back with a lowered head. ¡°En, that seems to make sense.¡± On the other end of the Naihe Bridge, Zhuang Qing was watching the yao and ghost on the bridge. As he slowly made his way behind them, he heard Fu Li¡¯s words. ¡°Love should be a weakness exclusive to humans?¡± ¡°You ran to the underworld during working hours just to discuss the philosophy of life with the yinchai chief?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li with a nk face. ¡°Don¡¯t bother thinking about getting into university and bing a civil servant after returning, why don¡¯t you just directly be a philosopher?¡± ¡°Hello, Mr Zhuang,¡± Li Xu put out his cigarette and took the initiative to greet Zhuang Qing. ¡°Hello, Chief,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded slightly at Li Xu. When he turned towards Fu Li, his expression darkened again. ¡°Fu Li, you¡¯re bing more and more daring; you even dare to barge into the underworld. Why don¡¯t you leap into the reincarnation pond as well?¡± ¡°It¡¯s no use even if I jump in,¡± Fu Li was a very honest yao. ¡°It¡¯s not like I can reincarnate.¡± ¡°That head of yours can only be saved by reincarnation,¡± Zhuang Qing threw down these words before turning and walking off. Seeing that Fu Li still hadn¡¯t caught up after he had taken two steps, his face sank. ¡°What are you still standing there for? Waiting for the yinchai chief to treat you to a meal?¡± Fu Li cupped his heads at Li Xu and then chased after him. Li Xu watched the two yao from the back. For some reason, he found this scene amusing. Laughter came out of his mouth involuntarily. He ced his cigarette at the corner of his mouth and took a puff. There was no taste. Only then did he recall that he had put it out when Zhuang Qing came. Shaking his head, Li Xu threw the cigarette into the rubbish bin and then walked towards the yinchai¡¯s official building. When he reached a fork in the road, the male ghost in the green jacket who had previously escaped was still in a desperate struggle. Pained shouts came from his throat, till Meng Po poured a bowl of soup into his mouth. Only then did this crazed male ghost quieten bit by bit. The hope, despair, and emotions in his eyes gradually vanished, eventually bing dull and listless. Under the guidance of the ghost messenger, he obediently jumped into the reincarnation pond. Love, hatred, passion, animosity ¨C everything was in this bowl of soup. ¡°Zhuang Qing, there¡¯s also hotpot in their underworld and it looks delicious,¡± Fu Li grabbed Zhuang Qing. ¡°Why don¡¯t we give it a taste? The two of us can pretend to be new ghosts; there¡¯s even a discount.¡± Zhuang Qing came to a stop, turning towards Fu Li. ¡°Discounts for new ghosts? More like cheating you of your money till your wallet breaks.¡± After leaving the ghost city, Zhuang Qing took out a token and the underworld automatically opened a gate to the human world. Seizing Fu Li by the sleeve, he directly tossed Fu Li in. Upon arriving at the human world, Fu Li nced around. This was the desert, why had Zhuang Qing brought him here? ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing studied Fu Li. ¡°I don¡¯t care what kind of life you led in the past, but once you¡¯re in the management bureau, you have to listen to my orders. I will treat this matter as if it never happened, but if it happens another time, I will put up warning notices around the entire bureau, got it?¡± ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t give careful thought to this matter. But I didn¡¯t do it without reason,¡± Fu Li nced at the bright sun and manifested arge sunshade, a table, and two chairs. ¡°The sun is so bright, let¡¯s sit and talk.¡± A ce like the desert wasn¡¯t suitable for the dragon race to survive in. Zhuang Qing stared at the fresh grapes on the table. His expression underwent many changes, but he still sat underneath the sunshade. ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°Two thousand years ago, I raised a human as a pet...¡± ¡°Pet?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s face darkened. He smiled coldly. ¡°I really couldn¡¯t tell that you had such an inclination.¡± What inclination? Fu Li didn¡¯t understand even after giving it some thought. He wasn¡¯t hung up on such a minor thing though, so he continued speaking, ¡°He wasn¡¯t in good health. Before he passed away from illness, he asked me not to raise any other pet. I agreed.¡± Zhuang Qing dropped the grape in his hand under the table by ident and simply pushed the grape into the sand with a hand. ¡°Today, a human came looking for me, saying that he knew me in his past life. He thought that he was the pet I raised.¡± ¡°Thought?¡± Zhuang Qing picked out this term. ¡°Yes,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Thought.¡± ¡°As long as a human reincarnates, the fate and karmic bonds of their past life will turn to dust. The moment he died, my affinity with him reached its end,¡± Fu Li calmly analyzed. ¡°Two thousand years has passed, who knows how many times he has reincarnated? How could he have suddenly recalled something that happened several lifetimes ago? Moreover, those scenes he recalled weren¡¯t consistent with reality.¡± Zhuang Qing observed Fu Li¡¯s apathetic expression. There was a twinge of difort in his heart. But even he himself was mystified by this difort. ¡°Only the people in the underworld that year had known that I raised a human pet, so I wanted to ask them,¡± Fu Li took out two sticks of ice cream from his Qiankun pouch and handed one to Zhuang Qing. ¡°I would like to request a favor from youter.¡± Zhuang Qing tore open the ice cream wrapper and took a bite. ¡°Let¡¯s hear it.¡± ¡°Nobody is more familiar with the sea routes than your dragon race; I want to find a yao.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Shen.¡± The surface of the sea was clear and crystalline under the sunlight. Sea waves gently batted the sand. This scene was exceedingly beautiful. Beneath the water, a dragon moved swiftly. If someone could see him, they would discover a rabbit squatting on the dragon¡¯s head. The speed at which the dragon swam was too quick. In the blink of an eye, he swam across the surface and bottom of the sea multiple times. ck clouds started to gather above the sea. It seemed it was about to rain. The weather above the sea was ever-changing; the asional wind and rain couldn¡¯t be more normal. Zhuang Qing leaped out of the ocean. Fu Li, who was clinging to the hair on Zhuang Qing¡¯s head, shook his slightly plump body, flinging the seawater off his body. He then changed into his human form. ¡°It¡¯s here.¡± A pheasant flew across the surface of the sea. It flew a distance before suddenly plunging into the water. Upon contact with the water, the pheasant turned into a creature that seemed like a dragon yet was not one. Its dark, earthy scales were shaped very oddly. After entering the water, it would be very difficult to find. When the Shen discovered the golden dragon¡¯s presence, he intended to go over and make his salutations. But the moment he saw a person by the side of the golden dragon, he turned to leave in fright. Fu Li flung out the whip in his hands, binding the Shen and dragging it back. ¡°Shen yao, where do you think you¡¯re trying to run to?¡± The Shen curled up its tail. It¡¯s mouth opened, and broken Standard Mandarin spewed out. ¡°Release me, I don¡¯t know anything.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t even asked anything, and you already said you don¡¯t know anything,¡± Fu Li shook the whip, binding the Shen even tighter. ¡°Who asked you to nt false memories into a human¡¯s head? Do you know that you¡¯ve vited the rules of the management bureau?¡± The Shen twisted its head towards the golden dragon, hoping that the other party would speak up for him on ount of them both being aquatic creatures. ¡°Yao cultivators who harm humans for no reason will be fined if they receive a light sentence. If the sentence is a severe one, they will be imprisoned in the Spirit Lock Formation,¡± Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form. ¡°Speak.¡± The Shen gave up all hope. This dragon had no loyalty to its own kind. His head moved to and fro. All of a sudden, he opened his mouth and spat out a breath of air. Thick fog suddenly rose on the surface of the sea. A mountain appeared in the fog. Fu Li stared nkly at the mountain, rocks, nts, and trees that had appeared in the fog. This was... Reflecting Mist Mountain... Chapter 53 - Do You Still Want to Be a Civil Servant?

Chapter 53 - Do You Still Want to Be a Civil Servant?

The Reflecting Mist Mountain pervaded by water and fog resembled a mountain of immortals isted from the mundane world. Its beauty was enough for one to forget all their troubles. A seven-colored divine deer raced through the mountain and forest. A bright-colored pheasant was waving its wings about. A sparrow perched on a branch broke into cheerful song. A white ape was positioned on a branch as it plucked fruit. Beneath the fruit tree, a wild pig was setting up fire to grill fish. On the other side of the mountain, a white goat was lyingzily on the ground. Not more than five steps from the goat squatted a terriblyrge white tiger with a tortoise crawling on its head. After an eternity, the tortoise stretched out a leg before very quickly retracting it. When together, these few naturally antagonistic animals appeared exceptionally harmonious. They resembled an oasis disconnected from the world, with no sign of killings or death. Zhuang Qing even saw hundreds of flowers blooming along the areas the seven-colored divine deer ran through. Tiny animals burrowed out of the soil, stealthily hiding the small flowers in their holes. The rumored Reflecting Mist Mountain actually looked like this; he finally understood how Fu Li could have been brought up to have such a kind and naive character. ¡°King Ganglie...¡± Fu Li gazed dazedly at the mountain that had suddenly appeared. He took two steps forward. Zhuang Qing regained his wits, grabbing hold of Fu Li. Along the way, he trapped the Shen yao, who was intending to sneak away, within a barrier. All of a sudden, a man wearing a brocade gown appeared on the mountain. The man had a slender physique, and his hands were even cupped around a white rabbit. Zhuang Qing found this man somewhat familiar. Thinking of Fu Si, who hade searching for Fu Li this morning, Zhuang Qing remembered who this man was. The man wearing a brocade gown bore a very strong resemnce to Fu Si. In particr, his gentle, well-mannered demeanor when smiling was almost identical to Fu Si. Zhuang Qing¡¯s identity in the human world was the boss of Chang Long Biotechnology Company, so he would asionally participate in charities organized by relevant local organizations. Thus, he had seen Fu Si before. There were no trees or leaves in this world that were identical. Naturally, there were also no two people who were exactly the same. Was it just a coincidence that this Fu Si so strongly resembled the illusory human? Following the appearance of the man carrying the white rabbit, the animals on the mountain surrounded him. Zhuang Qing watched as the man ced the white rabbit in the white ape¡¯s hands. The animals brought the rabbit on ap around the mountain while the man watched them from afar. The smile on his face was gentle and tolerant, yet his eyes seemed to contain a ball of fire. Watching everything that appeared on this illusorynd, Zhuang Qing¡¯s gazended on the white rabbit. After the white-furred rabbit was surrounded by the animals, it spent one moment scratching its ears with its front ws. The next moment, it nibbled on the fruit given by the white ape. Yet another momentter, it leaped onto the head of the white tiger, mimicking the white tiger¡¯s way of roaring. There were only images in this illusorynd without any sound; Zhuang Qing could not hear the white rabbit¡¯s cries. But even without the sound, Zhuang Qing could tell that this white rabbit was being doted on and pampered by a bunch of animals. He even thought of the parents in the human world who spoiled their children ¨C each and every one of them treated their children like little emperors and princesses, eventually spoiling them till they went out of control. ¡°The wild pig with two tusks is King Ganglie. He was most fond of treating everyone to a meal. When the flowers bloomed and the fall harvest came, he would treat us to a meal. His favorite daily task is to watch me eat all sorts of things. Elder White Ape was the most naggy, while Sister Pheasant had the worst temper. Sparrow couldn¡¯t take on a human form no matter what, and Elder White Goat would sleep when idle. Elder White Tiger was the most awe-inspiring. One time, another mountain¡¯s yao cultivators came to snatch our mountain, and he was the one who fended them off. There¡¯s also the Seven-Colored Deer...¡± Fu Li described to Zhuang Qing the mountain¡¯s yao, the trees, and the past ways in which he had been pampered by this crowd of yao, as if doing so would allow him to bypass two thousand years and once more meet with these yao cultivators. ¡°What about that person?¡± Zhuang Qing waited for Fu Li to finish introducing the yao cultivators on the mountain before pointing at the person who was standing motionless. ¡°Was he also a yao cultivator on the mountain?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°He was the human pet I raised. Turns out... he looked like this.¡± He had heroic, outstanding looks, and a graceful bearing; he was a human that stood out from the rest. But too much time had passed, he had already forgotten what this person looked like. However... Suddenly, Fu Li stomped down heavily on the head of the Shen yao. The Shen yao smashed into the water. Only after it spat out numerous bubbles in session did Fu Li pull it out by its horns. ¡°The illusion you constructed was very beautiful and also very realistic, but I have never once climbed onto Elder White Tiger¡¯s head in front of other yao. He and Elder White Ape were my teachers. There is no one who remembers the five words ¡®respect teachers and their teachings¡¯ more clearly than me! Wanting me to fall into your trap with this sort of shallow illusion, do you think I¡¯m one of those petrels waiting to drop into your mouth?¡± Fu Li sent the Shen yao back into the sea with another stomp of his foot. After multiple rounds of this torment, the Shen yao couldn¡¯t even utter a sentence. ¡°D-Dragon Lord, save...¡± Fu Li¡¯s palmnded smack on the Shen yao¡¯s face. The Shen yao careened through the water, creating multiple ripples on the surface of the water. Before he could escape, Fu Li once again grabbed a hold of his tail, swinging him back. The Shen¡¯s mouth popped open, and a few teeth dropped out. ¡°It¡¯s no use calling for anyone today,¡± Fu Li expressionlessly pressed down on the Shen¡¯s mingmen. His face gave off a murderous air. ¡°I don¡¯t care who got you to use someone from two thousand years ago to scheme against me, but Reflecting Mist Mountain is my baseline as a yao!¡± His five ws widened. Sharp nails extended from his fingers, and his killing intent thickened. He could no longer hold himself back. ck clouds churned in the sky. A sudden p of thunder sounded twice. ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing looked up at the sky and grabbed Fu Li¡¯s arm. The Shen yao, who had thought he was a goner, was delighted. Even if Zhuang Qing was a dragon who was disloyal to his own kind, he was still a yao cultivator of the aquatic races. On the ount that they were both aquatic races, there was no way he wouldn¡¯t save this life of his. ¡°If you kill him, how are you going to find out the identity of the mastermind?¡± Shen: This dragon was a disgrace to the aquatic races! Zhuang Qing gripped Fu Li¡¯s wrist, looking at the Shen he was squeezing in his hands. ¡°Leave him alive for now?¡± Fu Li stared at the wrist in Zhuang Qing¡¯s grip and took a deep breath. He turned and nced at the illusion that was the Reflecting Mist Mountain on the surface of the water. With hands that trembled slightly, he took out the vermilion fan from his Qiankun pouch, and gave it a hard p. The illusory animals still in the midst of a merry gathering gradually blurred, as if they would fade at any time. Fu Li closed his eyes, giving the fan another hard p. The illusion on the water¡¯s surface vanished. The great sea was restored to how it ought to look. Zhuang Qing wanted to utter a few words of constion, but after seeing the serene expression Fu Li had after opening his eyes, he suddenly couldn¡¯t say anything. He turned to look at the Shen. ¡°Who was the person who directed you?¡± The Shen shook his head repeatedly, not daring to answer. ¡°Forget it, he won¡¯t say it. I¡¯d better just kill him,¡± The hand squeezing the Shen tightened even more. The Shen shook his earth-colored tail, attempting to struggle free of Fu Li¡¯s hand. But he realized that in Fu Li¡¯s hands, he seemed to be a mere earthworm for whom struggle was impossible. ¡°Daren, let¡¯s talk if you have something to say,¡± The Shen spoke in inurate Standard Mandarin. An unexpected, a slightly fawning expression appeared on its dragon-ish face. ¡°It¡¯s not that this humble one doesn¡¯t want to tell you. This little yao is just concerned about losing his life if he does.¡± As he spoke, he stealthily looked at Zhuang Qing, hoping that Zhuang Qing would understand the hint in his gaze. Sadly, despite him rolling his eyeballs till they nearly fell out, Zhuang Qing merely disyed a cold face without the slightest reaction. Upon seeing this, the Shen gave up all hope. His continuously-struggling tail drooped, and he said weakly, ¡°A few days ago, Dragon Lord Qing Yan of the azure dragon n said that he received a favor from a human. He said that he wanted to repay this human¡¯s kindness, and asked me to help the human find the lover from his previous life.¡± Zhuang Qing narrowed his eyes. ¡°Get to the point!¡± ¡°How can I not help when asked by a Dragon Lord? I followed what the Dragon Lord told me and helped that human to construct several memories in the hope that he will find his previous life¡¯s lover.¡± The Shen swallowed its saliva. Seeing Fu Li¡¯s ugly expression, he corrected himself, ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t particrly approve of romantic rtionships between humans and yao, but since the Dragon Lord requested it, I didn¡¯t dare to go against him. Don¡¯t you think that makes sense?¡± ¡°The azure dragon n again?¡± Fu Li¡¯s face darkened. ¡°That¡¯s why I say there¡¯s nothing good about the dragon race.¡± The Shen silently nced at Zhuang Qing. In fact, he had simr sentiments. Throwing the Shen aside, Fu Li directly dived into the seawater. Zhuang Qing raised his head, looking at the densely-packed ck clouds in the sky. Unable to bear the worry in his heart, he transformed into dragon form, and followed after him. His life saved, the Shen hurriedly shook his tail, swimming as if his life depended on it. He had to put a bit more distance between him and the azure dragon n¡¯s dragon pce, just a bit more. ¡°Dragons fighting dragons ¨C that would be quite the interesting thing,¡± The Shen swam a great distance before creating an illusion on the surface of the sea that would lure petrels. He had suffered a fright, was riddled with injuries all over, and was both tired and hungry. In all likelihood, he was the most miserable Shen in the world. ¡°Aiyo, the scales on my neck fell off,¡± The Shen pped the water and opened his mouth, polishing off several petrels that had dropped into the illusion. He was syed outzily on the surface of water. ¡°Neither side wins in a dogfight. How very interesting.¡± Suddenly, an enormous strange bird flew over. With a p of its wings, he was sent flying into the distance. He stared at the dark sky and wondered dazedly how he had ended up flying. Bang! The Shen fell heavily into the water. His eyes widened as he watched a gigantic bird fish him up from the water. Had he eaten too many petrels, causing a yao cultivator of the bird race to seek revenge against him? Having been pped around consecutively by the bird¡¯s wings, the Sheny submerged in the water in despair. The bird might as well just peck him to death, what was it doing torturing him in such a way? Ai ai ai, don¡¯t grab his tail, it was going to break. In the end, he floated on the surface of the sea, his belly face-down. He wondered somewhat absent-mindedly if he was witnessing thest radiance of the setting sun. Why was he seeing a firebird at sea? Pah! The firebird stepped on his stomach. He sank to the bottom of the sea. Through the seawater, he saw the firebird spread out its wings. As it flew, it turned into a pheasant, vanishing at sea. Among the aquatic races, he was a dragon-resembling Shen, yet he had been bullied by the dragon race. He could turn into a pheasant upon leaving the sea, yet he was also bullied by a pheasant. What sort of worldly logic was this? Should a Shen be bullied without any sense of self-respect? Forget it. In any case, he had preserved his life. Whether he had any self-respect or not was inconsequential. The Shen shook his broken tail, stealthily sinking into the thick fog surrounding the surface of the sea. Fu Li came to a stop in front of the azure dragon n¡¯s barrier. He took his vermilion fan and gave it a wave. Instantly, an enormous crack appeared on the barrier. Seeing an outsider invade, the patrolling shrimp and crab soldiers were just about to sound the rm when they were sent scattering by Fu Li¡¯s fan. He made a beeline for the Crystal Pce¡¯s main door without stopping, and kicked the door with a leg. The pce door responded by copsing. The female yao cultivators ying inside squealed one by one as they morphed into their original forms, hiding behind pirs or coral rocks. Sticking out their heads, they secretly watched Fu Li. ¡°Who is trespassing on my azure dragon pce?¡± Qing Yuan rushed out, weapon in hand. But his footsteps came to a halt the instant he saw Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s you?¡± Fu Li squinted as he sized up Qing Yuan. ¡°You¡¯re not a match for me, scram.¡± Qing Yuan¡¯s hands shook from anger. ¡°Fu Li, you better not be too much of a bully.¡± ¡°Hah,¡± Fu Li waved the fan at him. Qing Yuan mmed against coral stone and spat out a huge mouth of dirty blood. Fu Li cocked his head, staring at him with eyes brimming with killing intent. ¡°I¡¯ve tolerated all of you for two thousand years, but you insist on bringing up past affairs. Your azure dragon n may have forgotten Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s one hundred lives, but I haven¡¯t.¡± Qing Yuan clutched his chest as he spat outrge mouths of blood. Reflecting Mist Mountain? A hundred lives? What madness was Fu Li going on about? ¡°Elder Qing Yuan, are you all right?¡± A jellyfish yao in its human form supported Qing Yuan, asking somewhat fearfully, ¡°What does this yao want to do?¡± He had seen this yao the other time when the Kunpeng charged into the dragon pce. He seemed to be an employee of the management bureau. Their azure dragon n hadn¡¯t even left the sea in recent times, so why was the management bureau causing trouble for them? Fu Li had no regard for how others viewed him. Fortunately, he was still in possession of some rationality and didn¡¯t engage in a killing spree. The soldiers he encountered on the way were all sent flying to one side. His goal was the dragon pce¡¯s main hall. A dragon came forward to stop him. Without a single word, Fu Li directly waved the fan. Not longter, the dragon pce¡¯s zed roof tiles were blown off, revealing bare eaves. None of the jade artifacts and treasures disyed inside had a good end either ¨C some were sent flying and others were broken; not one was left intact. When the Head of the azure dragon n led soldiers out, Fu Li¡¯s hand was wrapped around a dragon¡¯s horn. Seeing that the Head of the n had appeared, he released the dragon horn, and the dragon hurriedly hid behind the Head. ¡°The arrival of a noble guest at our doors is my n¡¯s fortune. But this daoyou has demonstrated great momentum that may not be very polite,¡± The Head of the azure dragon n gripped the walking stick in his hand tightly. ¡°May I know the reason for this noble guest¡¯s rudeness?¡± ¡°Is it polite for a noble n to make use of the Shen yao to scheme against me?¡± Fu Li pointed the vermilion fan at the dragons in front of him. ¡°That year, your azure dragon n made trouble at Weishui and caused countless people to drown to death. Have you forgotten how you made the mothers in the human world weep for their children and the husbands weep for their wives?¡± The Head¡¯s expression underwent a drastic change. The incident two thousand years ago was their azure dragon¡¯s n¡¯s nightmare. Ever since then, the azure dragon n no longer dared to conduct themselves so casually outside. As the azure dragon n¡¯s position among the yao ns rose, virtually no one dared to mention this incident in their presence. Who exactly was this yao who dared to bring up this past matter? ¡°My Reflecting Mist Mountain had close to a hundred yao, and every single one of them perished in the hands of the azure dragons. Today, your azure dragon n actually has the shame to scheme against me with this matter,¡± Fu Li¡¯s grip around the vermilion fan tightened. ¡°I will have a showdown with your azure dragon n today, even if heavenlyw disallows it.¡± The red shade of the vermilion fan in his hands gradually deepened, till it resembled a ming ze. The dragon n didn¡¯t dare to approach. ¡°The Vermilion Bird¡¯s true natal fire...¡± The hands of the Head of the azure dragon n trembled. He spoke to his nsmen in a low voice, ¡°No one is to touch that fan. The fire on it is the bane of our azure dragon n.¡± He looked towards Fu Li and attempted to resolve this grudge. ¡°It was indeed our azure dragon n who was at fault two thousand years ago. But that year¡¯s events have passed. Our azure dragon n has also paid a price and was taught a lesson. I implore this daoyou to show leniency.¡± ¡°Since you were taught a lesson, then why did your azure dragon n still collude with the Shen?¡± Fu Liughed icily. ¡°I know your race was born arrogant, but the world contains a great number of creatures. Not everything will be within your calctions.¡± ¡°I was the one who did it, it has nothing to do with the other dragons,¡± Qing Yan, who had yet to recover from his old injuries, walked out from the back. He stood in front of all the azure dragons. ¡°I was just helping daoyou to find the person you once had an affinity with, why the anger?¡± Fu Li observed Qing Yan¡¯s perfunctory demeanor and thought of all the yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain. His eyes gradually turned a shade of gold. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t been weak and fearful of death that year, the yao cultivators on Reflecting Mist Mountain wouldn¡¯t be used by you azure dragons two thousand years after their death.¡± Heavenlyw? Benevolence? Order in the world? What did all that have to do with him? A long, bestial mark appeared on Fu Li¡¯s forehead as he attacked Qing Yan with the fan. The situation prompted the Head of the azure dragon n to transform into dragon form and move forward to lend Qing Yan a hand. Forcibly tearing open a passage connecting the human world and underworld, destroying the illusion weaved by the Shen, and the continuous fighting he had engaged in all the way from the dragon pce¡¯s main entrance had already consumed a considerable amount of Fu Li¡¯s spiritual strength. But at this moment, he battled the two azure dragons as if fatigue and pain was alien to him. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing saw an azure dragon bite Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. He broke into a run, transformed into a dragon, and shoved the azure dragon aside. However, Fu Li paid no heed to the wound on his shoulder. Waving the raging inferno that was the fan, he aimed it at the heads of the azure dragons. Zhuang Qing felt that there was something not quite right with Fu Li. He seemed to have experienced qi deviation. Startled, he tried to stop Fu Li, but was grabbed by the horns instead. ¡°Don¡¯t get in my way,¡± Fu Li¡¯s golden pupils contained no emotion. Dark golden bestial marks covered his entire face. Zhuang Qing stared nkly. In the past, even if Fu Li was unhappy, the most he would do wasin a few times. All he had in his mind was getting into university and bing a civil servant. His temper was mild and he was easy to talk to. But not only did this golden-eyed Fu Li give off thick yao qi, his entire person exuded an air of cruelty. His current stance strongly resembled the Zhuyan and Oujiang. He was cold and made light of life. To the extent that he... burned with murderous spirit. Rumble! A sudden p of thunder sounded in the sky. The sound of thunder traversed the great sea, entering the dragon pce. Remembering the devastation Oujiang had suffered, Zhuang Qing intended to stop Fu Li. But he then caught sight of two dragons mounting a sneak attack on Fu Li. With a swing of his tail, he chased away the two dragons. ¡°Zhuang Qing!¡± Qing Yuan walked in from outside, a hand clutching his chest. ¡°This yao cultivator wants to annihte our dragon n, and you actually helped him. Are you in the same boat as him?¡± Zhuang Qing was on guard against the azure dragons crowding around him. ¡°The azure dragon n has vited the management bureau¡¯s rules. It is very normal for there to be some conflict when my colleague and I investigate.¡± Roar! Fu Li, who was currently embroiled in a fierce battle with the Head of the azure dragon n and Qing Yan, suddenly transformed into his original form. He opened his mouth, let out a long roar, and bit into Qing Yan¡¯s back. Thick dragon blood flowed along his mouth, streaming into Fu Li¡¯s throat. Its sweetness and fragrance awakened the hunger in Fu Li¡¯s heart. Swallowing the fresh blood in his mouth, Fu Li took a few more bites, the blood staining his white fur red. ¡°H-He swallowed Elder Qing Yan¡¯s flesh,¡± Fear rendered a jellyfish yao unable to even formplete sentences. ¡°A r-rabbit... ate a dragon.¡± Roar! Fu Li¡¯s body was dyed red by dragon¡¯s blood. His eyes had already turned golden-red. Hearing the jellyfish yao¡¯s shriek, he twisted his head towards the jellyfish yao and let loose a roar. Dragon blood dripped out of his mouth. The jellyfish was so frightened that its entire body broke out into trembles. Its buttocks plopped onto the ground, both hands propping it up from the ground. Kicking its legs, it shrank back. He was clearly just a tiny rabbit yao, but why was he so frightening? As if... as if he could swallow it any moment. Rumble. Rumble. Another two ps of thunder sounded in the sky. Fu Li paid no attention to the jellyfish yao and continued biting the flesh on Qing Yan¡¯s tail as Qing Yan issued pained howls. Yet, Fu Li didn¡¯t seem to have heard all these. All he did was mechanically open his mouth and tear at the flesh. Soon, an enormous bloody hole appeared in Qing Yan¡¯s dragon tail. After consuming his first bite of dragon flesh, Fu Li felt as if his entire body was brimming with power. A voice in the deepest recesses of his heart was telling him to eat the dragon, to make sure that he ate the dragon. He was originally born to eat dragons. Born to... eat dragons? ¡°King Ganglie, can dragon flesh be eaten?¡± ¡°Dragons are simr to the Feiyi who scared you ¨C both are furless, smooth-skinned creatures. They definitely don¡¯t taste good. They soak in the water all day long; their flesh could be fishy for all we know.¡± King Ganglie had lied to him. Dragon flesh was clearly delicious. It was fragrant, tender, tasty, and even contained plenty of spiritual qi. ¡°We might have been born yao, but we must not recklessly harm living things. More importantly, we must never eat yao with intelligence. The moment we do so, we will never be able to turn back.¡± ¡°What if I ate it by ident?¡± The mouth tearing into dragon flesh paused. Fu Li¡¯s eyes appeared red yet golden. His front ws pressing against the dragon couldn¡¯t stop trembling. ¡°Little Fu Li, none of the yao cultivators on Reflecting Mist Mountain eat indiscriminately.¡± ¡°Then what if I ate it?¡± ¡°If you ate it...¡± ¡°If you ate it... stay far away from us. Don¡¯t ever return to Reflecting Mist Mountain. Don¡¯t let us know.¡± Reflecting Mist Mountain could never be returned to. This had been the case a long time ago. The gold in Fu Li¡¯s eyes gradually dimmed. The color of red filled his eyes. Why leave such an evil dragon n alive? Eat them, eat them! Despite Qing Yan¡¯s pained howls, no dragon dared to approach Fu Li. Because the red light emanating from Fu Li¡¯s body made any dragon that approached feel like they were being roasted alive by an inferno, their soul ripped apart. Rumble rumble rumble! Nine ps of thunder sounded consecutively in the sky. The glow of thunder could be seen from the dragon pce. ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form. Bit by bit, he approached the red light. The glow of the red light turned his entire body a deep red. He felt hot all over, as if he was a person made of fire. Rumble! A purple bolt of lightning broke through theyers of clouds, and prated the great sea towards the azure dragon pce. This bolt of lightning flooded the entire area in the sea with light, as if it was daytime. Zhuang Qing reached out and finally grabbed hold of the blood-red rabbit ears. ¡°Do you still want to be a civil servant?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s palmnded smack on the rabbit¡¯s head, causing the rabbit to kick its legs out. Thunder and lightning flickered. Lightning struck, illuminating the rabbit¡¯s golden eyes. Ilyz: QAQ Chapter 54 - Ghost Ship

Chapter 54 - Ghost Ship

Everyone was in a state of stupefaction the moment the lightning struck, as if they were witnessing the end of the world. Zhuang Qing threw out the divine sword in his hands, attempting to block the lightning. While his de blocked the first bolt, it couldn¡¯t do the same for the second. In a moment of desperation, he shoved the bloody rabbit into his coat. Lightning approached. The moment it was about to strike Zhuang Qing, it split into two. One halfnded on Zhuang Qing, and the other halfnded on Qing Yan, who was lying motionlessly on the ground. The instant the lightning struck Zhuang Qing, he let out a smothered groan and bent over, shielding the rabbit that his arms nearly couldn¡¯t contain. ¡°Stop moving around recklessly. I¡¯m the darling of heavenlyw, but you¡¯re not.¡± Zhuang Qing kept Fu Li firmly pressed down. Concentrating spiritual qi at his eyes, he looked beyond the ck seawater and looked up at the blue dome of the sky. There, ck clouds were seething. There were flickerings of what seemed like thunder and lightning, as if a fresh bout of heavenly lightning was brewing. ¡°When we return, you won¡¯t only lose this month¡¯s wages, but the entire year¡¯s,¡± Zhuang Qing gripped the two ears, snorting coldly. ¡°Stop randomly kicking your legs. Be good and stay still, otherwise I¡¯ll include in your record that your performance wasn¡¯t up to par.¡± Not too far from the two people, Qing Yan was struggling in pain. Despite this, the surrounding azure dragons didn¡¯t dare to approach him for fear of the heavenly lightning. The third bolt of lightning struck, though it seemed considerably smaller than the previous one. Its power had also weakened. If the heavenly lightning that struck Oujiang was the size of an elephant¡¯s leg, this would be a needle inparison. Even then, the power contained in heavenly lightning was still something to dread. Nine bolts of heavenly lightningnded consecutively. Every bolt was split into two ¨C one halfnded on Zhuang Qing, while the other halfnded on Qing Yan. Qing Yan¡¯s lower half was already charred; even making hisses of pain was beyond him. Zhuang Qing fished Fu Li out of his embrace and threw him to the side. Sweat covered his pale face. His body swayed a little as he shed a cold smile at Fu Li. ¡°I might have owed you in my previous life.¡± If not, why had he stuffed him into his embrace and protected him? He didn¡¯t seem to be in his right mind? The Head of the azure dragon n watched Qing Yan twitch on the ground, on the brink of death. The gaze he directed at the sky was filled with fear. Transforming into his human form, he walked to Fu Li and extended trembling hands as he bowed. ¡°Today¡¯s matter was caused by my azure dragon n. Qing Yan has been severely injured and heavenlyw is enraged. If Fu daoyou is to continue battling with us, it will be detrimental to both sides. I implore Fu daoyou to be magnanimous.¡± ¡°n Head!¡± Unreconciled expressions appeared on the faces of the other azure dragons upon seeing the Head of their n lower his head to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. ¡°Shut your mouths!¡± The individual who berated the azure dragons wasn¡¯t the Head of the n, but the azure dragon n¡¯s great elder, who had not left the pce in 1900 years. His entirely-white hair betrayed his elderly status. Refusing the support of the other azure dragons, he trembled as he made his way to the rabbit whose fur was still red. He raised both hands, offering a deep greeting. The fear on his face nearly couldn¡¯t be suppressed. ¡°This junior was rude and angered senior, may senior please forgive me.¡± ¡°Great elder?¡± The Head of the azure dragon n hadn¡¯t expected the great elder to appear and wasn¡¯t in time to suppress the amazement that appeared on his face. ¡°Why did youe out?¡± That year, their azure dragon n had been embroiled in a fight with Weishui¡¯s yao cultivators. Via the Thousand Mile Sound Transmission, they had conveyed that they weren¡¯t able to beat the other party. Therefore, their n had dispatched a few more nsmen to provide assistance. Yet, not only were they unable to rescue any nsmen, the azure dragons who rushed over were either killed or injured. The only dragon who had lived through that experience and was still alive today was the great elder. The great elder wasn¡¯t willing to mention that year¡¯s matter in front of them and had merely added an extra n rule ¨C for them not to rashly provoke yao cultivators who seemed ordinary yet had immense courage. The n Head shifted his line of sight to the rabbit syed on the ground, his expression distant. ¡°Who are you?¡± Fu Li turned into his human form. He reached out to support Zhuang Qing but was pushed aside with resentment. He reached out his hands once more. Zhuang Qing nced at him silently, but no longer pushed Fu Li away. The great elder looked at the youth in front of him and thought of the incident that had urred more than 1900 years ago. At that time, he had been proud and arrogant. Despite not having undergone his final transformation, he was the most outstanding dragon among the younger generation. Thus, he had gone with the other dragons to ¡®resist the enemy¡¯. But when they reached the destination, they were beaten into the ground before even getting a clear glimpse of the enemy¡¯s appearance. After a sudden wave of lightning, the enemy vanished, leaving them injured and tired. Just as they thought that the incident was over, a rabbit yao jumped out of the underbrush. A dragon who was in a bad mood mocked the rabbit yao a few times. Who would have expected that rabbit to possess an iparable savageness? The rabbit went all-out in the way it fought, as if it wanted to take them down with it. The grand dragon race had never expected for there toe a day when they would suffer defeat at the hands of a rabbit. Hearing the blood-curdling screams of his nmates, the young great elder had been so frightened that trembles wracked his entire body. Only when death approached did he realize just how much he feared death. ¡°You...¡± An icy-cold dey against his neck. An approximately eighteen year old youth stood before him. The white brocade gown he wore was stained with the blood of the dragon race, resembling red plums blossoming in the midst of snow. It was a sight unrivaled in its beauty. ¡°I don¡¯t kill the young,¡± The youth withdrew his sword and shattered his dragon horns with a wave of a palm. ¡°Scram.¡± By the time he came to his senses, the Wei River was already filled with the azure dragons¡¯ floating corpses. He flew into the sky in a state of hysteria and discovered that the lower reaches of the Wei River was covered in floating human and animal corpses. A child wailed loudly as it floated in a wooden basin. A woman floating on the water was still cradling a child. The sounds of weeping and resentment drifted into the horizons. From his hiding spot in the clouds, he saw an olddy point to the sky with hatred, resentment rolling off her entire body. ¡°Heaven, you¡¯re blind!¡± The woman plunged into the river filled with floating corpses. Only when the river¡¯s waters reached the top of her head did her hatred-filled eyes close. ¡°The azure dragon n was deeply wrong that year, which was why the azure dragon n dared notin after losing twenty-six dragon lives at the Wei River,¡± The great elder smiled bitterly. ¡°If not for senior¡¯s magnanimity that year, this humble one¡¯s life would also have been lost at the Wei River.¡± Given that year¡¯s circumstances, the vicissitudes of life and death could no longer be clearly resolved. After returning to the dragon pce, he remembered the floating mass of red corpses as well as the olddy¡¯s resentful eyes, and never left the dragon pce again. ¡°It¡¯s you,¡± Fu Li remembered the shivering, young dragon from that year. He took another nce at the doddering great elder in front of him. ¡°Do less evil in your daily life, otherwise you¡¯ll age rapidly.¡± ¡°You!¡± An azure dragon wanted to retort, but was held back by the great elder. ¡°Senior,¡± The great elder raised his sped hands to Fu Li in a show of deep respect. ¡°This humble one didn¡¯t control my juniors well, that is the fault of this humble one. Two thousand years has already gone by since that incident. I beseech senior to let it go.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm hurt a little from Fu Li¡¯s grip, but he didn¡¯t say a single word. ¡°The lesson Qing Yan received today was brought on by his own actions. But the heavenlyw of today favors the human race, how could it tolerate senior¡¯s wanton ughtering?¡± A pained look appeared on the great elder¡¯s aged face. ¡°This humble one swears on this day with heavenlyw as the witness ¨C if my n¡¯s dragons dare to scheme against senior once more, this humble one will personally discipline them without the need for senior to take action. Should I vite this oath, let me suffer the pain of having my ashes scattered by nine bolts of lightning.¡± Fu Liughed coldly. ¡°Only twenty-six dragons from your dragon n died. Who willpensate the Wei River¡¯s tens of millions of life forms?¡± ¡°Senior...¡± ¡°Stop your hypocritical behavior,¡± Fu Li pointed the vermilion fan at the great elder. ¡°Don¡¯t let me see anyone from your azure dragon n again.¡± He lowered his head and saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s deathly paleplexion. No longer in the mood to spout rubbish with the azure dragon n, he told Zhuang Qing. ¡°Wait for me.¡± He walked over to Qing Yan, who was on hisst breath. Qing Yan watched him, his gigantic dragon body trembling. ¡°Tsk,¡± Fu Li brushed past him and picked up the sword that was scorched ck by lightning. He returned to Zhuang Qing¡¯s side. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± He pulled Zhuang Qing by the arm and flew out of the dragon pce. ¡°Great elder, are we going to just let him leave like that?¡± An azure dragon was not resigned. ¡°If this matter were to circte, what face would our azure dragon n still have?¡± ¡°No one is to leak today¡¯s affairs,¡± The great elder looked down at Qing Yan, who was lying on the ground. ¡°Bring him in for treatment. In the future, without my order, Qing Yan will not be allowed to take one step out of the dragon pce.¡± ¡°Great elder,¡± The Head called after the great elder. ¡°That yao cultivator called Fu Li, what exactly are his origins?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t make out his cultivation base,¡± The great elder voiced this embarrassing matter. ¡°That year, at the bank of the Wei River, my life should have ended under his sword. But he spared my life. How many has our azure dragon n lost after that incident? How many dragons do our azure dragon n have today? Can we still bear such a loss?¡± The Head of the n sunk into silence. He nced at the already-fainted Qing Yan and shook his head, sighing. ¡°We should not have allowed Qing Yan to have the thought of bing the dragon of national fate that year. If not for those incidents that year, many of these things wouldn¡¯t have happened.¡± The great elder remained silent for a moment. His face revealed an expression of contemtion. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Fu Li pulled Zhuang Qing out of the sea. His entire body was covered in wounds. The branded top and suit he was wearing was in even shabbier condition. The flesh on his back was visible, certain parts of which had been burnt ck by the lightning. ¡°I won¡¯t die,¡± Zhuang Qing looked down at his tattered suit. ¡°This coat was thetest piece custom-made for this year¡¯s autumn festival. I¡¯d nned on wearing it a few dayster to an evening charity party.¡± ¡°With this degree of injuries, there are better things to care about than clothes,¡± Fu Li took out a palm-sized ark from his Qiankun pouch. He flung the ark onto the surface of the water and the ark turned into an exquisitely decorated ship. There were tables, chairs, and even soft couches inside. ¡°Lie on the soft couch,¡± Fu Li leaped onto the decorated ship with Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing looked suspiciously at Fu Li. ¡°What do you want to do?¡± ¡°What else can I be doing?¡± Fu Li pressed Zhuang Qing onto the bed and tore off the clothes on his upper body, revealing his bare abdominal muscles and back. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing pushed Fu Li away and sat up. ¡°Are you crazy?!¡± ¡°Stop messing around, be good and lie down,¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s head and pressed him back down. He took out a bottle of medicine from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°Your injuries are very severe.¡± The ointment applied on his wounds brought with it afortable coolness. Zhuang Qingy syed out on the bed, no longer moving. The injuries were too deep and numerous in number. One bottle of ointment wasn¡¯t enough at all, so Fu Li took out another bottle. ¡°Just now, thank you for that.¡± He, a yao who had lived for more than four thousand years, had actually been protected by an underaged dragon. He was both moved yet embarrassed by such a thing. Any words of gratitude would only pale inparison. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to save you either,¡± Zhuang Qing snorted coldly. ¡°But it would be too embarrassing if other people found out that an employee of my management bureau was struck to death by heavenly lightning.¡± Medicine was applied to his back, neck, and arms. It was unknown what medicinal nts this spiritual medicine was made out of, but the wounds started healing not long after application. Fu Li gently patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s buttocks. ¡°Come, take off your pants.¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly turned around and stared at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li was confused by his stare. ¡°You don¡¯t wear clothes in dragon form either, what¡¯s there to be shy about?¡± ¡°Old Fu yao, did you forget that the blood in my veins is half human?¡± Zhuang Qing gnashed his teeth. ¡°Us humans don¡¯t have the habit of stripping naked in front of outsiders!¡± ¡°Then you cover your front, I¡¯ll help you apply the medicine on your butt,¡± Fu Li took out the third bottle of ointment. ¡°You can do the front yourself.¡± ¡°Scram!¡± Zhuang Qing reached the end of his patience. He snatched the bottle of ointment from Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°I¡¯ll apply it myself!¡± ¡°Sure sure sure. You¡¯re the boss and my savior, what you say goes,¡± Fu Li ced an extra bottle of ointment in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. He stood up and let down the cotton curtains inside. Standing outside the cotton curtains, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you outside.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the figure outside the curtain and slowly peeled off his pants. Blood and flesh were indistinguishable, bringing with it the unpleasant reek of blood. He expressionlessly waved a hand, washing off the blood on his legs, before applying the medicinal ointment onto his wounds bit by bit. ¡°Fu Li, you were right.¡± The figure outside shifted. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You might really not be a normal rabbit?¡± Zhuang Qing recalled the golden bestial marks on Fu Li¡¯s face when he nearly experienced qi deviation, as well as his ruthlessness when biting into Qing Yan¡¯s flesh. His brows furrowed. Swiftly applying the medicine, he manifested a set of clothes using his original form¡¯s scales and then lifted the curtain, walking out. ¡°I forgot something very important,¡± He manifested toothpaste and a toothbrush out of nothing. ¡°Brush your teeth!¡± Fu Li¡¯s face fell a little. epting the toothpaste and toothbrush, he started brushing his teeth. ¡°Do you know the amount of bacteria and parasites inside raw meat?¡± Zhuang Qing handed a cup of water to him. ¡°Even daring to eat any random thing, did our management bureau¡¯s dining hall decrease your food?¡± Fu Liy sprawled on the side of the ship. He spat out the foam in his mouth, drank a mouth of water, and continued rinsing his mouth. He turned towards Zhuang Qing, his eyes brightening. ¡°Dragon meat seems quite tasty.¡± Zhuang Qing touched his arm. ¡°Rabbit meat is also very delicious.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that I¡¯m not a rabbit?¡± Fu Li continued rinsing his mouth. ¡°Just because you¡¯re not an ordinary rabbit doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re not a rabbit.¡± Seeing that Fu Li was about to keep the toothbrush, Zhuang Qing said with furrowed brows, ¡°Brush another time.¡± Fu Li¡¯s lips parted. Zhuang Qing pulled up his sleeves, revealing the scars on his wrist that hadn¡¯t fully vanished. Fu Li... Fu Li obediently squeezed out toothpaste with a guilty conscience and continued brushing his teeth. A distance away on the sea, a pirate put down his binocrs, rubbing his eyes in disbelief. Then, he picked up the binocrs again and continued to look through it. ¡°G-Ghost ship?¡± This area of the sea was the rumored supernatural zone. Many cargo ships had disappeared at this ce recently, so ghost stories had circted over time. In reality, no such supernatural incidents had urred. It was them who had deliberately spread this rumor after robbing those cargo ships. ¡°What ghost ship? This is the era of science and technology; only fools would believe such things,¡± The captain pped a palm on the pirate¡¯s head. ¡°Keep a close eye on the sea, watch out for any fat fish we cany our hands on.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that, captain. There really is a ghost ship.¡± The pirate pointed ahead. ¡°Quick, look!¡± The captain held up the binocrs hanging at his chest. Sure enough, he discovered a strange ship on the surface of the water. Compared to their pirate ship that was disguised as a merchant ship, the seemingly wooden, two-storied ship was much smaller and weaker. How could a wooden ship float this far at sea? Wouldn¡¯t any random wave or gale smash the ship into bits and pieces? Also, why did it not show up on their radars? Were they really seeing ghosts? ¡°En?¡± Fu Li turned his head abruptly and set up a barrier around the ship. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Humans are peeking at us,¡± Fu Li looked into the distance. ¡°They don¡¯t seem to be good people.¡± ¡°V-Vanished?¡± Fright prevented the pirate from even formingplete sentences. He stammered as he ced down the binocrs. ¡°Q-Quick, turn the ship around.¡± ¡°Captain, we¡¯ve lost control of the ship,¡± The helmsman was crying in his heart. He watched the various instruments on the ship go wild, and copsed on the ground, covering his head. ¡°We¡¯re done for, done for.¡± He hadn¡¯t drank the most expensive wine, held the most beautiful women, and eaten the most delicious food, how could he die at the deste sea? However, none of their despair or fear was any use. As if alive, their ship steadily traveled along a certain route, till it met face to face with a military vessel. Did the current sea ghosts even pay careful attention to the legality of their methods? What other oue could the pirate ship have after bumping into the military vessel? ¡°Captain,¡± The helmsman sat paralyzed on the deck in despair. ¡°Let¡¯s learn how to sing . For better or worse, we can still participate in the prison¡¯s internal cultural performances.¡± ¡°Perform your ass. Laozi¡¯s tone deaf, who¡¯s going to listen to my singing? Still not escaping?!¡± The captain dragged the helmsman away and prepared to operate the ship himself. But no matter which button he pressed, there was not the slightest reaction from the various buttons in the operations room, as if they were out of order. ¡°F*ck!¡± The captain fiercely kicked the control room¡¯s main door. He had traveled the sea unhindered for ten years, yet it was the supernatural that led to his downfall. If he had known things would end up like this, he wouldn¡¯t have said inauspicious things and got people to fervently spread that that area of the sea was haunted. This time, ghosts had really been summoned. Fortunately, the military vessel had spotted the merchant ship from afar. When they received no response after sending a signal to the other party, they increased their speed. Upon approach, the ship was motionless. The few sailors trapped on the deck watched the ship slowly approach them. Not only did they not exhibit any joy at being rescued, their faces were even filled with fright. Those on the military vessel instantly understood that there was something off about the people on the merchant ship. These people were captured and then investigated. In the end, it was found that they were an infamous, vicious pirate gang. A few countries had recently joined hands to capture them on international waters. Now that they were so easily captured, there was a feeling that these people had been picked up for free. A navy officer brimming with righteousness listened to the pirates jabbering about ghosts and whatnot. ¡°You guys must have done too many bad deeds, so ghosts live in your hearts.¡± Those who were upright would not fear nted reflections; what was scariest in the world was not ghosts, but a human heart with no baseline. Zhuang Qing looked on coldly as Fu Li used magic to maneuver the pirate ship right into the trap. Turning, he leaned against the railing and looked at the clouds in the distance. The night was about to descend. He had once thought that the differences between Fu Li¡¯s original form and rabbits were a result of normal variations. But at this point, he had already changed his previous way of thinking. Rabbits should possess an innate fear towards the dragon race. No matter how profound their cultivation and how little they feared Dragon Might, it was impossible for them to eat dragon meat upon losing rationality So... what was he? He had read so many ancient texts and materials in the human imperial pce, and there had never been a description of a creature that matched Fu Li. ¡°What are you looking at me for?¡± Fu Li watched the sea pirates being taken away with a heart full of satisfaction. When he turned, he saw that Zhuang Qing was staring at him. Thinking that he had suffered internal injuries, he ced a hand against his wrist. His face very quickly sank. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say that you have internal injuries? Didn¡¯t I tell you early on that this is a crucial period for you since you¡¯ll be undergoing your final transformation?!¡± As he spoke, he found a vitality-replenishing pill in his Qiankun pouch and stuffed it into Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°Didn¡¯t I give you a bottle of vitality-replenishing medicine? Why didn¡¯t you eat it?¡± The corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips moved. He remained silent. If he ate a pill worth several millions for this small injury, he would not only suffer internal injuries, but also injuries to his heart. He was made to swallow three pills. I ate six to seven million worth of pills in one mouth, thought Zhuang Qing. If that amount was exchanged for spiritual rice, it would be enough for him to eat for a very long time. ¡°The sky¡¯s dark,¡± After swallowing the medicinal pills, Zhuang Qing¡¯s expressionless face became even colder. ¡°Are we going to sit the entire night on this decorative boat?¡± He was not considerate by nature, but seeing Fu Li act as if nothing had happened and knowing of the past grievances between him and the azure dragon n, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to ask the question out loud. As the leader of the management bureau, he ought to get to the bottom of the matter if he became aware of a fight between an employee and other yao cultivators. That would only be in ordance with staff rules. It was now already past work hours. Even as the leader, he shouldn¡¯t take up an employee¡¯s rest time. This matter... he would leave it for the time being. And maybe longer. ¡°Want to fish?¡± Fu Li passed Zhuang Qing a fishing rod. He took out a box of fish bait from a drawer below. ¡°My fishing skills are quite good.¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li smoothly take out the fishing rod and fish bait. Twisting his head, he nced at the decorative boat. It seemed that Fu Li had also done this in the past. He pulled open the drawer. There were quite a few fish baits inside. Perhaps the yao who had fished with Fu Li at that time were not few in number. As a dragon, eating fish was a matter of just opening his mouth. What need was there for such an inefficient and boring way of fishing? Half an hourter, Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li¡¯s bucketful of fish before looking down at his own empty bucket. His face was as frosty as December snow. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious, it¡¯s always like this when starting out,¡± Fu Li picked up his bucket and poured half of it into Zhuang Qing¡¯s bucket. ¡°With the fish I gave you as padding, you¡¯ll hook one soon.¡± Zhuang Qing nced down at the fishes whose tails were iling about in the bucket. The water flicked by the fish tails sshed onto his face. He wiped the water on his face. ¡°What are you so anxious for? Whether or not I hook any isn¡¯t important.¡± Another half hour passed. Zhuang Qing pulled up the fishing rod. A fat andrge fish dangled from it. He nced from the corner of his eyes at the two buckets of fish. The tips of his brows hooked up. The fish he had just hooked was currently thergest. Ilyz: someone had their tofu eaten~ Chapter 55 - Imagination Running Wild

Chapter 55 - Imagination Running Wild

The management bureau¡¯smunications team couldn¡¯t voice the bitterness in their hearts. The moment dawn broke, the media started creating fanfare about pirates encountering a ghost ship, and how the sea pirates¡¯ ship had gone out of order, proactively delivering the pirates to a military vessel for capture. The marketing ounts of these media outlets made this im with a lot of solemnity and sincerity ¨C the vivid writing and precise depictions forcibly concocted a stimting, supernatural story about how karma would always catch up. A meddlesome reporter proposed an interview with the captured sea pirates, but was rejected by the police. Following that, the reporter weaved an even more bizarre story about how the ghosts had frightened the sea pirates till they were in delirium and thus unable to ept interviews with reporters. Although manyizens felt that these reports were unreliable, ncing through suspenseful and stimting news articles when bored at work or school could still lift everyone¡¯s spirits quite a bit. Netizen A says: Sea ghosts are reallyw-abiding. They didn¡¯t scare these sea pirates to death or eat them. Instead, they let them bump into a military vessel. Aren¡¯t they just seeking out the military when in trouble? Netizen B¡¯s reply: Ghosts were also once humans, maybe this ghost was aw-abiding human when alive? Netizens had always had both cute and wild imaginations. After much discussion, there was actually still someone who developed sincere affection for this legendary ghost. This person drew the ghost a cute picture andposed a warm and adorable story. Perhaps the ghost was a soldier who died at sea in a war one hundred years ago. Even if his soul was adrift at sea, he still wanted to protect the civilians at sea. Perhaps he was a warrior who performed heroic acts when alive, and stuck to his roots even after death. It didn¡¯t matter whether stories were true or not. What was important was whether it was capable of moving people. An employee of themunications team finished reading the story about a soldier from a time hundreds of years ago turned heroic ghost, and how he protected travelers at sea. The employee was so touched that their eyes had turned red. Sneakily forwarding the story to the cultivators¡¯ forum, the employee took note of the author¡¯s name, and then tipped the author for theiric. ¡°Why are theseizens so good atposing stories?¡± The employee rubbed their red eyes before contacting the relevant department to look into the incident. The answer the employee received was beyond his expectations. He had assumed that this was an ordinary system failure, but the sea pirates really had made a fuss about seeing ghosts. Moreover, it was reported that a professional had checked the instruments after the pirate ship was towed to shore and everything was normal. Had they really encountered a phenomenon surpassing scientific knowledge? Although the team¡¯s employees were very doubtful of this, they were extremely proficient at handling this sort of public opinion. First, they got a popr ount that promoted science on the inte topile several famous historical haunting incidents. Then, they posted the truth behind these incidents, thereby conducting a wave of scientific publicity. Following that, they chose an ount with high credibility to publicly state that something had gone wrong with the pirate ship. Coupled with the effects of the ocean currents, the ship drifted to the military vessel. As for why the sea pirates were making a fuss about having seen ghosts, there were two possibilities ¨C one, they had been adrift at sea for too long and ate food that had gone bad, causing them to hallucinate; two, they were attempting to escape legal punishment by feigning madness. Subsequently, they spread the names of these evil sea pirates, the cargo ships that they had previously looted, and the innocent sailors they had killed. Stunned by the sea pirates¡¯ cruel actions, theizens angrily cursed them repeatedly for having no humanity. The ghost was then forgotten. There was nothing in this world that could not be understood using science. If there was, then they would create the conditions for it to be scientific. ¡°Oh right, I don¡¯t seem to have seen the bosse to work the past two days,¡± Employee A of themunications teammented after settling the public opinion issue on the inte. ¡°The boss will usuallye in person to see how such a thing is handled, but I didn¡¯t even see his shadow the past two days.¡± Employee B shook their head. ¡°He seems to have been injured. A lot of the work was handled by the team leaders and Fu ge the past two days.¡± ¡°Ai, I¡¯m going to ask you something, you¡¯d better not tell the rest,¡± Colleague A shifted closer to colleague B and spoke in a low voice. ¡°Do you feel that Fu ge is particrly well regarded by our bureau¡¯s higher-ups?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because you don¡¯t know that Fu ge saved the lives of many of the higher-ups,¡± Colleague B nced around their surroundings and lowered his voice. ¡°That video of the night of the Ghost Festival ¨C other than the boss, probably no one in the bureau is a match for Fu ge.¡± ¡°What are two talking about together?¡± Zhang Ke walked into the office. He rapped them on the head with the files he was carrying. ¡°Do your job well, don¡¯t gossip.¡± The two people smiled awkwardly. It seemed their words had been heard by Zhang ge. When had his hearing be so good? ¡°Are you two very curious why I can hear what you were talking about?¡± Zhang Ke passed them the files. ¡°For people with high cultivation, seeing a thousand li away and hearing from all directions isn¡¯t a problem. Do you think Fu ge heard those words?¡± ¡°Zhang ge, we were just a bit curious. We didn¡¯t have other intentions,¡± Colleague A looked around nervously, scared that Fu Li would suddenly appear. ¡°Given how high Fu ge¡¯s cultivation base is, it¡¯s inevitable for everyone to be a bit curious.¡± ¡°The elders have a saying ¨C curiosity kills the cat,¡± Zhang Ke spread out both arms, one arm resting on each of their shoulders. ¡°There¡¯s another saying ¨C you will get the short end of the stick if you don¡¯t listen to the words of elders. Understand?¡± Both of them nodded repeatedly. Even if they didn¡¯t understand, they had to understand it. ¡°Okay, you guys can consult Fu ge if there¡¯s anything cultivation-rted you don¡¯t understand,¡± Zhang Ke stopped teasing them. ¡°Other things shouldn¡¯t be talked about. This file contains thetest inte safety regtions, read through it thoroughly.¡± Seeing that Zhang Ke didn¡¯t intend on continuing to pursue the matter, the two people heaved a sigh of relief. When they looked at the thick safety regtions file, they unexpectedly had a strange mindset of dly enduring it. Zhang Ke walked out of the office with satisfaction. These youngsters wouldn¡¯t know what was good for them without some scaring. But it wasn¡¯t like Fu ge would have the leisure to listen to their conversation. He had run into some sort of mishap over thest two days, and not only was his wages deducted till there was almost nothing left, he kept running between the office and the boss¡¯ vi. Fu Li appeared just as Zhang Ke was thinking of him. Zhang Ke had just arrived at the spiral staircase when he saw Fu Li waving for the fruit tree to lower its head, so that he could pick from the top of the tree where the fruits grew best. It was unknown how many years this tree had been nted at this location. Although it didn¡¯t take on a human form, it did have some intelligence. Usually, anyone who attempted to pluck its fruits would be whipped by the tree¡¯s vines. Unexpectedly, Fu ge was actually able to coax it into lowering its head. The brilliant red fruits looked extremely tempting. When Fu Li walked over, Zhang Ke thickened his skin and asked Fu Li for some, but was unexpectedly rejected. The usually generous Fu ge was actually unwilling to even give him one. Had he be stingy from spending too much time with the boss? ¡°I¡¯m bringing these fruits back for Zhuang Qing to eat. If you like them, I¡¯ll pick a few more for you tomorrow,¡± Fu Li took out his handphone and nced at the time. ¡°It¡¯s time to get off work, I¡¯ll leave first.¡± ¡°Fu ge, Fu ge,¡± Zhang ke hurriedly grabbed Fu Li¡¯s arm. ¡°Don¡¯t leave first, I have something I want to ask you.¡± ¡°What?¡± Fu Li took out his handphone and took yet another nce at it. ¡°It¡¯ll be my sect leader¡¯s 150th birthday in a few days. He has always been a huge admirer of you, would you do me the honor ofing to have a simple meal?¡± Zhang Ke wanted to take this chance as well to widen Fu Li¡¯s connections in the cultivation world. In the current society, having many friends would give one an easier time. Mingling with only the boss would just turn him into a local Grandet. ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li readily agreed. Zhang Ke took this chance to stuff the invitation letter into his hand. Public transport didn¡¯t go all the way to Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi, so Fu Li could only alight at an intersection and make his way along a street before walking into the neighborhood. The moment the guard at the gate saw him, he revealed a smile. ¡°Mr Fu, you¡¯re here.¡± ¡°Good afternoon,¡± Fu Li shed a friendly smile at the guard. After he had taken two steps, he nced back at the tform the guard was standing on before casually stamping his feet and walking towards Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi. The management of a high-ss vi had especially good attitudes and would smile to some degree whenever they encountered people. Such an attitude made it such that property owners would willingly fork out far higher property fees than those in other neighborhoods. Hearing the sound of knocking on the door, Zhuang Qing swiftly walked to the door. After pulling open the door, he asked expressionlessly, ¡°Why are you here again?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t we not finished the fish we hookedst night?¡± Fu Li took out the fruits and ced them on a fruit tter at the side table. ¡°The fruits in the bureau look very good; it¡¯s a pity that no one eats them.¡± ¡°Are you here to visit a sick person or to freeload meals?¡± Zhuang Qing was angered just speaking about this. Fu Li said he would cook yesterday afternoon but nearly burned down the entire kitchen. Because of this, the fire rm in the vi rang continuously, involving a bunch of management staff. ¡°Don¡¯t be so harsh,¡± Fu Li was peeling the fruits. ¡°There is no perfect yao in this world, my culinary skills are just a bit poorer...¡± ¡°Are your culinary skills the only aspect that¡¯s a bit poor?¡± Zhuang Qing snatched the peeled fruit from his hands. Bringing it to his mouth, he took a bite out of it before walking towards the kitchen with a snort. Who knew what sin he hadmitted his past life for him to work himself to death managing such a mess. Someone capable of fighting finally came after much difficulty, but even then he couldn¡¯t be worry-free. Despite living for four thousand years, Fu Li couldn¡¯t cook, had terrible handwriting, and was wasteful with money. He practically had no strong points! With practiced motions, Zhuang Qing killed the fish by cutting open its abdomen and then descaled it. He expressionlessly poured hot oil into the wok. Taking care of him? In the end, he was still the one who ate more fish and shrimp than him. Just ying Tetris was enough for him to shriek loudly. That four thousand years he¡¯d lived hadpletely gone down a dog¡¯s stomach. After frying the fish chunks, he ced the fish in front of Fu Li with an unsmiling face. ¡°Pad your stomach with it first.¡± Returning to the kitchen, Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows creased. Was hecking in self-respect? Why did he have to fry him fish chunks before the meal was even done? Was he sick in the head? Braised fish, fish steamed in broth, pickled vegetable fish, fish head with diced hot peppers. The table was covered in fish. With much self-awareness, Fu Li went into the kitchen to scoop the rice and take the chopsticks. After the tableware was properly arranged, Fu Li suddenly thought of something and took out three jade bottles. ¡°For you.¡± The three bottles were neatly ced on the table. Zhuang Qing lowered his eyelids. ¡°Why did you bring more of this back? Didn¡¯t I tell you I don¡¯t need to drink it?¡± ¡°This has to be drunk continuously,¡± Fu Li pushed the bottles towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°The humans nowadays put in too much effort into opening up nature for development, so the quality of spiritual essence isn¡¯t as good as it was before. I can only wrong you by giving you these to drink.¡± Zhuang Qing stared at the spiritual essence in front of him and tried very hard to appear as if he didn¡¯t care. Fu Li nced at him. He pointed at the braised fish in the center. ¡°This fish is really fat, when did I hook such a fish?¡± ¡°Naturally, it was me who hooked it,¡± Zhuang Qing replied expressionlessly. ¡°Don¡¯t talk when you¡¯re eating.¡± Fu Li gave Zhuang Qing a lot of face and polished off a great half of the braised fish. He started chattering again. ¡°With how outstanding you are, there¡¯ll definitely be many females wanting to be your mate when your final transformation is over.¡± ¡°My career hasn¡¯t been fulfilled, what mate?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li from the corner of his eyes. ¡°You have such an inclination?¡± ¡°That girl from Affinity Moon Hotel, and that Fu Si are both quite good,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his chopsticks. ¡°The cultivation world doesn¡¯t oppose human-yao romance now, you can look for them.¡± ¡°Not suitable,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Human lifespans are a short hundred years. It will not be a good match, both for them and me.¡± ¡°So you mean to say that you¡¯ll be with them if their lifespans are suitable?¡± Zhuang Qing stood up expressionlessly. ¡°Wash the dishes after you¡¯re done eating.¡± ¡°I¡¯mying out my reasons for you, not that I want to be with them,¡± Fu Li stood up and tidied the table. ¡°Forget it, it won¡¯t make sense to a minor like you.¡± Zhuang Qing ignored him, his face cold. ¡°That Fu Si doesn¡¯t have any rtion to me either, he was just implicated in a scheme. The moment I removed the Shen¡¯s bubble from his mind, he and I became nothing more than strangers,¡± Fu Li carried the dirty dishes into the kitchen and started washing them. Zhuang Qing looked towards the kitchen, seeing only Fu Li¡¯s back as he tied the apron around him with a lowered head. Zhuang Qing listened to the unknown tune Fu Li was humming as he walked to the study. He took out several ancient texts that contained historical records of the human and cultivation world. In fact, he had long since read these books countless times to identify the yao descriptions that matched the characteristics of Fu Li¡¯s original form. In human mythology, the book was most widely circted. It was difficult to tell if its content was authentic or a sham. Some were real and some were fake, but there was no yao in the legends that resembled Fu Li. He flipped to a random page, on which was an image so abstract it appeared warped. Zhuang Qing smiled self-mockingly. All that was recorded in this book were things that existed several thousands of years ago. Fu Li was just a more-than-four thousand year old yao, one who had even lived deep in the mountains these few years. How could human records have any information rted to him? He flipped through the yellowed pages of an ancient book bound with thread. This book detailed many interesting stories in the human world that had no basis. The majority of them were fabricated by humans and had little cultural value. This was why they had long died out in the human world, apart from the few in his hands. He flipped to a page. An extremely uninteresting story was recorded on it. During the Xin dynasty, a physician encountered a rabbit who was carrying a man and spoke humannguage. When the greatly rmed physician came to, he couldn¡¯t tell if it had truly happened or if it was a dream. Xin dynasty... that was approximately the tenth year of the Common Era. This dynasty was a short-lived one in history, and there were extremely few records rted to it. How would it be possible for these phantom stories to be passed down? All those stories about peasants meeting yao and schrs encountering amorous ghosts had long since lost any novelty. Most of them were nothing more than stories fabricated by sour schrs who fantasized about having an encounter with a beautiful woman. ¡°Zhuang Qing,¡± Fu Li stood by the door and knocked on the door. ¡°Rest early, don¡¯t forget to drink the spiritual essence. I¡¯ll go back first.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Zhuang Qing took out his handphone. ¡°Turn into your original form.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Fu Li stared nkly. ¡°What do you want to do?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you feel that you were a mysterious rabbit?¡± Zhuang Qing said. ¡°I¡¯ll take a picture and take my time to investigate.¡± Fu Li awkwardly transformed into his original form. Zhuang Qing took photos of him from every angle before carrying the rabbit to the table and properly cing him down on it. ¡°If you stay in your rabbit form, I can lend you the couch in my living room for you to sleep on.¡± ¡°Forget it,¡± Fu Li jumped off the table, turning into his human form. ¡°I still prefer sleeping on a bed.¡± Bang. Fu Li looked at the door that had mercilessly mmed shut behind him. Shrugging his shoulders, he sighed. ¡°Yao in their rebellious stage are really bothersome.¡± Zhuang Qing stood behind the windows and watched Fu Li slowly walk out the neighborhood before pulling the curtains close. When Fu Li reached the entrance of the neighborhood, he discovered quite a few people surrounding the ce. Even the police had rushed to the location. ¡°These scum drunk drivers really just harm others and themselves,¡± Peng Hang took photos of the incident. Lowering his head, he looked at the tform for guards ahead. If not for the tform serving as a momentary obstruction, the drunk driver would have knocked into the guard at the gate. For neighborhoods like these with luxurious vis, there would be at least four guards on duty at every entrance. If a vehicle were to directly knock into them, several human lives could be lost. The forensic scientist who was collecting evidence and taking photos of the scene spoke to Peng Hang. ¡°Captain Peng, looking at the tire marks at the scene, the driver didn¡¯t brake.¡± ¡°Son of a b*tch!¡± Peng Hang cursed lowly. ¡°If you want to die, die on your own. Don¡¯t harm others.¡± ¡°Captain Peng, lower your voice a bit, there are still members of the public around us,¡± The forensic scientist spoke softly. ¡°For better or worse, endure it till we return to the station. You can continue cursing then.¡± Peng Hang took two deep breaths. ¡°What condition is the injured resident in?¡± ¡°ording to the people on the ambnce, the victim has good luck. When the car was heading towards him, he took a tumble for some unfathomable reason and coincidentally evaded the car that was heading towards him. He has an injury on his back from skidding, but it¡¯s not serious.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Beside him, a colleague from the traffic bureau was collecting evidence. The intoxicated driver had already been sent to the hospital. Feeling somewhat jittery, Peng Hang grabbed at his inch-long hair. With a turn of his head, he discovered a familiar silhouette among the crowd of people. He hurriedly squeezed through the crowd and called out to Fu Li. ¡°Mr Fu, you live here?¡± He had still been doing physicalbor at a construction site a few months ago, but he was now already living in a high-ss vi? He must have struck some top prize at the lottery? ¡°Police officer Peng,¡± Fu Li smiled as he greeted Peng Hang. ¡°I live in thepany¡¯s staff dormitory, thepany¡¯s boss lives here.¡± Fu Li could visit the boss at his personal residence not long after joining apany ¨C it seemed he was very highly regarded by his superiors. Peng Hang didn¡¯t know why he had stopped Fu Li either, so now that he was faced with Fu Li¡¯s smile, he felt a bit embarrassed. ¡°An incident happened here just now. Mr Fu should pay attention to safety when walking at night.¡± ¡®Thank you,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°I will remember it.¡± If he knocked into someone else¡¯s car and damaged it, he wouldn¡¯t be able topensate that person. Peng Hang finally finished settling everything at the scene andy down in the car, itching to just fall asleep straight away. He had already been working overtime for more than thirty consecutive hours. All of a sudden, he sat up straight on the chair, scaring the colleagues seated beside him. ¡°Captain Peng, what¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°If you guys saw a ton of people crowded around a certain area, with police officers present at the scene, would you take a few more looks out of curiosity?¡± ¡°Any living person will have some sense of curiosity. Even if they didn¡¯t run over and join in the excitement, they would still give it a few nces, right?¡± Yes, this was the reaction the majority of the people would have. Even if they didn¡¯t join in the liveliness, they would subconsciously give it a few more nces. He finally understood what was off ¨C Fu Li had zero interest in the car ident from beginning to end. When he spoke to him, he didn¡¯t give the scene a single nce. That young man Fu Li didn¡¯t seem to have a sense of curiosity. The woman who attempted to jump off a building, the python, thendlord, the car ident... Peng Hang touched his arms. This Fu Li seemed a bit unusual. In many cases, someone who spoke too confidently would very easily have their faces pped. The previous night, Fu Li had solemnly vowed that Fu Si was just someone who had been implicated in the scheme. But the next day when he went out to investigate a certain haunted school, he bumped into Fu Si on a flight of stairs. Fu Si was apanied by a group of school leaders. Zhuang Qing was beside Fu Li, and the school headmaster was personally showing them the way. ¡°Chief Zhuang,¡± Fu Si had dealings with Zhuang Qing in the business world, so he amicably shook hands with him. After that, his gazended on Fu Li, an absent-minded look crossing his face for a moment. ¡°This is?¡± ¡°My assistant,¡± Zhuang Qing retracted his hand, his expression icy. Even Fu Li¡¯s name was not introduced. ¡°Chief Zhuang¡¯s assistant looks very familiar, I seem to have seen him somewhere,¡± Fu Si passed his name card to Fu Li. ¡°I hope we will have an opportunity to coborate in the future.¡± Fu Li epted the name card. ¡°It might be because I have amon face.¡± The other people at the side: ... Good looking people often felt secure because they had something to lean back on ¨C despite being good looking, he still imed to be a man with amon face. All these shameless people. ¡°You¡¯re very good at making jokes,¡± Fu Si¡¯s gaze was very gentle. Whenever he directed all his attention at a certain individual, that individual would have the misconception that they were loved. Such a man was very well-liked by both women and men. ¡°Chief Fu, please take your time. We still have something to attend to, so we won¡¯t keep youpany,¡± Zhuang Qing gave Fu Si a small nod. There was a hint of arrogance in his courteous manner. However, given Zhuang Qing¡¯s status in the business world, such an attitude would be perceived as good manners and gracefulness. When people had different statuses, others would interpret their actions differently. ¡°Please,¡± Fu Si took a step to the side. He turned, sending Zhuang Qing and Fu Li up the stairs with his eyes, his gaze glued to Fu Li. Just as Fu Li was about to turn the corner, he came to a halt and nced down, coincidentally meeting Fu Si¡¯s eyes. Fu Si stared nkly, a tinge of confusion and unfamiliarity in his eyes. ¡°Goodbye,¡± Fu Li smiled at Fu Si before catching up to Zhuang Qing. Fu Si opened his mouth. He wanted to reply, but felt a momentary dizziness. When he regained stable footing, he felt slightly dazed. ¡°Your mind should not be wandering during work hours,¡± Zhuang Qing stood outside the rooftop door and lifted his chin. ¡°Open the door.¡± The headmaster took out a silver key and prepared to step forward, but was stopped by Zhuang Qing. ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± He took the silver key from the headmaster¡¯s hands and passed it to Fu Li. ¡°You go.¡± When Fu Li took the silver key, he added another statement, ¡°It won¡¯t be easy for your imagination to run wild when you¡¯re upied.¡± Fu Li: ? Chapter 56 - Rooftop

Chapter 56 - Rooftop

The door to the rooftop swung open. Fu Li couldn¡¯t help rubbing his nose. It was unknown if the rooftop had gone unswept for too long or if some animal had died up there, but there was a stinky smelling from it. ¡°Don¡¯te over first,¡± Fu Li nced back at the headmaster and nodded at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing walked up to the rooftop, where there was undried sewage as well as a thickyer of rust over the railings that bore the brunt of wind and rain all year long. The headmaster stood behind the door, sighing, ¡°This ce hasn¡¯t been used for a long time. For some unknown reason, strange things have continuously been happening recently. Nurturing children isn¡¯t easy, and there were multiple instances of people jumping from the building. The students¡¯ parents aren¡¯t the only ones who are upset, so are we.¡± As the school¡¯s headmaster, he viewed every student in the school as hope for the future. Zhuang Qing nced around before turning to look at Fu Li. Fu Li nodded. ¡°I know what¡¯s the problem,¡± Zhuang Qing walked out onto the rooftop, his shoes grinding the dust beneath. ¡°We¡¯ll settle it at night.¡± ¡°At night?¡± The headmaster replied worriedly. ¡°Doing it in the morning might be a bit safer?¡± Mishaps had urred at the school repeatedly, and alerting the police hadn¡¯t been of any use. Afterwards, the senior leaders had mentioned dispatching staff from the security department or whatnot. That one of them would be the famous boss of Chang Long Biotechnology Company had been out of his expectations. Nowadays, even a rich owner of apany had to hold two jobs simultaneously. They didn¡¯t have it easy either. Although he wanted to resolve the issues urring in the school and prevent the loss of more students¡¯ lives, he didn¡¯t want to implicate innocent people. ¡°Mr Zhuang, this matter isn¡¯t very urgent, why don¡¯t we wait for daytime...¡± ¡°This problem can¡¯t be resolved during the day,¡± Zhuang Qing turned back and beckoned Fu Li over. ¡°What are you doing standing there foolishly?¡± Fu Li came down from the rooftop and asked Zhuang Qing in a low voice, ¡°Why do we have to personally handle such a small thing? What about the rest?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you just happen to be idle?¡± Zhuang Qing leaned his head to the side with some difort. ¡°Familiarize yourself more with your work. You¡¯re new, so you don¡¯t know that there are many things that the management bureau has to do.¡± The headmaster couldn¡¯t apany the two people at all times, so after arranging food and lodging for them, he appointed a teacher to act as their guard, allowing them to familiarize themselves with the schoolyout. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li didn¡¯t intend to allow the teacher to follow them. Thus, after taking down the other party¡¯s phone number, they sent the teacher back to rest, saying that they would call him when night arrived. ¡°So this is what a university is like,¡± Fu Li watched the young humans brimming with enthusiasm beside him. He could sense strong vitality from these young people. From time to time, boys transporting girls on their bicycle would pass by them, causing passersby to reveal envious gazes. Fu Li watched these loving couples pass by with a broad smile. He told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Humans are very interesting.¡± ¡°Is it their emotions or the person that¡¯s interesting?¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li gaze fixedly at a passing student, his head turned in silence. ¡°Captain Z-Zhuang,¡± A very dashing boy rushed in front of Zhuang Qing and bowed. ¡°Did youe to resolve the issue of the haunted campus?¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows wordlessly. Who was this? ¡°This must be senior Fu Li,¡± The boy¡¯s attitude towards Fu Li was even more enthusiastic. ¡°I¡¯ve seen the publicity video. You were beyond cool in the video, truly my idol.¡± ¡°I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Wang Dong, a disciple of Wanyue Sect,¡± The boy smiled sheepishly. ¡°Martial Granduncle and Senior Brother frequently mention you. I can finally meet you today.¡± ¡°I can only me myself for not having learnt well and being unable to handle the problem at school. I know the location of the incidents, I can lead you there at night...¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t the doors to your dormitories closed after eleven o¡¯clock?¡± Fu Li pointed at a dormitory in the distance. A signboard hung on the door to the dormitory, on which the school dormitory rules were written. ¡°Students should attend school properly, there¡¯s no need for you to worry about other things.¡± ¡°No...¡± Wang Dong wanted to say something else, but when he turned his head, he was met with Zhuang Qing¡¯s cold stare. He hurriedly swallowed his words. ¡°Senior is right.¡± ¡°Fu Li!¡± A boy in in and simple attire raced over, his face overflowing with happiness. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°Zhang Peng?¡± Fu Li still remembered this boy. At that time, he had received the management bureau¡¯s prize money for courageously saving this boy from a gas explosion. ¡°That¡¯s me, that¡¯s me.¡± Zhang Peng remembered that Fu Li wanted to enter university by self-studying and asked, ¡°Are you here to sit in on sses?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m just taking a random walk,¡± Fu Li coughed dryly. ¡°You know I haven¡¯t been to university. That¡¯s why I came to take a look.¡± Zhang Peng felt a bit regretful. Thinking that his words may have been inappropriate and made Fu Li unhappy, he hastily said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll apany you.¡± He had sses in the afternoon, but if it was for his savior, then even skipping ss was not an issue. ¡°You should have sses in the afternoon, right?¡± As if discerning the thoughts in his heart, Fu Li said, ¡°I have someone to apany me, don¡¯t worry. Studying means you¡¯ve paid school fees. Not studying is a waste of your parents¡¯ efforts.¡± ¡°O-Okay then,¡± Only then did Zhang Peng notice that there were other people beside Fu Li. He nodded hesitantly. Tearing a piece of paper from his notebook, he wrote down his handphone number and passed it to Fu Li. ¡°This is my handphone number. Call me if there¡¯s anything.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li smiled and epted it. But he was clear in his heart that this number would never be dialed. ¡°Senior, you know our faculty¡¯s top student?¡± Wang Dong was amazed. Given Fu Li¡¯s status as a yao cultivator with profound cultivation, he had thought that Fu Li wouldn¡¯t ever get to know ordinary humans. ¡°En, I used to do physicalbor with his dad at a construction site,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t feel that there was anything wrong with doing physicalbor. ¡°This child¡¯s conduct is quite good. After knowing that I was studying to enter university, he gave me all his notes and textbooks, and even taught me study methods.¡± ¡°University?¡± Wang Dong¡¯s voice increased in volume by several notches. It was already strange enough that such a great yao actually went to do physicalbor for a living, but he even wanted to go to university. This situation was equivalent to a major figure capable of rebelling against an emperor kicking up a huge fuss about wanting to take the imperial exam. No ordinary person could understand the feelings of such an individual. ¡°What about university?¡± ¡°University is good,¡± Wang Dong smiled dryly, pping twice. ¡°Good teachers and students, and many pretty female ssmates...¡± He had heard that Captain Zhuang wasn¡¯t very easy to get along with, but he hadn¡¯t thought that he would be this hard to get along with. Anything he said would receive the other party¡¯s scrutiny. There was clearly nothing to his gaze, yet he was still cowed into silence by his stare. Later on, when Fu Li urged him to go to ss, he said his goodbyes without the slightest hesitation. The world of profound cultivators was too far from him. He¡¯d better study well, otherwise he would have no hope of joining the management bureau in this life. ¡°What exactly were you thinking when you went to do manualbor despite having a pile of treasures on you?¡± Zhuang Qing very much wanted to give Fu Li¡¯s head a shake and find out what was inside. ¡°Everything I have was given to me by other yao cultivators. I want to know if I can survive away from them,¡± Fu Li ced his hands behind his back. His appearance was distinctly youthful, yet he spoke like an old man. ¡°A yao¡¯s life is too long. When withoutpany, one has to learn how to grow on their own.¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips moved, but nothing came out of his mouth. He didn¡¯t know what it was like to live pampered by countless yao cultivators. Since young, he understood one principle ¨C he had to fight for the things he desired. No one would protect him his entire life. Rather than trust others, he should trust himself. Good friends had secretly schemed against him to eat his flesh, his nmates had bullied him, and there had been yao beasts who wanted to eat him. Every single one of them had harbored malicious intentions towards him, but he had also never expected anything good from them. He had to keep a firm hold on things that belonged to him, otherwise they would be snatched by others the moment he turned his head. Soon after, it was time for ss. There were markedly fewer students on the pathways. Fu Li saw that there were still students walking outsidezily and asked curiously, ¡°Don¡¯t they have to attend sses?¡± ¡°They don¡¯t have sses,¡± Zhuang Qing observed Fu Li¡¯s curiosity about everything rted to university. ¡°Study properly when you go back, strive to self-study... and enter school.¡± As for this school¡¯s admission notice... he shouldn¡¯t think about it for the time being. ¡°I haven¡¯t been studying properlytely. I¡¯ll revise after going back,¡± Fu Li turned and looked around a few times. ¡°I might even be a student here in a few years.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... Forget it, it was good to have a dream. The autumn wind was whistling at approximately eleven o¡¯clock that night. All the students had returned to their dormitories. Three school leaders followed behind Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, exposed to the cold wind. They sneezed a couple times. ¡°Are your hearts in good condition?¡± Halfway there, Fu Li took out a bottle of medicine that he had bought from the pharmacy opposite the school gate. ¡°Keep this.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± One of the school leaders epted it in confusion. The six words ¡°Fast-Acting Pills to Save the Heart¡¯ was written on it. He stuffed the bottles into the hands of the colleagues beside him. What sort of nonsense was this? He was a staunch believer of materialism who hated any talk of the supernatural. A blood-curdling scream came from the rooftop. Frightened, a mouse secretly eating in its hiding spot in the rubbish bin shrunk into a ball. A bang resounded, and something heavy fell onto the cement ground. ¡°Another child jumped?¡± A school leader panicked and took out their phone to call for an ambnce. Fu Li stopped the school leader. ¡°You heard wrong, nobody jumped.¡± Although nobody had jumped, the yin qi in this building was very heavy. Not more than a few minutester, there came the sound of yet another heavy object falling to the ground. The three school leaders wore slightly grave expressions. This repeated several times, and the school leaders¡¯plexions turned somewhat pale. They had realized that the scream and sound of a heavy falling object had never changed from start to end. Even the time of the intervals was exactly the same. ¡°Found it?¡± Fu Li found a miniature, remote-controlled yer at a certain hidden corner. The screams as well as the sound of a heavy item falling to the ground hade from it. The school leaders couldn¡¯t help furrowing their brows. The kids nowadays really went too far with their mischief, how could they joke about such a matter? They nced around, but saw no human figures. However, something suddenly dropped from the floor above,nding heavily on the floor. Fresh blood sshed a great distance. ¡°S-Save the person,¡± A school leader once again took out their phone, but was stopped by Zhuang Qing before he could dial the number. ¡°No need,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at the corpse on the floor. The corpse and bloodstains on the ground gradually vanished, as if they had never appeared in the first ce. ¡°This is... the maic field effect,¡± Zhuang Qing thought of a scientific exnation. ¡°It¡¯s not real.¡± The few school leaders looked at the empty floor. Their beliefs in materialism were heavily shaken. Maic field effect ¨C who were they trying to fool? Chapter 57 - Human Heart

Chapter 57 - Human Heart

¡°Mr Zhuang, this ce... doesn¡¯t have the conditions for the maic field effect to take form, right?¡± A physics-oriented leader bravely stood out. ¡°Why is there still...¡± ¡°The quality of soil might have influenced it,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over to the area where the corpse had vanished and looked at the floor above. ¡°You¡¯ll definitely be able to find a reason.¡± The three leaders nced at one another and started to seriously consider theposition of the soil that made up this plot ofnd. Yet, no matter how much they pondered over it, they couldn¡¯t find any conditions that satisfied it. In the end, the three people took out their phones and checked the database while arguing with one another. ¡°See this? This is the serious attitude of a schr,¡± Zhuang Qing turned towards Fu Li. ¡°If you studied this meticulously, attending university won¡¯t be a dream.¡± ¡°I think...¡± Fu Li swallowed. ¡°Dreaming might be a bit easier.¡± ¡°Do you really want to attend university?¡± Seeing him adopt a frightened look yet again, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°I¡¯ll give you sses when we return. Anyway, you¡¯ve given me quite a few good things, so just treat it as the fees for your apprenticeship.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve lived for so many years. Bing your apprentice...¡± Fu Li was slightly moved. But the him who had gradually understood social dealings still pretended to hold back. ¡°Isn¡¯t that not very good?¡± ¡°Have you heard of ¡¯One Word Master¡¯?¡± Zhuang Qing bent over and touched the ground. Without even raising his head, he said, ¡°Since there¡¯s someone willing to teach you, don¡¯t be fussy.¡± Fu Li was about to reply when he saw someone fall from the top of the building another time. He opened his jade bone umbre over Zhuang Qing¡¯s head. The moment the human silhouette came into contact with the umbre, it vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving no traces. The three leaders: ... Was this also the maic field effect? ¡°This umbre of mine has special attachments that may have broken the maic field,¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes widened, innocence and purity written all over his face. ¡°We¡¯ve taken a look, the school doesn¡¯t have any major problems. Perhaps the students were influenced by rumors, causing them to develop psychological suggestions.¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow as he looked at Fu Li. He¡¯d matured ¨C he even knew what psychological suggestions were. ¡®Our school has engaged a professional psychology teacher, we will arrange for a few psychology sses in the future.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll lend you the umbre first,¡± Fu Li passed the umbre to the three people. ¡°We¡¯re going up to the rooftop to take a look. There¡¯s no need to be scared no matter what you see, this umbre of mine can break through any strange maic fields.¡± The three leaders felt that holding up an umbre on a rainless night was a little foolish, but seeing Fu Li¡¯s smiling appearance, they subconsciously took the umbre. After Zhuang Qing and Fu Li went in, a leader eximed, ¡°Aiya, I forgot to give them the key. Should I deliver the key to them?¡± ¡°In horror movies, people who act on their own initiative and rush to deliver things to others will always encounter strange things,¡± Another leader pushed up the sses on the bridge of their nose. Under the moonlight, the leader¡¯s grizzled hair gave off a glow of wisdom and farsightedness. ¡°They¡¯re young and have good legs, they cane back for the key if they forgot to take it. We¡¯re old, so we shouldn¡¯t join in on the action.¡± Despite the fact that these two young men had repeatedly exined that it was the maic field effect or whatnot, they understood in their hearts that this was just their way of consoling three old men. Particrly that smiling, good-looking young man ¨C there were definitely other uses to the umbre he had specially stuffed into their hands. Fu Li pushed open the door to ssroom 604. A thickyer of dust had umted on the roof. The ceiling fan creaked as it spun. A boy wearing a white top was writing at a desk with tremendous speed. After he finished writing, he looked up at the door and smiled. ¡°You¡¯re here?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t speak. He walked to the boy¡¯s table. There was a suicide letter on the table. ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯te,¡± The boy climbed onto the windowsill and stood up, turning to look at Fu Li. ¡°I saw you return earlier on.¡± The expression on his face was rigid and mechanical. Two streams of blood flowed from his eyes. ¡°You agreed to jump with me that year, but you didn¡¯te. I waited for you year after year. You finally came.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve grown old and fat.¡± Fu Li followed him and climbed onto the windowsill. ¡°Did those students also jump with you?¡± There was a type of ghost who would forever be tied down to a certain location by emotion, resentment, and longing, unable to leave. The human world had given this sort of ghost a name ¨C earthbound spirit. This sort of ghost usually had no sense of existence, but if something were to stimte their emotions, they would repeatedly act out the scene prior to their death and pull other innocent people down with them. Eventually, they would turn into a vengeful ghost. The boy shook his head. ¡°Ping Wei, I was only waiting for you.¡± ¡°Waiting to jump with me?¡± Fu Li pushed open the neenth century-style windows, and smiled at the boy beside him. ¡°Sure.¡± The boy smiled. His smile was warm, like the early spring sun. ¡°When we meet again in our next life, we will definitely be together openly, never to be worn down by the world.¡± Fu Li looked at the boy¡¯s pure face and nodded slowly. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Great,¡± The boy gazed at the moon in the sky. ¡°The moon might not be round, but I am reunited with you.¡± Then, he jumped. Seeing this, Fu Li immediately turned, jumping down with him. The boy watched Fu Li¡¯s falling figure and reached out a hand, gently holding his palm, before slowly vanishing in the air. This time, there was no sshing blood, no body beyond recognition, and no dull sound indicating that something hadnded on the ground. The night breeze gently grazed Fu Li¡¯s face as he floated to the ground. Turning, he saw the three leaders staring at him. He pulled on a string behind him. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m hanging from a wire.¡± The three school leaders chuckled sarcastically. Zhuang Qing jumped down from the sixth floor as well. Without the slightest care, he pulled out a single string from behind him. ¡°I¡¯m also hanging from a wire.¡± The school leaders: ... There was no need to force an exnation, they might as well just treat them as blind fools. ¡°Is there a new teacher at your school called Ping Wei?¡± Fu Li raised his head, looking at the clean, tightly-closed windows on the sixth floor. The air-conditioning machine hung outside. It seemed to have been installed fairly recently. ¡°The psychology teacher newly-engaged by the school is called Luo Pingwei,¡± One of the leaders answered. ¡°He was a graduate from our school twenty years ago. The past few years, he¡¯s achieved rtively good results overseas, and our school spent a lot of money to invite him back.¡± Twenty years... The lifespans of humans were so short, how many twenty years did they have? In television dramas and novels, they constantly pursued love and extolled love. But when faced with love, these humans chose life and wealth. Wasn¡¯t this behavior very contradictory? Actually, it was quite good that humans could forget the trifles of their past lives after reincarnating. At least, they would have a new future to look forward to. Let those emotionally-damaging rtions be forgotten, it would be best if they were to never meet again in their next life. ¡°I suggest that you let the police investigate this individual. Perhaps there will be new discoveries,¡± Fu Li took back his umbre. ¡°Mr Fu, these things... Did that ghost tell them to you?¡± A professor who had restrained himself for a very long time finally voiced this question. ¡°You must be joking, ghosts don¡¯t exist in this world. Besides, the human heart is scarier than a ghost.¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Believe in science in this new age, don¡¯t believe in things of the past.¡± The school leaders: ... The three of them felt that Fu Li¡¯s words were a little obscure, but they contacted the police in ordance with Fu Li¡¯s intentions. The police investigated for consecutive nights and discovered many confusing theories in Luo Pingwei¡¯s house ¨C something about exchanging a life for another life to awaken someone who had already died. Following that, the police discovered that the criminal suspect had a homosexual partner twenty years ago. This lover was unable to withstand society¡¯s scrutiny and thus jumped from a building,mitting suicide. Nobody knew who he had heard such nonsensical things from, but after returning to the school, he used mental hypnosis to induce suicidal behavior in students with weaker mental states. He had wanted to borrow their deaths as a means of rousing his lover. The truth had long been buried with the deceased. Perhaps the man himself was aware that he was cowardly and despicable, and thus concealed his betrayal that year. After settling this matter, Zhuang Qing dragged Fu Li to the toilet. ¡°I don¡¯t go to toilets,¡± Fu Li was confused. ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to go to the toilet,¡± Zhuang Qing twisted the tap. ¡°Wash your hands!¡± Fu Li cast a helpless nce at him before extending his hands under the tap. ¡°Wash your right hand two more times,¡± Zhuang Qing thought of the scene of Fu Li jumping with the earthbound spirit and furrowed his brows. ¡°He jumped, so you also jumped. Do you think you¡¯re filming a movie?¡± ¡°I was just helping him to fulfil his desire,¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Human lifespans are short. It¡¯s okay to satisfy their desires.¡± Zhuang Qing scoffed wordlessly. Ilyz: wait, FL doesn¡¯t go to the toilet? do yao not need to go to the toilet? o.o Chapter 58 - Emotions

Chapter 58 - Emotions

Fu Li wasn¡¯t in very high spirits when he walked out of the toilet to a quiet path on campus. He didn¡¯t feel like talking. There were many gingko trees lining the path. Leaves dropped with a rustle the moment a breeze arose. Zhuang Qing looked at the leaf on Fu Li¡¯s head. He endured it for a very long time, but still removed the leaf. Fu Li turned his head, looking back at him. There was a hint of curiosity in his bewildered gaze. His desire to ask questions was written all over his face. ¡°What do you want to say?¡± Fiddling with the gingko leaf in his hands, Zhuang Qing sighed. ¡°Be direct.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t humans ce a lot of importance on love? Then why are they so merciless in the things they do?¡± Fu Li asked quietly. ¡°There was a resentment-gathering formation in that building. That ghost¡¯s love deliberately killed those students so they would be vengeful ghosts and hate that earthbound spirit whomitted suicide, right?¡± Fu Li just couldn¡¯t make sense of this. Even if they no longer loved each other, both of them were already separated by yin and yang, why did he refuse to even let a ghost off? ¡°Because he knew he was in the wrong. That was why he felt guilt and fear. When guilt and fear exceeds a critical level, he will attempt to destroy the source of guilt,¡± Zhuang Qing had lived for nearly two thousand years in the human world and had seen much of human ugliness and kindness. Therefore, no matter what the oue was, he could always calmly face it. ¡°Just like someone who owes a debt ¨C when the debt is toorge for one to repay, they will have thoughts of making the creditor vanish. This is the human heart.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t debts have to be repaid?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. ¡°In the same way cultivators like you and I have to repay negative karma...¡± ¡°You still don¡¯t understand? Humans are moreplex than yao,¡± Zhuang Qing gazed at Fu Li. ¡°So don¡¯t rashly believe the words spoken by humans. Even if the words said at that time were true, it doesn¡¯t mean it will remain true your entire life. The human heart is very fickle.¡± Fu Li¡¯s head drooped as he thought of his pet. His pet had beautiful handwriting, knew how to tell stories, and his grilled meat was much tastier than King Ganglie¡¯s. He asked softly, ¡°Not all humans are like that, right?¡± Faced with Fu Li¡¯s expectant gaze, Zhuang Qing had no choice but to nod. ¡°En.¡± After leaving campus, Zhuang Qing noticed that he wasn¡¯t in high spirits and thus said, ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll bring you to a ce.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Fu Li followed Zhuang Qing into the car. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to know the thoughts of that earthbound spirit¡¯s ex-boyfriend?¡± Zhuang Qing buckled his seatbelt. ¡°I¡¯ll take you to see him.¡± So that he wouldn¡¯t blindly show kindness all day long thinking that everyone was a good person. After Luo Pingwei was brought back by the team investigating the case, there was a time when he even feigned calm. Until the criminal psychology expert exposed his lies and the police found strong evidence at his house. Only then did he confess the process of his crimes as well as his motive. Twenty years ago, society was not tolerant of homosexual rtionships, which was why it was possible for people tomit suicide when they were unable to withstand rumors. Now, this man hadmitted such cruel acts for the sake of his deceased lover. His crime could not be forgiven, but it still caused those with more empathy to harbor some sympathy towards him. ¡°Many vicious criminals appear pardonable when they wear ayer of love and affection,¡± Peng Hang had finished reading the case records and was opening a cup of instant noodles while cursing. ¡°Bastards, all of them. If there was really love in his heart, there was no way he would haveid hands on those innocent students.¡± Even those homicidal maniacs without a shred of humanity loved to say that they had an unfortunate childhood, or that they were abandoned by their ex-girlfriend. In this world, there were plenty of people who were abandoned by their ex-girlfriend or had unfortunate childhoods. If every person were to behave the same way, the hundreds of millions of people within the country wouldn¡¯t even be enough for them to kill. ¡°Captain is right,¡± A police officer sneakily took out a ham sausage from the drawer. After being spotted by a colleague, he was left with half of it, scaring him into hastily shoving the remaining half into his mouth. Only after swallowing it did he continue, ¡°If all criminals were pardonable, then did his victims deserve to be harmed?¡± ¡°Forgiving the murderer is a matter for the victims in the underworld, us police are only responsible for catching criminals,¡± Peng Hang was ravenous. He had been upied from noon till night and hadn¡¯t even had a sip of water, so finishing an entire bucket of noodles in one mouth didn¡¯t feel like it would be a problem for him. ¡°Captain Peng.¡± A police officer walked into the office and whispered into Peng Hang¡¯s ears, ¡°Someone wanted to ask the suspect Luo Pingwei a few questions. The leader brought them over.¡± ¡°Who are they?¡± Peng Hang wiped the oil on his mouth and picked up his police cap from the table. ¡°Let¡¯s take a look.¡± That bastard harmed so many students, was there still someone who came to protect him? To the outside world, the management bureau was under the security department. Hence, Zhuang Qing brought Fu Li to visit the criminal suspect ¡®under the guise of work¡¯. The police could not refuse, though it was mandatory for someone from the police to be present when they questioned the suspect. ¡°You¡¯re Luo Pingwei?¡± Seated behind an outdated office table, Fu Li sized up the man before him. His body was fat due to gaming, and he wore spectacles. His skin was on the lighter side. Appearance-wise, he seemed very cultured. ¡°Who are you?¡± Luo Pingwei carried himself very well. Nobody would have guessed that a ruthless killer lurked beneath his skin. ¡°Why did you harm those students?¡± Fu Li felt that a human like him was truly scary. He was nothing more than a so-called ¡®dressed-up animal¡¯. But he often felt that this phrase wasn¡¯t very friendly to them yao cultivators. On what basis should human scum be on equal footing with birds and beasts? Their birds and beasts weren¡¯t capable of such acts. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to harm them, but if they died, Ah Li would be revived. For the sake of Ah Li, I¡¯m willing to do anything,¡± Luo Pingwei wiped his tears as he spoke of his rtionship with his lover, their deep love, their helplessness, and his undying longing for him the past twenty years. How fake could a person be? Fu Li watched this man perform an excellent retelling of their friendship and love. He asked expressionlessly, ¡°But didn¡¯t you use this method because you wanted his soul to scatter?¡± Luo Pingwei¡¯s movements paused, and then he continued crying. ¡°He is my only lover in this life, how could I treat him in such a way?¡± ¡°Liar,¡± Fu Li¡¯s jet-ck eyes stared at Luo Pingwei. ¡°A human like you loves yourself the most.¡± Luo Pingwei felt very unsettled by the gaze of the person opposite him. Faced with his gaze, he seemed to be naked, incapable of concealing anything. The awkwardness made him a bit angry. ¡°You know what? Why should I exin these things to you?¡± ¡°Every person has to pay a price for the wrongs they¡¯ve done,¡± Fu Li stood up, his gaze frosty. ¡°You won¡¯t be an exception.¡± ¡°Police officer, he¡¯s threatening me!¡± Luo Pingwei pointed at Fu Li with his handcuffed hand. ¡°Civilized enforcement ofw is emphasized now.¡± Seeing that no one paid any attention to him, Luo Pingwei started talking about how he was a doctor from some famous university overseas, and how he wanted toin about theck of human rights. ¡°Not asking anymore?¡± Zhuang Qing followed Fu Li out of the interrogation room. ¡°Nothing good to ask,¡± Fu Li pursed his lips. ¡°Such a pity that he gave up on his life to safeguard the love of such a human.¡± Zhuang Qing snorted softly, ¡°You don¡¯t understand love, why think so hard about it?¡± Fu Li was silent for a moment. He found that he was unable to refute Zhuang Qing. When Peng Hang saw Fu Li and Zhuang Qing leave the interrogation room, he didn¡¯t continue proceeding. He sent the two people out of the police station with his gaze, and then returned to the office to continue eating his instant noodles. However, in his heart, he once again discovered something new about Fu Li¡¯s identity. No wonder Fu Li was constantly changing jobs, and nothing useful could be found despite investigating the rtions he¡¯d had throughout his life ¨C it turned out he was someone from the national security department. All that manualbor, security guard and whatnot was merely his disguise for the purposes of investigating cases. After realizing this, he would reply to any colleagues asking about Fu Li with a ¡®don¡¯t know¡¯. Making irresponsible remarks at this time would be harmful. Peng Hang understood very well in his heart what ought to be done and what ought not to be done. After leaving the police station, Zhuang Qing noticed that Fu Li wasn¡¯t in a good mood. ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll treat you to supper.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the middle of the night, what good things are there to eat?¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t fond of fast food like hamburgers and fries, so he wasn¡¯t interested in Zhuang Qing¡¯s proposal. ¡°You¡¯ll know when you reach,¡± Zhuang Qing threw Fu Li into the car. The car came to a stop in a small alley, where a very small restaurant was located. The restaurant¡¯s signboard was painted white, with the three words ¡®Restaurant Night Owl¡¯ painted on it in red. Several customers were scattered throughout the restaurant, all of whom were idle. The cook was a middle aged man with very lively eyes. Upon seeing Fu Li and Zhuang Qing, he cordially greeted them. ¡°What would you two like to eat? This ce serves dumplings, noodles, wontons, and m soup.¡± The middle-aged man wiped the clean table another time. ¡°Prices are fair and portions arerge.¡± ¡°What do you want to eat?¡± Zhuang Qing asked Fu Li. ¡°M soup.¡± Fu Li added, ¡°With extra vegetables.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± The boss made a sound of agreement. With plenty of vigor, he turned and proceeded to cook m soup. Fu Li took a few nces at the other customers. These few customers weren¡¯t human; there were cats, dogs, and even an owl. These customers seemed to be regrs of this restaurant. From time to time, they would joke around with the boss and among themselves. But they took measure of Fu Li and Zhuang Qing even more frequently, seemingly guessing their identities. Tworge bowls of m soup were served. Sure enough, like what the boss had imed, the portions were more than enough. The boss had even specially poured two bowls of soy milk for them. Fu Li had originally thought that the boss was an ordinary human, but he very quickly realized that he had a very weak yao scent. However, the scent was very diluted and seemed like it would disappear soon. The regrs didn¡¯t leave even after finishing their supper and footing the bill. Though they engaged in a lively discussion about their troubles at work, their attention was continuously on Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. Fu Li vaguely felt that this was somewhat strange. Sure enough, when he and Zhuang Qing finished their meal and left the restaurant, the regrs also got up and left. ¡°That person¡¯s ancestor was an owl who was very good at cooking Long Feng Soup,¡± Zhuang Qing started the car and opened the window for the smell of m soup to disperse. ¡°What happened after that?¡± ¡°Then he fell in love with a human woman. In their tenth year of marriage without children, the human woman inadvertently found out that he wasn¡¯t human.¡± ¡°W-What happened after that?¡± Fu Li was a little anxious. ¡°They separated?¡± ¡°If they separated, where did their descendantse from?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li as if he was an idiot. ¡°They were very much in love and didn¡¯t give up on this affinity because they were of different races. Afterwards, the owl requested for spiritual medicine to let them have a child.¡± Fu Li seemed to be interested in this story, so Zhuang Qing continued telling it, ¡°Human lifespans are limited. When the human woman passed away from old age, the owl was extremely sad and also passed away not long after scattering his cultivation. The boss of this restaurant is his grandson from who-knows-what generation. Although the abilities of the yao cultivator have long been lost, their culinary skills were passed down.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve drunk that owl¡¯s Long Feng Soup?¡± Fu Li was a bit curious. Did Zhuang Qing not have any objections over the name of this soup? Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s very delicious.¡± The car sank into silence. A long whileter, Fu Li suddenly had a sh of understanding. ¡°Zhuang Qing, you told me all this to let me know that there are still blissful romances, right?¡± ¡°You¡¯re already so old, why are you still so fond of indulging in flights of fancy? I was just telling a random story.¡± Fu Li: ¡°Oh.¡± It was silent in the car once again, though the silence this timested for a particrly long time. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t utter a single word again even when Fu Li alighted. After a busy night, Fu Li finally had some time to rest in the day. He bought arge pile of food and knocked on the Kunpeng¡¯s door. Although there was a ton of food, the Kunpeng didn¡¯t make a fuss about wanting to drink alcohol. If he got this rabbit drunk, he feared that the dragon from the management bureau would once again leap about in a fight with him. ¡°Kunpeng daren, actually, I have a request...¡± The Kunpeng shoved a half-eaten duck¡¯s tongue into Fu Li¡¯s hand. ¡°Don¡¯t ask me to fight, I¡¯m scared of death.¡± He hadn¡¯t had enough of the many culinary delicacies in the human world, how could he die? ¡°Kunpeng daren, you¡¯ve misunderstood, there isn¡¯t a fight or anything today,¡± Fu Li shoved the duck¡¯s tongue back at him, letting the Kunpeng continue to feast on it. ¡°It¡¯s just a minor thing.¡± ¡°Why do I feel like you nevere to me for anything good?¡± The Kunpeng looked suspiciously at Fu Li. He still finished eating the remaining half of the duck¡¯s tongue. ¡°I invited you out for meals in the past, were any of them not good?¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Am I the kind of yao who lies to others?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± The Kunpeng contemted it carefully. ¡°Speak then.¡± Fu Li was waiting for these precise words from the Kunpeng. With a plop, he turned into his original form. His furry front ws held onto a chicken wing as he gnawed on it. ¡°I experienced a strange phenomenon.¡± The Kunpeng wiped his hand against Fu Li¡¯s exceedingly fat back. ¡°It is indeed quite strange for a rabbit to like eating non-vegetarian food and to be this fat.¡± ¡°Kunpeng daren, you haven¡¯t washed your hands,¡± Fu Li inched to the side and shook the fur on his body. ¡°I... two days ago at night, I consumed two mouths of dragon flesh by ident and triggered heavenly lightning.¡± ¡°You bit Zhuang Qing?¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s voice by a few notches. ¡°Are you still yao? You can even bite down on an underaged dragon?¡± ¡°How is it possible for me to bite my own people? I bit that azure dragon you beat up that time.¡± ¡°Good bite!¡± Kunpeng daren¡¯s mood had always been very flexible. ¡°But no matter how capable you are, you¡¯re just a rabbit. We can let it go if heavenlyw isn¡¯t tolerant of us great yao for the sake of bnce between species, but why is it that it doesn¡¯t tolerate a rabbit like you either?¡± The Kunpeng wiped his hands twice for show before picking Fu Li up and seriously looking him over. Crossing his legs, he stroked his chin. ¡°Looking at you closely, you do indeed look different from a rabbit. But I¡¯ve traveled across the yao world unhindered for tens of thousands of years, and there wasn¡¯t anyone among the great yao who looks like you.¡± No matter how blithe he was, he still felt that there was something odd about this matter. What rabbit would eat a dragon? Such a thing didn¡¯t correspond with a rabbit¡¯s instincts. Even if nts and animals were to cultivate into yao, they would still possess traits of their original form. He really hadn¡¯t seen anyone simr to Fu Li. Given the many years he¡¯d lived, not to mention being erudite and multi-talented, he¡¯d also seen quite a few things. Yet, he hadn¡¯t noticed anything fishy about this rabbit. The only special part about the other party was that he¡¯d taken on a human form after attaining a chance from heavenlyw. The rest of him wasn¡¯t very different from a rabbit, just that he had a dog-like nose. The most formidable aspects of the ancient great yao were their bodies. They were the embodiments of Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi and possessed divine power from birth. Even if other yao cultivators cultivated to death, they wouldn¡¯t be able to surpass them. ording to modern speech, they would be considered the darlings of heavenlyw during that era. Clouds forming from an exhale, traveling thousands of miles in a day, discing mountains and seas in a fit of anger ¨C ancient great yao who didn¡¯t have such capabilities would be embarrassed to be considered a great yao. Small-sized yao cultivators without a single impressive feature like Fu Li were nothing more than weeds by the roadside during those years. But if he was really that ordinary, why would heavenlyw strike him with lightning? ¡°Not right, heavenlyw can even turn Oujiang into dregs, why are you still alive?¡± The Kunpeng felt that this was the most crucial point. Fu Li was a bit embarrassed. ¡°Zhuang Qing shielded me.¡± ¡°No wonder you¡¯re hell-bent on following a mixed-blood dragon. With the darling of heavenlyw, even heavenly lightning will open the backdoor for you,¡± The Kunpeng tore open a packet of pickled pepper chicken feet. ¡°Since you¡¯re unsure what you are, why not just consider yourself a rabbit? I think rabbits are pretty good too.¡± Fu Li changed back into his human form. Recalling how he had gone out of control that night, he felt a faint sense of unease. He lowered his head and bit into the biscuit in his hand. Yet, in his mind was the taste of dragon blood. It was fresh, tasty, and even contained a certain energy. ¡°But Zhuang Qing treats you quite well. He even protected you when you suddenly went mad and ate a dragon,¡± The Kunpengmented all of a sudden. ¡°If I were him, I would probably have guarded against you. What if you went crazy and bit him that day?¡± Fu Li was stunned. He didn¡¯t seem to have thought of this issue. Although he didn¡¯t care about others eating rabbit meat in his presence, those were rabbits without any intelligence. Qing Yan... was a nearly three thousand year old dragon who had a human form. ¡°It is a blessing for any yao to have followed the right boss,¡± The Kunpeng nced at Fu Li from the corner of his eyes. ¡°You have pretty good luck.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. Zhuang Qing might look a bit cold on the surface, but he¡¯s quite nice by nature,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t even continue eating his biscuit as he started listing Zhuang Qing¡¯s good points. ¡°Magnanimous, steady, responsible, kind, high cultivation, loyal...¡± ¡°Stop stop stop...¡± The Kunpeng said with resentment. ¡°With how delighted you are, anyone who isn¡¯t in on the situation would think that you¡¯re praising your son. Can you, a rabbit, give birth to a dragon?¡± ¡°He¡¯s young, not yet an adult. To be this good, of course he should be praised more,¡± Fu Li said confidently. ¡°Youngsters should be given more encouragement.¡± The Kunpeng was toozy to pay any heed to him. With a shift of his buttocks, he back-faced Fu Li and continued gnawing on chicken feet. He wanted toment countless times ¨C pickled pepper chicken feet was really, really, really humanity¡¯s greatest invention. After finishing the snacks, Fu Li got ready to leave. The Kunpeng cast a few nces at him and called after him. ¡°Cultivation depends on the heart of the cultivator. Regardless of whether you¡¯re a rabbit or some other yaoguai, you are still you,¡± It was rare for the Kunpeng to be this solemn. ¡°The world is veryrge and changes ur anytime and anywhere. What you are isn¡¯t important, you don¡¯t have to take it to heart.¡± Fu Li stared nkly for a moment before smiling. ¡°Many thanks, Kunpeng daren.¡± ¡°Scram, scram. I want to sleep.¡± The Kunpeng stamped his feet and rolled on the ground. In a low voice, heined, ¡°Young yao have so many worries.¡± When Fu Li left, the Kunpeng sat up on the ground, his expression grave. Capable of turning the green pythons raised by Oujiang for over ten thousand years into ashes, eats dragons, attracts heavenly lightning... The Kunpeng thought back to several thousand years ago when the humans had just started flourishing. There was once an absurd rumor in the yao world iming that there would be a new yao beast born very soon, and who would supersede the great yao several thousand yearster. At that time, he had assumed that it was an ignorant little yao who deliberately created such a rumor out of fear of them. He hadn¡¯t believed that there was any truth in it at all. In fact, it wasn¡¯t just him who didn¡¯t take it seriously. So had the other great yao. Five thousand years had passed since that rumor circted. Based on the rumor, it could be inferred that the yao beast who would supersede them should have spread its name throughout the entire yao world hundreds or thousands of years ago. There was no way it would remain obscure with no news about it even till today. If the yao beast capable of superseding the ancient great yao was really like Fu Li, then it would be the mostical thing to ur in the yao world. If that were the case, it would be Zhuang Qing who corresponded more to the rumored new leader of the yao world. It was just that the current cultivation world had degenerated a little, so being the boss wasn¡¯t particrly grand. On the tenth of August, the leader of Qingxiao Sect¡¯s, Zhao Xiu, reached the great age of a hundred and fifty years. Zhao Xiu was a human cultivator of outstanding talent in the cultivation world, and a person of good moral standing and reputation. Not only did the human cultivators respect him to some degree, even the yao cultivators were very respectful towards him. On the third day before his birthday, there was already a birthday congrattory message for him on the front page of the cultivators¡¯ forum. On the forum, a few juniors of the cultivation world discussed the glorious achievements of the Qingxiao Sect. Not only did the Qingxiao sect not put a stop to this, some of their disciples even sneakily ran over to expose a few of the Sect¡¯s minor faults. Everyone was chatting when the topic shifted to the big shots that would attend Zhao Xiu¡¯s birthday feast. A little yao who had just transformed into its human form timidly left ament: I heard Chief Zhuang Qing of the management bureau is extremely powerful, will he attend Sect Leader Zhao¡¯s birthday feast? Yao cultivator A: Hehe Human cultivator B: Hehe Half-yao C: Hehe Disciple of Qingxiao Sect: Chief Zhuang Qing is very hardworking. If he were toe, he would definitely bring light to my Qingxiao Sect¡¯s humble dwelling. However, Chief Zhuang Qing doesn¡¯t appear to be fond of participating in such events, so I¡¯m afraid he will note. But on the off-hand that he does, it is not illegal to dream a little. A certain sect¡¯s disciple who had conflicts with the Qingxiao Sect: Hehe, a certain sect is relying on their two disciples working in the management bureau to boldly daydream. Just watch, if Chief Zhuang attends Sect Leader Zhao¡¯s birthday feast, I¡¯ll live-broadcast myself eating phones on the forum. Disciple of Qingxiao Sect: ...... So angry, but there was no way of retorting. Chapter 59 - Carrying a Tree

Chapter 59 - Carrying a Tree

Zhang Ke, who was scrolling through the cultivators¡¯ forum, threw his phone onto the table. Then, he grabbed a cultivators¡¯ census form and furiously entered the data into the system. Seated beside him was Song Yu, who shifted sideways till he reached Fu Li. ¡°Boss, I epted a sponsorship two days ago and thepany sent me a lot of snacks. Take some to Kunpeng darenter on, and help say a few good things about me along the way.¡± The fear from having a Kunpeng live above him had caused his appetite to decrease drastically. Even the feathers on his wings had started to drop. Getting a good night¡¯s sleep was practically impossible, nor could he swallow his food with ease. ¡°Don¡¯t be so nervous, it¡¯s not like the Kunpeng will eat you,¡± Fu Li patted his bald head. For the Suanyu with weak offensive strength to have lived for so many years, it was probably because he had very little courage. Song Yu smiled bitterly. Great yao like the Kunpeng were capable of eating anything. He just had to think about the Kunpeng being in his vicinity and his legs would inadvertently go soft. ¡°Fu ge, Song Yu,¡± Xu Yuan walked in. ¡°Just nice, both of you are around. We just received a report via telephone about a rtively odd situation. We might have to trouble you to make a trip.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± Fu Li scanned the somewhat solemn expression on Xu Yuan¡¯s face and couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Surely it¡¯s not some great yao who appeared again, requiring me to step in, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not clear at the moment,¡± Xu Yuan shook her head. She took out a printed photo and held it out to Fu Li. ¡°A few strange creatures appeared deep in the mountains of Yongliang Province. These strange creatures have three heads and cry for days on end without stopping. Their voices can travel as far as a hundred li. Although the local area has little human presence, rumors of ghosts have already spread.¡± Fu Li took the photo. The image on the photo was very blurry, but he could tell that the few people in the photo did indeed have three heads. In addition, they were slightly shorter and smaller than the average person. All of them were perched on a slightly odd-looking tree, making for an extremely strange sight. ¡°Isn¡¯t this the... Fuchang Tree?¡± Song Yu shifted forward to take another look at it. ¡°The Fuchang Tree is usually by the side of the Langgan Tree. The three-headed people live and die for the Fuchang ¨C their purpose in life is to pluck the Zhuyu fruits from the Langgan Tree, and then wait for the Fenghuang to descend.¡± Song Yu let out a crypticugh at this point. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that the spiritual qi is weak now and the Langgan Trees are close to extinct. As for the Fenghuang... who still sees them?¡± Hearing Song Yu put things this way, the roomful of cultivators fell into aplicated mood. They were born for the Langgan Tree and Fenghuang, yet both were no longer around. They had felt that these three-headed people were iparably ugly, but everyone was now sympathetic towards them. Even their life¡¯s purpose was gone, how could they not cry? ¡°Then what should be done now?¡± Xu Yuan sighed. These three-headed people hadn¡¯t done anything wrong, so violence couldn¡¯t be used against them. That being said, they couldn¡¯t just allow them to continue wailing like that. ¡°Who said the Langgan Tree was extinct?¡± Fu Li was confused. ¡°Isn¡¯t that tree with red fruit in the middle of the courtyard downstairs the Langgan Tree?¡± ¡°What?¡± All the cultivators looked towards Fu Li simultaneously. Why were they not aware that there was actually such an impressive fruit tree in their management bureau? ¡°So you guys didn¡¯t know what that tree was?¡± Fu Li was even more surprised than them. ¡°You guys even dared to randomly nt a tree without knowing what it was?¡± ¡°The year the management bureau was built, there was a cluster of flowers nted in that area in the courtyard. Nobody knows what happened after that, but a tree grew there.¡± Chu Yu had been with the management bureau for a longer period of time, so he knew of this development. ¡°We wanted to remove it, butter realized that it had spiritual qi and never actively attacked the bureau¡¯s people. The boss felt that the tree might have the chance to gain intelligence and take on a human form, so we just let it remain all this while.¡± Song Yu: ... The Langgan Tree was very rarely seen even during the ancient times. Yet, the management bureau so casually grew one, even letting it grow freely. If this wasn¡¯t because of heavenlyw¡¯s darling, then what else could it be? ¡°No wonder that tree refused to let us eat its fruits. Anyone who tries to pluck them will be whacked. Turns out it only fancies the Fenghuang,¡± Huang Can stroked his beard. ¡°This tree might even attract a Fenghuang one day.¡± Song Yu scoffed. These yao cultivators with average cultivation really had quite the beautiful imagination. ¡°Not right,¡± Zhang Ke suddenly turned to look at Fu Li. ¡°Fu ge, I remember you plucking the Langgan Tree¡¯s fruits many times.¡± What a shameless Langgan Tree; it bullied the weak but feared the strong! Fu Li smiled. ¡°So?¡± ¡°I say, Fu ge is really domineering. Even the Langgan Tree bows down to you,¡± Zhang Ke revealed a fawning smile. ¡°Pluck a few more next time. That way, everyone can also have a taste of it.¡± A fruit only the Fenghuang could eat ¨C it was high-ss just hearing about it! The rest looked down on Zhang Ke¡¯s fawning behavior, but in their hearts, they also very much longed for the Langgan Tree¡¯s Zhuyu fruit. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll return after dealing with the three-headed people.¡± Fu Li nced at the time before telling Song Yu, ¡°Get Chef Bao to keep a portion of braised spare ribs for me tonight!¡± Then, he morphed into a ray of radiant light and flew out. Xu Yuan looked out the window foolishly. Only a long whileter did she say, ¡°But I haven¡¯t told Fu ge the location.¡± ¡°No problem. The boss definitely has something on him that can give directions, so you don¡¯t have to worry,¡± Song Yu rubbed his hands. ¡°I¡¯ll go downstairs for a walk.¡± ¡°Wait. Song ge, I¡¯ll go with you,¡± Chu Yu hastily caught up to him. What a joke. Song Yu was definitely intending to sneakily pluck the Zhuyu fruit. Witnesses ought to have a share too. ¡°I¡¯m going too.¡± The entirety of the bureau¡¯s higher-ups swarmed into the courtyard and surrounded the Langgan Tree, causing others to wonder if the higher-ups were intending to chop down the tree. Even then, there wasn¡¯t a need for so many people. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize how strong and sturdy it felt in the past.¡± ¡°Its leaves are such a deep green color, like faultless jasper.¡± ¡°The luster of the rosy fruits are even more beautiful than jade.¡± ¡°Boss Suanyu, good luck.¡± ¡°Please call me by my name.¡± ¡°All right, Boss Song Yu.¡± Song Yu inhaled deeply and flew up the tree. Before his hand could even touch the fruits, countless vines shot out from the Langgan Tree and flung Song Yu towards the ground. The effortless manner in which it did so made it seem as if it had merely thrown a chick. Everyone: ... This was a bit awkward. Fortunately, Song Yu was very open-minded. He stood up with a pat of his buttocks and shook his head at his colleagues. ¡°It seems we can only wait for the boss to return before eating the fruits.¡± This Langgan Tree discriminated against half-bird yao cultivators like him. ¡°What is everyone doing?¡± Zhuang Qing stood at the top of the spiral staircase, staring with furrowed brows at the noisy group below. ¡°Boss,¡± Xu Yu and everyone elseughed dryly. ¡°We¡¯re plucking fruits. But this tree... won¡¯t let us.¡± Zhuang Qing recognized the fruits as the ones that Fu Li had brought home a few days ago. The tips of his brows shook. He did remember Fu Li mentioning that he had plucked them from the bureau, but he hadn¡¯t expected the fruits to have been plucked from this tree. Zhuang Qing walked to the tree and looked around. ¡°Where¡¯s Fu Li?¡± Xu Yuan exined Fu Li¡¯s whereabouts. Zhuang Qing turned and nced at the tree behind him. This tree turned out to be the Langgan Tree? Thinking of the few Zhuyu fruits at home that had already started wrinkling from sitting too long, Zhuang Qing decided to go backter and polish them off. ¡°Boss, why don¡¯t you give it a try too?¡± Chu Yu thickened his skin and asked. ¡°All of us tried it, but this tree is just way too stingy, just like...¡± Everyone cast sidelong nces at him at once. The tip of Chu Yu¡¯s tongue had a change of direction. ¡°Just like Grandet.¡± Zhuang Qing nced at him. He didn¡¯t move, because he had previously attempted to pluck its fruits. However, this tree was very resistant, so he never did it again. Now that the employees once again spoke of this, Zhuang Qing nced at Song Yu, whose clothes were even torn. He remained silent. After close to thirty seconds of silence, the Langgan Tree at the side suddenly moved. Its branches shook, and two vines swept up a few fruits, extending them to Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing stared nkly for a moment before stretching out his hands. A few fruits fell into his palms. They were ice-cold, and even emanated a mild sweet scent. With aplex mood, he looked up at the Langgan Tree that hadn¡¯t even given him a leaf in the more than hundred years it had been at the management bureau. ¡°As expected of the boss, the Langgan Tree even took the initiative to give you fruits.¡± ¡°Does the Langgan Tree discriminate against species?¡± Zhuang Qing turned the fruits over in his hands. Suddenly, he let out a lightugh. He didn¡¯t know if he was overthinking, but he felt that the tree¡¯s sudden friendliness towards him was because of Fu Li. Turning around, he saw everyone else gazing expectantly at the fruits in his hands. After a period of contemtion, Zhuang Qing picked out the smallest fruit and shoved it at Chu Yu. ¡°Share this.¡± Then, without care for the other people¡¯s reactions, he ced the fruits into his Qiankun pouch, turned, and left. ¡°One fruit for all of us to share?¡± Chu Yu held the Zhuyu fruit in a daze, unable to extricate himself from the shock even after a good length of time had gone by. With such a degree of stinginess, did he feel no shame in being the boss of the management bureau? He looked up at the Langgan Tree. ¡°Master Tree, how about giving us a few more?¡± The Langgan Tree stood tall motionlessly, as if it was just an ordinary tree that understood nothing. ¡°A tree looking down on yao!¡± Chu Yu was incensed. Lowering his head, he stuffed the fruit into his mouth without the slightest hesitation. Then, he was beaten up by his colleagues till he cried out for his parents. Song Yu even threatened to beat him till he turned into a fish before giving him to Chef Bao to make braised fish. From this, it could be seen that the emotional bonds between these colleagues were weak andcking, unworthy of even a single fruit. Layers uponyers of rotten tree leaves packed together could be found in the deep, deste recesses of a mountain, giving off an oppressive aura. If one were to step on them, the leaves would reach above their shoes. Fu Li stood on a tree branch as he watched the three-headed dwarves in the distance crying bitterly from where they sat on the Fuchang Tree. He sighed. Their wails were indeed both loud and unpleasant to hear. ¡°Even if you cry till your throats are worn out, the Fenghuang won¡¯t return,¡± Fu Li flew below the Fuchang Tree and spoke to the three-headed people. ¡°Your lives will be gone if you¡¯re found by an evil yao.¡± The three-headed people were so frightened by the sudden appearance of a person beneath the tree that they hugged one another, forming a bundle as they jabbered something. This was one of the ancientnguages. Many yao cultivators could automatically understand human speech after taking on a human form and even mimic humannguages. These three-headed people had very low cultivation and had to rely on the Fuchang Tree to live. Thus, they were much weaker than the majority of the yao cultivators when it came tonguages. Fu Li listened carefully before understanding that these three-headed people were asking who he was. ¡°I am Fu Li,¡± Fu Li squatted and directly faced the eyes of a three-headed person who had jumped down the tree. ¡°I know where the Langgan Tree is. As long as you protect the Langgan Tree, you¡¯ll definitely be able to wait for the Fenghuang.¡± He didn¡¯t think that these words would be able to move the three-headed people. But after the few of them whispered into one another¡¯s ears, they jumped down the tree together, and then dug out the Fuchang Tree from the ground, carrying the tree on their shoulders. They so easily... believed him? Fu Li stared nkly for a moment. ¡°You¡¯re believing me just like that?¡± The only three-headed person seated motionlessly on a tree branch turned to look at Fu Li. In somewhat shaky human speech, it said, ¡°On... you, there is the smell of the Fenghuang.¡± Ilyz: Never thought there would be a day I find trees cute *_* Happy Lunar New Year!! Chapter 60 - Whos More Important?

Chapter 60 - Who¡¯s More Important?

¡°Fenghuang?¡± Fu Li looked in amazement at the leader of the three-headed people. ¡°You¡¯re saying I smell like a Fenghuang?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll definitely meet a beautiful Fenghuang if we follow you,¡± The three-headed person responded. ¡°We were born for the Fenghuang and don¡¯t want to die without even seeing them.¡± The Fuchang Tree only bore fruit once in its lifetime. The three-headed race broke out of these fruits, so the day the Fuchang Tree withered would be the day their lives came to end. They could walk and speak upon birth, but hadn¡¯t expected there to be no Langgan Tree or Fenghuang after birth. To them, the abrupt appearance of this person who smelled like the Fenghuang and even informed them of the Langgan Tree¡¯s presence had given them meaning to continue living. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Fu Li bowed to the several three-headed people. ¡°I have never seen a Fenghuang. I can only lead you to the Langgan Tree to settle down.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± The three-headed people had a type of zealous trust in Fu Li. ¡°Since you can help us find the Langgan Tree, you¡¯ll definitely be able to help us find a Fenghuang.¡± Fu Li: ... When did he say he would help them search for a Fenghuang? They shouldn¡¯t think that they could be so shameless just because they had three faces. Fu Li knew very little of the stories surrounding the three-headed people. All he knew was that they were dependent on the Fuchang Tree for life, while the Fuchang Tree was the life partner of the Langgan Tree. White Ape hadn¡¯t told him anything more. Perhaps White Ape had considered these three-headed peoplepletely harmless and didn¡¯t fear Fu Li running into any danger, so he didn¡¯t tell him much about them. Although these few three-headed people had dubious shameless tendencies, they probably wouldn¡¯t lie to him. Had he really been in close contact with a Fenghuang at some ce? Fu Li pondered over this for a very long time, but couldn¡¯t recall having seen a Fenghuang at any ce. Had a Fenghuang passed by him while he was in his more-than-a-thousand years sleep? Fortunately... the Fenghuang didn¡¯t eat rabbit meat, otherwise his little life would probably be gone. ¡°Youngster, where is the Langgan Tree you found?¡± The leader of the three-headed people wiped the tears off his three faces. ¡°Our Fuchang Tree can¡¯t be away from the earth for too long.¡± Fu Li noticed that the three three-headed people had different appearances, and thus asked. ¡°May I know your names?¡± ¡°I¡¯m called Big Hair,¡± The one seated on a tree branch said. Fu Li nced at the hair on his heads. Indeed, he had the most hair. ¡°The one in front is called Middle Hair, and the one below is called Little Hair,¡± Big Hair flicked the hair on his heads with what seemed like pride. Fu Li: ... Middle Hair had slightly more sparse hair, while Little Hair had even less hair. The scant strands that grew on Little Hair¡¯s heads were yellow and dry. From a distance, it looked like there were a few weeds on his heads. Fu Li didn¡¯t quite understand the social customs of the world of the three-headed people. With a wave of his hand, he set up a barrier, and then directly swept the people and tree onto a cloud. There, he started narrating the rules of the human world to the three-headed people. ¡°Youngster, don¡¯t worry. Once we put down roots, we won¡¯t walk around randomly,¡± Big Hair said righteously. ¡°No matter how beautiful the human world is, it can¡¯tpare to our loyalty towards the Fenghuang.¡± ¡°Big brother, the human world is so pretty,¡± At the side, Little Hairy syed out on the cloud. His voice shook with excitement. ¡°There are even transparent rooms and roads in the air.¡± They were probably talking about high-rise buildings and overhead bridges, thought Fu Li. ¡°Where?¡± Big Hair leaped off the tree and squeezed by Little Hair¡¯s side, stretching out his neck. His three heads jostled about, nearly bumping into one another. Middle Hair cast a timid nce at Fu Li before hesitantly shuffling to Little Hair¡¯s side and watching with them. The forgotten Fuchang Tree waved its leaves from its lonely position in the clouds, emitting rustling sounds. However, the three-headed people remained immersed as they gazed at the flourishing human world, not even turning their heads. Upon further thought, these few three-headed people had just been born and were in no way different from children. It was normal for them to have some curiosity. Fu Li propped a hand against the Fuchang Tree and reduced the speed at which they traveled for them to get a closer look. ¡°Ahhhhhh!¡± Little Hair suddenly let out a hair-raising scream. ¡°Why are there such strange big birds?¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t a big bird, it¡¯s a man-built airne for humans to travel long distances,¡± Fu Li sat cross-legged on the cloud as he soothed the three-headed people. ¡°Some birds can¡¯t even fly that high up, so what are you making a fuss about?¡± Big Hair noticed Fu Li¡¯spleteck of anxiety and rapped a hand against one of Little Hair¡¯s heads. ¡°Stop making so much noise, it¡¯s scaring others.¡± ¡°Okay, big brother,¡± Little Hair had no way of retaliating despite having been hit. On the contrary, he was very obedient and no longer dared to scream recklessly. Sure enough, the one with the longest and most hair was the most impressive. The three-headed people watched this novelty for a while before running back to the Fuchang Tree. Big Hair looked at Fu Li gravely. ¡°Youngster, the human world contains too many enticing things. You must be careful not to fall into a human¡¯s trap.¡± Although it hadn¡¯t been long since his birth, he was a person from birth and his mind contained the legacy of the three-headed race. Therefore, he had a very good understanding of how crafty humans were. ¡°Many thanks for the information, I will definitely be more careful,¡± Fu Li smiled, his eyes curving. ¡°You are a youngster with good prospects. When you help us find the Fenghuang, we will definitely not treat you unfairly,¡± Big Hair pulled on the skirt made of tree leaves around his waist. These words were stated with quite the chivalrous air. ¡°Then I will have to trouble you to take me under your care,¡± Fu Li¡¯s height when seated cross-legged was almost identical to that of the three-headed people. Not a single hint of mockery appeared on his face just because the three-headed people couldn¡¯t don clothes. The three dwarves hugged their tree tightly after descending from the cloud. Even the previouslyzy Big Hair was also hugging the tree branches. ¡°I smell the Zhuyu fruit!¡± Big Hair¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°It¡¯s inside.¡± ¡°Please follow me,¡± Fu Li brought them to the office building¡¯s courtyard. The Langgan Tree was standing loftily in the center of the room, as if constantly awaiting someone¡¯s arrival. ¡°Langgan Tree, Langgan Tree...¡± Big Hair released the Fuchang Tree and bounded towards the Langgan Tree on his short legs. But very soon, he let out another shriek. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you water the Langgan Tree with morning dew liquid?¡± ¡°There¡¯s even ash on the tree¡¯s leaves!¡± Big Hair swiftly crawled up the Langgan Tree¡¯s branches. He pulled out a green-colored object from his waist, and then turned towards Middle Hair and Little Hair. ¡°Quick, nt the Fuchang Tree and tidy up the Langgan Tree.¡± ¡°Okay, big brother,¡± Middle hair and Little Hair carried the Fuchang Tree and ran over. They dug arge pit not too far from the Langgan Tree and nted the Fuchang Tree. Lastly, they stamped down on the soil with their feet before turning to wait on the Langgan Tree. The Langgan Tree didn¡¯t seem to reject the three-headed people¡¯s service. On the other hand, it adopted afortable position and allowed them to clean its branches and leaves. Big Hair sat in the middle of the tree branches and directed Middle Hair and Little Hair as they cleaned. Then, he hugged the Langgan Tree, took a few resolute breaths, and turned to speak to Fu Li. ¡°Youngster, many thanks. We will live here in the future.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li took out his phone and sent the various departments the news so that they wouldn¡¯t be too surprised upon seeing the three-headed people. Big Hair plucked a section of his hair, wrapped it in the Fuchang Tree¡¯s leaves, and handed it to Fu Li. ¡°This is my thank-you gift to you.¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t very sure what uses the hair had, but since the three-headed people regarded their hair with such importance and yet he was still willing to give him some, he wouldn¡¯t let his goodwill go to waste. ¡°Many thanks for your present, I will treasure it.¡± Big Hair crawled back up the Langgan Tree with satisfaction and rubbed against the tree here and there, bearing an uncanny resemnce to a fool. When Fu Li returned to the office, Song Yu gave him arge thumbs-up. ¡°Boss, you even managed to bring the three-headed people back. How impressive.¡± The three-headed people were very obstinate creatures with vtile tempers. If the Langgan Tree was not by their sides, they would be particrly irascible and savage. If someone were to enrage them, the hair on their heads would lengthen abruptly and wrap around the enemy, sucking dry their enemy¡¯s flesh. But if they had the Langgan Tree, they would be the most hardworking and gentle creatures. Their everyday tasks consisted of gathering dew, watering the Langgan Tree, and adding fertilizer as they waited for the Fenghuang toe and eat the Zhuyu fruits they had cultivated. Which was why the Langgan Tree and Fuchang Tree were usuallypanions for life; being without one wouldn¡¯t do. It was a miracle that the bureau¡¯s Langgan Tree had grown on its own, and that a Fuchang Tree had produced three-headed people despite being without itspanion. ¡°Those three-headed people just have child-like tempers, they¡¯re very easy to talk to. What¡¯s so impressive about that?¡¯ Fu Li noticed Chu Yu squeezed into a corner with several swollen bumps adorning his bald head. ¡°Chu Yu, what happened to you?¡± ¡°Oh, he was walking brainlessly and fell down the stairs,¡± Song Yu smiled. ¡°Yao cultivators have strong recovery ability, there¡¯s no need to worry.¡± What link was there between having a brain and falling down the stairs? Fu Li saw that Chu Yu was indeed okay, so he didn¡¯t pay him any more heed. Instead, he turned and asked Zhang Ke, ¡°Zhang Ke, what kind of present does your sect leader like?¡± ¡°Just the fact that you¡¯re willing to go is giving our sect the greatest face, there¡¯s no need to be so courteous,¡± Zhang Ke hurriedly replied. ¡°My sect will be having a birthday banquet tomorrow, you muste.¡± ¡°What banquet?¡± Zhuang Qing walked into the office and spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Is everything settled?¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Our bureau¡¯s Langgan Tree finally found itspanion tree.¡± As well as three free hardworking gardeners. ¡°I saw them along the corridor just now.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent for a moment, before dully adding another statement, ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you.¡± ¡°Serving the cultivation world is not hard,¡± Fu Li shifted the topic to the birthday banquet of Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s leader. ¡°We were discussing tomorrow¡¯s birthday banquet for the leader of the Qing Xiao Sect. I¡¯m not sure what would be an appropriate style of clothing for me to wear.¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Zhang Ke, who was standing at a corner, not daring to speak. ¡°Sect leader Zhao has an amiable and friendly disposition, he will be happy no matter what you wear.¡± ¡°Yes yes yes,¡± Zhang Ke nodded his head at the side like a chick pecking at corn. ¡°Even then, I can¡¯t dress too casually. What kind of clothing are you wearing tomorrow? I¡¯ll just copy yours,¡± Fu Li acknowledged that his taste wasn¡¯t a match for Zhuang Qing, so copying what he wore definitely wouldn¡¯t be an issue. A strange calm suddenly descended on the room. It was so quiet that nobody in the roomful of people seemed to be breathing. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li swallowed. ¡°D-Did I say something wrong?¡± Zhang Ke raised his head and looked helplessly at Zhuang Qing in an attempt to let the boss understand that this was merely Fu Li¡¯s assumption and that he certainly had not said that the boss would be attending. But even when his eyeballs were about to drop out of his sockets, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t spare him an extra nce. Boss, look at me, look at me, I have a clear conscience. ¡°Sure,¡± Zhuang Qing replied expressionlessly. ¡°Get off work earlier tomorrow afternoon, I¡¯ll take you to choose clothes.¡± ¡°Then my braised spare ribs...¡± ¡°Which is more important ¨C braised spare ribs or me apanying you to choose clothes?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression became even more nk. Fu Li: ¡°You!¡± Ilyz: ...Let¡¯s all raise our hands in apuse for the impressive naming sense disyed in this chapter. On a side note, ZQ¡¯s asking the real questions here£¨ ¡ä?£à£© Chapter 61 - Couple Outfit

Chapter 61 - Couple Outfit

¡°No, if you wear the same attire, won¡¯t that be a couple outfit...¡± Everyone looked towards Xu Yuan, who had uttered these words. Xu Yuan silently covered her mouth, feeling that she was speaking a bit too much today. So much that it was a bit hateful. ¡°What?¡± Fu Li¡¯s mind was still full of regret about the imminent departure of his braised short-ribs, so he hadn¡¯t heard what Xu Yuan had said. He turned towards Zhuang Qing, who was looking at Xu Yuan. He didn¡¯t seem to have heard what she had said either. ¡°I said that the boss has good taste in clothes, he¡¯ll definitely be able to guide you in choosing a suitable outfit.¡± Xu Yuan looked down at her watch and very seriously said, ¡°Aiya. Anyway, it¡¯s about time for us to get off work. Fu ge, you and the boss should quickly leave and choose the clothes.¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing said severely, ¡°How can we leave work early during work hours? When it¡¯s time to get off work,e to my office.¡± Then, he turned towards the other employees. ¡°Do your work well, don¡¯t discuss unrted topics.¡± ¡°Will do, Boss!¡± Everyone nodded simultaneously. After Zhuang Qing left, Zhang Ke spoke to Lin Gui with a nk stare, ¡°Tortoise ge, pinch me.¡± It was rare for such a request to be made voluntarily. Of course, Lin Gui mercilessly gave him a vicious pinch. ¡°Sss.¡± Zhang Ke charged towards his personal office, wild with joy. ¡°I¡¯ll give Sect Leader a call right this instant!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡± Fu Li directed a confused look at Wei Cang. ¡°Did something urgent happen? Does he need our help?¡± ¡°No, senior brother is in a very good state.¡± Wei Cang hurriedly exined, ¡°He¡¯s just too happy, nothing major.¡± The pinch had even caused him to suck in a breath, yet he was this happy. Humans really had unimaginable habits; fantastic oddities of every description. On the cultivators¡¯ forum, the cultivator that mocked the Qing Xiao Sect for indulging in wishful thinking was still arguing on the post with Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s disciple. Regardless of what the disciple said, he would retort with the statement ¡®if you¡¯re so capable, invite Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing to participate in your sect leader¡¯s birthday banquet¡¯. Angered to bits, the disciple nearly used a positioning talisman to locate the cultivator so that they could engage in hand-to-handbat. But everyone was aware that using a positioning talisman to search for a daoyou on the forum vited the rules of the cultivation world. If such behavior was discovered by the management bureau, the individual could be fined and given a demerit if it was a light punishment, or could be imprisoned in the Spirit Lock Formation if it was a severe punishment. Either way, it would be detrimental to the individual if they wanted to find a job in the future. Cultivators from other small sects watched the drama cheerfully. The Qing Xiao Sect could be counted as a major sect ranked in the top ten sects in the cultivation world. It had innumerable talents when it came to concocting pills and refining tools. Not only did it have yao cultivators as disciples, it also had human cultivators. As long as it was an individual produced by Qing Xiao Sect, even their backs would be a bit straighter than others. Now that Qing Xiao Sect was forced to concede, not only was there apleteck of sympathy, they even gathered around and looked on with great fervor. There were even people who found itcking in excitement and deliberately fanned the mes on the post. At this juncture, a certain disciple of Qing Xiao Sect suddenly popped out and provoked: Let¡¯s hear what kind of phone you¡¯ll be eating first? Instigator cultivator replied: If you guys really manage to get Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing to attend the birthday banquet, even eating two is fine, much less one. Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s disciple: Okay, I¡¯ll pin this post as a symbol of your vow. If Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing attends the banquet, you¡¯ll have to eat the Two-Star 8 and Pear X models. Instigator cultivator: Sure. If Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing doesn¡¯t go, I won¡¯t request for much &#k2013; in the future, you¡¯ll have to call me grandpa if you see you. Do you dare to take this bet? Cultivators¡¯ forum moderator: Warning. This forum strictly prohibits pornographic content, betting, and drugs. The next time you vite the rules, your ID will be locked, and you won¡¯t be able to log into the forum for a year. Instigator cultivator: Great god moderator, please let me off. I won¡¯t make recklessments again. Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s disciple: Since both parties have reached an agreement, it¡¯ll be settled this way then. Just wait and see. The cultivators eating melon seeds and watching both parties throwing ruthless words at one another were just short of directly waving gs and shouting ¡®fight, fight¡¯. In a ce like the capital, one could only have insufficient money. There was no money that could not be spent. Zhuang Qing brought Fu Li to a shop selling ready-made clothes, picked out a few sets of clothes, and gave them to Fu Li to try. Fu Li¡¯s face was a bit on the smaller side, but his figure was very well-proportioned ¨C he was a natural clothes rack. The sales assistant would im that he looked good in every set worn. Fu Li didn¡¯t seem very ustomed to wearing a necktie. After the sales assistant tied it for him, he would tug on it in difort, causing the necktie to very quickly loosen. The sales assistant wanted to step forward and help Fu Li arrange it, but Zhuang Qing unexpectedly stood up from where he was seated at the couch reading magazines. ¡°You¡¯ll look more lively if you wear a necktie with a suit,¡± Zhuang Qing went to help Fu Li arrange his shirt and cor. Then, he tied the necktie and took a step back, hands crossed over his chest. ¡°This way, you can just barely be considered good-looking.¡± ¡°But this isn¡¯tfortable,¡± Fu Li turned his neck. The neck was a sensitive area for a few yao cultivators; having something strapped around it made Fu Li feel restricted. ¡°It¡¯s your first time wearing it, so you aren¡¯t used to it,¡± Zhuang Qing pressed on the hand that Fu Li made to tug on the necktie. ¡°Look at the mirror first and see if it suits you.¡± Fu Li walked to the mirror and took a look. He finally understood the true meaning behind the concept of ¡®clothes make the man¡¯. In this style of dress, he looked like an elite. Many elite figures were very well-read ¨C did that mean that if he dressed like them, others would think that he was a very cultured person? ¡°Do the elites all like to dress like this?¡± Fu Li approached Zhuang Qing and asked in a low voice. Zhuang Qing instantly understood Fu Li¡¯s way of thinking. He nodded. ¡°Yes, they all like to dress this way.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll bear with it then,¡± He nced around the store. ¡°Don¡¯t you have to buy clothes as well? Which set do you like? I¡¯ll give it to you.¡± Fu Li nevercked disposable ie after receiving the sum of money given by the rich second generation. ¡°Give?¡± ¡°Yup. You apanied me to choose clothes, so I¡¯ll give you a present,¡± Fu Li was confused. ¡°You haven¡¯t chosen one?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at him for a few seconds before turning to look around the store. But after looking all over the store, he still felt that the one Fu Li was wearing looked the best. In the end, he chose the same model as him, but in a different color. When Fu Li went into the changing room, he sighed and gave his bank card to the cashier. The swipe of the card across the machine felt like a cut across Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. There was a bit of a sour, cold feeling, as well as a feeling of absurdity that he himself couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of. Fu Li had clearly said that he would give him the clothes, so why did he still foot the bill for both sets of clothes? Fu Li only realized that Zhuang Qing had paid for the clothes after leaving the changing room. He thought about it and then said, ¡°I¡¯ll treat you to a meal.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°Let¡¯s go to that Restaurant Night Owl from a few nights ago. Their m soup is quite delicious,¡± Fu Li missed that taste a little. Zhuang Qing: ... ¡°You don¡¯t like it?¡± Fu Li noticed that Zhuang Qing was silent. ¡°Then let¡¯s choose a different ce.¡± Clothes worth five figures in exchange for a bowl of m soup ¨C this level of cost-effectiveness was too high. When had he, Zhuang Qing, ever suffered such losses? Truly a joke of epic proportions. ¡°No, it¡¯s quite good,¡± Zhuang Qing hated that his mouth wouldn¡¯t abide by hismands. Restaurant Night Owl opened shop at seven o¡¯clock in the evening. Customers streamed in continuously for dinner or supper, filling the tiny shop with liveliness. This time, when Fu Li and Zhuang Qing visited, the customers in the restaurant were basically all human. Other than their outstanding looks inviting a few more nces from the customers, they didn¡¯t attract too much attention. Fu Li ordered tworge portions of m soup and even specially added two portions of fishballs. ¡°Handsome, you¡¯re back again?¡± The restaurant¡¯s boss smiled as he greeted the two of them. The m soup was cooked with swift movements, filled with so many fishballs that they nearly dropped out of the pot for cooking m soup. The boss¡¯ sincerity was evident. ¡°You two seem to be fond of fish and shrimp?¡± The boss received the money with gloved hands before removing his gloves and giving his hands a wash. ¡°This ce of mine sells deep-fried yellow croaker, do you want a portion?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Fu Li nodded without even thinking. The boss ced a giant te of yellow croaker in front of them. ¡°Please enjoy.¡± The yellow croaker had just been deep-fried and shone with a golden luster. The fish was crispy but not greasy. Only in the instant the fish entered their mouths was the fragrance cocooned by the crispy skin fully released. It was good enough to be termed a premium product among deep-fried yellow croakers. The m soup and fishballs were very quickly served. Fu Li ordered another two cans of herbal tea, to which the boss hesitated. ¡°If you drink too much herbal tea, you won¡¯t be able to stomach so much food. Why don¡¯t I pour two cups of tea for you? They¡¯ll be able to clean your pte too.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, we¡¯ll be able to finish it,¡± Fu Li was all smiles. ¡°We¡¯re both big eaters.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± The boss nced at Zhuang Qing, who was seated opposite Fu Li. This gentleman¡¯s very solemn appearance made it virtually impossible to draw any link between him and the term ¡®big eater¡¯. Not longter, he turned towards their table and realized that the yellow croaker had already been polished off. There were only a few fishballs remaining and most of the m soup had already been drunk. The speed at which their chopsticks moved made it seem like they could still eat quite a bit more. They really were big eaters. It seemed he had been overly concerned. Seeing that Zhuang Qing liked the yellow croaker, Fu Li ordered another portion. He was an underaged dragon after all, having preferences when it came to food was normal. After the meal, the two people were about to head to their respective homes when Zhuang Qing suddenly asked, ¡°Are you going to tie the necktie yourself tomorrow when attending Sect Leader Zhao¡¯s birthday banquet?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Forget it, sleep at my ce tonight. I¡¯ll teach you how to tie it tomorrow,¡± Resentment was written all over Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. ¡°Get in the car.¡± Fu Li stared nkly for two seconds. After getting into the car, he thanked Zhuang Qing, ¡°Thank you, you¡¯re really a good-natured dragon.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes were fixed on the road ahead as he replied dully, ¡°Should I be thanking you for your praise?¡± ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary,¡± Fu Li replied magnanimously. ¡°We¡¯re brothers after all, there¡¯s no need to pay so much attention to these things.¡± Zhuang Qing side-eyed him. Who¡¯s your brother? That night, Fu Li was lying on a wide bed, looking at the gems embedded in the ceiling when he suddenly thought of something. Although he didn¡¯t know how to tie a necktie, he knew how to manifest one. Wasn¡¯t it a bit inappropriate for him to thicken his skin and spend a night in Zhuang Qing¡¯s house just for the sake of tying a necktie? He flipped over and thought with his eyes closed that he definitely couldn¡¯t let Zhuang Qing know of such a silly thing. Anyway, he really didn¡¯t know how to tie a necktie. The next morning, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing alighted from the car dressed in the same model of suit. Their appearance attracted a session of raised eyebrows from the junior, senior staff, as well as the shrimp and crab guard. Why was Fu ge with the boss? And they were even wearing couple outfits? They hadn¡¯t heard of these two getting together. The several painting yao at the front counter sent the two of them upstairs with their gaze and then swiftly huddled together. All of them were paintings done by schrs, who had then taken on human form after absorbing the worship and love of countless humans over the years. Therefore, they had heard of things like ¡®pampering of homosexuals¡¯ and ¡®love between boys¡¯. Now that they witnessed the boss, who put on a cold expression all year long, suddenly wearing a couple outfit with another yao, it was enough material for them to gossip about for half a month. ¡°Why do I feel like there¡¯s something off about everyone today?¡± Fu Li nced back. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Zhuang Qing responded with a cold look, ¡°They might be looking forward to attending Sect Leader Zhao¡¯s birthday banquet and got so excited that they¡¯re not in the mood to work.¡± Fu Li suddenly saw the light. ¡°So that¡¯s what it was.¡± Chapter 62 - Dragon, Dragon, Dragon

Chapter 62 - Dragon, Dragon, Dragon

Fu Li took a look at the public workspace. Sure enough, his colleagues were all specially dressed in splendid attire. Zhang Ke and Wei Cang had taken leave today to return to their sect in advance and help with internal sect matters. ¡°Fu ge is very handsome in these clothes.¡± Chu Yu shot a nce at Zhuang Qing, who was standing outside, before adding, ¡°Worthy of the boss having apanied you to choose clothes, good taste.¡± Fu Li stroked the fabric of the suit and beamed, nodding. ¡°En.¡± Chu Yu nced out again. The boss had already returned to his office. He heaved a long sigh of relief, looking at Fu Li¡¯s clothes with a lowered head. He wanted to say more, but then felt that he shouldn¡¯t say too much and thus swallowed the words. Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s monastery was built on the peak of a mountain. The mountain was shrouded in clouds and mist all year round, so there was an additional barrier on the outside. Therefore, it was impossible for ordinary people to discover the ancient, schrly-looking building at the summit of the mountain. Once in a while, invading enemies would break the barrier, allowing ordinary people to discover the building at the top of the mountain. The relevant departments would then all use the extremely scientific phenomenon ¡®illusion¡¯ to exin this. Having undergone so many years of scientific education, everyone¡¯s first action upon witnessing such a thing was to take pictures and stare at this marvel. There really hadn¡¯t been more than a few people who felt that it was the dwelling of cultivators or immortals. From time to time, there would be a few people who had such a thought, but others would tell them that it was an illusion, and that supernatural entities and whatnot didn¡¯t exist in the world, thereby changing their thinking. It was still those words ¨C ¡®maintain a scientific outlook on development, persevere in the way of science¡¯. Since it was the birthday banquet of the sect leader of the Qing Xiao Sect, a major sect in the cultivation world, all the high-ranking human and yao cultivators in the cultivation world would offer their congrattions as well as a gift. Even the azure dragon n, who hadn¡¯t dared to leave their pce ofte, had sent an envoy to deliver a present. All the guests gathered in the main hall. Regardless of whether one was a human or yao cultivator, if they could be seated here, then they were all well-known figures in the cultivation world. Thus, nobody dared to say anything they shouldn¡¯t in this setting. The dragon race¡¯s numbers had been low the past few years, but apart from the golden dragon n and the azure dragon n, the rest had personally dispatched their nsmen over. The azure dragon n hadn¡¯t dared toe out of fear that they would encounter Fu Li or the Kunpeng and be given a fierce beating in front of the numerous guests. If that were to happen, their azure dragon n would have no face left. Hence, they simply prepared generous gifts and didn¡¯t show their faces. As for the golden dragon n... the entire cultivation world knew that the golden dragon n had already died out. The only golden dragon remaining was half-dragon and half-human, and had never been fond of attending the various events. Some cultivators realized that the birthday banquet had been done up particrly grandly, even more so than the birthday banquet held when Zhao Xiu turned a hundred years old. The tea, fruits, and pastries were top-rate products purchased from the Fields Sect. The water used for tea was also natural spring water containing zero tap water. The hearts of the other sect leaders ached. The Qing Xiao Sect had be increasingly prosperous the past few years ¨C their disciples were talented at cultivation and they had also been rather sessful in the arena of pill concoction and tool refining. Their Qing Xiao Sect upied one-third of the market for medicinal pills in the entire cultivation world while the remaining two-thirds were virtually all taken up by the pill-concocting sects. Tool refining was theparativelyrger business of the Qing Xiao Sect and was the industry that practically brought them a windfall. With the current ways of the world, being broke would put one in an extremely difficult situation. ¡°Please enter, elder of the Wanyue Sect.¡± Hearing this greeting, the sect leaders of the small sects continued sighing in their hearts. Here came yet another wealthy sect. If the Qing Xiao Sect had earned a considerable amount from the cultivation world, then the Wanyue Sect was second-best in the cultivation world at profiting from humans. Ranked first was the management bureau. Nobody dared to strive for this spot. Wang Cuihua, the elder of Wanyue Sect, smiled wordlessly upon entering. After greeting everyone, she sat down at the spot arranged for her by the Qing Xiao Sect. Her seat was adjacent to the elder of the Fields Sect &#k2013; the two of them had been mahjong friends for many years and started chatting upon meeting each other. ¡°The youngsters nowadays just can¡¯t keep their cool. They use fierce words on the inte whenever they feel like it without fear of not having a way out,¡± As they chatted, the topic shifted to the excitement online. The elder of the Fields Sect stated, ¡°It¡¯s a perfectly good birthday banquet, but these juniors can¡¯t even restrain themselves. They made too ugly a fuss, and now nobody has any face.¡± ¡°What if Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing reallyes?¡± Wang Cuihua casually asked, though it was clear she didn¡¯t believe in it either. She had been in a very good moodtely ¨C her mahjong-ying went very smoothly every day, and she could get all in the same suit even if she yed mahjong with her eyes closed. ¡°That¡¯s imp...¡± ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing and Cultivator Fu Li has arrived,¡± Someone outside shouted. ¡°Truly inconceivable,¡± Forgetting himself, the elder of the Fields Sect stood up, his gaze directed at the door. He wasn¡¯t the only one; many cultivators present were looking out curiously. The entire main hall was exceedingly quiet. An elder from the Qing Xiao Sect strode forward and weed them, smiling as brightly as a chrysanthemum. ¡°Dragon Lord, Cultivator Fu, please sit,¡± The elder bowed deeply to the two people. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li returned a half bow and gave the prepared gift to the elder. ¡°I wish Sect Leader Zhao a happy birthday. May his cultivation reach a greater level.¡± ¡°Your auspicious words are received. Please, sit,¡± The elder brought Zhuang Qing and Fu Li to the table for honored guests. Those at the table were yao cultivators with at least three thousand years of cultivation. Present at the table were also five dragons of different colors. As fellow members of the dragon race, it would only be right for these five dragons to express some amiability upon seeing Zhuang Qing. Yet, Fu Li discovered that they wore obscure expressions. Zhuang Qing was also toozy to give them another look, and merely lowered his head to drink tea. The azure dragon n¡¯s envoy was seated beside the blue dragon. After catching sight of Fu Li, the hand gripping his teacup shook nonstop. The table was so quiet that it bordered on strange, so the entire table of yao could hear the ttering sounds produced by the collision between tea cover and teacup. Fu Li nced at the green-haired tortoise in confusion. The green-haired tortoise¡¯s hand shook even harder. The teacup in his handsnded on the ground, breaking into pieces. Frightened, the tortoise in human form stared at Fu Li with his not-veryrge eyes, seemingly afraid that Fu Li would eat him in one mouth. Fu Li turned his head and said into Zhuang Qing¡¯s ear, ¡°They¡¯re all tortoises, but our bureau¡¯s Huang Hou and Lin Gui are much more mature than this one.¡± ¡°He came out from the bottom of the sea and hasn¡¯t seen the world, don¡¯t lower yourself to his level,¡± Zhuang Qing took a dish of pastries and ced it in front of Fu Li. ¡°You don¡¯t have to pay any attention to them. Let¡¯s leave after eating.¡± Although the dragons at this table weren¡¯t very pleasing to the eye, he had already given the gift, how could he leave without eating? The other yao seemed to have noticed the churning undercurrents between the dragons and remained silent as they lowered their heads, nibbling on melon seeds and drinking tea. They would exchange the asional look as they watched the show. They weren¡¯t aware in the past, but it turned out Chief Zhuang had very ordinary rtions with these people of the dragon race. Neither side was willing to even greet each other. Those not in the know might even assume that there was some sort of misunderstanding among their race. If they weren¡¯t scared of stirring up trouble, these few yao would have even taken out their phones and ran to the cultivators¡¯ forum to gossip. Was there anything more amusing than watching the dragon race make fools of themselves? None! Zhang Ke bustled back and forth as he received guests. Only after the sky had turnedpletely dark did he have the time to drink a mouth of water. He turned and asked another disciple, ¡°Has our boss and Fu Li arrived?¡± ¡°Dragon Lord and Senior Fu Li have already arrived. The Great Elder personally received them.¡± Zhang Ke nodded. That was more suitable. The boss had really given his sect a lot of face bying to his Qing Xiao Sect. This was the boss¡¯ first time publicly attending their sect leader¡¯s birthday banquet, and would be enough for them to brag about for many days on end. ¡°Then which table were they arranged to sit at?¡± Zhang Ke asked apletely unnecessary question. ¡°Second Elder said that Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing doesn¡¯t usually attend gatherings, and was worried that the Dragon Lord would feel ufortable with other people, so he specially arranged for him to sit with the other Dragon Lords to put him a bit more at ease.¡± Could the boss be at ease when seated with the dragon race? Outsiders weren¡¯t aware, but their management bureau was very clear that the boss wasn¡¯t on good terms with the dragon race at all. But these were the boss¡¯ private matters, so he wasn¡¯t in the position to tell his sectmates. He had no choice but to suppress the worry in his heart and run to the front to observe the atmosphere at the Dragon Lords¡¯ table. At this point, the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s marketing department had already spent a huge sum and bought posting rights on the cultivators¡¯ forum. They wrote a very long thank-you name list to express their deep feelings of gratitude, on which Zhuang Qing¡¯s name was impressively written at the very front. When the melon seed-eating audience saw this thank-you name list, an uproar arose among all of them. Chief Zhuang Qing really went? That Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing on the name list couldn¡¯t possibly share the same name and surname, right? Melon seed-eating daoyou A: Where¡¯s that daoyou who said they¡¯ll eat phones? Have you bought thetest Pear model? Melon seed-eating daoyou B: Eating Pear¡¯s phones is equivalent to eating money. Eating Two Star 8¡¯s phones is equivalent to giving up your life. Daoyou, you¡¯d better go to a pill-concocting sect and buy some quick-acting medicinal pills or something. They might save your life. Melon seed-eating daoyou C: So the question is, when will the phones be eaten? Instigator disciple: Eat what damned phones. Just because the Qing Xiao Sect said Chief Zhuang went, does that mean he really went? Without a video, it¡¯s not true. A certain Qing Xiao Sect disciple: Hehe. The birthday banquet officiallymenced. Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s sect leader was already a hundred and fifty years old, but still looked like an extremely spirited middle-aged person. He first expressed his gratitude to the guests before downing a ss of wine, instantly setting the atmosphere on fire. The Dragon Lords¡¯ table was the only quiet one, where there wasn¡¯t much talking apart from the lifting of sses. The red dragon wanted to speak a few times, but seeing that Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t even give them a single nce, he had no choice but to scratch his head and drink his wine with a lowered head. However, he was clearly not the type of person who could sit still. Stifled by the silence, he would y with the wine ss one moment and touch the decorative pattern on the bowls the next. Fu Li suddenly let out augh, attracting the gazes of the entire table of people. During an endless silence, any individual who acted in an unusual manner would be the string that pulled everyone out of the state of awkwardness and boredom. ¡°What are youughing at?¡± Zhuang Qing removed the wine ss in front of Fu Li and reced it with fruit juice. He didn¡¯t want to take care of a drunk rabbit ever again. Fu Li whispered into Zhuang Qing¡¯s ears, ¡°That dragon opposite me is a minor, just like you.¡± Zhuang Qing touched the ear close to Fu Li. The corners of his mouth drooped a little. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Although he doesn¡¯t look very different from you in terms of age, he isn¡¯t as mature and steady as you. It seems he¡¯s been spoiled at home,¡± Fu Li nced at the red dragon before taking another look at Zhuang Qing. ¡°But you¡¯re cuter than him.¡± One¡¯s own dragon would always be more pleasing than an outsider dragon. Yao and humans were the same in that biasness was in their nature. ¡°Being cute isn¡¯t anything good,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was indifferent. Only the inconspicuously-raised corners of his mouth revealed his emotions. ¡°Little Zhuang still doesn¡¯t like to speak, just like those years,¡± The arrogant-looking purple dragon spoke all of a sudden. Fu Li didn¡¯t know if it was his misconception, but he felt an almost imperceptible sense of superiority in the other party¡¯s tone of voice. Fu Li couldn¡¯t help furrowing his brows upon having such an inkling. Ilyz: I can¡¯t be the only one whoughed so hard at that chrysanthemum part... Chapter 63 - Hundred Birds

Chapter 63 - Hundred Birds

Zhuang Qing filled Fu Li¡¯s cup to the brim with fruit juice purchased from the Fields Sect. Not only was it fresh, it also contained spiritual qi, unlike some ck-hearted merchants in the human world who extracted juice from rotten fruits and even diluted it with water. After pouring the juice, Zhuang Qing looked up only to see everyone at the table looking at him. cing down the bottle of fruit juice, he raised his brows and met the purple dragon¡¯s gaze head-on. ¡°Sorry, do we know each other?¡± The yao cultivators who were watching the show nearly burst intoughter. This purple Dragon Lord clearly hadn¡¯t spoken with good intentions, but Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing was unexpectedly even more vicious and showed apleteck of regard for him. The current era differed from the past ¨C although the dragon race still unted their offensive power in the cultivation world, much of it had dwindled the past few years since the appearance of the management bureau. The lives of the little yao at the bottom of thedder had also improved by quite a bit. Were these yao ns on bad terms with Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing because of this? As members of the yao race, they¡¯d had to pay a bit more attention to how they spoke and acted ever since the management bureau came into existence. But their lives were far better nowpared to the past. They didn¡¯t have to worry about being captured by human cultivators for pill-concoction, nor did they have to worry about being bullied by unreasonable yao. They could even receive human identity cards and lead their lives in the human world. Subconsicously, they were emotionally more inclined towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°In the many years we haven¡¯t met, Little Zhuang has even be a leader in our cultivation world. It¡¯s normal not to remember us,¡± The purple dragon let out augh. ¡°When your mother died of illness that year, it was our three ns who adopted you.¡± The three ns the purple dragon spoke of were the purple, red, and white ns. The blue and ck dragon ns lived their lives in istion, caring for nothing. They would only reveal their faces on major asions and definitely wouldn¡¯t rashly leave the ocean at other times. Due to their low poption, and to avoid enemy invasion, it was said that the blue and ck dragon ns had even shifted their dragon pces to the same area of the sea. In the yao world, other yao would collectively call them the ¡®dragon n¡¯ regardless of the color of the dragon. But only the dragon race was aware that they were not as united on the inside. The yao cultivators were astonished upon hearing the purple dragon¡¯s words. What unexpected rtions. ¡°You were the bear children who bullied Zhuang Qing those years because he was an orphan and had no parents?¡± Fu Li put down his chopsticks and wiped the corners of his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s the birthday banquet of Sect Leader Zhao today, so I won¡¯t bicker with you despicable people. I will personally call on everyone¡¯s dragon pces tomorrow.¡± Seeing Fu Li in such a rage, the yao cultivators instantly understood. It turned out these Dragon Lords had bullied Dragon Lord after seeing that he had no elders. No wonder the rumors involving Dragon Lord Zhuang were all about the evil yao he had killed in the human world. Practically no one had heard anything about him in rtion to the dragon race. ¡°Fu daoyou has gone overboard with such words. Our three ns took care of his food and drink, how did it turn into bullying him?¡± An indignant look appeared on the purple dragon¡¯s face. ¡°Even if you are colleagues, you can¡¯t deliberately distort the truth.¡± ¡°You should be d that it¡¯s Sect Leader Zhao¡¯s birthday banquet today.¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t be bothered to pay any attention to the purple dragon¡¯s affected manner and directly said, ¡°Such strong abilities to lie through your teeth, have all you dragons taken advanced studies in pce intrigue? There isn¡¯t even any emperor for you to fight over, what are you wasting so much energy for?¡± ¡°You!¡± The purple dragon stood up with a p of the table. ¡°Sit down!¡± Fu Li berated him sternly. ¡°Haven¡¯t your elders taught you any rules?¡± The purple dragon wanted to retort, but discovered that he was unable to open his mouth. He also involuntarily sat back down, his body no longer listening to his directions. His eyes widened in rm and he attempted to seek the help of the red and white dragons. However, the red dragon only knew how to perform the simple-minded act of eating, whereas the white dragon thought that the purple dragon feared Fu Li¡¯s imposing manner and was looking down on him inwardly. The white dragon had absolutely no idea that something abnormal had happened to the purple dragon. ¡°The juniors nowadays have been pampered by their n¡¯s elders till they have no discipline; truly an upsetting affair,¡± Fu Li turned to look at the other yao cultivators. ¡°It¡¯s also because the current cultivation world is peaceful and stable. If this were the past, someone with such a temper would have long been killed.¡± The other yao cultivatorsughed dryly as they nodded. Those seated at this table had to have rtively high cultivation bases. Naturally, they could tell that Fu Li had controlled the purple dragon¡¯s body. But who would want to offend someone from the management bureau? Moreover, the depths of Fu Li¡¯s cultivation was immeasurable ¨C without them even sensing any spiritual force, the other party had already taken control of the purple Dragon Lord. Who would dare to offend this sort of great yao? More importantly, they were all little yao spirits who worked hard the entire way to make it to this level, and understood what it meant to ¡®give and take¡¯. Who would dare to arrogantly lose their temper at any time and ce like the dragon race? If this were to ur a thousand years ago, the purple Dragon Lord would have lost his life very early on. The green-haired tortoise was the most miserable of them all with how he was shaking all over. He had noticed something off about the purple dragon, but didn¡¯t dare to even breathe heavily. After the incident where this senior Fu made trouble for the azure dragon n, Elder Qing Yan lost his tail. Even in his human form, he didn¡¯t have his legs. This wasn¡¯t the most wretched part. Ever since that incident, Elder Qing Yan developed a fear of thunder and an ever greater fear of furry creatures. Elder Qing Yan was formerly of such outstanding looks and bearing, yet all he dared to do now was shut himself within the pce, unwilling to even step out the door. Everyone knew that Elder Qing Yan was now basically a waste. Since then, Fu Li turned into a great demon in the hearts of all the azure dragons. They dared not even think of seeking revenge and would flee on first sight. Without the meddlesome, bbering purple dragon, they could finally eat their food. When Sect Leader Zhao personally came over to toast them and express his thanks, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing had already tried all the dishes on the table. ¡°Everyone, you have honored me with your presence and brought light to this lowly sect¡¯s dwelling. If there were aspects of your treatment that were not to your satisfaction, please forgive me.¡± Sect Leader Zhao smiled with great delight and drank the wine without fuss. The purple dragon seated at the side realized that his body had moved again, involuntarily picking up the wine ss. His eyes bulged out in fear as he stared at the wine ss in his hands. He didn¡¯t dare to believe that he could be so easily controlled by a yao cultivator. What sort of sorcery had Fu Li cultivated? ¡°Sect Leader Zhao is too modest. It is the joy of your great birthday today, it is only right for us to toast you,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up and raised his wine cup. ¡°Please.¡± ¡°This humble one can¡¯t thank Chief Zhuang enough for taking the time toe amidst your busy schedule,¡± Sect Leader Zhao smiled even more happily, his eyes shining as he looked at Zhuang Qing. This was a dragon who had joined with the nation¡¯s fate, a dragon whose entire body was covered in a halo. At the side, a Qing Xiao Sect disciple responsible for taking pictures hurriedly lifted up the camera and took multiple shots in session of Zhuang Qing and Sect Leader Zhao toasting. After some editing, these could even be hung up in their sect¡¯s hall of fame. The videographers and cameramen all positioned themselves and started taking pictures or videos. Several cultivators even secretly took out their phones and snapped a few shots. Some adjusted the angle, allowing them to take a perfect ¡®wefie¡¯ with Zhuang Qing. Afterwards, they forwarded the photo to their friends and family, and engaged in a very robust round of bragging. The melon seed-eating cultivatorizens were even more vicious. They posted photos of Zhuang Qing appearing at the birthday banquet onto the forum and urged the instigator cultivator to quickly buy Pear X as well as Two-Star 8 so that they could livestream their phone meal for everyone to see. In addition to eating melon seeds, some people were also curious why Zhuang Qing suddenly decided to attend the birthday banquet. Was it because two high-ranking employees in the bureau were from the Qing Xiao Sect and because he had seen the huge mor on the inte, so he specially gave his employees face? Put in such a manner, Chief Zhuang really was a good leader. An employee of the management bureau very quickly disguised themselves and replied: Stop having those wishful thoughts. Our boss hardly looks at the forum; he has zero knowledge of all these arguments on the inte. You guys should take a look at the person he went with. The person he went with? Wasn¡¯t it Fu Li daoyou, the main lead of the cautionary film that had recently pervaded the cultivation world? Fu Li daoyou had profound cultivation and even dared to fight against Oujiang. He wouldn¡¯t be considered unfit for Dragon Lord Zhuang¡¯s status even if he went with him? Cultivator daoyou A: I seem to have understood something. Cultivator daoyou B: I seem to have understood it too. The cultivators were baffled by these few people¡¯s manner of speaking. What had they understood? Cultivator daoyou A: I¡¯m timid and don¡¯t dare to say it. Cultivator daoyou C: The two of them seem to be wearing a couple outfit. Is that what you mean? Cultivator daoyou A: The daoyou above is new, right? I didn¡¯t say anything, you remember to have a good meal. I ask all the cultivators and moderators to witness that the abovement has nothing to do with me. Daoyou A didn¡¯t appear again after making this reply. Clearly, this individual didn¡¯t dare to continue saying so much. But whether she appeared or not was no longer important. What was important was that the numerous melon seed-eating daoyous were struck dumb. It was not odd for these two great masters to appear together, but if they wore a couple outfit in addition to that, then it was a bit hard to fathom. Could Dragon Lord Zhuang and Senior Fu Li... The daoyouizens were still eating melon seeds, but it was already nearing the end of the banquet. After the meal, the Qing Xiao Sect had even prepared various singing and dancing performances for the enjoyment of the guests. The main hall in which clouds and mist were adrift seemed like a fantasnd. As Fu Li watched the Fenghuang Feather Dance onstage, he suddenly remembered something from his childhood. At that time, he had been frightened to tears by a Feiyi and cried for days on end after returning to the Reflecting Mist Mountain. Nobody could stop his crying. Later on, the sparrow living at the entrance of his cave as well as Sister Pheasant brought many pretty birds with them and performed many beautiful dances at the entrance of his cave. The unable-to-transform sparrow had even pretended to be a Fenghuang then, epting the worship of a hundred birds. Only when he asked the sparrow how she had done it did he discover that she had used the spiritual rice grown by King Ganglie to bribe the birds into apanying her to perform the dream-like show. Although he felt that Little Sparrow¡¯s dream wasn¡¯t very reliable, the ¡®Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang¡¯ dance was indeed very nice to look at. At that time, he had used the fact that he was young, as well as the sparrow¡¯s fondness for performing such shows to cart many bags of spiritual rice out of King Ganglie¡¯s ce. With those bags, he had invited the birds to perform numerous times. The people invited by the Qing Xiao Sect to perform the Fenghuang Feather Dance disyed beautiful poses and the lighting was also dazzling. Perhaps the memories of his childhood were too beautiful, but he still felt that that year¡¯s ¡®Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang¡¯ was even better-looking, even if... the tiny, tiny sparrow flying right at the front was not eye-catching in the least. Nothing could be more brilliant than the multi-colored feathers of the birds and their sweet chirping sounds. ¡°Sect Leader Zhao put in a lot of effort this time, he actually invited a Kongyouto perform,¡± A cultivator seated at the back eximed in admiration. ¡°A Kongyou¡¯s performance of a Fenghuang is reportedly the closest to the real thing.¡± Kongyou? Fu Li looked at the beautiful woman dancing lightly and gracefully on-stage. Wasn¡¯t that a peacock spirit? Also, this peacock¡¯s actual form was male. A Fenghuang¡¯s dance could take the breath of all away, attracting the worship of a hundred birds. This was why the was also called . However, the yao cultivators of the peacock race felt that they couldn¡¯t shoulder the name , and thus decided on as the title of the dance. However, Fu Li felt that the beauty of y not just in the Fenghuang¡¯s dance, but also in the splendid unity between the Fenghuang and the hundred birds. The birds who had worked in exchange for spiritual rice that year had taken even more care than dancers who had performed on stage for a hundred years. Ai, the juniors of the modern cultivation world were protected by the management bureau. They didn¡¯tck that bit of food, so they naturally didn¡¯t need to work themselves to the bone like how those birds did that year. Sure enough, an easy life made forzy yao. Chapter 64 - Bear Children

Chapter 64 - Bear Children

The audience broke into apuse and cheers after the end of the dance. The Kongyou walked to the center of the stage for a curtain call. There was indeed a hint of a peacock¡¯s arrogance in its lofty and indifferent attitude. Fu Li followed the entire venue of excited cultivators in smiling and apuding. Turning, he saw that Zhuang Qing was still eating nuts with a lowered head. He tapped Zhuang Qing on the arm. Zhuang Qing red at him. ¡°p!¡± Young dragons had to have manners. p p p. Zhuang Qing lifted his hands and expressionlessly pped thrice. At the side, a sparrow spirit nimbly snapped a photo and swiftly posted it on the cultivators¡¯ forum. If this post had been done half a day ago, the bored cultivators would be eating melon seeds in delight. But things were different tonight, particrly when they saw Fu Li at the corner of the photo, dressed in the same model of suit as Zhuang Qing. Daoyou A: Who would be expressionless when admiring something? Daoyou B: Even Senior Fu Li at the side is pping with more sincerity than Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing. Daoyou C: We have a perfectly good cultivators¡¯ forum here, let¡¯s not learn the ways of the human online forums. Hyping two unrted things? Exaggerated marketing? In the current era, who hasn¡¯t mixed around in the human forums? There¡¯s no need for these few tricks. Daoyou D: OP definitely hasn¡¯t been around the human forums much, the humans have much better tricks than these. They definitely won¡¯t give it such a stupid title, nor would they brag so awkwardly. At best, they would pretend to be a passerby and take a few beautiful shots of the Kongyou. Then, they would get several people to disguise themselves as passersby to ask which guests are present. The OP would then kindly release another photo to let the ¡®warm-heartedizens¡¯ identally discover the image of Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing pping before making a conjecture about their rtionship. With a discussion topic and the curiosity of passersby, won¡¯t the Kongyou gradually be the most outstanding dancers in the cultivation world? Daoyou A: The daoyou above seems to be very familiar with the human world? Daoyou D: No choice. There was a time Icked money and wanted to earn a bit as a water army in the human world. In the end, I ran into a swindler online who cheated me of the three hundred yuan registration fee. That swindler got me to make a variety of posts and had me leavements under all sorts of posts. I was exhausted from not sleeping for many days, but didn¡¯t manage to earn back the registration fee and even had to spend a lot on electricity. Daoyou C: Humans are really cunning and shameless. Daoyou B: Daoyou above, please do not generalize. This is a forum for the cultivation world, not a forum for yao cultivators. If you put it like that, then the yao cultivators who were swindled can only be med for not having brains. Humans wouldn¡¯t even believe such a stupid scam, only you yao cultivators would be duped so foolishly. Moderator: Warning. This forum prohibits racial discrimination. Daoyou 234 and 235 will be banned from logging into their ounts for a month on the suspicion ofrge-scale personal attacks. Melon seed-eatingizens: These two banned ounts must be fools? What age was it already? Yet there were still humans who looked down on yao and vice versa. There were now quite a few human-yao marriages, and even Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing was half-human and half-yao. There was no meaning in continuing to talk drivel about these. ¡°Why do the people in the cultivation world stir up so much drama too?¡± Zhang Ke had taken out his phone and was scrolling through the forum. To him, these cultivators were blindly joining in on the action because they were too idle. He stood on tiptoe and nced at the boss, who was eating and drinking tea while seated at the viewing tform. They even said he was admiring the show? If they angered the boss, their legs might end up broken. The subsequent performances invited very average reactions from everyone, possibly because was too exciting. Only when the night banquet ended and the Qing Xiao Sect gave out thank-you gifts did the atmosphere heat up once more. The Qing Xiao Sect was extremely generous ¨C in the thank-you gift given to every guest, there was a bottle of medicinal pills in addition to some special souvenirs. To the financially-strapped cultivators, this bottle of medicinal pills was good stuff that was hard toe by. Everyone was in great spirits when the birthday banquet came to an end. Some left by riding the clouds while others rode their own magic weapons. Nobody could surpass the Kongyou in tastefulness ¨C he left riding a red-crowned crane. Rays of light shed in the skies for a split second. If not for the barrier concealing it, it would have been taken for a meteor shower by the humans on the ground. Fu Li shook his head mid-flight. ¡°I seem to have forgotten something.¡± ¡°You forgot to take the gift box given by the Qing Xiao Sect?¡± That was the first thing Zhuang Qing thought of. Fu Li shook his head. The purple dragon seated motionlessly at the Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s guest seat: ... ¡°Zi Xiao, what¡¯s going on with you?¡± The red dragon circled the purple dragon twice. ¡°Does the Qing Xiao Sect have such nice scenery that you can¡¯t bear to leave?¡± Moron, couldn¡¯t he tell that he wasn¡¯t able to even move an inch? The ck dragon and blue dragon nced at the activity on their end, said their farewells, and then left without looking back, unwilling to say a single extra word. They were more clear-headed than the purple and azure dragon ns. The fact that it was Zhuang Qing out of the sixty dragons in the entire dragon race who eventually became the dragon of national fate was enough to prove certain things. The purple dragon had provoked Zhuang Qing because he hadn¡¯t forgotten the sense of superiority he felt when he was young, nothing more than that. At that time, they were little Dragon Lords coaxed and ced on a pedestal by hundreds of aquatic yao and thousands of yao, while Zhuang Qing was just a parentless, mixed-blood dragon without any support. Even if he was bullied by them, nobody would dare to say much. Which was why humans were actually quite wise creatures. They understood certain concepts very early on, such as not bullying youngsters and to always leave a route out for everything. These three ns had gone too far those years and forced a young dragon no more than several tens of years old to live in the human world constantly on the run. Now that the other party was living well and hadn¡¯t deliberately made things hard for them, the purple dragon instead delivered himself to the door. Leaving aside the fact that Zhuang Qing¡¯s colleague couldn¡¯t stand watching this any longer, even they couldn¡¯t tolerate the purple dragon¡¯s behavior. If it wasn¡¯t because he didn¡¯t have a brain, what else could it be? The disciple responsible for sweeping the main hall saw the purple Dragon Lord still seated motionlessly, and didn¡¯t dare to step forward and disturb him. Only after the purple dragon quietly sat there in this manner for close to half an hour did the white and red dragon realize that the purple dragon wasn¡¯t enjoying the scenery. He simply couldn¡¯t move. The two people panicked internally. What was going on? ¡°It¡¯s Zhuang Qing,¡± The white dragon reacted the next instant. ¡°This must have been done by him.¡± The red dragon picked up the purple dragon. ¡°Let¡¯s ask him for an exnation.¡± Saying so, he floated out. Along the way, the three dragons bumped into the green-haired tortoise, who was taking his time to fly. The green-haired tortoise spotted them and wanted to fly faster, but still ended up being stopped by the white dragon due to the innate limitations of his race. ¡°Senior Minister Gui of the azure dragon n,¡± The white dragon gripped the green-haired tortoise¡¯s back. ¡°Events like this have always been attended by Qing Yuan or Qing Yan, why have they not appeared recently?¡± The green-haired tortoise struggled to no avail and had no choice but to say, ¡°Dragon Lord Qing Yan isn¡¯t feeling very well and Elder Qing Yuan is cultivating in seclusion, so neither of them coulde.¡± One didn¡¯t have legs, and the other didn¡¯t have a horn. How could they be willing toe? ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± The white dragon released his grip, and the green-haired tortoise fell onto the clouds with a plop. Paying no heed to the green-haired tortoise¡¯s sorry state, the three dragons flew off without even a nce back. ¡°Senior Minister, are you okay?¡± The apanying junior official slowly helped the tortoise up and said softly, ¡°Those Dragon Lords are still so overbearing.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine.¡± The three dragons didn¡¯t seem to be flying towards the sea. The tortoise wondered doubtfully if they intended to go to the human world for some fun. But the purple Dragon Lord couldn¡¯t speak or move in his current state, so where could they be going to y? ¡°I remember now,¡± Fu Li suddenly came to a stop. ¡°I used an immobilizing skill on that displeasing dragon and seem to have forgotten to undo it.¡± This was why he kept feeling like he had forgotten something. ¡°How about I go back and find them?¡± ¡°No need,¡± Zhuang Qing said. ¡°Come with me to my ce first. They¡¯lle knocking on their ownter on.¡± ¡°That works too,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Let him suffer more.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to be fond of bickering with juniors,¡± Zhuang Qing had always thought that Fu Li was even more tolerant of most yao cultivators than the humans. He hadn¡¯t expected Fu Li¡¯s reaction to be so big tonight. ¡°Juniors who are not sensible should be taught a lesson,¡± Fu Li stated. ¡°What¡¯s more, they even bullied you. I¡¯m helping you to vent while doing this.¡± Zhuang Qing stared nkly. A long whileter, he responded with some awkwardness, ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it,¡± Fu Li replied as if it was only right. ¡°As a yao, of course I have to protect my own yao. The way I see it, those bear children need a spanking. After a few rounds, they might still be salvageable. If they don¡¯t learn well when young, won¡¯t they just be harming others and themselves when theye out in the future?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°You have a point.¡± There was an indescribable feeling of awkwardness at being considered someone else¡¯s yao and protected, but Zhuang Qing also had a bizarre feeling that this wasn¡¯t bad. He had probably spent too much time with Fu Li and was infected with the silliness in Fu Li¡¯s brain. ¡°Zhuang Qing, stop right there!¡± Fu Li turned around. Sure enough, the three bear children had arrived. Chapter 65 - Jade Plaque

Chapter 65 - Jade que

The white dragon¡¯s roar startled the cultivators secretly watching Zhuang Qing and Fu Li from their hiding spots in the clouds, to the extent that they no longer wanted to leave. They hid within the clouds, pretending as if the people involved in the actual matter were unable to discover their presence. Reality proved that uninquisitive species had long gone extinct during the course of earth¡¯s transformation. The remaining species all yearned to explore, learn, and create. However, this inherent thirst for nature resulted in some creatures losing their lives due to curiosity. Risk and gain could be said to coexist. Anyone who watched the cautionary video released by the management bureau would know that this new Senior Fu Li was an expert that the average yao could not afford to provoke. What¡¯s more, he had something unspeakable going on with Chief Zhuang. Creating excessive trouble would result in embarrassment. ¡°How may I help you?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t intend to let Zhuang Qing handle this matter in his ce. Zhuang Qing was the boss of the management bureau; if it got out that Zhuang Qing took the initiative to fight with these dragons, it wouldn¡¯t be very pleasing to the ear. But it was different for him. If worst came to worst, he could resign, go back to being a security guard at Affinity Moon Hotel, study, and get into university. ¡°Get lost, our dragon ns want to talk to Zhuang Qing. Irrelevant yao shouldn¡¯t butt in.¡± The white dragon wasn¡¯t even willing to spare Fu Li a nce and directly spoke to Zhuang Qing, ¡°Remove the immobilization spell from Zi Xiao. Quick.¡± Zhuang Qing crossed his arms across his chest and answered at a measured pace, ¡°Youe to me for everything. If you fall down in the future, are you going to me me for tripping you too?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t discuss who¡¯s right or wrong with an idiot,¡± Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. ¡°Let me resolve this.¡± Zhuang Qing: ...... Then what would it be if you were the one discussing it? ¡°I don¡¯t speak to dog legs...¡± The red dragon tugged on the white dragon¡¯s sleeve and said softly, ¡°I heard he¡¯s a rabbit.¡± ¡°Shut up,¡± The white dragon couldn¡¯t stand the red dragon with poor brains. His elder brother was clearly quite intelligent, so why was it that when it came to him, he was so stupid that he was beyond redemption? Did his parents use up all the IQ when giving birth to his elder brother? The red dragon rolled his eyes towards the sky after being yelled at by the white dragon. He towed the purple dragon to the side and sat down. If they got into a fight, by no means would he help. ¡°No worries, it¡¯s okay for me to be the one speaking,¡± Fu Li¡¯s gazended on the purple dragon¡¯s neck. That area of skin was so tender he could even make out the veins beneath. With lightning speed, he shifted his line of sight. ¡°Whether you¡¯re human or yao, you¡¯ll have to pay a price for doing wrong. Being young and not sensible isn¡¯t something that you can just use as an excuse as and when you like, understand?¡± ¡°After this long, you¡¯re actually still standing up for Zhuang Qing,¡± The white dragon sneered. ¡°Are you his dog? A dog that barks even when the owner hasn¡¯t called for it? The cultivators concealed in the clouds sucked in a breath of cold air. These words were too offensive. Just as everyone thought that Fu Li would be unable to hold back his anger and start fighting with the white dragon, Zhuang Qing, who had been standing expressionlessly at the side, suddenly moved into action. Nobody managed to get a clear view of his actions; all they saw was an oppressive shadow flying past. The white dragon who had just been speaking overbearingly to Fu Li was sent flying a great distance, resembling a steamed bun that had been tossed out. ¡°It¡¯s not that I won¡¯t bicker with you, I¡¯m justzy.¡± Thick clouds automatically converged to form an arched bridge under Zhuang Qing¡¯s feet. Stepping onto the bridge, he walked to the white dragon, leaned over, and hauled him up from the clouds. He stated expressionlessly, ¡°Don¡¯t challenge my patience.¡± The white dragon attempted to push Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand away, but failed no matter how much he tried. He spat out a mouth of blood, before suddenly saying in a low voice, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to find the jade que your mother gave you that year?¡± He wiped the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth. ¡°If you apologize to me and let me hit you thrice, I¡¯ll give the jade que to you.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s birth mother was a princess in the Eastern Han dynasty who was not favored by the emperor. After her pregnancy with Zhuang Qing, her physical condition deteriorated day by day. Zhuang Qing was not yet ten years old when she was at death¡¯s door. When he was brought back to the dragon n, he only had a few items from the human world with him. How could the people in the dragon pce fancy things from the human world? Coupled with the lowly human blood flowing in Zhuang Qing¡¯s body, he was not only bullied by the young dragons at dragon pce, but also publicly looked down on by the great aquatic yao. The majority of the things he brought from the human world were either destroyed or thrown out. In the end, the only thing that remained was the jade que around his neck. That jade que represented Zhuang Qing¡¯s identity in the human world, and was the noble rank that his birth mother had dragged her ailing body to the pce to plead for countless times. Fearing that her child would be bullied by the other nobility after her death, she had requested for a noble rank to protect him. But this human princess had not known that the dragon race had suffered an enormous disaster, resulting in the deaths of countless dragons either by illness or lightning. As a result, if they discovered anyone with dragon blood stranded outside, they would take them back to the dragon n to be brought up. Therefore, before Zhuang Qing could even enjoy the noble rank she had begged for with all her heart and connections, he was forcibly brought back by the dragon race to the dragon pce at the bottom of the sea. Even if the golden dragon n only had one dragon still around, Zhuang Qing wouldn¡¯t have had such tough days at the bottom of the sea. Unfortunately, the entirety of the golden dragon n had lost their lives. Even his birth father had staked hisst breath to touch the heart of his birth mother, leading to her pregnancy. He had turned into dust after that, vanishing into the world. The jade que was the sole emotional attachment Zhuang Qing had had in his childhood. Later on, even that jade que had been lost. Standing on the other end of the cloud bridge, Fu Li¡¯s eyelids moved. He didn¡¯t seem to have heard the white dragon¡¯s words, yet also seemed to have heard it clearly. Zhuang Qing released the white dragon and looked at him expressionlessly. The white dragon patted thepel that was wrinkled from Zhuang Qing¡¯s grip. He smiled with delight. ¡°How is it? Have you thought about how you want to apologize?¡± ¡°Apologize your ass! You¡¯ve watched too many dog blood dramas in the human world. Allow you to hit me thrice? Are you an idiot?¡± Zhuang Qing gave the white dragon a vicious kick. In a sh, the white dragon tumbled countless times through the clouds like an egg before lying paralyzed on the clouds. The cultivators hiding in the clouds and watching the show pulled their heads back. They were afraid yet curious about what exactly the white Dragon Lord had said to anger Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing to such an extent. Although Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing looked stern, he definitely wasn¡¯t someone who would attack without thought. The fact that he was this angry had to be entirely the fault of the white dragon. Among the cultivators standing around watching, the bat yao had the best hearing ability. Moreover, he had been cultivating for over a thousand years. The two Dragon Lords hadn¡¯t erected a barrier and blocked out their voices when they were talking, so the bat yao should have clearly heard what they were saying given his cultivation. Therefore, everyone cast their gazes towards the bat yao. ¡°What are you looking at me for?¡± The bat lowered his voice, scared that he would be discovered by the Dragon Lords. ¡°What did the white dragon say to anger Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing to this point?¡± The cultivators¡¯ burning gazes scared the bat yao into shrinking his neck back. If he¡¯d known things would progress like this, he wouldn¡¯t have stayed behind to watch the drama. Seeing that he was unwilling to answer them, the other cultivators half-threatened and half-promised the bat yao benefits. Finally, the bat yao was unable to withstand the pressure and revealed the truth. ¡°White Dragon Lord seems to have taken a certain important item Dragon Lord Zhuang¡¯s mother left for Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing when he was very young. He used it to threaten Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing and insisted that he apologize to him and allow him to hit him thrice, otherwise he won¡¯t return the item to him.¡± Seeing mes on the verge of erupting from the cultivators¡¯ eyes, the bat yao stammered out, ¡°T-Then, Dragon Lord Zhuang got angry.¡± He even cursed! That was Dragon Lord Zhuang. The cold and noble Dragon Lord Zhuang whose clothes were always neat and tidy actually knew how to say such vulgar profanities. Every inch of the bat was in a state of stupefaction. ¡°That¡¯s too shameless,¡± An enchanting willow tree spirit scolded softly. ¡°My heart aches so much just thinking about how Dragon Lord Zhuang was bullied by them during his childhood.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough, your heart aches for all good-looking male yao,¡± The banyan tree spirit at the side ridiculed. ¡°If you have the ability, help Dragon Lord Zhuang get justice.¡± The willow tree spirit gave the banyan tree spirit a re. With a twist of her waist, she went to another cloud to continue watching the show. ¡°Zhuang Qing!¡± The white dragon only managed to get up with difficulty after a great deal of time had passed. ¡°Since you don¡¯t care about the jade que, then I¡¯ll go back and destroy it.¡± ¡°Up to you,¡± Zhuang Qing left the miserable-looking white dragon behind and left. The cloud bridge under his feet vanished bit by bit. By the time he reached Fu Li¡¯s side, the cloud bridge had alreadypletely vanished. Nothing connected the clouds he and the white dragon were on. ¡°A five thousand fine for fighting,¡± Zhuang Qing gave himself and the white dragon a vition ticket, and then passed the white dragon¡¯s ticket to the stunned red dragon at the side. ¡°Remember to pay the fine before the deadline.¡± ¡°O-Okay,¡± The red dragon clutched the vition ticket and nodded foolishly. ¡°Do you still have something to ask me about?¡± Zhuang Qing patted the dust off the sleeves of his suit as he looked expressionlessly at the red dragon. ¡°No, no,¡± Terrified, the red dragon hid behind the purple dragon. He shook his head repeatedly. ¡°Good.¡± Zhuang Qing spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Can¡¯t bear to part with the night view here?¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li looked up at him nkly. ¡°Still not leaving?¡± Zhuang Qing threw down these words and then flew into the distance on a cloud, the speed at which he flew theplete opposite of his previous exasperatingly slow pace. Fu Li nced in the direction Zhuang Qing left. He tapped the forehead of the purple dragon called Zi Xiao once, saying in a low voice, ¡°Bear child, if you cause trouble again, then you can just be a paralyzed dragon for your entire life. At least you won¡¯t bother others that way.¡± Leaving behind these words, Fu Li removed the surrounding soundproof barrier before chasing after Zhuang Qing with a broad smile. ¡°You...¡± Zi Xiao wanted to swear without reservations, but upon recalling the words Fu Li had uttered, he felt an indescribable fear and was unable to voice the curses. ¡°Zi Xiao, you can talk?¡± The red dragon walked out from behind him without feeling the slightest bit of shame at hiding behind his back. ¡°What did Fu Li tell you? Why did you suddenly return to normal?¡± ¡°Stay away from me,¡± The purple dragon took a deep breath and reminded himself not to get angry with a fool. ¡°If you have the time to bullshit with me, why don¡¯t you help Little White up?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± The red dragon turned and went to help the white dragon up. He thought somewhat unhappily that the white dragon and purple dragon had bad tempers and created trouble every time they came out, so he wouldn¡¯t go out with them in the future. After the white dragon was sent back to the dragon pce, his nmates found out that he was injured and was greatly incensed, ready to settle ounts with the assant. However, upon hearing that the attacker was Zhuang Qing, they fell silent. The things they had done those years were indeed not ster. To add on to that, Zhuang Qing had now joined with the nation¡¯s fate and was held in high esteem by cultivators. They didn¡¯t have the courage or confidence to look for trouble. The white dragon threw a fit after seeing that his nmates didn¡¯t intend to help him vent. After eating a medicinal pill, he went to sleep. It was already midnight when he woke. All of a sudden, he thought of the jade que he had thrown into the junk box. Thus, he clutched his chest and climbed out of bed. Only after spending close to two hours did he take out a dust-covered jade que from a box that was neither old nor new. The jade que wasn¡¯t big. The five words ¡®Wen An Marquis, Shang County¡¯ were carved on it in seal script. The symbol of the imperial family was disyed right at the top. ¡°This is the jade que you stole from Zhuang Qing?¡± A voice suddenly sounded from behind. Chapter 66 - Changing Forms

Chapter 66 - Changing Forms

Taken aback, the white dragon leaped to his feet. He looked back but saw nothing, not even a shadow of a ghost. His hand gripped the jade que tightly as he took a few steps back, reaching out to a coral disy piece on a cab. But the next second, the coral piece shattered into fragments. Shaken, a quiver ran through his entire body. His hand drew back. ¡°Who is it sneaking around,e out!¡± However, the person concealed in the darkness didn¡¯t seem to want to reveal themselves, and disyed no reaction towards his fear and fury. ¡°Daoyou, my white dragon n might not be an illustrious or influential n, but it¡¯s still given a meager amount of face. If you want riches, this junior has a few good things. As long as Senior likes them, this junior will offer them up with both hands.¡± Although he was arrogant and rude, he wasn¡¯t without brains. This person of unidentified origin had soundlessly broken through the dragon pce¡¯s barrier and arrived at his bedroom, indicating that this person had extremely profound cultivation. If he were to enrage such a cultivator, he might not even manage to keep his life. But this person mentioned Zhuang Qing, did they know each other? ¡°What good things can your dragon race have? You only have so much. I heard you¡¯re in possession of Zhuang Qing¡¯s weakness?¡± The white dragon turned joyful upon hearing this. Did this person have a grudge with Fu Li, and thus came looking for him? With a scheme in his heart, the white dragon was no longer as nervous. ¡°Senior may not be aware, but Zhuang Qing has a particrly antisocial personality. Not a single dragon in the dragon race is on good terms with him.¡± The expert of unknown name was silent, so he continued, ¡°Also, that person is cold-hearted and merciless. He caused someone of the same race to go to jail tens of years ago and sent someone from the azure dragon n into prison a while back.¡± ¡°Give me that jade que,¡± The person he couldn¡¯t see suddenly spoke. The white dragon nced down at the jade que in his hands with some hesitation. ¡°Senior, this thing is...¡± He had just spoken when the jade que in his hands flew out on its own and then vanished midair, nowhere to be seen. He didn¡¯t even know how the other party managed it. He cautiously let out a cooperativeugh. ¡°This thing isn¡¯t of much use. The Zhuang Qing of today has already won recognition and sess, he wouldn¡¯t regard such a thing as important.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need you to educate me,¡± The mysterious person snorted coldly. All of a sudden, the pce doors swung wide open, and the night breeze surged into the hall. Cold wind blew against the white dragon¡¯s head, sending a tremble through his whole body. But the white dragon turned cheerful again upon thinking about how Zhuang Qing had provoked such a dangerous person. A snow-white rabbit with pointed ears swam out of the sea and jumped ashore at a fantastical speed. With a shake of its plump body, its wet fur became fluffy. The rabbit¡¯s hind legs stood upright, and it held its front ws together, bowing towards the sky. He was already so old, but it was his first time stealing something. Grandpa heavenlyw shouldn¡¯t argue with someone of lesser knowledge. He had actually intended to directly fight his way into the white dragon n¡¯s Crystal Pce and snatch the jade que back. But out of concern that it would harm the management bureau¡¯s reputation if it got out, he could onlye up with such a scheme. When this matter was no longer under the public eye, he would secretly give those bear children a beating. He transformed into his human form inside a barrier. Taking out the jade que, he wiped the umted dust on its surface, revealing the words on it. Compared to Simplified Chinese, he was actually more familiar with seal script since he had had more contact with it. Shang County&#k2026; Wasn¡¯t that somewhere not too far from Reflecting Mist Mountain? If Reflecting Mist Mountain hadn¡¯t been destroyed that year, and Zhuang Qing had gone to this fiefdom, then they might have been on the same plot ofnd? Fu Li didn¡¯t understand the humans¡¯ hierarchical system at that time, so he couldn¡¯t make anything out of this jade que. But whatever the case, this was an item Zhuang Qing¡¯s mother had left for him. It was probably of great importance to him. If he genuinely didn¡¯t care about it, he wouldn¡¯t have hit the white dragon in front of the other yao cultivators. Given Zhuang Qing¡¯s cultivation, there was no way he didn¡¯t know of the yao cultivators hiding around them and watching the show. Even then, he still hadn¡¯t been able to hold himself back. On the surface, he might seem like he didn¡¯t care at all. But in his heart, the extent to which he cared might be immeasurable. It was very normal for young yao to have a sharp tongue but soft heart. But how should he give the jade que to Zhuang Qing? He couldn¡¯t possibly swagger to him and say, ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I stole your jade que back.¡± Wouldn¡¯t that be a conscious vition of the rules? He sighed and turned into his rabbit form. With a jump, he flew back to the capital. After cing the jade que into a brocade pouch, he got a tiny bird to help him send it over. Worried that Zhuang Qing wouldn¡¯t open the door for the bird, he changed into arge bird and led the tiny bird to Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi, through the barrier, and then went knocking on the window of Zhuang Qing¡¯s room. Knock knock knock. Zhuang Qing happened to be in a bad mood. Hearing the sounding from the window, he nced out the window with creased brows and was met with a tiny bird cocking its head at him, a brocade pouch around its neck. The bird¡¯s mung bean eyes were innocent and nk. He grabbed a fistful of millet from the cab with a straight face and cautiously opened the window. After scattering the millet on the windowsill, he took the brocade pouch from the bird¡¯s neck. He undid the knot around the pouch and the jade que fell into his palm. Zhuang Qing stared nkly at the five words ¡®Wen An Marquis, Shang County¡¯. Chirp chirp chirp. The bird finished the millet and pped its wings a few times on the windowsill before flying off with satisfaction. Only at this time did Zhuang Qinge to his senses. Stroking the decorative words on the jade que, he stretched his head out the window and peered around without seeing anyone. His hands repeatedly turned the brocade pouch around before discovering a strand of white hair on it. Twirling the thin strand of hair in his hands, Zhuang Qing suddenlyughed. Would he not know who found the jade que just because a bird sent it over? How many people knew about the incident today? How many could run to the dragon pce and retrieve something silently? How many cultivators would be able to lead a bird past the barrier outside his vi? Those who would do such a stupid thing for him... how many were there? ¡°Thank you,¡± He spoke out the window. There was no movement outside. ¡°Remember toe to work on time tomorrow morning.¡± There was still no movement. A very long timeter, so long that Zhuang Qing had shut the windows and switched off the lights in the room, the ¡®bird¡¯ hanging upside down underneath the windowsill fell onto the ground with a plop. pping its wings, it flew off in a haste. High-difficulty movements like hanging upside down were still more suitable for bats, it was a bit beyond him. The ¡®bird¡¯ changed into a white rabbit after flying out the vi¡¯s barrier. With a kick of its legs, the tiny white rabbit morphed into a stream of light, vanishing into the night. At the vi, Zhuang Qing opened the windows and cast a nce beneath the window, saying softly, ¡°Who knows how his head grew for him to be this stupid.¡± Despite the resentful wordsing out of his mouth, there was a smiling expression in his eyes. The white dragon waited happily for a good few days in the dragon pce, but didn¡¯t hear of Zhuang Qing getting injured or dying. He wondered with some disappointment if Zhuang Qing¡¯s cultivation was too high and the mysterious senior was also unable to deal with him. His mood turned bad again the moment he thought of this. They were clearly all dragons, so why was the difference so big? But soon after, he no longer had the energy to care about Zhuang Qing. An envoy from the azure dragon n had brought an extremely shocking piece of news. In thest one thousand years, the azure dragons had prospered without limits, so much so that the humans were misled into recording them down in their books. They had lumped them together with the Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, and ck Tortoise, and named them the Four Divine Beasts. In human entertainment industry lingo, this was called bundling. By relying on the fact that the other three divine beasts had already vanished in the human world and were unable to clear up these rumors, the azure dragon n very vigorously gave themselves airs. Yes, the Vermilion Bird, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, and ck Tortoise were indeed the Four Divine Beasts. However, this Azure Dragon referred to the ancient divine dragon, who had no link to the current azure dragons. Because of this, the white dragon had always found the azure dragon n rather displeasing to the eyes. But because the other party had more influence due to their numbers, the most he had done was utter a fewints in private. In the presence of the azure dragon n, he didn¡¯t have the guts to say such things. The azure dragon n, the shameless braggart that relied on false fame and stuck gold onto their own face, had actually decided to seal off the azure dragon n¡¯s Crystal Pce. If nothing major urred in the cultivation world, they would not rashly leave the sea territory under their jurisdiction. The reason why they had sent an envoy over was also to indirectly tell the white dragon n that they would not concern themselves over trivial matters as they needed to cultivate their moral character. If these words were spoken by envoys from the ck or blue dragons, then the white dragon wouldn¡¯t think much of it. Those two ns never had much care for anything anyway. But this was the azure dragon n, the azure dragon n that itched to have the management rights to all sea territories. Believing them capable of cultivating their moral character was akin to believing that the azure dragon n would birth a hundred dragon babies the next day. The azure dragon n¡¯s envoy knew that the white dragon n didn¡¯t believe them and thus smiled bitterly, ¡°We¡¯re not afraid of being mocked even if we say it out loud. Our azure dragon n has done many foolish things over the past few years. That Weishui incident caused our n to lose twenty-eight lives, yet we were not aware that this was a warning from heavenlyw and continued to act in an imposing manner. If things were to continue like this, heavenlyw might one day no longer tolerate us and eliminate our entire n.¡± Just like the golden dragon n of those years. They had received the worship of countless humans and possessed divine power at birth, but what was their eventual oue? ¡°Everyone, please think carefully. How many children have our dragon race had for thest one thousand years?¡± Death by heavenlyw¡¯s lightning was a quick death. But wasn¡¯t it just a slow and torturous death if they had no children? ¡°That¡¯s all this humble one has to say. I implore everyone to reconsider, goodbye.¡± The azure dragon n¡¯s envoy left. Some in the white dragon n felt that the azure dragon n¡¯s words made sense, while others felt that the azure dragon n¡¯s fears were groundless and that they must have been scared stiff by some recent incident. But given the azure dragon n¡¯s current status, what could scare them to this extent? The white dragon suddenly thought of the mysterious senior that appeared in his bedroom a few nights ago. Could it be... him? ¡°Fu ge, Fu ge. How can I let you do something like pouring water? Let me, let me.¡± ¡°Fu ge, something like printing information can just be handed to me.¡± ¡°Fu ge, do you want to eat the snacks that have been very popr on the inte recently? I have a lot here.¡± Fu Li sat at his desk and stared at the fresh flowers, drinks, and snacks on the desk. He raised the tip of his brows. ¡°If you have something to say, just say it.¡± ¡°Actually, it¡¯s not anything major,¡± Chu Yu thickened his skin and went up to him. ¡°We¡¯re just a bit curious about the fruit of the Langgan Tree downstairs. Fu ge, you¡¯re so powerful, can you pluck a few Zhuyu fruits for us to try?¡± ¡°And I was wondering what it was,¡± Fu Li stood up. ¡°Wait for me.¡± Everyone was overjoyed at this turn of events. When it came to being generous, Fu ge had to be included. When Zhuang Qing walked into the management bureau, he saw Fu Li carrying a bag of fruits. ¡°Why did you pluck so many?¡± It wasn¡¯t like he would be able to eat so many at one go. ¡°Chu Yu, Zhang Ke, and the rest want to have a taste of it, so I plucked a few more.¡± ¡°The Zhuyu fruits contain an abundance of spiritual qi, I¡¯m worried their bodies won¡¯t be able to stand it,¡± Zhuang Qing took more than half of the fruits from Fu Li. ¡°Shortcuts cannot be taken when cultivating. Absorbing the spiritual qi in these fruits will be enough for them. When they¡¯ve fully absorbed the spiritual qi in the fruits, you can pluck two more for them. This would be considered making a steady improvement.¡± Fu Li suddenly understood. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± All the people standing along the corridor waiting for fruits: ... Sure enough, the boss was stingy all year round. ¡°I was joking with you,¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly returned the fruits to Fu Li. ¡°Since they¡¯re curious, let them try it. One fruit isn¡¯t anything major.¡± Everyone: ... Was he possessed? How was it possible that the boss had said such words? Chapter 67 - Water-Evading Beast

Chapter 67 - Water-Evading Beast

¡°Do you feel like the boss is in an especially good mood today?¡± Chao Yun bit into a Zhuyu fruit. ¡°I heard the boss had an unpleasant disagreement with the dragon ns yesterday night. Many people saw it?¡± Everyone looked at Zhang Ke in curiosity. As the party that hosted yesterday night¡¯s birthday banquet, Zhang Ke ought to be the person most in the know. Zhang Ke grumbled internally. Seeing everyone¡¯s eyes on him, he could only answer, ¡°My sect¡¯s elder didn¡¯t know that the boss isn¡¯t on good terms with the dragon ns and arranged for them to sit together out of kindness.¡± Sss. There was a collective sucking in of breath. He had probably already given Sect Leader Zhao plenty of face by not fighting them on the spot. ¡°I was helping to wee the guests at that time, so I¡¯m not too clear on the details, but I heard news from other guests yesterday night that the boss fought with the white Dragon Lord in the sky.¡± Zhang Ke added, ¡°The white Dragon Lord waspletely trounced, without even the strength to fight back.¡± His little bit of strength wasn¡¯t enough for him to win whether it was inbat or cursing, yet he deliberately went to provoke Zhuang Qing. Wasn¡¯t he just picking a quarrel? ¡°He¡¯s in a good mood even after fighting with someone else?¡± Chao Yun was so astonished that she even stopped eating the Zhuyu fruit. ¡°This isn¡¯t scientific.¡± ¡°What is science at this ce?¡± Xu Yuan pointed at an official business webpage on theputer. ¡°The boss even personally wrote vition ticketsst night ¨C one for him, and one for the white Dragon Lord.¡± ¡°He probably... turned foolish from anger?¡± Chao Yun straightened the cheongsam she was wearing. With a beautiful posture, she said, ¡°For the boss to want to beat up the white dragon even if he had to give himself a vition ticket, he must have been quite angry.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not right, isn¡¯t it because the boss and Fu ge were wearing a couple outfit?¡± The honest and pure Wei Cang who still didn¡¯t understand office culture asked in confusion. ¡°Love puts one in a good mood ¨C isn¡¯t this the logic?¡± ¡°What love? Whose breeding season is it?¡± Fu Li had gone to Zhuang Qing¡¯s office, and happened to hear Wei Cang¡¯s words when he came back. Out of respect for his colleagues¡¯ privacy, Fu Li rarely used his cultivation to specially listen in on what others in the office were saying. Thus, he hadn¡¯t heard Wei Cang¡¯s earlier words. ¡°I was saying the boss and...¡± Zhang Ke reached out and pulled his junior disciple back, smiling cooperatively. ¡°We were saying that Wei Cang¡¯s breed of tiger is about to go extinct and that it isn¡¯t easy to find a suitable partner.¡± ¡°That¡¯s indeed difficult,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°When there¡¯s time, everyone can go search around in the forests, just in case there¡¯s someone suitable.¡± ¡°Fu ge is right, I¡¯ll apany him in the search when I have time,¡± Zhang Ke nodded seriously. ¡°I definitely won¡¯t let him live as a bachelor.¡± Wei Cang: ... Seeing that Fu Li really hadn¡¯t heard Wei Cang¡¯s words, everyone heaved a sigh of relief. If what was originally a few teasing words spoken in private ended up overheard by the person involved, then that would be too awkward. ¡°Zhang Ke, our sect was really shown a lot of face to have even managed to invite the Kongyou,¡± Chu Yu was scrolling through the cultivators¡¯ forum on hisputer. ¡°It¡¯s rare for the noble and virtuous Lord Kongyou to be willing to show his art for Sect Leader Zhao.¡± ¡°Stop bringing it up. There was a drunk guest yesterday night who kept making a fuss about their beauty. The other disciples and I were so busy that our feet practically didn¡¯t touch the ground, how did we have the time to look at the performances?¡± Zhang Ke yawned. ¡°If I didn¡¯t have to work today, I would love to sleep till noon before waking up.¡± ¡°What Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang is this?¡± Song Yu, who hadn¡¯t attended the birthday banquet, took a few looks at the performance video on the forum. He said contemptuously, ¡°The real Fenghuang wouldn¡¯t need to do so many garish movements. The moment a Fenghuang appears, all birds would obey it.¡± ¡°Song ge, you¡¯ve seen a Fenghuang?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Song Yu said proudly. ¡°Which yao in that era of ours hasn¡¯t seen a Fenghuang?¡± The others felt envious, dejected, as well as an inexpressible sense of sadness at the demise of a fellowrade. At this moment at the Qing Xiao Sect, Zhao Xiu and several elders were tearing open the presents given by the guests. They were noting them down in a book so that they would know what to give as a return gift in the future. Spiritual qi was weak now; even if everyone had good stuff, they wouldn¡¯t have much, so they wouldn¡¯t give very rare things even if Zhao Xiu had some reputation in the cultivation world. It was all right as long as the present appeared consistent with propriety ¨C everyone was well aware of this. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang gave a pair of blood corals from the East Sea, as well as a box of sea pearls.¡± ¡°Lord Fu Li...¡± The elder tearing open the gift box stared nkly and said with trembling hands, ¡°Sect Leader, this is a five hundred year old wild mountain ginseng!¡± ¡°What?¡± Zhao Xiu stood up and took the box for a look at it. There was indeed a wild mountain ginseng of exceptionally high quality ced inside. What was rare was that this wild mountain ginseng had been preserved perfectly ¨C the person who dug it out had been very careful, resulting in extremely thick spiritual qi. ¡°Good stuff,¡± Zhao Xiu lightly wiped the wild mountain ginseng. The humans had been developing rapidly these few years, and there was practically no ce in the sea and mountains devoid of human presence. There was a certain mountain rumored in the cultivation world for being dangerous and cultivators with slightly lower cultivation dared not even enter it. In the end, ordinary humans operated their nes and cars, brought a horde of workers over, and actually dug a tunnel through the mountain, setting up a railroad. There were also some reefs at sea that ordinary humans had built inds on by depending on their own abilities, without the help of cultivators. Human strength and their speed of development was boundless. In the near future, perhaps these humans would go beyond earth and upy the entire universe. Although, it was unknown if they would be restricted by heavenlyw after breaking away from earth. ¡°Note down this favor,¡± Zhao Xiu put the cover back on and handed the wild mountain ginseng to the elder in charge of managing affairs. ¡°Refine this into medicinal pills and let the inner sect elders consume it.¡± Humans possessed the ability to invent and innovate, but their lifespans were not even a tenth of a yao cultivator. Even if they stepped onto the path of cultivation, it was still possible for them to age and die. It was tough for yao cultivators to gain intelligence, but the moment they did, it wasn¡¯t difficult for them to live more than five hundred years. On the other hand, human cultivators had it easier than nts and animals when it came to cultivation, although anyone who lived more than five hundred years would already be a rare expert. With losses, there would always be gains. It wasn¡¯t clear who was at a greater disadvantage. The great sea would forever be the ce that was most out of reach and unfathomable. In the past, humans couldn¡¯t be apart from water, yet feared the disasters that water brought, so they would constantly offer sacrifices to all sorts of divine creatures rted to water. For instance, the Dragon King, Water Jiao, He Bo, and so on. As human knowledge and experience increased, they realized that offering sacrifices to divine creatures wouldn¡¯t help them, so they gradually learnt to abandon these divine creatures and started to rely on their own created tools. This was why, the earlier the time period in historical records, the more devout humans were towards divine creatures, and theter the time period, the more the humans believed in themselves. This was probably humanity¡¯s greatest strength, which was why they could rise above so many living creatures and stand at the top of the food chain. A certain historical science program was ying on a public television in a certain tiny restaurant. The heavy rain that had been pouring down thest few days had washed a stone statue out from the bottom of a river. The stone statue resembled a dragon, yet also resembled a tortoise. There was even an upright b of stone beneath its stomach. Its four limbs were even bound by iron chains. It had a rather monstrous appearance. The eventual conclusion the archaeologists arrived at was that this was an ancient type of water-evading beast. Reportedly, frightening floods would not ur at river basins with its presence. Humans then subsequently carved out stone statues of this water-evading beast, used chains to bind them, and then let them sink to the bottom of the ocean so that he would protect their offspring for many generations at the river basin. Once sunk, it was said that the water-evading beast could not be towed out no matter what. If the stone statue were to suddenly run aground, an enormous flood unstoppable by even the water-evading beast would erupt at the area. After learning after this ancient saying, some people proposed that the experts ce the water-evading beast back. But an even greater number of people felt that it didn¡¯t matter, and that many disasters wouldn¡¯t have happened if they could rely on a single stone statue to evade natural disasters. People came and went at the restaurant. Not a single person had any interest in knowing what exactly this stone statue was. They were busy going to work, busy making a living, busy realizing their unattainable dreams. However, coincidences were rampant in the world. The day after the stone statue was towed away by a vehicle, it rained unceasingly for ten days in a row. With the assistance of the government, the civilians in the vicinity of the water basin moved away temporarily. No one knew how long the rain wouldst, nor did they dare to confirm if a flood would happen. Nobody dared to bet on the civilians¡¯ lives. What was scarier was that the stone statue towed back for research had gone missing. The staff members and the police had scoured the surveince material countless times without finding any suspicious people. The only thing was, the surveince camera had flickered abruptly a few times on the night the stone statue vanished. When it returned to normal, the stone statue had already disappeared. Only a pile of rusted, splotched chains as well as the iparably heavy, enormous stone remained. Fearing that this excessively strange matter would send the local civilians into a panic, the matter was suppressed and the relevant department sent a report to their superiors in hopes that they would find a way to resolve the case. Two days had already passed when the management bureau received the documents from the security department. Zhuang Qing flipped through the photographs. His gazended on the iron chains binding the water-evading beast¡¯s four limbs, an exceedingly ugly expression on his face. 1800 years ago, he had once seen this yao beast. He was on the run at that time, so after encountering this yao beast, he assumed that the other party also wanted to eat him. Yet, contrary to his expectations, the other party merelyy downzily at the waterside and asked him where he was heading to. He was both tired and on guard at that point, so he hadn¡¯t spoken the truth. On the other hand, it was this water-evading beast who pulled at him and jabbered on and on. He said his name was Gong Fu, and that his birth father was the Azure Dragon, the auspicious animal equally as well-known as the Vermilion Bird. He had inherited his birth father¡¯s ability to control water, so with him around, there was no fear of floods. Right before they parted ways, Gong Fu, the self-proimed bloodkin of the dragon race, even gave him a box of medicinal pills. His reason for doing so was that they were both of the dragon race. Although, in Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes, that strange-looking,zy yao cultivator had little rtion to dragons. ¡°Gong Fu...¡± Zhuang Qing stood up, pushed his office door, and walked into the working area. ¡°Chao Yun, Qing Xu, Fu Li. Come with me.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± The three people who had been named stood up. From Zhuang Qing¡¯s grave expression, Fu Li knew that it definitely wasn¡¯t anything good. ¡°Let¡¯s talk after we reach,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t have the time to exin. He led his three colleagues and rushed in a haste to the location where the stone statue of Gong Fu had been fished up. ¡°What thick resentment,¡± Qing Xu¡¯s feet had just touched the ground when he was given a huge shock by the resentment on the surface of the water. He hurriedly recited a resentment-clearing Daoist chant, dispelling the resentment on the surface of the water that was so thick it had nearly materialized into physical substance. ¡°This is...¡± Chao Yun and Zhuang Qing¡¯s dragon qi protected them, preventing the resentment from nearing them. Chao Yun nced at Fu Li. Fu Li seemed to have fused together with the resentment; he didn¡¯t seem ufortable at all. Zhuang Qing ced a hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. Instantly, the golden light of virtue wrapped around him. The resentment hastily fled in disarray; any resentment that didn¡¯t make it in time dissipated in the golden light of virtue. ¡°How many years of resentment does this ce hide for it to be so scary?¡± Chao Yun removed the hairpin holding her hair up. She tossed it into the air, and the hairpin released thousands of streams of auspicious qi, dispelling a considerable amount of resentment. ¡°What did the people here do?¡± Chao Yun wore an extremely ugly expression. As she looked at the resentment that wouldn¡¯t clear no matter how much it was dispelled, she thought of something not very good. She turned to look at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing silently spat out the dragon pearl in his body. The dragon pearl radiated a golden glow in all directions. Even the thickest resentment faded away under the golden light. Gradually, the resentment lessened. As the resentment dissipated bit by bit, Fu Li caught sight of a person not far from the shore suddenly jumping into the water. Treading on the surface of the water, he flew over and picked the person up from the river. The person had already fainted. Fu Li threw him onto a pile of grass at the side. When he looked back at the other side of the river, he realized that thick fog had risen above the water. He could no longer see the opposite bank. Wu... wu... The wind over the river whistled as it blew. It resembled the wails of a certain creature, yet also resembled the angriest of all denunciations. Fu Li waved his sleeves, sweeping the thick fog away from the surface of the river. However, the scene that met Fu Li¡¯s eyes wasn¡¯t the opposite bank, but what had happened after Gong Fu¡¯s death. His skeleton was ced by humans into the stone statue before iron chains were wound around it. Talismans were engraved onto the stone statue, and the statue was then thrown into the water. One year. Ten years. One hundred years. One thousand years. Resentment was borne from the shackled skeleton. He hated the heavy iron chains that imprisoned his body and hated the vicious talismans for imprisoning his soul. But what he most hated was those humans who wouldn¡¯t even let him rest in peace after death and made him live day after day at the bottom of the sea, where it was full of decay, mud, and fish. This wasn¡¯t Gong Fu. It was his resentment after death. Fu Li had heard Gong Fu¡¯s story from White Ape before. He was said to be one of the sons of the divine dragon. Because his birth mother was a spiritual tortoise, he resembled both a dragon and a tortoise. He was veryzy and was most fond of ying around in the water. From time to time, he would tease the humans or yao near the shore. If the other party was to his liking, he would give them a present. He was an auspicious beast with a very interesting personality. When Fu Li was young, he had once thought about what he could do to endear himself to Gong Fu so that he would receive a present if they ever met. Never had he thought that a casual thought from childhood would end in him meeting this auspicious beast in such a manner. Fu Li was very upset. He didn¡¯t know if he was sad for Gong Fu or disappointed in the humans. The worship of gods was one way in which humans sought psychological protection. In essence, their carving of the stone statue was also a form of worship. But why had they ced the auspicious beast¡¯s skeleton within the stone statue and trapped it in the water for so many years? Didn¡¯t they revere him? Weren¡¯t they grateful to him? Then why did they still do such a thing?! The thick fog on the surface of the river gradually converged to form a human figure. The person with scarlet eyes was d in a ck robe. His long hair fell casually down his back. He looked nothing like an auspicious beast. The resentment after the death of an auspicious beast had cultivated into a yao. A yao that took form from resentment was foreordained to be evil by nature. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing found him from who-knew-where. His expression underwent a subtle change upon seeing the person standing on the surface of the river. ¡°Gong Fu?¡± No. Not right. This wasn¡¯t Gong Fu. The year Gong Fu gave Zhuang Qing the medicinal pills in his human form, his sleeves had fluttered and his hair had been bound by a jade band. He had lookedpletely ethereal. The evil yao before his eyes now looked identical to Gong Fu, but gave off an aura that was theplete opposite of his. ¡°I¡¯m not a silly Gong Fu,¡± The ck-clothed person¡¯s ck-red lips hooked up. ¡°But I don¡¯t have a name, so it¡¯s fine for you to call me Gong Fu.¡± ¡°Is the continuous torrential rain in the vicinity your doing?¡± Zhuang Qing walked to Fu Li¡¯s side. His gaze met the ck-clothed person¡¯s. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Do you know how many years I was trapped in the water?¡± The ck-clothed person gave an irrelevant answer. ¡°For 1500 years, I hoped for a human to fish me up. I waited day after day after day, but there was no one. No one!¡± Zhuang Qing gazed at him. After a long pause, he said, ¡°It wasn¡¯t easy for you to take on a form by relying on resentment. If you behave in such an unbridled manner, I¡¯m afraid you will very quickly vanish in this world. Is that worth it?¡± ¡°If I have to lie in decay and mud every day like I did for 1500 years, then I¡¯d rather have a quick death,¡± The ck-clothed manughed maniacally. ¡°Those greedy, selfish humans should get their just deserts.¡± ¡°But the humans who sank you to the bottom of the sea are already dead.¡± Fu Li asked, ¡°Are you going to seek revenge on their descendants?¡± Zhuang Qing turned towards Fu Li, unsure if he was speaking with sincerity or lying to assuage Gong Fu¡¯s resentment. The ck-clothed person furrowed his brows. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°There are many innocent humans around us. They don¡¯t owe you, so you can¡¯t harm them. But those who owe others should repay it. The humans who did this out of selfishness ought to pay a price,¡± Fu Li paused for a moment. ¡°Are you able to find those humans¡¯ descendants?¡± The ck-clothed man was about to speak when the sound of footsteps came from a ce not too far away. Fu Li peered through the thick fog. A little child was walking through a cluster of reeds with difficulty. Mud covered his back, chest, and legs of his pants. Who knew how many times he had slipped and fallen along the way? The child seemed to be carrying something in his arms. He held the things bundled tightly in stic bags to his chest protectively, as if they were treasures. Zhuang Qing raised a hand and set up a barrier, concealing them. Some human children still had their biological instincts and were capable of seeing certain souls or strange phenomena. However, this sort of ability would vanish as they grew older and they would be no different from an ordinary person. Whereas children whose abilities never vanished could integrate into the cultivation world and step onto the path of cultivation. The child took another tumble when he was about to reach the riverside. This time, he was a bit more unlucky. His entire person rolled like a watermelon, coating mud all over his face and head. There was no part of him that didn¡¯t resemble a person made of mud. Fu Li looked at the ck-clothed person. Unexpectedly, he didn¡¯t have any reaction and allowed the little child to arduously take step after step to the riverside. Crouching by the river, the child washed his hands and face clean, revealing a pair ofrge, bright eyes. The little child wanted to use his sleeves to wipe the mud on the bags, but his sleeves were even dirtier than the stic bags. In the end, he simply peeled off his jacket and scrubbed it clean in the water. After wringing it dry of water, he wiped the mud off the stic bags. Following that, the little child took offyer afteryer of stic bags before taking out a massive enamel cup from inside. The image of a Yingke Pine was engraved on the enamel cup. The cup looked to be an extremely old-fashioned one. He opened the enamel cup, revealing a chicken leg as well two buns inside. The little child found three pebbles and solemnly set the enamel cup on them. Chapter 68 - Letter

Chapter 68 - Letter

¡°Grandpa Divine Beast, it¡¯s been raining nonstoptely, so my family¡¯s going out of town,¡± The little child grinned. Raindropsnded on his damp head, producing pitter-patter sounds. ¡°Mom said we¡¯re moving house. I don¡¯t know when we¡¯re going toe back,¡± The little child seemed very vexed. He bowed respectfully towards the river thrice, his hands sped together. Then, he plopped his buttocks on a pile of pebbles. ¡°You¡¯ve smelled the chicken leg and buns already, right? I¡¯ll dig in then,¡± The little child took the chicken leg and buns from the enamel cup and nibbled on them as he prattled away nonsensically. The bone of the chicken leg became visible very soon after. This little child... was quite good at being economical. Fu Li watched the little child polish off the offerings cleanly like a dark-skinned monkey. He turned towards Gong Fu, but realized that the other party was very calm in the face of this unexpected situation. He seemed to have long grown ustomed to this little child¡¯s behavior. Did this child frequentlye to make offerings? ¡°All of them said that my luck was good for not drowning despite falling into the river. But I know that it was you who saved me,¡± He stuck his head out and looked at the surface of the water, as if he would be able to look through the deep riverwaters and see the divine beast that saved him. ¡°Grandpa Divine Beast, what do you like to eat? You can send me a dream and I¡¯ll bring some for you to smell.¡± Fu Li nced at Gong Fu. He talked about annihting the Heavens and Earth, so why had he still saved a child that fell into the water? ¡°I just didn¡¯t want a human corpse to dirty the bottom of the river even more,¡± Gong Fu saw Fu Li¡¯s gaze on him and became slightly unhappy. ¡°What are you looking at me for?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s talk about the matter of taking revenge then,¡± Fu Li scanned their surroundings. ¡°Human books and records don¡¯t date back to that historical period, but the mountains, trees, and yao cultivators here might still remember.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you here to stop me from taking revenge?¡± Gong Fu shifted his gaze from the little child. ¡°This dragon beside you has very likely joined with the nation¡¯s fate. He will let me take revenge.¡± Zhuang Qing shot him and Fu Li a silent nce. ¡°Although this golden glow of virtue is a bit familiar,¡± Gong Fu might be the incarnation of an auspicious beast¡¯s resentment, but he had inherited Gong Fu¡¯s memories. Therefore, he was Gong Fu, but also not him. ¡°That fool must have met you when he was alive.¡± Zhuang Qing stated calmly, ¡°Gong Fu daren was a very impressive auspicious beast.¡± ¡°Then do you know how this very impressive auspicious beast died?¡± Gong Fuughed heartily. ¡°He fell sick. His body was so weak that it was a challenge for him to even change into his human form. Even at the end, he still went to save the humans who met with floods. Those humans were the recipients of his grace and they sincerely attended to him till his death. But after his death, those humans revealed their greedy sides and were unwilling to even let his skeleton off.¡± Zhuang Qing watched the rapid flow of riverwater. His throat moved, but he had no way of putting in a good word for the humans. Ingratitude. This was nothing more than that. The little child seated on the pebbles stood up and waved at the river. ¡°Divine Beast daren, I¡¯ll see you next time.¡± He turned, took two steps, and slipped, falling into the water. Before Zhuang Qing and Fu Li reacted, Gong Fu shot out and plunged into the water, dragging the little child out. Seeing that the little child had fainted, he hurriedly stretched out a hand to test for breath. After confirming that he was unharmed, he removed the mmy clothes on the child¡¯s body. Manifesting a thick,rge nket, he wrapped the child in it, ced him at a clean area, and then walked back. Based on this situation, Gong Fu¡¯s desire to annihte the Heavens and Earth probably wouldn¡¯t be aplished, Fu Li thought silently. ¡°Among all of Father Dragon¡¯s children, I am the fastest,¡± Gong Fu returned to the barrier and gave this exnation with a nk face. ¡°I understand,¡± Fu Li nodded very seriously. ¡°You managed to save that child before us because you¡¯re fast.¡± Gong Fu: ... Zhuang Qing: ... There was an awkwardness in the air that was hard to put into words. ¡°This is for you,¡± Fu Li looked up at the sky. He took the jade bone umbre from his Qiankun pouch and offered it to Gong Fu. ¡°I¡¯ll apany you in finding out the descendants of those ungrateful humans.¡± Gong Fu smelled the scent of dragon on the umbre and didn¡¯t ept it. ¡°An umbre made of dragon bones?¡± ¡°Rx, this type of dragon is a degenerate, it can¡¯t bepared to auspicious beasts like your Father Dragon who can guard the four directions,¡± Fu Li stuffed the umbre into his hands. ¡°Resentment is rolling off your entire body, I¡¯m worried that heavenly lightning will scatter your soul before you even make it very far.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. Most of the current dragons have low cultivation and no power in their limbs. Compared to the dragon race of those years, they¡¯re very far off,¡± Gong Fu took the umbre. ¡°Although this dragon beside you still has some redeeming qualities.¡± Zhuang Qing asked expressionlessly, ¡°Should I thank you for the praise?¡± ¡°If all you juniors know how to be polite, thanking me would be fine,¡± Gong Fu stepped out of the thick mist and onto the muddy road. He looked back at the little child lying at the side, and with a sweep of his sleeves, erected a protective barrier around him. He had heard that the trafficking of children was now popr in the human world. Themon people living here were dependent on the river. However, because this area was poverty-stricken, the majority of those in the prime of their lives went out to work, leaving the old, the weak, and the women at home to work thend. The government had already urgently sent themon people away, so the entire vige was deste. Green-tiled houses and little two-storey houses dotted their surroundings, looking extremely withered. Gong Fu remembered many people being at this vige. The elderly weaved fishs and the women nted crops, while the men fished at the river for money. Nature¡¯s most wonderful gift to them was the river that he had been submerged in for 1500 years. A temple so dpidated that its original visage could no longer be made out stood at the shabbiest corner of the vige. It was unknown what year or dynasty it had been built in, or how many times it had been rebuilt. When Fu Li and the rest arrived at this temple, they found that many of the stone steps in front of the temple had already been eroded by wind. The green tiles that blocked wind had alle off and several rotten, fragmented sticks of wood swayed unsteadily from side to side. Weeds had broken out everywhere. With a wave of Fu Li¡¯s hand, he got rid of the weeds in the temple. There was a stone statue disyed in the room that was carved out of an unknown stone. They could still tell after much difficulty that this stone statue bore some resemnce to a lizard. This seemed like... Gong Fu¡¯s true form? Was Gong Fu this ugly? ¡°Those three boys in front, that ce is dangerous, don¡¯t stay there,¡± A middle-aged man with the legs of his pants rolled up waved at them a short distance away. ¡°You came from elsewhere? Don¡¯t you know that this ce is going to be flooded? You¡¯re still not leaving?¡± Zhuang Qing walked to the middle-aged man and took out his identification. ¡°Hello, I came from the capital to investigate something here.¡± ¡°You¡¯re here to look into the stone statue?¡± The middle-aged man took a nce at the identification and grasped Zhuang Qing¡¯s purpose foring. ¡°I am the vige head. I came back for an important document I lost at the vigemittee. I can answer anything you want to know, but this ce is dangerous, let¡¯s talk while walking.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Gong Fu, who nodded. ¡°Many thanks,¡± Zhuang Qing thanked the vige head. ¡°Why so polite? You¡¯re also doing things for the sake of themon people,¡± The vige head turned towards Fu Li and Gong Fu, who had caught up to them. His mouth stretched into a smile. ¡°Does the big city also take into ount appearance when choosing employees?¡± Zhuang Qing stared nkly before understanding what the vige head meant. ¡°No, it¡¯s just a coincidence.¡± ¡°Then your big city¡¯s natural environment must be good for nurturing people,¡± The vige head sighed. ¡°Unlike this ce of ours that¡¯s been poor for generations. Fresh fruits and vegetables are really difficult to find.¡± ¡°Head, who is that damaged temple dedicated to?¡± Fu Li took the chance to inquire. ¡°I¡¯m not very sure either. That damaged temple was already that way when I was young. Apparently, during the years when feudalistic superstitions were being done away with, some children weren¡¯t sensible and went to tear down the temple. Who would have imagined that they would end up with a high fever when they returned? They nearly lost their lives.¡± The vige head nced back at the shabby temple. ¡°Ever since then, no one went near that ce. The vige shaman said that that temple is dedicated to a god, and that anyone who offends him will receive retribution.¡± The vige head realized that he had revealed quite a bit and hurriedly changed the topic. ¡°Of course, as the grassroots manager, I definitely don¡¯t believe in this sort of feudalistic superstition. But the wishes of the masses must still be obeyed. At any rate, the vige is spacious since there are few people. It¡¯s not like it¡¯ll be in the way if it¡¯s left there.¡± Fu Li: ... Vige head, your political awareness is pretty high. ¡°Why are you sure that it was dedicated to a god?¡± Gong Fu mocked. ¡°Perhaps it isn¡¯t?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that,¡± The vige head was startled. ¡°These were passed down by the older generation, its authenticity isn¡¯t clear.¡± What was wrong with this youngster, why was he carrying an umbre when it wasn¡¯t raining and there was no sun out? Gong Fu was silent, his face expressionless. ¡°This ce of ours does have a legend rted to the temple¡¯s deity though,¡± The vige head twisted his hands. ¡°Are you interested? I¡¯ll narrate it for you.¡± The children in the vige had gotten tired of hearing this legend, so the vige head was ecstatic at finally finding outsiders to brag to. Seeing his eagerness, Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°Tell us then.¡± ¡°It¡¯s said that a very long time ago, there were many days of torrential rain and the vige neighboring us encountered a sudden flood. At that time, things weren¡¯t like they are now. The country wouldn¡¯t think of all sorts of methods to rescue us just because of a small matter. Help was remote during those times and the local county magistrate was holding a cushy job, how could he be bothered to care about the life and death of themon people? After several viges were flooded, themon people cried out day after day. Who would have expected a divine dragon to suddenly descend from the skies and not only sweep all themon people to a safe mountain, but also give them many food rations? Perhaps the divine dragon overexerted itself from saving too many people, but it passed away from illness not longter. The neighboring viges built this temple in remembrance of him,¡± The vige head said. ¡°The elderly say that the divine dragon will revive and return to the great sea as long as our offspring make offerings to it every day.¡± Gong Fuughed mockingly. The vige head thought that he wasughing at the ignorance of such thinking, and thus replied with some embarrassment, ¡°But these are all rumors, they may not be true. All these years, apart from a few elderly people and children, nobody has gone to make offerings.¡± ¡°Humans are all like that, forgetful and fickle,¡± Gong Fu gazed at a mountain in the distance. That was the ce ¡®he¡¯ had found for those humans to settle at after saving them. ¡°Ah?¡± The Vige Head looked at Gong Fu in confusion. People from the city were really interesting nowadays; their resentment extended to the entire human race. Fu Li red at Gong Fu, transmitting his voice to him, ¡°Gong Fu daren, if you scare this ghost off, we won¡¯t be able to ask about things with value.¡± Gong Fu snorted wordlessly. The four people reached the highway. Seeing an overturned motorcycle ahead, the vige head rushed over in a fluster. ¡°Someone got into an ident!¡± Zhuang Qing and Fu Li didn¡¯t move. There was a hint of pity in the gazes they directed at the vige head. The vige head rushed to the side of the motorcycle. There was a faint strange feeling in his heart. Wasn¡¯t this his motorcycle? Who crashed into his motorcycle till it ended up in such a state? He was stunned when he saw the blood-soaked person lying on the ground. Wasn¡¯t that... himself? He stared nkly at the corpse before turning towards Fu Li and the rest, as if seeking an answer. His mouth widened. Only after an eternity did he ask in disbelief, ¡°I-I died?¡± He had no wife or children and didn¡¯t die in a very painful way, so it wasn¡¯t a big deal. He had gone back to retrieve the localmoners¡¯ subsistence allowance, which the people living a harsh life were waiting for to buy rice. Since he was dead, this matter would probably be further dyed. Also, this highway ought to be fixed. It would be wet and muddy the moment it rained, which made it easy for idents to ur on the road. He was an obvious example of this. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re dead,¡± Gong Fu stated without the slightest shred of courtesy. ¡°Are you an idiot? You don¡¯t even know whether you¡¯re alive or dead?¡± ¡°Hehe,¡± The vige head wasn¡¯t angry despite being mocked in such a way. He scratched his head and shed a few smiles. As a grassroots worker, he would asionally be scolded directly by themon people. Sometimes, he would encounter scuffles and have to emphasize civilized behavior and good conduct. Therefore, after working this job for a few years, he gradually became an even-tempered person. ¡°Then what should I do now?¡± The vige head was a bit worried. ¡°Where should a dead person go?¡± ¡°A yinchai will bring you to the underworld,¡± Fu Li took out his phone to make a police report. Worried that he would attract police suspicion, he called for emergency medical aid as well. ¡°Oh,¡± The vige head sat down cross-legged beside the highway. ¡°You guys should quickly leave then, I¡¯ll wait for the yinchai here. I¡¯m a ghost and needn¡¯t fear floods, but you guys aren¡¯t exempt from drowning.¡± ¡°Who said we¡¯re human?¡± Gong Fu sneered. ¡°How can humans see ghosts?¡± The vige head leaped up in shock. ¡°Then what are you?¡± ¡°I am...¡± Fu Li covered Gong Fu¡¯s mouth. ¡°He was joking with you. The three of us learnt a few skills from an expert, so we can see you.¡± ¡°So you guys are great masters,¡± The vige head looked doubtfully at Zhuang Qing. ¡°The identification you showed me just now was fake. What did youe to our vige for then? To steal the statue of our god?¡± Zhuang Qing wrinkled his brows. ¡°What would I do with a stolen chunk of stone? Use it as a stool?¡± The Vige Head: ... That was true. Gong Fu red at Zhuang Qing, who remained unmoved. Lowering his head, Zhuang Qing took out a handkerchief, pulled Fu Li¡¯s hand over, and wiped it. ¡°Mud got onto your hand.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li beamed. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± Zhuang Qing shot a nce at Gong Fu before telling Fu Li, ¡°Obtaining information more than a thousand years ago from trees is practically impossible because no tree here has lived for so many years. These mountains are also very ordinary, none of them have be mountain spirits.¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± Hearing the sound of bells in the distance, Zhuang Qing replied, ¡°The underworld yinchais will be most clear on the life and death trajectories of the local people.¡± ¡°Lord Fu Li, Chief Zhuang, why are you here?¡± Li Xu was a bit astonished when he saw Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. ¡°We have something to ask yinchai daren. May we know if yinchai daren will be willing to clear up our confusion?¡± Fu Li bowed to Li Xu. Li Xu hurriedly evaded his bow and smiled. ¡°Please speak.¡± ¡°Will the underworld be able to check the life and death records of the civilians here 1500 years ago?¡± Fu Li nced at Gong Fu. ¡°This matter is very important to us, we request that yinchai daren extend a helping hand.¡± ¡°1500 years ago?¡± Li Xu thought about it. Taking out his phone, he told the vige head seated at the side, ¡°Wait first.¡± ¡°As you wish, as you wish,¡± The vige head was watching the excitement with relish. This was a yinchai that he hadn¡¯t even seen in his entire lifetime. Li Xu essed the system for the life and death register and did a search for 1500 years ago. After inputting the location, the system spat out themon people¡¯s natal charts, their life trajectories, as well as their cause of death. A person¡¯s life was a mere few tens of words in the life and death register. ¡°1500 years ago, approximately 520 CE, nearly all of the people here were killed by roving bandits. More than two hundred people died,¡± Li Xu said. ¡°Based on their original trajectories, they shouldn¡¯t have died. However, the local people seemed to have used a forbidden technique that caused a shift in their fates. That is also to say ¨C they incurred Heaven¡¯s wrath.¡± ¡°Heaven¡¯s wrath...¡± Fu Li was surprised. ¡°So many people, and all of them met with the wrath of Heaven?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Li Xu essed the recorded information on the incident that year that incurred Heaven¡¯s wrath. Sighing, he shook his head. ¡°When these ghosts reached the underworld, they said that they had received the divine dragon¡¯s blessing, but the divine dragon had died because of them. They said that the divine dragon would one day revive as long as they buried the divine dragon¡¯s skeleton in the sea, built a temple for it,and burned incense and made offerings to it year after year. Who knew where they heard of such a crooked practice?¡± ¡°They... wanted to save the divine dragon?¡± Fu Li suddenly looked at Gong Fu. However, Gong Fu¡¯s head was lowered, preventing him from getting a clear view of the other¡¯s expression. ¡°If there was really a divine dragon at this ce, how could the divine dragon have died from exhaustion just because it saved a few people? This could only mean that this divine dragon was already going to die,¡± Li Xu kept his phone. ¡°These people attempted to revive a dragon that was destined to die. Such a thing goes against heavenlyw, so they naturally incurred the wrath of Heaven.¡± ¡°Could these people have lied and merely wanted to keep the divine dragon¡¯s skeleton suppressed in the riverwater to prevent floods from urring?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°Would they still incur the wrath of Heaven?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a dead corpse. Even if it was used as waste, what Heaven¡¯s wrath can there be?¡± Li Xu shook his head. ¡°Why is Lord Fu Li interested in that year¡¯s incident? Does this matter have something to do with the imminent flood?¡± ¡°This ce is still going to be flooded?¡± ¡°ording to the records on the life and death register, floods should have urred at this ce a long time ago, and there should have even been many deaths,¡± Li Xu sighed. ¡°In the end, after keeping watch here for a day, the only thing I watched was an unlucky ghost who rode a motorbike to his death.¡± He took out his work phone again and took a look at it. He scoffed, ¡°Changes really happen quickly in modern society. The records on the life and death register have also changed ¨C there will no longer be any floods here. I should be getting off work then.¡± Li Xu looped the Spirit-Locking Chain around the vige head¡¯s soul, feeling refreshed now that he had less workload. ¡°I¡¯ll get off work after bringing him back. Goodbye, everyone.¡± ¡°Goodbye,¡± Fu Li looked at his merry back, momentarily unsure of what to say. Gong Fu was gazing at a mountain in the distance. With a tap of his heels, he flew up. Seeing this, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing followed after him. Due to the reforestation policy over the past few years, there was lush vegetation on the mountain, with practically no roads in sight. Naturally, there were also few human traces. There was a cave located halfway up the mountain. Gong Fu stood at the entrance to the cave without venturing in. Fu Li took out threerge night pearls from his Qiankun pouch, giving Gong Fu and Zhuang Qing one each. The entrance to the mountain cave was instantly lit up. When they walked into the cave, Fu Li was met with stone carvings on the wall that were so simple and crude they were practically abstractions. A long river, the humans that had drowned, and the divine beast that descended from the skies. This was a letter of gratitude that spanned a thousand years. The people here looked forward to the divine dragon once again awakening, returning to the great sea and blue sky. But they had used the most ignorant method. Chapter 69 - Merged

Chapter 69 - Merged

1500 years was too long. The majority of the people that now lived at this ce were the descendants of those who had migrated here and survived by a fluke. They too had gradually forgotten what their ancestors had done, as well as the oath that had been made. Fu Li held up the night pearl and studied the mural from start to end. Thest picture was of the divine dragon bursting forth from the water, soaring into the highest of the Heavens as humans knelt on the ground in worship. Perhaps the humans of that time would still remember this divine dragon and prostrate themselves in front of him a thousand yearster. However, to humans, 1500 years was too long, so long that all could be forgotten. The mural was so ugly that it wasughable. There was no sense of beauty to be said and the body proportionscked harmony; the heads were big and the bodies small. There waspletely no attention paid to how they looked ¨C they looked like child¡¯s graffiti. Fu Li touched the humans kneeling in the mural. A chunk fell off the stone that had already been eroded by wind. ¡°Southern Liang, Fifteenth Year. Five viges suffered flood damage, but were fortunate to be rescued by the divine dragon. None in the five viges was harmed. The divine dragon passed on from exhaustion, saddening all viges. Divine advice was sought ¨C burying the divine dragon in the water and trapping its divine bones would prevent its divine soul from scattering. With this letter, we warn theter generations ¨C our service of the divine dragon must not end. Established Southern Liang, Eighteenth Year.¡± The Liang Kingdom of the Southern Dynasties... Based on the time period, the fifteenth year of Southern Liang should be 516 CE. It had taken three years topletely do up the mural in the cave, which was also to say that these vigers had died at the hands of roving bandits in the second year after thepletion of the mural. There was no heroism, no emotion in the deaths of these two to three hundred people. Their death was a silent one. There were no records of them throughout the long course of history. Fu Li gently touched the words on the mural. He turned towards Gong Fu. The stifled and sad feeling in his heart couldn¡¯t be expressed in words. If even he was in such a state, howplex was Gong Fu¡¯s emotions? He had hated these humans for 1500 years, but discovered at the end that they had died for his sake while he had suffered endless imprisonment within the water. ¡®He¡¯ had indeed revived, but had not flown into the sky as a divine dragon. Instead, he was an evil cultivator that crawled out of the bottom of the ocean for the purpose of vengeance. Fate made fools of people. Fu Li hadn¡¯t understood the meaning contained in these five gentle words. Only today did he finally grasp its meaning. These five words were too somber, so somber that it smothered breath. Gong Fu stretched out a pale finger and gently touched the divine dragon flying among auspicious clouds in thest image. The stone wall was ice-cold. Under Gong Fu¡¯s touch, the divine dragon turned into fine powder bit by bit, leaving only a sunken vacant space. ¡°Gong Fu daren?¡± Fu Li watched the mural slowly vanish. He wanted to say a few words of persuasion, but was stopped by Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing shook his head at him. Nobody could differentiate between right and wrong in this intertwining of gratitude and grudges. Outsiders had even less right to interfere. Image after image vanished under Gong Fu¡¯s hands. Gong Fu moved very slowly. He seemed to be carving these drawings into his heart before slowly eroding it. The humans of this era had long lost the need to be rescued by others. They were capable of saving themselves. Why then did he have to let these things remain only for them to be interpreted as myths by people who were not in the know? The image in the center was thest one remaining. The divine dragon had passed away. Vigers surrounded the divine dragon on all sides, kneeling in worship. They covered their faces as they wept bitterly. Gong Fu stared at this image for a very long time. He curled up his fingers, cing his hands behind his back. The divine dragon had already passed on. No longer would it soar into the Heavens. It was quite appropriate to let this drawing remain. He turned to look at the two juniors who had apanied him into the cave, suddenly letting out augh. His jet-ck hair had the luster of snow. No longer did he appear to be overflowing with resentment. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± He stooped over and picked up the jade bone umbre on the ground. ¡°I should have left long ago.¡± He walked out of the cave and looked up at the sky that had already cleared. The bright sun hung up there. The whole world seemed to brim with beauty. He looked down at the mountain and water beneath his feet and told Fu Li, ¡°The world outside is indeed more beautiful than the water.¡± Gong Fu moved the umbre over his head away, exposing his jade-like hand to the sun. ¡°You can have the umbre back,¡± Gong Fu smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t need it anymore.¡± Just like how the humans no longer needed a divine dragon to save them. Gong Fu¡¯s body gradually turned transparent. Fu Li eximed anxiously, ¡°Gong Fu daren!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not Gong Fu, just the resentment he left behind. The reason for this resentment is gone now, so there is no need for me to continue remaining in this world.¡± Gong Fu couldn¡¯t have smiled more gently than the way he was now. He was good-natured and handsome, just like the Gong Fu when he was still alive. ¡°No, that child needs you!¡± Fu Li opened the jade bone umbre and covered Gong Fu¡¯s head with it. ¡°In the future, he will make offerings to you every single year. Your disappearance will definitely sadden him.¡± ¡°Children won¡¯t stay young forever. Naturally, they will one day also forget the innocence of their childhood,¡± Gong Fu said. ¡°I should be grateful to that child. If not for him, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to break the iron chains shackling me, nor would I be able to see the sun, mountains, and water outside. This much is fine.¡± ¡°But we need you!¡± Fu Li said anxiously. ¡°We need you. Zhuang Qing, isn¡¯t that right?!¡± He turned towards Zhuang Qing urgently, wanting him to say something as well. ¡°Fu Li is right,¡± Zhuang Qing responded. ¡°Our management bureau has many little yao and also many interesting humans. The cultivation world is in need of yao cultivators to maintain order. I hope Gong Fu will be able to lend us a helping hand.¡± ¡°It¡¯s toote,¡± Gong Fu shook his head. ¡°I am just an incarnation of resentment. I don¡¯t have a real body.¡± He would cease to be the moment he moved the jade bone umbre aside. From the clouds came the sound of a dragon hissing. In a split second, golden light filled with auspicious qi burst forth. Fu Li and Gong Fu looked up simultaneously. A divine beast that somewhat resembled a dragon pierced through theyers of clouds, flying above them in a spiral. ¡°That is...¡± Gong Fu looked up in a daze, seemingly not daring to believe his own eyes. ¡°That is Gong Fu¡¯s true body, the stone statue that abruptly disappeared from the research facility.¡± Zhuang Qing leaped into the clouds, transformed into a golden dragon, and intertwined with Gong Fu in flight. Following that, Gong Fu¡¯s true body flew straight down and merged with the body of resentment that was on the verge of dissipating. Fu Li watched nkly as the golden light merged with the resentment before gradually condensing into the actual Gong Fu. He felt like he had watched a genuine miracle. Those humans 1500 years ago had done it. They had truly enabled Gong Fu to rise from the dead and once again soar into the highest of Heavens. In the air, golden dragon Zhuang Qing let out a shrill hiss beforending on the ground and transforming into his human form. He walked over to Fu Li and rapped Fu Li on the head. ¡°Close your mouth.¡± ¡°I remember where I saw you,¡± Gong Fu turned into his human form. With a slender build and elegant demeanor, he couldn¡¯t be any more beautiful. He slowly opened his eyes. Looking at Zhuang Qing, he said, ¡°1800 years ago, that baby dragon?¡± ¡°Senior,¡± Zhuang Qing bowed respectfully to Gong Fu. ¡°This little partner you found is quite cute,¡± Gong Fu took a few careful nces at Fu Li. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Go where?¡± Fu Li asked nkly. ¡°To the management bureau you spoke of, of course. I like cute little yao and interesting human cultivators,¡± Gong Fu manifested a jade flute and fiddled with it. ¡°The human cultivators don¡¯t capture yao now?¡± ¡°They can¡¯t do so at will, otherwise they¡¯ll be punished,¡± Fu Li kept his jade bone umbre in his Qiankun pouch. ¡°The current society is harmonious, and the peaceful coexistence of humans and yao is promoted so they can build a harmonious and beautiful home together.¡± ¡°That makes it even more interesting,¡± Gong Fuughed lightly. He turned and gazed at the cave behind him. His eyes remained fixed on it for a very long time before his smile was restored. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± A mural suddenly appeared on the stone walls of the cave. In the mural, a divine dragon was circling the peak of the mountain while humans lived and worked peacefully at the foot of the mountain. The mountain was pleasing to the eyes and the waters were clean, but the most beautiful of them all was the humans. Qing Xu and Chao Yun were still dealing with the resentment on the surface of the river. Unexpectedly, the sun appeared and the resentment vanished in a blink of an eye, leaving only a nk-faced man gradually waking from his slumber on the opposite bank of the river, as well as an enamel cup-toting child who wasughing foolishly. What was this? ¡°There seems to be dragon qi in the sky,¡± Chao Yun gazed up at the sky. The clouds today seemed to be abnormally strange ¨C golden light was actually emanating from them. ¡°Let¡¯s search for Fu ge and the boss right now,¡± Chao Yun kept her hairpin. Finding Qing Xu¡¯s flying speed too slow, she picked him up with one grab and flew out. ¡°Ahhhhh!¡± Qing Xu screeched. ¡°Chao Yun daoyou, you¡¯re a female yao, can you be a bit gentler?¡± ¡°Being a female yao means I have to be gentler? I think you¡¯re being sexist,¡± Chao Yun grinned. ¡°Daoyou, that isn¡¯t good.¡± The next moment, she flew even faster. Qing Xu¡¯s ¡®ahhhhh¡¯ also very quickly turned into ¡®ah!¡¯. ¡°There seems to be two little friends heading towards us,¡± Gong Fu was standing on a cloud. He saw a pretty woman carrying a man in the distance as she made her way over. With a swing of her arm, the man fell at their feet. ¡°Little friend, you¡¯re being too polite. There is no need to be so courteous when meeting me,¡± Gong Fu beamed as he stooped over to look at Qing Xu. ¡°How can I not feel embarrassed when met with such enthusiasm?¡± Qing Xu climbed up from the cloud. He was just about to retort when he realized that there was an exceedingly handsome man standing in front of him. His anger instantly weakened by half. ¡°I¡¯ve let this daoyou see my unsightly side. This is just an ident.¡± ¡°Boss, have you identified the source of the resentment?¡± Chao Yunnded in front of Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. Seeing that there was even a yao cultivator with immeasurably deep cultivation at their side, she ced her hands together and bowed towards him. ¡°This one greets senior.¡± ¡°No need for such courtesy,¡± Gong Fu had always been gentle and considerate to beauties. ¡°The issue has already been dealt with,¡± Zhuang Qing told Chao Yun. ¡°Reply headquarters that the flood crisis has been resolved.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Chao Yun took out her phone and started sending a work email to the other end. The security headquarters replied very swiftly with an enquiry on the stone statue. ¡°Just say that the stone statue turned into a yaoguai and flew off,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Gong Fu. ¡°It¡¯s within our range of control.¡± ¡°What is this that every one of you has? Even the yinchai has it. Is it something recently trending in the cultivation world?¡± Gong Fu was very curious about the phone Chao Yun was holding. ¡°It has a very interesting look.¡± As a result, Fu Liunched into an exnation about what a phone was and how it should be used, even handing his own phone to Gong Fu for him to operate. Not long after, these two yao who hadn¡¯t seen much of the world started gasping in surprise as they yed tetris over and over again, as if it was an iparably thrilling game. Zhuang Qing: ... Chao Yun, Qing Xu: Why did all these yao appearing out of nowhere always click particrly well with Fu ge? Was it because birds of a feather flocked together? ¡°Ai, junior, it should be my turn this round.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you just y? How can juniors not respect their seniors?¡± ¡°Relying on age won¡¯t work, we agreed just now that every person will y one round!¡± Zhuang Qing took his phone from his pocket and passed it to Fu Li. ¡°Take mine.¡± A stately, highly-ranked employee of the management bureau was squabbling because of a phone, wasn¡¯t this throwing the face of all yao? Online rumors concerning the stone statue were very quickly buried under all sorts of media gossip. Although, the local weather bureau was once again taken to weibo and given a scolding byizens. Viger Big Dog Wang: Can the weather bureau be a bit more reliable? You said something about floods and got us to drag our families out of our houses in the middle of the night. But in the end, after waiting two to three days, there was no flood and the sun came out. These f*ckers cheerily told me that the flood warning has been terminated and everyone can happily return home. Who wouldn¡¯t be unhappy from the torture of all this back-and-forth? It was fortunate that the local weather bureau didn¡¯t have weibo. No matter how harshly theizens scolded them, they wouldn¡¯t see it. Even if they did, they could feign ignorance and not reply. With constant weather changes, an infallible weather bureau never on the receiving end of criticism would not be a good and dedicated weather bureau. Gong Fu¡¯s arrival was weed by all the women in the management bureau. The men felt that Gong Fu was putting on an act when he yed the bamboo flute and wrote calligraphy at random, but to the women, this was the beauty of literature and art. The men felt that Gong Fu¡¯s upright, rule-abiding behavior when he was freeloading off them was pretentious, but to the women, this was elegance. Within three days, Gong Fu seeded in bing the public enemy of the men and was awarded the title of ¡®true love¡¯ by the women. For the time being, no one was able to supersede him. Gong Fu gave himself a human name ¨C Fu Kong. To outsiders, he imed to be Fu Li¡¯s distant cousin, although no one believed him. He had even suggested living together with Fu Li, to which Zhuang Qing rejected. His room was arranged on the floor above Fu Li¡¯s. ¡°Little Fu Li,e y tetris with cousin...¡± Gong Fu pushed open the door and saw the Kunpeng seated in Fu Li¡¯s living room. The Kunpeng turned to look at him as well. ¡°Kunpeng?¡± Gong Fu closed the door, amazement filling his face. ¡°You¡¯re actually not dead?¡± ¡°Narcissistic tortoise?¡± The Kunpeng was even more amazed than Gong Fu. He had thought that divine beasts like Gong Fu had long faded away. ¡°Get lost, weirdo that¡¯s neither fish nor bird, I¡¯m a dragon,¡± Gong Fu kicked the Kunpeng off the couch. ¡°You¡¯re so heavy and you still have the cheek to sit on the couch. Aren¡¯t you scared you¡¯ll damage it?¡± ¡°What did you call yourself just now? Cousin?¡± Kunpeng side-eyed Gong Fu. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you have a bit of face? You¡¯ve lived for tens of thousands of years, and you still have the cheek to call yourself the cousin of someone who¡¯s only four thousand years old. Even if your face doesn¡¯t redden, I feel awkward just listening to it.¡± ¡°The crux is the face,¡± Gong Fu leaned against the couchzily. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if the elder brother is a handsome yao. Self-awareness is the only thing left for ugly yao.¡± Kunpeng: ¡°Who are you calling ugly?¡± Gong Fu sneered. ¡°Anyone who responds to this is ugly.¡± Fu Li had guessed very early on that these two people didn¡¯t get along very well. Gong Fu¡¯s birth father was a divine dragon while the Kunpeng was fond of eating dragons; how could there be no grievances in such a situation? But he hadn¡¯t expected these two great yao who were tens of thousands of years old to argue... at a kindergartener¡¯s level. He sat down on the carpet cross-legged and allowed the two people to squabble. While he was at it, he grabbed a bag of melon seeds and started cracking them with gusto. ¡°Such bad posture when sitting and standing, are the juniors nowadays all socking in etiquette?¡± Gong Fu, who was vigorously arguing with the Kunpeng, suddenly turned towards Fu Li. ¡°Can a junior eat at the side while the seniors are talking?¡± He snatched the melon seeds from Fu Li. ¡°Caramel vor. Melon seeds can even be sweet?¡± He grabbed a handful and started crunching on them. Fu Li: ... What was this? The Kunpeng snickered as he grabbed a handful of melon seeds from Gong Fu. He told Gong Fu, ¡°Have some shame, how can you snatch melon seeds from a junior?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re so capable, don¡¯t eat them,¡± Gong Fu snorted coldly. ¡°I snatched yours, not the junior¡¯s,¡± The Kunpeng stated boldly. ¡°I am a yao with a baseline.¡± Fu Li saw that these two had once again started bickering, so he simply patted his buttocks and went off in search of Zhuang Qing. A difference of three years represented a generation gap. The generation gap between him and these two seniors was toorge; he had no way ofprehending their thoughts and brain circuits. On his way down, he just happened to bump into the Suanyu, who was sneaking out. Fu Liughed, ¡°Suanyu, what are you doing.¡± ¡°Shh, don¡¯t let Gong Fu daren hear you,¡± Song Yu looked around, panic-stricken. ¡°Gong Fu daren is a famed ancient auspicious beast. He¡¯s the natural enemy of us fiends.¡± ¡°Not us, you,¡± Fu Li instantly cast their rtionship aside. ¡°You didn¡¯t do anything evil, why are you so scared?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know how powerful Gong Fu daren is,¡± Song Yu muttered in a low voice. ¡°Other than the four great divine beasts, us fiends are most fearful of the divine dragon¡¯s son.¡± Who asked the divine dragon to be so good at having children? The humans were fond of saying that the nine offspring of the Dragon each had their good points. However, the number nine was made up; the divine dragon had more than nine children! Chapter 70 - Worry

Chapter 70 - Worry

Seeing how frightened the Suanyu was, Fu Li patted him on the shoulder. ¡°You can let your heart settle back down. Gong Fu daren is a level-headed auspicious beast, he won¡¯t attack immediately even if he sees that you¡¯re a fiend.¡± ¡°He¡¯ll attack after saying a few words?¡± An aggrieved look took over the Suanyu¡¯s face. ¡°Is getting trashed the only thing in your head?¡± Fu Li was speechless. ¡°Getting killed too,¡± The Suanyu¡¯s greatest weakness was cowardice, but his greatest strength was also his cowardice. Yaoguai with little courage might not have high cultivation, but would live longer on average. He was a fiend that brought terror to humans from birth, not once had he truly interacted properly with humans or other yao cultivators. Only when he joined the management bureau did he finally experience what it was like to have a social life. ¡°With such little courage, you still have the cheek to call yourself a fiend?¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°If Gong Fu daren wants to put you in your ce, I¡¯ll defend you. That should be fine, right?¡± ¡°Many thanks, Boss!¡± The Suanyu instantly grinned from ear to ear. These were the exact words he had been waiting for. Boss Fu Li definitely got along well with Gong Fu daren, otherwise Gong Fu wouldn¡¯t tell outsiders that he was Boss Fu Li¡¯s cousin. Even his alternate name in the human world was Fu Kong. ¡°So, you said so much just so that I would say this,¡± Fu Li suddenly understood. After mingling with the others from the management bureau, even the Suanyu had be sly. ¡°Boss, aren¡¯t you on holiday today?¡± The Sunayu gazed at the floor above. ¡°If Gong Fu daren and Kunpeng daren are left to their own devices upstairs, won¡¯t the two of them get into a fight and even tear the house down eventually?¡± ¡°The two of them aren¡¯t in the mood to fight now.¡± They were both gathered in his house eating snacks. Despite being at that age, they still snatched their junior¡¯s snacks ¨C there was truly no part of them that was senior-like. The noble, lofty, and untarnished Gong Fu daren in Fu Li¡¯s heart had already turned into a puff of smoke. Distance brought about beauty ¨C this was the best portrayal of Gong Fu in Fu Li¡¯s heart. ¡°If you¡¯re afraid, then go settle the campus spirit-summoning incident with Zhang Ke and the rest. Don¡¯t stay in the management bureau all day, you¡¯re not pregnant or recovering from childbirth.¡± Fu Li had realized a long time ago that the Suanyu usually stayed within the management bureau and wouldn¡¯t leave unless something major happened. That being said, he had made quite a bit of money just by livestreaming himself eating. ¡°Those minor cases have no need for me, what would I be there for?¡± The Suanyu shook his head repeatedly. ¡°I¡¯d better not go.¡± Fu Li stared at him for a few seconds. The Suanyu rubbed the corner of his clothes, his gaze evasive. ¡°Actually, you don¡¯t have to be worried about bringing nightmares or terror to humans. Have you brought terror to anyone after joining the management bureau?¡± The Suanyu seriously pondered over it before shaking his head. ¡°Have you brought terror to thoseizens who watch your livestreams?¡± The Suanyu thought back to thements left byizens. The majority ofments were about how the streamer was eating happily and how they were very satisfied just seeing the streamer eating. He had received a huge tip yesterday from aizen with mild anorexia who developed an interest in food after seeing his livestreams and subsequently recovered from the condition without medication. Not only did he not bring any terror to humans, he had brought them joy because of his ability to eat. The humans nowadays were quite difficult to make sense of though, they could even watch someone else eating with such relish. Who knew if they were bored or if they had seen too little of the world? ¡°When you don¡¯t want to bring terror to others, your body will abide by your innermost wishes,¡± Fu Li beamed at the Suanyu. ¡°Do you still not understand that?¡± The Suanyu stared dazedly at Fu Li, seeming to have understood something yet not understanding it. The him of the past had relied on this innate skill to frighten the little yao and humans. Through this, he had received offerings. Therefore, he had never considered not causing psychological terror to these yao and humans. Now that he had joined the management bureau, he might look down on the juniors for their poor cultivation, but would always cheerfully join in on the fun when everyone was gossiping or ying around together. This was a typical case of ¡®mouth not admitting anything but body being honest¡¯. ¡°Take your time to think about it, I¡¯m going to look for your immediate superior.¡± Wasn¡¯t his immediate superior Zhuang Qing? The Suanyu watched Fu Li from behind as he left in a flurry, aplex expression on his face. Those rumors online... were they all true? The Suanyu felt that his yao worldview was being challenged. Fu Li went downstairs and got the three-headed brothers to pluck two fruits for him before leisurely making his way to Zhuang Qing¡¯s office. Zhuang Qing looked up when he arrived. ¡°Something the matter?¡± ¡°I¡¯m bored, so I came to chat with you,¡± Fu Li tossed him a Zhuyu fruit and plopped down on a chair. ¡°There¡¯s something on my mind that I just can¡¯t make sense of. I don¡¯t know who to talk to about it.¡± Zhuang Qing caught the Zhuyu fruit Fu Li had tossed over. One of his hands typed out a ¡®something came up here, we¡¯ll discuss more about this project at the meeting¡¯ message to an online work chat. After exiting from the messaging application, Zhuang Qing raised his chin. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Gong Fu daren,¡± Fu Li stole a peek at Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression. ¡°I find this matter a bit odd.¡± ¡°En?¡± Zhuang Qing put down the Zhuyu fruit and rested his sped hands on the desk. He looked at Fu Li with gratification. ¡°Continue.¡± He had finally learnt how to put his brain to work. ¡°Themon people Gong Fu daren saved were all ordinary people with little worldly knowledge. How could they have encountered an expert, and an expert who specially gave them advice at that?¡± Fu Li said with a solemn expression. ¡°This was about opposing heavenlyw. There was no way the person who came up with the idea wasn¡¯t aware of it.¡± ¡°So your conclusion is?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°Do you think this person could have been a friend of Gong Fu daren who deliberately got the leader of the humans to do such a thing?¡± In the long period of time Fu Li had pondered over this, he had always felt that this wasn¡¯t a coincidence but a premeditated incident. Gong Fu daren really had risen from the dead, but the price was the lives of more than two hundred humans. He only dared to keep this conjecture in his heart and not mention it in front of others for fear that the juniors would let it leak. If Gong Fu were to hear about it, he would be even sadder. Zhuang Qing sighed. ¡°If it was a friend, how could that person havee up with such a n?¡± Fu Li¡¯s upbringing had caused him to be too innocent, unknowing of the manyplex situations and circumstances in the world. ¡°If he really was a friend of Gong Fu, he wouldn¡¯t havee up with such a malicious plot. As an auspicious beast, Gong Fu is too strong for the world to ept. After his death and the dissipation of his Dao, the best method would be to bury him in the water. Not in the river, but in the great sea. Even more importantly, he should not have been bound by iron chains.¡± ¡°I once visited the secret imperial archives during the Sui dynasty and read through all the strange, ghostly things that were recorded in the Qin and Han dynasties. An unofficial ount spoke of an evil practice of gathering all the resentment in the world to give rise to an evil spirit. Using a body of stone and the bones of a great yao, all evil things under the Heavens can be summoned.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone softened when he noticed the grave look on Fu Li¡¯s face. Although he wanted to broaden Fu Li¡¯s horizons, he didn¡¯t want to scare him silly. Fu Li was already silly enough, so if he scared him even further, his IQ might no longer be salvageable. ¡°This is just an unofficial ount. It¡¯s not clear whether it was written by a human or a yao, so there isn¡¯t much authenticity to it. It¡¯s just that the events that Gong Fu encountered bears some simrity to the descriptions in the unofficial ount.¡± ¡°No, there are still areas where they differ,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Thosemon people genuinely wanted Gong Fu to live again and there was still a trace of kindness in Gong Fu¡¯s original body, so the one who lived again in the end was still Gong Fu and not an irrational evil spirit.¡± Hisplexion was deathly-pale. ¡°But what if the one that awoke was an evil spirit?¡± Someone born from the convergence of all grievances in the world ¨C would heavenlyw reject it first, or would it manage to harm themon people first? ¡°Don¡¯t think so much, isn¡¯t the current situation perfectly fine?¡± Zhuang Qing handed the Zhuyu fruit back to Fu Li. ¡°Take it.¡± ¡°What? You¡¯re not eating?¡± Fu Li took the fruit in confusion. ¡°Give it a rinse,¡± Zhuang Qing said. ¡°I have mysophobia and can¡¯t stomach it if it isn¡¯t washed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t we have a dust-prevention barrier here?¡± Fu Li looked helplessly at Zhuang Qing, reminding himself that this was an underaged yao as well as the savior of his life. He couldn¡¯tin. Therefore, he could only roll his eyes in his heart and get up to wash the fruit in the bathroom. ¡°Wait, I want a cup of coffee too, thanks.¡± Drinking coffee with fruits? What kind of sick habit was that? The eyes Fu Li was rolling in his heart was about to reach the sky. Zhuang Qing nodded in satisfaction. Good. Giving him things to do would prevent him from having reckless thoughts. When Fu Li reached the entrance of the tearoom, he heard Chao Yun and Xu Yuan giggling inside, a certain barely-suppressed excitement in their giggles as they discussed Gong Fu and whatnot. Fu Li understood the next instant. Given the current age of masculinity-consumption, it was also quite good that women had the freedom to appreciate men. He knocked on the door to highlight his existence to the two people before taking out a bag of instant coffee from a drawer at the side. He poured the coffee into the cup, threw in a few cubes of sugar, and prepared to add boiling water. Xu Yuan watched his simple and crude way of making coffee and hurriedly stopped him. ¡°Fu ge, don¡¯t you dislike drinking coffee?¡± ¡°En, I¡¯m helping Zhuang Qing,¡± Fu Li turned the tap and filled the cup with water in a whoosh. But the boss didn¡¯t like drinking coffee too. Xu Yuan was about to open her mouth when Chao Yun pulled on her. Her words were swallowed back down. Chao Yun waited for Fu Li to carry the coffee out before saying in a low voice, ¡°Sometimes, the friendship between men can be very confusing.¡± ¡°Friendship?¡± Xu Yuan was extremely doubtful of this term. ¡°If not that, what do you think it is?¡± Chao Yun side-eyed her, predicting that she wouldn¡¯t dare to say anything else. ¡°Of course it¡¯s the world¡¯s purest, most noble friendship,¡± Indeed, Xu Yuan dared not. Zhuang Qing merely moistened his lips with the coffee Fu Li made before cing it at the side, though he did polish off the Zhuyu fruit. Only after Fu Li watched him finish the fruit did he recall that his mind had been so focused on making coffee that he had forgotten to wash the Zhuyu fruit. It had already entered Zhuang Qing¡¯s stomach, so he... would just not tell him. ¡°Are you intending to sit in my office the entire afternoon?¡± Zhuang Qing cleaned his hands as Fu Lized around in his office, not leaving. ¡°You¡¯re not going out to y with the Kunpeng?¡± During the past holidays, when had Fu Li not brought the Kunpeng out to eat and drink? Ever since that rich second generation called Zhou Chang gave him a few million as a thank-you fee, the frequency with which Fu Li went out for meals increased. With a greedy Kunpeng as apanion, Zhuang Qing was genuinely worried that Fu Li would go bankrupt from eating soon after. ¡°The Kunpeng and Gong Fu are currently arguing with each other,¡± Fu Liy sprawled on the couch, sighing. ¡°When older yao cultivators quarrel, they aren¡¯t reasonable at all. They even snatched my melon seeds.¡± ¡°The two of them bullied you?¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. Those two old yaoguai ate and drank courtesy of Fu Li, and still bullied him. Could they be any more shameless?! Chapter 71 - Perceptive Owl

Chapter 71 - Perceptive Owl

The two old yaoguai resented by Zhuang Qing were currently in Fu Li¡¯s room discussing the issue of educating the next generation of yao cultivators. The Kunpeng disdained the current yao cultivators forcking ferocity and for losing the ability to survive in threatening environments. Even the little yao that patrolled the mountains in the past were capable of beating others up till they let loose frenzied howls. Gong Fu disdained the current yao for not having even the slightest bit of sophistication. In the past, any yao with status carried themselves well,pletely unlike the current hunchbacked yao who didn¡¯t seem to ever straighten their necks. ¡°What sophistication? A yao only needs to be powerful and all else will be okay.¡± ¡°Without even the most basic etiquette, what difference is there between a yao and an unintelligent animal?¡± Gong Fu retorted. ¡°We only take on human form, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re really human. Is there a need to learn from them in this aspect?¡± The Kunpeng couldn¡¯t stand the humans¡¯ bookishness, so he responded with impatience upon hearing Gong Fu¡¯s words. ¡°Can¡¯t you think up something else?¡± ¡°Who says it¡¯s the yao learning from the humans?¡± Gong Fu sneered. ¡°When us yao paid careful consideration to etiquette and social hierarchy, the humans were still wearing fur skirts and hunting. You must have turned foolish from seeing too many humans the past few years.¡± ¡°Tsk,¡± The Kunpeng snatched the melon seeds from Gong Fu¡¯s hands. He was toozy to bicker with him, so he could only relieve his anger by snatching food. Contrary to expectations, Gong Fu¡¯s anger dissipated after seeing the way he acted. He leaned against the sofazily. ¡°But the humans are indeed very clever to have invented so many interesting things.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you pay careful attention to etiquette? What is that posture then?¡± The Kunpeng retorted sarcastically. ¡°It¡¯s not like there¡¯s anyone here for me to show my elegance to,¡± Gong Fu shook his head. ¡°Rules are dead, but people are alive. Rigid creeds should not be maintained.¡± ¡°Laozi can¡¯t outtalk you,¡± The Kunpeng felt that yao cultivators like him weren¡¯t cut out for talking with detestable people like Gong Fu; they would definitely be angered to death if they spoke a bit more. Seeing that the Kunpeng had really gone speechless from anger, Gong Fu sat upright. ¡°You¡¯re already so old, why is your temper still so bad?¡± The Kunpeng turned his head, ignoring him. ¡°How many of the yao cultivators in the past are still alive today?¡± Gong Fu sighed. He stood up and walked to the window. ¡°Those still alive are probably dragging out an ignoble existence, not daring to boldly walk out. The management bureau is also quite good; at least there¡¯s a ce that can help speak up for yao cultivators. The current younger generation of yao may notpare to us in strength, but aren¡¯t inferior to us at all in terms of wisdom.¡± Hearing these words, the Kunpeng also felt a bit sad. The glory and splendor of the yao race in those years had long passed. If they didn¡¯t adopt an open mind, they would no longer be able to live their lives. Back in those years, Oujiang had also been considered a first-rate yao beast who would receive the worship of tens of thousands of yao when he appeared in public. After so many years had gone by, heavenlyw no longer tolerated him behaving the same way he had back then. ¡°What ns do you have for the future?¡± The Kunpeng sighed. He didn¡¯t want to continue quarreling with Gong Fu anymore. ¡°I¡¯m preparing to work with little Fu Li,¡± Gong Fu replied. ¡°I heard from other yao that a career with the management bureau is the most popr in the yao world now.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± The Kunpeng thought that something had gone wrong with his ears.. ¡°Of course. How can we just let little Fu Li continue supporting us?¡± Gong Fu clicked his tongue. ¡°I won¡¯t embarrass that person.¡± ¡°Who wants to be supported by him? Any random item I throw out to sell is enough for me to eat decades¡¯ worth of food in the human world,¡± The Kunpeng shook his head. ¡°Anyway, I won¡¯t embarrass that person.¡± ¡°You&#k2026;¡± Gong Fu hesitated. ¡°Really don¡¯t think that there¡¯s something off about Fu Li?¡± ¡°No!¡± The Kunpeng refuted too quickly. Such an attitude conversely aroused suspicion. Gong Fu narrowed his eyes at him. ¡°If it¡¯s a no, then it¡¯s a no. It¡¯s not like it¡¯s anything major anyway.¡± The room sunk into silence. A momentter, the Kunpeng said dispiritedly, ¡°I really don¡¯t know. I just have a vague feeling that there¡¯s something off about him. I can¡¯t make out anything else.¡± The fact that he couldn¡¯t identify what was problematic about Fu Li despite his cultivation base meant that he couldn¡¯t afford to provoke the yao behind Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s very normal for you not to be able to discern anything. You¡¯re a fiend by nature, so your cultivation path is different from ours,¡± Gong Fu tapped the couch lightly. ¡°That child seems to have a problem with self-awareness, and a very severe one at that.¡± The Kunpeng was about to say something when his tone changed all of a sudden, his voice rising in volume. ¡°I say, that¡¯s enough. There¡¯s only so many melon seeds, you should at least leave the little rabbit some.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who ate the most?¡± Gong Fu pushed the melon seed shells in front of him towards the Kunpeng. ¡°Look at your pile of melon seed shells.¡± When Zhuang Qing pushed open the door, he was greeted with the sight of these two great yao who had lived more than a hundred years pushing a pile of melon seed shells back and forth. Melon seed shells littered the ground, and the couch and side table in Fu Li¡¯s room were in a hideous mess. ¡°Seniors.¡± He knocked on the door and said with a displeased expression, ¡°What are you doing?¡± The Kunpeng and Gong Fu released their grip simultaneously. They didn¡¯t speak. ¡°You¡¯re great yao known even to humans. I presume this junior won¡¯t have to remind you of things like cleanliness, hygiene, and protecting the younger generation,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gazended on the melon seed shells on the ground. ¡°Correct?¡± The Kunpeng wanted to say that it was none of Zhuang Qing¡¯s business, but faced with his calm gaze, he didn¡¯t dare to. Thus, he turned towards Gong Fu. The shameless Gong Fu was already silently picking up the melon seed shells from the ground with a lowered head. This hypocritical auspicious beast only knew how to pretend to be a good person! ¡°Many thanks for your understanding,¡± Zhuang Qing closed the door. He walked to the staircase where Fu Li was standing. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Fu Li stuck his head out and nced towards his room door. ¡°What did you talk to Gong Fu about?¡± ¡°Nothing much, I was just telling him about the philosophy of life,¡± Zhuang Qing had a serene expression on his face. ¡°I¡¯ll take you out for a meal.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Zhuang Qing calcted the time they had. ¡°It¡¯s fine to just have a casual meal since it isn¡¯t a special day.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s just go to Restaurant Night Owl,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°It¡¯s economical, delicious, and you like to eat his food.¡± ¡°Who told you I like to eat at that ce?¡± Zhuang Qing shot back. ¡°Do I need to be told?¡± Fu Li said. ¡°It¡¯s obvious just from looking at you.¡± Zhuang Qing stared nkly for a moment, responding softly soon after, ¡°You¡¯re thinking too much.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± Restaurant Night Owl opened for business in the evening. But when they arrived at the restaurant, Fu Li discovered that there was something off about the restaurant owner¡¯s expression. Only when he saw them did he force out a smile. ¡°Boss, what happened?¡± Fu Li wiped the table and stools with a face towel before pointing at a stool for Zhuang Qing to sit down. He continued asking the boss questions. ¡°We can help if you ran into some trouble.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing major,¡± The restaurant owner had cleaned the meal-preparation counter very well. Everyone could get a clear view of him cooking through a ss door that was neither old nor new. ¡°I have an old customer who eats here practically every day since I opened the restaurant. He suddenly stoppeding the past two days, so I¡¯m worried that he had an ident.¡± Somebody who could eat at this ce on a daily basis definitely wasn¡¯t any ordinary diner. Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing and shoved the menu into his hands. ¡°Can you tell us who this diner is? This friend of mine has a widework of connections and might be able to help you find him.¡± Zhuang Qing, the person with a widework of connections: ... Overjoyed at the turn of events, the restaurant owner hurriedly informed them of the diner¡¯s appearance and distinctive features, even remembering which part of the head the diner¡¯s birthmark was on. ¡°Is he talking about that owl?¡± Fu Li transmitted his voice to Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing nodded. Fu Li¡¯s brows creased. Owls were national endangered animals, and this one was a yao who could even take on human form. By right, the owl shouldn¡¯t have run into any great danger. But why did the owl vanish for several days all of a sudden? Given the owl¡¯s habits, it wasn¡¯t likely that he decided to stoping to the restaurant. ¡°It¡¯s fine even if he can¡¯t be found,¡± The restaurant owner ced a huge te of yellow croaker on the table. ¡°He might have had a change in taste and went to another restaurant to eat. That¡¯s also possible.¡± He would rather the other party have a change in taste than to have encountered danger. The m soup on this day wasn¡¯t very nice because the restaurant owner only added one type of seasoning. However, Fu Li didn¡¯t say anything. Even Zhuang Qing also silently finished his meal without saying anything else. They finished their meal and were walking to the entrance when Fu Li saw a middle-aged man limping slightly on his left leg walking over. It was already dark and the backlight prevented him from seeing the man¡¯s face clearly. Only after he got close to them did Fu Li realize that he was the owl who had vanished for a few days. ¡°You¡¯re here, what do you want to eat today?¡± When the restaurant owner saw that the owl hade, his smile brightened. He didn¡¯t ask where the owl had been for the past few days, nor did the middle-aged man offer an exnation. The two of them were the most familiar of strangers. One cooked every day, and the other ate his cooking every day, yet they didn¡¯t even have a way of contacting each other. After finishing his meal, the middle-aged man said while footing the bill, ¡°I suffered a small injury to my leg recently, so it¡¯s a bit difficult for me toe out.¡± ¡°Make sure to rest, it¡¯ll be very bad if you can¡¯t use your leg,¡± The restaurant owner held a lunchbox out to the middle-aged man. ¡°Drink this, remember to bring the lunchbox back to me after you¡¯re done.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± The middle-aged man epted the lunchbox and felt his pockets. ¡°How much?¡± ¡°You¡¯re already an old customer, take it as my treat,¡± The restaurant owner smiled. The middle-aged man rifled through his pockets for a very long time. In the end, he still epted the restaurant owner¡¯s kind intentions. He walked out of the tiny restaurant, lunchbox in hand. The streetlights greatly elongated his shadow. When he reached the corner, he came to a halt and turned towards an alleyway. ¡°The two of you have waited a very long time for me. Come out.¡± Zhuang Qing and Fu Li walked out of the alley. ¡°What brings you two?¡± The middle-aged man clutched the lunchbox in his hands tightly, an extremely guarded expression on his face. The fact that he couldn¡¯t even recognize Zhuang Qing indicated that he was an unremarkable little yao in the yao world whose cultivation base wasn¡¯t all that great. ¡°This one in the news, is it you?¡± Fu Li held up a local newspaper dated two days ago, his expression cryptic. This piece of news stated that a farmer had heard the dog in the house barking after midnight. Thinking that a thief had snuck into the house, the farmer got up and discovered that the dog had bitten an owl, who had a strip of dried fish in its mouth. The owl seemed to have been discovered by the dog while it was stealing food. Fortunately, this farmer uncle was very knowledgeable and knew that he was an endangered animal. Not only did he not me the owl for stealing his things, he even bandaged the owl¡¯s wound and fed it two strips of dried fish. ¡°I wasn¡¯t really intending to steal, just... just...¡± The middle-aged man felt a bit guilty. ¡°My chiefbor contractor ran off with my money and I really had no money on me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t owls catch mice, frogs, snacks, and whatnot?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°Why steal someone else¡¯s dried fish?¡± ¡°Mice aren¡¯t hygienic, there¡¯s too much bacteria and parasites on them. Frogs are beneficial to the environment, and we need to protect the environment as well as animals, so eating them isn¡¯t the best idea.¡± Oh, he was quite perceptive. Chapter 72 - Untitled

Chapter 72 - Untitled

The owl directed a suspicious gaze at Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. ¡°What do you want with me? That human doesn¡¯t know the identities of us diners, I¡¯ll have to request for you not to let him discover anything fishy.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re very clear on the boundary between yao and humans,¡± Fu Li was silent for a moment. ¡°But there¡¯s something I don¡¯t quite understand. Since your chiefbor contractor ran off with your money, why didn¡¯t you make a police report or go to the cultivators¡¯ management bureau?¡± ¡°My workmate said that there are too many chiefbor contractors who abscond with money, so it¡¯s especially difficult to get the money back,¡± The owl paused for a moment. ¡°The humans are too cunning. When they really want to dodge a creditor, even their shadows won¡¯t be found. As for the management bureau...¡± The owl shook his head frantically. ¡°I don¡¯t dare to go to them.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. ¡°I heard there are a lot of powerful, great yao there with profound cultivation,¡± The owl swallowed. ¡°So scary.¡± ¡°What are you scared of? It¡¯s not like they eat owls,¡± Fu Li felt that this owl had too little courage. ¡°What if they do?¡± The owl nced around their surroundings, hugging the lunchbox in his arms tightly. ¡°The field dog working with me went to the management bureau a few days ago to make a police report and hasn¡¯t returned till now. I¡¯m worried he offended someone from the management bureau...¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li interrupted the owl. ¡°You said the field dog hasn¡¯t returned till now?¡± ¡°This field dog is a bit simple-minded. For the sake of saving a bit of electricity, he said he would run over in his original form,¡± Anxiety filled the owl¡¯s face. ¡°I¡¯ve been searching for him nonstop the past two days. I¡¯m worried he was locked up by the management bureau, but if I ran to the bureau, that would be the equivalent of delivering myself to them.¡± ¡°Wait, why do you persist in thinking that it was the management bureau who captured your friend?¡± Fu Li felt that this issue couldn¡¯t be neglected. ¡°Who else would it be if not them?¡± ¡°It¡¯s impossible for it to be them.¡± ¡°On what basis can you be so sure?¡± ¡°Because we¡¯re from the management bureau.¡± The owl stared nkly, his eyes so wide that they almost popped out of his sockets. A momentter, he turned and was about to make a run for it when Fu Li grabbed a hold of him. ¡°Don¡¯t eat me, owls have a lot of parasites!¡± The owl was so frightened that he turned into his original form. Even then, his ws still had a death grip on the lunchbox. ¡°You¡¯re all feathers, what is there to eat?¡± Zhuang Qing erected a barrier around them to avoid any human from assuming that they were abusing a national endangered animal. ¡°Bring him back.¡± The owl thought with desperation that this would probably be hisst time watching over his old friend¡¯s descendant and that he would never be able to eat at his ce again. Who knew if other humans or yao would bully this descendant after his death? After the owl was brought to the management bureau, Fu Li poured a cup of tea and set it on the table. The owl was hanging his head silently. ¡°You don¡¯t want to save your friend?¡± Zhuang Qing flipped open a recording book. ¡°Or do you mean to say that you don¡¯t dare toe to the management bureau because the field dog¡¯s disappearance has something to do with you?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve been good friends for more than a hundred years, how could I have harmed him!¡± The owl was slightly agitated. ¡°He really wasn¡¯t captured by you guys?¡± ¡°Since he¡¯s your friend and you thought that he was captured by the management bureau, why didn¡¯t you attempt to rescue him from this ce? Is your brotherly affection made of stic?¡± Zhuang Qing let out a mockingugh. Using his phone, he snapped a few shots of the owl and then input the pictures into the yao world¡¯s poption database. Census information on several different owls very quickly appeared. ¡°What is your registered birthce?¡± ¡°Wuyue Province.¡± ¡°Wuyue Province...¡± Zhuang Qing raised his head, ncing at the owl. ¡°So you¡¯re a dusky eagle-owl.¡± ¡°How did you know that?¡± Fu Li was curious. ¡°Most dusky eagle-owls in our country appear at Wuyue Province.¡± Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t help adding, ¡°Read up a bit more when you go back, strive to get into university on your first try.¡± Fu Li: ... ¡°Continue speaking,¡± Zhuang Qing dragged Fu Li to his side and sat him down. Turning to Fu Li, he spoke in a low voice, ¡°Sit properly, don¡¯t walk here and there.¡± Since the owl had alreadynded in the other party¡¯s hands, he could only give aplete and systematic ount of things. ¡°The field dog and I can¡¯t be considered good friends, but there isn¡¯t any animosity between us either. After he spoke about making a report at the management bureau, he turned into his original form and ran out of the work shed. I¡¯m not too clear on what happened after that either. Was it really... not you who caught him?¡± ¡°Why would we catch him?¡± Zhuang Qing did a simple note-taking and then sent a search directive for the dog to their work chat. He told the owl, ¡°We will deal with the chiefbor contractor who ran off with your money as soon as possible, you can go back with peace of mind.¡± ¡°You¡¯re really letting me go?¡± ¡°You want us to treat you to supper?¡± ¡°T-That won¡¯t be necessary,¡± Hooking two ws around the lunchbox, the owl flew off without a single nce back. ¡°It seems our management bureau has overlooked an aspect of our work,¡± Zhuang Qing closed the recording book as he spoke to Fu Li. ¡°Strengthening our publicity at the grassroots level is very important. We¡¯ll discuss this aspect of our work at our meeting tomorrow morning.¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Oh.¡± He took out his phone and started informing his colleagues of this. Zhuang Qing nodded with satisfaction. Thankfully, he wasn¡¯t too stupid when it came to work. ¡°Then let¡¯s arrest that chiefbor contractor now,¡± Fu Li stood up, ready to walk out. ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to go,¡± Zhuang Qing took a cup of water, fixing his eyes on the surface of the water. As a leader of the aquatic races, his vision could extend to anywhere where there was water, as long as he willed it. The chiefbor contractor had been very well-off the past few days. He had gone back to his home state with his pockets bulging and bought arge golden chain under the envious gazes of his friends. There wasn¡¯t anything lowkey about the way he did this. With every person that passed by him, he itched to swing about the chain around his neck. ¡°Wang ge, you made a fortune?¡± ¡°No no, I just made enough for a couple hundred thousand meals,¡± Labor contractor Wang raised his chin. ¡°Nothing much.¡± ¡°To say that a couple hundred thousand is nothing much, it seems Wang ge really made a fortely and no longer fancies this little bit of money.¡± Satisfaction filledbor contractor Wang¡¯s heart upon seeing the onlookers¡¯ shocked gazes. He bought a few cans of beer and a catty of pork before staggering home, humming a song. He had merely taken a few steps when his ankle twisted by ident. When he next looked up, he realized that he was already standing outside a police station in the capital. The shock caused sweat to seep out profusely from his head . He hadn¡¯t even drank the beer, why was he already drunk and even hallucinating? Chapter 73 - Shoulder

Chapter 73 - Shoulder

¡°Captain Peng, about that case we took a few days ago ¨C the chiefbor contractor turned himself in.¡± ¡°What?¡± Peng Hang put down his personal old-fashioned teacup, thinking that he had heard wrongly. ¡°Didn¡¯t we just receive a report in the morning that thebor contractor surnamed Wang was at his hometown?¡± He was at his hometown in the morning, but appeared at the entrance of their police station now. Did he take a ne just to turn himself in? Whatudable spirit. He nearly burst intoughter upon seeing the chiefbor contractor. Those slippers on his feet, and the way he was carrying beer and pork ¨C was he here to drink and chat with them? He tilted his chin, tellingbor contractor Wang, ¡°Come in and give an ount of your crimes.¡± Labor contractor Wang looked at Peng Hang and the other people who hade out like they were malicious spirits, stepping back repeatedly. ¡°Ai, what are you running for? You¡¯re already here, it doesn¡¯t make sense not to take a seat here for a while,¡± Peng Han handcuffedbor contractor Wang. ¡°Let¡¯s go, you can have a nice and proper seat inside.¡± Labor contractor Wang muttered, ¡°Impossible. I must be having a nightmare.¡± He had clearly been on the way home to eat, so how could he have appeared at the entrance of the capital¡¯s police station? This wasn¡¯t logical at all. Or... had he encountered the legendary aliens? Peng Hang brought thebor contractor in and opened a recording book. ¡°Your name, hometown, and age. Also, give an ount of your crime.¡± Unexpectedly,bor contractor Wang suddenly eximed, ¡°I bumped into aliens!¡± ¡°Sit properly,¡± Peng Hang tapped the table several times with his pen. ¡°May the suspect please not get too excited. Do not attempt to feign ignorance to escapewful punishment.¡± ¡°Comrade police officer, I¡¯m not lying,¡± Labor contractor Wang appeared to be in a manic state. ¡°I just bought a few bottles of beer and a catty of stewed meat at the entrance of the vige and everything was perfectly fine then, how could I have walked all the way to the capital? Do you think this was done by aliens?¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying you ran into aliens?¡± Peng Hang was amused. Fortunately, he knew to maintain professionalism and control his emotions in front of a suspect. ¡°It¡¯s the truth, I was still at my hometown in the morning. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can investigate it,¡± Labor contractor Wang was no longer concerned that he had been caught by the police. He felt that he had experienced an elusive, major world event. Perhaps reporters, scientists, and television stations would interview him, turning him into someone who had appeared on television. Peng Hang waved a hand at a colleague at the side. ¡°Brother, let the local authorities check whether the suspect really made an appearance at his hometown.¡± Even if the other party¡¯s words were beyond belief, Peng Hang still felt that he ought to get someone to investigate. He had to abide by his professional responsibilities. With how developed the currentwork was, as long as someone was confirmed to have appeared at a certain location, they would only need to obtain local surveince data and it wouldn¡¯t be very difficult to find the individual¡¯s traces. Roughly one hourter, a reply came frombor contractor Wang¡¯s hometown saying that the surveince data couldn¡¯t be obtained in a short period of time. However, his neighbors at his hometown all said that they hadn¡¯t seen him. ¡°Impossible, I greeted so many neighbors today,¡± Labor contractor Wang said hysterically. ¡°They even admired the big gold chain I bought!¡± ¡°We will continue investigating this matter, you¡¯d better give us an ount of your crime first,¡± Peng Hang removed the pen cap and nced at his watch. ¡°This whole situation has dragged on for nearly two hours. Even if you¡¯re not tired, I want to sleep.¡± ¡°Are aliens not even as important as investigating the case?!¡± Labor contractor Wang was extremely excited. ¡°If you investigate it properly, our country will be the first to discover actual living aliens. Imagine how much face others would have to give us!¡± ¡°I really couldn¡¯t tell you were so patriotic. If you love the country so much, don¡¯t cheat workers of their money. It isn¡¯t easy for everyone to make money; if you act in this way, how are others going to live?¡± Peng Hang said. ¡°Aliens invading earth is a concern for the astronomers, and youmitting crimes is a concern for us police. We have clearly-defined roles, so there¡¯s no need for you to worry.¡± Labor contractor Wang looked at Peng Hang in disappointment, feeling that this brainless police officer had missed out on a gargantuan opportunity. He was a sinner who held the country back! Peng Hang could care less about how bitter he felt and started investigating the details of the case. At the management bureau, Zhuang Qing recalled his power and spoke to Fu Li, ¡°You really are a rabbit with how anxious you are.¡± Not only did he drag someone through space, he even wiped the memories of the people nearby. Spiritual energy wastage was no concern to him. ¡°I¡¯m conserving the police¡¯s resources. If I can help the country save a bit of money, then I will,¡± Fu Li stated. ¡°All for the sake of serving the people.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... ¡°This power the aquatic races have is quite interesting,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°I read from a biology book that water makes up a veryrge proportion of human cells. With how familiar you aquatic races are with skills rted to water, fights should be very much in your favor.¡± Zhuang Qing instantly understood the meaning behind Fu Li¡¯s words. He rapped a hand against Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°The humans are best at drawing, but does that mean every human can draw?¡± ¡°Impudent,¡± Fu Li swatted Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. ¡°I know you aquatic races have a huge group of yao holding you back, you don¡¯t have to ce such special emphasis on it.¡± Laughing softly, Zhuang Qing picked up his coat from the stool. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°My house, to rest. We¡¯ll investigate the field dog¡¯s case first thing in the morning,¡± Zhuang Qing smoothed the seam of his pants a few times and then stiffly ced his hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I want to eat hairy crab for supper, but there¡¯s no point eating alone.¡± ¡°Sure sure,¡± Fu Li was most fond of eating seafood. It was just that he had recently been supporting the Kunpeng and Gong Fu, these two great yao who had veryrge appetites. He was worried that the few million he had on hand wasn¡¯t sufficient, which was why he couldn¡¯t bear to eat expensive things like hairy crab. Now that Zhuang Qing offered to treat him of his own ord, he immediatelyunched into a discussion with Zhuang Qing on which restaurant had the best tasting food, radiant with delight. These were all things he had heard from his colleagues at the management bureau. ¡°Since you like it so much, why didn¡¯t you go out and eat it the past few days?¡± Zhuang Qing gazed at Fu Li¡¯s side-profile. His heart itched, as if it was being scratched by a rabbit¡¯s short tail. This was how men interacted, right? Arm over shoulder and whatnot? ¡°Money has to be saved before it can be spent,¡± However, Fu Li wasn¡¯t thinking of anything else. He said, ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll run out of money to spend if a few more seniorse.¡± ¡°Still not admitting you¡¯re silly? The money they spend can be added to our public expenses,¡± Zhuang Qing stated. ¡°You contributed the most by helping everyone to cate them, how can we allow you to pay out of pocket to support them? What job takes your money instead of paying you?¡± ¡°But Xu Yuan said that not everything can be reimbursed...¡± ¡°Does she have more authority or do I have more authority?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows furrowed slightly. ¡°You,¡± Fu Li made his decision without even thinking. ¡°The higher-ups have already approved special funds. When that timees, I¡¯ll arrange for finance to give you allowance.¡± Zhuang Qing paused for a moment before adding, ¡°Eat whatever you want, don¡¯t wrong your stomach.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± He walked out of the office with one hand stiffly ced on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Boss, I...¡± Chu Yu walked to the door and directly ran into Zhuang Qing. Seeing the hand resting on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder, Chu Yu¡¯s mouth dropped open. He was silent for two to three seconds before saying, ¡°I went the wrong way.¡± Wedging the file under his pits, Chu Yu turned and ran in the direction of themon working area. ¡°One thousand years old, but still so frivolous,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s tone was calm. ¡°Ignore him.¡± Crabs in autumn were both fat and tender. Fu Li happily dug into his crab meat, arge pile of crab shells beside him. Zhuang Qing looked at the mountain of shells and got the waiter to add another ten for Fu Li. He felt that there was something wrong with him. He clearly couldn¡¯t bear to spend money, yet when he saw how happily Fu Li ate, he actually felt that there was some meaning in spending money. Could he have been influenced by Fu Li and caught his bad habit of throwing money away by the handful? After eating all the crab meat, Fu Li asked, ¡°Will we be on holiday during National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival?¡± ¡°Those are public holidays, of course we¡¯ll be on holiday,¡± Zhuang Qing replied. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I thought of a good way to earn money,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°We can make a bit of money from selling fish we caught.¡± Zhuang Qing wanted to say that he didn¡¯t want to embarrass his yao... ¡°In the many years I¡¯ve lived, I¡¯ve never set up a stall to sell something. It¡¯ll definitely be very interesting.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Against his intentions, this word slipped out of his mouth. Zhuang Qing felt that his mouth was a bit despicable. ¡°Which area of the sea has more fish now?¡± Invigorated, Fu Li spiritedly discussed with Zhuang Qing about how they would fish, whether they would fish at the sea or the river, and how much they would sell the fish for. After chattering the entire way to Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi, Fu Li had already started to n how they would spend the money earned. This was despite the fact that there was still a few days remaining before the Mid-Autumn Festival; the fish in his mind had yet to even be caught. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t burst his bubble either. He took out a bunch of grapes from the fridge, washed them clean, and ced them in front of Fu Li for him to eat while talking. ¡°Did you set up a stall in the past?¡± Fu Li asked Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing stared nkly for a moment before slowly shaking his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°No problem, you¡¯ll have experience when I apany you,¡± Fu Li was extremely excited, hating that he couldn¡¯t lug a bucket of fish off to sell right this instant. ¡°Okay,¡± From the way Fu Li intended to do whatever he said, Zhuang Qing knew that Fu Li definitely hadn¡¯t suffered any grievances in the past. He hadn¡¯t experienced rejection, which was why he did as he pleased and thought beautifully of everything. Although this rabbit constantly proimed that he was four thousand years old, Zhuang Qing viewed Fu Li as a pure but not annoying yao who had been overly pampered by other yaoguai. The next morning, Fu Li was still asleep when Zhuang Qing finished making breakfast. After Fu Li sat at the table, Zhuang Qing ced his breakfast in front of him. ¡°I think you¡¯re indeed not a simple rabbit.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing with a fried egg in his mouth. ¡°You might have the blood of a sloth in you,¡± Zhuang Qing downed the milk at one go. ¡°Remember to wash the dishes after you¡¯re done eating.¡± Fu Li: ... This person said he deserved to be called a rabbit one moment but said he wasn¡¯t a rabbit the next, could he be a bit more consistent? Fu Li felt that he was increasingly losing the dignity of an elder. After washing the dishes, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing went to the work shed the field dog lived in. Fortunately, animals easily shed fur during autumn, so they managed to pick up the field dog¡¯s fur from the ground. The owl stared at the strands of dog fur in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. What use did this fur have? ¡°Heaven and Earth, Yin and Yang. Listen to my orders,¡± Zhuang Qing tossed the strands of dog fur into the air. The dog fur moved automatically even without wind, suddenly morphing into golden light and flying off. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li exchanged a nce and then flew after it. The owl stared nkly at the vacant door, feeling that his wings were just for show. There was no one whom he could catch up to. He had brought down the bird world¡¯s standard of speed. Chapter 74 - Selling Fish

Chapter 74 - Selling Fish

A heroic dog had appeared two days ago at Canteen Two of the capital¡¯s university. Two days ago, two female students were stalked by a bad guy. Just as he was about tomit a violent act, a field dog suddenly appeared and pounced on this scoundrel, preventing any harm from being inflicted on these two female students. After this incident, the field dog became an inte celebrity on the university¡¯s internal forum. Not only did the school permit him to set up hisir in a small house, the students would even visit him with delicious food. As one of the rescued girls, Wang Yi had been bitten by a dog when she was young and was thus very afraid of dogs. But when she thought of the field dog who had bravely fought against the evildoer that night, she would feel grateful yet scared. Therefore, she specially purchased high-grade dog food online that was delivered in two hours. Then, she ced it far, far away from the dog¡¯sir, not daring to get close to the dog. This very simple-looking dog seemed to perceive her fear, so it held the dog food in its mouth and brought it beside its doghouse with a wagging tail. It didn¡¯t approach her. This continued for two to three days, and Wang Yi got ustomed to bringing the dog food every time she passed by the canteen. The dog also never looked at her with anything but gentle eyes. It¡¯s silly, furry face was really exceedingly adorable. Wang Yi brought the dog food at night and then stood outside the house, not leaving immediately. She stood at the side and waited for the dog to finish eating before asking, ¡°Do you have a name?¡± The field dog¡¯s ears trembled. It cocked its head at Wang Yi, its tail wagging. It looked rather foolish. Amused by its cute appearance, Wang Yi cautiously took one step towards it. ¡°Can I touch your head?¡± She felt she was being a bit ridiculous to actually be speaking to a dog, but she was truly very scared. Only by speaking meaningless nonsense could she ease the fear in her heart. Her hand inched towards the field dog¡¯s head. When there was approximately ten centimeters¡¯ distance between them, her fingers trembled lightly, not daring to proceed any further. The field dog originally lying in its doghouse suddenly lifted its upper torso, sending its head to Wang Yi¡¯s palm. Frightened, Wang Yi shrank back. ¡°Wu?¡± The field dog cocked its head in confusion at her, as if asking why she stopped touching it. Wang Yiughed and ced her hand on the field dog¡¯s head. The shaggy and warm sensation was very nice to stroke. At this moment, the fear she had towards pets dropped significantly. ¡°Thank you,¡± Wang Yi squatted and met the field dog¡¯s gaze at eye level. ¡°Without you, I would have been in danger.¡± The field dog watched her, its head cocked. Its dark, lively eyes overflowed with warmth. ¡°It¡¯ll be the Mid-Autumn Festival in a few days,e home with me?¡± Wang Yi¡¯s house was located in this city, so she didn¡¯t have to worry about how she would bring the dog home. ¡°My dad and mom like dogs very much. They just didn¡¯t raise any thest few years because they had misgivings about my emotional state. If youe to our house, they¡¯ll definitely wee you as a new member.¡± The field dog swung its head and gently bumped its front ws against Wang Yi¡¯s palm. ¡°Since you didn¡¯t object, that means you agree?¡± Wang Yi revealed a brilliant smile. ¡°It¡¯s a deal then.¡± sses would start very soon, so Wang Yi had no choice but to part with the field dog and hurriedly run to the school building. The field dogy down in the doghouse with its chin resting on the edge of the doghouse, looking strangely pitiful. ¡°Field dog?¡± All of a sudden, two people appeared in front of the field dog. One of them was cold as ice, while the other was all smiles, though the person smiling did not give off the feeling that he was weak and could easily be bullied. ¡°A field dog had his money stolen a few days ago by a chiefbor contractor, and went out saying that he would go to the management bureau to seek justice. In the end, he went missing halfway there. Are you that field dog?¡± Fu Li fished out the information and took a few more looks at it. Although humans more or less had simr appearances, he could still distinguish their identity from the way they spoke, their actions, habits, and dressing style. But dogs didn¡¯t wear clothes, and if they had simr fur coats, then he really wouldn¡¯t be able to distinguish between them at that point in time. Hepared the dog with a photo for an eternity before confirming that this was the field dog that the owl said had disappeared. Fu Li said, ¡°A yao reported to us that his friend went missing. We can rest at ease knowing that you¡¯re fine, do you want to go back with us now?¡± The field dog gazed in the direction the girl had left in for a very long time. Human speech came out of its mouth. ¡°Must I go back?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not mandatory, but we have to take responsibility for every citizen of the cultivation world,¡± Fu Li took out his phone, snapped a few shots of the field dog, and then uploaded them onto the system to conclude the case. ¡°Peoplee and go here, and it¡¯s a bad environment to live in. Why do you want to stay here?¡± ¡°It¡¯s still better than doing physicalbor,¡± The field dog grumbled. ¡°Dog breeds like us are only liked by humans when we¡¯re young. After we grow up, we can only be tied up outside the house by farmers, whether rain or shine.¡± ¡°It was still okay in the past, at least we could guard the house. The humans nowadays all like golden retrievers, huskies, and teacup dogs. Even if a golden retriever or husky tears down their house, they can¡¯t bear to get angry. But no matter how much these people like dogs, they will only be fond of these exquisite dog breeds. The majority of us field dogs don¡¯t receive such treatment. There are some people who find us cute when we¡¯re young and bring us back to raise. When we¡¯re older and no longer cute, they find it embarrassing to bring dogs like us withmon blood out and eventually abandon us.¡± The field dog remembered very clearly the little dog in the past who very happily told him that he would soon have an owner. But three monthster, he saw the little dog leashed in the backyard of its new owner¡¯s house, its entire doggy body skeletal-thin, with fur so dirty that it had clumped together. A thickyer of fungi had grown on the bowl at the side, with less than half of the bowl containing leftover food that had already turned rancid. He had gnawed through the leash and rescued the little dog, but the dog passed away shortly after. Before the dog died, it even told him how much its little owner had liked it when it first entered its new owner¡¯s home, how the owner would hug him to sleep on the bed, and how its owner had shared their steamed egg with it. A dog might only have one owner throughout their entire life, but their owner could have many pets. ¡°Those exquisite dog and cat breeds are the most hateful. They¡¯re fussy, have nasty tempers, and even treat their owners like ves to order about!¡± At this point, the field dog plopped back down on the ground like a deted balloon. ¡°Even if that¡¯s the case, humans still like them.¡± The field dogy its head back inside the doghouse, probably because it felt that the features of its rich-hating self were too ugly. ¡°Us field dogs yearn for an owner that would raise us forever without abandoning us. Such a thing is already hard enough, how can we dare to be as choosy as those exquisite dog and cat breeds?¡± The field dog¡¯s tail suddenly started wagging extremely cheerfully. ¡°I¡¯ve never experienced what it was like to be doted on by an owner and someone said just now that they would take me home. I want to give it a try. A-Anyway, I¡¯m a yao. If they aren¡¯t willing to continue raising me in the future, I can still find a job and support myself.¡± Truthfully, this field dog couldn¡¯t be considered cute. But it had very clean fur. In particr, its eyes looked especially pure. Fu Li stroked his head twice. ¡°Okay. If you¡¯re in need of anything in the future,e find us at the management bureau. Regardless of how humans treat different pets, every cultivator in the cultivation world is equal at our management bureau.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± The field dog wagged its tail. Stretching its head out of the doghouse, it continued gazing in the direction Wang Yi had left in. Seeing his behavior, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing left the school. On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Fu Li went to the school to take another peek. In the distance, he saw a little girl with a ponytail carrying the field dog into a private car. The field dog was holding a small package in its mouth while its tail wagged so hard that afterimages were practically visible. ¡°Da Yuan, don¡¯t be scared when the car starts movingter, it¡¯s normal when a car starts up,¡± Wang Yi gently took the field dog into her arms as she consoled him. ¡°Dad, let¡¯s buy some daily necessities and toys for Da Yuanter.¡± ¡°Gotcha,¡± The middle-aged man driving reached out and stroked the field dog¡¯s head before starting up the car in contentment. Their house finally had a dog! ¡°Awooh,¡± The field dog called out softly, attracting its owner¡¯s affectionate caresses. ¡°Da Yuan, don¡¯t be scared, don¡¯t be scared. I¡¯ll buy you toyster.¡± Fu Li stood along the street as he watched the car with the family of three slowly making its way into the distance. cing his hands behind his back, he hummed a song in high spirits. Shrinking distance to inches, he arrived outside Zhuang Qing¡¯s house in the blink of an eye. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, get up,¡± Fu Li stered his face to the window of Zhuang Qing¡¯s room. ¡°Quick, quick. We should be off to catch fish.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree on ten o¡¯clock?¡± Zhuang Qing opened the window. Fu Li turned into a rabbit and hopped in. ¡°Isn¡¯t it almost ten o¡¯clock?¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the time. Was five minutes past nine considered almost ten o¡¯clock? He lowered his head and watched the rabbit jump from the left side of the table to the right before bounding from the right to the left. He dug clothes out from his wardrobe. ¡°We can leave after I change my clothes.¡± ¡°Quick, quick!¡± The white rabbit hopped on the spot a few more times, just like a little student about to go on a trip who was so excited that they werepletely incapable of sitting still. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t resist giving Fu Li a few pokes on his butt. Then, he lifted Fu Li up by the neck and ced him on the bed. ¡°Don¡¯t jump, you¡¯re making me dizzy.¡± Even his heart felt like it was leaping up and down in tandem with Fu Li. It really wore him out. When Zhuang Qing changed his clothes and came out, Fu Li hopped onto his shoulder, straightened his hind legs, and waved his right front ws. ¡°Let¡¯s go, dragon knight!¡± ¡°What movie did you watch with Gong Fu this time?¡± Zhuang Qing massaged his temples, feeling his head ache slightly. It had been a mere few days since Gong Fu joined the management bureau, but he had managed to teach Fu Li quite a few bad habits. ¡°Sorry, sorry,¡± Fu Li touched Zhuang Qing¡¯s face with his ws. ¡°I was joking with you.¡± ¡°You also y with Gong Fu like this?¡± ¡°How can that be? He¡¯s an elder after all,¡± Fu Li shook his tail. ¡°It¡¯s still more fun ying with you.¡± Zhuang Qing snorted. He picked Fu Li up from his shoulder, cradling him in his palm. ¡°Get ready, we¡¯re leaving.¡± Dragons moved very quickly. Extremely quickly. Zhuang Qing¡¯s skill at fishing was so-so, but Fu Li couldn¡¯t match him when it came to catching fish. One hourter, Fu Li arrived at an alley where food was frequently sold, arge bucket of authentic river fish in hand. He put the fish on disy. Good-looking people were weed everywhere, and the same concept applied when it came to selling food. The two male yao with little selling experience very quickly received their first customer. ¡°Youngster, I¡¯m going to use this fish to make pickled vegetable fish slices. Make sure to fillet the fish well for me.¡± Fu Li was struck dumb. So, selling fish meant they would have to kill fish too? He touched the water on his face that a fish had sshed onto him, turning towards the silent Zhuang Qing beside him. Zhuang Qing took the fish from Fu Li. With a few swishes of the knife, he cleanly descaled the fish. Then, he chopped off the fish¡¯s head, nimbly filleted the fish, and packed it in a stic bag for the auntie who bought the fish. ¡°What pretty knife work, you really have the air of a great chef,¡± Satisfied, the auntie paid and left. The Zhuang little dragon whose skill with the sword was the best in the dragon n silently cleaned the blood and scales on the back of the knife, keeping mum about his talent. ¡°City enforcement is here!¡± When the very quick big shot of the dragon n looked up, the vegetable farmers and stall-keepers around them had already disappeared without a trace. Only Fu Li and him were still present. Chapter 75 - Misunderstanding

Chapter 75 - Misunderstanding

¡°You two still aren¡¯t running?¡± A vegetable-toting auntie pointed at the entrance of the alley. ¡°Take care not to be caught by city enforcement.¡± Only then did Fu Li realize that the setting up stalls was not allowed at this ce. He had assumed that it was a marketce for people to freely trade since there was arge number of people. It turned out not to be the case? He picked up the two buckets with a single hand and took off in a mad rush, his other hand dragging Zhuang Qing along. Faced with everyone¡¯s gazes, using an illusory skill really was out of the question, otherwise they wouldn¡¯t be any different from tricksters. ¡°Aiyo, young people really have good physical strength.¡± The auntie watched the two frantically-fleeing figures and turned to speak to her daughter, who was apanying her to buy vegetables, ¡°See that? If you don¡¯t study well, you¡¯ll only be able to set up a stall and sell vegetables after you grow up. For the sake of saving that few market-management dors, you¡¯ll even need to hide from city enforcement.¡± ¡°But they were wearing branded clothes,¡± The girl felt that she ought to speak up for the two handsome brothers. ¡°They could have set up a stall for the life experience?¡± ¡°Come on, who knows whether they¡¯re authentic or fake?¡± The auntie watched a city enforcement officer chase after the two handsome men. ¡°Watch less of those boring television dramas. Where in this world are there rich people who are so bored that they sell fish for money without finding the fish dirty?¡± ¡°You two, stop!¡± The city enforcement officer failed to catch up to Fu Li and Zhuang Qing despite putting forth the energy of a baby drinking milk. Panting, he supported himself with the wall andined, ¡°Such good physical strength, but they don¡¯t want to participate in track and field and instead run to this ce to set up a stall. Are they sick in the head?¡± The water in the bucket had sshed all over the ground due to the overly-quick speed at which they ran. Fu Li turned around and saw that the city enforcement officer had long been thrown off. Dragging Zhuang Qing to a hiding spot behind a wall, he then looked down at the bucket. Not only was the fish there, they were still alive. He instantly heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Great.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent, an unpleasant expression on his face. He had already been rendered speechless. In these many years, he had traveled the skies and seas extensively. There was nothing he hadn¡¯t seen and no dangers he hadn¡¯t experienced. But this was his first time being chased by a city enforcement officer so pathetically. ¡°Turns out setting up stalls at that ce isn¡¯t allowed, let¡¯s switch locations,¡± Fu Li manifested several leaves and threw them into the bucket containing the fish. ¡°Nothing will go wrong this time for sure.¡± ¡°Hand.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Zhuang Qing retracted his hand and said with a stiff face, ¡°What¡¯s with two men holding hands?¡± His palm was burning hot and sweat had even seeped out of it. He turned his head self-consciously, feeling that the way he looked now was extremely embarrassing, though he himself didn¡¯t know why he had such a strange thought. ¡°I forgot about it,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°I saw that you nked out just now and didn¡¯t react, so I just dragged you along while I was at it.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take you to a ce where you can set up a stall.¡± Apuse sounded from time to time at a certain remote corner of a free-trade market. Under the twinkling rays of bright white light, a fat and tender fish turned into filleted fish in a blink of an eye before automatically flying into a stic bag for containing fish. Fish scales and internal organs formed a tiny mountain at the corner. It was evident that business was booming. ¡°Your fish,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his knife, wiped his hands on a towel, and then handed the fish to the man who had ordered it. ¡°Handsome, with your knife work, you can be a professional chef. Killing fish at a market is a huge waste of your talent,¡± The man took the stic bag and nced at Fu Li, who was clumsily weighing fish at the side. ¡°This kind of thing can be done on your own, there¡¯s no need for you to have a partner.¡± ¡°Thank you. Your total is 89.5 yuan,¡± Zhuang Qing was expressionless. ¡°Forget about that 0.5 yuan?¡± Fu Li was about to nod when Zhuang Qing interjected, ¡°It¡¯s a small business, earning money isn¡¯t easy.¡± ¡°Ai, who does business like this? I won¡¯t buy from you again,¡± The buyer reluctantly took out 100 yuan, and Zhuang Qing returned him 10.5 yuan. After the man left, Fu Li handed the fish he had weighed to Zhuang Qing. ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree that we won¡¯t take the 0.5 yuans?¡± ¡°Others are fine, but not him,¡± Zhuang Qing slit open the belly and removed the scales. Dirty fish blood and scales entered the clean, neat slit. ¡°He¡¯s not to your liking?¡± Zhuang Qing silently filleted the fish with a lowered head. ¡°You were right not to let that money go then,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°We won¡¯t spoil him.¡± The two people had outstanding looks, sold fat and tender fish, and set reasonable prices. Coupled with the attention of many passersby that Zhuang Qing¡¯s superbly-artistic knife work attracted, they very quickly sold all their fish. Fu Li squatted on the ground and counted their money multiple times before merrily informing Zhuang Qing, ¡°We earned a lot of money.¡± Zhuang Qing had just returned from washing his hands and was greeted with Fu Li smiling so broadly that his eyes became mere slits. ¡°So happy?¡± ¡°Of course, let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll go eat crayfish,¡± Fu Li fished out a fewrge banknotes. ¡°Let¡¯s donate this amount.¡± ¡°To who?¡± ¡°There¡¯s that charity event to provide nutritious meals for impoverished children in the mountains ¨C let¡¯s donate to them,¡± Fu Li stuffed the wads of cash into the pocket of his jacket. ¡°What do you think about that?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. After arriving at the aid post, Zhuang Qing looked at the pictures of the children on the wall. Many of the children hadrge eyes, thin and weak faces, and bright smiles. While Fu Li went to the toilet, Zhuang Qing took the opportunity to give the relevant staff member a check for two million. Only at this moment did several staff members recognize him as the boss of Chang Long Biotechnology Company. The other party was covered in the smell of fish and was dressed in casual attire, so they momentarily couldn¡¯t rte this image to his usual impably-attired, elite-looking appearance. Fu Li came out of the toilet and discovered that Zhuang Qing had disappeared. Only after circling the hall did he catch sight of a few people smiling from ear to ear as they walked out of a small house with Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing gestured for these staff members not to send him any further and then strode to Fu Li. ¡°What are you doing standing there foolishly? Didn¡¯t you want to eat crayfish?¡± ¡°You know them?¡± Fu Li walked shoulder-to-shoulder with Zhuang Qing. ¡°Is our bureau¡¯s business really profitable?¡± ¡°If it isn¡¯t, where would the material benefits and supportive policies in the cultivation worlde from?¡± Zhuang Qing stuck his hands into the pockets of his pants. ¡°The equilibrium between the cultivation and human world was achieved partially because everyone wants peace, but also because our cultivation world can aplish things some humans can¡¯t.¡± Fu Li recalled that when he was working at Affinity Moon Hotel, many girls were fond of the skincare and makeup products produced by Chang Long. However, because the products were too expensive, they would often just discuss it vigorously to satisfy their desires, and asionally buy one or two products. It was no wonder that Chang Long was this highly-esteemed. These were the insights on skincare that innumerable yao and ghost cultivators had acquired over countless years after all. It was only natural for the effects of these products to satisfy people. While the both of them were digging into crayfish, a video titled was posted on the inte. The man ughtering fish in the video had an imposing presence and handsome facial features. The way he ughtered fish was direct and efficient, while the fish slices he filleted were all of equal thickness, as if they had been measured by a ruler. In the current era of masculinity-consumption, the video was swiftly forwarded many times on the inte. When the management bureau¡¯smunications department saw this video, their first reaction was to marvel that there was actually someone in this world who so closely resembled their boss. But when they saw that the man beside him was identical in looks to Fu Li, they knew that it wasn¡¯t a coincidence. This really was their boss. They hadn¡¯t expected their boss to be so frugal as to even spend a holiday selling fish for money. But even if he had to sell fish for money, why did he need to bring Fu ge along to do bitter work? He couldn¡¯t treat Fu ge as freebor just because the other party was easy to talk to, right? They didn¡¯t know how to handle this video, so they could only send a report to their higher-up. Thus, the reportnded in Zhang Ke¡¯s hands. After internally scolding Zhuang Qing for being a Grandet, Zhang Ke pushed this report to Chu Yu. By the time Chu Yu finished watching the entire video, all his three fish views had disintegrated. The boss was capable of doing anything for the sake of money now; he would even sell fish on a holiday. Wasn¡¯t this good now? The entire yao race had now lost their face on the inte. Who knew whether other cultivators had already seen it? After a period of contemtion, he imed publicly that the boss and Fu ge had disguised themselves as fish sellers at the free-trade market to capture a group of thieves. This reason wouldn¡¯t be believed by those within the management bureau, but the outside world was very amenable to such things. Who would have thought that the dignified boss of the management bureau would run off and sell fish for some extra ie? The cultivation world had just settled on the method to resolve this, but the human world¡¯s inte went up in an uproar first. Aizen had realized that this fish seller with lightning-quick knife work was the boss of the globally-renowned Chang Long Company. At first, someizens felt that this was merely nonsense. However, aizen¡¯s professionalparison of their face shapes led them to realize that this person squatting in the marketce and ughtering fish really was the boss of Chang Long Company. The person selling fish with him seemed to be an employee of hispany. Netizen A: The boss is even more practiced than the employee at ughtering fish. An employee who can¡¯t ughter fish isn¡¯t a good employee. Netizen B: I thought that fishing was the only fish-rted hobby wealthy people had, but it seems I¡¯ve seen too little of the world. Turns out the truly wealthy people have a hobby of ughtering and selling fish. Netizen C: A melon seed-eatingizen at the scene said that a customer asked Boss Zhuang if he could waive the remaining amount, and Boss Zhuang said something about it being a small business and that he couldn¡¯t take any less. The grand boss of Chang Long is actually so in touch with themon people. Even if he wasn¡¯t the boss of Chang Longpany, I think he would still be able to make a lot of money just by selling fish. Netizen D: Am I the only one who feels that the brother at the side who¡¯s so clumsy despite only weighing fish is more like the boss? ughtering fish is the most dirty and tiring task, but it ended up being done by the boss. Netizen B: Boss Zhuang might like ughtering and selling fish. One nce at his knife work is enough to tell that he¡¯s trained before. ¡°He wields a sword, of course he¡¯s trained before,¡± Zhang Ke threw his phone onto the table and looked at his junior brother practicing boxing in the courtyard. He leaned out the window and asked, ¡°Junior brother, does every tiger know the move ?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Wei Cang moved out of his boxing stance and wiped the sweat on his forehead. ¡°The fox race¡¯s Charm, the tiger race¡¯s Roar, the dragon race¡¯s Might, and so on are all innate.¡± ¡°Is there a tiger yao who can¡¯t use the Roar?¡± ¡°Impossible,¡± Wei Cang didn¡¯t hesitate. ¡°Unless he isn¡¯t a part of the tiger race at all.¡± At a certain jungle in the north, a gigantic spotted tiger leaped out of a cave. He shook his fur and let out a long, majestic roar. After cultivating for nearly three hundred years, he had finally attained the Dao. When he reached the human world, there would certainly be endless livestock for him to eat! But after running out of the jungle with much difficulty, the shock from seeing speeding metal boxes on the highway rooted him to the ground. What were these things? Some drivers seemed to have seen him. Someone very quickly called the police and informed them about discovering a tiger at so-and-so location. Three hourster, the tiger with self-acknowledged high cultivation and who could eat cows, goats, and even virgin males and females in the human world, was sessfully taken down by a tranquilizer. Chapter 76 - Hidden

Chapter 76 - Hidden

When the old tiger yao woke, he was lying inside a very spacious cage. Laid out beneath him was a veryfortable nket, on which was ced wild boar meat of the best quality. The humans had caught him again? Three hundred years ago, he had been surrounded by a few humans and given a painful beating. They had even talked about peeling off his skin to make a rug. He then escaped with much difficulty and fled back to the mountains, preparing to cultivate till his cultivation base had attained great heights before ridding himself of this shame. He hadn¡¯t expected to fail before achieving his final goal. The humans actually came up with underhanded, ruthless means, unwilling to engage in closebat with him. ¡°Idiot!¡± ¡°Who?¡± The old tiger yao was still weak. Raising his head, he looked around his surroundings before realizing that there was also a very pretty transparent container in this slightly rocky space. There was a huge ck snake in the container. Seeing that he had finally noticed it, the ck snake let out a coldugh. ¡°You were also caught by the humans?¡± The old tiger yao looked at the ck snake sympathetically. ¡°Did the humans put you in such a pretty container because they intend to offer you as tribute to a high-ranking person?¡± He had heard that certain humans were particrly fond of eating snakes. They stewed snake and chicken meat together, and gave it the glorified name of Long Feng Soup. ¡°You were caught by the humans?¡± The ck snake flicked its tongue. ¡°I¡¯m not as stupid as you. Don¡¯t worry, not only will these humans not kill you, they¡¯ll treat you as a treasure and make offerings to you.¡± If he wasn¡¯t mistaken, this was a South China Tiger, a breed that was on the brink of extinction. Since the humans ced so much importance on this to the point that they used a ne to fly him to the capital, they probably had ns for him there. ¡°Will they offer virgin males and females as tribute?¡± The tiger yao nearly couldn¡¯t resist salivating. He had heard that the meat of virgin males and females were especially fresh and tender, and that consuming them could enhance one¡¯s cultivation base. The ck snake shot the tiger yao a nce filled with pity. In the current age, he was still thinking about eating virgin males and females? Looking back, he himself was a ck python who had nearly transformed into a dragon. If he hadn¡¯t had such poor vision when requesting for a title and ran into that nutjob of a yao cultivator, perhaps he would already be one of the dragon pythons. He wouldn¡¯t have ended up in his current state ¨C trapped in a ss enclosure by the humans like he was a pet and observed by people. From time to time, the zoo would even send him off to tour other parts of the country in the name of ¡®learning how to interact¡¯. The magnificent ck python had fallen to this level. Only by relying on the face of this South China Tiger could he take an airne. What else could he say? ¡°Brother snake, tell me, how will the humans treat me?¡± ¡°Who are you calling brother? I had almost a thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation before I was taken. Call me senior!¡± The ck snake swung its tail somewhat unhappily. ¡°Youngsters really can¡¯t keep their cool; asking so many questions about things as small as a sesame seed. Everything will naturally be clear when you reach the ce!¡± The tiger yao didn¡¯t dare to speak again. He swung his tailzily, crawled back onto the nket, and very quickly fell into a dazed sleep. While he was half-asleep, he heard apuse as well as someone touching him all over. He swung his tail weakly. Where were they touching? Didn¡¯t they know that tigers¡¯ butts couldn¡¯t be touched? In theter part of the night, the tiger yao finally regained all his strength and impatiently escaped from the Center for the Protection of Wild Animals. In the three hundred years that had gone by, the human world had changed drastically. He stepped into the monstrous, multi-colored world of the humans, feeling that every scene before him was simply incredible. Wasn¡¯t this magnificentndscape something that would only be present in the Heavens? The tiger yao tugged on the slightly awkward clothes on his body. Concealing himself in a corner, he changed the style of his clothing before sneaking out of the tiny alley. Immense, transparent doors. Glittering, radiant pearls. Huge resplendent pearls hung from pirs at great heights. All these things were on disy outside, were they not afraid that they would be stolen? The tiger yao looked around as he walked and then bumped into a certain human. He furrowed his brows. ¡°Look where you¡¯re walking.¡± Saying so, he turned and was about to walk off when he was grabbed by the other party. ¡°What do you want?¡± The tiger yao¡¯s eyes revealed malicious intent. This puny human¡¯s flesh smelled very fragrant. If he didn¡¯t have misgivings about this ce having too many people and that eating this human would attract other people, he might have already failed to stop himself from taking a bite. ¡°The tiger that escaped from the Center for the Protection of Wild Animals?¡± There was immense strength in the young human¡¯s wrist, so much so that the tiger yao couldn¡¯t struggle free. Shock reverberated through his heart. Was this human a master at catching yao? Otherwise, how was it possible for this human to hold him back by the wrist and make out his original form? ¡°Who are you?¡± The tiger yao was starting to get scared. ¡°You entered the human world illegally and escaped from the Center for the Protection of Wild Animals without reason, leading to severe negative impacts on society. ording to the management bureau¡¯s punishment regtions, you would be fined and kept in custody. But on ount of the fact that you are a yao cultivator who took on your human form not too long ago, we can exempt you from the fine. I will now send you to the Yao Union to receive general knowledge lessons on the human world.¡± The young man held out a small book to the tiger yao. ¡°I am an employee of the management bureau who is responsible for managing the affairs of the cultivation world.¡± ¡°What management bureau? You write like you¡¯re missing an arm and a leg. Methods like this to swindle people already went out of fashion three hundred years ago,¡± The tiger yao tried to push the young man away but failed due to the other party¡¯s massive arm strength. ¡°All you tiger yao reach adulthood at the age of two hundred, so if you continue struggling, I¡¯ll hit you,¡± Fu Li used a skill to control the tiger yao, making him obediently follow behind him to the Yao Union. When they arrived at the Yao Union, there were still a few mahjong yers who hadn¡¯t left. They were gathered around the mahjong table pping about the mahjong tiles, producing banging sounds. A wolf yao was seated on the left, while a human was seated on the right. Were the wolves nowadays so intimate with humans? ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so awkward, I have good feelings towards tigers,¡± Fu Li led the tiger yao to the Yao Union andpleted the registration. Seeing the tiger follow behind him dispiritedly, Fu Li assumed that he had frightened the tiger. ¡°I have an elder who transformed from a white tiger. But his original form looks more heroic than yours, and his fur isn¡¯t yellow but white.¡± ¡°Stop bragging. There is no white colored tiger in this world of ours,¡± The tiger retorted. ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense just to get closer to me. It¡¯s not like I can beat you anyway.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have white-colored tigers?¡± Fu Li came to a halt. ¡°Maybe you just don¡¯t know about them?¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible,¡± The tiger yao said with certainty. ¡°I can¡¯t be sure about other species or the tigers in other worlds, but ever since I stepped onto the path of cultivation, I¡¯ve possessed the memories of our tiger race that were passed down. At this ce of ours, even if the asional white tiger appears, they all have very poor aptitude. It¡¯s impossible for them to gain intelligence and step onto the path of cultivation. The only exception is the legendary divine beast ¨C White Tiger. It¡¯s rumored that he guards one of our earth¡¯s regions and he¡¯s also the king of us beast-types.¡± Fu Li was a little absent-minded. In his memories, Elder White Tiger was someone of utmost dignity and majesty. Facing him was equivalent to facing a tall mountain. Now that this tiger told him that Elder White Tiger might be from a tiger n with aptitude issues, there was some unhappiness in his heart. But a yao n¡¯s legacy would not lie. Elder White Tiger had also disliked leaving the mountain in the past, could it be because... he felt inferior from having physical defects and thus hid on the mountain? Or... Elder White Tiger was the legendary divine beast? No. Not right. Elder White Ape said very early on that the divine beasts had long gone missing. If Elder White Tiger was a divine beast, how did the saying about them missinge about? Elder White Ape never lied, so this conjecture was not valid at all. Upon careful thought, the yao cultivators on the mountain didn¡¯t seem to like leaving the mountain. Their asional ventures out of the mountain were also for the sake of finding food or some small toy. Sometimes, King Ganglie and Elder White Ape would bring him to the coast to y. But whenever they did so, they would always erect a barrier around their surroundings. At that time, he had merely assumed that it was to protect him. But now that he thought carefully about it, the yao cultivators on the mountain did indeed differ slightly from ordinary yao cultivators in terms of appearance. King Ganglie¡¯s tusks were sharper than that of other wild pigs. Elder White Ape was taller and skinnier than other white apes. Elder White Goat¡¯s horns were so curved that they were practically spirals. Elder White Tiger¡¯s fur was especially white. Sister Pheasant¡¯s wings were very broad. Little Sparrow could never change into their human form. Uncle Tortoise¡¯s neck was particrly long... Fu Li was aware how against outsiders animals were. Fu Li thought about how these uncles and sisters might have suffered many grievances in their childhood from those of the same species before eventually gathering together and raising him. There was a bitter pain in Fu Li¡¯s heart. Actually, they could tell that he didn¡¯t look like an ordinary rabbit, right? That was why they so attentively raised him, doted on him, and poured all their energy into giving him the best. King Ganglie¡¯s cooking tasted bad, Elder White Goat was alwayszing in bed, Elder White Ape and Elder Tortoise was long-winded, Sister Pheasant had an explosive temper, Elder White Tiger was habitually silent, and Little Sparrow always liked to sing unpleasant-sounding songs at the entrance to his cave. Despite all this, they were the best yao in the world. Fu Li had never once been as regretful as he was now. If he had been a bit more sensible back then, a bit more considerate, he might have noticed what was different about his elders. He would have properly eaten King Ganglie¡¯s food and properly learnt how to fight from Sister Pheasant. He wouldn¡¯t have disdained Elder White Ape and Elder Tortoise¡¯s long-windedness, wouldn¡¯t have disliked being alone with Elder White Tiger just because he was stuffy, wouldn¡¯t have only known to run to Little Sparrow to make a scene. At least... at least, he could have been a bit better to them so that they wouldn¡¯t worry so much. Elder White Ape once said ¨C all living things in the world revolved around the cycle of cause and effect. There was no such thing as ¡®if¡¯. He didn¡¯t understand when he was young. Now that he understood, he would rather not understand. ¡°W-What happened to you?¡± The tiger yao realized that the person beside him had suddenly stopped moving. Turning, he saw Fu Li¡¯s deathly paleplexion, his eyes so red they turned rabbit-like. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t joke with me, I was only talking about how it¡¯s impossible for white tigers to cultivate into a yao. Do you need to be this sad?¡± ¡°It¡¯s none of your business,¡± Fu Li pointed in a direction for the tiger yao. ¡°Keep walking in that direction and an employee will receive you.¡± The tiger yao wanted to say a bit more, but seeing Fu Li¡¯s unsightlyplexion, he swallowed his words. What a narrow-minded yao; he couldn¡¯t even take a few casual words from him. He¡¯d better talk less. Fu Li carefully thought back to the yao cultivators on the mountain and realized that every one of them differed slightly from those of the same species. Perhaps their mountain wasn¡¯t called Reflecting Mist but Hidden Mist. It was and where all yao cultivators with defects lived in seclusion. It was and separate from the world, so he named it Hidden Mist. After walking along muddle headed for who-knew-how-long, Fu Li realized that he had unknowingly arrived outside the neighborhood where Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi was located. Perhaps his body made a decision by habit since he frequently came to this ce in recent times. The guards at the gate had already recognized Fu Li. Upon seeing him, they did a simple registration before letting him in. Fu Li stood under the washed-out streetlights in the neighborhood, looking down at his shadow on the ground. Suddenly, he didn¡¯t want to look for Zhuang Qing. His elders lived in seclusion precisely because they didn¡¯t want other yao to know about their differences. How could he tell someone else about it? He crouched down despondently and hugged his knees, staring dazedly into space. Two thousand years ago, no matter where he hid out of anger, the elders on the mountain would always find him, toys in hand, and coax him into going back. That wouldn¡¯t happen again now. ¡°Fu Li, what are you doing squatting here?¡± Zhuang Qing walked to his side, stooping over to look at him. Chapter 77 - Choice

Chapter 77 - Choice

¡°I...¡± Fu Li looked up at the man bathed in streetlight. He stood tall and handsome, possessing a steadiness that many yao in the yao world fell short of. Zhuang Qing crouched in front of him. ¡°You¡¯re squatting here in the night to count ants?¡± ¡°What ants can there be at night?¡± Fu Li hugged his knees tightly. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I should be asking you that,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up, hauling Fu Li up from the ground. ¡°We¡¯re outside my house.¡± The lights in the vi shone brightly, its radiance prating the windows and illuminating the area outside the house. Fu Li stuck his hands into the pockets of his pants. His shoulders shrank back in the autumn wind as he smiled, ¡°I was just walking around randomly.¡± ¡°You were walking around randomly and then reached my ce?¡± Zhuang Qing felt around his body. ¡°Wait here for me.¡± Fu Li watched Zhuang Qing swiftly return to his house before very quicklying back out. In a blink of an eye, he was back in front of him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send you back.¡± Zhuang Qing emphasized, ¡°Remember not to run about recklessly.¡± Then, he ran back to the garage to start the car. Fu Li watched Zhuang Qing from behind as he hurried along. Suddenly feeling that this scene before him was a bit funny, he couldn¡¯t help letting out augh. Zhuang Qing stopped the car in front of Fu Li, opening the window. ¡°Get on.¡± Fu Li obediently got into the car and buckled his seatbelt. He told Zhuang Qing abruptly, ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see you being so polite in the past,¡± Zhuang Qing drove out of the neighborhood. As he was turning out of the gate, he saw an elderly couple opposite crossing the road. Stopping the car, he lowered the brightness of the car¡¯s headlights. Only when the elderly couple hadpletely left the road did he proceed. Streetlight would asionally shine on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face through the motley of tree leaves. Fu Li suddenly realized that the yao seated beside him was not an underaged dragon, but a steady man that propped up the entire domain in which the cultivation world survived. He should not evaluate the current situation with the standards of the yao world thousands of years back. Many of the things he had taken to be true was nothing more than him being stuck in his old ways, not having walked out of Reflecting Mist Mountain. The world changed as time went by. That was all. The elements changed in a split second. Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi surged forth, converged into an enormous whirlpool of spiritual qi, and barreled towards Zhuang Qing¡¯s car. Noticing the abnormalities in the skies and earth, Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li, who had already entered a meditative state beside him. With a pull of the seatbelt and a smack of the steering wheel, the car was driven into a tiny, secluded alley, where it came to a stop. A gale swept up the dead leaves on the ground. Zhuang Qing took off his zer, pulled open the car door, and walked out. Countless yao beasts appeared in the darkness, a strange light shing in their eyes. Zhuang Qing looked at the various animals surrounding the alley. His natal sword appeared in his hands. ¡°I, Zhuang Qing, stand here today. Who dares to step forward?¡± He narrowed his eyes halfway, his icy, severe gaze sweeping around his surroundings. In a sh, a great half of the yao beasts left. A leopard yao stood on a wall. Its three tails were curled up slightly, and its upper body leaned forward. It didn¡¯t seem resigned to leaving. Spiritual qi was thin in the yao world, so yao cultivators in the midst of a breakthrough were the world¡¯s greatest spiritual qi vessels. If one ate a ¡®spiritual qi vessel¡¯, they would gain immeasurable cultivation. Yao cultivators who kept within their bounds wouldn¡¯t dare to have such thoughts, but to evil yao, it was a temptation they had no way of rejecting. Swish. Silver light shed, and Zhuang Qing flew back to his original position. The leopard yao who had attempted to advance had already lost two out of three of its tails. Blood flowed unceasingly. ¡°The next time a yao attempts to advance, they won¡¯t just have a broken tail but a severed head,¡± Zhuang Qing flicked the edge of his sword lightly and a drop of blood flowed along the edge of the sword,nding on the ground. ¡°Meow!¡± A cat hissed harshly and the majority of the surrounding yao left discreetly, leaving three yao concealed in a dark corner. ¡°Come out, all of you,¡± Zhuang stared at the dark corner. ¡°Since you three have already decided to do something that goes against the management bureau¡¯s regtions, why bother to hide?¡± ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang has much courage and insight. Your swordy has reached perfection,¡± A man with an all-white beard walked out of the alley¡¯s depths. Zhuang Qing had seen this yao before. This man had sat at the same table as them not too long ago at the birthday banquet arranged for Zhao Xiu, the sect leader of Qing Xiao Sect. This yao cultivator¡¯s original form was a hyena, and he had a cultivation of nearly 3500 years. In the cultivation world, he would already be considered an elder with more experience and knowledge. Although it was unclear whether his character was good or bad, he hadn¡¯t harmed anyone before. It seemed it was untrue that he hadn¡¯t harmed people. He was merely adept at disguise. When the benefits were not significant enough, he concealed his true nature very well. The two yao who appeared with the hyena were also honored guests who had appeared on the day of the birthday banquet. Perhaps only these old yaoguai with profound cultivation would dare to remain when Zhuang Qing had set up protective magic.. ¡°Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, I respect the nation¡¯s fate that you bear, as well as your talent at cultivation. But we are determined to have this spiritual meat tonight. You had better quickly make way for us, otherwise we might injure you by mistake,¡± The hyena¡¯s avaricious gazended on the car behind Zhuang Qing. ¡°The management bureau¡¯s regtions clearly stipte that no harming of other yao is to take ce. As people of virtue and prestige in the cultivation world, are you going to vite the management bureau¡¯s regtions?¡± Zhuang Qing took a few steps forward without hesitation, obstructing the hyena¡¯s greedy eyes. ¡°Ignorant child!¡± The hyena had long grown ustomed to receiving the respect of the younger generation and had long bore dissatisfaction towards Zhuang Qing, this cold, young yao. However, he hadn¡¯t dared to express his feelings as he had misgivings about the other party¡¯s identity. Now that he was anxious to eat Fu Li¡¯s flesh and Zhuang Qing was being meddlesome, how could he possibly endure it? ¡°Scram.¡± Zhuang Qing smiled coldly. He didn¡¯t bicker with the hyena either, and directly called on Heaven and Earth¡¯s blessings. Converging it on his sword, he attacked the three yao. No matter how high the cultivation of the hyena and the other yao cultivators, they would still feel fear when faced with the Fate. The three yao cut sorry figures as they dodged. The hyena cursed, ¡°Zhuang Qing, child, if you¡¯re so capable, don¡¯t borrow the Fate and have a fair fight with me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m using what originally belongs to me and also taking on three people with one of me, how is it unfair?¡± With a sh of his sword, severe sword intent attacked the hyena directly in the face. The hyena dodged miserably, though more than half of his ear was cut off. Fresh blood dyed half his face red. ¡°Do you still want to continue?¡± Zhuang Qing gripped the sword with his left hand, his expression cold. ¡°I¡¯ll give you two choices. One, fall under my sword tonight. Two, leave this ce right now and turn yourself in at the management bureau; this matter will be settled ording to the rules.¡± The hyena wiped the blood on his face as he stared, unresigned, at the converging spiritual qi of Heaven and Earth. To be able to incite suchrge fluctuations in spiritual qi, there had to be a very powerful yao cultivator in the car who encountered a sudden breakthrough in mindset. If this yao cultivator advanced in its cultivation and knew of their actions tonight, would they let them off? But if they persisted in making things difficult for Zhuang Qing, how certain could they be that they would be able to snatch the spiritual meat from Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands? In the current situation, there was no difference from being trapped in an impossible situation with no way out. Deathy on one end, and a short lifey on the other. Why not go all out then? ¡°Less of that nonsense. Let me witness your true abilities tonight then.¡± Stepping through dense fog, Fu Li raised his shaggy ws. He saw the Wei River dyed red from fresh blood, corpses floating on top of the river. Tiger, goat, pig, ox, ape... A few azure dragons were wantonly devouring their bodies, enjoying the merry feast. Rage, killing intent, and hatred congregated at his chest. Fu Li wanted to rip these azure dragons to shreds. He itched to break their necks with a single bite, scrape the flesh from their bones, ingest their flesh, and inhale their blood. ¡°No living thing in this world can distance themselves from resentment, hatred, sentimentality, greed, love, and regret.¡± ¡°As long as one is alive, they will naturally not be able to distance themselves from these.¡± ¡°Little Li is right. But you must remember, if you want to be an extraordinary great yao, you must not be influenced by the seven emotions and six desires. Only by calming your heart and reflecting will you be able to brush aside the fog and see the truth.¡± Fu Li came to a halt. Step after step, he retreated from the bloody Wei River. The corpses floating on top of the water gazed at him with open eyes. Every pair of eyes was asking him why he didn¡¯t avenge them, why he didn¡¯t kill the azure dragons, why he allowed their remains to be swallowed by the azure dragons. The stink of blood drifted from the surface of the river and into his nose. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. When he next opened his eyes, the Wei River before him had already disappeared. What appeared before him was Reflecting Mist Mountain, the Reflecting Mist Mountain that hadn¡¯t been destroyed. ¡°Little Li,¡± Little Sparrownded on his shoulder. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to watch the Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang? I called all the birds in the mountain and woods over.¡± Only then did Fu Li realize that the surrounding trees were filled with all sorts of birds. These birds all had bright-colored feathers and clear, bright eyes. Their gazes were on both Little Sparrow and him. Chirp. Little Sparrow pped its wings, speaking to Fu Li as it flew into the sky, ¡°Watch closely.¡± Countless birds soared into the sky, following behind Little Sparrow. They sang at the top of their voices, their beautiful feathers radiating a dazzling glow beneath the sun. When the Fenghuangunched into dance, the world lost color. Fu Liy in the underbrush as he silently watched Little Sparrow dance and chirp to its heart¡¯s content. Nostalgia was palpable in his eyes. ¡°Little Li,¡± King Ganglie came over with a jade bowl of spiritual porridge that gave off a very strong smell. ¡°Don¡¯t only care about ying, don¡¯t you need to eat too?¡± Seeing the bowl of steaming spiritual rice congee in front of him, Fu Li changed into his human form and epted the bowl. ¡°King,¡± Fu Li held the jade bowl, the corners of his eyes reddening. ¡°Did I ever praise Little Sparrow¡¯s dance for being very beautiful?¡± King Ganglie looked at him nkly. ¡°I miss all of you,¡± He blinked, the rims of his eyes reddening slightly. ¡°Thank you.¡± The Reflecting Mist Mountain beside him, the Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang, and the simple and honest King Ganglie gradually turned blurry. Fu Li ced the jade bowl on the ground. Transforming into a white rabbit, hey back down at his original spot and watched the surrounding scenery turn into darkness in a daze. Bang. The spiritual rice congee in the jade bowl shook lightly, as if it was putting all its might into preserving the entirety of the illusion. ¡°King Ganglie can¡¯t make such delicious congee,¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes widened all of a sudden. A red line appeared between his brows. Looking up at the sky, he let out a long roar. Roar! Kacha. The jade bowl broke apart, vanishing into the boundless darkness. Endless spiritual qi gushed into Fu Li¡¯s body. Dense clouds churned in the sky. The clouds of tribtion were imminent. Lightning shed. Thunder rolled. Torrential rain came pouring down. The rainwater washed away all the fresh blood on Zhuang Qing¡¯s sword. Wiping the rainwater on his face, he turned and walked to the side of the car. ncing at the clouds of tribtion in the sky, he pulled open the car door and wrapped his arms around Fu Li. Shrinking great distances to an inch, he arrived at the sea that stretched as far as the eye could see. When yao cultivators advanced in their cultivation, they would definitely experience the lightning of tribtion. This was a form of tempering for the body and soul; no one could help. Zhuang Qing ced Fu Li on the surface of the sea and then changed into a golden dragon, setting up protective magic for Fu Li. The first bolt. The second bolt. The third bolt. ... The ninth bolt. Roar! A deafening bestial cry came from the bottom of the sea. Endless spiritual qi descended from the sky, epassing the entire sea and earth. The fishes swimming in the sea leaped out of the water in joy, epting the gift bestowed on them by the Heavens. Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form and made his way to Fu Li. Lying on the surface of the sea was a white rabbit approximately thirty to forty centimeters long with a tuft of red fur between its brows. It had four sharp ws and its eyes glittered like gold. Baleful qi was spilling out. Their gazes met. In the other party¡¯s golden pupils, Zhuang Qing saw several red strands of light. He was silent for a moment before picking the rabbit up and cing it in the crook of his arm. ¡°After struggling for so long, your body just became a bit bigger?¡± He stroked the rabbit¡¯s fur gently. A drop of dragon blood seeped out of his forefinger and entered the rabbit¡¯s body. The baleful qi instantly vanished without a trace. Suddenly, a torrential current surged from the bottom of the sea, as if something was about to break out of the water. Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression changed. Carrying Fu Li, who hadn¡¯t yet regained his strength, he flew into the sky. In this short instant, an enormous strange beast erupted from the sea. This strange beast had a very odd appearance ¨C its tusks grew upwards and it was iparably ugly. It let out a long roar, causing the entire surface of the sea to sway. The seawaves roiled as if the water in the sea was being propelled by him onto drynd. ¡°Taowu?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression changed drastically. ¡°Why would it be sealed in the sea?¡± In the legends, the Taowu had perished at Sanwei Mountain during a fight with several other fiends. Why did it appear at this time? Observing the airflow above the sea and the continuous convergence of seawater from the surroundings, Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression turned heavier and heavier. If things continued in this way, an immense tsunami would definitely break out at the coast. Even if they were to do an emergency evacuation now, there was no guarantee that everyone at the coast would escape in time. The bodies of ancient great yao alone were so formidable that they could cause strange phenomena in the world. At the coast, Gong Fu looked down at the seawater beating against his feet. There was a grave expression on his face. ¡°There exists a beast in the East Sea that is formed from the spiritual qi of all living things in the world. Its body is made of five-colored divine stone, and it bes yao through heavenly chance. Its body is as small as a pika. If it consumes spiritual creatures, it will be an auspicious creature, but if it consumes dragons, it will be a fiend.¡± Gong Fu reached out, feeling the spiritual qi that descended from the Heavens. Hisplexion was not good. ¡°That is the Hou.¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± The Kunpeng, who had followed him over, snorted. ¡°This spiritual qi feels so good, it¡¯s so rich. Who knows who the person who seeded in their tribtion is? Heaven and Earth actually gave so much back to this person.¡± Gong Fu asked, ¡°If you met a child who might be a good person in the future and save many people, but could also be a bad person that destroys the world, would you choose to spare his life or kill him?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not use creatures like children as an analogy, okay?¡± The Kunpeng massaged his arms, feeling like his entire body had turned numb. ¡°Since 4200 years ago, children have been my greatest fear.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s change it to a young person,¡± Gong Fu ced his arms behind his back. ¡°What would your choice be?¡± Ilyz: FL can finally be known by something other than ¡®white rabbit with dog-like nose¡¯ >< Chapter 78 - Taowu

Chapter 78 - Taowu

Spiritual qi that rained from the sky was a type of reward offered by heavenlyw to yao cultivators whose cultivation had reached great heights. At the same time, it was also a form of repayment by Heaven and Earth. The more the spiritual qi repaid, the stronger the yao cultivator. The Kunpeng tapped his ws and replied nonchntly, ¡°I was born a fiend, so I don¡¯t understand the worries you auspicious beasts have for the nation and citizens. Anyway, in my opinion, before the yao beast has done any wrong, no one has the right to decide whether he lives or dies. Do you know what I dislike the most about you auspicious beasts?¡± Gong Fu saw the hint of mockery on the Kunpeng¡¯s face, as well as his contempt towards heavenlyw. ¡°That you do things thinking you¡¯re always right in the name of concern for the nation and all living creatures,¡± The Kunpengughed coldly. ¡°Since he was born in this world, there is meaning in his existence. If he is an auspicious beast, it will be the fortune of all; if he bes a fiend, then it will be time for you auspicious beasts to worry.¡± Spiritual qi descended on his palms, seeping into his skin bit by bit and nourishing the flesh beneath the skin. Gong Fu gazed at the sea silently, his hands behind his back. ¡°Besides, since you¡¯ve asked this question, it means you¡¯ve already made a decision in your heart,¡± The Kunpeng patted the melon seed shells on his body. ¡°You question only because there is hesitation in your heart. If you really have the intent to kill, why ask such a question to a fiend like me?¡± If he couldn¡¯t do it, then he ought to honestly admit to it. What pretentiousness ¨C insisting on finding a way out through a fiend. ¡°You¡¯re right. Even if he wants to annihte the Heavens and Earth, I will protect thend beneath my feet even if I have to resort to destroying my body of dragon bones,¡± Gong Fu was about to leave when he saw the tide rise suddenly beneath his feet. Hisplexion didn¡¯t look very good. ¡°This smell...¡± The Kunpeng muttered. ¡°It¡¯s the Taowu.¡± Savagery was second nature to the Taowu. It ate both humans and yao, and was unbridled in its conduct. If there was a ranking of the level of savagery among the ancient fiends, the Taowu would definitely be within the top ten. The Kunpeng, Taowu, and Oujiang weren¡¯t the same kind of yao ¨C the Kunpeng regarded himself as a principled bad guy, while the Taowu was bad in an extremely casual manner, without any reason to speak of. The pitch-ck seawater roiled continuously. Zhuang Qing looked at the gigantic strange beast beneath him that had emerged from the sea. He stroked Fu Li¡¯s smooth fur. ¡°Fu Li, you just advanced and your cultivation base isn¡¯t stable. Leave this ce first.¡± Fu Li leaped out of his embrace and transformed into his human form. Apart from hisplexion being a bit on the pale side, there wasn¡¯t much difference between how he looked now and how he usually looked. He shook his head. ¡°No, neither of us are a match for him. There¡¯s no point in you remaining here on your own.¡± Looking out at the fiercely churning sea, Zhuang Qing tightened his grip on the sword in his hand. ¡°There is a rumor that the Taowu has extraordinary divine power and fears only the Vermilion Bird.¡± He turned towards Fu Li. Under the glow of lightning, his handsome, inclined face was overly fair. ¡°I remember you have the Vermilion Bird¡¯s fan, perhaps it can block one or two blows.¡± The Vermilion Bird¡¯s fan was just a fan at the end of the day, not the Vermilion Bird. What was more, with his and Fu Li¡¯s cultivation base, it was impossible for them to defeat the Taowu. At this juncture, they would dy as long as they could. For every additional minute and second, the people onnd would be a bit closer to safety. In this not-cold autumn night, not only did the human world¡¯s security department receive an emergency notification, the cultivation world¡¯s Yao Union as well as the variousrge sects also received the management bureau¡¯s emergency notification. The ancient fiend Taowu has appeared, please evacuate everyone at the coastal areas. Taowu? The cultivators who had lived more than a hundred years in peace couldn¡¯t imagine how terrifying this great yao had to be for the management bureau to send out an emergency notification. After seeing the notification, some yao cultivators with little courage turned into their original forms and fled without even thinking. Compared to the human body, it was their actual forms that were more advantageous when fleeing. Peng Hang, who hade to Linhai City in pursuit of a criminal, had worked overtime till midnight. After much difficulty, he found the time to return to the guesthouse for a bath and change of clothes. Driving the shabby Alto car he had borrowed, he hadn¡¯t gone far when he saw cats and dogs running past asionally along the main road. Birds were also flying chaotically in all directions. ng. A huge crow banged into his car. Instantly, a crack appeared on his windscreen. Peng Hang stared at the windscreen, bbergasted. Was it a bird or a shot put that had banged into him? What was even weirder was that the bird responsible for damaging his car was actuallypletely f*cking fine. Climbing up, it took off with a p of its wings. Bringing the car to a stop at the roadside, Peng Hang saw a dog carrying a snake race past, as well as a wolf and fox run past together. It was his first time realizing that the coastal areas had so many mystical endangered animals. ¡°Ai, young man,¡± A knock sounded on the window by the driver¡¯s seat. Peng Hang looked out and saw an elderly man with a head full of white hair standing outside. Why did an old man suddenly pop out in the middle of the night? Peng Hang pulled a jacket over his police uniform before opening the car window. ¡°Uncle, why are you still out when it¡¯s thiste?¡¯ Although public security within the country was good, taking a tumble in the middle of the night was a serious concern. ¡°Youngster, I see that you¡¯re righteous, dignified, and have an extraordinary imposing presence. You¡¯re someone who has umted virtue over several lifetimes. Listen to a word of advice from this uncle ¨C leave this ce tonight.¡± The old man was all smiles. ¡°Something major will be happening tonight.¡± ¡°Uncle, did you run into some trouble?¡± Peng Hang adjusted his jacket. ¡°When you encounter trouble, you should go to the police immediately.¡± The old man shook his head. ¡°Foolish.¡± Peng Hang was baffled. He was an elite police officer with countless solved cases. How was he foolish? The old man seemed to want to say a bit more, but a sudden p of thunder rang in the sky, frightening the old man so much that his expression changed drastically. Turning, he dashed into a tiny alley at such speed that Peng Hang doubted his eyes. This old man ran at even faster speed than him? Lightning shed in the sky. Peng Hang had an inexplicable feeling that there was something strange about this night. He lit a cigarette, holding it in his mouth. Seeing several mice scuttle out of the sewer, he drove towards the highway without looking back. He hadn¡¯t been to Linhai City many times and didn¡¯t know if there was some special situation going on tonight or whether Linhai City¡¯s animals just had that much character. There was a faint feeling in his heart that something wasn¡¯t quite right. He took out his phone and filmed a video to send to a friend who researched natural phenomena. But no matter how long he waited, the video just couldn¡¯t be sent, possibly due to the weather or unstable signal. Cursing, Peng Hang peeled off his jacket and returned to the guesthouse with a feeling of uneasiness. Linhai City wasn¡¯t considered a particrly developed city, but because the natural scenery wasn¡¯t bad, there were still many tourists who came to the ce to y although it wasn¡¯t yet the Mid-Autumn Festival. Peng Hang just reached the guesthouse¡¯s main entrance when he saw a family of three hastily leaving the guesthouse with their luggage. The family seated themselves in a family car parked at the side. He wasn¡¯t sure if he had seen wrongly, but there seemed to be many tiny animals crammed in the car. But before he could take a careful look, the car had already left through the gate. Possibly because he had seen many fleeing animals, this family of three gave Peng Hang the feeling that they were running for their lives in a flurry. He had met this family of three before. The woman was gentle, the child was polite and cute, the man was steady and reliable; it was a very warm family. Why would such a family leave the guesthouse in the middle of the night without consideration for the child? Raising his head, Peng Hang nced at the constantly thundering sky filled with lightning. He furrowed his brows. At sea, the Taowu watched the continuously churning clouds and opened its mouth, releasing an explosiveugh. ¡°Heavenlyw, it won¡¯t be so easy to eliminate me!¡± His mouth gaped open. Sharp teeth glinted in the icy light, resembling numerous sharp-edged knives. His pale skin had a strange red tinge to it and there were many scars on his body, as if it had been split open by something before healing. Seawaves raged. The Taowu¡¯s true form finally emerged from the water in its entirety. ¡°It is rumored that the Taowu is formed from the resentment of the world. It has a ferocious and stubborn personality. In addition, he possesses a miraculous ability to revive from death as long as time continues to run and Heaven and Earth¡¯s resentment is not severed,¡± Fu Li looked at the flickering rays of lightning in the sky and swallowed. ¡°Which was why he was given the name of Taowu.¡± ¡°The Taowu isn¡¯t only vicious, it also has boundless offensive capabilities. During the ancient times, it was known by the dauntless title of ¡®undefeated in battle, unstoppable attacks¡¯.¡± Gong Fu appeared behind the two people. His gazended on Fu and he smiled. ¡°Congrattions on a major advancement in your cultivation.¡± ¡°Gong Fu daren, why are you here?¡± Fu Li noticed the Kunpeng behind Gong Fu and was amazed. ¡°Kunpeng daren?¡± ¡°What?¡± The Kunpeng said with a stiff face. ¡°I can¡¯te watch the excitement?¡± The Kunpeng had only waited for the fight to end when Oujiang appeared, yet he now took the initiative to make an appearance. This could be said to be very rare. ¡°At this point, I think you won¡¯t only be able to watch the excitement but also participate in it,¡± Fu Li pointed at the Taowu on the surface of the sea. ¡°For example, fighting with him?¡± The Kunpeng red at Fu Li silently. ¡°Gong Fu?¡± The Taowu discovered Gong Fu¡¯s presence. He spread his two wings and flew into the sky, meeting Gong Fu and everyone¡¯s gazes at the same level. He let out an abrupt mockingugh. ¡°An auspicious beast with a fiend, how ridiculous.¡± All of a sudden, he retracted the smile on his face. ¡°Useless fiends like you should just be eaten by me. You¡¯ll at least have some use then.¡± Gong Fu¡¯s expression turned exceedingly ugly. He had discovered that the Taowu¡¯s aura was extremely chaotic, as if... the current Taowu was born from devouring another great yao¡¯s yao force. ¡°You merged with another great yao?¡± Gong Fu was in disbelief. ¡°Are you crazy?!¡± ¡°Despite being fiends, those useless trash actually want to shun the world or lie dormant at the bottom of the sea. Since they no longer have any use, why shouldn¡¯t they be a part of me? They won¡¯t go to waste that way,¡± The Taowu replied as if this was only right and proper. ¡°What¡¯s wrong about that?¡± The ancient great yao had disappeared in great numbers within a short span of time. At that point, Gong Fu had merely assumed that they had gone into hiding. Now that he was faced with the Taowu, he couldn¡¯t help wondering how many had gone into hiding and how many had been devoured. ¡°Kunpeng, despite being a fiend, you actually mixed around with Gong Fu. What a disgrace to the fiends,¡± The Taowu smiled evilly. ¡°I saw through your improper thoughts a long time ago. As I expected, you¡¯re a traitor.¡± ¡°What f*cking traitor, when was I in the same group as you?¡± The Kunpeng cursed, his hands on his hips. ¡°Laozai will y with whoever I like to y with. Who are you to order me, Kunpeng daren, around? Don¡¯t regard yourself as unequaled in the world just because you swallowed a few scraggly yao. If you¡¯re so impressive, why hide at the bottom of the sea for so many years. Back at the Sanwei Mountain, weren¡¯t you quite grand and prideful? What are you doing running to the sea? Don¡¯t you find it embarrassing?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Thinking about how he had been forced by the Fenghuang and Vermilion Bird five thousand years ago into feigning death to flee, as well as the days of hiding all over the ce without daring to show himself, the Taowu felt that this was the greatest shame and humiliation in his yao life. ¡°Kunpeng, we haven¡¯t met for a few thousand years and that mouth of yours is still as detestable as always.¡± ¡°What a coincidence. I also feel like your appearance has be more and more disgusting,¡± The Kunpeng nced at the movement at sea. ¡°Today¡¯s matter is between us great yao, all you little yao who aren¡¯t up to standard can scram to the side.¡± The Kunpeng intended for Fu Li and Zhuang Qing to make a run for it first. ¡°Nobody will be leaving today,¡± The Taowu understood the Kunpeng¡¯s intentions with a single nce. ¡°For you to protect these little yao, there¡¯s definitely something special about them.¡± His gazended on Fu Li¡¯s hands. He suddenly flew into a huge rage. ¡°The Vermilion Bird¡¯s fan!¡± Fu Li looked down at the vermilion-colored fan in his hands, a contemtive look on his face. This fan had been given to him by Sister Pheasant. It had been given the name of Vermilion Fan because it was red in color. It was said that the fan contained the fire spirits of the Five Elements and was capable of beating back evil spirits. He didn¡¯t have the opportunity to use this fan in the past and whenever he did use it, every person who recognized the fan called it the Fan of the Vermilion Bird. The Vermilion Bird was one of the four divine beasts. It controlled the direction South and seven constetions, as well as the fire element of the Five Elements. It guarded the Southern areas of the earth and there were many records rted to it in the course of human history. The Vermilion Bird¡¯s totem had even appeared among the many tools of the human imperial household. Fu Li had heard many stories of the Vermilion Bird from Elder White Ape. At that time, he had asked White Ape where the Vermilion Bird went. White Ape hadn¡¯t answered him and merely got him to go to Sister Pheasant to learn magic. He hadn¡¯t understood at that time. When Oujiang brought up the Vermilion Bird, he had been busy pressuring the green pythons raised by Oujiang and hadn¡¯t thought much of it. Now, he suddenly felt doubtful. Where exactly did the vermilion fan given to him by Sister Pheasante from? He had asked Sister Pheasant back then whether she had made it. She didn¡¯t deny it, but she also hadn¡¯t admitted to it. Now that he thought carefully, had Sister Pheasant¡¯s feathers been this red and bright? ¡°I hate that smell on you the most, I¡¯ll eat you first!¡± The Taowu rose up abruptly. His wings unfolded. Seawater morphed into des of ice, forcing the Kunpeng and Gong Fu away. He rushed directly at Fu Li. Fu Li, who had just advanced, waspletely incapable of evading the Taowu¡¯s attack. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Transforming into a golden dragon, Zhuang Qing forcibly took the ice des¡¯ attack, slicing open a long bloody streak along the flesh on his back. He was very quick, so quick that he appeared to be a vestigial ray of light. Before the Kunpeng and Gong Fu reacted, he had already unhesitatingly swung his tail onto the Taowu¡¯srge, savage, and gaping mouth. Dragon blood sshed onto Fu Li¡¯s face. He looked at the golden dragon shielding him with wide eyes. Gold suffused his ck pupils. Chapter 79 - Elder

Chapter 79 - Elder

Fu Li had heard the pained howls of dragons many times, but had never seen a dragon not make a single sound even when their tail was bitten till it was indistinguishable and fresh blood sttered in all directions. He stretched out a trembling hand and gently wiped the blood on his face. The dragon blood was fragrant, sweet, and filled with spiritual qi. Fu Li looked down at the blood on his palm. The bloody lines in his pupils increased, eventually staining both eyespletely red. ¡°Fu Li...¡± Zhuang Qing opened his dragon mouth, but the voice that came out was weak and powerless. To dragons, their tail was of utmost importance. A dragon who had lost their tail would no longer be able to soar above the highest of Heavens when they transformed into their dragon form. Fu Li thrust out his hand, flinging the vermilion fan. Like a razor-sharp de, the fan shed the Taowu¡¯s face. Pained, the Taowu¡¯s mouth opened, and the golden dragon in its mouth plunged into the sea. In an instant, scarlet blood dyed a wide expanse of sea red. The scent of blood permeated the air. Fu Li extended a hand, catching the vermilion fan that had flown back. A long red vertical line appeared in the center of his forehead. ¡°What thick baleful qi,¡± The Taowu stretched out its tongue, licking clean the blood at the corners of its mouth. ¡°Truly delicious.¡± A sudden p of thunder sounded in the sky, and a bolt of lightningnded on the Taowu. With a shake of the Taowu¡¯s body, the horn shattered by lightning slowly regenerated. ¡°As long as there is life, resentment, and hatred in this world, what can heavenly lightning do to me?¡± The Taowu raised his head, looking up at the sky in crazedughter. His white skin gradually turned a bloody red. He roared madly, ¡°Today will be the day I eat this dragon with overflowing virtue!¡± What was heavenlyw? He, a Taowu, would not be controlled by any existence. Sensing heavenlyw¡¯s bias towards the golden dragon, the Taowu released Fu Li. Instead, he made to jump into the sea and swallow the golden dragon whose tail he had injured. Yet, when he was on the verge of nearing the water, a beastly roar came from behind, and he was knocked more than ten meters away. Roar! The churning seawater intensified. Sea breeze whistled. Amidst thunder and lightning, a white rabbit looked up at the sky and let out a long hiss. The red fur in the center of its forehead suddenly emitted a piercing red light. Nine water pirs shot towards the sky. The rabbit expanded in size bit by bit. As if immersed in fresh blood, its white fur became as bright and beautiful as fire. ¡°What is this?¡± The Taowu hadn¡¯t expected himself to be sent flying by a rabbit. But when he saw this tiny rabbit turn into a strange blood-red beast, the Taowu¡¯s eyes revealed vignce. However, the Kunpeng and Gong Fu¡¯splexions weren¡¯t much better than the Taowu. Seeing the baleful qi rolling off Fu Li unceasingly in all directions, they swiftly erected a barrier in an attempt to limit the spread of baleful qi. This sort of baleful qi could arouse the most evil of thoughts in the depths of any living creature¡¯s heart, turning them brutal, bloodthirsty, and hysterical. This was an inherent skill of the fiends, simr to how auspicious beasts brought bountiful harvests, good fortune, and luck from birth. Thepletely irrational Fu Li stood on the surface of his sea. His blood-red eyes fixed unwaveringly on the Taowu as he opened his mouth, snarling. ¡°He wants to eat the Taowu,¡± Gong Fu looked at Fu Li¡¯s red fangs, fishing out the magic weapon he carried with him. ¡°If he were to really eat the Taowu, he would be a true monster ¨C one that is without thought and emotions, only knowing destruction and resentment.¡± Gong Fu knew that Fu Li was more dangerous than even the Taowu at this point in time. If he was rational, he should have taken the chance to behead Fu Li when his cultivation hadn¡¯t yet stabilized. But when he saw the blood-red fiend¡¯s untiring protection of the golden dragon floating on the sea, refusing to let the Taowu approach even the tiniest bit, Gong Fu transformed into his original form and stood in front of Fu Li. Sensing the approach of another creature, Fu Li sent Gong Fu a roar, but didn¡¯t make any move to attack. ¡°Interesting, interesting,¡± The Taowuughed heartily. ¡°Gong Fu is actually protecting a monster. Would those ancient auspicious beasts ridicule you if they knew of this behavior?¡± ¡°A clear conscience is exactly what our cultivation of the body and heart emphasizes,¡± Gong Fu was not infuriated by the Taowu¡¯s remark. On the contrary, he shook his tail elegantly. ¡°Taowu, I advise you to give up on creating havoc. Return to your deep sea.¡± ¡°Ridiculous,¡± The Taowu nced at them with disdain. ¡°On the basis of all you trash?¡± Gong Fu and the Taowu soon became embroiled in battle. When an auspicious beast and fiend battled, it wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that the earth became discolored. Lightning would asionally plummet from the skies, each and every boltnding on the Taowu. However, new flesh would very quickly grow at every area that was cut off or scorched by the lightning. In the face of an undying creature, even the strongest power appeared somewhat weak. Peng Hang stood in front of the guesthouse¡¯s windows. He watched thunder and lightning sh continuously in the sky, feeling like he was witnessing the prelude to a disaster. What was even scarier was that nobody apart from him knew that the disaster had already begun. On this night, the people in the guesthouse seemed to be in a particrly deep sleep. The entire floor waspletely silent. ¡°If I say you¡¯re trash, then you¡¯re trash,¡± The Taowu looked at Gong Fu, who he had beaten into spitting out blood. Two horns materialized on his head. ¡°If this was five thousand years ago, you would still be able to fight with me. Unfortunately, the divine beast Azure Dragon is already dead. Without the blessing of the ancestral dragon to strengthen all you sons, along with the loss of human faith, what can you depend on to suppress me?¡± ¡°Heavenlyw won¡¯t be able to kill me unless you eliminate all living creatures beneath the Heavens,¡± The Taowu didn¡¯t even look at the heavily injured Gong Fu. He looked down at Fu Li arrogantly. ¡°A mere child who only lived a few thousand years still wants to fight against me?¡± Though he uttered such words, he discovered that the spiritual qi on this monstrous yao beast was exceedingly strange. The parts that came into contact with him were actually corroded. Fu Li could care less about what the Taowu was saying. His brain was a huge mess. All he wanted to do was kill this thing in front of him and protect something. But protect what? In his eyes, the sky was red, the sea was red, and even the monster he wanted to devour was red. Seeing the monster reveal a w, he rushed over without hesitation. wing. The erosion of baleful qi. And the ability to corrode from birth. Fu Li¡¯s mind allowed his body¡¯s instincts to take over. This was the yao beasts¡¯ most primitive style of battle ¨C tossing away the sophistication and hypocrisy of their human forms, and leaving only their wild nature. Despite increasing in size, Fu Li still seemed extremely petite inparison to the Taowu. A sudden look at the two beasts tangled together might even cause one to think that the Taowu was bouncing about on its own for fun. While protecting the severely injured Zhuang Qing and Gong Fu, the Kunpeng also had to keep an eye on the fight between Fu Li and the Taowu. With a golden dragon and Gong Fu on its huge fish back, the Kunpeng gazed at the thunder and lightning in the sky. He thought somewhat despondently that if this incident had urred five thousand years ago, no one would believe that the mighty, impressive Kunpeng daren would be carrying two auspicious beasts. If this was the past, even he would not have believed it. ¡°Cough cough.¡± Zhuang Qing gradually woke up from the extreme pain, his dragon tail trembling slightly from the pain. He looked at Fu Li up in the sky, as well as the blood that drenched him head to toe. Changing into his human form, he propped a hand against the Kunpeng¡¯s back and slowly climbed up. ¡°What are you trying to do?¡± The Kunpeng noticed Zhuang Qing¡¯s movements. ¡°Mixed-blood dragon, you¡¯re throwing away your life.¡± ¡°Fu Li can¡¯t continue like this,¡± Zhuang Qing supported the wound on his lower back as he fished out a flying magic weapon, a green hue to his pale lips. Yao beasts who lost their rationality for too long would turn into a beast through and through, no longer able to find who they once were. ¡°Fu Li is only your subordinate, do you need to go this far?¡± The Kunpeng couldn¡¯t understand. Although he was also very fond of Fu Li, he couldn¡¯t quite understand Zhuang Qing¡¯s willingness to fight with everything he had even under such circumstances. He had also taken in a disciple in the past; he didn¡¯t mind helping them to vent by beating up uncouth adversaries, but asking him to lose his life was a no-no. They were yao after all, there were naturally things they could and couldn¡¯t do. Zhuang Qing stared nkly for a moment before looking up and seeing the Taowu send Fu Li flying with his horns. No longer did he have the leisure to think too much. Activating his magic weapon, he moved forward and caught Fu Li. He made a cut on his forefinger in an attempt to seal the baleful qi on Fu Li, but the irrational Fu Li simply didn¡¯t allow his hand near him. Knocking Zhuang Qing to the side, he once again engaged the Taowu in battle. When they first got to know each other, he had thought of Fu Li as a little yao with not-very-high cultivation, which was why he had nted three dragon scales on him. He had done so at that time because he wanted to thank Fu Li for lending them the yao-beating whip. It waspletely beyond his expectations that his inadvertent action at that time would actually help Fu Li to mask the baleful qi. Zhuang Qing felt that he had probably gone insane. In this situation, he wasn¡¯t thinking about how to deal with Fu Li, but finding ways to help him return to normal and even escape the eyes of heavenlyw. After fighting with Fu Li for such a long time, the Taowu was exhausted and riddled with scars. Until Fu Li bit his tail, severing it. It was only then that he flew into a rage and stopped concealing his baleful qi. He would rather be struck by heavenly lightning continuously than not kill Fu Li. ¡°Scram!¡± The Taowu used his horns to deflect a bolt of heavenly lightning. He firmly pressed Fu Li down with his foot. The baleful qi Fu Li exuded corroded his foot continuously, but new flesh also grew continuously. Fu Li¡¯s entire body was soaked in fresh blood. Roar! Although the weak spots all over his body had already beenid bare to the Taowu, there was no fear in Fu Li¡¯s blood-red pupils. The Taowu hated tiny creatures who showed no fear to him. He opened his mouth, intending to swallow Fu Li. The Kunpeng couldn¡¯t continue resting at hisurels at this point. With a shake of his fish tail, he pped the Taowu¡¯s mouth, causing the Taowu to bite Fu Li¡¯s front ws and not his neck. ¡°Kunpeng, mind your own business!¡± The Taowu shot an icy nce at the Kunpeng, realizing that his lips and tongue had also been injured by the corrosion. Shifting his front ws, he grabbed Fu Li by the neck. He had thought that he had found an interesting ything, but it turned out to be inedible. A ything that was both inedible and an eyesore could only be killed. A sword stabbed into his front ws. This sword contained boundless virtue, so the Taowu¡¯s ws could do nothing but turn to ashes in a split second. Taking advantage of the instant during which the Taowu was regenerating its lost limb, Zhuang Qing carried Fu Li and dodged to the side. ¡°Go die!¡± The Taowu opened its mouth and spat out countless ice des as he pursued Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Zhuang Qing once again transformed into his dragon form in a sh and curled himself up, wrapping around Fu Li so that he was in the center. The pain he expected didn¡¯t arrive. Zhuang Qing saw a tiny red bird fly out of the clouds and directly ram into the Taowu¡¯s eyes. The Taowu let out an anguished wail. The eyes he had lost unexpectedly didn¡¯t regenerate at lightning-speed. The tiny red bird turned into a beautiful woman in a red robe. She carried a red whip and mes of anger burned in her eyes. ¡°You actually dare to bully my family¡¯s child,oniang will cut you down today!¡± The whip in her hand changed into a sharp sword, which she thrust at the Taowu. The howling Taowu wasn¡¯t in time to evade, and had his ears and nose sliced off. It was unknown what power the woman was using, but the areas where she injured the Taowu didn¡¯t regenerate. Even this was not enough to alleviate the red-clothed woman¡¯s anger. She brandished her divine sword, flesh following every de. She was actually slicing flesh piece by piece from the Taowu¡¯s body. Even more terrifying was the fact that every piece was identical in size ¨C as thin as a cicada¡¯s wing. The Kunpeng was shaking in fear at the side. Half of the blood in his body was of the bird species and he instinctively feared this bird of unknown origins. Carrying Gong Fu, he retreated to the side and said in a low voice, ¡°Gong Fu, you¡¯re experienced and knowledgeable. Tell me the origins of this individual.¡± The heavily injured Gong Fu smiled bitterly. ¡°This senior has profound cultivation and is intentionally hiding its true form. I can¡¯t tell. However, to be capable of injuring the Taowu to this extent, this person should be...¡± ¡°Are you all right?¡± The red-clothed woman suddenly appeared in front of the two of them. Her smile was as gentle as water and fine ck hair flowed smoothly down her back. Her beauty was like that of a heavenly immortal. ¡°We¡¯re o-okay,¡± The Kunpeng shook his head quickly. Doing this action in his fish form was a little challenging, and he nearly shook Gong Fu off his back. ¡°Good,¡± The red-clothed woman fixed her gaze on Gong Fu, her smile bing even gentler. Gong Fu shut his mouth and shook his head silently. The red-clothed woman kept her sword in satisfaction and threw him a bottle of medicinal pills. Turning, she walked across the surface of the water, arriving in front of Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing¡¯s curled dragon body didn¡¯t move. He stared guardedly at the red-clothed woman, refusing to let her approach. The red-clothed woman looked at his guarded expression as well as the fresh blood dripping from all parts of his body into the sea. She attempted to see past his body and catch a glimpse of his protectee Fu Li, but Zhuang Qing curled his body even tighter. ¡°I am...¡± The red-clothed woman revealed an ashamed look. She opened her mouth and paused for a long time, but was actually unable to say the subsequent words. It became even harder for her to speak when she watched this underaged golden dragon protect Fu Li like his life depended on it. She turned and walked to the bruised and haggard Taowu. Taking out a bag, she absorbed the Taowu into it before tying a tight knot. She fished out a medicinal pill from her chest and held it out to Zhuang Qing. ¡°Many thanks for taking care of our family¡¯s child. I am Fu Li¡¯s elder, you can call me Zhu Yue.¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t take the medicinal pill offered by the woman calling herself Zhu Yue. On the contrary, he stubbornly kept his vitality up and spoke coldly, ¡°Fu Lu told me all his friends and rtives died at Weishui.¡± The red-clothed woman stared nkly. The shame on her face deepened. Taking advantage of her nk stare, the seemingly heavily injured Zhuang Qing unexpectedly curled his bloody mess of a dragon tail around Fu Li and plunged head-first into the depths of the sea. Seeing the sea that had been stained red by fresh blood, the red-clothed woman stared nkly for a long time before touching her face. ¡°Are his dragon eyes blind? Do I seem like a bad person?¡± She stared at the sea for a few seconds and then nced at the heavenly lightning in the sky that had yet to disperse. Gritting her teeth, she jumped into the sea and chased after them. The Kunpeng stared nkly at the sea on which floated blood suds. ¡°That woman knows Fu Li?¡± Gong Fu popped a medicinal pill into his mouth, his face the picture of indifference. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He wouldn¡¯t dare to say anything even if he knew. In any case, all heavenly lightning in the sky had dispersed after the woman jumped into the sea. Chapter 80 - Reunited

Chapter 80 - Reunited

Some said that the seabed was the most fantastical world. There were all sorts of never-before-seen fish, bizarre deep-sea nts, as well as beautiful deep seandscapes. When Fu Li woke clear-headed, a mass of gold filled his vision. The smell of blood and dragon pervaded his surroundings. He shifted his body, and then realized that the gold was Zhuang Qing¡¯s scales. Zhuang Qing was curled around him. His memories were a chaotic mess. Shaking his head, he asked softly, ¡°Zhuang little dragon, Zhuang little dragon?¡± There was no reaction from Zhuang Qing. He jumped out with a kick of his hind legs. Landing on the ground, he turned into his human form and saw the wounds on Zhuang Qing¡¯s body that had turned white from soaking in seawater. What was scariest was the wound on his tail ¨C it was so deep that bone was visible. The floor was covered in blood, and his tail was curled up somewhat unnaturally. He remembered now. Just as the Taowu was about to kill him in one bite, Zhuang Qing had turned into his dragon form and shielded him... Too busy to pay any heed to his current location and what had happened after that, Fu Li took out medicinal pills, pried open the dragon¡¯s mouth and shoved the medicine in. Despite being tossed around like this, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t wake up; it was clear that he had suffered severe injuries. Fu Li found medicine for external injuries, then used his spiritual force to remove the surrounding clotted blood before applying the medication. No matter how steady Zhuang Qing was usually, the current unconscious golden dragon didn¡¯t yet have the look of an adult. The mottled dragon scales on the dragon¡¯s body and the old wounds incapable of healing chronicled the scars left by time. Fu Li had been coddled from young and could not imagine how the young dragon had lived without the protection of elders. After applying medicine to all the wounds, Fu Li made his way to the dragon¡¯s head and sat cross-legged. Looking at the still motionless Zhuang Qing, he reached out and touched his horns. Zhuang Qing had already saved him twice, and each time ended in him being heavily injured. This dragon often said he was dumb andcking in life experience, but in reality, he was the true dumb yao. If he were really intelligent, why would he risk his life to save him? Was he not aware how powerful the Taowu was? ¡°I hate smooth, furless creatures, but...¡± Fu Li watched the coiled-up Zhuang Qing. Even in the moment before he lost consciousness, this dragon still didn¡¯t forget to erect a barrier and protect him with his body. ¡°Are you a fool?¡± Fu Li poked the dragon¡¯s head. ¡°Are you a fool?¡± He raised his head, sizing up his surroundings. The ce they were in was a luxurious pce hall, and the decorative items inside were very tastefully chosen. It was just that it was cold and unfriendly, without even the slightest bit of life in it. This ce had likely been uninhabited for a very long time. There was some resemnce between this pce and the azure dragons¡¯ pce, though it was even morevish and exquisite. Fu Li had a rough idea what ce this was. The golden dragon n¡¯s pce. As the sole descendant of the golden dragon n, only Zhuang Qing would be able to remove the restriction on the pce. But there was an absence of dragon guards and servants at this ce that rendered even the most luxurious ce cold and cheerless. In the end, the golden dragon n that had been an illustrious existence for thousands of years still met such a mournful closure. He let out a sigh. Pressing his hand against Zhuang Qing¡¯s forehead, spiritual qi entered the dragon¡¯s body through his palm and into his meridians, nourishing his resplendent dragon pearl. After transmitting his spiritual qi, Fu Li realized that his cultivation had advanced by quite a bit. Hey against the dragon¡¯s headzily and thought back to the incident that had urred. He had broken through, encountered a heart tribtion, and entered a meditative state in Zhuang Qing¡¯s car. After that, he went through the tribtion of heavenly lightning. His cultivation base advanced greatly. After that... He furrowed his brows. His memories stopped at Zhuang Qing blocking the blow from the Taowu for him. There was nothing after that. But looking at Zhuang Qing¡¯s injuries, it was clear that it was not only his tail that was injured. That being said, he would already be considered a genius in the yao world for battling the Taowu for this long with only 1900 years of cultivation, even if he had joined with the nation¡¯s fate. If Zhuang Qing were to fall from the skies because of him, even he would find it uneptable. ¡°How long do you want to lean against me?¡± Fu Li hurriedly turned around upon hearing this cold voice. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± ¡°En,¡± Not wanting anyone to see his gaunt, scar-riddled body, Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form. He stood up. ¡°Come with me to the inner pce.¡± Fu Li stretched out a hand and supported him by the arm. Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li silently, not pushing away his hand. The golden dragon pce was very big and very pretty. Just the majestic building was enough to let Fu Li imagine just how glorious the golden dragon n had been in those years. He inclined his head, looking at Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. The other party¡¯s expression was calm, seemingly bereft of emotions towards this pce. ¡°What are you looking at me for?¡± Zhuang Qing turned his head all of a sudden, meeting his eyes. These eyes were really handsome. Fu Liughed dryly. ¡°I¡¯m not very familiar with this ce, can you give me an introduction?¡± ¡°No,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s rejection was very blunt. Fu Li: &#k2026; ¡°This is my second time here,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the signboard outside the pce with the three words &#k2018;Chen Fang Pce¡¯. ¡°Ist came to this ce 1900 years ago, I was only around ten years old at that time.¡± ¡°So young?¡± Fu Li helped Zhuang Qing up the stairs. ¡°You didn¡¯te over at all these few years?¡± In Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes, every nt and tree in this ce was extremely foreign. It was all very cold. ¡°What is there toe for?¡± They entered Chen Fang Pce, inside which was a bedroom. The brocade quilt on the bed was still clean and soft, as if its owner had merely left temporarily and would return before the sky turned dark. Fu Li removed the quilt from the bed and took out new bedding from his Qiankun pouch as a substitute. Worried that Zhuang Qing would sleep in difort, he even specially added a few moreyers of bedding. ¡°Lie down first and rest for a while.¡± ¡°This is Jiaoren yarn?¡± Zhuang Qingy down on the bed. The cozy sensation caused his entire body to subconsciously rx. ¡°Maybe,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t care about these mere worldly possessions. There was a mountain of things in his Qiankun pouch that he himself didn¡¯t know the origins of, so it was natural for him not to care about it. ¡°Fu Li...¡± Zhuang Qing thought of the strange woman who imed to be Fu Li¡¯s elder. That woman seemed to be the Taowu¡¯s bane; the moment she appeared, the Taowu no longer had the ability to retaliate. ¡°Did all the yao at that time have these things?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Fu Li stuffed another medicinal pill into Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen many yao, and the length of time I spent away from the mountain is even less. My understanding of the entire yao world stems from the verbal narrations of the mountain¡¯s elders. However, all the yao cultivators on the mountain took these to bemon things, perhaps they were not rare in the past.¡± Zhuang Qing stroked the quilt made out of Jiaoren yarn withplex feelings. Jiaoren yarn was considered an extremely rare item in all relevant information records, even if these records were ancient texts dating back to two thousand years ago. So, had the people who recorded it in the ancient texts seen too little of the world, or was it the yao cultivators of Reflecting Mist Mountain who were closed-off? ¡°Fu Li, there was a female cultivator just now who imed to be your eld...¡± Someone broke through the barrier outside the golden dragon pce! As the only master of the golden dragon pce, Zhuang Qing¡¯s level of awareness of the pce was extremely high. His expression turned severe and he sat up on the bed, saying in a heavy voice, ¡°Who is it whoes? Why have you entered my dragon pce without permission?¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing¡¯s tense expression, Fu Li got up and guarded the bed, gripping his red whip. There was no response from outside, but Fu Li heard the sound of footsteps. The footsteps were very light, and the person was walking very slowly, but the person eventually came to a stop in front of Chen Fang Pce. A pce door stood between them. Fu Li didn¡¯t move and neither did the person outside the pce. With a contemtive look, Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li, who was shielding him. ¡°Those who visit are guests who should be treated with due respect, but this humble one¡¯s friend is injured and is temporarily unable to receive your honored self,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t know who this person was, but if they were a friend, they would not remain silent now, which was why he was very cautious. ¡°I request the forgiveness of your honored self.¡± Listening to this familiar voice, Zhu Yue smiled as if she was crying. She ascended the steps, her hand touching the pce door. All she needed to do was push open this door to see the child they had raised for more than two thousand years. ¡°Your honored self has trespassed on the dragon pce. Are you not willing to even leave a name?¡± This child had grown up in the close to two thousand years they had not met. He no longer acted like a spoiled child, nor was he still ignorant. He now knew how to put on airs. Zhu Yue grinned, revealing a smile. Though she was smiling, the rims of her eyes had reddened. She took a deep breath. Her voice trembled lightly as she said, ¡°This humble one is a little yao of Weishui, Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s Zhu Yue.¡± The pce suddenly quietened. Zhuyue couldn¡¯t help but wonder worriedly if the child would me her, get angry at her, or... if he had long forgotten the elders after making a new friend. Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s... Zhu Yue? Fu Li thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. Reflecting Mist Mountain had been destroyed. All the yao on the mountain were buried in the bellies of dragons, so how was it possible... ¡°Zhuang Qing, what did she just say?¡± Fu Li looked back at Zhuang Qing nkly, wanting to know if he had misheard. ¡°She said...¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the absent-minded Fu Li. His eyelids drooped. ¡°She said she¡¯s Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s... Zhu Yue.¡± That was a woman with such beauty that no man under the Heavens would be able to look away from her. Zhuang Qing covered his chest. That ce hurt terribly. It had probably... suffered an internal injury that had yet to heal. Fu Li suddenly rushed towards the door, screeching to a stop right before he opened the door. He turned towards Zhuang Qing on the bed. The pale-faced Zhuang Qing had already sat up on the bed and was gazing at him with dark yet bright eyes. ¡°Be careful,¡± Fu Li walked back to the bed and set up a few barriers in session. ¡°I¡¯m worried this is a trap.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not as stupid as you,¡± Zhuang Qing coughed softly. ¡°Go take a look, it might be real.¡± If it was real, Fu Li would have rtives. He would no longer be all alone. After helping Zhuang Qing to settle down, Fu Li once again walked back to the door. Just as he was about to pull open the door, the door was pushed open from the outside. Creak. The door that had been unused for many years let out a heavy sound. Time seemed toe to a standstill the moment the door opened. Fu Li saw the figure standing outside clearly. His eyelids trembled slightly. There was none of the anger and surprise that Zhu Yue had imagined. He merely looked at her silently, his good-looking eyes gleaming with tears. He was still as cute as he had been those years. ¡°Little Li,¡± Zhu Yue wanted to show a nicer-looking smile, but her voice just kept shaking. ¡°Have you been well these years?¡± Fu Li cocked his head as he looked at the person outside the door. After a long while, he asked, ¡°Are you real?¡± Zhu Yue could no longer maintain the smile on her face. She nodded, her eyes red. She covered her mouth, unable to say anything. Fu Li walked towards her, reached out, and brought her into his embrace. ¡°Long time no see, Sister Pheasant.¡± ¡°Impudent. Call me Sis Zhu Yue.¡± ¡°The King said before that prettydies should be called sister.¡± ¡°I told you not to listen to that damned pig. It¡¯s been so many years, why do you still remember his words?¡± ¡°The words all of you said,¡± Fu Li smiled, his eyes curving. ¡°I remember them all.¡± Zhuang Qing watched the man and woman embrace at the pce door. His chest felt increasingly stuffy and even somewhat achy, seething in his chest painfully. He clutched his chest, his facepletely expressionless. It was just this tiny bit of pain. He could endure it. Fu Li hadn¡¯t met his rtive for many years. He couldn¡¯t destroy the atmosphere just because of this tiny matter of his. ¡°Little Li, I...¡± ¡°Sister Pheasant, what about the King and the rest? Are you with them?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t ask why they didn¡¯t pass away that year or where they had been the past few years, but instead asked about the whereabouts of the other yao. Zhu Yue shook her head silently. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She had been in deep sleep for two thousand years. When she next woke up, Reflecting Mist Mountain was no longer in the world. She had gone to great lengths to find Fu Li, but didn¡¯t dare to get acquainted with him. Only when the Taowu wreaked havoc, and Fu Li and Zhuang Qing seemed to be unable to hold on did she have no choice but to reveal herself. ¡°What happened that year?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°All the yao said that you were eaten by the azure dragons. I didn¡¯t believe them, so I lit many Migu Branches, but I couldn¡¯t find you.¡± If someone could not be found by a Migu Branch, there could only be one reason. They were either already dead, or had gone to a ce unreachable by Fu Li. ¡°That year...¡± Zhu Yue had just opened her mouth when a sudden p of thunder sounded outside the pce. She smiled. ¡°Some major incidents happened that year, let¡¯s not mention it for now. I saw your friend receive a severe injury to protect you just now, I¡¯ll help take a look at his injury.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li hurriedly nodded. ¡°Sister Pheasant, Zhuang little dragon has many old scars on his body and the medicine I have with me can¡¯t cure himpletely. Do you have a way?¡± ¡°He has a stuffy dragon personality and likes keeping things in his heart. He doesn¡¯t tell others even if he¡¯s injured,¡± Fu Li sighed. ¡°Really worrisome.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hate this sort of furless, smooth yao in the past?¡± Zhu Yue looked at Fu Li, whose thoughts were alreadypletely upied by his friend. There was a faint disappointment in her heart. The young bird had finally flown out of his nest and found his partner. ¡°We have to look at problemsprehensively,¡± Fu Li withdrew the barrier. ¡°He¡¯s different from other hateful dragons.¡± Zhu Yue saw the man behind the barrier. He was handsome, had outstanding bearing, and possessed countless virtue. He was an extremely powerful yao cultivator. With time, perhaps he would aplish great things. She didn¡¯t know if it was good for Little Li to be friends with such a yao. Zhuang Qing raised his pale face and smiled politely at Zhu Yue, cupping his hands in greeting. ¡°This junior, Zhuang Qing, wasn¡¯t aware that Senior really had past rtions with Fu Li. May Senior forgive me if I have offended you in any way.¡± ¡°No worries, you did so for Little Li¡¯s protection.¡± He was a polite child who knew how to respectfully call her elder. Ilyz: half of me is happy for FL and the other half is hurting for ZQ ?? Chapter 81 - Medicine

Chapter 81 - Medicine

¡°His wounds are in a very bad state, I¡¯ll go out and prescribe medicine,¡± Zhu Yue did a cursory inspection of Zhuang Qing. ¡°His old injuries have not healed, which affected his heart meridians. The dragon race has to undergo two major rounds of evolution at the age of five hundred and one thousand. Although he forcibly withstood them, the internal injuries haven¡¯t been patched up.¡± Put unpleasantly, he had exceptional innate talent but suffered from malnutrition. If the golden dragon n hadn¡¯t declined, this golden dragon¡¯s cultivation could be a level higher. ¡°Take good care of him,¡± Zhu Yue stood up and walked out of the inner pce. ¡°Fu Li?¡± Zhuang Qing sat up on the bed after Zhu Yue left. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± He had realized that there was something amiss with Fu Li¡¯s mood. After Zhu Yue¡¯s appearance, Fu Li¡¯s performance had been a bit strange. Not only was he absent-minded, he seemed to also be escaping from something. ¡°Nothing much,¡± Fu Li shook his head. He pulled the quilt covering Zhuang Qing upwards. ¡°Your injuries are severe, make sure to rest.¡± ¡°What gave you such great confidence in your ability to lie?¡± Zhuang Qing coughed twice, turning his back to Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s fine even if you¡¯re unwilling to say it, just treat me as a meddlesome person. But some things should not be suppressed in the heart; you¡¯ve just broken through and your mental state should not be unduly affected.¡± Looking at the back of Zhuang Qing¡¯s head, Fu Li suddenly yearned to tell him everything. Perhaps not seeing the other party¡¯s face made him much more at ease. ¡°The moment I knew Sister Pheasant hadn¡¯t died, I was happy,¡± Fu Li looked down at his fair and clear palms. ¡°I¡¯ve dreamed of them countless times over the past two thousand years. Of them standing on Reflecting Mist Mountain, telling me that they were actually just teasing me, and that they didn¡¯t die. But when I woke up, I would only see a shabby cave and and of weeds beyond the cave. I woke up time after time and fell into a deep sleep time after time. Till three years ago when a few humans who had lost their way woke me up for real.¡± ¡°They wore strange clothes and carried strange bags. In the end, they were rescued by a metal box that could fly yet had no spiritual qi,¡± Fu Li recalled the incident that had urred three years ago when he just woke up. ¡°The sun on that day was very warm and I suddenly thought of going down the mountain.¡± ¡°The human world had already changed. They no longer believed in gods and ghosts, and no longer wandered about in desperation. I thought of the words my pet once told me.¡± ¡°What did he say?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at the decorative dragon on the curtains, resisting the urge to look back. ¡°He said that if themon people can live in peace, work happily, and eat and drink to their fill, then the world would definitely be a beautiful one,¡± Fu Li recalled his human pet¡¯s gentle voice, as well as the eyes that overflowed with anticipation. ¡°His desire was realized after two thousand years, so I wanted toe out and take a look on his behalf, and then steadily experience the life of a human to help him realize his iplete wish.¡± ¡°You liked that person very much?¡± ¡°You mean my pet?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°He was a very interesting human. He was erudite, multi-talented, and told me many interesting stories. It¡¯s just that his life wasn¡¯t very good. I only raised him for a few years before he passed away from illness. Maybe I¡¯m not suited to raising pets, which was why he died. I¡¯ve never raised another pet after that.¡± His words contained regret, dejection, and even reminiscence. But there was no obvious sorrow. For that human, Fu Li had been willing to leave his cave and make contact with the human world. But when he mentioned this human, there was little sorrow to be seen. Zhuang Qing could not understand Fu Li¡¯s feelings. He didn¡¯t interrupt Fu Li, wanting to know more. ¡°I was pampered by the elders on Reflecting Mist Mountain from young. They gave me all that they had,¡± Fu Li¡¯s fair fingertips trembled slightly. ¡°From young, they taught me that there were things I could and couldn¡¯t do as a yao. If I were to create trouble after leaving the mountain, they could take responsibility for me. But there was one thing I definitely couldn¡¯t do.¡± ¡°If I were to feed on those with intelligence, I would be expelled from Reflecting Mist Mountain, never to be acknowledged again,¡± Fu Li¡¯s voice shook. ¡°I...¡± Ate dragon flesh. ¡°I hoped for them all to be alive and well. I hoped to be reunited with them, yet feared reuniting with them,¡± Fu Li subconsciously stroked the quilt made of Jiaoren yarn. ¡°How can I let them know that the rabbit yao they raised like a treasure is actually a yao beast of unknown identity who has designs on dragon flesh?¡± ¡°When I think about how I could be hated by them in the future, I would rather they live on well and never find me. And that the me in their hearts will forever be that easily satisfied rabbit who could make them happy just from breaking a tree with a kick.¡± The closer to home, the greater the apprehension. Any ce with old friends was home. ¡°I said your brain is no good, and you still refuse to admit to it.¡± Zhuang Qing turned around and sat up, asking Fu Li, ¡°When did you eat dragon flesh?¡± ¡°That azure dragon...¡± ¡°Back in those years when I fought with the white dragon n, I also bit them. Does that count as eating dragons? There¡¯s no such thing as elegance in a fight. If you can vent anger by taking a bite, then of course you should. Isn¡¯t that very normal?¡± Zhuang Qing said seriously. ¡°Qing Yan is also still alive and well, how is what you did considered viting a rule?¡± Fu Li blinked, his eyes on Zhuang Qing. He couldn¡¯t quite react. ¡°If you really like eating dragon flesh, why haven¡¯t you gobbled me up when interacting with me in private?¡± Zhuang Qing coughed a few times. He rapped Fu Li on the head with resentment. ¡°In my eyes, you haven¡¯t seen your elders for a very long time and now want to act like a spoiled child. Consider your age, you¡¯re already more than four thousand years old. Is it appropriate for you to act like a little kid?¡± ¡°I...¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t finished his statement when he saw Zhuang Qing spit out a mouth of fresh blood. He was so frightened that he didn¡¯t dare to utter the rest of the statement, instead hurriedly transmitting spiritual energy into his body. Strange. The meridians in his body had already been opened, so why was he still spitting out blood? Was his cultivation not high enough, preventing him from identifying the issue? Fu Li circted his qi around Zhuang Qing¡¯s body once. Not feeling very reassured, he then stuffed a few medicinal pills into Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°What did you give me to eat?¡± ¡°Nothing much, just some ordinary Evesting Pills.¡± Zhuang Qing choked. One Evesting Pill cost five million, and he now had five of them in his mouth&#k2026; Twenty-five million. This time, not only did Zhuang Qing¡¯s chest feel stuffy, his heart also started aching. Fu Li saw Zhuang Qing¡¯splexion turn even paler after eating the medicinal pills. Lowering his head, he sniffed the medicine bottle. This was the correct smell, the medicine wasn¡¯t spoilt. Zhu Yue pushed open the door and came in, handing a bowl emitting steam to Zhuang Qing. ¡°This medicine will nourish your meridians. Drink it first, I¡¯ll prescribe the subsequent medicer.¡± ¡°Sister, what did you put inside? Why is the smell so nauseating?¡± Upon seeing Zhu Yue enter, a smile automatically stered itself on Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Nothing much, I just used chalcedony for the water, and Taisui and Jianmu leaves as the main medicine. He won¡¯t die from drinking it,¡± Zhu Yue pulled on Fu Li¡¯s ears. ¡°Which of all those medicinal pills you have weren¡¯t prescribed by me? And you¡¯re still suspecting my medical expertise?¡± Only then did Fu Li nod, reassured. He told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Drink, there won¡¯t be a problem.¡± Chalcedony. Taisui. Jianmu. Zhuang Qing looked up. Fu Li and Zhu Yue were beaming at him, as if the bowl of medicine in his hands couldn¡¯t be more ordinary. But which of these three things were ordinary? Chalcedony and Taisui weren¡¯t as bad, perhaps one or two of them could be found if one put in all their effort. Jianmu had long gone extinct, so where had these Jianmu leavese from? Compared to this bowl of medicine, those five Evesting Pills were insignificant. Zhuang Qing finally understood where Fu Li¡¯s wasteful habits hade from. It turned out that it was a case of ¡®the junior imitating their seniors¡¯ vices¡¯. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Scared of the bitterness?¡± Fu Li took out two Zhuyu fruits from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°Eat these after drinking the medicine.¡± Zhu Yue stole a nce at Zhuang Qing. Was this for real? When he was protecting Little Li, he didn¡¯t show the slightest bit of fear even when his entire body was covered in wounds. But he was actually scared of drinking medicine? Zhuang Qing very much wanted to exin that he wasn¡¯t scared of the bitterness. But when he saw Zhu Yue and Fu Li¡¯s expressions, he suddenly felt that his value system might differ a little from theirs. He lowered his head silently and drank up all the medicine. Before he could bite into the Zhuyu fruits, he felt the entire world spin. His consciousness gradually blurred. He was plotted against?! He opened his eyes with a supreme effort, wanting to draw his sword. But then, he saw Fu Li¡¯s smiling face. His hand paused. Immediately after which, his eyes shut and he passed out. ¡°This dragon is a bit special, he was actually able to put up a struggle for a while after drinking the entire bowl of medicine, and only fainted after that,¡± Zhu Yue stepped forward and took a few careful looks at him. ¡°Unlike you when you were young. You would copse on the ground in sleep before even finishing a bowl of medicine.¡± ¡°He suffered a lot when he was young,¡± Fu Li picked up the medicine bowl that had fallen at the side. He adjusted Zhuang Qing till he was in afortable sleeping position, and then pulled the quilt over him. ¡°So his willpower is very strong.¡± The pce sank into silence. Zhu Yue stared at Fu Li for a while before sighing. ¡°Let him sleep for a while, let¡¯s go out and talk.¡± Fu Li clenched his fists. He nodded without meeting Zhu Yue¡¯s eyes. The two people walked out through the pce door and sat beside the stones of the Eight Immortals. Zhu Yue took out a few pastries, fruits, and so on from her Qiankun pouch; they were all things he had liked to eat in the past. Looking at the food disyed on the table, the tips of Fu Li¡¯s fingers trembled lightly. ¡°We haven¡¯t met for so many years, I¡¯m not sure if you still like these,¡± Zhu Yue was very beautiful when she smiled. Much better looking than all those so-called snake and fox yao. ¡°I like them,¡± Fu Li took a pastry from the te and stuffed it into his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ve always liked them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Zhu Yue took out a bottle of spiritual essence. ¡°Eat slowly, don¡¯t choke.¡± Fu Li remembered how the yao cultivators on Reflecting Mist Mountain had been most fond of feeding him spiritual essence in the past. They would feed him during mealtimes, when he was ying, and even when he learnt a skill. Only after Reflecting Mist Mountain was destroyed did he change his habit of drinking spiritual essence. He drank a mouth of spiritual essence before lowering his head and smiling. ¡°It¡¯s not as tasty as the past.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be helped. The spiritual qi isn¡¯t as pure now, so the spiritual essence can¡¯tpare either,¡± Zhu Yue watched Fu Li cleanly polish off the entire bottle despite saying that it wasn¡¯t as nice as the past. The smile on her face brightened even further. ¡°I¡¯m very happy that you made a new friend,¡± Zhu Yue stroked Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°Our Little Li has finally grown up.¡± The rims of Fu Li¡¯s eyes were slightly red. He turned his head to the side in embarrassment. ¡°I thought all of you had...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, we thought that we could apany you as you grew up, and watch you be an outstanding and great yao. However, Heaven¡¯s Will cannot be changed easily, and obtaining a sliver of a chance is already the result of many years of conspiracy.¡± Zhu Yue wanted to say something but hesitated. ¡°But our Little Li is already very impressive. Even in our absence, he was still able to be this outstanding.¡± ¡°They¡¯re all still alive, right?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t be bothered about the slightly miserable expression on his face. ¡°Right?¡± ¡°Little Li...¡± Helplessness colored Zhu Yue¡¯s expression. ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± Fu Li¡¯s shoulders drooped in disappointment. After which, he very quickly looked at Zhu Yue with luminous eyes. ¡°They¡¯re definitely still around. When I rushed over that year, I didn¡¯t see all of you... The other yao cultivators all said you were buried in the bellies of the azure dragons, but the azure dragon n has such low cultivation and can¡¯t even beat me, so how could they be your opponents?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened that year, but I¡¯m very happy today,¡± Fu Li rubbed his eyes and revealed a dazzling smile. ¡°All of you are still alive. That really is great.¡± ¡°Little Li...¡± There were tears in Zhu Yue¡¯s smile. Getting up, she pulled the child she had watched grow up into her arms. The precious, innocent-as-white paper child that they had doted on had grown up somewhere away from their sight. He had learnt how to think, how to be suspicious, and how to control his emotions. He had truly grown up. This was clearly a matter to rejoice over, yet she felt so upset she wanted to cry. If she could, she would rather have doted on him for an entire lifetime. He wouldn¡¯t need to face ughter or theplexities of the outside world. All he needed to do was live happily and simple-mindedly. They could give him the best magic weapons, the most delicious spiritual items, the most precious treasures. They could give him all that was best. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± We gave you the most beautiful living environment, but let you face life outside on your own midway through. ¡°Sister P... Pheasant, can you release me?¡± Fu Li asked softly. The pheasant released Fu Li and turned to look out the door. She smiled at everyone outside. Lin Gui, Chu Yu, Chao Yun, and Ning Xuan watched Fu Li embrace a beautiful woman dazedly. Even after a long time, they still didn¡¯te to their senses. The Kunpeng told them just now that the boss was heavily injured, so they had rushed here in a flurry. The boss was nowhere to be seen. Instead, they saw Fu ge and an unfamiliar woman locked in a deeply emotional embrace. Wasn¡¯t this a bit inappropriate? ¡°Fu ge,¡± Chu Yu was the first to react. ¡°Is the boss okay?¡± ¡°He took medicine and already went to sleep,¡± Fu Li touched his face. ¡°What are all of you doing standing outside? Come in, all of you.¡± ¡°May I know who this senior is?¡± Chu Yu realized that he couldn¡¯t make out this woman¡¯s cultivation base. On top of that, he couldn¡¯t even sense the slightest bit of yao qi from her. But she was standing in the golden dragon pce, so it was impossible for her to not be yao. He bowed respectfully towards her, his expression guarded. ¡°I am Fu Li¡¯s auntie.¡± Seemingly not having made out the thoughts of these juniors, Zhu Yue smiled. ¡°Like Fu Li, you can call me Auntie Zhu Yue.¡± Chu Yue gazed at this woman who didn¡¯t look a day after twenty in her human form, the shock in his heart deepening. Fu ge had cultivated for more than four thousand years. The fact that this woman could be called auntie by Fu ge meant that her cultivation was even more profound and that much scarier. Fu Li knew that Sister Pheasant wanted to take advantage of these juniors again, but didn¡¯t speak since he had no intentions of revealing Zhu Yue¡¯s actual form in the presence of his colleagues. ¡°So Senior is actually Fu ge¡¯s elder. Please excuse ourck of manners,¡± Chu yu saw that Fu Li didn¡¯t deny it, and thus stepped forward and bowed towards Zhu Yue. ¡°This junior greets Auntie Zhu Yue.¡± He hadn¡¯t expected Fu ge to have an auntie; this really dide as a surprise to the yao. ¡°No need to be excessively courteous,¡± Zhu Yue fished out several tiny bottles from her Qiankun pouch. Comeee, here¡¯s a gift.¡± The four yao gift recipients were stupefied. These were... Evesting Pills? Was this Auntie Zhu Yue nouveau riche to give each person a bottle of Evesting Pills at their first meeting? ¡°They¡¯re just toys of little value, please don¡¯t look upon them with distaste,¡± Zhu Yue smiled in embarrassment, feeling that offering such things to juniors as gifts was indeed a little unpresentable. But when the incident urred that year, she hadn¡¯t had the time to pack up many valuables before lightning struck her till she was half-dead. So, it was true that she didn¡¯t have many good things on her now. Little value? Chu Yu thought about the time when Fu Li had nonchntly taken out a whole bundle of spiritual grass. Was this to say that Fu ge really was a rich second generation yao? Perhaps it was because Zhu Yue¡¯s manner and style of conduct were extremely simr to Fu Li, but everyone gradually loosened up in front of her despite their burning curiosity about her identity, and told her many things about Fu Li when he was at the management bureau. Fu Li couldn¡¯t stand the ttery in anything and everything they uttered, and simply let Zhu Yue gossip idly with Chu Yu and the other yao while he went in to take care of the unconscious Zhuang Qing. Upon hearing that everyone was very fond of Fu Li and deeply respected him, the smile on Zhu Yue¡¯s face became even more loving. Taking out a bunch of spiritual fruits from her Qiankun pouch, she said in high spirits, ¡°Continue.¡± Chu Yu looked at the pile of spiritual fruits and swallowed. ¡°Fu ge is also very fond of studying. He¡¯s resolved to enter university and be a civil servant.¡± After rifying what a civil servant was, Zhu Yue revealed a helpless smile. That child still cherished his old friendships very much. He had even taken that human pet¡¯s words to heart. ¡°Thank you very much for taking care of Fu Li these days. That child has been pampered by us from young, so if there¡¯s anything he¡¯s not so good at, please excuse him.¡± ¡°Auntie Zhu Yue, you¡¯re too polite. It¡¯s Fu ge who has been taking care of us,¡± Chu Yue mentioned how Fu Li had saved him from the clutches of the painted skin ghost. ¡°If not for Fu ge, I wouldn¡¯t be standing here today.¡± Praising their family¡¯s child was the best way of currying favor with an elder, particrly if the elder cherished the child. This was the conclusion Chu Yu had arrived at after summing up his experiences in the human world. ¡°It¡¯s about time to boil the next round of medicine,¡± Zhu Yue nced at the sky. ¡°You can go in and visit the wounded person, but don¡¯t disturb him. That child¡¯s injuries are on the severe side and he needs a good sleep.¡± That child... referred to the boss? The thoughts and feelings of Chu Yu and the rest were in disarray. ¡°May I know if there is anything we can help with?¡± Chu Yu stood up as well. They hadn¡¯t had the opportunity to see the boss all this time and had long been stricken with worry. It was just that they had to give Zhu Yue face, so it wasn¡¯t good to ask directly. It wouldn¡¯t be pretty if they gave the other party the impression that they didn¡¯t trust her. ¡°No need,¡± Zhu Yue replied casually. ¡°I don¡¯t have need for help at the time being since it¡¯s just curing this minor ailment.¡± Chu Yu tactfully didn¡¯t follow after her. The four yao nced at one another and then made their way towards the room Zhuang Qing was in. It was also their first time in the golden dragon pce. Back in those years when Chu Yu had been working by Zhuang Qing¡¯s side, he had once asked about the dragon pce out of curiosity. But the boss¡¯ expression turned very ugly upon hearing the words ¡®dragon pce¡¯, so he never again mentioned it after that. When the Kunpeng and Gong Fu came over today and told them that the boss might have brought Fu Li to the golden dragon pce to nurse his wounds, they were all caught by surprise and even suspected the Kunpeng of lying to them. But when they arrived outside the golden dragon pce and smoothly passed through the barrier, they knew that the Kunpeng hadn¡¯t lied. The golden dragon pce was even morevish and refined than what they had imagined. Just looking at a single corner of the pce was enough for them to imagine how grand the golden dragon n had been in those years. Entering the inner pce, they caught sight of Zhuang Qing, who was peacefully sleeping on the bed, as well as Fu Li, who was sitting quietly at the side. For some reason, they felt that their entrance had disrupted a beautiful scene, making them seem somewhat repulsive. ¡°You came?¡± Fu Li noticed them. ¡°Take a seat.¡± Seeing that the quilt was tightly wrapped around Zhuang Qing and that hisplexion could still be termed good, Chu Yu asked in a low voice, ¡°How are the boss¡¯ injuries?¡± ¡°No major issues after taking medication. We¡¯re nning to heal his old ailments now,¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyelids drooped. ¡°If not for me, he wouldn¡¯t have been injured either. I owe him...¡± ¡°Fu ge, these words shouldn¡¯t be said by me, but I feel that the boss probably wouldn¡¯t want to hear you say such things given his personality,¡± Chu Yu stated. ¡°You and the boss are colleagues who live and die together on the battlefield. Isn¡¯t it only right and proper for there to be mutual aid? What¡¯s more, you¡¯ve also protected the boss during critical moments, so what is there to owe or not owe? Won¡¯t that just harm your rtionship?¡± Fu Li smiled, seemingly epting Chu Yu¡¯s words. Not longter, Zhu Yue carried freshly boiled medicine in. ¡°Little Li, wake the little dragon.¡± Fu Li reached out a hand and tapped Zhuang Qing a few times. Zhuang Qing started to gradually regain consciousness. Zhuang Qing hated the feeling of losing control over his body. During those years, he had a so-called good friend who poisoned his food for the sake of personal benefit. If he hadn¡¯t forcibly held on and escaped at that time, he would have long lost his life. Fu Li¡¯s bright eyes were the first thing he saw upon opening his eyes. ¡°How do you feel?¡± Only then did Zhuang Qing discover that his body seemed to have lightened quite a bit. The previous bone-piercing pain in his lower back was also gone. ¡°I feel much better, thank you.¡± ¡°Since the medicine has a healing effect, then drink this bowl of soup too,¡± Fu Li helped him up into a sitting position and held the bowl to his mouth. ¡°After drinking this medicine, you¡¯ll sleep for two hours. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be by your side guarding you.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the bowl of soup. Gripping Fu Li¡¯s hand, he pulled the bowl closer before lowering his head and drinking the medicine that would make him lose consciousness. As he sank into unconsciousness, a scene from more than a thousand years ago surfaced in his mind. ¡°Zhuang Qing, I have a sinister mind, but what about you?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve never even trusted anyone in this lifetime, nor do you dare to trust anyone. If I am vile and despicable, then you are tragic and pitiful.¡± Chapter 82 - Little Kid

Chapter 82 - Little Kid

What did it feel like before birth? Warm? Safe? Disconcerting? Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t open his eyes. He felt like an unborn fetus, cocooned in warmth. Someone was singing an iprehensible folk song in the distance, the tune strange yet familiar. ¡°The universe contains all that is living. The skies are vast, the earth is boundless. Likewise, all that is living is immense. The universe was a formless mass at first; the skies became the skies, the earth became the earth, and everything came to life.¡± ¡°Heavenlyw is ruthless, but also sentimental. All life forms have an opportunity to live; the dead are also alive, and the living are also dead.¡± ¡°There is no eternal life in the world, but there is eternity...¡± Zhuang Qing opened his eyes and found his soul standing on a dark red river. Stunning red flowers bloomed aplenty along both sides of the river. He was standing on a ck sailboat. The ferryman was wearing a conical bamboo man and was clothed in a ck-azure robe, the empty edges of his robe fluttering in the air. ¡°Where are you bringing me?¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head and saw that he was wearing a brocade gown embroidered with gorgeous dark patterns. ¡°Naturally, I¡¯m sending you to the ce you should be at,¡± The ferryman didn¡¯t even turn his head. ¡°Young Master has altered the fiend¡¯s fate of turning into the scourge of the world. Young Master possesses countless virtue and will be a monarch in your next life, certain to leave your name in the annals.¡± Zhuang Qing realized then that he was dreaming. Cultivators didn¡¯t dream easily, but if they did, then it served as an omen. The ferryman once againunched into song, singing the same strange tune. Zhuang Qing stood at the edge of the boat and watched the scenery on both sides of the river slowly go past. He saw his reflection on the river. This was not his face. Or rather, this was not how he looked. The reflection on the river was blurry, and he couldn¡¯t make out his appearance very clearly, but Zhuang Qing could tell with one nce that he did not have such a stature, nor would he wear clothes for the dead. A white jade band with a flying dragon. A ck robe with golden patterns. The style of this attire was, however, that of people who had passed on. ¡°This is the Wangchuan River?¡± He felt something itchy on his cheek. He wiped a hand against it, and a dark red bloody blotch appeared on his palm. ¡°Young Master has extraordinary knowledge...¡± The ferryman turned to look at him. An odd look took shape on his aged face. Soon after, he stopped rowing. ¡°Young Master hase to the wrong ce.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at him silently. It was said that the underworld ferrymen were the ones who transported newly deceased ghosts across the Wangchuan River, from the hands of the yinchai to the Eighteenth Yama Pce to have their fates told by the Judges of the underworld. Zhuang Qing recalled that the underworld had already modernized its management practices for a very long time. A tall bridge had been erected over the Wangchuan River, along with regr bus services. The ferrymen had long lost their jobs; some had started cruise businesses, and he had heard that they were getting by quite well. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back,¡± The ferryman bowed deeply to Zhuang Qing before turning the boat back. Water gurgled. There was a gentle breeze. If not for the strange color of the riverwater, one would very easily think about the beautiful and peaceful Jiangnan Three Moons. The ferryman once again sang that strange tune. Zhuang Qing closed his eyes,tched onto the peculiarities in the air, and struggled free of the dreamscape. When he next opened his eyes, what he saw was the pretty patterns on the bed pirs. Zhuang Qing discovered that the Dragon Pearl within his body had increased in strength by quite a bit, and his old ailments had all vanished. His entire body was in an unparalleled state of rxation. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± Zhuang Qing turned around and saw Fu Li seated by the bed. His smiling eyes were exceedingly good-looking. ¡°How long did I sleep?¡± Zhuang Qing sat up on the bed. Strength seemed to be coursing throughout his entire body and his cultivation had also advanced significantly. ¡°Not long, just one night,¡± Fu Li took out a jade bottle. ¡°Ah, open your mouth.¡± Was he coaxing a child? Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li for two seconds before opening his mouth in resignation. The medicinal pill dissolved immediately upon entering his mouth, and Zhuang Qing felt a burst of spiritual qi through all his limbs and meridians. Every pore felt exceedingly rxed. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°Good stuff I got from Sister Zhu Yue,¡± Fu Li took out a set of clothes from his Qiankun pouch for Zhuang Qing. ¡°In the entire Reflecting Mist Mountain, Sister Zhu Yue is the best at concocting medicine. Any type of medicine taken from her is definitely good stuff.¡± ¡°You know how to concoct medicine too?¡± Zhuang Qing tapped the clothes in Fu Li¡¯s hands and they automatically appeared on his body. ¡°I was fond ofzing around at that time and I didn¡¯t have the patience to learn. I couldn¡¯t sit still in front of the pill-refining furnace, so I have little personal experience with concocting pills, although I know the steps for pill-concoction,¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing¡¯s clothes. He was very satisfied with his vision. As expected, Zhuang little dragon looked good in this set. Recalling Zhu Yue¡¯s dubious identity as well as her formidable powers, Zhuang Qing could practically envisage the leisurely days Fu Li had had from young. Anything he wanted would be delivered to his hands with just a word, and he would naturally have a huge group of yao coaxing him if he was even a teeny bit unhappy. He was the yao world¡¯s little princess. ¡°An expert in theory, but an amateur in practice?¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow. ¡°That¡¯s not right either. I was just a little bit more yful, that¡¯s all,¡± Fu Li used his hands to show a small distance, making a supreme effort to preserve his dignity as a senior. Zhuang Qing was about to reply when he heard the sound of footsteps outside. The smiling expression on his face vanished, and he nced in the direction of the door. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± Zhu Yue pushed open the door and came in. Seeing the clothes Zhuang Qing was wearing, she smiled. ¡°No wonder Little Li left the sea in a rush this morning, so it was to buy this set of clothes.¡± ¡°Many thanks for saving me, Senior,¡± Zhuang Qing stepped forward and bowed deeply to Zhu Yue with respect. ¡°No need to stand on ceremony,¡± Zhu Yue evaded half the bow, extending a hand as if to support him. ¡°Little Li was the child I watched grow up, and you were injured to this extent for the sake of saving him. If there is any thanks to be said, it should being from me.¡± ¡°Senior has misunderstood,¡± Zhuang Qing took a step back and bowed fully with his hands held in front. He stillpleted this bow. ¡°It is my personal desire to share in trials and hardships with a colleague. This was done for my own sake, so there is no need for anyone to thank me. The fact that Senior rescued this junior and even healed this junior¡¯s old ailments is a favor that this junior owes to Senior.¡± Zhu Yue stared nkly for a moment before understanding what Zhuang Qing meant. He had saved Fu Li out of his own free will, so thanking him was a form of sphemy towards his kind intentions. However, she did him a good turn by saving him. Therefore, he had to thank her. This realization did not anger Zhu Yue but delighted her. She rejoiced that Fu Li had found such a good friend. ¡°In my heart, Little Li is my child. Since you and Little Li are good friends, then you are tantamount to a son of mine. Saving one¡¯s son is only right and proper, what need is there for thanks?¡± The smile on Zhu Yue¡¯s face became even gentler. ¡°Isn¡¯t that right?¡± ¡°Sister Zhu Yue...¡± ¡°Little Fu Li, I¡¯ve told you many times that you must call me auntie!¡± ¡°No, King Ganglie said that pretty girls should be called sister and not auntie,¡± Fu Li shook his head persistently. ¡°The King is the master of the mountain, so we have to listen to him.¡± That stupid pig doesn¡¯t know how to teach anything good, Zhu Yue cursed inwardly. Raising her head, she smiled at Fu Li. ¡°Since you know how to coax girls so well, you can now find a female yao you like?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze lingered on Fu Li. He remained silent. Fu Li shook his head nkly. ¡°Why do I have to find a female yao I like?¡± ¡°Ai,¡± Zhu Yue shook her head. ¡°Still too young to understand all these. You¡¯ll understand when you¡¯re older.¡± ¡°Auntie Zhu Yue, this junior has a residence in the human world. You and Fu Li haven¡¯t seen each other for many years, why not first go to this junior¡¯s ce and have a good chat with Fu Li about the past?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t let the talk of finding a female yao continue and instead invited Zhu Yue to his house as a guest. His enthusiastic and hospitable attitude waspletely inconsistent with his usual aloofness. No matter how awkward and cold Zhuang little dragon was usually, he was still a good child who respected seniors on the inside, thought Fu Li. ¡°No need,¡± Zhu Yue smiled. ¡°I still have some matters to attend to, so I won¡¯t be going with you to the human world.¡± ¡°Sister Zhu Yue!¡± Fu Li was a bit anxious and also very confused. ¡°Why don¡¯t you want to live with me?¡± Just like they had two thousand years ago. Was that not nice? ¡°I haven¡¯t settled some things, I¡¯lle find you when I¡¯m free,¡± Zhu Yue helped Fu Li tidy his clothes. ¡°You¡¯re already so big, don¡¯t tell me you still need auntie to be by your side all the time. Aren¡¯t you afraid that your friends willugh at you?¡± ¡°Zhuang little dragon won¡¯t be that senseless,¡± Fu Li subconsciously converted ¡®friends¡¯ to ¡®Zhuang Qing¡¯. ¡°Sister Zhu Yue, leave with us? Let¡¯s leave together.¡± ¡°You¡¯re already more than 4200 years old, why are you still so much like a child?¡± Zhu Yue smiled and rapped Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°I still remember the moment Stupid Pig and White Ape brought you back 4200 years ago. I stretched out my hands, wanting to carry you. In the end, you cried till the sky changed shades and the day lost its light. In a blink of an eye, you grew so big and even made a pretty good friend.¡± The hand on Fu Li¡¯s head didn¡¯t have much force. It was gentle and warm, just like her love for Fu Li. ¡°Be good. Wait for auntie to finish her business before finding you,¡± Seeing that Fu Li didn¡¯t seem very happy, Zhu Yue fished out arge pile of things from her Qiankun pouch and poured them into Fu Li¡¯s Qiankun pouch. ¡°Use voice transmission to contact auntie if there¡¯s anything, don¡¯t let yourself be wronged. Take all these snacks to eat, auntie has more here once you¡¯re done.¡± ¡°Sister Zhu Yue, I¡¯m not a little kid anymore,¡± Fu Li touched the spiritual fruits in his Qiankun pouch, thinking about how the mountain¡¯s elders loved to shove things at him during his childhood when they had to leave the mountain and couldn¡¯t bring him along. He hadn¡¯t expected them to still only have this one move after so many years had gone by. ¡°If you¡¯re not a little kid, then you have to learn how to live independently away from your parents,¡± Zhu Yue tapped Fu Li¡¯s forehead. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, as long as you need me, you¡¯ll definitely be able to find me.¡± They had parted for two thousand years. Although Fu Li intentionally yed down this matter, Zhu Yue knew very well in her heart that Fu Li had not wanted to separate from her. If she could, she would want to personally raise this child forever as well, pampering him and protecting him just like the past. But she couldn¡¯t. That year, they had peered into a sliver of Heaven¡¯s Will and survived with much difficulty. They had wanted to live on for a very long time, wanted to apany Fu Li for a bit more. Fu Li knew that no one would be able to change Sister Pheasant¡¯s mind once she set her heart on something. He forced out a smile and took a lot of snacks he had prepared for the Kunpeng and Gong Fu from his Qiankun pouch, stuffing all of them into Zhu Yue¡¯s hands. ¡°These are snacks from the human world, some of them taste quite good. Although they don¡¯t contain spiritual qi, eating them to pass the time isn¡¯t a bad thing.¡± Fu Li whispered into Zhu Yue¡¯s ear, ¡°There are two bags of Zhuyu fruits in there. During the ancient times, only the Fenghuang could eat them. Take it and eat them, I¡¯ll pluck more for you when I go back.¡± The Fenghuang were birds, and Sister Pheasant was also a bird. Things that a Fenghuang liked to eat would definitely be of benefit to a pheasant. If he had known earlier that he would be reunited with Sister Pheasant, he would have plucked a few more. ¡°Zhuyu fruit?¡± The smile on Zhu Yue¡¯s face froze before very quickly reverting back to normal. ¡°That¡¯s good stuff.¡± Zhuang Qing, who was standing behind Fu Li, nced a few times at Zhu Yue. Zhu Yue raised her head, meeting his beautiful eyes. Zhuang Qing smiled faintly at Zhu Yue. In that instant, his handsome looks were beyond good-looking, as if snow had faded away and spring hade. Chapter 83 - Fortunately

Chapter 83 - Fortunately

This child was really handsome. Zhu Yue shifted her line of sight and told Fu Li, ¡°I¡¯ll tidy up the kitchen. After you and your friend pack up, you can return.¡± The corners of Fu Li¡¯s lips moved, but he didn¡¯t utter any words of protest. The golden dragon pce¡¯s meal room was very clean, and there were even some ingredients arranged on the shelves. At a cornery broken fragments of a jade bowl. Two thousand years had gone by, but no one had tidied it up. With a wave of Zhu Yue¡¯s sleeves, the shattered jade bowly in the wastebasket. Zhu Yue circled the meal room once and discovered many strange spots. From the way the golden dragon pce looked, it didn¡¯t seem to have gradually declined. Rather, it was more like the dragons that had inhabited this ce had suddenly sustained serious damage, which was why the entire pce had still been preserved in its most resplendent state. ¡°Auntie Zhu Yue,¡± Zhuang Qing stood at the door, his expression calm as he looked at Zhu Yue. ¡°Is this pce to your satisfaction?¡± ¡°Your injuries have just healed, why did youe here?¡± Zhu Yue wore a smile when she turned to look at Zhuang Qing. ¡°It¡¯s worthy of being the ce the golden dragon n lived in, it really is beautiful.¡± ¡°If auntie doesn¡¯t mind, why not live here temporarily?¡± Zhuang Qing examined Zhu Yue¡¯s expression. ¡°What does auntie think about that?¡± ¡°As an elder, I won¡¯t go so far as to take advantage of you juniors. I appreciate your kind intentions,¡± Zhu Yue kept the medicinal ingredients she had ced in the kitchen in passing. ¡°Since that is the case, as a elder, why does auntie lie to Fu Li?¡± Zhu Yue looked at Zhuang Qing, bbergasted. Faced with the other party¡¯s expressionless face, she recalled the Blue Dragon, the auspicious beast that had yet to fade away. The Blue Dragon had guarded the East at that time and was worshipped by countless people. These people had frequently made totems with the likeness of the Blue Dragon and would also make offerings to the Blue Dragon every year. Later on, following the reduction in the number of times the Blue Dragon appeared in the human world, it was gradually passed down by the humans that the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, ck Tortoise, and Vermilion Bird were the divine beasts that guarded the world¡¯s four directions. The term ¡®Blue Dragon¡¯ was also forgotten by the humans, to the extent that the few dragons currently living in the azure dragon pce had the shame to call themselves the descendants of the divine beast Azure Dragon. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± The smile on Zhu Yue¡¯s face faded. Her long, shapely brows puckered up. ¡°In Fu Li¡¯s heart, all of you are his most respected and closest elders. He will believe anything you say,¡± Zhuang Qing stepped over the doorstep and came to a stop five steps away from Zhu Yue. ¡°But did you really not lie to him?¡± Zhu Yue could tell that this golden dragon wasn¡¯t the impulsive type. Given the other party¡¯s personality and the fact that she extended him a lifesaving grace, he shouldn¡¯t have done something like running to the meal room and questioning her. The other party¡¯s prating gaze made Zhu Yue slightly uneasy. She shifted her gaze. ¡°You¡¯re too young. Not knowing about certain things is better than knowing about them.¡± ¡°Fu Li is not a child, he has the right to choose to know the truth,¡± Zhuang Qing thought about Fu Li¡¯s dim-witted nature when he first came into contact with the human world, and for no reason at all felt wronged for him. ¡°You gave him the purest of living environments, but made him ept separating from you without any prior indication. Have you not thought about what would happen to him if he didn¡¯t hide in a cave and sleep for two thousand years, but instead ran into a vicious human?¡± He possessed rare treasures and a pure personality. It wouldn¡¯t be so bad if he was cheated of his treasures, but if he had stepped onto the wrong path and was ultimately eliminated by heavenlyw... Thinking of this possibility, Zhuang Qing simply couldn¡¯t suppress the anger in his heart. Heughed coldly. ¡°Senior has profound cultivation. This junior does not dare to venture a guess at your true form, are you really a pheasant?¡± Zhu Yue replied with a displeased look, ¡°Junior, you¡¯ve overstepped your boundaries.¡± The formidable pressure caused a cold sweat to break out on Zhuang Qing¡¯s forehead.. He nearly fell to his knees, as if there was a gigantic mountain pressing down on him. ¡°It¡¯s not good for little kids to know too much about adult matters,¡± Zhu Yue smiled. ¡°You are very clever and loyal, I am happy that Little Li made a good friend like you. But we don¡¯t need outsiders to interfere in our family¡¯s affairs.¡± She sighed. Her opinion of him rose a little as she looked at this junior who didn¡¯t take a single step back despite his pale face, and who didn¡¯t reveal even the slightest hint of fear. If she had used this move a few thousand years ago, who knew how many yao cultivators would kneel and call her king? ¡°It is for his sake that we do not let him know certain truths,¡± Zhu Yue released the pressure and ced her hands behind her back. ¡°I¡¯m now reassured after seeing that Little Li is living very well.¡± ¡°The legends say that the body of Vermilion Bird daren, the protector of one of the earth¡¯s directions, is covered in the true me of the five elements. She is capable of dispelling all resentment in the world and bringing auspicious omens to the world.¡± Zhuang Qing asked, ¡°If I may dare to ask Auntie Zhu Yue, is this legend true or false?¡± The meal room sank into a deathly silence. ¡°It was true five thousand years ago, but false now,¡± Zhu Yue was silent for a long time. She looked at the tiny garden outside the window. ¡°The universe has long lost the need for the Vermilion Bird¡¯s protection, so this world also no longer needs the Vermilion Bird to exist.¡± ¡°This junior understands,¡± Zhuang Qing took a step back and bowed deeply to Zhu Yue. ¡°This junior bids farewell.¡± He took step after step back till he left the meal room. Only then did he turn around and head out. Zhu Yue stood at the edge of the doorsteps and watched the young yao stride out of the yard. Suddenly, she let out augh. It was little Fu Li¡¯s good fortune to have made friends with this child. He had clearly guessed her true form, but still dared to run over and question her, protesting against injustice for little Fu Li. Such kind intentions were hard toe by. ¡°You found the things you wanted?¡± Fu Li saw Zhuang Qing return with empty hands and assumed that he had already ced the things inside his Qiankun pouch. Thus, he asked, ¡°Do you have any other things you want to take with you?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li¡¯s happy smile and shook his head silently. Crash. A tiny, vermilion-colored bird came over with a letter in its mouth. Fu Li extended a hand and the tiny birdnded on his palm, morphing into a red feather. Upon opening the letter and reading it, a hint of disappointment could be seen on his face. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Watching him clutch the letter and feather wordlessly, his entire person on edge, Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. ¡°Nothing,¡± Fu Li shook his head. He hung his head as he replied, ¡°Sister Zhu Yue left a letter saying that she¡¯s already left.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sad,¡± Fu Li guessed what Zhuang Qing was going to say. ¡°I¡¯m already very happy with the knowledge that they¡¯re still alive.¡± ¡°The human world has a saying ¨C ¡®one good turn deserves another¡¯.¡± Fu Li kept the feather and letter. ¡°I will study properly after returning and strive to be a civil servant as soon as possible. I will serve the people, do more good deeds, and umte more virtue. That way, I might be able to meet with the other elders very soon.¡± Zhuang Qing felt that none of the persuasive words he had thought up just now would be of any use, because the Fu Li who harbored the dream of bing a civil servant had a majestic and ambitious goal. He stared nkly for a moment before nodding. ¡°You have a point, work hard.¡± ¡°But for us to call Senior Zhu Yue auntie while you call her sister, isn¡¯t there something wrong with that?¡± Zhuang Qing felt that Fu Li was benefiting at their expense. ¡°There¡¯s nothing very wrong about it,¡± Fu Li responded with conviction. ¡°I¡¯m more than 2200 years older than you. You can even call me uncle.¡± Zhuang Qing put on a fake smile. ¡°Is that so?¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression, Fu Li instantly corrected himself, ¡°Of course, given our good rtionship, there¡¯s no need to pay particr attention to all these traditional practices. Treating each other as equals is fine.¡± ¡°Who has a good rtionship with you?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gazended on Fu Li¡¯s slender and fair neck. He hurriedly shifted his line of sight and said with burning cheeks, ¡°No matter how many nice sounding words you say, I won¡¯t return you the wages I deducted today.¡± ¡°Am I the sort of person who would bow down to money?¡± Fu Li stretched a hand around Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulders, looking entirely like two good brothers. ¡°I know all you young yao are awkward, so I won¡¯t joke around with you. But, thank you for this incident.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to think too much. As long as it¡¯s an employee of the management bureau, I¡¯ll protect them well,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s entire body stiffened as Fu Li leaned against his shoulder. He walked somewhat like a bear, as if there was arge stone tied at his waist. Fu Li was merely smiling, but when Zhuang Qing turned his head carelessly, he suddenly felt that Fu Li¡¯s eyes seemed to contain starlight. They glittered exceedingly, and were also exceedingly good-looking. The Taowu had been captured by Zhu Yue, but the seawaves he had brought about still affected Linhai City. The households closer to the sea and living on lower ground had all been notified by the relevant department in the middle of the night and fled to higher ground. Fortunately, the local departments reacted quickly and there were no human casualties caused by the sudden seawaves, though there was some damage to property. To the security department, this was already the best oue they could have thought of. Which natural disaster had not caused property damage? Moreover, the incident that urred this time was a severe crisis that had nearly brought the entire Linhai City down. When Linhai City¡¯s weather bureau received the notification from their superiors, they had felt that their superiors were making a fuss out of nothing. They surveyed the weather every single day at Linhai City and there were no signs of a tsunami at all. Yet, their superiors insisted on getting them to send out an emergency evacuation notification. They felt wronged and helpless in their hearts, and only sent out this notification after both sides wrangled with each other for a very long time. Thinking about their colleagues at other regions who had previously been subjected to a torrent of abuse byizens, they could already imagine the miserable state they would be in the next morning as they were scolded. They hadn¡¯t expected the tsunami to happen in theter half of the night. Fortunately, the various departments had long since made the preparations for emergency rescue. Otherwise, given how sudden the tsunami was, who knew how much themon people would have to endure? Residents of Linhai City were already praising the relevant local departments online for their prompt disaster relief and wondering what divine means the weather bureau had used to foresee it. Officers carrying residents through rushing waters to the safe zone in the middle of the night, neighborhoodmittee members knocking on door after door to notify residents, residents spontaneously using canoes to rescue their neighbors ¨C all sorts of touching photos were posted on the inte, giving rise to a wave of praise. There was aizen who stated that he had seen many animals fleeing in all directions when he got off work at night, and that these animals must have sensed the natural disaster and thus escaped in advance. There were people who said that this was pseudoscience, while others imed that animals had far higher sensitivity towards nature than humans. Theizens spent a long time arguing over this issue. In the end, otherizens felt that it was a bit immoral for them to be quarreling over such a problem when Linhai City had been struck by a natural disaster. Only then did everyone give in. Peng Hang looked at the pictures online of the fleeing animals at Linhai City and stroked his chin in contemtion. It seemed like he wasn¡¯t the only person to have discovered this unusual situation. He had previously read an article stating that fleeing animals were not necessarily a sign of a natural disaster, hence using abnormal behavior in animals as a way of predicting the weather was not an urate nor scientific method. He had given the local weather bureau a call yesterday night, and they had said at that time that there were no abnormalities in the weather. It was only in the middle of the night that they suddenly sent out a notification for evacuation. Furthermore, those rescue officers seemed to have made preparations well in advance, which was why they reacted so quickly when the disaster urred. He walked out of the guesthouse and was helping the residents nearby to carry the trash to one side when he heard a familiar voice. ¡°Fortunately, there were no human casualties. It was really too dangerous this time.¡± Chapter 84 - Rabbit

Chapter 84 - Rabbit

The moment Peng Hang saw Fu Li, he only had one question in mind: Why was it him again? Currently, the tide had just receded and the streets were stained with filth. In order to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, all factories in Linhai City ceased operations and schools halted sses. This was so that the professionals arranged for by the departments could disinfect and clean the city. As such, there were very few pedestrians on the streets. Fu Li¡¯s group was currently walking along the streets in attire that was spick and span, without even masks or gloves on. Even their shoes were mud-free. Peng Hang had an inexplicable feeling that this group who stood out like a sore thumb had mistakenly entered this ce. After Fu Li¡¯s group left the sea, they had intended to leave straight away. But when they thought about Linhai City that might have met with a tsunami, they decided toe to the city to take a look. After a cursory look around, they were much more reassured. There was no resentment or any human casualties. The humans¡¯ powerful rescue systems in the event of a disaster and high regard for the lives of ordinary civilians could also be considered a form of improvement on the part of human society. The sun came out again the day after the rise of the tides. The streets were both stuffy and hot. Officers in camouge attire pushedrge boxes of trash towards the garbage truck. From time to time, ordinary residents would carry fruits and bottled water over with the intention of shoving them into the officers¡¯ hands. However, they were all rejected. Chao Yun watched these young men dripping in sweat from the heat of the sun, admiration in her eyes. She had stayed by the side of a female emperor and had always been respectful towards such pure soldiers. ¡°Madam, there¡¯s more muddy water on this end, don¡¯te here,¡± A youngd pushing a small cart smiled, revealing a mouth full of white teeth. He pointed at a small alley ahead. ¡°The pavement hasn¡¯t been cleaned yet, everyone should refrain from leaving their houses for the time being.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Chao Yun nced at the long-sleeved top and girdle skirt she was wearing before looking down at the clean and pretty red high heels on her feet. She shed the youngd a grateful smile. ¡°You¡¯re wee,¡± The youngd didn¡¯t look any further at Chao Yun. He pushed the cart along and went off in a haste, his green rubber shoes covered in muddy water. Chu Yu was moved. ¡°This sort of scene always makes me feel that expending so much energy and doing so many things are all worth it.¡± ¡°These people are really cute,¡± Fu Li watched the busy officers on the streets. Turning his head, he saw an elderly man directing his granddaughter who couldn¡¯t be more than five years old to deliver water to the officers. If the officers refused it, the little granddaughter would open her mouth and bawl, to the point that the officers could only temporarily stop what they were doing and twist open the cover of the bottle to drink a few mouths of water. Little bear children had great uses at certain times. Sure enough, ordinary humans couldn¡¯t do anything about children. The elderly man¡¯s ¡®rotten idea¡¯ likely served as a kickstart, because several ¡®bear children¡¯ less than ten years of age very quickly came out with drinking water or fruits and pestered these officers to no end to drink a bit of water and take a short rest. There were even those in the prime of their lives who came out to help with shovels or brooms. For a time, the street was bustling with noise and excitement. Fu Li nodded. Although all sorts of hateful humans appeared all the time, there were still many more cute ones. ¡°Mr Fu Li.¡± Fu Li turned around and saw a man with a scraggly beard and jacket walking towards him. The man wore a slightly haggard expression, looking entirely like someone who hadn¡¯t slept well. Remembering the man¡¯s identity, Fu Li revealed an amazed expression. ¡°Officer Peng, why are you here?¡± Peng Hang was a police officer at the capital, so why was he at Linhai City? ¡°Out on official business,¡± Peng Hang didn¡¯t tell Fu Li about the content of his work. Fortunately, Fu Li was tactful and didn¡¯t continue this line of questioning, otherwise the atmosphere would turn awkward. Peng Hang took out cigarettes from his pocket and distributed them to the people standing behind Fu Li. Seeing that they didn¡¯t have the habit of smoking, he touched his cigarette box and decided to hold back his desire to smoke. ¡°What are you here for?¡± ¡°They¡¯re all my colleagues. We came... to this ce to go sightseeing,¡± Fu Li lied smoothly. ¡°We hadn¡¯t expected to encounter such an incident not more than two days after our arrival. So our boss got us toe out and see if there¡¯s anything we can help with. Peng Hang¡¯s gaze swept across the faces of Fu Li¡¯s group before eventually settling on Zhuang Qing. He directed a smile at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded politely at Peng Hang. Peng Hang¡¯s gazended on Chao Yun¡¯s clean high heels as he fiddled with the cigarette box in his hands. ¡°The relevant departments have arranged for professional rescue officers. It is good that you have kind intentions, but the quality of air outside isn¡¯t very good, so it¡¯ll still be better for everyone to return and rest.¡± ¡°Mr Police Officer is right. Specialized work should still be left to the professionals to resolve.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded and told Fu Li and the rest, ¡°Let¡¯s head back.¡± Fu Li was all smiles as he bid goodbye to Peng Hang. Peng Hang lit a cigarette and watched them disappear at the end of the street. He had a niggling feeling that this Chang Long Company not only considered talent when recruiting employees but also their looks. The men were handsome and the women beautiful. They weren¡¯t down-to-earth at all. Spitting out smoke, he took out his phone and got his colleague to run a check on Fu Li¡¯s travel records as well as his hotel check-in records. For some unknown reason, he constantly felt that this person called Fu Li was a bit strange. The things he did were even more strange. The records were very quickly dug out. Fu Li had bought a ticket for a certain airline¡¯s first ss cabin two days ago. He had flown from the capital to Linhai City, and the hotel he stayed in had the relevant records as well. There was nothing out of ce. Peng Hang scratched his head. Could there be a mistake in his upational disease, causing him to feel that there was something off about anyone that was just a tiny bit more special? This Fu Li¡¯s work experiences were rather odd, but his character was not bad and he had done many good deeds. When he thought of this, Peng Hang felt a bit embarrassed. He shouldn¡¯t have suspected aw-abiding civilian. ¡°Fu ge, I feel like there was something wrong about the way that police officer looked at you,¡± Chu Yu stated. ¡°Did you spill the beans in front of him?¡± ¡°Probably not,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s obvious that that human is a staunch materialist. Even if there was a haunting right in front of him, he would automatically employ all sorts of scientific reasons to exin it.¡± Zhuang Qing listened to Fu Li and Chu Yu discuss materialism and hauntings the whole journey, and then spoke mildly, ¡°It¡¯s fine even if he discovered something. A memory-losing spell will do the trick.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right!¡± Fu Li nodded at once to express his firm endorsement of Zhuang Qing¡¯s opinion. All of a sudden, the smile on his face disappeared. He raised his head, staring at a certain house in the distance that had an entire floor flooded. ¡°There seem to be people in that house.¡± Chu Yu sucked in his nostrils and confirmed it for him. ¡°It¡¯s the smell of humans, and... the smell of Happiness Ointment.¡± ¡°Happiness Ointment?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°You¡¯re sure?¡± Chu Yu nodded. ¡°This is the smell.¡± As the top Daoist fish, he would take responsibility for his senses. At a certain house, several lords were squatting on the bed and table as they looked vacantly at the furniture floating around the house. They had merely kidnapped two children beforeing to Linhai City, and hadn¡¯t expected to encounter such an incident before they had even stayed a few days. The boss slowly spat out a mouth of smoke. The smell of Happiness Ointment pervaded the entire house. He shot a nce at the children who were tied together. The children were seated on a cab, not daring to cry or kick up a fuss. He tapped the ash on his cigarette. ¡°The tide has already started receding. When order is restored outside, we¡¯ll have to think of a way to deal with these two children.¡± If he¡¯d known that the police from the capital would chase after them to this ce, he wouldn¡¯t have epted this business. Now that so much trouble had been stirred up, he and his gang of brothers would be dragged in if he even so much as made one wrong move. ¡°Boss, those police officers that came over from the capital have a tight watch on us, I¡¯m afraid this matter won¡¯t be easy to deal with,¡± A fatty at the side sucked in his nostrils desperately. He already felt a little drunk just from sniffing the smoke. He rubbed his nose to clear his mind a little. ¡°Even if the tide recedes, there are still many officers outside cleaning the city and helping the residents to tidy their houses. Constantly staying here may not be a good idea either.¡± The boss abruptly took a few puffs of his cigarette. He looked at the muddy water on the ground, his gaze suddenly turning ruthless. ¡°Since the tide has risen, one or two drowned children would just be an ident. Let the other side know.¡± Rather than let these goods drag him down, he would rather deal with them early on. ¡°Boss, you mean...¡± ¡°Let our business partner know. Just say that the goods were spilled and that I¡¯ll bring him good stuff next time,¡± The boss put down the cigarette and pointed at the two children. ¡°Deal with them.¡± They would take advantage of the lower ground on this end and the fact that no one had passed by to throw these two children down and let the tide wash them away, resulting in idental deaths. Hardening his heart, the boss instructed his subordinates to carry this out. The fatty found two sters and sealed the two children¡¯s mouths. With one child in each hand, he stepped into the water and prepared to fling the two children through the window on the second floor. However, a strange incident urred. After being flung down, the two children did not sink into the water. An enormous tortoise carried the two children and swam to shore in the blink of an eye. He thought he had seen wrongly. He rubbed his eyes forcefully and realized that the two children andrge tortoise had disappeared, but there was now an extra white, fat rabbit beside the window. ¡°Fatty, what are you daydreaming about?¡± The boss saw the fatty standing motionlessly by the window and said with some impatience, ¡°You still want to watch them drown with your eyes wide open?¡± Not even a shred of humanity. He had already thrown them down, yet he still wanted to watch them drown to death. Unlike him, who had a soft heart by nature and couldn¡¯t stand to see such a cruel scene. ¡°B-Boss, rabbit, there¡¯s a rabbit,¡± Fatty stammered out, his words tinged by fear. Any person who saw an overly-clean rabbit appear before them after seeing an iparablyrge tortoise would find this scene strange. ¡°What¡¯s that about a rabbit? Have you not seen a rabbit in your whole f*cking life?¡± The boss pointed at a little brother beside him. ¡°Capture the rabbit to add to our meal.¡± The words just left his mouth when there was a thumping sound. The fatty fell heavily onto the ground, sshing dirty water. ¡°What happened?¡± The boss wiped the muddy water on his face and saw a fluffy, tiny white rabbit standing on the fatty¡¯s face. The fatty¡¯s four limbs were iling in the water, yet he just couldn¡¯t climb up. Faced with this scene, the few people in the house felt their hair stand on end. There was even someone who was so scared that they swallowed. In the quiet house, the sound of the person swallowing was particrly prominent. Then, they saw the rabbit... grin. Grin! Ahhhhhhh, how could rabbits grin?! Two hourster, Peng Hang received a call from Linhai City¡¯s police station, informing him that a few men were shouting and screaming at a certain house, which had attracted the attention of rescue personnel. These men imed to be the suspects of a kidnapping case in the capital and wanted the police to arrest them immediately. Linhai City¡¯s police officers weren¡¯t very clear on the case¡¯s proceedings and thus wanted to invite Peng Hang over for confirmation. Peng Hang: ? Wasn¡¯t there something wrong about this? Chapter 85 - Fu Li

Chapter 85 - Fu Li

When Peng Hang rushed to the police station, he was met with the few suspects babbling strangely. He inexplicably thought of the chiefbor contractor who had turned himself in not too long ago while carrying beer and stewed meat. ¡°There really is. There are yaoguai, that rabbit can eat humans!¡± ¡°A tortoise weighing several hundred catty brought the children away.¡± ¡°Yaoguai exist, they want to eat us. Policerades, you have to protect us.¡± How big was a tortoise weighing a few hundred catty? How big was a rabbit? Could they even eat people? Some people suspected they were deliberately feigning mental issues to shirk their legal responsibilities and thus got them to do a mental assessment. Everything came back normal. What was most mystical was that someone discovered the two kidnapped children at a certain street. They were seated quietly beneath a house¡¯s eaves, and even had bread and milk in their hands, as if they were merely tired out after a day of fun and sat down by the road for some rest. Peng Hang felt that there was something wrong with his brain. After the urrence of these bizarre incidents, the first thing he thought of was Fu Li. In the end, after pondering over it, he could only ept this oue ¨C namely, that Fu Li¡¯s identity was tied to the security department, so even if he exhibited some strange behavior, it was rted to work. Convinced of this, he no longer specially went to investigate the surveince cameras at the entrance and exit of the airport in order to determine if Fu Li had taken the scheduled flights in the records. Mid-Autumn Festival, the day when families reunited. Bao Yu had made many court mooncakes. Covering an entire table in mooncakes, he carried the table to the rooftop. Chu Yu looked up at the moon in the sky as the cold night breeze blew against him. He asked out of curiosity, ¡°Fu ge, what is there to be gleaned from praying to the moon?¡± ¡°Moonlight can raise cultivation,¡± Fu Li looked up, gazing at the bright moon in the sky. He told the yao cultivators on the rooftop. ¡°All of you have your own cultivation method; there is nothing much I can guide you in. The added cultivation from praying to the moon is simr to the money you secretly made from a second job. There will not be any bad effects on everyone¡¯s orthodox cultivation methods.¡± Everyone grew even more serious when Fu Li uttered these words. Tidying the edges of their clothes, they resolved to pray well to the moonter. Seeing everyone so solemn, Fu Li walked to Zhuang Qing and asked softly, ¡°Are you going to pray?¡± Zhuang Qing answered him with a question, ¡°What about you?¡± ¡°Of course I will. I prayed every year in the past,¡± Fu Li grabbed Zhuang Qing¡¯s wrist and found a good spot on the roof. ¡°Let¡¯s stand here and prayter.¡± Zhuang Qing nced at his shining eyes before turning his gaze towards the moon in the sky. ¡°All right.¡± Zhang Ke, who was tidying his clothes, saw Fu Li standing at the other end and was just about to head over when Chu Yu grabbed onto him. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to stand with Fu ge,¡± Zhang Ke didn¡¯t understand why Chu Yu was holding onto him. ¡°Why are you pulling me back?¡± ¡°Stand? Where are your eyes?¡± Chu Yu lowered his voice. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see that the boss came over tonight? Two handsome guys standing together is eye candy, but if you barge in, it¡¯s equivalent to a carrot appearing amongst ginseng. Would that be nice to look at?¡± Zhang Ke: ... This description was a bit ruthless, but when he looked at Zhuang Qing standing beside Fu Li, he did indeed put a stop to his intentions to go over. It was midnight. Fu Li said, ¡°No need to stand on ceremony, it¡¯s fine to just pray a bit with a sincere heart.¡± It wasn¡¯t like the moon was human; it wouldn¡¯t insist on unnecessarily borate things. The respectful bow of a sincere person would be reciprocated by moonlight. If there was an absence of sincerity, even praying thrice and kowtowing nine times wouldn¡¯t be of any use. He turned to look at Zhuang Qing. The other party was also looking at him. Fu Li ced both hands together, closed his eyes, and bowed towards the moon. The next instant, he transformed into a white rabbit. cing his front ws together, he did aplete bow. Endless brilliance was cast onto his body, as if there were countless rays of light enveloping him. Every strand of fur shone. Zhuang Qing quietly watched Fu Li for a while before bowing towards the moon. The power of the moonlight was extremely gentle. Upon bowing, his entire person felt like it was encased in a warm box. The giddy, contented feeling it brought about made him want to fall into a deep sleep. It felt like only a short period of time had passed, but at the same time, it felt like a long stretch of time had gone by. By the time he opened his eyes, it was almost dawn. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± A mooncake was held out to him. The contrast between the fair, delicate hand and the mooncake gave a delicious-looking appearance to the mooncake. Zhuang Qing picked up the mooncake and turned to look at the side. His other colleagues were already digging into their mooncakes while seated cross-legged on the ground. Not even a single mooncake was left on the table. ¡°These juniors are too savage when ites to eating,¡± Fu Li took out two tes of mooncakes from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°Luckily I reacted quickly and snatched two tes in advance, otherwise we won¡¯t have anything to eat.¡± While speaking, he handed a te to Zhuang Qing. Then, he fished out two soft cushions and sat on the ground cross-legged. Zhuang Qing held the te of mooncakes and silently looked at Fu Li¡¯s bold sitting posture. ¡°Sit,¡± Fu Li patted the soft cushion beside him and threw a mooncake into his mouth. His mouth didn¡¯t seem very big, but when the mooncake fell into his mouth, it seemed like it was falling into a bottomless pit; not even a shadow could be seen. Zhuang Qing mimicked the way Fu Li sat and sat down as well. He bit into the mooncake he was holding. It really did taste quite good. What was even rarer was that the top was filled with spiritual qi. The spiritual qi was extremely pure, without any of the filth from the mundane world. No wonder there was such a scramble for a few mooncakes. It wasn¡¯t for the mooncakes, but for the spiritual qi on top. ¡°In the past at Reflecting Mist Mountain, we also liked to disy offerings as we prayed to the moon. After praying, everyone would sit together and share the offerings. It was very lively.¡± Fu Li took out a bottle of spiritual essence and handed it to Zhuang Qing. ¡°Drink some water when eating, don¡¯t choke.¡± Zhuang Qing opened the bottle and took a sip. His entire body immediately rxed. ¡°Among the yao cultivators on the mountain, some were good at ying musical instruments, and others were good at singing and dancing. Everyone would sing and dance, and we would often y till the time was forgotten,¡± Fu Li revealed a smile. Among the times he mentioned Reflecting Mist Mountain in Zhuang Qing¡¯s presence, this smile was his most natural. ¡°Although Reflecting Mist Mountain isn¡¯t around now, everyone might still be alive and well. As long as they¡¯re still around, any ce can be Reflecting Mist Mountain. When I find them in the future, I¡¯ll bring you to Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s gathering and treat you to a spiritual hot spring, spiritual wine, and to the most beautiful song and dance.¡± Seeing the smile on his face, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t mention Zhu Yue¡¯s true form. He wiped the corners of his mouth. ¡°Okay.¡± He too wanted to see the yao cultivators who had raised Fu Li from young. He wanted to understand how Fu Li had once lived. Although, he himself didn¡¯t quite understand why he had such a thought. But as a cultivator, he didn¡¯t want to stifle his true thoughts too much. Many things for which there appeared to be no reason could only be understood after acting on them. ¡°You saved me from the Taowu. I want to say thank you, but those two words are too insignificant, too shallow. I can¡¯t say them.¡± Fu Li¡¯s bright eyes gazed at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Lifesaving grace cannot be repaid. I will treat you very, very well to not dishonor this friendship.¡± He didn¡¯t say kindness, but friendship. His eyes were too bright, so bright that its shine reached Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. His heart felt like it was firmly pinched by something. It loosened gently, and then once again firmly pinched his heart. He felt a bit short of breath, yet was reluctant to part with this feeling. How strange. ¡°What friendship? Stop bragging,¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head and ate three mooncakes in session before drinking a mouth of spiritual essence. When he next looked up, he was still as expressionless as before. ¡°I¡¯m not a little kid, I don¡¯t need you to treat me well.¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re amazing, but shouldn¡¯t you at least give me some face?¡± Fu Li took out another bottle of spiritual essence for Zhuang Qing. ¡°Since I want to treat you well, then you can just reluctantly ept it on ount of us being colleagues, okay?¡± Zhuang Qing turned his head to the side. ¡°Whatever you say. How senseless.¡± ¡°The sun¡¯s about toe out,¡± Fu Li suddenly pped him on the shoulder and pointed at the sky in the east. ¡°Quick, look.¡± Zhuang Qing cast his gaze in the direction Fu Li was pointing at. The line of light that had already appeared in the dim sky was particrly striking. This line was the key to opening light. Very soon, the sky in the east turned increasingly red, and the sun slowly made its way up the horizon, looking like the egg yolk of a duck¡¯s egg. It was daytime. ¡°Let¡¯s eat fried eggs for breakfast,¡± Fu Li stared at the morning sun for a very long time. He turned towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°Let¡¯s go to your house to cook.¡± Zhuang Qing polished off thest mooncake and foisted his te on Fu Li. He stood up and patted his pants. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°To my house to cook.¡± ¡°When did the boss and Fu Li sneak off?¡± ¡°When you were snatching thest mooncake,¡± Huang Hou stroked his beard. ¡°I don¡¯t need to work today, I¡¯ll go back and rest.¡± More importantly, he had taken in a lot of spiritual qist night and needed to go back and absorb it. ¡°Another one gone,¡± Lin Gui had a good temperament and was also a bit slower in the way he did things. He and Huang Hou were cleaning up the messy rooftop, and since both their original forms were of the tortoise species, they both had the shoring of being very slow when doing things. ¡°Fu ge really knows a lot,¡± Huang Hou wiped the table. ¡°Just praying once to the moon gave me the feeling that it was even more effective than a few years of cultivation.¡± Lin Gui smiled and nodded. ¡°It¡¯s just a pity that despite Fu ge being so powerful and him putting in most of the effort whenever a great yao causes trouble, so much of his sry was deducted by the boss,¡± Huang Hou said in a low voice. ¡°They all say that the boss is very stingy in private, is that true?¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± Lin Gui asked back with a smile. Huang Hou shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t dare to think.¡± ¡°That¡¯s okay. You¡¯ll slowly get to know in the future,¡± Lin Gui¡¯s eyes were filled with tolerance for the younger generation. ¡°I believe in you, good luck.¡± Huang Hou: ... This sort of trust didn¡¯t make him feel proud. Fu Li ran to Zhuang Qing¡¯s house and sessfully ate his fried eggs. Afterwards, he turned into his original form and fell asleep on the couch. For some unknown reason, he constantly felt tired thest two days and would fall asleep immediately after lying down. After cleaning up the kitchen, Zhuang Qing walked out and saw the rabbit sprawled on its back on the couch, sleeping with its belly exposed. He found a bath towel and covered the rabbit with it before going upstairs. He took a book and headed back down. The book had already turned yellow and some of the threads that bound the book had alsoe out. It was very likely that the book would fall apart if a bit more force was used. The book contained some recordings of the ancient great yao. However, in all cases, these great yao had formidable bodies and monstrous appearances. Cute looking yao cultivators like Fu Li had little fame. The most that would happen was them bing the food of other yao cultivators. Flipping a yellowed page, Zhuang Qing saw an abstract drawing that he vaguely made out to be a wild pig. Dangkang. Simr in appearance to a pig. The appearance of the Dangkang is an omen that the world will experience a prosperous year. It was a mere twenty-one words. Apart from a distorted drawing, there were no other records. Zhuang Qing nced at the peacefully sleeping rabbit and suddenly had a ridiculous conjecture. Fu Li was having a very strange dream. He dreamt that he was a ball of light that couldn¡¯t speak. Then, he was blown by the wind into a certain rock. He didn¡¯t want to be a rock, so after a round of struggling, he became a rabbit. The sky was an intense red. The ground was very dark. He cried out loudly in great fear. Until a warm palm rested against his back. He opened his eyes and saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s solemn face. Zhuang Qing retracted his hand at lightning speed and said with a taut face, ¡°You kicked the bath towel to the floor. I was going to help cover you with it.¡± Fu Li sat up. Sure enough, he saw the bath towel on the floor. Shaking his tail, he climbed onto the cushions andy back down. ¡°Thank you.¡± Watching Fu Li lie down obediently, looking as if he was waiting to be covered by the nket, Zhuang Qing picked up the bath towel and covered him with it. ¡°What do you want to eat at noon?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not picky, I just don¡¯t like carrots, cabbage, bittergourd, Yuxing vegetable...¡± Hearing him recite the names of many vegetables, Zhuang Qing reached the end of his patience and gave the rabbit¡¯s head a rub. ¡°You really aren¡¯t picky at all.¡± Though Zhuang Qing said so, he still avoided the vegetables Fu Li listed when he opened the fridge. Sneezing, Fu Li thought about how an elderly human man had once told him that the way to a person¡¯s heart was through their stomach. Given Zhuang Qing¡¯s culinary skills, if he liked a female yao in the future, he would definitely obtain her affection with ease. There were peeled fruit cubes on the side table. Fu Li switched the television on, leaped onto the side table, and started eating slowly. By the time Zhuang Qing was done cooking, the entire te of fruit cubes had been eaten by Fu Li. The exceedingly fat rabbity numbly on the couch,ziness exuding from every inch of his body. ¡°Time to eat.¡± Thepletely motionless rabbit instantly bounded to the dining table upon hearing these words. Changing into his human form, he picked up his chopsticks. ¡°Wash your hands,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li¡¯s hands with displeasure. He had climbed all over the floor, couch, and side table in his rabbit form. How clean could his hands be? Fu Li obediently went to wash his hands with this one shout from Zhuang Qing. Along the way, he evendled out the soup in the kitchen. ¡°Bao Yu¡¯s culinary prowess can¡¯t bepared to yours,¡± Fu Li munched on the meat of the fish belly and gave Zhuang Qing a high evaluation. ¡°Don¡¯t think that I¡¯ll cook for you frequently even if you praise me,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his empty bowl. Seeing signs of fatigue still present on Fu Li¡¯s face, he couldn¡¯t help furrowing his brows. ¡°Still sleepy?¡± Fu Li was a bit embarrassed. ¡°Forget it, I can¡¯t hope for you to do much anyway. Go sleep.¡± Zhuang Qing picked up the dirty bowls on the table and walked to the kitchen. When he reached the door, he looked back. Fu Li had turned into his rabbit form again and was jumping onto the couch. Zhuang Qing shifted his gaze. There was an uneasy feeling in his heart. He constantly felt that there was something abnormal about Fu Li the past two days. When Fu Li leaped onto the couch, a rustling sound came from his feet, as if he had stepped onto some paper. He pushed the cushions away with his head, revealing a shabby, yellowed book. He had never been a yao who was fond of reading books, but since his greatest dream in recent times was to be a civil servant, he flipped through a few pages with his ws. There was a brief introduction of a few yao beasts inside, though there wasn¡¯t as much content as what White Ape had told him. His interest instantly dissipated. Just as he was about to close the book,ck of control over his rabbit ws caused him to flip to a certain page at the back. The word ¡®Dangkang¡¯ caught his attention. The Kunpeng had mentioned this yao beast when he chatted with him. However, he knew almost nothing about this yao beast because Elder White Ape hadn¡¯t told him about it. There were only a few words and there was little information to be gleaned. Although the kindergarten-level drawing did surprise him a little. The pig resembled King Ganglie quite strongly, though King Ganglie¡¯s original form was much better looking than this one and he didn¡¯t look this malevolent. The Dangkang was an auspicious beast and could even bring bountiful harvests to the human world? Whenever they had to nt things on the mountain, it was always Elder White Goat and Elder White Tiger worrying over it. All King Ganglie knew how to do was eat, cook, and host feasts. Apart from appearance, there was really nothing simr about the Dangkang and King Ganglie. ¡°Still not sleeping?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over. Seeing that Fu Li was reading the page on the Dangkang, he smoothly stated, ¡°In the legends, the Dangkang is an ancient auspicious beast. His appearance can bring about bountiful harvests, and he can also sing and dance. The ces he sings at will be lush with vegetation and abundant with fruit. The ces he dances at will be full of vitality and its yield will double.¡± King Ganglie¡¯s singing was hoarse and unpleasant to the ear. His dancing was also only limited to twisting his buttocks and stamping his feet. It seemed like there was an even greater disparity in standards between him and the Dangkang now. Moreover, given King Ganglie¡¯s fondness for bragging, if he really were the Dangkang, he would have long bragged about it to him for a hundred years. How could he not even mention it once? ¡°My cultivation has just advanced and my soul hasn¡¯t fully assimted yet,¡± Fu Li sneezed. ¡°I¡¯ll go meditate first, maybe I¡¯ll get better after that.¡± Zhuang Qing nodded, his expression grave. In the past, he hadn¡¯t been in very high spirits just after his cultivation advanced, but he had also never been as sleepy as Fu Li. Fu Li transformed into his human form and picked up the book beside him. A page fell out,nding on his other palm. Xing Xing. Simr in appearance to an ape. White-eared and walks like a human. Comprehends all living things in the world, but cannot foresee the future. When it consumes meat, it runs as fast as flight. These words were apanied by a picture underneath of an ape walking upright. The drawing was also an exaggerated, distorted image. Fu Li clutched this piece of paper, his gaze fixed on it for a very long time. Then, he wedged the paper into the book and ced the book on the side table. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t see any changes in Fu Li¡¯s expression, but he still subconsciously felt that Fu Li wasn¡¯t very happy at this point in time. He threw the book to the side and told Fu Li, ¡°These are just some jumbled up records. They can¡¯t be taken as the truth.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t understand,¡± Fu Li sat on the couch, hugging his knees. His expression was one of veiled bitterness. ¡°I thought that all the yao cultivators on the mountain were like me ¨C having defects from birth. But reality tells me that I might have just thought too much about everything. I¡¯m the only one who really has defects.¡± Even today, he could remember the many images Elder White Ape had drawn for him when he first reached Reflecting Mist Mountain. ¡°Little child, who does the sparrow I drew look like?¡± ¡°Like the little bird dancing on the tree this morning.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°Who does the pheasant I drew look like?¡± ¡°Like the pretty sister who wanted to carry me yesterday.¡± ¡°Very clever.¡± ¡°Who does this white ape I drew look like?¡± ¡°Like you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°What about this wild pig?¡± ¡°Like the fat uncle that brought me back yesterday with you.¡± ¡°You have very good vision.¡± ¡°After discussing with King Ganglie for a few days, we decided to give you a name.¡± ¡°What is a name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a way of calling you.¡± ¡°What name did you give me?¡± ¡°Fu Li.¡± ¡°What does it mean?¡± ¡°Fu ¨C a symbol of the auspicious. Li ¨C a reminder that once you encounter the auspicious, you must never let it leave you.¡± Chapter 86 - Eating Yao

Chapter 86 - Eating Yao

The rabbit sprawled on the couch was ying Jewel of Antis on the tablet. However, his dispirited tail revealed that he was not in very high spirits at the moment. Even so, he still persisted in ying mobile games for an entire afternoon till Zhuang Qing finished preparing dinner. Smelling the fragrance of food, Fu Li shook his ears, kicked the phone to the side, and jumped off the couch. Zhuang Qing saw that Fu Li had already obediently seated himself on the chair, his bowl and chopsticksid out properly. Wasn¡¯t he in a bad mood? Why was he in such good spirits when it was meal time? Zhuang Qing thought in a huff. He thought about how he had even hid in the kitchen and used his phone to search about the types of food that could lift a person¡¯s mood, and felt like his brain had been infected with Fu Li¡¯s stupidity. What spice or sweet food? It was purely about eating till one was full to bursting. Fu Li sat on the stool for a long time. Seeing Zhuang Qing re at him continuously, he asked curiously, ¡°Is the food not done yet?¡± ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Zhuang Qing wanted to taunt him a bit more, but the words that came out became, ¡°Some dishes are very spicy, can you handle them?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve even eaten many tes of m crayfish together, what else is there that I can¡¯t eat? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m picky,¡± Fu Li swung his short tail. His tail swiped back and forth across the back of the chair, as if it was a brush. ¡°Yup, you¡¯re not picky at all, you just have too many things you dislike eating,¡± Zhuang Qing was angered intoughter by his words. The dishes he carried out from the kitchen covered the entire table. Several dishes that featured fish or shrimp as the main ingredient were ced closest to Fu Li. Fu Li was stunned by the entire table of dishes. He transformed into his human form. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, were you given prize money?¡± Zhuang Qing had just put down thest te of fruits and sat down when Fu Li uttered these words. He responded expressionlessly, ¡°Ever since working with all of you, I haven¡¯t taken any prize money in a very long time.¡± Fu Li could tell that Zhuang Qing was mocking them, but he wasn¡¯t angered. Instead, he revealed a smile. ¡°Thank you.¡± Although his mouth was harder than anything else, his heart was softer than even cotton candy. ¡°Don¡¯t overthink. I cook like this even when you¡¯re not around,¡± Zhuang Qing picked up his chopsticks and deliberately chose an iparablyrge, fat shrimp right in front of Fu LI. But this time, Fu Li didn¡¯t scramble with him for it and even voluntarily gave him a good number. Zhuang Qing suddenly felt somewhat unustomed to it. He directly ced the peeled shrimp into his mouth without any sauce. Fu Li didn¡¯t notice that he had momentarily forgotten himself. Taking a sip of fruit juice, he told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Zhuang Qing, thank you.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips moved, but he didn¡¯t speak. ¡°I don¡¯t know why the elders from the mountain lied to me, but they treated me very well,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t move his chopsticks. He gazed at the moon outside the window, his train of thought drifting back four thousand years ago. From birth, he seemed to have understood thenguages of all living things in the world. Coupled with the fact that he had gained intelligence, he could be considered knowledgeable from birth. In the past, it was unknown if Elder White Ape had intentionally misled him into misunderstanding the true forms of the yao cultivators on the mountain. Moreover, after he misunderstood, everyone lived in a manner consistent with what he had imagined. Just like... they hoped he would misunderstand their identities. Fu Li didn¡¯t understand why they would do so. But all he needed to understand was that the care and concern his elders showed to him was real. That was enough. Pursuing an answer for everything may not always result in happiness. The destruction of Reflecting Mist Mountain was the knot in his heart. Perhaps the many interesting yao cultivators he had gotten to know in this period had allowed him to gradually walk out of the sorrow that was Reflecting Mist Mountain. So when this knot was untied and he glimpsed the truth within, he was not overly angry or disappointed, to the extent that he rejoiced at the fact that everyone did not possess defects at birth and that they were auspicious creatures revered by all. Elder White Goat once said that he would have truly grown up when he no longer obsessed over the past and learned how to reflect. Or perhaps it was because there was a reliable friend beside him when he discovered this truth that his ability to endure psychologically was strengthened. This table of dishes that was even more sumptuous than the past represented the other party¡¯s kind intentions. He picked up a m chicken cube with his chopsticks. The chicken meat was very spicy, so spicy that he gasped for breath. Even the rims of his eyes felt hot. Fu Li silently picked up multiple chunks of chicken meat and delivered them to his mouth. His tongue felt like it was on fire. ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his chopsticks. With a terrifying expression on his face, he made a weak statement after a long while, ¡°Eat something else.¡± He pushed the extremely spicy dishes to the side. Fu Li looked nkly at him. His raised chopsticks hung in the air motionlessly. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who told me in the past not to insist on holding on even if I¡¯m upset?¡± Zhuang Qing poured a ss of fruit juice for him and held it out to Fu Li¡¯s mouth. ¡°Take a sip.¡± Fu Li obediently took a sip. ¡°It¡¯s very normal to be in a bad mood when the people closest to you lie to you.¡± Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li take multiple sips of the fruit juice before continuing, ¡°Your angry look is also much better-looking than the way you look when you stubbornly insist on holding on.¡± The corner of Fu Li¡¯s lips puckered up. ¡°Elder White Goat said that adult yao must learn how to master control over their emotions and remain rational.¡± ¡°Rational my ass!¡± Even when cursing, Zhuang Qing, who was dressed in a top and vest, still gave off a noble air. ¡°A yao who isn¡¯t upset when encountering sad things isn¡¯t an adult but a fool!¡± ¡°R-Really?¡± Fu Li had already unwittingly drank half a ss of fruit juice. ¡°I¡¯ve had dealings with humans and yao cultivators from young. Although I¡¯m not as old as you, even ten of you won¡¯t be able topare to me when ites to life experience,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his ss of fruit juice. Lowering his head, he looked at Fu Li. ¡°Anyway, there¡¯s no one apart from me here. If you want to be happy, then be happy. If you want to be angry, then be angry. I don¡¯t have any interest in telling other yao about your matters.¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face copsed. His entire person was listless, looking like a deted balloon from head to toe. ¡°I just don¡¯t understand why they lied to me.¡± To him, they were his most trusted elders who had been by his side since the time he gained awareness. It was them who taught him magic skills and the way to concoct pills. It was them who taught him the principles of being a yao. It was them who raised him from young. Even if they told him that the sun rose from the west and that he felt the sun rose from the east only because there was something wrong with their mountain¡¯s qi field, he would also believe them without a doubt. Everything he possessed ¨C knowledge, cultivation, and maturity, were all bestowed on him by them. Without them, there would not be the current Fu Li. Therefore, he had never once thought that they would lie to him, and that this lie had been nted when he first arrived at Reflecting Mist Mountain. No, not right. They hadn¡¯t lied to him, just intentionally misled him into thinking that their true forms were of ordinary animals, animals that could be seen anywhere in the world. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, if all the yao cultivators on the mountain were not like what I had imagined, then what exactly are their true forms?¡± Fu Li bit his lower lip. ¡°They might have deliberately misled me because they had no other choice?¡± ¡°Were they good to you?¡± Zhuang Qing answered his question with a question. Fu Li nodded. ¡°No other yao could be better than them.¡± ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, you can directly ask them when you find them in the future. What use is there in letting your imagination run wild on its own?¡± Zhuang Qing looked out the window, his expression grave. ¡°Besides, I think that you¡¯re right. Perhaps they didn¡¯t have any choice.¡± ¡°I feel much better now that you said that,¡± Fu Li yawned. Shrinking back into a rabbit, hey on the dining chair and directly fell asleep. Seeing that Fu Li had inadvertently fallen asleep, Zhuang Qing crouched down, staring at the fat rabbit. The worry in his heart intensified. There was something very wrong with Fu Li¡¯s current condition. How could a yao cultivator sleep at the drop of a hat? If he ran into some evil-hearted yao who took this opportunity to dig out his yao core, what would he do then? Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s yao cultivators had really spoiled him rotten. Stretching out his hands, Zhuang Qing ced the rabbit in the crook of his arm before carrying it to the couch. After a moment of hesitation, he turned and went upstairs. His bedroom was veryrge and very grand. Most importantly, there was a huge safety formation set up inside. Any foolish yao who barged into the formation might lose their lives. cing the rabbit on the bed, Zhuang Qing covered him with a small nket. A tiny sigh escaped his lips. Why did he, a dragon who wasn¡¯t even two thousand years old, have to worry about a rabbit who was more than four thousand years old? His phone rang at this moment. He nced at Fu Li, who was dead to the world, and walked out of the room. ¡°What happened?¡± It was Chu Yu on the other end. His voice was anxious. ¡°Boss, there¡¯s trouble.¡± ¡°What trouble?¡± Zhuang Qing pinched the bridge of his nose. For trouble to have urred in session, the fengshui today probably wasn¡¯t very good. ¡°Two yao cultivators were attacked by an unknown evil yao. Their entire body was drained of blood, leaving only ayer of skin and their skeletons,¡± An involuntary shiver snaked up Chu yu¡¯s spine upon thinking about the miserable state the two yao cultivators were in post-death. ¡°The yao on the forum are panic-ridden now, and many yao don¡¯t dare to leave their houses. There are even some with less courage who have already run to our management bureau¡¯s hall to make their bed and hide.¡± In recent years, hardly any of such incidents had urred. Even when the Zhuyan was stirring up trouble, he had eaten humans and not yao cultivators. For such an incident to ur abruptly after such a long period of peace, it was very normal for some yao to be afraid. ¡°Who are the deceased?¡± ¡°One of them is a flower yao who transformed into its human form not too long ago, and the other is a half-yao that has a hundred years of cultivation.¡± These two yao didn¡¯t have high cultivation, so most of the anxious yao cultivators on the forum were those with low cultivation. ¡°The suspect shouldn¡¯t be a great yao with high cultivation. If they wanted to eat yao, they definitely wouldn¡¯t choose this sort of little yao,¡± Zhuang Qing stated. ¡°Look through the Yao Union¡¯s database ¨C look out for yao with blood-sucking abilities, and investigate the recent entrance and exit records of foreign yao. Don¡¯t let off any suspicious yao. Most importantly, send a safety warning to every cultivator. I¡¯m worried that the suspect will target the blood of not only yao cultivators, but also human cultivators.¡± ¡°Got it, Boss. I¡¯ll get on it straight away,¡± Chu Yu was also aware that this matter could not be dyed. Covering it up was even more out of the question. They should then strengthen their safeguards. On the Yao Union¡¯s side, they received funds from the country every year. This time, they wouldn¡¯t be able to pocket the money without working. Zhuang Qing hung up and returned to the room, looking at the rabbit that was sleeping like a pig. He wrote a note and stuck it on the rabbit¡¯s head before leaving the vi withrge strides. The rabbit on the bed kicked out its hind legs and spread out its limbs. Its sleep was carefree and worry-free. Fu Li had a very beautiful dream. In his dream, he was wrapped in something nice and cozy. There were people beside him crying,ughing, and ring up in anger. All the emotions converged on him. These emotions did not distress him but instead strengthened his body. There was a human wearing animal skins who hoped that their tribe would be able to avoid the onught of winter ice and snow. There was a skinny, shriveled woman wearing a shabby sackcloth who prayed to the Heavens not to take her child away from her. There was also a tiny child with messy hair and a dirty face standing on barrennd, praying to the Heavens to grant him food. Yet, the human wearing animal skins did not escape the onught of wind and snow. Countless elderly people and children froze to death. In the end, even the man in animal skins was buried in the frozennd. Before his death, his eyes were wide open, seemingly questioning the Heavens why it had seized the lives of so many people. The skinny, shriveled woman¡¯s child still passed away. She hugged its swaddling clothes as she cried and cursed the Heavens forcking vision, demanding to know why it had taken her only child. The tiny child with messy hair and a dirty face eventually starved to death in thest round of winter snow. He was barefoot when he passed away. On his dirty and dry face, his reluctance to part with life could be seen. He hadn¡¯t yet looked upon the prosperous and beautiful side of this world before painfully passing on from hunger and cold. The devotion of the human wearing animal skins, the pitiful state of the skinny, shriveled woman, and the innocence of the tiny child ¨C none of these made the Heavens benevolent. Countless humans passed on in pain every day, and there were also many humans who bawled at birth every day. Many people cursed the Heavens for being merciless, yet there were also many people who uttered ¡®many thanks for the protection of the Heavens¡¯. There were all sorts of people in the human world, but none of them would escape life and death. ¡°All life and death is karma. One must never be demanding. The demander will suffer, and the obeyer will be blessed.¡± A voice with concealed bitterness rang beside Fu Li¡¯s ears, so faint that neither its gender nor age could be distinguished. Fu Li asked curiously, ¡°Who are you?¡± The voice did not answer him and merely repeated the phrase ¡®never be demanding¡¯. When Fu Li opened his eyes, a roof full of iid gemstones entered his vision. He shook his head. A slip of paper fell off his head. ¡°Something to settle at the management bureau. I¡¯ll rush over first. Zhuang Qing.¡± Fu Li leaped off the bed. Turning into his human form, he cast a purifying spell on himself and then swiftly set off for the management bureau. Inside the barrier, the management bureau¡¯s hall was filled with tents. On one end, a dog and cat yao nearly broke into a fight over territory, while on the other end, a parrot yao and crested myna yao were eloquently trading insults. To discuss whose water basin was better looking, two fish yao transformed into their original forms and shook their tails. A white mouse yao had arrived toote and had no alternative but to share a tent with a cat yao. The fear left him shaking from head to toe. When a dog yao arrived at his side, he was so thoroughly frightened that he turned into his original form. Two flower yao were ttering each other, but behind their gentle appearances was their ruthless denigration of the other. On their pretty, flirtatious faces was infinite charm. The Kunpeng and Gong Fu stood on the floor above, looking down at the tents densely packed together and the yao of all varieties who interacted peacefully despite squeezing together. If this were a few thousand years back, it would be impossible to see such a sight. The cat yao actually didn¡¯t eat the mouse yao, nor did the snake yao eat the frog yao. A wolf yao even called a pig yao ¡®brother¡¯ and gathered together to y cards. This was simply a miracle. ¡°I don¡¯t understand the trends in the current cultivation world,¡± The Kunpeng pointed at a happy couple at a corner. ¡°Isn¡¯t that a Siberian weasel and a chicken? Those two can actually get together?¡± Gong Fu was looking on with keen interest. He rolled his eyes at the Kunpeng. ¡°Isn¡¯t it said that the times are progressing and that the yao world is improving? Isn¡¯t it very good that they can be together in such harmony and love?¡± He had just voiced these words when noise sounded from below. It turned out that the crested ibis was quarreling with a spider, and it was quite a serious quarrel too. When the nearby yao saw them, they revealed expressions indicating that this was expected. The grudge between the crested ibis and spider yao went all the way back to many years ago. That year, there was a disagreement between the crested ibis and the spider yao, so the crested ibis deliberately framed the spider yao for illegally capturing a wild endangered animal. Because of this, the spider yao was arrested by the human police and imprisoned for many years. The spider yao demonstrated excellent behavior in the human prison and sessfully left jail this month after much difficulty. Now that he bumped into the crested ibis, this shameless enemy of his, he could already be considered very restrained for not beating the other party up. The crested ibis¡¯ outrageous behavior had long incurred the loathing of many yao, so when the argument urred, all the yao stood on the side of the spider yao. With so many yao against him, the livid crested ibis left the hall. ¡°So what if you¡¯re an endangered animal? If not forozi being unable to find evidence of you framing me, I would have long gotten the management bureau to arrest you,¡± The suppressed anger in the spider yao¡¯s heart abated a little at longst. ¡°Truly a scum among birds!¡± Hearing his words, the other yaoforted him. Some yao even stuffed some delicious snacks in his hands. The spider yao held the delicious dried meat and licked his teeth. The crested ibis silently ran out and then bumped into the management bureau¡¯s Fu Li head-on. ¡°What are your eyes for, farting?!¡± The crested ibis got up from the floor and started cursing. But when he saw that he had bumped into Fu Li, his voice instantly lowered in volume by eight-tenths. He remembered the sense of fear he had felt when he was sent flying by Fu Li¡¯s palm. With a humph, the crested ibis patted the dust that had gotten on his body before running off into the distance without looking back. ¡°Ai...¡± Fu Li looked at the wallet on the ground. Stooping over, he picked it up. He took out his phone and called Zhuang Qing. After confirming that his help wasn¡¯t needed at the moment, he took the wallet and chased after the crested ibis. Although the bird wasn¡¯t very likable, Fu Li would send his wallet to him on ount of the fact that he was a national bird treasure, so as to avoid the dignified national treasure making it onto human news because he didn¡¯t pay for the things he bought. The crested ibis was a yao who valued face. How could he tolerate being scolded by so many yao? In one breath, he ran tens of kilometers, only stopping at a river. He picked up a pebble beside his foot and flung it into the river. Unresigned, he cursed, ¡°How shameless, who was it who deliberately got him arrested by the human police?¡± It was clearly that yao with impure motives who wanted to capture him for sale after seeing his pretty feathers, okay? He hadn¡¯t expected the yao he hade across to say that he had deliberately framed him. He couldn¡¯t believe there was actually such a shameless yao in this world. Those yao cultivators who stood up for him too ¨C they were all morons. All of them just assumed that they were standing on the side of justice without even looking at the trash they were helping. He was a dignified crested ibis. He had no need for human aid if he wanted to take revenge on a spider. A-Although, he had indeed relied on human help in the end to escape from the clutches of the spider yao. But that wasn¡¯t important. What was important was that he wouldn¡¯t use such underhanded means. ¡°The sun today is so good, why is mister admiring the scenery on your own by the river?¡± A man wearing a suit and necktie stood not too far from the crested ibis. He had ck hair, blue eyes, and deep facial features. He was very handsome, but clearly didn¡¯t look like a human from this country. The crested ibis was a yao with an explosive temper. Seeing that the man was putting on an act, he directly said, ¡°Is it any of your f*cking business whatozi is standing here doing!¡± The handsome man stared nkly for a moment before very quickly restoring his elegant smile. ¡°Is mister not afraid of running into bad guys when standing here alone?¡± The crested ibis rolled his eyes heavily at the sky. ¡°Scram!¡± Laozi relies on beauty to move unhindered through the world of yao cultivators. All he needed to do was transform into his original form, and countless people would kneel and call him daddy. There was no need to be polite. ¡°Mister, this sort of attitude makes me very unhappy,¡± The handsome man¡¯s face sank. The blue shade of his eyes deepened due to rage. ¡°Disobedient little things are better off eaten.¡± Chapter 87 - Habit

Chapter 87 - Habit

¡°Are you f*cking crazy?¡± The crested ibis furrowed its brows. ¡°Do you know how long the jail sentence is for eating a national endangered animal?¡± The suited man sneered after hearing these words. ¡°I¡¯ve heard for a long time that your country¡¯s yao cultivators are protected very well, but I didn¡¯t expect them to be this childish. Since I dare to eat you, would I still be afraid of some wild animal protectionw?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a foreign yao?¡± rm rang in the crested ibis¡¯ heart. He retreated a few steps towards the river. The suited man evidently knew the reality of ¡®viins dying by talkativeness¡¯. Hepletely ignored the crested ibis¡¯ words and suddenly spread out both arms, pouncing at the crested ibis like he was hunting. The bloodthirsty aura on him triggered the crested ibis¡¯ memories of a frightening experience when he hadn¡¯t yet taken on human form ¨C a male eagle had nearly wed him to death that year. Although he evaded the suited man¡¯s attack in a panic, hisplexion was very pale. ¡°I heard the crested ibis is orded a lot of importance in your country. The fresh blood of a bird with high human regard and faith must be very tasty,¡± The suited man was not infuriated by the crested ibis¡¯ dodge either. On the contrary, he took off his suit zer. ¡°Quick-witted prey can whet the appetite.¡± The crested ibis thought of the two yao cultivators who had been drained of blood. They might not have had high cultivation, but one of them was a flower yao whose actual form was a Dutchman¡¯s Pipe while the other was a half-human and half-fish, mixed-blood yao who seemed to have the lineage of a koi. Humans were very odd creatures. Though deep down, they no longer believed in the supernatural, they still believed that seeing a Dutchman¡¯s Pipe blossom would bring them luck and that wealth would definitely stream in if they raised koi at home. Their low cultivation was one of the reasons why this foreign yao had eaten them, but the special meaning behind their original forms was probably the greater reason. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Two firmly-muscled men wearing short-sleeved sports attire even in autumn ran over from the river dike. Noticing the hostile atmosphere between the crested ibis and the suited man, the gray-sleeved man used the sweatband around his neck to wipe his face. ¡°This is a civilized city, fights are not allowed.¡± He raised his sleeves, revealing his tattooed, sturdy arms in an attempt to scare the two people off. ¡°Two humans?¡± The suited man wrinkled his brows. His dark blue eyes swept across the sweat on the two muscled men and an expression of dislike appeared on his face. Sweaty middle-aged men whose skin was an ugly shade of dark from the sun was his most hated food. Their blood was foul. ¡°Scram, mind your own business,¡± A red light shed across the suited man¡¯s pupils. ¡°Hey, do you know where we¡¯re from?¡± The grey-sleeved man instantly became unhappy. Peeling off his shirt, he clenched his fists and shook his pectoral muscles, unting his offensive abilities. The other took the chance to fish out his phone and call the police. ¡°Stupid,¡± The suited man made a grabbing motion and the two muscled men were dragged to him as if there was an invisible string around them. ¡°I hate being interrupted when I¡¯m enjoying my meal,¡± The suited man cast a disdainful nce at the two people before directing his gaze at the crested ibis. He stretched out an arm and very easily gripped the crested ibis by its neck. ¡°You eastern yao really are too ipetent. Eliminating all of you is even easier than suntanning,¡± The suited man was handsome, but there waspletely no elegance in the way his hands moved. The suited man grabbed the crested ibis by the hair, held down his shoulders, and prepared to snap his neck. The next second, he was sent flying by a wave of power. The two muscled men¡¯s jaws dropped involuntarily as they watched the suited man who had been acting like a pretentious prick suddenly fly out, the height at which he flew up exceeding even seven or eight meters. This was a scene shot for a low-budget wuxia film, right? How could a person send an adult man that high up and that far with just one kick of the leg? That was life-threatening! They looked at the young man who had made a sudden appearance and felt their worldviews tottering on the edge of copse. The crested ibis, who had thought that he was a goner, looked at the yao who had suddenly appeared beside him. Opening his mouth, he let out a few dry coughs, unable to even say one word. ¡°We treat guests from afar with kind hospitality, but there is a phrase called ¡®guests act in ordance to the convenience of the host¡¯. On our easternnd, behavior such as eating yao isn¡¯t permitted.¡± Fu Li picked up the crested ibis behind him and threw him to the side. ¡°This honored guest has vited our management bureau¡¯s rules, please leave with us.¡± ¡°And what are you?¡± Rui Er was born a noble vampire prince and had already lived for more than a thousand years. He had no fear of sunlight or silver things, and possessed riches unimaginable to many humans. Fu Li had seen through Rui Er¡¯s actual form. He was nothing more than a hybrid of bat and human. He couldn¡¯t be considered to have a good foundation, nor was his cultivation very profound. Thus, Fu Li couldn¡¯t quite understand what this foreign yao cultivator was so proud of. Did he think he was unrivaled just because he bullied a few little yao in the yao world? ¡°If the guest does not cooperate with this humble one¡¯s investigation, I will have no choice but to be discourteous,¡± Fu Li stretched out a hand, the other hand still ced behind his back. ¡°You have taken two of my cultivation world¡¯s lives and attempted to injure our country¡¯s national endangered animal. Not only did you vite the cultivation world¡¯s regtions, you simultaneously breached the human world¡¯sws and resisted arrest. You have an extremely vile nature.¡± Seeing that the pretentious suited man waspletely unharmed despite falling from such a height, the two muscled men felt that there was something very fishy about today¡¯s incident. Although they usually liked bragging and would send someone flying with a kick regardless of what anyone said, it was still quite scary to see someone sent flying by a kick for real. When they heard ¡®cultivation world¡¯, ¡®human world¡¯ and whatnot, they felt that they seemed to have identally touched the fringes of a mysterious world. ¡°Hmph, you want to arrest me with just yourself?¡± Rui Erughed contemptuously. ¡°Trulyughable. Someone without any cultivation wants to arrest me?¡± The crested ibis, who had been carted to one side to stand properly, spat out the word ¡®idiot¡¯ upon hearing these words. Fu Li didn¡¯t have any cultivation? If these words got out, the entire cultivation world would burst outughing. Who didn¡¯t know that this rabbit spirit seemed gentle and harmless on the surface, but had boundless magic power when beating up yao? No one in the entire cultivation world wanted to offend this great lord. Rui Er very quickly paid a price for his ignorance. A p of the palm sent him into the waters. No! He hated water! Rui Er treaded water, wanting to float up. However, only half of his body made it out of the water before he was sent back into the water by a stomp of Fu Li¡¯s foot. ¡°Boss,¡± The gray-sleeved muscled man rubbed his eyes. ¡°Just now, how did that person get on top of the water?¡± The ck-sleeved muscled man stood upright and still. His face was nk from excessive shock. ¡°Ah, he must¡¯ve flown over.¡± How could people fly? Impossible! The gray-sleeved muscled man blustered in the depths of his heart. But all he did was twitch the muscles on his face and look up at the sun in the sky. ¡°I¡¯m probably dreaming.¡± The ck-sleeved muscled man said with a stiff face, ¡°You should think about when we¡¯ll be silenced.¡± With how powerful these people were, they definitely wouldn¡¯t be willing to let others discover their special characteristics. Since the two of them had discovered the existence of people with superpowers in this world, they would probably end up silenced. A string of superpower films yed out in the minds of the two burly chaps. The eventual conclusion they arrived at was that cannon fodders who discovered a secret too early on would generally fail to live on. The two people nced at each other, each seeing a hint of despair in the other¡¯s eyes. They hadn¡¯t yet unted photos of their muscles to their friends; they didn¡¯t want to die. Ru Er was tossed about by Fu Li till exhaustion took over his mind and body. In the end, he feebly turned into a ck-grey bat that struggled painfully in the water. Stepping on the water, Fu Li turned towards the crested ibis. ¡°Come here.¡± ¡°For what?¡± Although the crested ibis verbally expressed reluctance, he still obediently stepped onto the water and walked over. ¡°Capture this bat and return to the management bureau with me.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you capture it?¡± The crested ibis stooped over and picked up the bat from the water. He forcefully shook his hand to get rid of the water on it. Then, he took out string in preparation to tie it up into a ball. ¡°Bats are fond of hiding in dark caves and dislike taking baths. Who knows how much harmful bacteria they have on their bodies?¡± Fu Li¡¯s aversion was very obvious. ¡°It isn¡¯t very appropriate for me to do this sort of thing.¡± The crested ibis who was currently tying the bat up: ... He was the national treasure, was it appropriate for him to do this sort of thing? Calm down, calm down. Lifesaving grace ought to be repaid many times over. He couldn¡¯t get angry, couldn¡¯t get angry. ¡°I thought you might have moremon topics of discussion since you both have wings,¡± Fu Li was persuaded by the reason he himself had weaved. ¡°That¡¯s why I let you handle it. It can¡¯t be more appropriate.¡± The crested ibis reached the end of his patience. ¡°I am a national treasure.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve long finished reviewing the junior high school textbook, I know you¡¯re a national treasure,¡± Fu Li kicked the bat the crested ibis had tied up with the edge of his foot. ¡°In the past, this thing¡¯s patterns even symbolized luck and fortune. But isn¡¯t it still running over to suck blood now? Really, there¡¯s more and more degeneration, andpletely no progress.¡± He walked to the shore and went up to the two muscled men. ¡°You must be very curious why we can fly?¡± The two muscled men nodded. ¡°But I can¡¯t tell you,¡± Fu Li cocked his head. He tapped each of them once on the head. ¡°Continue toughening your bodies. Forget this bizarre, unscientific matter.¡± A few minutester, the two muscled men stood up on the stone steps. Chastising themselves for resting midway through their run, they continued jogging into the distance. At the management bureau, the crested ibis¡¯ departure hadn¡¯t attracted much attention. The spider yao had also fostered good rtions with the surrounding yao because of this matter. Whether it was the yao world or human world, ¡®joining together against amon adversary¡¯ would always be a good way of cultivating friendships. The spider yao spoke about how sad he had been in prison and how unused he had been to the humans¡¯ fast pace after leaving prison. In doing so, he aroused the sympathy of many yao cultivators. ¡°But the blood-sucking yaoguai outside hasn¡¯t been caught. What if the crested ibis ran into trouble after running out...¡± The one who spoke was a very young hibiscus yao. She had a sweet appearance and her heart was as soft as her appearance. ¡°The crested ibis has already lived for hundreds of years, how could he so easily be harmed?¡± Another yao responded impatiently. ¡°He¡¯ll return on his ownter.¡± ¡®Ai, he really dide back on his own.¡± ¡°Where, where?¡± ¡°Why is he with someone from the management bureau?¡± ¡°Did he hug the thigh of the management bureau?¡± Everybody gossiped about the crested ibis in a very lively manner. On the contrary, it was the spider yao who lowered his head as he silently gnawed on dried meat. It was just that he would asionally steal a few peeks at the floor the management bureau¡¯s office was on. Fu Li brought the crested ibis into an office for receiving yao cultivators before giving Zhuang Qing a call. Zhuang Qing and a crowd of colleagues were pinpointing suspicious areas using a projector. They were in the middle of their discussion when his phone rang. The other colleagues silently nced at Zhuang Qing¡¯s phone. Upon seeing the caller ID, Zhuang Qing hesitated for three seconds before picking up the call. ¡°Fu Li, did something happen?¡± He thought of Fu Li¡¯s overly-sleepy appearance with some worry. ¡°What are you doing? Nobody picked up when I dialed the internal line,¡± Fu Li took two cups of tea, handing one to the crested ibis. The crested ibis, who had still been very surly in speech just now, became so well-behaved after entering the office that he seemed more like a quail than a crested ibis. Even when Fu Li passed him the tea, he only dared to ept it with both hands and hold it up to his mouth, taking small sips from it. ¡°Capture what?¡± Fu Li heard that there was proper business for the bureau to do and his voice instantly became more solemn. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°What? A blood-sucking yao?¡± Fu Li nced at the bat who had been bundled up in a ball of string and stuffed into a stic bowl for takeout. ¡°I captured a bat outside just now. This bat seems like a foreign hybrid species. It wanted to drink the blood of our bird world¡¯s national treasure, so I seized it and gave it a beating.¡± ¡°You captured it?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice raised a few octaves. ¡°I¡¯ll go over this moment.¡± ¡°Boss, did something happen?¡± Seeing the somewhat strange expression on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face, Chu Yu thought that Fu Li had encountered some trouble. A tinge of anxiety could be seen on his face. ¡°Fu Li called to say that he captured a blood-sucking bat outside,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the projected map of the city. Putting down theser pen in his hands, he walked out. Seeing this, the other people followed after him. The crested ibis hadn¡¯t drunk more than a few sips of tea when a long string of footsteps sounded from outside. When he looked back and saw the man heading the group, he no longer dared to even drink his tea. In a blink of an eye, he leaped up from the chair and shrunk into a corner. Noticing the crested ibis¡¯ movements, Fu Li couldn¡¯t help taking an extra nce at him. Seeing Fu Li seated leisurely beside the table, Zhuang Qing strode in. His first question upon opening his mouth was, ¡°Still sleepy?¡± Fu Li stared nkly for a moment before shaking his head vacantly. Everyone following behind Zhuang Qing wore slightly strange expressions. Given that such a major incident had happened today, it was already strange that Fu Li hadn¡¯t rushed over first thing, but the boss was now even specially asking if Fu ge was sleepy or not... There was a perpetual feeling that their thoughts would shift to something moreplex the moment they weren¡¯t careful. ¡°So all of you were actually present,¡± Logically, it was still vacation period, yet all of the high-level bureau employees were present. This indicated that the matter wasn¡¯t as unimportant as Zhuang Qing had made it out to be. He directed his gaze at Chu Yu. ¡°What exactly happened? Tell me.¡± ¡°Two yao cultivators were murdered during the past two days. You should know of this, right?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°I already received the news forwarded by all of you.¡± He only knew that two yao cultivators with low cultivators had been murdered, as well as their original forms and the state of their cultivation. But he hadn¡¯t seen even one photo of the murder scenes. Zhuang Qing had even told him previously that it wasn¡¯t anything major, but it seemed from everyone¡¯s attitudes that this matter was not actually minor. ¡°The very scary appearances of the two murdered yao cultivators sent many yao cultivators into a panic, so there are now many yao cultivators living temporarily at our management bureau,¡± Chu Yu exined. ¡°But living here all the time isn¡¯t a solution either. The longer this is drawn out, the more detrimental it¡¯ll be. Who would have expected you to capture the suspect just as we were formting a capture n. Where was this suspect locked up at?¡± Fu Li pointed at the transparent stic takeout box on the table. Chu Yu lowered his head and looked at it. It seemed to be a ball of string? Upon closer inspection, he found a w sticking out of the ball of string. ¡°This is...¡± ¡°The mixed-blood product of a human and bat yao,¡± Fu Li saw that Chu Yu was about to reveal Rui Er, who was in the takeout box, and hurriedly held up his teacup, standing further away. He was afraid that the dust on the bat¡¯s body would fly into his teacup. Unresigned, Rui Er trashed about. What mixed-blood product of a human and bat yao? He was a prince, the prince of the noble blood n. ¡°Bat yao?¡± Chu Yu picked up the string and carried Rui Er out. His nose twitched. ¡°He does indeed reek of blood. There¡¯s even the smell of the Dutchman¡¯s Pipe and the koi. He drained those two yao cultivators of their blood.¡± Fu Li thought about it before adding, ¡°Can foreign yao speak orientalnguages fluently?¡± ¡°No,¡± Zhuang Qing pointed at Chu Yu. ¡°Take that dirty thing further away.¡± Chu Yu took a few steps back towards the door. The teacup Fu Li was holding returned to its original spot. Zhuang Qing walked to him, dragged a chair over, and sat down. ¡°It¡¯s fortunate you captured him. If not, no one would be able to rest easy.¡± ¡°This incident was also a coincidence. If the crested ibis hadn¡¯t dropped his wallet, I wouldn¡¯t have chased after him to return his wallet. I might not have captured him if that was the case,¡± Only then did Fu Li remember that the crested ibis¡¯ wallet was still with him. Fishing out the wallet, he looked around and found the crested ibis standing at a corner. ¡°Your wallet. Check whether there¡¯s anything missing.¡± ¡°N-Nothing,¡± The crested ibis leaned over to take his wallet. To him, anything that would allow him to be an extra millimeter away from Zhuang Qing was a good opportunity that he would not give up on. He ced his wallet into his pocket, said a word of thanks, and hastily ran out. ¡°He seems to be very scared of you. Did you beat him up in the past?¡± Fu Li found this a bit strange. The crested ibis and dragons were two different types of creatures; their paths shouldn¡¯t have crossed much. ¡°I¡¯m not familiar with him,¡± Zhuang Qing touched the teacup in Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°The tea isn¡¯t hot anymore, I¡¯ll help you refill the water.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± At Zhuang Qing¡¯s house, Fu Li had let Zhuang Qingdle out food for him, so he didn¡¯t think too much when Zhuang Qing said that he would help him to refill his tea. He directly handed Zhuang Qing the cup. When Zhuang Qing went off to refill water, Fu Li realized that everyone was looking at him with a very odd gaze. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li looked at Chu Yu in confusion. Chu Yu shook his head. ¡°Nothing.¡± ¡°Why do I feel like your gazes are very strange?¡± Fu Li contemted it for a moment and then took out a pile of snacks from his Qiankun pouch and ced them on the table. ¡°Hungry from working overtime?¡± All the employees: ¡°Haha.¡± The sound of theirughter was both awkward andpletely bereft of any amusement. Zhuang Qing came back from refilling water and was greeted with a huge crowd of people surrounding Fu Li. He furrowed his brows. ¡°None of you have anything to do?¡± ¡°Such a major incident has urred; have the report materials been prepared? Has the job of pacifying the cultivation world been arranged? Any follow-ups on the issue of security in the future? What about the criminal¡¯s verbal confession, has it been recorded?¡± Zhuang Qing ced the cup in front of Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t gather here, do what you should be doing.¡± Everyone scattered in all directions. Carrying the takeout box containing the bat, Chu Yu was on his way past the deck on the second floor when he heard a few yao cultivators gathered together and talking about how the crested ibis had hugged Fu Li¡¯s thigh and whatnot. He dismissed it with augh, and was about to head to the interrogation room when he heard a yao cultivator with a slightly shrill voice say, ¡°Maybe that crested ibis wants to rely on its good looks to seduce Fu daoyou.¡± Chu Yu¡¯s footsteps came to a halt. He looked towards the yao cultivator who had spoken. Not too far behind him, Zhuang Qing, who had just walked out of the room meant for receiving yao cultivators, also happened to have heard this statement. His expression was extremely indifferent. The corners of his lips pursed up slightly. Chapter 88 - Analogy

Chapter 88 - Analogy

¡°Ai, why did you stop walking?¡± Fu Li walked out of the office. Seeing that Zhuang Qing was standing motionlessly like a statue, he poked his waist. Zhuang Qing turned like he had been electrocuted and shot a re at Fu Li. ¡°What did you touch me for?¡± The spot at his waist that had been touched felt like it was on fire; it was both scalding hot and itchy. He could barely stop himself from scratching the area. Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing to have such a big reaction and was also shocked. ¡°What¡¯s with you?¡± Zhuang Qing wanted to say that a man¡¯s waist couldn¡¯t be touched, but faced with Fu Li¡¯s face, his imposing manner weakened abruptly. ¡°Nothing, there are a few little yao saying vulgar things downstairs.¡± Fu Li listened with rapt attention, and then realized that these people were gossiping about him. ¡°That crested ibis¡¯ human form isn¡¯t good looking, would Fu Li daojun fancy him?¡± ¡°The human form has always been the ugliest. Fu Li daojun¡¯s cultivation is profound, why would he use the human appearance to judge the crested ibis¡¯ looks?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. The crested ibis has bright-colored feathers, was established as a national treasure by the humans, and has some capital he can be proud of. Although Fu Li daojun¡¯s cultivation is profound, his original form is not lofty. There is a possibility that he was attracted by the crested ibis¡¯ vivid feathers.¡± What did they mean by ¡®not lofty¡¯? Fu Li most hated othersmenting on his original form. As a result, the smile on his face copsed the moment he heard this. So what if his original form wasn¡¯t lofty? Little bodies often harbored great souls! ¡°No, wasn¡¯t it mentioned on the forum that Fu Li daojun and Zhuang...¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible. The difference is too great, they don¡¯t seem like a pair just by looking at them.¡± ¡°Talking behind someone else¡¯s back is wrong. Your cultivation is poor, but it seems you¡¯ve learnt the human way of gossiping and meddling to the fullest extent,¡± Zhuang Qing flew down from the second floor. He said with a cold face, ¡°Since you¡¯re in such high spirits, why not let me listen in as well?¡± ¡°D-Dragon Lord,¡± The little yao who had been talking suffered such a fright that both their legs trembled. No longer did they dare to shoot their mouths off. Zhuang Qing saw that they had lost the enthusiasm for gossiping and let out a cold snort. He turned his head and realized that there was a yao cultivator gnawing on dried meat with a lowered head. The yao cultivator hadn¡¯t even raised his head once. It was clearly a very normal matter, but Zhuang Qing felt that there was something strange about it. He took a few steps before suddenlying to a stop. He turned to look at the yao cultivator who was eating dried meat. The other party still didn¡¯t look up. On the other hand, it was the yao cultivators around him who were secretly looking at Zhuang Qing with their bodies leaning forward slightly, indicating that they were seeing him off. ¡°You,¡± Zhuang Qing walked over. ¡°Let me see your identification card.¡± ¡°Dragon Lord, this person is Zhu Zhi daoyou. Because of a misunderstanding a few years ago, he was in a human prison for a few years. He was recently released from prison,¡± A warm-hearted yao at the side thought that Zhuang Qing was suspicious of the spider¡¯s identity and hurriedly took the initiative to help exin. Zhuang Qing had an impression of this incident. The incident hadn¡¯t only been reported in the human world that year but had also caused a sensation in their cultivation world. The crested ibis said that he had been captured by the spider yao, who was going to sell him abroad. On the other hand, the spider yao said that it was the crested ibis who had deliberately framed him and was beingpletely unreasonable. At that time, although the spider yao had already been given a sentence in the human world, he still dispatched people to look into the case. There had indeed been evidence at the scene indicating that the spider yao had forcibly brought the crested ibis away, which was why they hadn¡¯t contacted the relevant department in the human world to amend the original judgement. Despite so many years having gone by, this incident unexpectedly still hadn¡¯t subsided at all. On the contrary, it became more and more intense, creating such a stir that the entire cultivation world knew of it. Even some of the new bureau employees thought that the crested ibis was the one who had framed the spider yao. These yao ought to also think a little harder. If the crested ibis had reallymitted such a vile thing, how could the management bureau just sit and watch? Probably because the crested ibis was too vexed by these rumors, he simply smashed the pot that was already cracked. He would threaten anyone who provoked him with descriptions of how he would set them up. Little by little, the crested ibis grew to be hated by everyone in the cultivation world, regardless of whether they were human or cat. He would encounter obstacles everywhere he went. The spider yao didn¡¯t look strong. Under Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze, he seemed to be cowering a little. Fishing out his identification card from his jacket, he handed it to Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing took a nce at it before returning it to him. ¡°Since you¡¯ve alreadypleted your prison sentence, then turn over a new leaf. Don¡¯t do any more illegal things.¡± The spider yao shrunk his head back silently, appearing somewhat pitiful. The yao cultivator at the side couldn¡¯t bear to look on any longer and directly said, ¡°Dragon lord, it was the crested ibis who deliberately framed him that year. Zhu Zhi was wrongly used.¡± Zhuang Qing recognized this yao who was fighting for justice. It was him who said just now that the crested ibis had seduced Fu Li. He was also the one who said that Fu Li¡¯s original form didn¡¯t match well with his. For some reason, this yao cultivator looked particrly displeasing to Zhuang Qing. It was probably because the other party¡¯s human form was too ugly. Fortunately, he was highly professional and thus didn¡¯t make the mistake of using his authority for personal motives. ¡°One should not casually speak out when there is no evidence,¡± The tip of Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows creased. ¡°There were areas of suspicion regarding the case at that time. Among the birds captured at the scene, there were other wild animals other than the crested ibis.¡± Having been refuted by Zhuang Qing in front of so many yao cultivators, this yao cultivator who was posing as a righteous individual had some difficulty keeping his facial expression from slipping. Despite the intense fear in his heart, he still refused to back down. ¡°Who knows whether you¡¯re just shielding the crested ibis? The crested ibis is close to Fu Li daoyou, so it¡¯s only natural for you to speak up for your people.¡± This time, Zhuang Qing¡¯s face darkened even further. What was the crested ibis? Was it worthy of being paired with an old yaoguai like Fu Li? ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Fu Li noticed that Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t quickly head back up after going down, and therefore curiously made his way down as well. Realizing the exceedingly ugly expression on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face, he looked at the surrounding yao cultivators and then took two more nces at Zhuang Qing. His gazended on the spider yao. This yao cultivator wasn¡¯t eye-catching, but there was resentment and baleful qi on him. It seemed he had done bad things. ¡°What did youe here for?¡± Seeing Fu Li, Zhuang Qing once again thought of the words voiced by the yao cultivators. ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with this spider yao,¡± Fu Li said directly. ¡°There¡¯s resentment on him.¡± ¡°Why is Fu Li daojun falsely using me?¡± The spider yao looked at Fu Li with a mixture of grief and indignation. This move of his attracted everyone¡¯s attention. The gazes the yao cultivators directed at Fu Li became slightlyplex. ¡°Why would I want to falsely use you?¡± Fu Li took out a small copper mirror from his Qiankun pouch and yed with it in his hands. ¡°You have an ambiguous rtionship with the crested ibis. I can understand if you speak up for him, but why must you falsely use me?¡± Crested ibis? With him? Ambiguous? Fu Li thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. Why did he have to have an ambiguous rtionship with a bird that liked to court disaster? He turned towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°He¡¯s talking about me and the crested ibis?¡± ¡°My ears are working perfectly fine, I heard it,¡± Zhuang Qing was expressionless. ¡°I don¡¯t need you to emphasize it another time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the problem. I didn¡¯t speak more than a few words to the crested ibis, so where did this rumore from?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯tprehend it. ¡°Did no one see me beating up the crested ibis the other time?¡± ¡°Beating is a sign of affection, and cursing is a sign of love. When there is deep emotion, the leg is used for kicking,¡± Among the crowd of yao, a yao cultivator who was watching the excitement added fuel to fire by shouting out this statement in a hoarse voice. ¡°Hey hey, crow spirit, don¡¯t hide at the back. I know that you¡¯re the one who shouted,¡± Fu Li waved his hands, though he wasn¡¯t very angry. Betweenughter and tears, he asked, ¡°How could I possibly have any sort of rtionship with the crested ibis? If you guys change it to me and Zhuang Qing having an ambiguous rtionship, wouldn¡¯t that be more probable?¡± The tips of Zhuang Qing¡¯s ears moved a little. ¡°Fu Li daojun, so you¡¯re actually together with the Dragon Lord, right?¡± A yellow oriole yao had a slightly excited look on her face. Fu Li, ¡°I was making an analogy. Analogy, understand?¡± Why didn¡¯t the yao nowadays understand human speech? Ilyz: Analogy, he says ?? Chapter 89 - Abnormal

Chapter 89 - Abnormal

In the face of incredibly tempting gossip, all would have immense courage, regardless of whether one was human or yao. From this, it could be seen that the phrase ¡®curiosity killed the cat¡¯ was very believable. Zhuang Qing was one of the cultivators who held illustrious positions in the cultivation world, and on top of that, he had formidable cultivation, possessed the blood of the dragon race, and maintained order in the cultivation world. Because of this, many yao cultivators feared his cultivation but also held his cultivation in high esteem. Prying into the secrets of the strong was extremely enticing to the ordinary person. All living creatures possessed this instinct. Fu Li noticed the curious gazes around them and sighed, ¡°Now is not the time to be joking.¡± He looked at the spider yao. ¡°But any yao who hasmitted evil will have baleful qi on them. Everyone may have heard of a mirror called Reflecting Yao Mirror. No yao cultivator will be able to conceal anything as long as they are reflected in this mirror.¡± ¡°I-Impossible,¡± The spider yao¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t as steady as it was previously, but he still refused to believe that Fu Li would be in possession of something like the Reflecting Yao Mirror. ¡°Why would it be impossible? We¡¯ll know after using it,¡± Fu Li held up the copper mirror in his hands and swiftly recited a chant. The mirror emitted a beam of light that enveloped the entire spider yao. The next second, ayer of ck-red fog appeared on the spider yao. The fog moved threateningly, brimming with evil qi. The yao cultivators originally standing beside the spider yao fled in all directions one after another. The gazes they directed at the spider yao were tinged with fear. Although they weren¡¯t knowledgeable and experienced enough, even a fool would be able to tell that there was something off about the bloody qi on the spider yao. The spider yao saw that the situation wasn¡¯t very encouraging and turned in an attempt to flee. However, he had just turned around when he was sent flying by a wave of Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeve, ramming into the Langgan Tree at the courtyard. With the Langgan Tree¡¯s arrogance, how could it let an average yao cultivator near it? With a swing of its vines, it actually whipped the spider yao back into the crowd of yao. A few screams of rm sounded from the crowd. Fortunately, the bureau¡¯s people had exceedingly quick reactions and tied the spider yao up within a few moments. Then, they told everyone that the evil yao ughtering fellow members of the cultivation world had already been found. Everyone was happy but also scared. Several yao cultivators on good terms with the Dutchman¡¯s Pipe yao and koi burst into tears on the spot. At this juncture, no one was in the mood to pay attention to the gossip about Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. Their lives were the most precious. Zhuang Qing arranged for workers to console the yao cultivators before ncing at Fu Li. With a straight face, he said, ¡°Come here.¡± Seeing that his expression didn¡¯t look very good, Fu Li assumed that he minded the yao cultivators¡¯ gossip. As such, after they reached an area with few people, Fu Li said in a low voice, ¡°Sorry, I was a bit impulsive when speaking just now. Don¡¯t take those little yao¡¯s words to heart.¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly turned and stared at him. ¡°Am I that narrow-minded? Is there anything about this second-rate rumor that is worthy of my concern?¡± Fu Li hurriedly shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re right, there¡¯s nothing worthy about it.¡± ¡°Older yao cultivators like you may not understand the degree of open-mindedness now,¡± Zhuang Qing ced his hands behind his back and raised his chin slightly, appearing somewhat haughty. ¡°Yao cultivators have many interactions with humans nowadays, and they¡¯ve also picked up the bad habit that humans have of carelessly making conjectures. If they put all their energy into expressing their opinions, then we might not need to work every day.¡± Fu Li nodded. Halfway through his nodding, he realized that there was something wrong. ¡°There are really rumors of an ambiguous rtionship between me and the crested ibis outside?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression turned even colder. ¡°Does your brain only contain that one bird?¡± ¡°When has my brain ever contained birds?¡± Fu Li felt like he had been wronged. Noticing the strange expression on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face, he asked with some disbelief, ¡°Or... are those rumors on the inte about you and me?¡± ¡°Humph,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t refute it this time. ¡°What did they say?¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing¡¯s stern, straight-faced appearance and suddenly grew curious. Stretching out his hands, he leaned against Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°That we¡¯re together?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s waist stiffened as he allowed Fu Li to continue leaning against him. Feeling that Fu Li¡¯s breath was too close to his face, he pushed at him, ¡°Anyway, these are just some messy small love matters, they¡¯re not important.¡± ¡°How can love be a small thing? You¡¯re young and must not look down on anything rted to feelings. Haven¡¯t you seen how those leads in novels and television dramas can¡¯t wait to throw their lives away for love?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li in a daze. What did he mean by that? ¡°But it isn¡¯t very reasonable for them to say that there¡¯s something going on between me and you,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m already more than four thousand years old, how can Iy my hands on a minor like you who hasn¡¯t even fully be a dragon? That would be too immoral.¡± Zhuang Qing abruptly let out a coldugh. He pushed Fu Li to the side and went to the interrogation room without a single look back. Having been pushed away so suddenly, Fu Li couldn¡¯t quite react. What did this mean? Was he angry again? Zhuang Qing strode into the interrogation room. His motions as he closed the door gave Huang Can and Xu Yuan, who were inside the interrogation room, a huge scare. ¡°Boss?¡± Xu Yuan saw that Zhuang Qing had entered and was about to get up and offer her chair to him when Zhuang Qing said, ¡°No need, I¡¯ll just sit at the side.¡± He crossed his long legs and sat down on a chair at the side. ¡°Continue.¡± Xu Yuan noticed that there was something off about Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression, but also knew that she couldn¡¯t meddle, so she continued questioning the bat yao about his motive formitting the crime. However, the bat yao wasn¡¯t at all aware of his status as a prisoner. His attitude was extremely arrogant, and he insisted on violence rather than cooperation. Zhuang Qing, who was in a bad mood, had very little patience as well. Seeing the bat yao behave in this way, he directly said, ¡°The nature of the case is already settled and he was even captured at the scene. It¡¯s fine if he isn¡¯t willing to divulge the criminal processes. Just sentence him ording to the rules and invite a great master from the Fatian Temple to help the souls of the Dutchman¡¯s Pipe yao and koi yao find peace.¡± ¡°Boss, you¡¯re here too?¡± Chao Yun pushed open the door and saw that Zhuang Qing was inside, so she said, ¡°Just nice, you¡¯re here. We discovered from human surveince data that the spider yao and bat yao had been in touch with each other in private.¡± Zhuang Qing raised his good-looking chin and smiled coldly at the bat yao. ¡°Colluding together?¡± The bat yao didn¡¯t speak. Zhuang Qing got up and headed to the other interrogation room. The first thing he saw upon entering the room was Zhang Ke seated with Fu Li. His heart stirred. Both legs went against his orders and sat him down beside Fu Li. Seeing that it was him, Fu Li turned and shed a grin at Zhuang Qing. The corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips moved. He wanted to return the smile, but the corners of his mouth felt a little stiff. The spider yao evidently wasn¡¯t as calm as the bat yao. Fu Li thoroughly deceived him just by casually fishing out two magic weapons with unclear authenticity, resulting in the spider yao obediently confessing everything in detail. It turned out the spider yao had made a small fortune a few years ago in the human world. He then went traveling abroad and happened to bump into the bat yao who knew how to speak Korean. This bat yao was even an earl or whatnot in the western yao world, and he bore a lot of curiousity towards the eastern yao world. Upon hearing that there were all sorts of umon yao in the eastern yao world, he started having other intentions. One party had impure intentions, and the other was enamored with the human world¡¯s splendor. For the sake of money, he willingly agreed to cooperate with a foreign yao to ughter hisrades. Who would have expected the spider yao to have such bad luck and bump into the crested ibis before he had even done many bad deeds, eventuallynding in prison? ¡°You¡¯re also of an eastern yao race, but just a bit of human money can make you sell out yourrades. What prospects.¡± Fu Li broke the pen in his hand after listening to the spider yao¡¯s verbal confession. He shot a scathing nce at the spider yao. Throwing away the pen, he pulled out the chair and walked off. ¡°Fu ge,¡± Zhang Ke was also terribly disgusted by the spider yao. Seeing that Fu Li no longer wanted to pay any heed to this matter, he could only endure his disgust and continue questioning the spider yao about the rted details. Zhuang Qing nced a few times at the door. After enduring it for a few seconds, he still went out. Fu Li wasn¡¯t upstairs anymore when he went out in pursuit of him. The hall downstairs was inplete chaos. The yao cultivators were all packing up their bedding and sleeping bags, and were walking out of the management bureau in threes and twos. Zhuang Qing went down the spiral staircase and eventually found Fu Li in front of the Langgan Tree. There, Fu Li had his hands stretched out to receive the Zhuyu fruit from the three-headed people. He then took out a few different types of human snacks from his pockets and handed them to the three-headed people. The three-headed people seemed to be very interested in the food from the human world. Hanging upside down on the vines, they swayed back and forth. With the three bodies and nine heads gathered together, they resembled fried bulbs of garlic. ¡°You still haven¡¯t found the Fenghuang?¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, we believe in you.¡± ¡°Yup, we believe in you.¡± There were clearly only four people, yet when they spoke, the oue was a lively discussion with many people talking at once. Zhuang Qing stood at his spot far away, suddenly not wanting to disturb them. Fu Li turned back all of a sudden, and saw the tall and lofty Zhuang Qing in the middle of a crowd of noisy yao cultivators. At this instant, he suddenly understood the true meaning of the human phrase ¡®wind-facing jade tree¡¯. What noise? What yao cultivators? What work? In this one smile, all these turned into smoke in Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes. His mind buzzed and his heart thumped, as if someone was banging on a drum in his heart. Not only that, this someone was using quite a bit of strength, unwilling to stop for even one moment to rest. He clutched his chest, fearing that his heart would pop out. He even felt ashamed at letting Fu Li realize his peculiarity at this moment. ¡°Zhuang Qing...¡± Fu Li was about to give Zhuang Qing the Zhuyu fruits in his hands when he saw him suddenly clutch his chest and take a few steps back. Fu Li hurriedly ced the fruits into the pockets of his jacket and ran over withrge strides. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t dare to look at Fu Li¡¯s face. He turned his head to the side and inhaled deeply. ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong, my breathing¡¯s just not very smooth.¡± ¡°You ran into a setback while cultivating?¡± Fu Li ced a hand on Zhuang Qing¡¯s wrist and allowed his spiritual qi to enter his meridians. The flow of his spiritual qi was smooth and unhindered. There was even a faint indication that Zhuang Qing¡¯s meridians were expanding, a sign that he was on the cusp of making a breakthrough. There didn¡¯t seem to be anything wrong. Zhuang Qing stared at his wrist. Not only did he feel like there was someone banging on arge drum at his chest, it felt like someone had also set his wrist on fire. This was very abnormal. Chapter 90 - Red Carpet

Chapter 90 - Red Carpet

¡°Boss!¡± Ning Xuan ran over in a haste. Seeing that Fu Li was gripping Zhuang Qing¡¯s wrist, he came to a halt, turned, and got ready to leave. He might be a sword, but he definitely wasn¡¯t a sword without eyes. ¡°Ning Xuan,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t think too much. After confirming that there wasn¡¯t much of an issue with Zhuang Qing¡¯s body, he released Zhuang Qing and called after Ning Xuan, ¡°What are you running so anxiously for? Did something happen?¡± Ning Xuan secretly nced at Zhuang Qing. Unfortunately, Zhuang Qing¡¯s head was lowered, preventing him from seeing anything much. He could only turn to face Fu Li and say with a dryugh, ¡°Nothing major, it¡¯s just that the human businessmunity has recently invited the boss to participate in a very important charity event. This charity event has a high level of public credibility. Even the country regards it with a high degree of importance, so ourpany will receive an invitation letter every year. I came to ask if the boss will be present in person this year.¡± Many of the management bureau staff usually came and went, and were involved in many activities. If they were not under an organization, they would inevitably be discovered by perceptive humans over time. This was why they were all employees of Chang Long Biotechnology Company to the outside world. Having an identity was more advantageous when it came to concealing themselves in the human world. The sole thing they had not considered was profiting so much from human women. Chang Long¡¯s various makeup and skincare products had actually turned into high-end, extravagant skincare products with fame on an international level. Out of their revenue every year, this aspect ounted for thergest percentage. Therefore, there was an important trick to doing business ¨C obtaining the hearts of women was equivalent to obtaining the world. Zhuang Qing rarely made an appearance at this sort of event. Other people had also been arranged to participate in the charity event for the past two years. Ning Xuan¡¯s inquiry this year was merely routine business. With the boss¡¯ looks, he would be considered handsome from all angles in the human world, with no dead angles. If he participated in this charity event and was exposed by the live broadcast camera, perhaps he would stimte thepany¡¯s sales volume. Of course, he only dared to think about this sort of matter in his heart. The yao world¡¯s sense of aesthetics emphasized might and majesty. No matter how good-looking the human form, it had no fur, no scales, no ability to climb or jump, and its proportions were not beautiful. It was too weak. ¡°Charity event?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li beside him. After a period of silence, he said. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Ning Xuan thought that he had heard wrongly. With the boss¡¯ stinginess, it would be extremely embarrassing if the boss arrived at the charity event and then couldn¡¯t bear to donate. ¡°Fu Li hasn¡¯t experienced human society¡¯s high-end ces, I¡¯ll bring him along to take a look at the world,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was calm. ¡°Will that be an issue?¡± ¡°No problem, no problem,¡± Ning Xuan hurriedly replied. ¡°I¡¯ll send a reply to the organizer right this instant.¡± ording to the previous years¡¯ rules, Chang Long would donate twelve school buses with the highest safety specifications, twelve fully-equipped medical vehicles, twelve cleaning vehicles, as well as fifty million yuan. The live charity auction was the only thing remaining. At such a moment, the more money one spent, the more face one would have. However, Ning Xuan felt that their boss might be stingy at the charity auction this time. Ning Xuan replied to the organizer¡¯s invitation and then thought of a question ¨C why did the boss want to specially bring Fu ge out to see the world? Song Yu had lived for tens of thousands of years but also hadn¡¯t seen much of the world, so why wasn¡¯t he bringing Song Yu? Was it because Song Yu was too ugly? The annual charity evening party was a venue for celebrities from all social circles to unt their fame and wealth. Businessmen, schrs, and celebrities were the main yers at the charity evening party. At this time, boredizens would pay the most attention to the famous brand that donated the most, the celebrity that wore the prettiest clothes, and the person who was stingy and donated less. This annual night event was always a huge show full of twists and turns. As a local, old, and famous luxury goodspany, despite Chang Long¡¯s representative not being as eye-catching as the celebrities, they still had quite a lot of presence in the eyes of numerousizens. This was because their products were too expensive and too effective. Despite being pressured by many foreign luxury products, they continued to stand tall and was even passed down for many years. Mystery and grandeur surrounded it. The evening party hadn¡¯t begun, but there were alreadyizens mocking that Chang Long would definitely be donating vehicles and money again this year, and that they would send the beautiful and charismatic female director to represent them. The beautiful female director they spoke about was Xu Yuan, who was slightly more popr than the rest of the management bureau staff. In the eyes of the femaleizens, Xu Yuan was young and capable. Although she hadn¡¯t gotten married and given birth to children, she was nevercking in outstanding men to stand by her side. She was practically the example of a sessful woman. Naturally, theizens didn¡¯t know that these outstanding men were all employees of the management bureau. In addition, the majority of them could not fundamentally be considered men, but were instead male in the animal world, since they were yao. Xu Yuan had her own weibo ount with a significant number of fans. Therefore, on the day of the charity event, there were fans who asked Xu Yuan which malepanion she would be appearing with on the red carpet. In the previous years, Xu Yuan had always appeared with a malepanion, and most of these malepanions were all artists with more fame, so theizens could not be med either for gossiping in this manner. The fans of many male artists were awaiting the result, because the male artist that appeared with Xu Yuan would always be Chang Long¡¯s male luxury goods ambassador. Many people wanted their idols to snatch this ambassador position. As a result, there were quite a few fans posting their idols¡¯ photos in thement section. As one of the most popr male artists currently, She Weilong¡¯s photo naturally also appeared in thement section. However, She Weilong hated that he couldn¡¯t kneel in front of these fans and plead with them not to help him raise his sense of presence. Ordinary humans wouldn¡¯t know the truth behind Chang Long Company, but he was very clear what exactly thispany was. It was clearly the cultivation world¡¯s government; who would run to the government for no reason? She Weilong¡¯s manager saw him twisting left and right as he sat in front of the makeup mirror. ¡°Wei Long, what¡¯s with you?¡± ¡°The weather¡¯s been drytely, my back is a bit itchy,¡± She Weilongughed dryly. Not only was it itchy, it even felt chilly. ¡°It might be your first time attending a charity party, but you don¡¯t have to be nervous. The entire process of the evening party will be broadcasted live, so everyone present will be more controlled. When you reach, just take note of your etiquette,¡± The manager looked very highly upon She Weilong¡¯s talent and thepany was also interested in supporting him, which was why they didn¡¯t intend to let him create something out of nothing to influence the favorable impression bystanders had of him just for the sake of attention. ¡°I know,¡± She Weilong nodded. To him, humans were not a form of existence that he needed to fear. Seeing that he was keeping hisposure, the manager was also reassured. The appearances of the idol sect as well as the performance skills of the strength sect were all treasures in this circle. If they were not carefully protected, they would be easily destroyed. At the vi, Fu Li spread out both arms and allowed Zhuang Qing to straighten his clothes. Compared to the attire he had worn to the birthday banquet of the sect leader of the Qingxiao Sect, this attire was even more solemn and refined. All the essories matched perfectly. Even the men¡¯s brooch at his chest was made of pure diamond. In the human world, it was called a diamond brooch. His hair was put in order by the hairdresser in the painting of the courtdy. Ayer of makeup was also applied onto his face. His entire person was tossed about like he was a bonsai. He looked down at Zhuang Qing, who was helping him to tie his necktie. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m some important figure, is there a need to be so strict?¡± ¡°Do you know what your position is to the outside world?¡± Zhuang Qing pressed down on the corners of the bowtie with a serious expression. Fu Li, who still didn¡¯t quite understand theplicated affairs of the human world, saw the solemn look on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face and grew somewhat anxious. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The chairman¡¯s special assistant,¡± Zhuang Qing took a step back and nodded with satisfaction. ¡°Just barely presentable. You won¡¯t lose face in front of the camera.¡± ¡°Who is the chairman?¡± Fu Li was at a loss. ¡°Why do we have to walk the red carpet?¡± ¡°I¡¯m the chairman, of course,¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head and straightened his cuff links, not looking at Fu Li. ¡°Ourpany is extremely famous in the human world. The evening party today is very important, how can we miss the opportunity to walk the red carpet for publicity?¡± Fu Li suddenly saw the light. ¡°So that¡¯s the case.¡± He fished out his Qiankun pouch from his ears. The instant the pouchnded in his hands, it immediately expanded in size. He took out two milky white medicinal pills. ¡°This is a Huanyan Pill. Eating it will make someone better-looking, do you want one?¡± Upon seeing the Huanyan Pill offered to him, Zhuang Qing nearly pulled off his cuff links. He was silent for two seconds before letting Fu Li keep the pills. ¡°We¡¯re fine like this, using the Huanyan Pill will be an unfair advantage.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Upon turning, Fu Li saw the courtdy yao staring at the Huanyan Pills in his hands with shining eyes. He conveniently handed the pills to the courtdy yao. ¡°Do you like it? For you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Fu Li daren,¡± Unable to contain her joy, the courtdy yao kept the Huanyan Pills as if they were treasures. No woman could resist the temptation of beauty, and it was no different for female yao. Chu Yu, who was seated on a couch, had a baffled expression on his face. It should be said that he was already very baffled when he learnt that the boss would be bringing Fu Li to the charity event and would even be walking the red carpet. When he saw the boss personally straightening Fu Li¡¯s clothes and noticed that the two people were even wearing two exceedingly simr suits, his entire person became petrified. He had constantly felt that there was something off. He had been by the boss¡¯ side for so many years and had never known the boss to have a habit of dressing someone up. Fu ge did indeed look very much like a noble family¡¯s young master after dressing up, but... Whichpany chairman would bring their special assistant along when walking the red carpet? This wasn¡¯t in line with the usual practices in the human world. Also, what was that about the evening party being very important, and that it was necessary for them to dress in their best attire to walk the red carpet and take the opportunity to promote thepany? All of that was utter nonsense. If it was really that important, why hadn¡¯t the boss attended it even once all these years? Chu Yu watched the boss stoop over to help Fu Li put on a watch and felt that he might have discovered a shocking secret. When they left the vi, Fu Li looked at the long limousine in front of them and said in surprise, ¡°The capital¡¯s roads are very congested, it won¡¯t be convenient to drive such a long car, right?¡± Chu Yu wanted to say that people usually wouldn¡¯t go forward and gather around it when they saw such a long car. But Zhuang Qing nodded in a very serious manner. ¡°It is indeed not very convenient. That¡¯s why we need to leave in advance.¡± He turned to look at Chu Yu. ¡°Drive slowerter.¡± Chu Yu put a smile on his face. ¡°Yes.¡± The inside of the car was very spacious. It was outfitted with everything that could be needed, and lying down wasn¡¯t a problem either. Fu Li, however, was a little unustomed to it, because the car didn¡¯t have Zhuang Qing¡¯s favorite bright and shiny things. There weren¡¯t even any ss beads, let alone diamond gems. As if understanding Fu Li¡¯s thoughts, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°I usually don¡¯t use this car much.¡± Fu Li nodded in understanding. ¡°It is indeed a bit simple on the inside.¡± Chu Yu, who was ying the role of driver, suddenly felt upon hearing these words that the boss and Fu ge might have amonnguage when it came to aesthetics. morous clothing could be seen at the scene of the charity party. asionally, luxurious cars woulde to a stop at the entrance of the hotel. Under the lens of countless cameras, the car door would open, and someone illustrious or famous would walk out. Despite the fact that it was already extremely chilly on an October night in the capital, dedicated female artists still put on pretty evening dresses and wore their most fitting smile. They would walk past the cameras and then leave their names at the signing board. Theizens watching the broadcast would remark on the artist¡¯s appearance. There were few evaluations of sessful businessmen, since they weren¡¯t good-looking enough to attract them. The most they would do wasment about how this person was rich, that person was also rich, who had a good rtionship with theirpanion, who and who was just a couple in name, and how they were in private. The artists¡¯ fans were busy fighting amongst themselves. Any artist with a bad appearance stood the chance of being mocked by a small proportion of people. Netizen A: The entry segment is about to end, why have we still not seen Chang Long¡¯s representative? Or is Chang Long not participating this year? Netizen B: Not likely. Chang Long is our local ethical enterprise. There are really no ws to be picked out when ites to doing charity. The amount of money they¡¯ve spent on charity these years might give everyone a shock. Netizen C: Everyone in the country knows that Chang Long does well in the charity aspect. Maybe the other party considers this charity event to be beneath them and aren¡¯t willing toe? Netizen D: The ck sunspot above, rest your mouth. I advise you not to say anything reckless. Don¡¯t use the ckening methods in the entertainment industry on Chang Long. Don¡¯t regret it if you end up harming your idol. Chang Long was an extremelyrgepany and they could be considered one of the pirs of the local economy. It was reported that they had been a hugepany in the country more than one hundred years ago. It was just that the people in power were extremely lowkey, which was why they were not conspicuous in the eyes of ordinary civilians. But if they were to really discuss this, almost no businessman present at the event today couldpare to the person with power over Chang Long. When the long, branded limousine stopped outside the venue, the reporters at the scene snapped continuous photos of the car. The car door swung open and an exceedingly handsome man in a suit alighted. Following this, the sound of the cameras shing intensified. After the handsome man alighted, an elegant young man with a noble¡¯s aura got down from the car. The diamond brooch on his suit glinted under the shes of light, giving off a radiance that dazzled the eyes. Theizens behind theirputer screens hated that they couldn¡¯t glue their eyeballs to the screen. Idol? Celebrity? In the face of the pinnacle of good-looking men, all of that was sh*t. Men who were handsome from all angles, without any dead angles ¨C that was only fair. Ilyz: The amount of shade that¡¯s being thrown at Song Yu behind his back lol... Chapter 91 - Power Failure

Chapter 91 - Power Failure

It was Fu Li¡¯s first time at such an event. The moment he got out of the car, ¡®kacha¡¯ sounds rang out all around him unceasingly. If not for his unusual talents as a yao, the shing lights might have prevented him from opening his eyes. Zhuang Qing nced back at Fu Li. Standing sideways, he helped Fu Li block half the lights. Only after waiting for him to adapt to the ambience at the venue did they walk the red carpet together, shoulder-to-shoulder. The red carpet was very long and very wide. The areas beyond the police cordons on both sides were jam-packed with local and international media reporters. A little farther was the fans who had bought audience tickets. They raised LED signboards to promote their beloved idols, even more dedicated than the worshippers of Gods hundreds of years ago. In spite of the fact that Fu Li and Zhuang Qing were not from the entertainment industry, their appearance still incited astonished but friendly shrieks from quite a few girls. The reason was none other than their astounding body proportions, as if they had grown in ordance to the golden ratio. Looks-wise, each of them also had their own merits. In particr, to women, Zhuang Qing¡¯s face was practically irresistible. ¡°The two honored guests walking towards us now is Mr Zhuang Qing, the chairman of Chang Long Biotechnology Company, as well as his special assistant, Mr Fu Li.¡± The host introduced the fleet of cars and contributions that Chang Long had donated this time with high spirits. The sound of cameras shing increased even more. Rich, handsome, and young sessful figures were truly rare treasures. For reporters with a higher sensitivity towards news, they could rely on a few handsome pictures to write out a sensational script that was several tens of pages long. Who would be willing to miss out on this rare chance? The crux was that this young and handsome chairman actually didn¡¯t go the conventional route. Not only did he not bring a femalepanion, he even brought his special assistant to walk the red carpet with him. There were really too many articles that could be written from this. Hearing the surrounding shrieks, Fu Li maintained his smile as he spoke softly to Zhuang Qing, ¡°These humans are really particr about manners. They¡¯re scared that we¡¯ll be awkward and even specially hyped up the atmosphere.¡± Looking at the moist corners of Fu Li¡¯s mouth, Zhuang Qing felt that he shouldn¡¯t let a rabbit develop simr tastes as humans. Having thought this through, he smiled and nodded. ¡°En, these humans are very amiable.¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face brightened by two notches. ¡°Chairman, please stop with Mr Assistant for a photo together,¡± A gutsy reporter yelled. Zhuang Qing halted and very naturally ced a hand over Fu Li¡¯s shoulders. Coming to a stop, he allowed the reporters on this end to snap photos for a period of time. The reporters hadn¡¯t expected the aloof and lofty Chang Long chairman to be so cooperative; even their hands were shaking as they took photos. Only by relying on their formidable professionalism did they manage to snatch a few interesting pictures. For example, the scene of Chairman Zhuang and Assistant Fu Li looking at each other. For example, Chairman Zhuang stretching out his hands to help Assistant Fu Li block the ring lights. There were truly too many articles that could be written. The reporters at the scene were very excited, while theizens watching the live broadcast online had long since overturned the skies. Netizen 1: Danggggggggg, this is actually Chang Long¡¯s chairman! He looks thirty, right? This older sister is thirty-one this year, and I had to scrimp and save just to buy a set of Chang Long skincare products. In the end, the other party¡¯s boss is even younger than me. The shabbier product will be tossed out, and the inferior person will be left with no way to live. Netizen 2: This is the perfect character set-up for a romantic tyrannical director ¨C handsome, wealthy, young. Facing this face, I can eat three more bowls of rice every day. How can there be such a handsome, rich, and powerful person in this world? This isn¡¯t scientific. Netizen 3: Person upstairs, don¡¯t get excited. This humble one has discerning eyes and can tell that there is definitely an unspeakable gay love between this handsome, rich, and powerful person and his assistant. So, he doesn¡¯t have a romantic tyrannical director¡¯s character set-up, but a pure love tyrannical character set-up. Netizen 4: The assistant is also very handsome, okay? That waist, those legs, that face. Want to bed him. Netizen 5: I¡¯m not sure why I¡¯m seeing a sense of excitement as if they¡¯re entering the bridal room when they¡¯re clearly just walking the red carpet. I¡¯m guilty, I¡¯ll lick the screen as I reflect. The red carpet was a few tens of meters long. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li were not walking slowly, but the reporters¡¯ attention was all ced on them, hating that these two people couldn¡¯t walk slower to let them take a few more detailed photos. Photos of their clothes, essories, watches, and shoes were captured and then sent back to theirpanies for the brands to be identified. If the chairman and assistant used the same brand for everything, then then there would be even more to talk about. She Weilong was caught in a jam for a while. After rushing to the venue with difficulty, he could hear the continuous sound of screeches inside. She Weilong¡¯s manager didn¡¯t have a very goodplexion. Was some big shot ahead of them? He was a little regretful in his heart. If he had known this, he would have arrived earlier. They didn¡¯t dare to snatch the spotlight, but also didn¡¯t want to be behind a big shot. Since the media¡¯s attention had all been snatched up by the big shot, the person who came after would naturally be eclipsed. The worker in front who was in charge of managing the venue gestured, indicating for their car to enter. Seeing this, the manager reminded him in a low voice, ¡°Wei Long, you must not be nervouster. Remember, you must be elegant. Your temperament is very good, and your attire is also sponsored by a major brand. You cannot have stage fright.¡± She Weilong nodded solemnly. But when he alighted from the car and saw the two people walking along the front half of the red carpet, his knees almost softened and directly sent him dropping to his knees. Heavens, why was the yao world¡¯s boss here? Themotion at the venue just now was caused by the two of them? Thinking of Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s human appearances, She Weilong took a deep breath and tried hard to make himself appear less terrified. It was fortunate that these two people didn¡¯t make a living in the entertainment industry, otherwise who knew how much hatred they would get? A cultivator could not randomly sign their true name, as there would be a certain contractual effect. Therefore, whenever cultivators signed their names at events, they would intentionally or otherwise leave out a stroke or dot. Fu Li didn¡¯t write simplified Chinese characters very well, but he had practiced writing his name to perfection. He took the pen and smoothly wrote his name. Zhuang Qing nced at his name and then signed his name on the left using a golden glitter pen. The two names were closely aligned, side by side, as if they were naturally meant to be ced together. At this moment, the cameraman did a huge close-up on both their signatures, as if he had established contact with the gossip channels. This once again incited the surprised shrieks of theizens watching the live broadcast. This perpetually present ambiguity was simply too romantic. Zhuang Qing took the pen from Fu Li and put it on the tray. Turning, he ced a hand on Fu Li¡¯s back and walked down the steps with him. Fu Li felt the warm palm on his back and shed a smile at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang little dragon always had a stern mouth and soft heart. Zhuang Qing had still told him not to embarrass Chang Long in the car, yet he was now worrying that he wasn¡¯t ustomed to an unfamiliar environment and protected him everywhere they went. How could this world have such an awkward dragon? Although he was quite cute. Netizen 1: Ahhhhhh! My young girl¡¯s heart has revived, Chairman Zhuang really is pampering the little assistant all the time. He took the pen for him and even held him while going down the steps. Really dying from the meng, dying from the meng. Netizen 2: The little assistant¡¯s smile is also very sweet. That smile he revealed when he turned towards Chairman Zhuang was so sweet that it practically takes the breath away. If I was Chairman Zhuang, I would definitely also dote on him like this. What mountain of gold? What sea of silver? As long as I¡¯m around, I¡¯ll give him everything. Netizen 3: I¡¯m done for, I¡¯m done for. Me, a single dog, actually finds the interactions between them very sweet. My brain probably went bad. Netizen 4: So, did Chang Long¡¯s chairman specially attend the party in person this time just so he can feed everyone dog food? Netizen 5: Rich people are so domineering when disying affection publicly. Chairman Zhuang¡¯s gaze is so warm when looking at the little assistant that they¡¯re practically love-filled pools of spring water. They entered the venue. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li were not originally seated together, but the organizer changed their minds and decided on the spot that the two people would be arranged to sit together, possibly because of the atmosphere when they were walking the red carpet. This was the first time Chang Long¡¯s chairman had personally attended an evening party and it was possible that this assistant was also his lover. Even if they didn¡¯t pursue perfection, the least they had to do was ensure that this important figure did not feel slighted. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li had arrived a bitter, so after they sat down, the table was fully upied. The eight people at the table were all public figures, and they each took the initiative to greet Zhuang Qing. Fu Li didn¡¯t recognize these people, but Zhuang Qing had likely interacted with them before. Therefore, although the atmosphere at the table wasn¡¯t lively enough, at least it wasn¡¯t overly awkward. The other people present had also not expected Zhuang Qing to attend this event in person and to even bring along a good-looking assistant. Observing Zhuang Qing¡¯s respectful attitude towards Fu Li, they had a clear understanding of the situation. No wonder there was no talk of romance between this chairman and any man or woman, it turned out he already had a partner. Everyone was a bigwig and would not use private affairs as a topic of conversation at such an event; the most they would do was talk business. Themencement of the charity event was followed by performances to hype up the atmosphere, and then the auctioning of goods. At the start of the auction, most of the things sold were branded bags, branded essories, and whatnot. These were the main battlefields for female artists. The money used to purchase these goods would all be given to charity, so any information on the amount an artist spent on a certain item was also worthy of being publicized as charity. After the auctioning of every few items, artists would go on stage to perform. Fu Li propped a hand against his chin as he drank his drink, striving to let his bored expression appear less obvious. Zhuang Qing noticed that he had already drank a few drinks in session and lowered his head, whispering into his ear. ¡°Bored?¡± Fu Li gave a small nod and then transmitted his voice, ¡°A bit.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll bring you for supper after the auction,¡± The tips of Zhuang Qing¡¯s brows moved slightly. He spoke into Fu Li¡¯s ear, ¡°As a thank you gift for apanying me to this boring event today.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li nodded. When Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t paying attention, he took the chance to secretly touch his slightly itchy ear. Just as Zhuang Qing was sitting up straight, he caught sight of a camera pointed at him not too far away. He retracted the hand ced on the back of Fu Li¡¯s chair, and turned his gaze towards the stage. Netizens: Hehehe, the way Chairman Zhuang looks when he¡¯s pretending to cover it up is simply revealing what he wants to hide. Too meng! Everyone from the management bureau who worried that the boss¡¯ bad habit of being stingy would act up and that he wouldn¡¯t be willing to bid during the auction, looked at the various scenes on the live broadcast screen withplex feelings. Reason told them that the boss and Fu ge had a pure rtionship, but emotion told them that these two yao definitely didn¡¯t have a pure rtionship. So, would the boss bid at the auction tonight? Round after round of the auction was conducted. The rich merchants at the same table as Fu Li and Zhuang Qing had all symbolically bidded for an item. Only Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t bid at all from start to end. ¡°This is the secondst item to be auctioned at this charity event, the renowned carving master, Mr Liu¡¯s work ¨C Dragon and Rabbit Pair.¡± The auctioneer removed the red silk, revealing a vivid and lifelike sculpture in the ss case. The rabbit and dragon crouching together were clearly very different species, yet strangely had a harmonious warmth to them. ¡°Mr Liu took a whole year toplete this sculpture. When it waspleted, it just so happened to be the Lunar New Year, when the Year of the Rabbites to an end and the Year of the Dragon approaches. Thus, the name of this sculpture is Blessing. It is a metaphor for an abundance of good fortune.¡± The auctioneer nced down the stage and smiled. ¡°The starting price of this item is 50 000. The auction will begin now.¡± ¡°200 000,¡± Someone raised their bidding card. Fu Li turned to look over. Unexpectedly, it was the human the Shen had imnted fake memories in. What was his name again? Fu Si? Zhuang Qing had also noticed Fu Si¡¯s presence. Him, who had never once raised his bidding card, raised it for the first time. ¡°300 000.¡± Fu Si didn¡¯t expect someone topete with him for a wooden carving. He turned to look at Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, revealing a friendly smile. Fu Li stared nkly before nodding at Fu Si. Fu Si smiled. He raised his card again. ¡°500 000.¡± ¡°What are you doing staring at him all the time?¡± Clenching his teeth, Zhuang Qing quietly spoke into Fu Li¡¯s ears. Fu Li looked back, his cheek bumping into the corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. He wiped his face. ¡°It¡¯s an ident.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze underwent a subtle change. Immediately after, he snorted coldly. ¡°Of course I know it¡¯s an ident.¡± ¡°500 000, going thrice...¡± ¡°1 000 000,¡± Zhuang Qing expressionlessly raised his bidding card. Wasn¡¯t it just a bit of human currency? He had plenty of it. Fu Si nced at Zhuang Qing in astonishment. He had bidded for this disy item because he felt that the rabbit was lovable and cute, which was why he had some interest in it. But a gentleman wouldn¡¯t snatch what someone else liked. It was obvious that Chairman Zhuang was very fond of this auction item, so he wouldn¡¯t participate in this excitement. Eventually, the auction item was taken by Zhuang Qing with a high price of 1 000 000. Fu Li asked Zhuang Qing in a low voice, ¡°You like wooden carvings?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded with a straight face. Fu Li abruptly nodded in understanding. He patted Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. ¡°I know how to carve this too, I¡¯ll carve some for you to y with when we return.¡± Yao cultivators without a childhood were really pitiful, they probably didn¡¯t have many interesting toys. As a good brother, he had to carve a few interesting toys to help Zhuang Qing make up for hisck of a childhood. After the auction ended, Zhuang Qing brought Fu Li backstage to swipe his card and retrieve the auction item. When Fu Li got closer, he realized that the rabbit and dragon were not seated side-by-side, but instead opposite each other. The image of the rabbit and dragon¡¯s front ws intertwined together was adorable. Fu Li carried the sculpture in his arms. As he was stroking the dragon¡¯s chubby face, he suddenly thought of his and Zhuang Qing¡¯s original forms. Smiling, he said, ¡°Say, don¡¯t you think this looks like us?¡± ¡°Turns out Mr Zhuang and Mr Fu are born in the year of the dragon and rabbit,¡± The worker responsible for the handover smiled. ¡°Then this item really has a lot of affinity with the two of you.¡± ¡°T-That is quite the affinity.¡± Fu Li wondered how they knew what year he was born in. The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips curved, although the curve ttened again when he saw the person who had walked in as well. ¡°Chairman Zhuang,¡± Fu Si walked in and shook hands with Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Bearing in mind that Zhuang Qing and Fu Li might have a lovers¡¯ rtionship, he didn¡¯t say anything special to Fu Li, only a few congrattory words. ¡°Congrattions, Mr Zhuang, for obtaining what you desire,¡± He cast a nce at the sculpture in Fu Li¡¯s arms with a gentle smile. Fu Li thought that even if he wasn¡¯t the pet from those years, his gentle look really did seem very pet-like. Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li. He ced a hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Many thanks Mr Fu for the blessings.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go and retrieve what I bidded for, I won¡¯t disturb the both of you,¡± Fu Si saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder and very tactfully brought up leaving. The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth that had straightened once again curved upwards. ¡°Take care.¡± Fu Si left with a smile. While swiping his card, he felt that miracles really did exist in the world. Chairman Zhuang rarely participated in public events, but he unexpectedly brought his assistant to a high-profile charity event that was even broadcasted live. It was almost like he had specially attended the event just so he could bring his assistant out. Though, this assistant did give him a veryfortable feeling, as if they had previously met countless times. With a shake of his head, he instantly found his previous thought absurd. How many times could he have crossed paths with that assistant? ¡°Mr Fu, this is the item you bidded for,¡± The worker handed Fu Si a brocade box. Fu Si had just epted it when he suddenly heard a buzzing sounding from above. The entire room sank into darkness. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°Power failure?¡± ¡°What about the emergency backup system?¡± ¡°Did something go wrong with the live broadcast in front?¡± ¡°There are no issues on stage, all power has been cut backstage.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on? Can the backup system be used?¡± ¡°N-No problems with the wires...¡± Hearing these words, Fu Si had a vague feeling that there was something fishy about this matter. Even if the electrical equipment wasn¡¯t mistake-proof, many relevant preparations would at least have been made. How could the stage bepletely fine while all of backstage was in darkness, and with no unidentifiable reason too? ¡°No one should walk around recklessly, don¡¯t create a racket,¡± The person-in-charge switched on his phone and found the honored guests who hade backstage to retrieve the items they had bidded for. They then arranged for security guards to protect them in arge lounge. It was a long walk from backstage to the front so they didn¡¯t dare to take any risks. If news of this power failure were to get out, it would be very embarrassing. But if something were to happen to these important figures, the consequences wouldn¡¯t only be limited to embarrassment. Fu Si had just sat down on the couch when he heard two security guards leading two people in. Borrowing the weak light of his phone, he got a clear look at the two people. It was Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. ¡°Aiya, what a coincidence, we meet again,¡± Fu Li seemed to have taken out a round torch that could emit light from his bag, but it was very quickly pressed back in by Zhuang Qing. Noticing Fu Si¡¯s gaze, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°This sort of toy light isn¡¯t very safe. There is a danger of it exploding when used for too long.¡± Fu Si couldn¡¯t help thinking that Chairman Zhuang¡¯s assistant was quite a strange one. He actually carried a y torch the size of a fist on him? Didn¡¯t these two people go out just now, why did theye back? What about the wooden carving Assistant Fu Li was holding? Had he thrown it out because he was scared of tripping in the dark? Chapter 92 - Monster

Chapter 92 - Monster

¡°This assistant of mine is a bit yful. Please forgive him, Mr Fu,¡± Zhuang Qing dragged Fu Li to the couch and sat down, conveniently looking around at the people in the room. They were all important figures ¨C if something were to happen to either one of them, many people would lose their jobs. Fu Si smiled, though it went unappreciated due to the poor lighting in the room. Everyone present understood very well in their hearts that it was abnormal for there to be a power failure at this moment. But the more critical the situation, the more they had to keep calm. Panic and fear would only allow the person behind the scenes to exploit the situation. For better or worse, everyone had been in the business world for a long time and possessed self-preservation instincts. The situation outside was unknown, and there were even professional security guards surrounding them. Staying in this room was definitely safer than running out rashly. Several young heirs lost their cool and made a fewints. But after seeing that their elders didn¡¯t respond, they too gave in and shrank into a corner, holding up their phones as they looked at the pitch-ck corridor outside. ¡°Phone...¡± A rich second generation looked at the notification that his message had failed to be sent out. His heart chilled. ¡°There doesn¡¯t seem to be a phone signal.¡± The room quietened even further. An elder who had experienced tumultuous times walked over. ¡°Everyone, don¡¯t panic. There are innumerable security guards in the entire hotel, and all entryways are guarded. There will soon be peopleing to resolve this problem.¡± Fu Li¡¯s gaze went around the room once. No suspicious creatures had appeared inside. He got up to switch off the air vents and realized that the corridor outside was extremely quiet, as if this lone room had been abandoned. The few security guards guarding the entrance seemed to have also sensed that something was off and were continuously adjusting their wireless intes that emitted no sound apart from ear-piercing static. Thinking about the many important figures still sitting in the room, the security guards grew slightly anxious. One of them got ready to search for other people. Switching on the shlight at his waist, he discovered that dense fog had risen along the corridor. The fog was colorless and odorless, but its appearance at such a time and location rendered it somewhat frightening. Despite having received special training, these security guards were still shocked by this sight. Swallowing, they took a small step into the room. ¡°Come in.¡± The four security guards looked back simultaneously at the young man who had spoken. This gentleman was dressed exquisitely, was he the child of some rich and influential person? ¡°There¡¯s fog outside, do you not want toe in?¡± Fu Li walked to the door and stretched his head out, ncing outside. After dragging the four security guards into the room, he closed the door. The rest of the people in the room didn¡¯tment on Fu Li¡¯s actions, because they had also seen the thick fog through the windows. When there were many people, a sealed space would give one a stronger sense of security. The fog grew increasingly thick, as if all the fog had converged outside, wanting to wrap around the room and devour it. For ease of sight and good lighting, this room hadrge floor-to-ceiling windows. But when the pretty nightscape outside the rooms all turned into fog, it became especially terrifying. Two young workers were so scared that they even crouched at a corner and burst into sobs, their cries turning the already-solemn atmosphere even more solemn. Everyone had their gazes fixed on the windows, as if something scary would appear there at any time. Swish! A very loud sound rang out from the side of the window, startling everyone. The brows of even the calmest individuals trembled for a moment. Fu Li was pulling the curtains across the windows. He beamed at everyone. ¡°The fog is a little heavy tonight, there¡¯s nothing nice to see outside.¡± Everyone nodded repeatedly. Contrary to expectations, closing the curtains made them feel extra secure. This was simr to how people who feared ghosts would have a death grip on their nkets. Even if they knew that the nket wouldn¡¯t protect them, this sort of emotional reassurance would give them a little more courage. Time creeped by. There was still no movement or sound outside. Just as everyone was about to go mad from the silence, footsteps sounded along the corridor outside. On closer listen, it seemed to be two people walking over, shoulder-to-shoulder. Their rxed, unhurried footsteps were hair-raising. The sound of footsteps grew closer and closer, and then stopped outside the room. Everyone sucked in their breaths. ¡°Your Majesty, fog has risen,¡± Two voices sounded outside, but the words they spoke were identical. There was no difference even in their tones. ¡°This servant has done the night patrols for Your Majesty. Your Majesty may be at ease.¡± ¡°W-What¡¯s that outside?¡± A rich second generation in the midst of an emotional breakdown shivered. ¡°Did an acting lunatic mix in with us?¡± Your Majesty? This servant? Come on, feudalism died out a long time ago! Fu Li shot a nce at Zhuang Qing, who was sitting motionlessly and silently on the couch. He walked to the door and asked, ¡°Who is this?¡± ¡°This servant is Ye Zhong.¡± ¡°This servant is You Guang.¡± Everyone looked at Fu Li with expectant and encouraging eyes. Anyone who dared to take the initiative at this moment was a brave warrior. No wonder Chairman Zhuang specially brought him to walk the red carpet; he was a talent who remained steady and fearless in the face of danger, and would step forward bravely at a critical juncture. When this was over, they would definitely have to show their gratitude to Chang Long. Fu Li had heard of Ye Zhong and You Guang¡¯s story. It was said that the two of them were brothers, but because they were joined at the arm, they often ate and slept together. In addition, because of their infamy, evil ghosts dared not approach them, which was why they were conferred the title of Night Wandering Ghosts. But the Night Wandering Ghosts frequently did night patrols for monarchs, why would they be here? Was it because they had mistaken Zhuang Qing as a monarch because of his dragon qi? ¡°His Majesty and the chancellors have been surrounded by evil spirits. May I bother these two daren to expel the evil spirits, and ensure the safety of His Majesty and all the darens.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Everyone looked at Fu Li, and then nced at Zhuang Qing. Chairman Zhuang¡¯s selection criteira for his assistant was rather unexpected. Not only was Fu Li¡¯s courage and insight outstanding, he was also... quite good at acting. Someone was going to pluck up their courage and tease Fu Li, but unexpectedly, shrieks and sobs sounded outside, along with a girl¡¯s voice shouting ¡®falsely used¡¯. ¡°Zhao Wu, you killed me and my child, you will not have a good death.¡± This half-crying, half-usatory voice drifted into the room, and a certain rich second generation¡¯splexion turned deathly-pale, his entire body trembling nonstop. With one look at him, Fu Li knew where the surging resentment outside came from. This individual had provoked a human girl with a special fate and was unwilling to take responsibility, causing the human girl to die tragically. Now, she had turned into an evil spirit and was demanding repayment. The sound of the woman cursing as well as the infant¡¯s wails stabbed into everyone¡¯s hearts like daggers, releasing a painful chill. Fu Li leaned against a table silently, as if he hadn¡¯t heard the sounds outside. The other people each had strange expressions. No one spoke. Only the rich second generation called Zhao Wu could no longer contain his fear and rushed up to Fu Li. ¡°Help me. As long as you¡¯re willing to help me, you can ask for any reward.¡± Fu Li looked at the zer that Zhao Wu¡¯s grip had wrinkled. He furrowed his brows. Zhuang Qing stood up and walked over to Fu Li, pushing Zhao Wu away. ¡°Mr Zhao, there is a phrase called ¡®all debts have to be repaid¡¯. Your life is not more noble than the woman and infant outside,¡± Fu Li said with a cold face. ¡°You toyed with someone else wantonly and even shoulder several infant spirits. I cannot help you.¡± ¡°No no no no, I was wrong, I know I¡¯m wrong. I will definitely change in the future. When we leave, I¡¯ll invite someone to recite heavenly scriptures for 49 days. Really!¡± At this moment, Zhao Wu tossed all concern for face out the window, eager to kowtow to Fu Li. ¡°The death of a person is akin to the extinguishing of a me. No matter how good the tomb is, what use does it have?¡± Fu Li was disgusted. ¡°Even wild beasts don¡¯t devour their cubs. You can¡¯t even match up to animals.¡± Several scattered and smashed bodies of childreny on this human, one of whom was in bits and pieces. This meant that he had been eaten by a person during his life, and that the person who had eaten him was the human in front of Fu Li. Fu Li had heard that stories of human cannibalism were tragedies belonging to a time very far back, and that there was no significance in bringing them up now. But this Zhao Wu didn¡¯tck money nor food, why would hey his hands on an infant? Fu Li tapped the infant spirit¡¯s head and read its memories. He nearly vomited right there and then. It had not even urred to him that this Zhao Wu would believe in a nonsensical prescription and for the sake of that thing on his lower body, get someone to bring the unborn children his girlfriend aborted back home and create medicine out of them to boost his sex drive. Zhuang Qing saw that there was something off about Fu Li¡¯splexion and kicked Zhao Wu to the side. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine, I just feel disgusted.¡± The other people watched Zhao Wu take a good few tumbles after being kicked by Zhuang Qing, and couldn¡¯t quite react. Amiability was key to doing business; one might be badly bruised in private while fighting for certain projects, but only smiles would be seen in public. Someone like Zhuang Qing who used physical means without saying anything was really quite special. Those who had extremely close business dealings with the Zhao family couldn¡¯t help saying a few words of persuasion upon seeing this situation. ¡°Everyone, let¡¯s sit down and slowly talk it out if there¡¯s something to say. Is there a need to...¡± ¡°I have nothing to say to a beast who can even eat the flesh of his own child.¡± In front of these rich and influential figures, Zhuang Qing directly dered, ¡°From today onwards, Chang Long will not cooperate with the Zhao family on any projects.¡± As a veteran merchant in the business world, Chang Long upied a very special position. Many few merchants within the industry even suspected that Chang Long had the support of the country. For the one calling the shots in Chang Long to directly say these words, it was clear that he was beyond disgusted by Zhao Wu. But eating the flesh of his biological child... The people who were about to stoop over and help Zhao Wu up retracted their hands and took a few steps to the side. Those present were not pure white lotuses, but they could not bring themselves to blindly approve of eating human flesh and even the flesh of their own children. ¡°Your Majesty, this servant has captured the evil spirits. Your Majesty, please instruct this one.¡± The voice of a Night Wandering God drifted into the room from outside. This time, only one person spoke. Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing, who nced at Zhao Wu. Zhao Wu had shrunk into a ball from fright. Zhuang Qing told Fu Li in a low voice, ¡°Settle it as you deem fit.¡± He walked over to the couch and sat down, sending a message to the management bureau in passing to let them know that they needn¡¯te over. The fact that the signal had been blocked by evil ghosts didn¡¯t affect Zhuang Qing in the slightest. ¡°Help her to leave this ce, and then...¡± Fu Li shot a nce at Zhao Wu. ¡°Let her go.¡± ¡°No no, you can¡¯t let her go!¡± Zhao Wu shook his head in rm. ¡°What if she causes more trouble for me in the future?¡± Fu Lu grinned. Gold light flickered in his pupils. ¡°Isn¡¯t that great?¡± Under Fu Li¡¯s golden-eyed gaze, Zhao Wu felt like there was arge hand around his throat that prevented him from saying anything. He looked back, his entire body trembling, and then realized that everyone in the room was motionless like statues. ¡°You are, you are...¡± Zhao Wu let loose a shout. ¡°A monster!¡± Fu Li beamed and opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth. ¡°If you continue shouting, I¡¯ll eat you!¡± ¡°Monster, monster.¡± Zhao Wu was terrified into urinating, quivering as he crawled backwards. He found that a leg had moved a little, and hurriedly grabbed a hold of it. ¡°This person is a monster.¡± Zhuang Qing kicked the human that smelled of urine to one side, asking expressionlessly, ¡°What monster?¡± ¡°Your assistant is a monster!¡± Zhao Wu¡¯s voice carried a sobbing tone. His entire person had descended into a state of madness. ¡°The monster you were speaking of,¡± Zhuang Qing ced his phone down. ¡°Does it look like this?¡± The next instant, golden dragon scales appeared on his face. Firm, forked horns grew out of his head as well, giving off golden rays of light in the darkness. Zhao Wu¡¯s mouth gaped open. With a bang, he copsed on the floor. ¡°Useless piece of trash. Can¡¯t handle being frightened, but has the guts to eat his own children,¡± Fu Li crouched and held the several infant spirits sitting on Zhao Wu¡¯s shoulders. With a tap of his right forefinger, these infant spirits gained an extra pair of wings. He opened the window and smiled at the infant spirits. ¡°The wings will bring you to the road to the underworld, go.¡± The infant spirits wound around his arm, crying quietly. ¡°I hope you will have a happy family in your next life and that you won¡¯t meet this sort of human scum again,¡± Fu Li smiled as he patted their bright red heads, no dislike for their unpleasant-looking appearances. ¡°Go.¡± Only then did the infant spirits with undeveloped limbs part from Fu Li. pping the wings that radiated a golden glow, they flew into the night. Zhuang Qing stepped forward and closed the windows. With a subtle shake of his sleeves, the fog surrounding the room disappeared without a trace. With auspicious qi all over his body, eliminating fog created from resentment was merely a matter of blinking an eye. He had only endured till now because Fu Li seemed to have other ns. All the people in the room had been frozen by him. He smiled helplessly. ¡°Do you want to get rid of Zhao Wu¡¯s memories?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it more interesting to let him retain those memories?¡± Fu Li opened the door and waved a hand. The four security guards were restored to the positions they were in before they entered the room and everything in the room returned to its original state. Zhuang Qing dragged Fu Li over to the couch to sit before coughing once. Everyone in the room came alive. They forgot the fog that had just appeared outside the doors and windows, as well as the Night Wandering Gods. All they knew was that they had been sitting in the room and talking for a few minutes. The electric circuits resumed normalcy. It was only then that everyone found Zhao Wu, who had cked-out at a corner of the room and was concealed by the curtains. Just as everyone was about to call an ambnce for Zhao Wu, he woke up. He looked at the now-bright room and absent-mindedly felt like he seemed to have had a dream. ¡°Mr Zhao, are you all right?¡± A worker hastily helped him up. ¡°Zhao Wu, I didn¡¯t expect you to be this scared of the dark.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a problem with the electric circuits, don¡¯t be scared.¡± Zhao Wu sat down on the couch, and then realized that his pants were wet. The memories before he fainted all returned to him. All of a sudden, he stood up from the couch. ¡°What about the fog and female ghost from just now?¡± Everyone was at a loss. What fog? What ghost? ¡°Mr Zhao, were you dreaming?¡± Fu Li looked at Zhao Wu with deep concern. ¡°You, you!¡± Zhao Wu turned and saw Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. His teeth chattered and he fainted again. Amotion arose in the room once more. Only Fu Si rubbed his temples doubtfully. He remembered that Assistant Fu had been sitting on the left side of the couch just now, why was he sitting on the right the next instant? Or had he remembered wrongly because the room was too dark? Chapter 93 - Im Scared

Chapter 93 - I¡¯m Scared

The night breeze was cold. Chu Yu watched dense ghost qi emerge from the hotel. Pulling his jacket tight, he lit a cigarette and puffed on it. Only when several infant spirits pping their reincarnation wings flew across his head did he raise his head again. He¡¯d seen reincarnation wings at the Daoist temple during those years. To help a general find the road to the underworld, an old Daoist priest had used his own cultivation to condense a pair of wings. The wings would only vanish after it brought the general¡¯s soul to the gates of the underworld. Such a method consumed a hefty amount of spiritual qi, which was why few cultivators were willing to make such arge sacrifice for lonely souls and wild ghosts. Of course, there also weren¡¯t many people capable of using this skill. He didn¡¯t expect to see it again more than eight hundred yearster. Though it was quite pretty. He finished the cigarette stick and then used a cleansing skill, dispersing the smell of smoke on him till there was no trace of it left. Then, he returned to the car and started it up. Looking at the time, the boss and Fu Li woulde out soon. There had been a power failure backstage and the emergency backup system had failed. Under normal circumstances, this would just be a small issue. However, it became a huge problem because this error had happened at such an important event. If it got out, there was no telling how many people would mock the organizers for their ipetence. The person-in-charge hurriedly rushed backstage and was just about to apologize to these big shots when he heard that the Second Young Master of the Zhao family had fainted. Upon hearing this news, blood sugar rushed up his throat and he hated that he couldn¡¯t faint dead away as well. The person-in-charge called for the doctor stationed on their end toe over and administer emergency treatment, smiling as he apologized. Although these big shots didn¡¯tin much, important figures like them were masters at not showing their emotions on their face. Only the Heavens would know whether or not they truly took offense. After respectfully sending these people off, the person-in-charge started scolding the staff responsible for order and security backstage. ¡°The power failurested for almost twenty minutes backstage. What exactly were all of you doing, why didn¡¯t you contact me immediately?¡± The security staff were scolded into silence. They didn¡¯t feel like much time hadpsed from the moment the power failure urred to the moment the big shots entered the room and sat down, yet almost twenty minutes had gone by. It was also extremely strange that not a single person had notified the front counter during the power failure. ¡°You guys had better pray that this matter doesn¡¯t cause a ruckus outside, otherwise all of us will be done for,¡± The person-in-charge rubbed his face. Forcing out a smile, he went to deal with the big shots from the entertainment industry. Zhuang Qing and the rest walked out through the VIP passage. After everyone spoke a few words of courtesy, they prepared to get into their cars and leave. Fu Si, who was behind Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, held it in for a very long time but eventually still quietly voiced the doubt in his heart. ¡°Mr Zhuang, you seem to have forgotten to take the item you bidded for.¡± Even if he didn¡¯t hold an item he bidded a million for in high regard, he shouldn¡¯t leave it at the auction venue. It would be very awkward if it were to be discovered by the organizer, and would be detrimental to Zhuang Qing if it were to get out. ¡°Item he bidded for?¡± Fu Li stared nkly for a moment before smiling. ¡°Oh, we already took it. During the power failure, we ran into an artist we¡¯re familiar with along the corridor. He helped us take it out.¡± He nced around and waved a hand at She Weilong in the distance, who was stiff with cold. ¡°Little She.¡± Hearing Fu Li calling out to him, She Weilong, who wanted to stealthily take his leave, was so shocked that his entire body turned rigid. He walked to Fu Li with a hunched back and smiled cooperatively. ¡°Mr Fu, you called for me?¡± ¡°We were walking quite hastily just now and forgot to thank you. We¡¯ve troubled you.¡± She Weilong was bewildered. Troubled him with what? Thank him for what? But for better or worse, he was still a snake yao who had mixed into the entertainment industry, so he reacted extremely quickly. ¡°You¡¯re wee, you¡¯re wee. It is my honor to have helped Mr Fu.¡± Even if these two great masters said that they were his grandpas, he would definitely take on the role of grandson without hesitation, much less a mere ¡®thank you¡¯ from them. Snakes were best at being flexible. To be the grandson of a dragon was his gain. On the other hand, She Weilong¡¯s manager was stunned. His eyes had been fixed on She Weilong all the while, and he hadn¡¯t seen She Weilong hugging Chang Long¡¯s thigh, so how did these two people know each other all of a sudden? But regardless of the reason, this was a good thing for them. Fu Si had only given Zhuang Qing a reminder due to their friendly rtions in the business world. After finding out that he had thought too much, he tossed this matter out the window and no longer mentioned it. Bidding goodbye to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, he then turned and walked off without any reluctance. As the heir to the Fu family, Fu Si could be considered perfect. He understood the principle of ¡®taking care not to overdo something¡¯. Seeing that Zhuang Qing and Fu Li no longer needed him, She Weilong very tactfully dragged his manager back to the grand car thepany had arranged for them. Noticing that his manager wanted to gossip, he instantly said, ¡°Don¡¯t ask about the gossip surrounding those two. Those two are big shots, true big shots.¡± The manager stared nkly with his mouth wide open for an eternity before saying, ¡°I just wanted to say that that assistant seems to be the security guard we saw at the hotel the other time.¡± She Weilong nodded. ¡°He¡¯s experiencing life. A hobby of the rich. You understand.¡± The manager nodded. ¡°I understand, you mentioned it to mest time as well.¡± He had been skeptical of She Weilong¡¯s words at that time, but it turned out that it really was a case of the wealthy experiencing life. Simply crazy. He could live a good life, yet insisted on running over to be a security guard. ¡°Then he and Chairman Zhuang...¡± ¡°Brother, don¡¯t speak recklessly!¡± She Weilong was given such a shock that he interjected. ¡°My life is at stake.¡± Those two weren¡¯t even human. As long as they wanted to, they could listen to any word his manager said. When that time came and a lightning bolt came down, they wouldn¡¯t even be alive, what gossip could they engage in? ¡°Okay okay okay, I won¡¯t say it.¡± Seeing that She Weilong¡¯splexion had turned pale from fright, he didn¡¯t dare to say anything further either. Instead, he changed the topic to work. ¡°You¡¯ll be going to the zoo tomorrow to film for a variety show. I¡¯ve already asked the program team ¨C your zodiac animal is the snake, your surname is also She, and even your fans¡¯ nickname for you is little snake, so the segment you¡¯re filming tomorrow might be rted to snakes. If you¡¯re scared of snakes, I¡¯ll negotiate with the program team tonight and get them to abandon this arrangement.¡± ¡°Snakes?¡± She Weilong patted his chest right then and there. ¡°No worries, I¡¯m not scared of them.¡± As a snake who had lived for hundreds of years, he would be a snake ancestor in front of those snakes. What did he have to fear? On the other end, Chu Yu pulled the car door open for Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. He asked curiously, ¡°There are evil spirits inside?¡± Fu Li once again remembered Zhao Wu¡¯s actions. Furrowing his brows, he stated, ¡°There are evil spirits and also evil people.¡± Chu Yu guessed that something else had definitely also happened. But when he turned around and saw the boss staring at him with an unkind gaze, he tactfully zipped his mouth shut. At certain moments, silence was golden. Being too talkative would lead to his death. The car slowly proceeded along the flow of traffic. Fu Li looked out the window for a long while. Suddenly, he asked, ¡°Why?¡± Why was there someone who could so easily abandon their own child and evenmit worse deeds? Elder White Ape had said that humans were the most intelligent animals. They invented tools,nguage, and script by relying on their own abilities. As a result, they understood ethics, etiquette, and possessed a faultless character that many animals didn¡¯t have. But after living in the human world for a long time, he realized that humans came in all shapes and forms. Although there were those humans Elder White Ape had spoken of, there were also immoral humans whocked even the slightest bit of humanity. Were his hopes for humans too great, which was why he found it particrly unbearable when witnessing their ugly side? ¡°Humans might be smarter than animals, but they are still a type of life form. They are not gods.¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his head, looking at Fu Li¡¯s hand on his knee. He reached out and gripped Fu Li¡¯s wrist, as if this posture would enable him to better console Fu Li. ¡°There are no perfect humans in the world, just like how there are no perfect yao cultivators.¡± Fu Li¡¯s lips moved. He couldn¡¯t refute Zhuang Qing, nor did he feel that there was anything wrong with Zhuang Qing holding his wrist. ¡°After my birth, I lived in the human world till my mother passed away from illness. After that, I lived in the dragon pce for a few years. I then constantly roamed the human world ¨C the East, the West, and even the coldest north and south poles. I even made human friends.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice was calm, bereft of emotional fluctuations as he recalled his memories. ¡°My mother cannot be considered the traditional good woman. Although she was not favored by the emperor, she was a royal princess and thus possessed a lot ofnd, riches, servant girls, and also... malepanions. After the death of her prince consort, she didn¡¯t even mourn for a hundred days before summoning malepanions to y around with. Such a woman probably doesn¡¯t conform to the loyal and sentimental human in your heart.¡± Fu Li remained silent. He did indeed think that loyalty to one¡¯s partner was a must, regardless of whether one was male or female. Should one party pass away, finding another partner was understandable. But even then, one ought to treat emotions seriously and not be this frivolous. ¡°But such a woman actually didn¡¯t fear the words of outsiders after unwittingly getting pregnant. She still gave birth to me,¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth raised slightly. ¡°She only knew how to enjoy life, but treated me extremely well. Even when she was on the brink of death, she still went to the pce to request an imperial decree from the emperor who had never been fond of her, and managed to plead for a noble title andnd for me.¡± ¡°Is it that ¡®Wen An Marquis, Shang County¡¯?¡± Fu Li asked in passing. ¡°Yes,¡± Zhuang Qing feigned surprise. ¡°How did you know about that?¡± Only then did Fu Li remember that he had specially invited a little bird to help him send the jade que he had stolen, out of fear that Zhuang Qing would realize that he had vited the bureau¡¯s staff regtions. Regaining his wits, he coughed dryly, ¡°I don¡¯t know where I heard it from either. Anyway, that¡¯s the impression I have.¡± Zhuang Qing sighed inwardly. Reflecting Mist Mountain had truly made Fu Li too obedient; he couldn¡¯t even lie. ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t expose Fu Li¡¯s lie. He nodded and said, ¡°I¡¯ve seen generals who, for the sake of protecting themon people, watched with tears in their eyes as their family members were shot to death by the enemy. I¡¯ve seen elegant noblemen with high moral character eventually betray their country for glory. I¡¯ve even seen filthy-mouthed, havoc-causing vige women who, for the sake of protecting the vige children, lure roving bandits away and end up hacked to death. I even had a good friend I got along well with who, for the sake of immortality, eventually colluded with evil yao to poison me to death using medicine.¡± ¡°What happened after that?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°Were you okay?¡± ¡°I just experienced my second dragon transformation at that time and could naturally distinguish human medicine,¡± Zhuang Qing lowered his eyelids. ¡°So I didn¡¯t drink it.¡± ¡°You were right not to drink it,¡± Fu Li stated. ¡°You¡¯re half-dragon and half-human, and your cultivation wasn¡¯t stable at that point. Human poison will still have some effect on you.¡± These things that Zhuang Qing mentioned clearly couldn¡¯t be considered pleasant, whether it was the process or the oue, but Fu Li actually felt somewhat relieved. It was likely that humans had been this erratic all along. At this moment, the car came to an abrupt stop. Fu Li stered his face against the window and looked out. A police officer wearing a fluorescent vest was syed out beneath a car searching for something. Kneeling with both legs on the cold ground seemed to be ufortable for him, so he very quickly switched to kneeling on a single knee. Woof! A sound could be heard from underneath the car. A whileter, the police officer finally stood up, his hands wrapped around a tiny dirty dog. A broad smile stretched across his face. Noticing that the car Fu Li was in had stopped behind his car, the police officer covered the tiny dog¡¯s eyes with a hand to prevent the headlights from shining into the dog¡¯s eyes. ¡°Sorry, sorry,¡± The police officer saluted Fu Li and the others before carrying the tiny dog into the police car. Their car drove past the police car. Fu Li looked back and saw the police officer seated in the driver¡¯s seat peel off his uniform, remove the thin sweater inside, and then shake it out, covering something at the front passenger seat. He was probably covering the little puppy, thought Fu Li. ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°A cute person,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, thank you. I might have understood the meaning behind your words.¡± Zhuang Qing released his grip on Fu Li¡¯s wrist and said mockingly, ¡°Even needing me to exin such a simple question, you stillck life experience. There¡¯s an event taking ce at the capital¡¯s zoo tomorrow, I¡¯ll take you to the venue to patrol. You¡¯ll get it after interacting a bit more with humans.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li thanked him sincerely. ¡°Forget it. Who asked me to be your boss. If I don¡¯t protect you, who will?¡± Zhuang Qing stretched out a hand and rubbed Fu Li¡¯s head helplessly. Fu Li felt that there was something wrong with this situation. Who exactly was the older and younger one between him and Zhuang Qing? Chu Yu, who was driving in front, wanted to say something but hesitated. In the end, there was also no chance for him to say anything. What could he say? Could he tell Fu ge that dispatching two employees from a subsidiary department to keep a watch on the venue was enough for such an event? The boss already said that he wanted to let Fu ge interact a bit more with humans. How could he still blindly say that this was different from their past practices? It wasn¡¯t like he was a mentally challenged fish. The issue of the power failure backstage at the charity event didn¡¯t enter people¡¯s ears that night, but Zhuang Qing and Fu Li exploded in poprity online. The two people had outstanding looks and had too much tacit understanding when walking the red carpet, thus manyizens felt that they were together. After they were refuted by otherizens, theseizens were very unresigned and managed to find plenty of evidence on the inte. For instance, a certain weibo post made by the forestry bureau to thank a group of warm-hearted people for rescuing a rare snake species. The picture beneath the post contained Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s figures. For instance, the godly knife wielder and fish seller who had been popr for a while on the inte. Zhuang Qing sold the fish, while Fu Li was responsible for epting money and doing the weighing. There were evenizens who discovered that Fu Li had once rescued a youngdy from being harassed by hoodlums and had also been a security guard at a hotel. Netizen 1: Hahaha, I¡¯m going to dieughing because of this pair. They¡¯re clearly two Mr Perfects, yet they do such strange things. This roley of them selling fish at the market really is down-to-earth. Netizen 2: Everyone, be a bit more solemn. With our chairman daren¡¯s knife work, he¡¯s simply pressuring all the fish sellers to death. Handsome guys who don¡¯t want to sell fish can¡¯t be good directors; I¡¯m bowing down to these two. Netizen 3: Look how happy Assistant Fu Li is when he¡¯s epting money, his eyes are shining. Intuition tells me that this roley must have been thought up by Assistant Fu Li. Chairman daren really pampers his assistant. This pair is just so sweet! Netizen 4: Can I break some news? The day before this fish selling video circted online, I apanied my grandma to an alley outside to buy fish. There are often people selling things in that alley, but ording to the rules, stalls can¡¯t be set up at that ce, so stall-keepers frequently run from city management. On that day, I saw city management chasing the chairman and his assistant all over the streets. They might not have known then that stalls can¡¯t be set up at that ce, and only went to the marketter on. Netizen 5: I¡¯m going to hup fromughter. Even television dramas don¡¯t dare to act out city management chasing a big shot and his boyfriend all over the streets. But, it really is meng! So meng! Fu Li was oblivious to all the excitement on the inte. After returning, he went to bed very early before heading to the zoo to patrol early in the morning. Work should be done with dedication ¨C this was his principle as a yao. The zoo in the capital was ranked in the top five zoos in the entire country. The zoo offered a rich diversity of species and was strictly managed, so it attracted visitors from all over the country every year. Although it wasn¡¯t a public holiday, the zoo was going to wee two pandas, which resulted in many people from the capital racing over to join in the excitement. The capital zoo had already adopted the pandas, but this did not affect the enthusiasm themon people had for pandas. As a national treasure of the mammal variety, pandas possessed a local charm that was unmatched by all animals. Countless people were captivated by them. When Fu Li and Zhuang Qing rushed to the zoo, there were many publicity signboards at the venue. Many visitors were wearing panda headbands and caps, smiling with a mouth full of teeth. Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t bought tickets. Instead, he specially got hold of a staff pass and entered the zoo from the staff passage. Touching the card hanging in front of his chest, Fu Li eximed in admiration, ¡°Your thinking is really thorough. With a staff pass, handling any sudden incident will be easier.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent. Holding the map of the zoo, the two of them followed the map and passed bypound afterpound. Upon seeing a snake symbol hanging outside a certainpound, Fu Li paused. He didn¡¯t really want to enter. Just seeing a snake was enough to make him think of the Feiyi. His childhood trauma was etched into his heart, unwilling to detach no matter what. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing looked back at him. Fu Li shook his head. As a senior who was more than 4200 years old, how could he appear terrified in front of a junior? ¡°Are you scared of snakes?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°No,¡± Fu Li continued to shake his head. ¡°How can I be scared of them?¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. He extended a hand to Fu Li. ¡°I¡¯m not very fond of those things, looking at them makes my skin crawl. Can you lend your hand to me to hold?¡± Ilyz: ZQ, why are you so cute? On a side note, CG will be hosting a 10k discord members celebration event with lots of prizes from the trantors and authors, make sure to check it out~ There are 2 bonus releases for DDAS up for grabs as well All you have to do is submit fanart or fanfiction for any of the participating novels for a chance to score a prize ^^ Any submissions for DDAS would be really appreciated, let your imagination go wild! Chapter 94 - Betrayal

Chapter 94 - Betrayal

¡°You¡¯re scared of snakes?¡± Fu Li lowered his head, ncing at the hand extended to him. He reluctantly took hold of Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. Fu Li¡¯s hand was clean, soft, and warm. Zhuang Qing seized the opportunity to walk beside him, nodding with a straight face. ¡°En.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you a dragon?¡± There were less visitors at the snakepoundpared to the other animalpounds, so Fu Li¡¯s question didn¡¯t attract anyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Dragons are quite simr to snakes. If you¡¯re scared of snakes, do you dare to even look at your original form?¡± ¡°Did you forget that half of the blood in my veinses from a human?¡± Zhuang Qing simplified scientific knowledge in deadly earnest. ¡°The human fear of dangerous animals is carved into their genes. Despite so many years of evolution, the fear that has been carved into these genes will subconsciously manifest. Many humans might have died from the venomous fangs of snakes when they didn¡¯t yet have advanced tools, which is why humans have a natural fear of snakes. I get very vexed over this sometimes too. I¡¯m half-dragon, but scared of snakes. Will you make fun of me?¡± ¡°How could I? Am I that kind of yao?¡± Fu Li came to a stop and used his other hand to pat Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m not fond of furless, smooth creatures either. You¡¯re half-human and have that...¡± ¡°Gic memories.¡± ¡°Right, gic memories, so it¡¯s very normal for you to be scared of them. Going against nature is difficult and not something shameful for yao.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wee. Aren¡¯t we good friends?¡± Fu Li gripped Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand tightly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, don¡¯t be scared.¡± Looking at their intertwined hands, Zhuang Qing revealed a pure smile. Even the faint stink of snake in the snakepound had no effect on his good mood. In the middle of the snakepound, She Weilong was wearing a zookeeper¡¯s outfit and looking loftily through the ss at the snakes within the enclosure. The cameraman following him discovered that She Weilong really wasn¡¯t scared of snakes. Rather, it was the snakes who all raised their heads after spotting him, seemingly weing him. She Weilong spoke to the camera in delight, ¡°Did you see that? I might have even been the king of snakes in my past life.¡± His next challenge involved crossing over threerge pythons and retrieving the sponsored bag all the way inside. As long as he sessfully obtained the sponsored bag, the sponsor would donate an additional 200 000 yuan to impoverished elementary school children. The worker opened the passage for zookeepers. While introducing the various snakes in the different areas as well as their level of endangerment, the worker led She Weilong to the rearing area. The apanying cameraman watched She Weilong cross over arge python without any change in expression. Fine sweat seeped out of the cameraman¡¯s forehead. Just looking at such a big snake made his heart feel weak, yet She Weilong had such huge guts. ¡°Big ck is the one all the way at the back. He was sent to our zoo by the forestry bureau¡¯s emergency rescue. This snake has a very docile temperament and even went to a foreign zoo not long ago for a friendly exchange, so you don¡¯t have to be scaredter on.¡± The zookeeper took out a piece of paper from the pocket of their jacket. ¡°Your task today is to feed Big ck his meal and stroke his head thrice. The sponsored bag will then be sessfully obtained.¡± It was just a matter of feeding a snake, thought She Weilong. To be personally fed by him would practically be a few hundred years¡¯ worth of good fortune for the snake. He took the feeding bucket, used the feeding tongs to pick up the meat chunks, and then walked in. Worried that this big celebrity would run into trouble, the program team still arranged for many professional assistants, despite the fact that they had specially arranged for docile snakes to be at this ce. If something were to really ur, they wouldn¡¯t be able to handle the consequences. Fortunately, She Weilong made his way through without any mishap. Upon reaching the innermost section, he saw arge ck python sprawled on the groundzily. Probably because it led a veryfortable life in the zoo, the python gave off a subtle feeling of contentment through the lens of the camera. The ck python looked up upon hearing the sound of human footsteps, flicking its tongue. In the eyes of the humans, this was merely the snake¡¯s reaction towards being disturbed. However, She Weilong seemed as if he had been struck by lightning. This was a snake? Were the people from the zoo blind? This was clearly a python Jiao who could transform into a dragon if it were to gain a chance. ¡°Tsk, little sh*tty snake!¡± The ck python sneered contemptuously as it coiled its body. She Weilong swallowed. Using thenguage of the snakes, he said, ¡°Senior, this junior has a task toplete. Can you lend me a hand?¡± ¡°Bah!¡± The ck python buried its head. ¡°Boss, big brother, this meat is very good. Give me some face and take a few bites of it, okay?¡± She Weilong offered the meat to the ck python with shaking hands. To the program team, She Weilong was mimicking the hissing sounds issued by snakes with the intention of reaching the goal of a ¡®friendly exchange¡¯. This sort of behavior was simr to how humans would involuntarily meow when faced with cats. But everyone knew that humans had no talent for learning animalnguages. Therefore, the ck python didn¡¯t give She Weilong even a tiny bit of face. With a twist of its head, it slithered to another corner. No matter how She Weilong hissed, none of it worked. Faced with the uncooperative ck python, She Weilong nearly kowtowed to it. If he¡¯d known that there was a real snake ancestor here, how would he have dared to proim himself an ancestor of snakes? It was no wonder that the two snakes outside stayed there obediently; it turned out that the true boss was in here. ¡°I can cooperate with you, but you must help me do something,¡± The ck python finally relented a little after She Weilong pleaded with it piteously. ¡°Don¡¯t hesitate to tell me any good food and wine that you need. This junior will definitely satisfy you,¡± She Weilong feared this sort of powerful senior, but also harbored some suspicion in his heart. Why would such a powerful yaoguai stay in a poverty-stricken area like the zoo? Just look at how magnificent it was to be a big celebrity like him. ¡°You¡¯re a yao who thinks only about wine and food?¡± She Weilong looked extremely displeasing to the ck python. He had poor cultivation and mixed around with humans all day long. He was willing to stoop to even the lowest level. It was just that that repulsive yao had ced a restriction on him, preventing him from employing any magic power despite having cultivation, so he had no choice but to let this little yao run errands for him instead. ¡°I want you to help me kill someone,¡± The ck python smiled coldly. ¡°Help me kill a security guard at Affinity Moon Hotel. When I¡¯m out, I¡¯ll definitely give you the best cultivation method so that bing a Jiao and dragon won¡¯t just be a dream.¡± She Weilong felt that this senior not only had issues with his conduct, but also didn¡¯t have a very good brain. Society was ruled by thew now, and killing people at random was a bad idea. He didn¡¯t dare to provoke the management bureau¡¯s great masters. ¡°Senior, I just want you toplete a game, how did it be killing someone?¡± She Weilong actually wanted to ask if there was something wrong with his brain but didn¡¯t dare to. ¡°You don¡¯t want the cultivation method?¡± ¡°Bing a Jiao and dragon is indeed good, but I feel that being a big celebrity is also not bad,¡± She Weilong responded. ¡°A hundred yearster, I¡¯ll switch up my looks and mix into the entertainment industry again. That will also be quite interesting.¡± The ck python hadn¡¯t expected this snake cultivator junior to be so disappointing. Angered, he wanted to send his tail flying over, but seeing that the zookeepers were still present, he could only resentfully feign sleep. Who knew what trick that vile yao had used on him? As long as he did something excessive, intense pain would wrack his entire body, giving him no choice but to yield. The program team had no choice but to change the game rules after noticing that the ck python had actually fallen asleep. After letting She Weilong interact with the two pythons outside, they allowed him to retrieve the sponsored bag. Hugging the sponsored bag, She Weilong nced back at thezy ck python. He felt like he was a genuinely good snake who wasn¡¯t corrupted by wealth or riches. He even gave up on a profound cultivation method just so he wouldn¡¯t kill. The more he thought, the more lofty he felt he was. She Weilog walked out of the rearing area with immense delight and turned towards the observation area for visitors. He hadn¡¯t walked more than a few steps when he collided head-on with two people, the fright causing him to even drop the sponsored bag onto the ground. Why?! Why did he meet these two great masters again? Did they know about his conversation with the ck python and think that he was following the ck python¡¯s bad example? She Weilong very much wanted to give Fu Li and Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands a hard shake. It really wasn¡¯t like that, listen to my exnation! But he couldn¡¯t toss aside his idol image. As a dedicated idol, he couldn¡¯t allow himself to be imperfect in front of the camera. She Weilong, stand your ground, you can do it. Legs, don¡¯t soften. More importantly, don¡¯t reveal your original form! ¡°Your item,¡± Fu Li bent down and picked up the sponsored bag. Zhuang Qing, whose hand was intertwined with his, was made to take one step forward because of his actions. He nodded at She Weilong. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°H-Hello,¡± She Weilong hastily took the sponsored bag from Fu Li. ¡°Thank you... Mr Fu Li.¡± The word ¡®daojun¡¯ nearly slipped out of his mouth. ¡°You¡¯re wee,¡± Fu Li had noticed the cameraman following behind She Weilong. Tugging at Zhuang Qing, he indicated for them to walk faster so that they wouldn¡¯t hold up the other party as they filmed. Zhuang Qing nced at the anxious-eyed She Weilong and silently followed Fu Li a distance away. The cameraman switched off the camera and asked She Weilong in a low voice, ¡°Teacher She, are those two your friends? Should we cut their scene?¡± She Weilong was jolted out of his state of fear. ¡°Cut?¡± ¡°Yes, those two are lovers. Although this sort of romantic love is highly respected now, there will inevitably be more extreme people. Broadcasting it may not be good for them.¡± The cameraman had given it considerable thought. Their program was in need of amusing antics, but if it were to cause a hugemotion, their reputation would also be affected. She Weilong suddenly turned his head towards the direction Fu Li and Zhuang Qing had left in, and discovered that those two people¡¯s hands were actually... linked. Linked? She Weilong was struck dumb. Were those two... together? He remembered that Fu Li daojun¡¯s original form was a rabbit. For a rabbit to be with a dragon, wasn¡¯t the difference in their original forms a bit too big? No wonder the Dragon Lord spent a million yesterday night on bidding for that lousy wooden carving. It was definitely because there was a dragon and rabbit on it. Unexpected, truly unexpected. The grand chief of the management bureau, Dragon Lord Zhuang Qing, was actually engaging in an office romance. Despite the fact that Zhuang Qing was walking very slowly, the two people eventually made it out of the snakepound. Gazing at the hand Fu Li had released, he said nonchntly, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Handsome brothers, how about buying some panda hairbands?¡± A young girl at a selling booth greeted them enthusiastically. ¡°They¡¯re very cheap. One for twenty yuan, and thirty yuan for two. Many visitors bought it today, why not get one too?¡± Twenty for one, and only thirty for two ¨C it seemed like they would save ten yuan. Fu Li unhesitatingly fished out thirty yuan and bought two panda hairbands. ¡°For you,¡± Fu Li wore one and took out his phone, using the front camera to happily look at himself. The fluffy animal ears were very nice to look at. Having looked enough at the camera, he offered the remaining one to Zhuang Qing. ¡°For what?¡± Zhuang Qing remained unmoved.How could a dignified seven chi man wear this sort of thing? ¡°We have to blend into the masses¡¯ way of life, look at how many people are wearing it,¡± Fu Li pointed around them. There were indeed many people wearing panda hats or panda ears among the visitors that came and went. ¡°We must move from the masses to the masses, wearing this is called ¡®integrating deeply into the masses¡¯.¡± This sort of facious reasoning couldn¡¯t move Zhuang Qing. He was going to reject it again when Fu Li reached out and ced the headband on his head. Then, he grabbed Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. ¡°Let¡¯s wear them together, don¡¯t take it off.¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips twitched. He looked at Fu Li, who was all smiles. ¡°Let go.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll let go if you promise not to take it off.¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li for a few seconds before saying helplessly, ¡°Let go, I won¡¯t take it off.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it have been good if you¡¯d gone ahead with this earlier?¡± Fu Li let go of Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand and adjusted the angle of the panda ears on his head. ¡°You¡¯re clearly younger than me, so why do you live your life like an old and decrepit man? The humans have invented so many interesting toys, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a waste not to experience them?¡± Zhuang Qing watched the panda ears on Fu Li¡¯s head sway as he spoke. Springs were attached at the bottom of the ears to raise the panda ears¡¯ level of meng, so the ears would sway back and forth with the slightest shift of the head. It would definitely be cuter if it were rabbit ears, thought Zhuang Qing somewhat absent-mindedly. He cocked his head self-consciously. Following behind Fu Li, they moved forward slowly. Several young girls not far from them had long since been attracted by their looks. Shrieks nearly escaped their mouths when they saw Fu Li putting the panda hairband on Zhuang Qing. ¡°Those two were Chairman Zhuang and Assistant Fu, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s them, I swear on the video on myputer.¡± ¡°I really didn¡¯t think that two men¡¯s interactions could be so provocative that my young girl¡¯s heart would thump nonstop. But Assistant Fu and Chairman Zhuang are really handsome. Chairman Zhuang¡¯s expression when he doesn¡¯t want to wear the panda ears but has no choice but topromise because he dotes on Assistant Fu is such a perfect textbook example of a lover.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we catch up to them and take a look?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t, they¡¯re having a perfectly good date. How hateful would we be if we ran up and surrounded them?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. A cute bystander girl who disrupts a date will be struck by lightning.¡± The zoo was too big and chairs for visitors to rest were avable between every area. Fu Li and Zhuang Qing picked a chair to sit on. Everyone around them was drinking and eating; only the two of them were sitting with empty hands, standing out like a sore thumb. A bear child spat grape skin on the ground, and was berated by his even more valiant mother. Fu Li thought that the child would start bawling, but under his mother¡¯s formidable eye attack, the child sniffled, stuck his little butt out, and picked the grape skin up. Then, he acted like a spoiled child, twisting about on his mother¡¯s body like fried braided dough. ¡°Wait here,¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly stood up. ¡°Be good and sit here, don¡¯t walk off randomly.¡± Fu Li: ... ¡°Be good and sit here, don¡¯t move. Mother is going to throw the rubbish,¡± The bear child¡¯s mother rubbed the child¡¯s head and headed to the rubbish bin three meters away to toss the grape skin. The bear child sat there obediently, although his chubby hand was stretching towards another bag of snacks. Fu Li had an inexplicable feeling that Zhuang Qing¡¯s words were extremely simr to what the bear child¡¯s mother had said. The bear child opened another bag of snacks and stuffed two pieces into his mouth. Turning his head, he saw Fu Li looking at him and hurriedly twisted his buttocks, hiding the bag of snacks. Give up, evil stranger. I won¡¯t give any of my snacks to you. When the woman returned after throwing away the bag of snacks, the bear child hastily picked out thergest piece from the bag. ¡°Mama, here.¡± The mother smiled radiantly as she ate the snack. Fu Li noticed that the bear child had dropped a biscuit onto the ground by ident, which he obediently picked upter on, throwing it into the trash bag beside him. It seemed this bear child wasn¡¯t all that bear-ish after all. ¡°Stop looking.¡± Arge bag of snacks took up Fu Li¡¯s entire line of sight. The next second, it was ced in Fu Li¡¯s arms. He looked down at the items in the bag. There was c, fruit juice, all sorts of potato chips and biscuits, and even a box of red grapes wrapped with cling wrap. He tore open a bag of potato chips and ced it between them. ¡°Why did you buy these?¡± Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t fond of potato chips. He took a drink can from the bag, pulled the tab, and took a sip from it. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to eat them very much?¡± ¡°When did I want to eat them?¡± Fu Li was confused. ¡°Then what were you staring at another child¡¯s food for?¡± Zhuang Qing patted his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s fine, eat if you want to. No one other than me will know about it anyway.¡± Fu Li: ... Was he the kind of yao cultivator who would be jealous of a child¡¯s snacks? Fu Li finished the bag of chips a short whileter. He took a few sips of c. ¡°You went to buy the snacks because I wanted to eat them.¡± ¡°No,¡± Zhuang Qing turned his head away. Sunlight shone onto his ears, causing them to appear slightly transparent with a hint of pink. ¡°I just went to scout out the path and saw that there was a kiosk selling these things, so I bought some along the way,¡± Zhuang Qing scoffed. ¡°How could I specially buy all these? Stop this wishful thinking.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li continued to drink c with a wide smile on his face. Why were Zhuang Qing¡¯s ears turning increasingly red? She Weilong ended the afternoon shooting with much difficulty. He took advantage of the afternoon rest time to disguise himself and seek out Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, who were sitting on the rest chairs and snacking. ¡°Dragon Lord, Fu Li daojun, please listen to my exnation!¡± She Weilong strode over to the two people. ¡°This is all a misunderstanding.¡± Fu Li looked nkly at She Weilong. Was this snake not very right in the head? Zhuang Qing fished out a napkin and stuffed it into Fu Li¡¯s hands for him to wipe his mouth. Then, he looked at She Weilong with a cold face. ¡°Speak.¡± With one nce at Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression, She Weilong knew for certain that the Dragon Lord was aware of his conversation with the ck python. He hurriedly responded in a low voice, ¡°This is a misunderstanding. I don¡¯t know that ck python at all, nor did I agree to his conditions. I¡¯m a pure snake who definitely won¡¯t step onto the wrong path.¡± ¡°En,¡± Seeing that Fu Li had wiped his mouth clean, Zhuang Qing threw the snack bag and empty drink bottles into the rubbish bin. After sitting back down on the chair, he raised his chin. ¡°Continue.¡± ¡°I suspect the zoo¡¯s ck python has antisocial snake disorder. He even wanted to tempt me with a cultivation method to kill a security guard from Affinity Moon Hotel,¡± She Weilong didn¡¯t hesitate to betray his snake senior. In any case, they weren¡¯t of the same breed, so he defended himself guiltlessly, ¡°But a snake like me naturally rejected him without the slightest hesitation. Cultivation can be done slowly, but illegal acts like murder cannot be done.¡± ¡°I might be the security guard he wanted to kill,¡± Fu Li blinked innocently. ¡°I was the one who captured him and sent him to the forestry bureau.¡± At this instant, She Weilong felt like he might have made the most correct decision he would ever make throughout his entire life as a yao. Chapter 95 - Not Easy

Chapter 95 - Not Easy

Of course, She Weilong remembered that Fu Li had been a security guard at Affinity Moon Hotel. But the thought that the ck python would have the snake guts to even make a move on someone from the bureau hadn¡¯t even crossed his mind. No, it ought to be said that the ck python wascking in morality to have actually instigated him into throwing his life away. He must¡¯ve had a few lifetimes¡¯ worth of bad luck to run into someone like this who was of the same species. Fortunately, the Dragon Lord and Fu Li daojun could distinguish between right and wrong with keen perception, and didn¡¯t take him as an aplice. ¡°We have a clear understanding of the matter.¡± Fu Li noticed the presence of girls around them secretly looking in their direction and kindly warned She Weilong, ¡°You seem to have been recognized?¡± ¡°Ah?¡± She Weilong hadn¡¯t walked out of the joy of preserving his life, and couldn¡¯t quite react upon hearing Fu Li¡¯s words. ¡°That¡¯s Little Snake!¡± ¡°Ahhh, it really is Little Snake.¡± Pleasantly-surprised exmations sounded from the crowd. She Weilong threw down a ¡®goodbye¡¯ and broke into a run. But there were simply too many people at the zoo today. No matter how long his legs, he couldn¡¯t escape pursuit of the crowd and was thus surrounded by a gaggle of people without making it very far. Although the young girls were very excited and were snapping pictures left, right, and center with their phones, they still used their slender bodies to block the surrounding masses rushing ahead so as to prevent She Weilong from being injured. ¡°Please don¡¯t squeeze, take care of safety,¡± She Weilong helped a young girl up who was being pushed about till she swayed unsteadily from side to side. He said loudly, ¡°Take note of the little friends around us, I hope everyone will not distress others because of me.¡± Upon hearing these words, the fans maintained order very cooperatively and were no longer as rowdy. Fu Li was originally worried that trampling would ur, but after seeing She Weilong¡¯s practised way of handling it, he decided not to join in the fun. ¡°That little snake seems to really like being a celebrity.¡± In spite of the fact that he was both cowardly and unconfident in their presence, he couldn¡¯t be more perfect in front of his fans. Even that awl-like face of his was radiant. Those young girls at the venue probably genuinely liked him as well ¨C the atmosphere at the venue was thick with the scent of faith. Humans were destined to have an abundance of emotion. They could like an artist one day, but like another celebrity the next. Despite that, their fondness for the person at that point in time was genuine, and the individual investing their emotions had no reservations either. It was a beautiful memory for both parties. Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li smile all of a sudden. ¡°What are you smiling at?¡± ¡°This is a gratified smile,¡± Fu Li said very seriously. ¡°A smile that an old father would have when seeing that his child has grown sensible.¡± ¡°Howe I wasn¡¯t aware that a male rabbit can give birth to a snake?¡± Zhuang Qing stood up. ¡°We¡¯ve been sitting for a very long time, let¡¯s go to the next stop ¨C the pandapound.¡± ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Fu Li nodded. He was most fond of fluffy, plump animals. It was just a pity that there was only one panda yao registered with the management bureau. Two years ago, this panda yao snuck into a panda research base in order to freeload meals. He spent his days acting cute in front of the panda livestream channel, until the base got ready to send him for breeding. Only then did he rush to report to the management bureau and Yao Union so that he could be a member of the Wildlife Release Program. He¡¯d heard that the panda yao had shrank his original form and pretended to be his own son, shamelessly mixing back into the panda research base. The management bureau and Yao Union couldn¡¯t do anything about this sort of decadent yao with no initiative or drive, so seeing that he didn¡¯t stir up any major trouble and even brought happiness to the humans, they could only close one eye. There was a long queue outside the pandapound. The humans who couldn¡¯t see the pandas raised their phones towards the panda statues and managed to take a few photos. Zhuang Qing expressionlessly took out the work pass he had ced inside his pocket and hung it around his neck. Under the envious gazes of everyone else, he led Fu Li into the pandapound. There were many children inside, some of whom took advantage of the adults¡¯ inattention to run about recklessly while the adults chased after them from behind. A child bumped into Zhuang Qing¡¯s legs. Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t even reacted when he rolled back twice like a potato andy sprawled on the ground, bawling. Zhuang Qing: ... He was so worried that the panda ears on his head also started swaying. The child¡¯s father hurriedly ran over and scooped the child up. He nced at Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Realizing that their attire was not ordinary, he grumbled a little, but didn¡¯t dare to really get into an argument with them. He carried the child off, the child on his shoulders still wailing loudly. Fu Li touched his shoulder, feeling like it was a bit cold. Zhuang Qing abruptly turned towards him. ¡°Not having children in the future is very good.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Li was caught by surprise. ¡°Your dragon race¡¯s reproductive ability is quite good, you might have many children in the future.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s footsteps came to a halt. ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t have children in the future,¡± Zhuang Qing fixed his gaze on the panda in the enclosure, who was lying on the ground and leisurely gnawing on tender bamboo. ¡°So I won¡¯t have this kind of worry.¡± Fu Li nced at the panda, and then nced at Zhuang Qing with a pensive look. It was said that pandas had very weak reproductive capabilities despite how impressive they were. Much of panda reproduction was reliant on humans. Was Zhuang Qing¡¯s reproductive capabilities simr to the panda¡¯s? Which male would be willing to admit that they weren¡¯t strong in this aspect? The fact that Zhuang little dragon was willing to tell him this showed that he treated him as a good brother. Having understood this, Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. ¡°Science and technology is advancing rapidly now. What can¡¯t be done now may not be an issue in a few hundreds or thousands of years.¡± A nk look on his face, Zhuang Qing allowed Fu Li to consolingly pat him all over his shoulders and chest. After leaving the pandapound, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing discovered a tiger yao who was plump and strong from being fed well. The tiger yaoy on the groundzily as it ignored the amazed shrieks from children outside. He finally had a reaction when Zhuang Qing and Fu Li passed by him. Getting up, he called out to them. ¡°The two brothers outside, the treatment at the zoo is not bad, do you want to take it easy with me?¡± The tiger yao asked. ¡°Humans are way too scary, they¡¯ve actually invented a gun that can knock people unconscious. You must take care of your safety.¡± He could smell the special aura around Zhuang Qing. Although he couldn¡¯t tell what the other party¡¯s original form was at the moment, he still remembered that it was Fu Li who had led him to the Yao Union to be registered. The tiger¡¯s roars frightened the children into crying out, while those with little courage broke out into sobs immediately. While coaxing their children, the parents didn¡¯t forget to take out their phones to snap photos of the tiger¡¯s roaring appearing, along with their own children¡¯s shameful crying visages. In this world where cameras were ubiquitous, parents were also merciless to their own children. Fu Li couldn¡¯t help smiling when he saw this tiger yao. He remembered this white tiger. He had brought this tiger yao to the Yao Union then, so why had it run over to the zoo in a sh? Feeling a bit curious, he used the Sound Transmission Skill to ask him a few questions. ¡°Don¡¯t bring it up. Living in human society is too hard,¡± The tiger yao hung his head. ¡°A degree is required for everything. In the end, I fainted along the roadside from hunger and was sent by a rescue organization to this ce.¡± If this were the past, he could fill his tummy just by eating a human. However, he had learnt at the Yao Union¡¯s human world general knowledge training ss that yao cultivators who recklessly ate humans would be beaten to death by the management bureau. Thus, he could only endure it. He lowered his head, licking the fur on his front ws. ¡°But it¡¯s not bad here. I don¡¯t have to worry about food, and the humans even make an all-out effort to be my ves, revolving around me day after day.¡± For a moment, Fu Li didn¡¯t know what to say. Humans were now bing increasingly conscious of wildlife conservation. This was a good thing in itself, but they hadn¡¯t expected the yao races tock drive and rely on the humans¡¯ awareness of conservation to spend their days only eating and ying. They had degenerated down to the core. s, what would be the future of the yao cultivation world? Fu Li turned to look at Zhuang Qing. It was still fine, at least there was a reliable yao leading them. Fu Li patted Zhuang Qing on the back. He shook his head, sighing with emotion. ¡°You don¡¯t have it easy either.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... Finishing their tour around the entire zoo, Fu Li was leaving through the zoo¡¯s entrance with a massive stuffed panda in his arms when he recalled that he was supposed to be patrolling with Zhuang Qing today. He peeked guiltily at Zhuang Qing¡¯s expressionless face, coughing dryly. ¡°I¡¯ll apply to do overtime tonight.¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow at him. ¡°The ck python isn¡¯t well-behaved, so I¡¯ll conceal myself ande over at night to put him in his ce,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°You don¡¯t have toe since you¡¯re scared of snakes.¡± Zhuang Qing pinched the stuffed panda¡¯s ear. ¡°Okay.¡± Watching Zhuang Qing, Fu Li suddenly broke out into smiles. Although Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t know why he smiled, he still returned a slightly stiff smile after nking out for a moment. The panda ears on their heads swayed to-and-fro continuously, just like a pounding heart. Autumn and winter nights were a little chilly. All the snakes in the snakepound were lyingzily on top of warm, cozy stones, sleeping infort. To the snake species, the autumn and winter season was a good time for them to slumber. As a yao spirit with many years of cultivation, the ck python had already broken away from the natural pattern of hibernation. Virtually every night was spent struggling with the restriction cast on him. It was unknown what trick that vile security guard had used on him, but not only was all his cultivation rendered useless, he even lost his ability to transform into his human form. If he could regain his cultivation, he would definitely eat that nasty yao cultivator, all the way down to every strand of his hair. He cursed Fu Li night after night, hoping every day that his curse would be realized so that the resentment in his heart could be resolved. ¡°Don¡¯t say vulgar things, it¡¯s a civilized society.¡± A figure suddenly appeared in front of the ck python. The other party was clothed in a pair of 88 yuan pajamas ¨C shipping included, along with free socks. The rabbit plush slippers on his feet were not touching the ground; he hovered there very leisurely. ¡°It¡¯s you,¡± The appearance of the person he had just been cursing prompted the ck python to retreat extremely guardedly. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Nothing much, I just wanted to see you,¡± Seeing that the ck python had entered attack mode, Fu Li floated backwards. ¡°Don¡¯te too close to me, I¡¯m allergic to you snakes.¡± ck python: ¡°Then why aren¡¯t you scramming?¡± ¡°But I heard that you haven¡¯t been very obedient in the zoo, so I couldn¡¯t hold myself back froming to see you,¡± Fu Li wrinkled his brows. ¡°You consumed virgins and yao cores for the sake of your cultivation. I spared your life thinking that it wasn¡¯t easy for you to cultivate for so many years, and only removed your cultivation. Instead of repenting, resentment has festered in your heart. What kind of logic is this?¡± ¡°So what if I eat yao cores and virgins? On what basis should you manage me?¡± Hatred stewed without stop in the heart of the ck python when he thought of the humiliation he had been subjected to these days. ¡°You¡¯re merely a yao, you might have overstretched your reach.¡± ¡°I like meddling in other people¡¯s business,¡± Fu Li stated boldly. ¡°You can¡¯t beat me, so of course you can only be disciplined by me. ording to the current rules, you¡¯ve vited the management bureau¡¯s regtions, so I¡¯m not wrong for punishing you. ording to the past rules, it would also be tradition in the yao world for me to deal with you as I deem fit if you can¡¯t defeat me. Where is the problem in this?¡± ¡°I refuse to ept it!¡± The ck python¡¯s hatred was thick. ¡°I¡¯ve cultivated for so many years, so many years!¡± Fu Li cocked his head. When the bright moonlight shone onto his face, he looked like an immortal who had walked out from a heavenly pce. ¡°If you refuse to ept it, bang yourself to death on the stone then,¡± Fu Li was very serious, innocence brimming in his eyes. ¡°You¡¯re helpless in front of me anyway.¡± ¡°Ahhhh, I¡¯ll kill you!¡± The ck python turned ruthless from anger. Widening his mouth, he rushed over, wanting to coil around Fu Li¡¯s waist. ¡°Too slow,¡± Fu Li pressed down on the python¡¯s fatal spot and flung him onto the ground before hurriedly retrieving a bottle of water from his Qiankun pouch to rinse his hand. Snakes had many parasites on them. The ck pythony syed on the ground, boundless despair in his heart. If he¡¯d known that such a day woulde, he definitely wouldn¡¯t have walked into that hotel that night. More importantly, he wouldn¡¯t have chosen this lunatic to bestow him a title. Why had he chosen this person at that time? There were clearly other humans beside him, including more na?ve women. He seemed to have been possessed at that time. He had felt that this lunatic was a human with an abundance of luck, and that asking him to bestow a title would allow him to obtain even stronger power. Who would have expected for him to not even be human in the first ce but a yao who had taken on form by relying on a chance from heavenlyw, and a crazy yao at that. ¡°What exactly do you want?¡± The ck python knew that he couldn¡¯t win against him, whether it was inbat or cursing. Thus, he simply broke the cracked pot andy on the ground, ¡®life has no meaning¡¯ written all over his face. ¡°Nothing much, I just came to see how your spiritual reformation has been going,¡± Fu Li¡¯s expression turned solemn. ¡°There will be many temptations to take shortcuts throughout your cultivation journey. If you step onto the wrong path, you will pay a price for taking the shortcut sooner orter. If you understand this, then turn over a new leaf and fight to once more walk on the path of cultivation. If you still don¡¯t understand this, then there wille a day when you will lose your life.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve said what I can, do your best,¡± Fu Li nced at the ck python, his silhouette vanishing into the air. Tsk. The ck python scoffed. He curled up the tail that was hurting from Fu Li¡¯s fling and rested his head on his body. In his daze, he suddenly thought of an incident a few hundred years ago. At that time, he was at a crucial point of his transformation into human form. Lightning was roiling in the skies, and in his frenzied state, he hid in someone¡¯s house. When a small child discovered him, he had thought that the child would scream and attract the adults, but unexpectedly, the child didn¡¯t cry out and instead threw him a biscuit. And then... And then he sessfully avoided the lightning tribtion and transformed into a human. As for that child... he nced at his tummy. He didn¡¯t understand why he still remembered such a minor incident after so many years had passed. A few dayster, Fu Li was reading the news while seated in his office. There was one very interesting report. Yesterday, a parent carrying a child was ying at the zoo when they identally dropped the child into the area inhabited by ck bears. Just as a ck bear was about to eat the child, a ck python that escaped from the snakepound scared the ck bear into retreating, thereby saving the child¡¯s life. The zoo workers were extremely touched. After capturing the ck python and cing it back in the snakepound, they arranged a high-end single room for it. Someizens were criticizing the careless father at the bottom of the news report while some said that the child ought to pay respects to this snake as its adoptive father. Otherizens said teasingly that the snake had resisted its natural habit of going into hibernation with much difficulty and went through untold hardships to escape from thepound, only for all its efforts to go to waste for the sake of rescuing a child; it was definitely a kind snake that was on the verge of gaining intelligence. Fu Li looked through the poprments for a while and then clicked on the linked video provided in the news report. The ck python shielded the little child amidst everyone¡¯s screams, confronting the ck bear with its mouth wide open. Both sides were in a deadlock for nearly a minute before the ck bear retreated. The workers took this chance to rescue the child and catch the ck python along the way. Fu Li looked at the ck python¡¯s ¡®life has no meaning¡¯ face, and copsed on the keyboard inughter. ¡°Fu ge, what are youughing at?¡± Chu Yu ced a cup of tea on his desk and stretched his head over to look at the screen. Wasn¡¯t this a snake? ¡°Nothing much,¡± Fu Li sat up straight. Picking up the cup of tea, he thanked Chu Yu. Chu Yu went back to his seat, took out his phone, and sent a message to his friends in a group chat. Number One Fish in the World: Did you see the news online? The photo of the boss and Fu ge wearing panda ears from the back? Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: I saw it. What are you trying to say? Devastatingly Beautiful: The boss and Fu ge went on a date at the zoo two days ago? How are zoos interesting, they should at least go to some high-end consumer site. The boss is also too stingy, he isn¡¯t even willing to spend more money on a date. Exceptionally Good Sword: Who was the boss on a date with? Fu ge? Why were they on a date? Dashing Ke: Sword ge, the boss walked a red carpet with Fu ge, held his hand, and even spent a million for the wooden carving at the auction. If this isn¡¯t love, what is it? Exceptionally Good Sword: What? They¡¯re together? Devastatingly Beautiful: What do you think it is if not that? Exceptionally Good Sword: But Fu ge¡¯s original form is too small. If they sleep together, won¡¯t... Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: Wow, didn¡¯t expect you to be such a dirty sword. [disdainful face] Exceptionally Good Sword: ... Fu L saw a few colleagues lowering their heads as they yed with their phones, profound smiles on their faces. He shook his head helplessly. In the current society, everyone was a smartphone addict, regardless of whether they were human or yao. Being apart from their phones would probably drive them crazy. Feeling that he was ipatible with these smartphone addicts, he simply got up and went in search of Zhuang Qing. Among so many young yao, only Zhuang Qing was a bit more suited to an old yao like him. Fu Li reached the door, and was about to knock when Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice sounded from within. ¡°I understand that you want to resolve the issue of the drought, but there is no yaoguai causing trouble at that ce, nor can we allow a yao cultivator to summon rain. There¡¯s no need to worry, rain will descend in a few days. Please endure it for the time being.¡± ¡°Money?¡± ¡°We¡¯re serving the people, how can we bring up money?¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll arrange for the bureau¡¯s cultivators to make a trip there and see if this problem can be resolved.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too polite. Yao and humans are a closely-knitted family who built a harmonious world together. Us cultivators share in a beautiful future with humans.¡± Zhuang Qing expressionlessly made small talk with the person on the other end of the line. Seeing Fu Li standing outside, he swiftly ended his conversation with the person on the other end. ¡°Come in.¡± ¡°Just now, you were...¡± Zhuang Qing sighed. Turning, he surveyed the distantndscape outside the window. ¡°Applying for some funds for the bureau isn¡¯t easy either.¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you.¡± The bureau was supporting so many human and yao cultivators. On top of that, it still needed to support great yao like the Kunpeng and Gong Fu who only knew how to eat and drink without working. Zhuang little dragon really didn¡¯t have it easy as the boss. Chapter 96 - Afraid

Chapter 96 - Afraid

The scene of Zhuang Qing toiling to support the management bureau surfaced in Fu Li¡¯s mind. He took out his Qiankun pouch, dropping it onto the floor. A small mountain of gold, gems, and the sort poured out. ¡°These things are all very pricey in the human world, go exchange it for money,¡± Fu Li looked at the mountain of gems that was the same height as him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about money, I have more here even if it¡¯s all used up.¡± ¡°Quickly keep all those things,¡± Zhuang Qing shed to the door in an instant and locked the office door tightly. Turning, he reprimanded Fu Li, ¡°How many times did I tell you not to reveal your valuables! Why do you still not remember it!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you short of money?¡± Fu Li gently kicked the mountain of gems twice, as if they were cheaply-priced ss beads. A pile of gems tumbled down with a crash. ¡°I don¡¯t have much use for these. They¡¯re all just things the elders on my mountain threw to me to y with when I was young and not sensible.¡± Fu Li was being honest. To humans, these were indeed treasures. But to many yao cultivators whose original forms were animals, these gems weren¡¯t very different from the stones by the riverside. The reason why many yao cultivators were reluctant to leave the mortal world wasn¡¯t because of the gold, silver, and jewels in the human world, but because the human world was full of all sorts of emotional temptations. Who knew how many yao cultivators had been subjugated by this? What was most interesting was that humans were clearly afraid of yao and ghosts, yet liked to set up yao and ghosts as the protagonists of films and literary works so as to stimte their longing for the mysterious. For instance, the works , , and so on were filmed and modified time and time again. This was truly the epitome of liking something and never tiring of it. But if a yao or ghost were to appear for real, the humans¡¯ first reaction would be fear and not pleasant surprise. The so-called ¡®feigning fondness for something one actually fears¡¯ was probably like this. ¡°We work for the sake of the country, how can the country treat us unfairly? Keep these things first,¡± Zhuang Qing snatched the Qiankun Pouch from Fu Li¡¯s hands, and then discovered that there was a blood restriction on it. Apart from Fu Li, no one else would be able to let this Qiankun pouch automatically take in items. Left with no choice, he could only stuff the gems a handful at a time into the bag. Gold, agate, chysoberyl, jadeite, natural crystals, diamond, pearls... While sweeping these items into Fu Li¡¯s Qiankun pouch like they were trash, Zhuang Qing channeled such strong will that he nearly turned numb. He now understood why so many people hated yet envied rich second generations. He spent a long time filling the bag, but the mountain of gems had only decreased by one-third. Zhuang Qing threw the Qiankun pouch to Fu Li. ¡°Quick, put them back in.¡± ¡°You really don¡¯t want them?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Okay then,¡± Fu Li helplessly retrieved the gems. He now had a new understanding of the arrogance of young yao. ¡°Remember to let me know if you need them in the future.¡± Zhuang Qing heaved a long sigh of relief when the pile of gems disappeared before his eyes. He felt both disappointed and rxed, just like a person on a diet watching someone else remove the delicacies that tempted them. His emotions were extremelyplex. ¡°There¡¯s a drought somewhere?¡± Fu Li shrank his Qiankun pouch and sealed it in his ear. ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°The southern region of Zhongshan Province should be a geographical area with an abundance of water, but there hasn¡¯t been a single drop of water since July. The relevant department has also tried using artificial precipitation methods, but they haven¡¯t seeded because the natural conditions didn¡¯t meet the requirements. Rumors have sprung up all over Zhongshan Province, stirring up many jokes.¡± ¡°Then who from our bureau will be more suitable to resolve this problem?¡± ¡°Let Qing Xu go. He¡¯s one of the most outstanding Daoist priests in Lin An Monastery, and is most proficient at calling down rain. He¡¯s never had the opportunity to go out on his own for training during the past few months he¡¯s been with the management bureau, it¡¯s appropriate to let him handle it.¡± Fu Li suddenly understood. ¡°You think things through very thoroughly. New staff require training opportunities.¡± Qing Xu was ecstatic at receiving the news that he would be out on an official job. He hadn¡¯t had an opportunity to showcase his abilities despite having been with the bureau for so long, so now that there was finally a ce that needed him, he happily packed his luggage at once, booked a train ticket for that night, and rushed towards Zhongshan Province. The train reached the most severely-impacted urban district in Zhongshan Province the next morning. Upon alighting from the train, Qing Xu was nearly swept away by the heatwave outside. He hastily took off his jacket and wool sweater, and met up with the worker in charge of receiving him. The worker receiving him saw the clothes in Qing Xu¡¯s hands and said helplessly, a bitter smile on his face, ¡°It¡¯s been a tough journey. We haven¡¯t managed to seed at lowering the temperature here at all. The temperature today is still considered okay, it¡¯s only thirty-six degrees. The highest temperature the past few days was forty-one degrees. Many factories and schools had no choice but to go on vacation.¡± ¡°That really is a torment,¡± Qing Xu nced at the sun hanging in the sky. It wasn¡¯t even ten o¡¯clock in the morning, but the sun was already so strong. The worker only knew that Qing Xu was a specialist arranged by the higher-ups and wasn¡¯t in the know about what exactly Qing Xu would do, but asking too many questions was also not a good idea. After leading Qing Xu to the hotel, other departments would arrange for staff to apany him. The apanying workers arranged toe over naturally knew of Qing Xu¡¯s true identity. They politely apanied Qing Xu for lunch, not daring to press him to investigate the real reason behind the drought. On the contrary, it was Qing Xu himself who felt that this scene was a little strange. The moment he finished eating, he took a bath, burned incense, and brought his lunch buddies to a tall mountain with extremely good feng shui. Then, he set up a formation to make offerings to the gods. Qing Xu was in the middle of setting up the magic formation when he sensed a strange auraing from the east. The aura was influencing the normal cirction of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements. In particr, it restrained the water element. His expression turned grave as he drew his magic weapon. ¡°Which yao is it causing trouble here?¡± Yao? The apanying workers grew anxious as well upon hearing his words and fished out the special weapons at their waists. A faint image of a gigantic snake appeared among the towering mountains and precipitous ridges. Its long tail could be seen halfway up the mountain. It was a terrifying sight. ¡°There are two tails, two monster snakes!¡± The faces of the apanying workers turned pale from fright. Although they knew a few cultivation techniques, they could not truly step on the great path of cultivation due to theirck of talent. Therefore, they were only affiliated with the security department. In reality, they were public security officers stationed at the various provinces. ¡°Daoist priest Qing Xu, what should we do now?¡± ¡°What should we do...¡± Qing Xu gritted his teeth. White suffused the fingers gripped around his magic weapon. He kept all the things on the altar, turned, and broke into a run. ¡°What else can we do! Of course it¡¯s to call for the boss ahhhh!¡± His voice echoed through the valley, resounding far into the distance. The two enormous snakes that revealed their tails swiftly withdrew their tails and vanished into the mountain. Zhuang Qing was in a meeting with the bureau staff when his phone rang. He nced down at the caller ID before telling all the staff members, ¡°It¡¯s a call from Qing Xu.¡± Everyone found this a bit unexpected. Wasn¡¯t Qing Xu out on an official job, why did he think to call them? The moment the call connected, Qing Xu¡¯s miserable shriek sounded. ¡°Boss, save me!!¡± Zhuang Qing instantly stood up from the chair, his expression solemn. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°There are monster snakes at least tens of meters long, I suspect they were drawn out by the drought. I don¡¯t have profound cultivation, and can¡¯t defeat these two monster snakes,¡± Qing Xu gasped for breath as he ran with all his might. ¡°I need reinforcements.¡± ¡°Send the coordinates to my phone, I¡¯ll rush there straight away,¡± Zhuang Qing hung up. ¡°The meeting will be concluded for the time being, continue your work ording to what was arranged just now.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li stood up too. ¡°I¡¯ll go with you.¡± ¡°No need, it¡¯s just two snakes. I can deal with them,¡± Zhuang Qing had long noticed that Fu Li wasn¡¯t very fond of snakes, so he didn¡¯t intend to bring him along. Fu Li chased after him outside the meeting room. Lowering his voice, he said, ¡°Don¡¯t try to be brave, it¡¯s not embarrassing to be afraid of snakes. By going with you, I can also boost your courage.¡± Zhuang Qing came to a stop and shed a smile at Fu Li. ¡°Okay.¡± Sure enough, he was still afraid of snakes, thought Fu Li. That was why Zhuang Qing was so happy after hearing that he would be apanying him. Zhuang little dragon was good in all aspects, but he was a bit too eager to be at the top. He would keep everything hidden in his heart and shoulder all burdens himself. Living like this was simply too tiring. Given the urgent situation, the two people couldn¡¯t be bothered with the usual procedures and directly traversed a thousand miles in an instant. Soon after, they rushed to the foot of the mountain. In the distance, they saw Qing Xu leading three to four people down the mountain at a speed that would outpace even a sprinting champion. Fu Li shed to Qing Xu and grabbed a hold of him. ¡°Stop running. Where are those two snakes? Lead us there.¡± ¡°Fu ge, Boss, you¡¯re here,¡± Qing Xu¡¯s eyes shone. His breath evened out instantly and his fear vanished. He straightened his chest and said, ¡°I¡¯ll bring you over.¡± The several people behind Qing Xu were huffing and panting as they plopped down on the ground. Seeing how worn-out they were, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°Rest here, you don¡¯t have to follow us over.¡± ¡°Many thanks, Chief Zhuang. Pardon our sorry figures,¡± The apanying workers were a little embarrassed, though they knew very well in their hearts they wouldn¡¯t be of any help even if they followed them over. Zhuang Qing pulled Fu Li to his side. He picked up Qing Xu with his other hand and soared into the skies, flying to the top of the mountain. At this moment, Qing Xu recalled the terror of being flown back and forth by Chao Yun. In front of Chao Yun, he could still let loose a few screams, but in Zhuang Qing¡¯s presence, all he dared to do was cover his mouth. When they arrived at the ce where Qing Xu had set up the altar, Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. ¡°There is indeed something off about the qi field here.¡± The Five Elements were in disarray, it was no wonder that the water vapor couldn¡¯t form rain in ordance with the natural water cycle. Zhuang Qing took off his jacket and nced at the zing sun in the sky. It was already this season, yet the sun was still giving off such blistering heat. Despite only half of his blood being dragon, there was still some of the dragon race¡¯s pride in Zhuang Qing¡¯s bones. For instance, not fearing any type of snake. The next moment, countless dragon scales appeared on his face. He issued a dragon roar at the mountain. In a blink of an eye, birds flew off and beasts left. The water and energy deficient trees even shook their branches. Strangely, the two monster snakes didn¡¯t appear. ¡°Strange, did I see wrongly?¡± Qing Xu was a bit uneasy, concerned that the boss would think that he was making a fuss out of nothing. ¡°No, you didn¡¯t see wrong,¡± Zhuang Qing grabbed at the empty air, ripping apart a barrier. Behind the barrier, a monstrous snake with two bodies and one head was coiled around the mountain, its enormous body wrapping around the entire mountain. ¡°What monster is this?¡± Goosebumps too numerous to count popped up on Qing Xu¡¯s arms. This snake looked a little too strange. ¡°This is a Fei...¡± Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯tpleted his statement when something round and fluffy pounced on him. The fluff smashed onto his face before rolling into his arms. It was a chubby rabbit. ¡°Fu Li?¡± Zhuang Qing hurriedly reached out and caught the rabbit, preventing him from falling onto the ground. The fat rabbit pushed its head forward vigorously, hiding its head in the crook of Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm. The rabbit clenched its tail towards its buttocks and then ceased to move. No matter how much Zhuang Qing yelled, he didn¡¯t emit a single sound. Qing Xu looked at this scene dazedly. It was said that snakes were the natural enemies of rabbits, but given how high Fu ge¡¯s cultivation was, was he still unable to resist his biological instincts? ¡°Don¡¯t be scared. This is a Feiyi, it doesn¡¯t have highbat ability, so I can handle it on my own,¡± Seeing that Fu Li was actually afraid of this thing, Zhuang Qingid his jacket out on the ground. ¡°Lie here for a while first, I¡¯lle back after settling the Feiyi.¡± The rabbit who had been silently feigning death all this while shook its head maniacally, its front ws gripping his sleeves tightly. ¡®I don¡¯t want to be alone even if it kills me¡¯ was written all over him. Qing Xu felt that given the boss¡¯ aloof attitude, he would probably fling the terrified, clingy Fu Li off. But reality gave him a tight, hard p on the face. Not only did the boss not fling Fu ge off, he even transformed into his original form and ced Fu ge on top of his head. Qing Xu looked at the majestic golden dragon and was a bit moved. He took a few steps forward. ¡°Boss, I...¡± ¡°You stand here, help me keep an eye on the clothes,¡± The golden dragon flew towards the Feiyi without even looking back. Qing Xu: ... Oh, so there was even a difference in treatment. Qing Xu sat down cross-legged, took out his phone, and clicked on the inte search engine. Requesting to know how to curry favor with my superior. Waiting online for an answer. Very urgent. Fu Luy on the dragon¡¯s head and covered his head with the hair on the side of the dragon¡¯s temples. He didn¡¯t want to take even one more look at the Feiyi, there was nothing more disgusting than it in this world. Fu Li would never forget the shame of being frightened by the Feiyi into peeing his pants when he was five hundred years old. Squatting on top of Zhuang Qing¡¯s head and covered by the soft dragon whiskers, Fu Li finally felt a sense of security. His four limbs pulling on the dragon¡¯s whiskers, Fu Li could feel Zhuang Qing circling the sky multiple times. After that, an intense strike went through the body beneath him. Had they started fighting? Fu Li kicked out his feet guiltily as he listened to the dragon roars and strange cries of the Feiyi that drifted into his ears. As a senior who had more than four thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation, wasn¡¯t it a little cowardly of him to be hiding behind a junior? After a fierce inner tug-of-war, Fu Li felt that he ought to be a little braver. At an average speed of 0.5 centimeters per minute, Fu Li started stretching his head out of the dragon¡¯s whiskers. Just as his head was about to pop out, Zhuang Qing spoke all of a sudden. ¡°Make sure you¡¯re hidden. I¡¯m going to spit out water, it¡¯ll be a bit cold.¡± As a rabbit, h-he was afraid of the cold. Fu Li confidently retracted his head. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t lie to him. He heard the powerful rush of water... and the sound of water swiftly freezing into ice. It had almost slipped his mind that Zhuang Qing was a dragon who was born with the ability to walk on clouds, summon water, and freeze water. Chilly wind brushed against his body. Taking a deep breath, he secretly stretched his head out of the dragon¡¯s whiskers. Under the glittering sun, an immense block of ice stood on the mountain. The Feiyi was frozen in the ice, so he could only make out a faint silhouette. Sunlight hit the ice, refracting multi-colored rays of light. There was an indescribable beauty about it. ¡°Done,¡± Zhuang Qing turned back to his human form. Carrying rabbit Fu Li in his arms, he stroked the fur on his back. ¡°I¡¯ve already frozen the Feiyi, you don¡¯t have to be afraid.¡± As hey in Zhuang Qing¡¯s warm embrace, the memory in Fu Li¡¯s mind about being chased by the Feiyi till he broke out into sobs seemed a little less vivid. ¡°Thank you,¡± He was a bit embarrassed. After today, he would probably not have the face to put on a senior¡¯s airs in front of Zhuang Qing. But that wasn¡¯t important. What was important was that Zhuang Qing had helped him to vent, so he was now in a very good mood. Zhuang Qing expressionlessly stroked the rabbit¡¯s fur. ¡°The Feiyi threw Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements into chaos. ording to the management bureau¡¯s regtions, he should be sealed in the bitter cold. What do you think?¡± ¡°Seal, seal seal,¡± Fu Li nodded repeatedly. ¡°Otherwise drought will ur wherever he goes, all animals and nts will die in his hands.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± With a wave of Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand, the Feiyi was absorbed into a magic device, which then floated to the ground. ¡°Qing Xu.¡± Qing Xu hurriedly kept his phone and stood up. ¡°Boss, your instructions?¡± ¡°You can continue soliciting rain.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Qing Xu nced at Fu Li, who was still lying in the boss¡¯ arms. ¡°Boss, is Fu ge okay?¡± Zhuang Qing stroked Fu Li¡¯s fur. ¡°He¡¯s fine. He just had a breakthrough and can¡¯t use too much magic power, so I let him turn into his original form to rest.¡± Ennnn? Hadn¡¯t he changed into his original form because he was scared of snakes? ¡°Do you have any other questions?¡± Zhuang Qing raised his brows slightly. His jet-ck eyes stared at Qing Xu, scaring him into shaking his head repeatedly. ¡°No.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good, I¡¯ll go back with Fu Li first,¡± Zhuang Qing made use of the Thousand Miles into an Inch skill once more, vanishing before Qing Xu¡¯s eyes. ¡°Aiya, heavens, scaring me to death,¡± Qing Xu sat on the ground again and took out his phone to look at theizens¡¯ replies. None of them were reliable. Thus, he posed another question. I have a colleague who is particrly good at his job. But I discovered today that he¡¯s actually afraid of cockroaches, to the point that he even leaped onto the boss in fright. The boss didn¡¯t me him. Not only did the boss help him kill the cockroach, he even helped him to cover up this small w. Doesn¡¯t this mean that the boss ces a lot of importance on this colleague of mine? Netizen 1: Of course, which boss doesn¡¯t ce a lot of importance on an employee with strong work capabilities? Netizen 2: Isn¡¯t the crucial point the fact that this colleague leaped onto the boss? OP, what was the boss¡¯ reaction when your colleague jumped onto him? Grandpa Dao: He didn¡¯t have much of a reaction, all he did was carry him. Netizen 3: ... Netizen 4: ... Netizen 5: OP, I¡¯ll tell you the answer ¨C this is love. Netizen 6: Powerful boss and the subordinate who has strong working capabilities but is scared of cockroaches ¨C this pair of lovers is a bit meng. Netizen 7: Is it only me who realized that the OP uses ¡®him¡¯ when referring to the boss and colleague? Qing Xu looked at the replies below that for no rhyme or reason had switched to the topic of ¡®hegemonic chairman and good-looking employee¡¯. Qing Xu didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry. Keeping his phone, he stood up and got to work. How could the boss and Fu ge be together? Even the Three Pure Ones wouldn¡¯t believe it, let alone him. Ilyz: someone¡¯s gonna be eating his words in the near future ?? Chapter 97 - Feiyi

Chapter 97 - Feiyi

Gusts of cold wind swept past. Fu Li jumped off Zhuang Qing with some embarrassment and transformed into his human form. ¡°About that ¨C thank you very much.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a small thing,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li. ¡°No need for thanks.¡± Fu Li was relieved after seeing that Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was normal and that he didn¡¯t disdain him for being scared of snakes. In a very good mood, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll treat you to dinner, let¡¯s go.¡± Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t remember where he had read that delicious food could alleviate one¡¯s fear and distress. It wasn¡¯t time for them to get off work yet, but the mental health of an employee was also very important. He hesitated for no more than three seconds before agreeing. The two people went to Restaurant Night Owl. There weren¡¯t many customers in the restaurant, but Fu Li realized that there was an extra helper ¨C the owl who had been captured while stealing food and then released. The owl was a bit nervous upon seeing them. Without even thinking, he proimed, ¡°I¡¯m working at this shop as a helper in the kitchen.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get anxious, we¡¯re here to eat,¡± Fu Li and Zhuang Qing sat at a table. Fu Li returned the smile that the boss shed at them. Seeing that Fu Li and Zhuang Qing really weren¡¯t going to arrest him, the owl also felt at ease. He ced the menu in front of them, took out a tiny notebook and pencil, and got ready to jot down the dishes they wanted. ¡°Have there beenrger ms and crayfishtely?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°The ms are plump and fresh, they¡¯re guaranteed to taste good. The crayfish are indeed a bit on the small side, but I guarantee that every one is fresh,¡± The owl pointed at the tank at the corner containing crayfish. ¡°They¡¯re freshly-ughtered and cooked. If you order it, I¡¯ll add... two for every portion!¡± ¡°Then one portion each of ms and crayfish,¡± Fu Li also ordered a whole bunch of seafood. The owl was a little worried as he went in search of the boss, menu in hand. How exactly should he prevent the boss from finding it strange that two people had ordered so many dishes? The boss took the menu. Noticing something off about the owl¡¯s expression, he told him in a low voice, ¡°Some people naturally have bigger appetites. As people in the food and beverage business, we can¡¯t be emotionally affected just because someone eats a lot. That would be impolite.¡± The owl: ... He had really thought too much. ¡°If every customer was like them, I might even have made a fortune a long time ago.¡± After their meal, when Fu Li was footing the bill, the boss took ten yuan less, saying that it was a friendship discount for regr customers. Delighted, Fu Li spent another hundred yuan and ordered tworge portions of ms to bring back for the Kunpeng and Gong Fu to try. Zhuang Qing drove Fu Li to the management bureau. ¡°Sleep early after going back. Get to work on time tomorrow morning.¡± ¡°Kay,¡± Fu Li yawned. Carrying the takeaway boxes, he shed into the dormitory located behind the bureau¡¯s office and knocked on the Kunpeng¡¯s door. As expected, Gong Fu was also present. During the ancient times, the Kunpeng and Gong Fu were yao cultivators who stood on different sides. However, in the current times where great yao gradually perished, they no longer needed to adhere to the old notions of the auspicious versus the fiend, and started to interact peacefully. Perhaps to them, they could only reminisce about the past with the other. There was already no one else who knew what exactly the era of the ancient great yao looked like. Seeing the crayfish Fu Li brought back, the Kunpeng and Gong Fu split the chopsticks in their hands simultaneously, took out a few cans of beer from the fridge, and happily dug in. ¡°Take your time eating, I¡¯m going to sleep,¡± Fu Li yawned and turned to leave. ¡°Wait,¡± Gong Fu stopped Fu Li. Wiping the oil stains on the corner of his mouth, he told Fu Li, ¡°Have you been feeling sleepy very oftentely?¡± Fu Li nodded and sat cross-legged in front of Gong Fu. ¡°Gong Fu daren, do you know what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Just a bit,¡± Gong Fu put down his chopsticks. ¡°Your cultivation has advanced by leaps and bounds, so your body also has to evolve. However, the spiritual qi in the human world is sparse, preventing your body that has just undergone a breakthrough from getting enough spiritual qi. That¡¯s why this is happening.¡± ¡°Then what should I do?¡± ¡°It¡¯s like this at the start, but you¡¯ll get used to it over time,¡± Gong Fu picked up a m and sucked up the sauce on the shell. When he finished eating and saw Fu Li¡¯srge, pitch-ck eyes fixed on him, his heart softened. He sighed helplessly. ¡°Take it as me giving in to you. I learnt a folk remedy twenty thousand years ago. It was learnt to pass the time when I was bored, I never expected it toe in useful now. Although I have the pill-concocting furnace and know the method to concoct the pill, I¡¯m short of three types of spiritual medicine.¡± ¡°Short of which types? I have some medicinal ingredients here that I randomly kept in the past. I¡¯ll rummage through themter, maybe I¡¯ll be able to collect them all.¡± ¡°Five thousand year old Taisui, less than seven days¡¯ old Three Lives¡¯ Beard, and Moon Quicksand,¡± Gong Fu sighed. ¡°These three things wouldn¡¯t be difficult to find if this were the past, but now...¡± ¡°I have Moon Quicksand here,¡± The Kunpeng took a jade gourd from his Qiankun pouch and ced it on the table with a bang. ¡°Feel free to use it.¡± ¡°What did you take out so much for? To unt your wealth or for me to paint walls with it?¡± Gong Fu took a bit of Moon Quicksand from the jade gourd before returning the gourd to the Kunpeng. ¡°Take it back, take it back. I¡¯m toozy to help you safekeep scrap metal.¡± ¡°Tsk,¡± The Kunpeng stuffed the jade gourd back into his Qiankun pouch. ¡°You look down on this scrap metal of mine, but do you have it?¡± Seeing that the beginnings of a fight was stirring between them, Fu Li hurriedly interjected, ¡°Wait wait, what is a Three Lives¡¯ Beard?¡± ¡°The hair of a three-headed child who hasn¡¯t reached seven days¡¯ old. The three-headed nsmen live and die for trees. They have three lives before theirpanion tree withers and dies, which is why their hair is called the Three Lives¡¯ Beard. Newly-born three-headed people have not been tainted by the mortal world and are full of vitality and spiritual qi.¡± Gong Fu sighed yet another time. ¡°Although it seems easy to obtain, it¡¯s actually the most challenging, because only hair that a three-headed person gave willingly will contain spiritual qi. If it¡¯s forcibly obtained, the Three Lives¡¯ Beard will turn into resentment. Someone who consumes it might go crazy if slightly affected and may lose their lives if severely affected.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a few strands of hair, why so many things to take note of?¡± The Kunpeng clicked his tongue, instantly thinking of the three-headed people who crawled all over the Langgan Tree in the bureau all day, catching insects and watering it. ¡°Little rabbit, aren¡¯t there three-headed people in your bureau¡¯s courtyard? You can just ask them for a few strands of hair.¡± ¡°That won¡¯t work,¡± Gong Fu shook his head. ¡°Those three-headed people don¡¯t seem to have recently been born aspanions to the Fuchang Tree. Even if they gave it to me, it can¡¯t be used to concoct the pill.¡± ¡°Then what should we do now?¡± The Kunpeng tossed aside his chopsticks, saying in frustration, ¡°The spiritual qi in the human world now is sparse, and the number of Fuchang Trees were originally already dwindling. A Fuchang Tree that can produce three-headed people is even harder toe by. The world is vast, where are we going to find a three-headed person who was born less than seven days ago?¡± Seeing Gong Fu and the Kunpeng worrying for him, Fu Li cheered up. He took Taisui meat out of his Qiankun pouch. ¡°I have Taisui meat.¡± Gong Fu forced out a smile and picked up the Taisui meat. The Kunpeng was unresigned. ¡°Little rabbit, you were the one who brought those three-headed people back when they were just born. Didn¡¯t they give you any thank-you gift?¡± ¡°Thank-you gift?¡± Fu Li suddenly recalled that Long Hair seemed to have given him a tuft of hair at that time. He didn¡¯t know what use it had, so he had casually thrown it into his Qiankun pouch. ¡°Long Hair gave me hair,¡± Fu Li opened his Qiankun pouch and took out the hair that Big Fur had given him. The moment the hairnded on Gong Fu¡¯s hand, it turned into thin, light green threads brimming with thick vitality. Green shoots sprouted on all the trees outside with yellowing leaves and countless flowers bloomed along the shrubs. It was an iparably beautiful sight. ¡°Good stuff. You actually received the leader¡¯s blessing,¡± Gong Fu only plucked out two strands. ¡°Two strands are enough.¡± Fu Li: ... Leader... The leader of a n of three was still considered a leader, right? ¡°I always thought that Zhuang Qing was the dearest son of heavenlyw. Only today did I find out that Zhuang Qing might just seem like it, the true dearest child is you,¡± The Kunpeng looked at the trees outside the windows that had sprouted green leaves. ¡°Someone who is not the dearest child would be unable to grasp such a good chance.¡± Gong Fu, who always loved to bicker with the Kunpeng, unexpectedly expressed his agreement through silence. The Kunpeng might not be aware, but he understood it very well in his heart. The three-headed people were extremely miserly life forms who exhibited very extreme behavior. Born aware, they would bawl whenever there was anything that didn¡¯t suit their tastes, till they exhausted all their energy and passed away. Seven days of crying would cause mountains and trees to shake. Forty-nine days of crying would create wastnds spanning over a hundred li and the extinguishing of life forms. Crying for a full hundred days would result in their death, triggering earthquakes. Overall, they were a strange race who could outcry a hundred people with just one of them. Moreover, they were particrly haughty and looked down on the single-headed humans. Perhaps in their eyes, all life forms apart from the Fenghuang were trash. The odds of Fu Li receiving a gift from the leader of the three-headed people were even smaller than an ordinary person striking a ten million jackpot. This was probably... Fu Li¡¯s fortune. ¡°Concocting the pill will take seven days. During this period, I will let the Kunpeng help with watching over the furnace, so you don¡¯t have to bring us food during the seven days,¡± Gong Fu was worried that the crayfish would turn cold if left sitting and thus picked out tworger ones. ¡°Why do I have to fan the furnace?¡± The Kunpeng was indignant. He was the grand Kunpeng daren, how could he be one of those fire boys? ¡°You don¡¯t care about Fu Li¡¯s body?¡± ¡°I care.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not worried about Fu Li¡¯s cultivation?¡± ¡°I¡¯m worried.¡± ¡°Then why all the questions?¡± Gong Fu smiled elegantly. ¡°It¡¯s not like you know how to concoct the pill, so other than keeping watch on the furnace, what else can you do?¡± The Kunpeng, ¡°I...¡± This is exactly why I said those pretentious auspicious beasts are the most hateful ¨C they¡¯re self-righteous and pretend to be noble and virtuous. ¡°How can I trouble Kunpeng daren for such a thing, let me...¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to work?¡± Gong Fu waved his hands. ¡°You may not know, but the Kunpeng is an amphibian. Other than spraying water, he can also spit fire. If we can save on the refined fire for the furnace, then let¡¯s not waste it. Life is tough nowadays, everything has to be used sparingly.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± Fu Li understood in a sh. He thanked the Kunpeng, ¡°Kunpeng daren, I¡¯ll have to trouble you then.¡± The Kunpeng turned his head. ¡°Forget it, take it as me giving you face.¡± ¡°Thank you, daren,¡± Fu Li took out arge pile of snacks from his Qiankun pouch and distributed it to both of them before leaving with a grateful heart. ¡°Hypocrite!¡± The Kunpeng was full of disdain for Gong Fu. Gong Fu ignored him in favor of rummaging through the pile of snacks for the vors he liked. In the presence of good food, who cared what nonsense the Kunpeng was spouting. At the dark underground spiritual formation in the bureau, Zhuang Qing turned on the light switch on the wall and locked the Feiyi into the Spiritual Lock Formation. There was a powerful barrier here, so no matter how powerful the Feiyi¡¯s abilities, it wouldn¡¯t influence the outside world¡¯s natural climate. The Feiyi had been frozen in ice for too long. After it was locked inside the formation, it was also too weak to struggle. Only its two tails moved a little. The Feiyi race all lived on Hunxi Mountain or Taihuai Mountain from birth. The Feiyi n on Taihua Mountain had wings and were capable of flight, while the Feiyi n on Hunxi Mountain had thicker, stronger bodies and two bodies, but no wings. The two ns had never had dealings with each other, and even faintly held each other in contempt. Subsequently, the weather worsened. It became colder day after day, and many Feiyi silently passed away amidst the cold. After that, the Feiyi on Hunxi Mountain never again heard of anything rted to the Taihua Mountain¡¯s Feiyi. As the sole remaining Feiyi from Hunxi Mountain, the Feiyi that Zhuang Qing had captured had little courage. It spent every day either suntanning or sleeping. Two months ago, he suddenly fell unconscious. When he woke up, he was at a new location. Three thousand years ago, a senior had left the mountain of its own volition and turned into ashes under the sun. When Hunxi Mountain heard of this matter, the Feiyi on the mountain no longer dared to leave. Because of this, they avoided the turmoil between the human and yao world and spent two to three thousand years in peace. However, the weather suddenly became extremely cold a few hundred years ago. Many yao cultivators on Hunxi Mountain were unable to avoid this cmity and quietly passed on. Thinking of its deceased seniors, the Feiyi timidly curled itself into a ball. But his body was toorge and he had two bodies, so when he was curled up, he looked even more disgusting. The beauty-lover, Chao Yun, couldn¡¯t help covering her eyes. Why did all the ancient great yao have such spontaneous-looking original forms? They ought to give aesthetics a thought as well. ¡°Why did you appear at Zhongshan Province?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t abandon the interrogation because of the Feiyi¡¯s pitiful appearance. Because of the Feiyi¡¯s appearance, not only were there economic losses, countless animals had also died from thirst. He could not remain indifferent to this. The Feiyi made a series of strange noises. Chao Yun and the rest were baffled. What was he saying? Zhuang Qing had once studied thenguage of ancient yao from the records left behind by the yao races, so he could still roughly understand the Feiyi. This Feiyi hadn¡¯t understood him, it was just rambling about wanting to return to Hunxi Mountain. Therefore, Zhuang Qing repeated the question in thenguage of the ancient yao. This time, the Feiyi understood. He shook his head. ¡°I didn¡¯t do it intentionally, someone else brought me there.¡± The Feiyi, who had been sent flying by a swipe of Zhuang Qing¡¯s tail and then frozen by ice, didn¡¯t dare to provoke Zhuang Qing. He replied very honestly, ¡°Our n has an ancestral rule ¨C there are strange great yao outside Hunxi Mountain that can turn us into ashes, so our Feiyi n cannot leave the mountain.¡± ¡°Turn into ashes?¡± Zhuang Qing recalled that a great yao had once mentioned a Feiyi suddenly turning into ashes. Did the Feiyi n¡¯s ancestral rule originate from this matter? ¡°Yes,¡± The Feiyi nodded repeatedly. ¡°Our n has always been cautious, we didn¡¯t leave Hunxi Mountain for more than three thousand years. But several hundred years ago, the mountain suddenly became colder and colder. My nmates and other yao cultivators died in droves within the short span of a few days, I¡¯m the only Feiyi left on the entire Hunxi Mountain now.¡± Zhuang Qing conveyed the Feiyi¡¯s words to his colleagues. ¡°Suddenly turned cold a few hundred years ago...¡± As a Feng hairpin, Chao Yun was not sensitive to the temperature, to the extent that she didn¡¯t even know which year was the coldest. ¡°He should be referring to the ice age,¡± Zhuang Qing still remembered that period. The world had been in chaos, and the people had no way of getting by. Those who had frozen and starved to death were too many to count. Chu Yu also remembered it. He nodded repeatedly. ¡°I recall there being a period when it was especially cold. It was so cold that all the water froze into ice. If not for the fact that I had a cultivation base, I might have frozen to death during that age.¡± ¡°Who brought you out?¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. The Feiyi shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Chapter 98 - Nine Hearts Tribulation

Chapter 98 - Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion

Ancient yao beasts had been emerging one after the other. Because of resentment, Gong Fu had nearly fallen to the ranks of the fiends while the Feiyi who had lived for hundreds of thousands of years had actually perished during the Ice Age due to the cold. This was simply absurd. ¡°Isn¡¯t this lie a bit too much? The Feiyi don¡¯t look like they have much destructive power, but whatever the case, they still lived past the era of the ancient great yao. How could they die because of this sort of natural cmity?¡± Chu Yu found this matter rather strange. It was simr to hearing about penguins from the south pole running over to their country and eventually freezing to death. It didn¡¯t make sense at all. Nevertheless, Zhuang Qing felt that this Feiyi wasn¡¯t lying. Although this Feiyi appeared sturdy, there were many scars caused by frostbite on its body. He couldn¡¯t speak thenguage of the modern yao world, and even the few words Chu Yu had spoken was enough to leave him trembling. All this not only indicated that the Feiyi had very little courage, but also hispleteck of interaction with the outside world. The only life-preserving skill he had learnt was probably the barrier to conceal his figure. It was fortunate that he knew how to erect barriers. If he had been discovered by the humans, only a bullet would be needed to dispose of him. ¡°So you¡¯re the sole survivor of the Feiyi race?¡± ¡°I am indeed the only Feiyi on Hunxi Mountain,¡± The Feiyi¡¯s two bare tails drooped, not daring to look at Zhuang Qing and the rest. He was the picture of a cowardly person who had been bullied. ¡°The Feiyi on Taihua Mountain have long been eradicated. Some ces have already been developed into natural scenic spots for humans to appreciate,¡± Zhuang Qing stated. ¡°ording to the management bureau¡¯s rules, you should have been given a prison sentence. But due to the special characteristics of your species, I will discuss with the other relevant departments before making a decision.¡± The Feiyi wasn¡¯t afraid of being imprisoned or whatnot. He had never been fond of walking around recklessly, so there was no difference no matter where he stayed. Speaking of this, it was quite strange ¨C their Feiyi race wouldn¡¯t bring about huge droughts if they stayed at Taihua and Hunxi Mountain, but the moment they left these ces, not even a de of grass would grow wherever they went. Zhuang Qing discussed the matter regarding the Feiyi with the relevant departments. Every party had their own opinions. Some felt that there was meaning behind the existence of all life forms, and that there was only one Feiyi in the world, so they ought to treat it as a special type of breed and raise it. Others felt that the Feiyi¡¯s natural ability was too dangerous, and that they couldn¡¯t risk human lives and assets. There were also those who felt that the Feiyi should first be locked up and observed for a period of time so they could deal with any after-effects. As the various parties were arguing ceaselessly on video, Zhuang Qing cut in. ¡°The most important thing now isn¡¯t to decide how the Feiyi should be dealt with, but to investigate who brought him out of Hunxi Mountain.¡± ¡°Why not ce the Feiyi back on Hunxi Mountain?¡± ¡°No, I just went to take a look at Hunxi Mountain. The feng shui of thendscape there has been damaged by someone, so it can no longer seal the Feiyi¡¯s innate abilities,¡± Zhuang Qing took out a photo of Taihua Mountain. ¡°There are many mountain tops on Taihua Mountain that haven¡¯t been opened up for development, I think it¡¯ll be more suitable to seal him there.¡± ¡°There are too many travelers at Taihuai Mountain, I¡¯m afraid it isn¡¯t very suitable,¡± The people from the security department were hesitant. ¡°Naturally, we won¡¯t let him roam freely. We¡¯ll seal him at a mountain top that people don¡¯t visit,¡± Zhuang Qing put down the photo. ¡°What does everything think about that?¡± Everyone nodded. They could feel at ease with Zhuang Qing handling the matter. Only after a long while had gone by did they react. Weren¡¯t they discussing whether or not they would keep the Feiyi? How did it turn into a discussion on where he should be kept? Despite having understood Zhuang Qing¡¯s thoughts, the few of them didn¡¯t mind and instead started ruminating over the unknown creature that had brought the Feiyi to the human world. Anything cultivation-rted was all Greek to them, but none of them were weak when it came to scheming. The boss of the security department: ¡°ording to previous behavior in the yao world, it¡¯s possible that yao cultivators are vying for territory. Now that you, the Dragon Lord, is around, these yao cultivators probably won¡¯t ruthlessly deal a killing blow, so they threw the Feiyi at Zhongshan Province, intending to get someone else to do the dirty work for them? Zhongshan Province can¡¯t be considered a major agricultural province, and the Feiyi just happened to appear during theter stage of the harvest season, so the economic losses were limited to a certain degree.¡± The boss of the environmental department: ¡°This sort of thing can¡¯t be said with certainty, it¡¯s possible that the timing was just a coincidence. Whatever the case, the unknown creature who did this definitely doesn¡¯t harbor kind intentions.¡± The boss of the education department: ¡°Perhaps he¡¯s giving you a warning? Or provoking you?¡± The boss of the education department had studied psychology in the past and had taken an optional course in criminal psychology. In the field of psychology, he was an outstanding individual renowned across the globe. This statement of his attracted everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Not taking into ount the unknown creature¡¯s identity and looking solely at the behavior, his actions resemble the way children cozy up to others,¡± The outstanding individual had a solemn expression on his face. ¡°Perhaps he is dissatisfied with the cultivation world¡¯s neat and orderly way of living, and wants to return to the past.¡± Thend they lived on was too mysterious, and it was unknown how many mystical life forms it had produced. To the human world, a chaotic cultivation world was definitely not a good thing. Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. After growing ustomed to afortable life, who would still be willing to go around killing? ¡°No matter what it is, we should take precautions. Preparation averts peril after all,¡± The boss of the education department said. ¡°For the blissful lives of themon people, there is no such thing as doing too much.¡± Hearing these few people speaking in academguage again, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°Please take your time to discuss, I¡¯ll make the arrangements for the Feiyi.¡± ¡°Ai, youngsters have such strong ability to take action. It¡¯s already sote, and he still wants to work overtime,¡± The boss of the environmental department yawned. ¡°I¡¯m too old and can¡¯tpare to them.¡± ¡°Whatpare, do you have more zeroes in your age than him?¡± The boss of the security department cut the power for the video-conference, leaving the boss of the environmental department to direct his anger at the ck screen. Compare their real ages? It was only right to look at their physical condition! Fu Li was dreaming again. He dreamed about ying the ¡®fork in the road¡¯ game. On a huge path made of starlight, a fork would appear after walking a short while. At the first fork, a stunning woman stood at the left while an empty path was on the right. Without even thinking, Fu Li walked to the right, too embarrassed to even raise his head. Sister Pheasant told him that as a male, he must not look around randomly when human girls were dressed particrly scantily. At the second fork, a mountain of treasures were piled up on the left. Even the road was made out of gems. In contrast, there was only an ordinary tiny path on the right side, with tiny flowers growing sporadically along the path. Only a nutcase would go to the left. Those gems were uneven; stepping on it would be quite painful to the feet. At the third fork, a sword radiating holy light was disyed on the left. Fu Li continued walking towards the right. These weapons weren¡¯t fun to y with at all, they couldn¡¯t evenpare to a single five-colored holy light sword in his Qiankun pouch. At the fourth fork, there was a luxurious imperial pce on the left with countless servants kneeling on the ground in worship. It was already the current era, yet here they were still engaging in feudalism and all that same old stuff. He was a yao with the resolve to be a civil servant, this sort of corrupted thinking was uneptable. At the fifth, sixth, and seventh forks, Fu Li chose the empty path. Cultivation methods, spiritual pills, ancient inheritances or whatnot had no allure to him at all. When he reached the eighth fork, he saw Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s yao cultivators on the left. Fu Li¡¯s nose nearly turned askew. What rotten dream was this? There waspletely no sense of realism. The sparrow who lived at the entrance of his cave was very pompous. To it, its wsnding on the ground was akin to suffering a gargantuan grievance, how could it possibly jump about on the ground pecking at grains? That was something only chicks would do. At the ninth fork, Fu Li saw two huge doors. The one on the left was made of crystal, the two words ¡®Immortal Pce¡¯ written on the signboard in the middle. Heavenly music was aflutter. The one on the right was made of ck wood, with a signboard stating ¡®Underworld¡¯ hanging in the middle. There was even a ck jade que erected at the side of the door, on which were the words ¡®If I don¡¯t enter the underworld, who will?¡¯. Fu Li pushed open the door on the left without hesitation. He had already visited the underworld, but he hadn¡¯t yet seen what the Immortal Pce looked like. But when he pushed open the gorgeous door, the space behind it was vacant with nothing in sight. He nced behind. Just as expected, there was an expanse of darkness behind him. All roads had vanished in the darkness. ¡°As a cultivator, you should possess the determination to face the suffering of Heaven and Earth. Why did you give up on the underworld to enter this ce?¡± A genderless and ageless voice entered Fu Li¡¯s ears. He sat cross-legged on the floor and replied with a question of his own, ¡°Many life forms in the world yearn for the light; even moths throw themselves at fire, let alone me.¡± ¡°The lives of moths are brief, they do not know suffering. You have cultivated for many years, yet you are unable to grasp this?¡± Fu Li felt that this dream was a bit odd. He was living his life perfectly fine, what did he need to understand? ¡°Isn¡¯t fulfilling one¡¯s desire the emphasis of all things? If I wanted to push open this door but persisted in pushing open the other, how would that be considered ¡®understanding¡¯?¡± Fu Li asked in reply. ¡°Following one¡¯s heart and being in harmony with heavenlyw ¨C is that not the best Heart of Dao?¡± The voice was silent for a while. ¡°Why were you unwilling to go to the underworld?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been to the underworld, but not the immortal pce. The lifespan of a yao cultivator is long; maintaining the asional harmless curiosity will make my life more interesting.¡± Fu Li asked a question in return, ¡°Who are you? Why did you appear in my dream?¡± ¡°I am your Heart of Dao.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie to this yao. How can my Heart of Dao be so bothersome?¡± Fu Li raised a brow. ¡°Although I don¡¯t know what you are, I don¡¯t sense malicious intentions from you, so I won¡¯t bicker with you. You had better leave quickly.¡± There was clearly potential for this to develop into a conversation of profound morals, yet Fu Li had talked it to death. The voice that professed to be Fu Li¡¯s Heart of Dao was silent for a long time, to the point that Fu Li assumed that it had already left. Only then did the voice once again sound. ¡°Nine is the Greatest Number. On this day, the power of your Dao has advanced greatly. Now wake up!¡± Fu Li woke from the dream with a start and discovered that all the decorative objects in the room had shattered. The ss on the windows had long disappeared, leaving only two tattered window curtains fluttering in the wind. He lowered his head and saw the spotless, snow-white fur on his front ws. When had his fur been this white? Zhuang Qing had just walked out of the video-conferencing room when he felt a powerful wave of yao qi dispersing in all directions from the staff dormitory. Explosions of all kinds sounded all over the entire building. He watched with his own eyes as window after window of ss turned into fragments. That was special reinforced ss that had just been installed this year! Gong Fu suddenly opened his eyes in the midst of meditation. He walked to the window in disbelief and felt the intense yao qi in the air. It had been too long, a near eight thousand years since hest met a spiritual yao who passed the Test of Nine Hearts. ¡®Nine is the Greatest Number¡¯ included the things that had the most allure to yao cultivators. Yao cultivators with Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi or who were formed from objects had to pass the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion if they wanted to be true great yao. During the ancient times, the number of yao who took on form due to Heaven and Earth¡¯s qi was not small, yet very few of them truly became great yao. The Kunpeng could be considered one of them. All the yao in the building were rmed. Most yao didn¡¯t know what had happened and only wondered nkly which yao had broken through in the middle of night and whether this individual had any civility. Didn¡¯t they know to find somece deep within the mountains to do this sort of thing? Also, the windows that had been shattered by the shock. Would they be able to apply to have it reimbursed at public expense? ¡°Fu Li!¡± Zhuang Qing burst through the door to Fu Li¡¯s room. ¡°Are you okay?¡¯ He went mute the next second. This fluffy creature whose body had increased in size by two folds, was so white that it bordered on holy, had aplex red mark on its forehead, and looked like a cross between a dog and rabbit, was Fu Li? Fu Li climbed out of a pile of rubbish. He shook the fragments on his body and raised his front ws. He was extremely satisfied with his increasingly ¡®imposing¡¯ body, though he didn¡¯t know why his body had turned bigger. However, at this point in time, all his meridians were clear, and his entire body brimmed with spiritual qi. The feeling of fatigue from before had vanished without a trace. His entire yao body couldn¡¯t have felt better. ¡°Aiyo, my god,¡± The Kunpeng rushed over. Upon seeing Fu Li¡¯s original form, he nearly couldn¡¯t resist rubbing his eyes. Wasn¡¯t the color of his fur too good? Why didn¡¯t he have such powerful beautification abilities when he passed the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion? ¡°Why did Fu Li... be like this?¡± Zhuang Qing felt that Fu Li¡¯s fur would definitely be very nice to touch. But when he looked at the fur that was untainted by even a speck of dust, he couldn¡¯t quite bring himself to do so. ¡°A yao cultivator born to the Heavens and nurtured by the Earth starts absorbing Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi before their birth. Those with good luck can condense a physical body, while those with bad luck will dissipate into spiritual qi as repayment to the earth,¡± Gong Fu rubbed his hands in preparation to stroke Fu Li¡¯s fur. But the dragon beside him actually moved even faster than him and pulled Fu Li into his arms in the blink of an eye. ¡°With a physical body, the yao cultivator would have passed the first hurdle. The second hurdle is to transform into human form. In the yao world, yao who are unable to take on human form can only be considered inferior yao. The third hurdle is to go through the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion. Only after experiencing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion can they be considered a true yao,¡± The Kunpeng exined. ¡°During ancient times, countless yao who took form from spiritual qi perished because they were unable to pass the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion. Fu little Li, congrattions on bing a true adult.¡± The hand that Zhuang Qing cradled around Fu Li couldn¡¯t help tensing. Fu Li had actually experienced such a thrilling matter, if he hadn¡¯t made it through... The taste of blood welled up in his throat. Zhuang Qing stroked Fu Li¡¯s white fur, swallowing the blood. ¡°You¡¯ve be heavier.¡± ¡°Kunpeng daren, what are you saying? What¡¯s the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion?¡± Fu Li rested his furry head on Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder as he looked at the Kunpeng in confusion. If that dream was the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, that would really be too easy. ¡°Didn¡¯t the yao who took you in and cared for you tell you about it?¡± The Kunpeng found this strange. On certain asions, Fu Li seemed to understand the ancient times like it was the back of his hand. But on other asions, he was as ignorant as a child. What were the yao cultivators who educated him doing? Even if they overemphasized certain topics, there was no need to do it to such an extent. ¡°You don¡¯t know what the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion experience is like?¡± Fu Li¡¯s cultivation had advanced abruptly not too long ago, and now he suddenly had to experience the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion. If Fu Li weren¡¯t standing here all good and well, he would really suspect heavenlyw of wanting Fu Li to die. ¡°All I had was a dream. It was just some naked beauty, a rabbit with very glossy fur, gems, divine weapons, spiritual weapons, cultivation techniques, and so on. It¡¯s not like Ick gems, divine weapons, and cultivation techniques. It¡¯s not good to get too close to beautiful people and rabbits too, that would be too discourteous.¡± Fu Li knit his brows. ¡°Most unreasonable of all was that there were even people pretending to be my close friends in the dream, and their pretense wasn¡¯t even good enough. I remember all the appearances and likes of my close friends. The Shen lied to me previously using this method, and now this same method was used again. What an overused method.¡± The Kunpeng stared nkly. To Fu Li, the things that many yao cultivators longed for day and night hadpletely no allure. As for the illusion of his close friends, Fu Li was well acquainted with their habits and properties, and had even been lied to once, so he naturally wouldn¡¯t be duped again. He had thought wrong. Heavenlyw didn¡¯t want Fu Li to die; it had opened the backdoor for him. ¡°What about thest hurdle?¡± The Kunpeng thought about how he had spent a hundred years before breaking through the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, and was so jealous that he nearly turned into a fat fish. ¡°There were two doors. I chose the pretty one.¡± The Kunpeng nearly couldn¡¯t catch his breath. That pretty door was a trap. The world¡¯s most beautiful fantasndy beyond that door. During the ancient times, many yao cultivators had failed at this point. ¡°In the end, there was nothing behind that door but a ck space. I argued with a voice pretending to be my Heart of Dao for a while and then woke up,¡± Fu Li lifted his white ws with immense happiness. ¡°And then I realized that my original form became mighty and majestic.¡± He was a shaggy round lump. Mighty and majestic his ass. The Kunpeng was at a loss. This doesn¡¯t seem quite right. He had discussed this with the yao cultivators who had sessfully passed the tribtion, and all of them had opened the door to the underworld, experienced being separated from what was dear to them, the bitterness of life and death, and the cruelty of illness and poverty. Only then were they considered to have passed the tribtion. What was this that Fu Li had experienced? ¡°Because he has no desires or yearnings in his heart,¡± Gong Fu¡¯s voice sounded in the Kunpeng¡¯s heart. The Kunpeng looked back. Gong Fu had appeared behind him at some time. ¡°He possesses everything that others long for even in their dreams. He even has what others don¡¯t have,¡± Gong Fu appeared at Fu Li¡¯s door with a somewhatplex expression. ¡°In some sense, a yao cultivator who possesses innumerable treasures and is easily satisfied has the strongest heart.¡± The Kunpeng furrowed his brows. ¡°We¡¯re so close, what are you using the sound transmission skill for? Exactly what kind of abilities did the yao cultivators who raised Fu Li have? They actually gave him so many precious things, so much so that he even looks down on the things that appeared in the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion?¡± Remembering how the red bird iming to be Fu Li¡¯s elder had easily put the Taowu in its ce, the Kunpeng had a spell of heart palpitations. Fortunately, he hadn¡¯t really injured Fu Li when he first left the seal at the bottom of the ocean. Otherwise, if the elder one came for him after he beat up the little one, half of him might really end up barbecued while the other half would be made into soup to drink. Gong Fu didn¡¯t answer his question. ¡°So, Fu Li is the true darling of heavenlyw, not Zhuang Qing. One grew up pampered and spoiled to the heavens, while the other received the acknowledgement of the nation¡¯s fate only after experiencing hardship. It¡¯s clear that the former led a better life.¡± The yao cultivators who raised Fu Li had perhaps thought of all the temptations that Fu Li could face when undergoing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, which was why they had given Fu Li countless treasures, taught him how to be a yao, and showered him with boundless love. Only a yao who possessed all that was beautiful and had been loved and doted on would see a nk space when opening the door of their wishes. ¡°But generally speaking, in Xianxia stories, people like Fu Li will still end up beaten to death by Zhuang Qing.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t read stories carelessly!¡± The Kunpeng felt that the novel he had borrowed from the sword yao called Ning Xuan was quite interesting. Humans really were mysterious creatures; they coulde up with any story. Seeing that the Kunpeng and Gong Fu were locked in a silent staredown, Fu Li suddenly pped his shoulder and said in excitement, ¡°So I¡¯m really not an ordinary rabbit but a great yao who took form from Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi?¡± Chapter 99 - Pet

Chapter 99 - Pet

A major event like sessfully passing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion wasn¡¯t even more important than whether or not his original form was that of a rabbit? The Kunpeng turned his head, shooting a nce at Gong Fu. With a wave of his hands, all the things in the room were restored to their original condition. Then, he took out a carpet from his Qiankun pouch,id it out on the floor, and sat down cross-legged. ¡°There¡¯s no use asking me about this sort of thing. Ask Gong Fu.¡± Seeing that Fu Li was going to get down from his embrace, Zhuang Qing hesitated for a moment, and then mimicked the Kunpeng, sitting cross-legged on the carpet without releasing his grip on Fu Li. Seemingly very used to being carried, Fu Li soon found afortable position in Zhuang Qing¡¯s arms to nest in. Zhuang Qing gently stroked the fur on Fu Li¡¯s back and couldn¡¯t help wondering who exactly had carried Fu Li so frequently for him to be so used to someone else¡¯s hug. Was it those yao cultivators on Reflecting Mist Mountain, or... the human that Fu Li called his pet? Gong Fu walked into the room. Seeing the exceptional color of Fu Li¡¯s fur, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from extending a hand. ¡°Gong Fu daren,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s outstretched hand blocked Gong Fu. ¡°Fu Li is a yao cultivator with intelligence. These actions of yours may be a little inappropriate.¡± ¡°It¡¯s called ¡®caressing¡¯ when an elder helps a junior stroke their fur. How is that inappropriate?¡± Gong Fu pretended not to have understood Zhuang Qing¡¯s words. He was going to pat Fu Li¡¯s head, but Zhuang Qing directly covered Fu Li with his arms, his speed unexpectedly even faster than Gong Fu. Gong Fu sighed and sat down beside the Kunpeng. ¡°The young yao nowadays have less and less respect for their seniors.¡± Zhuang Qing had long heard Fu Li making suchints. When he looked down at Fu Li, Fu Li¡¯s head was turned towards the wall, looking entirely like he hadn¡¯t heard anything. Unable to help himself, Zhuang Qing pinched his ear, and then... pinched it another time. Because the soft feel of it was way too good. The other yao in the entire building didn¡¯t dare to sleep soundly after the sudden movement. They waited for a very long time with their eyes fixed on the empty windows, but heard no other sound. They shook their nkets, sending the shards of ss on the nkets to the ground, and then flipped over, continuing to sleep. They were all inhabitants of the cultivation world; a few ss fragments on the bed wasn¡¯t much of an issue. The four yao were seated in the shape of a triangle. Fu Li took out four drink cans from his Qiankun pouch, used his ws to push two cans opposite him, and split the remaining two cans between him and Zhuang Qing. The Kunpeng watched Zhuang Qing help Fu Li to pull open the tab on the can, even sticking a straw in. He couldn¡¯t help muttering in his heart to Gong Fu, ¡°Truly the life of a young master. Zhuang Qing is such a serious dragon, yet he still has the patience to do this.¡± Gong Fu pulled open the tab of the drink can and took a sip from it, ignoring the Kunpeng. Instead, he asked once again about the course of events and details of Fu Li¡¯s tribtion experience. After hearing about the process of Fu Li¡¯s dispute with the ¡®fake Heart of Dao¡¯, he suddenly felt joyful. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to the Kunpeng and think that the tribtion you passed was very easy,¡± Gong Fu ced his drink can down, solemnity all over his handsome face. ¡°Greed is pretty much the instinct of all life forms, just that the degree of it varies. The fact that you could effortlessly pass the tribtion wasn¡¯t because of good luck, but because you have a simple and unyielding heart. For instance, that cultivation method that can revive a life form ¨C to many creatures, this is an enormous temptation. Who has not missed the deceased? Who has not had the thought that ¡®if only he was still alive, everything would be good¡¯?¡± Fu Li had been pampered and raised from childhood. Now that he was on his own outside, did he not miss his close friends? Moreover, his close rtives had appeared at the tribtion of the eighth heart. To Fu Li, this was akin to the most delicious bait. If he did not have a firm Heart of Dao, he might have long sunk deeply into this beautiful illusion, never to leave. The first eight tribtions weren¡¯t considered much. In reality, the truly dangerous one was the ninth tribtion. If even an iota of instability were to appear in his heart when he chose the immortal pce¡¯s door and argued with the Heart of Dao, he would sink into a nightmare that could never be awoken from. Eventually, his physical self would die and his Dao would vanish. Every tribtion appeared simple but carried immense danger. In fact, Gong Fu couldn¡¯t help thinking that if Fu Li hadn¡¯t encountered the yao cultivators who had brought him up, he might have be a great yao worshipped by countless yao. But the way things were now was even better ¨C he had friends, a livelihood, and even a small thought of bing a civil servant. What was so good about bing a great yao? Those who managed to live right underneath the eyes of heavenlyw were either discrete or had little courage. The previous glory of the yao world had long disappeared. Even those who became great yao would perhaps ultimately die at the hands of heavenlyw. ¡°You... are indeed not an ordinary rabbit,¡± Gong Fu smiled. His smile was very gentle. ¡°When I had yet to be a great yao, I lived in my father¡¯s Azure Dragon Pce. He once told me about a creature in the world called the Hou, a primordial spirit formed from the spiritual qi of Heaven and Earth. Its body is made of five-colored stone. When it first takes form, it is as small as a pika. If it attains a heavenly chance and grows to adulthood, its appearance will be simr to a rabbit and dog. With endless power, it will be a region¡¯s overlord.¡± ¡°But five-colored stone is extremely hard toe by, and how much spiritual qi is there to form a primordial spirit? Which is why there is only one of you since the time the world took form,¡± Gong Fu¡¯s smile warmed even further. ¡°ording to the current sayings, you are a rare animal in the cultivation world.¡± He stretched his hand towards Fu Li¡¯s head once more, and was once again blocked by Zhuang Qing. The smile on Gong Fu¡¯s face stiffened. He had already tossed out such an important piece of information, so why couldn¡¯t this dragon forget about this matter out of shock? ¡°There seems to be something wrong about this,¡± Fu Li bit on the straw, taking a few sips of his drink. ¡°Since there wasn¡¯t any creature like me who was born at that time, how did Dragon God daren know that a life form like me is called a Hou? Or is it to say that as the protector god of one of the world¡¯s directions, Dragon God daren can calcte approximately when a new life form will be born, and thus randomly give it a name in advance?¡± Gong Fu: ... He hadn¡¯t considered this question before, though he was in inexplicable agreement with Fu Li¡¯s words. But how could he let his father¡¯s dignity copse in front of a junior? ¡°Of course not. The birth of all living things in the world is apanied by a certain heavenly chance. The term of address for a race naturally also carries Heaven and Earth¡¯s opportunity. How can it be so random? You were bornte and are still young, so it¡¯s normal for you not to know about these.¡± Fu Li nodded nkly. So there were also many things to pay attention to when it came to the names of the races of yao cultivators. He looked at his furry front ws and then hung his head all of a sudden. Zhuang Qing, whose attention had always been on him, hurriedly stroked his fur upon seeing his sudden loss of spirit. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Fu Li nced at Zhuang Qing. Covering his face with both ws, he asked with some embarrassment, ¡°T-Then, is the Hou an auspicious beast or fiend?¡± Gong Fu stared nkly. Fu Li asking this question had been out of his expectations. He had thought that Fu Li would ask how a Hou cultivated and which aspects it was strong in for it to be the master of a region. Who would have expected the eventual question to be this one. ¡°Why ask this?¡± Gong Fuughed. All his facial features rxed, as if he had encountered a happy asion of great significance in his life as a yao. Gong Fu¡¯s smile made Fu Li even more bashful. Feeling that this question of his was really too childish, he buried his face into the crook of Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm. ¡°ording to the cultivation world¡¯s rules, those who are fiends by nature cannot participate in the human world¡¯s exam for civil servants, no matter how good their results are.¡± The sound of Gong Fu¡¯sughter became even louder. Only when Zhuang Qing reached the end of his patience and shot Gong Fu a re did he hold hisughter back. He said with a smile, ¡°Of course you¡¯re an auspicious beast, an auspicious beast that couldn¡¯t be any better.¡± Fu Li blinked. He smiled with a satisfied heart. ¡°That¡¯s good then.¡± He would have to continue studying and preparing to be a civil servant. ¡°You¡¯ve just undergone a tribtion, have a good rest. I¡¯ll leave with the amphibian first, we won¡¯t disturb you,¡± Gong Fu pulled on the Kunpeng¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The Kunpeng had wanted to sit with Fu Li a while longer, yet Gong Fu didn¡¯t give him even the slightest bit of face and dragged him out like he was a dead fish in front of a junior. Angered, he yelled continuously, ¡°Don¡¯t pull, don¡¯t pull. This is my new shirt.¡± The both of them were now freeloading elders without ie who were dependent on their juniors to raise them. They already squandered a lot when it came to eating, so it would be better for them to be a bit more frugal when it came to clothing. ¡°Can¡¯t we give two young yao some alone time at this happy moment?¡± Gong Fu flung the Kunpeng to the side, sending the Kunpeng rolling on the ground. With a pat of his buttocks, the Kunpeng climbed up. ¡°When a junior seeds in passing a tribtion, we as elders should instruct them a bit more or at least take out a few congrattory gifts. Did you drag me out because you wanted to save on a congrattory gift?¡± The Kunpeng was not at all afraid to specte about Gong Fu harboring the most malicious of intentions. ¡°There aren¡¯t more than a few strands of hair on your head, aren¡¯t you scared your head will blind them?¡± Gong Fu manifested a fan in his hand, which he mmed down on the Kunpeng¡¯s head. ¡°Look at how enthusiastically that little dragon protects Fu Li, you still don¡¯t get it?¡± ¡°Those two are together.¡± Creak. The door behind the two of them opened and Song Yu stretched his head out with a face full of awkwardness. ¡°Daren, do you want toe in for a cup of tea?¡± The Kunpeng and Gong Fu stared nkly for a moment. Then, they realized that their rooms were on the floor above Fu Li¡¯s and not the floor below. The Kunpeng straightened his clothes and coughed dryly. ¡°No need, we should be going back to rest.¡± ¡°Then... take care?¡± Song Yu was genuinely scared that these two bosses would start fighting outside his door. The Kunpeng nced at the trembling Song Yu. With a jeer, he turned and headed upstairs. He really didn¡¯t want to admit that this Suanyu was also a yao who had lived through the ancient times. His guts weren¡¯t muchrger than the point of a needle. The Kunpeng pulled Gong Fu into his room and then cast a soundproofing spell. ¡°You lied to him.¡± ¡°Lied to who?¡± Gong Fuy down on the carpetzily. ¡°Fu little Li, that rabbit.¡± The Kunpeng said resolutely, ¡°Although I¡¯m not sure exactly what kind of yao beast a Hou is, he definitely isn¡¯t an auspicious beast by nature. In the past, didn¡¯t you also...¡± ¡°So what if he¡¯s an auspicious beast or fiend?¡± Gong Fu responded carelessly. ¡°I¡¯ve gotten over it already. Whether one is auspicious or a fiend is nothing more than a skill given to one by nature. Fiends may not necessarily bepletely evil, and auspicious beasts may also not necessarily be honorable. Since Fu little Li is happy that he¡¯s an auspicious beast, then he will be an auspicious beast. Do you have any objections?¡± The Kunpeng: ¡°None, you said it very well.¡± This inferior brand of a dragon finally spoke decent yao speech. After the Kunpeng and Gong Fu left, Song Yu heaved a huge sigh of relief, and then thought about the words he had heard while eavesdropping. He felt like his entire yao body wasn¡¯t in a very good state. His boss Fu Li had gotten together with a golden dragon? There were a total of three yao living on Song Yu¡¯s floor. After a certain door was closed tightly, a certain chatgroup started bing very lively. Exceptionally Good Sword: Everyone, don¡¯t sleep, don¡¯t sleep. Fu ge and the boss¡¯ romantic love has even been acknowledged by the ancient yao, Gong Fu daren. Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: Don¡¯t kick up a fuss in the middle of the night. World¡¯s Number One Fish. I... heard it too. This matter had originally been a half-true and half-false joke among everyone. But after hearing Gong Fu daren say such a thing, they dared to be one hundred percent certain that the boss had truly gotten together with Fu ge. Handsome Ke: It¡¯s a happy asion. Maybe the boss will be generous after getting together with Fu ge. Devastatingly Beautiful: Hehe, you¡¯re thinking too much. Generally speaking, stingy men will be even more stingy after settling down, because they have to save even more money to support their lover. Exceptionally Good Sword: You two human cultivators aren¡¯t sleeping either? Devastatingly Beautiful: I couldn¡¯t sleep after such a big racket. Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: Just nice. Since you can¡¯t sleep, I have snacks here. I¡¯ll find youter on. Devastatingly Beautiful: Okay. I bought a few new lipsticks, quicklye over and test out the colors. Chao Yun pushed open her room door, and saw that all the lights along the corridor had been broken by the shockwave. The finish on the walls was alsoing off. She was inwardly amazed. There was a defense magic formation in this building, so even if a yao cultivator¡¯s spiritual qi went into a riot, the most that would happen was destruction of the things in their room. It was impossible to render the entire building in such a state. She nced at the corridor ahead. Cracking sounds could be heard as her feet stepped onto ss shards. She looked down at her feet before turning and walking towards Xu Yuan¡¯s room. At the empty window, Fu Li discovered that magic would not restore the broken ss. He nced at Zhuang Qing guiltily without uttering a word. ¡°There aren¡¯t any magic formations on the ss, so they can¡¯t be restored to their former condition after being broken,¡± Even if the other party had a rabbit¡¯s face at the moment, Zhuang Qing could still discern his inner thoughts. ¡°I will let the finance department calcte the amount of ss that was broken and deduct the damage from your sry.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li wondered which year and month he would receive his wages if it continued to be deducted in this manner. ¡°But all the magic formations are set up by me, so I won¡¯t take thebor cost from you,¡± Zhuang Qing carried Fu Li and stood up. ¡°It¡¯s not convenient to live in a ce without windows, I¡¯ll bring you over to my ce to stay for the time being. You can move back after the windows have been installed.¡± ¡°Then what about the colleagues who live in the building?¡± Fu Li felt even more guilty. ¡°They each have their own amodation, don¡¯t worry.¡± Fu Li then realized that all his colleagues in the bureau had their own property, and that it was only him who didn¡¯t. At this moment, he unconsciously forgot about the two dependents, Gong Fu and the Kunpeng. ¡°Let¡¯s walk back,¡± Zhuang Qing made his way out of the management bureau. Gazing up at the moon in the sky, he asked Fu Li, ¡°Do you mind?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine as long as you¡¯re happy,¡± Fu Li shook his tail. It wasn¡¯t like he was walking anyway. After walking in silence for a while, Zhuang Qing blew out a long breath of air. ¡° I don¡¯t know what I should say, but still, congrattions on advancing greatly in your cultivation.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li rested his head on Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°My premonitions are pretty urate, turns out I¡¯m really not a rabbit but a Hou. Have you read any stories about the Hou?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ve only heard of a type of yao beast called the Golden-Haired Hou. It¡¯s not the same as you.¡± The wind was a bit chilly. Zhuang Qing held Fu Li a little tighter. ¡°You¡¯re more powerful than that kind of yao beast.¡± ¡°I think so too.¡± Zhuang Qing broke into a smile at Fu Li¡¯s shameless attitude. He didn¡¯t smile often, but when he did, it was also done in a very reserved way, with a kind of self-restrained allure. But Fu Li did not see this smile, and even if he did, he probably wouldn¡¯t understand this type of beauty. ¡°I¡¯m a great yao now. If some other yao runs over to cause trouble in the future, you mustn¡¯t stand in front of me. You¡¯re a perfectly good golden dragon, don¡¯t be a bald dragon,¡± Fu Li gently patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder with his ws. ¡°You have the right to rest and bezy sometimes. The heavy burdens of the cultivation world should not be shouldered by you.¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t shoulder them, how will there be ces where the cultivation world¡¯s little yao can fit in? Who knows how many thoughtless yao wille out to cause trouble?¡± Zhuang Qing propped up Fu Li¡¯s butt with his hand. ¡°I have no cares, having things to do can add some meaning to my life.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll shoulder them with you in the future,¡± Fu Li started patting Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder with his ws again. ¡°I¡¯m a great yao now, I can cover for you if anything happens in the future. I won¡¯t make you bored.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s feet came to a halt. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Really.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll keep mepany all the time?¡± Fu Li said, ¡°Am I that kind of yao who will lie to juniors?¡± Zhuang Qing let out a lowugh. He didn¡¯t remind Fu Li that he himself had also just reached adulthood. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°No need for thanks, is there a need for us to distinguish between what¡¯s yours and mine?¡± ¡°Yup, we...¡± Zhuang Qing stroked Fu Li¡¯s fluffy back. ¡°We won¡¯t distinguish between what¡¯s yours and mine.¡± ¡°Ai, brother.¡± Two young men were passing by Zhuang Qing on their motorbikes when they came to a stop along the roadside and shouted loudly, ¡°You treat your pet too well, aren¡¯t you tired carrying it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s cold during winter and the ground¡¯s dirty. He gets sleepy very often, so carrying him is more convenient,¡± Zhuang Qing answered the strangers¡¯ boring question in a very good mood. ¡°You¡¯re really pampering him,¡± The young men shed Zhuang Qing a thumbs-up. ¡°No choice. I cherish him, so I can¡¯t bear to see him suffering,¡± Zhuang Qing revealed a smile. When the young men left on their motorbikes, Fu Li harrumphed. ¡°Those two humans have no eyes, am I that sort of pet who needs to be raised by people?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have to lower ourselves to the level of such ignorant humans.¡± Fu Li leaned his head forward again. After the excitement just now, he really was feeling a bit sleepy now. Zhuang little dragon¡¯s embrace was very warm and steady. If not for the fact that he had promised his human pet to never raise another pet, he would want to raise Zhuang little dragon now. Elder White Ape once said that a friend who couldn¡¯t bear for him to suffer would definitely be a good friend. ¡°Fu Li...¡± ¡°Fu Li?¡± Zhuang Qing patted Fu Li, who had already fallen asleep on him. He shook his head with a helpless smile. He had really fallen asleep just like that. It seemed like passing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion had only increased his cultivation, his brain was still the same old thing. For him to have lived so many years with this degree of stupidity, he must have relied entirely on luck. Ilyz: they make me so soft ?? Chapter 100 - You Mean You Understand?

Chapter 100 - You Mean You Understand?

Zhuang Qing carried Fu Li home and then stuffed him into the quilt. Looking at the way hey on the bed with his belly facing up, Zhuang Qing shook his head wordlessly. Truly a stupid yao spoiled rotten by his elders. Cold wind arose. He walked to the windows, closed them, and pulled the curtains shut. Zhuang Qing left the guestroom. Standing along the corridor, he gazed at the luxurious crystal chandelier in the living room. Suddenly, he covered his face with both hands and rubbed his face with all his might. Zhou Nan was a shut-in addicted to games. For other shut-ins, even if they disliked social interaction and chose to stay home all day, they would still have fixed ie from work such as writing, drawing, trantion, various kinds of online livestreaming, and so on. But Zhou Nan was different. He was only fond of nesting at home and relying on the inheritance his parents had left him to pass his days. He spent every day seeking self-satisfaction by killing people in-game or posting sensationalistments beneath all sorts of news articles to vent his dissatisfaction with life. However, he discovered that some inconveniences had appeared in his life recently. In the middle of the night, the sound of a woman crying and cursing could be heard from the toilet, and he constantly dreamed about his family¡¯s elders scolding him. He didn¡¯t take these seriously, but unexpectedly, bruises started appearing on his legs and buttocks a few dayster. As long as he sat on a hard stool, he would experience unbearable pain. He mustered his courage to go to the hospital for a check-up and even spent a considerable sum of money on the physical check-up. In the end, no problem was found. Angered, he went online, cursed doctors for being liars, and then posted about his recent experiences on a certain supernatural forum. Unfortunately, the post he sent out did not attract the attention of otherizens. His post was very quickly pushed down the front page by the other posts. He was a little disheartened, but also had no other option. On that night, the strange sound of the woman crying in the toilet intensified. All eight generations of his family surrounded his bed, cursing and hitting him. He couldn¡¯t sleep well at all the entire night. The next afternoon, he pulled the covers over him and was about to catch up on sleep when the doorbell rang. He got up from the bed with some impatience. Massaging the aches that had spread to his waist, he pulled open the door with a scowl and half-awake eyes. ¡°What do you want? I don¡¯t buy insurance and purifiers.¡± ¡°Comrade, sorry, we¡¯ve disturbed you.¡± Only then did Zhou Nan notice that the speaker was wearing a police uniform. He looked quite amiable though, was he a civil policeman from the local police station? He felt a bit nervous. Had his curses on the inte been reported? ¡°I-Is something the matter?¡± Zhou Nan nced at the two men behind the civil policeman. The one on the left was around 1.8m or 1.9m and had a figure men would be envious of. His looks were also the aggro-pulling sort. So what if he was good-looking, wasn¡¯t he just a neighborhood policeman following behind a senior civil policeman? Zhou Nan couldn¡¯t help but think. The man on the right was slightly shorter and had a smooth, bald head. It was fortunate that he appeared kind, otherwise passersby might call him a hoodlum when he walked on the streets. ¡°No, we¡¯re just knocking on doors to conduct interviews on public opinion,¡± The civil policeman took out his identification. ¡°Sorry for the disruption.¡± Zhou Nan, who cursed people unceasingly on the inte, was the non-provocative type in reality. Seeing that the policeman had taken out his identification, he hurriedly opened the door and took two steps back. ¡°Pleasee in, pleasee in.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± The bald man walked in and was greeted with a house full of empty drink bottles. Takeout boxes were also piled high on the table. He almost didn¡¯t know where to put his feet. ¡°Pardon the mess,¡± Zhou Nan kicked the mass of rubbish in the house to the left and right, and at longst managed to clear a small path. ¡°Please.¡± The entire house was in a mess; it was practically a trash pit. The bald man¡¯s sense of smell was a bit more sensitive and he was very unustomed to the smell in the house. Unable to bear it, he opened the living room windows. Neither did he dare to sit on the couch in the living room that had umted a thickyer of dust. Zhou Nan grabbed at his oily hair. He took out a few drink cans from the fridge, but was turned down by the extremely handsome man. ¡°Thank you for your kind intentions, but we have rules ¨C we can¡¯t take anything from the masses,¡± The handsome man seemed to be interested in Zhou Nan¡¯s house. Stepping on the rubbish, he smoothly made his way to the toilet door. ¡°Is this your bathroom?¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Zhou Nan thought of his bitter experiences during this period and said hesitantly, ¡°There¡¯s something off about that ce, you¡¯d better not go in.¡± He was very jealous of this sort of man who was good-looking from head to toe, but if something were to really happen to him, the small bit of conscience he still had wouldn¡¯t be at ease either. The handsome man opened the bathroom door and nced in. Zhou Nan, who was behind him, saw the yellow sink, dripping tap, and filthy toilet bowl. His face turned a subtle shade of red. ¡°The bathroom is quite big,¡± The handsome man closed the door, shutting the smell of the toilet in as well. Zhou Nan secretly heaved a sigh of relief. If things were to continue like this, he would die from awkwardness. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the other households to do the survey, you two can take a look around this ce,¡± The older policeman smiled at the two young men before swiftly retreating from the house. He moved so quickly that it seemed as if he was running for his life. The embarrassment in Zhou Nan¡¯s heart intensified. He was the only one who still couldn¡¯t pick out any faults. ¡°Sss,¡± He twisted his waist, and was instantly in such pain that he sucked in a breath of cold air. ¡°You¡¯re injured?¡± The handsome man looked over with deep concern, his expression so sincere that Zhou Nan subconsciously spoke about the events that had urred in recent times. Even the strange crying sounds in the toilet were told to the other party. Only after he had finished saying everything did he realize with a start what he had said. He hurriedly waved his hands. ¡°I may have been too tiredtely and hallucinated. I don¡¯t promote feudalistic superstitions...¡± ¡°I know,¡± The handsome man patted him on the shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious, it¡¯s not anything major.¡± ¡°Fu ge,¡± The bald man taking a breath of fresh air at the living room window shouted. ¡°Boss notified us that the meeting will start at eleven o¡¯clock.¡± ¡°I know. The matter here can be settled in half an hour,¡± The handsome man nced at the clock on the living room wall. Unfortunately, the dust-covered clock had long gone on strike, so he had no choice but to take out his phone to look at the time. Zhou Nan stole a peek at it. It was actually thetest model of a certain major brand. It was said that there were still many people queuing on the inte to purchase it, yet this neighborhood policeman had already started using it. He¡¯d even talked about not taking anything from the masses just now, but here he was taking out a phone from a major brand. Zhou Nan felt a little upset as he thought of this. ¡°My name is Fu Li. I¡¯m not an employee of the local police station, I¡¯m under another department,¡± Fu Li looked at the dejected young man whose hair resembled a bird¡¯s nest. ¡°My department¡¯s colleagues saw your post on the inte, so I came to your house to take a look.¡± Post? Zhou Nan stared nkly. This handsome brother calling himself Fu Li was talking about the post he had sent out yesterday about being haunted? ¡°What department are you guys from? Does my house... really have unclean things?¡± Frightened, Zhou Nan shifted backwards repeatedly, as if putting a few steps of distance between him and the toilet would make it safer. Hiss. Fu Li didn¡¯t pay any heed to him. He grabbed at empty space at the toilet door and actually dragged out a woman dressed in white. This scene scared Zhou Nan till his legs softened. His body swayed, falling onto the pile of trash. ¡°W-What is this?¡± ¡°This is a toilet god. It¡¯s also okay for you to call her a toilet ghost. In the past, humans had the habit of making offerings to kitchen or toilet gods. For some people, because they made offerings with sincerity, their homes would have souls born from their belief. They are what you humans call home deities,¡± Fu Li looked at the weak, incessantly-weeping toilet god in front of him. ¡°She is your house¡¯s home deity.¡± ¡°C-Celestial being... she¡¯s not a ghost?¡± Zhou Nan stammered. ¡°Why does my house have such a thing?¡± He didn¡¯t believe in these. Where did the beliefe from? ¡°Of course she¡¯s not a ghost,¡± Fu Li tapped the toilet god. The toilet god¡¯s body turned corporeal and she gained the ability to speak. ¡°Many thanks, daren,¡± The toilet god bowed to Fu Li. She was a very good-tempered home deity. ¡°You have already grown so weak, why not leave this house?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. When a toilet god no longer received a mortal¡¯s offerings, they could search for a new believer. Although there were few humans nowadays who believed in such things, finding one would not be a problem. Why would she wrong herself by remaining in this dirty and messy ce? The toilet god raised her head, revealing a delicate and pretty face. ¡°Because I promised someone that I wouldn¡¯t leave unless the Zhou family¡¯s descendants personally dere that they no longer need me.¡± Fu Li turned towards Zhou Nan. Zhou Nan was so scared that he nodded repeatedly. ¡°I didn¡¯t know there was a celestial being in the house. If I knew, I would definitely have set her free.¡± ¡°I remember that you home deities have a habit ¨C if the household was constantly noisy or they behaved in unscrupulous ways, you can manifest unusual phenomena as a warning to them. Why didn¡¯t you do so?¡± Fu Li rarely came to the human world in the past, but he had listened to stories of home deities. One example was of a child around seven or eight years old who didn¡¯t understand the rules and would constantly cry, making a fuss. The child would even run to the kitchen to urinate. Not longter, this family¡¯s rice suddenly couldn¡¯t be cooked and no matter how much firewood they burned, it was all useless. After that, this family promised to discipline the child well, offered incense, and kowtowed. Only then did their lives return to normal. After being disciplined, this child became better and better, and was even a sessful candidate in the highest imperial civil service examination. Later on, the legend of home deities blessing families circted around the human world. The toilet god¡¯s face was a little flushed. ¡°This Mr Zhou doesn¡¯t cook at all. I arranged for two snakes toe in and warn him, but there was too much rubbish in the house, which attracted many mice. In the end, those two snakes were stuffed from eating mice.¡± ¡°Is your promise to that human so important? So important that you would rather have your soul extinguished than to leave this ce?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t understand the toilet god¡¯s way of thinking. ¡°He was a very good person who could see me from young,¡± The toilet ghost revealed a warm smile. ¡°He apanied me all the way, spouseless and childless. Even when he was about to die, he couldn¡¯t let go of the fact that it would be his rtives who would be with me. He stubbornly held on, unwilling to take hisst breath.¡± ¡°He only left with peace of mind after I promised to stay with the Zhou family,¡± The toilet god lowered her head, concealing the emotions in her eyes. ¡°Over these years, I¡¯ve already grown used to it.¡± Zhou Nan, who was sitting paralyzed on a pile of rubbish, stared nkly. He had heard his father mentioning when he was still alive that their family had also once been illustrious. There had been an olddddd ancestor more than two hundred years ago who had even been a sessful candidate for the highest imperial civil service examination and became the region¡¯s official. It was just that he didn¡¯t wed a wife in his entire life and passed away from illness before reaching the age of thirty. Their n had been taken in by a branch family of this ancestor. In his memories, his grandfather would burn joss sticks and paper as offerings to the kitchen god, home deity, or whatnot when he was alive. After grandfather passed away, his dad would asionally do the same. But when it reached his generation, he forgot about this matter. Now that he was looking at the home deity, the fear in his heart was gradually reced by shame. Touching the bruises all over his body, he smiled bitterly. ¡°Home deity, I know I was wrong, but you beat me up too viciously too.¡± The toilet god asked in confusion, ¡°My soul was on the brink of dissipating ofte, how could I have harmed you?¡± Zhou Nan shivered in fright. ¡°You mean there are other ghosts in my house?¡± Fu Li looked at Chu Yu, who shook his head. ¡°There is no aura belonging to evil ghosts.¡± Fu Li knew what to do upon hearing this response. He told Zhou Nan mildly, ¡°Perhaps your family ancestors who haven¡¯t reincarnated couldn¡¯t bear to look on and came over to teach you a lesson.¡± The house was full of rubbish and stink. No matter howzy he was, he shouldn¡¯t turn his house into a rubbish pit. Zhou Nan¡¯s shoulders shrank back. He peered around the house in rm, as if wanting to see if there were any manifestations of his ancestors around him. Fu Li ignored him, instead turning towards the toilet god. ¡°If this Mr Zhou releases you, do you have any ce you want to go to?¡± The toilet god shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t want toe into contact with any other human family apart from the Zhou family.¡± ¡°Even if your soul were to scatter?¡± ¡°Yes, even if my soul is scattered,¡± The toilet god smiled and nodded. ¡°Why?¡± Fu Li found it even harder to wrap his head around this. ¡°That human merely apanied you for a few short decades. Do you not even want your life?¡± The toilet god looked at the handsome yao cultivator daren with profound cultivation before her, and let out a lightugh. ¡°Yao god daren, you probably don¡¯t understand what love is, right?¡± Fu Li replied, ¡°I do understand. Many elders have loved me from young, I love them too.¡± ¡°Not the same, that¡¯s not the same,¡± The toilet god¡¯s smile became even gentler. She looked at Fu Li just like she was gazing upon an uninformed junior, despite the fact that she hadn¡¯t even lived three hundred years while the one standing before her was a great yao with more than four thousand years of cultivation. ¡°There is a type of love that cannot be reced by anyone. You will want to be with him in every life, never to be apart.¡± Fu Li looked at the toilet god with pity. ¡°But human lifespans are short, you cannot be with him forever.¡± ¡°Yup. But if I¡¯ve fallen in love, then fighting for it day and night is also okay,¡± The toilet god saw the pity in Fu Li¡¯s eyes and smiled gently. ¡°Even if he¡¯s human, I will still acknowledge it.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand love, so it wasn¡¯t his ce to evaluate whether or not such behavior was clever or foolish. But this affection was worthy of his respect. He thought about it and then said, ¡°If you have nowhere to go, you cane to our ce as logistics staff. That ce of ours has many female cultivators like you.¡± The toilet god smiled silently. ¡°The Zhou family will not need a toilet god in the future,¡± Zhou Nan stood up. The dejected him seemed to have some vigor at this moment. ¡°I will take good care of myself on my own, you can leave with this handsome guy called Fu Li.¡± He wasn¡¯t capable of sincerely making offerings to the so-called home deity. His life¡¯s interesty in the virtual world, and it would remain that way his entire life. Someone who was useless at life was destined to remain that way forever. He didn¡¯t want to drag others down with him. Moreover, the toilet god was the lover of his ancestor. ording to family hierarchy, he would even need to address her as ¡®ancestral grandmother¡¯. His face burned at the thought of his ancestral grandmother living in this dirty house with him. The toilet god pondered over it before shaking her head. ¡°May I request yao god daren to give me some time? At the least... I must teach this child how to live independently before I can leave with peace of mind. After all, he is... Yu Zhi¡¯s descendant. I must take good care of him on behalf of Yu Zhi.¡± Zhou Nan wanted to say that he didn¡¯t need anyone to teach him how to live, but faced with a floor of trash, he had no way of voicing it with conviction. ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li agreed. He then ced a restriction on Zhou Nan preventing him from telling anyone else about this matter. ording to the usual practices, Zhou Nan¡¯s memories should have been wiped. However, the toilet god wanted to teach him how to live independently, so removing Zhou Nan¡¯s memories would greatly limit what could be done. Who asked him to always be so good at understanding human wishes? This was why he had chosen topromise. After Fu Li and Chu Yu left, Zhou Nan saw the toilet god actually helping him to tidy up the trash on the floor. He hastily leaped up from the floor. ¡°P-Please sit. Let me handle the dirty work.¡± He swept the trash that had umted on the couch onto the floor and thenid a towel on it. ¡°Please sit, please sit.¡± The toilet god sat down with an affectionate smile. Zhou Nan ran back and forth ten times before throwing out all the rubbish in the house. He then started mopping the floor. After half an hour of mopping, he was so fatigued that his head was spinning and his eyes had dimmed. He blurted out, ¡°Ancestral grandmother, is ancestral grandfather good-looking?¡± After voicing this question, he hated that he couldn¡¯t give himself a p. What ancestral grandmother? Wasn¡¯t this asking to be whipped? But a glorious smile stretched across the face of the toilet god seated on the couch. She nodded. ¡°Good little grandson, your ancestral grandfather was especially good-looking.¡± ¡°There is no man in this world better-looking than him.¡± Fu Li and Chu Yu rushed back to the bureau and finished their meeting. Fu Li roughly understood the meeting content ¨C the general idea was about loving the environment, protecting nature, and so on. The moment the meeting ended, he ran over to Zhuang Qing, andy a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go eat.¡± He had already promised to keep Zhuang Qingpany, so he definitely had to do it well. Thinking about how Zhuang Qing had eaten on his own for almost two thousand years, Fu Li felt that he had to apany Zhuang Qing to eat many, many times, so that he could experience the happiness of eating with a seatmate. In Fu Li¡¯s mind, Zhuang Qing was a lonely, exceedingly pitiful little cabbage growing in the ground who faced the harsh forces of nature on a daily basis. The colleagues in the meeting room who hadn¡¯t yet left all came to a halt, wanting to know how the boss dated. Zhuang Qing turned his head and shot them a nce. A shiver crept up their backs and they scuttled out of the meeting room without looking back. Huang Can was the slowest and was blocked by his colleagues. In a moment of desperation, he transformed into his original form ¨C a weasel ¨C and squeezed out through a crack. ¡°What are they running off so quickly for?¡¯ Fu Li reacted instantly, ¡°No good, Chef Bao must have made some good food today. They must be running so quickly because they want to snatch the limited food!¡± He grabbed Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm and then dragged him out. ¡°Let¡¯s run faster, we can¡¯t let them snatch it first.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... Why did he have to apany this stupid yao to do a brainless thing like running quickly for the sake of food? He was the grand dragon of national fate, did heck this bit of food? Zhuang Qing had a straight face as he was dragged along by Fu Li in a run. The pursed corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth curved upwards. ¡°Hold my hand,¡± Zhuang Qing gripped Fu Li¡¯s hand tightly. ¡°I¡¯ll take you to snatch it.¡± The management bureau¡¯s colleagues felt like a golden light had shed past them, but when they nced around their surroundings, they discovered nothing. ¡°Your golden dragon n is so fast,¡± Fu Li managed to snatch his favorite fish and shrimp. In a very good mood, he gave Zhuang Qing a fish. ¡°The other yao can¡¯tpare in this aspect.¡± Zhuang Qing took a big mouth of the fish Fu Li gave him. He raised his chin high, an unperturbed look on his face. ¡°It¡¯s nothing great.¡± ¡°When Chef Bao makes good food in the future, I¡¯ll take you to snatch it. They definitely won¡¯t be able to out-snatch me.¡± Zhuang Qing had already eaten one-third of the fish. He made a sound of agreement with an expressionless face. As a result, there was an extra small piece of yellow croaker from Fu Li on his te. ¡°Was there anything strange about the ce you went to check on today?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a toilet ghost,¡± Fu Li recounted the entire matter. ¡°I just don¡¯t understand how those short ten years of love can be so important that she¡¯ll give up on everything.¡± The yellow croaker in Zhuang Qing¡¯s chopsticks fell onto his te. He lowered his head and expressionlessly wiped the spots of oil that had sshed onto the table. ¡°There are too many things you don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°You mean you understand?¡± Zhuang Qing raised his head, looking at him. ¡°If I love someone, I will be even more ambitious than her. I won¡¯t only be chasing after them morning and night.¡± Fu Li was a little weirded out by Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze. There seemed to be a rabbit in his heart dancing. ¡°T-That is indeed more ambitious.¡± ¡°En, as long as you understand that,¡± Zhuang Qing ced the yellow croaker into his mouth and elegantly chewed on it. ¡°The way you eat is so nice to look at, just like that pet of mine in the past.¡± ¡°Shut your mouth and eat, you¡¯re noisy!¡± ¡°Oh...¡± A minor in their rebellious period was truly hard to service. Chapter 101 - RiChapter Second Generation Yao

Chapter 101 - RiChapter Second Generation Yao

When they finished their meal, Fu Li got up and went with Zhuang Qing to hand their tes to the cleaning station. Turning, Fu Li saw that Zhuang Qing was wearing a straight face. He didn¡¯t seem to want to talk, so Fu Li made a suggestion, ¡°Why don¡¯t we take a walk?¡± Under the guise of apany, the management bureau had many staff fitness areas and was once elected by the media as thepany with the most beautiful environment in the entire country. It was unknown how many people experienced envy, jealousy, and hatred upon seeing the conditions of Chang Long¡¯s lodging. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze was silently fixed on Fu Li. He didn¡¯t reject this suggestion, but also didn¡¯t agree to it. What an awkward yao. Fu Li gripped his shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go. We still have two hours of rest time in the afternoon anyway, we can chat while walking.¡± ¡°What do you want to talk about?¡± Zhuang Qing ambled along a tiny path with greenery. He had been here more than a hundred years, but strolled at this ce. He had no idea what was so interesting about this sort of boring and slow method of exercise. ¡°Anything,¡± Fu Li kicked his legs out. ¡°For example, love?¡± Zhuang Qing sneered. ¡°What, you were provoked by the toilet ghost¡¯s words?¡± ¡°No. Every yao has their own ambitions ¨C some yao feel that love is the most important, other yao feel that pursuing the Dao is the most important, and there are even some who revere power. As long as they don¡¯t harm the world, there is nothing wrong regardless of what they pursue.¡± The him now was truly a coward through and through, thought Zhuang Qing. There was clearly no one who wanted Fu Li to understand what love was more than him, but at the same time, he didn¡¯t want Fu Li to worry about these emotions. He hoped that the day Fu Li understood love woulde not because of someone¡¯s prompting, but because he had feelings for him. ¡®In love, those who act as saints are all fools¡¯ ¨C he had once seen this statement in a human book. He hadn¡¯t understood love at that time, but inwardly approved of this statement. Only when love came did he understand that no one wanted to be a saint when in love. Love was simply too gentle and cautious; it was nothing more than an unwillingness to let the other party suffer. Fortunately, his life was long enough, and there would be a day when Fu Li understood. ¡°You have a point,¡± The tiny bit of awkwardness in Fu Li¡¯s heart vanished without a trace after hearing Zhuang Qing¡¯s words. He looked at several half-grown children who were ying basketball at the basketball court. As they were ying, they turned into their original forms, rolling together. A small sika deer secretly kissed a tiny lion. ¡°Cough, cough,¡± Fu Li turned his head away. The little yaoguai nowadays also started dating early. ¡°Tell me about your past, for example... that human pet,¡± Zhuang Qing looked down at the ground. ¡°You mentioned that pet in front of me quite a few times. Was he very important to you?¡± ¡°He was the first pet I raised, and also thest,¡± Fu Li thought about it. ¡°He was a cute human who could cook, write, draw, tell stories, and y chess. He knew many, many things. Elder White Ape said that he¡¯s one of the more outstanding humans.¡± Zhuang Qing plucked a green tree leaf and fiddled with it. ¡°He¡¯s verypetent, you like him very much?¡± ¡°En, I quite like him.¡± Fu Li saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s serious expression and hurriedly soothed him. ¡°You want to raise a human pet?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s face iced over. ¡°Can¡¯t I?¡± ¡°Of course you can¡¯t. Humanw now prohibits the buying and selling of ves, it¡¯s illegal,¡± Fu Li hastily consoled him, wanting to let Zhuang Qing give up on this absurd thought of his. ¡°You can¡¯t know thew and still break it.¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t want to raise another person.¡± Zhuang Qing threw the rotten tree leaf in his hands onto the ground and replied in an almost-disappointed manner, ¡°But I¡¯m thinking about raising a rabbit.¡± ¡°Rabbits are quite good,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°They have an entire body of fluff and are also cute.¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at Fu Li. ¡°I think so too.¡± Fu Li stared nkly and reacted the next instant. ¡°You were teasing me on purpose.¡± Zhuang Qing stroked his head. ¡°Seems you¡¯re not foolish after all.¡± ¡°Impudent, who¡¯s foolish?¡± Fu Li wanted to stroke him back, but ended up missing after Zhuang Qing took a step back. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I¡¯m not a dragon but a mighty and majestic Hou, got it?!¡± There was a smile yet not a smile on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. ¡°A rabbit-like Hou?¡± Fu Li felt that his dignity as a great yao had been challenged. Rolling up his sleeves and striking a pose, he was about to put Zhuang Qing in his ce when Zhuang Qing turned tail and ran. The two people started chasing each other on the grass. Qing Xu came out from the dining hall and saw Fu Li and Zhuang Qing running and chasing after each other outside. The change in his expression could not be expressed in a mere few words. This sort of ¡®y chase¡¯ game had actually appeared in rtion to the boss and Fu ge, wasn¡¯t this too scary? ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Chu Yu saw Qing Xu standing there in a daze and pped him on the shoulder. ¡°Lost your mind from looking at it?¡± ¡°The boss and Fu ge&#k2026;¡± Qing Xu didn¡¯t know whether he should tell Chu Yu about what he had seen that day. Chu Yu might be a fish and him a human, but from his perspective, there was a gap in seniority between them. Even the master of his temple would obediently give a junior¡¯s bow to Chu Yu. ¡°Fools in love are all like this, it¡¯ll be okay when you¡¯re used to it,¡± Chu Yu said breezily. ¡°You spend all your days in the Daoist temple, so it¡¯s normal not to understand these.¡± Qing Xu: ... ¡°If you have the time to look at them ying boring games, then why not practice drawing talismans? It¡¯s not that I like to pick on you. Just look at your rain-soliciting process at Zhongshan Province, the rain only came down after soliciting for one or two hours. Back in those years, the seniors from your temple were much stronger than all of you.¡± Qing Xu hurriedly responded. ¡°Please be assured, elder. This disciple will definitely train more. I will not bring down the prestige of us Daoists.¡± ¡°Good that you have such heart,¡± Chu Yu lectured Qing Xu and then strutted his way to the fitness area. Hiding behind a thicket, he took out his phone and snapped shots of the men ying around in the distance. Tsk tsk tsk. He hadn¡¯t expected the boss to be such a person. He almost couldn¡¯t bear to look on. ¡°What is Chu Yu hiding there for?¡± Fu Li nced at Chu Yu, who was hiding behind a tree. His stature was so robust, did he think no one would be able to spot him once he hid behind a tree? Had this fish watched too many television dramas? ¡°Don¡¯t bother about him, the brain of a fish...¡± Zhuang Qing shot a cold nce at Chu Yu¡¯s hiding ce. ¡°You¡¯re aware of it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Fu Li nodded in sympathy. Indeed, the brain of a fish couldn¡¯t be considered good. After Zhuang Qing sent the Feiyi to Taihua Mountain, the management bureau once again became tranquil. No great yao appeared, nor did any little yaoe out to cause trouble. Apart from expelling ghosts or soliciting rain, all other moments could only be spent idly watching television dramas or ying games. The temperature in the capital had already started to drop. Everyone in the management bureau was a cultivator, so they had no need for a heater. Everyoney on their office deskszily as they waited to get off work. Zhang Ke clicked on a video titled in boredom. The camera lens was a little shaky and the noisy sound of a motorbike¡¯s engine could also be heard. A man in a suit walked unhurriedly along the roadside while carrying a dog, treating the dog like the most precious of treasures. After the camera lens zoomed in, Zhang Ke felt a bit embarrassed. He nced back secretly at Fu Li. Who knew when this video was shot? It was actually the boss carrying Fu ge in his original form. ¡°What are you watching?¡± Xu Yuan stretched her head over and sucked in a breath of cold air. ¡°Hush,¡± Afraid that Xu Yuan¡¯s movements would attract Fu Li¡¯s attention, he forwarded the video link to Xu Yuan. Xu Yuan clicked open the video, put on her earphones, and started watching. Upon hearing the statement ¡®I cherish him, so I can¡¯t bear to see him suffering¡¯, Xu Yuan covered her mouth. She hadn¡¯t expected the usually stingy and cold boss to actually have such a side. Was this the legendary tender sentiments of an iron-willed man? ¡°There¡¯s a new development,¡± Huang Can strode in and stuck all the photos in his hands onto the presentation board. ¡°Quick, look at these.¡± Everyone shifted their gazes to the presentation board and were struck dumb by the golden-bright, dazzling pictures of a fall harvest. ¡°What pretty photos, the trees are so heavilyden with fruit.¡± Zhang Ke asked in confusion, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with these photos?¡± ¡°Do you know when and where these photos were taken?¡± Huang Can¡¯s expression was grave. ¡°At a small rural vige in the capital¡¯s suburbs. Within one night, so many ripe rice crops appeared in the fields yesterday night. That small rural vige is now packed with travelers saying that it¡¯s a miracle.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it snowing yesterday night?¡± Zhang Ke shifted closer to the photos. He couldn¡¯t quite bring himself to believe in this. These rice crops were abundant with grains, creating an expanse of gold. No matter how he looked at it, it didn¡¯t seem like an illusion created by a yao cultivator. But if it wasn¡¯t an illusion, who would be so bored that they would rather be arrested by the management bureau than not carry out such mischief? ¡°This doesn¡¯t make sense at all,¡± Xu Yuan couldn¡¯t resistmenting. ¡°But this ability is quite interesting. It would really be a miracle if there was a bumper harvest all year round.¡± ¡°Suppress the rumors about the incident first,¡± Although Lin Gui was a bitzy, he considered things more thoroughly. ¡°Therger the ruckus, the more incredible the rumors will be. On our side, we¡¯ll first investigate the nature of this incident. Some materialism believers on the inte will definitely take the initiative to help use up with all sorts of perfect reasons.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s just say that somebody stole the crops from an agricultural research center and deliberately put them in the snow to attract everyone¡¯s curiosity,¡± Xu Yuan thought for a moment. ¡°Then, emphasize the importance of these experimental rice crops, and how the mischief has resulted in huge scientific, technological, and economic losses.¡± ¡°That works too,izens are best at imagining the wildest things after all. They cane up with countless stories of the vicissitudes of life with one simple announcement,¡± Lin Gui approved of Xu Yuan¡¯s method. ¡°We¡¯ll go with that then. Arrange for the information and public opinion departments to disseminate this message at once.¡± ¡°Onest thing...¡± Lin Gui yawned. ¡°I¡¯m a tortoise and ill-suited to going out during winter. Who will be investigating the scene?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go with Fu Li,¡± The travel-worn Zhuang Qing walked in wearily, unmelted snow still on his shoulders. He took a photo from the presentation board and gave it a few looks before telling Fu Li, ¡°Come with me.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li took two scarves from the drawer and followed Zhuang Qing out. After they left, the other colleagues looked at Lin Gui with respectful eyes. He was worthy of being called the meticulous brother tortoise ¨C even managing to calcte that the boss was about toe over. What was that about tortoises being ill-suited to being outside during winter? After cultivating for so many years, he was still scared of a little bit of winter snow? Fu Li passed a scarf to Zhuang Qing after leaving the management bureau. ¡°For you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need it,¡± Zhuang Qing rejected it. ¡°Everyone outside puts it on, we have to follow the crowd,¡± Fu Li wrapped the scarf around Zhuang Qing¡¯s neck. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the train station.¡± There were many people in the train. Fu Li and Zhuang Qing covered half their faces with the scarves, so nobody realized that they were the ¡®Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant¡¯ who had blown up on the inte previously. Leaving the train station, the two people then took a public bus for a while before rushing to the small rural vige. His feet treading on hard snow, Fu Li nced at the long procession surrounding the ce. He told Zhuang Qing in a low voice, ¡°The humans still have the most vigorous enthusiasm when ites to watching a show.¡± Both of them didn¡¯t move forward. When the police rushed over, they used the reason of the crops being stolen experimental products from a research center to disperse the surrounding crowd. Many people were unwilling to leave, so they took two to three hours to disperse the crowd in its entirety. When Fu Li and Zhuang Qing walked into the rural vige, the police officers on duty were either standing or crouching as they dug into their lunchboxes. On such a cold day, the lunchboxes would lose their heat the moment it was taken out. But these few people weren¡¯t unhappy and were instead eating very blissfully. ¡°Leaders, the surroundings have been cordoned off,¡± The person-in-charge of the policemen had long received the news that the higher-ups would dispatch specialists to deal with this matter, so the person-in-charge guessed their identities immediately after catching sight of them. He took out several aerial photos and handed them to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. ¡°These were taken by drones. The rice crops upy almost two fields¡¯ worth of space.¡± Zhuang Qing took the photo to look at it and then turned towards the golden paddy field in the snow. He spoke to the police officer in charge, ¡°It¡¯s been hard on our fellow policerades.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± The person-in-charge smiled. He watched Zhuang Qing and Fu Li walk into the paddy field, making no move to follow them in. His job was to maintain order at the scene, there was no need for him to be too curious about other things. It was said that these rice crops were stolen from a research base, who knew if the experiment would be affected. ¡°There is a very faintyer of spiritual qi on these rice crops, but they can¡¯tpare to the spiritual rice grown by the Fields Sect,¡± Fu Li picked up several rice grains to check and smelled the light scent of rice. He found this matter extremely strange. ¡°These rice crops don¡¯t seem like they were moved here using a transportation skill,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled out the root of a crop. The root had dug in very deeply and sturdily. ¡°I heard from the police that rice crops had indeed been nted in this paddy field in the past. After the grains were collected, the owner of the farm went bankrupt, and nobody came to collect the rice sprouts in the field. They rotted a long time ago, even the field dried up.¡± The two people stepped on the moist and slippery field. Fu Li gazed around their surroundings. ¡°The closer we get to the center, the stronger the spiritual qi. There might be something at the center.¡± The two looked at each other and hastened towards the center of the field. However, apart from ears of rice so heavy that their stalks bent over, no yao creature was found. ¡°There¡¯s something there,¡± Zhuang Qing spread the rice crops and felt about the ground for a while before picking up several green strands of hair. The strands of hair on Zhuang Qing¡¯s palm gave off a faint golden glow. Zhuang Qing clenched his fist, sealing the spiritual qi on the green hair. The wind swept up the fragrance of rice. In the midst of the wind, a few golden grains fell from the rice crops that didn¡¯t drop even one grain no matter how they were bumped about. Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. A mere few strands of hair could trigger the growth of so many rice crops. How strong was this yao? As he was in a state of absent-mindedness, a warm hand unfolded his hand. He came to his senses. Seeing that it was Fu Li¡¯s hand, he hurriedly spread open his palm. Fu Li held up these three green strands of hair. He stared at it a long while and then said pensively, ¡°I might have smelled the scent on these three strands of hair somewhere.¡± But he rarely left the mountain, where could he have smelled it? The elders on his mountain didn¡¯t smell like this. Could it have been a yao cultivator who came over to the mountain as a guest? In his memories, Reflecting Mist Mountain rarely received outside visitors. For the most part, the yao who coulde to Reflecting Mist Mountain had a pure and simple nature. Unfortunately, he only wanted to have fun at that time and wasn¡¯t fond of receiving guests with his elders. ¡°But I can¡¯t remember,¡± Fu Li hung his head. Why was he so yful when young? Couldn¡¯t he have been a bit more sensible, a bit more obedient? ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Zhuang Qing kept the three strands of hair in a jade box. ¡°You can¡¯t be faulted, I don¡¯t know what hair this is either. But we can ask two yao.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°The Kunpeng and Gong Fu.¡± The Kunpeng and Gong Fu sat cross-legged on a soft carpet. Faced with the burning gazes of two juniors, both yao looked at each other. It was still Gong Fu who spoke, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Say it.¡± ¡°This junior has something I would like to consult daren on,¡± Zhuang Qing took out the jade box and ced it in front of them. ¡°Would daren know which yao beast¡¯s fur this is?¡± Gong Fu picked up the jade box, opened the cover, and took a look before passing it to the Kunpeng with no change in his expression. The Kunpeng¡¯s reaction was much bigger than Gong Fu. Gritting his teeth, he fixed his eyes on the hair inside and said with a cold smile, ¡°Of course I know.¡± ¡°Then... whose is it?¡± Fu Li endured the Kunpeng¡¯s ugly expression and bravely posed this question. The Kunpeng threw the jade box onto the carpet, unwilling to answer. Gong Fu let out augh and ced the lid back on the jade box. ¡°If I didn¡¯t guess wrong, this is the Dangkang¡¯s fur.¡± ¡°The Dangkang is an auspicious beast representing the harvest. As long as he¡¯s around, there will never be a need to worry about a bad harvest, so not only humans but many yao cultivators will make offerings to him. However, the Dangkang has been missing for more than four thousand years. Legends of him in the human world have nearly died out, and there aren¡¯t many who make offerings to him,¡± Gong Fu ced the jade box back into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. ¡°The Dangkang has probably reappeared.¡± ¡°The Dangkang... has reappeared?¡± Fu Li stared nkly. He repeated the question another time with some disbelief, ¡°Has the Dangkang really appeared?¡± Gong Fu was a bit surprised by Fu Li¡¯s overly-excited reaction, but he refrained from asking too much out of consideration. He nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s probably the case, or some yao cultivator could have obtained the Dangkang¡¯s fur and lost it by ident.¡± Hearing thetter conjecture, Fu Li¡¯s face fell slightly but very quickly returned to normal. ¡°Thank you daren, I understand.¡± He remembered where he had smelled that scent. More than three thousand years ago, he was ying with a little yao on the mountain and secretly hid in King Ganglie¡¯s cave dwelling. It was there that he smelled this scent. Back then, King Ganglie said that the scent had been left behind by a guest who had already left. He hadn¡¯t thought much of it at that time. Coupled with the fact that he didn¡¯t smell it again, he gradually forgot about this matter. However, after he suspected King Ganglie of being the auspicious beast Dangkang, he discovered something suspicious about this matter. This guest¡¯s smell had only been present in King Ganglie¡¯s cave dwelling; he had never smelled it anywhere else. Had... King Ganglie intentionally concealed his special characteristics and lived on Reflecting Mist Mountain using the appearance of an ordinary wild pig spirit? But why did he conceal it? Fu Li walked along in a daze. Sister Zhu Yue, King Ganglie, Elder White Ape, Elder White Tiger, Elder White Goat, and the various yao on the mountain ¨C had they all concealed their special characteristics? What were they hiding from? All of a sudden, he came to a halt, looking at the dusky sky outside the window. Heavenlyw! Could they have been hiding from heavenlyw? ¡°Be careful,¡± Zhuang Qing put his arm around Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Keep your eyes on the road when walking. You¡¯re a Hou, not a mouse. Can your eyes only see one inch away?¡± ¡°Zhuang little dragon.¡± Staring at Zhuang Qing, Fu Li mumbled, ¡°My previous guess wasn¡¯t wrong, turns out I really am a super powerful second generation yao.¡± Zhuang Qing walked forward, his arm around Fu Li. ¡°Mr Rich Second Generation Yao, can you give some face to this rich first generation yao who built everything from scratch and walk properly?¡± Chapter 102 - I Bought a House

Chapter 102 - I Bought a House

The news of rice crops sprouting from snow gradually took on a different interpretation on the inte. Some said that the owner of the farm had done it deliberately to create hype, while others said that they were reverse-seasonal crops researched by a certain experimental base. Regardless which interpretationizens subscribed to, no one would really believe that golden, dazzling rice crops would grow out of snow. The most they would do was treat the incident as an entertaining anecdote to poke a bit of fun at. The more developed the inte, the faster the speed at which news was kept up to date on the inte. Sometimes, the most trendy inte ng couldn¡¯t be understood after a few days away from the inte. This piece of news wasn¡¯t as attractive as some celebrity¡¯s explosive scandal, so theizens very quickly pushed this matter to the back of their minds. Just because theizens watching the fun had forgotten about it didn¡¯t mean that certain high-level departments closely following the matter would also forget about it. Food was the god of the people ¨C who wouldn¡¯t ord a lot of importance to such a mystical ability? Everyone was waiting for the results of Zhuang Qing¡¯s investigation, and the various departments even specially expressed that they would definitely cooperate with all their might should an obstacle be encountered during the course of the investigation. However, they waited for multiple days without receiving any news from Zhuang Qing¡¯s side. For Zhuang Qing, whose work efficiency had always been very high, not having any results was rather surprising to everyone. In their hearts, Zhuang Qing upied a very special position. Everyone was on equal footing during their usual meetings, but dragons held a majestic and mysterious status in the hearts of the countrymen, so there was already some degree of reverence towards Zhuang Qing in everyone¡¯s bones. Because of the perpetualck of a result, nobody could sit still, but they also couldn¡¯t directly ask Zhuang Qing about it. In the end, in the name of a meeting, they informed Zhuang Qing that he had to be present. The meeting only started at half past nine, but everyone had already gathered before it even reached nine. Only Zhuang Qing¡¯s seat was still unupied. At twenty minutes past nine, Zhuang Qing finally appeared in the meeting room under everyone¡¯s hopeful gazes. There was even a youth wearing a suit following behind him. Those who recognized Fu Li recalled how he had fended off the great yao¡¯s attacks multiple times for humans, and revealed respectful smiles. ¡°Apologies, I¡¯mte,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled out the chair and sat down. Fu Li had appeared at this ce with the dual-identity of assistant and secretary. He sat behind Zhuang Qing, his back to the wall. The several people closer to him all turned their heads towards him, shing him friendly smiles. Fu Li returned their smiles and then took out his meeting recording book, his attitude extremely like that of a secretary. ¡°Since everyone has arrived, the meeting will officiallymence, ¡° The speaker had a head of snow-white hair and his face was lined with wrinkles, yet age had not diminished this person¡¯s imposing manner. Fu Li had a somewhat favorable impression of the humans present, because the purple and golden glow of virtue could be seen in the center of their foreheads. Saving lives and creating prosperity was worthy of this virtue. To Fu Li, most of the meeting content was difficult to understand. He stole a few nces at the secretaries to his left and right whose pens were flying over paper. Once again, his impression of human abilities went one level higher.. Fu Li bumbled through, noting down most of the content. The meeting was already more than halfwaypleted when he heard the elderly man sitting at the head of the meeting table say, ¡°Chief Zhuang, you handled online public opinion on the rice crops very well. What kind of creature would be able to create such an extraordinary sight and cause so much food to grow in the span of one night?¡± ¡°During the ancient times, there were numerous great yao, each with their own abilities. During the past thousands of years, the great yao no longer appear in public. It is extremely challenging to find out his identity,¡± Zhuang Qing replied calmly. ¡°There is a cultural gap between the current cultivation world and the ancient times, so this great yao¡¯s identity cannot be discovered with just this one extraordinary phenomenon.¡± ¡°If it can¡¯t be discovered, then forget it,¡± Everyone present was very rational. They understood that they could not make demands regarding this matter, and that doing so would not lead to a good oue. Fortunately, the economy had been flourishing in recent years. Even if natural disasters urred asionally, there was no need to be concerned about death from starvation. ¡°The nature of this unknown yao cultivator gentleman is unknown, if it¡¯s...¡± The boss of the security department didn¡¯t finish his statement, but everyone understood what he meant. Everyone would still be able to live their lives well without this mystical ability. At the most, they would just be a little regretful. But if this powerful yao was not friendly to humans, then that would be a major issue. The mastermind behind the Feiyi¡¯s incident hadn¡¯t appeared, and everyone¡¯s hearts were strung tight. They had added all suspicious parties, including certain foreign hostile factions, into their list to take precautions against. ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry about that. During the ancient times, yao cultivators who can imbue vitality were all auspicious beasts by nature, and everyone made offerings to them. They are friendly to all life forms, including humans,¡± Zhuang Qing said. ¡°The fact that this yao can cause rice crops to grow from snow shows that he is not a brutal yao.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good then,¡± After the most worrisome problem was resolved, the atmosphere at the meeting rxed. The boss of the security department even had the thought of cracking a joke, ¡°To think the status of yao cultivators in the past really was decided by their birth; their positions were determined the moment they were born, isn¡¯t that a bit too simple and cruel?¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably because the hearts of yao cultivators are more pure and simple?¡± Zhuang Qing returned this statement in neither a servile nor overbearing manner. The boss of the security department instantly zipped his mouth shut. Zhuang Qing¡¯s words indicated that the hearts of humans wereplex. Zhuang Qing represented the cultivation world and naturally had to protect the cultivation world in such a setting. It was fine if they joked around individually during private video conferences, but during official meetings, Zhuang Qing would stand his ground firmly. Excessive aggressiveness would be over the top, while excessive nonchnce was weakness. Since he wanted to protect the entire cultivation world, he wouldn¡¯t be careless in this aspect. After the meeting ended, everyone bid goodbye to Zhuang Qing and even specially shook hands with Fu Li, their attitudes so friendly that it nearly bordered on enthusiasm. Fu Li even suspected that they wanted to pluck a strand of his hair to take back as a souvenir. Seeing that Fu Li was surrounded by these people, Zhuang Qing reached out and dragged Fu Li out of the crowd. He raised an arm at everyone. ¡°There are still many things waiting for us to handle at the cultivators¡¯ management bureau, we¡¯ll take our leave first.¡± Everyone watched with some regret as Zhuang Qing strode out of the meeting room with Fu Li. This was a rabbit yao capable of rivaling the Kunpeng in a fight, and defeating the God of Pestilence and Suanyu. With such formidable magic power, he was definitely also an auspicious beast. Shaking hands with him would definitely not be a disadvantage to them. ¡°They¡¯re a gang of old foxes. Don¡¯t have dealings with them in private, otherwise you¡¯ll be exploited without even knowing it,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled open the car door and sat down, speaking to Fu Li, who was seated in the front passenger seat. ¡°Although human lifespans are only a short hundred years, their intelligence far exceeds the four thousand year old you.¡± Fu Li curled his lips. ¡°If I didn¡¯t know you were warning me out of good intentions, I would think that you¡¯re deliberately mocking me.¡± ¡°No, you¡¯re not getting it, I am deliberately mocking you,¡± Zhuang Qing started up the car without even a sideways nce. ¡°Do you still have any love for your colleague?¡± Fu Li buckled his seat belt and snorted. ¡°I¡¯m now a second generation yao, what do I need to use my brain so much for?¡± Zhuang Qing cocked his head, casting a nce at Fu Li. Tenderness surfaced in his gaze but was very quickly concealed. ¡°Love for colleagues? You¡¯re thinking too much, there¡¯s no such thing.¡± Fu Li: ... ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I feel like you haven¡¯t been very friendly to metely,¡± Fu Li stared at Zhuang Qing suspiciously for a very long time. ¡°You¡¯re not a hater of the rich, right? Are you envious of my status as a second generation yao?¡± ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± Zhuang Qing stepped on the brakes. With an ashen face, he said, ¡°You got me into a car ident once, don¡¯t make it happen another time.¡± Fu Li gave a pure smile, innocence overflowing from his gaze. Half an hourter, the two of them were stuck in traffic. Fu Li gazed at the slow-moving flow of traffic ahead and then suddenly turned, smiling at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, thank you.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t tell them about King Ganglie¡¯s identity today because you didn¡¯t want to bring him trouble right?¡± Fu Li was merely unwilling to work his brain too hard; he wasn¡¯t an idiot. The reason why King Ganglie had concealed his identity wasn¡¯t made clear yet. If the humans found out that the King was an auspicious beast capable of bringing about bumper harvest at a plot ofnd, who knew how much trouble that would cause? ¡°Don¡¯t overthink, I just didn¡¯t want to inconvenience myself,¡± The tips of Zhuang Qing¡¯s ears burned. ¡°If you really want to thank me, settle all the supernatural incidents in the human world found by themunications department.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li smiled and agreed. The cars continued moving ahead at a snail¡¯s pace. Driving and stopping was a severe waste of petrol, but Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood continued to remain good. He switched on the radio in the car and listened to the male and female host advertising something in exaggerated voices. They seemed to be talking about some real estatepany that had started selling property, how good the district was, and how cheap the prices were. ¡°When I first came to the human world, I worked at this real estatepany¡¯s construction site,¡± Fu Li suddenly grew spirited. ¡°Who would have thought that it had already started selling the houses.¡± When Fu Li thought about how he had participated in its achievement, there was a bit of pride mixed in with his excitement. Truly a second generation yao spoiled rotten by great yao, he could even feel glory from doing manualbor. Zhuang Qing wanted to make a few mocking statements, but when he saw how Fu Li smiled till even his brows and eyes curved into crescents, he couldn¡¯t say a single word. No wonder humans liked to say that love made people stupid. Not only had he be stupid, he had even turned cowardly. Howcking in maturity! ¡°Why don¡¯t I buy a house as a gift to you?¡± Zhuang Qing felt that he might be even less mature than he had thought. ¡°How is that proper? I heard that houses in the human world are very costly,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t have much desire for a house. In any case, to a yao, living anywhere was fine. ¡°The gems and medicinal pills you gave me are also extremely valuable in the current world, so why did you give them to me?¡± ¡°Because you like them,¡± Fu Li replied as if it was only right and proper. ¡°Since you like it, of course I¡¯ll give them to you.¡± Zhuang Qing nced at him silently. ¡°I¡¯m giving you a house also because you¡¯ve once dedicated yourself to them. To us yao cultivators, money is just a way to make our lives in the human world more convenient. So what if I give one to you?¡± ¡°You seem to have a point,¡± Fu Li was persuaded by Zhuang Qing. ¡°Then just buying one for me is fine.¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips curved. ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s go now.¡± Upon reaching thepany¡¯s property purchase center, a sales agent stepped forward to receive them. When he brought them to look at the three-dimensional model of the multistory buildings, Zhuang Qing directly stated, ¡°We won¡¯t look at the multistory ones, lead us to the vis and bungalows.¡± The moment Mr Sales heard this, his attitude became even more cordial. He didn¡¯t take Zhuang Qing and Fu Li to look at the bungalows either, instead directly leading them to the area where the models of vis were located. He told Zhuang Qing a ton of stuff like lighting, the room configuration, greenery, property, and so on. Zhuang Qing turned towards Fu Li and asked, ¡°Which one do you like?¡± Fu Li took a few looks at the models and randomly pointed to one. ¡°This one then.¡± It looked very small, but he could make do with it with some difficulty. Mr Sales understood then that he was the true owner. He nced at the way the two people stood shoulder-to-shoulder and suddenly saw the light. So these two people had that kind of rtionship. He instantly smiled, ¡°Congrattions on purchasing your new house. Will you be paying a deposit first or directly going through the procedures to purchase the house?¡± ¡°Direct purchase,¡± Zhuang Qing ced a hand on Fu Li¡¯s shoulder. Fu Li held Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. With the way he and Zhuang Qing looked now, they could be elected as the representatives of all the good brothers in the country. Mr Sales was ted. Letting them sit down and rest in the VIP rest area, he then went to fetch the property purchase contract. This sort of straightforward, nouveau riche customers were to his liking ¨C they could decide to buy thergest vi within three minutes. He retrieved two types of contracts, one of which was for a down payment while the other was to make the purchase in full. After putting down the contracts, the two guests directly chose to make the purchase in full, as he had guessed. The only unexpected thing was that the gentleman named Fu Li was the owner of the house, while the other individual paid the bill. A property worth several tens of millions was given away at a drop of a hat. Love was truly worthy of the greatest admiration. Fu Li finished signing all the contracts and then used a wet tissue to wipe the thumb he had used for fingerprinting. He spoke to Zhuang Qing, ¡°This ce is a bit far from the workce.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, it¡¯s not like you definitely have to live at this ce,¡± Zhuang Qing picked up his teacup and took a sip from it. ¡°If your family¡¯s elderse over, they¡¯ll need a ce to rest.¡± Only then did Fu Li realize why Zhuang little dragon had suddenly decided to give him a house. If this were two thousand years ago, he wouldn¡¯t have felt that such a thing was important. But aftering to the human work and interacting with many yao and humans, he understood how precious this kindness was. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, thank you,¡± Fortunately, he had gotten to know Zhuang Qing aftering to the human world, and the feeling of leading a wanderer¡¯s existence had gradually vanished, thought Fu Li. Ever since Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s destruction, he had been without close rtives or friends. Apart from hiding deep within the mountains and forests, cultivating or sleeping, there was nothing very important. Zhuang Qing was probably the only good brother he had genuinely made friends with in the past two thousand years. ¡°If you say thank you another time today, don¡¯t talk to me again,¡± Zhuang Qing stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s go for lunch, we still need to go back and work in the afternoon.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li picked up the contract for the purchase of the house as well as the bill, and then followed Zhuang Qing out of the building. After getting into the car, he ced the bag containing the contract and bill into his Qiankun pouch. No ce was safe. cing them in his Qiankun pouch was still the most reassuring. Noticing his actions, Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood lifted again. As for the small matter of his bank ount now being short of a huge sum of money, he no longer cared about it as much. In the afternoon during work, everyone watched with envious and jealous hearts as Fu Li once again plucked a few Zhuyu fruits from the Langgan Tree to give to Zhuang Qing. ¡°I¡¯m so envious that the boss can eat such precious fruits. The Langgan Tree won¡¯t even let me touch it,¡± Zhang Key sprawled over his desk, looking somewhat despondent. ¡°Talk when you¡¯re as strong and good-looking as the boss and can have a powerful boyfriend like Fu ge,¡± Xu Yuan rapped him on the head with a file. ¡°Stop indulging in fantasies and obediently tidy up the files.¡± ¡°It was us two who first saw Fu ge, who would have expected him to get together with the boss in the end.¡± Zhang Ke hugged the files andmented, ¡°This is fate.¡± ¡°If you want to view it that way, the old yaoguai defending the Yao Union¡¯s office should have seen Fu ge first, as well as that green-haired duck. It wouldn¡¯t have been you,¡± Xu Yuan rolled her eyes towards the ceiling. ¡°More importantly, if you have the guts, then say those words in front of the boss.¡± Zhang Ke: ... He didn¡¯t have the guts. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, Zhuyu fruits for you,¡± Fu Li ced a te of fruits in front of Zhuang Qing. ¡°You can eat them without worry, they¡¯ve been washed.¡± Zhuang Qing looked up. He was just going to get Fu Li to stay behind and eat with him when Fu Li threw down the words ¡®I¡¯m going to work¡¯ and ran out. He looked at the Zhuyu fruits still dripping with water on the fruit te and let out a gentleugh. The Zhuyu fruits were very fragrant and sweet. Zhuang Qing slowly ate them, mouth after mouth. After finishing the fruit pulp, he kept the Zhuyu fruit¡¯s pits, washed them clean, and ced them inside his storage ring. Humming a yao folk song from the ancient times, Fu Li returned to his work desk at the public office area. He picked up the coted reports of supernatural events and picked the most suspicious case. Making annotations, Fu Li picked out a ¡®haunted house urrence¡¯. Many so-called haunted houses in modern human society were either hype created by the media or a case of humans scaring themselves. Among a hundred haunted houses, not more than one percent of them truly had ghosts. These humans didn¡¯t stop to think either. Decent ghosts had to develop their career in the underworld and queue to be reincarnated too, what use was there in staying in the human world? There was nothing to eat and drink, nor was there a ghost to talk to, why would they want that? Resentful and malicious ghosts were even less likely to remain in dpidated, unupied houses. These ces weren¡¯t in line with their schemes to harm the human world. Earthbound spirits were the sole possible existences that could remain, because the resentment prior to their death, coupled withpses by the underworld yinchai in their work, meant that they were unable to leave their ce of death. They could only repeat the despair and suffering of their death day after day. But there was a lot to be said about the formation of earthbound spirits. If there was an earthbound spirit in any random so-called haunted house, the underworld yinchai¡¯s sry would probably have long beenpletely deducted. ¡°Fu ge,¡± Bored of tidying up files, Zhang Ke listened to the tune Fu Li was humming. His body and mind seemed particrly rxed. He asked with some curiosity, ¡°What song are you singing? Why does listening to it fill my body with spiritual qi?¡± ¡°This is a song from the yao world that I learnt from my mountain¡¯s Elder White Goat, I don¡¯t know what it is,¡± Fu Li thought that Zhang Ke wanted to learn it. ¡°This is thenguage of the yao world, you won¡¯t be able to learn it.¡± Zhang Ke knew that Fu Li was telling the truth, so he didn¡¯t think that Fu Li was deliberately refusing to teach him. Instead, he asked curiously, ¡°Then what¡¯s the meaning behind this song?¡± ¡°Thanking the Heavens, Earth, rivers, and blessing all living things ¨C that¡¯s the rough meaning,¡± Fu Li took out all the information rted to the haunted house. ¡°I don¡¯t sing it well. When Elder White Goat sang it, all the yao cultivators on the mountain would stop and quietly listen to him sing. It¡¯s a pity that he¡¯s just toozy. He¡¯s toozy to speak, toozy to sing, toozy to do anything. Throughout two thousand years, I only learnt three tunes.¡± On the other side, Chu Yu, who was secretly listening to Fu Li hum the tune, thought that the personalities of Fu Li¡¯s elders were really all kinds of strange. There was the red bird Zhu Yue who spentvishly yet still felt that her presents weren¡¯t good enough and the white goat who was toozy to even lift a finger. The fact that Fu ge hadn¡¯t been raised wrong by them was virtually an affair of great fortune for the yao world. ¡°Fu ge, you seem to be in a particrly good mood today, did you pick up a treasure?¡± Chu Yu asked curiously. ¡°I didn¡¯t pick up a treasure, but I have a house now,¡± Fu Li very happily replied. ¡°You bought a house?¡± All the colleagues in the room were shocked. Although Fu Li was in possession of many unusual treasures, he didn¡¯t have much of the currency that was in cirction in the human world. In an extremely expensive area like the capital, Fu ge was actually able to purchase a house? Had he gone to the human world to sell his medicinal ingredients? Ilyz: ¡®not drawn to scale¡¯ isn¡¯t in FL¡¯s vocabry lol Chapter 103 - Washing Dishes

Chapter 103 - Washing Dishes

¡°Fu ge, how big was the house you bought?¡± Zhang Ke asked enviously. ¡°There are quite a few goodmercial properties recently, which one did you buy?¡± Fu Li told Zhang Ke the name. Zhang Ke was almost sure that Fu ge had either sold his medicinal ingredients at a profit or took on private jobs, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t have the money to buy a house in that district. The management bureau didn¡¯t have any written rules prohibiting everyone from taking private jobs, but in order to construct an image of industriousness and diligence, nobody would speak about it tantly even if they asionally helped to examine feng shui or tell fortunes in private. Worried that he would bring trouble to Fu Li, Zhang Ke instantly changed the topic to prevent everyone from noticing this matter. Fortunately, the colleagues in the office were all close to Fu Li, so the topic was no longer brought up after a mutual exchange of nces. ¡°Fu ge, you think there¡¯s an issue with this haunted house?¡± Chu Yu noticed the picture of the haunted house in Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Is there really a ghost there?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure whether or not there¡¯s a ghost, I can¡¯t tell much just from a photo,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°But the supernatural phenomena that happens in it is different from the other conventional haunted houses.¡± Strange sounds would be heard when entering other haunted houses, but for this house, entering and leaving could be done with ease. However, the people who went into this haunted house would be especially unlucky for a period of time after. In addition, they were disliked by birds and even had nightmares of birds scratching their faces and pressing down painfully on their tummies. Truly a strange, exotic haunted house that stood out from the masses. ¡°I¡¯m guessing that it may not be a ghost that¡¯s inside it but a yao,¡± This haunted house was the residence of arge, rich family two to hundred years ago and was decorated extremely tastefully. Although it had gone into disrepair over the many years, some semnce of its previous glory could still be seen from the photo. Later on, it was ted for development into a scenic spot. But for some reason, it was shelved and had now joined the ranks of the haunted houses. ¡°You mean an unlicensed resident who came to the human world?¡± Chu Yu was inwardly startled. There was actually a yao who dared to run to the human world under the eyes of the management bureau as an unlicensed resident, was this ignorance or fearlessness? ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± Fu Li shook his head. He put down the documents on the haunted house. ¡°I¡¯ll know after visiting this ce tomorrow.¡± ¡°That works too,¡± Chu Yu nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll get Qing Xu to be your assistant.¡± At the corner, Zhang Ke heard this and hurriedly added, ¡°Let my junior brother Wei Cang go as well.¡± Chu Yu and Zhang Ke¡¯s gazes mingled in the air. Discerning each other¡¯s thoughts, they arrogantly turned their heads. ¡°How can I trouble them for a small matter like this?¡± Fu Li was a bit embarrassed. ¡°No trouble, no trouble,¡± Zhang Ke said. ¡°Wei Cang is still young. Learning from Fu ge is a good thing for him.¡± Chu Yu had simr thoughts as Zhang Ke. Qing Xu was his Daoist junior, while Wei Cang was Zhang Ke¡¯s junior brother ¨C both of them were quite good at thinking for their own people. After understanding their way of thinking, Fu Li smiled helplessly. ¡°I understand.¡± The other colleagues expressed strong disdain for Chu Yu and Zhang Ke¡¯s way of ¡®using their position to hug a golden thigh¡¯. When they were getting off work that night, snow started falling again. Xu Yuan noticed that Fu Li didn¡¯t return to the staff dormitory but had instead gotten into the boss¡¯ car. She softly asked Chao Yun, who was beside her, ¡°Fu ge moved in with the boss recently?¡± ¡°Maybe...¡± Chao Yun remembered the still-unrepaired windows in Fu Li¡¯s dormitory, her expression turning profound. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because his windows are damaged.¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t they fixed two weeks ago?¡± Xu Yuan came to a realization after uttering these words, covering her mouth. She seemed to have meddled in someone else¡¯s business. ¡°On such a cold night, nesting on the couch and cooking hotpot is the mostfortable,¡± Fu Li picked up arge pile of ingredients from the supermarket and ced them into the boot. He sat at the front passenger seat and patted the snowkes on his head, saying happily, ¡°Go go go, let¡¯s go back.¡± Zhuang Qing watched him shake all the snow onto the cushion without saying much. All he did was pass him a few paper towels. ¡°Don¡¯t wet your clothes.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m a yao, not a human. I won¡¯t fall sick,¡± Fu Li epted the paper towels and carelessly wiped his clothes twice. He said to Zhuang Qing, ¡°I¡¯ve been living at your house for so long and even freeload food and drink. It¡¯s quite embarrassing.¡± In fact, at the start, he had made preparations to return after the windows were fixed. However, Zhuang Qing¡¯s house was morefortable than the staff dormitory. Most importantly, Zhuang Qing had good cooking skills, even better than Chef Bao, the self-proimed head chief of the imperial family. Because of this, he became depraved and thickened his face, not wanting to leave. The good thing was that Zhuang little dragon was generous. Not only did he not dislike him eating and living with him without paying, he even frequently made delicious food for him. This sort of friendship made him want to stay even more. ¡°It¡¯s boring to eat alone, my appetite will be better with someone to apany me,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes were trained on the road ahead. The roads were slippery on snowy days; he drove extremely carefully. ¡°Are you mentioning this now because you find eating with me a bother?¡± ¡°How can that be?¡± Fu Li instantly denied it. ¡°I just feel that eating and living with you without paying isn¡¯t very good.¡± ¡°We¡¯re yao, living together for the asional ten or twenty years is very normal. Why care about this sort of small thing?¡± Zhuang Qing slowed the car down, allowing the sapphire blue car anxiously wanting to overtake them at the side to go first. ¡°Certain human formalities areplicated and superficial. We don¡¯t have to do everything the way humans do, otherwise what¡¯s the point in being a yao?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve led a solitary life from childhood and never felt the liveliness of living with other yao,¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at Fu Li, his pretty eyes tranquil and without fluctuations. ¡°If this is a bother to you...¡± ¡°No bother, no bother,¡± Fu Li was stared at by Zhuang Qing till his heartbeat turned irregr and his head swam. He no longer brought up anything rted to courtesy. ¡°I¡¯m very happy living with you.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing shifted the eyes that were fixed on Fu Li, revealing an extremely faint smile. ¡°I am also very happy.¡± Fu Li picked at the cushion. He started regretting the words he had said, those words had definitely made Zhuang Qing recall the hurtful things that happened in the past. Was it really like what Zhuang Qing had said ¨C he didn¡¯t use his brain when doing things? He was jolted back to his senses by a deafening sound. He turned and looked out the car window. The sapphire blue car had rammed into amppost, arge dent at the front of the car. Fortunately, the car driver had crawled out of the car, not too worse for wear. ¡°The roads are slippery during snowy weather, traveling has to be done slowly,¡± Zhuang Qing gripped the steering wheel tightly. ¡°Going too quickly can result in an ident.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Fu Li nodded as he stared nkly. These words did seem to make sense. The two of them cooked delicious hotpot at night. The snow outside the window grew heavier and heavier. Fu Li looked out the window and told Zhuang Qing, ¡°It seems like it¡¯s going to be the eve of Lunar New Year soon.¡± Zhuang Qing put down his chopsticks. ¡°What about it?¡± Fu Li shook his head. He had simply recalled that it had been many years since hest saw the Nian. ¡°Are you full?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then wash the dishes,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the empty bowls in front of Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s your turn to wash the dishes tonight.¡± Fu Li muttered in a low voice, ¡°We eat congee when it¡¯s your turn to wash the dishes, but eat hotpot when it¡¯s my turn...¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± Zhuang Qing leaned against the couch. ¡°I didn¡¯t hear you clearly.¡± ¡°I said tonight¡¯s hotpot was delicious,¡± Fu Li carried the pot and bowls towards the kitchen with quick steps. Forget it, forget it. An exploitative person should not speak out. There might be another reason why Zhuang little dragon so enthusiastically allowed him to remain living here ¨C that is, he wanted to find someone who could help him wash the dishes. Ai, he had finally seen through Zhuang Qing¡¯s sinister motives. Zhuang Qing switched on the television, tugging the nket on his body upwards. Hearing the sound of water from the kitchen, heughed. It was also not bad if things carried on like this. When they woke up the next morning, a thickyer of snow had already umted outside the vi. Seeing numerous little aquatic yao putting their all into sweeping up the snow, Fu Li ran downstairs, saying to Zhuang Qing who was sitting on the living room couch, ¡°Those little cultivators from the aquatic races are the former subordinates of the golden dragon n?¡± Zhuang Qing arranged the breakfast tes and gestured for him to sit. ¡°Theye over every winter and can¡¯t be driven away. You don¡¯t have to pay them any heed.¡± Seeing the impatience all over his face, Fu Li didn¡¯t ask any further. But when he went upstairs to change his clothes, he saw Zhuang Qing carrying arge box of breakfast and distributing it to the little yao. He even shoved a few hundred yuan at every yao. These yao were extremely respectful towards Zhuang Qing and didn¡¯t dare to ept the money. But after being subjected to a cold re from Zhuang Qing, they immediately obediently epted it. Fu Li heard them address Zhuang Qing as ¡®Your Majesty, the Dragon King¡¯. The golden dragon n was almost extinct and thekes, oceans, and rivers under their jurisdiction had also been divvied up among the other dragon ns. It was unexpected that there were still yao among the aquatic races formerly attached to the golden dragon n who were still loyal and devoted to the golden dragon n. Fu Liy against the window frame, feeling that the way Zhuang Qing interacted with these aquatic yao was quite interesting. Zhuang Qing looked up and saw Fu Li¡¯s outstretched head on the window frame. His face turned dark. ¡°Put your head back in, the snow hasn¡¯t stopped.¡± Bang. The windows closed. The shaggy head had also gone back in. Zhuang Qing shook his head helplessly. Turning, he looked at the aquatic yao who were still vigorously sweeping the ground. ¡°The weather¡¯s cold, return to the sea early.¡± ¡°This subordinate will do as you bid.¡± Zhuang Qing sighed helplessly, aware that he could not change the mindsets of these aquatic yao. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,¡± Fu Li walked out of the house with a scarf on. ¡°I¡¯ll be investigating a haunted house with Wei Cang and Qing Xu today, and won¡¯t be eating lunch at the bureau. Don¡¯t help me pack food.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Zhuang Qing manifested a hat from a tree leaf and ced it on Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°I¡¯ll send you there.¡± ¡°No need, I can just take the train. Don¡¯t bete,¡± Fu Li held the hat on his head in ce, preventing it from being blown away by the chilly wind. ¡°I¡¯m leaving, see you tonight.¡± Zhuang Qing watched him hop away and very quickly vanish out the gate. His smile faded. ¡°He really does resemble a rabbit.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, Dragon King,¡± A little aquatic yao trembled. ¡°That daoyou friend of yours has a very dangerous aura.¡± His back had turned cold when the other party came close to him and his entire fish body felt like it was being suffocated. Zhuang Qing nced at the aquatic yao. It¡¯s original form... seemed to be a kind of fish Fu Li was very fond of eating? He thought about it and then said consolingly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, although he likes eating your type of fish, he doesn¡¯t eat intelligent life forms.¡± The aquatic yao: ... He was even more scared now. Fu Li, who was currently squeezing into a train, didn¡¯t know that the matter of him and Zhuang Qing buying a house had been ced on the inte by good reporters first thing in the morning, attracting the attention of countlessizens. Before he was squeezed into dried rabbit, he finally walked out of the train station. He found the well-known haunted house in an alley. Wei Cang and Qing Xu had already arrived. Upon seeing Fu Li, both of them hurriedly went to meet him. The strong scent of dragon on Fu Li almost made Wei Cang bow down to him on reflex. ¡°Fu ge, good morning.¡± ¡°Morning,¡± Fu Li waved a hand at the two people and nced at the haunted house. He didn¡¯t sense any yao qi. But that didn¡¯t mean that there weren¡¯t any strange things inside. Perhaps the yao cultivator inside was an expert at concealing its aura, or perhaps it was stronger than him. Fu Li jumped over the wall around the perimeter. Looking at the withered grass beneath his feet, he warned Qing Xu and Wei Cang, ¡°Be careful.¡± Chapter 104 - Uncle

Chapter 104 - Uncle

The mass of snow and withered grass exuded the smell of rot. Not too far from them was a well, on which dark green moss had grown. What was scary wasn¡¯t the moss, but the fact that there was only a thinyer of snow in the yard despite the heavy snow. The entire yard was covered in mud. ¡°Did someone clean the yard? Or...¡± Qing Xu shut his mouth. No matter how he looked at the yard, it didn¡¯t seem like it had been cleaned. Rather, it was more like an external force had caused the snow to dissipate. However, he felt no spiritual qi, nor was there any baleful qi or resentment. As long as a life form lived at this ce, some qi should have been left behind. It was a very scary thing for there to be no qi. Qing Xu touched his slightly chilled arm. ¡°We should¡¯ve brought Elder Chu today.¡± Chu Yu was naturally sensitive towards the qi of all types of yao cultivators. Even the qi of yao who had taken form through heavenlyw could be sensed by him. ¡°No use. Even if Chu Yu hade, he wouldn¡¯t be able to perceive much,¡± Fu Li took out two talismans and passed them to Wei Cang and Qing Xu. ¡°These talismans were gifted to me by my family¡¯s elders, they can block one hit.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± Wei Cang clutched the talisman. There was a terrifying magic protection formation on this talisman; the individual who made it must have been an exceptionally mighty person. If a life-saving talisman like this were to be auctioned in the cultivation world, there would be a mad scramble among cultivators for it. The talisman felt slightly heavy in Wei Cang¡¯s hands, as if Fu Li had casually thrown him a house in the prime section of the capital¡¯s fourth ring. ¡°I don¡¯t need it,¡± Fu Li smiled. Ever since he passed the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, his cultivation could no longer be spoken of in the same vein. He even had a faint feeling that he possessed a certain innate ability. It was just that this feeling was too vague, as if it was shut behind a locked door. Fu Li did not forcibly break through this door because no one could be sure what this door hid. He had been living very well these few years and was temporarily not in a hurry to know certain truths. The withered underbrush moved. Something seemed to have rushed out from inside. Qing Xu and Wei Cang looked back suddenly, their gazes vigntly settling on the underbrush. A short whileter, an exceedingly obese white rabbit crawled out of the underbrush. This white rabbit wasn¡¯t scared despite seeing strangers. It stared foolishly at them for a while before very slowly hopping towards the main door. The three of them discovered three or four holes the height of ten centimeters at the bottom of the already-peeling main door. They were just nice for the fat rabbit to crawl in and out. ¡°It seems the great figure of unknown origins inside is very fond of raising rabbits as pets,¡± Qing Xu looked at the holes at the bottom of the door, a good half of the fear in his heart vanishing. A yao who raised rabbits as pets shouldn¡¯t have a vicious nature. Fu Li watched the fat rabbit jump up the stairs and squeeze through a hole in the door. After a few shakes of its short tail, it vanished into the hole. ¡°Fu ge, are we going in now?¡± Qing Xu turned towards Fu Li, seeking his opinion. Although Fu Li appeared young in terms of appearance, Qing Xu and Wei Cang were very clear who the true decision-maker was. ¡°Let¡¯s go in and take a look. Follow behind me, don¡¯t walk around recklessly no matter what sounds you hear,¡± Fu Li thought about it. ¡°If someone calls you, don¡¯t casually reply.¡± There were all sorts of magic weapons in the yao world, and each had different skills. There were flight magic weapons that had to be stroked three times before it would fly, gourds that would only spit fire after exposure to sunlight, storage magic weapons that could only absorb the other party¡¯s body and soul if their name was called out correctly, and so on. Fu Li was worried that the two juniors didn¡¯t have enough knowledge of the yao world¡¯s magic weapons and would suffer losses if they weren¡¯t careful. Only after the two juniors nodded obediently did Fu Li take out his red whip and step onto the stone steps. The residence¡¯s doors that were once engraved with flowers and covered in red paint had rotted under day after day of wind and rain stter. The only evidence of its previous grandness were the mottled flower designs. After walking up the stone steps, Fu Li didn¡¯t directly push open the door, but instead lightly knocked on the door twice. Cupping his hands, he said, ¡°This humble one is a little yao of Weishui. I have brought two juniors along to pay a visit. If we have offended you in any way, we seek senior¡¯s forgiveness.¡± An object falling to the floor suddenly sounded from inside the house. Fu Li thought that the door would open, but after waiting for a while, the house was once again restored to its tranquility. He nced back at Wei Cang and Qing Xu, who directed theirrge, perplexed eyes at him. At this moment, he felt particrly strongly that Zhuang Qing was a reliable and capable junior. Upon pushing open the doors, the wooden doors that had been in disrepair for many years creaked. However, whaty behind the door was not the intolerable dpidation that Fu Li had imagined, but a dazzling sight iparable in its luxury. A man wearing a red jade headband and brocade gown was seated in the master¡¯s seat. His jade-like hands were gently stroking the fat white rabbit that had crawled past them, though his eyes were on Fu Li. The man was very good-looking and had an air of icy arrogance. He sat on the chair casually, as if he was a king waiting for hundreds of officials to bow down to him. Fu Li couldn¡¯t make out the other party¡¯s true form, but instinct told him that this mysterious great yao had no malicious intentions towards him, and was even... a bit fond of him? He reflected inwardly. He must have learned this bad habit of being narcissistic from his bureau colleagues. ¡°An honored guest has arrived at our doors; please excuse this humble one for not going out to greet you. Please sit,¡± The man waved a hand and a few fair and graceful female attendants walked out of the house with spiritual tea, spiritual fruits, and pastries in their hands. Coincidentally, these were all in line with Fu Li¡¯s tastes. Qing Xu and Wei Cang looked at the sparkling fruits on the te that had a water-like transparent quality to them, and didn¡¯t dare to take them with their hands. ¡°Many thanks daren for the hospitality. These spiritual moon fruits are extremely hard toe by, it is this junior¡¯s honor to have the fortune of meeting you here,¡± Fu Li picked up a spiritual moon fruit and ced it in his mouth. Spiritual moon fruits were the size of grapes and were borne from the essence of the sun and moon. They ripened once every five hundred years, and if they remained unplucked by the seventh day of ripening, they would morph into morning dew and vanish from the world. Simr to the spiritual essence in the mountains, they were extremely delicate spiritual objects. Frequent consumption of these fruits would not only cleanse the meridians but also increase the body¡¯s spiritual qi. Fu Li often ate these when he was young. Later on, he no longer ate them after living independently. Looking at these fruits, he once again thought of his days on Reflecting Mist Mountain. ¡°You...¡± The great yao hugging the rabbit changed his sitting posture. Lowering his head, he stroked the rabbit¡¯s fur, not looking at Fu Li. ¡°Your cultivation isn¡¯t low, how could you not have even seen these things?¡± ¡°Please excuse mypse, daren. This junior has seen them, but I was pampered by my elders during childhood and nevercked food or drink. Afterwards, an ident happened, and this naturally-timid junior hid in the depths of the mountains for many years without leaving. It has been many years since Ist ate these,¡± The corners of Fu Li¡¯s mouth curved as he ate the delicious food of his memories. ¡°What elder would give you glory and splendor during childhood but abandon you like you¡¯re worthless after you¡¯ve grown up? To me, those elders don¡¯t have much conscientiousness,¡± The great yao let out a light scoff, throwing the rabbit on his knee to the floor. A female attendant stepped forward and carried the rabbit away. ¡°This junior is very grateful for daren¡¯s concern,¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face faded. ¡°But my family¡¯s elders are extremely conscientious yao, may daren please not make absurdments.¡± The great yao was not infuriated by Fu Li¡¯s disrespectful tone. Instead, heughed gently and looked up at Fu Li. ¡°You are a good child.¡± Qing Xu and Wei Cang met each other¡¯s gazes. Why was there something off about the atmosphere? Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected the other party to have such a good temper either. Compared to the ancient great yao he had previously encountered, this individual was practically a gentle and harmless little lily. ¡°What did you seek me out for?¡± The great yao raised his chin. His gaze remained on Fu Li, as if Qing Xu and Wei Cang hadn¡¯t existed from the start. ¡°This junior is employed at the cultivation world¡¯s management bureau and heard that this ce was haunted, so I came over to pay a visit. I was not aware that daren was resting here and interrupted daren¡¯s quiet cultivation, please forgive me,¡± Fu Li got up and bowed deeply to the great yao. ¡°No need for courtesy. This ce of mine has always been quiet, having a junior to apany me in conversation adds joy to my life,¡± The great yao got up and helped Fu Li up. ¡°My name is Feng Ruizhong. ording to seniority, you can just call me uncle.¡± Fu Li obediently bowed after hearing these words. ¡°This junior is Fu Li. I pay my respects to Uncle Feng.¡± ¡°Good good good,¡± Feng Ruizhong repeated this word thrice. He patted Fu Li on the shoulder. ¡°Since you¡¯ve called me uncle, uncle will also give you a wee gift.¡± He took out a Qiankun pouch and removed the restriction on it. ¡°There are some toys inside, you can throw them away or y with them as you wish.¡± Fu Li hadn¡¯t expected the other party to be so generous. Having grown ustomed to the ancient great yao¡¯s style of fighting the moment there was a sign of dispute, Fu Li couldn¡¯t quite adapt when faced with such a generous ancient great yao. ¡°One should not ept a reward without merit ¨C how can this junior ept senior¡¯s esteemed gift?¡± ¡°I want to give you a present because you¡¯re pleasing to my eyes, what need is there for merit?¡± Feng Ruizhong stuffed the Qiankun pouch into Fu Li¡¯s hands. Seeing that there were two yao behind Fu Li and worried that they would be jealous of Fu Li because they didn¡¯t receive any gifts, he passed them each a bag of gemstones while he was at it. ¡°You¡¯re still young, take these stones to y with.¡± Gripping the bag of gemstones that was the size of an adult fist, Wei Cang and Qing Xu suddenly came to a realization ¨C they had run into a nouveau riche yao. These many gemstones were enough for them to even buy two or three houses in the capital. ¡°This house has been ownerless all the while and I felt that the feng shui here wasn¡¯t bad, so I lived at this ce for a few months. If it¡¯s not appropriate, then I¡¯ll move out tomorrow,¡± Feng Ruizhong was very easy to talk to. Clearly, he didn¡¯t want to make Fu Li¡¯s job hard. ¡°Are there any other things that need my attention?¡± ¡°May I know if Uncle Feng... has registered with the Yao Union? The current human world is different from the past ¨C if yao cultivators want to travel in the human world, then they have to go to the Yao Union and sign up for an identification card.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been living here all this way and have not gone outside. I wasn¡¯t aware that there was such a rule,¡± Feng Ruizhong nced out the window. ¡°May I request little Li to bring me to the Yao Union and get this settled?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed there were also very normal ancient great yao. No, not right. He didn¡¯t seem to be that normal either. Fu Li touched the Qiankun pouch he had shrunk and then nced at the gemstones Wei Cang and Qing Xu were holding. Was giving generous gifts at the drop of a hat considered normal? Feng Ruizhong nced at Fu Li¡¯s clothes. The next instant, the brocade gown he was wearing turned into attire simr to Fu Li¡¯s. He touched his short hair and told Fu Li, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Feng Ruizhong pulled open the door. The moment he stepped onto the stone steps, he looked up at the sky. Heavy snow resembling goose feathers floated onto his face. Fu Li turned his head back and discovered that the other party looked a little deste. But when the other party discovered his gaze, a gentle smile appeared on his face. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± His feet stepped onto the filthy, muddy ground. He wrinkled his brows slightly, but when he saw Fu Li not more than two steps away from him, he still followed after him with wide strides. Fu Li took out his phone and booked a car using an app. He told Qing Xu and Wei Cang, ¡°The two of you can go back first, I¡¯ll bring Uncle Feng to the Yao Union to register and eat lunch with him along the way.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Qing Xu and Wei Cang knew they couldn¡¯t help even if they were present. This great yao called Feng Ruizhong seemed easy to get along with, but they still needed to rush back and let the boss know. If anything were to crop up, they could still make preparations in advance. Getting to know a yao was easy, but understanding a yao¡¯s heart was difficult. It was best to be prepared for all situations. The car booked through the app came to a stop in front of Fu Li and Feng Ruizhong. Pulling open the car door, Fu Li let Feng Ruizhong sit first before doing so himself. Feng Ruizhong didn¡¯t ask Fu Li much, possibly because the driver was human. Fu Li could tell that he was unustomed to being in such a narrow space, yet he didn¡¯t make anyints. Fu Li subconsciously had a favorable impression of this great yao, despite the fact that they had never met before and he couldn¡¯t even see through the other party¡¯s true form. When they reached the Yao Union, Feng Ruizhong got off. After the car drove off, he asked Fu Li with furrowed brows, ¡°You didn¡¯t pay that human?¡± He was the image of an elder who couldn¡¯t resist educating a junior on the right behavior after seeing him take advantage of others. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Uncle Feng. In the current human world, paying doesn¡¯t necessarily have to be done with actual cash. Paying through the phone can also be done,¡± Fu Li took out his phone. ¡°It¡¯s been deducted.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s how it is,¡± Feng Ruizhong eximed in admiration. ¡°Humans seriously have endless creativity.¡± It seemed like this yao cultivator was extremely friendly towards humans. The remnants of worry in Fu Li¡¯s heart vanished entirely. In the management bureau¡¯s public workspace, Xu Yuan, who was scrolling through the inte, suddenly let out a startled gasp, shocking everyone into thinking that Zhuang Qing hade. All of them sat up straight, but didn¡¯t see Zhuang Qing appear at the door after waiting for a while. They didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry. ¡°Beauty Xu, what are you so frightened for? You scared us into thinking that the boss came over.¡± Xu Yuan turned around and looked faintly at her colleagues. ¡°Do you still remember Fu ge saying that he bought a house?¡± ¡°Yeah, what about it?¡± Chao Yun was holding up a cosmetic mirror and re-applying lipstick with single-hearted devotion. ¡°Didn¡¯t he mention it yesterday?¡± ¡°Then you definitely don¡¯t know how he bought the house,¡± Xu Yuan took a deep breath. ¡°He didn¡¯t buy the house, the boss gave it to him.¡± Chao Yun¡¯s hand shook, smearing lipstick on her chin. Covering her chin, she said in shock, ¡°Impossible. With how stingy the boss is, how can he bear to spend a few million on a house for Fu ge?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a few million,¡± Xu Yuan swallowed. ¡°That¡¯s more like it,¡± Chao Yun removed the makeup stain with magic. ¡°The boss¡¯ stinginess has already prated deep into his bones, stinginess can¡¯t be cured by love.¡± ¡°No no no, that¡¯s not what I meant. The boss gave Fu ge a vi worth more than ten million, not a few million. The video of him and Fu ge buying the house has already been crazily forwarded all over the inte, go look at it yourselves.¡± The next moment, everyone in the office was either fishing out their phone or clicking their mouse. It wasplete chaos. A certain well-known forum: <818 Sweet Details of Chang Long Group¡¯s Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant Fu Buying a House, with Pictures!> A certain media website that relied on its headlines to prevail over others: A certain weibo: After everyone finished looking through the revtion along with all the pictures, videos, and facts, the entire office was so quiet the drop of a pin could be heard. A long whileter, Chu Yu asked in a low voice, ¡°What¡¯s so great about that? The boss and Fu ge have a very good rtionship, right? Hahahaha...¡± ¡°I¡¯m about to believe in love,¡± Chao Yun¡¯s expression wasplex. They had followed Zhuang Qing for so many years and were all aware of Zhuang Qing¡¯s bad habit of being stingy. But other than saying a few teasing words in private, there wasn¡¯t any dissatisfaction. In fact, they not only respected Zhuang Qing, but also worshipped him. Because if all the cultivators present had experienced what Zhuang Qing had, they would not have done better than him. Even doing as well as him would be challenging. The boss had toiled for the cultivation world all these years, and it was always him who raced to the front when things were most dangerous and painful. Anyone who saw this and was not a thankless wretch would want the boss to rx a little and live life a little more happily. But all the boss did the past few years was work and more work. Apart from them, he pretty much didn¡¯t have a single friend by his side, nor did he care about such things. Now that they saw this piece of news, they should¡¯ve been secretly teasing him in their chatgroup. But when they saw the boss gripping Fu ge¡¯s shoulder in the video and the way his brows and eyes gentled, there was a warm and sour feeling in their hearts. There was nothing they could bring themselves to say. A long whileter, Chao Yun closed the video and smiled. ¡°This is quite good.¡± ¡°Yup, it¡¯s quite good,¡± Chu Yu nodded. ncing at one another, they saw the gratification in each other¡¯s eyes. Footsteps sounded outside. Everyone looked towards the door and saw Qing Xu and Wei Cang running over hastily. Propping their hands against the doorframe, they gasped for breath. ¡°A-An ancient great yao appeared!¡± Seeing that only two of them had returned, everyone¡¯s faces turned green. ¡°What about Fu ge?¡± If something happened to Fu ge, how would the boss live? After all, he had even generously bought Fu ge a vi worth twenty million. ¡°F-Fu ge?¡± Seeing everyone look at them with grave expressions, Wei Cang and Qing Xu were given a huge shock. Why were their expressions so frightening? ¡°What happened to Fu Li? Why is it only the two of you who came back?¡± Zhuang Qing appeared behind them, his expression as cold as ice. ¡°Fu ge¡¯s fine,¡± Wei Cang stared nkly for two seconds. ¡°He brought the great yao to the Yao Union to sign up for an identification card.¡± Everyone: ... There was actually an ancient great yao who was so easy to deal with. Wasn¡¯t this individual a bit too in touch with the people? Upon hearing where Fu Li had gone, Zhuang Qing set off without even looking back. Seeing the ugly expression on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face, Wei Cang and Qing Xu looked at their other colleagues worriedly. Had they done something wrong? Outside the entrance to the Yao Union, Feng Ruizhong nced at the signboard hanging on the door. The words were a little simple and crude, but fortunately could still be recognized. Nurturing and Rxation Club for Elderly. Was this the Yao Union¡¯s name in the human world? He followed Fu Li through the entrance of the Yao Union and saw several people in the yard holding a veryrge umbre. They were seated around a table and throwing around small cubes. Among them were two humans and two yao cultivators. The atmosphere could still be considered harmonious. They might quarrel from time to time, but wouldn¡¯t fight. ¡°That¡¯s called mahjong, it¡¯s a game invented by humans,¡± Fu Li softly exined to Feng Ruizhong. ¡°They are fixed mahjong friends and will gather for a game when they¡¯re not upied.¡± ¡°Fu Li daoyou is here?¡± Wang Cuihua saw Fu Li and greeted him as she touched the tiles. The other three people also took the initiative to enthusiastically greet Fu Li. ¡°They seem to respect you very much,¡± A smiling expression took shape on Feng Ruizhong¡¯s face. ¡°En. The cultivation world is especially respectful towards people from the management bureau.¡± Fu Li brought him into the inner yard and raised his voice, ¡°Grandpa, are you around? I brought a yao over for registration.¡± ¡°I heard you, I heard you,¡± The grandpa pulled open the semi-open door. ¡°I¡¯m not deaf, don¡¯t be so loud. The young yao now are really...¡± The grandpa suddenly fell silent. He stared nkly at Feng Ruizhong behind Fu Li with trembling limbs, seemingly at a loss for words. Fu Li looked back at Feng Ruizhong and saw that he had a hand ced on the side of his mouth. Looking at his expression, he didn¡¯t seem very happy. He hastened to exin, ¡°Grandpa is a good yao, my identification card was also done by him.¡± ¡°En,¡± Feng Ruizhong¡¯s expression became gentle again. ¡°Please enter,¡± The grandpa bowed and retreated to the side. After Feng Ruizhong entered, he followed him in. The grandpa switched on the light in the room, took out a wooden chair, gave it a few wipes, and then ced it in front of Feng Ruizhong. ¡°Daren, please sit.¡± Feng Ruizhong looked at Fu Li. Fu Li dragged over a stool and sat down beside his chair. Only then did he sit on the chair with some dislike. ¡°Your name?¡± ¡°Feng Ruizhong.¡± ¡°Age?¡± Feng Ruizhong thought about it. ¡°Just write ten thousand then. Round it up to a whole number.¡± Fu Li turned to look at Feng Ruizhong. Exactly how old was he to be so casual when filling in his age? ¡°ce of birth?¡± ¡°Jiao Province¡¯s Nan... Nanshan.¡± The grandpa very quickly did up the data. There was not the slightest trace of baleful qi on Feng Ruizhong. Naturally, he was not an evil yao, so his registration was done very quickly. Before half an hour was even up, he received a temporary identification card. ¡°Your official identification card will be ready three dayster, may I know where this humble one should go to send it to daren?¡± ¡°Little Li is my junior. You can pass it to him after it¡¯spleted,¡± Feng Ruizhong¡¯s attitude towards the grandpa was very indifferent. Despite that, the grandpa didn¡¯t mind and respectfully saw them out of the yard. Watching as the two silhouettes disappeared through the door, the grandpa gave a deferential bow, bowing so deeply that he nearly touched the ground. ¡°With an identification card, you will be an ordinary human in the human world,¡± Fu Li nced at the sky. He spoke to Feng Ruizhong in a low voice, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t do anything over-the-top, you can try all the delicious food, drink the finest liquor, and y any interesting games you want in the human world.¡± ¡°Okay, I haven¡¯t been in contact with the human world for many years. If Little Li has the time in the future, would you be able to bring me about?¡± Feng Ruizhong opened an umbre and held it over Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°Sure,¡± Fu Li nodded with a broad smile. ¡°There seems to be a dragon with impure blood in that iron car staring at you,¡± Feng Ruizhong pointed at a car a short distance away. ¡°Is that your friend?¡± ¡°En?¡± Fu Li looked over. Realizing that it was Zhuang Qing¡¯s car, he nodded vigorously, ¡°Uncle Feng, that¡¯s my best friend, Zhuang Qing.¡± Saying so, he ran over, leaving the shade of the umbre. Feng Ruizhong nced at the empty space beneath the umbre, and then looked at Fu Li¡¯s cheerful back. He let out a lightugh. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,¡± Fu Li knocked on the car window. ¡°Did youe to fetch me?¡± Zhuang Qing scrolled down the car window. He nced at the handsome yao cultivator standing on the steps with a small smile, and then nced at Fu Li, who was looking at him with all smiles. He nodded. ¡°En, I came to fetch you home.¡± ¡°Hello, Little Li¡¯s friend,¡± Feng Ruizhong came over as well. He felt about and took out a Qiankun pouch, extending it into the car. ¡°Come, it¡¯s a wee gift from this elder. You must ept it, don¡¯t frown upon it.¡± Chapter 105 - Transformation

Chapter 105 - Transformation

Feng Ruizhong¡¯s behavior made Zhuang Qing think of Fu Li¡¯s elder ¨C the Vermilion Bird Zhu Yue. A Qiankun pouch was capable of holding too many things; Zhuang Qing had no way of envisaging what it could contain, nor could he ept it. ¡°Apologies, the management bureau has a rule that we can¡¯t ept presents from other cultivators,¡± Zhuang Qing bowed. ¡°Many thanks senior for the generous gift.¡± ¡°There is a saying in the human world ¨C ¡®an elder¡¯s gift cannot be declined¡¯. If you¡¯re unwilling to ept it, you will be looking down on this senior,¡± Feng Ruizhong had beautiful looks. When he wasn¡¯t smiling and raised the corners of his brows slightly, he would give off a subtle feeling of power. ¡°Many thanks Uncle Feng,¡± Fu Li epted the Qiankun pouch on Zhuang Qing¡¯s behalf. ¡°Little Li is still well-behaved,¡± Feng Ruizhong put on a smile once again. Patting the hat on Fu Li¡¯s head, he asked with some heartache, ¡°Have you been well the past few years?¡± Fu Li nodded dazedly. Looking at the hat on Fu Li¡¯s head that had been manifested with magic, there seemed to be a sh of emotion in Feng Ruizhong¡¯s eyes. But in the end, all he did was help him to arrange the hat. ¡°Take good care of yourself, let me know if youck anything.¡± He fished out a few jade pendants and stuffed them into Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Break a jade pendant if you run into any issue, I¡¯ll rush over immediately.¡± Fu Li looked at Feng Ruizhong in a daze as he clutched the jade pendants. Feng Ruizhong¡¯s behavior was overly intimate. Fu Li ought to suspect the other party¡¯s intentions, but whenever the other party smiled at him, there was only a feeling of closeness in his heart, nothing else. ¡°Uncle Feng...¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Did we meet in the past?¡± Feng Ruizhong smiled gently. ¡°The snow¡¯s heavy, go back early.¡± His gazended on Zhuang Qing, and he gave him a friendly smile. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the identical clothes Feng Ruizhong and Fu Li were wearing, and said with a straight face, ¡°Please take care, senior.¡± Feng Ruizhong pulled open the car door, smiling at Fu Li. ¡°Quick, get on.¡± He had very strong learning capabilities. With only one car ride, he already knew how to open a car door and let himself integrate into the crowd seamlessly. Fu Li sat in the front passenger seat. The corners of his lips moved without saying anything. Feng Ruizhong had not denied meeting him before, but neither had he admitted to it. Was the other party unwilling to say it, or had he chosen to cover it up because he had misgivings about something? While he was in the midst of contemtion, Feng Ruizhong ced another Qiankun pouch in his arms. ¡°Treat yourself a bit better, don¡¯t wrong yourself when it concerns food, clothes, amodation, and travel.¡± He took another nce at the hat Fu Li had manifested using magic with a forced smile. ¡°Having prettier clothes is also okay.¡± Fu Li had a strange feeling. Why was Uncle Feng looking at him as if he had experienced immense suffering and grievances? ¡°Take good care of yourself,¡± Feng Ruizhong cast a deep nce at Fu Li before turning and walking in another direction. Fu Li looked at his back view, an unspeakable distress in his heart. He pulled open the car door and caught up to him. ¡°Uncle Feng.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Feng Ruizhong came to a halt. When he turned to look at Fu Li, the happiness in his eyes nearly couldn¡¯t be suppressed. ¡°This is my workce. Come find me when you¡¯re free, I¡¯ll take you to eat delicious food in the human world,¡± Fu Li ced a name card in Feng Ruizhong¡¯s hand, his eyes fixed tightly on Feng Ruizhong. ¡°Make sure toe.¡± Feng Ruizhong gazed at the name card in his palm and then carefully ced it in his storage ring. ¡°Okay.¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes curved. Smiling, he ran back to Zhuang Qing¡¯s car. When he next looked back, there was only heavy snow fluttering behind the car. Feng Ruizhong¡¯s silhouette could no longer be seen. Head drooping, he passed the Qiankun pouch given by Feng Ruizhong to Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing took the Qiankun pouch that was as small as a brocade sack. There was a sour feeling in his heart, but he also felt that there were no grounds for such a feeling. When Feng Ruizhong was arranging Fu Li¡¯s hat, he nearly couldn¡¯t resist swatting the other party¡¯s hand. It was fortunate that he had managed to hold himself back, otherwise Fu Li would definitely think him temperamental. He threw the Qiankun pouch into the storage box and made a great effort to let his expression appear a bit more normal. ¡°Could this senior Feng be... a senior from Reflecting Mist Mountain?¡± Fu Li shook his head lightly. ¡°Impossible. Although the elders were rarely in their human forms on the mountain, they¡¯ve transformed in front of me before. He¡¯s not one of them.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve seen all of your elders¡¯ human forms?¡± Zhuang Qing felt that Feng Ruizhong¡¯s attitude towards Fu Li had long exceeded the normal attitude a great yao would have towards a little yao. No matter how kind an ancient great yao was, they would still have some arrogance. It was impossible for them to be so easy to get along with. ¡°I¡¯ve seen them all,¡± Fu Li said. ¡°When I first changed into my human form, I wasn¡¯t used to the human body. The elders on the mountain were afraid that I would develop an aversion to the human form, so they all turned into their human forms and kept mepany for a period of time. I remember every single one of their appearances clearly, there¡¯s no way I forgot.¡± ¡°That human pet of yours...¡± ¡°I-It¡¯s true that I don¡¯t remember him very well,¡± Fu Li felt like he had spoken too confidently, resulting in his face being pped by Zhuang Qing the next instant. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ve definitely never seen this senior Feng before.¡± Using his phone, Zhuang Qing went into the work system and checked Feng Ruzihong¡¯s personal information that had just been registered at the Yao Union. Ten thousand years was likely to be a random number. His birthce was Jiao Province¡¯s Nanshan? Jiao Province¡¯s Nanshan covered a veryrge area. The other party¡¯s true form could not be gleaned just based on such a vague address. In addition, no one could confirm the authenticity of this so-called birthce. If the other party was not Fu Li¡¯s elder, then why would he behave so intimately? Or, towards Fu Li, did he have... Zhuang Qing tried very hard to suppress this idea. With a heavy look, he asked, ¡°You mentioned before that your mountain has a sparrow who can¡¯t transform...¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible. Little Sparrow is a narcissistic and noisy female bird,¡± The sparrow in Fu Li¡¯s memories had never transformed into its human form for thousands of years, and had a voice as young and tender as a human girl. Because of this, he couldn¡¯t regard her as an elder. Little Sparrow didn¡¯t seem to mind either and constantly yed with him on a regr basis. The suspicion in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart deepened upon seeing how certain Fu Li was. In this world, good treatment did not exist for no rhyme or reason. But Fu Li seemed to have a very good opinion of Feng Ruizhong, so in the end, he didn¡¯t voice the suspicion and jealousy in his heart. Fu Li went back to Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi after work, ate dinner, and then sat cross-legged on the couch to watch television. After watching for a while, he suddenly thought of the two Qiankun pouches Feng Ruizhong had given him. He opened one of the pouches and casually turned it upside down. A heap of pearls, gold, and cloth instantly filled the house, drowning even the furniture. Hearing the sound from the kitchen, Zhuang Qing came out for a look. A mountain of gold and pearlsy piled up in his living room like a heap of discarded garbage. What was Fu Li doing? Fu Li was shocked by the mountain of treasures. With a hasty chant, he put the things back in again. He had only poured out a small bit of the things in the Qiankun pouch and it already formed such a pile. If he had poured out all of it... ¡°What are you doing?¡± Zhuang Qing wiped his hands. Noticing the Qiankun pouch in Fu Li¡¯s hands, he furrowed his brows. ¡°This is the one the great yao gave you today?¡± Fu Li nodded nkly. He might have understood why Uncle Feng threw him another Qiankun pouch before leaving. He might have discerned that his hat was manifested from tree leaves and thought that he led a difficult life, so he gave him this much gold, silver, pearls, cloth, jade decorations, and whatnot? This misunderstanding might be a bit big. Fu Li didn¡¯t dare to directly turn the other Qiankun pouch upside down. He opened the pouch andbed through the inside with his spiritual consciousness. There were all sorts of medicinal pills, spiritual fruits, medicinal ingredients, and even magic weapons ced inside, along with a number of toys scattered all over. Fu Li was in possession of quite a few good things. Although he was shocked by Feng Ruizhong¡¯s generosity, it wasn¡¯t to the point where he would forget himself. On the other hand, Zhuang Qing felt that there was something exceedingly strange about this matter. Any one of these medicinal ingredients or magic weapons would make countless cultivators water at the mouth. Feng Ruizhong¡¯s good treatment of Fu Li was over-the-top. He searched for the Qiankun pouch Feng Ruizhong had given him, opened it up, andbed through it with his spiritual consciousness. There weren¡¯t as many things inside as those given to Fu Li, but they were all very hard toe by as well. Most importantly, Zhuang Qing sensed a dragon¡¯s aura in the Qiankun pouch. He took out a ck wooden box emanating dragon qi from the Qiankun pouch. Without even removing the cover, Zhuang Qing could already feel the formidable Dragon Might and spiritual qi, so much so that his hand couldn¡¯t grip it properly. ¡°Dragon qi?¡± Fu Li also felt this wave of particrly strong qi. He looked down at the box in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. ¡°What¡¯s inside?¡± Zhuang Qing removed the cover. The dark-green dragon horn ced inside was suffused with majestic spiritual qi, as if a dragon would take to the skies the next instant and roar at the Heavens and Earth. In a sh, the phantom image of an azure dragon appeared above the ck wooden box. His enormous dragon head looked upon Zhuang Qing with eyespletely bereft of emotion. ¡°My race¡¯s junior, you actually opened this box?¡± The phantom image suddenly let out a long hiss. Morphing into a green light, he entered the center of Zhuang Qing¡¯s forehead. Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand trembled, and the box fell to the ground. The moment the dragon hornnded on the ground, it broke into smithereens, leaving only fine, dull white powder. ¡°Zhuang Qing,¡± Seeing that the dragon qi on Zhuang Qing was surging outwards continuously, Fu Li hurriedly erected a barrier around the vi. He reached out a hand to unblock Zhuang Qing¡¯s meridians, but the moment he touched Zhuang Qing¡¯s back, powerful dragon pressure barreled towards him. This gust of dragon qi seemed to be guarding against him, preventing him from approaching. Yet, it was extremely friendly towards Zhuang Qing, seemingly protecting him. Sensing this, Fu Li no longer dared to rashly approach. He sat down cross-legged at the side. If anything strange were to happen to Zhuang Qing, he would be in time to respond. Zhuang Qing was no longer cognizant of the outside world¡¯s affairs. At this moment, an unfamiliar dragon qi had sucked his mind into his sea of consciousness. Although Zhuang Qing was not a pure golden dragon, he was a genius at cultivation with a particrly strong sea of consciousness. Looking at the azure dragon that had appeared in his sea of consciousness, Zhuang Qing subconsciously guessed his identity. ¡°You are the Holy Beast, Azure Dragon daren?¡± The azure dragon¡¯s gaze was no longer as cold as before. His voice was deep, low, and brimming with the vicissitudes of life, as if he had experienced the transformations of the world and would remain unshaken even by death and destruction. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect my fated dragon to be a half-human and half-dragon hybrid golden dragon. Forget it, forget it, forget it, this is all Heaven¡¯s Will. Humans are the inventors of script and have be the chief of all living creatures. If you were to inherit the dragon race, perhaps you would be able to seize a small chance for the world to survive under the workings of heavenlyw.¡± Zhuang Qing recalled the dragon horn in the ck wooden box. He stepped forward and bowed deeply to the Azure Dragon. ¡°This junior is called Zhuang Qing, I greet Holy Beast daren.¡± ¡°The Holy Beast Azure Dragon has long perished five thousand years ago, I am nothing more than a wisp of his destroyed soul attached to his dragon horn,¡± The Azure Dragon sighed. ¡°Since you have broken the seal on the box containing his destroyed soul, then this is our affinity.¡± Zhuang Qing looked guardedly at the Azure Dragon¡¯s destroyed soul, though he dared not act blindly without careful consideration. This was his sea of consciousness, so any action could cause him irreversible damage. The destroyed soul seemed to have made out his thoughts. He didn¡¯t mind though, and simply said, ¡°I will give you the dragon race¡¯s inheritance today. I hope you will carefully synthesize and examine it, and safeguard the peace of ournd.¡± After uttering these words, the destroyed soul vanished gradually, turning into small specks of starlight that floated gracefully in Zhuang Qing¡¯s sea of consciousness. They mixed into his sea of consciousness bit by bit. A boom resounded in Zhuang Qing¡¯s head. Boundless spiritual qi surged through all the meridians throughout his body and his bones grew impatiently. ¡°The dragon race¡¯s final transformation?¡± Fu Li grew aware of the intermittent appearance of Zhuang Qing¡¯s dragon scales and the growth of his dragon horns out of his head. The golden halo of virtue was rotating around him, seemingly wanting to help Zhuang Qing shed his body and exchange his bones. The dragon race would undergo their final transformation between the age of 1500 and 2000. If they sessfully endured this transformation, their cultivation would advance greatly, and moving mountains and propelling the sea could be done in a mere blink of an eye. But Fu Li had not expected for there to be an item rted to the dragon race in the Qiankun pouch Uncle Feng gave to Zhuang Qing, and for this item to have stimted Zhuang Qing into suddenly entering his transformation. There wasn¡¯t enough time for careful consideration. Fu Li took out a cloth from his Qiankun pouch and wrapped Zhuang Qing in it. Shrinking it, he then went to the seaside by a coastal city, turned into his original form, and entered the depths of the sea with Zhuang Qing. He had been unconscious when Zhuang Qingst brought him to the golden dragon pce, but he had specially noted down the route on their way back. ¡°Mommy, a white Samoyed with a cloth in its mouth jumped into the sea andmitted suicide.¡± There were a few humans ying at the beach. None of them were aware that a dragon had passed by them. A little girl with a toy figurine in her hands and hair draped over her shoulders pointed at the sea. ¡°Daddy, quickly rescue the doggy.¡± The little girl¡¯s father swept his gaze across the quiet sea many times before smiling helplessly, ¡°Darling, daddy doesn¡¯t see any dog.¡± ¡°It must have drowned,¡± The four or five year old child believed in the things she saw with absolute certainty. Thinking about how that snow-white doggy had drowned to death in the sea, the little child instantly grew so upset that she burst into tears. Tears plopped onto the sand, very quickly wetting a small area of sand. The girl¡¯s parents couldn¡¯t bear for their child to be sad, so the girl¡¯s father went one round around the coast in search of it. In the end, he could only go back and say, ¡°Darling didn¡¯t see wrongly, I saw a white dog climbing out of the sea just now and running off into the distance.¡± ¡°Really?¡± The little girl looked at her father with red eyes. In her heart, daddy was omnipotent and definitely wouldn¡¯t lie to her. ¡°Really, that dog climbed out and ran off,¡± The girl¡¯s father pointed in a random direction. ¡°Unfortunately, it ran too fast. Daddy couldn¡¯t catch up to it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine as long as it managed to climb out,¡± The little girl was jubnt. Hugging her daddy, she gave him a big kiss. The girl¡¯s mother looked at the pitch-ck sea. Suppressing the strange feeling in her heart, she heaved a sigh of relief inwardly. Her daughter had definitely seen wrong. Fu Li lifted the restriction on the golden dragon pce and brought Zhuang Qing into the pce¡¯s back hall. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t keep up his human form immediately after they stepped through the back hall¡¯s doors, turning into a gigantic golden dragon. The transformation process was excruciating. Zhuang Qing let out dragon roars one after the other, banging his head and tail against the wall unceasingly. Very soon, blood seeped out of his body. A feeling of suffocation gripped Fu Li¡¯s heart increasingly as he watched the blood gradually stain Zhuang Qing¡¯s golden dragon body. His breathing turned rough, as if he had contracted what the humans called ¡®heart disease¡¯. Seeing that Zhuang Qing was about to ram into the wall again, he shed in front of the wall without even thinking. His body was softer, so even if Zhuang Qing banged into him, his dragon horns probably wouldn¡¯t break. To dragons, their horns represented their dignity and honor. He worried that Zhuang Qing would be a hornless dragon if he continued banging them. The golden dragon whose eyes had turned a bloody red from the pain had long lost his sense of reason and could care less about what he was banging against. Just as he was about to knock into Fu Li, he forcibly held himself back. His weak voice came out intermittently, ¡°F-Fu Li...quickly leave.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be scared,¡± Fu Li circted the spiritual qi around his body and ced a hand on top of the golden dragon¡¯s head. ¡°Good brothers share in life¡¯s joys and sorrows. I believe you will get through it and be the dragon race¡¯s most handsome dragon.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s entire body was writhing in pain. Every bone and scale on his body felt like it was being shattered and rbined, gradually growing anew. He remembered his first transformation at five hundred years old. Back then, he had broken countless trees from banging against them in pain, and the blood he had shed had dyed the entire mountain top red. At that time, he had thought he wouldn¡¯t be able to hold on, but he still got through it. He had no spiritual pond, no spiritual medicine, and no nmates to help channel spiritual qi into his body, yet he had survived. His second transformation was even more painful than his first. He had been 1200 years old then, and the blood that flowed out of him had turned an entire river red. But so what if he survived? No one looked forward to his survival, nor did anyone care whether he survived or not... Zhuang Qing¡¯s consciousness was already blurring. He had even forgotten what date it was. There was only pain in his mind, endless pain. A voice in his heart questioned what he was persevering for. Even if he just barely survived, he would merely continue his days of being hunted by evil yao. All of them wanted to devour his meat, drink his blood, and pluck out his bones. Who would look forward to his sess? ¡°Zhuang little dragon?¡± Realizing that Zhuang Qing¡¯s howls were gradually weakening, he inwardly eximed ¡®no good¡¯. Since young, Zhuang Qing had never been nourished in the dragon race¡¯s orthodox ways. Although his cultivation base was higher than the other dragons, hidden scars had long been left on his body from being bullied by other dragons during his childhood and constantly suffering injuries in the human world. Now that he had suddenly entered his transformation, his body might not be able to hold on. This dragon... Fu Li hated smooth, slippery creatures. Regardless of whether or not they were dragon or snake, he hated them all. But this golden dragon was different. He might be smooth and slippery, but he wasn¡¯t hateful whatsoever. He didn¡¯t want him to die. He wanted his transformation to seed, and for him to grow sparkling golden dragon scales and majestic dragon horns. Then, those dragons who bullied him would feel inferior in his presence, never raising their heads all their lives. Fu Li opened his golden pupils. Lowering his head, he pressed his forehead against the center of the golden dragon¡¯s forehead. Red and golden light instantly melded together. Chapter 106 - Emperor of the Aquatic Races

Chapter 106 - Emperor of the Aquatic Races

Despite the agony of the transformation process, every transformation would strengthen the body and enhance its perfection. Even the current chief of all living creatures, the humans, would also experience the growth of permanent teeth and puberty before they could be considered adults. Yao cultivators were no different. The stronger and rarer the animal, the more painful their transformation ¨C this was thew of all life forms in the world. The only life forms in the world capable of escaping this rule were those born beyond the Six Realms and nurtured by Heaven and Earth. Fu Li and the Kunpeng were examples of such life forms. But life forms born beyond the Six Realms had their own cmities. As long as they failed to pass a single tribtion, their physical body would perish, their Dao would scatter, and they would turn into spiritual qi, acting as fertilizer for the earth. Therefore, nobody alive had it easy. No one was more noble than anyone else. Powerful spiritual qi entered Zhuang Qing¡¯s body through Fu Li¡¯s forehead, helping him over and over again to sort out his fractured meridians and crushed bones. Their spiritual qi intertwined together. Not only did neither side repel the other, they were in such harmony that it seemed as if they were one. Zhuang Qing¡¯s consciousness stood within his sea of consciousness, his entire body soaked in blood as resentment-filled words rang in his ears. ¡°Lowly human, what qualifications do you have to receive the golden dragon n¡¯s inheritance? Our dragon race doesn¡¯t have a mixed breed like you.¡± ¡°Anyway, the dragon pce hasn¡¯t had a ce for you since a long time ago. Why not bury yourself in my belly and avoid the pain of fleeing all over the ce?¡± ¡°I hate the way you have a card up your sleeve for everything, who would be friends with someone like you?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re so impressive, why didn¡¯t you save him? Why wasn¡¯t it you who died?¡± ¡°Although my dearest has the talent to save the world, Zhen does not want everyone in the world to only know my dearest and not Zhen. From this day onwards, the person Zhuang Qing will not exist in history books.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a heartless man, I really wish you would just go die.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you die?¡± ¡°Why not die?¡± Zhuang Qing opened his eyes, looking at the faces brimming with hatred in his sea of consciousness. ¡°Why do I have to die?¡± He wanted to live. He had to live well, no matter how much blood he shed and how much hardship he suffered. Only by living could he see more, and only by meeting more people had he met that somewhat stupid yao. Living was very good. Although every generation in the cultivation world couldn¡¯tpare to the previous, and the colleagues under him allcked meticulousness and skill, there was still a yao waiting for him to wake up, waiting to eat together and bicker with him. ¡°I want to live, I will definitely live.¡± Long sword in hand, he shed the faces of hatred with a wave of his sword. Turning, he looked beyond the sea of consciousness. Strand after strand of red spiritual qi circled his sea of consciousness, protecting it and preventing it from dissipating. He was very familiar with this spiritual qi. It was Fu Li. The arrival of the red spiritual qi allowed Zhuang Qing to break through the obstructions in his heart with redoubled power, no longer affected by inner demons. The entire East Sea was in turmoil. Spiritual qi surged. Sensing the activity, the other dragon ns all walked out of their pces, gazing at the changes in the sea outside their barriers. Someone of the same race was undergoing their final transformation, but who could stir up so much activity? It was as if... as if the Dragon Emperor was being born. The Head of the azure dragon n looked through the barrier at the uneasy-looking sea creatures, and let out a long sigh. Ever since Qing Yan did those things, the azure dragon n had shut themselves in the pce, not daring to stir up any trouble. He didn¡¯t know which dragon junior was undergoing its final transformation tribtion, but given that the surge in Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi could be felt in all four seas, it was evident how powerful this dragon would be if it sessfully passed the tribtion. There was also a possibility that it would be the Dragon Emperor. He nced at his nsmen behind him and spread out his palm. The dragon n had been embroiled in internal strife for many years and was in decline. If a genius could truly appear, then this might be thest chance to safeguard the dragon race. A green glow radiated from the azure dragon seal in the Head¡¯s hand. This represented the azure dragon n¡¯s blessing and would be of some help to this fellow member of their race. ¡°n Head,¡± Qing Yuan looked at the movement at the bottom of the sea with a solemn expression. The radiance of the pearls shone onto his face, causing his face to appear iparably pale. ¡°Throughout the past hundreds of years, the only one who can be transforming is Zhuang Qing. Leaving aside the fact that he doesn¡¯t have peaceful rtions with our azure dragon n and solely considering that half the blood in his body is human blood, it is impossible for him to get through this transformation. Why is there a need to waste the spiritual power in the n seal on him? It was impossible for their pure dragons to stir up suchrge fluctuations during their final transformation, yet Zhuang Qing had such great capabilities. But it was useless no matter howrge the fluctuations ¨C his blood had already doomed him to failure. Those who were half-human and half-dragon didn¡¯t have high status in the dragon n partially because the dragon ns perceived humans as lowly. The other reason was that there had never been a half-human dragon in the dragon n¡¯s records who had made it through their third transformation. The Head didn¡¯t retract the n seal. He looked at the seal hovering midair in silence. Ever since the death of their divine beast, Blue Dragon, the dragon race could no longer divine the Dao of Heaven and Earth, and even encountered multiple attacks in a row. Instinct told him that Zhuang Qing¡¯s sessful transformation might be the dragon race¡¯s opportunity to survive. He didn¡¯t know how this opportunity to survive would manifest, but he still acted on his instinct. If the dragon race was extinguished, what use was there in having the azure dragon seal? A green light streaked across the vast sea and descended on the golden dragon pce, wrapping around the dragon and rabbit touching foreheads. The golden glow on the golden dragon strengthened a little. Soon after, two beams of light flew in, one ck and one blue. The Head of the red dragon n raised his head as he looked at the sea. When he saw that even the white dragon seal and purple dragon seal had been offered, he nced at the cold pce behind him before offering up the red dragon n¡¯s seal. Their prayers for the golden dragon to sessfully transform and soar into the highest of the Heavens were extended to their nsman through the n seals. The roiling Four Seas quietened at this instant, and the storming wind and waves at the surface of the sea halted abruptly. It was an uneasy quietness, just like the calm surface of a mirror. The yao cultivators in the midst of cultivation opened their eyes. The cultivators in meditation listened quietly with rapt attention. Everyone could sense something different about the world¡¯s spiritual qi. It felt like something was on the brink of emerging, yet it also felt like something was on the verge of demise. Life and death was a hair¡¯s breadth apart. All the department heads were seated together with several enormous disy screens in front of them, gazing at the tranquil, ripple-free surface of the sea with grave expressions. Everyone was waiting. Waiting for the final oue. Outside the golden dragon pce, countless aquatic yao were kneeling outside the barrier waiting for the golden dragon n¡¯s Dragon King to awaken. The sword in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands moved faster and faster, chopping apart hatred and exterminating resentment. The spiritual qi in his body flowed increasingly smoothly, as if the entire world was within his control. As long as he didn¡¯t give up, he could return his sea of consciousness to and of peace. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,¡± The illusion in front of his eyes took on Fu Li¡¯s form, his pale face filled with grievances. ¡°Are you going to kill me?¡± The tip of Zhuang Qing¡¯s sword trembled slightly. Fu Li¡¯splexion became even more wan. ¡°Quickly leave with me, I¡¯ll bring you out.¡± ¡°What did youe here for?¡± ¡°I came to save you.¡± Fu Li said angrily, ¡°You still don¡¯t know you¡¯ve gone into qi deviation?¡± Zhuang Qingughed coldly. ¡°But you¡¯re not him.¡± He raised his sword and the ¡®Fu Li¡¯ in front of him was beheaded the next instant, vanishing without a trace. ¡°He wouldn¡¯t show this kind of wronged look,¡± Dragging the sword, Zhuang Qing made his way step by step along the path out of his sea of consciousness. A burst of brilliant light erupted in front all of a sudden. When he opened his eyes, he was met with a white Hou with almost no distance between them. The gentle red spiritual qi in his body just now was Fu Li¡¯s divine consciousness and spiritual qi? But he didn¡¯t have the leisure to think too much at this juncture, because the feeling of his flesh and blood being reborn was not a pleasant one. Boundless spiritual qi poured into his body. His bones and blood were growing bit by bit at this point as he was born anew. The six-colored divine light revolving around him seemed to have sensed that his dragon body was starting to be recast, and thus rushed into Zhuang Qing. When Fu Li next opened his eyes, his legs nearly softened and sent him rolling out like a ball of fur. Golden tail, golden ws, golden body, golden scales ¨C the golden light wound around Zhuang Qing bit by bit before eventually coiling around his dragon horns. His previous forked dragon horns suddenly expanded sharply, turning into a pair of majestic golden dragon horns. The golden dragon let loose a long roar, and blessed rain descended on the world in abundance. The golden dragon¡¯s transformation was sessful. Shoals of fish leaped out of the Four Seas, crying out in joy. Birds perched on branches broke into light and graceful dance. All animals knelt in worship. Golden pheasants heralded the break of dawn, the sun rose in the east, and red auspicious clouds painted the entire horizon red. ¡°Dragon Emperor...¡± The Head of the azure dragon n looked at the East Sea in a daze. Kneeling on the ground, he bowed deeply before turning into his dragon form and swiftly swimming towards the East Sea. All the other azure dragons felt this wave of pressure and willingly knelt in worship. In the department meeting room, the leaders with heads of all-white hair apuded emotionally with a childlike excitement. The management bureau¡¯s staff who had persevered for an entire night all cried tears of joy as they embraced one another. The world outside was in jubtion, but the golden dragon pce was especially quiet. Fu Li raised his head to look at the huge dazzling golden dragon in front of him. He reached out a white, furry w to touch the dragon¡¯s nose when the golden dragon bent his head and delivered his nose to him. Fu Li patted his nose. His voice was particrly warm and proud, as if he was a parent praising his child. ¡°You did very well.¡± He didn¡¯t like furless, smooth, and slippery creatures, and the dragon race was ranked in the top three he most hated. But at this moment, he felt he loathed the dragon race not only because they didn¡¯t have fur, but also because they were ugly. The golden dragon before him was exceedingly pretty. Sunlight seemed to have converged to form the scales on his body. It was a beauty that Fu Li couldn¡¯t turn his gaze away from. Perhaps all creatures in the world had a beautiful side, and it was just him who hadn¡¯t seen them. Zhuang Qing was certainly at the apex of the dragon race in terms of attractiveness. ¡°Come up,¡± Zhuang Qing tossed Fu Li onto his head without feeling like he had done any earth-shattering thing and got ready to bring Fu Li to work to clock in. But when he swam out of the golden dragon pce and discovered scores of dragons and aquatic yao cultivators kneeling outside the pce¡¯s barrier, he fell silent. Upon seeing the tiny white dog as fat as a round ball seated on top of the golden dragon¡¯s head, the dragons and aquatic yao who had been looking forward to the golden dragon¡¯s appearance also fell silent. In their fantasies, the Dragon Emperor should emerge while treading on golden light and auspicious clouds, and then ept their kowtows with dignity. He shouldn¡¯t be swimming out so casually and leisurely with a fat dog on his head. ¡°What is everyone doing?¡± Zhuang Qing transformed into his human form. He was still dressed like an elite man, wearing the same old suit and necktie. It was just that the fat dog he was carrying in his hands reduced his icily arrogant image by a good half. ¡°Congrattions to the Dragon Emperor on a sessful transformation,¡± The Head of the dragon race was respectfully addressed Dragon King by the outside world, but at this moment, all of them willingly paid their respects to Zhuang Qing. The dragon race hadn¡¯t had a Dragon Emperor for many years. No one had expected Zhuang Qing, this half-human and half-dragon individual, to actually obtain the formidable inheritance of the dragon race, and to possess the pressure exclusive to the Dragon Emperor after transforming sessfully. Fu Li, who had lost all his spiritual qi to Zhuang Qing and was so tired he couldn¡¯t be bothered to even move an inch, looked at the vast, dense stretch of people kneeling and felt that there was something wrong with his yao understanding. He had even been worrying yesterday night that Zhuang Qing wouldn¡¯t be able to grow pretty horns and would be mocked by the other dragons, yet when they came out in the morning, these dragons directly kneeled in front of Zhuang Qing. ¡°Your dragon n has a rule that everyone has to kowtow once to a dragon who transformed sessfully?¡± Fu Li¡¯s front ws rested on Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. He said softly, ¡°Your dragon n¡¯s rules are really quite unconventional.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s head was crammed with many memories rted to the dragon race¡¯s inheritance and he hadn¡¯t had the time to clean them all up. Upon hearing Fu Li¡¯s words, he nodded, his mood slightly strange. They would go with whatever he said. ¡°Everyone, please return,¡± Zhuang Qing adjusted the position of his arms so that Fu Li could rest a little morefortably. ¡°Zhuang Qing will engrave the favor from all ns in his heart today.¡± ¡°We¡¯re undeserving of this praise,¡± There were bitter smiles on the faces of the dragons who had past grudges with Zhuang Qing. ¡°Our muddle-headed ways have caused Your Majesty much suffering in his childhood. Shame fills our hearts, what favor is there to speak of?¡± ¡°What happened in the past has already gone by, there is no point in bringing them up again. As long as everyone abides by the management bureau¡¯s rules, this Zhuang will not have anything to be displeased about.¡± Seeing that these people continued to kneel motionlessly, he said with a straight face, ¡°Please rise, everyone. It is unknown whether this Zhuang¡¯s transformation has caused any changes in the ocean currents. I request that everyone help this Zhuang to check on this.¡± ¡°We ept the order. Your Majesty has justpleted the transformation, please have a good rest,¡± The Head of the azure dragon n bowed once more. He nced at the white dog in Zhuang Qing¡¯s arms. Having already guessed the dog¡¯s identity, he bowed to the dog as well. ¡°This humble one will arrange for my nsmen to conduct a check on the variousrge bodies of water. We will definitely not harm any innocent people.¡± ¡°We ept the order as well.¡± The other dragon ns also reacted. Although the fact that Zhuang Qing had be the Dragon Emperor made them feel a little awkward, the dragon race hadcked a backbone all these years. Heavenlyw was hard to fathom, so now that they finally had a Dragon Emperor, they felt much more secure at heart. This feeling was akin to a giant suddenly appearing when everyone felt that the sky was about to copse. No matter who this giant was, they wouldn¡¯t dislike them. Fu Li looked at the deferential way the dragons and aquatic yao retreated, and then said, ¡°You¡¯ve be awesome, Zhuang little dragon. Turns out you¡¯ve be the dragon race¡¯s boss, they called you Your Majesty!¡± Zhuang Qing stroked his fluffy head. ¡°It¡¯s just a term of address, you don¡¯t have to take it seriously.¡± He turned into his dragon form once more, tossed Fu Li onto his head, and swam out of the East Sea. Feng Ruizhong sat in front of a window, staring nkly into the horizon. He had given the wrong present when gifting the Qiankun pouches, and threw a dragon who hadn¡¯tpleted its transformation the horn of the Blue Dragon, one of the Holy Beasts of the four directions. This was quite the difficult situation. That dragon horn contained a portion of the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance. Given the current abilities of these little dragons, there was no way they could receive such a powerful inheritance. The eventual oue could only be death by explosion, or a crazed dragon who lost all sense of reason after its sea of consciousness went into chaos. ¡°You have a pig¡¯s brain!¡± The man seated not too far behind him pped the table and cursed, ¡°That¡¯s Little Li¡¯s friend. If something happens to him, you¡¯d better not think that he¡¯ll forgive you in this lifetime.¡± Feng Ruizhong was scolded till he dared not raise his head. He didn¡¯t dare to believe either that he hadmitted such a mistake. Had he been so focused on looking at Fu Li when he was giving out the gifts that he hadn¡¯t noticed what exactly he had thrown out? ¡°Curse me all you want, but why curse yourself too?¡± Feng Ruizhong asked in a low voice. Angered to death by these words, the man pped the table to bits with one palm. ¡°This won¡¯t do, I must help this dragon get through his transformation.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want your life anymore? After evading such arge tribtion with so much difficulty, do you want to attract... its attention again and discard your life before you¡¯ll be satisfied?¡± ¡°Then should we let Little Li hate us?!¡± The man pulled open the door to leave. At this moment, blessed rain descended from the skies and multicolored sunlight surged in the east. It was clearly a lucky omen brought about by the Heavens. The man came to a stop, saying in disbelief, ¡°The inheritance... was sessful?¡± In the more than five thousand years the Azure Dragon¡¯s horn had been with them, they hadn¡¯t found the fated dragon. Yet, Feng Ruizhong¡¯s idental present actually resulted in sess. Was this a joke? Feng Ruizhong stretched his hand out the window, smiling yet also not smiling. A long whileter, he abruptly pointed at the skies and eximed, ¡°F*ck, damned Heavens, are you toying with us?¡± The damned Heavens didn¡¯t pay any heed to him and continued showering blessed rain, as if celebrating the birth of the emperor of the aquatic races. But the focus of everyone¡¯s attention ¨C the emperor of the aquatic races ¨C was currently queuing outside a breakfast store while carrying a snow-white Hou. This breakfast store was extremely popr. Zhuang Qing was carrying Fu Li across the road when Fu Li made a statement that there were many people in the queue and that the food had to be delicious. As a result, Zhuang Qing got in line at the back of the queue while carrying the snow-white Hou. What was so impressive about being the emperor of the aquatic races? He still had to queue to buy breakfast when he came to a popr breakfast store in the human world. Zhuang Qing looked down at the sleepy Fu Li as he gently patted his back. His gaze was as warm as spring. Chapter 107 - Any Objections?

Chapter 107 - Any Objections?

When the excited management bureau staff found Zhuang Qing, Zhuang Qing was carrying a dog with his left hand while nibbling on the buns held in his right hand. The white dog had its two front ws resting on his shoulder and was holding a steaming-hot bun, munching on it with its tail shaking from side to side. A few girls nearby were secretly snapping photos of them with their phones. Upon seeing this scene, the excitement coursing through everyone¡¯s bodies disappeared in a blink of an eye, just like a balloon that had been pricked by a needle. Although the emotion in their excitement was gone, what came next was a sense of security ¨C a sense of security that their boss wouldn¡¯t abandon them no matter how strong he became. Everyone had observed the fluctuations that urred in the early morning; anyone with a bit of knowledge would know what it meant. ¡°What are all of you standing here for?¡± Zhuang Qing took a bite of the bun in his hands. ¡°Do you want your wages to be deducted for not going to work?¡± Only then did everyone return to their senses and run towards the management bureau without looking back. Who would want to have their wages deducted? Fu Li finished his bun andid his head on Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll take a half-day sick leave today and sleep for a bit.¡± ¡°Sleep then,¡± Zhuang Qing stuffed the bun he hadn¡¯t eaten into his mouth and took him into his embrace with both arms. As expected, Fu Li had already fallen asleep. Fu Li had exhausted all his spiritual qi yesterday night to help him transform sessfully. If he had dragged it on a bit longer, Fu Li¡¯s cultivation might have regressed. Fu Li would asionally render him angry yet helpless, and he would itch to give his head a good shake. But sometimes, the things Fu Li did made him unable to bear putting him through the slightest torment. The guy in his arms was hateful in this way. Zhuang Qing¡¯s fate was implicitly tied to the nation¡¯s fate, so after his sessful transformation, blessed rain descended from the skies, showering all creatures with grace. Even the country¡¯s fortune inexplicably improved a little. For instance, research institute A¡¯s experiment seeded, scientific academy B overcame a certain difficulty in a project, and scientific research center C sessfully developed a certain medicinal product. There was even a reduction in the levels of pollution seen in all therge water bodies within the country. The various departments were momentarily full of joy. Not only did they allocate a sum of money to the management bureau in the name of ¡®scientific fees¡¯, they even rewarded Zhuang Qing with a house and car. The department leaders on friendly terms with Zhuang Qing all sent generous gifts as well. To this country¡¯s humans, dragons had always been symbols of luck and protection. So everyone who gave gifts were most willing to do so, and did so with exultation. All the major sect leaders in the cultivation world and several famous yao cultivators started preparing generous gifts and personally called on Zhuang Qing before the human world¡¯s gift brigade had even dispersed. Zhuang Qing was now the emperor of the aquatic races, and the importance of water on earth went without saying, so no one wanted to offend the aquatic emperor unless they felt that they were living too good a life. The various major sect leaders knew where Zhuang Qing lived in the human world, but when these sect leaders called on him and realized that there was no other yao or person in his house apart from Fu Li, their mood turnedplex. They had long heard that there was some ambiguity between Zhuang Qing and the daoyou called Fu Li. They had only taken it as rumor, yet the two parties were actually already living together. Sect leader Zhao Xiu of the Qing Xiao Sect and sect leader Tian Feng of the Fields Sect were old friends, so the two people arranged to go together even when they went to offer Zhuang Qing gifts. From their seat at the couch, they nced at thendscape on the wall pieced together with jewels, and then nced at Fu Li beside Zhuang Qing. An awkward but not discourteous smile hung on their faces. Zhuang Qing was also not the talkative type. Fortunately, Fu Li had a more easygoing personality, so the atmosphere wasn¡¯t too terrible. Later on, the two sect leaders couldn¡¯t bear to sit any longer and stood up to take their leave. Zhuang Qing got up and saw them off at the door. ¡°There¡¯s heavy snow and wind outside, please take care.¡± ¡°No need to see us out, Chief Zhuang,¡± How could Zhao Xiu and Tian Feng allow Zhuang Qing to see them out the door? Which resulted in them repeating this phrase over and over again. Zhao Xiu even depended on the fact that his sect¡¯s disciple was a high-ranking employee in the bureau to crack a few jokes. ¡°Chief Zhuang and Fu daoyou has a good rtionship. Should there be a Dao-Bonding Ceremony held someday, this Zhao will definitely shamelessly drop in for two cups of wine.¡± Zhuang Qing nced back at Fu Li, who was washing the teacups in the kitchen. A hint of a smile appeared on his perpetually nk face. ¡°If there is such a day, this Zhuang will definitely send an invitation.¡± One look at his expression, and Zhao Xiu and Tian Feng knew that this new emperor of the aquatic races already harbored intentions in this aspect. Instantly, they revealed ambiguous smiles. After getting into a small car arranged by their sects, they left the vi. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,¡± Fu Li walked out of the kitchen and spat out a breath of air to blow-dry his wet hands. ¡°The story you told me yesterday night ¨C what happenedter on?¡± Zhuang Qing closed the vi¡¯s main door. ¡°Wait for me on the bed first, I¡¯ll be up right away.¡± ¡°Quicklye up then,¡± Fu Li went upstairs and jumped onto the soft bed with a plop. He turned into his original form and theny downzily, not moving. Ever since discovering that Zhuang Qing had heard of many interesting human legends, he got hooked onto Zhuang Qing¡¯s ¡®bedtime stories¡¯. Or maybe it was because Zhuang Qing¡¯s blood had be even purer after his sessful transformation. These days, Fu Li often smelled a sweet fragrance on Zhuang Qing, the very delicious type. He had been ashamed of this thought at first, but after realizing that this smell could hasten the speed with which the spiritual qi in his meridians circted when he was asleep, the shame turned into worry. With Zhuang Qing¡¯s current constitution, wasn¡¯t he a bit too great of a temptation to yao cultivators? Every part of a dragon was a treasure. What if some yao wanted to eat Zhuang Qing to increase its cultivation? He had originally thickened his skin and lived with Zhuang Qing for the food he cooked, but he was even less reassured about leaving now. With him around, Zhuang Qing would have an extra helper when fighting. Zhuang Qing washed a te of fruits and then turned towards the furtive shadow outside the window with a cold smile. ¡°Scram.¡± With a shiver, the shadow instantly vanished without a trace. Zhuang Qing had removed the barrier outside the vi due to the many guests recently, which was why there were also more unknown creatures roaming about outside the vi. Fu Li, who was syed out on the bed, turned his head towards the window. There was an evil spirit lying outside the window with a malevolent expression. With a shake of Fu Li¡¯s ears, the evil spirit outside the window let out a miserable shriek and its soul scattered, turning into a true dead ghost. The other guests hidden at various corners turned and floated out upon seeing this. Along the way, they bumped into a yinchai army from the underworld. The next instant, there was once again a peal of ghostly cries and howls. ¡°Leader, you¡¯re so wise. Hiding here really will let us capture fugitives from the underworld,¡± A ghost messenger used their Soul-Locking Chain to bind an evil spirit as they cast a look of worship at Li Xu. Li Xu spat out a ring of smoke, his gaze deep. ¡°The person inside has rich spiritual qi. To ignorant evil spirits, it¡¯s a huge temptation.¡± Also, only these brainless evil spirits would dare to do such things. Look at how tactful the yao cultivators were ¨C those with high cultivation politely sent gifts while those with low cultivation saluted from their hiding spots in the distance,pletely unlike these stupid ghosts. Forget it. If they were smart, how could they be escaped criminals listed in the underworld¡¯s records? Unfortunately, they had basically already captured what evil spirits that could be captured. The free bait ¨C Zhuang Qing¡¯s ¨C reputation had probably already circted throughout the underworld. Who knew where they could find another bait as good as Zhuang Qing? The cultivation world was in amotion for a period of time because of Zhuang Qing bing the Dragon Emperor. Only when the Lunar New Year was imminent and everyone started making preparations for the new year did the fervor gradually decline. The few days leading up to the Lunar New Year was the capital¡¯s peak period for traveling, and also the only time in the year that human movement urred on arge scale. Whenever this period arrived, not only would the various major affiliated departments be incredibly busy, even the management bureau had to dispatch people torge airports, bus stops, and train stations across the entire country for fear that a cultivator would suddenly have the thought of taking revenge on society and explode their internal core. That would make for quite some trouble. The area Fu Li was responsible for was the capital¡¯srgest train station. He looked on as countless humans carting bags of all sizes jostled through the crowds, and had a whole new level of respect for the life forms known as humans. People were practically piled on top of one another, yet they could still squeeze into the vehicles. It was practically a miracle. Fu Li guarded the ce for three or four days and didn¡¯t capture any yao who wanted to take revenge on society, although he did discover quite a few little yao who attempted to travel for free as stowaways. These little yao had ordinary cultivation and didn¡¯t get by very well, so they would lie on car roofs or storage cabins in their original forms to save on that bit of transport money. These little yao had very pure auras, so Fu Li closed one eye to their behavior and allowed them to freeload a ride. The closer it was to the end of the year, the less people there were in the capital. On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Fu Li took a train back to the management bureau after getting off duty. The train was vacant, with him and two other girls being the only passengers in the carriage. The female passenger closer to him had long hair that trailed over her shoulders. Although she couldn¡¯t be considered very pretty, she had very fair skin. The other female passenger was hanging her head, preventing her appearance from being seen, and had a slightly plump figure. All of a sudden, the lights in the train flickered once. The long-haired female passenger nced up at the lights before ncing at Fu Li, who was seated opposite. Picking up her bag, she got up and moved to a seat closer to him. The train doors opened very quickly. Quite a few people got on at this station, all of whom were silent after getting on. The atmosphere was exceedingly quiet. ¡°Do you feel like the train seems to be traveling for a very long time today?¡± Unable to stand the silent atmosphere, the long-haired girl shifted towards Fu Li and asked softly. ¡°En, the road is a bit long,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t speak in a low voice, causing the people seated opposite him to look at him uniformly. Fu Li ignored them and told the long-haired girl, ¡°Get off with meter.¡± As if having found a pir to lean on, the long-haired girl nodded repeatedly. The people seated opposite them also retracted their gazes, no longer looking at them. The long-haired girl took out her phone and took a few looks at it, her body trembling thest few times. The people seated opposite her were dressed normally and had normal appearances, but not a single one of them was on their phone! Riding the train was a very boring affair, how could there be no one using their phone? This was too creepy. ¡°The train should be stopping soon,¡± Seeing the girl¡¯s trembles intensifying and the way she nearly couldn¡¯t hold back her tears, Fu Li sighed. He took out five copper coins from his pocket, threaded a string through them, and then offered it to the girl. ¡°Take it.¡± ¡°W-What are these?¡± The girl epted the copper coins and found ¡®Kaiyuan Tongbao¡¯ or something written on them. ¡°Copper coins,¡± The management bureau had plenty of these things, and five of them had just been taken by Fu Li via a teleportation skill. ¡°Thank you,¡± The long-haired girl had heard of the legend of the ¡®Five Emperor Coins¡¯, so regardless of whether or not these five copper coins were real or fake, she was very grateful for the other party¡¯s kind intentions. It seemed the other party, like her, had also sensed that these ¡®passengers¡¯ were abnormal. After she gripped ¡®Five Emperor Coins¡¯ tightly, the train slowed to a halt. Fu Li turned to her. ¡°Come with me.¡± ording to her usual habits, she wouldn¡¯t have listened to an unfamiliar man. However, she subconsciously followed what the other party said, perhaps because the atmosphere today was too scary, or maybe it was because this young man looked handsome and reliable. Both of them walked to the door and the girl realized that the passengers seemed to want to get up and obstruct them. Only by covering her mouth could she control her desire to scream. Fu Li picked the girl up, and then they were out of the train. The girl nced back. The train was already slowly moving off. The plump woman who got on with her was standing by the window, seemingly resenting them for leaving. ¡°S-She...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be scared, they¡¯re just going home to visit their family,¡± Fu Li smiled at the girl. ¡°They won¡¯t intentionally harm people.¡± ¡°Those things... also need to visit their families?¡± The woman¡¯s trembling hadn¡¯t ceased. She gripped the Five Emperor Coins given by Fu Li tightly, as if she would feel more at ease by doing so. ¡°Of course, everyone will be on vacation on a day like the eve of the Lunar New Year,¡± Taking advantage of the girl¡¯s inattention, Fu Li waved a hand in the air and the mist in the train station disappeared. Everything seemed to have returned to normal. The girl didn¡¯t seem to be trembling as badly either. She looked at Fu Li with gratitude, ¡°Handsome, are you a great master?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a very good understanding of these things, and just have some knowledge on one or two things,¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t lying, he really didn¡¯t understand human methods for expelling ghosts. To yao cultivators, brute strength was much more effective than talismans, seals, and whatnot. The girl thought that it wasn¡¯t convenient for Fu Li to divulge anything, so out of embarrassment, she didn¡¯t ask more either. After walking out of the train station, she took her phone out. ¡°Handsome, you extended such a huge helping hand to me today. Can I treat you to a meal if there¡¯s a chance in the future? Let¡¯s add each other on Wechat?¡± ¡°Fu Li.¡± The girl turned back and saw a long-legged, handsome brother. The other party was wearing a long, ck windbreaker, and walked in an extremely graceful manner. It was just that his face was expressionless, so he looked very unapproachable. Only when the handsome brother beside her walked alongside the other party did the girl realize that the other party had speciallye to fetch the handsome brother who had traveled with her. Watching the two people from the back, the girl exhaled a breath of warm air on her palms and then ced her phone and the Five Emperor Coins back into her pocket. The money for treating someone to a meal wouldn¡¯t be spent. With how unusual tonight¡¯s matter was, she might as well donate a bit of money to Project Hope. Wasn¡¯t there that one good saying called ¡®financial loss might prevent disaster¡¯? ¡°That human girl has a very good opinion of you,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled open the car door for Fu Li. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I have a likable appearance?¡± Fu Li buckled his seatbelt and asked with little care, ¡°We can go on holiday after work tomorrow?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li¡¯s face and gave an enigmaticugh. ¡°En, it¡¯s quite likable.¡± ¡°En?¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t understand. What did that mean? ¡°If nothing major happens tomorrow, we¡¯ll be on holiday after work tomorrow till the end of the seventh day,¡± Zhuang Qing started up the car. After a long period of silence, he said, ¡°Human lifespans are very short.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, ordinary humans only have a lifespan of around one hundred years. To us yao cultivators, it is indeed quite short.¡± ¡°So you must keep your distance from humans. Even if you... feel the stirrings of love, they are still not suitable for you.¡± ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I didn¡¯t expect you to start thinking of these things not long after you seeded in your transformation,¡± Fu Li clicked his tongue. ¡°If I was interested in humans, I would have been moved two thousand years ago. Why would I need to wait till now?¡± Two thousand years ago? Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth tensed up even more. Was Fu Li talking about that human pet of his? ¡°You liked that human pet very much?¡± Zhuang Qing asked with a straight face. ¡°I quite liked him,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Sister Zhu Yue even said before that he was the very good-looking type of human.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent. ¡°But I don¡¯t remember what he looks like,¡± Fu Li furrowed his brows, turning to look at Zhuang Qing. ¡°But his human appearance probably isn¡¯t as good-looking as your face.¡± ¡°Since you liked him quite a bit, why don¡¯t you even remember his appearance?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood lifted a little. ¡°I rarely interacted with humans back then and didn¡¯t use my human form much either, so my ability to distinguish between human appearances wasn¡¯t strong,¡± Fu Li¡¯s face was a bit red. ¡°But this shoring was already righted before I registered for my identification card at the Yao Union.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine even if you don¡¯t remember, he¡¯s already been reincarnated anyway. Rather, his beauty will be lost if you remember it.¡± So what if this human was Fu Li¡¯s only pet? Thought Zhuang Qing inwardly. A pet whose appearance wasn¡¯t even remembered by the owner was a failure of a pet. As for the possibility of the ¡®owner being too much of a g¡¯, Zhuang Qing subconsciously ruled it out. The fault would always lie with others, it was impossible for the fault to lie with his own people. This Dragon Emperor, the closest of all the dragons to the humans, had perhaps already acquired the ¡®muddle-headed emperor¡¯ shoring of the human feudalistic period. On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, thest day of work, few people were in the mood for work, and most were just waiting to go on holiday. In the public office, everyone was discussing how they would be passing the new year and what Lunar New Year merchandise they would be buying. The majority of cultivators present had close rtives or belonged to a sect, so there was definitely nock of liveliness when they celebrated the Lunar New Year. Only Fu Li was syed on his desk, listening to their spirited voices. Because he had no sect, no rtives, and no elders. To him, there was nothing special about this year. ¡°There¡¯s trouble, a zealous yao sent us aint email saying that the boss and Fu ge epted bribes. The other party even provided a photo of the incident,¡± Chu Yu received a call from the supervision division and turned towards Fu Li. ¡°There are quite a few yaoguai kicking up a fuss downstairs, asking us to give an exnation.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Everyone stared nkly, their heads turning towards Fu Li simultaneously. None of them felt that such a thing was possible. When Fu Li went downstairs to the reception room, Zhuang Qing was already present. A few yaguai were seated there, mming the tables and hitting the stools as they spouted something about the management bureau epting bribes, betraying the trust of the cultivation world, and so on. He picked up one of the photos serving as evidence and nced at it. Was this taken when Uncle Feng gave them the Qiankun pouches outside the Yao Union? Seeing that Fu Li had picked up the photo, the yao cultivators cursed even more harshly as if they were injected with confidence. ¡°The management bureau has been requesting us to do this and that these few years, and wants to manage us even if all we did was steal a wallet,¡± The mouse yao¡¯s eyes shifted left and right, but the words he spoke were said in an extremely infuriating manner. ¡°But you don¡¯t even need to go out and steal, any random yao just has to give you a few gifts and there¡¯s nothing much for you to worry about.¡± ¡°Yes. The way I see it, they¡¯re in with the snakes and mice, and don¡¯t attach any importance to us ordinary yao,¡± Another yaoguai echoed his words. The mouse yao rolled his eyes. ¡°Who are you cursing? Who¡¯s with the snakes?¡± ¡°My mistake, my mistake,¡± The other yao smiled awkwardly. How had he forgotten that this individual was a mouse yao? The Yao Union¡¯s person-in-charge sat there with an awkward expression. Given Zhuang Qing¡¯s identity and status, how could he becking in gold, silver, pearls, or whatnot? Naturally, he wouldn¡¯t ept any bribes either. But the difficultyy in the fact that the people kicking up a fuss had photos and videos as evidence. He momentarily didn¡¯t know what would be appropriate to respond with, so he could only wait in silence. This whole matter reeked of something fishy. Given Zhuang Qing¡¯s present status, how could this little yao dare to intentionally smear the reputation of the management bureau? The destruction of the management bureau¡¯s reputation would definitely not be beneficial for the entire cultivation world. The eventual sufferers wouldn¡¯t be the elites of the management bureau, but the little yao at the lowest rung of the yao world. He raised his head and nced at Zhuang Qing. The other party¡¯s expression was normal. These little yao¡¯s screeches hadn¡¯t angered him. Fu Li was seated beside Zhuang Qing. In his opinion, given the cultivation base of these little yao, it was impossible for them to secretly snap photos of them without being discovered. ¡°I heard someone reported my nephew for epting bribes?¡± A man kicked open the door of the management bureau¡¯s reception room. ¡°As an uncle, can¡¯t I give my own family¡¯s junior some pocket money?¡± This man was extremely good-looking. At this moment, his chin was raised, and his lofty gaze seemed to be proiming hisck of care for the majority of the yao present. In his eyes, the several yao facing Fu Li and pping the table were nothing more than trash. ¡°I have a lot of money, and I¡¯ll spend as much as I want on my junior. If you have any objections, I¡¯m all ears, en?!¡± Chapter 108 - Selling Out a Teammate

Chapter 108 - Selling Out a Teammate

The aggressive way in which this man made his appearance drew all eyes to him. Nephew? Everyone nced at Zhuang Qing, and then nced at this man whose cultivation was a profound mystery. They felt that there was something strange about this. Many people in the cultivation world knew that Chief Zhuang possessed the blood of the dragon race but was not close to them. Throughout these years, Chief Zhuang had always doled out the appropriate punishment and put whoever needed to be put in their ce whenever the dragon nmitted a wrong. He never shielded them or covered up their errors. The dragon n didn¡¯t have dealings with Zhuang Qing either, so how could they have given Zhuang Qing anything? The several yao creating trouble grew scared inwardly, but forcibly kept up their imposing manner. ¡°Both the briber and bribee are at fault. You im to be Chief Zhuang¡¯s uncle, but who knows if that¡¯s true or false? Maybe you just want to exploit it to shirk guilt.¡± ¡°And what are you?¡± With a raise of the man¡¯s brows, a light shiver ran through the mouse yao who was speaking. It was a type of fear that pierced into the innermost depths of the heart. His legs trembled, and he couldn¡¯t voice even a single word of refute. The man scoffed upon seeing how terrified he was. ¡°I am Fu Li¡¯s uncle, Feng Ruizhong. I¡¯ve been apart from Little Li for many years and was very happy to meet once again, so I gave my junior a bit of pocket money.¡± Fu Li raised his head, silently meeting Feng Ruizhong¡¯s gaze. ¡°So you¡¯re Fu daoyou¡¯s elder,¡± The Yao Union¡¯s employee immediately responded. ¡°Since this matter was a misunderstanding, our Yao Union won¡¯t involve ourselves any longer.¡± This employee had nearly three thousand years¡¯ worth of cultivation, yet he couldn¡¯t make out Feng Ruizhong¡¯s true form. In fact, he couldn¡¯t even sense the slightest bit of qi. Secretly guessing that the other party was a great yao who had just left his mountain, he dared not offend him in the slightest and thus got up, bowing deeply. ¡°En,¡± Feng Ruizhong nodded and epted this deep bow with a calm expression. Everyone else was inwardly astonished. This Yao Union employee was considered an individual of virtue and prestige in the cultivation world and had never been seen bowing so deeply to anyone. What exactly were this man¡¯s origins? ¡°Ai,¡± Chao Yun spoke to Chu Yu softly. ¡°What are the origins of this yao cultivator professing to be Fu ge¡¯s elder?¡± Chu Yu shook his head with a heavy look. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Even you don¡¯t know?¡± Chao Yun was shocked. Chu Yu was particrly sensitive in this respect, yet there was a yao whom he actually couldn¡¯t see through? Chu Yu smiled bitterly. Lowering his voice, he said, ¡°I¡¯m not a Yao-Revealing Mirror who can see through anything. At that time, I only vaguely sensed faint yao qi from Fu ge, but couldn¡¯t make out his original form.¡± That being said, this Feng Ruizhong was even more impressive. There wasn¡¯t any yao qi on him at all. If not for the fact that he was standing here and iming to be Fu ge¡¯s elder, everybody might have just assumed that he was human. It was indeed impressive to render someone frightened, but getting them to drop all pretenses was the scariest. The mouse yao¡¯s voice shook. ¡°A-Are you Fu daoyou¡¯s elder just because you say you are? Where¡¯s your evidence?¡± Feng Ruizhong furrowed his brows. mming a hand on the mouse yao¡¯s head, he drew out a wisp of ck gas from his mind. The gas twisted here and there on his hand, wanting to escape one moment and wanting to prate into his palm the next but to no avail. ¡°I always say mice don¡¯t have such big guts, someone actually set a restriction on you,¡± With a squeeze of his hand, the gas immediately dissipated. The controlled yao cultivators then came to their senses, saying that their bodies were not under their control, which was why they had ndered Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, and so on and so forth. The expression on the face of the Yao Union¡¯s employee changed drastically. He had actually failed to notice that a restriction had been ced on these few yao. How profound was the cultivation of the mastermind? ¡°Many thanks senior for informing us,¡± He nced at the yao cultivators trembling from fright, and brought them away after apologizing to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Fu Li, who basically hadn¡¯t spoken more than a few words since entering the room, looked at Feng Ruizhong with continued silence. Feeling self-conscious under his stare, the smile on Feng Ruizhong¡¯s smile became stiffer and stiffer, though he didn¡¯t dare to reveal his true feelings through his facial expression. This reaction was borne from shame and guilt. The rest felt that there was something off about the atmosphere and thus very tactfully left the reception room, leaving Zhuang Qing and Fu Li to receive this elder on their own. As Chu Yu was closing the door, Zhuang Qing spoke to him using the sound transmission skill. ¡°Investigate the residences of those yao cultivators and see if there¡¯s anything to be found.¡± Chu Yu nodded. Turning, he started assigning everyone tasks. This matter seemed to be a ¡®framing incident¡¯ but in truth, was malice-filled. There was a possibility that the mastermind wasn¡¯t targeting the boss but the entire cultivation world. The door closed and the reception room sunk into silence. ¡°Uncle Feng, please sit,¡± Fu Li pointed at the single couch opposite him. Feng Ruizhong sat down with a dryugh. ¡°I used the past two days to fully understand the human world¡¯s currency. When I took a taxi over, the driver said that this workce of yours is very outstanding. All he spoke about was how you were winning honor for your ancestors.¡± Fu Li pursed his lips silently. ¡°And and, I brought you many things ¨C they¡¯re all things you like eating,¡± Feng Ruizhong took out arge pile of items from his bag, covering the entire table with spiritual essence, spiritual fruits, and all sorts of fragrant pills made from rare medicinal herbs. Seeing that Fu Li still wasn¡¯t talking, Feng Ruizhong was in a fluster and asked timidly, ¡°You said the previous time that you would bring me to the human world to try delicious food, is that still valid?¡± His cautious and solemn appearance had none of the previous majesty. Fu Li¡¯s adam¡¯s apple shifted. A long while passed before he replied, ¡°Where were you these years?¡± Feng Ruizhong was happy yet ashamed now that Fu Li was finally willing to speak. ¡°It was too chaotic at that time. I originally wanted to bring you along, but... but I was scared that you would be implicated as well.¡± He nced at Zhuang Qing, who was seated beside Fu Li, and smiled. ¡°Luckily I listened to them at that time and didn¡¯t bring you along, otherwise I would have harmed you.¡± Fu Li¡¯s lips trembled lightly. ¡°You pretended not to recognize me and even tricked me into calling you uncle. You¡¯re shameless.¡± ¡°Stinky brat, I¡¯m hundreds of thousands of years older than you, what are you going to call me if not uncle?¡± Feng Ruizhong had a self-conscious look on his face. ¡°You have no conscience. You call them uncle but only know how to call me little sparrow, I was good to you for nothing.¡± Fu Liughed out loud, though the rims of his eyes were red. He covered his eyes with a hand. ¡°Who asked you not to change into your human form all the time? Your voice was even like a little kid¡¯s, it was already good that I didn¡¯t call you little sister.¡± Feng Ruizhong gazed at Fu Li with a smile, unexpectedly not angered by the words ¡®little sister¡¯. Fu Li was also looking at him with a smile. This smile bypassed two thousand years, as if all the partings and unfamiliarity would turn to nothing in the face of this smile. ¡°These years... have you been well?¡± Fu Li¡¯s voice was a bit hoarse. Zhuang Qing patted his shoulder and got up. ¡°I¡¯ll go pour tea.¡± Feng Ruizhong watched Zhuang Qing leave the room, his smile bright. ¡°It was not bad.¡± He¡¯d managed to survive and see this stinky brat, how could it not be good? Fu Li wanted to smile, yet couldn¡¯t force it out. He turned his head towards the painting on the wall to make himself appear a bit more carefree. ¡°I¡¯ve been well these few years too.¡± Feng Ruizhong looked at the shoddy clothes Fu Li was wearing. His heart had long ached unbearably. ¡°How can you be well? We¡¯ve wronged you these years, it¡¯s our fault for not taking care of you and letting you bear so much hardship.¡± ¡°Little Sparrow...¡± Fu Li paused. ¡°Uncle Feng.¡± ¡°Ai!¡± Feng Ruizhong happily made a sound of agreement. He had spent the past few years thinking about getting Fu Li to call him uncle, so now that he had gotten Fu Li to correct himself after much difficulty, he was in such bliss that he nearly couldn¡¯t tell north from south. ¡°I¡¯ve really been well these few years, I j-just missed you guys a bit,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°Before I fell asleep that time, all of you said you¡¯ll wait for me to wake up and then let me gain experience for two years in the human world. I didn¡¯t expect to hear the news of all of you being eaten by the azure dragons after waking up.¡± ¡°But nobody lied to me, you came to find me before my two years in the human world was up,¡± Fu Li raised his head, smiling at Feng Ruizhong so broadly that his eyes curved into crescents. ¡°It¡¯s so good to be able to see all of you again.¡± Feng Ruizhong stood up and embraced Fu Li. Just like how the sparrow had hidden with Fu Li in the underbrush when he didn¡¯t want to learn swordy and used its soft wings to block the dust fromnding on his head. When Zhuang Qing gently pushed open the door to the reception room, he was met with the scene of the two men hugging in the room. The scene was so beautiful that it seemed like a painting. He felt a little upset in his heart. Closing the door, he leaned against the wall, staring expressionlessly at the colleagues that came and went. He clearly understood very well in his heart that Fu Li and Feng Ruizhong merely had a normal senior and junior rtionship, but when he thought that they were not rted by blood, he still felt that anything was possible. There were not many masters and disciples in the cultivation world who were bonded as Daopanions, but it wouldn¡¯t be strange for an uncle and nephew with no blood ties to be Daopanions either. Zhuang Qing felt that his thoughts had be very dirty. Just because he had such intentions towards Fu Li, he felt that everyone could be harboring bad intentions. It was shameful and absurd. ¡°You made a very good friend,¡± Feng Ruizhong stroked the shaggy back of Fu Li¡¯s head, transmitting his voice to Fu Li. ¡°The human race is flourishing in these times and the yao race is on the decline. Although he is yao, he possesses powerful qi of virtue. He is an extraordinary child.¡± ¡°Uncle Feng, I didn¡¯t make friends with him because...¡± ¡°Shush,¡± Feng Ruizhong ced his forefinger at the side of his mouth and made a soft shushing sound. Heughed lightly. ¡°Of course I know that. But all elders will hope for their children to be in goodpany.¡± Little Li¡¯s fate was special. They had divined Little Li¡¯s fate innumerable times, and the end result was always either chaos or death. His sole chance of survival was also sporadic and indistinct. The day he saw Zhuang Qing, he knew that this chance at survival had been found. If not for that, how could he have given the wrong Qiankun pouch to Zhuang Qing out of excitement and handed him the Qiankun pouch that contained the divine beast Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance horn? But yao with great virtue were indeed extraordinary. He had sessfullypleted his transformation under the stimtion of the Dragon God¡¯s inheritance, and even epted the divine dragon¡¯s inheritance in its entirety. He was only afraid that this silly nephew of his didn¡¯t know that his good friend already had half the body of a divine dragon. But the way things were now was also good. Regardless of whether one was human or yao, anyone who wanted to be treated with sincerity would have to repay the other with sincerity. No matter what was said, Little Li was worthy of being his nephew ¨C all he did was casually make a friend and that friend was an individual whose fate stood head and shoulders above the entire yao race. This was strength. ¡°Uncle Feng, Little Li,¡± Zhuang Qing knocked on the door and came in, putting down the tray holding three cups of tea. ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware that Uncle Feng was Little Li¡¯s elder in the past. I request Uncle Feng¡¯s forgiveness if I wascking in manners.¡± ¡°You¡¯re being too polite,¡± Feng Ruizhong smiled warmly. ¡°You are Little Li¡¯s good friend, so you are also my nephew. Words of politeness should not be said among family.¡± He didn¡¯t mention the matter about the divine dragon¡¯s inheritance, as if he wasn¡¯t the person who had shoved such a precious item into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. Thinking that Feng Ruizhong had only given him the divine dragon¡¯s inheritance on ount of Fu Li, Zhuang Qin stood up and bowed deeply to Feng Ruizhong. ¡°Many thanks Uncle Feng for bestowing generous gifts, this junior has benefited greatly.¡± ¡°Affinity is at the heart of this matter. I haven¡¯t been able to find a suitable dragon to give it to these years, so you¡¯ve helped me greatly,¡± Feng Ruizhong was being truthful, Zhuang Qing had indeed helped him out quite a bit. For one, he had allowed him to fulfil the promise he had made to the Blue Dragon. Secondly, Zhuang Qing had spared him from being hated by Fu Li. But nobody in the entire cultivation world knew that the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance was in his hands, much less that he had ¡®given¡¯ the inheritance to Zhuang Qing, so it was still better to keep this matter to himself. When Feng Ruizhong was arrogant, he could be so provocative that many yao would want to smack him to death. But when he willingly treated someone well, he would do so without the slightest reservations. A yao like him didn¡¯t have strong emotions or desires, nor would he have children. In his heart, Fu Li was equivalent to his child. How could shielding the shorings of one¡¯s child be considered deception? Therefore, when he felt that Zhuang Qing was of use to Fu Li, he naturally treated Zhuang Qing well. Just like that year when Fu Li brought back his human pet ¨C when everyone discovered that he was of some use to Fu Li, they were naturally also willing to show him a pleasant countenance. In their eyes, all creatures were equal. Excluding Fu Li and any life forms rted to Fu Li. At noontime, Zhuang Qing spoke to Feng Ruizhong and Fu Li, who were deeply engaged in conversation. ¡°It¡¯s almost noon. Little Li, why don¡¯t we bring Uncle Feng out for lunch first?¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Uncle Feng, let¡¯s go.¡± Seeing that Fu Li¡¯s attitude towards him had reverted to that of those days, Feng Ruizhong was immensely happy. ¡°Little Li, in the future, uncle won¡¯t lie to you or leave again without a word.¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°Okay.¡± The three people went downstairs and were just passing by the Langgan Tree when the tree suddenly shook vigorously. Its vines curled around the Zhuyu fruits and presented them to Feng Ruizhong. Fu Li looked at the vines and Zhuyu fruits with a smile. ¡°Uncle Feng, these fruits are delicious, give them a taste.¡± Feng Ruizhong swallowed. He didn¡¯t dare to reach out his hands. ¡°Fenghuang!¡± Long Hair jumped down the Fuchang Tree with his three heads and excitedly kneeled in front of Feng Ruizhong. ¡°Fenghuang daren, my nmates and I were waiting for you.¡± The two other nsmen, Middle Hair and Little Hair, also kneeled in front of Feng Ruizhong. Feng Ruizhong: ... He raised his head and looked at Fu Li. ¡°Little Li, I can exin.¡± Fu Li smiled wordlessly. ¡°Young man, you¡¯re indeed a noble person. You have found the great Fenghuang daren on behalf of our n. From now onwards, you will be our entire three-headed n¡¯s honored guest,¡± Long Hair bowed deeply to Fu Li, his six eyes filled with gratitude. Fu Li stooped over and patted one of his heads. ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± He took two Zhuyu fruits from the Langgan Tree¡¯s vines, split them with Zhuang Qing, and then slowly nibbled on them. ¡°Uncle Feng, they were born at the Fuchang Tree more than two months ago.¡± Feng Ruizhong, who had also risen from fire more than two months ago: ... He had better think about what he had on himself that could coax the little child. ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you outside,¡± Fu Li tugged on Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, let¡¯s go.¡± Zhuang Qing shed Feng Ruizhong an apologetic smile before leaving with Fu Li without any hesitation. Not even one word of constion was uttered. Feng Ruizhong: ... Fu Li walked out of the office building and looked up at the snowkes floating in the sky. ¡°Zhuang little dragon.¡± ¡°En?¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at him. ¡°I¡¯m very happy.¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing hesitated for a moment and then reached out a hand, patting him gently on the head. Thinking of the Lunar New Year goods in the vi, and the rhyming couplet and ¡®Fu¡¯ word that had yet to be pasted, Zhuang Qing inwardly let out a lightugh. Since Fu Li had found his rtives, he would definitely gather with them more often. In any case, other than the years right after his birth when he had spent Lunar New Year¡¯s eve with his mother, he no longer celebrated man-made holidays, so it didn¡¯t matter. Upon arriving at the hotel, Zhuang Qing ordered a table full of dishes. Despite this, Feng Ruizhong was a bit restless. ¡°Little Li, we weren¡¯t intentionally trying to lie to you. We didn¡¯t have any other choice at that time,¡± Feng Ruizhong wore an anxious expression. He was scared that Fu Li would be angry, but also couldn¡¯t talk about the matter in detail. Despite being faced with a table full of dishes, he had no desire to move his chopsticks. ¡°I¡¯ve met Sister Zhu Yue,¡± Fu Li suddenly said. ¡°Is she with you now?¡± Feng Ruizhong stared nkly. The joy on his face couldn¡¯t be suppressed. ¡°She¡¯s still alive?!¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. Hedled out a scoop of soup into his bowl and did the same for Zhuang Qing. ¡°I don¡¯t know why all of you want to keep me in the dark, but if me knowing this will inconvenience all of you, then I¡¯ll just treat it as something I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°In any case, small as sparrows are, they have all the vital organs,¡± Fu Li smiled. ¡°There¡¯s no difference.¡± Feng Ruizhong looked at Fu Li, his moodplex. Although Fu Li was still very close to him, he couldn¡¯t not admit that Fu Li had matured a lot during the nearly two thousand years they had been apart. The little child they had doted on had matured even more than they had anticipated. Unfortunately, they hadn¡¯t been able to take part in this process. ¡°Actually, there¡¯s another person living in that worn-out house,¡± Feng Ruizhong thought about it and decided to sell out his teammate. ¡°Our mountain¡¯s great king is also there.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Fu Li eximed happily. ¡°Then why didn¡¯t hee out and see me that day?¡± ¡°He... might not have dared to,¡± Feng Ruizhong pondered over it. ¡°There is a saying in the human world called ¡®the closer to home, the greater the apprehension¡¯; us elders are ashamed to meet you. As long as you¡¯re living well, we can rest at ease.¡± All the adults in the house had thrown their sound-asleep child at home and feigned death to save their lives. Although they really weren¡¯t sure whether they would be able to survive at that time, they truly didn¡¯t have the confidence to appear in front of the child. Fu Li¡¯s smile brightened even further. ¡°Then I¡¯ll personally pay a visit to the great kingter on.¡± King Ganglie was currently using magic devices to refine female attendants, his entire head preupied with refining a bunch of female guards for Fu Li. At this point in time, he was still oblivious to the fact that he had already been sold out by his teammate. Chapter 109 - Those Years

Chapter 109 - Those Years

When they were about to finish their meal, Fu Li left the private room. Feng Ruizhong observed the iparably powerful auspicious qi on Zhuang Qing, who was seated opposite him. A wisp of a smile could be seen on his face. ¡°Many thanks, Dragon Emperor, for your care towards Little Li during this period.¡± ¡°If Uncle Feng has no objections, please call me by name,¡± Zhuang Qing put down his chopsticks and wiped the corners of his mouth. ¡°He and I care for each other, there is nothing much to thank me for. You¡¯re too polite, Uncle Feng.¡± Feng Ruizhong¡¯s good impression of Zhuang Qing deepened upon hearing these words. In the eyes of elders, juniors who attached great importance to friendship would always be pleasing. When Fu Li returned, the atmosphere between Zhuang Qing and Feng Ruizhong was pretty good. There was even some mention of dragons and an inheritance. Upon seeing him enter, Feng Ruizhong said, ¡°This child, Little Zhuang, is quite good.¡± ¡°I know he¡¯s very good, but what were you discussing? There¡¯s even a barrier set up in the room?¡± Fu Li discovered upon entry that there was a soundproofing barrier in the room. Fortunately, the waiters at this ce didn¡¯t randomly enter the rooms, otherwise they would assume that the two of them were putting on a miming show. ¡°You¡¯re young and don¡¯t understand that the walls have ears,¡± Feng Ruizhong removed the barrier and continued eating happily. Just thinking about the situation the mountain king would be inter put him in an especially good mood. Even ordinary human food became slightly tastier. When the three people left, Feng Ruizhong saw Fu Li take a strange round container from a human. He had no idea what it contained. After Fu Li paid a visit to the ¡®haunted house¡¯, Feng Ruizhong moved to the top of a great mountain afterpleting his identity registration. Looking at the glorious splendor that was the pce on the mountain, Fu Li wanted to say that it was an illegal building, but still held himself back. He nced at Zhuang Qing. The other party¡¯s expression was normal; he probably hadn¡¯t considered the issue of it being an ¡®illegal building¡¯. Therefore, Fu Li made a decision and tossed this matter to the back of his mind. ¡°This golden flying pce was originally made for you. Back when you said you wanted to go to the human world to gain experience after waking up, I was scared that you wouldn¡¯t befortable in human houses, so the King and I made a flying pce.¡± Feng Ruizhong knocked on the pce doors with a hand and the doors opened in response. Behind the doorsy pavilions, an exquisiteness beyondpare, along with many maid guards refined from magic treasures walking about. Faced with a pce unrivaled in its beauty, Zhuang Qing, who was walking beside Fu Li, very much doubted what experience Fu Li would be able to gain from the human world if the incident hadn¡¯t urred that year and the great yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain were this thoroughly prepared. ¡°Ever since the great king stole a look at you while hidden in that house, he¡¯s been thinking about the maid guards he didn¡¯t finish refining those years. He¡¯s constantly in the Divine Fire Hall the past few days, noting out.¡± Feng Ruizhong didn¡¯t bring Fu Li to the main hall, but instead chose to turn left. A Spiritual Gathering Formation had been added to the flying pce and spiritual qi was abundant. Even the flowers and nts inside looked like they had more vitality than the ones outside. In this flying pce, the Divine Pce Hall was used exclusively for refining weapons. Zhuang Qing remembered that Fu Li was not proficient at refining weapons. Naturally, he was also not proficient at pill-concoction. However, along the way, he had seen a Fragrant Pill Hall for the exclusive use of pill-concoction as well as abat practice arena. Zhuang Qing looked at Feng Ruizhong¡¯s back with a moved expression. Deep in the hearts of these great yao, perhaps they too had not been willing to be apart from Fu Li, so there were still many facilities they needed in the flying pce they had made. They had been unwilling to be apart, but were eventually separated for two thousand years. This was fate. Kang Gu was seated cross-legged in front of a furnace, refining wholeheartedly, when he heard the sound of footsteps. Without even identifying the qi, he directly said, ¡°Quick, give the furnace two puffs of fire. Magic tools refined with your true fire will be better.¡± Not hearing Feng Ruizhong¡¯s response, he looked back. The magic fan in his hands fell onto the floor with a ng. ¡°L-Little Li...¡± He climbed up from the floor and vigorously patted the bit of dust on his body. In the end, the more he patted, the dirtier he became. In a moment of desperation, he pped a cleaning skill on himself to make himself appear cleaner and livelier. After stammering for an eternity, Kang Gu finally voiced aplete statement, ¡°Have you eaten? I¡¯ll go make you some.¡± The air thickened at this moment. Fu Li¡¯s gaze was fixed on Kang Gu, who didn¡¯t know where to put his hands and feet. Fu Li abruptly broke into a smile. Kang Gu stared nkly, his simple and honest face filled with confusion. But when he saw Fu Li smiling happily, he touched the back of his head and also grinned. ¡°Long time no see, King,¡± Fu Li walked up to Kang Gu and reached out, hugging him. Fishing out something from his Qiankun pouch, he handed it to Kang Gu. ¡°For you.¡± Feng Ruizhong recognized it from the side. It was the thing the human had given to Fu Li when they were eating. ¡°Ai,¡± Kang Gu merrily epted the round container. Only after touching it all over did he ask, ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°Five grain rice made by a human chef,¡± Fu Li opened the cover of the instion container. The five grain rice inside was still giving off steam. ¡°The modern five grain rice isn¡¯t made the same way as in the past, but it¡¯s very delicious. Give it a try.¡± Kang Gu stared nkly as he held the container silently. Feng Ruizhong was also staring nkly. He hadn¡¯t expected Fu Li to specially bring Kang Gu a container of five grain rice. In the past, many little yao and humans had set up altars to make offerings to Kang Gu. Other than the five grain rice, Kang Gu had had no interest in the other offerings. However, these little yao and humans hadn¡¯t known this and often assumed that only offerings like cattle, goats, pigs, and so on could be considered grand. Later on, after they lived on Reflecting Mist Mountain in seclusion, they no longer received offerings from the human world and Kang Gu also no longer ate much ordinary food like five grain rice. When Fu Li was young, he had been fond of pestering the mountain¡¯s elders to tell him stories. Everyone had wanted to conceal their identities, but at the same time also wanted to tell the little child stories. Over time, Fu Li grew aware of many of their small pleasures. Who would have expected Fu Li to still remember this small pleasure after so many years had gone by? Kang Gu sat on the steps at the entrance to the Divine Hall Hall, holding up the lunchbox as he dug into the five grain rice. Fu Li quietly sat beside him. Feng Ruizhong and Zhuang Qing had disappeared to who-knows-where; only the two of them were in this ce. There were many questions Fu Li wanted to ask, but when he saw King Ganglie polish off every single grain of rice in the lunchbox, he said, ¡°If King likes it, I¡¯ll buy it for you again next time.¡± Kang Gu ced the lid back on the lunchbox. Taking advantage of a moment when Fu Li wasn¡¯t paying attention, he secretly hid the lunchbox in his Qiankun pouch. This was something their family¡¯s little child had specially brought back for him, he had to keep it well. The strong winds on the mountain violently blew against the wide-sleeved gown Kang Gu was wearing, revealing the injuries on his arm so deep that bone could be seen. Fu Li hugged his knees, cocking his head at him. ¡°Where has King been these years?¡± Injuries could not easily be left on the body of a yao, unless the injuries couldn¡¯t heal due to a wounded inner core. Just like the wound on Zhuang little dragon at that time, and... the wounds on King Ganglie¡¯s arm. ¡°N-Nowhere in particr, I just couldn¡¯te out for a while,¡± Kang Gu stammered out this short reply. His gaze flitted back and forth, not daring to focus on Fu Li. ¡°I met Sister Zhu Yue a while back, she wasn¡¯t willing to tell me what happened that year,¡± Fu Liughed lightly. ¡°I know all of you are doing this for my sake, so I¡¯m very happy just knowing that you¡¯re still alive.¡± A hint of happiness could be seen on Kang Gu¡¯s face after he learned that Zhu Yue was still alive, but his heart started aching again when he saw how Fu Li was smiling. It was them who had picked Fu Li up from the East Sea that year. Fu Li had only been a tiny thing at that time, resembling a little mouse that had just grown fur. Despite this, the sound of his cries were so earth-shattering that it sent all the life forms within a hundred li radius of him scampering off. But only him and Old Xing knew that he wasn¡¯t a mouse or a rabbit, but a newborn yao beast born through an opportunity bestowed by Heaven and Earth. The little yao beast thaty sprawled on hard stone was bawling loudly, but the instant it saw him, its cries stopped abruptly and it persistently crawled towards him on its four soft, short legs. In the end, every crawl was apanied by three tumbles. It didn¡¯t crawl very far even after a long time had passed. Kang Gu understood in his heart that he and Old Xing should have turned and left based on the situation at that time. But when he saw the little yao beast crawling as if its life depended on it, his heart inexplicably softened. He made up his mind ¨C if this little yao crawled to him within the time it took to burn one incense stick, he would bring him home. One incense stickter, the little yao beast had only covered one-third of the distance. Looking at the little yao beast¡¯s four limbs which were bleeding from friction, Kang Gu didn¡¯t budge. Two incense stickster, the little yao beast finally made it to the halfway mark. Three incense stickster, Kang Gu picked the little yao beast up from the ground and cradled it in his embrace. Anyway, there was an eighth or ninth-tenth chance that it would die if it was thrown outside. For better or worse, it would be able to live a few good years with them. Kang Gu hadn¡¯t known what was the thing he had picked up at that time, and the little yao beast also hadn¡¯t known who had brought him away. ¡°Little Li, we shouldn¡¯t have lied to you during those years,¡± Kang Gu rubbed Fu Li¡¯s head with a gentle expression. ¡°You¡¯ve already safely passed the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, so you probably know that you¡¯re not a rabbit but a yao beast born and raised by the Heavens and Earth.¡± ¡°Not Heaven and Earth, it was all of you who raised me,¡± Fu Li squinted and smiled. ¡°Without all of you, there would be no me.¡± Kang Gu¡¯s expression shifted, his heart melting into a puddle. This was the cute and gentle little child they had raised. ¡°That year...¡± ¡°Kang Gu didn¡¯t know Little Li was a Hou when he brought him back that year,¡± Feng Rizhong was seated beside the spiritual spring. He poured Zhuang Qing a cup of spiritual tea. ¡°There are forty-nine restriction formations on this flying pce. When all the restriction formations are activated, even heavenlyw can be deceived for a while.¡± There was a faint guess in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. Back when these great yao had made the flying pce, they might not have done so so that Fu Li could go to the human world, but because they wanted to help him avoid... heavenlyw? Why did they think that heavenlyw wouldn¡¯t let Fu Li off? As if perceiving Zhuang Qing¡¯s doubts, Feng Ruizhong said, ¡°The Hou is a yao beast born and raised by Heaven and Earth. His soul is formed from Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi, as well as the seven emotions and six desires. Five-colored stone forms his body. Only after he took shape through a chance from Heaven and Earth was he considered truly born. When Kang Gu brought Little Li to Reflecting Mist Mountain, the Baize who is all-knowing about matters regarding Heaven and Earth was forthright with us that Fu Li possessed a fiend¡¯s qi by nature and would someday be a fiend who would cause cmity and chaos in the world. Even so, we were able to evade the eyes of heavenlyw with his help.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was a bit unpleasant. ¡°So all of you lied to him?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Feng Ruizhong smiled bitterly. ¡°The newborn Hou was confused and ignorant. In addition, he was the sole Hou in the world, so he didn¡¯t have any inherited memories from his race. We let him believe that he was an ordinary rabbit and that we were ordinary yao cultivators. By relying on his mistaken understanding, we hid from the eyes of heavenlyw.¡± Zhuang Qing was a little upset. These lofty auspicious beasts who had been worshipped by countless life forms had actually raised Fu Li with such thoughts? ¡°Why tell me this?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s face was taut. ¡°You¡¯re not afraid that I would tell Fu Li?¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing much that can¡¯t be said. We only raised Little Li to be a bit more pure and kind, but he¡¯s not an idiot. Sooner orter, he will guess the truth behind that year,¡± Feng Ruizhong¡¯s smile became even more pained. ¡°We have received boundless worship from other creatures and had innumerable servants by our sides who served us willingly. We thought ourselves omnipotent, but we had never raised a little yao beast before. He was such a tiny, soft thing. We were scared that we would hurt him just by carrying him in our hands. We had no way of imagining how such a cute little child could turn into a fiend. We often thought that perhaps it was us who divined wrongly.¡± ¡°We thought about it every single day and divined every one of those days. We divined again and again, but not only did we fail to divine this little child¡¯s chance of living, we also failed to divine our emotions. Raising the little child took a lot of effort and a lot of emotion. Everything about our family¡¯s child was good ¨C even if there was a possibility he would be a fiend, it wouldn¡¯t be his fault,¡± Feng Ruizhong sighed. Even when he uttered unreasonable words, he still exhibited conviction and confidence. ¡°We divined countless fates for him. Even if it was the Baize who carried out the divination, Fu Li¡¯s ending... was always to plunge the human world into chaos and eventually perish under the punishment of heavenlyw.¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible!¡± Zhuang Qing interrupted Feng Ruizhong. ¡°How could someone like him whose mind is fixated on bing a civil servant, a yao who was taught by all of you to be friendly to humans, plunge the human world into chaos?¡± Feng Ruizhong watched this steady junior reveal an infuriated and anxious appearance, and thest bit of worry in his heart vanished without a trace. ¡°Because his fate has changed.¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. What did the many incidents that urred at Reflecting Mist Mountain have to do with a change in Fu Li¡¯s fate? ¡°Fu Li¡¯s fate already started changing when he rescued that human at the bottom of the mountain.¡± Feng Ruizhong looked at Zhuang Qing with aplex gaze. ¡°Perhaps this is the chance at survival that heavenlyw gave Little Li.¡± Zhuang Qing was stunned. ¡°You mean the human pet that Fu Li mentioned?¡± Chapter 110 - Together

Chapter 110 - Together

¡°Fu Li has mentioned him to you?¡± Feng Ruizhong smiled. Picking up the teapot, he poured Zhuang Qing a cup of tea. ¡°These tea leaves are two thousand years old Chen dynasty tea, but they¡¯ve been kept fresh in a Qiankun pouch. Try it.¡± Zhuang Qing took a sip of the tea. Without savoring the taste, he continued asking, ¡°He was very important to Fu Li?¡± ¡°Little Li is a very responsible owner, and that was his first and only pet,¡± There wasn¡¯t much emotion in Feng Ruizhong¡¯s voice when he mentioned this human. ¡°Unfortunately, this human had a limited lifespan and was only by Little Li¡¯s side for not more than five years before passing away from illness.¡± Zhuang Qing once again recalled the conversation between the underworld¡¯s yinchai chief and Fu Li outside Affinity Moon Hotel when he had just gotten to know Fu Li. ¡°After Little Li buried him, he sunk into a deep sleep,¡± The edges of Feng Ruizhong¡¯s eyelids were a faint red-golden color. When he fiddled with the teacups with a lowered head, he appeared arrogant and cold. Zhuang Qing could not find any simrity between him and the yful little sparrow Fu Li had described. ¡°The humans have a saying called ¡®God¡¯s ns supersede our own¡¯. Just when we thought that we had hid from the eyes of heavenlyw, the azure dragon n egotistically stirred up chaos, causing the entire Wei River to flood many areas. Countless people died in the flood,¡± Feng Ruizhong¡¯s voice was cold. ¡°If we hid in the mountains and didn¡¯t go out, the number of people struck by the disaster would only increase. But if we went out to stop the azure dragon n, we would definitely be discovered by heavenlyw.¡± ¡°Heavenlyw no longer tolerates the existence of powerful yao cultivators in the world. It wants to build an era without magic, one that belongs to ordinary humans,¡± Feng Ruizhong paused. ¡°You¡¯re very clever. By guiding the cultivators to sneak into the human world and live there, you have allowed heavenlyw to recognize this method of interaction, leaving the yao race a chance to live.¡± Whether heavenlyw was fair or unfair could not be said. During the era of the ancient great yao, the yao race had upied nearly all the continents, and the other living creatures were mere fish meat in the mouths of the great yao. Only by prostrating themselves in front of the great yao could fish meat struggle on at death¡¯s door. Later on, the human race gradually thrived. They too had to make offerings to the various yao gods before they could have favorable weather to live on. The divine yao continued to remain aloof and lofty as they treated humans as ythings. Thissted until the great yao gradually disappeared or passed on, and the human ability to create became stronger and stronger. The grand days of the divine yao then started toe to an end, weing the magic-free era of the humans. The humans now were akin to the yao cultivators back then ¨C they sought all the world¡¯s resources without the slightest restraint, stood at the peak of all living creatures, and schemed against each other without any worries. But who could guarantee that human glory would always remain as it was? If the things heavenlyw bestowed on all living creatures in the world were not treasured, there woulde a day when heavenlyw would take them all back. ¡°It was also Heaven¡¯s Will that the Holy Beast Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance was given to you,¡± Feng Ruizhong looked up at the sky. ¡°These forty-nine barriers can¡¯t hold on for much longer. If you have anything more you want to ask, take this chance to do so. I¡¯ll tell you everything.¡± ¡°All of you evaded the eyes of heavenlyw through painstaking efforts that year, so why dare toe out now?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Feng Ruizhong. ¡°Back in those years, you could asionally leave the mountain because you deceived Fu Li, allowing all of you to hide under the eyes of heavenlyw with the identities of ordinary yao cultivators. But your identities have already been exposed now, so why is there no reaction from heavenlyw now that you¡¯ve appeared?¡± ¡°You¡¯re very intelligent,¡± Feng Ruizhong smiled. ¡°Because, since the start of this year, the age of the humans have already reached their peak. Us yao cultivators can struggle for survival in the human world as long as our behavior isn¡¯t over-the-top, just like how the humans in those years did in the presence of the divine yao.¡± There was a subtle change in Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression. He wanted to ask more when there was an abrupt cracking sound from the barrier. Something seemed to have split, but at the same time, everything seemed normal. Zhuang Qing knew that he couldn¡¯t continue asking, even if he felt that Feng Ruizhong had left certain things out in his answers. ¡°This type of tea is called Hongfang tea, and the leaves were plucked from Kunlun Mountain. Unfortunately, this type of tea has all withered up now due to insufficient spiritual qi. The one you¡¯re drinking now is an out-of-print version, so savor it well, don¡¯t waste it,¡± Feng Ruizhong looked a littlezy. He threw a spiritual stone into the spiritual spring, causing the golden lotuses inside to tremble. Zhuang Qing watched the spiritual stone sink to the bottom of the spring. The hand holding his teacup tightened and then rxed again. ¡°That human pet has already been reincarnated, right?¡± Zhuang Qing looked down at the surface of the cup. His eyes were reflected in the water. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see the jealousy in his heart. ¡°Maybe,¡± Feng Ruizhong threw two medicinal pills into the spiritual spring. The koi yao inside leaped out of the water and swallowed the medicinal pill, its golden fish tail carving a pretty arc in the air. ¡°That human had the fate of a monarch for three lives ¨C a good emperor who would benefit both the country and the people. We might even be able to guess which three he was by flipping through the history books.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent. Fu Li had been preparing to enter universitytely; did he guess which emperor was his pet while revising history? ¡°So fragrant,¡± Fu Li walked in. There was even a bodyguard and pce maid crafted through divine devices following behind him. He had changed into the attire he wore on Reflecting Mist Mountain during those years, perhaps to make his elders happy. The magic robe was gorgeous but also capable of warding off the attacks of a great yao, while his magic band was refined from divine stone. An abundance of spiritual qi rolled off his entire body. Seeing that Fu Li had entered, Feng Ruizhong¡¯s careless appearance instantly became much more proper. A kind smile adorned his face. ¡°You look better dressed this way, how can our family¡¯s child wear those rags? Make do with this attire first, the King and I will make a few more magic clothes in the style of the current human worldter. It¡¯s a pity that the humans now are too casual ¨C they cut their hair on a whim and don¡¯t even use a hairband. We can only make you a few more hats to make do with.¡± Having witnessed firsthand how these formidable parents pampered the younger generation to no end, Zhuang Qing was already certain that Fu Li¡¯s bad habit of giving things away by the handful originated from these elders. In their eyes, the things others considered exceedingly precious treasures were nothing more than toys, so they felt no heartache even if they gave them away. Apart from his good behavior, there wasn¡¯t much difference between Fu Li and a hedonistic son of rich parents in the human world. ¡°You¡¯re still going to work in the afternoon?¡± Feng Ruizhong stroked the magic clothes Fu Li was wearing, a little regretful that Fu Li couldn¡¯t wear it a while longer. He said at once, ¡°You sit here with Zhuang Qing for a while. Your Uncle Ganglie and I will make a set of magic clothes you can wear outside right now.¡± ¡°Uncle Feng, I don¡¯t need...¡± ¡°How can you not need it? Look at the life you¡¯re leading without us around,¡± Feng Ruizhong fished out a pile of tea, fruit, and pastries, cing them on the table before walking off in a haste, intending to finish making the clothes before Fu Li went to work. Fu Li sat at Feng Ruizhong¡¯s seat and asked Zhuang Qing, ¡°King Ganglie and I were chatting about some entertaining stories just now, were you bored sitting here?¡± ¡°No, Senior Feng is very humorous,¡± Zhuang Qing took an empty cup and poured Fu Li a cup of good tea. Holding up his teacup, he said, ¡°Congrattions on reuniting with your elders.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li toasted Zhuang Qing, took a sip of the tea, and instantly smiled till his eyes curved into crescents. ¡°It¡¯s actually Hongfang tea, I knew that Little Sparrow... Uncle Feng has the most good things on him.¡± He ate a few of the spiritual fruits he had casually taken from the te, and then threw one into the spiritual spring. Watching the golden koi fly up high into the air to snatch the food, he smiled at Zhuang Qing. ¡°The color of its scales are very pretty, a little like you.¡± Seeing the identical way he and Feng Ruizhong behaved, Zhuang Qing was almost certain that the great yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain had never taught Fu Li the concept of using things sparingly. But when he heard Fu Li praising the koi, he still offered a reaction, ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°En, although its scales aren¡¯t as good-looking as yours,¡± Fu Li held up his teacup, smiling as he ate. The smile on his face hadn¡¯t faded even once since he came in, probably because of his good mood. ¡°I remember you saying that you dislike furless animals?¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow. ¡°You¡¯re special,¡± Fu Li coughed dryly. ¡°You have to think in this way ¨C I hate the dragon race so much but I still praised your good looks, it¡¯s clear you¡¯re very good-looking.¡± Zhuang Qing let out a lightugh at his facious reasoning. ¡°Do you still want to be a civil servant now that you¡¯ve found your elders?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze was fixed on Fu Li, as if he was searching for a certain answer from his eyes. ¡°Of course, I came to the human world to gain experience,¡± Fu Li said seriously. ¡°The first step is to get a university degree.¡± ¡°En, this ambition is a far-reaching one. Good luck,¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips curved. ¡°Need me to give you lessons?¡± Fu Li recalled Zhang Ke telling him that Zhuang Qing had obtained top marks in the imperial examinations, was once a great official, and had obtained all sorts of academic degrees. Instantly, he was filled with deep veneration for this study god of the yao world. ¡°Yes yes yes.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll start lessons after Lunar New Year¡¯s eve,¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at the koi swimming about in the spring. Its tail did indeed have some charm, but not as much as his. One hourter, Feng Ruizhong walked in with Kang Gu,rge bags in hand. ¡°Come, both of you go change in the hall,¡± Feng Ruizhong stuffed a bag each into Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°We¡¯re short on time, so we only managed to make a coat and shoes with simple patterns. We¡¯ll make a few more sets for both of youter on.¡± Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t expected to receive one as well. He stared nkly as he held the bag of clothes. ¡°Little golden dragon, don¡¯t nk out. Little Li will be done changing soon,¡± Kang Gu patted Zhuang Qing on the shoulder. Coming to his senses, Zhuang Qing solemnly expressed his thanks to them. ¡°This child is quite polite,¡± Kang Gu stroked his chin, speaking to Feng Ruizhong. ¡°It¡¯s just that his personality is a little subdued, not at all like the personality of a dragon.¡± ¡°Work your pig¡¯s brain a bit. If he had the dragon race¡¯s rotten personality, how could our family¡¯s child have made friends with him?¡± Feng Ruizhong responded. ¡°This child has a steady personality, considers things from all angles, and possesses profound virtue. I can rest at ease with our child having such a friend.¡± Kang Gu: ¡°Can you stop calling me pig¡¯s brain?¡± ¡°Are you not a pig? If you¡¯re not a pig, would you have dropped your hair in the human world and stirred up such a bigmotion?¡± Feng Ruizhongughed coldly. ¡°The way I see it, your brain was damaged after being frozen for a thousand years. Since you managed to leave the ice after much difficulty, don¡¯t get sent back in by heavenlyw¡¯s lightning.¡± Kang Gu: ... Fu Li changed into the clothes his elders had specially made, turned around, and saw that Zhuang Qing had also changed into his. Standing by the window, he nced out. King Ganglie was arguing with Uncle Feng again. In the past, the little sparrow frequently helped the King refine tools on the mountain. In the end, they would end up quarreling while refining. Fu Li was already used to it. ¡°Are we going down the mountain now?¡± Zhuang Qing saw Fu Li leaning against the window, watching Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu. Knowing that he couldn¡¯t bear to part with his two elders, Zhuang Qing said, ¡°I¡¯ll permit you to go on holiday in advance this afternoon, I¡¯ll rush over.¡± ¡°How can I let you go back alone? We agreed to share in blessings and shoulder challenges together,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s thest day of work this year. I have to apany you till work ends, otherwise what kind of brother would I be?¡± Fu Li told his two elders through sound transmission that they would be heading to work, and then pulled on Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm, leaving the flying pce and arriving at Zhuang Qing¡¯s car. ¡°Go go go, let¡¯s quickly get to work. We¡¯ll be on holiday after it ends.¡± At work in the afternoon, several staff belonging to sects had already applied for leave to go home. Zhuang Qing, who was usually very strict, was easier to talk to at this time and approved any request for leave. They were now promoting yao rehabilitation, so even the yao criminals locked below ground would receive the new year gift bags distributed by the management bureau. These bags contained nothing more than some melon seeds, biscuits, sweets, and so on, but Fu Li and Song Yu still received a warm wee by the yao criminals when they went to distribute the bags. ¡°Fu ge, will you be spending Lunar New Year¡¯s eve with Zhuang Qing?¡± Song Yu noticed theplicated patterns and protective restriction on Fu Li¡¯s clothes. Cold sweat seeped out of his body profusely. Which yao cultivator made such a powerful coat? ¡°En, of course I¡¯ll be with him,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°He isn¡¯t on good terms with those aquatic yao cultivators, of course I¡¯ll be apanying him.¡± ¡°Your rtionship is so good,¡± Song Yu was a little moved. Back when he was beaten up by Fu Li till his feathers filled the sky, he really hadn¡¯t thought that Fu Li and Zhuang Qing would end up together. ¡°But since you and Zhuang Qing have such a good rtionship, why not hold a Dao Bonding Ceremony and give him some status?¡± ¡°Dao Bonding Ceremony?!¡± Fu Li thought that he had heard wrongly and turned to look at Song Yu. ¡°Why must a Dao Bonding Ceremony be held?¡± ¡°The entire cultivation world knows you¡¯re together but you still don¡¯t want to take responsibility, where do you want Zhuang Qing to stand?¡± Song Yu was shocked. Fu ge was usually quite supportive of the human world¡¯s monogamous system, and he had even said that everyone, regardless whether they were yao or human, had to have morals and take responsibility. Who would have expected him not to take responsibility once he was the one involved? He really hadn¡¯t expected Fu ge to be such a hypocritical yao. Fu Li: ... There was something not quite right about this matter, he had to straighten things out properly. ¡°What are you standing here for?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over expressionlessly. ¡°Have the gift bags been given out?¡± Fu Li was silent while Song Yu hurriedly shook his head. ¡°You still have the time to chat idly when they haven¡¯t been distributed?¡± Zhuang Qing took the bag from Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll apany you.¡± Fu Li stole a peek at Zhuang Qing. Weren¡¯t the two of them very normal, where did the rumors outsidee from? ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Zhuang Qing opened a prison cell¡¯s window and shoved the bag containing sweets and biscuits inside. The yao cultivator behind the door epted the bag. Leaning against the window, the yao cultivator nced at Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, saying fawningly, ¡°Are these sweets from the Dragon Emperor and Fu daojun? I wish you two eternal unity and a lifetime of happiness.¡± Finishing this statement, the yao cultivator picked up the bag and happily ran off into the distance. Fu Li: ... Even the imprisoned yao criminals knew of this rumor? He thought about how Zhuang Qing had just reached adulthood and became the emperor of the aquatic races, but ended up having his reputation spoiled by him. His sin was too great. ¡°The little yao nowadays really like talking nonsense,¡± Fu Li took another bag containing a gift box from his Qiankun pouch and walked over to another room, opening the window. This time, Fu Li was familiar with the person standing behind the door. It was Seventh Uncle Sun, the dog yao who had been imprisoned after creating fake identification. ¡°It¡¯s Little Fu,¡± Seventh Uncle Sun epted therge bag Fu Li handed to him. Sneaking a look at Zhuang Qing, he told Fu Li in a low voice, ¡°A yao can¡¯t be judged by appearance; Little Fu, you¡¯re really powerful, even managing to take down our yao world¡¯s lofty flower. You don¡¯t have to say anything, I¡¯ll definitely have a good drink with you when I get out of jail one monthter.¡± Fu Li: ... He looked back at Zhuang Qing somewhat guiltily. Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was normal, as if he didn¡¯t care about these rumors. He secretly heaved a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t the sort of yao who would get angry out of nowhere, otherwise it might be a bit awkward today. After all the gift bags were distributed, Song Yu ran far away with the register. As a yao with self-awareness, he definitely wouldn¡¯t be the two people¡¯s lightbulb. Fu Li watched Song Yu run off into the distance, his moodplex. If he¡¯d learnt about this earlier, he would have given him a good beating at that time. He ran faster than anyone else the moment there was trouble, yet he still said he wanted to be his little brother. What use did he have for such a little brother? ¡°Those words...¡± Fu Li¡¯s fingers ran over his coat. ¡°You heard them?¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing turned and walked up the stairs. Fu Li hastily followed after him. ¡°I think these rumors might be a bit over-the-top.¡± Fu Li saw Zhuang Qinge to a halt and hurriedly said, ¡°But these little yao are just spreading it randomly, don¡¯t take it to heart.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t take it to heart,¡± Zhuang Qing turned to face him. ¡°Did you take it to heart?¡± ¡°N-No,¡± Fu Li hastily shook his head. ¡°Humph,¡± Zhuang Qing gave an ambiguous snort. ¡°Since you don¡¯t mind, I don¡¯t mind it either. What are you talking about this for?¡± ¡°I was worried you would be unhappy,¡± As the senior, Fu Li felt that he should consider things a bit more thoroughly. ¡°It¡¯s about to be the new year, it won¡¯t be good if you¡¯re unhappy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re overthinking, I¡¯m very happy,¡± Zhuang Qing said with a taut face. ¡°Also, I have something to discuss with you,¡± Fu Li pulled on Zhuang Qing. ¡°How about not spending Lunar New Year¡¯s eve at your house?¡± Zhuang Qing looked down at the hand grabbing his arm. He was silent for a few seconds. When he raised his head, his expression was calm. ¡°Okay.¡± He shook off Fu Li¡¯s hand, turned, and left. ¡°Then let¡¯s move the food to the flying pce after work.¡± ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing turned towards Fu Li, the corners of his lips slightly curved. The smile he directed at Fu Li was very polite. ¡°I won¡¯t object to you not spending the new year at my ce, but aren¡¯t you using your age to bully me if you still want to take the food I bought?¡± Fu Li was stunned. He didn¡¯t understand why Zhuang Qing would say such a thing. ¡°I want you to spend the new year together with me at the flying pce. If we leave so much food at home, it¡¯ll spoil right?¡± Chapter 111 - Misunderstanding

Chapter 111 - Misunderstanding

Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li. A long whileter, he suddenlyughed. Walking to Fu Li, he leaned forward slightly. The distance between him and Fu Li was so minuscule that the other¡¯s breathing could be felt. ¡°I feel silly, how can I hope for a blockhead like you to understand so much?¡± ¡°Zhuang little dragon, you seem to be making personal attacks on me?¡± Fu Li was already used to Zhuang Qing being in close proximity, so he didn¡¯t dodge or evade Zhuang Qing even when he closed in abruptly. Instead, he reached out intimately and poked Zhuang Qing¡¯s forehead. ¡°Impudent, who¡¯s a blockhead?¡± Zhuang Qingughed lightly. Walking over to Fu Li¡¯s side, they advanced shoulder-to-shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Where to?¡± Fu Li felt the hand Zhuang Qing ced on his shoulder and patted the other party¡¯s hand. ¡°More food must be prepared when eating with elders,¡± Zhuang Qing led Fu Li out. ¡°They haven¡¯t been in the human world for so many years and must be interested in human delicacies, let¡¯s go to the supermarket and prepare a bit more.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not working anymore?¡± Fu Li nced at the time. There was still more than forty minutes before they could get off work. Zhuang Qing raised a brow. ¡°As the leader, I also asionally want to arrivete and leave early.¡± Saying this, he dragged Fu Li out of the underground Spirit Lock Formation. ¡°It¡¯s good to be young,¡± The Kunpeng watched the two juniors walk out of the main door shoulder-to-shoulder as he leaned over the railing. He spoke to Gong Fu, ¡°Even natural enemies can be together, is this the legendary miracle borne from love?¡± After passing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion, Fu Lipleted his evolution into the great yao beast Hou. The Hou¡¯s diet was varied, but dragon meat ought to be a major source of nourishment for a Hou. Fu Li was with Zhuang Qing every day, yet he could actually endure the temptation of delicious food. His self-control really couldn¡¯t bepared to the average yao. Gong Fu smiled. ¡°This is a miracle of life.¡± Changes in predetermined fates never failed to put him in an especially good mood. ncing around at the employees avoiding them, he told the Kunpeng, ¡°Let¡¯s go back to sleep.¡± If they continued to stand around, these juniors would be scared out of their wits. The Kunpeng nced with distaste at these cowardly bureau cultivators. He shook his head with a sigh. Truly the misfortune of the cultivation world. Despite the fact that there were a lot less people in the capital than usual, festive songs were ying in many shops along the streets and alleys while rednterns swayed back and forth in the wind. There was some semnce of the Lunar New Year¡¯s festive atmosphere. The supermarket was ying ssic new year songs. The moment Fu Li stepped into the supermarket, he received a leaflet stating that a small red dragon figure would be given if more than five hundred yuan was spent, and that a dragon and rabbit figure would be given if more than eight hundred yuan was spent. Only then did the two people remember that it was the Year of the Rabbit this year, and after tomorrow night, it would be the Year of the Dragon. ncing at the photo on the leaflet, Fu Li said to Zhuang Qing. ¡°These two figures are quite cute.¡± ¡°En.¡± Zhuang Qing whispered into his ear, ¡°It¡¯s a pity you don¡¯t look like a rabbit now and more like a Samoyed.¡± ¡°I can look back on my childhood,¡± Fu Li shoved Zhuang Qing the shopping cart. ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go. We can buy a few more things and get theplimentary dragon and rabbit figures if we make up eight hundred yuan.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... Was it a bargain just because there wereplimentary gifts? Fu Li piled the cart high with all sorts of meat. When they arrived at the cereals and oils section, Fu Li was dazzled by the various brands of cooking oil. He squatted in front of the shelves and looked up at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Which oil is good?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t like being in the kitchen, so don¡¯t use this kind of question to make things hard for yourself,¡± Zhuang Qing picked out a bottle of oil and ced it into the shopping cart. ¡°We don¡¯t have to buy vegetables. I got the Fields Sect to prepare them, we¡¯ll go to their sect to retrieve them at night.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded as he looked at the nearly-full cart piled with all sorts of things. ¡°But what did you buy those gift bags for? It¡¯s not like they¡¯re of much use.¡± Zhuang Qing replied with a serene expression, ¡°Didn¡¯t you see on the leaflet that they¡¯ll give a four-piece natural silk bed set on top of the dragon and rabbit figures if more than five thousand is spent?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Understanding dawned on Fu Li. ¡°You want to make up the amount?¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the shopping cart to the red wine section and picked out a bottle of the best red wine. He didn¡¯t have the habit of hoarding red wine, nor did he have any 80s Lafite, 70s Bordeaux, and so on. He could only randomly buy two bottles at the supermarket to join in the liveliness. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, you have really attained the way of housekeeping.¡± Fu Li watched Zhuang Qing buy the red wine and said softly, ¡°I don¡¯t like drinking red wine.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Zhuang Qing said into his ear. ¡°I don¡¯t like drinking it either, it¡¯s just to fit in with the current situation.¡± After passing through the red wine section, they entered the section where various major local wine brands were sold. A young boy and girl were choosing items &#k2013; the boy pushing arge cart of items wanted to buy the most expensive wine, but the girl didn¡¯t seem very willing. ¡°You¡¯ve already bought so many things, why buy wine too? Don¡¯t waste money, my dad isn¡¯t very fond of wine.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my first time going to your house to pay respects to the elders, there cannot be the slightest negligence,¡± The boy gently kissed the crown of the girl¡¯s head. ¡°What if they¡¯re not willing to let you marry me when the timees? Didn¡¯t you sayst time that you wanted to buy the natural silk quilt? If we make up five thousand, the supermarket will give us a set, what value for money.¡± ¡°You really are...¡± The bashful yet angry girl gave the boy a light pat. When she raised her head and caught sight of Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, her face reddened even further. Fu Li: ... He looked at his shopping cart, and then looked at the things in the couple¡¯s shopping cart. He inexplicably thought of the rumors surrounding him and Zhuang Qing. They really did seem... to resemble the humans¡¯ attitudes when meeting their partner¡¯s parents. ¡°You want to buy this wine?¡± Zhuang Qing asked in a low voice. Fu Li shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of wine that has been fermenting for thousands of years at home, this wine isn¡¯t good.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Zhuang Qing brought Fu Li to the snacks section, as if not noticing something off about Fu Li. ¡°See if there¡¯s anything you want to eat.¡± Fu Li buried his head and started looking through. After taking a few boxes of chocte ced at the top, he discovered a few human girls holding up their phones behind the shelf. The girls¡¯ gazes met Fu Li¡¯s, and they hid their phones behind their back with awkward expressions. Fu Li didn¡¯t pay any heed to their actions. He smiled at them, stuffed the chocte boxes into the shopping cart, and then said with a face of worry, ¡°It¡¯s full.¡± ¡°Wait here first,¡± Zhuang Qing stuffed the shopping cart filled to the brim in Fu Li¡¯s hands, strode off with his long legs, and then pushed another empty cart over, sweeping all the snacks that Fu Li might have interest in off the shelves and into the cart. ¡°Let¡¯s look around and see if there¡¯s anything else to buy?¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded and followed behind Zhuang Qing, heading towards the cooked food section. Only when the two people were a distance away did the girls cover their faces and say softly, ¡°Chairman Zhuang unexpectedly came with his family¡¯s Little Assistant to the supermarket to shop, how sweet and down-to-earth. Chairman Zhuang was so handsome when sweeping the snacks off the shelves and into the cart.¡± ¡°Little Assistant looks so gentle when he smiles, he didn¡¯t even me us when he saw us secretly taking photos,¡± The girls looked at the videos and photos on their phones. On one hand, they were concerned that sharing the videos would bring trouble to Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, but on the other hand, they wanted to share with everyone the dog food they had eaten. There was a tug of war practically going on in their hearts. Not being able to voice a secret was a torture. The two of them bought too many things. The cashier spent an eternity scanning the barcodes before reporting the cost. ¡°A total of 4956 yuan, thank you for your patronage.¡± ¡°Still short of 44 yuan?¡± Zhuang Qing paused while fishing out his phone. His gaze swept across the little shelves at the side. Finding a box of strawberry-vored chewing gum marked with the price of 68 yuan, he smoothly took a box. ¡°Add this.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± The cashier revealed a smile as they scanned the barcode on the chewing gum. ¡°After footing the bill, please bring your receipt to the gift section on the right to retrieve your gifts.¡± ¡°Many thanks,¡± Zhuang Qing used his phone to pay, picked up the shopping bags of all sizes, and walked out of the payment section with Fu Li. After receiving the various gifts, they werepletelyden down with shopping bags. When they walked out of the supermarket, Fu Li heard a song ying at a nearby shop. A woman was cheerfully singing ¡®a chicken in the left hand, a duck in the right hand, and a fat doll on the back¡¯. He told Zhuang Qing, ¡°Isn¡¯t the way we look now simr to what¡¯s being sung?¡± ¡°Which family¡¯s daughter-inw is she? Ah, she walks very busily.¡± ¡°Turns out she¡¯s returning to her parents¡¯ home.¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at him, ¡°Simr?¡± Fu Li: ... If this misunderstanding were to carry on, he might really have to take responsibility for Zhuang little dragon. He didn¡¯t know if these rumors getting out would affect Zhuang little dragon in his search for a wife either. Fu Li thought about it carefully and felt that there might not be any female yao in the cultivation world who was worthy of Zhuang Qing. He felt a sense of relief. For a yao who had just reached adulthood, what was most important was their career. There was no need to be in a hurry to marry. After stuffing everything into the boot, Fu Li squeezed himself into the front passenger seat and asked Zhuang Qing, ¡°Why do humans want to create so many holidays, don¡¯t they find it bothersome?¡± ¡°This is probably a kind of emotional need humans have,¡± Zhuang Qing started up the car. ¡°Human emotions are veryplex. To them, holidays are emotions and happiness, and holidays make their lives a bit more interesting.¡± ¡°Is it also because of this that the cultivation world adopts human holidays?¡± Fu Li peeled off his coat and closed the car windows. ¡°Maybe. Boredom happens after living for a long time and we then search for things to do. No race is better than the humans when ites to ying,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li. ¡°Buckle your seatbelt.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li buckled his seatbelt. ¡°You¡¯re right. When ites to ying, there really isn¡¯t any creature that¡¯s superior to humans.¡± Upon returning to the vi, Zhuang Qng went to arrange the things in the kitchen and icebox while Fu Li tidied up the things they had bought from the supermarket and determined the ones they would need to bring to the flying pce. Theplimentary gifts were all left behind, along with a portion of the snacks. All the raw meat and cooked food would be brought along. ¡°This box of chewing gum is so big,¡± Fu Li spotted a box of chewing gum inside. Feeling a bit bored with the house chores, he got ready to tear it open and eat a piece. The box contained tiny square-shaped stic bags, inside which was not chewing gum but a certain tool that prevented reproduction. Fu Li clutched the tiny, thin bags with aplex expression. Why had Zhuang Qing bought these? ¡°Zhuang little dragon, what did you buy this for?¡± As a yao cultivator, Fu Li felt that healthy mating was not too embarrassing to mention. He just couldn¡¯t understand why he didn¡¯t know who Zhuang Qing had developed an impulse to mate with despite being with him nearly every day. Zhuang Qing ced the pickled pepper chicken feet he had made into his Qiankun pouch. Seeing Fu Li holding up the box of chewing gum he had bought, he said smoothly, ¡°Bought it for you, strawberry-vored things aren¡¯t bad.¡± Fu Li¡¯s hand shook slightly. He stuffed the box and tiny stic bags into his Qiankun pouch. Was he the person Zhuang little dragon wanted to mate with? ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing ced a te of pecans in front of Fu Li. ¡°Eat some pecans first, I¡¯ll be done packing everything up soon. I picked that up on the spur of the moment just now, get another vor next time if you don¡¯t like the strawberry vor.¡± ¡°This...¡± Fu Li was somewhat at a loss. ¡°The vor isn¡¯t the issue, right?¡± ¡°Then what¡¯s the issue?¡± Zhuang Qin was busy packing the things and didn¡¯t have the energy to discuss which vor of chewing gum was better. ¡°Eat a few more pecans, nourish your brain.¡± Fu Li stared at Zhuang Qing¡¯s busy silhouette. cing the bowl on his knees, he fished out his phone while munching on pecans and found a certain forum that was said to be capable of resolving anyplex problem. Fu Li had heard of this forum from his colleague Zhang Shan when he was working at Affinity Moon Hotel as a security guard. He just disliked this sort of faceless method ofmunication, so he had never expressed his views on the forum. He swiftly registered an ount and found themunication area for emotions. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: Went with a good brother to the supermarket. He secretly bought a box of condoms and even said that it¡¯s for me. How should I handle this? Brother Lemon: Is OP male or female? Seeing that someone had replied to him so quickly, Fu Li hurriedly stated his gender. ¡°Does Uncle Feng and Uncle Kang like eating fruit jam?¡± Zhuang Qing had found a jar of fruit jam given by the Fields Sect in the kitchen and was standing at the kitchen door, looking at Fu Li. ¡°If they won¡¯t find these fruit jams ordinary, I¡¯ll bring them along.¡± Fu Li nodded absent-mindedly. ¡°Okay.¡± Seeing that Fu Li was busy ying with his phone, Zhuang Qing thought that he was ying Sokoban or Jewel of Antis. Therefore, he no longer disturbed him and decided what to bring on his own. Fu Li refreshed the page. There were already a few tens of replies beneath the post. He was a little moved, humanizens were really enthusiastic. Crabs Taste Bad: What is there to settle? Of course you should happily go to bed with him. Flower: OP, don¡¯t listen to the person upstairs¡¯ nonsense. You and your friend are the same gender ¨C he bought the condoms to hint to you that he thinks of you in that way. But do you like him? Can you bear the gazes of others? Fu Li saw this reply and felt that the gazes of other people was not the issue. The issue was that he regarded Zhuang Qing as a brother and hadn¡¯t expected this brother to want to sleep with him. I am an Unrivaled Handsome Guy: Just thinking about two men together gives me the creeps. The replies beneath were all cursing at theizen called ¡®I am an Unrivaled Handsome Guy¡¯. Fu Li silently expressed his approval of their curses. Feelings didn¡¯t distinguish between genders. Even humans and yao could fall in love, so what was so strange about men being with men and women being with women? In this respect, humans were a little narrow-minded. They stillcked the open-mindedness of the nts and animals in the natural world. Panda¡¯s Tail: OP, as an experienced individual, I feel that you should rify your friend¡¯s true intentions. If you don¡¯t like him, please make it clear to him without hurting him. After all, silently liking someone of the same gender requires a lot of courage. If you like him too, then be together with him. Don¡¯t fear rumors, don¡¯t fear others¡¯ gazes. Human lives are pitifully short, it isn¡¯t easy to find a lover with whom you share a mutual affinity with. Fu Li turned to look at Zhuang Qing. This was indeed a serious issue. Crabs Taste Bad: Follow what I say. Sleep with him directly, and you¡¯ll know whether or not it¡¯s love. Fu Li: ... So, some humans were this simple and crude. He refreshed another time, and many more replies appeared, most of which were either mocking or curious about what happened between him and Zhuang Qing. Only a small number were sincerely raising suggestions. Sure enough, watching the excitement was mainstream among humans? ¡°Done eating?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over. Seeing that Fu Li had already finished eating the pecans, he smoothly ced the te on the side table. ¡°Let¡¯s go, we¡¯ll go to the Fields Sect to pick up the vegetables. ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li stuffed his phone into his pocket. He reached out a hand and pinched Zhuang Qing¡¯s wrist. En, he could confirm that he wasn¡¯t averse to physical contact with Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing looked down at his sleeves. There was now a small crease on the new top he had specially changed into. ¡°Fu Li, hands must be washed after eating,¡± Zhuang Qing clenched his teeth. Fu Li: ... Maybe he had thought too much. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t seem to have any special reaction to physical contact with him. The Fields Sect¡¯s style was very simr to their name ¨C nting was what they loved most. They nted all sorts of vegetables, trees, and medicinal nts. In the entire cultivation world, there was no sect better than them at nting. Every time it was the new year, many people would ce an order at the Fields Sect for spiritual rice, spiritual vegetables, and spiritual fruits so that they could spend the new year in a sumptuous manner. Things were slightly different this yearpared to the past years. Although the whole of the Fields Sect was incredibly busy, the sect¡¯s elder still personally prepared an order, because the owner of this order was Zhuang Qing. In all these years, Zhuang Qing had never specially ced an order at the Fields Sect during the new year. He had finally made an exception this time, so nobody in the Fields Sect dared to be sloppy about it. After a young sect disciple spread this matter, half the cultivation world knew that Chief Zhuang, who never celebrated the new year, had bought goods this year in preparation for the eve of the Lunar New Year. Certain well-informed busybodies actually stayed at the Fields Sect after learning that Zhuang Qing would be collecting the goods on the evening of the 29th. ¡°He¡¯s here, he¡¯s here,¡± A disciple of the Fields Sect rushed into the main hall. ¡°Chief Zhuang came with Fu daojun.¡± The rest who were watching the show instantly understood. No wonder Chief Zhuang¡¯s style of doing things was different this year; a dragon with apanion was different. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li met the elder of the Fields Sect. The elder handed Zhuang Qing the vegetables and fruits he had ordered and gave them an extra jar of fruit jam. ¡°This lowly sect has received plenty of care from Chief Zhuang, this jar of fruit jam is for you and Fu daojun to eat.¡± ¡°Thank you, elder,¡± Fu Li thanked him, his arms wrapped around the fruit jam. ¡°You¡¯re too polite,¡± The elder smiled extremely kindly. ¡°This old fogey wishes you two a happy Lunar New Year. May your feelings only deepen.¡± Fu Li: ... He just knew that this rumor had spread through the entire cultivation world. ¡°Thank you.¡± While in a daze, he heard Zhuang Qing say these words. Ilyz: this misunderstanding... I don¡¯t dislike it (¡ä?`) Chapter 112 - Worried Yao

Chapter 112 - Worried Yao

Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing, and then looked at the elder from the Fields Sect. He wanted to let the other party know that this was a misunderstanding, but when he glimpsed the raised corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s lips, he hugged the jar of fruit jam tightly and remained silent. In the eyes of the Fields Sect¡¯s elder, Fu Li¡¯s silence was due to his thin skin, so he didn¡¯t think much of it. Fu Li received quite a few new year¡¯s blessings along the way to the Fields Sect¡¯s main entrance. There were even many cultivators who looked at him and Zhuang Qing with a face full of ambiguity, their expressions screaming ¡®you don¡¯t have to say anything, we understand¡¯. Fu Li finally understood. Conjuring up things in the mind was a bad habit of the humans, but when yao cultivators transformed into their human forms, they could also acquire this sort of bad habit. They hadn¡¯t walked out of the Fields Sect¡¯s barrier when Zhuang Qing noticed that Fu Li had his head silently lowered. Knowing that Fu Li objected to those words, he said calmly, ¡°There¡¯s no need to take offense to their words. As time passes, they will realize that those are just rumors.¡± Fu Li lifted his eyelids, ncing at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing met his gaze. ¡°We¡¯re going to the flying pce now?¡± ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. He touched the phone in his pocket. Would there be a signal in the flying pce? Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong had long prepared everything after knowing that the two juniors would being over for two days. What they hadn¡¯t expected was for Zhuang Qing to bring arge pile of presents from the human world. The items weren¡¯t expensive, but such kind intentions were hard toe by. As a result, their liking for Zhuang Qing increased. ¡°Both your rooms are in the east hall. Little Li, bring Little Zhuang over.¡± Feng Ruizhong was making magic clothes with Kang Gu and couldn¡¯t leave at the moment, so he told Fu Li, ¡°y well. It¡¯s hot here, don¡¯t stay too long.¡± Ordinary fire was of no threat to yaoguai with profound cultivation, but the fire currently in the Divine Fire Hall was the Fenghuang¡¯s true me that he had spat out. The juniors would feel ufortable if they stayed for too long. ¡°Then you and King Ganglie shouldn¡¯t push yourself too much,¡± Fu Li knew how they worked, so he didn¡¯t insist on remaining to help and instead brought Zhuang Qing out. The patrolling bodyguard-maids that they encountered along the way bowed one after another, their expressions vivid and their motions simr to ordinary people. Without careful scrutiny, it would be nearly impossible to tell that they were merely refined devices without souls. To be capable of making refined devices with a high level of simrity to living people, and to make so many at that ¨C these ancient great yao had formidable capabilities. ¡°It should be on this side,¡± Fu Li pointed at the pce in the east. ¡°My family¡¯s elders like to position my dwelling in the east.¡± There was indeed a pce standing on its own in the east. The name ¡®Hall of the Rising Sun; Sun Rises in the East¡¯ engraved on it was quite a fitting one. There was ample spiritual qi in the hall, and Zhuang Qing discovered that the floor and walls were not only iid with spiritual stones, but had a Spirit-Gathering Formation drawn on them. A single day of cultivation here would be equivalent to ten days of cultivation outside. ¡°The rooms are all the same.¡± Fu Li opened the rooms to two master bedrooms, took a few nces, and then told Zhuang Qing, ¡°I¡¯ll take the one on the left and you take the one on the right.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Zhuang Qing walked into the room. Only when he heard the door close next door did the corners of his mouth tighten. Hiding in the room, Fu Li took out his phone and made the unexpected discovery that there were two signal bars. The country¡¯s infrastructure was truly yao-shattering. What magnificent humans. Fu Li found the website he had previously logged in to, located his post, and continued posing questions. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: I¡¯m back. Many thanks to the aboveizens for their help. I realized another issue just now &#k2013; everyone in our socialwork seems to think that we¡¯re together and even wished us well to our faces. My good friend didn¡¯t provide an exnation and thanked them instead. Does this mean he&#k2026; really has romantic thoughts about me? Flower: OP¡¯s follow-up is finally here. I feel like OP has a group of good friends. They have a high eptance of your love and even specially wished you well. Very cute. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: That isn¡¯t an issue, my socialwork has a high eptance of all kinds of love. That isn¡¯t what I wanted to ask guidance for, I wanted to request for everyone to raise a few ideas on what my friend meant by this action. Crabs Taste Bad: Is it only me who feels that OP¡¯s friend is a schemer? Under some imperceptible influence, he got everyone around the OP to feel that him and the OP are together. Who would express their feelings towards the OP like this? Looking at the OP, he doesn¡¯t seem like someone with romantic experience. OP, I sincerely advise you not to continue struggling, give in to him. Panda¡¯s Tail: OP, perhaps this friend of yours has secretly been in love with you for a very long time. It¡¯s just that you didn¡¯t know about it. Fu Li read this reply with some shock. Zhuang Qing had secretly been in love with him for a very long time? No, impossible. Zhuang Qing¡¯s usual attitude towards him wasn¡¯t at all like the kind in television dramas. All that about the face turning red, secretly writing love letters, giving presents, and stammering when speaking ¨C Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t conform to a single one of them. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: My friend is a very impressive person who doesn¡¯t fear anything. If he had any intentions towards me, he wouldn¡¯t stay silent for so long. Panda¡¯s Tail: Because even the bravest person will be timid in the face of love. The more he cares, the more cautious he¡¯ll be. Because in the grand bet that is love, he dare not lose, doesn¡¯t want to lose, and can¡¯t afford to lose. Fu Li stroked his chin thoughtfully. Was it really like this? ¡°What a dimwit!¡± The crested ibis sat cross-legged on his bed, two fingers flying across the screen. It had been a long time since he had seen such a silly human who didn¡¯t even know whether the person beside him liked him. Panda¡¯s Tail: Think hard. What is he usually like? How does he treat people? Has he given you any particrly expensive presents? Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: Nothing very expensive, he just gave a vi to me a while back. Flower: Hehe, is OP purposely fooling around with us? Crabs Taste Bad: Another troll post? Panda¡¯s Tail: A vi? Why don¡¯t you brag that someone secretly in love with you gave you a huge pile of gold, silver, and jewels? Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: That didn¡¯t happen, those were the things I gave him. ¡°We were chatting perfectly well, why did they start to curse me?¡± Theizens on the post were no longer answering his question and werementing ¡®green burial pleasure¡¯, ¡®post trolling everyone to death¡¯, and whatnot. Seeing this, Fu Li logged out of the post, shaking his head. ¡°Humans are really temperamental.¡± After he withdrew from the post, he found a post with a tiny me symbol on the top page titled ¡®Some Things about the Hegemonic Chairman and his Assistant¡¯. He smoothly clicked on it and immediately saw the photo he and Zhuang Qing had posed for on the night of the charity event. He was cocking his head and looking at something while Zhuang Qing was turned towards him. There were many photos inside ¨C photos of him and Zhuang Qing selling fish, photos of them from the back as they walked around the zoo with panda ears, photos of them seated in the car, and even photos taken from the side as they strolled around the supermarket. Tomorrow¡¯s Sunday: My friend and I took many photos, but they were all taken in secret, so we can only put up two photos taken from the side and back. But the chairman is super doting to his little assistant. The little assistant picked everything out along the way and the chairman just obediently pushed the cart at the back. When the little assistant was buying snacks and the cart was full, the chairman pushed another cart over and swept up all the goods on the shelves. Truly both handsome and considerate. Dou Dou Doesn¡¯t Take a Beating: Really envious of the person upstairs for witnessing this scene. Is the chairman and little assistant as good-looking in real life as they are in photos? Tomorrow¡¯s Sunday: Super good-looking, even more good-looking than the pictures. Everything below the neck is all legs. My little partner and I nearly couldn¡¯t breathe because of how handsome both of them were. Let me tell you guys a small secret ¨C when the chairman went to settle the bill, he picked up a box of little umbres at the counter. I went to take a peek at themter on ¨C that was a big box, it seems like the chairman and his little assistant¡¯s rtionship is super~ duper~ good~ Thements below were already discussing the topic of who was top and bottom, how many times they did it a night, and how long one time was. Fu Li silently closed the web page. He hadn¡¯t expected humans to be so interested in life¡¯s great harmonious exercise. Zhuang Qing was of the dragon race. How could it only be seven times a night and one minute every time? These humans were really ignorant. ¡°Fu Li,¡± Knocks sounded on his door. Fu Li hurriedly stuffed his phone into his pocket. With a wave of his hand, his room door opened. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Zhuang Qing sat beside the table. ¡°It¡¯s boring being on my own in the room.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll take you for a stroll around,¡± Fu Li stood up. He felt a bit embarrassed just thinking about how he had even been considering Zhuang Qing¡¯s reproductive ability a minute ago. Zhuang Qing noticed that there was something off about him, but didn¡¯t expose him. ¡°Will it be an inconvenience for you?¡± ¡°No no,¡± Fu Li paused. ¡°We¡¯re friends after all.¡± Zhuang Qing smiled gently. ¡°En, the most important friends, right?¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°Yes!¡± Kang Gu squatted on the steps at the entrance to the Divine Fire Hall and asked Feng Ruizhong with a look of confusion, ¡°It¡¯s Little Li and Little Zhuang¡¯s third or fourth time circling the yard, should I ask them to stop and eat something?¡± Feng Ruizhong closed the door to the refining furnace and walked over to Kang Gu. He crouched down with both hands on his knees and looked at them for a while. ¡°Do you feel like... our Little Li is a bit clingy with Little Zhuang? Does he have those intentions towards Little Zhuang?¡± ¡°Little Li is already more than four thousand years old, it¡¯s very normal for him to like a yao. Little Zhuang has profound cultivation, an upright nature, and a body of yao-shocking virtue. It wouldn¡¯t be half bad if Little Li became his Dao Companion,¡± Kang Gu stared at Zhuang Qing with rapt attention for a moment. Suddenly, his breathing turned heavy. ¡°Do you still remember the divination Baize did for Fu Li?¡± Feng Ruizhong hesitated. ¡°You mean ¨C golden water transforms to luck, virtuees from the east?¡± Kang Gu nodded fiercely. ¡°Little Zhuang is a golden dragon and is now the emperor of the aquatic races. The golden dragon pce is also in the East Sea. Maybe he¡¯s Little Li¡¯s sole chance at survival.¡± The gazes of the two great auspicious beasts met, each seeing ecstasy in the other¡¯s eyes. Zhu Yue was unwilling to appear even today, even though Fu Li said that he had met her in the sea. Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong had long suspected that in ordance with Baize¡¯s divination, Zhu Yue had gone into the sea in search of Fu Li¡¯s sole chance at survival. They had always assumed that the prophecy referred to a certain object or magic device, but hadn¡¯t considered the possibility that these ten words referred not to a magic device, but to a human or yao. ¡°If Baize is still alive...¡± Kang Gu inhaled deeply as he struggled to suppress the excitement in his heart. ¡°If he¡¯s still alive, he would definitely be able to tell if Little Zhuang is Fu Li¡¯s one chance to live.¡± They had fled in all directions at that time and ended up suppressed at different locations in the world. No one knew who was still alive and who was already dead. Among the great numbers of yao cultivators on Reflecting Mist Mountain, the only ones they could be sure were alive were the four of them. ¡°If Little Zhuang really is the chance at survival mentioned in the prophecy, then he must not learn of this matter,¡± Feng Ruizhong said. ¡°What if he thinks we want him and Little Li to be together because of his fate?¡± ¡°But we only specially thought of him and Little Fu bing Dao Companions because of his fate,¡± Kang Gu scratched his head. ¡°If Little Li and Little Zhuang be Dao Companions, they will be in the same boat. With Little Zhuang¡¯s virtue, he can definitely protect Little Li from heavenlyw.¡± ¡°So you must remember to keep your mouth tightly shut,¡± Feng Ruizhong red at Kang Gu, worried that his pig¡¯s head would mess things up. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see how those men and women in human stories end up quarreling till the skies and earth turn upside down because of such misunderstandings?¡± Something like ¡®turns out you just wanted to make use of me, I hate you¡¯. Something like ¡®turns out you don¡¯t love me at all, you only love my money or body, I hate you¡¯. And something like ¡®turns out you don¡¯t love me, you only love this face that resembles someone, I hate you¡¯. Those humans loved and hated, but at the end of the day, they might still be able to reconcile, reunite, and get together once again. Their family¡¯s Little Li couldn¡¯t bear this sort of torment from being hated here and there. What if heavenlyw made trouble out of nothing while they were in the midst of hating here and there? What should they do then? ¡°But the most important question now is ¨C how are we going to get Little Zhuang to willingly be Dao Companions with Little Li?¡± Anxiety filled Kang Gu¡¯s face. ¡°We can¡¯t possibly rely on our seniority and higher cultivation to force Little Zhuang to be with Little Li, right?¡± Feng Ruizhong: ... The two people nced at each other and sighed simultaneously. This matter would worry them yao to death. Chapter 113 - Good Looks of Humans

Chapter 113 - Good Looks of Humans

CG¡¯s 10k discord event has ended! The prize of 2 bonus DDAS chapters has been selected by Mellownite, so here they are~ happy reading Dinner was cooked food from the supermarket along with several dishes Zhuang Qing put together. After living in the human world for some time, Fu Li had already cultivated the habit of having three meals and supper a day. Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu were also happy to eat with Fu Li at the same table, so the atmosphere was extremely harmonious the entire meal. Clouds and mist coiled around the mountain. Kang Gu moved a small stool to the entrance of the hall and sat down, gazing out at the ink-ck sky. He took out a fruit from his sleeves to nibble on. ¡°King,¡± Fu Li carried a stool over and sat near Kang Gu. ¡°Why are you sitting herete at night?¡± ¡°Looking at the sky,¡± Kang Gu pointed at the sky. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you ying with Little Zhuang?¡± ¡°We¡¯re together all the time at work, what¡¯s there to y?¡± Fu Li rested a hand on Kang Gu¡¯s back. ¡°Uncle Feng said he wanted to teach him how to refine devices and brought him to the Divine Fire Hall.¡± To Fu Li, Zhuang Qing was a yao cultivator with high innate talent. It was just that there had been no opportunity for his talent to be showcased since he didn¡¯t have guidance from a good elder. If Zhuang Qing had been guided by Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s elders like he had, his future prospects would definitely be greater than his. His refining ability was so-so, he was even more so-so at pill-concoction, his talismans and formations were just barely passable, and beast-taming was all Greek to him. ¡°Little Zhuang¡¯s natural talent is indeed quite high,¡± Kang Gu had an exceedingly good impression of Zhuang Qing. Thinking that Fu Li had romantic feelings towards Zhuang Qing, he was even more willing to praise Zhuang Qing and make Fu Li happy. ¡°What ns do you have for the future?¡± ¡°What ns?¡± Fu Li thought about it. ¡°I want to first get a degree in the human world and then be a civil servant if the opportunity arises.¡± ¡°You want to be a government official in the human world?¡± The thought that his family¡¯s child would have such an idea had never crossed Kang Gu¡¯s mind. ¡°Apart from these, I don¡¯t know what I can do for the time being,¡± Fu Li told Kang Gu about the news he had watched after waking up and the interesting things that had urred after he joined the management bureau. ¡°I want to help my pet take a good look at the flourishing human world.¡± ¡°The human called Bo Lian?¡± Kang Gu had never forgotten the human with the name of Bo Lian, because he had had the golden glow of virtue of someone who had been a virtuous person for ten lifetimes, as well as the purple cloud of a monarch. Little Li¡¯s natal chart had undergone a change after saving him. A virtuous person for ten lifetimes, a monarch for three lifetimes ¨C for a human with such a fate, even if he hadn¡¯t been conferred the status of a god in the human world, he would definitely reincarnate into an individual of virtue and prestige. Unfortunately, a human with such a fate was too extraordinary. He couldn¡¯t divine the trajectory of Bo Lian¡¯s fate. ¡°En,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°He told me many things about the human world. Although the current human world differs from what he told me, it¡¯s still very interesting.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been so many years, it¡¯s surprising that you still remember him,¡± In Kang Gu¡¯s memories, Bo Lian was an extremely talented man of nobility. After his arrival at Reflecting Mist Mountain, he hadn¡¯t lost much of hisposure because they were yao cultivators, nor had greed risen in his heart upon seeing the gold, silver, and gems in the mountain. Elegant demeanor, extraordinary bearing ¨C this was Kang Gu¡¯s evaluation of Bo Lian. It was a pity that humans had short lifespans. Or perhaps this was fate predetermined by the Heavens. A few years after Bo Lian started living on Reflecting Mist Mountain, his body suddenly weakened. No medicine was effective. After his death, Little Li sank into a deep sleep from sadness. Now that he recalled the matters of that time, Kang Gu couldn¡¯t be more d that Fu Li had fallen deeply asleep. If heavenlyw had sealed him in a corner of the world like them and punished him day after day without sleep, how much pain would he be in? ¡°I am a good, responsible owner,¡± Fu Li spoke about the dog yao he had met while working. ¡°To dogs, they would be ecstatic if their human owner treated them kindly and didn¡¯t forget them after they passed on. That pet of mine probably had such thoughts as well.¡± ¡°Little Li, humans are different from dogs,¡± Kang Gu was a broad-minded auspicious beast, but even then, humans were much moreplex creaturespared to other animals. ¡°I know,¡± Fu Li nodded very seriously. ¡°But I am a good owner.¡± Seemingly understanding what he meant, Kang Gu smiled. ¡°Your behavior really has matured after passing the Nine Hearts¡¯ Tribtion.¡± Fu Li merely smiled upon hearing these words. He seemed more steady than he had been two thousand years ago, just that the corners of his eyes and tips of his brows still gave off a somewhat childish air. ¡°You¡¯ve never thought about seeking him out these few years?¡± Kang Gu teased him without thinking. ¡°With him, your understanding of the human world might increase.¡± ¡°He is another person in his next life. The past is akin to smoke, what would I find him for?¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°I raised that year¡¯s pet, that year¡¯s Bo Lian. Who his reincarnation is and what he possesses has no rtion to me.¡± Sometimes, Kang Gu wondered whether Fu Li had such thoughts because he didn¡¯t understand emotions or because his mental state had already undergone supreme enlightenment, enabling him to see through the cycle of life and death and the true essence of emotions. ¡°What¡¯s more, Zhuang little dragon is still around to teach me anything I don¡¯t understand,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°The past cannot be pursued, cherish the present.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. The past cannot be pursued, why not cherish the people in the present?¡± Kang Guughed heartily. ¡°That¡¯s how cultivators ought to be. Meeting Bo Lian was your fortune, it is also your fortune that you now know Zhuang Qing.¡± Kang Gu looked up at the sky. ¡°Heavenlyw is merciless yet merciful. All living things will have a chance at survival.¡± Fu Li couldn¡¯tprehend why the topic had suddenly shifted to chances at survival. Thinking that Kang Gu wasmenting about his experiences these years, he nodded as well. ¡°King is right.¡± ¡°Zhuang Qing is quite a good yao. You¡¯re two thousand years older than him, don¡¯t let him down,¡± Kang Gu stroked Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°Us yao from Reflecting Mist Mountain must be morally upright, do not be half-hearted or do anything unfaithful.¡± There seemed to be something off about these words. Fu Li felt that King Ganglie might have misunderstood something. ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing was standing beside the door engraved with flowers. Under the light of the night pearls, his tall and straight posture softened a little and lost some of his usual aloofness. Fu Li looked back on conditioned reflex after hearing Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice. ¡°Ai.¡± He nced down at the time. It was already his usual sleeping time. He spoke to Kang Gu, ¡°King, it¡¯ste, I should be going to bed. I¡¯ll prepare the food tomorrow morning with Zhuang little dragon. We¡¯ll definitely give you a whole table of dishes at that time.¡± ¡°Sure sure sure,¡± Kang Gu naturally had no objections, smiling so widely that his whole face exuded good cheer. ¡°Then the two of you quickly go to bed.¡± Fu Li¡¯s footsteps paused. This statement was even more wrong. Zhuang Qing stood on the spot and waited for Fu Li. Only when Fu Li reached him did he continue proceeding forward. ¡°Refining is very interesting.¡± ¡°En, King and Uncle Feng said that you¡¯re a very talented junior,¡± As Fu Li walked beside Zhuang Qing, he took out an eight treasures colored ssmp from his Qiankun pouch to hold in his hand. The ss was as transparent as clear water, and an enormous night pearl was contained inside it. Not only did it illuminate the path beneath their feet, it also lit up the mountain fog in the pce. Fu Li sent Zhuang Qing to the door. Zhuang Qing took one step past the threshold while Fu Li remained outside. Zhuang Qing turned to look at him without closing the room door. Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes were very bright under the glow of the night pearl, as bright as the stars Fu Li had seen on Reflecting Mist Mountain. They were beyond good-looking. Suddenly, Fu Li thought that being Dao Companions with Zhuang little dragon didn¡¯t seem... half-bad? ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± A slightly rough palm was ced on his forehead. The hollow of this palm wasn¡¯t as soft as Sister Zhu Yue¡¯s, but it was warm. ¡°It¡¯s not hot, why is your face red?¡± Zhuang Qing had one foot outside the threshold and one foot inside. The distance between him and Fu Li was minuscule. Fu Li touched the spot on his forehead that Zhuang Qing had touched and raised his head, looking at him. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I have a question I want to ask you.¡± The raised corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth lowered slightly. His eyes remained as bright as starlight. ¡°What?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t reproduce with a female dragon, will the golden dragon n be extinct?¡± ¡°The golden dragon n has already be extinct, I¡¯m only half-dragon,¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow. ¡°So this worry of yours came a bitte.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Fu Li had a short moment of contemtion. ¡°I¡¯m the only member of this n of mine, so the n can also be considered extinct.¡± Zhuang Qing wanted to ask what he meant by that, but in the end, Fu Li turned and left with a heavy expression all over his face. ¡°Why did this stupid yao suddenly think about an issue like n reproduction?¡± Zhuang Qing closed the door, his heartden with worry. Had Senior Kang Gu told Fu Li something that made him want to have children? How could a male yao incapable of giving birth be together with a male yao who wanted children? Zhuang Qing sat on the spiritual jade bed, too preupied to look at how priceless the disy items were in the room and how luxurious the jade-crafted walls were. His mind was wholly focused on Fu Li wanting children. He had thought that everything would be fine when Fu Li was enlightened, but he hadn¡¯t considered what he would do if Fu Li liked another female yao after he was enlightened. Silently wish him happiness and then bury his feelings in the depths of his heart? F*ck silently wishing him happiness. Zhuang Qing expressionlessly punched the headboards. Wishing him happiness was an impossibility. In this lifetime, he would never do that. On a certain forum at this time, theizens were going crazy on the post made by ¡®Mighty and Majestic Rabbit¡¯. At the start, this post had attracted quite a few drama-watchingizens because the OP was male and was being secretly liked by another man. After that, this OP said something about gifting a vi, gemstones, and whatnot, which made everyone suspect the OP of intentionally fabricating a story and cheating everyone of a good time, thereby inviting the mockery of even moreizens. Above all, everyone discovered that the OP never appeared again after they exposed the OP as a liar, which resulted in them being even more certain that the post was purely made up. Little Strong¡¯s Brother is Called Big Strong: I¡¯ll weakly make this statement ¨C read this post with the neighboring hugely popr post and you might have an even more beautiful experience. Maybe the OP wasn¡¯t lying; he¡¯s just too rich. Thisizen¡¯sment attracted countless jeers the moment it appeared. There were even some people who called him the OP¡¯s sockpuppet. Of course, there were also many idle and boredizens who really went over to the neighboring post. Those who didn¡¯t read it would be left in the dark, while those who took one nce at it were shocked. Many details coincidentally matched up, so much so that it bordered on scary. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit said that his good friend bought little umbres at the supermarket and in that post, it was mentioned that Chairman Zhuang and the Little Assistant had also bought little umbres today when walking around the supermarket. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit said that the most expensive gift his friend had given him was a vi and in that post, it was also mentioned that Chairman Zhuang gave Little Assistant a vi worth several tens of millions. All that stuff about working together and being thought of as a couple by many people also matched up with many details on the neighboring post. Theizens fell silent. They scrolled up to their curses at the OP and silently applied to the forum moderator for deletion. It was okay if it was just a coincidence, but if the OP was really Chairman Zhuang¡¯s little assistant, that would be unbelievable... Flower: So Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant aren¡¯t together yet, and Chairman Zhuang¡¯s secret love is one-sided? Crabs Taste Bad: Kneeling and begging for the OP toe back and take a look. The words we said at the start were just a joke. What we actually wanted to say is that you and your good friend are a match made in Heaven and Earth, and that you should quickly get together. Potato: Being rich is really good, I want my male friend to casually give me a vi and for me to casually give him a bag of gems too. Can Fish Fly: Being rich is really good +1 Nonsensical Cloth: All those brothers who cursed the OP should eat some good food at home. If Chairman Zhuang knows that you guys actually cursed Little Assistant on the like that, go and think what your oue will be. Theizens who had cursed: ... Fu Li tossed and turned on the bed, unable to sleep. He took out his phone to scroll through the post and realized that a small fire symbol had actually appeared at the back of the post he had previously sent, indicating that his post had exploded in poprity. ¡°These humans have so much energy, they can even curse me till the post went up in poprity,¡± Fu Li clicked open the post and discovered that the top was indeed all curses directed at him, but the style at the bottom waspletely different. They were all ¡®Little Assistant, we were wrong¡¯, ¡®Little Assistant, kneeling and pleading for you and Chairman Zhuang to get together¡¯, and so on. Flower: OP, if you really are Little Assistant, please believe that Chairman Zhuang truly loves you very much. Words can deceive, but the eyes will never lie. Chairman Zhuang¡¯s eyes only have you. [picture] [picture] Theizen called Flower sent quite a few photos in session. Whether it was static or moving, all of them were sent out. But in every photo, Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze was always on him. Especially the moving photo where he was reaching out to help Zhuang Qing put on the panda ears. Zhuang Qing was looking helplessly at him like he was indulging an unreasonable child, with an all-epassing tenderness. Fu Li had never noticed all these before. But now that theseizens posted them, even Fu Li himself nearly believed that Zhuang Qing really liked him. On the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month ¨C thest day of the Year of the Rabbit ¨C Fu Li pushed open the windows. He stretched his head out. The sky was a vast expanse of white, and snow was once again falling from the sky. ¡°Put on your clothes ande out for breakfast,¡± Someone rapped him on the head. Fu Li covered his head. Looking at the vigorous and handsome Zhuang Qing, the words in his heart slipped out, ¡°Zhuang little dragon, do you...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t find a female yao to have children with,¡± Zhuang Qing suddenly closed the distance between them. ¡°The Hou is born from the Heavens and nurtured by the Earth. No matter which female yao you¡¯re with, the children that are born won¡¯t be Hou.¡± Fu Li¡¯s eyes widened, his gaze fixed on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. The rabbit in his heart was hopping about. He seemed to have learnt how to appreciate the good looks of humans. Chapter 114 - Nian

Chapter 114 - Nian

CG¡¯s 10k discord event has ended! The prize of 2 bonus DDAS chapters has been selected by Mellownite, so here they are~ happy reading The winter fog and rain as fine as silk threads was both cold and entangling. With one breath, a slight chill would prate the depths of the heart. Zhuang Qing was slightly regretful after the words escaped his mouth. Telling any yao straight to their face that their race was unable to continue reproducing as normal was always a surefire way of infuriating the other party. Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing with his mouth wide open, seemingly not having thought that Zhuang Qing would consider such a thing. He blinked dazedly and touched his chest in an attempt to press the continuously hopping rabbit down. ¡°But I don¡¯t have any intentions to have a little Hou with a female yao.¡± Just thinking about how much energy his elders on Reflecting Mist Mountain had spent on raising him was enough for Fu Li to feel that raising children was an extremely scary affair, particrly for people like him. ¡°Since you don¡¯t have any intentions to have a little Hou with a female yao, then you can consider being together with a male yao. Best if the male yao can cook, fight, has cars, houses, and status in the human world, dislikes having ambiguous rtionships with other yao or humans, and won¡¯t scheme against you,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s face was solemn. ¡°And also good-looking.¡± Fu Li remained silent, his eyes wide open. But the rabbit in his left chest still hadn¡¯t been pressed down by him and instead started bounding about with heightened intensity. ¡°For example...¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s luminous eyes were fixed on Fu Li. The expression on his face was even more solemn and serious than usual. ¡°Me.¡± ¡°Ah?!¡± Fu Li felt that he might be heavenlyw¡¯s dearest son. He just had a tiny bit of unspoken intentions towards Zhuang Qing when the person in question took the initiative to confess. He hadn¡¯t made things difficult for Fu Li at all. Seeing Fu Li¡¯s stupefied look, Zhuang Qing pursed the corners of his mouth. ¡°I thought about it carefully. Other than me, no one else of age in the yao world is worthy of being with you.¡± Fu Li silently wondered why he had never known about Zhuang Qing¡¯s narcissism. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you¡¯re unwilling to be with me now, I¡¯ll ask you again after a period of time,¡± Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t ustomed to saying thick-faced words. His cheeks and the tips of his ears had turned a subtle red. Even then, he still said it. As if only by doing so would he have a reason to continue being with Fu Li and to be present in Fu Li¡¯s future. ¡°Until you agree.¡± In Fu Li¡¯s memories, Zhuang Qing was a taciturn yet arrogant young dragon who didn¡¯t indulge in small pleasures like his other colleagues. He was the symbol of the management bureau ¨C calm, rational, brave, with virtually no emotional weaknesses. ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li squinted as he smiled, nodding. Zhuang Qing stared nkly, momentarily uncertain whether Fu Li was saying that he could continue asking in the future or if.. he agreed to be with him. Seeing the way Zhuang Qing stood there foolishly, Fu Li extended a hand and poked him on the forehead. ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree to make the twelve zodiac buns today?¡± ¡°En...¡± Zhuang Qing gradually came back to his senses and realized that Fu Li had already dragged him to the entrance of the kitchen. His wless shirt sleeves were wrinkled by Fu Li¡¯s grip,pletelycking the ir of a high-end product. ¡°Fu Li, are you...¡± Zhuang Qing wanted to ask Fu Li if he agreed for them to be together, but when he saw Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu seated at the doorsteps of the kitchen, he swallowed his words. If these two elders knew that he harbored such intentions towards Fu Li, they might chase him out of the flying pce right there and then, never allowing him even one step near the flying pce. He endured the surging emotions in his heart and finished making breakfast. The four yao sat together. Apart from Zhuang Qing who still wasn¡¯t talkative, Fu Li, Feng Ruizhong, and Kang Gu spiritedly discussed what they would eat for lunch and dinner. ¡°Little Li, what do you want to eat? I¡¯ll make it for you,¡± Kang Gu had a mysterious confidence in his own culinary skills. ¡°King, how can this sort of small thing be done by you? Zhuang Qing¡¯s cooking is quite good and he¡¯s also your junior, it can¡¯t be more appropriate for him to do the cooking,¡± Kang Gu¡¯s promation that he would cook scared Fu Li into hurriedly pulling on Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand and making eyes at him. ¡°Right, Zhuang little dragon?¡± Seeing the way Fu Li looked, Zhuang Qing recalled him mentioning before that he most feared eating King Ganglie¡¯s food. Suppressing the emotions in his heart, Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°Fu Li is right, leave these things to me. Senior Kang and Fu Li haven¡¯t met for many years, chat more now that you¡¯re together. Fu Li often mentioned all of you to me, he¡¯s missed all of you these few years. Now that you¡¯ve finally reunited, how can you waste your time on this sort of small thing?¡± Zhuang Qing seldom spoke so much and whenever he did, it was always to echo Fu Li¡¯s words. Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu were both somewhat embarrassed by this. What was their family¡¯s child doing bullying the person by their side? ¡°Little Zhuang, this child has been spoiled by us since young, don¡¯t go along with him for everything,¡± Feng Ruizhong watched Fu Li smile till even his eyes became unnoticeable. ¡°The more spoiled he is, the more shorings he¡¯ll have.¡± ¡°No, Fu Li is very good,¡± Zhuang Qing stated. ¡°He¡¯s helped me very much at the bureau and he¡¯s of good character as well. All the cultivators in the bureau are very fond of him.¡± Feng Ruizhong shook his head. Truly, beautyy in the eyes of the beholder. As elders, they were very clear in their hearts the shorings and strengths Fu Li possessed. Ever since their meal started, they had discovered that Zhuang Qing would asionally nce at Fu Li in secret, while Fu Li still thoughtlessly ate and ate and ate, smiling like a fool. If he wasn¡¯t their family¡¯s child, he would have been brought out for a beating. But they loved their family¡¯s child dearly, and could only close one eye. After their meal, Kang Gu insisted on remaining in the kitchen to help, so Fu Li had no choice but to stay behind as well and knead the dough with Feng Ruizhong at a corner. ¡°There¡¯s no Feng among the twelve zodiacs,¡± Fu Li shot a nce at Feng Ruizhong, who was secretly kneading out a Fenghuang. ¡°Only a chicken.¡± ¡°Is a chicken as good-looking as a Fenghuang?¡± Feng Ruizhong created the Feng¡¯s eyes with a poke, and then kneaded a small strip of dough, sticking it onto the tail with the utmost intention of making the &#k2018;Fenghuang¡¯ in his hands as lifelike as possible. In Fu Li¡¯s eyes though, it was merely a fat goose with a leek for a tail. Fu Li wasn¡¯t about to be outdone. He started making the once-hated dragon, but in order to express that his liking was only for the golden dragon and that the other dragons were still gs, he specially chose to make the dragon body with cornmeal. After Zhuang Qing¡¯s sessful transformation, half his dragon body had evolved into the true body of the Aquatic Emperor Fu Li saw. To show off the golden dragon¡¯s might and majesty, he directly took half the cornmeal. The dragon horns had to be handsome, the dragon beard had to be elegant and full, and the bull nose could be done a little less realistically. The key points were the dragon¡¯s mysterious meandering form and its pretty golden scales. ¡°Oh, Little Li, that eel¡¯s not bad,¡± Kang Gu, who hade over to retrieve the steamer basket, took a nce and suppressed his conscience, praising him. ¡°Vivid, lifelike, lively, and fascinating.¡± Fu Li threw down the knife he had been using to carve the dragon scales. ¡°But I¡¯m making a dragon.¡± ¡°It¡¯s...¡± Kang Gu nked out for two seconds. ¡°It¡¯s still very lifelike.¡± Other than ¡®lifelike¡¯, he had no other words of praise left. The dragon and Feng done by Fu Li and Feng Ruizhong took up a good half of the steamer basket while the other zodiacs shrunk aggrievedly at a corner of the other half,pletelycking any sense of presence. Kang Gu carried the steamer basket to the pot and asked Zhuang Qing, ¡°Anything else we need to prepare?¡± ¡°Nothing much,¡± Zhuang Qing opened the cover of the steamer basket and nced in. He smoothly picked up the rabbit squeezed at a corner and ced it beside the golden dragon¡¯s head before expressionlessly putting the cover back on. Kang Gu: ... The young yao nowadays were really bing more and more difficult to understand. Washing the vegetables and cutting the meat were the next tasks. The four yao were clearly almighty figures with profound cultivation, yet they did them the exact way the humans did, and even did so with great zest. ¡°I got you to learn swordy from Zhu Yue properly, but you insisted on dragging me along to be your ymate. Look at the shreds of potato you sliced, how is that considered shreds? Those are clearly strips.¡± ¡°If worstes to worst, I¡¯ll let Zhuang little dragon deep-fry potato strips for me. His deep-fried potato strips are delicious. Besides, you didn¡¯t persuade me to return and learn swordy properly when I yed with you either.¡± ¡°Still talking back to me? Believe it or not, I will whip you.¡± ¡°Inflicting domestic violence on a child is not right.¡± ¡°A child who¡¯s lived more than four thousand years?¡± Hearing the bickering at the corner, Zhuang Qing looked back repeatedly. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with the soup boiling in the pot. At this time, his entire mind was fixated on how he could get Fu Li to agree to be with him. Also, what exactly did Fu Li¡¯s ¡®okay¡¯ mean? ¡°Don¡¯t pay any heed to those two. They just met two days ago and were adjusting to the unfamiliarity, so they couldn¡¯t argue then,¡± Kang Gu patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°In the past, on Reflecting Mist Mountain, Old Feng was most fond of staying on the parasol tree at the entrance of Fu Li¡¯s cave. Fu Li thought he was a little sparrow who couldn¡¯t change forms and took him as a little partner of the same age. When they¡¯re together, they¡¯re either ying or arguing. Half of Little Li¡¯s bad habits were brought about by Old Feng.¡± More than five thousand years ago, Old Feng fought a fierce battle with a few fiends, causing his cultivation to take a huge hit. Since then, he assumed his childhood appearance in order to restore his vitality. Later on, after restoring his cultivation with much difficulty, he was sealed by several fiends capable of moving the mountains and seas with a single sneeze and naturally reverted to his childhood appearance. Fu Li had never seen Old Feng when he changed forms, so when they first met a few days ago and Old Feng discovered that the little yao calling on them was Little Li, he thickened his skin and pretended to be a senior to scare Little Li into calling him uncle. His wish could be considered to have been granted. The corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth hooked up as he listened to Kang Gu¡¯s descriptions of the past events on Reflecting Mist Mountain. ¡°Fu Li has a very good rtionship with Senior Feng.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Kang Gu sighed. Seeing that Feng Ruizhong and Fu Li were still quarreling, he told Zhuang Qing in a low voice, ¡°The day I found him, he told me that if not for the fact that Fu Li hadn¡¯t called him uncle, allowing him to hold on, he might not have persevered until the day the fire went out.¡± Zhuang Qing looked back at the two yao who had turned the vegetables into a messy pile. He gave a light smile. ¡°It¡¯s quite good this way.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s quite good this way,¡± Kang Gu nodded. The steaming of the buns was done. Kang Gu removed the cover of the steamer basket, and Fu Li and Feng Ruizhong went over. After steaming, the entire body of the originally ugly dragon and Feng swelled up, rendering them even uglier. In contrast, the rabbit Zhuang Qing had previously pinched was squatting on the dragon¡¯s head in a lively manner, the exact image of a rabbit borrowing a dragon¡¯s might. ¡°It¡¯s cooked,¡± Kang Gu touched the tiny steamed buns and ced the steamer basket at the side. ¡°Eat at the side.¡± These two weren¡¯t of any help in the kitchen; all they did from start to end was blindly stir up chaos. Fu Li swept up the dragon and rabbit, telling Feng Ruizhong, ¡°These belong to me and Zhuang little dragon.¡± Then, he took the little fat pig away as well. ¡°This is for the king.¡± Feng Ruizhong ignored him. He grabbed the steaming hot Fenghuang bun and bit into it. The ugly Fenghuang lost half its wings at once. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,e, for you,¡± Fu Li plucked the two dragon horns and delivered them to Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°Eat the dragon horns, eat the dragon horns. You¡¯ll be the most beautiful dragon in the dragon world.¡± There were only a total of fifty-plus dragons in the dragon n now, was it very difficult to be the most beautiful one? Looking at the dragon horn buns in Fu Li¡¯s hand, Zhuang Qing lowered his head and ate them, touching Fu Li¡¯s fingers by ident. Fu Li silently stole a nce at the rosy corners of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze was fixed on Fu Li¡¯s fingertips. He too remained silent. ¡°Little Zhuang, the oil¡¯s going to turn old,¡± Kang Gu reminded him in a low voice. Zhuang Qing returned to his senses. He spoke to Fu Li, ¡°Go and y first, your clothes will be dirtied if the oil stters.¡± Fu Li nodded, telling him softly, ¡°Then I¡¯ll y with my phone outside, I¡¯ll leave the rabbit bun for you.¡± Zhuang Qingughed gently. ¡°Okay.¡± Fu Li walked to the kitchen door with the hornless dragon bun and sat down. While nibbling on the bun, he fished out his phone and clicked on the forum page. The area beneath his post was filled withizenments asking him and Zhuang Qing to get together, the total number of which had already exceeded five thousand. Even the forum moderator had also appeared to send an ¡®eternal unity¡¯ emoticon. Fu Li saved some of the videos, gifs, and photos on his phone and then directly scrolled all the way down to the bottom. Amongst the numerous eagerly hopefulizens, he replied to the post. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: Thank you everyone for your concern, we¡¯re together now. After sending out this reply, he ced his phone into his pocket and resolved to polish off the entire dragon, including the tail. Flower: F*ck, OP really is Little Assistant?! Crabs Taste Bad: It¡¯s time to witness a historical moment. Bye-Bye Moon: Has no one suspected this OP of pretending to be Little Assistant and deliberately sending this reply to deceive everyone? Thement by theizen called Bye-Bye Moon was supported by manyizens. To them, things couldn¡¯t be this coincidental ¨C the moment the neighboring post exploded in poprity, many small identical details appeared in this post. Sessful figures like Little Assistant and Chairman Zhuang didn¡¯tck anyone by their sides, how could theye online to post? But even moreizens could care less about the authenticity of the post. They were moved by the sweet romance in their imagination and went around various tforms promoting this post. The attention of innumerableizens was attracted by this, nearly paralyzing the forum¡¯s server. ¡°F*ck my ancestors, those two really got together?¡± The crested ibis had spent an entire day scrolling through the post without even sleeping. When he saw the OP¡¯s reply stating that they were ¡®together¡¯, he nearly flung his phone. Manyizens took this matter for entertainment but he knew that this wasn¡¯t someone fooling around. There was an eighth or ninth-tenths possibility that the poster really was Fu Li. Thinking of Zhuang Qing¡¯s viciousness when killing those yaoguai, the crested ibis¡¯ shoulders couldn¡¯t help trembling. He was truly worried that Zhuang Qing would swallow Fu Li the rabbit in one mouth if he was in a bad mood one day. Rubbing his dry and fatigued eyes, he got up from the bed and walked to the windows, pushing them open. Snowkes intermingled with cold air gushed into the room. He hurriedly shut the windows. When Zhuang Qing and Fu Li dated, the presents they casually gave out consisted of vis and gemstones. On the other hand, he lived in a shabby second-hand house that wasn¡¯t even seventy square meters. He, the national treasure of the bird world, couldn¡¯t even bumble along as well as a rabbit. Truly an affair that would make listeners grieve and witnesses weep. While he was off in another world, a red shadow with thick yao qi shed past his window. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± The wave of intense yao qi made the crested ibis subconsciously hold his breath. There was a touch of uneasiness in his heart. ording to bureau guidelines, yao cultivators could not give off overly-strong yao qi in the human world. If they were discovered by the management bureau, they would be punished. He sneakily opened the window a crack. Apart from the remnants of yao qi in the air, there were no other visible traces that a yao cultivator had passed through. ¡°It¡¯s the management bureau¡¯s problem anyway, what am I worrying about?¡± The crested bis returned to his bed and picked up his phone to game. However, he lost three consecutive rounds shortly after he started. ¡°Forget it, I¡¯d better report this to the management bureau,¡± The crested ibis logged out of the game and dug out the hotline for the bureau. No matter what time it was, there were always yao cultivators on duty at the bureau. After receiving this warm-hearted yao¡¯s call, they immediately reported the information to the various superiors of the yao teams and issued this piece of news on the yao world¡¯s tforms. The management bureau frequently issued all sorts of warning messages, but every incident was either handled in a timely manner by the bureau or there was a reporting error. Therefore, the cultivators who received this news continued to happily eat their sumptuous lunch and didn¡¯t take this matter seriously. The dispatched workers investigated the surroundings and even obtained surveince footage in the vicinity, but didn¡¯t discover the suspicious yaoguai mentioned by the crested ibis, much less any excessive amount of yao qi. Therefore, the management bureau categorized this matter as a reporting error. The crested ibis saw the people from the management bureau arrive without managing to find anything and also thought that he had seen wrongly. But just as the sky was about to darken, he discovered the sound of human screams from outside, along with the crying sounds of children. He lived in a small, old neighborhood. Although the houses weren¡¯t very good, the number of people living here was not small. He hurriedly opened his windows and saw a malevolent-looking monster half-resembling a lion pounce towards two children. In a moment of despair, he leaped out of the window and yelled, ¡°Yaoguai, release those two children.¡± The monster halted its movements and turned to look at the crested ibis. It let out a roar, revealing white, dense teeth and bright red gums. The two children had long been scared silly, and didn¡¯t dare cry nor run. The crested ibis realized that there were even a few deathly-pale adults lying unconscious on the snow-covered ground beside the children. The monster had fur simr to that of a lion and a lone horn emanating baleful qi on its head. The bloody qi engulfing its body was so thick that it could practically congeal into physical material. When the crested ibis got a clear glimpse of the monster¡¯s appearance, he was slightly regretful about rushing out in the heat of the moment. ¡°Nian...¡± The Nian was born two thousand years ago. Despite the fact that it hadn¡¯t appeared for several hundreds of years, its fearsome reputation meant that it was still a terrifying existence to ordinary yao cultivators. It was said that the Nian had odd tastes in food and was also picky. If it wanted to eat a man that year, it definitely wouldn¡¯t eat a woman. If it wanted to eat an infant the following year, it definitely wouldn¡¯t eat an adult. The crested ibis didn¡¯t have more than a few hundred years of cultivation. Faced with the Nian, he nearly couldn¡¯t maintain stable footing. He forcibly squeezed out a smile. ¡°Nian daren, you haven¡¯t descended upon the human world for a few hundred years, this year...¡± ¡°Scram!¡± The Nian didn¡¯t even spare the crested ibis a single nce and sent him flying with one swipe of its tail. ¡°F*ck your ancestors,¡± The crested ibisy sprawled on the snowy ground as he spat out arge mouth of blood. With a wave of his sleeves, three of his feathers turned into silk fabric. Scooping up the two frightened children, he hid them behind him, allowing the two children to evade the Nian¡¯s ravenous mouth. ¡°All you bureau bastards, what was that about reporting error? Laozi¡¯s done for now.¡± The crested ibis dialed through to the management bureau. ¡°You idiots, the Nian came out!¡± He wasn¡¯t in time to hang up before the Nian¡¯s enormous hoofs mmed onto his back. ¡°Even a bird yao dares to stop me from eating?¡± ¡°F*ck you, damned idiot,ozi is a national treasure! National treasure!¡± The crested ibis was spitting out blood from being stomped on, but he still didn¡¯t forget to dere his status as a national treasure. Unfortunately, the Nian didn¡¯t know what a national treasure was. In his eyes, the little yao snarling beneath his foot was nothing more than a harmless bird. This bird¡¯s neck was something he could snap in one mouth. But just when he was about to snap the crested ibis¡¯ neck, a red whip wound around his back. He gave a pained howl and released the crested ibis. Looking up at the people who had arrived, the crested ibis transformed into his bird form without the slightest hesitation. Waving his bloody wings, he hid behind a branch. ¡°Which ignorant junior dares to attack me?¡± Enraged, the Nian looked back at the yao who had arrived. ¡°Dragon?¡± Zhuang Qing took off his apron, using it to wipe his hands. ¡°Nian?¡± ¡°This is the Nian?¡± Fu Li wrinkled his brows in distaste. ¡°How ugly, just like a balding lion.¡± He shook the whip in his hands. ¡°We have to rush back quickly, we still need to watch the Lunar New Year partyter.¡± The crested ibis perched on the tree branch licked his feathers as he stared hatefully at the lovey-dovey pair below, choking in silent fury. ¡°Don¡¯t move. You still have to cook after going back, don¡¯t get your hands dirty,¡± Fu Li took out his whip, mming it onto the Nian. ¡°There haven¡¯t been firecrackers in the city the past few years, so you came running out again to cause trouble?!¡± Chapter 115 - Congratulations to You

Chapter 115 - Congrattions to You

The Nian reacted even more violently to these words than when he was whipped. His ferocious mouth gaped open, letting loose a roar at Fu Li. ¡°Ignorant human, how can the mere firecrackers in your human world scare me?¡± The fuming Nian couldn¡¯t even be bothered to use honorifics anymore. ¡°The Nian isn¡¯t scared of firecrackers?¡± Fu Li really hadn¡¯t been aware of this matter. He turned slightly towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°I was deceived by the legends in the human world?¡± Zhuang Qing: ... ¡°Forget it, this isn¡¯t important. Go save those humans first, there still seems to be some life left in them. I¡¯ll capture this Nian.¡± Taking care of a Nian wasn¡¯t of much difficulty to Fu Li. Within a few breaths, the Nian was firmly bound by the whip in his hands, unable to do much apart from curse others. ¡°You follow the bad example of humans despite being a dragon, there is truly no greater disgrace to the yao race!¡± The Nian started berating Zhuang Qing after seeing that Fu Li was ignoring him. ¡°If you¡¯re willing to kill this human, I¡¯m agreeable to giving this human¡¯s heart ¨C the most tender part ¨C to you.¡± The Nian rarely came into contact with the dragon n, but the dragons in the legends he had heard possessed immense strength and nevercked for any basic necessities. Thousands of years ago, it was said that a yao cultivator had offered the Dragon King the heart of a human born on the seventh day of the seventh month. Overjoyed, the Dragon King then bestowed him an incredibly profound cultivation technique. The dragon race had always looked down on humans, so why was this dragon with powerful qi together with a human? ¡°Which countryside did this idiote from?¡± The already-safe crested ibis shook his blood-stained feathers. ¡°In this age, the world has long united and here you are still wanting to eat humans and yao, why don¡¯t you eat yourself?¡± ¡°Ignorant bird, I¡¯m talking to the Dragon Lord, is there any space for you to cut in?¡± The Nian might have a vile appearance, but when he wanted to curry favor with someone, he could still be quite tactful. ¡°Laozi is a national treasure!¡± The crested ibis pped his wings. Several bloody feathers floated onto the snow-covered ground. ¡°Eat this,¡± Fu Li fished out a medicinal pill and tossed it to the crested ibis. Catching it with his ws, the crested ibis looked suspiciously at Fu Li. ¡°What medicine is this?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I may be from the countryside, but you won¡¯t die from this medicine,¡± Fu Li raised a brow, a hint of indifference in his voice. ¡°F*ck, you¡¯re too petty. I was cursing the Nian, not you,¡± Smelling the fragrant scent of the medicinal pill, the crested ibis swallowed his saliva, gulping the pill down. To his surprise, not only did a great half of his internal wounds heal right after he downed the medicinal pill, his cultivation also rose slightly. He couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°What medicine is this?¡± ¡°Nourishing Qi Pill,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t have the leisure to pay any heed to the crested ibis and was preupied with dealing with the Nian so that he could return home to watch the Lunar New Year celebratory party. Although he often hid in homes the past few years to watch news broadcasts, the new year was of great significance to the humans, so he would always conscientiously avoid the new year period when humans gathered. This year would be his first time watching the Lunar New Year¡¯s celebratory party. After finishing lunch, he had brought Uncle Feng and the King to Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi to sit by the television and wait for the party to begin. Now that a Nian had popped out to disturb him, his mood was no longer that wonderful. The three insignificant words ¡®Nourishing Qi Pill¡¯ shocked the crested ibis till he nearly lost his grip on the tree branch and directly plunged to the ground. He had actually eaten a very costly Nourishing Qi Pill! He finally understood why so many humans were fond of being sugar babies. The happiness of reaping without sowing was truly too great. No no no. As a national treasure, how could he have such a depraved way of thinking. He ought to struggle arduously and rely on himself! ¡°You¡¯re not human?¡± The Nian discovered a clue from their conversation. He looked at Fu Li with an expression of shock, as if he was looking at a monster. Just how terrifying was the cultivation of a yao who possessed tremendous strength yet didn¡¯t give off any yao qi? ¡°Is whether or not I¡¯m human important?¡± Fu Li took out a Binding-Yao Lock issued by the management bureau and cuffed him. ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte,¡± A woman with a gentle expression and hair that reached her waist walked through the barrier. The woman wasn¡¯t beautiful, but her gaze was warm and magnanimous, as if her eyes epassed all of spring. ¡°Who are you?¡± Fu Li smelled thick spiritual qi from this woman. She didn¡¯t seem like a yao. Rather, she was closer to what the humans called a ¡®god¡¯. But there were no gods in the world. The so-called gods were merely a type of spiritual body formed from human thought and worship. ¡°Greetings, daoyou,¡± The woman smiled gently at Fu Li. Her smile made Fu Li think of the word ¡®mother¡¯. He had seen many human mothers smile in this way. ¡°This humble one is called Nian Chuyi.¡± The woman with the name of Nian Chuyi exined her origins, ¡°The humans consider the first day of the Lunar New Year a beautiful beginning full of hope, so a monarch bestowed me the title of Spring God during the olden times. Please call me Chu Yi.¡± ¡°Chu Yi?¡± Fu Li had been in deep sleep for close to two thousand years and wasn¡¯t aware of the presence of ¡®man-made gods¡¯ in the human world. When he turned towards Zhuang Qing, Zhuang Qing had already sent the unconscious people out of the barrier. Even the two terrified children had had their memories wiped by him and were merrily ying sparklers outside the barrier with the adults. ¡°Dragon Lord daren, it¡¯s been hundreds of years since we met, have you been well?¡± The instant Chu Yi saw Zhuang Qing walk through the barrier, she stepped forward and gave an elegant bow. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine,¡± Zhuang Qing cast a nce at the Nian Fu Li had captured. ¡°You came for him?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Chu Yi nodded. ¡°I exist to chase away the ferocious Nian and bring a peaceful new year to the humans.¡± The Nian was eternally undying. He would perish every year, but whenever the new year arrived, he would once again revive. The Nian was born from human desires and fear, while Chu Yi was born from human hope, wisdom, and courage. Chu Yi walked over to Fu Li, bowing towards him. ¡°Many thanks to daojun for helping me to capture the Nian.¡± The Nian revealed a perpetual sneer after catching sight of Chu Yi. ¡°The pitiful Spring God. So what if you kill me? I will still rise at the same time next year. I will never be exterminated so long as humans have desires rooted in greed.¡± ¡°Without greed, there will be no pursuit of goals. Only with pursuit will there be hope,¡± Chu Yi was not infuriated by the Nian¡¯s words. She ced a hand on the Nian¡¯s head, and the Nian dissipated with a roar. The Yao-Binding Lock fell to the ground, as if the Nian had never existed. Chu Yi sent Fu Li a smile afterpleting all this. ¡°Though it is our first meeting, I smell the scent of someone alike.¡± She was born from human thought. Likewise, the yao before her with profound cultivation had likely also taken form through a heavenly chance. Hundreds of years ago, the Nian had been unable to condense its form due to weak spiritual qi in the Heavens and Earth, and she too had been in constant deep sleep. For some unknown reason, the Nian had once again risen this year, so she could only prop up her body thatcked spiritual qi in pursuit of the Nian. The humans no longer hoped for celestial immortals to save them. Perhaps she would also dissipate into the Heavens and Earth not long after, never to exist. This daoyou was different. After taking form, he no longer drew on the thought of other life forms to continue living. Such a thing was very good. Chu Yi¡¯s smile became even gentler as she thought of this. ¡°I spoke wrongly, I hope this daoyou does not mind. Since the Nian has been eliminated this year, I should be going back.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t seen the human world for a long time, Zhuang Qing and I will bring you around,¡± Fu Li was moved by the smile on Chu Yi¡¯s face. He turned towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°Okay, Zhuang little dragon?¡± ¡°No need,¡± Chu Yi shook her head. ¡°Thank you for your kind intentions. In my current state, the most I canst is two hours...¡± ¡°Two hours is enough to see plenty,¡± Zhuang Qing said expressionlessly as he walked to Fu Li¡¯s side. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Chu Yi nced at the glittering lights along the road. The corners of her mouth moved. A long whileter, she said, ¡°Thank you.¡± The streetlights that shone as brightly as the sun, the towering buildings, the cars and pedestrians all around them, the bundled-up children whose faces exuded joy ¨C it was through all these that Chu Yi witnessed a new human world. There was no ughter, no starvation everywhere, no tortured howls. The flourishing world seemed like a transient dream that she would wake from with one poke. ¡°Can every person... eat meat now?¡± ¡°Yup, most of the humans in this country lead rtively good lives. Their tummies are full and they have warm clothing, but they still have many small troubles,¡± Fu Li nodded. ¡°That¡¯s very good. Having a full tummy and warm clothing is very good,¡± Seeing that a child had slipped and fallen at the roadside, Chu Yi reached out, wanting to help the child up. But the child¡¯s parents moved even quicker, scooping the child into their embrace. ¡°The day I sank into a deep sleep, many children had no food to eat,¡± Chu Yi smiled, sending the family off into the distance with her gaze. The smile at the corners of her eyes and brows couldn¡¯t be suppressed no matter what. ¡°It¡¯s really nice that things are now like this.¡± A few youngsters were stuffing arge bag of food into the hands of a beggar in slightly grimy clothes. The beggar wished them a happy new year with a smile. The youngsters in bright and neat attire ran off with smiles. ¡°Are they the children of nobility?¡± ¡°No, they are just several of many ordinary youngsters,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°There are many such youngsters in this country. Of course, there are also many not-very-good children.¡± Chu Yi merely smiled. She almost couldn¡¯t bear to blink, she wanted to look upon this world more. Even if it was just one extra nce, it would still be good. Fu Li and Zhuang Qing brought Chu Yi to a huge public square where humans came and went. Boys and girls strolled about with their hands linked, the air thick with the scent of honey. ¡°Is it all right for them to be like that?¡± Chu Yi saw a couple locked in an embrace in the distance. There was shock in her eyes but no curiosity. ¡°There is freedom to love. Abiding by marriages arranged by parents is not necessary,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Fu Li beside him, whose gaze was fixed on the big screen. ¡°Most people have the chance to choose their own path.¡± Chu Yi recalled how a very, very long time ago, a ten-plus year old girl had been wedded to a man she didn¡¯t love by her parents. After her marriage, she was either beaten or scolded. In the end, she jumped into an icyke on the eve of Lunar New Year. She had no other choice apart from enduring it or dying. ¡°Things are very good this way,¡± Chu Yi nodded. ¡°Really very good.¡± On this night, she practically said nothing else other than ¡®good¡¯. The human world was not perfect, but many things were very good. Tummies were full, there was warm clothing, and everyone had the freedom of choice, no matter whether they were woman or man. Chu Yi lingered in the public square for a very long time. She was interested in the statues in the public square as well as the neon signs. In her eyes, even the huge screens were a novelty. ¡°Try these,¡± Fu Li came over with many snack-filled bags. There was grilled sweet potato, cotton candy, baked chestnuts with sugar, biscuits, choctes, melon seeds, peanuts, and so on. Everything that could be thought of was there. ¡°Thank you,¡± Chu Yi epted the snacks with a very warm smile. Two hours was a very long but also very short time. When the hour hand on the clock was about to reach the number eight, Chu Yi stood up from the public chair, saying with a smile, ¡°I won¡¯t be able to apany the humans to usher in the new year this year.¡± Fu Li took out a medicinal pill from his Qiankun pouch and offered it to Chu Yi. ¡°I have a Soul Condensing Pill here, perhaps you might be able to hold on a while longer after eating it.¡± ¡°No need,¡± Chu Yi smiled, shaking her head. ¡°This country is toorge and there are too many things I want to see. But I can rest easy now that I know that starvation and the chaos of war is no longer rampant in this country. Wait for next year. When I appear again next year, would you apany me to visit other ces?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded silently. Fu Li recited the address of Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi. ¡°We live here. When you wake up next year, make sure toe find us.¡± Chu Yi smiled, nodding. If she could wake up. ¡°Dragon Lord and Daoyou have a very good rtionship,¡± Chu Yi spread out her palm. An object as transparent as icey in her palm. ¡°This is Spring Jade, a toy formed from human hope and happiness. Although it doesn¡¯t have any use, its strong point is that it¡¯s nice to look at.¡± She ced the Spring Jade in Fu Li¡¯s palm and charmingly batted her eyes at him. ¡°This is my gift in return for treating me to snacks.¡± At this moment, Fu Li saw the vitality and life force of spring in her. Fu Li didn¡¯t know whether he ought to ept this gift and stealthily nced at Zhuang Qing. Aplex expression on his face, Zhuang Qing nodded lightly at Fu Li. ¡°Thank you,¡± Gripping the Spring Jade tightly. Fu Li got up. ¡°I¡¯ll send you home. You¡¯re wee to be a guest at our house next year.¡± Chu Yi¡¯s body was already gradually fading. There were even people who passed through her body, though no one could see her nor were they aware that spring had already arrived. Chu Yi knew that she wasn¡¯t going home. She was merely falling into a deep sleep due to insufficient spiritual qi. But this gentle way of putting it made herugh out loud from joy. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll definitely go if I have the chance. I¡¯m only returning home, there¡¯s no need to see me off.¡± Her figure became increasingly faint. In no more than a few minutes, only a blurry silhouette remained. Fu Li could vaguely make out her smile. ¡°Dragon Lord, you were still alone the year I met you. It is truly my fortune to see the Dragon Lord in this state today. When I next meet the two lords in theing year, it will be the time of autumn harvests and blooming flowers in warm spring.¡± The Spring God vanishedpletely. Among the hordes of people in merriment, no one knew of her arrival and her quiet disappearance. ¡°It¡¯s snowing again!¡± A child yelled out. Fu Li raised his head. Snowkes floated down, noiselessly and ceaselessly. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li. ¡°Where?¡± Fu Li stood there in a daze, his gaze somewhat vacant. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to watch the New Year¡¯s G?¡± Zhuang Qing took hold of his hand. ¡°It¡¯s only eight o¡¯clock now, there¡¯s still plenty of time to watch.¡± Fu Li¡¯s tone was a little mncholic. ¡°But I don¡¯t want to go back right away.¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s footsteps halted. ¡°Then I¡¯ll walk with you.¡± He didn¡¯t release his grip on Fu Li¡¯s hand. ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded. He held Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand tightly without the slightest difort. In any case, Zhuang Qing was already his dragon, it was fine no matter how they held hands. Zhuang Qing turned back to look at thepletely oblivious Fu Li. The tips of his brows shifted slightly. Did the fact that he was willing to hold his hand mean that he wasn¡¯t averse to their close proximity? Did it mean that he would be his Dao Companion one day? ¡°Snow-covered heads, together till our hair turns white,¡± A girl pushed aside the umbre a boy was holding up for her. ¡°Let¡¯s not use the umbre.¡± ¡°Even if snow doesn¡¯t fall on us, we¡¯ll still be together till our hair turns white. But if you fall sick, I¡¯ll be worried,¡± The boy hurriedly covered her with the umbre. In a low voice, he told his girlfriend, ¡°Don¡¯t learn from those two brothers at the side. They¡¯re strong and vigorous, and can resist the cold.¡± The two brothers at the side, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing: ... ¡°They¡¯re together?¡± The girl lowered her voice. ¡°But they look like a good match.¡± The boy wanted to turn around and take a few looks at them, but his girlfriend turned his head back. ¡°Don¡¯t look too much, it won¡¯t be good if they feel awkward.¡± ¡°I just wanted to see what kind of men will dare to go against societal pressure and walk together hand-in-hand without fear of others saying anything,¡± The boy muttered softly. Despite this, he didn¡¯t look back again. It was unknown whether or not he was afraid of his girlfriend bing angry or because he didn¡¯t want Zhuang Qing and Fu Li to feel awkward. The volume at which they conversed was indeed low, but they were not aware that the two brothers behind them were not human but yao with much better hearing ability than normal humans. Fu Li sent the couple off with his gaze, looking thoughtful. It seemed he and Zhuang little dragon were a natural couple; they were only casually walking outside, and there were already people who said they were a good match. But despite Zhuang Qing¡¯s high cultivation and the cold weather today, sweat had still seeped out of his palm. Was it because the time since his sessful transformation was too short, and so the spiritual qi in his body was still slightly unstable? ¡°Ah!¡± A girl suddenly shrieked from a crowd of people at the side. ¡°Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant!¡± ¡°Where?¡± Herpanions turned back one after another. Upon seeing Zhuang Qing and Fu Li, they covered their mouths, not quite daring to believe their eyes. Did wealthy people also like strolling outside like them when on a date? The girl who shrieked grew conscious of how discourteous her behavior had been and apologized to Fu Li and Zhuang Qing with a red face. ¡°I¡¯m s-sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Fu Li replied with a smile. ¡°Happy new year.¡± ¡°Happy new year,¡± The red-faced girl stuttered after seeing that Fu Li wasn¡¯t going to me her. ¡°Wishing you and Chairman Zhuang happiness.¡± ¡°Thank you for the blessing,¡± Fu Li was amused by the girl¡¯s actions. ¡°That...¡± Fu Li¡¯s easygoing attitude strengthened the girl¡¯s courage, and she asked a question that manyizens wanted to personally ask. ¡°Are you and Chairman Zhuang really together?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s palm tensed up. He turned to look at Fu Li, his expression as rigid as stone. Fu Li held up his and Zhuang Qing¡¯s intertwined hands. ¡°Yup, we¡¯re together.¡± ¡°Congrattions, congrattions, congrattions to you. Congrattions, congrattions to you,¡± In a small shop along the street, an outdated song was ying on a raggedy sound system. The sound was incredibly echoey, vibrating so intensely that Zhuang Qing¡¯s ears rumbled. ¡°Winter hase to an end, what great news.¡± Was he misunderstanding something? ¡°The icy snow has melted, the plum trees are about to blossom.¡± Zhuang Qing blinked. Chilly snowkes floated into his eyes. It hurt a little and gave a slight burning sensation. ¡°Congrattions, congrattions, congrattions to you. Congrattions, congrattions to you.¡± The hand he was holding was warm and robust. This was probably... real, right? Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li dazedly. In his distracted state, he heard the unfamiliar human girl congratting him. He seemed to have said something. What did he say? ¡°Thank you.¡± Although he himself didn¡¯t know who he was thanking. Ilyz: congrattions!!! ?????? Chapter 116 - Kiss

Chapter 116 - Kiss

¡°You¡¯re already my dragon and you still nk out when with me?¡± Noticing that Zhuang Qing was standing there in a daze, Fu Li tugged on his sleeve, shaking his hand like a little master. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Zhuang Qing gazed at Fu Li absent-mindedly. ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go,¡± Fu Li waved a hand at the girls before moving off, pulling Zhuang Qing along by the arm. The girls covered their faces, smiling. A gutsy girl called out courageously, ¡°Chairman Zhuang, Assistant Fu, wishing you loving affection till old age and a century of happiness.¡± After shouting out this statement, the girl bashfully hid behind her friend. Unexpectedly, Chairman Zhuang, who had been the epitome of an aloof male god from start to end, suddenly came to a stop and turned around to look at them. The girls grew a bit nervous. Had the shout been too loud and made Chairman Zhuang unhappy? ¡°Thank you for the blessings, although it¡¯s not a century but ten thousand years, a hundred thousand years.¡± Zhuang Qing turned from the passive party to the active party ¨C he stretched an arm around Fu Li¡¯s shoulder and walked into the stream of people amidst the fluttering snowkes. The girls covered their mouths, shrieking softly. ¡°Zhuang Qing looked so serious just now.¡± ¡°Yeah, as if he and Little Assistant can live for tens of thousands of years.¡± ¡°Maybe Chairman Zhuang meant that he will be with Little Assistant in every life.¡± ¡°Dying from sweetness, dying from sweetness.¡± On the forum, aizen had already captured a photo of Zhuang Qing and Fu Li holding hands at the public square. Furthermore, this photographerizen was an expert ¨C the photo taken was both aesthetic and overflowing with a romantic air. Heavy snow gently floated to the ground, and the crowds of people faded into the background. The two men holding hands seemed to have formed their own world; a world with only them, inessible to any other person. Cloud: It¡¯s the Lunar New Year and watching the New Year G isn¡¯t very interesting, so I ran over to the forum to eat dog food. My brain must not be very good. Stunning Little Witch: OP took the picture really beautifully. We bumped into Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant at the public square today. Their rtionship is extremely good, not at all like a couple who has just confirmed their romantic status. Crabs Taste Bad: The entire world already knows that the two of them are together, only Little Assistant doesn¡¯t. Who knows how happy Chairman Zhuang is now that Little Assistant realized it? Cloud: Say, do you think Chairman Zhuang knows that Little Assistant made this post? If he knows, will he get the forum moderator to delete this post? Crabs Taste Bad: ... Stunning Little Witch: ... Panda¡¯s Tail: Does it matter whether or not he knows? He definitely won¡¯t let the forum moderator delete a post like this that proves Assistant Fu and him are together. Stunning Little Witch: The person upstairs is speaking too absolutely. You aren¡¯t Chairman Zhuang nor do you know him, on what basis can you determine that Chairman Zhuang won¡¯t allow the deletion of this post? ¡°Laozi not only knows Zhuang Qing but also Fu Li,¡± The crested ibis threw his phone onto the bed. Pulling up his pajamas, he nced at his injured chest. At this point, it was as bright and unmarred as it had been previously. There was no indication that there had once been an injury there. There was a rumor in the yao world that Fu Li had cultivated together with very powerful great yao before leaving his mountain, which was why his cultivation was so profound. He had previously turned his nose up at this rumor, thinking that the yao in the yao cultivators¡¯ world had lived for too long and likeding up with all sorts of nonsensical rumors, asking for trouble when there was none. But after today, he no longer thought so. Fu Li was a second generation nouveau riche, a great figure that others knelt down and called daddy. The asional crackling sound could be heard outside the window, caused by someone setting off fireworks. The crested ibisy on the bed, closed his eyes, and fell asleep. By the time Fu Li and Zhuang Qing returned, they were only in time to watch thest bit of the New Year G. The moment it struck twelve, Kang Gu carried a bunch of firework tubes out. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the flying pce to set off the fireworks.¡± There was a barrier inside the flying pce and it was far from the ground, so even if they secretly set some off, it wouldn¡¯t be discovered by the humans. The four yao flew back to the flying pce with Fu Li following behind Kang Gu, tubes in hand. ¡°How should we arrange them so that they¡¯ll look better?¡± ¡°Put them down, let me do it.¡± ¡°I want to do it myself.¡± Feng Ruizhong stood on the steps, arms crossed over his chest. He turned to speak to Zhuang Qing, ¡°These two people are just so senseless.¡± Zhuang Qing... remained silent. All he did was fix his line of sight on Fu Li, who was ying around. ¡°What a bear child, it¡¯s all because those old yaoguai on the mountain spoiled him. He¡¯s already more than four thousand years old but he doesn¡¯t have the image of a mature yao at all. Truly worrisome.¡± Though Feng Ruizhong med Fu Li, he about-faced and said, ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you, tolerating this kind of bear child.¡± Zhuang Qing shook his head. ¡°No, Fu Li is very good.¡± Feng Ruizhong wanted to say a bit more, but when he saw Zhuang Qing¡¯s earnest and serious expression, he onlyughed. Turning his head, he watched Fu Li and Kang Gu arranging the tubes with their butts sticking out. He gave a faint smile. ¡°Childish.¡± ¡°Uncle Feng, quicklye, there are still many tubes here,¡± Fu Li waved Feng Ruizhong over. ¡°Ai,ing,¡± Feng Ruizhong trotted over to Fu Li¡¯s side and took the tubes from him. Zhuang Qing stuck his hands into the pockets of his trousers, shaking his head helplessly. Seriously, juniors took after their seniors. He saw too much of Fu Li in them. ¡°I can¡¯t give you this, I¡¯m keeping it to y with Zhuang little dragon.¡± ¡°Forgetting your father now that you have a wife, I raised you for nothing.¡± ¡°Uncle Feng, you already took so many, you should at least leave my family¡¯s little dragon some, right?¡± Fu Li hid the tubes behind his back, turned tail, and ran. Feng Ruizhong took two steps in pursuit of him. He saw Kang Gu stillughing when he turned around and cursed, ¡°Laughughugh, look at how all you elders spoiled this little rabbit.¡± Kang Gu felt very wronged by his cursing. Unresigned, he said, ¡°Who was it who yed with Fu Li every day during those years so that he didn¡¯t have the thought of even learning swordy?¡± These words choked Feng Ruizhong up till his temper dissipated. Snorting, he didn¡¯t say anything. Fu Li couldn¡¯t be bothered about whether or not these two elders were bickering. He heartlessly shoved the firework tubes into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands and said in a low voice, ¡°Us two can y in secretter.¡± Zhuang Qing had always had the notion that only children would y with fireworks, but when he saw Fu Li so earnestly helping him to snatch them, these small toys suddenly became interesting. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°King, set them off!¡± Fu Li stood on tiptoe, telling Kang Gu, ¡°It¡¯s already past twelve.¡± ¡°Humph, let me set them off,¡± Feng Ruizhong blew out a puff of air and the fireworks exploded one after another. Dazzling firework flowers blossomed in the sky, apanied by shrill whistles. It was a beautiful and dream-like sight. ¡°Happy new year,¡± Fu Li hugged Zhuang Qing¡¯s neck. ¡°Happy new year,¡± The corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth raised and he hugged Fu Li. This new year was a beautiful one, so beautiful that it seemed like a dream. Feng Ruizhong was looking up at the fireworks in the sky when he suddenly thought of something. ¡°Where did you get the fireworks from?¡± ¡°From a firework and firecracker factory. I specially chose a firecracker factory with a very good reputation, quality definitely isn¡¯t an issue.¡± ¡°You secretly took them and didn¡¯t pay the humans?¡± Kang Gu: ... He stroked his chin somewhat guiltily. ¡°I didn¡¯t have money, but I ced a bag of golden beans in the boss¡¯ house. That should be enough to pay for these fireworks.¡± Feng Ruizhong: ... The first day of the Lunar New Year, all sorts of passages roasting the New Year G circted on the inte. A piece of news rose above all this ridicule and received the attention of countlessizens. Upon seeing this piece of news, manyizens expressed that they were seeking for this sort of great bandit to visit their house so they would be several hundred thousand richer in one night. There were even some who suggested that this boss had encountered the God of Wealth, indicating that they would strike it big in the Year of the Dragon. As Zhuang Qing was scrolling through the news on his phone, he nced at the three yao seated in a row in the living room watching a dog blood drama on family morality. He replied to the message from a certain department. [I¡¯m not sure, maybe some rich person was bored. Since the boss of the firework factory won¡¯t pursue this matter and the other party doesn¡¯t have any malicious intentions, then there¡¯s no need to make a big deal out of it.] Zhuang Qing ced the te of washed fruits onto the side table and noticed that Fu Li was looking at him. ¡°You can continue watching, I¡¯ll go cook.¡± Seeing Zhuang Qing enter the kitchen again, Fu Li shifted all over the couch before eventually jabbing a toothpick into a slice of honeydew and slipping into the kitchen. ¡°Terrible,¡± Feng Ruizhong rolled his eyes. ¡°This is why I say he forgot his elders after gaining a wife, thankless wretch.¡± Kang Gu smiled simple-mindedly. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that the kids have a good rtionship. You just can¡¯t bear the child leaving your side. It¡¯s fortunate you¡¯re an uncle and not Little Li¡¯s mum, otherwise you¡¯ll definitely be an evil mother-inw.¡± Feng Ruizhong: ... ¡°Shut your mouth if you don¡¯t know how to say anything good!¡± ¡°What¡¯s for lunch?¡± Fu Li leaned against Zhuang Qing¡¯s back, holding the honeydew out to Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°This piece is very sweet, I specially picked it for you.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Zhuang Qing ate the honeydew. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of oil and smoke in the kitchen, go watch television with the elders in the living room.¡± ¡°How will they have the time to look at me when watching television,¡± Fu Li rolled up his sleeves. ¡°I¡¯ll apany you.¡± Zhuang Qing scanned the kitchen and then pointed at the carrots in the sink. ¡°Wash those then.¡± ¡°Carrots again...¡± Fu Li inwardly looked down on them. Dunking the carrots into the water, he scrubbed them vigorously, to the point where the poor carrots either missed an arm, had a broken leg, or lost a thickyer of skin. ¡°I¡¯m done washing them,¡± Fu Li flicked the water off his hands. ¡°When I was working at Affinity Moon Hotel, a human grandpa told me that I had to learn how to cook to coax the person I like back home.¡± He smiled in delight. ¡°Now that I have you, I finally don¡¯t have to think about it.¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the pitiful carrots in the basket and was silent for two seconds. ¡°En, things are indeed better this way.¡± ¡°Come here,¡± Fu Li crooked a damp hand at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands were oily. Worried that he would dirty Fu Li¡¯s clothes, he could only ce his hands behind his back and lean towards him. Muah. Warm, soft lips met before swiftly parting. Zhuang Qing dazedly remained in his original position, somewhat unable to react. ¡°The wok, the wok!¡± Fu Li pointed at the wok. In the end, the water on his hands sshed into the deep fryer, causing bits of oil to stter andnd on the back of his hand. He hastily took two steps back. Zhuang Qing switched the gas off in a fluster, rubbing his hands on his apron. ¡°Were you scalded?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve cultivated for so many years, how can I be scared of this little bit of oil,¡± Fu Li nonchntly touched the back of his hand. ¡°Although the sound of the oil sttering is a little scary.¡± ¡°Then stand further away,¡± Zhuang Qing pecked him on the forehead. ¡°After I¡¯m done frying,e over again and serve the food.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li touched the spot where he had been kissed, the rabbit in his heart bouncing at lightning speed. Zhuang little dragon¡¯s lips were pretty soft. On television, the male lead¡¯s mother resented the female lead in all aspects, and the female lead was weeping endlessly, pleading for this mother to acknowledge her. Feng Ruizhong stared at the television as his hands worked on shelling peanuts. ¡°Should we find Zhu Yue?¡± ¡°No rush,¡± When Kang Gu wasn¡¯t revealing a simple-minded smile, he did bear some semnce to a king of a mountain in the yao world. ¡°At least we can be sure that Zhu Yue is still alive, the rest...¡± The punishment they had been subjected to these years was to live a life worse than death. They didn¡¯t know how many of the yao from Reflecting Mist Mountain could endure it. ¡°There is no benefit in overthinking, don¡¯t mention this in front of Little Li,¡± Feng Ruizhong looked towards the kitchen. The two juniors were all lovey-dovey, in great harmony. ¡°Being alive is more powerful than anything else.¡± ¡°Green pepper stir-fry with julienned potato is pretty easy,¡± Fu Li dumped potato strips into the wok while Zhuang Qing did the stir-frying. Along the way, Fu Li threw in some Sichuan pepper and minced garlic, feeling like he had contributed to the green peppers and julienned potato dish that left the wok. ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. As long as you¡¯re happy. Ilyz: thank you Ziplen for sharing your lovely fanart on discord~ Chapter 117 - No End to Learning

Chapter 117 - No End to Learning

Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s Lunar New Year was spent with an abundance of happiness and bliss, but the other people from the management bureau had to withstand the curious questions from their sectmates or good friends on a daily basis. For instance, how exactly had Dragon Emperor Zhuang and Fu daoyou gotten together? As the sole remaining dragon of the golden dragon n, could the other aquatic yao ept him being with a male rabbit yao? Even more yao felt that this was an injustice to Zhuang Qing. After a difficult period of suffering, he had passed a major tribtion to be the Dragon Emperor and received the worship of all aquatic races. But in the end, he got together with a male rabbit yao. How would the other aquatic races perceive him? When Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t yet the Dragon Emperor and wasn¡¯t openly together with Fu Li, all the cultivators felt that it would be quite good for them to get together. But after Zhuang Qing became the Dragon Emperor and confirmed his rtionship with Fu Li, several meddlesome yao started to nitpick here and there. Some would say that Fu Li¡¯s background was too poor and that he wasn¡¯t worthy of the emperor of the aquatic races, while others would say that Zhuang Qing¡¯s actions were a disappointment to the aquatic ns and so on and so forth. Or perhaps they were simply agitated from boredom and merely wanted a gossiping target to kill time. Certain yao who took on human form a very long time ago would gradually acquire some bad human habits, for instance vices such as greed, lust, jealousy, talkativeness, and so on. Such voices gradually appeared on the cultivation world¡¯s forum, iming that Fu Li behaved snobbishly by originally looking down on Zhuang Qing, but immediately choosing to be with him the moment he saw that Zhuang Qing had undergone his transformation and became the emperor of the aquatic races. There were even yao who, under the cover of sockpuppets, deliberately fabricated short paragraphs implicitly targeting Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. ¡°These yao must be sick in the head,¡± The first day they returned to work, everyone in the management bureau was in a situation where their body was in the office but their heart was somece else. Zhang Ke surreptitiously took out his phone to scroll through the forum. He didn¡¯t scroll for long when his entire person red up, shocking his other drowsy colleagues. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Seeing how irate Zhang Ke was, Xu Yuan said teasingly, ¡°Your period¡¯s here?¡± ¡°What period, someone¡¯s talking nonsense on the cultivators¡¯ forum,¡± Zhang Ke replied moodily. ¡°What trouble has the boss and Fu ge brought them by being together for them to spout rubbish?¡± Incensed beyondpare, he switched on hisputer and tapped on the keyboard, starting a quarrel with the other party. ¡°Their IP address shows that they¡¯re outside the country,¡± Xu Yuan checked the IP address. ¡°Seems like this yao cultivator isn¡¯tcking in intelligence and still knew to get themselves a proxy IP before speaking nonsense. We¡¯ll have to invite aputer expert if we want to look into it further, I can¡¯t do it.¡± ¡°Look into what?¡± Fu Li walked into the office, a bag of spiritual fruits in hand. Kang Gu had given them to him to share with his colleagues. ¡°Look intost year¡¯s criminal records,¡± Xu Yuan immediately closed the webpage. ¡°Fu ge, congrattions on finally achieving a happy ever after with the boss.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Fu Li distributed the spiritual fruits to everyone with a wide smile. Taking out his phone, he posed a question to Zhang Ke, ¡°Zhang Ke, you mentionedst year that our cultivation world has a forum, how can I register?¡± ¡°Ah?!¡± Zhang Ke looked up. Seeing that all his colleagues were staring at him, he responded somewhat guiltily, ¡°Today won¡¯t do, the forum¡¯s server is under maintenance, so you won¡¯t be able to log in.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t take this matter to heart. He ced his phone on the desk in passing. Zhang Ke and the other colleagues secretly heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°I¡¯m heading to themunications department to see if there¡¯s any web data to transfer,¡± Xu Yuan stood up, determined to get themunications department to delete the nonsensical posts. ¡°I¡¯ll go,¡± Fu Li took out a bag of fruits from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°It just so happens I¡¯m going over to give them fruits.¡± Everyone turned their heads and looked at Xu Yuan. Talk about mentioning what had not been mentioned. Xu Yuan: &#k2026; She hadn¡¯t expected Fu ge to be in such a good mood today that he ran all over distributing presents either. ¡°Fu Li,¡± Zhuang Qing had been standing outside the door since who-knows-when. ¡°Come with me for a moment.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li stuffed the fruits into Xu Yuan¡¯s arms. ¡°Then help me to distribute them.¡± ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Xu Yuan agreed in a haste. At this point in time, she would be willing even if she had to dig into her own pockets to buy fruits to distribute, let alone distribute fruits on his behalf. Zhuang Qing nced at Xu Yuan. ¡°If themunications department has something going on, settle it quickly, understand?¡± ¡°Understood, understood, understood,¡± Xu Yuan nodded hurriedly. It seemed the boss also knew about thosements on the forum. Only Fu ge was stillpletely in the dark. ¡°Wait,¡± Fu Li remembered that he hadn¡¯t taken his phone. Turning, he moved to pick his phone up. In the end, he bumped into Zhang Ke by ident, knocking his phone to the floor. ¡°Sorry,¡± As Fu Li was stooping over and picking up the phone, he identally caught sight of a passage of words on the screen. I Just Can¡¯t Bear to Watch: This Fu Li yao is both snobbish and scheming. The other employees of the management bureau must have encountered a few lifetimes¡¯ worth of bad luck to be working in the same ce as him. Shadow: Isn¡¯t it just him taking a fancy to Chief Zhuang¡¯s Dragon Emperor status and therefore impatiently promoting it on the forum, itching to let the entire world know that he got together with Chief Zhuang? No, It¡¯s Me Who Can¡¯t Bear to Watch: The pitiful Chief Zhuang is such a good dragon, but was lied to by this sort of scheming yao. ¡°Fu ge, this...¡± Fu Li returned the phone to Zhang Ke. ¡°All this on the inte is just nonsense, don¡¯t take them to heart,¡± Zhang Ke was afraid that these intements would affect Fu Li and Zhuang Qing¡¯s rtionship. He stammered out, ¡°You and the boss are getting along perfectly fine. We all know what kind of yao you are, and so does the boss. You must not make yourself unhappy just because of this little bit of stuff online.¡± Fu Li silently furrowed his brows. Raising his head, he looked at Zhuang Qing, who had already made his way over to him. There was no worry to be seen on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face. Fu Li very seriously said, ¡°These people are jealous of me for obtaining you, right?¡± Who had obtained who? The hearts of the other colleagues were in a perilous situation with unlimited undtions, yet it was all sunshine on their faces. Ah, they really hadn¡¯t expected this. It seemed like the mighty, majestic boss was actually... Ah, love. What a grand and fascinating thing it was. It could actually let the Dragon Emperor give himself wholly to a rabbit, and with steadfast loyalty and their hearts joined as one. How miraculous. ¡°They¡¯re all boring people, there¡¯s no need to pay any heed to them,¡± Zhuang Qing cast a nce at the employees surrounding them who had their ears pricked up in preparation to listen to the excitement. After bringing Fu Li into his office, he closed the door before saying, ¡°I can clean up the onlinements by today, it¡¯s not a major issue. Take the time now to think about what you want to eat tonight.¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°No, I want to show off my wealth now.¡± ¡°What?¡± Zhuang Qing thought he had misheard. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say those things of mine are very rare in the cultivation world?¡± Fu Li asked. ¡°They can¡¯t beat me inbat, don¡¯t have as many treasures as me, nor do they have as capable and good-looking a partner as me. Won¡¯t they be angered to death if I unt my wealth?¡± Zhuang Qing: ... Faced with Fu Li¡¯s exhrated gaze, he gave a slow nod. ¡°As long as you¡¯re happy.¡± ¡°Then tell me how I can log into the cultivators¡¯ forum,¡± Injected with energy, Fu Li drifted to Zhuang Qing with phone in hand. What part of him was distressed by the forumments? ¡°Open the website, then use spiritual qi as the conductor...¡± Seeing that Fu Li had already set his heart on this, Zhuang Qing could only resign himself to it and give Fu Li a meticulous exnation on the method to enter the forum. ¡°Thank you, dear,¡± Understanding the method, Fu Li pecked Zhuang Qing on the chin, nestled on the chair with a turn of his head, and started fiddling with his phone. Zhuang Qing touched his chin. Logging into his forum ount, he left a verifiedment under the post with the most curses. Zhuang Qing: I just like losing money to him instead of being paid. Many thanks for the concern, we¡¯re doing very well. ¡°Hahahaha,¡± Hidden in his house, the crested ibis pped his thigh inughter. This Zhuang Qing was vicious and ruthless in the way he killed those evil yao that year, but when it came to emotions, he was still pretty serious. Wouldn¡¯t this one sentence of his anger those parasites deliberately sowing discord to death? In a moment of excitement, he left ament at the bottom egging Zhuang Qing on. Only after he made thement did he regain his wits and start suspecting whether he had been too impulsive. Unexpectedly, when he refreshed the webpage, there were actually quite a few yao cultivators cheering Zhuang Qing on, and they were all verified replies too. The leader and elder of the Fields Sect, the various high-ranking staff of the management bureau, and the elders of the Qing Xiao Sect and Wanyue Sect all emerged in rapid session. ¡°Are the people from the famous orthodox sects all this idle?¡± The crested ibis looked at how these big bosses of the cultivation world had actually all secretly paid close attention to this post, and felt that these famous orthodox sects... might just be that sort. Just as he was thinking that things would end like this, a daoyou iming to be from the dragon n spoke out. Big Red Dragon: Who are all of you to represent us aquatic races and look down on Fu Li daojun. Did you shameless lot ask about the opinions of us aquatic races? Let me tell you, us aquatic races follow the orders of Chief Zhuang Qing. We are all supportive and understanding towards whoever he likes. Those muddying the waters can scram to the side. The other cultivators watching the show were shocked. The dragon n was now so united on the inside? Wasn¡¯t there a dragon just a few months ago who nearly turned into their original form after being beaten ck and blue by Chief Zhuang? Why were they running out now to speak up for Chief Zhuang? And even heavily imply that the entire dragon race would abide by Chief Zhuang¡¯s orders at any time? ¡°Zhuang little dragon, this forum design is too shameless ¨C it even wants information like my phone address book and bank ount. They might as well just snatch my phone?¡± Fu Li rolled his eyes. Zhuang Qing replied evenly, ¡°This is us integrating with the humans and following the rules and regtions of major human applications. This is already the simplified version where there¡¯s no request for ess to internal storage or the photo album.¡± ¡°All human applications are this shameless?¡± ¡°Most applications are this shameless, there are even some that are even more shameless than this,¡± Zhuang Qing responded after a moment of contemtion. Understanding suddenly struck Fu Li. There was truly no end to learning about the human world. One had to either keep forging ahead or fall behind. After thismentation, Fu Li started fishing things out of his Qiankun pouch. Which should he take a picture of and post on the forum to better provoke the yao? Would the various divine-level magic devices be too provocative? But he didn¡¯t have low grade magic devices. What about medicinal pills? Or gold, silver, and jewels? Ilyz: someone tell me whether I shouldugh or cry... Chapter 118 - New Man

Chapter 118 - New Man

The exceptional liveliness on the forum almost paralyzed the server. Just as themunications department was frantically rescuing the server, a post made by ¡®Mighty and Majestic Rabbit¡¯ appeared soundlessly on the forum. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: It¡¯s my first time on this forum, but I didn¡¯t expect power, status, and rank to be the only things in the minds of so many juniors nowadays. I am extremely aggrieved about this. Why can¡¯t you let your heart be a bit purer, a bit more free? Panda¡¯s Tail: ... ¡°What is this Fu Li trying to do by sending this pretentiousment? Does he think those yao cultivators haven¡¯t had enough of cursing him?¡± One Cent Steamed Bun: Is OP an idiot? He even wants our hearts to be a bit purer. If you¡¯re so pure, then go back into hiding in the depths of the mountains, why run to the inte? Be frank and admit it if you don¡¯t have more than a few cents in your pockets, what are you doing talking about the heart? Who in the current times still drinks your kind of sour and stinky chicken soup? Cat King: OP, don¡¯t lower yourself to these little yao. They¡¯ve long been blinded by the flourishing humans. Sliced Pork with ck Fungus: The cat yao upstairs, scram to the side. Talk less of all this ¡®flourishing¡¯ stuff. Since OP holds money and status in such contempt, do you have it? No Need to Bring Rations: Based on OP¡¯s name and his ¡®regarding money as dung¡¯ attitude, he can¡¯t possibly be Fu Li daojun, who got together with Chief Zhuang after he became the Dragon Emperor, right? The instant ¡®No Need to Bring Rations¡¯ put forth this suggestion, it garnered the approval of manyizens who had cursed Fu Li. Thements on the post very quickly exceeded a hundred, the majority of which were mocking Fu Li for being shameless, putting on a disy of innocence after reaping the benefits, and the like. While these people were cursing, a sense of responsibility actually took root within their hearts, as if they were engaging in this unrestrained abuse for Zhuang Qing¡¯s sake. One Cent Steamed Bun: You im not to have gotten together with Chief Zhuang for his benefits, do you have evidence? ¡®Mighty and Majestic Rabbit¡¯ once again made an appearance after being cursed several hundred times on the cultivators¡¯ forum. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: What benefits? Are you referring to magic devices? Medicinal pills? Or money and valuables? Sliced Pork and ck Fungus: Can you take them out? Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: Are all of you talking about these? ¡®Mighty and Majestic Rabbit¡¯ then sent out many photos of magic treasures, eighteen types of magic weapons, flying boats, magic clothes, and so on. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: I still have plenty of these magic tools, though most of them aren¡¯t convenient to use, so I¡¯ve been throwing them away. Theizens: ... Next, he posted countless bottles of medicinal pills. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit: Cultivating one¡¯s moral character and heart is most important in the path of cultivation. Relying on medicinal pills to build up cultivation is not a good thing, so these medicinal pills have been lying in my Qiankun pouch untouched for a few thousand years. All kinds of gemstones and gold followed soon after. The gold, silver, and jewels formed a mountain in the photo, glinting with an enchanting radiance. The cultivators surrounding the post were struck dumb. For a moment, no one dared to reply to the post. Panda¡¯s Tail: I¡¯ll be honest with you guys. I suffered an injury a few days ago and Fu Li daojun casually threw me a Replenishing Qi Pill. Do you know what mood I was in when swallowing that Replenishing Qi Pill? Cat King: The yao upstairs who benefited from the nouveau riche, please do not show off. Sliced Pork and ck Fungus: Impossible, this is fake! There¡¯s no way a yao cultivator who was even a security guard at a hotel for a while could have so many good things. I don¡¯t believe it! Century Old Snake: Believe in it if you want, don¡¯t believe in it you don¡¯t want to. Can¡¯t a nouveau richee out and experience life? Oranges Are Very Sweet: Fu Li daojun, requesting for a Replenishing Qi Pill, I¡¯m willing to be your vi¡¯s gardener. Watermelons Are Not Watermelons: Fu Li daojun, please take me in, I can work thend! The post that had originally been replete with curses turned into a thigh-hugging ocean after Fu Li unted his wealth. ¡°All these shameless cowards. They were cursing even harder than me just now, but in a blink of an eye, they started hugging his thigh. Bah, shameless!¡± Zhang Qiang swore as he looked down at his phone from where he was seated on a flight of steps. ¡°Who knows whether this Fu Li took Zhuang Qing¡¯s items to unt? F*ck, he¡¯s truly worthy of being a rabbit, every inch of him is Lord Rabbit.¡± ¡°Sorry for disturbing,¡± A tall, skinny, and handsome man walked over to Zhang Qiang. ¡°I just left the mountain. You mentioned a &#k2018;Fu Li¡¯ just now?¡± ¡°And who are you?¡± Zhang Qiang put his phone into his pocket. For some indecipherable reason, he was too embarrassed to voice any vulgarities in the face of this warm, affable, and handsome man with a smile on his face. Zhang Qiang stood up from the steps, patted the dust off his trousers, and lowered his voice a few notches. ¡°You know Fu Li?¡± The man nodded with a smile. ¡°So you¡¯re from the same hometown as him,¡± Zhang Qiang lifted his chin and let out a snort. ¡°Who knows which hometown Fu Li¡¯s from? He hooked the aquatic race¡¯s Dragon Emperor by relying on his face and still ran over to the forum to show off. How can a country bumpkin who hasn¡¯t seen the world have so many things to unt? It¡¯s just him depending on the Dragon Emperor who blindly took a fancy to him.¡± ¡°What did he unt?¡± Inquisitiveness appeared on the man¡¯s gentle face. ¡°Look!¡± Zhang Qiang held his phone out to the man, who merely stared at the screen without touching it, seemingly not very used to phones. ¡°How impoverished was the mountain you lived on to not have even seen a phone?¡± Zhang Qiang grew even more arrogant, as if he was certain Fu Li was not in possession of any good things and that the items in the photos were all things Zhuang Qing had given him so that he could prop up his reputation. He tapped the phone, allowing the man to get a clear look at the things in the photo. ¡°See this? This is called a phone. Thetest model costs more than nine thousand, you won¡¯t be able to buy it even if you see it.¡± ¡°Then do you know where Fu Li is now?¡± The man nced at the overcast skies, disappointment in his eyes. ¡°The cultivation world¡¯s management bureau?¡± Zhang Qiang put his phone back into his pocket with a sneer. ¡°Truly someone from a mountain. A single yao made it big, and the entire mountain runs over to fish for money.¡± The man shed a gentle smile upon hearing these words. ¡°You¡¯re a small yao spirit with low cultivation, but you have quite a scathing mouth. You¡¯re unable to even make out my true form or cultivation, yet you still behave so egotistically and rudely. It seems like the current cultivation world is very peaceful.¡± Thinking that the man wanted to act against him, Zhang Qiang said hurriedly, ¡°You¡¯d better not act rashly, the current cultivation world prizes peace and opposes violence. If you dare to do anything to me, I¡¯ll make a report to the management bureau for them to catch you.¡± ¡°You just said that Fu Li is at the management bureau, and you¡¯re now saying that the management bureau will help you out if you make a report to them,¡± The man calmly stuck his hands in the pockets of his windbreaker. ¡°Such behavior is truly inappropriate.¡± He stretched out a thumb and tapped Zhang Qiang once on the forehead. Without even the slightest bit of resistance, Zhang Qiang turned into a cockroach the size of three fingers. ¡°It is an inherently difficult matter for a tiny pest to cultivate into a person. But what use is there in bing a person if you do not hold on to the heart of Dao after cultivating into a person?¡± The man fished out a piece of silk fabric to clean his fingers. ¡°Maintain your original form for seven days and have a good think about the original intention of cultivation.¡± After throwing the silk fabric into the rubbish bin, the man turned and left. He walked no more than a few steps before hearing the sound of girls shrieking. ¡°Cockroach!¡± ¡°Quick, kill it.¡± ¡°It squeezed into the sewer.¡± At the management bureau, themon work area was enveloped in joy. ¡°Fu ge is so cool!¡± Zhang Ke was syed out on his desk as he scrolled through Fu Li¡¯s ¡®wealth-unting¡¯ pictures. ¡°What is this about Fu ge hugging the boss¡¯ thigh? It¡¯s clearly the boss who¡¯s hugging Fu ge¡¯s thigh.¡± He sat up straight and asked his other colleagues, ¡°Say, don¡¯t you think that¡¯s the case?¡± Unfortunately, his other colleagues were still engrossed in Fu Li¡¯s show of wealth and didn¡¯t have the time to pay any attention to Zhang Ke¡¯s question. ¡°I don¡¯t understand the world of wealthy yao very well,¡± Chao Yun shivered, a Tang dynasty cup used by the emperor sped in her hand. ¡°I¡¯ve always known that Fu ge has many good things, but I didn¡¯t expect him to have this much.¡± ¡°All of you...¡± Huang Hou had joined the management bureau the same time as Fu Li, but due to hiszy nature and the fact that he hadn¡¯t joined any prestigious orthodox sect, he was particrly unremarkable among the group of new employees. ¡°Have you ever had the thought that Fu ge isn¡¯t an ordinary rabbit yao at all?¡± Could a rabbit yao defeat the God of Pestilence, battle the Kunpeng for that long, and beat up the ancient famed yao Song Yu till feathers filled the sky and he was beyond recognition? Also, those treasures he had on him as well as his money-generous elders. Which one of these seemed simple? The Kunpeng¡¯s name had resounded across the yao world for innumerable years. Even today, his name still sent countless yao cultivators into shivers. However, he continued to obediently remain at the management bureau. Song Yu was even more direct ¨C he straightforwardly addressed Fu Li as ¡®boss¡¯ in front of the entire cultivation world. In addition, the son of the divine beast Blue Dragon, Gong Fu, was also very close to Fu Li. Even the three-headed nsmen downstairs who looked at people with their necks were only close to Fu Li. Where in the world would there be such a coincidence? ¡°This kind of question isn¡¯t important,¡± Chao Yun looked at Huang Hou like he was na?ve. ¡°What his true form is isn¡¯t very important. In any case, he¡¯s the boss¡¯ family, which makes him the equivalent of our boss. Naturally, the more powerful our boss is, the better.¡± Huang Hou: ... He really hadn¡¯t expected these seniors to be so casual. At the management bureau¡¯s dormitory, the Kunpeng was watching Gong Fu, who was seated cross-legged beside the window drinking tea. Scratching his head, he said impatiently, ¡°You drink tea the whole day. It¡¯s just water boiled with a few tree leaves, what¡¯s so special about it?¡± ¡°How can a simple-minded, all-brawn yao like you understand this sort of spiritual enjoyment?¡± Gong Fu put down his teacup. ¡°Why so anxious?¡± The Kunpeng furrowed his brows. ¡°You don¡¯t feel it?¡± Gong Fu looked out the window in silence. ¡°The spiritual qi in the Heavens and Earth is in chaos and yao qi is surging in all directions. The deeply-asleep yao are all on the brink of waking,¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s expression was grave, seemingly envisaging the moment the earth sank into chaos. ¡°No.¡± ¡°What?¡± The Kunpeng looked in amazement at Gong Fu. As the son of the divine beast Blue Dragon, Gong Fu¡¯s sensitivity towards Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi ought to be even stronger than he, who was a fiend by nature. How was it possible for him not to feel it? ¡°I no longer have the qi of the divine dragon left by Father,¡± The teawater that trickled down his throat was slightly chilly. ¡°I was born through resentment and my true body was reconstructed from a corpse. I¡¯ve long lost the identity of an auspicious beast.¡± ¡°No wonder you had to strain so much when fighting the Taowu,¡± The Kunpeng had on a somewhatplex expression. ¡°And I still thought that I wasn¡¯t able to sense the qi of an auspicious beast because your cultivation advanced.¡± Gong Fuughed in a neither servile nor overbearing manner. ¡°Heaven and Earth is just, going against heavenlyw requires a price to be paid. Great yao have been appearing again and again, but don¡¯t forget that Zhuang Qing is here.¡± ¡°What can a little dragon less than two thousand years old do?¡± In the Kunpeng¡¯s eyes, Zhuang Qing might have high cultivation and the enhancement of virtue, but at the end of the day, he was too young. If a cmity were to really ur, would he be able to ward it off? ¡°Who knows?¡± Gong Fu merely continued smiling. ¡°Before Heaven bestows great responsibility, it must first expose us to starvation and poverty, and exhaust our muscles and bones. Zhuang Qing¡¯s honorable father was a golden dragon and his mother was of the human imperial n. The myriad of experiences he subsequently encountered is the whetstone for his fate. The moment fortitude is borne from fate that has been honed, a sharp de will be unsheathed.¡± ¡°No son of heavenlyw aplished great things without undergoing torment,¡± Gong Fu gazed at the gray sky outside the window with squinted eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s take our time and see how it goes.¡± The Kunpeng thought about the novels involving immortals in the human world. The main characters also all underwent trials and tribtions before eventually bing the strongest king or the world¡¯s savior. ¡°This... is also good.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you often say that you¡¯re a fiend and can¡¯t be bothered about the life and death of all the living creatures in the human world?¡± Gong Fu seemed to be smiling yet not smiling. ¡°Why worry now?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I just ask a random question?¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s cheeks were a subtle shade of red. He turned his head, saying, ¡°Who cares whether they live or die.¡± ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s the case,¡± Gong Fu nodded in a very perfunctory manner. ¡°What kind of expression is that? That¡¯s the way I think...¡± The Kunpeng stopped abruptly. Sniffing, he suddenly eximed, ¡°The Baize¡¯s scent!¡± ¡°Baize?¡± Gong Fu stood up as well. The tea on the water sloshed onto the ground, wetting the carpet. ¡°You didn¡¯t smell wrongly?¡± ¡°Not possible, I¡¯ll be able to sniff out that vile character¡¯s scent even if he sprayed cologne,¡± The Kunpeng turned and walked out. ¡°Wait,¡± Gong Fu stopped him. ¡°What do you want?¡± Anger surfaced on the Kunpeng¡¯s face. ¡°What are you going for? To fight with the Baize at the management bureau?¡± Gong Fu lifted his chin. ¡°Are you really taking Zhuang Qing and Fu Li as people without half a temper? If you could only fight the two of them to a draw when you first left the sea, then now...¡± One was the emperor of aquatic races and the other was a Hou formed from Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi, and the Hou even had a protective Vermilion Bird behind him. If the Kunpeng were to infuriate these two juniors, he would probably be beaten till he was half-dead. ¡°I won¡¯t fight him, but going out for a look should be okay, right!¡± The Kunpeng strode out in a huff. This time, Gong Fu didn¡¯t stop him. He had warned the Kunpeng on ount of their few days of friendly rtions, but as for whether or not the Kunpeng listened to him, that was something he would have to decide for himself. ¡°Chang Long Biotechnology Company?¡± The man stared at the dazzling sighboard at the entrance. To an ordinary human, this was arge,vishly-decorated corporation with tight security and widespread fame across the country. But to the man, this ce had thick yao qi and countlessyers of space formations. Even the security guards at the entrance were yao cultivators of the aquatic race. ¡°Hello mister, may I know who you¡¯re looking for?¡± A security guard whose original form was that of a yellow croaker walked through the gate, a professional and courteous smile on his face. The yellow croaker didn¡¯t have very high cultivation, but because of overfishing by humans, the number of yellow croakers were increasingly dwindling. Since a yellow croaker managed to cultivate a human form after much difficulty, the management bureau employed him as a security guard on contract basis. The yellow croaker was also very grateful to the care shown to him by the management bureau, so not only was he diligent and responsible in his work, he always served with a smile. The frequent praises he received from the management bureau made him the subject of much jealousy from the other security guards. ¡°Hello, sorry for the disturbance,¡± The man pushed up the gold-rimmed sses ¨C that he had just manifested ¨C on the bridge of his nose. ¡°May I know if Fu Li is here?¡± The moment the yellow croaker heard he was looking for Fu Li daojun, he hurriedly nodded. ¡°Yes, may I know who you are?¡± ¡°I¡¯m his uncle, my surname is Bai. Would I be able to go in to meet him?¡± Only then did the yellow croaker realize that the handsome man was also a yao cultivator. He fished out his inte, smiling at the man. ¡°Bai daoyou, please wait a moment. I¡¯ll contact the front counter this instant.¡± ¡°Sure, thank you for the trouble.¡± Fu Li was nestled on the couch reading through the countless forumments wanting him to be their godfather. Shaking his head, he sighed. ¡°The young yao nowadays really aren¡¯t reserved at all.¡± ¡°En, I¡¯m still young and don¡¯t want you to carry a godson or goddaughter back,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the photos Fu Li had shown off online. After discovering that all the things Fu Li had chosen were all not very valuable toys, he allowed Fu Li to continue messing around. Shortly after, Fu Li¡¯s phone rang. Zhuang Qing discovered that Fu Li¡¯s expression became a little off after picking up the call. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°The front counter said that my uncle with the surname Bai is looking for me.¡± Fu Li leaped up from the couch, stammering, ¡°Do you still remember the Uncle White Goat I told you about? He¡¯s surnamed Bai.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go take a look,¡± Fu Li threw down this statement, turned, and ran out. Because he was too anxious in his running, he even broke Zhuang Qing¡¯s flower pot at the door with a kick. ¡°The Baize...¡± Zhuang Qing cast a nce at the shattered flower pot and ran over as well. ¡°Mr Bai, the front counter has already done the verification, please enter,¡± The yellow croaker let the man through the door. ¡°Many thanks,¡± The man rifled through the pockets of his windbreaker, took out two medicinal pills, and ced them in the yellow croaker¡¯s hands. ¡°Take these, you can eat them for fun.¡± Cradling the two Vitality Pills, the yellow croaker¡¯s legs nearly went soft from shock. ¡°Mr B-Bai, these medicinal pills are too valuable, I can¡¯t ept them.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so valuable about this sort of toy?¡± The man waved a hand and left. The yellow croaker was now one hundred percent certain that this Mr Bai was Fu Li daojun¡¯s elder, because other than Fu Li daojun¡¯s elders, no one in the cultivation world was this liberal with their money. It was said that the two daojuns Qing Xu and Wei Cang had each received arge bag of gemstones worth cities when they met Fu Li daojun¡¯s elder while apanying him out on official business. This news had pervaded every inch of the management bureau. Who would have expected him to also encounter such good stuff. The moment the man took one step through the management bureau¡¯s barrier that could only be entered by yao cultivators, he saw the little yao ying on the grass, as well as the human cultivators amusing the little yao in y. He even saw a ginseng spirit riding on the neck of a human cultivator. This was the current state of the human and yao cultivators? ¡°Baize, it really is you!¡± The man looked up and raised a brow at the yao who was running straight for him. ¡°Oh, Kunpeng, you got out of the barrier?¡± Chapter 119 - Baize

Chapter 119 - Baize

The Kunpeng nced around. A few little yaoguai were cowering timidly at their hiding spot in the corner, looking entirely like they wanted to eavesdrop but didn¡¯t dare to. He red at the Baize with knitted brows. ¡°W-What barrier? You haven¡¯t appeared for so many years, what did you suddenly run here for?¡± ¡°The sealing barrier of course,¡± The Baize was all smiles. ¡°After being sealed at the bottom of the sea for 4200 years, was your memory also sealed?¡± Understanding suddenly appeared on the faces of the little eavesdropping yao. It turned out that Kunpeng daren hadn¡¯t been resting at the bottom of the sea but was sealed by another great yao. ¡°Uncle Kunpeng, my mom said that good yaoguai won¡¯t casually lie,¡± A little ox yao with horns on their head walked over to the Kunpeng, their expression perplexed. ¡°But you¡¯re my good friend, so I decided I won¡¯t dislike you.¡± ¡°I really can¡¯t thank you any more, little calf,¡± The Kunpeng picked up the little ox yao and tossed him into the arms of the yaoguai at the side who were watching the excitement. ¡°Little yaoguai shouldn¡¯t create a disturbance when great yao are speaking.¡± The Kunpeng was a little angry now that the fact he had been sealed for more than four thousand years was exposed. If this was the time when he first left the sea, he would probably already be fighting with the Baize now. But after personally seeing how heavenlyw had struck the God of Pestilence to death with lightning, he had a faint inkling of the truth behind a certain incident. Perhaps the Baize and the rest hadn¡¯t created trouble out of nothing that year, but had done so to save his life. With such a thought, it was a bit awkward for him to meet the Baize again. He momentarily didn¡¯t know whether he ought to get angry at him or thank him. ¡°What are all of you doing gathered around here?¡± Zhang Ke was bringing files down when he saw many yao cultivators surrounding the entrance. Even the Kunpeng, who usually didn¡¯t appear much in front of other yao cultivators, was also standing on the steps. His curiosity ignited, Zhang Ke stretched his neck over to take a look. Curiosity had really deeply prated the genes of humans. Even people who stepped onto the path of cultivation were no different. Zhang Ke was an example of this. ¡°Captain Zhang,¡± A courtdy painting yao at the front counter spoke softly. ¡°There¡¯s a man surnamed Bai outside who came searching for Fu Li daojun. But Kunpeng daren seems to know this Mr Bai and...¡± The female yao lowered her voice. ¡°And this Mr Bai said that Kunpeng daren wasn¡¯t sleeping at the bottom of the sea for a few thousand years but was sealed during those years.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Zhang Ke was instantly invigorated. The fact that the man surnamed Bai dared to directly say such things to the Kunpeng meant that he had incredible strength. However, he was also a yao Fu ge knew. Was there some unknown secret between all this? Who would have expected the Kunpeng standing on the steps to suddenly turn back and re at Zhang Ke and the courtdy painting yao. ¡°You think I can¡¯t hear what you two are muttering about?¡± Zhang Ke and the female yao: ... ¡°You¡¯ve be quite promising in the more than four thousand years we haven¡¯t met, actually daring to bellow at juniors whose ages don¡¯t even have the same number of zeroes as you,¡± The Baize set foot on the steps. ¡°Forget it, forget it. I¡¯m in a hurry to find my family¡¯s child, I won¡¯t talk all this nonsense with you.¡± ¡°Your family¡¯s child?¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s brows creased. ¡°What child?¡± A vague conjecture took shape in his heart. ¡°Uncle Bai!¡± Fu Li ran out of the passage. Upon catching sight of the Baize, he let out a pleasantly surprised shout, did a rabbit hop, and arrived in front of the Baize. ¡°It¡¯s really you?!¡± ¡°You¡¯ve grown up,¡± The Baize took off his sses and patted Fu Li on the shoulder. ¡°Much sturdier.¡± What amazed him even further was the thin, concealed yet visible glow of golden virtue and purple qi of a monarch on Fu Li. The year that heavenlyw doled out its punishment ¨C the time when he was separated from Fu Li ¨C Fu Li hadn¡¯t had all these. Fu Li was a soul formed from the human world¡¯s various spiritual qi, seven feelings, and six desires. His extremely disorderly natal chart was also a greatly ominous omen. It was impossible for him to have virtue and the purple qi of a monarch, nor should he have them. In the past two thousand years, what marvel had Fu Li encountered for such a reversal in his greatly ominous natal chart to appear? Ever since being sealed in the heart of a desert and suffering the scorching rays of the sun on a daily basis, the Baize¡¯s ability to foretell Heaven and Earth¡¯s heavenlyw had be increasingly weak and he had lost most of this ability. He could no longer divine Fu Li¡¯s fate. Even the Kunpeng¡¯s natal chart was beyond him now. ¡°Little rabbit, you¡¯re the Baize¡¯s junior?!¡± Looking at Fu Li and the Baize¡¯s happy meeting, the Kunpeng suddenly bellowed, ¡°I asked you back then whether you¡¯ve met the Baize, why did you say you hadn¡¯t?!¡± He really hadn¡¯t expected a Hou like Fu Li to actually have been raised by an auspicious beast like the Baize. It was truly the greatest joke under the eyes of heavenlyw. He even called him uncle and still said they hadn¡¯t met before? Truly unexpected ¨C what seemed like a pure and simple junior was even more professional than anyone else when lying. ¡°Baize?!¡± Everyone thought that something had gone wrong with their ears upon hearing the Kunpeng¡¯s explosive shriek. The illustrious Baize of Heaven and Earth who could see previous incarnations and foretell the future was actually standing alive and well in front of them? Zhang Ke squeezed through the gaggle of little yao watching the liveliness. Taking out his phone, he sent his colleagues a message. ¡°Quick,e and see the auspicious beast Baize. A live one!¡± ¡°Bigheaded fish, you can¡¯t beat me so you¡¯re trying to bully my nephew?¡± The Baize pulled Fu Li behind him and put on his sses, staring at the Kunpeng. ¡°Are you trying to threaten us with your loud voice?¡± ¡°F*ck your threaten!¡± The Kunpeng who was addicted to ying with phones had already learnt inte ng for cursing others. ¡°Fu little Li, what did you tell me at that time?!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Elder White Goat was the Baize at that time,¡± Fu Li stuck his head out from behind the Baize¡¯s shoulders after taking cover behind him. ¡°I can¡¯t be med for that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re taking me for a fool?!¡± The Kunpengughed in anger. ¡°You lived with them for thousands of years without knowing what they were?¡± The Baize touched his nose, turning towards Fu Li hesitantly, though his re at the Kunpeng wasn¡¯tcking in oppression at all. ¡°So what if you¡¯re taken for a fool?¡± Kunpeng: ¡°Y-You...¡± ¡°What¡¯s everyone shouting outside for?¡± The moment Zhuang Qing¡¯s voice sounded, the little yao gathered around watching the drama instantly opened up a path so that Zhuang Qing could get a clear view of the situation. Zhuang Qing passed through the tiny path everyone opened up for him beforeing to a halt on thest row of steps. ncing at Fu Li behind the Baize, he smiled politely at the Baize. ¡°Senior Bai, hello.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± As an auspicious beast, the Baize was inherently fond of living creatures with an abundance of virtue and purple qi. In the many years he had lived, there were not many creatures like Zhuang Qing who possessed the golden glow of virtue and whose entire body was bathed in the purple qi of a monarch. Therefore, he subconsciously had a favorable impression of Zhuang Qing at first nce. Furthermore... The Baize¡¯s expression changed subtly, though he very quickly concealed it. Fu Li walked out from behind the Baize. Tugging on Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeve, he told the Baize, ¡°This is... my future Dao Companion, Zhuang Qing.¡± The Baize¡¯s expression turned incredibly strange after hearing Fu Li¡¯s words. A long whileter, he nodded repeatedly. ¡°Good, very good.¡± The management bureau staff watching the excitement on the sidelines were stunned. Wasn¡¯t Fu ge¡¯s elder too easy to deal with? They had immeasurably profound cultivation and possessed rare treasures, yet they so easily epted that Fu ge had found a male yao to be hispanion. Did they really love Fu ge dearly? ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Little Li had a Dao Companion and came over in a hurry. I didn¡¯t manage to collect any good things these few years either,¡± The Baize rifled through the things he had on himself before taking out a thick box of books from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°This contains some of the Blue Dragon¡¯s insights on cultivation as well as thews of the Dao. Take it, you can flip through it for fun.¡± The Blue Dragon¡¯s cultivation methods... The Kunpeng¡¯s face twitched. The shameless Baize had actually hidden the divine beast Blue Dragon¡¯s cultivation methods. ¡°How can I...¡± Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t one of the still-confused cultivators around them. He possessed the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance and naturally knew how precious the cultivation techniques contained in the box were. ¡°Take it,¡± The Baize smiled. ¡°You are Little Li¡¯s Dao Companion, which is tantamount to being a part of our family. There is no talk about cost when ites to family. Or...¡± The curved corners of his eyes narrowed. ¡°You don¡¯t want to be bonded to Fu Li as his Dao Companion?¡± ¡°This junior doesn¡¯t have that intention,¡± Zhuang Qing solemnly stated his position. ¡°You¡¯re bonded now then,¡± The Baize ced the box in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. Turning, he told Fu Li, ¡°It¡¯s not appropriate to stand here all the while talking. Little Li, bring your travel weary uncle to a seat.¡± ¡°Senior Bai, please.¡± ¡°You are Fu Li¡¯s Dao Companion, just call me Uncle Bai like he does.¡± ¡°Okay, Uncle Bai,¡± Zhuang Qing corrected himself readily. A serious expression hung on his solemn face as he bootlicked the elder. ¡°Strange...¡± The Kunpeng stroked his chin, staring at the Baize¡¯s back with furrowed brows. The Baize was extremely hypocritical ¨C he appeared gentle and easy to get along with on the surface, but was a very picky yao in reality. It was an arduous affair to find just one yao in a hundred years who could genuinely catch his eye. But he was now treating Zhuang Qing like his biological son. Was it possible that he had truly taken a liking to Zhuang Qing? Not right, not right, this wasn¡¯t the Baize¡¯s style. He thought about it and still followed after them. ¡°Little Li,¡± Away from the eyes of the other cultivators, the Baize took off his sses. When his helpless and pain-filled expression was paired with his handsome face, one¡¯s heart would inevitably soften even if he hadmitted an earth-shattering wrong. ¡°Actually, I can exin certain things.¡± ¡°Exin how you¡¯re clearly the Baize but let me misunderstand that you¡¯re a white goat?¡± Seated beside him, Fu Li refused to go along with the Baize¡¯s behavior. ¡°This matter, no one wanted to...¡± The Baize¡¯s smile turned even gentler. ¡°No matter how it¡¯s said, I can rest easy now that you¡¯re standing here perfectly fine.¡± He epted the teacup Zhuang Qing handed over, revealing the motley of wounds beneath his sleeve. ¡°Uncle Bai, how did the wounds on your arme about?¡± Fu Li had seen this sort of wound on Kang Gu as well. ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± The Baize smiled. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine after a while.¡± ¡°You¡¯re lying to me again. Given your constitution, how can wounds not heal immediately?¡± Fu Li lifted the sleeve, saying with creased brows, ¡°Did you get these wounds over the past few years?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± The Baize stroked Fu Li¡¯s head. ¡°Sit down first and tell me how you¡¯ve been these few years.¡± Seeing that the Baize had used the simple trick of injuring oneself to gain the opponent¡¯s confidence, Zhuang Qing allowed Fu Li to go down his train of thought. Lowering his head, he silently took a sip of tea. For such a matter, it would be better for him to pretend not to have seen anything. Hearing the incidents that had urred after Fu Li came to the human world, the Baize unobtrusively sized Zhuang Qing up. After meeting Zhuang Qing¡¯s eyes, he calmly maintained his smile without the slightest guilt or embarrassment at being caught peeking. Just as Fu Li was talking about how the God of Pestilence had been struck to death by lightning, the Baize asked abruptly, ¡°How many auspicious dates are there this year? What date is your Dao Bonding Ceremony with Zhuang Qing?¡± Fu Li: ¡°Ah?¡± It turned out that even the elders in the cultivation world were fond of pressing for marriage? ¡°What ¡®ah¡¯?¡± The Baize said. ¡°You¡¯re older than Zhuang Qing by more than two thousand years and have a good rtionship with him. Are you going to just be together in such an obscure way without even a Dao Bonding Ceremony?¡± Fu Li felt that these words sounded a little familiar. He seemed to have heard it somewhere not too long ago. ¡°The yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain ce great emphasis on emotions and responsibility. Things like abandonment and ying around for fun are definitely not allowed,¡± The Baize turned to look at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Good nephew, what do you think?¡± Zhuang Qing was silent for a second. Seeing that Fu Li¡¯s face was still filled with confusion, he said, ¡°Everything will be in ordance to Fu Li¡¯s wishes, this junor has no elders, so anything is fine.¡± ¡°What if I got the both of you to hold the Dao Bonding Ceremony tomorrow?¡± ¡°As long as Fu Li has no objections, this junior is very much willing.¡± The Baize fixed his gaze on Zhuang Qing. All of a sudden, he smiled. ¡°I was joking with you. Fu Li is my only nephew, your Dao Bonding Ceremony cannot be done carelessly or in an unpresentable manner. Tomorrow is too rushed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think so, Fu Li?¡± Fu Li thought about it before earnestly nodding. ¡°Indeed, it can¡¯t be done sloppily.¡± So if he wanted to hold a Dao Bonding Ceremony with Zhuang Qing, what things would he need to prepare? Chapter 120 - Recollection Mirror

Chapter 120 - Recollection Mirror

Bang! The door was pushed open forcefully from the outside and the Kunpeng walked in with a heavy expression. When the usuallyzy-looking Kunpeng didn¡¯t smile, it was a somber realization for everyone that he wasn¡¯t an ordinary yao cultivator but a famous, ancient great yao. The Baize furrowed his brows slightly. With a wave of his hand, he indicated for the two juniors to stand at the side. ¡°Kunpeng, what do you want to do?¡± ¡°What happened that year?!¡± The Kunpeng arrived in front of the Baize. ¡°Countless great yao vanished without a trace and among the yao cultivators of the ancient era, some slept, some were sealed, and others died. Was it seriously the...¡± ¡°Since you already guessed it, whye and ask me?¡± The Baize pointed at the seat at the side. ¡°Why so aggressive? If you have something to say, sit properly and say it.¡± The Kunpeng sat down ordingly before returning to his senses. Why did he have to listen to the Baize and sit just because he said so? How embarrassing was that? But since he had already sat down, standing up again would be even more embarrassing. ¡°All right, you¡¯re a great lord, don¡¯t be so pretentious in your behavior,¡± The Baize raised his chin. ¡°Sit properly.¡± Fu Li pulled Zhuang Qing over to the side to take a seat. Taking out a tter of fruits from his Qiankun pouch, he ced it between him and Zhuang Qing. ¡°Let¡¯s eat fruits while listening to them talk.¡± ¡°Here¡¯s some nuts too,¡± Fu Li fished out some hickory, peanuts, and whatnot before taking out two bottles of spiritual essence ¨C one each for him and Zhuang Qing. The Kunpeng¡¯s profusely imposing manner vanished the instant he heard the crunching of nuts. He waved a hand at Fu Li in distaste. ¡°Can¡¯t you go out to eat? Must you be a bother here?¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Fu Li¡¯s mouth was stuffed full of hickory kernels, his face brimming with innocence. ¡°And you!¡± The Kunpeng pointed at Zhuang Qing, saying disgruntledly, ¡°Your past maturity and steadiness was all in vain, what have you been learning from Fu Li to end up like this?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at him expressionlessly. He silently pinched a hickory kernel and ced it in Fu Li¡¯s hands. ¡°Forget it...¡± The Kunpeng hung his shoulders in disappointment. ¡°No wonder the humans say that we take on the attributes of whoever we associate with ¨C you¡¯ve been corrupted by this rabbit.¡± ¡°What nonsense are you spouting? Our family¡¯s Little Li is clever and cute, how could he corrupt anyone?¡± The Baize aimed a kick at the stool underneath the Kunpeng¡¯s buttocks. ¡°Speaking badly of our family¡¯s child warrants a beating.¡± ¡°Already four thousand years old and he¡¯s still a child?¡± The Kunpeng sneered. Suddenly, he asked, ¡°How old is Fu Li this year?¡± ¡°What business is it of yours?¡± The Baize wrinkled his brows. ¡°Before I was dragged out of the sea, pummeled on the shore by you guys, and then sealed in the sea, I heard the sound of crying that seemed to shake the world...¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s gaze on Fu Li gradually turned dangerous. ¡°I was sleeping perfectly fine at that time. After being awakened by the child, I was just about to go out and see what yaoguai was crying when I was seized by you guys and sealed.¡± Fu Li shifted towards Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing sat a little further up front, coincidentally blocking Fu Li. The Kunpeng: ... He couldn¡¯t stay in this rotten human world any longer. The Kunpeng stood up in a huff. ¡°Your entire family of yao bullied one of me!¡± ¡°You¡¯re aware as well that we¡¯re a family of yao; if we don¡¯t bully you, are you going to bully yourself?¡± The Baize waved a hand with a wide smile. ¡°You should have left a long time ago. What are you staying here for and dying our conversation?¡± The Kunpeng: ... This yao scum! The Kunpeng came burning with loftiness but left irate, mming the door with a bang. ¡°Compensation has to be paid for damaging public property,¡± Fu Li muttered softly. ¡°Little rabbit child, I haven¡¯t settled this more than four thousand year old debt!¡± The Kunpeng¡¯s livid voice came from the corridor. The other yao in the management bureau withdrew into their office after hearing how incensed the Kunpeng was, desperately suppressing even the strongest of curiosity. In the face of one¡¯s life, curiosity didn¡¯t seem all that important. ¡°The Kunpeng¡¯s personality is such that he¡¯s a little more irritable at times. That¡¯s his nature, but it¡¯s not detestable,¡± The Baize tapped the door and a barrier instantly sprung up in the room. Seeing that he had erected a barrier, Fu Li thought that he had something important to say. But the Baize¡¯s first statement upon opening his mouth was, ¡°The eighth of the next month is quite good. All five elements are appropriate; it can¡¯t be any more suitable for organizing a Dao Bonding Ceremony.¡± ¡°Uncle Bai, I forgot to tell you that King Ganglie and Uncle Feng are in the flying pce on a mountain,¡± Fu Li interrupted the Baize. ¡°I¡¯ll lead you to them.¡± There was a hint of emotion on the Baize¡¯s face. He stood up. ¡°Are they okay?¡± ¡°They¡¯re all fine, it¡¯s just that they stay in the flying pce most of the time and aren¡¯t very fond of stepping out.¡± ¡°Okay then,¡± The Baize nced at Zhuang Qing. ¡°I¡¯ll seek them out first.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll bring you over,¡± Fu Li nodded smilingly. He turned towards Zhuang Qing. ¡°Zhuang little dragon...¡± ¡°Go back first,¡± Zhuang Qing threw the hickory shells into the rubbish bin. ¡°Send me a messageter and tell me what you want to eat, I¡¯ll buy it after work.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Fu Li nodded obediently and reached out his hands, hugging Zhuang Qing. ¡°Thene back earlier.¡± Zhuang Qing handed the jacket Fu Li had taken off in his office to him before turning to speak to the Baize, ¡°If Uncle Bai has anything he would like to eat, get Fu Li to call me.¡± The Baize nodded. ¡°Okay.¡± Zhuang Qing sent the two people out of his office with his gaze and then sat back down on the chair. He had a faint feeling that there was something off about the Baize. How could the all-knowing Baize be incapable of divining whether or not Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu were still alive? He even wanted Fu Li to lead him to them... If not for the auspicious qi on the Baize being impossible to falsify, Zhuang Qing would even suspect that it was not the real Baize who had been in his office. Outside the flying pce, the Baize was looking at the tightly closed pce doors. He sighed with emotion. ¡°It¡¯s been two thousand years, but the golden flying pce we were nning to do up for you during those years still ended up in use.¡± Fu Li released the restriction on the pce door and led the Baize in. As expected, Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu were immensely excited upon seeing the Baize. Discerning their jubtion from the many years of separation, Fu Li gave them some space. As Fu Li was leaving through the main door, he vaguely heard Feng Ruizhong ask something. ¡°What happened to you?¡± He uttered this statement in what seemed like a worried and anxious tone. When Fu Li wanted to listen on, all sound vanished. What were they talking about that they didn¡¯t want him to hear? Fu Li made his way back and ran into a barrier that kept him outside. Sitting down with his back against the barrier, Fu Li looked up at the sky. The weather wasn¡¯t very good; it looked like it was about to snow or rain. He stared at the sky for who-knows-how-long when his phone suddenly sounded. It was the messaging app that he¡¯d installed a short while back. It enabled video and call conversations as well as the forwarding of all sorts of pictures. Fu Li had a lot of interest in this app recently. The message was from Zhuang Qing. He¡¯d found a little rabbit cake in the cake shop and snapped a photo of it. The rabbit on the cake was charmingly na?ve, an image that others couldn¡¯t help but want to poke. After staring at the photo for a while, Fu Li¡¯s mood suddenly brightened. At the cake shop, the shop employee watched the severely-dressed man direct his phone at the cartoon cake on the shelf like a young schoolgirl, and thought inwardly ¨C this was probably what gap moe in reality looked like. When the man finished snapping his pictures and stood up to face them, the employee had their breath taken away by his looks. This man really had very good looks. On top of that, he looked a little familiar. ¡°Wee,¡± The employee hurriedly smiled and weed this new customer that came through the door. ¡°Hello, may I know if there are any freshly made cartoon cakes like the one on the shelf?¡± When she came to her senses, the good-looking man already walked over to her. ¡°Yes there are, please wait a moment,¡± The employee retrieved the cartoon cake freshly made in the afternoon and wrapped it nicely in a box. ¡°Thank you for your patronage, that¡¯ll be a total of ny-eight yuan.¡± The man took out a hundred yuan note, epted her change, and then pushed open the door and walked out. The employee nced outside curiously and saw the man walk towards a luxury car parked at the side. The sight of this luxury car triggered the employee¡¯s memory. Wasn¡¯t this Chairman Zhuang? Her younger sister had been jabbering into her ears day after daytely about how loving Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant were. The young girl had made a big fuss after seeing the two children get together, as if a joyous event on earth-shattering levels had happened. But in her opinion, no matter the gender of a couple, special treatment should not be given in romance. Only then could it be considered true equality in love. No wonder a sessful figure like Chairman Zhuang would do such a childish thing ¨C it turned out that he had taken the photo for his lover to see. He could be considered a good man. While tidying up the cash register, the employee thought ¨C sometimes money really wasn¡¯t the most important thing in the world, what was important was the motive. Arranging the shelves of goods, she nced with a smile at the car that was slowly driving off. Being lovers for eternity ¨C that was pretty good. It snowed that entire night. When Fu Li woke up the next morning, hey slumped against the window frame, daydreaming. Zhuang Qing, who lived next door, made his way over to the window upon seeing him like this. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Fu Li leaped up from the window. ¡°Going to work now?¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. When they entered the yard, Kang Gu, Feng Ruizhong, and the Baize were sitting at the stone table ying Chinese checkers. They didn¡¯t even raise their heads upon seeing them appear. They had yed for an entire night, fromst night till now. ¡°King Ganglie, Uncle Feng, Uncle Bai, we¡¯re going to work.¡± ¡°Go, go,¡± Feng Ruizhong waved a hand casually, resembling a bear parent who couldn¡¯t wait to be freed from their bear child. Fu Li: ... Familial love really was perilous ¨C it couldn¡¯t evenpare to a box of Chinese checkers. ¡°Kang Gu, you hopped wrongly again!¡± Feng Ruizhong pressed down on Kang Gu¡¯s hand. ¡°Go back, the hopping rule in the center wasn¡¯t correct, you can¡¯t go that way.¡± ¡°I was originally here.¡± ¡°Nonsense!¡± ¡°Get the Recollection Mirror!¡± Feng Ruizhong told the Baize. ¡°I¡¯m going to expose this shameless liar!¡± The Baize fished out the most valuable treasure of the yao world, the Recollection Mirror, though the purpose of doing so was merely to look at one step of checkerssting thirty seconds. If this was known to the yao cultivators who had desired the Recollection Mirror to death back in those years, their eyes would definitely turn red from anger. ¡°Sure enough, you faked it,¡± Feng Ruizhong snorted with a sneer after looking at the Recollection Mirror. ¡°I really couldn¡¯t tell that your simple and honest appearance hid a shameless heart.¡± ¡°I just saw wrongly,¡± Kang Gu still refused to admit to it and exchanged a few heated words with Feng Ruizhong. ¡°I¡¯m toozy to argue with you,¡± Feng Ruizhong continued with his move. Just as he was about to return the Recollection Mirror to the Baize, he suddenly thought of something. ¡°Seems like Little Li still owes the human from that year karma.¡± ¡°The death of a person is akin to the extinguishing of amp. The karma can be considered resolved,¡± Kang Gu shook his head. ¡°There is no such thing as ¡®owing¡¯.¡± ¡°But he had the fate of a monarch,¡± Feng Ruizhong solemnly stated. ¡°It¡¯s different from an ordinary human.¡± Kang Gu furrowed his brows. ¡°It¡¯s been two thousand years. We don¡¯t know how many times the person in question has reincarnated and where we should go to severe the karma, do you think we¡¯re filming the human world¡¯s Legend of the White Snake?¡± Feng Ruizhong pointed at the Recollection Mirror in his hands. ¡°Let¡¯s use this to look at it.¡± Chapter 121 - Past Relations?

Chapter 121 - Past Rtions?

The Recollection Mirror was a product of the Baize¡¯s own blood essence and 4900 years of his time. Although it could not tell the future, it could make out the past appearances of all living creatures in the world. In the past, this item had merely been a small toy of little value to the Baize. But after he was sealed within a vast desert bereft of spiritual qi, where no living creature could be seen for thousands of li, this mirror became the crucial object that allowed him to endure two thousand years of torment. As an auspicious beast, his lifespan was simply too long. He had seen mountains being engulfed by seawater, the deep sea turning into high mountains,ndslides, the ground cracking apart, and borderlessnds being split open. The transformations of the world, life and death, and the appearance of a new species when one fell into extinction ¨C a never-ending cycle. The advent of an era where the teachings of Buddha were not understood represented the end of the era of the gods and yao. He had originally thought that he could calmly ept the decay of his body, but only after he was sealed in an endless desert did he realize that his heart was unwilling. No one would be willing to die soundlessly, and an auspicious beast worshipped by countless living creatures was no exception. It was only at this juncture that the Baize found that he was not what he imagined himself to be ¨C wanting for nothing. ¡°You want to find Bo Lian¡¯s reincarnation?¡± The Baize looked at the Recollection Mirror on the table. ¡°Bo Lian¡¯s fate is not ordinary, I¡¯m afraid the Recollection Mirror may not be able to find out everything in its entirety.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine to just give it a try,¡± Feng Ruizhong amassed spiritual qi at the handle of the mirror and wrote Bo Lian¡¯s name and birth data on the mirror. In a sh, spiritual qi surged and the mirror emitted a dazzling radiance. Wind blew, and the mirror projected scenes so realistic that they seemed to be urring right before their eyes. ¡°Bridge to bridge, road to road, dead souls can never turn back...¡± The man wearing a splendid gown walked behind the yinchai, all sorts of souls by his side. But unlike these souls, there was no Soul-Locking Chain around him, nor did the surrounding souls dare to get too close to him. ¡°Bo Lian¡¯s being brought to the underworld by the yinchai after his death...¡± The door to the yard opened all of a sudden and Fu Li walked in. ¡°Uncle Bai...¡± Fu Li came to a halt upon seeing the scene in the yard. It was impossible for a scene of an elegant gentleman with tears of blood streaming down his eyes to not be shocking. Zhuang Qing, who followed Fu Li in from behind, didn¡¯t have to ask Fu Li about the man¡¯s identity because he had already guessed it. When looking at him previously, he had a niggling feeling that the scene was fake and unrealistic. Only now when he watched the man walk among the various souls did hee to realize just how magnificent he was. ¡°Little Li, what did youe back for?¡± Feng Ruizhong wanted to keep the Recollection Mirror, but also couldn¡¯t do it too obviously, so he merely smiled awkwardly. ¡°You¡¯re looking at Bo Lian?¡± Fu Li reacted more calmly than Feng Ruizhong had thought he would. Looking at the man with tears flowing from his eyes, Fu Li¡¯s lips moved a little. He looked at the Bo Lian projected by the Recollection Mirror while Zhuang Qing, who was standing at the side, looked at him. After Bo Lian was led to the Yama Kings¡¯ pce, no Yama King dared to ept his bow. Rather, they courteously addressed him as Lord Bo Lian. ¡°Lord Bo Lian has extraordinary virtue and is certain to be a wise and capable ruler in your next life. May Lord Bo Lian not miss the opportune period and proceed to the human world.¡± ¡°If I am reborn, this life...¡± ¡°A new life awaits after birth. Since it is a new life, this life is a fleeting one, there is no need to cling to it.¡± ¡°Is there a way to retain my memories of this life?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then what meaning is there in reincarnation? What I want to remember will not be remembered and what I want to have cannot be obtained,¡± The elegant gentlemanughed out loud, a slight chill to his bitterughter. ¡°Will being a wise and capable ruler allow me to have what I want?¡± ¡°The monarch is the most respected in a nation. Naturally, what you want will be obtained.¡± ¡°Will I have a long life? Will I have the person I longed for in my previous life?¡± ¡°This...¡± ¡°Then what use is there in reincarnating?¡± ¡°Lord Bo Lian, if you are unwilling to reincarnate, your foreordained fate in the human world will be rewritten. Even your natal chart will be aplete mess. The price of this...¡± ¡°So what?¡± The Yama Kings were helpless, but they couldn¡¯t treat Bo Lian as any ordinary soul, so they had no choice but to let him stay in the Yama Kings¡¯ Pce. The Yama Kings would attempt to persuade Bo Lian every year. If he reincarnated soon, his natal chart could still get back onto the right track. However, Bo Lian refused. All he did was paint day after day without making a fuss. He painted many rabbits, as well as a youth of seventeen or eighteen years of age with a jade band on his head. Zhuang Qing knew he was painting Fu Li. The vivid, lifelike rabbits were Fu Li and so was the lively youth. In every single stroke and paintingy yearning and love. The human called Bo Lian had romantic feelings for Fu Li. Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t help turning to look at Fu Li. Had Fu Li known about this? Ten years passed without Bo Lian reincarnating. Twenty years went by. Forty years went by. The Yama Kings gradually stopped persuading him, merely sighing beside him, ¡°Lord Bo Lian, your natal chart has been ruined. The underworld can no longer control your fate. You will have to seek your own blessings on the day of your reincarnation.¡± Bo Lian continued to remain silent as he sketched on silk fabric the outline of a youth with a jade band sitting on a tree. The youth¡¯s brows and eyes were curved in smile, his bright eyes resembling two tiny suns. Eighty years went by, and no longer did anyone persuade Bo Lian to reincarnate. However, he heard about news regarding Reflecting Mist Mountain from a ghost messenger. This was the first time he had heard about something rted to the mountain since his death. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that those yao from Reflecting Mist Mountain all perished in the hands of the azure dragons in order to stop them from doing evil. Even the mountain was wrecked by the azure dragons.¡± ¡°The yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain... all died?¡± ¡°Yeah, all of them died. Not a single one survived. That lightning strike caused a good half of the mountain to disappear.¡± The person he had longed and thought of was already dead, yet he had no chance to even see the other party¡¯s departed soul, because humans and yao were destined to walk different routes. Bo Lian burned all his paintings. Everyone in the underworld said that he had gone insane. ¡°If you and I were both yao, if you and I were both not yao...¡± Dressed in a clean and neat brocade gown, Bo Lian walked across the Naihe Bridge to Meng Po. ¡°Has the Lord given it careful thought? If you reincarnate now, you may be destitute, miserable, and lead a poor and simple life...¡± Bo Lian shook his head. epting the bowl of soup from Meng Po¡¯s hands, he raised his head and downed all of it. A stream of bloody tears dripped into the colorless, tasteless soup, suffusing the bowl of soup with color. ¡°After stepping onto the Path of Reincarnation, your previous lives and this life will be separate paths.¡± The man in a brocade gown jumped dazedly into the Reincarnation Pond. Even when his soul vanished into the pond, he didn¡¯t take a single nce back. The Recollection Mirror was about to continue when the body of the mirror suddenly started shaking fiercely, as if unable to bear the formidable spiritual force. The scene projected in the yard changed to what vaguely seemed like a lofty pce. However, this scene merely appeared for an instant before the Recollection Mirror lost its effect and the scene disappearedpletely. Feng Ruizhong was not only not disappointed upon seeing the scene vanish, he even secretly heaved a sigh of relief. It was quite inappropriate for Little Li¡¯s current lover to see just how much a human had liked Little Li in the past. He tossed the Recollection Mirror back to the Baize and gave a hollowugh. ¡°Who would have imagined that Bo Lian had such thoughts about Little Li? Fu Li was just a half-grown child at that time.¡± The atmosphere was a bit strange. Fu Li stole a peek at Zhuang Qing, feeling an indescribable guilt. He clearly hadn¡¯t done anything bad, but he still didn¡¯t dare to look directly at Zhuang Qing at this point. ¡°That Bo Lian, what did he reincarnate as?¡± Grabbing Fu Li¡¯s hand, Zhuang Qing turned towards the Baize for the answer. The Baize shook his head. ¡°He destroyed his own natal chart, I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Uncle Bai doesn¡¯t know either?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was overly tranquil. The Baize met his gaze, feeling like Zhuang Qing had already guessed his drastic drop in strength. He shook his head with a bitter smile. ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Since he has already reincarnated, it¡¯s not important who he was after that,¡± Fu Li stated seriously. ¡°He¡¯s already forgotten me, isn¡¯t that very good?¡± Those yinchai were correct. After stepping onto the Path of Reincarnation, the previous and current lives were different paths. Why look into an oue that was predetermined? He didn¡¯t know how much hardship Bo Lian had experienced after reincarnation, nor could he change it. Once time had psed, there would never be a way of turning it back. It was unknown how many times Bo Lian had reincarnated. Since he possessed virtue and purple qi, he would certainly avert disaster in the end and be an overlord, even if his natal chart had been destroyed. He had saved Bo Lian because the other party had virtuous qi and he hadn¡¯t wanted such a human to perish in the wilderness. In the subsequent days on Reflecting Mist Mountain, he got along with Bo Lian very happily. He gave Bo Lian many books and cured him of his illness, while Bo Lian apanied him for a joyous period of time. Therefore, neither of them owed the other. He just hadn¡¯t been aware that Bo Lian had had those thoughts towards him. ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to work?¡± Kang Gu changed the topic. ¡°Why did you run back again?¡± ¡°Uncle Bai and you haven¡¯t gone to the Yao Union for registration, Zhuang little dragon and I came back to bring you over,¡± Fu Li replied. ¡°Having a human identification card will make future travel in the human world convenient.¡± ¡°No rush, no rush, going over two dayster won¡¯t make any difference,¡± After such an awkward incident, the Baize was too embarrassed to go out with the two juniors. ¡°Okay then, Zhuang Qing and I will go to work first,¡± Fu Li tugged on Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Zhuang Qing silently followed after Fu Li. When he reached the door, he looked back at the three elders, all of whom returned a kindly smile. After the two juniors left, Kang Gu nearly rolled up his sleeves and strung Feng Ruizhong up for a beating. ¡°Look look look, you insisted on looking and now Zhuang Qing saw all those things. What if he falls out with Little Li?¡± ¡°When I suggested looking at it, weren¡¯t you also quite curious? Isn¡¯t it very shameless of you to me me now?¡± Feng Ruizhong was not to be outdone and got into a quarrel with Kang Gu. The Baize silently sat by the side. When the two yao were about done with their quarreling, he raised a brow. ¡°Continue, I see you have learnt quite a few new curse words in the human world, I haven¡¯t heard enough of them.¡± Kang Gu: ... Feng Ruizhong: ... ¡°Have all the years you¡¯ve lived gone down a dog¡¯s stomach?¡± The Baize kept the Recollection Mirror. He mmed a hand on the stone table. The table instantly fell apart and marbles rolled all over the ground. ¡°You merely survived under the eyes of heavenlyw and you already forgot who you are. If you think your lives are too cushy, go to a corner and torment yourselves, don¡¯t harm Little Li!¡± Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong didn¡¯t dare to speak. Only after the Baize left with a displeased expression did Feng Ruizhong ask in a low voice, ¡°Isn¡¯t the Recollection Mirror his? If he didn¡¯t agree, could we have used it?¡± ¡°You¡¯d better shut your mouth and talk a little less,¡± Kang Gu fished out his Qiankun pouch. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if Little Zhuang has any interest in magic treasures and medicinal pills. Why don¡¯t we get Little Li to send him some so that he¡¯ll be a bit happier?¡± ¡°Is Little Zhuang that kind of yao who got together with Little Li for magic treasures, medicinal pills, and whatnot?¡± Feng Ruizhong was in a bad mood. ¡°He may not value them, but a gift from apanion is always something to rejoice over.¡± ¡°Then... we can give it a try?¡± In the car, Fu Li secretly nced at Zhuang Qing a good number of times from the front passenger seat. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t have much reaction. When the light was red, Zhuang Qing twisted the cap off a bottle of milk and passed it to Fu Li, which he obediently finished. He usually felt that milk wasn¡¯t nice to drink, but he was unusually cooperative today. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, you¡¯re angry at me?¡± ¡°It¡¯s someone else who likes you, not you who likes someone else, what is there for me to be angry about?¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s fingers tapped against the steering wheel, full of dissatisfaction with the capital¡¯s traffic conditions. Just waiting for a red traffic light to pass took more than ny seconds, and even then it was still so congested.. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you want me to prove that I¡¯m not angry?¡± Zhuang Qing cocked his head at him. The corners of his mouth curved. ¡°En?!¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°No, no.¡± ¡°Everything¡¯s all right then,¡± Zhuang Qing said. ¡°ce the empty milk bottle in the storage box.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li obediently ced the bottle in the right ce. Seeing that Zhuang Qing was still expressionless, he patted his chest and dered, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have no ambiguous intentions towards Bo Lian at all. In the many years I¡¯ve lived, I¡¯ve only liked one yao ¨C his name is Zhuang Qing. As for Bo Lian or Bo Fu, they¡¯re definitely only ordinary friends. I have no other intentions.¡± ¡°None at all?¡± There was still ten seconds to the the of the red traffic light. Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood was a little better. ¡°Definitely none. How can Bo Lianpare to you in my heart? You¡¯re definitely, definitely the best!¡± Fu Li pointed at the sky and swore. He finally understood why the male leads in human dramas were so fond of swearing ¨C because there was nothing better than this move when coaxing a lover. ¡°He waited so many years for you and even destroyed his natal chart, but you weren¡¯t moved in the slightest?¡± ¡°I was, but...¡± ¡°En?!¡± ¡°N-No, I have you, how can I be moved by someone else. Really, believe me.¡± The car started up again. Zhuang Qing¡¯s grand car shuttled through the traffic. While listening to Fu Li¡¯s various oaths, the image of Bo Lian drinking Meng Po¡¯s bowl of soup with bloody tears surfaced in his mind. For Fu Li, this human had given up his fate as a monarch, given up afortable life, and even wept tears of blood in soul state. What kind of emotion was this? Was Fu Li reallypletely unaffected by him? ¡°You¡¯re the handsomest in my heart, every nce leaves me intoxicated...¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough,¡± Zhuang Qing interrupted Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t memorize this sort of mushy street song lyrics.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a difference between my words and song lyrics...¡± One re from Zhuang Qing and he didn¡¯t dare to speak. The car entered the management bureau. Zhuang Qing watched Fu Li follow behind him with his head hanging. A whileter, he sighed and gripped Fu Li¡¯s wrist. ¡°Look at the steps when you¡¯re walking, don¡¯t look about recklessly.¡± ¡°En en,¡± Fu Li held Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. ¡°You¡¯re around, so I¡¯m at ease.¡± ¡°Fu Li, who did you learn to speak so sweetly from?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that my mouth is sweet, I¡¯m just expressing my innermost feelings,¡± Fu Li pointed at his eyes. ¡°Look at my sincere eyes.¡± Seeing the way he made a supreme effort to open his eyes, Zhuang Qingughed. What did it matter who Bo Lian was? Someone who was already dead should not be an obstacle in his and Fu Li¡¯s feelings. In any case, it was him who got together with Fu Li and the one acknowledged by Fu Li¡¯s elders was also him. The person who would be with Fu Li forever would also be him. In this war of emotions, it was him, the person who cameter, who won. Qian Luguo was a backpacker and a photographer. He had been to many different ces, captured many pretty photos, and even won an international prize. This time, he entered a deep mountain said to have cavemen, a map bought locally in hand. Unfortunately, he didn¡¯t photograph anything of value in the mountain even after staying for many days. On the day he was going to leave, he picked up his binocrs and nced through it, discovering a snow-white figure in the jungle, as if... a white ape was walking upright. The unusual height of this ape and abnormally white shade of the fur all over its body made him think about the legends of cavemen. Should he flee or chase after it for a photo? Qian Luguo only hesitated for a second before rushing to catch up to it. However, when he dashed to the area where the white ape had appeared, there was nothing there, not even a single white strand of hair was visible. Unwilling to give up, he searched all over the ce, but there were no traces of an animal passing through. Had he seen wrongly? The sound of dried leaves being trodden on suddenly came from behind him. Frightened, he instantly looked back and saw a tall man standing not too far away. The other party was dressed in clothes very simr to his own, just that the color differed a little. Noticing the camera dangling around the other party¡¯s neck, Qian Luguo heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°You also came to the mountain to photograph cavemen?¡± ¡°Cavemen?¡± The tall man was briefly stunned before immediately gripping his camera. ¡°Yup, I searched the mountain for a very long time but didn¡¯t spot any cavemen.¡± ¡°Seems like it was only a rumor,¡± Qian Luguo forced a smile. ¡°I¡¯m going to go down the mountain today. The weather forecast states that it¡¯ll snow heavily tonight; it¡¯s dangerous to stay here.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go down the mountain with you.¡± Hearing that the man would leave with him, Qian Luguo was even more reassured. The fact that he would leave with him in broad daylight proved that the man who suddenly popped out was not some strange mountain spirit. The man didn¡¯t talk much, but when he did, his words made a lot of sense. It was apparent that he was an extremely learned individual. Qian Luguo was even somewhat reluctant to part with him at the moment of their separation, so he gave his phone number to the other party. ¡°You¡¯re really going to the capital to seek out your nephew?¡± Qian Luguo was a bit worried. Some of his children weren¡¯t even attentive to him, let alone his nephews. It was unknown whether this man would be weed by the nephew he sought. ¡°Yes, I came out to find him.¡± Qian Luguo watched the other party¡¯s rear view in the distance and let out a small sigh. Hopefully the nephew the other party had personally raised still remembered this familial love. Chapter 122 - Jealousy

Chapter 122 - Jealousy

¡°When yao get increasingly close to humans, they will be assimted by them. They be jealous, greedy, and resentful. At this point, their person continues to be riddled with weak points, even if they possess supreme yao power.¡± ¡°King, as long as you obtain the inheritance of the divine dragon...¡± The enormous silhouette in the shadows shook. ¡°I am the only one in the world capable of obtaining Father¡¯s inheritance. Father and the divine Feng were on good terms those years; his inheritance must be in the hands of the divine Feng.¡± ¡°No one can rob me of it,¡± The ugly and gigantic strange beast opened its dark yellow eyes, a strange green in the depths of its pupils. ¡°Only I.¡± ¡°The yao world is too peaceful.¡± ¡°The true nature of a yao lies in massacre and hot-bloodedness. That lowly half-yao trash has ruined the yao world.¡± ¡°This king will lead the yao world towards the great, supreme Dao.¡± Affinity Moon Hotel was one of the capital¡¯s famous hotels. Celebrities often stayed at the hotel and important conferences were also frequently held there. After the end of the year, several major conferences were also held one after another. On the twelfth of the first lunar month, a very important national conference for authors was held at the Affinity Moon Hotel. With one step through the hotel¡¯srge doors, Ma Ha discovered that Affinity Moon Hotel had incredibly special feng shui. Any random disy piece would happen to be located at the most suitable spot; not the slightest corner had been cut. It was unknown which expert had helped the hotel out in this aspect. Taking out his invitation letter, he obtained his room card from the staff without a hitch and entered the elevator, bumping into a few authors who had simrly rushed over as well. Ma Ha had quite the reputation in the creative world, but no one had thought that he would be a simple and honest looking middle-aged man and not an elderly man like what everyone had imagined. But Ma Ha was not very fond of talking, and so everyone gradually paid no heed to him. The organizer arranged for a wee dinner in the hotel at night. Ma Ha sat at a corner, picking from the dishes on the table he was partial to as he watched authors familiar with one another exchange toasts. Shortly after, an author over the age of fifty plopped down on a chair with his back against it. He slumped over the table. Someone at the side called out to him a few times before happily stating that he was drunk and whatnot. Looking at the chair behind the drunk author¡¯s chair, Ma Ha put down his chopsticks and spoke a few words to the person-in-charge before getting up in preparation to leave. Unexpectedly, he had just reached the door when the author slumped over the table sat up all of a sudden and looked at him dazedly. At a loss, Ma Ha walked over to him. ¡°Are you unwell? Do you want me to call a doctor over?¡± The author pushed his hand away, picked up his wine cup, and then staggered towards the others. Despite being treated so discourteously, Ma Ha wasn¡¯t angered. Turning, he left the restaurant withrge strides. He touched his coat. He had left his phone and room card in the room. Everything about him was good, except for his memory. That was something that he couldn¡¯t change no matter what. Without the room card, Ma Ha couldn¡¯t use the elevator. ncing at the empty corridor, he ducked into the men¡¯s toilet and quietly recited a chant. ¡°En?!¡± Wang Han, who was reading the hotel¡¯s financial report in his office, suddenly stopped all motion and stared at the hourss on his desk. The blue rays of light that flickered in the hourss made for a beautiful sight. ¡°A yao cultivator¡¯s in the hotel?¡± He put down his pen and switched on hisputer, preparing to look through the data on the guests who had checked into the hotel today. However, quite a number of guests had checked in today and he couldn¡¯t identify the problematic individual in a short time. Only after calling the hotel¡¯s manager did Wang Han discover that there was an authors¡¯ exchange conference being held at the hotel these few days, and hence nearly fifty renowned authors from all parts of the country had checked into the hotel today. ¡°A group of bookish authors...¡± Wang Han stroked his chin. ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be a yao who became an author, right? How carefree were they to be in such a profession?¡± Concerned that he would be discovered after activating his yao force, Ma Ha made his way to the front counter, borrowed a phone, and gave the management bureau a call. ¡°Hello, may I know if this is the management bureau?¡± Ma Ha was liable to stammer the moment he was anxious. Fortunately, the call operator was very patient and didn¡¯t take Ma Ha as a yao who was looking for trouble. ¡°T-There¡¯s a human who¡¯s been possessed by a yaoguai, quickly dispatch people here.¡± ¡°Okay, I will stay in the room. I can be in touch with you via call at any time,¡± Ma Ha took a recement room card from the front counter with trembling hands and then hurriedly hid in his room. After he left, an employee at the front counter asked in a low voice, ¡°That author was talking about some yaoguai possession. Could he have written too many stories and be unable to distinguish between reality and fiction?¡± ¡°He was also being very sneaky when entering the elevator, as if he¡¯s scared that something willtch onto him. The way he acted was a bit frightening,¡± Another employee at the front counter touched his arms. ¡°It¡¯s horrifying just thinking about it. There are so many guests in the hotel, it¡¯ll be an issue if something happens. Should we call the doctor and police officers?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s first report this matter to the manager.¡± In the restaurant, the lounge that had originally been filled with the sounds of cheerful talk and joyousughter was now an expanse of silence. The ¡®author¡¯ who had gotten drunk right at the start straightened the clothes on his body and then took a deep breath. ¡°Dreams, illusions, ambition ¨C such a beautiful taste...¡± He had assumed that only human infants had all sorts of different-tasting thoughts, but contrary to his expectations, the souls of humans with a love for writing stories were also very interesting. The sleeping authors were not aware that their unending stream of inspiration and the dreams they had bestowed on the characters they penned had been absorbed as food by an iparably filthy demon. ¡°Oh?!¡± The demon paused abruptly. ¡°The taste of jealousy.¡± He chuckled, seeminglyughing at the intense jealousy that the human heart clearly bore whilst maintaining a hypocritical friendliness on the surface. ¡°Truly ridiculous yetmentable creatures,¡± He swallowed the qi colored by jealousy. Twisting his neck, a dull sound rang out from his neck. ¡°Short of one. Where has the runaway littlemb gone?¡± He pulled open the restaurant door. Without sparing even a single nce at the waiters unconscious on the floor of the restaurant, he stepped into the security passage, humming a song as his hands yed with his room card. The restaurant was on the third floor, while the authors were arranged to stay on the sixth floor. Tap. Tap. Tap. Hidden in the bathroom, Ma Ha trembled as he listened to the footsteps approach. He had already resolved inwardly to change into his original form and escape through the sewer if the demon were to burst through the door. Ever since he cultivated a human form, he had never stayed in the dirty, stinky, and disgusting sewer. But in the face of life and death, there was no need to live too morously. ¡°Is the clever littlemb hiding here?¡± The demon outside gently knocked on the door thrice. ¡°That¡¯s not very polite,¡± The demon suddenlyughed, and kicked open the door with one sweep of his leg. From Ma Ha¡¯s hiding spot in the bathroom, he watched the demon¡¯s long shadow twist on the floor like extended demonic ws that would haul him out from the bathroom. It got closer and closer. Just as the shadow was about to bump into the door, a pair of feet appeared in front of the door. It was Chief Zhuang. Chief Zhuang had arrived. Ma Ha hugged the toilet bowl and plopped down weakly, on the verge of hugging Zhuang Qing¡¯s thigh and calling him daddy. ¡°Dragon?¡± The shadow pulled back. Struggling out of the human¡¯s weak skin, he stood before Zhuang Qing in a round, ck mass. The mass condensed into the shape of a man. ¡°I smell jealousy on you.¡± Zhuang Qing ignored him. He stretched out a hand and ripped open an empty space, tossing the powerless Ma Ha in. ¡°What a noble dragon ¨C even thinking about rescuing a useless little yao at this time,¡± The demonughed out loud. ¡°The yao world has always been a survival of the fittest. Did you end up like this because the humans brainwashed you?¡± The demon spread out both arms abruptly. ¡°Let me see what the jealousy in your heart is like.¡± Seeing the vast expanse of darkness that pounced over, Zhuang Qing finally understood who this yao was. The legendary shadow yao Wangliang traversed the darkness, swallowed the vitality and dreams of animals and humans, and was an expert at bewitching people into unconsciously descending into the world of his creation. Wangliang was born very early on. When there was light in the universe, there was also shadow. Wangliang was born because of this. Though he did not possess excellentbat ability, he would not die as long as there was light. Dealing with him was an affair of immense difficulty. Zhuang Qing also had a shadow. As a result, he too got caught up in an illusory shadow world after Wangliang cast his magic. Shadows were dark and frightening, but they also most clearly understood the true thoughts in the depths of the heart. Two thousand years ago, a noble gentleman and a shaggy rabbit met. Since then, the noble gentleman took up residence in the mountain. The rabbit-turned-person practiced writing characters and painting with the noble gentleman, and listened to the noble gentleman¡¯s stories of the human world. When the noble gentleman was approaching his end, his unusually bright eyes remained fixed on the little gentleman that the rabbit had transformed into, unwilling to shut no matter what. ¡°Bo Lian,¡± The little gentleman gripped his hand. ¡°What do you want to say? I¡¯m listening.¡± The corners of the noble gentleman¡¯s mouth opened and closed. A long timeter, he asked, ¡°After I die, will you raise another human?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± The noble gentleman forced out a smile. ¡°Very good.¡± His eyes were still as unresigned as ever. He held the little gentleman¡¯s hand tightly. ¡°You... I...¡± The little gentleman gripped his hand back, his gaze gentle yet confused. ¡°You... see the human world on my behalf, help me see it the day it flourishes in peace,¡± The strength in his hand weakened increasingly. ¡°Don¡¯t...¡± Don¡¯t forget me. In the end, he didn¡¯t voice these words. He¡¯d wanted Fu Li to help him look upon thend under the Heavens when it thrived, but even more so did he want Fu Li to remember him when he did so. ¡°I promise that I¡¯ll help you see a flourishing human world,¡± The little gentleman looked at the open eyes of the noble gentleman. With a shaking hand, he closed his eyes. ¡°I will learn the human world¡¯s ways of living, and properly and carefully help you to look at it.¡± The little gentleman found a precious cotton yarn and wrapped the noble gentleman¡¯s body in it before cing him in a jade coffin. When the yinchai brought the noble gentleman¡¯s soul away, he didn¡¯t stop the yinchai. But he stood for a whole day and night beside the jade coffin. Eventually, he buried him beside the Wei River. The Wei River flowed past the great kingdom the noble gentleman was born in and possessed extremely rich spiritual qi. The little gentleman buried him here in the hope that his next life would be a prosperous and peaceful one. Zhuang Qing returned to his senses from the illusion. He raised his sword with a cold face. ¡°Cheap tricks are not worth ying.¡± ¡°You¡¯re jealous of this human,¡± Wangliangughed wantonly. ¡°The great Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races is actually jealous of a human who has long passed on, how ridiculous.¡± Zhuang Qing paid no heed to him. His sword streaked past, shing his body. With one roar, the various inspirations and dreams Wangliang had originally swallowed fled back to their owners¡¯ bodies. Wangliang¡¯s shadow flickered. Soon after, they joined as one. Clenching his teeth, he bit out hatefully, ¡°You can injure me?!¡± ¡°There is nothing impossible in this world,¡± Zhuang Qing drew his sword, smiling coldly. ¡°What came from the sewer should not attempt to return to the earth.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± A tall man dressed like a backpacker came to a halt. Raising his head, he looked at the tall, gorgeous building beside him. ¡°The stink of Wangliang.¡± He casually walked into a public telephone booth, morphed into a ray of light, and flew into the hotel. The pedestrian queuing outside to use the telephone: ... Had he seen wrongly just now? There was no one in the telephone booth. Then what was that man who just went in? Chapter 123 - This Life

Chapter 123 - This Life

The dark world was thick with jealousy and hatred. In the chaotic space, Zhuang Qing even saw Fu Li linking hands with the human called Bo Lian. The voice in his heart seemed to be spurring his anger and resentment, even causing a hint of killing intent to arise. Zhuang Qing raised the sword in his hands and forcefully plunged it into the ground. The red and ck world was gradually taken over by rays of light. Wangliang gave a smothered groan of pain, telling Zhuang Qing who had already left the illusion, ¡°Worthy of a yao who became the Dragon Emperor just after their transformation. You still have some use.¡± All of a sudden, he manifested multiple doppelgangers that encircled Zhuang Qing. ¡°Even then, I still see your weakness.¡± ¡°So what?¡± Zhuang Qing sliced through all the doppelgangers. ¡°Any living creature with emotion will have weaknesses.¡± ¡°Only with weakness can one be stronger!¡± A blinding radiance abruptly emanated from the sword in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. A blood-curdling shriek came from Wangliang, and all doppelgangers turned to dust. He took a few steps back, seemingly in disbelief that a two thousand year old dragon with no inheritance from his elders could have such outstanding cultivation. Fleeing when one wasn¡¯t a match for an opponent had always been the tradition in the yao world. Wangliang hesitated for only a blink of an eye before preparing to conceal himself in the shadows and escape. However, just as he was fading into the shadows, a hand suddenly reached out from the side and dragged him out of the shadows. ¡°Wangliang?¡± The man shook the ck shadow in his hand. Throwing him onto the ground, the man stepped on him with a foot to prevent him from running off. ¡°Many thanks for your assistance, daoyou,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at Wangliang, who waspletely unable to resist on the ground. Vignce rose in his heart. ¡°You¡¯re wee. Wangliang has always been best at attacking the heart. The fact that you were not influenced by him is something of considerable rarity,¡± The man twisted Wangliang around, squeezed him into a ball, and then flung him into the bag on his back. Zhuang Qing could tell that it wasn¡¯t an ordinary bag but a smokescreen for a Qiankun pouch. He could vaguely sense a hint of auspicious qi from the yao. After receiving the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance, he could distinguish the true forms of yao cultivators, the only group whom he couldn¡¯t distinguish through the naked eye being the ancient great yao who were born fiends or auspicious beasts. Not wanting to infuriate this sort of great yao, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t use any magic to distinguish the other party¡¯s true form. He merely kept his sword and did a junior¡¯s bow towards the man. ¡°This junior is Zhuang Qing, I supervise the human and cultivation worlds. May I know what business senior has in the human world?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to find a junior,¡± The man¡¯s gaze settled on Zhuang Qing. What was originally the eyes of a normal person suddenly changed colors ¨C one turned white and the other ck. White symbolized yang while ck symbolized yin. Where they intersected was the flow of time. The man took a sudden step back. Hisplexion was pale and a smidgen of blood dripped out of the corner of his mouth. He clutched at his chest. His gaze turned extremely strange, but contained no malicious intent. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t know what the other party had seen on him, but still asked very carefully, ¡°Senior, are you okay?¡± ¡°No issue,¡± The man casually wiped the traces of blood at the corners of his mouth. He turned, looking out the door. ¡°There¡¯s a humaning.¡± Zhuang Qing shot a nce at the mess of a room. ¡°The manager behind this hotel is part of a sect in the cultivation world. There is no need for senior to worry that other issues will crop up.¡± ¡°Yao and human cultivators are on such good terms now?¡± The man was a little moved. When he glimpsed Zhuang Qing¡¯s past just now, he saw only half of it before the other party¡¯s powerful golden glow of virtue rendered his head dizzy and vision blurred. He hadn¡¯t managed to continue. But just one half of the information had already put him in aplicated mood. He didn¡¯t know whether he ought to feel deeply moved or helpless. ¡°This junior wasn¡¯t aware that Chief Zhuang hade in person, please excuse this junior for not going out to meet you,¡± Wang Han strode over with a smile. He didn¡¯t even take a single look at the chaotic mess the room was in. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on Chief Zhuang, may I know which evil guy has been executed?¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the male yao of unknown identity. ¡°There¡¯s nothing much on this end. As for the hotel¡¯s losses, you can write a report and apply forpensation at the management bureau.¡± ¡°Chief Zhuang has helped us to resolve such a major problem, nopensation is needed for such a minor thing,¡± Wang Han was being truthful. If all the famous authors across the country ran into trouble at their hotel, their sect¡¯s hotel chain would be severely impacted. Competition in the country¡¯s food and beverage industry was fierce; nobody wanted any trouble to ur. At this point in time, not only did he not want to report his losses, he even wanted to send Chief Zhuang a big red packet. Unfortunately, Chief Zhuang was more on the upright side and had never epted bribes. The only issue of bribery that had caused a stir was a misunderstanding, since it was a gift from Fu Li daojun¡¯s elder to a junior. Those who did business understood very well what could be said and what could not be asked. He didn¡¯t recognize the stranger in the room, but definitely wouldn¡¯t foolishly eavesdrop out of curiosity. He helped Ma Ha, who was hiding in the bathroom and couldn¡¯t even stand straight, to the couch and sat him down properly. ¡°Many thanks Chief Zhuang for your lifesaving grace,¡± Ma Ha legs trembled uncontrobly. Wang Han nced at him, thinking silently about how unexpected it was for a swamp eel yao to undertake the profession of an author and to be so sessful too. There were truly a myriad of ways in which yao cultivators assimted into the human world. ¡°No need to be polite, protecting therades of the cultivation world is the duty of the management bureau,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression was indifferent. ¡°The management bureau will dispatch people overter to deal with the authors¡¯ memories.¡± ¡°Thank you very much for all the trouble you¡¯ve taken, Chief Zhuang,¡± Wang Han wanted to ask how Fu Li had been recently, but swallowed the words out of fear that Zhuang Qing would think that he was intentionally worming his way into being friends. Zhuang Qing led the man out of Affinity Moon Hotel. ¡°Senior, please follow me.¡± The man followed Zhuang Qing into the car and buckled his seatbelt like how Zhuang Qing did. ¡°If senior wants to seek out a junior who has already entered the human world, you can provide his name and photograph, and the management bureau will help you find information on him,¡± Zhuang Qing stated. ¡°ording to work procedures, you will have to fill in a form at the management bureau, after which an audit will have to be carried out before we can help you obtain private information.¡± Zhuang Qing could look up information at any time through the work system. But this man¡¯s identity wasn¡¯t clear, so filling in the form at the management bureau would make it easier to control. Fortunately, the man was very easy to talk to. When Zhuang Qing brought up filling in the form, he didn¡¯t raise any objections either. This sort of cooperative attitude further improved Zhuang Qing¡¯s favorable impression of this yao. Upon reaching the management bureau, Zhuang Qing directly brought the man to themunications records branch for him to fill in the form himself while he returned to his office. The situation involving Affinity Moon Hotel was originally going to be handed to Fu Li to settle, but something unexpected happened in the south and Zhuang Qing was concerned that the strength of the other staff wouldn¡¯t suffice, so he had no choice but to let Fu Li lead a team over to settle it. The staff at themunications records branch were extremely busy. Not only did they have to pick up all sorts of calls from people wanting to make reports, they also had to filter out the useful bits of news. After handing the form and a pen to the man Zhuang Qing brought, they were so busy that their feet practically didn¡¯t touch the ground,cking even the time to drink a mouthful of water. The man discovered that there were both humans and yao in the room, and among the yao, there were herbivores as well as carnivores. Despite that, the atmosphere was very harmonious. The form was in simplified Chinese ¨C themonly used characters now. The man didn¡¯t seem to be very familiar with these characters, so he filled it in at a very slow pace, onlypleting it after a good tens of minutes. ¡°Which yao is this who came down the mountain without knowing the rules? He directly vanished in the telephone booth. It¡¯s fortunate that the surveince camera in the telephone booth was spoilt, otherwise this matter will cause a hugemotion,¡± An employee swiftly tapped on the keyboard as they transferred the matter to their colleague to handle. Turning, they noticed that the man had already filled in the form. ¡°Please give me the form, thank you.¡± He took a look at the form. The characters on it were very beautiful, but were soplex that he couldn¡¯t understand them. This should be seal script? He passed the form to the colleague in the opposite cubicle, who was a tree yao over the age of two thousand years old. Though this colleague¡¯s reaction speed was a little slow, they were very knowledge. The tree yao took the form and leaned close. They took a few good looks at it, thinking that they had read wrongly. The person this yao cultivator was applying to search for was named Fu Li and their ancestral hometown was the Weishui area. Wasn¡¯t this their bureau¡¯s Fu Li daojun? What did the boss mean by this? He had definitely brought this man to their bureau so that they could help find the person, but if the person to be found was Fu Li daojun, then was there any need to fill in the application form? He pondered over it. Putting down the form, he told the man seated opposite, ¡°Wait a moment.¡± He got up and went to the back. Fishing out his phone, he gave Zhuang Qing a call, wanting to ascertain what Zhuang Qing¡¯s intentions were. Zhuang Qing responded without even thinking after receiving the call from themunications records department, ¡°I¡¯ll rush over immediately.¡± When he thought about Fu Li¡¯s enigmatic elders, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t find it all unexpected that Fu Li was the junior yao this man wanted to find. He strode into themunications records department and spoke to the man, ¡°Senior, I didn¡¯t know the junior you wanted to find was Fu Li. He is an employee of our management bureau and is currently in the south settling some matters. He¡¯ll be back very soon,e and sit in my office first.¡± The tip of the man¡¯s brows shifted subtly upon hearing that Zhuang Qing and Fu Li were in the same workce. He nodded at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Thank you for the trouble.¡± ¡°This junior is called Zhuang Qing, you can call me Little Zhuang,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed open his office door, making a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. ¡°Please take a seat, I¡¯ll pour you a cup of tea.¡± The man scanned the surroundings. He smelled Fu Li¡¯s scent inside; the yao cultivator called Zhuang Qing was not lying to him. Zhuang Qing returned very quickly. The man epted the tea he handed over, asking, ¡°I don¡¯t have a name, you can call me Uncle Yuan.¡± After introducing himself, he took out a few boxes from his Qiankun pouch and offered them to Zhuang Qing. ¡°Come, these are my gifts to you.¡± Seeing these boxes, Zhuang Qing no longer turned them down and epted them after thanking him, because he knew that declining was of no use. Fu Li¡¯s elders were very unified in the way they gave gifts. That is, they were all generous. But the word ¡®Yuan¡¯ made Zhuang Qing think of White Ape, who had guided Fu Li on Reflecting Mist Mountain into assuming that everyone were ordinary yao cultivators. ¡°Forgive this junior¡¯s presumptuousness, but would senior happen to be the Elder White Ape Fu Li frequently mentioned to me?¡± ¡°Does Little Li really mention me often?¡± Elder White Ape, the man whose true identity was the Xing Xing, had a moved expression. Zhuang Qing nodded. The smile on the Xing Xing¡¯s face lit up even more and he asked many questions about Fu Li in rapid session ¨C whether his cultivation had advanced, whether he got along well with other yao cultivators, whether he had been bullied by other yao cultivators, and whether he was short of anything. Zhuang Qing answered them one by one with an abundance of patience. ¡°Does Little Zhuang have a Dao Companion?¡± The Xing Xing looked at the thick virtue and purple qi rolling off Zhuang Qing, and a faint n took shape in his heart. But without having seen Fu Li, he couldn¡¯t have too many ideas. ¡°Many thanks senior for your concern, this junior already has a lifelong partner.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± The Xing Xing sighed inwardly. This was what wasughable about fate. An enormous price was paid in a past life and what was sought was still not obtained, yet there was no affinity despite meeting in this life. Whether one was yao or human, no one could evade fate. He could only hope that Little Li would meet his benefactor and avoid the greatly ominous situation in his fate. Zhuang Qing was going to tell the other party that his Dao Companion was Fu Li when a knock abruptly sounded on the door. Half of Fu Li¡¯s body leaned in. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, I heard there was trouble at Affinity Moon Hotel?¡± ¡°Little Li?¡± The tall man whose presence had been extraordinarily imposing just a while ago stood up in bewilderment after Fu Li appeared, just like an adult who had done wrong, brimming with guilt and love in front of their child. ¡°Elder White Ape?!¡± Fu Li thought he was mistaken. Blinking, he bounded up like the wind, turning into his original form and hugging the Xing Xing. ¡°It¡¯s really you?!¡± The Xing Xing hurriedly reached out and caught Fu Li in his original form, smiling yet sighing emotionally. ¡°You¡¯ve really grown up, even your original form has be handsome and mighty.¡± ¡°Right? I think so too,¡± Fu Li shook his tail in delight and received another long string of praises from the Xing Xing. After the uncle and nephew ttered each other in Zhuang Qing¡¯s office for half an hour, Fu Li asked, ¡°Elder, why were you with Zhuang little dragon?¡± The Xing Xing recounted the events that had taken ce. ¡°I really have to thank Little Zhuang, otherwise I would still not know where you were.¡± ¡°All¡¯s fine, don¡¯t you know now?¡± Fu Li wiggled his ears at Zhuang Qing, a bashful smile seemingly on his shaggy face. ¡°Elder, you¡¯re back just in time. I might be holding a Dao Bonding Ceremony a whileter, I¡¯m very happy that you can take part in it.¡± ¡°Dao Bonding Ceremony ¨C with who?¡± The Xing Xing thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. Shaggy and chubby ws slowly, unhurriedly pointed towards Zhuang Qing, who was seated at a corner in habitual silence. The Xing Xing¡¯s eyes widened, shifting between Fu Li and Zhuang Qing. He had only seen half of Zhuang Qing¡¯s past just now ¨C from his past life, his reincarnation and to the torment he had experienced to survive in the human world ¨C before his divine consciousness was sent shooting back by Zhuang Qing¡¯s golden light of virtue and purple qi. He hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing to eventually be with Fu Li. Thinking that the Xing Xing was dissatisfied with Zhuang Qing, Fu Li said in a haste, ¡°Zhuang little dragon is especially good, he¡¯s also the Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races. King Ganglie and Uncle Feng also like him very much, you...¡± ¡°I am also very appreciative of this junior,¡± The Xing Xing interjected. ¡°When is the Dao Bonding Ceremony? The eighth of the next month is an auspicious date, is it fixed on that date?¡± Fu Li: ... Were all these elders of his so anxious for him to marry? Under normal circumstances, shouldn¡¯t his elder be most concerned about Uncle Feng and the King¡¯s whereabouts? What kind of mentality did he have to be so anxious about his marriage? ¡°Who would have expected you two to still end up together after going around in circles.¡± Zhuang Qing raised his head at once, looking at the Xing Xing. What did he mean by that? Chapter 124 - Idiots?

Chapter 124 - Idiots?

The Xing Xing was a little baffled upon seeing Zhuang Qing raise his head to look at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°You mean to say that Fu Li and I... have met in the past?¡± Zhuang Qing had never believed in the so-called past and present lives, so now that he suddenly heard the Xing Xing say such a thing, his heart did not contain joy but utter disbelief. ¡°Elder White Ape, what do you mean by that? I¡¯ve met Zhuang Qing in the past?¡± Fu Li was also taken byplete surprise and asked this question practically in unison with Zhuang Qing. ¡°Both of you still aren¡¯t aware?¡± The Xing Xing was even more surprised than the two people involved. He ced his teacup on the table. ¡°In Little Zhuang¡¯s past life, wasn¡¯t he the human pet you raised?¡± Zhuang Qing thought that something had gone wrong with his ears. He stood there in a daze, a buzzing sound in his brain. His usual cognitive ability was lost. His head turned towards Fu Li, as if in search of some semnce of the truth from him. ¡°P-Pet in my previous life?¡± Fu Li stammered like his tongue was in knots. ¡°But they don¡¯t look alike at all.¡± ¡°It¡¯s very normal for them to look different, it¡¯s not like they have the same parents after reincarnation. It would be strange if he looked simr to his past self,¡± The Xing Xing seemed to bepletely unaware of the big bomb he had cast down and fished out arge pile of things from his Qiankun pouch. ¡°Little Zhuang was a human in his past life and had a short lifespan; there was no affinity between you two. Fortunately, you¡¯re still yao in this life. He too became yao and you even got together.¡± ¡°Some people are not fated to meet even if they reincarnate a hundred times. For you to meet once again and even be bound as Dao Companions ¨C that is a marriage predestined by fate,¡± The Xing Xing nodded with a smile. ¡°Pretty good, pretty good.¡± The Xing Xing was clearly talking about his past life, but he seemed to be listening to someone else¡¯s story. Even when he recalled the images he had glimpsed in the Recollection Mirror, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t feel like the human called Bo Lian was him at all. The human he had been inwardly jealous of and even wished to never have appeared was actually himself? ¡°Fu Li,¡± He sat back down on the office chair dazedly. A good whileter, he met Fu Li¡¯s worry-filled eyes. ¡°I recall you saying that Bo Lian was an ordinary friend to you, and that you didn¡¯t have any intentions towards him?¡± Fu Li opened his mouth. He didn¡¯t know how he should respond. ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°Is there a very big difference between me and Bo Lian? Or should I say, is there any shadow of him in me?¡± ¡°You and Bo Lian,¡± Fu Li shook his head. ¡°Aren¡¯t alike at all. He had a mild personality, schrly bearing, and was always smiling when with me.¡± Fu Li wasn¡¯t willing to think back to the past and had intentionally pushed all memories rted to Bo Lian to the bottom of his heart. Because he understood even more clearly than Bo Lian that the death of a human symbolized the end to all things, a foreordained end to their affinity. There was only suffering in continuing to cling to it. Only after Zhuang Qing made this serious inquiry did he dig out the memories buried in the depths of his heart bit by bit. However, these memories had been hidden away for too long, so long that they had changed colors. There was indeed not the slightest simrity between Bo Lian and Zhuang Qing ¨C whether it was in looks or personality, not a single point of simrity could be found. Bo Lian had been fond of hugging him in his original form and sitting at the entrance of his cave, basking in the sunshine while telling him all sorts of funny stories about the human world. He¡¯d also often made him delicious food from the human world. Elder White Ape had said that a noble gentleman like Bo Lian would never cook in the human world. Bo Lian had also liked painting; he¡¯d painted the sky, the earth, mountains, water, and him. Whether it was his human form or his original form, they¡¯d all appeared countless times under Bo Lian¡¯s brush. ¡°Maybe he liked you very much, and he continued to like you after death to the moment he reincarnated,¡± Zhuang Qing thought about how Bo Lian had waited day after day following his death, how he had given up on his fate to be a monarch, how he had abandoned his future after reincarnation, and how he had waited in despair and loneliness for the day he and Fu Li would meet again. In the end, what he waited for was not Fu Li but the news of the death of the yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain. ¡°Your heart really wasn¡¯t moved by everything that Bo Lian did?¡± Zhuang Qing looked up, his eyes on Fu Li. In his good-looking eyes were glinting stars. ¡°Both of you take your time to talk. I seem to smell the Kunpeng¡¯s scent, I¡¯ll go find him to reminisce about the past,¡± Sensing something off about the atmosphere, the Xing Xing stood up without any hesitation and put down his teacup. ¡°Virtuous Zhuang nephew, can I go to the back?¡± ¡°Please,¡± Zhuang Qing made a ¡®please¡¯ motion and the Xing Xing swiftly left without looking back. Fu Li: ... ¡°Why aren¡¯t you talking?¡± Zhuang Qing turned and continued to look at Fu Li. There was even a smile on his face. ¡°Do you want me to say I was moved or that I wasn¡¯t moved?¡± Fu Li swallowed. ¡°That is my question to you, I only want to hear the words from your heart. I won¡¯t get angry no matter what you say,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled open the window curtains and looked out the window. ¡°Although Uncle Yuan said that I was Bo Lian in my past life, I don¡¯t have any memories of it, nor do I have any empathy for the rtionships and emotions of my past life.¡± ¡°In my eyes, you¡¯re different from Bo Lian. Bo Lian was my friend and pet, you¡¯re my lover,¡± Fu Li secretly scrutinized Zhuang Qing¡¯s expression. ¡°It¡¯s a different feeling.¡± ¡°Even though our souls are the same?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li. Fu Li slowly shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s different. Although the soul is the same, the memories and rtionships are different, so it¡¯s a different existence.¡± ¡°A past life is a past life, this life is this life,¡± Fu Li very much wanted to utter some honeyed words, but he eventually still chose to be honest. ¡°In my heart, my affinity with Bo Lian reached its end the moment he died.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly inexplicablyughed. ¡°I really don¡¯t know if you¡¯re sentimental or heartless.¡± Fu Li sighed in helplessness. He just knew Zhuang Qing would be angry. Saying that he wouldn¡¯t be angry no matter what was merely deception. ¡°I can¡¯t lie to you. I didn¡¯t understand emotion those years and didn¡¯t know that Bo Lian had romantic intentions towards me.¡± When he learned about it, two thousand years had already gone by and Bo Lian¡¯s remains had long turned into yellow soil. The year the azure dragon n caused trouble at Weishui¡¯s river basin, many ces were flooded and it was unknown where Bo Lian¡¯s remains had washed to. Perhaps it had sunk to the bottom of the river, or perhaps it had flowed along the river to an unknown ce and eventually ran aground, drying up and vanishing into Heaven and Earth. He only hoped that Bo Lian¡¯s remains could rest in peace and hadn¡¯t been disturbed by gold plunderers. ¡°Got it,¡± Zhuang Qing picked up his coat lying over the chair. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Go where?¡± Fu Li looked at Zhuang Qing, somewhat unable to follow. ¡°Bring Uncle Yuan to Uncle Feng and Uncle Kang. They haven¡¯t met for many years and must have many things they want to say,¡± Zhuang Qing made his way to the door, crooking his finger at Fu Li. ¡°What are you still standing there for? Come along.¡± Fu Li went forward and linked hands with him, beaming. ¡°En en, okay.¡± Zhuang Qing leaned his head, looking at Fu Li beside him. Seeing the simple-minded way he was smiling, he inwardly let out a sigh of helplessness. It seemed like there was a simrity between his past and present lives after all ¨C at least, they had simr aesthetic tastes and even fell for the same person. Not only was the Kunpeng not moved at seeing the Xing Xing, a fight almost broke out. However, although the Xing Xing¡¯sbat ability was a bit on the lower end, he was extremely quick. Unable to evennd a hit despite multiple attacks, the Kunpeng simply plopped down on the ground. ¡°Laozi won¡¯t fight with you anymore.¡± ¡°What are you fighting for? If not for us that year, you might have already been struck to death by heavenly lightning,¡± The Xing Xing nced around the Kunpeng¡¯s room. Apart from a thick carpet, there was nothing else. He mimicked the Kunpeng and sat down cross-legged as well. ¡°Seems like you¡¯ve been welltely.¡± ¡°No choice, your nephew is filial towards us elders,¡± The Kunpeng shook his leg. ¡°He raised us very well.¡± ¡°You¡¯re even calling our family¡¯s Little Li nephew, you should give him some gifts after freeloading these few days,¡± The Xing Xing might appear boorish, but he was very meticulous in personality. The Kunpeng¡¯s little move at driving a wedge between them had zero effect on him. He wasn¡¯t the brainless type like Feng Ruizhong. ¡°It is only right and proper for juniors to be filial to their elders, how are gifts needed?¡± The Kunpeng snorted somewhat unhappily. ¡°If not for him crying till the skies turned murky and the earth dark, I wouldn¡¯t have been awoken by him.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so wrong about babies crying a little after birth, have you never seen infants crying?¡± The Xing Xing was unhappy. Inciting disharmony was all right, but he would be unhappy if his family¡¯s child was bad-mouthed. ¡°I¡¯ve seen children cry, but have never seen any child who cried till seawater roiled and all light vanished,¡± The Kunpeng said moodily. ¡°You guys also have quite the capability, this sort of fi...¡± ¡°Uncle Yuan, Kunpeng daren, sorry for interrupting,¡± Zhuang Qing reached the door and rapped on it. His gaze swept across the Kunpeng. ¡°Uncle Yuan, Fu Li and I are getting off work, let¡¯s go back together.¡± The Xing Xing stood up, patting the non-existent dust on his body. ¡°Aiya, our family¡¯s child is fetching me home for a meal, I won¡¯t argue with you over these meaningless questions.¡± The Kunpeng: ... Was having a child so impressive? What f*cking difference was there between the Xing Xing¡¯s senseless methods of showing off and those street aunties in the human world? How despicable. But he was still very angry! The three yao got into the car. Noticing that the Xing Xing wasn¡¯t unustomed to the car, Fu Li could rest at ease. ¡°Elder, you won¡¯t leave now that you¡¯ve arrived in the human world, right?¡± The Xing Xing replied, ¡°I won¡¯t, I won¡¯t.¡± Fu Li revealed a smile. They were halfway through their journey when the Xing Xing said out of the blue, ¡°Little Zhuang, you¡¯ve suffered these few years.¡± His natal chart was destroyed in his past life because of Fu Li, and he suffered all sorts of torment not long after being born in this life. Regardless of whether one was human or yao, getting through both these fates was a matter of incredible difficulty. But not only did Zhuang Qing get through it, he even cut a bloody path through his own fate. It was no wonder that he could obtain the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance and even be the Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races. Upon hearing these words, Fu Li suddenly recalled that it was precisely because Bo Lian had stayed on in the underworld for a full eighty years in the hope of meeting with him after death that his extremely precious natal chart was destroyed. Which was why Zhuang Qing had suffered so much in this life, with no parents or rtives, and constantly teetering on the edge of death. ¡°Zhuang little dragon...¡± Fu Li suddenly felt upset, the kind of upset that came with no prior indication, where his entire heart was immersed in a jug of both bitter and astringent liquid, suffocating him. ¡°Those were the things I did in my past life, it has nothing to do with you, nor does it have anything to do with me,¡± Zhuang Qing saw that Fu Li¡¯s expression was off. ¡°I¡¯ll make the honey chicken wings you like tonight, do you want to eat it?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Fu Li nodded. He still had the energy to eat, it seemed like he wasn¡¯t all that upset, thought the Xing Xing. Fu Li and Zhuang Qing returned to the flying pce. The Xing Xing was in aplex mood at returning home and walked right at the back. He heard Feng Ruizhong and Kang Gu¡¯s hurried footsteps. ¡°Little Zhuang, don¡¯t take to heart those things you saw this morning.¡± ¡°Yes. Actually, it was all Bo Lian¡¯s one-sided intentions towards Little Li, our Little Li was never once moved by him.¡± ¡°Yes yes yes. Even in our hearts, we prefer you more.¡± The Xing Xing: ... These two good pals were probably idiots, right? Ilyz: the moment everyone was waiting for is finally here~ Chapter 125 - Having an Affair?

Chapter 125 - Having an Affair?

¡°Old Xing Xing,¡± Seeing the Xing Xing, who was standing behind the arched door, Kang Gu arrived by the Xing Xing¡¯s side within a fewrge steps. He said happily, ¡°You¡¯re fine?¡± Back when the heavenly tribtion had struck them, old Xing Xing was the first to vanish under the lightning strikes and despite staying in the human world for such a long time, they still hadn¡¯t found any of his traces. Seeing him alive and well now, the gigantic stone in his heart could finally be put to rest. The Xing Xing and Kang Gu were the earliest to get to know each other. Kang Gu was gullible and had a simple personality, so he was frequently deceived by the other little yaoguai. Only after getting to know the Xing Xing was Kang Gu spared from the fate of constantly being deceived. The Xing Xing was quick but not adept at offensive technique. Coupled with the fact that his flesh was considered by yao cultivators to be a huge source of nourishment, he frequently adopted a policy of fleeing whenever he encountered overly violent yao beasts. This situation finally stabilized after he got to know Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong. Both Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong disliked working their brains, while he was a more dependable and careful yao. So when they were together, their personalitiesplemented one another well. Now that the Xing Xing was seeing these two people yet again spouting brainless words, he was in aplete state of helplessness yet not at all surprised. ¡°I was worried that you brainless people would be sold off without me, so I had no choice but to live on well,¡± The Xing Xing smiled, pping Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong on the shoulder. All emotions were in the words unspoken. The Baize strode out of the inner rooms. Seeing the Xing Xing standing together with Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong, he took off his sses and made his way over to the three yao. He said with a gentle smile, ¡°You¡¯re back?¡± ¡°I¡¯m back.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Fu Li tugged on Zhuang Qing¡¯s sleeve, shooting him a meaningful nce. The two juniors detoured around the elders and went to the flower garden at the back. Fu Li dragged Zhuang Qing to a seat, took out food and drinks from his Qiankun pouch, and then told Zhuang Qing, ¡°The elders are on very good terms, they would frequently gather in the past to drink tea and wine, and discuss cultivation. Now that they¡¯ve reunited, they must have many things to say.¡± Everyone had their own secrets, whether it was an elder or a junior. Fu Li felt that he ought to give the elders their personal space. Zhuang Qing took a snack, and it was Fu Li¡¯s favorite vor at that. Fu Li stared at the snack packaging in his hands and rubbed his chin in an effort to make himself appear extremely generous, as if he didn¡¯t mind in the slightest. ¡°Eat,¡± Zhuang Qing tore open the packaging and held it out to Fu Li¡¯s mouth. ¡°You¡¯re not angry at me anymore?¡± Fu Li stared at the snack, not quite daring to eat. ¡°Will you not dare to eat if I¡¯m angry?¡± Zhuang Qing raised a brow. Fu Li lowered his head and took a bite. ¡°I will. I dare to eat anything you feed me.¡± Fu Li¡¯s human form was very easy on the eyes. The way he lowered his head to eat was extremely cute to Zhuang Qing. He stroked the back of Fu Li¡¯s head, sighing. Since he took a fancy to such a simple-minded yaoguai, what else could he do other than treat him well? ¡°I¡¯ll go to my room and change my clothes,¡± Zhuang Qing threw the snack wrapper into the rubbish bin and got up. ¡°I ran into Wang Liang today, his bad luck got on me.¡± Fu Li stared nkly. Hadn¡¯t dark yaoguai like Wang Liang long been sealed? Why was it still running to the human world to do evil? His gaze fixed on Zhuang Qing¡¯s back, Fu Li secretly fished out his phone. As everyone already knew his online name, he specially chose to go anonymous before running over to the forum to raise a question. Nameless Netizen: Question ¨C if there is such a thing as past and present lives, your boyfriend liked you in his past life and did many things for you, but you still didn¡¯t like him. In this life, you finally get together, but when you do, your boyfriend finds out that someone in your past life liked you very much. You say that you have no feelings towards the person in your past life in front of your boyfriend. But all of a sudden, your boyfriend discovers that the person in your past life is him and even asks you if you really had no feelings towards the person in your past life. How would you reply to make him happy? Beany Beancurd: OP, reading a little less mythology-rted works will be of benefit to your IQ. Qingke Barley Wine: The person upstairs went a bit overboard. OP already said ¡®if¡¯, although there is no such ¡®if¡¯ in this world. On the surface, this problem is very easy to resolve. For them to be involved with each other in both past and present lives, they must have quite the affinity. But on closer thought, this is actually a question that is sure to get one killed. If OP said that he had feelings for the boyfriend in his past life, then the boyfriend will feel that you¡¯re treating him as a substitute. But if OP said that he didn¡¯t, the boyfriend will feel that you¡¯re very heartless despite his past self doing so much for you and question whether or not you truly love him. I¡¯ve thought about it very deeply. OP, you¡¯d better act coquettishly to your boyfriend. Ask him who he¡¯ll save if you and his mom fall into the water. Nameless Netizen. My boyfriend¡¯s mother passed away a long time ago. I¡¯m a guy and don¡¯t know how to act coquettishly. Beany Beancurd: So, turns out OP is a gay guy. 25 Cent Apple: OP, ignore Beancurd. Although, OP, I do think that you have quite the wild imagination to be applying this situation to yourself. There is no way such a thing will ever happen, but on ount that it isn¡¯t easy for people of the same gender to be together, I¡¯ll help the OP answer this illogical question. Firstly, nothing cannot be resolved by papapa. If it can¡¯t, then papapa twice. Humans have to live in the present. Only fools would allow illusory things like past lives to affect their happiness in this life. Nameless Netizen. What¡¯s papapa? A kind of game? Qingke Barley Wine: OP, you¡¯re so cute that you make others want to do all sorts of deviant things to you. Nameless Netizen: I advise you not to, you can¡¯t beat me. Long Wind Floating Past: The deadly earnest OP is very cute. Papapa refers to a type of athletic game on the bed, one of the most harmonious human exercises that benefits both the country and the people. It¡¯s also a huge contribution towards our race¡¯s reproduction. Upon seeing this exnation, Fu Li¡¯s entire yao body felt that humans had to be the n which spoke most tactfully about mating. But mating... Zhuang Qing came out after changing his clothes. Seeing that Fu Li was still ying with his phone, he rapped the desk. ¡°Stop ying with your phone and apany me to the meal room to cook.¡± He was wearing ck pants, his upper body clothed in a white shirt and his sleeves rolled up slightly. There was a kind ofnguid male beauty about him. Fu Li licked the corners of his lips, suddenly feeling some anticipation towards the great harmonious activity of a race. ¡°Hungry?¡± Zhuang Qing sighed after noticing him lick his lips. ¡°Forget it, you sit here and snack, I¡¯ll cook.¡± Watching Zhuang Qing walk off, Fu Li stood up and embraced Zhuang Qing by the waist. ¡°Zhuang little dragon.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing patted the arm wrapped around his waist. ¡°Don¡¯t make a fuss, do you still want to eat?¡± ¡°We¡¯re yao cultivators, skipping a meal is fine.¡± Fu Li spoke softly into his ear, ¡°Let¡¯s mate.¡± Zhuang Qing stared nkly. A long whileter, he turned to look at him. ¡°Feeling guilty because of what happened in the past?¡± Fu Li: ... How was he still able to link it to past lives? ¡°You...¡± Zhuang Qing sighed helplessly. Hugging Fu Li, he pecked him on the forehead. ¡°Don¡¯t think too much. I¡¯m not angry and I don¡¯t me you. I¡¯ll go cook, you sit here first for a while, I¡¯ll be done very soon.¡± Fu Li: ... Nameless Netizen: I¡¯ve tried it. My boyfriend said he¡¯s not angry and doesn¡¯t me me, but he¡¯s still not willing to papapa with me. Qingke Barley Wine: There¡¯s only one truth ¨C your boyfriend¡¯s having an affair. 25 Cent Apple: To be unwilling even to papapa, OP¡¯s boyfriend must either still be angry or have another man or woman outside. OP, you¡¯d... better keep watch. Beany Beancurd: Do those few upstairs have a functioning brain? Such an obvious green post and you¡¯re still replying to it? Nameless Netizen: Green post? I¡¯m using ck-colored words. Beany Beancurd: To not even know what a green post means, is OP a viger who just discovered the inte, or is he pretending to be pure? Long Wind Floating Past: OP, Beancurd is saying that you made this post to cheat others. Nameless Netizen: Everything I said is the truth. Why is everyone saying that he has someone else outside? I¡¯m with him every day and never discovered anything off about him. Beany Beancurd: OP is a fool. When men want to cheat, they will be able to find a way even if you¡¯re with them 24 hours. After mentions of cheating, a ndestine love affair, and whatnot were brought up, the post that originally had few replies suddenly became very lively. Manyizens popped out to share their personal experiences on how they had discovered their partner cheating, broadening Fu Li¡¯s horizons in the process. Despite how short human lifespans were, they went quite far when it came to being disloyal to their partners. In the end, the conclusion was that the OP¡¯s boyfriend was clearly picking a quarrel. He was having an affair and still used this sort of absurd reason to condemn the OP. He was quite inly the world¡¯s most unrivaled scum man. The OP was also brainless, since he believed such words and regarded a trash man as treasure. How base. Fu Li: ... How exactly had things progressed to this stage? He kept his phone and made his way to the meal room. Zhuang Qing was in the middle of killing fish; the sparkling and translucent slices of fish nearly arranged on bamboo leaves on a te made for a beautiful sight. Fu Li moved to Zhuang Qing¡¯s side. ¡°You really don¡¯t need my help?¡± Zhuang Qing stuffed a small piece of fried fish into Fu Li¡¯s mouth, putting down the vegetable knife. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll be done soon.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Fu Li carried a small bowl of deep-fried fish to the steps outside and sat down. Listening to the sounds of chopping vegetables and stir-frying, Fu Li thought about how theizens had said that Zhuang Qing might be having an affair outside, and the deep-fried fish in his mouth instantly lost all taste. Zhuang Qing came out after finishing cooking and was surprised that Fu Li hadn¡¯t touched much of the fish in his bowl. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you eating?¡± Fu Li stuffed the bowl back into Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. ¡°It¡¯s turned cold and tastes bad.¡± ¡°They slipped your mind while you were ying with your phone?¡± Zhuang Qing swapped the bowl for a new one, filling it with freshly-fried fish. ¡°Come, eat while it¡¯s hot.¡± Fu Li epted the bowl, the soles of his shoes rubbing a good few times against the sides of the stairs. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, you¡¯re having an affair?¡± ¡°What?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t hear him clearly. ¡°I asked whether you¡¯re having an affair!¡± The soles of his shoes rubbed even faster. Zhuang Qing hadn¡¯t expected Fu Li to have such a misunderstanding. ¡°What¡¯s inside your head? One of you is capable ofing out on top of a hundred third persons. Fu Li, don¡¯t have reckless thoughts, you¡¯re the only one I like. This was the case in the past, it still is the case now, and it will continue to be the case in the future.¡± ¡°Since you¡¯re not having an affair, then why do you not want to mate with me?¡± Fu Li mmed the bowl on the ground, saying aggressively, ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± Zhuang Qing rolled down his sleeves, looking at Fu Li¡¯s deliberately provocative manner with a straight face. ¡°Where did you learn to act like this?¡± The female lead and her boyfriend in yesterday¡¯s dog blood drama seemed to have also argued in this way? ¡°I¡¯m expressing the fury in my heart!¡± Fu Li jabbed Zhuang Qing¡¯s waist. ¡°Got it? Fury.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Zhuang Qing took off the scarf around his waist, erected a heat-preservation barrier in the kitchen, and then stooped over, picking Fu Li up and heading towards the pce hall. ¡°Why are you carrying me upside down? It¡¯s ufortable.¡± ¡°Are we going to mate?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll change my wording, are we going to papapa?¡± ¡°...¡± With a kick of Zhuang Qing¡¯s foot, the door swung open. He tossed Fu Li onto the bed and peeled off his shirt. ¡°Wait, I don¡¯t seem to know how to do it, do you?¡± Fu Li sat up on the bed, his brows furrowed. He was the picture of anxiety. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, why don¡¯t we research first?¡± Zhuang Qing smiled coldly. What research was there to be done at such a time? The setting sun shone onto the window frame, its golden rays of light prating the window. The spring wind swept past, and the tree branches in the yard shook slightly, emitting rustling sounds. Again and again, seemingly unstoppable. ¡°The sky¡¯s turned dark,¡± Kang Gu, who was currently immersed in conversation, looked up. ¡°Why have no female attendantse to get us to eat today?¡± The Baize: ¡°Little Zhuang and Little Li may be busy with something, I¡¯ll go take a look at the kitchen.¡± He nced in the direction of the bedrooms thoughtfully. On this night, neither Zhuang Qing nor Fu Li appeared even after the elders retrieved the food from the meal room and finished their meal. ¡°Little Zhuang and Fu Li couldn¡¯t have quarreled, right?¡± Kang Gu was extremely worried. ¡°If I¡¯d known that Little Zhuang would see those things about Little Li¡¯s past in the Recollection Mirror, I would have gotten old Fenghuang to close off the mirror.¡± Feng Ruizhong sat at the table, looking somewhat dispirited. ¡°No wonder you told Little Zhuang something about Fu Li having no feelings towards Bo Lian the moment we came back,¡± The Xing Xing sighed. His head felt like it was aching. ¡°But do you guys know that Zhuang Qing was Bo Lian in his past life?¡± ¡°What?¡± Kang Gu and Feng Ruizhong simultaneously received this bolt out of the blue. Even the Baize revealed a bbergasted look. He asked in disbelief, ¡°Zhuang Qing is Bo Lian?¡± Given heavenlyw¡¯s usual way of handling things, how could it have allowed Little Li and Zhuang Qing to meet if Zhuang Qing was Bo Lian? ¡°I¡¯ve seen Little Zhuang¡¯s past, he was Bo Lian in his past life,¡± The Xing Xing was silent for a moment. He said in a veryplex tone of voice, ¡°Zhuang Qing paid too huge a price for this emotion.¡± He might not have seen all of Zhuang Qing¡¯s past, but to a young yao, the things Zhuang Qing had encountered in this life were all painful. If he hadn¡¯t lingered in the underworld for eighty years in his past life, how could Zhuang Qing have encountered all this in his current life? Chapter 126 - Blockhead

Chapter 126 - Blockhead

Fu Li sat cross-legged on the bed in the middle of the night. He took out a Vitality Replenishing Pill from his Qiankun pouch and shoved it at Zhuang Qing. ¡°For you, it¡¯s been hard on you.¡± Faced with this Vitality Replenishing Pill, Zhuang Qing¡¯s face darkened. Pressing Fu Li onto the bed, he gnashed his teeth. ¡°Fu Li!¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Fu Li cocked his head and reached out, touching Zhuang Qing¡¯s sweaty cheeks. ¡°Don¡¯t touch.¡± ¡°You¡¯re already my dragon, so what if I touch?¡± Naturally, there was nothing wrong with touching. But when the me was reignited, that was a problem reserved for a night of indulgence. The next morning, the elders still didn¡¯t see their juniorse out to eat. Feng Ruizhong squatted by the door, gazing pensively in the direction of the bedrooms. The Baize walked over and patted him on the shoulder. ¡°What are you crouching here and thinking of?¡± ¡°I was thinking. If Little Li and Little Zhuang get into a fight, should we pretend not to have seen it or try to get them to reconcile? ¡°You¡¯re overthinking,¡± The Baize couldn¡¯t helpughing. ¡°Their rtionship is very good, it¡¯ll be fine as long as you don¡¯t worry for no reason. Haven¡¯t all of you been fond of watching those television dramas in the human world? Aren¡¯t those elders who like to meddle with their juniors¡¯ affairs very loathsome?¡± Feng Ruizhong nodded. ¡°Then you shouldn¡¯t be like those elders in television dramas.¡± Feng Ruizhong understood in a sh. The Baize was indirectly saying that he was being meddlesome. He hung his head, cupped his chin, and let out a long sigh. ¡°Uncle Feng, Uncle Bai, what are you doing squatting at the entrance to the meal room?¡± Fu Li walked in from outside. His clothes were neat and orderly, and every strand of his hair was brimming with vigor. His entire yao person was filled with the vitality of spring. The Baize and Feng Ruizhong looked up, a shocked expression on their faces the moment they got a clear glimpse of Fu Li¡¯s face. Due to Fu Li¡¯s inherent natal chart, there was no golden glow of virtue or purple qi on him. Nor was it possible for them to appear on him. But if that was the case, what was the golden and purple radiance that they were now seeing on Fu Li? Those rays of light couldn¡¯t possibly be falsified using colored light bulbs, right? ¡°Uncle Bai, Uncle Feng, what¡¯s with the two of you?¡± Fu Li discovered the strange pleased yet doubtful looks on their faces, and couldn¡¯t help but suspect that the elders had found out that he and Zhuang little dragon had matedst night. As a yao, Fu Li did not feel that there was anything embarrassing about the great harmonious activity of life. But he did feel a bit awkward when thinking about how his elders had not known a single thing while he was ying with Zhuang little dragon in bed. ¡°Child, yourplexion today is pretty good,¡± The Baize returned to his senses, a smile spreading over his face. ¡°Keep it up.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± Seeing that an attendant refined from magic devices was cooking in the kitchen, Fu Li said, ¡°Zhuang little dragon and I are going to work, you guys have a good rest at home.¡± What was with his tone of ¡®arduously working to make a living outside, yet still needing to worry about his foolish fathers at home¡¯? Feng Ruizhong watched Fu Li from behind as he floated out. Turning towards the Baize, he said, ¡°Why do I have a feeling that Fu Li is in a particrly good mood today?¡± The Baize gave it a thought. ¡°He might have resolved the misunderstanding with Little Zhuang. They¡¯re young after all, quarreling and then reconciling is very normal.¡± ¡°Is that how it works?¡± Feng Ruizhong had a niggling feeling that there was something off about this. Zhuang Qing was standing outside and waiting for Fu Li. Upon seeing him step through the door of the meal room, he draped the jacket in his hands over Fu Li. ¡°Why did you run out without putting on a jacket?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a yaoguai, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m scared of the cold,¡± Fu Li put on the jacket and linked hands with Zhuang Qing. ¡°Let¡¯s go then?¡± ¡°En,¡± Zhuang Qing gripped Fu Li¡¯s hand. Pretending not to see Feng Ruizhong¡¯s furtive peeks at them from behind the door, he helped to tidy Fu Li¡¯s bed hair. After the two little juniors left the flying pce, the Xing Xing erected a barrier in the yard and let Wang Liang out from the magic device. ¡°Oh, why does Wang Liang look so puny?¡± The Baize¡¯s ¡®oh¡¯ seemed to embody infinite ridicule and disdain. Wang Liang¡¯s entire body shook from anger, but in the presence of the four auspicious yao beasts, not only was he renderedpletely powerless, all his power was even sealed. ¡°This is Wang Liang?¡± Feng Ruizhong walked over and patted the ck lump. ¡°Why does he look like any ordinary demonic yao? He did too many things that caused him to lose virtue and became this weak?¡± Wang Liang sneered. ¡°You don¡¯t have to mock me. I may be in your hands today, but I won¡¯t utter a single thing.¡± Without saying anything further, the Baize cast his auspicious light on Wang Liang, who let out a smothered groan of pain. Wang Liang: ... ¡°Don¡¯t talk big if you can¡¯t endure it, how embarrassing would it be when you¡¯re seen through?¡± The Baize withdrew his auspicious light, settling himself on a chair at the side. ¡°Come, have a good chat with us, who was it who rescued you from the seal?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean,¡± Wang Liang leaned his head to the side. ¡°I came out by myself.¡± ¡°You relied on your little bit of strength to shatter the seal?¡± Feng Ruizhong mercilessly jeered at him. ¡°Don¡¯t you feel guilty saying such things?¡± Wang Liang was close to spitting out blood from Feng Ruizhong¡¯s attitude. His face contorted. ¡°Do all you auspicious beasts naturally look down on other yao?¡± ¡°No, you thought wrong,¡± The Baize¡¯s smile turned even gentler. ¡°We just don¡¯t look up to you very much. You were born in darkness, born by relying on absorbing the emotions of other living creatures, yet you don¡¯t understand emotion. Apart from spreading jealousy and hatred, what else can you do?¡± ¡°What do natural auspicious beasts like you know? You stood tall and lofty ever since birth, receiving an abundance of worship from a myriad of living creatures. Naturally, you look down on a yao beast like me who brings misfortune from birth,¡± Wang Liangughed grimly. ¡°What¡¯sughable is that you want me, a creature who brings misfortune from birth, to be benevolent like you.¡± ¡°Misfortune is misfortune ¨C it is impossible in this world for a fiend to be an auspicious beast,¡± Ridicule was painted all over Wang Liang¡¯s face. He was ridiculing the high and lofty auspicious beasts, and also ridiculing them for their naivety. ¡°Eternally impossible!¡± ¡°Fu ge!¡± Zhang Ke beckoned to Fu Li the instant he reached the management bureau¡¯s public workspace. Tossing an empty yogurt bottle into the rubbish bin, Fu Li made his way to Zhang Ke. ¡°What good news do you have to tell me?¡± ¡°Look here, look here,¡± Zhang Ke pointed at hisputer screen. There was a post titled ¡®top ten couples who touched the entire country¡¯ or something or other on the screen. He and Zhuang Qing¡¯s voter rank was very high; they were in the top five. Were humans nowadays idle to this extent? What couple ranking? There was even voting? Many lovers appeared well-off on the surface, but no one could be certain how they were like in private other than the people in question. What were theizens using as a basis for voting? Fu Li conveyed the doubts in his heart to Zhang Ke, who smiled in reply. ¡°This has its origins in intuition and fondness. If you and the boss object to it, I¡¯ll contact the other departments and get this website to delete the post.¡± ¡°No need, let them have their fun, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s anything major,¡± Fu Li sat on a nearby chair with a broad smile, as if he would pardon anything. ¡°Do you feel like Fu ge is in a particrly good mood today?¡± Xu Yuan fished out her phone and asked in the group chat. ¡°Did something good happen?¡± Exceptionally Good Sword: Maybe it¡¯s because Fu ge¡¯s elders returned? Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: No no no, Fu ge¡¯s face is brimming with the aura of flowers blooming in spring. An emotionless sword like you won¡¯t understand. ¡°Oh!¡± Zhang Ke eximed softly. ¡°I got it.¡± ¡°Got what?¡± Fu Li turned to look at Zhang Ke in confusion. ¡°N-Nothing, I just realized that spring¡¯s arrived,¡± Zhang Ke nodded solemnly. ¡°Spring is truly beautiful.¡± Fu Li was left speechless. Why was this child so dim-witted? He took out his phone and found the post he had made anonymously yesterday. Netizens were squabbling under the post, and there was already no one who was concerned about the question posed by the person involved, nor the answer this individual had wanted. Fu Li thought about it and then sent a reply to this post. No matter what was said, manyizens had wholeheartedly offered up ideas to him. Nameless Netizen: Many thanks for the suggestions, everyone. We¡¯ve already made up. Twenty-Five Cent Apple: I¡¯m not sure why but I have an indescribable feeling that the OP¡¯s tone resembles that person. Qingke Barley Wine: Person upstairs, you¡¯re not alone, I feel the same. This must be my misconception. It¡¯s impossible for such a silly and illogical thing to happen to the Boss and Little Assistant. Also, on the post made not long ago, there was a shot of the Boss and Little Assistant queuing up together to buy breakfast. Their rtionship is very good, the Boss definitely isn¡¯t having an affair. After rejecting this conjecture, everyone once again happilyunched into chatter. Out of boredom, someone even offered the OP ideas on how to distinguish men who were having an affair. ¡°Your imagination ran wild because you saw these?¡± Fu Li looked up. At some point, Zhuang Qing had walked over to his seat. The fact that he had posted on the inte must have been discovered by him. ¡°I was just asking a casual question, how can you peek at my phone?¡± Fu Li stuffed his phone into the pocket of his jacket and said righteously, ¡°Doesn¡¯t the human world have a saying called... ¡®respecting privacy¡¯? Understand?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at him with a smile yet not a smile. Faced with his gaze, Fu Li felt a bit guilty. ¡°All right, if there are any jobs outside today, you don¡¯t have to personally run out and settle it. I¡¯ll bring you out for a meal during rest time in the afternoon,¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the time. ¡°I reserved a table at a seafood shop.¡± Fu Li agreed without even thinking. Both of them were fond of eating marine products, so after getting together, at least they wouldn¡¯t have a fall out because of their tastes in food. ¡°Boss, why not be merry as a group rather than alone? It¡¯s been a long while since I¡¯ve eaten seafood,¡± Chu Yu came looking for trouble. ¡°We want to eat too!¡± Chao Yun and Ning Xuan looked at Chu Yu as if he were a warrior. Contrary to their expectations, Zhuang Qing replied without hesitation, ¡°Since everyone wants to go too, let¡¯s go together after getting off work in the afternoon.¡± ¡°T-Thank you boss,¡± Chu Yu stammered, his gaze on Zhuang Qing. Turning, he secretly nced at Fu Li. It seemed like Fu ge¡¯s elders had given the boss many treasures for him to have be so generous. The other colleagues were also struck dumb. The boss who couldn¡¯t bear to even work the air-conditioner too much during summer was actually willing to treat them to seafood ¨C it couldn¡¯t be that sort of cheap self-service ce, right? ¡°Boss, where will we be eating?¡± Chu Yu was still as brave as ever. ¡°The most famous one in the central za. I knew everyone would want to go too, so I got them to reserve the seats early on,¡± Zhuang Qing waved a hand. ¡°Work hard, otherwise you won¡¯t need to go.¡± ¡°Work, work,¡± Chu Yu switched on hisputer in a flurry to make himself appear a bit more hardworking. When Zhuang Qing left, he hurriedly took out his phone and started chattering in the group chat. Number One Fish in the World: The boss has such a strong tyrannical chairman aura today, he¡¯s so generous that I don¡¯t feel like it¡¯s real. Female Emperor¡¯s Exclusive Hairpin: Reality has proven that great love can make anything possible. Everyone put down their phones and turned to look at Fu Li. The truly great person was Fu ge. In the sea so deep that the bottom could not be seen, iparably hideous deep sea fishes werezily swaying their deformed tails back and forth. Upon hearing the snarl echoing from the depths of the sea, their fat bodies shifted and they swam a bit further. Several ugly and noisy fishes had appeared in the sea some time back, and they would create a stir every so often. The more diligent deep sea fishes nearby had all moved away, leaving only the few who disliked moving. ¡°King, please quell your anger. Wang Liang has poor strength, he has only himself to me for being captured,¡± A strange beast sporting the body of an ox, the tail of a snake, and a single eye was pawing the ground with its hooves. Seemingly unustomed to life in the sea, the two horns on its head asionally moved as if to push something upwards. ¡°That trash Wang Liang sorelycks in achievements, but has ample failures. Only a brainless yao like Yazi would ept him as a subject,¡± The strange beast addressed as King shook its body. ¡°Does that blockhead Yazi want us to help him find the Blue Dragon¡¯s inheritance?¡± The strange ox didn¡¯t seem to have a very good memory. Only after thinking it over for a good while did it reply exasperatingly slowly, ¡°Yazi seems to have mentioned this matter before.¡± ¡°Those sons of the Blue Dragon have been pampered to no end with Heaven and Earth¡¯s spiritual qi since their birth. They think that Heaven and Earth will always give them free reign, what a childish and absurd affair,¡± The king snorted. ¡°Let him find it, if he really manages to find it...¡± ¡°Do we help him obtain the inheritance?¡± The strange ox interrupted the king, asking impatiently. ¡°Help? What benefits do we get by helping him?¡± The king flung a dead fish at the strange ox¡¯s head. ¡°Can¡¯t you use your brain when talking and working?¡± He had still been mocking Yazi¡¯s subjects for their unparalleled silliness, but all these small fry in front of him weren¡¯t much better than them either. Other than killing, looting, and bringing harm to living creatures, couldn¡¯t these blockheads have a bit more brains? ¡°King, I thought of a rumor from five thousand years ago,¡± The strange ox shook off the dead fish on its head and hurriedly offered a rumor it knew. ¡°What rumor?¡¯ The king didn¡¯t expect anything useful toe out of this subject¡¯s mouth. ¡°When the yao emperor descends on the world, the yao world will once more wee great prosperity.¡± ¡°Yao your ass!¡± Another dead fish mmed onto the strange ox¡¯s face. The lone eye on its head instantly turned swollen. ¡°Laozi is the yao world¡¯s boss!¡± Having all these blockheads as subjects gave the king the misconception that being the yao emperor would be a verymentable affair. Chapter 127 - Fate

Chapter 127 - Fate

The seafood was eaten by everyone with particr gusto. Even Xu Yuan, who usually hollered about wanting to diet, also disyed extraordinary fighting strength, stuffing herself so full that she nearly couldn¡¯t walk. In order to freeload off Zhuang Qing and eat frequentvish meals in the future, everyone even racked their brains for ways to praise howpatible the two people were and how their rtionship wouldst for eternity. Zhuang Qing, who usually sported a cold face, was coaxed till his brows and eyes softened considerably. But no matter how they ate, there was a limit to how much everyone could eat. Fu Li and Song Yu belonged in the category of the most capable eaters. Song Yu¡¯s original form was the Suanyu, whose body was akin to a mountain, and the amount he was capable of consuming was known to everyone. But Fu ge was a mere rabbit, how was he also able to ingest so much? He was truly an oddity among rabbits, the type that was especially good at putting food away. Everyone ate till their bellies were as round as balls and the cups and dishesy on the table inplete disorder. Fu Li got up to go to the washroom and bumped into Chu Yu, who was just on his way out of the toilet. ¡°Fu ge,¡± Chu Yu had drunk too much wine. Not only was his face red, even his shiny scalp was a little flushed. ¡°We¡¯re very happy that Fu ge got together with the boss, really.¡± Fu Li passed the soap to Chu Yu. Chu Yu squeezed out arge amount and scrubbed his hands for an eternity without cing his hands beneath the water tap. It was then that Fu Li knew he was heavily drunk. ¡°The boss isn¡¯t very fond of talking and he doesn¡¯t know how to say pretty words, but he¡¯s still very serious when ites to emotions,¡± Chu Yu was standing a little unsteadily. He propped his hands against the corner of the washbasin. His soapy hands became even more slippery, and with a ng, he banged into the washbasin, turning into a ck and white fish. Fu Li stared nkly for two seconds before retrieving a colored ss jar from his Qiankun pouch, collecting a bit of tap water, and then tossing Chu Yu in. ¡°This water tastes horrible, why does it taste like bleach?¡± Chu Yu popped his head out of the water and spat out two mouths of water. ¡°I want to drink spring water from the mountains.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have spring water from the mountains now, only tap water,¡± Fu Li pressed Chu Yu¡¯s head back down. Unresigned, Chu Yu¡¯s head popped out of the water again. ¡°Fu ge, I say, there hasn¡¯t been a single yao by the boss¡¯ side all these years, I almost thought he doesn¡¯t have emotions. There was a peony yao in the past who was deeply enamored with the boss, but there wasn¡¯t even a crease in his brows.¡± ¡°And then?¡± Fu Li was extremely interested in this sort of dog-blooded past story. ¡°There was no ¡®and then¡¯. The very proud peony yao about-faced and left the country to pursue their studies,¡± Chu Yu shook his tail. ¡°The boss is a very boring yao, so boring that even the emotion-driven gossip involving him ispletely unable to shake anyone up or move them to their core. ¡°Seems like you¡¯re a bit disappointed?¡± Fu Li¡¯s smile became even gentler. Upon seeing this smile, a good half of the intoxication on Chu Yu¡¯s face vanished. ¡°F-Fu ge, these were all rumors I heard of, don¡¯t take them as the truth. Really, the boss has been single for close to two thousand years. You¡¯re his only love partner, I swear on the Dao.¡± ¡°En,¡± The smile on Fu Li¡¯s face didn¡¯t change. ¡°It¡¯s right not to engage in puppy love.¡± ¡°It¡¯s terrific that you think so&#k2026;¡± ¡°Shh, someone¡¯sing,¡± Hearing footsteps approaching outside, Fu Li pressed Chu Yu down with his fingers and cast a silencing skill in passing. A youngd walked in. Seeing the fishbowl in Fu Li¡¯s hands as well as the fat and ugly fish in it, his brain momentarily short-circuited. ¡°This is the pet I bought along the way,¡± Fu Li shook the fishbowl. ¡°I changed his water.¡± ¡°Ah, this fish¡¯s appearance has quite a lot of... character,¡± The youngd stared nkly for a long while before uttering an insincerepliment. ¡°I think so too,¡± Fu Li carried the fishbowl out, leaving behind a youngd with a face full of confusion. A good whileter, the youngd thought out loud, ¡°Directly changing the water to tap water for a fish he just bought, can that fish survive?¡± When Fu Li carried the fishbowl back, everyone had already put on their jackets and was preparing to leave. Noticing the fishbowl in Fu Li¡¯s hands, Zhuang Qing took it and passed it to Qing Xu. ¡°Come, carry your family¡¯s elder well.¡± Qing Xu cautiously took the fishbowl. Looking down at Chu Yu, who was continuously spitting out water, he thought to himself that it was rather unexpected for elder Chu Yu to possess such a childish heart and to still be fond of blowing bubbles at his age. Chu Yu¡¯s heart was shattering to bits. He wanted to return to his human form and didn¡¯t want to drink tap water. Exactly what restriction had Fu ge ced on him? Not only was unable to speak out loud, he couldn¡¯t even transform? Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s rtionship could be considered to have been made public to the management bureau after the seafood feast. The only thing theycked was a Dao Bonding Ceremony. The several elders living in the flying pce made divinations here and there all day long, constantly thinking about picking out a perfect date and time for the ceremony. In a blink of an eye, two to three months went by. On the vast sea that stretched as far as the eye could see, Zhu Yue sat on a magic flying boat. Her right hand gripped a fishing rod while her left hand held a wine jar. Not a single fish had been baited, but half the wine had already been drunk. After waiting for an eternity, her wrist moved all of a sudden. The fishing rod twisted as if it was alive and hauled a fish out from the water. ¡°Daren, spare my life!¡± The fishnded on the boat, transforming into a half-human and half-fish yaoguai. When yaoguai had insufficient cultivation, there was a possibility of having poor control over their human form, causing certain characteristics of their original form to be revealed. Zhu Yue shook the wine jar in her hands. Draining the jar of all the wine, she tossed the empty wine jar into the sea. ¡°So it¡¯s just a little yao who can¡¯tpletely change forms. What were you doing nearby?¡± The little yao cowered in a corner, trembling. ¡°Replying to daren, this humble yao cultivator is a part of the azure dragon n who manages this area of the sea...¡± ¡°Azure dragon n...¡± Zhu Yue smiled coldly. ¡°What are those azure worms intending to do now?¡± Hearing the disdainful way Zhu Yue spoke of the azure dragon n, the little yao grew even more terrified. Someone who could sail and fish alone in the sea, and be so egotistical in territory managed by the dragon n was definitely a great yao with profound cultivation. The more the little yao thought this way, the more fearful he was of enraging this great yao. As such, he stammered and stuttered, unable to form aplete sentence even after a good while. ¡°R-Replying to daren, this little one is under orders to search for treasures in the sea and to make my humble contribution to the great wedding of our n¡¯s Dragon Emperor.¡± ¡°Dragon Emperor?¡± Zhu Yue thought about the surging of spiritual qi in the East Sea a few months back that could be felt in all parts of the nation. The dragon n¡¯s new emperor had appeared as sweet rain descended continuously from the skies. ¡°So that¡¯s the case,¡± Zhu Yue disliked the azure dragon n, but after living for so many years, she believed herself open-minded and wouldn¡¯t take her anger out on an innocent little yao. ¡°Which n does the dragon race¡¯s Dragon Emperore from?¡± ¡°Replying to daren, Dragon Emperor daren is half-dragon and half-human. Not only is he the emperor of our aquatic races, he is also the person in charge of the cultivation world. The Dao he cultivates is one with the nation¡¯s fate; he is an exceptional individual,¡± The little yao¡¯s eyes shone when he mentioned the emperor of the aquatic races. It was evident just how much he revered this yao emperor in his heart. ¡°Half-dragon and half-human?¡± Zhu Yue recalled the dragon who was on good terms with Fu Li and who had nearly broken his tail from taking a blow from the Taowu on behalf of Fu Li. ¡°This yao emperor you speak of, is it Zhuang Qing?¡± ¡°Indeed, it is Chief Zhuang.¡± Zhu Yue kept her fishing rod. ¡°So it¡¯s him who¡¯s getting married. I am familiar with this Dragon Emperor of yours, I should also send generous gifts during his Dao Bonding Ceremony. May I know who his Daopanion is?¡± ¡°Dragon Emperor daren¡¯s Daopanion is also a very impressive yao cultivation. On top of having more than four thousand years of cultivation, he is also Dragon Emperor daren¡¯s colleague. These two darens getting together is an affair much anticipated by the cultivation world and human world.¡± More than four thousand years of cultivation. His colleague. There was a faint absurd premonition in Zhu Yue¡¯s heart. ¡°May I know the name of this individual...¡± ¡°It¡¯s Fu Li daojun, who is highly regarded by many yao cultivators.¡± Zhu Yue¡¯s body swayed, just short of falling headlong into the seawater. Why did her family¡¯s cute little Fu Li suddenly decide to hold a Dao Bonding Ceremony with Zhuang Qing? ¡°When is their Dao Bonding Ceremony going to be held?¡± Zhu Yue picked the little yao up, scaring the little yao into reverting to their original form and struggling in despair in Zhu Yue¡¯s grip. ¡°Daren, Dragon Emperor daren and Fu Li daojun¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony will be on the eighteenth of the next month, because Fu Li daojun¡¯s elders said that the weather on that day will be clear and all living creatures will be revitalized; it is the best day this year.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± The Vermilion Bird nodded. Flinging the fish that was shivering with fear into the sea, she turned into her bird form and rushed into the sky. The elders mentioned by the little yao had to be the Dangkang and old Fenghuang, who had sent her information previously. What exactly were those two thinking? How could they let Little Li and Zhuang Qing hold a Dao Bonding Ceremony? Had they forgotten Fu Li¡¯s natal chart? The fish yao¡¯s head popped out of the sea. When it next looked at the surface of the sea, there was no longer any yao cultivator to be seen, nor was there the wooden boat that seemed like it would fall apart at a single gust of sea wind. He shook his head before plunging headfirst into the seawaters. He had to report to the Dragon King at once. This great yao that seemed to know Fu Li daojun didn¡¯t seem to approve of Dragon Emperor daren and Fu Li daojun being together. The Dao Bonding Ceremony that was highly anticipated by everyone could not be ruined in this way. At Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi, the gemstones embedded in the wall had already been switched out in its entirety. The elderscked other things, but they had more than enough of all kinds of gemstones. Fussing over the color and dazzle of the stones, they poured out a mountain of gemstones and took their time choosing from them. Defensive talismans had been added on all the furniture, even the flower patterns on the carpets were made out of various extinct, ancient magic formations. If any evil yao were to charge in, they would simply be trapped within the formations with no way of escaping. The elders also found Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi too small and inconvenient for them when turning into their original forms. Therefore, they set up a dimensional space in the tiny study room. Inside, there was a mountain, water, flowers, nts, as well as a swimming pool that contained spiritual qi. Kang Gu had also used up quite a few natural materials and treasures to personally build the rooms in the dimension. Only when Zhuang Qing was standing in the dimension did he understand the true capabilities of the ancient great yao. Many of the magic formations and dimensions in the management bureau were the products of many years of toiling, but even then itcked the abundance of spiritual qi that was in this dimension, let alone the safety and size of the dimension. Even scarier was the fact that the management bureau¡¯s dimensions were fixed whereas the dimension in the study room could be turned into a small portable object when not in use. ¡°I came up with the set-up for this dimension after being inspired by human vernacr stories. Although this dimension can¡¯t let animals and nts mature in a night even with me exerting a bit of power, it¡¯s still not too bad,¡± Kang Gu had researched many human novels and had experienced many bursts of inspiration from them. To humans, many of these settings were fantasy stories, but to him, they were incredibly novel ideas. When he had time in the future, he even nned to specially craft a dimension capable of growing nts and rearing fish like how it was described in human novels. When he had nothing to do, he could nt some spiritual grain and medicine inside. Just as he was blissfully imagining this, the barrier outside Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi shifted. A yao cultivator was nning to barge in forcefully. ¡°Who is it?¡± Kang Gu walked down the stairs and opened the main door. A fluffy object suddenly came mming over, and his entire yao body was sent flying out. The house was filled with chaotic fluttering feathers. Hearing the not-so-small movement downstairs, Fu Li, who was choosing jewels while seated on the floor, called Zhuang Qing out from the dimension. ¡°Let¡¯s go down and take a look.¡± Just as these words left his mouth, crisp cracking sounds came from the floor below. Zhuang Qing thought of the cdon lotus flower vase from the Song dynasty he had put on disy in the living room and cracks appeared in his heart along with the porcin. He nced at Fu Li, and his cracked heart instantly healed. He was even going to have a Dao Bonding Ceremony with Fu Li; if the porcin had to shatter, then so be it. At this instant, Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood suddenly lifted, as if he had finally broken free of thest chain that bound him. Apart from Fu Li, there was nothing else in the world that he couldn¡¯t ovee or be without. Sensing the shift in Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood, Fu Li was a little astonished. The elders were smashing things downstairs yet Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood actually rose, what kind of logic was this? Downstairs, Zhu Yue, donned in fiery-red attire, pointed her sword at Kang Gu. ¡°Damned fat pig, is there something wrong with your brain? There¡¯s no way you don¡¯t know about Little Li¡¯s situation, how can you allow Little Li to be Daopanions with another yao cultivator?¡± ording to Little Li¡¯s natal chart, he was foreordained to be alone his entire lifetime; his fate revealed a dangerous visage. How could he be Daopanions with a yao cultivator? Wasn¡¯t this just making things worse?! He would be better off finding a human with an especially good natal chart, perhaps there would still be a sliver of a chance if so. Chapter 128 - Planting Flowers

Chapter 128 - nting Flowers

Zhu Yue didn¡¯t dare to voice the subsequent words, and even more so did she not dare to let Fu Li hear it. Fu Li had been by their side since birth and was the child they had personally brought up. From young, he had been taught to adore this world and to respect Heaven and Earth; his personality could not be any kinder. Divinations of his fate had stated that his birth was in keeping with heavenlyw, his eventual death would take ce amidst a chaotic world, and that he was destined to be lonely and grim all his life. As the Vermilion Bird, one of the divine beasts of the four directions of Heaven and Earth, Zhu Yue was unable to sincerely proim this divination as entirely false, no matter how much she wanted to. But she could not ept it. Fu Li had been raised so well by them and was so obedient, how could he be a fiend that would thrust the world into chaos? Was heavenlyw seriously that blind? ¡°Sister Zhu Yue?¡± Standing along the corridor, Fu Li stared nkly at Zhu Yue, whose sword was pointing at Kang Gu. The King and Sister Zhu Yue hadn¡¯t met for two thousand years but fought upon meeting, how contradictory was that? Seeing that Fu Li hade down, Zhu Yue kept her sword. With a wave of her sleeves, everything in the house returned to its original state. ¡°Nothing, I was ying around with this old pig to see if his cultivation had dropped during these few years.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± A smile stretched across Fu Li¡¯s face. ¡°Did youe to participate in mine and Zhuang little dragon¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony after receiving news from the King?¡± Fu Li quickly made his way downstairs, happiness palpable on his face. Zhuang Qing followed behind him, silently watching Zhu Yue. Fu Li was close to these elders and doubting what they said was a difficult matter for him, which was why he couldn¡¯t tell that the atmosphere between Zhu Yue and Kang Gu wasn¡¯t very normal. But Zhuang Qing had lived alone for 1900 years and was more sensitive to emotions than Fu Li. He feared that the great yao Zhu Yue had note to participate in his and Fu Li¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony. ¡°I¡¯m not...¡± Zhu Yue suddenly stopped speaking midway through her statement as she stared at Fu Li, who had alreadye near. How did that golden glow of virtue and purple qi on hime about? Her fingers curled up in divination, her expression seemingly delighted yet sorrowful. A long whileter, she turned to look at Zhuang Qing, who was standing on thest step of the staircase. Thest time she saw Zhuang Qing at the golden dragon pce, the purple qi and golden glow of virtue on him hadn¡¯t been this thick. Now that she was seeing him again, he was much stronger than before, and his entire person seemed to give off the nine words ¡®anyone who touches me will be out of luck¡¯. ¡°Yup, I rushed over from the sea after receiving Kang Gu¡¯s message,¡± Zhu Yue smiled as she corrected her tone. ¡°You will be a yao with a family in the future, you must cultivate well and not ck off like in the past.¡± Fu Li scratched his head smilingly. Zhu Yue took out gifts from her Qiankun pouch and stuffed them into the arms of the two juniors before heading to the other rooms in search of the Xing Xing and Baize. The Xing Xing and Baize had steady personalities, and were not too surprised upon seeing Zhu Yue. Only after erecting a soundproofing barrier in the room did the Baize say, ¡°Finally willing toe back after spending enough time at sea?¡± ¡°Was it the two of you who came up with the idea of Little Li and Zhuang Qing bing Dao Companions?¡± Zhu Yue sat on the windowsill, watching Zhuang Qing and Fu Li crouch and nt flowers in the tiny flower garden. ¡°It was truly beyond my expectations that Little Li¡¯s chance at survival would be right under our noses.¡± ¡°The two little juniors already had feelings for each other, we didn¡¯te up with any idea,¡± The Baize¡¯s gaze followed Zhu Yue¡¯s line of sight. Fu Li had just picked a flower and was cing it on Zhuang Qing¡¯s head while Zhuang Qing directed a helpless yet indulging gaze at him. Their rtionship couldn¡¯t be any better. ¡°It¡¯s pretty good like this. The person he likes is a good match for his fate, there¡¯s no need to make a choice thatpromises his fate for the sake of survival,¡± Zhu Yue smiled. She rested a hand on her knee and leaned against the wall, retracting her gaze. ¡°When I met Zhuang Qing the other time, his natal chart didn¡¯t seem as good as it is now.¡± ¡°He¡¯s now the Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races, naturally he¡¯s different from the past,¡± The Baize pushed his sses up. ¡°Water is of utmost importance to all living creatures. Now that he controls all aquatic races, his fate will naturally differ from the past.¡± ¡°He really encountered all the good things,¡± Zhu Yue¡¯s tone wasplex. ¡°There is a phrase in the human world ¨C ¡®every generation supersedes the previous, engulfing the previous generation¡¯. Us earlier generations can¡¯tpare to this junior.¡± ¡°If you knew who he was in his previous life, your mood will probably be even moreplex,¡± The Xing Xing sat on the chair in an exceedinglyidback manner. ¡°You¡¯ve been drifting about the sea for so long partially because you want to help Fu Li find his chance at life, and partially because you may not want to face the Earth. You don¡¯t want to acknowledge that this world has already forgotten you, the Vermilion Bird, one of the divine beasts of the four directions. Am I right?¡± Zhu Yue stared wordlessly at the hand resting on her knee. ¡°The new recing the old and the transformations of the world ¨C these have to be epted sooner orter,¡± The Xing Xing let out a clear and brightugh. ¡°Anyone living, whether human or yao, will experience prosperity and decline, ups and downs. You have lived to this great age ¨C if you still can¡¯t understand this, then your many years of cultivation have really been for naught.¡± Zhu Yue sneered. ¡°So what if I understand? So what if I don¡¯t understand? Since that is the inevitable ending, am I not allowed to even be upset?¡± ¡°Who said all things are inevitable?¡± The Xing Xing pointed at Fu Li, who was stooping over and pulling out weeds. ¡°There will always be changes and new endings.¡± The corners of Zhu Yue¡¯s lips moved, but she ultimately did not refute the Xing Xing¡¯s words. ¡°Little Li and Zhuang Qing¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony has been arranged on the eighteenth of the next month. It¡¯s a day when all five elements are free, and Heaven and Earth are in harmony,¡± Seeing that Zhu Yue didn¡¯t wish to talk, the Baize brought up Fu Li¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony. ¡°We¡¯ve calcted everything, what do you think about it?¡± ¡°Since all you old ones say it¡¯s not bad, then there definitely isn¡¯t any issue,¡± A smile took shape on Zhu Yue¡¯s face, though her face turned somewhat disappointed subsequently. ¡°If Kunlun Mountain were still around, Little Li and Zhuang Qing¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony could have been held there. That would be most grand.¡± ¡°In this era, what use is there in making everything so grand?¡± The Xing Xing fished out fruits from his Qiankun pouch to nibble on. ¡°The two children have a good rtionship, that¡¯s stronger than anything else.¡± ¡°You really are open-minded about everything,¡± Zhu Yue jumped down from the windowsill. ¡°Have the invitation cards all been prepared? Old Kang, you have to personally make the auspicious clothes worn on the day of the Dao Bonding Ceremony. We might not be as well-off as we were in the past, but things can¡¯t be too unsightly either.¡± ¡°Rx, I¡¯ll personally make the clothes, and you and the Baize can add the talisman patterns to them. As for the fire for refining the clothes, old Fenghuang¡¯s true me will be used. It¡¯ll definitely be both pretty and practical, even if we encounter...¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Zhu Yue said. ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to talk, then do less of it.¡± Kang Gu: ... The flowers in Zhuang Qing¡¯s flower garden were all managed by the little yao of the aquatic races when they came by, and Zhuang Qing usually didn¡¯t care much for them. Despite Fu Li pulling up all the flowers and scattering what he imed to be flower seeds he brought from Reflecting Mist Mountain, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t have any objections and even helped Fu Li with the weeding. ¡°I recall this flower being particrly pretty ¨C it blooms in many different colors. Every time it blooms, the Seven-Colored Deer will be especially ecstatic and eat all the way from the top of the mountain to the foot of the mountain,¡± As Fu Li scattered the seeds, he described to Zhuang Qing the appearance of the flowers when in bloom. ¡°This type of flower is very tiny when it blooms, but when moonlightes out at night, it emits pretty rays of light that makes for a beautiful sight. However, it doesn¡¯t taste very good when eaten, it¡¯s a bit on the sour side. Everyone usually eats a lot of meat, so they¡¯ll usually use it for brewing soup.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... So after everything was said and done, the prettiest flower was eventually still taken as food by the yao cultivators of Reflecting Mist Mountain? ¡°It¡¯s a pity that the spiritual qi in the human world is thin. I don¡¯t know how long these flowers will take to bloom when nted here,¡± Fu Li stuffed the flower seeds into mud pits, piled mud into the pits, and then ferociously stomped down twice on them with his foot. Zhuang Qing: With how much force he used to stomp on it, they would probably never bloom. Afterpleting the nting, Fu Li brought Zhuang Qing to the dimension in the study room. He fished out a y jar and told Zhuang Qing mysteriously, ¡°Inside this is the Crystal Flower. All its petals are transparent and when it blooms, it¡¯s like all the stars in the sky havended on the ground. It¡¯s incredibly beautiful.¡± ¡°Can it be eaten?¡± Zhuang Qing, who was already ustomed to Fu Li¡¯s logic, took the initiative to pose this question. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, how can you be like this? Don¡¯t just think of eating every single thing,¡± Fu Li took out a golden staff from his Qiankun pouch, poked a hole in the ground, and threw in a single flower seed. ¡°Although this flower isn¡¯t edible, a transparent crystal will be formed when it withers. This kind of crystal is a very good ornament ¨C it doesn¡¯t melt upon contact with water and won¡¯t crack upon contact with fire. Aren¡¯t you fond of shiny things? After these flowers be fruits, I¡¯ll make a bonsai out of them for you.¡± ¡°These external objects aren¡¯t important to me,¡± Zhuang Qing said with a straight face. Taking the golden staff from Fu Li, he helped him to poke holes. ¡°You don¡¯t have to make things hard for yourself over such things.¡± ¡°You¡¯re already my dragon, how can I not know your interests?¡± Fu Li¡¯s face drifted over and he pecked the corner of Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°You¡¯re a dragon after all, there¡¯s nothing embarrassing about liking these shiny things. Be good, Fu ge will pamper you.¡± Hearing these words, Zhuang Qing was happy but also found it ridiculous. Tugging Fu Li over, he kissed him hard on the face twice before saying in a huff, ¡°Then you must pamper me well tonight.¡± ¡°Zhuang little dragon, you¡¯re bing more and more naughty now. Can¡¯t you think of anything else other than mating?¡± Fu Li¡¯s tone of voice was resentful, but his eyes glittered with a light that shone even brighter than the Crystal Flower seeds in his hands. ¡°En, I¡¯m only naughty with you,¡± Zhuang Qingughed into his ears, the sound of hisughter numbing Fu Li¡¯s entire body. He pushed Zhuang Qing away. ¡°Do your work well, don¡¯t ck off.¡± After the sparkling, translucent Crystal Flower seeds were ced in the earth, covered with soil, and watered with spiritual spring water, perhaps many, many Crystal Flowers would bloom in the following year, turning the entire dimension into an expanse of beauty. Zhuang Qing looked at Fu Li, who was diligently counting the seeds, calcting the number that would survive and what bonsai would be suitable. The corners of his mouth curved. This dimension was truly warm, even his heart had also warmed. ¡°The quality of the earth on this side is suitable for nting flowers of the peony or Chinese rose variety,¡± After nting all the Crystal Flower seeds, Zhuang Qing pointed at a plot ofnd at the side a short distance away. ¡°The colors won¡¯t look too monotonous that way.¡± ¡°Peony?¡± Fu Li raised a brow. He side-eyed Zhuang Qing with just a bit of displeasure. Zhuang Qing was baffled by Fu Li¡¯s gaze, though he still nodded. ¡°If you dislike peonies, then that seven-colored flower you previously nted is also very suitable.¡± ¡°The seven-colored flower it is then,¡± Fu Li started scattering seven-colored flower seeds outwards. ¡°You¡¯re not nting peonies?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like peonies,¡± Fu Li stamped down vigorously on the mud. ¡°They¡¯re ugly.¡± Zhuang Qing was silent for two seconds before nodding. ¡°Peonies are indeed a little gaudy, it¡¯s normal for you not to like them.¡± Fu Li snorted lightly and identally tossed a few extra seeds into the pits. Zhuang Qing: ... What was going on? After the two of them celebrated love on the bed that night, Zhuang Qing, who was still in the dark about the truth, very resolutely expressed his stance, dering that he and Fu Li shared identical interests and a sense of aesthetics. Therefore, their lives together would definitely be very harmonious in the future. Fu Li turned over. ¡°Oh.¡± Zhuang Qing: ... He finally understood what it was like to be at a loss as to what to do when his lover suddenly became angry. Pulling the other person under his nket, he hardened his heart and gritted his teeth, calling out forms of address that made him somewhat shy, ¡°Don¡¯t you always say you¡¯re my brother, why are you unhappy out of nowhere now? It¡¯s still not okay if I call you brother? Brother Fu? Big brother Fu? Bro Fu?¡± Fu Li turned around, meeting Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze. He asked softly, ¡°Am I that sort of narrow-minded person?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not, I was overthinking,¡± Borrowing the moonlight that shone through the windows, Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li¡¯s eyes that were curved inughter. ¡°Our Fu ge is the most imposing, en?¡± ¡°That¡¯s still eptable,¡± Fu Li pinched Zhuang Qing¡¯s waist. ¡°Sleep. It¡¯s a holiday tomorrow, do you want to go to the sea?¡± Zhuang Qing kissed the corner of Fu Li¡¯s mouth. ¡°Can you apany me there tomorrow? I¡¯ll treat you to crispy m lobster on the way back.¡± ¡°And fish.¡± ¡°Okay, and fish.¡± Zhuang Qing was half-asleep in the middle of the night when he felt a light pecknd on his lips. ¡°I was messing around with you, you silly youngster. Any random look I give you can scare you silly, aren¡¯t you a fool?¡± He subconsciously hugged the person in his embrace tighter. It was all warm and soft, extremelyfortable. As if he were a wandering traveler in the chilly night finally finding a warmth that belonged solely to him. Chapter 129 - Plague

Chapter 129 - gue

Aquatic creatures of all varieties swam outside the golden dragon pce in the East Sea. Even several freshwater creatures who had cultivated into spirits could be sighted outside the golden dragon pce. Under all the yao¡¯s effort, the golden dragon pce that had been worn down by many years of disrepair once again became a dazzling sight to behold, brimming with majesty. From time to time, yao cultivators would inquire whether the Dragon Emperor had reached and whether the Dragon Emperor would be bringing his Dao Companion. When the main doors of the golden dragon pce opened, the former subjects of the golden dragon n were standing at the main entrance and weing guests. The scene was lively but not raucous. The elders of the dragon ns were all seated in the main hall. The azure dragon n who was usually extremely arrogant was particrly lowkey this time, something which the other ns weren¡¯t quite ustomed to. The purple, red, and white ns at the side weren¡¯t much more high-profile than the azure dragon n either. When the n heads were selecting their seats, none of them had the nerve to pick the seat right in the center. The blue dragon n and ck dragon n had always been on good terms, so their seats were beside each other as well. The young juniors of these two ns couldn¡¯t helpunching into discussion upon seeing the rare scene of the azure dragons¡¯ obedient behavior. A blue dragon: ¡°I¡¯m still not very used to the azure dragon n¡¯s well-behaved look.¡± A ck dragon: ¡°Do they have any other choice? Do you still remember the disaster the azure dragon n stirred up two thousand years ago? I heard that quite a few rtives of Fu Li daojun, the Dragon Emperor¡¯s partner, were killed. Qing Yan even yed dirty tricks on Fu Li daojunst year, provoking Fu Li daojun till he flew into a big rage and directly attacked them. The events that followed are unknown, but even heavenly lightning was triggered and Qing Yan was struck silly by it. For a good time, he didn¡¯t even have the nerve to show his face.¡± The blue dragon nced behind the azure dragon n at Qing Yan, who was clothed in a long, azure-colored robe and sitting on a wheelchair in silence. ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem as high-spirited as in the past. But it¡¯s quite a surprise that the azure dragon n was able to set aside their old grudges and extend aid with the azure dragon seal during the Dragon Emperor¡¯s transformation.¡± The ck dragon quietened upon hearing these words. He watched as yao came and went, and countless fishes shuttled throughout the main hall. He said in a slightly downcast tone, ¡°This is the dragon race¡¯s final chance at survival. The azure dragon n can¡¯t afford to risk it, no one can.¡± The azure dragon n was naturally aware that Zhuang Qing disliked them. They, as well as the purple, red, and white ns who had once humiliated Zhuang Qing, faced Zhuang Qing with guilt in their hearts. But till this day, no one among the entire dragon race except for Zhuang Qing had cultivated the great Dao, much less stimte such huge fluctuations during their transformations. Though the yao cultivators of the dragon race were arrogant, they were not impulsive or brainless. Dignity and arrogance would have to make way for the continued reproduction and survival of their race. Therefore, no matter how noble one¡¯s identity or how powerful one was, it was a good idea to ensure a route out for oneself. Behaving like the azure, purple, red, and white ns would be digging one¡¯s own grave, something which was toote for regret now. Fortunately, despite Zhuang Qing¡¯s cold personality, he wasn¡¯t a yao who would exploit public office to avenge personal wrongs. Otherwise, even if these four ns managed to hold on by their teeth, they wouldn¡¯t be able to lead peaceful everyday lives. At the moment, the entirety of their dragon race had no choice but to support Zhuang Qing. Even if they felt a bit vexed, they could only endure it. The dragon race had started dying off in droves thousands of years ago, yet the number of births were on the decline. The various ns put all their heart into nurturing theter generations, but none of them was able to transform into the Dragon Emperor and obtain the acknowledgement of the nation. If this continued, the dragon race¡¯s eventual ending in this world would be extinction. Zhuang Qing¡¯s sessful transformation was the dragon race¡¯sst saving grace. Even if this saving grace hated them, they still had to cling to him with a death grip. Even if they didn¡¯t do so for themselves, they still had to think for their juniors who hadn¡¯t yet grown up. The ck dragon nced back at the few remaining dragons of his race, his eyes clouded with worry. ¡°The Dragon Emperor has arrived.¡± ¡°Warm respects to His Majesty, the Dragon Emperor.¡± The dragon ns stood up in session. Even Qing Yan, who was seated on his wheelchair and unable to move, also sat up straight and hung his head, his posture respectful. The ck dragon watched the man wearing a dark-colored suit in the distance walk over while escorted by little yao. The man donned a grave, stern expression, and didn¡¯t seem very easy to get along with. However, the tiny, fluffy, and plump animal in his arms that resembled both a dog and a rabbit lessened the cold aura surrounding him by a good bit. At least, the little yao wouldn¡¯t be terrified at first nce. ¡°There¡¯s no need for everyone to stand on courtesy. It¡¯s a new era now, there¡¯s no need to be particr about past practices.¡± Though Zhuang Qing said as such, for some reasons unknown to the ck dragon, he could hear a hint of candidness in these two simple statements. It seemed like Zhuang Qing really didn¡¯t regard the empty courtesies that had been passed down as important. ¡°Please take a seat.¡± The front pce of the golden dragon pce was veryrge, but even then, it wasn¡¯t enough to fit all the aquatic races. Therefore, in order to save space, some little yao with low cultivation simply turned into their original forms and squeezed together in a dense pack to watch the show. ¡°Who pressed against my tail?¡± ¡°My fins, my pretty fish fins, don¡¯t squeeze!¡± ¡°Scram eel, I hate eels.¡± Hearing the whispers outside the pce hall, Zhuang Qing nced up. The entire main hall instantly quietened till even a pin could be heard. Fu Li, who was lying in Zhuang Qing¡¯s arms, stretched out his ws, picked out a few golden tangerines from the fruit tter, and ced them in Zhuang Qing¡¯s hands. Zhuang Qing knew that Fu Li disliked the strong smell of tangerines, which was why he deliberately maintained his original form and left the task of peeling the skin to him. Zhuang Qing took his time peeling the skin, and just as Fu Li opened his mouth, he stuffed the tangerine into his own mouth. Fu Li: ... Pinching his soft ears, Zhuang Qing held the remaining half out to Fu Li¡¯s mouth. Fu Li turned his head away and refused to open his mouth. Fu ge also had a temper, as well as his own sense of dignity. ¡°I¡¯ve tasted it. It¡¯s sweet, that¡¯s why I¡¯m giving it to you.¡± Only then did Fu Li ¡®stiffly¡¯ open his mouth and swallow the tangerine. The ck dragon who bore witness to this entire event felt like he was watching two kindergarteners y house. Was this how the Dragon Emperor and his future Dao Companion usually interacted? It was Zhuang Qing¡¯s first time returning to the East Sea after his sessful transformation, so there was a lot of meaning to this event. From the dragon ns to the ordinary aquatic yao cultivators, everyone was afraid that Zhuang Qing wouldn¡¯t want to return to the sea, so every one of them were on tenterhooks. Some yao even thought of sending Fu Li gifts so that Fu Li would sway Zhuang Qing through pillow talk. Unfortunately, Fu Li was a well-known wealthy and powerful individual in the yao world. Fearful that Fu Li would disdain anything they sent to him, they quashed this intention. Now that Zhuang Qing had finally appeared and didn¡¯t exhibit any negative attitudes towards the aquatic races present, everyone¡¯s state of mind stabilized a bit, full of hope for the future. Therge numbers of aquatic races that hade were beyond Fu Li¡¯s expectations. He asked Zhuang Qing through sound transmission, ¡°Did these aquatic racese over to watch the excitement or to freeload a meal?¡± Zhuang Qing was stunned. All of a sudden, he recalled that Fu Li had never really been in contact with imperial power. His childhood was spent on Reflecting Mist Mountain and the yao cultivators there had been more natural in their interactions. Even Kang Gu, who was addressed as King Ganglie, did not take on the stance of a higher ranking yao in front of all the yao on the mountain. When Fu Li came to the human world, there was already more equality among the humans and there was no longer any strict differentiation in status like the feudalistic periods. Hence, in Fu Li¡¯s eyes, these aquatic yao cultivators were merely here to join in the fun or freeload a meal. Zhuang Qing slowly caressed the fur on his back as he replied through sound transmission. ¡°They¡¯re not here to freeload a meal, they¡¯re here to pay their respects.¡± ¡°Pay their respects?¡± Fu Li¡¯s ears twitched. ¡°Like the feudalistic emperors in television dramas?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t reply or deny it. His gazended on all the yao, seeing the few dragons who had previously bullied him frantically lower their heads, not daring to meet his gaze. He saw the sea turtle who had once mocked him hide behind a coral stone, shivering and wanting to shrink its head into its turtle shell yet not daring to. He even saw the octopus yao who had secretly applied herbal medicine to his wounds after noticing that he was being bullied, as well as the sea crab who had stuffed him food when he was ravenous. ¡°It¡¯s almost noon. Everyone hase from afar, let¡¯s talk after lunch.¡± All the yao heaved a sigh of relief simultaneously. The head of the ck dragon n said, ¡°Your Majesty has no need to worry, I have already prepared lunch.¡± ¡°It¡¯s surprising how conscientious these dragon ns are, they even brought their own food when visiting,¡± Fu Li finished nibbling on a fruit and then held his ws out to Zhuang Qing, who fished out a handkerchief and wiped his ws. ¡°You¡¯ve beenzing on me for half the day, do you want to get up and eat?¡± Fu Li silently buried his head into the crook of Zhuang Qing¡¯s arm. ¡°There are many fresh marine products in the dragon pce. Eating will be very inconvenient if you¡¯re not in your human form,¡± Zhuang Qing patted Fu Li¡¯s fat buttocks. ¡°You don¡¯t want to eat?¡± With a shake of his tail, Fu Li jumped down Zhuang Qing¡¯s knee andnded on the ground in human form. He sat on the vacant seat beside Zhuang Qing. ¡°Your Majesty, daojun, please sit in the inner pce,¡± The ck dragon got up to show Fu Li and Zhuang Qing the way. The other dragon ns instantly followed. Knowing that they wouldn¡¯t be able to enter the inner pce, the other aquatic races simply set up tables and chairs outside, and waited for the lunch banquet tomence. They really did give off a subtle air of a freeloader. Before entering, Zhuang Qing nced back at the tens of dragons following behind him. He didn¡¯t speak. Unable to clearly grasp Zhuang Qing¡¯s thoughts, the ck dragon said, ¡°If Your Majesty prefers the quiet, I will get the juniors to withdraw outside.¡± ¡°No need,¡± Zhuang Qing saw the cautious ways of these dragons. Even those still in infant state ¨C seven to eight hundred year old little dragons who couldn¡¯t retract their dragon horns ¨C were looking at him pitifully. ¡°Come in, all of you.¡± The azure, purple, red, and white dragon ns obediently followed after him, not daring to say even a single extra word. Fiverge tables were arranged in the inner hall. The dishes on the main table were particrly sumptuous. Perhaps these dragon ns had specially made discreet inquiries on Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s tastes, because much of the food on the table were dishes they were fond of. ¡°Your Majesty, please sit,¡± The ck dragon led Zhuang Qing to the main seat. Zhuang Qing stared at the seat and continued standing. The hearts of the n heads tensed once again. ¡°This Zhuang is a junior, how can I take the main seat in everyone¡¯s presence...¡± ¡°This seat is fitting for Your Honorable Majesty.¡± ¡°There is no one apart from Your Majesty who is more suitable for this seat.¡± Amidst all sorts of entreaties and everyone talking at the same time, Zhuang Qing finally dragged Fu Li over to the seat. The elders of the ck and blue ns sat beside the two of them and the elders of the other four ns obediently sat themselves down, not daring to say or do anything more. After finishing their meal, the four n heads offered their apologies to Zhuang Qing. Beside Zhuang Qing, Fu Li watched the head of the red dragon n with snow-white hair bend over and bow deeply to Zhuang Qing. He inched to the side. ¡°n head, there is no need for this,¡± Zhuang Qing got up and helped the head of the red dragon n up. His expression was still t and without ripples. ¡°As the chief of the management bureau, this Zhuang will seriously deal with any trouble, no matter the race that encounters it.¡± ¡°In the past...¡± The cheeks of the red dragon n¡¯s head were flushed. ¡°We let Your Majesty down.¡± ¡°Let bygones be bygones. n head, there is no need for you to bring it up again,¡± Zhuang Qing turned to look at Fu Li. If the dragon ns had treated him well at that time, he might have remained at the bottom of the sea, became an ordinary yao cultivator of the dragon race, taken control of a sea territory after reaching adulthood, and peacefully stayed there till his life reached its end. In such a life, he would be doomed to never cross paths with Fu Li. Throughout his entire life, perhaps he would never have known about the existence of the yao named Fu Li. No one could say for certain whether happiness bred misfortune or misfortune bred happiness. ¡°Many thanks for Your Majesty¡¯s tolerance,¡± The head of the red dragon n retreated with a lowered head. The few remaining ns also went forward and apologized. Zhuang Qing¡¯s attitude continued to remain even. There was no resentment or dissatisfaction, and of course, there was also no excessive intimacy. In all likelihood, he really had gotten over it, just like how he said he had. At a certain location in the depths of the sea, the yao addressed as king was roaring at its subject in fury, ¡°Aren¡¯t you capable of spreading gues? Why did you leave for several months, and yet there still isn¡¯t any news from the human world?¡± The subject being scolded didn¡¯t dare to reply. Only after the king¡¯s anger had more or less dissipated did they say in a small voice, ¡°King, this subject doesn¡¯t know what happened either. I clearly added poison to the humans¡¯ drinking water, but their bodies had no reaction at all. Later on, I tried to spread the gue through the air, but these humans still had no reaction. It¡¯s simply too strange.¡± ¡°How can weak creatures like humans be able to escape terrifying gues? That¡¯s impossible, something must have gone wrong,¡± The king was infuriated. The king turned in a circle on the spot and then transformed into a plump pufferfish. ¡°You change into an ordinary sea creature too, don¡¯t let the other aquatic yao realize that there¡¯s something fishy.¡± The single-eyed strange ox obediently transformed as well. Perhaps it was because he had few eyes, but he specially transformed into a four-eyed flounder to make up for the loneliness of having one eye. Master and servant swam out of the deep sea and just so happened to chance upon the aquatic yao leaving the golden dragon pce. Freshwater and seawater fish were mixing with one another; if human biologists were to discover this sight, it would definitely be termed a miracle to be researched for many years. The fake pufferfish seized the opportunity to mix into the group of yao and started making discreet inquiries about the human world. The aquatic yao had just received the support of the Aquatic Emperor and was in a good mood, so they very nicely answered this country bumpkin fish who asked all sorts of questions on human general knowledge.. ¡°Why aren¡¯t they scared of gues?¡± A tiny ugly fish burst intoughter. ¡°Humans are now made to take all sorts of immunization injections from birth. Human medicine has long ovee those fatal gues from ancient times.¡± The pufferfish: ... Chapter 130 - Time of Evil Encounters

Chapter 130 - Time of Evil Encounters

At the entrance to the human Disease Prevention Branch, two men wearing ck jackets were squatting on the ground. The asional car that passed by them would spray their faces with exhaust. Wiping his face, the man who was as plump as a ball said with resentment, ¡°The air is turbid, spiritual qi is sparse, and metal boxes run amuck on all streets ¨C how did the human world be like this?¡± ¡°King, this must be the work of those silly humans,¡± The slightly plump man said unhesitatingly. ¡°This must be their plot.¡± He just made this statement when a sprinkler truck passed by, nearly wetting his shoes. The slightly plump man pulled his feet backwards, his gaze fixed on the sprinkler truck that had driven off without a thought for those behind. For a good while, he couldn¡¯t say anything. ¡°I don¡¯t want to have an injection!¡± ¡°Wooo!¡± The two people watched an adult carry a human child whose cries could shake the Heavens through the main doors. Both men simultaneously directed reverent gazes at the building behind the doors. What sort of godly force was inside that could strike such fear in the hearts of children yet render them immune to all diseases once they came out? ¡°King, are we going to go in?¡± The slightly plump man had a grave expression. ¡°The humans¡¯ secret weapon must be inside.¡± ¡°Yes. If there really is one, we¡¯ll snatch their secret weapon,¡± The man who was as plump as a ball stood up and patted the dust on his body before waving a hand towards the main door. ¡°Fei, walk in front.¡± The slightly plump man called Fei hesitated. ¡°King, I...¡± ¡°Cut the bullsh*t, get in!¡± The man who was plump as a ball kicked Fei in with a single leg. Only when Fei stood up straight without being subjected to any attacks did he straighten his cor and stride through the main doors with his feet syed outwards. The guard who had been surveying them for a very long time picked up his phone and dialed the police after they walked through the doors of the Disease Prevention Branch. These two men spoke in a very bizarre manner and even asionally watched the children passing by the road. He suspected that they were child traffickers. ¡°King Hundun...¡± ¡°Shut your trap,¡± The plump as a ball man named Hundun interrupted Fei. ¡°Quick, get over there and take a look.¡± He pointed to a corridor where all manner of sobs sounded. The children were shouting themselves hoarse, their shrieks unceasing. From time to time, the bellows of adults could be heard. ¡°The humans... can¡¯t be killing children or experimenting on living people, right?¡± Fei swallowed. No matter how ruthless their yao ns were, they still very rarelyid hands on children. It seemed like humans were even more ruthless than yao. Just as they thought this, a seven or eight year old child suddenly charged out of the corridor. Half the child¡¯s arm was bare, and multiple adults were hot on the child¡¯s heels. Shrieks, angry curses, and sobs rose and fell in session. ¡°I don¡¯t want to get an injection!¡± ¡°Not allowed, you have to. I¡¯ll beat you to death at home if you don¡¯t,¡± Reality proved that adult men had greaterbat ability. The child that escaped with much difficulty was hauled up by an adult man. With a face full of anger, the man brought the child sobbing in despair back to the room saturated with cries of fear. Even more terrifying was the fact that the surrounding adults all wore cheerful smiles, as if this was an extremely interesting affair. W-What horrifying degree had humans evolved to? Hundun and Fei nced at each other. Hundun said, ¡°Weck the strength to ovee this predicament. When this king finds other subjects, we will investigate this ce once more.¡± Fei was ecstatic upon hearing these words. ¡°King is wise!¡± The two yao turned and made for the door. When they reached the entrance, an old fellow dressed in blue stopped them. ¡°The two youngsters, wait a moment.¡± Fei turned to look at Hundun. ¡°King, he¡¯s calling out to us?¡± ¡°He¡¯s calling for youngsters, that has nothing to do with us,¡± Hundun shook his head and turned a deaf ear to the old human man¡¯s calls. ¡°Youngster, don¡¯t walk so quickly.¡± The uncle guarding the door grabbed a hold of Hundun¡¯s sleeve and said with plenty of enthusiasm, ¡°Are you two not local?¡± Hundun squinted at the elderly human man. ¡°What about it?¡± ¡°Youngster, sorry, ording to our Disease Prevention branch¡¯s guidelines, foreigners have to have their identification cards checked before entering. Trouble you two to let me have a look at your identification cards,¡± Despite the kindly smile on the elderly uncle¡¯s face, his body was blocking the entrance, preventing Hundun and Fei from leaving. ¡°Identification card?¡± How could Hundun know about something like an identification card? He turned towards Fei. ¡°You take it out.¡± Fei was at a loss. How could he have such a thing? One nce at the two men¡¯s expressions and the elderly uncle knew that there was definitely something off about them. Seeing that police cars had alreadye over, his kindly face instantly turned cold. ¡°Seeing how robust your bodies are, you don¡¯tck strength, so why do you not take the correct path and insist on reaping benefits without working for it? That won¡¯t be so easy!¡± Hundun, Fei: ... Why was this old geezer changing faces so casually? Why was there no sign of it? Two or three police cars swept by, tightly blocking the main doors of the Disease Prevention Branch. Close to ten police officers got out of the cars and surrounded Hundun and Fei without a single word. ¡°Raise your hands and take out your identification cards,¡± The police officer holding up a gun stared at Hundun and Fei, not daring to be sloppy in the least. ¡°Quickly.¡± Fei nced at the pitch-ck pistol in the police officer¡¯s hands andughed out loud. ¡°There are no talismans on it and no spiritual qi. What can such a small toy do?¡± The police officers were struck dumb by the Fei¡¯s provocative words. They had seen savage hoodlums, but hoodlums who didn¡¯t even show the slightest bit of fear upon seeing guns were still seldom seen. The police officers issued repeated warnings for Fei and Hundun to take out their identification cards and go with them to the police station. Unable to understand what they were saying, Fei and Hundun eventually grew tired of seeing these humans bellow here and there, and thus turned to leave. ¡°Stand still, don¡¯t run,¡± A young police officer fired a shot at Fei¡¯s leg. But despite the bulletnding on Fei¡¯s leg, he showed no reaction, not even lowering his head. All the police officers were stunned. The young police officer wore a slightly nk expression, thinking that he had shot a fake bullet. ¡°Everyone, be careful,¡± The older police officer had more experience in handling sudden turns of events and had also encountered certain supernatural urrences that could not be exined with science. Hence, he reminded all the police officers to retreat behind the police car. Sensing that these humans were finally viewing him with veneration, Hundun nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be good if you¡¯d been like this earlier?¡± Toozy to argue with ignorant humans, he waved a hand at Fei. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°King, do you want to kill these hindrances?¡± Fei¡¯s tone of voice was calm, as if he was discussing stomping a few ants to death. ¡°Kill, kill, all you know is to kill people!¡± Hundun fiercely rapped Fei on the head several times. ¡°Can¡¯t you think about something else?¡± Covering his head, Fei didn¡¯t dare to refute Hundun¡¯s words. Listening to the howls emitting from the building behind him, he told the very vignt police officers standing at the main doors, ¡°All of you retreat and I won¡¯t kill you.¡± But what surprised him was that these clearly fearful police officers didn¡¯t leave but instead tightened their grip on the ck toys in their hands. Hundun furrowed his brows. Grabbing Fei, who was by his side, he leaped out of the police officers¡¯ encirclement. ¡°Mommy, those two people jump really high up, are they Sun Wukong?¡± A child¡¯s mouth gaped open. The tear stains on their face hadn¡¯t even dried as they looked up at the figures leaping midair. The child¡¯s mother felt her brain short-circuiting. ¡°With how fat they are, they¡¯re more like Zhu Bajie.¡± Upon finishing this statement, she jolted in rm. How could humans leap that high? Were wire stunts being filmed outside? But if that was the case, it shouldn¡¯t be taking ce at the entrance of the Disease Prevention Branch. At the golden dragon pce in the East Sea, the other aquatic yao cultivators had already left, save for the dragon ns. ¡°Fu Li daojun was right at that time. Those years, Your Majesty¡¯s ancestors had the best innate talent and highest cultivation among the seven dragon ns,¡± The now handicapped Qing Yan no longer gave off the aura of superficial perfection; his entire dragon being had now be much more lowkey and down-to-earth. ¡°But starting from four thousand years ago, the elders of the various ns deteriorated ahead of their time. Many infant dragons perished before even leaving their shells. At that time, we thought that the other dragon ns were stirring up trouble, so the rtionships between the ns became very unpleasant.¡± It was precisely because of this reason that after the extinction of the golden dragon n, no dragon stood up for the young half-human and half-dragon Zhuang Qing despite the constant bullying by the other young dragons. But the dragon race¡¯s reproduction situation became increasingly worse ¨C there was not a single newborn dragon in thest five hundred years. The asional dragon egg would be produced with much difficulty, but even those could not be sessfully incubated. Only at that juncture did they see the truth ¨C this was a punishment from the Heavens. Because of the Heavens¡¯ punishment, the dragon race had no newborn dragons. Because of the Heavens¡¯ punishment, the dragon race¡¯s elders deteriorated increasingly quickly, while breakthroughs in the cultivation of the younger generation were few and hard toe by. The Heavens wanted to extinguish the dragon race, so how could the dragon race resist? To the dragon race, Zhuang Qing¡¯s sessful transformation and his acknowledgement by the Heavens and Earth was akin to finding the sole light after walking in the darkness for a long time. Zhuang Qing¡¯s mood was especially calm when listening to Qing Yan speak of the dragon race¡¯s past stories. During his childhood, he had once wondered why he didn¡¯t have the protection of elders and why no elders descended from the skies to protect him during his most painful moments. But yao and humans were alike in that they had little interest in many things after reaching adulthood, one example of which was the vicissitudes of life experienced by the dragon race in the past. He was well aware of the thoughts these dragon ns harbored in their hearts. ¡°I know...¡± Zhuang Qing caught sight of a paper man flying into the pce hall and reached out, grabbing a hold of it. The paper man swiftly morphed into ashes at his fingertips. ¡°What happened?¡± Fu Li stood up. His originally careless expression had been retracted. ¡°Song Yu sent a message saying that an urgent case hase up in Linhai City. Two men without any fear of bullets leaped several tens of meters high in front of many people, escaping from the police officers¡¯ encirclement. Many ordinary city residents filmed it with their phones.¡± Zhuang Qing spoke to the dragon ns, ¡°I understand your concerns. I already said just now that as long as I remain the chief of the management bureau, I won¡¯t turn a blind eye to you.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°I¡¯m still more used to you calling me Chief Zhuang,¡± Zhuang Qing interrupted Qing Yan. He turned towards Fu Li, ¡°Fu Li, let¡¯s go.¡± Fu Li silently followed after him. Zhuang Qing transformed into a dragon, Fu Li jumped onto the dragon¡¯s head and sat down, and in a blink of an eye, the two people flew out of the golden dragon pce. Watching Zhuang Qing leave hastily, the other dragons furrowed their brows. There was trouble in the human world again? They didn¡¯t think much of it in the past, but only now did theye to realize ¨C why was there so much trouble in the human world? Linhai City¡¯s police officers had already stepped in to rify that the video of two men in Linhai City leaping several tens of meters in the air was a product of a certain drama crew while filming. But even then, manyizens suspected that these two men possessed supernatural powers and that the police were concealing the truth. Even several forces abroad had started to keep tabs on this matter. When Fu Li and Zhuang Qing rushed to the Disease Prevention Branch, there were many people crowding outside and watching the excitement. Although nothing could be seen by running over to the Disease Prevention Branch at this juncture, this had no effect on their passion for gossiping. Fu Li overheard a few conversations; the rumor had already transformed into two men turning into birds and flying off. The two of them directly made their way to Linhai City¡¯s Public Security Bureau and watched the surveince footage taken from the Disease Prevention Branch. The two suspects had very ordinary looks and for whatever reason, didn¡¯t enter the vination room despite nearing it. But from the way the two people moved, they definitely hadn¡¯t gone to the Disease Prevention Branch to receive an injection or pick up children. ¡°Comrades, this is the bullet and bullet shell that hit the suspect¡¯s thigh,¡± The Public Security Bureau offered the evidence bag to Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing wasn¡¯t wearing gloves and didn¡¯t touch the evidence, but there was an indent on the head of the bullet that was visible to the naked eye. ¡°Were these two people¡¯s traces discovered by other surveince systems?¡± Zhuang Qing looked at the densely packed surveince points on the wall and couldn¡¯t help rubbing his eyes. ¡°No discoveries at the moment.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Zhuang Qing nodded. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you, we¡¯ll search for evidence elsewhere.¡± After leaving the Public Security Bureau, Zhuang Qing pulled Fu Li towards the car. He took out a small bowl from the icebox and poured water into the bowl. As the Aquatic Emperor, he could maneuver the spiritual qi in all water bodies and search for the two yao cultivators of unclear origin ording to their water trails. At a riverbank where water flowed rapidly, Hundun told Fei, who had changed back to his original form, ¡°This is yourst chance. If the gues have no effect on humans, I¡¯ll eat you in one mouth.¡± ¡°King, please rest at ease. With this gue, the humans will not be able to die even if they plead for it,¡± Fei let out a long hiss towards the sky. His snake-like tail suddenly swelled. Just as he was about to fling his tail into the water, Hundun abruptly mmed a palm towards the water. ¡°Who is peeping at this king?¡± An enormous ssh of waternded on Fei. Before he could even spit out the water in his mouth, he was sent flying a good few meters by something that leaped out of the water abruptly. Fei¡¯s body smashed into the ground, creating a deep pit. His lengthened tail was retracted amidst the intense pain. Hundun wasn¡¯t in a much better state than Fei. He evaded the attack while cutting a sorry figure,ughing coldly upon seeing the golden dragon whose head had emerged from the water. ¡°This king was wondering what it was, turns out there¡¯s a worm in the water.¡± Fu Li jumped onto shore and shook the water off his body. He stamped a foot on Fei. ¡°Single eyed, body of an ox, tail of a snake ¨C you are the fiend Fei?¡± ¡°What are you?¡± With the tiny strange creature that resembled both a dog and a rabbit stomping on him, Fei couldn¡¯t even muster the strength to climb up from where hey copsed in the pit. He stared at Fu Li in disbelief, as if he was looking at a monster. ¡°And what are you?¡± Fu Li jumped a few times on Fei, who felt like he was being viciously pounded several times by a huge mountain. The vision in both his eyes dimmed, and his organs felt like they had all shifted locations. Hundun nced at Fei before suddenly roaring at the golden dragon, ¡°Scram, you have no business here.¡± The golden dragon flipped over in the river water. Under the shine of the setting sun, the golden dragon¡¯s tail emanated a dazzling light. Hundun saw the glittering golden light of virtue and thick purple qi on the dragon. ¡°The dragon of national fate...¡± The setting of the sun in the west was also the time of evil encounters, when golden light filled the sky. But in the western horizon, ck clouds were churning, as if something hidden in the clouds was on the cusp of breaking through. Chapter 131 - Worship of Ten Thousand Yao

Chapter 131 - Worship of Ten Thousand Yao

At the flying pce, the Baize and Xing Xing were attaching thest patterned mark to a ceremonial robe. Upon sess, the ceremonial robe emanated a faint golden glow unparalleled in its purity and holiness. ¡°Are the flower patterns on top too nd?¡± Kang Gu circled the two sets of celebratory clothes. He looked them up and down, but still found certain things displeasing. ¡°These are the clothes Little Li and Little Zhuang will don on their big day, it¡¯s still not resplendent enough. As the host of the wedding, I think their clothes should enable all the guests to focus their attention on them.¡± ¡°You might as well let them carry light bulbs. After the electricity is connected, they¡¯ll be brighter than anyone else,¡± Feng Ruizhong rolled his eyes at the sky. ¡°Don¡¯t you think you have a tacky sense of aesthetics?¡± ¡°So what if it¡¯s tacky? Don¡¯t the humans also like wearing gold on their hands and necks when organizing weddings? Is there anyone who calls them tacky? The way I see it, each and every one of those humans are very envious,¡± There was a hint of regret and listlessness in Kang Gu¡¯s tone of voice. ¡°Although we¡¯re no longer as well-off as we were in the past, the Dao Bonding Ceremony is the most important moment in a yao¡¯s life. We can¡¯t wrong the two children.¡± ¡°Old pig, I understand your way of thinking, but the current era is different. The young yao have a different sense of aesthetics from us. Whether you say something is good-looking or bad-looking doesn¡¯t matter, we have to seek Little Li and Little Zhuang¡¯s opinions,¡± The Baize¡¯s hands were cupped around a teacup, the item most weed by middle-aged humans. There was an infusion of fresh flowers and fruits inside, because it was said to promote good health. The Baize had recently developed a great interest in human recuperative programs. Day after day, he arranged for the meal room attendants to make nourishing dishes. Unfortunately, no one except for him had any interest in the food, and thus his ¡®n for good health¡¯ was also shelved. Zhu Yue was holding a whetstone and sharpening her sword at the side. asionally, she would even spit two mouthfuls of fire towards the sword, inciting repeated cries of rm from Feng Ruizhong, who was worried that the fire she spat out would burn the celebratory clothes. ¡°If the celebratory clothes you made can even be burnt by fire, then what use are they?¡± Zhu Yue slid her sword back into its sheath, exuding the aura of a female emperor. ¡°You guys...¡± She paused, and the expressions of the other auspicious beasts in the room all turned grave. Beyond the mountain, the sky dyed red from the setting sun had been engulfed by gloomy ck clouds. The sky dimmed bit by bit. ¡°A summoning formation...¡± Zhu Yue tossed the sword in her hands aside. The windows swung open with a wave of her hand, the fierce wind at the mountain top sending her hair fluttering in the breeze. What was scary wasn¡¯t the wind, but the chaotic spiritual qi in it. Heaven and Earth had Five Elements. Both the human and yao cultivators drew on Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements in order to use magic. But at this moment, the Five Elements were in a state of chaos, just like... someone had drawn on Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements to summon something. Someone capable of drawing on the Five Elements and setting up a summoning formation ought to be an... auspicious beast. ¡°Baize?¡± Zhu Yue attempted to do a divination, but with the Five Elements in disorder, she couldn¡¯t make out anything. Left with no choice, she turned to look at the Baize. The Baize¡¯splexion was even uglier than Zhu Yue. He slowly shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t divine it.¡± Zhu Yue took a deep breath. ¡°Little Li still hasn¡¯te back?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go find him.¡± The Baize put down his teacup, telling the rest with a solemn expression, ¡°Wait here, if something happens...¡± ¡°If something happens, we won¡¯t leave without a single word again,¡± Zhu Yue picked up the sword she had tossed to the floor and shed a bright smile. ¡°That year, the azure dragon n was doing evil and the eye of heavenlyw was on us, but even then, we were not afraid, much less now.¡± The fact that they were born as auspicious beasts and received the endless worship of all creatures was also because their hearts brimmed with pity and love for thisnd. When Heaven and Earth was in danger, life and death was not something they would give any thought to. Evening was when the exchange of day and night took ce, when darkness swallowed the light. It was also the time when evil descended on the earth, which was why people called it the time of evil encounters. Though the yao cultivators weren¡¯t fond of this saying, they had no choice but to admit that Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements were most chaotic during the exchange of light and darkness. There was darkness in light and light in darkness, but it was ultimately darkness that prevailed over light when night descended. Great waves surged on the surface of the waters. Fei, who was currently bearing the brunt of a one-sided beating, looked up at the pitch-ck sky. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with shouting how much he hurt any longer, yelling towards Hundun, ¡°King, look at the sky.¡± Hundun replied in a huff, ¡°Can¡¯t you see this dragon making things difficult for me? What if he mounts a sneak attack on me while I¡¯m looking at the sky?¡± He thought about how grand a life he had lived in those years and the countless subjects he had had. Who would have expected him to only be left with one subject now, and one that wascking a good brain at that. ¡°King, not that, there¡¯s something off about Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five Elements,¡± Fei shouted himself hoarse. ¡°Someone¡¯s summoning something.¡± Upon hearing these words, Hundun also couldn¡¯t be bothered with Zhuang Qing. He tossed a defense barrier on himself before looking up at the sky. ck clouds were roiling in the sky, and the setting sun had long been engulfed by darkness. The sky was drained of all color. Night was imminent. At an office, a white-cored worker preparing to get off work got up and looked out the windows, wondering doubtfully why the sky had turned dark so early when it was already spring. The light above her head flickered, the electricity seemingly a little unstable. The colleague seated beside her said in a slightly startled tone of voice, ¡°Why has the sky turnedpletely dark when it¡¯s not even half past five? It¡¯s not even winter, the color of the sky today is a bit strange.¡± They just finished their statement when crackling sounds came from the office¡¯s electric circuits. A few minutester, the office sank into darkness. The entire office suddenly quietened. Someone turned and looked out the window. The only thing visible was the ck clouds in the western sky that resembled a monster with a gigantic gaping mouth, as if wanting to swallow the entire sky. An employee snapped a photo of it with their phone and posted it on weibo. Just Thinking of Getting Rich Overnight: There was a sudden ckout in the office. I casually snapped a shot of the sky with my phone, doesn¡¯t it seem like some blockbuster xuanhuan movie¡¯s viin boss is about to take the stage? ¡°This was done by you guys?¡± Zhuang Qing swiftly flew out of the water, turning into his human form uponnding on the ground. He pointed his sword at Hundun. ¡°What were you nning to do by illegally entering the human world?¡± ¡°This has nothing to do with me. This king never does things like pitting others and pitting myself,¡± A tinge of anxiety was visible on Hundun¡¯s face. Seeing that Zhuang Qing was still pointing his sword at him, he said anxiously, ¡°You really aren¡¯t sensible. Instead of bothering about this trivial matter, you¡¯d better run for your life right now.¡± Zhuang Qing furrowed his brows. He looked up at the sky that was almost half taken over by darkness. ¡°What formation is this?¡± Heavenlyw favored the humans; practically no yao cultivator could set up a formation and incite such arge movement. Yet, this formation actually seemed like it would seed. What kind of demon would it bring about when the skypletely darkened? ¡°If I didn¡¯t guess wrongly, this yao race has already died out for tens of thousands of years...¡± ¡°The Worship of Ten Thousand Yao,¡± A silver light shed by, and the Baize, spotlessly white from head to toe with two horns atop his head and his whole body brimming with holiness, appeared before Zhuang Qing on magic clouds. His fur swayed in the wind, his voice extremely grave. ¡°Activating this formation requires the skeletal remains of over ten thousand yao cultivators that are buried in mountains and rivers. During the exchange of day and night, and using dragon qi as the lure, these sacrifices are then made to the Heavens.¡± ¡°What is he praying to the Heavens for?¡± Zhuang Qing gave a junior¡¯s bow to the Baize. ¡°Praying for the birth of the emperor of the yao race,¡± The Baize studied the sky. A good half of it had already turned ck. ¡°When the yao emperor appears, the world will descend into chaos.¡± Every time Zhuang Qing heard the phrase ¡®yao emperor¡¯, a feeling of absurdity would take shape in his heart. He had heard this term more than once from fiends, but it was his first time hearing it from an auspicious beast. ¡°Who is the yao emperor?¡± Zhuang Qing asked. ¡°Do they possess the method to break the formation?¡± ¡°No,¡± The Baize shook his head. ¡°Once the Worship of Ten Thousand Yao starts, it is irreversible.¡± The fact that heavenlyw allowed the birth of the yao emperor symbolized that the humans had alreadymitted acts that touched heavenlyw¡¯s baseline. Therefore, heavenlyw wanted the yao race to ¡®discipline¡¯ the humans. ¡°Baize...¡± Hundun¡¯s eyeballs nearly dropped out of his sockets after seeing the Baize. He didn¡¯t fear the Heavens nor the Earth, but he most feared the Baize. Since birth, the Baize was equivalent to a restraint that prevented him from doing as he pleased in all aspects. He had thought that the Baize¡¯s body and Dao had perished, and only then had he dared to wreak havoc in the human world. It was beyond his expectations for the Baize to be so long lived and to appear without the slightest foreshadowing. ¡°Hundun?¡± The Baize nced at the fatty shrunk at the corner. ¡°You¡¯re still alive?¡± Hundun wasn¡¯t very pleased in his heart and muttered, ¡°Even you are still alive, how can I be dead?¡± The Baize wasn¡¯t in the mood to poke fun at Hundun. Seeing that Zhuang Qing had once more transformed into his original form, he asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to look for the heart of the formation,¡± Zhuang Qing hooked his tail around Fu Li and tossed him onto his head. ¡°Even if I can¡¯t stop it, I still want to try.¡± The Baize sighed. ¡°All right, I¡¯ll go with you.¡± He pointed in a direction with his front hoof. ¡°The heart of the formation should be in that direction.¡± Fei, who was finally not being pressured by Fu Li, climbed up from the ground and scampered to Hundun. ¡°King, are we still going to release the gue?¡± His gaze on the dust-cloaked Fei, Hundun took several steps back in dislike. ¡°The yao emperor is already going to appear, what gue do you still want to release? We¡¯re going over to look as well.¡± ¡°To stop that dragon from meddling?¡± ¡°Why stop him?¡± Hundunughed grimly. ¡°Not only will we not be stopping him, we even need to lend him a hand.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Fei was confused. ¡°Isn¡¯t it good for there to be a yao emperor?¡± ¡°Good my ass!¡± Hundun snorted. ¡°Laozi is a yao king who¡¯s lived for hundreds of thousands of years, on what basis do I have to listen to the orders of a yao emperor who popped out of nowhere?¡± If the yao emperor was born, hismands would naturally have a bewitching effect on yao cultivators so they would subconsciously listen to his words. For good or bad, Hundun regarded himself as a brilliant and famous fiend, how could he be subjected to such immense humiliation? He didn¡¯t know which idiot had insisted on summoning the yao emperor. If he found out, he would definitely kill that person. Zhuang Qing flew swiftly. He traversed the ck clouds heavily charged with thunder and lightning, and finally found the heart of the formation with the help of the Baize. The area it was located at was not unfamiliar to him; it was Hunxi Mountain. The Feiyi he had sealed at Hua Mountainst year had originally been living on Hunxi Mountain, just that it had been flung out by some unknown yao cultivator. At that time, he had merely assumed that it was an act of evil deliberately done by some yao cultivator. Who would have expected for the heart of the Worship of Ten Thousand Yao formation to be here. Gust after gust of evil wind swept by the center of the peak of Hunxi Mountain. Spiritual qi from all directions gushed towards it without any sign of stopping. At this location, it then converged to form evil yao qi that threw Heaven and Earth¡¯s Five elements into chaos. Zhuang Qing dared to bring the Baize and Fu Li near only because he had the protection of the golden glow of virtue. As for Hundun and Fei, they had long ago stopped, not daring to take even a single step closer. ¡°Fu Li, do you feel ufortable anywhere?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t dare to rashly get close. Looking at the enormous vortex of evil yao qi that had taken shape in the air, he retreated. Using the work system, he sent out an emergency message for assistance to all the cultivators and departments in the human world. ¡°Fu Li?¡± There was a faint fear in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. Fu Li didn¡¯t seem to have spoken since the sky started ckening. In spite of the biting cold of the evil wind, he turned into his human form and pulled Fu Li into his embrace. ¡°Fu Li?!¡± Fu Li¡¯s snow-white fur was gradually turning the color of blood. Chapter 132 - Formations Heart

Chapter 132 - Formation¡¯s Heart

The human heart contained many emotions ¨C love, hatred, sorrow, and happiness. When negative emotions like fury, remorse, resentment, jealousy, killing intent, greed, and so on invaded the heart, one would turn cynical and even desire the destruction of the world. For many people, during moments of extreme dejection, they would suddenly question ¨C why did they have to live? This world was truly too disgusting. For the great majority of the time, this emotion was short-lived; this sort of negative thinking could be tossed to the back of the mind with a nap or a bath, to arise only at the next time one was unhappy. This sort of emotion vanished in a blink of an eye, but the gloomy qi borne from it still remained in the Heavens and Earth. It was precisely this anger, greed, and despair generated by humans themselves that the Worship of Ten Thousand Yao formation exploited to reachpletion. More than five thousand years ago, the yao world gradually waned in power. A rumor arose during that time, stating that the yao world would be weing its strongest emperor who would lead the yao race to new horizons. This rumor had disappeared along with the great yao and was gradually forgotten by the yao cultivators. Even among the yao cultivators who survived the ancient era, the majority of them did not take this rumor to be true. The yao race prized strength above all else, but it didn¡¯t need a yao emperor. Fu Li could hear many voices ¨C happy ones, sorrowful ones, desperate ones, and hopeful ones. A colossal voice filled with despair and pain was calling out to him, waiting for him to save it. My emperor, we are awaiting your awakening. Who are you? We are your people. Tortured souls wailing in anguish stretched as far as Fu Li could see. Their facial features were distorted, their souls iplete. Unable to reincarnate, their only fate was for their soul to slowly dissipate in the stream of time. Fu Li felt their wrath and unwillingness as if it belonged to him. He hated the unjust heavenlyw and hated the humans who were clearly weak yet upied the earth. The yao race absorbed the essence of the sun and moon and cultivated a long-lived body with much difficulty, and now they had to voluntarily drop dead just because heavenlyw needed the humans to prosper? Unfair! This was unfair! How hateful, how hateful! He wanted... these humans to kneel and worship the yao race, to be enved by the yao race for generations upon generations. Zhuang Qing realized that the Fu Li in his arms had opened his eyes, his body of fiery fur so gorgeous that it was a little ominous. ¡°Dragon?¡± Golden pupils stared at Zhuang Qing. There was no emotion in his eyes, as if he merely viewed Zhuang Qing as an underling who only needed to crawl by his feet. The unease in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart intensified as he gazed at Fu Li in his embrace. His expression was alien to him. Pressing down his heart that was jumping aboutwlessly, he asked, ¡°Fu Li, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± ¡°Ignorant little yao, I am the emperor of the yao race, who permitted you to call me by my name?¡± Fu Li jumped down from Zhuang Qing¡¯s body, turning into his human form. The zing red streak on his forehead emanated formidable yao power. ¡°Fu Li&#k2026;¡± Zhuang Qing stretched out a hand to block him from walking towards the heart of the formation, but Fu Li pushed his hand away, the palm of his hand mming against Zhuang Qing¡¯s chest. ¡°Rude junior.¡± This one palm of his was not light. Zhuang Qing took two to three steps back, forcibly swallowing the blood that gushed up his throat. Maybe he hadn¡¯t swallowed blood but thousand year old ice, otherwise why would his heart be this cold? A few hours ago, they had still been looking forward to seeing what their celebratory clothes looked like, how many guests would be present at their Dao Bonding Ceremony, and how many banquet tables they would need to set up. So why had things turned out like this? The heart of the formation was still absorbing the spiritual qi of the Five Elements in the Heavens and Earth. Ominous qi grew thicker and thicker in their surroundings. Almost four-fifths of the sky had already darkened. Several rays of light shed across the sky. Those from the management bureau with higher cultivation had already rushed over. Taking the lead was not Ning Xuan or Chao Yun, but Gong Fu and the Kunpeng, who freeloaded from the management bureau without doing any work. Gong Fu and the Kunpeng had such uglyplexions that the sky seemed like it was about to copse. Expressions of terror and disbelief decorated the faces of Song Yu, Chu Yu, and the other yao following behind them. Chu Yu was worried after discovering that Fu Li wasn¡¯t beside Zhuang Qing. ¡°Boss, where¡¯s Fu ge?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t pay any heed to him. Taking out his natal sword, he went in pursuit of Fu Li. ¡°Don¡¯t go,¡± The Baize held Zhuang Qing back. As an elder who loved Fu Li dearly, he might wear a heavy expression but was better able to ept this matter than Zhuang Qing. ¡°He¡¯s already awakened, you can¡¯t touch him.¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the Baize¡¯s hand away, his gloomy eyes directed at him. ¡°You¡¯re too calm for an elder.¡± The management bureau people who had just rushed over were somewhat confused. Seeing the surging undercurrent between Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s elder, even more so did they not dare to speak. Those with more courage turned towards Gong Fu in search of answers. Gong Fu shook his head, not uttering a single word as he watched Fu Li slowly approach the heart of the formation in the distance, his expression one of sadness and sympathy. The fate and ending of certain yao were foreordained from the moment of their birth. Even before the Hou had arrived on this earth, Father had foreseen that its birth would send waves of shock through the world. Not only was the Hou capable of moving mountains and ttening the sea, what was scariest was his innate ability to corrode. As long as he willed it, any living creature that came in contact with him would burn to a crisp in a mere blink of an eye. A yao beast who could bring about destruction from birth was doomed to not be auspicious, it could only be a... fiend. ¡°What¡¯s Fu ge going to do?¡¯ Ning Xuan, who had rushed over in a flurry, recognized Fu Li from the back. He had simply not dared to recognize him for a moment because Fu Li¡¯s walking posture and his qi differed from usual. Unfortunately, no one answered his question. ¡°If you touch him now, you will be like that Feiyi¡¯s ancestor and turn to ashes under the sun,¡± The Baize pointed at the shrubs that had withered to ashes beneath Fu Li¡¯s feet. ¡°Nothing can escape the Hou¡¯s ability to destroy.¡± ¡°Hou?!¡± Chu Yu stared nkly. ¡°What¡¯s a Hou?¡± Wasn¡¯t Fu ge a rabbit yao? Why had things suddenly turned so strange? Also, the Feiyi from Hunxi Mountain had once said that his ancestor had turned to ashes all of a sudden. But no yao cultivator outside of their management bureau knew of this matter. Based on the upational standards of the management bureau¡¯s staff, it was impossible for Fu ge to have told his family¡¯s elders about it, so how had this eldere to learn about it? The crux of the matter was... why did this elder say that Fu ge was connected to the Feiyi¡¯s ancestor turning to ash? ording to the Feiyi¡¯s statement, the Feiyi who had turned to ash had lived approximately more than three thousand years ago. Fu ge couldn¡¯t have been more than a few hundred years old at that time, how could he have done such a thing? The ground suddenly shook violently, as if something was about to break through the earth. Zhuang Qing stared at the small cracks that had split open on the ground. His sword shot over abruptly, an intense golden glow shining at the tip of the sword. The yao beast who had just shown half its head found itself dropping down. ¡°Who is it?¡± The yao beast was in a rage. Shoving aside the surrounding mountain stones, it let out a furious roar. This yao beast had the body of a leopard, two horns on its head, as well as thick dragon qi. The yao beast scanned its surroundings and saw Zhuang Qing with a sharp sword in hand, ready to attack. But when he caught sight of Gong Fu standing not too far behind Zhuang Qing, half his anger instantly dissipated. ¡°Gong Fu?¡± Seeing Gong Fu¡¯s weak dragon qi and his even weaker auspicious qi that bordered on pitiful, delight at Gong Fu¡¯s misfortune could be seen on his face. ¡°And I thought you¡¯d died long ago, I didn¡¯t expect you to still be dragging out your ignoble existence.¡± He and Gong Fu were dragon sons, but Father wasn¡¯t very fond of him, saying that he liked ughter by nature and was a beast without good fortune and morals. In contrast, he couldn¡¯t be more fond of Gong Fu who was bornter. It was just a pity that Father had died too soon, otherwise he would definitely drag Father over to see Gong Fu¡¯s current appearance. With how weak his dragon qi was, could he even be considered a dragon son? ¡°Yazi?¡± Gong Fu never thought that he would meet his half brother here and with such an appearance. He reminded the yao from the management bureau with a dark expression, ¡°Yazi is the best atbat among all of Father¡¯s children. In the past when humans strongly believed in supernatural beings, Yazi had another title in the human world ¨C God of War. In the past, many countries¡¯ generals liked to carve his true form on their weapons as a way of imploring for the divine strength of the God of War, so that they would triumph in every battle.¡± ¡°What? Very disappointed to see me alive and kicking?¡¯ Yazi crawled out of the crack. He shook the soil off his body and gave a bellow before transforming into a man d in golden armor. His hand gripped a sharp hatchet, ire written on his soldier-like face. ¡°I was merely taking a nap here and all of you caused the mountain to rock back and forth, how am I supposed to sleep?¡± ¡°This formation wasn¡¯t created by you?¡± Gong Fu¡¯splexion turned even uglier. This formation required dragon qi in order to be activated, and as the dragon son who had inherited the most of Father¡¯s divine power, Yazi¡¯s dragon qi couldn¡¯t be any stronger. Moreover, his dragon qi was also the purest. ¡°Why would I ce a formation beside me?¡¯ Yazi nced back at the eye of the formation in the mountain and couldn¡¯t help cursing, ¡°Who came up with this? Are they crazy?¡± Rather than say that the yao emperor forcibly awakened by the magic formation was the strongest of all yao, they would be better off calling it an irrational monster that only knew destruction. Thinking of this, Yazi jumped back into the crack he had just crawled out of before leaping back out a short whileter. He turned and made to run, but came face to face with the Baize before he had even taken two steps. ¡°I was wondering who¡¯s so familiar, turns out it¡¯s the Baize,¡± Yazi took two steps back, smiling awkwardly. ¡°We haven¡¯t met for thousands of years and you¡¯ve be increasingly vivacious.¡± Yazi had the least patience when it came to interacting with divine beasts like the Baize. But the Baize just had to be a divine beast from the same generation as his father, so no matter how poorly mannered he was, he still had to show some restraint in front of the Baize. ¡°Yazi, who knows you¡¯re resting here?¡± The Baize blocked Yazi¡¯s road, preventing him from slipping off. ¡°All my subjects,¡± Yazi nced up at the sky that was only left with a trace of light, feeling slightly anxious. When the sky turnedpletely dark, he wouldn¡¯t be able to run off any longer. ¡°Who are those subjects?¡± The Baize continued questioning him. In a moment of desperation, Yazi didn¡¯t think about why the all-knowing Baize had to ask him about such things. He merely shook his head impatiently. ¡°Just some little yao who want to lead their lives with me, why would this king remember their names?¡± The Baize and Gong Fu were both aware that Yazi wasn¡¯t lying; he really was that sort of brainless character. Gong Fu gripped the golden armor on Yazi¡¯s body and sighed. ¡°Elder brother, your dragon qi has been exploited and became one of the catalysts for awakening the yao emperor. The karma is too great, how will you return it in the future if you leave now?¡± ¡°Mine?¡± Yazi looked like he had received a bolt from the blue. Angered into turning back into his original form, he stomped heavily on the ground. ¡°That son of a b*tch dared to scheme against me?!¡± He was the source of the dragon qi in the Worship of Ten Thousand Yao formation; wasn¡¯t this just digging a grave for him! He merely wanted to obtain Father¡¯s inheritance, how had he been implicated in so many things? The sky turnedpletely dark, as if Yazi¡¯s enraged roar had broken thest barrier holding back the Worship of Ten Thousand Yao formation. The heart of the formation was a deep, borderless darkness. Inexhaustible spiritual qi and evil qi poured out of the heart of the formation. One of Fu Li¡¯s feet stepped into the heart of the formation. ¡°Fu Li!¡± Fu Li turned to look at the little dragon running towards him. The tips of his brows furrowed slightly. Spiritual qi gathered in the hollow of his palm, giving off a dark red glow. Bright red symbolized passion and vividness, but sometimes dark red symbolized death. ¡°Zhuang Qing, don¡¯t go over,¡± The Baize didn¡¯t think that Zhuang Qing would still dare to get close at this juncture. He hurriedly went forward and blocked Zhuang Qing. ¡°He¡¯s not the usual Fu Li now. See how the mark on his forehead is gone? That means he¡¯s already awakened all of the Hou¡¯s power.¡± ¡°Including destruction.¡± ¡°Then do you know what¡¯s inside the heart of the formation?¡± Although Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t know everything under the Heavens like the Baize, he had a premonition that he could not let Fu Li enter the heart of the formation. Definitely not. ¡°It¡¯s... the resentment and unreconciled emotions of the deceased yao cultivators.¡± ¡°Fu Li is the emperor who will help them take revenge.¡± ¡°But Fu Li said he only wants to get into university and be a civil servant,¡± Zhuang Qing pushed the Baize away and flung the sword in his hand to one side. ¡°I won¡¯t let him step onto the wrong path. Once he does...¡± ¡°He will never be able to be a civil servant in the future.¡± And then, Zhuang Qing went after Fu Li without looking back. Chapter 133 - Hes Back

Chapter 133 - He¡¯s Back

In Fu Li¡¯s eyes, the hatred-filled world was ck and red, containing an unbearable repulsiveness that tainted virtually all aspects of it. His people ¨C countless yao ns ¨C were struggling in this repulsiveness. Just like ants washed away by a flood, they drifted along the currents of fate, only for their corpses to eventually rest at the bottom of the sea. ¡°Fu Li!¡± ¡°Fu Li!¡± Fu Li retracted the foot that had stepped into the heart of the formation, turning to look at the man sprinting towards him. In this red and ck world, this man actually gave off a golden glow. The light was not striking in the overwhelming ck and red, but it gripped all of Fu Li¡¯s attention. He raised a hand, looking at his fair palm, and then spread out his five fingers. With just a smidgen of force, this little dragon that radiated golden light would vanish before him. But for some reason unknown to him, his body seemed to have lost its usual awareness. His meridians were in chaos, and his mind violently resisted the order. Furrowing his brows, he ced the hand behind his back, allowing the man that morphed from dragon to grab the other hand. His body possessed a powerful ability to corrode. The instant the man came into contact with him, he smelled the scent of burning flesh. What stupefied him was that even then, the man still didn¡¯t let go. His brows furrowed even further, and he subconsciously controlled his innate ability, withdrawing his innate corrosion. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Fu Li, you said you wanted to go to university and be a civil servant. And... you promised the past me that you would take a good look at this world on my behalf. Have you forgotten all of that?¡± Zhuang Qing felt Fu Li withdrawing his corrosion ability and joy reverberated in his heart. Even under the influence of the summoning formation, Fu Li still couldn¡¯t bear to hurt him. ¡°Civil servant?¡± There was a clear understanding of civil servants in Fu Li¡¯s mind. He sneered, ¡°It¡¯s nothing more than the job of lowly humans, why would I want to be one?¡± He kicked Zhuang Qing aside, towering over him. ¡°Little dragon, retreat to one side, otherwise I¡¯ll kill you.¡± ¡°If I had to let you walk into this formation, I¡¯d rather let you kill me,¡± Zhuang Qing stretched out a hand, and the sword he had tossed to a corner flew into his grip. ¡°Fu Li, you told me humans are very interesting, and that they had strong creativity and many interesting personalities. Did you forget all that too?¡± ¡°But humans also have many hateful characteristics ¨C greed, selfishness, jealousy...¡± Fu Liughed bitterly. ¡°The water was polluted by them, the trees were cut down by them, and even the sea that is home to you aquatic races have been sullied by all sorts of secretions. Wouldn¡¯t it be better for such disgusting creatures to vanish from this world?¡± The thundering clouds in the skies roiled. The entire sky was illuminated from the glow of lightning, but when lightning disappeared, the sky was only an expanse of ck, just like an enormous ck hole that would never see sunlight, moonlight, or starlight. Zhuang Qing looked up at the sky. That area was especially still, so still that it made him uneasy. What was brewing there? Was it tribtion clouds of unrivaled strength? Or heavenlyw¡¯s dissatisfaction towards a certain race? ¡°You draw your sword because you want to kill me?¡± Fu Li¡¯sughter was filled with ridicule for Zhuang Qing. He wasughing at Zhuang Qing¡¯s wild imagination and also mocking the gutlessness of the other yao cultivators. He raised his chin. His loathing for the yao cultivators present was palpable in every motion and gaze. ¡°Baize, Kunpeng, Yazi, Gong Fu...¡± He nced from the corner of his eyes at the other yao cultivators from the management bureau, toozy to even call out their names. ¡°Are you afraid of me? Or deep down in your heart, are you also looking forward to me destroying this human world so that my yao race can recover its glory?¡± The Baize took a few steps forward, his gaze fixed on this unfamiliar Fu Li. He closed his years. The year the Xing Xing and Dangkang brought Fu Li back, he had disapproved of raising a fiend with an unknown nature. But before he had even voiced his objections, he met Fu Li¡¯s ck and limpid eyes. Fu Li couldn¡¯t be tinier back then. White fur covered a body that wasn¡¯t even asrge as a mouse. When those ck, watery eyes stared at him, he had the misperception that even the sound of his breathing was too loud. Many fiends were small and weak during their infant period. A proportion of them would have iparably ugly appearances and sharp needles all over their bodies to enable their survival, while others would appear especially cute or good-looking to muddle the minds of other creatures. The Baize had a very clear understanding of this. But when he looked upon the feeble and helpless Fu Li, his thoughts at that time were to first observe and then sort him out if he did anything wrong. And then, more than four thousand years went by. During this period, he had concocted medicinal pills for the yao child, told him stories, dressed him, fed him, and taught him how to draw talismans. Even when the child was stirring up a ruckus and being disobedient, all he did was pick him up by the ears and give him a scare. He had never even raised a hand against him once. To be looked at with such a gaze by the child he had personally brought up, the Baize felt an ice-cold wind scrape past what felt like his empty valley of a heart. His heart felt so cold that it hurt. ¡°All living things in the world have their ownws of prosperity and decay. Even if you kill off all humans, there will be other creatures that take their ce,¡± The Baize walked very slowly, taking every step with the utmost stability. ¡°There will be a day when humans get their just deserts for polluting the environment and wasting Heaven and Earth¡¯s natural resources. Their fate will change, but their punishment shouldn¡¯t be up to you. It is Heaven and Earth who makes the decision.¡± Compared to the races who had also once prospered, the humans were probably the species who had risen the fastest. But given their ways of living, they would probably also be the fastest species to go extinct. ¡°The yao race is weak. The whole world has entered a era without magic not because of the humans, but because the yao race employed their power without restraint, overturning mountains and seas, and wantonly murdering other living creatures,¡± The Baize pointed at the sky. ¡°There is a limit to everything. The Heavens see everything that all races do. If too many wrongs aremitted, their eventual fate can only be Heaven¡¯s Wrath.¡± ¡°The yao race has already done wrong, don¡¯t tell me you want to repeat the same mistakes?¡± The Baize came to a halt below the steps and looked up at Fu Li, who was standing on the steps. ¡°It¡¯s all right if you¡¯re unresigned, it¡¯s also fine if you¡¯re angry, but you should let go of the yao race. Time will never turn back, and the yao race will also not recover its past splendor because of ughter. As long as you¡¯re alive and living well, there is hope. If you insist on going against heavenlyw, then only extinction awaits us yao.¡± Fu Li gazed at the jet-ck sky, smiling coldly. ¡°The strong die, and the weak also die. If those useless yao trash die, then they die. What use is there in living?¡± Upon hearing these words, Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li¡¯s eyes. Red flickered within his ck eyes. They were a gorgeous sight, no gem in this world could be more beautiful than them. But they were dead; there was no emotion in them, nor was there him. ¡°My emperor, you¡¯re right. If ipetent yao cultivators die, then they die. This world has no need for cowardly and ipetent creatures.¡± Nine monsters crawled out of a crack behind the summoning formation. These monsters resembled both snakes and Jiao. They possessed sharp fangs and theirughter sounded like an infant¡¯s wail. Despite having a cultivation of more than a thousand years, yao like Chu Yu and Ning Xuan were unable to resist theughter. Covering their ears, they spat out blood. Gong Fu erected a barrier around them, and only then did their minds feel more at ease. They looked upon the nine monsters who had emerged abruptly with immense difort in their hearts. They could be considered well-known figures in the cultivation world, but when they really came into contact with these great yao, they had no way of resisting the other¡¯sughter, let alone fight it. The difference in strength was too great. Looking at the ink-ck sky, the worry in their hearts deepened. ¡°Song Yu, what¡¯s this nine-headed monster?¡± Chu Yu asked Song Yu beside him. As a yao cultivator who had survived the ancient times, Song Yu definitely knew the identity of this monster. ¡°It doesn¡¯t have nine heads but a single head,¡± Song Yu¡¯s lips paled with fright. His voice shook as he spoke. ¡°This yao beast is called Jiuying.¡± Jiuying had nine heads and cultivated the Dao of both fire and water. Its cultivation was profound and it was adept at scheming. It was a very famous evil beast during ancient times. Song Yu had just responded when the nine-headed monster walked out. Its nine massive heads scanned every yao cultivator present before it transformed into its human form and walked to Fu Li, kneeling in worship before him. ¡°This subject is Jiuying. This subject greets His Majesty.¡± ¡°What are you?¡± Fu Li lowered his head to look at the man kneeling in front of him. His brows wrinkled slightly. ¡°This subject is the yao who summoned you, a faithful subject of yours,¡± Jiuying bowed, acknowledging his allegiance to Fu Li. Yazi¡¯s features twisted with fury from where he stood beside Gong Fu. ¡°That¡¯s also what he said when he relied on me for help.¡± Sure enough, a yaoguai with nine heads was shameless. He had too many faces, so casually throwing them into the trash wasn¡¯t an issue. ¡°Your subject stole your dragon qi and used it to set up a magic formation,¡± Gong Fu¡¯s expression was grave. Pity and helplessness filled the gaze he directed at Yazi. ¡°You¡¯d better pray that Fu Li doesn¡¯t really destroy the human world, otherwise...¡± Otherwise when heavenlyw settled the ounts, there would be no escape for Yazi either. Yazi¡¯s face darkened. He itched to pummel Jiuying to death, but when he caught sight of Fu Li standing in front of Jiuying, he instantly calmed down. What question couldn¡¯t be slowly talked over? What use was there in employing force? Even Yazi, who previously held the title of God of War among the yao, also understood what ¡®give and take¡¯ meant and to n before taking action. ¡°Subject?¡± Fu Li scoffed. Raising his chin high, he said coldly, ¡°Scram, I don¡¯t want an ugly and furless yao cultivator as my subject.¡± Despite the fact that his memories were being suppressed by the hatred that poured in from all directions, his body still remembered his disgust for snake-like creatures. Jiuying never thought that the yao emperor he had summoned would actually be of such entric character. But when he thought about how the yao emperor would soon wreck destruction on the world, he gave a deep, deferential bow and then withdrew to the side. Fu Li didn¡¯t even spare him a nce as he took a step towards the heart of the formation. Jiuying could barely suppress the smile on his face. At longst... at longst, he could take revenge for the humiliation he had suffered during those years. Ten thousand years ago, he was wounded by a certain human n and made to suffer from the Five Elements under the continued suppression of magic devices. He had vowed at that time that should he ever manage to leave, he would massacre all humans, no matter the price, as retribution for the ten thousand years of suffering he had been subjected to. ¡°Fu Li, you can¡¯t go,¡± Zhuang Qing pulled on Fu Li¡¯s arm without thinking. The resentment in the formation was increasing in force. Countless anguished howls sounded from within, resonating throughout the mountain. ¡°Ignorant junior, let go of His Majesty¡¯s hand,¡± Jiuying hated the meddlesome Zhuang Qing. Turning into his original form, he pounced at Zhuang Qing with his mouth wide open. ¡°Scram!¡± Fu Li sent Jiuying flying with a sh of his whip. He didn¡¯t even nce at Jiuying. ¡°I said long ago that furless, ugly creatures should keep their distance from me!¡± Chu Yu and Song Yu, who were hiding behind the barrier, simultaneously took several steps back. ¡°Let go!¡± Fu Li stared at the hand sping his wrist, his brows furrowing into a knot. ¡°Do you want to die?¡± ¡°If dying can prevent you from entering that ce, then I would rather die,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s clothes whipped about from the gusts of resentment. He stepped onto the first row of steps. ¡°Fu Li,e back with me?¡± Fu Li¡¯s head hurt a little. He wanted to kill this hindrance of a little dragon, but every time he raised his hand, his body would leave his control. Feeling somewhat vexed, he pushed Zhuang Qing aside and set up a barrier between them before looking at the Baize icily. ¡°What seal did you put on me that made me live like an ignorantrvae? I will definitely settle these ounts with all of you.¡± The Baize was silent as he stood there. Since Fu Li¡¯s awakening, his every word was heartless and ruthless, but not once had he truly intended to kill them. Didn¡¯t he want to destroy the human world? Why then was he turning a blind eye to the yao cultivators who shared a close rtionship with humans? The negative emotions in Heaven, Earth, and the Four Seas could influence Fu Li¡¯s mind, but it couldn¡¯t erase whaty in the depths of his soul. Half of Fu Li¡¯s body entered the heart of the formation. In a split second, the weather changed abruptly and the entire mountain shook. ¡°The flow of the ocean¡¯s currents cannot be forecast.¡± ¡°There¡¯s interference in the satellite monitoring data, urate data cannot be obtained.¡± ¡°Unable to detect the source of the malfunction.¡± ¡°The water levels at the various coastal areas are rising. Please decide if the emergency evacuation measures should be activated.¡± ¡°Manynd areas are seeing earthquakes lights, water and oil spurting out from the ground, anomalies in groundwater, and so on. The earthquake bureau suspects that these are the indications of an earthquake.¡± Emergency message after emergency message was transmitted to the headquarters of the major departments. The heads of the various departments looked up at the abnormally dark sky, and had an ominous premonition. ¡°Any news from the cultivators¡¯ management bureau?¡± ¡°All management bureau staff have already set out, but there is still no concrete information.¡± ¡°Contact Chief Zhuang.¡± ¡°Unable to connect.¡± ¡°Activate... the emergency escape systems. Minimize casualties as far as possible.¡± In the short span of an hour, the persons-in-charge of the various departments issued countless directives. Yet internally, they feltpletely unprepared for what was going to happen. These years, as science and technology developed at increasingly rapid speeds, humans seemed to have be omnipotent. Only when their surroundings turned strange and chaotic did theye to realize how insignificant humans were. They were not omnipotent, nor were they the rulers of Heaven and Earth. Netizens were still giddily ridiculing celebrities and television dramas online, and there were even peopleining about the poor weather and whether or not foreign hackers were causing trouble. An infant was crying at the top of their lungs. A young married couple was arguing over who should wash the dishes. A white-cored worker doing overtime was hesitating over whether or not they ought to order supper at the expense of their weight. After much pondering, they still ordered takeout. When the takeout arrived, a picture of it was posted to their Moments and they proimed themselves to be a foodie. After posting the picture, they took two bites, found the food too oily, and then threw the full box of food into the rubbish bin. Along a street, several men were stuffing themselves at a food stall while blowing their own trumpets. As they bragged about the great business that they would do, they wondered internally how they could escape from paying the bill withouting across too petty. The boss of the food stall was stir-frying heavily-seasoned vegetables with plenty of oil. He used his dustden towel to wipe the sweat on his face and then picked up arge te, dumping all the vegetables in the wok onto the te. Without any heed for the ting, he turned and shoved the te into the hands of his plump wife. The wife ced the te of vegetables onto a customer¡¯s table before wiping her oil-stained hands on her apron. The people along the noisy street were in high spirits. None of them cared about the stars or moon in the skies. No matter how dark the skies, they could still render the darkness of night as bright as daytime. The little bit of radiance from the stars and moon were dispensable to humans. Only bored people and dating couples would asionally think of using them as a way to express their moods. In the originally chaotic and noisy human world, no one sensed just how disorderly the Five Elements were, let alone know what had urred somece they couldn¡¯t see. The spiritual qi and resentment in the heart of the formation was a formidable temptation to Fu Li. In the instant he touched the heart of the formation, boundless power surged into his body, nourishing his every meridian and muscle. All he needed was to jump in. As long as he jumped into the heart of the formation, he would possess the power umted by countless yao cultivators and the power to rule over the world. ¡°Fu Li!¡± His arm was once again held back. Except for this arm, his entire person had already entered the heart of the formation. It seemed the chaotic Five Elements and dense resentment was immensely painful to this little dragon with virtue; Fu Li could see the other party¡¯s exposed flesh on his wrist as drop after drop of fresh blood dripped into the heart of the formation. This dragon was actually capable of breaking the barrier he set up? ¡°Useless, it¡¯s useless,¡± Jiuying cackled maniacally as he watched Fu Li enter the heart of the formation. ¡°He is the yao emperor born from the expectations of ten thousand yao. Once the formation ispleted, it can¡¯t be stopped. ¡°Heavenlyw!¡± Jiuying pointed at the Heavens. ¡°Since you¡¯re unjust, I¡¯ll show you the oue of these humans.¡± ¡°Baize daren, what does he mean by that?¡± Gong Fu¡¯splexion was exceedingly ugly. ¡°The Worship of Ten Thousand Yao and the birth of the yao emperor cannot be undone,¡± The Baize¡¯splexion wasn¡¯t much better than Gong Fu¡¯s. ¡°Even if Fu Li doesn¡¯t enter the heart of the formation, the formation will still be executed.¡± Which was why he didn¡¯t prevent Fu Li from stepping into the heart of the formation, because it would all be futile. Jiuying was too deeply immersed in his madness; he had actually gathered so much resentment from yao cultivators and used the entirend as a formation, viting the natural order of Heaven and Earth. Gong Fu nced at the already-withering vegetation around them. ¡°But if the formation isn¡¯t undone, the humans along with the other living creatures will not be able to escape. Is there really no solution?¡± ¡°There used to be one,¡± The Baize coughed a few times, hisplexion so pale that it was almost lifeless. ¡°The four divine beasts who guard the four directions of Heaven and Earth. With them around, this sort of situation wouldn¡¯t have happened.¡± Gong Fu and Yazi fell silent. Their father was one of the four divine beasts, but he had already faded five thousand years ago, so how was it possible for the four divine beasts to be gathered? ¡°The Blue Dragon has faded, the whereabouts of the White Tiger and ck Tortoise are unknown, the Vermilion Bird...¡± Two bird whistles sounded in the sky all of a sudden. A fiery-red Vermilion Bird and a multi-colored Fenghuang descended from the skies, stunning all the yao cultivators from the management bureau. T-The Vermilion Bird and Fenghuang, in the flesh? They grew even more amazed when the Vermilion Bird and Fenghuang turned into their original forms. Weren¡¯t these two Fu ge¡¯s elders? They were actually... the Fenghuang and Vermilion Bird?! Zhu Yue¡¯s first statement upon turning her human form was, ¡°How is Fu Li?¡± The Baize shook his head. ¡°Where¡¯s the Xing Xing and Old Kang?¡± The Baize nced behind them. Given how much they valued Fu Li, Old Kang and the Xing Xing should have already rushed over by now, unable to hold themselves back. ¡°The water level by the coast has risen, the Xing Xing and Dangkang rushed over with a few yao cultivators.¡± Staring at the Worship of Ten Thousand yao formation at the mountain, Zhu Yue said coldly, ¡°Who did this?¡± Her gaze swept across their surroundings. Discovering Jiuying kneeling outside the formation, she questioned with loathing, ¡°Jiuying?¡± She raised her sword with the intention of killing him, but was blocked by the Baize. ¡°He is the yao who activated the formation, we can¡¯t touch him.¡± To the yao emperor, the yao who summoned him was his faithful servant. Unless the yao emperor himself made a move, the death of this yao by the hands of another yao cultivator would be regarded as a provocation towards him. If not for this, why else would Jiuying still be alive and well now? But Fu Li had nowpletely lost his usual sense of reason, how was it possible that he would kill Jiuying? ¡°Your Majesty, this disgusting dragon has constantly been hindering your great cause, please let this servant eliminate...¡± Before Jiuying could finish his statement, ash of Fu Li¡¯s whip cut off eight of Jiuying¡¯s heads. He said coldly, ¡°I already mentioned twice that ugly yao cultivators should keep their distance from me. If you still can¡¯t get that in your head, then you have no need for yourst head.¡± Jiuying, who was now left with only one head, took consecutive steps backwards. Turning into his human form, he knelt in a concealed corner, not daring to step into Fu Li¡¯s line of sight. Only now did he truly understand what he had summoned. At the heart of the formation, Fu Li looked down at Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand. Thick white bones could already be seen, yet he refused to release his grip. The pain in his head grew more and more intense. With just one whip, this dragon would probably lose his hand. But despite the clear enticement of the power within the formation, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to push the dragon¡¯s hand away. What exactly had his body experienced to have such a senseless emotion? ¡°Could it be that... you want to jump in with me?¡¯ Fu Li suddenly got closer to Zhuang Qing. His voice was hoarse. ¡°Unfortunately, the golden glow of virtue surrounds your entire body. I¡¯m afraid the yao cultivators below won¡¯t be very weing towards you.¡± ¡°I smell my scent on you,¡± He tapped the back of Zhuang Qing¡¯s hand and the palm that was originally only left with bones was restored to its fleshy appearance. Fu Li pushed Zhuang Qing away. ¡°Scram, I won¡¯t kill you.¡± ¡°You really can¡¯t recall the past you at all?¡± Zhuang Qing slowly drew his sword from its sheath. ¡°If I have to let you forget me and let you throw the entire world into chaos, then I might as well kill you now.¡± Fu Li watched the hand gripping the sword tremble slightly and let out a lightugh. ¡°You want to kill me?¡± Zhuang Qing stared at Fu Li¡¯s eyes. These eyes... were not Fu Li¡¯s eyes. He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. An abruptugh let loose from his lips. ¡°I have to protect both the yao and human world and naturally will not permit you to cause trouble. But I am also your lover and naturally will not betray you. I¡¯ll kill you, and then vanish from this world with you, okay?¡± The howls of grief under the formation were bing fiercer, as if they would break through the heart of the formation in a sh and arrive in this world. This dragon was clearly smiling, but Fu Li¡¯s heart told him that he wasn¡¯t lying. ¡°The celebratory hall in the flying pce is already ready, and the whole of the cultivation world knows we will soon hold our Dao Bonding Ceremony. Our celebratory clothes are the grandest and most beautiful in the entire cultivation world.¡± The smile on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face dimmed. ¡°But if you don¡¯t want all these, then I won¡¯t want them as well!¡± ¡°Fu Li, I don¡¯t fear death.¡± Dao Bonding Ceremony, celebratory clothes... Fu Li looked down at the departed spirits and souls of the dead that were crawling out of the heart of the formation. A foot stomped down on a departed spirit and with a miserable screech, the departed spirit morphed into ash. He clearly ought to release the departed spirits of the yao cultivators, yet his first reaction was to destroy them. Fu Li studied his disobedient foot. When he raised his head, a few drops of a fishy and hot substancended on the mark on his forehead. It was... this dragon¡¯s heart¡¯s blood. Pain. There was unending pain. Every breath put him in unbearable pain. His blood-red eyes widened. This dragon actually schemed against him. Things shouldn¡¯t have turned out this way... But what should it have turned out to be? Why did he feel like this dragon wasn¡¯t a threat to him at all? The Vermilion Bird guarded the southern area of Heaven and Earth. Her appearance suppressed a proportion of the formation¡¯s power. It was also at this moment that Zhuang Qing seized the opportunity to rouse Fu Li. He wasn¡¯t only the Aquatic Emperor and the dragon of national fate, but also the dragon who had inherited the Blue Dragon¡¯s legacy. He was equivalent to the new generation¡¯s divine beast of the east. It was only that Heaven and Earth no longer needed divine beasts, so practically no yao cultivator had taken note of this. Heart¡¯s blood was a yao cultivator¡¯s most precious blood essence. If Fu Li still couldn¡¯t be roused, then he... would apany Fu Li and jump into the heart of the formation. ¡°This is... Father¡¯s power,¡± Yazi suddenly turned and looked at Zhuang Qing. ¡°Why does he possess Father¡¯s power?!¡± Gong Fu also hadn¡¯t expected Zhuang Qing to possess his father¡¯s inheritance. He turned towards Feng Ruizhong. ¡°You gave Father¡¯s inheritance to Zhuang Qing?!¡± Feng Ruizhong: ... This matter had really been an ident, but who would believe him even if he said it? ¡°Look at what¡¯s happening, you¡¯re still so concerned about the inheritance?!¡± Hundun, who had restrained himself for a very long time, reached the end of his patience. ¡°All you auspicious beasts are just so sentimental. Think about the past reasons and future causes when doing things, who says the four divine beasts have to be gathered for the formation to be suppressed?! As long as the yao emperor...¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Feng Ruizhong shot an icy re at Hundun, his gaze as sharp as a sword. Hundun had an innate fear towards the Fenghuang, so with this one re from Feng Ruizhong, he didn¡¯t dare to voice the remaining words. Song Yu nced at Feng Ruizhong and then looked at Hundun. A vague guess took shape in his heart and he stole a nce in Fu Li¡¯s direction. Lowering his head, he kept silent. Zhu Yue was pumping spiritual energy into Heaven and Earth nonstop, but her divine powers were primarily used for protecting the south, so although the Five Elements in the south were gradually restored to normal, the other three directions showed no sign of improvement. When midnight came, the human world would wee the dark and chaotic days of torrential floods and consecutive earthquakes, when sand would fly and stones would roll. At the various important bureaus, all the staff were keeping vigil in their meeting rooms. The phone operators made call after call unceasingly, without even the time to take a sip of water. ¡°Any news from the management bureau?¡± ¡°The management bureau issued a high-danger warning. After the appearance of strange beasts caught on surveince at the coasts, the water levels stopped rising continuously.¡± At this moment, the sect leader and elders of the Fields Sect bumped into the Qing Xiao Sect as they were flying through the sky. The two sects met the other¡¯s gaze and continued on their way without enquiring about their destination. Soon after, halfway through their flight, they once again encountered human and yao cultivators rushing from all directions. Whether a nation flourished or decayed was the responsibility of themon people. Moreover, this matter concerned the survival or death of the human world. If they did not step up, who else would prevent the disaster from urring? ¡°If the yao emperor is willing to suppress the formation, this cmity can be avoided,¡± The Baize¡¯s voice shook. ¡°Once the yao emperor turns his back on his people, it will backfire against him. Eventually... his body will die and his Dao will dissipate.¡± ¡°Baize!¡± Feng Ruizhong raised his voice. ¡°Are you crazy?!¡± The Baizeughed bitterly. He transformed into his original form, the warm white light that emanated from his body dispersing the surrounding resentment. As an auspicious beast, he was born to disperse evil and protect Heaven and Earth¡¯s people. Even if he was forgotten by the humans, he couldn¡¯t forget his duty. Auspicious light illuminated the nts, flowers, and animals before eventually shining onto Fu Li. ¡°What name did you give me?¡± ¡°Fu Li.¡± ¡°What does Fu Li mean?¡± ¡°Fu ¨C a symbol of the auspicious...¡± Fu Li suddenly opened his eyes amidst the pain. Seeing Zhuang Qing, who was bleeding at the chest, he shed a grin. Fishing out a Replenishing Qi pill from his Qiankun pouch, he shoved it into Zhuang Qing¡¯s mouth. ¡°Don¡¯t recklessly bleed.¡± ¡°Fu Li, you¡¯re awake?¡± Zhuang Qing couldn¡¯t be bothered about the Replenishing Qi pill in his mouth and swallowed it without even chewing. He made to leave the formation, pulling Fu Li by the hand. ¡°Quick,e out.¡± Fu Li didn¡¯t move. Pulling Zhuang Qing back, he kissed him on the face. Zhuang Qing was dumbfounded by his sudden action, his handsome face appearing somewhat foolish. ¡°The Hou is even more mighty and majestic than what I had imagined, I¡¯m very satisfied,¡± Fu Li beamed as he patted Zhuang Qing¡¯s chest. ¡°Do you know why my surname is Fu?¡± ¡°Because Fu is a symbol of the auspicious,¡± Fu Li cocked his head smilingly as he looked towards the Baize, Zhu Yue, Feng Ruizhong, and everyone else behind Zhuang Qing. ¡°There are no fiends on our Reflecting Mist Mountain, only auspicious beasts.¡± He pped a palm against Zhuang Qing¡¯s chest. This palm of his was exceedingly heavy, and it sent Zhuang Qing¡¯s entire body mming into the Baize. The auspicious light emanating from the Baize came to an abrupt stop. Zhuang Qing climbed up frantically and saw Fu Li roaring in the heart of the formation in his original form. Snow-white fur, golden eyes, and a tail that swayed slightly in the breeze. On this night, many people heard a roar. Some said it was a dragon, some said it was a tiger, and others said it was a lion. However, all these discussions were very quickly forgotten by theizens. Because they were busy caring about new events, too busy keeping tabs on new celebrities, and too busy to think too much. But that morning when the curtains were pulled open, a dazzlingly golden sun greeted them. Feeling like the sun was particrly piercing, they pulled the curtains back with some resentment. Some switched on the television and found that the morning news had suddenly started emphasizing the importance of protecting the environment, developing energy sources in a controlled manner, and that the various countries had convened a meeting on environmental protection on some date and location. However, everyone had listened to too many of such slogans, and practically no one took it seriously. Only after policy after policy was carried out and the air quality became better and better did everyone realize that environmental protection was not just a slogan. There were many things humans were not aware of. They were constantly busy and constantly running here and there, making a huge fuss for every minor thing. They didn¡¯t know that a certain mountain that went missing two thousand years ago had been returned by a certain mysterious creature. They didn¡¯t know that a very important ceremony was cancelled on the eighteenth of a certain month. They also didn¡¯t know that the dimensions spoken of in novels truly existed. The flowers in Zhuang Qing¡¯s vi had blossomed. Every color under the sun, they made for a beautiful sight. He sat on the steps, watching the flowers that had bloomed in the snow, allowing the frost and snow to pile on his head. Half the night went by, and an extra snowman appeared before him. The snowman was a little on the plump side andy sprawled on the ground, resembling both a rabbit and a dog. Zhuang Qing sat there for an entire night, guarding this lump of snow that looked both like a dog and rabbit. The Nian didn¡¯t appear this lunar new year. His gaze on the gate of the vi was exceedingly calm. ¡°Boss,¡± Chu Yu and the other staff members stood outside the gate, waving at him. They were carrying things in all manner of sizes. ¡°Happy new year!¡± Zhuang Qing stood up, and only then realized the heavy cloak of snow on his shoulders. He dusted off the ice and snow, and opened the yard gate to let them in. ¡°Boss, we came to give you things on the first day of the lunar new year, so you¡¯ll definitely make a fortune this year and encounter all sorts of good things,¡± Carrying items of all sizes, he headed towards the vi. When he saw the deep footprints at the door and the lifelike snow sculpture in front of the footprints, he came to a halt. The staff following behind him had also seen this snowman. They couldn¡¯t utter a single word, just like ducks with their necks strangled. ¡°What are you doing standing here? Go in,¡± Zhuang Qing said expressionlessly. ¡°All of you are listless during work but be lively the minute it¡¯s the holidays. If you can be this energetic during work, then our management bureau won¡¯t have to recruit new staff every few years.¡± The first to return to his senses, Chu Yu squeezed through the gate, all smiles. The rest followed along in banter as they walked through the vi¡¯s gate. However, everyone cautiously avoided the snow sculpture, not daring to even take an additional nce at it. The snow still hadn¡¯t stopped at noon. Xu Yuan and Chu Yu finished cooking and was about to call Zhuang Qing to eat when they saw him standing by the window, silently looking at the gate. Xu Yuan¡¯s footsteps stilled. She couldn¡¯t bring herself to open her mouth. She peeked outside the windows. Half the snow sculpture¡¯s body was buried in the snow, half its head still vaguely visible. But it already didn¡¯t seem like... Didn¡¯t seem like Fu ge¡¯s original form. In the East Sea, the Kunpeng was leisurely catching fish to eat. He was in quite a good mood. The humans seemed to have turned over a new leaf during the past few years and had started to vigorously control the levels of water pollution. Because of this, the fish in the sea had be much tastier as well. When he swam past the azure dragon pce and saw those little dragon children shivering in fear, the Kunpeng¡¯s mood brightened even further. But before he made it very far, he heard a faint, familiar voice. He broke through the surface of the water and smelled thick spiritual qi. The Baize and Dangkang were fishing at sea. ¡°Fishing during winter ¨C you must be insane!¡± The Kunpeng swished his tail and dove head-first back into the water. At a bustling street, people out for recreation could be seen everywhere. A young man and a woman with long hair trailing over her shoulders met along the street. ¡°Chu Yi, long time no see.¡± ¡°Long time no see, the spiritual qi in the human world seems particrly abundant this year, so I woke up.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great.¡± ¡°Yup,¡± Chu Yu¡¯s smile was happy and warm. ¡°Why are you here alone?¡± ¡°I went out on a long trip and just came back. I saw you, so I came over to say hi.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the case, happy new year.¡± ¡°Happy new year. Thank you for the Spring Jade you gave me, it was a great help.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Chu Yu smiled in jubtion. ¡°Really,¡± The young man¡¯s lips curved into a smile, his eyes like crescent moons. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wee. Quickly head home, your loved ones must be waiting for you.¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± The young man came to a stop outside the gate of the vi that was adorned with decorative flower patterns. Gazing at the familiar decorative flowers, the young man smiled. ¡°Mr Fu, you¡¯re back?¡± A security guard passed by and saw the man, his face revealing a subtle amazement. Smiling, he greeted the man. For the two years Mr Fu hadn¡¯t been home, Mr Zhuang also hadn¡¯t been fond of going out. ¡°Yup, I¡¯m back.¡± The young man shed a smile at the security guard before pressing the doorbell. The snow sculpture at the gate had already beenpletely buried by the snow. Hearing the sound of the doorbell, Zhuang Qing nced at his colleagues who were seated at the dining table eating and drinking. Pulling open the door, he headed out. As he was going down the steps, he nced down at his feet and crouched down, digging out the snow sculpture buried in snow. But even then, the snow sculpture that had fused with snow no longer seemed like him. Zhuang Qing cradled the snow sculpture in his palms, removing the excess ice and snow on its head bit by bit. He turned towards the yard gate. Outside the iron gate decorated with flowers, the young man met his gaze with a smile as bright and warm as the rising sun. Ilyz: Tranted this chapter with my tears ?? This is the end of the main text and the remaining five extras will be posted in a few hours! Any questions you have will probably be answered in the extras. Chapter 134 - Extra: Open the Door

Chapter 134 - Extra: Open the Door

Fu Li was never a daring yao cultivator. After being shocked by the Feiyi at the age of five hundred, he developed an innate sense of repulsiveness towards furless creatures. He feared death, feared separation, and also feared dying. Since learning about the true identities of the Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s elders, he had always thought of himself as an auspicious beast ¨C the very impressive type. But the heart¡¯s blood that sshed onto his face and the auspicious glow of light that Elder Baize nearly burned all his life for was sobering. He wasn¡¯t an auspicious beast but a fiend, one that was capable of bringing about destruction ¨C the legendary yao emperor. He didn¡¯t want to die. He wanted to live well. He wanted to organize a Dao Bonding Ceremony with Zhuang Qing. He wanted to wear the most beautiful, most magnificent celebratory clothes and let the whole cultivation world be jealous of him. But if he didn¡¯t die, countless people would. Along with Elder Baize, Sister Zhu Yue, and even Zhuang little dragon... When he pped Zhuang Qing aside with a single palm, Fu Li felt like he couldn¡¯t be more handsome, just like those great heroes in movies who chose to die for the sake of the world. The Hou was born because of the Seven Emotions and Six Desires in the world, and would probably also die because of them. He wanted to tell Zhuang Qing that his original form this time was definitely very mighty and majestic. Fortunately, when he transformed into his original form this time, his fur was not red but a snow-like white. After learning that he was a Hou, he had wondered why he didn¡¯t possess any n inheritance or have innate skills like the Kunpeng despite being a yao born because of Heaven and earth. He understood now. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t have them, but that Reflecting Mist Mountain¡¯s elders had sealed those abilities so he could live in peace. But Heaven had mandated that no matter how much his elders foretold, a foreordained destiny could not be altered. Which was why, knowing what capabilities one had might not always be a good thing. It was still better for a yao to live a bit more muddled. A Hou¡¯s soul was the most formidable strength of will. He jumped into the heart of the formation and upon releasing his sea of consciousness, felt the yao race¡¯s most painful sufferings. Massacre, devastation, hatred. They hated the humans, hated the other cultivators, and hated him, the yao emperor who abandoned them. They were going to vanish in this Heaven and Earth, so they would bring this traitor of an emperor along with them. Only then would their hatred fade. Fu Li felt that the way he died wasn¡¯t at all sensational. To Fu Li, fighting five hundred rounds with the viins and bleeding oceans were more in line with the character setting of a hero. He hadn¡¯t even been a yao emperor for a night and was already overthrown by his people. How inspirational, how tragic, how worthy of pity. As his soul gradually dissipated, a thought suddenly came to mind. He wanted to open his eyes and take another look at Zhuang Qing. But all he could see were the enraged souls of yao cultivators, as well as the souls disappearing amidst the Five Elements that were slowly returning to their normal state. Shrieks and sobs rode the winds and entered his ears. Watching the tormented souls within the formation, he swiftly did a series of hand gestures. ¡°By the life of the yao emperor, I dere all yao innocent. Follow Heaven and Earth back into the cycle of reincarnation.¡± As innocent as these yao were, the significance of their birth was a mystery and they died understanding little. Even their departed souls were not spared from exploitation by a great yao like Jiuying. If they could re-enter the cycle of reincarnation and not dissipate, that would also be a good thing. Afterpleting everything, what remained of Fu Li was only a blurry, lumpy silhouette. Lying on the ground, he gazed at the opening to the heart of the formation not more than 1 meter across. Stars seemed to be burrowing out of the clouds. The stars today were really beautiful. At a house, a little girl who just couldn¡¯t fall asleep climbed out of her bed and told her parents who were still watching a drama on ethics, ¡°Mommy, the sky outside is very dark, I can¡¯t fall asleep.¡± The girl¡¯s mother got up and walked over to her, stroking her head. ¡°Then let¡¯s pay our respects to your godfather? Godfather is so powerful, he¡¯ll definitely bless your sleep after you bow to him.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± The little girl nodded. Making her way to the center of the living room, she respectfully knelt and bowed to a longevity tablet, her head touching the ground. Ever since the time she lost her soul from fright and was brought back by Fu Li, her family erected a longevity tablet for Fu Li and took the initiative to encourage the little girl to address Fu Li as ¡®godfather¡¯. The little girl still remembered how Fu Li had held her hand and led her past the river, street, and eventually to her parents. Therefore, she would stroke the protective talisman Fu Li had given her every time and obediently kowtow to the longevity tablet with iparable trust. This was also what happened tonight. Stroking the protective talisman against her chest, she kowtowed towards the longevity tablet. Then, the little girl knelt on the ground and said softly, ¡°Godfather, you must bless me with a good dream tonight. En, you must have a good dream tonight too. Sleep soundly and chase away all the bad guys.¡± Godfather was so powerful, surely no bad guy would bully him? ¡°Anyway,¡± The little girl rubbed her eyes. Godfather really was powerful; after paying her respects to him, she started feeling sleepy. ¡°See you tomorrow, godfather.¡± The child¡¯s pure, untainted faith drifted along the cool breeze. Apanied by the stars, it floated past mountains, flew past rivers, and circled Hunxi Mountain. Yet, its power found no outlet for use. To fiends, faith had no use. The pure, transparent faith circled Hunxi Mountain, round after round. Just as it was on the verge of disappearing, the golden glow of virtue at the foot of the mountain lured it over, and it eventually settled on a piece of jade stained with dragon blood. See you tomorrow, godfather. This was a faith that contained both hope and anticipation. The wisp of faith illuminated the jade sttered with dragon¡¯s blood. A year¡¯s n starts with spring. And the Spring Jade that embodied human grace and hope was humanity¡¯s most beautiful blessing. The jade stone was buried by the dust that fell off the mountain. In the course of a year, innumerable cultivators, both human and yao, visited the ce to grieve. Every day, there were always cultivators reminiscing about recent events and droning on and on in unbearable detail. The humans started controlling the level of water pollution. When they resolved to aplish something, there would always be results to show for it very soon. In a short span of a year, the East Sea became much cleaner. Delighted, the aquatic races would even extend a helping hand to the asional human who fell into the water. As time passed, a rumor started circting at the coast of the East Sea. It was said that the deity living in the East Sea would rescue any human who didn¡¯t do any evil if they were to encounter a violent storm at sea. In the era of materialism, countless fishermen and sailors unexpectedly had boundless confidence in this rumor and even started sparing all sorts of rare fishes and baby fishes when fishing. Coincidentally, in the more than one year since then, the fishermen and sailors really didn¡¯t encounter any major storms at sea. Even the ocean currents that flowed past the coastal area would forcibly turn the corner and evade thend on this side. As a result... incense sticks burned even more exuberantly at the coast of the East Sea. Someone even erected an iparably hideous statue of a deity so that it could receive the offerings every day. On an icy winter day, a little girl who insisted on going with her parents to y at the coast watched passersby pray to a strange-looking stone statue. She stared at the stone statue for a long time before turning to her parents. ¡°Daddy, mommy, are they also paying respects to godfather?¡± ¡°Ah?¡± The little girl¡¯s mother almost didn¡¯t react. ¡°That stone statue looks very much like godfather,¡± The little girl pointed at the stone statue¡¯s eyes that were curved in a squint. ¡°Look, its smile is exactly the same as godfather¡¯s.¡± The child¡¯s parents scrutinized the stone statue a few more times and rejected the notion very vehemently in their hearts. No, child, your godfather was much more handsome than this stone statue. But faced with the little girl¡¯s serious expression, the couple resisted the pull on their conscience and expressed without the slightest morality that their daughter was right. Seeing her parents nod, the little girl raced over to the stone statue and kowtowed. ¡°Godfather, are you living by the sea now? I¡¯m about to start my first year of primary school. When I get a hundred marks, I¡¯ll bring the paper for you to see.¡± ¡°Oh, is this little girl also paying respects to the Sea God?¡± An elderly granny asked with a broad smile. The granny had a very kindly appearance, and the little girl couldn¡¯t help but feel close to her. ¡°Ah?¡± The little girl didn¡¯t understand why her godfather became a Sea God when others spoke of him, and she understood even less what a Sea God was. But she had once read Journey to the West and knew that deities were very powerful bigshots, so she nodded and said, ¡°En, my godfather is very powerful, he¡¯s a Sea God!¡± The child¡¯s words gave rise to a burst ofughter from everyone. The little girl stuck out her chest in delight. Her godfather was just that impressive! The sea breeze arose, sweeping up the red cloth hung over the deity¡¯s statue. The red cloth swayed about, as if it were beckoning. On Hunxi Mountain, the jade that had been buried in the soil for a very long time shifted before turning into a beam of light that soared towards the east. Eventually, it entered the stone statue. At midnight, the stone statue¡¯s shadow suddenly turned into a charming, smiling man. He looked up at the bright moon in the sky and let out a lightugh. Who would have thought that the little girl with the lost soul whom he had saved in passing would end up bing his chance at survival? Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart¡¯s blood had preserved a wisp of his soul while the little girl¡¯s faith had allowed his soul to enter and be nurtured by the Spring Jade that brimmed with life energy. His transformation was also attributed to the fortuitous words this little girl had uttered. Only then was he able to obtain this once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity on this day that marked the end of the new year and the start of a new year. ¡°But how does this ugly stone statue resemble me?¡± With a wave of Fu Li¡¯s hand, the stone statue became handsome and dashing. Only then did he feel at ease. The sky was about to brighten and he could smell the Kunpeng¡¯s scent in the sea breeze. Deliberately mimicking the sound of a child sobbing, he let out a cry towards the sea and then hurriedly shrunk a great distance to an inch, returning to the capital. The capital was still as busy and lively as ever. It was just that the air didn¡¯t seem as turbid as before, and the vegetation on both sides of the roads was more dense than before. Even Chu Yi had appeared once more. He should have properly thanked Chu Yi, but with his heart full of worry for a certain dragon, he couldn¡¯t wait to fly back to the vi right this instant. But when he stood outside the vi¡¯s gates and saw Zhuang Qing foolishly hugging that lump of snow that both resembled a rabbit and dog, he smiled till his eyes turned red. ¡°Zhuang little dragon, have you turned silly?¡± Fu Li widened his eyes. ¡°Still not opening the door for your beloved Fu ge?¡± Chapter 135 - Extra: Invitation Card

Chapter 135 - Extra: Invitation Card

When the elder of the Fields Sect walked into the sect leader¡¯s yard, he found the sect leader staring at an invitation card with aplex, confused expression. Seeing him enter, the sect leader ced the invitation card on the table. ¡°You received it too?¡± The elder had a profound expression. Fishing out an invitation card, he ced it in front of the sect leader. ¡°Sect leader, are we going?¡± Two years ago during spring, a strange phenomenon urred at Hunxi Mountain. When the major sects rushed over, they just happened to see Fu Li daoyou dispersing his cultivation and suppressing the formation with his body before eventually vanishing in the heart of the formation. Countless specks of light had flown out from the formation, resembling fireflies in the summer night. It was a beautiful sight. In the dark night, they became the sparks that ignited the me of hope. They gazed at these fireflies in a daze, momentarily speechless. A disciple with a rtively livelier personality stared foolishly for a long time before muttering, ¡°What are they?¡± ¡°They¡¯re souls, most likely...¡± The elder of the Fields Sect looked down at the ground. ¡°Most likely the souls of the yao cultivators used to activate the formation. They¡¯ve been released.¡± He didn¡¯t tell the junior that the souls trapped in the formation should have been swallowed by the magic of the formation, vanishing without a trace, and not enter the reincarnation cycle after the formation was stopped. He couldn¡¯t fathom how Fu Li had aplished it, nor was he willing to think too hard about it. Someone who had lived till his age no longer had much curiosity. ¡°Sect leader, Fu Li daoyou...¡± He shook his head silently. Everything had a cause and effect; for many things, a price had to be paid. Fu Li daoyou... Used his body to repel the yao, resulting in the death of his physical body and the dissipation of his Dao. The abnormal phenomenon at Hunxi Mountain was clearly resolved, yet they couldn¡¯t muster any happiness. Chief Zhuang was soaked in blood, his expression vacant. Fu daoyou¡¯s few elders were also standing there dazedly. Their gaze was one which the cultivators were extremely familiar with ¨C it was that of an elder who had lost their child all of a sudden and forgotten how to even cry. That night, the sect leader of the Fields Sect stood at Hunxi Mountain for an entire night. Only when the morning sun rose and the world was once again bathed in light did he move his somewhat stiff legs and turn to look at Chief Zhuang, who was kneeling on the ground motionlessly. As he looked at Zhuang Qing¡¯s back, he suddenly felt that despite Zhuang Qing still being alive, there was not a trace of spirit in him, as if he had already died. In that instant, he even felt like Zhuang Qing would leave with Fu Li daoyou. But just when this thought surfaced in his mind, Zhuang Qing¡¯s phone rm rang. ¡°Zhuang little dragon is the most handsome, Zhuang little dragon is the most obedient. Get up early, Fu ge will give you a kiss.¡± There was a hint of teasing and glee in this merry voice. But at this time, this joy couldn¡¯t be more ill-timed. Then, he saw Zhuang Qing, the habitually silent Dragon Emperor who never revealed any emotion in front of others, hug his phone and cry himself hoarse as he knelt on the ground. He had no way of describing just how sorrowful this crying was. He merely felt that the mountains and rivers had dulled, the mountain wind was but a whistle, and his heart was excruciatingly cold. The morning sun illuminated all of the world, but failed to illuminate the kneeling Zhuang Qing. The image of Zhuang Qing¡¯s silent cries of sorrow was the only thing that remained in his memory, along with the long shadow behind him and the brilliant sunlight at the mountain. The too-bright sunlight made that long, long shadow appear particrly dark. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s romance created a huge stir in both the cultivation and human world, yet it ended abruptly in such a manner. For a long while, Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t appear in public. After a long, long time, when Zhuang Qing once more appeared, he seemed to once again be the Chief Zhuang who could hold up half the sky. But no one dared to mention the yao cultivator Fu Li again, nor did anyone ever see Zhuang Qing reveal a pained, angry, or happy expression. Just like a walking corpse, albeit a living one. On the surface, he appeared beautiful and without ws, but in reality, an empty shell was all that remained. What was on the inside had long since disappeared. Despite this, after two years passed and everyone thought that Zhuang Qing would never again fall in love, he sent out a fiery red invitation card with celebratory words the color of scalding gold. It was so dazzling that it didn¡¯t feel real. When they opened the card, the contents rendered them even more apprehensive. Bridegrooms Zhuang Qing and Fu Li? But wasn¡¯t Fu Li daoyou dead? [We transcended time, mountains, rivers, and finally met. Never will we be apart, forever and ever.] The sect leader of the Fields Sect read this string of words on the invitation card over and over again. Finally, he had no choice but to concede ¨C Zhuang Qing had gone crazy. Fu Li¡¯s physical self had died and his Dao had dissipated. Not even a wisp of his soul could be found, so how was it possible for them to never be apart, forever and ever? And the wedding date was even the eighteenth of this month. In other words, eight dayster. Two years ago, Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s wedding date had also been this date. How could a wedding thatcked one of the grooms be perfect? Had Zhuang Qing... decided to be with Fu Li daoyou through such a method? ¡°Sect leader, has Chief Zhuang...¡± The elder of the Fields Sect wanted to ask if Zhuang Qing had gone mad but couldn¡¯t bring himself to voice it. He wasn¡¯t the only one, the other yao and human cultivators who received the invitation card couldn¡¯t do so either. During the disaster two years ago, Fu Li daoyou had paid a price with his life, and he and Zhuang Qing had been deeply in love. The current state of peace that the cultivation and human world was in was practically built on Fu Li¡¯s skeleton. They couldn¡¯t utter such words. ¡°Go, prepare generous gifts,¡± The sect leader of the Fields Sect closed the invitation card. ¡°When we go, everyone must be aware of what should and should not be said.¡± If it was a ghost marriage, then ghost marriage it was. In any case, there was freedom to love in the cultivation world. The members of the dragon n who received Zhuang Qing¡¯s invitation card were in an even moreplex mood than the human cultivators. Given Zhuang Qing¡¯s rtionship with the dragon n, they were already overjoyed that they were invited to participate in his Dao Bonding Ceremony. But when they saw that the other groom was Fu Li, their delight turned to rm and helplessness. They wouldn¡¯t dare to say much even if the Dragon Emperor wanted to have an ordinary human as his Daopanion, but wasn¡¯t Fu Li dead? Wedding a dead yao and even having it on the same date of their unsessful marriage two years ago, what did this mean? A ghost marriage? Moreover, ghost marriages were corrupt practices in the human world. Fu Li¡¯s physical body had died and his Dao had dispersed, leaving not even his soul, so what use was there in having a ghost marriage? Had His Majesty gone insane from missing him? But after the dragon n gathered and discussed at length, not a single dragon opposed it. The days after losing one¡¯s true love were too painful. If this would make His Majesty just a bit happier, then their dragon race wouldn¡¯t say anything untoward, nor did they have any right to do so. The entire human and cultivation world owed Fu Li this karma. Since he had passed on, this karma would be considered a legacy given to his fianc¨¦ Zhuang Qing. Nobody could bear to say anything inappropriate about this matter. Not only were the aquatic yao cultivators going to attend this Dao Bonding Ceremony, they would even prepare gifts ording to the highest standards of the Dragon Emperor¡¯s wedding. Due to the short time, they didn¡¯t have the time to search for treasures, thus they simply opened up the treasuries of their respective dragon pces and started taking inventory of the valuable items. ¡°Elder Qing Yan, this is the list of gifts we prepared, please review it,¡± Gui Xiang handed the list to Qing Yan, who looked it over and then shook his head. ¡°Too little, add more.¡± ¡°But this is already the list of gifts with the highest standards in our azure dragon n¡¯s record of ceremonial gifts,¡± Gui Xiang was a little worried. The richer families also didn¡¯t have surplus grain now, so to send out so many things, even the azure dragon n had to hollow the treasury out quite a bit. ¡°If not for Fu Li daojun, we wouldn¡¯t be sitting here discussing the standard of our gifts,¡± Qing Yan¡¯s expression was calm. Ever since the lightning rendered him handicapped, Zhuang Qing became the Dragon Emperor, and Fu Li willingly met death for the human world, his entire dragon person had be much more mild. In the past, he had been unresigned at not bing the dragon of national fate. But when he saw Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s actions, he understood that he who was incapable of doing so much for the human world would never be able to be the dragon of national fate. Its fate was tied to the rise and fall of the nation ¨C he could not bear such great responsibility, so he was destined to never obtain this honor. ¡°I understand,¡± Seeing that Qing Yan was set on this decision, Gui Xiang knew there was no need for further discussion. He retrieved the gift list. ¡°I¡¯ll go prepare it again right this moment.¡± He¡¯d better do another sweep of the treasury and see if there was anything else they could take out. March eighteenth was a suitable date for marriage, relocation, and starting a new business; everything was suitable on this date. The flying pce that had never weed guests before had its main gates wide open. Countless attendants refined from magic devices shuttled about. All kinds of flowers were in full bloom within the flying pce and heavenly music drifted in the air. If an ordinary human were to enter by mistake, they would certainly think of it as the legendary Heavenly Pce. The morning sun¡¯s radiance illuminated the flying pce. The flying pce gave off a splendid golden glow that dazzled the eyes. The guests who came to offer their congrattions caught sight of the pce in the distance from the clouds and couldn¡¯t help eximing in admiration inwardly. The refined pce and the unprecedented defense formation inside was truly worthy of magic devices refined by ancient great yao. After learning that Fu Li¡¯s elders were actually famous auspicious beasts the likes of the Fenghuang, Baize, Dangkang, and Vermilion Bird, the entire cultivation world was of the firm opinion that Fu Li was an auspicious beast, otherwise how could he have performed such a noble act? Despite not seeing the groom at the main gates, the guests didn¡¯t take offense at all. All of them offered their heavy congrattory gifts and then exchanged looks with one another. Should their expressions be happier or more solemn? It was inappropriate to be too happy, but being too solemn didn¡¯t seem very good either. Fortunately, someone weed them with a face full of smiles very soon after. This person was someone they all recognized ¨C it was the management bureau¡¯s Captain Chu Yu. The other party had a bald head and a glittering smile, as if it was truly a good day that woulde by only once every ten thousand years. Everyone heaved a sigh of relief. This Chu Yu had been by Zhuang Qing¡¯s side for many years. Since he was smiling so jubntly, then it was probably alright for them to put on slightly happier expressions. Upon walking through the inner doors, they saw Zhuang Qing dressed in magnificent celebratory clothes standing there. On his perpetually unchanging face was a warm smile. ¡°Wee to this Zhuang¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony, please enter.¡± Everyone thought in their hearts that Chief Zhuang smiled like he had lost all his faculties and forgot the fact that Fu Li daojun was no longer in this world. Nobody dared to reveal anything peculiar and squeezed out a smile, congratting Zhuang Qing on the great joy that was his Dao Bonding Ceremony. As for the phrase ¡®never to be apart, forever and ever¡¯, they really couldn¡¯t bring themselves to say it out loud. This wouldn¡¯t be a blessing but plunging a knife into Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart. Just as the atmosphere was turning somewhat awkward, someone yelled from the winding corridor, ¡°Zhuang little dragon, there are already guests so early?¡± En en en? Everyone once again had the thought that the human world¡¯s synthetic voice technology was quite developed. To their ears, this voice sounded like it came from Fu Li daojun himself. The warm and tender smile on Zhuang Qing¡¯s face when the voice sounded sent a wave of apprehension through their hearts. It seemed he really had gone crazy. They sighed with sorrow in their hearts and felt upset. For a moment, they didn¡¯t know what sort of expression they should have, so they could only turn towards the corridor to prevent Zhuang Qing from discovering their awkward expressions. However... Was Fu Li daojun¡¯s figure standing along the corridor also the result of high-tech projection? Why did it look like the real thing? Even they thought that it was Fu Li daojun in the flesh, let alone Zhuang Qing daojun. Chapter 136 - Extra: Dao Bonding Ceremony (1)

Chapter 136 - Extra: Dao Bonding Ceremony (1)

Holding fast to the principle of being true to one¡¯s heart and pledging to only be with the other in their entire lifetime ¨C to the cultivation world, bonding oneself to another as a Dao Companion was a serious affair that could not be reversed. Unlike ordinary people, they could not divorce just because they couldn¡¯t continue living together or found the other displeasing to the eye. The cultivation world¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony had to be witnessed by heavenlyw, and no matter whether one lived to a hundred or thousand years old, they only had one chance. Therefore, the cultivators who came into more and more contact with the culture of the human world pretty much all liked using their identification cards in the human world to get a marriage certificate at the Civil Administration Bureau. Yet, they didn¡¯t dare to rashly hold a Dao Bonding Ceremony. Because a cultivator¡¯s life was too long, and the temptations of the mortal world were too great. It was precisely because of this that the cultivation world was so shocked that Zhuang Qing wanted to have a Dao Bonding Ceremony with a dead yao cultivator. But their shock meant nothing when they saw Fu Li standing along the corridor. The cultivation world could create puppet people that weren¡¯t too far off from the real person, but these puppet people didn¡¯t have thoughts or a soul, and definitely couldn¡¯t be like this ¡®Fu Li¡¯ walking along the corridor and speaking so vivaciously, with a smile as bright as a living person. But they personally saw Fu Li¡¯s physical self die and his Dao extinguish, so how was he alive? These cultivators were clearly astounded on the inside, but on the surface, they still maintained a smile, not daring to reveal any strange expressions. It was fortunate that these cultivators weren¡¯t actors, otherwise the acting industry was done for, thought Fu Li. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you,ing this far. Please take a seat in the inner pce,¡± Fu Li straightened his celebratory clothes and made his way to Zhuang Qing¡¯s side. Linking hands with him, he did a ¡®please¡¯ gesture at everyone. The poor cultivators opened their mouths, but didn¡¯t know what to say. Even if they didn¡¯t believe it, they had no choice but to admit that the Fu Li standing before them was alive and well. He wasn¡¯t a puppet, nor was he a projection created by human technology. For a moment, they couldn¡¯t quite decipher what was real and what was illusion. Were they dreaming? Or had they entered some scary fantasnd? The sect leader of the Fields Sect looked down at Zhuang Qing and Fu Li¡¯s intertwined hands. There were a myriad of thoughts and emotions in his heart, but when they reached his mouth, what came out was the word ¡®congrattions¡¯. Nobody understood why Fu Li daoyou had revived despite dying, but none could voice this question. Reviving after death was not a principle that existed under the Heavens; if there was, an immense price must have been paid. They¡¯d rather not ask so that their conscience might be more at ease. ¡°You are still a match made in Heaven, may your hearts be evesting and your love eternal,¡± The sect leader of the Fields Sect bowed deeply to Fu Li. This one bow was his thanks to Fu Li for saving their lives. Fu Li smiled and returned a half-bow. He made a ¡®please¡¯ gesture. ¡°Please take a seat in the inner pce.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± The sect leader of the Fields Sect bowed again before leading the rest into the inner pce. Grand decorations adorned the interior of the golden flying pce. The attendants created from magic devices were vivid and lifelike; if not for their reticence andck of life force, those from the Fields Sect would have thought them real. The dragon n was hot on the heels of the Fields Sect. Back when the Qing Xiao Sect held a birthday banquet, the enormously arrogant dragon race dispatched only one representative per n. But this time at Zhuang Qing¡¯s wedding banquet, everyone in the dragon n turned up, from the old to the young. It was just that their faces wore what strongly appeared to be forced smiles, as if they had gone broke. When they saw Fu Li, their reactions were even stronger than the Fields Sect, to the point that they even suspected the Fu Li beside Zhuang Qing of being an amorous yao who deliberately took on Fu Li daojun¡¯s appearance to confuse Zhuang Qing. Fortunately, they were rational enough to know that there were still ancient great yao in the flying pce like the Vermilion Bird, Baize, and Fenghuang. Even if His Majesty the Dragon Emperor was fooled by an amorous yao due to lovesickness, it was impossible for these great yao to fail to distinguish the child they had raised from young. Qing Yan felt that if it weren¡¯t for his disabled legs, he would definitely swoop out of his wheelchair and investigate if Fu Li was the real deal. ¡°Something wrong?¡± Zhuang Qing nced at the dragons. Turning, he straightened out the pretty much nonexistent creases on Fu Li¡¯s celebratory attire. ¡°Fu Li and I aren¡¯t elegant people. There¡¯s no need to be polite, eat and drink to your heart¡¯s content after you take your seats.¡± Qing Yan forced out a smile. His gaze scanned Fu Li multiple times before he cupped his hands in greeting at Fu Li. He then let the other members behind him push him in. Seeing that the future head of the azure dragon n hadn¡¯t said much, the other dragon ns followed suit as well. After they all entered the inner pce, they exchanged gazes with one another, each well aware of the shock the other was experiencing. But no one said anything, as if whoever posed the question first would be the loser. The reception hall that ought to be bustling with noise and excitement was strangely quiet at the moment. The sect leaders and elders of the major sects were silently ying the profound thinker, while the dragon race had on calm expressions, as if they knew the whole truth but were just unwilling to let the others know. Seeing that the dragon race and major sects weren¡¯t talking, the other individual cultivators all fished out their phones and lowered their heads, pretending as if nothing had happened as they scrolled through the forum. But hidden beneath their serene appearances was a restless heart for gossip. Anonymous poster: The Dragon Emperor¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony is about to be held. The instant I saw his Dao Companion, my entire person was shocked silly. But what followed was happiness. Regardless of what happened these two years, I wish the Dragon Emperor and his Dao Companion eternal love. This post stirred up a thousand waves in the forum. Countless cultivators were burning with curiosity, but this anonymous poster never again appeared after making this post, angering the cultivators till they couldn¡¯t help but curse unreservedly. ¡°Pfft,¡± One of the individual cultivators seated in the pce hall finally couldn¡¯t help but let out augh. Like a spell that broke the silence, his voice caused everyone to turn their gazes towards him, as if doing so would make things less awkward for everyone. This poor cultivator was stared at till both his hands shook. By ident, he broke the screen of the Fruit 15s he just bought. Cradling the fractured screen, he felt a pain like that of a knife twisting in his heart. ¡°Why so careless?¡± The sect leader of the Fields Sect revealed a harmonious smile. ¡°Quickly keep it, it¡¯s Zhuang Qing and Fu Li daoyou¡¯s big day today.¡± The other people: See, there would always be a way to shift the topic of conversation to Fu Li daoyou. ¡°That¡¯s right, Zhuang Qing daoyou and Fu Li daoyou have been separated for so long and it wasn¡¯t easy for them to be together. We must ensure this Dao Bonding Ceremony is lively and festive,¡± The sect leader of the Qing Xiao Sect followed up. He turned to look at the dragon ns. ¡°What do the n heads think of this?¡± You¡¯re all aquatic ns, so you must know some things through the grapevine, right? ¡°Sect Leader Zhao is right,¡± Qing Yan smiled gently. ¡°His Majesty and Fu Li daojun¡¯s feelings are heartfelt. The entire aquatic race is very happy that their love has finallye to fruition.¡± The Qing Xiao Sect had two disciples who were high-ranking members in the management bureau; they definitely had insider information. All the sects: The dragon race is really tight-lipped. The dragon race: Human cultivators really know how to put on an act and lie. The individual cultivators: The sect leader of the Qing Xiao Sect and the dragon race seem to know something. The ce was caught up in a kind of bizarrely calm atmosphere, where ¡®I know you definitely know¡¯ and ¡®I may not know, but I feel like you definitely know¡¯ tangled in the air, causing the cultivators to reveal artificial smiles. The morning sun slowly rose in the sky, gradually heading towards the center of the sky. After the guests slowly streamed in, Fu Li and Zhuang Qing went to the back to change into their formal Dao Bonding celebratory gowns. From the inner lining to the robe, every article of clothing was personally crafted by the elders. Only the not very eye-catching jade pendant at Zhuang Qing¡¯s waist was personally carved by Fu Li, who had also added a talisman to it. As someone who had been coddled by yao from young, Fu Li had some understanding of refining tools, pill-concoction, and talisman-drawing. But he was also not proficient in them. These abilities of his might be considered top-rate in the current cultivation world, but in the eyes of the ancient great yao, it was merely at the level of a kindergartener who had just learned how to hold a pen. But even then, Fu Li still personally crafted a pair of double heart pendants. The day he returned ¨C the first day of the lunar new year ¨C he stood outside the iron gates engraved with flowers and got Zhuang Qing to open the door for him. Zhuang Qing had stared at him in a daze for a very long time before walking to the gate with shaking limbs. He forgot to press the electronic lock buttons and also forgot to use his key. He pulled open the iron gate, and it copsed with a loud bang. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t dare to reach out and touch the person before him. Because for close to two years, he had already seen Fu Li return countless times and stand outside the gates, smiling at him. But not a single one of those times had been real. As long as he reached out and touched him, he would be nothing and vanish in the air. There were people around him who called him crazy, and gradually no one in the cultivation world dared to mention Fu Li¡¯s name. Until one day, a little aquatic yao spirit tugged on his sleeves and bawled loudly, asking him not to die along with Fu Li. Watching the little yao spirit¡¯s incoherent crying, Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart felt empty and very cold, but not painful. Once he became used to it, there was no longer much feeling, just like when immersing a wounded hand into ice-cold water during winter. From that day onwards, he returned to the way he lived in the past. It was just that he would open the door to the bedroom every night and keep the living room lights on. He always thought that if Fu Li hadn¡¯t died, he would definitely return to find him. One yearter, on the day of Fu Li¡¯s death anniversary, he opened a passage to the underworld and took a ferry that was now the underworld¡¯s tour boat. Passing by the Wangchuan River, he arrived at the end of the Naihe Bridge. The Naihe Bridge was packed with souls waiting to be reincarnated. Beside Meng Po was a long row of automatic water dispensers, which every soul would need to take a cup from before they could enter the pool of reincarnation. There was no pitch-ck cauldron here, nor was there any big, longdle, only a sealed pot of soup that towered so high the top of it was barely visible. It was full of Meng Po¡¯s soup. The souls who were unwilling to drink the soup were forcibly fed the soup by the yinchai before they were tossed into the pool of reincarnation. When one was reborn and advanced towards a new life, the matters of the past no longer had anything to do with them. Meng Po caught sight of Zhuang Qing and let out a faint sigh. ¡°Your Majesty Dragon Emperor, the soul you want to see is not here.¡± She knew what Zhuang Qing wanted to ask, but she was nothing more than the underworld¡¯s Meng Po. The underworld could not take in the souls of great yao, and moreover, Fu Li daojun¡¯s soul had scattered, so how was there going to be a soul? Zhuang Qing probably knew this as well, he just couldn¡¯t ept it and harbored absurd delusions in his heart. Sure enough, His Majesty the Dragon Emperor¡¯splexion paled even further once these words left her mouth. He stared nkly at Meng Po¡¯s soup, looking very much like Bo Lian when he heard that all of the yao on Reflecting Mist Mountain had been killed by the azure dragons. She thought Zhuang Qing would cry, but he didn¡¯t. ¡°That day at the Ghost Market, you said drinking this soup would allow me to recall my past life. Is that true?¡± ¡°It¡¯s true, does Your Majesty want to drink it?¡± Meng Po got up to get the soup. ¡°I said that night that drinking the soup necessitates a price, but it¡¯s different for you. You already paid the price.¡± In his past life, Bo Lian had exchanged a wisp of virtue for a promise from her. If he were to encounter Fu Li¡¯s reincarnation in his next life, then let him drink the soup and recall the affairs of the past. However, Bo Lian forgot that the past life and the present life were different. The him in the present life wasn¡¯t at all willing to drink this bowl of soup. The soup had already been ced in front of Zhuang Qing. The colorless, odorless soup contained in the jade bowl was full of a mysterious temptation. Zhuang Qing shook his head. ¡°No need.¡± Meng Po looked up at Zhuang Qing. Zhuang Qing was standing on the bridge, the wind blowing the edges of his clothes. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Meng Po watched Zhuang Qing leave from the back and then kept the bowl of colorless, odorless soup. She thought that this bowl of soup would probably never be sold. Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t mention all these to Fu Li. Practically every morning after Fu Li came back to life, Zhuang Qing would take a few anxious nces at Fu Li lying beside him and touch him before he could be sure that he wasn¡¯t dreaming. ¡°Zhuang little dragon,¡± Fu Li made his way to Zhuang Qing after changing into his celebratory clothes. The fresh red of his celebratory attire gave his face a red tinge. ¡°Am I handsome?¡± Zhuang Qing walked over to him, crouched down, and straightened the corners of Fu Li¡¯s robe for him. ¡°Handsome.¡± Fu Li happily kissed him on the head. Seeing Feng Ruizhong pass by, he hollered, ¡°Uncle Feng, is it the lucky hour yet?¡± ¡°Stop hurrying, stop hurrying, there¡¯s still one hour to go!¡± Fu Li sighed. Why was there still so much time left? He couldn¡¯t wait for Zhuang Qing to be in his household register. Chapter 137 - Extra: Dao Bonding Ceremony (2)

Chapter 137 - Extra: Dao Bonding Ceremony (2)

¡°It¡¯s the lucky hour!¡± The exmation seemed to havee from the clouds. Exquisite music sounded outside the windows. A long red carpet extended from the gates of the flying pce to the inner pce. Outside the pce, the six dragon ns of different colors simultaneously soared into the sky rife with shes of auspicious clouds. The cry of a Feng suddenly streaked across the sky. Birds too many to count flew over from all directions and broke into song and dance midair, the sight so beautiful it was akin to paradise. ¡°Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang!¡± A multi-colored Fenghuang took to the air, as beautiful as a miracle. All the guests forgot the time and forgot who they were. All they could do was gaze at the sky in a daze and stare at the Fenghuang whom countless birds acknowledged allegiance to. As Zhuang Qing walked down the red carpet, he looked up at the miraculous sight in the sky and took hold of Fu Li¡¯s hand. ¡°The real Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang is really very beautiful.¡± At the birthday banquet of Qing Xiao Sect¡¯s sect leader, the peacock spirit¡¯s performance of this dance had taken the breaths of innumerable cultivators away. However, when the real Hundred Birds Worshipping the Fenghuang appeared, everyone realized that no word of beauty was sufficient to describe this scene. ¡°Daojuns, please enter the first door.¡± Flower yao clothed in red carried baskets and sprinkled flower petals in the air ceaselessly, immersing the entire flying pce in a rain of flowers. The Baize stood at a door. Seeing Fu Li and Zhuang Qing make their way over, his face revealed a gentle smile, and he tapped their foreheads once. The Baize¡¯s blessing. ¡°Elder Baize...¡± Fu Li touched the center of his forehead, smiling brightly at the Baize. ¡°Go on in,¡± The Baize withdrew his smile and took a step back, allowing the two newlyweds to pass through the door. Zhuang Qing and Fu Li directed a junior¡¯s bow at the Baize before making their way in, hand-in-hand. Fu Li could vaguely hear the sound of the Baize¡¯sughter. Unable to hold himself back, Fu Li was about to turn around when he heard the Baize¡¯s voice beside his ear. ¡°Go on in, don¡¯t look back.¡± Fu Li pursed his lips,ughing lightly. Zhuang Qing leaned his head over, speaking into his ear, ¡°You¡¯re smiling a bit foolishly.¡± ¡°You¡¯re more foolish than me,¡± Fu Li sneakily took out a mirror and ced it in front of Zhuang Qing. ¡°Look, aren¡¯t you more foolish?¡± Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t smile much usually, but the smile on his face hadn¡¯t disappeared even once today, and there were hints of red on his fair cheeks. He did have the air of a rich family¡¯s foolish son. Looking at the him in the mirror, Zhuang Qing suddenly had a thought. So this was his expression the entire time today? Fixing his gaze on the mirror, he saw the Baize at the side of the door, smiling with an exceedingly kindly gaze as he looked at them. Two years ago, after that incident, Zhuang Qing had ill-feelings towards Fu Li¡¯s elders. Because when Fu Li met with this mishap, they were too calm, so calm that Zhuang Qing found it uneptable. To these auspicious beasts, despite Heaven and Earth¡¯s creatures being more important, they still loved Fu Li very much. Even then, Zhuang Qing still found it difficult to release the tension in his heart. But on this day, when he saw the Baize¡¯s gaze brimming with insuppressible affection, that little bit of ill-feeling in Zhuang Qing¡¯s heart vanished without a trace. ¡°Daojuns, please enter the second door.¡± The Vermilion Bird Zhu Yue and Dangkang Kang Gu were guarding the second door. Zhu Yue helped Fu Li to straighten the band around his hair, and then smiled. ¡°Go on in, my child.¡± Standing at the side, the rims of Kang Gu¡¯s eyes had turned red from smiling, yet his mouth was continuously jabbering, ¡°Good, these clothes are worn well.¡± He had thought that there would never be an opportunity for this set of clothes to be worn. Upon walking through the second door, the long, long carpet snaked past the corridor, past the jade pathway, and straight into the inner pce. Walking on the soft red carpet was just like strolling on clouds; Zhuang Qing felt like his feet were stepping on something as soft as a feather, so light that treading on it didn¡¯t feel real. The Fenghuang dancing in the sky alsonded on the ground, turning into Feng Ruizhong. He and the Xing Xing guarded the inner door. Upon seeing the little yao spirits escort Zhuang Qing and Fu Li over, he wanted to say a thousand words, but when they bowed, all of it turned into ¡®go on in, don¡¯t miss the lucky hour¡¯. Loving was easy, but staying together wasn¡¯t. Zhuang Qing was entangled with Fu Li in both his past and present lives, and almost parted with him through death in this life. Was there anything else that could separate them? Zhuang Qing and Fu Li discovered after entering thest inner door that the guests who ought to be sitting in the pce had already headed outside the door, glorious smiles adorning their faces. Enthusiastic apuse sounded at the entrance to the pce the moment they caught sight of Zhuang Qing and Fu Li. Among these faces, Fu Li made out his colleagues from the management bureau, the azure dragon n¡¯s Qing Yan, the dog yao who introduced him to the city, and the sharp-tongued crested ibis. ¡°Congrattions.¡± ¡°Congrattions.¡± ¡°Forever united, never to be apart.¡± Fu Li wondered why his palms were sweating when the weather today was pleasantly cool. ¡°The lucky hour is here, pray to the Heavens.¡± An altar was set up in the inner pce¡¯s yard, on which all sorts of worship articles were disyed. An incense burner engraved with mysterious talismans was ced in the middle where it was absolutely empty. ording to the rules of the cultivation world¡¯s Dao Bonding Ceremony, the newlyweds had to make the Dao Bonding vows in the presence of heavenlyw before they could obtain its acknowledgement. ¡°The majestic sky above, the profound earth below ¨C Zhuang Qing and Fu Li voluntarily bind themselves to each other as Dao Companions. From this moment onwards, they apany each other in life and death and share in both honor and disgrace. May heavenlyw please bear witness.¡± Zhuang Qing lit the incense and then nced at Fu Li beside him. ¡°Zhuang Qing is willing to share in everything with Fu Li; it will be so for my virtue, dragon qi, and purple qi.¡± The guests were in an uproar. As the only dragon of national fate under the Heavens, Zhuang Qing so readily stated that he would share his immensely profound virtue and dragon qi. This was not like those honeyed words said in private; an oath witnessed by heavenlyw had to be kept. ¡°It is Fu Li¡¯s fortune to have met Zhuang Qing,¡± Holding the incense, Fu Li bowed thrice with nine prostrations. ¡°Never again will I be apart from Zhuang Qing in this life. With him, I will share in both honor and disgrace.¡± These oaths were very ordinary, and there was nothing particrly special about them. In the eyes of the guests, Zhuang Qing even seemed to have ¡®lost out¡¯. But the next instant, they saw Zhuang Qing smile, and it was an especially handsome, particrly satisfied smile at that. Because Zhuang Qing didn¡¯t need anything from Fu Li, all he desired was one promise. To never be apart, and to share in disgrace and honor. To Fu Li, gold, silver, jade items, magic devices, and medicinal pills were all superficial things. Only an emotionden oath could not be easily uttered. Fu Li ced heavy importance on promises. It was fine if he didn¡¯t make a promise, but once he did, he would not betray it. When the two people inserted the incense sticks in the incense burner, the sun suddenly radiated seven glorious, multi-colored rays of light. A phenomenon symbolic of good fortune in the sky ¨C this meant that their oaths had already been recorded by heavenlyw, and that they had be true Dao Companions. There was nothing more beautiful in the life of a yao than the moment obsession finally came true. In the human world, countless people captured photos of the multi-colored sunlight. Even if ecologists had a scientific understanding of this phenomenon, there were still manyizens who wished upon these photos. Whether this was effective wasn¡¯t important, what was important was the sheer beauty of the photos, a type of beauty that made people suspect that it was a miracle. What cirrostratus clouds? What halo? Beautiful scenes were all miracles borne from nature. Olden Days: I¡¯m not sure why, but after seeing this photo, I suddenly thought of a movie decades ago. When the female lead fell into dire straits, she still thought that the man she dearly loved would fetch her on auspicious, seven-colored clouds. Perhaps two deities up above got married, leading to this magical scene. Pretty Bear: The person upstairs is really romantic. Do you still remember that very famous gay couple from two years ago ¨C Chairman Zhuang and his Little Assistant? 25 Cent Apple: How could I have forgotten? I even paid close attention that year to the posts concerning them. Who would have expected for there to be no news now despite the liveliness that year? Although I don¡¯t want to admit it, these two people might have already broken up. Dou Dou: I heard from a family member working at Chang Long that Chairman Zhuang hasn¡¯t inspected the branch office the past two years, and also didn¡¯t attend any public events. There¡¯s a rumor circting in thepany that the two of them haven¡¯t broken up, but that Little Assistant contracted a serious illness, so Chairman Zhuang has been by Little Assistant¡¯s side all this while. 25 Cent Apple: Hearing this news, I¡¯m in a veryplex mood. I really don¡¯t want anything to happen to Little Assistant. Thement by theizen ¡®Dou Dou¡¯ attracted the attention of manyizens. The formidableizens started searching for evidence from all directions to verify Dou Dou¡¯s words. In the end, they had no choice but to admit that Little Assistant might have really fallen ill. Because someone discovered that there was a period of time two years back when Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant were frequently captured eating or taking a walk together. But Little Assistant seemed to have vanished on a certain day. In the only two photos of Chairman Zhuang, he was expressionless and his gaze was cold, not at all like someone in love. After that, there were no longer any photos or news of Chairman Zhuang, and Chang Long¡¯s public-facing work was also handled by others. Zhuang Qing never appeared again. In the short span of two to three days, the post had thousands of replies and kindizens started to wish Little Assistant well underneath the post. 25 Cent Apple: I really hope Little Assistant will suddenly appear one day and say underneath this post ¡®sorry everyone, I¡¯m already cured and happily together with Chairman Zhuang¡¯. Thisment aroused the sadness of countlessizens. They were not only sad for Chairman Zhuang and Little Assistant, but also sad for themselves and for the emotions that hadpsed with time. Dou Dou: I watched ambiguous feelings develop between them and watched them get together, but I don¡¯t want to see them break up or be separated by life and death. Olden Days: Everyone is weak in the face of love. One can prevail over money and fate, but cannot escape being mocked by fate. Little Assistant, if you are well and together with Chairman Zhuang, you must let us know after seeing this post. One day, two days, five days, one week, half a month... Time went by, day after day. This post was gradually forgotten, and theizens still had yet to receive Little Assistant¡¯s reply. It was once again the night of the new year. Fu Li dragged Zhuang Qing to the rebuilt Reflecting Mist Mountain. As always, clouds and mist wound around Reflecting Mist Mountain, colorful flowers bloomed, and trees flourished, looking like a fantasnd. The only thing different from two thousand years back was that there were now many more things from the human world. For instance, phones, television sets, game consoles, and so on. Kang Gu had already learnt how to create a variety of electrical appliances and developed aputer that could connect to the inte without human electricity. With this invention, he was awarded the cultivation world¡¯s ¡®Most Innovative¡¯ prize. It was then developed and put to use by the management bureau, extending all the way into the depths of various mountains and forests. Several yao cultivators who didn¡¯t step outside had also learnt how to chat online. While apanying the elders to watch the Spring Festival G, Fu Li conveniently passed to Chu Yi the matter of giving a beating to the Nian, who had been seized just aftering out. Disinterested in the Spring Festival G, Fu Li fished out his phone and logged into the forum that he hadn¡¯t entered for three years. The forum¡¯s webpage had changed drastically. The forum for emotions that Fu Li once went to was now hidden at who-knows-where. Thus, he could only exercise the power of the search bar, and consequently saw the post worrying that he had fallen seriously ill and would be separated from Zhuang Qing by life and death. On this night, a new reply appeared right at the bottom of the post. Mighty and Majestic Rabbit. Thank you everyone for your concern. I am well now and watching the Spring Festival G with Mr Zhuang. Happy New Year. Chapter 138 - Extra: Worth It

Chapter 138 - Extra: Worth It

When the White Tiger left the frosty world, virtually all his spiritual qi had been exhausted. Divination and flight waspletely beyond him, and even if he were to forcibly fly a distance, he would likely be discovered by humans and cause a panic. Moreover, he had to preserve sufficient spiritual qi to maintain his human form. He traveled across an icy mountain for more than ten days before finallying across a mountaineering team. Noticing his thin clothes, the mountaineering team even thought that he was hallucinating from being at death¡¯s door. Thus, they hurriedly dragged him over andmenced a series of emergency rescue actions. White Tiger: ... ¡°Brother, are you all right?¡± ¡°Team doctor, quicklye and take a look.¡± ¡°His pupils are in a normal state and his breathing is smooth, he¡¯s already out of danger.¡± After drinking some water and eating a nutritious meal, the White Tiger apanied them up the mountain and even rescued two humans who almost fell off the mountain. Afterwards, he watched these humans stick a red-colored g on the mountain, make strange expressions at a tiny ck box, and even talk to themselves. He found these humans a bit strange. That wasn¡¯t the end of it. These humans even enthusiastically called him over to stand with them in front of the ck box, rambling on about how grateful they were for his help, how this was their team¡¯s glory, and so on. Just climbing a mountain could induce a sense of glory ¨C humans really were mystical creatures. While making his way down the mountain, the White Tiger caught sight of a few frozen human corpses. The humans going down the mountain would silently salute them before continuing on their way down. ¡°Many people have attempted to conquer this tall mountain these years. During that process, there would be people who died.¡± The leader told the White Tiger. ¡°They are all heroes.¡± The White Tiger looked at the leader¡¯s solemn, saint-like expression and couldn¡¯t help thinking that life in the human world should be pretty good for people to be pursuing such a form of subjugation. The clothes these mountaineers wore were also different from those thousands of years back. And those small shining boxes clearly had no spiritual qi yet could retain human images. ¡°I won¡¯t be mountaineering anymore after going back. It¡¯s fortunate that you joined, otherwise we wouldn¡¯t have sessfully made it up the mountain,¡± The leader heaved out white puffs of air as he spoke, his face a deep red from the cold. ¡°But I don¡¯t have any regrets.¡± He looked back at the majestic,rge mountain behind him and revealed a gratified yet reverent smile. The White Tiger was silent. When they were close to the foot of the mountain, the mountaineers went crazy with joy. Pretty much every person turned into a chatterbox, unlike how they had stayed silent while climbing the mountain to preserve their strength. They talked about their rtives, their lovers, their dreams, and their futures with absolutely no restraint. ¡°Old White, what about you?¡± The leader asked. ¡°After going down the mountain, will your family members me you foring to such a dangerous ce?¡± The White Tiger stared nkly, and then slowly shook his head. His absent-minded expression led the leader to believe that he had said something inappropriate. Embarrassed, the leader stopped this line of questioning. Just before they parted, the mountaineering team gave the White Tiger a wad of cash as thanks for his lifesaving grace. If not for the fact that they had too little cash on them as well as the White Tiger¡¯sck of a phone, their gratitude cash would probably have been evenrger. The leader specially gave his name card to the White Tiger, so that he could find him whenever he faced difficulties in the future. After parting with these humans, the White Tiger casually stuffed the name card into his pocket. He walked for a very long time without food or drink. Just as he was about to reach the capital, the identification-less him was reported by a good-hearted yao and he was ¡®invited¡¯ by the cultivators guarding the local area into their office for an investigation. ¡°How long has daoyou not been to the human world?¡± The White Tiger had assumed that these human cultivators would start a big fight with him. But contrary to his expectations, they didn¡¯t take out any weapons and instead brewed a cup of tea and prepared some food for him. ¡°Two thousand years.¡± The two human cultivators responsible for registration interviews were utterly amazed upon hearing this. They took out a registration form for special yao cultivators from a drawer. ¡°Mr Bai, there is a strict cultivators¡¯ management system in ce in the current human world. Any yao cultivator who wants to live in the human world has to register at the Yao Union and obtain an identification card. Only with an identification card can you travel in the human world. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be restricted and when that timees, not only will you be inconvenienced, the management bureau will also be in a difficult position.¡± The White Tiger was a little doubtful of these two human cultivators¡¯ words. Could yao cultivators go to the human world as and when they liked? ¡°Mr Bai, what are your strong points? We can give you a temporary identification card and rmend you jobs so you can officially start working after registering at the capital¡¯s Yao Union.¡± White Tiger: ... He, a dignified divine creature of Heaven and Earth, still needed to work?! ¡°If you possess gold, silver, jade artifacts, or other such items, please do not take them out rashly. Such things are not in cirction in the current human world.¡± ¡°My strength is on the high side and I¡¯m proficient at refining. I know a bit of talisman-drawing and pill-concoction as well,¡± The White Tiger wanted to say that he was the best at protecting Heaven and Earth, but the current state of affairs in the human world was unknown and his spiritual qi was depleted, so he dared not reveal his identity. ¡°Considerable strength, good human appearance ¨C Affinity Moon Hotel recently wanted to recruit two cultivator security guards and the Fields Real Estate Company is also wanting someone from the cultivation world. Send them his information,¡± The assistant very quickly finished their discussion and stuffed a temporary identification card, a printed rmendation letter, and a map to the capital¡¯s Yao Union into the White Tiger¡¯s arms. After stamping them, they said, ¡°Mr Bai, your documents have already been settled. Next person.¡± The White Tiger gripped the few pieces of paper and couldn¡¯t help but admit that he, one of Heaven and Earth¡¯s four gods, had now been reduced to such a state. There was no other option but to work and earn money in the human world. Holding the map, he traveled acrossnd and water to the capital, making turn after turn, and was nearly knocked down by a vehicle in the human world. Although he didn¡¯t say much, the driver was scared witless. After breaking away with much difficulty from the driver who insisted on sending him to the hospital, he wandered around for several hours before finding the Yao Union under a different name. When he pushed open the door, the ce was deserted, not a single person in sight. A thickyer of gingko leaves were strewn over the floor, rendering the floor an expanse of gold. ¡°Anyone here?¡± The White Tiger raised his voice. ¡°The cultivation world¡¯s office at a border town sent me here.¡± That human cultivator had even lied to him that yao cultivators now led rtively good lives. With the pitiful state things were in, it didn¡¯t seem good in any way. ¡°Hello, sorry,¡± A goat yao with inch-length hair raced out, apologizing to the White Tiger repeatedly. ¡°The Yao Union is on holiday today and isn¡¯t handling identification card requests. You may stay the night at our Yao Union¡¯s guesthouse first.¡± ¡°Holiday?¡± The White Tiger looked at the tables set up in the yard. They did appear to be frequently upied. ¡°Yes,¡± The goat yao pointed at a notice pasted behind the door. ¡°The Dragon Emperor of the aquatic races is holding a great feast with guests today, and anyone with some status in the cultivation world will be attending it. I¡¯m an intern who just started working, so I specially stayed behind to get some brownie points.¡± ¡°Dragon Emperor?¡± The White Tiger was caught off guard. For the declining dragon race to birth a Dragon Emperor, and one who was respected by so many people in the cultivation world at that, this individual could be considered someone of outstanding talent among the dragons and an expert in the cultivation world. However, ording to their divinations of the cultivation world¡¯s fate in those years, shouldn¡¯t the dragon race gradually vanish and eventually go extinct? The Baize was also present when they were divining, had he made a mistake? ¡°It¡¯s so lively, could it be the Dragon Emperor¡¯s wedding?¡± ¡°How could it be a wedding? The Dragon Emperor and his Dao Companion are deeply affectionate and already held a Dao Bonding Ceremony a few years ago. On that day, clouds tinged with sunset hues filled the sky, there was endless auspicious qi, and even heavenlyw congratted them.¡± The goat yao¡¯s eyes shone when talking about the Dragon Emperor and his Dao Companion. ¡°The Dragon Emperor¡¯s Dao Companion is very good. Great yao had constantly been wreaking havoc the past few years, and they were all beaten back by him and the Dragon Emperor.¡± The White Tiger, also a great yao: ... ¡°Of course, we only target yao cultivators who are a threat to society. We very much wee cooperative and peaceful yao like you to build a harmonious society with us.¡± Seeing that the White Tiger¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t quite right, the goat yao hastily exined the basic regtions of the cultivation world. They were definitely not violence-crazed maniacs who would beat up great yao on sight. ¡°The ancient great yao Suanyu is a high-ranking employee in the management bureau. Gong Fu daren and Kunpeng daren are also unofficial staff in the management bureau,¡± The goat yao jabbered on for a good while. Seeing that the other party was still intending to continue, the White Tiger gave a dry cough. ¡°The Dragon Emperor has a brilliant reputation in the cultivation world, so everyone attends the banquets he organizes?¡± ¡°Ai,¡± The goat yao¡¯s urge to chatter was ignited on mention of this topic. Turning, he dragged two stools out of the room and insisted that the White Tiger sit and listen to him. ¡°There is nothing bad about the cultivation world, except that we¡¯re not very cultured as a whole. The Dragon Emperor¡¯s Dao Companion self-studied for quite a few years but just couldn¡¯t pass the exam. Even then, he refused to give up. The entire cultivation world already knows of this matter.¡± The White Tiger felt that this world was full of absurdity. A yaoguai who actually liked taking examinations and even failed to pass many times ¨C what kind of yaoguai was this? ¡°The Dragon Emperor¡¯s Dao Companion performed especially well this year and finally managed to pass the exam. He even received an admission letter to university,¡± The goat yao shook his head. ¡°Fu Li daojun was ecstatic, and when Fu Li daojun¡¯s happy, the Dragon Emperor naturally bes happy as well, so he organized a feast in the golden dragon pce. Everyone with some rtions to them will attend and offer their congrattions.¡± ¡°Which daojun did you say it was?¡± The White Tiger couldn¡¯t be bothered with how ridiculous the whole matter of a ¡®yao cultivator struggling for nearly ten years before finally passing the exam and obtaining the congrattions of human and yao cultivators¡¯ was. Just the name ¡®Fu Li¡¯ had caused him to lose his usual judgement. ¡°F-Fu Li daojun,¡± The goat yao looked at the White Tiger¡¯s joyful yet doubtful expression, and had a vague premonition in his heart. This individual... couldn¡¯t be Fu Li daojun¡¯s elder, right? Those elders in Fu Li¡¯s family... The goat yao¡¯s entire body shivered. They were all famous divine beasts during the ancient era, even Fu Li daojun himself was the auspicious beast Hou. When he next looked at the White Tiger, the goat yao¡¯s gaze brimmed with reverence. But the White Tiger was no longer in the mood to pay any heed to him. Letting loose a long roar at the sky, he morphed into a white tiger and leaped into theyers of clouds. ¡°Senior, wait, casual flight isn¡¯t allowed in the human world, at least put up an invisible barrier!¡± The goat yao hurriedly fished out his magic weapon upon seeing the White Tiger¡¯s hasty departure and went in pursuit of him. Many guests roamed about the golden flying pce in the East Sea. An extremely vivid banner hung on the grand pce doors. With red as the base color, the words ¡®Fervent Congrattions to Fu Li daojun for Entering the Domestic A List Undergraduate Course¡¯ were written on it in gold. The banner swayed in the golden pce with an abundance of festivity. ¡°Congrattions, congrattions. Our cultivation world finally has one more great talent.¡± ¡°Truly worthy of Fu Li daojun. It¡¯s only been a short ten years since he came to the human world and he¡¯s already managed to get into university.¡± The yao cultivator who spoke had been in the human world for almost one hundred years and took the exam for twenty consecutive years without receiving an admission letter to university. Fu Li¡¯s admission letter was ced in a ss bottle in the main hall. In order to prevent the loss of the admission letter by theft, the elders even erected countless barriers around it. Even if a bolt of heavenly lightning came mming down, the admission letter would probably make it out unscathed. The yao cultivators surrounded the admission letter and circled it. The envy they revealed pleased Zhuang Qing very much. With a wave of his hands, firecrackers sounded outside the pce. Timid yao cultivators covered their ears as they secretly peeked out. There was so much noise and excitement that it almost seemed like the new year. Zhuang Qing had just finished dealing with a mass of cultivators who came to offer their congrattions and was about to turn back to look for Fu Li when he felt a weightnd on his back. Something had jumped onto his shoulders. Seeing this scene, the other cultivators exchanged looks. Fu Li daojun was once again bullying the Dragon Emperor. Zhuang Qing took Fu Li in his original form into his arms. ¡°You¡¯re cking again.¡± Fu Li transmitted his voice, ¡°Too many people, greeting them all is a bother.¡± Zhuang Qingughed lightly. Stroking his fur, he continued greeting the guests. The guests discovered that for the entire afternoon, Zhuang Qing continued to carry Fu Li daojun¡¯s original form and even asionally fed him food and drink, looking entirely like he was raising a son. The aloof male god Lord Zhuang Qing was made inelegant in the face of love. But there was good in inelegance as well. Whether one was human or yao, living a bit more inelegant and being a bit more in touch with themon people would give their life color. If it were a hundred years ago, who would believe that Zhuang Qing, who had been the top scorer in the imperial examination and a major official in the imperial court, would host a huge feast where the sound of drums went up to the skies and firecrackers rang out continuously, all because his Dao Companion got into university? ¡°Is this a bit too mboyant?¡± Fu Li looked at the guests that came and went. Despite his happiness, he felt a little embarrassed. ¡°No, not at all,¡± Zhuang Qing rubbed the soft flesh on his chin. ¡°After you graduate, you¡¯ll be one of the rare few talented students in our cultivation world. And you¡¯ve also contributed immensely to the human world. Passing is a given when you take the civil servant examination after graduation.¡± Fantasizing about the days after he passed the civil servant examination, Fu Li smiled till his eyes curved into crescents. ¡°When you be a civil servant, let¡¯s hold another one,¡± Zhuang Qing¡¯s gaze swept across the guests. ¡°Let¡¯s hold a flowing water banquet for three days.¡± He didn¡¯t understand in the past why some people liked to unt their wealth, their children, and their spouses, but he now understood the delight thaty in such things. Was there anything more interesting in this world than that? ¡°En!¡± Fu Li nodded. Raising his head, he kissed Zhuang Qing on the face. Zhuang Qing lowered his head, gazing at Fu Li¡¯s smile. Beside them, firecrackers sputtered and guestsughed cheerfully. There was no worry, only happiness. Outside the golden dragon pce, a white tiger and a snake-like tortoise bumped into each other head-on. ¡°It¡¯s you?!¡± They stared at each other dazedly. Stepping through the barrier together, they saw the beautiful, lively scene behind the barrier. Two thousand years of twists and turns finally culminated in this breathtaking era. Despite the ups and downs, when the final meeting took ce, it was worth it. Ilyz: We¡¯ve reached the end of DDAS! There is so much I like about this story ¨C theedy, the touching moments, the lively side characters, the deep and evesting bond between FL and ZQ. Thank you for following me to the end of this journey and I hope you enjoyed it~ See you around! The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!