Ye Wan kept her promise to let the Divine Tree cub and Suisui stay in the same room. However, she set up the soft couch by the window as a comfortable little bed, making it convenient for the Divine Tree to bathe in the moonlight.
Lang Xuan had no objections as long as he could see Suisui. With Suisui to play with, he no longer wanted to fall back into a deep sleep.
To welcome Bian Yun and celebrate moving into Changliu Peak, Ye Wan personally prepared a table of delicious dishes that evening.
Bian Yun watched as various ingredients turned into delicious food in Ye Wan’s hands, her expression somewhat stiff.
Could it be that in the future, when Ye Wan is away, I will have to cook for Suisui too?
…
Before bed, Ye Wan told Suisui that they might be apart for two or three days starting tomorrow, and asked her to stay with Master Bian Yun for the time being.
Suisui knew her mother was within this large sect and not going somewhere far away, and it would only be a few days without seeing her. Although she was reluctant, she obediently agreed.
The next day, after Ye Wan finished her night of cultivation, she was in the kitchen making breakfast when a sudden burst of wailing came from the room, which also startled Bian Yun living next door.
The two entered the room as quickly as possible and saw Suisui sitting on the bed, hugging a broken eggshell and wailing loudly, her tears rolling down like broken strings of pearls.
“What’s wrong? What’s wrong? Don’t cry, don’t cry, Mother is here.” Ye Wan stepped forward, pulled the child onto her lap, and distressedly wiped her tears.
Perhaps because of Ye Wan’s lazy and carefree nature, Suisui was also raised to be a bit thick-skinned and rarely cried. Even when she felt wronged, she would just pout, and after her eyes got wet, she would coax herself back to normal in no time.
When you scolded her, she would pout and say: “Mother, don’t be mean anymore, hurry up and coax me!”
Even when she was angry, she was afraid her mother would be sad and would say in advance: “Mother, I’m angry with you for just a little bit, it’ll be fine in a moment, don’t be sad.”
Truly, it was rare to see her cry with tears rolling down in clusters, making Ye Wan’s heart ache.
“Waaa, Mother, it’s broken… I crushed the eggie! Waaa…”
The more she spoke, the sadder she became. Suisui tilted her head back, opened her mouth wide, and wailed loudly. In her tiny world, it was as serious as the sky falling.
Ye Wan looked at the spiritual beast egg in Suisui’s hands, of which only half a shell remained, and was also a bit stunned.
She thought she had forgotten something; it turned out she had forgotten to give Suisui a science lesson on spiritual beast eggs.
Could it be that Suisui got up early to hatch the egg and crushed it?
Ye Wan glanced inside the shell; there was no egg liquid. It couldn’t have hatched after just one night, could it?
Was Suisui’s Heavenly Dao Father that efficient? Where would that leave the Sect Master’s face?
Bian Yun couldn’t stand it anymore. She stepped forward and lifted the quilt. A fluffy “chick” appeared under the blanket. The difference was that this “chick” was a light, pale blue, only the size of a palm, like a tiny ball of fluff, and was currently pecking at the eggshell.
Suisui stared blankly at this little “chick” and forgot to cry. She looked at the eggshell in her arms, then at the “chick,” her eyes full of utter confusion.
“Mother, did it come out from the eggie? Did I give birth to it?” Suisui’s eyes widened in surprise, her tear-washed eyes appearing even clearer and purer.
Ye Wan was amused by her daughter’s words and wiped the tear stains from her face. “It hatched from the egg shell; you didn’t give birth to it.”
“Then why did it come out? I didn’t even know.” Suisui pouted her small mouth. She was unhappy that she hadn’t been there to welcome the chick’s birth.
“Maybe it likes you and wanted to come out early to see you.” Ye Wan began to dress her daughter.
“Wow! Then I like it too!” Suisui was instantly comforted. She lay on the bed and leaned in gently, afraid of scaring this tiny “chick.”
“Mother, why is it white and blue? Little chicks are supposed to be yellow.” Suisui couldn’t distinguish shades very well yet; she could only say it looked like blue and also like white.
Ye Wan looked at Bian Yun. The original owner’s knowledge of spiritual beasts was limited to common ones, and the cultivation knowledge she had recently “downloaded” into her brain didn’t cover this either.
Bian Yun had also been staring blankly at the “chick” for a while. She hadn’t expected to find an Ice Phoenix egg in the lower realm.
Ice Phoenixes and Fire Phoenixes were both of the Phoenix clan, but these were celestial beasts and shouldn’t appear in the lower realm.
Furthermore, Ice Phoenix eggs weren’t that easy to hatch. They had to reside in extremely cold places, such as ten-thousand-year snow mountains, and required a certain opportunity to hatch.
No, this should be considered a semi-celestial beast because the bloodline had been purified. The powerful bloodline force had directly helped it hatch even under limited conditions.
Yesterday, when the Wan Yan Sect Master gave Suisui the spiritual beast egg, she had checked it with her divine sense. At that time, she couldn’t tell the egg had the Ice Phoenix bloodline, and only a sliver of weak vitality remained, destined never to hatch.
Bian Yun looked at Suisui again. Since meeting this child, no matter how outrageous or unreasonable things occurred, they seemed to become unsurprising when they happened to her.
“This is an Ice Phoenix. An Ice Phoenix can breathe out ice for a thousand miles and spread its wings to control wind and snow. This one has likely received a bloodline boost and is now considered a semi-celestial beast,” Bian Yun said.
Ye Wan looked at that little ball of fluff. The pale blue tiny thing would be a national internet-famous pet in modern times in minutes.
“Ji…”
The little “chick,” no, the little Ice Phoenix, looked up and made its first sound after hatching. Though its voice was immature, one could hear a cool, clear, and pleasant tone.
Suisui carefully picked up the “chick” with both hands and placed it on her lap, her small hand gently stroking its soft down. “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. I’ll protect you.”
Ye Wan thought about it and felt she should inform the Sect Master. A spiritual beast egg estimated to be at the eighth grade, given just yesterday, had hatched after only one night—it would be improper not to say something.
Without the Sect Master’s communication jade slip, she could use a transmission talisman to the main peak. Dedicated disciples would receive it, filter out the necessary ones, and present them to the Sect Master for review.
Whether the Sect Master would see it or when he would see it, she didn’t care.
Just as the transmission talisman was sent out, the little Ice Phoenix suddenly turned its head and pecked Suisui’s small hand.
Suisui was pecked into a daze. In the next moment, loud wailing once again echoed throughout Changliu Peak.
“Mother, it bit me! I don’t want it anymore! Waaa…”
Although she said she didn’t want it, she couldn’t bear to throw it away with force. Instead, she puffed out her cheeks and gently nudged the “chick” from her lap onto the soft quilt, afraid of hurting it.
Ye Wan saw an ice-fire mark sink into Suisui’s head. A contract had been formed, and it was a master-servant contract.
Ye Wan: …
Her transmission talisman had just been sent, and the little Ice Phoenix had already contracted with Suisui. Although she knew the Sect Master wouldn’t ask for it back, contracting so quickly made it look like she was afraid he would.
“Suisui, that’s the little Ice Phoenix showing it likes you by making a mark. It will stay with you from now on, and no one can lure it away with candy. If you protect it well, it will protect you too,” Ye Wan said, wiping the tears of the aggrieved cub.
“But it bullied me.” Suisui complained piteously, pointing at the little Ice Phoenix and showing Ye Wan her pinky finger, which had already healed, leaving only a red mark.
Ye Wan still performed a healing spell and gently blew on it. “There, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
Suisui just wanted her mother’s comfort. She puffed out her own cheeks and blew on it herself, then turned around with her hands on her hips to lecture the little Ice Phoenix on the bed.
“You’re not allowed to bite me again, or I won’t like you, I won’t play with you, and I won’t protect you anymore.”
“Did you understand? If you understood, nod your head.” Suisui saw the Ice Phoenix looking dazed and manually helped it nod. After that, she scooped the “chick” back into her arms and smoothed its feathers. “Then I’ll forgive you this time.”
Ye Wan: …
So, how could those years in Banyan Village have been boring? She could be entertained for half a day just watching her daughter’s antics.
“Mother, what’s the chick’s name?” Suisui asked, insisting on holding it even while her mother dressed her.
“It’s not a chick, it’s an Ice Phoenix cub,” Ye Wan corrected.
“I don’t want to call it Xiao Huang. I already have a Xiao Huang, and it’s not yellow anyway.” Suisui took out a doll named “Xiao Huang” from her storage bag—a cream-yellow butter bear Ye Wan had knitted for her.
“It’s the Huang of phoenix, not the Huang of yellow.”
Suisui blinked. “They’re both Huang. Then I’ll just call it Xiao Huang-huang!”
Ye Wan: …
It was better to end the child’s period of illiteracy soon. The sect provided enlightenment classes for new disciples.
After dressing her, Ye Wan let Suisui sit on the edge of the bed while she continued to tie her hair.
Bian Yun watched from start to finish, her brow never loosening.
When Ye Wan is away in the future, will I have to tie Suisui’s hair like this too? I’ve never even been this attentive to myself.
Bian Yun could almost imagine the jade-exquisite little cub becoming rough and unkempt under her care during the days Ye Wan was absent.
Suisui swung her short legs, her small fingers sliding through the little Ice Phoenix’s down. Seeing the Ice Phoenix pecking and eating the eggshell with great relish, she stole a glance at her mother. Seeing that her mother wasn’t looking, her small hand quickly snatched a piece of eggshell from under the Ice Phoenix’s beak and stuffed it into her mouth.