Two seconds later, another message came through.
Mu Liuyun: “Let me know if you run short of Spirit Stones.”
Could he really deliver them if she told him?
Still, it was a kind gesture, so Su Tangxing expressed her thanks.
“Mangmang is here! Mangmang is here!”
Shouts and cries came from outside as a green-feathered parrot noisily flew in. Spotting Su Tangxing, its beady eyes shifted, and it changed direction to dart straight toward her face.
Su Tangxing raised her arm, and Qingmang landed on her hand, its tiny claws gripping her clothes as it shrilled, “Tangtang! Xingxing!”
Su Tangxing pinched its beak. “Shh, the patient is resting.”
The parrot’s darting eyes turned toward Lin Xiangqing. Its beak opened and closed in her hand before it fluttered its wings and flew to Lin Xiangqing’s head, leaning in and tilting its head to observe. Who knows what it could possibly discern.
Guanlan Yuanjun followed closely behind, first examining Lin Xiangqing’s condition before saying, “It’s fine. The Medicinal Pill was too potent; his body couldn’t handle it. I’ll help him disperse the medicinal effects. It seems we’ll need to adjust the pills for him going forward.”
Lin Xiangqing’s body had been growing increasingly depleted. Previously, he had been given pills specially refined by Elixir Peak, containing only minimal Spiritual Power. But now, even these were too much for him to digest.
Guanlan Yuanjun conducted a thorough examination and sent a voice transmission to Guanshui Yuanjun: “Junior Sister, refine another batch of pills, but leave out a few of the spiritual herbs. Xiangqing’s constitution can’t bear them.”
The other side agreed, adding that she couldn’t come over right now and would send her Spirit Beast to deliver them instead.
Soon, a flying ant crawled in through the doorway.
It arrived empty-handed, but upon reaching the spot, it retrieved a bottle of pills out of thin air.
Seeing Su Tangxing watching, Guanlan Yuanjun explained, “It has its own dimensional storage space. All the Spirit Beasts on our mountain have them.”
Qingmang lifted one wing, showing Su Tangxing the downy feathers underneath.
When she didn’t understand, it pecked at one of the feathers and squawked, “Space! Space!”
Only then did she realize.
When playing games, some Spirit Beasts had their own portable storage spaces, though it was never explained how they came about.
She stroked the spot; the little bird’s underwing was warm and cozy, with an exceptionally pleasant texture.
Qingmang flapped its wings, cackling as it broke free, muttering nonsense: “Guanshui refining pills. Guanshui, give me that thing, I’ll pay you back in Spirit Stones next month!… Fine, don’t give it, so stingy!… Sweetheart, darling! Who’s the cutest little bird in the world?… Ancestor in seclusion, why come out of nowhere to steal my disciple… Ancestor, Fuli! Big Fuli!”
Guanlan Yuanjun glanced at Su Tangxing and coughed heavily, warning, “Qingmang.”
The parrot fell silent, but soon couldn’t resist its chattering nature. With its wings tucked behind its back, it paced back and forth in a pigeon-toed manner, mumbling, “Forest mountains at dusk, sky and sea vast and azure woof woof, how does the kitten meow, meow meow meow meow meow—I’ve gained sentience!”
That last shout made Lin Xiangqing tremble.
Even if he were dead to the world, he’d have been startled awake. His eyelashes fluttered as he slowly opened his eyes, his gaze still somewhat dazed and confused.
Guanlan Yuanjun grabbed Qingmang, holding it in her hand. “Be quiet, or go back to your Cultivation Cave and stay there.”
She then turned apologetically to Lin Xiangqing. “Sorry for disturbing you.”
Lin Xiangqing shook his head, his long hair slipping and swaying against his cheeks. With difficulty, he reached out from under the heavy quilt and gently stroked Qingmang’s exposed little head.
The green-feathered parrot turned its head and greeted him familiarly: “Hi! Hello!”
“How did Mangmang get here?”
Su Tangxing said, “You have a fever. I’ll ask Yuanjun to come take a look.”
He was taken aback, touched his own forehead, and smiled weakly, “Did I scare you?”
Su Tangxing shook her head.
Lin Xiangqing looked toward Guanlan Yuanjun, “Troubling you again, Shishu. I’m fine.”
The Sect Leader’s Daoist name was Guanhai, and he was Guanlan Yuanjun’s senior brother. In their generation, all Daoist names contained the character “Guan.”
“No need to be polite with me.” Guanlan Yuanjun didn’t say anything else, only handing him the bottle of Medicinal Pills, “Take these from now on.”
Lin Xiangqing turned toward the flying ant nearby, extending a finger to touch it, “Please thank Shishu Guanshui for me.”
He didn’t ask why the Medicinal Pills had been changed again, only smiling at Su Tangxing, “It’ll be a few more days before I can brew wine with you.”
“No rush.”
Guanlan Yuanjun didn’t stay long. Su Tangxing glanced at the sky and left shortly after her.
“Rest well.” Su Tangxing stood up and said, “I’ll bring you food tomorrow.”
“No need to trouble yourself—”
“It’s no trouble. It’s on my way.”
Lin Xiangqing opened his mouth, then changed his words, chuckling helplessly, “Alright. Thank you, Great-Grandmaster.”
She hummed in acknowledgment and closed the door for him.
Inside the room, a faint light glowed. On the bed, Lin Xiangqing hugged the quilt. He had just tried to get up to escort her and Guanshui Yuanjun, but both had pressed him back down one after another.
Now maintaining a half-sitting posture, his long black hair was loosely draped, a few strands falling over his chest. His skin was delicate, his lips like thin cherry blossoms.
His eyelashes were half-lowered, as if lost in thought.
The room was quiet and serene, his figure exuding a sense of loneliness and solitude.
Su Tangxing was thoughtful.
Lin Xiangqing, this sickly, beautiful senior brother, had a game character setting of being a recluse, rarely appearing. He stayed in the Xianju but didn’t have his own Spirit Beast, which inevitably made him seem out of place.
She hadn’t triggered any specific related plotlines, and the occasional videos she came across were mostly focused on his personal appeal, so what exactly was the plot?
Su Tangxing pondered all the way back without reaching a conclusion and decided not to dwell on it. Returning, she found the puppy wasn’t in the spot she had left it—both it and the clothes had moved to another place. It seemed it had tried to crawl out to find her.
Lifting the clothes, she saw it lying there like a fuzzy, pale-yellow kiwi fruit.
When it drowsily opened its eyes and saw her, it clumsily stood up, whimpering and nuzzling against her.
Su Tangxing picked it up and used the Cleaning Technique on it and her wrinkled clothes.
Looking around the room, she couldn’t find a place for it to sleep, so she folded the clothes and used them directly as a nest.
“You can sleep here for now.”
After soothing the puppy and placing it back, there was still a Puppet in standby mode in the room.
The window on the second floor was half-open, and the occasional breeze carried the gentle comfort of summer.
The moon was bright, the stars sparse, and the puppy was pouncing at shadows.
Su Tangxing leaned against the window, placed it back in its nest, but it jumped out again, leaping into her arms.
Plump and round, it settled in her palm, filling it completely.
She placed it back again.
Xiao Huang jumped again.
Puppies always have abundant energy. They treated this as a game, repeating it back and forth several times until it ended up lying on its back on Su Tangxing’s crossed legs, exposing its pink belly.
She rubbed its slightly sunken belly and asked, “Are you hungry?”
There was still chicken she had packed and brought back for it in the food box, but she wasn’t sure if Xiao Huang could eat it.
She pried open its mouth and saw tiny, sharp teeth emerging inside.
She found it adorable.
Especially the incisors, shaped like little swimming ducks.
In the game, dogs could eat anything, but Su Tangxing wasn’t sure now. She tore off a small piece of chicken and brought it to its mouth.
Xiao Huang looked at her, opened its mouth to chew and swallow, and after a while showed no signs of discomfort.
Su Tangxing rubbed its belly and fed it a little less, planning to make homemade dog food tomorrow and gather some wool to make a bed for Xiao Huang.
As for the Puppet, she couldn’t keep letting it stand in the corner like a human-shaped signboard—it was quite startling to see it suddenly in the middle of the night.