Xiao Lie frowned fiercely and growled, “Disobey, and I’ll eat you!”
Several hens tucked their heads in and obediently settled down to incubate their eggs.
After arranging the hens, Shen Ci squatted on the ground counting the remaining bamboo tubes. Sunlight filtered through the bamboo joints, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Suddenly, her eyes lit up as she looked up at Xiao Lie:
“Brother Xiao, how about we make bamboo tube rice?”
After a pause, she added: “And I’ll fry some chicken legs for you too.”
“Awooo~”
Xiao Lie let out an excited howl and pulled out a large iron wok from his Naring. With a flick of his finger, the wok hovered in mid-air.
Flames instantly shot up, and he looked at Shen Ci proudly.
Shen Ci: “…”
She covered her eyes helplessly. “Brother Xiao, bamboo tube rice is steamed!”
The wolf-man tilted his head in confusion, making Shen Ci burst into laughter. She grabbed his furry large hand: “Come on, let’s go to the kitchen!”
Xiao Lie let himself be dragged along as they ran, his hair flying in the wind. He watched curiously as the young girl stood on her tiptoes to search through the cabinets.
Shen Ci pulled out a bag of glutinous rice, thought for a moment, then took out another bag.
“This needs to be soaked in water,” Shen Ci explained while pouring the rice into a basin. The clear water quickly turned milky white.
She turned around to wash the vegetables.
Xiao Lie imitated her by grabbing a carrot, but with one claw swipe—
“Smack!”
The carrot shattered into pieces.
“Pfft.” Shen Ci couldn’t help laughing. “Brother Xiao, why don’t you just help me tend the fire instead?”
The wolf-man crouched dejectedly in front of the stove, carefully controlling the flame.
While waiting for the rice to soak, Shen Ci stood on a small stool and skillfully took out the cutting board and kitchen knife, chopping away with rhythmic thuds.
Within moments, pork belly, carrots, and chili peppers were all diced. Shen Ci also shelled a large bowl of corn kernels and chopped some spring onions.
“Brother Xiao, high heat!”
Xiao Lie’s ears perked up as Spirit Energy surged from his fingertips. “High heat coming!”
Flames half a person’s height shot up from the bottom of the wok, startling Shen Ci so much she nearly dropped her spatula.
“Brother Xiao, my kitchen! Aaaaaah!”
The wolf-man quickly reduced his power, and the flames instantly shrank back to normal size. His ears drooped as his tail anxiously wrapped around his ankle: “..First time, not familiar.”
Trying hard not to laugh, Shen Ci poured cooking oil into the hot wok. The diced pork belly sizzled loudly upon contact, followed by corn, carrots, and chili peppers.
The aroma of seared pork belly mixed with the sweetness of corn filled the kitchen. Xiao Lie kept sniffing toward the wok, getting so close he nearly touched the bottom. Shen Ci pressed her hand against his forehead:
“Brother Xiao, not allowed!”
Xiao Lie looked at her with puppy-dog eyes glistening with moisture.
Shen Ci had no choice but to pat his head again. “Be good, it’ll be ready soon. Brother Xiao, please bring me the glutinous rice.”
After working for a while, Shen Ci finally spooned the half-cooked ingredients and glutinous rice into the bamboo tubes, then placed them in the steamer.
As the steamer bubbled away, the two crouched side by side in front of the stove. Shen Ci rested her chin in her hands, her brow furrowed tightly.
The “Heavenly Record of Spirit Cuisine” clearly stated that golden-glowing food could aid cultivation. She’d been eating it for every meal these past few days, so why was there no sign of a breakthrough? Her Dantian remained completely lifeless.
Shen Ci touched her Dantian, feeling puzzled, confused, and very anxious.
That bastard Song Heyu had struck ruthlessly. If not for having her space and being able to draw healing spirit talismans, she really wouldn’t know what to do.
She absolutely had to surpass them, then hang up Song Heyu and Shen Qingyao and beat them!!!
Xiao Lie noticed her small face scrunched into a frown and leaned closer to Shen Ci. “What’s wrong? You don’t smell right.”
Shen Ci puffed her cheeks in frustration. “I’m annoyed at how slow my cultivation progress is.”
Xiao Lie pointed outside the courtyard and sniffed around her. “No, the Spiritual Qi…”
She deflated, hanging her head. “A-Ci knows…”
The Spiritual Qi in the Cultivation World was as diluted as watered-down wine, making Foundation Establishment difficult for many cultivators.
The Five Great Sects monopolized the five major Spirit Veins, while the remaining scraps required arrays to barely sustain them. The Spirit Stones needed just to maintain the spirit gathering arrays each year could bankrupt a minor sect.
“Money, money…” she muttered.
She sprawled on the ground, staring blankly at the ceiling, wishing she could bury herself in Spirit Stones…
Xiao Lie’s tail swept anxiously across the ground when suddenly his dark pupils lit up!
“Ya!”
Before Shen Ci could react, the wolf-man hoisted her over his shoulder like a sack and sprinted toward the Back Mountain.
“Brother Xiao?!” She flailed her short legs as wind whistled past her ears. “Where are we going?”
“Awooo!!”
His response was a vigorous wolf howl.
In a few bounding leaps, Xiao Lie reached the mountain peak. The moment they arrived, dense Spiritual Qi washed over them.
Carrying Shen Ci to a Cave Residence, he pointed at a meditation cushion on the ground. “Meditate.”
Shen Ci blinked in surprise, then sat cross-legged and began Qi Refining breathing exercises. Only a few wispy strands of Spiritual Qi hovered around her, moving as slowly as a crawling snail.
Xiao Lie’s ears twitched with impatience. He plopped down beside her and sharply extended his claws.
Boom!
Violent Spiritual Qi was forcibly gathered by him, transforming into a cyan torrent that poured into Shen Ci’s Dantian!
“Mmph…!”
Shen Ci arched her back sharply. As the Spiritual Qi entered her body, her Dantian felt as if pierced by countless silver needles. The familiar, excruciating pain from the valley came rushing back, making her curl into a ball drenched in cold sweat.
“Brother Xiao, it hurts…”
“A-Ci!” Xiao Lei fumbled anxiously to catch her.
Fifteen minutes later, the teacup in Mo Cheng’s hand suddenly shattered.
When he looked up, Xiao Lie was already rushing toward him with Shen Ci in his arms. The young girl lay unconscious, her face deathly pale, her clothes soaked through with cold sweat.
Mo Cheng’s plain robes fluttered without wind as his voice suddenly deepened. “You channeled the Spiritual Qi here?”
The wolf ears drooped guiltily. “She… she said she wanted to cultivate…”
“Reckless.”
A snow-white silk thread flew from Mo Cheng’s sleeve, wrapping around Shen Ci’s wrist. With a lift of his finger, the unconscious girl was lifted by Spirit Energy, floating lightly in the air.
A luminous healing pill emerged from his palm and gently pressed between Shen Ci’s lips. The pill dissolved upon contact, causing her tightly furrowed brows to relax slightly, though her face remained pale as paper.
Mo Cheng pointed two fingers toward her Dantian, sending a stream of Spirit Energy probing inside.
“Hm?”
Beneath his plain head covering, his brows slightly furrowed.
This girl’s Dantian…
“Remarkable.”
She could actually absorb the Spiritual Qi here. Though slower, like a trickling stream, it was more condensed than ordinary cultivators’ Spirit Energy.
Xiao Lie stood obediently nearby, anxiously watching Shen Ci’s condition.
After a moment, Mo Cheng withdrew his hand.
Xiao Lie immediately approached, carefully gathering Shen Ci in his arms, his wolf ears standing straight up.
Before he could ask, Mo Cheng already spoke, “Rest assured, she’s fine now.”
He swept his sleeves as he sat down, his plain white robes brushing against the stone table. “Rather, why are you so concerned about a little human girl?”
Xiao Lie scratched his head, making a tuft of hair stick up. “A-Ci… smells nice.”
“Incense?” Mo Cheng said casually, “What’s wrong? I remember you don’t eat humans.”
Xiao Lie: “…”