The benefits of securing a meal ticket quickly became apparent.
Yun Qingyue, who had barely spoken, saw that the Sect Leader and white tiger had reached a consensus, allowing her heart to finally settle. When she saw the little white tiger choose to stay with her, joy gradually filled her heart—she was certainly pleased, not merely because she had brought back a divine beast to add strength to the sect's future, but because this little white tiger truly liked her.
After all, as a divine beast, it surely wouldn't be as fragile as other spirit beasts that could die from casual care, right? This little white tiger had followed her for nearly half a month and was still lively and active—certainly nothing to worry about!
Yun Qingyue was suddenly delighted, her hand unconsciously stroking the tiger cub's soft fur as she held it, feeling as if she had finally obtained the doll she had dreamed of since childhood. This doll she had yearned for over many years, and beyond pure affection, there was also a moderate obsession...
Of course, along with her joy, a sense of responsibility welled up within Yun Qingyue.
Thus, before Jiang Mo could remind her, Yun Qingyue took the initiative to tell Qingxiao about the white tiger's abnormalities, concluding with speculation: "Divine Lord Zhiming didn't see anything amiss, but this disciple believes the little white tiger's body is too weak at present, perhaps unable to bear the spiritual power contained in the Azure Essence Spirit Marrow. That's why it instinctively chose the more harmless and gentle nurturing essence pills."
Qingxiao listened carefully to her explanation, then nodded, acknowledging her conjecture. Although Azure Essence Spirit Marrow was already considered among the gentler treasures, the little white tiger's current condition wasn't even comparable to the Qi Refinement stage—being too weak to accept nourishment was possible.
Had Divine Lord Zhiming considered these factors? If so, why would he still leave the Azure Essence Spirit Marrow?
Qingxiao harbored some doubts, but his expression revealed nothing. Instead, he generously said: "Since nurturing essence pills are effective, there must be other medicinal pills that can be used. The Azure Essence Spirit Marrow can wait for the future. For now, Qingyue, you should make a trip to Mount Qionghua to see your Uncle Qinglan. See if there are any suitable medicinal pills, and feel free to use them for Monitor of Troops."
This was exactly what Yun Qingyue had been waiting for. Without hesitation or refusal, she directly accepted the order and took her leave—she had come to Lingyun Hall today for the little white tiger, and now that the matter was settled, there was no need to discuss minor details.
Qingxiao indeed didn't detain her, merely watching as she departed. As she left, he saw the little white tiger turn back and wave its paw at him, which made him smile.
Jiang Mo had taken a liking to this straightforward, generous, and handsome meal ticket, so she waved her paw in farewell: "Goodbye, meal ticket! You're truly a good person. When I reach a higher level in the future, I'll definitely repay you and Xuanqing Sect well!"
Of course, Qingxiao might not understand the little white tiger's words, as her speech still came out as milky "aowu" sounds. Only the system heard her declaration, so the light orb flickered and moved before her eyes, taking the opportunity to advise: "Host, though taking pills is good, the levels gained are quite hollow. If you want to be Xuanqing Sect's pillar in the future, how can you do so with insufficient combat power? Listen to me, go kill some monsters."
Having finally found a meal ticket and looking forward to a lazy life of good food and comfort, why would she look for trouble? Without thinking, Jiang Mo swung her paw and swatted away the hovering system light orb.
Unfortunately, by this time, Yun Qingyue had already left Lingyun Hall, summoned her flying sword, and soared into the sky.
The system baby, as usual, played along with the host's performance, stabilizing after being swatted away and rolling several times. When it looked up, it was dumbfounded. The caretaker carrying the host had flown so far they were just a tiny dot. So it frantically chased after them, calling out: "Host, host, wait for me..."
Jiang Mo, lying in Yun Qingyue's arms with her small head poking out from her shoulder, happened to see the desperately pursuing system light orb behind them. Coupled with the system's pitiful calls, she couldn't help but burst into laughter against Yun Qingyue's shoulder—she had seen many systems before, with all kinds of personalities: shrewd, rigid, ruthless, cunning... but this one before her was definitely the most foolish!
Sensing the host's internal relaxation and joy, the system light orb flickered almost imperceptibly, then continued its relentless pursuit.
The system was still a baby—what malice could it harbor? It was simply concerned that the host was too guarded against it, and recently, having found a caretaker, she hadn't paid much attention to it. So acting foolish to ease the atmosphere was also good.
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Mount Qionghua was to the north of Mount Tianyang. The peak master, Venerable Qinglan, was a renowned pill refiner, and his collection of medicinal pills was the most complete in all of Xuanqing Sect, ensuring the little white tiger would have plenty of choices.
When Yun Qingyue arrived at Mount Qionghua carrying the little white tiger, Qinglan had already received the Sect Leader's message and was waiting for their arrival.
However, Qinglan was obsessed with pill refining and had little interest in matters outside of it. If not for the divine beast's importance to the sect, he wouldn't have bothered with the two at all. Now, having made time to see them, he didn't waste words but directly led them to his storehouse, then waved his sleeve, pointing inside: "From first to eighth grade, every pill I can refine is here. Feel free to choose."
He spoke casually, but both Yun Qingyue and Jiang Mo were shocked by the storehouse before them. Especially Jiang Mo, whose tiger eyes widened to perfect circles, appearing completely inexperienced.
The storehouse before them was truly vast, with an area probably larger than ten soccer fields. Besides the already refined pills, it also contained various processed or unprocessed spiritual materials. Even so, the shelves of already refined pills occupied at least a third of the space, with a dazzling array of pills in varieties that made one's eyes blur.
The little white tiger swallowed, her initial excitement about finding food suddenly wilting, even feeling a bit panicked—with so many varieties of pills here, surely she wouldn't have to taste each one to choose? Who knew if there might be some strange things among them?!
The system was offline and unreliable, so the little white tiger unconsciously hugged Yun Qingyue's arm with her paws, seeking support.
Fortunately, Senior Sister was very reliable. Looking at the pill inventory beyond imagination, she pondered only briefly before walking directly to the area storing third-grade and below pills. Then she wandered between the shelves for a while before finally selecting a jade bottle, taking it down and saying to Jiang Mo: "These are Spirit Nurturing Pills. Would you like to try them?"
The name sounded a bit like Nurturing Essence Pills—perhaps an upgraded version?
Left without any clue when facing this warehouse of pills, Jiang Mo naturally followed Yun Qingyue's recommendation, nodding her small head. So Yun Qingyue personally took out a Spirit Nurturing Pill and placed it before Jiang Mo.
The little white tiger looked at the pill in that fair palm, yet her gaze somehow didn't fall on the Spirit Nurturing Pill. Her eyes wavered for a moment, not having time to appreciate the current mood, then she lowered her head and lapped the pill into her mouth.
The next moment, a familiar warmth swept through her entire body, and the system's prompt sounds rang in succession—
"Ding, congratulations host, experience points +500."
"Ding, congratulations host, experience points sufficient, leveling conditions met. Congratulations host on reaching level 10."
"Ding, congratulations host on reaching level 10, daily quests activating..."