"You... you misunderstand. I'm not worried about you! You're my person now, and if you die easily, it's a disgrace to me!"
However, the little cat maintained its comically lazy posture, sprawled out in the girl's arms. Its words held no credibility whatsoever!
Jin Bao'er didn't expose his pretense, her expression complex as she asked, "Last night, you signed a contract with me? Why?"
The naturally proud demonic beasts never voluntarily signed contracts with humans. Little Golden Phoenix was foolish, but the little white cat before her was the dignified Beast King, a great cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage! Why would such an arrogant existence choose to leave the forest with her, and even proactively sign a contract last night, pouring his power back into her? It offered him no benefit.
The little white cat froze upon hearing this, then, recalling his impulsive decision the previous night, appeared quite agitated.
"So I signed it, what's the big deal? It's not like I'm going to die! I'm the one at a disadvantage, and I'm not complaining, so why are you fussing? My willingness to sign is a courtesy to you, so you don't end up getting beaten up again without anyone noticing. If you were to die..."
He almost blurted out his true thoughts, quickly covering his mouth. The action, surprisingly human-like, looked rather comical. However, the girl before him showed no hint of mockery; her complex gaze deepened.
"Enough, enough! I'm sleepy! Don't disturb me."
With that, the little white cat yawned and burrowed back into her embrace to sleep, his dependence evident.
Jin Bao'er suppressed the surge of emotion within her heart. In this moment, she finally acknowledged Tian Shu as her companion!
However, thinking of the demonic lord Li Yan from last night, she found it peculiar. If those two had known each other for a long time, what was his objective? Was it merely Su Xianzhi? Why hadn't Immortal Master Lou Yun noticed? And why did he arrive so late today? Could it be... he was colluding with the demons?
The more she thought about it, the more complicated things became. Even if Lou Yun wasn't colluding with the demons, Su Xianzhi was not entirely blameless!
With this thought, she directly put the little cat into her spatial artifact, concealed her aura, and rapidly headed towards the Hall of Xiao Yun...
Dodging everyone along the way, she finally arrived at that place! The Hall of Xiao Yun, which she hadn't stepped foot in since her rebirth!
A thick defensive array blocked Su Xianzhi's room, completely obscuring anything happening inside!
"Sigh, when do you think Senior Sister will come out? Immortal Master was worried sick all day yesterday. Did they have a fight? I heard Immortal Master didn't return last night either!"
"Honestly, this Junior Sister is a bit too willful. For the past few years, Immortal Master has traveled so many places to help her recover her cultivation. Such a great cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage! And she's still so willful, avoiding Immortal Master. If Immortal Master cared about me even a tenth as much as he cares about her, I would die without regrets!"
"Stop talking. Be careful Junior Sister hears you, or we'll be dead later!"
Several handyman disciples chatted as they swept the courtyard. Jin Bao'er heard them clearly, but a sense of unease lingered.
Last night, Li Yan the demonic lord went to kill her, and Su Xianzhi happened to be inside the defensive array, distancing herself from the matter! No wonder Lou Yun had such an expression when she mentioned Su Xianzhi wanting to kill her last night. It seemed they had indeed argued.
Just as she was about to leave, the person inside the room's eyes suddenly opened. A flash of purple flickered in the girl's clear eyes, carrying a seductive haze, eerily strange, but it quickly returned to normal.
"Little Fairy! You're awake?"
A charming voice rang in her ears. The two were in an extremely ambiguous position. In normal circumstances, Su Xianzhi would have pushed him away in embarrassment, but this time, she smiled. Feeling the immense power surging within her, she was overwhelmed with joy, murmuring excitedly.
"My power! This is... early stage Golden Core?"
The power of the Golden Core stage was significantly stronger than that of the Foundation Establishment stage. She could feel the potent, unrestrained spiritual energy flowing around her, as if she could kill someone with a mere wave of her hand!
Hearing this, Li Yan rested his chin on her shoulder, his pheromone-rich aura washing over her. His impossibly beautiful face drew closer, slowly seducing Su Xianzhi!
"I worked very hard to ensure Little Fairy could maintain her sanity!"
Su Xianzhi was stunned, then her cheeks flushed. She slowly stood up from beside him, her expression earnest and grateful.
"Thank you for helping me. It was all thanks to you this time! I promise you... that thing! I will definitely do it, but not now!"
Li Yan's expression showed some dissatisfaction, but he said nothing.
"Fine, it'll be mine sooner or later! By the way, there's a fearless guy outside. Do you want to go take a look?"
He had already noticed the person outside, but Su Xianzhi was about to wake up, and he wanted to be the first person she saw, so he hadn't acted.
Su Xianzhi thought he was referring to some disciple eager to witness her predicament. A glint of killing intent flashed in her eyes but quickly disappeared.
"Perfect for me to practice on!"
As Jin Bao'er outside turned to leave, she sensed the power fluctuation, accompanied by a familiar yet unsettling fragrance.
At this moment, a proud and beautiful girl in white emerged from the room. The hint of annoyance that had lingered on her brow was gone, replaced by an air of supreme power and confidence. Her pure and innocent demeanor had completely vanished, giving way to a womanly charm and allure...
This is... early stage Golden Core?
Jin Bao'er's pupils contracted instantly! She was shocked to discover Su Xianzhi's cultivation had reached the Golden Core stage! Yet, when she had seen her just two days ago, she was clearly a mortal with no cultivation whatsoever!
Looking at the shocked expressions on the faces of others, it was clear that before she opened the defensive array, she hadn't been like this. But in just one night, what method could transform a mortal with a damaged dantian into a Golden Core cultivator?
This was impossible!!
Su Xianzhi was pleased by the astonished looks on the disciples' faces and proud of her Golden Core stage aura! She never expected that possessing such power would be so exhilarating!
However, she soon noticed something amiss. Wasn't there an unwelcome guest outside? Why couldn't she sense anyone else's aura! All she detected were the auras of the handyman disciples of the Hall of Xiao Yun... Not even her master's aura. It seemed he hadn't returned last night.
"Little Fairy, do you need my help?"
A sweet voice reached her ears. Before Su Xianzhi could speak, someone flew out from a corner...
Jin Bao'er had just retracted her surprise and was looking rather grim. Realizing something was wrong and preparing to leave, she was locked onto by a familiar force, her body instantly immobilized. In the next second, she was uncontrollably flown outwards.
Jin Bao'er's sudden appearance surprised everyone. However, they quickly recovered and bowed respectfully. Su Xianzhi never expected the fearless person to be Jin Bao'er, whom she detested the most. Her face instantly turned cold, murderous intent surging within her.