Chapter 18

    An unidentified beast appeared, one that could be mistaken for a horse, dragon, dog, or cat.

    From certain angles, it even resembled a unicorn from the fairy tales of Liu Yi You's past life.

    "Qi Ling," Ta Gui greeted.

    "Ah, it's you, little turtle," the majestic-looking beast replied. Suddenly, its body transformed into a handsome young man.

    Liu Yi You blinked. The beasts was already impressive in its original form, but as a human,

    it was even more so.

    The guardian beasts were the same in essence, yet they were so different.

    Qi Ling sensed the intense gaze and frowned. He turned to Liu Yi You and asked, "Who are you?"

    "I am the turtle's master," Liu Yi You replied, blinking.

    Qi Ling looked at Liu Yi You, noting her hair sticking out in all directions and her appearance indicating she had recently been struck by lightning. He frowned deeper when he saw the young man and the woman who showed no signs of injury.

    "You dared to touch the Heaven and Earth treasure?" Qi Ling growled.

    "Calm down, Qi Ling. I have something to ask you," Ta Gui intervened.

    "You brought them here?" Qi Ling's voice was stern.

    "She is the successor of the Underwater Palace," Ta Gui explained.

    The young man paused for a moment, then pointed at the little girl. "Her?"

    The old turtle nodded.

    Upon hearing this, Qi Ling's demeanor softened considerably. "Could you show me?"

    Liu Yi You blinked and then nodded. "But first, can I ask why you can transform into a human while Ta Gui and Xiao Gui can't?"

    The young man raised his eyebrows, looking at Liu Yi You with surprise, then turned to the turtle curiously.

    The old turtle blushed slightly. "I..I can transform, but I don't like to." With that, Ta Gui transformed into an old man.

    The little girl's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. She had never known that Ta Gui and Xiao Gui could transform.

    Liu Yi You quickly pulled Xiao Gui out of the Underwater Palace. "Xiao Gui, transform!"

    Xiao Gui looked at its master, bewildered. "Master, since when can I transform?"

    Liu Yi You nearly collapsed. She turned to Ta Gui, needing an explanation.

    "Since you became a guardian," Ta Gui explained.

    What did that mean? It implied that Xiao Gui couldn't transform before, but now that it was a guardian, it could.

    "Mao Tong, you transform," Liu Yi You commanded.

    "Stinky kid, I can't do that," Mao Tong said with a dark expression.

    "Aren't you a celestial beast?" Liu Yi You asked, her face full of question marks.

    She remembered reading that celestial beasts could transform into humans. She had read this a long time ago.

    And Mao Tong was supposed to be an immortal, wasn't he?

    "No! I'm a Khainui," Mao Tong retorted.

    Liu Yi You's face darkened. Khainui, Khainui my ass! Would they ever get to the point?

    The worm crossed its arms defiantly. Liu Yi You, at a loss, turned to the young man, who kindly explained,

    "In this small world, there are only four kinds of celestial beasts: the Celestial Wind turtle, the Water Dragon Yi Long, the Fire Phoenix Feng Huang, and myself."

    Liu Yi You nodded; she already knew this. "And about the transformations?"

    "We have long lifespans. When we give birth, our offspring become celestial beasts immediately, but they can only transform when they become high-level celestial beasts or fully-fledged guardians."

    "Oh..." the girl and the young man exclaimed in unison. Liu Tan, though silent, was listening intently.

    Qi Ling glanced at Tong Tian, hesitated, and then looked at Liu Yi You thoughtfully.

    "You have a divine guardian with you?" Qi Ling asked.

    Liu Yi You tilted her head in confusion. "What is a divine guardian?"

    Qi Ling handed her a book. Liu Yi You didn't waste any time and opened it immediately.

    Originally, this world was created by a great deity to provide a safe place for his little disciple to grow.

    The world consisted of four continents, each guarded by a beasts, with the Underwater Palace's owner nurturing them continuously. This cycle had been maintained until a certain group of evil-minded people brought forth a form of darkness.

    As time passed, this darkness grew stronger. Meanwhile, the Underwater Palace's owner, who was a half-human, half-fish being, could no longer sustain their lineage and grew weaker. As their power waned, they sealed themselves in a hidden place, waiting for a successor.

    Originally, the Winter Maiden was responsible for protecting the Underwater Palace. However, when the palace was sealed, the Winter Maiden was sealed along with it.

    The book also mentioned the Qi Blossoms Technique, a technique meant to maintain beauty. The Underwater Palace's owner, who fell in love with a human, created this technique to remain a young woman forever. Despite its excellence, the technique had weaknesses.

    The first way to nullify the technique was to receive a drop of blood from the great deity. The second way was to find a half-human, half-fish being. A drop of heart blood from such a being would renew the body, causing the technique to dissolve.

    Seeing this, the girl's eyes sparkled. She handed the book to Liu Tan to read further.

    This was her path to growth.

    "And now a problem has arisen, which you all are aware of," Qi Ling said.

    Ta Gui nodded. "Yes, I am going to search for Yi Long and Feng Huang."

    "The soul of Yi Long has long since perished, and Feng Huang's soul is weaker than weak," the young man replied.

    "How do you know this?"

    Qi Ling's face twisted into an unappealing grimace. He answered shortly, "It's my ability."

    Liu Yi You's mouth twitched, but she didn't expose him further. The qilin was a beast made up of many animals, and one of them was

    a dog...

    Seeing Liu Yi You's expression, Qi Ling eyed the little worm pretending to sleep on her head and asked, "Why do you have Yi Long's aura?"

    Mao Tong lazily opened one eye and replied, "I have stopped being Yi Long. I am Lord Khainui now."

    Liu Yi You's face darkened upon hearing this.

    Just as Qi Ling was about to ask more, Xiao Gui interrupted, "Master Khainui is the dragon above dragons, the divine dragon among dragons."

    Mao Tong nodded in agreement, patting the back of the turtle it was lying on with a loud slap.

    "Well done."