Chapter 16

    Handsome, indeed, but injured... really injured.

    "You guys… I don’t know if you got the herbs, but now you’re putting more burden on me," Liu Yi You muttered.

    She complained, but no matter how much she grumbled, she still treated the newcomer.

    The young man was at the Qi Integrating stage and wasn't seriously hurt, just injured from a fall. Liu Yi You used her Healing technique, and in no time, his body was back to normal.

    "The rest just needs time to recover," Liu Yi You said.

    "And what about that giant cat and that skinny-as-a-stick guy? What's that about?" Mao Tong asked.

    "Never mind that. Did you get the herbs?" Liu Yi You inquired.

    Mao Tong, Xiao Gui, and Ta Gui took out a bunch of herbs, including some she already had and some new ones.

    "These will do," Liu Yi You smiled slightly and calmly stored the herbs in the Underwater Palace. Mao Tong prepared to dive in but was pulled back by a small hand. "Where do you think you’re going?"

    "Into the fish tank."

    The little girl smirked. "If you want something to eat, I'll get it for you. Just wait outside. If you go in, you'll end up burning my herb garden again."

    The three beasts simultaneously pouted and drooped their heads.

    Xiao Gui and Mao Tong clung to Liu Yi You's head, while Ta Gui perched on Liu Tan's. Now, they were ready to continue their journey to the Guardian's Tomb.

    However, they needed to wait for the injured man to wake up first.

    The little girl squatted beside the unconscious tall young man, his chiseled face and prominent nose catching her eye. Liu Yi You rested her elbows on her knees, propped her cheeks with her hands, and watched the young man happily.

    Who doesn’t like a handsome man?

    The sweet-looking girl tended to the young man attentively. When he woke up, they would gaze deeply into each other's eyes. The tall young man would tenderly embrace the young woman, saying, ‘I love you.’

    Liu Yi You smiled sweetly at the fantasy in her mind.

    "Seventeen, you're still a child..." Suddenly, Liu Tan, who was snacking nearby and usually didn't speak much, issued a warning.

    Pulled abruptly from her daydream, Liu Yi You pouted.

    "Yes, Grandfather," she said, removing one hand from her cheek to poke the young man's face. His eyelids fluttered, and he slowly opened his eyes, then suddenly sprang up in shock.

    "My Celestial Mushroom!"

    Liu Yi You was so startled she fell backward, landing on her bottom.

    "Where am I? Where's my Celestial Mushroom?" the young man exclaimed, looking around frantically.

    "Celestial Mushroom what? You were too dumb to get them, yet you stupidly jumped off the cliff. Are you stupid or stupid?" Mao Tong scolded angrily.

    "But I saw it first!" the young man retorted.

    "I harvested it first," Mao Tong shouted back.

    "That’s mine."

    "Where's the mushroom?"

    "...." The young man looked around and then burst into tears. "That was mine! You all stole my mushroom, sobs..."

    Liu Yi You's brow twitched. Here was a handsome man, a grown man, sitting on the ground, crying and kicking his legs like a child.

    Fantasies are one thing, but reality is another. Liu Yi You quickly discarded her sweet thoughts and pouted. Handsome, but such a waste.

    Annoyed, she turned to Mao Tong. "What mushroom?"

    The herbs Mao Tong had given her did not include any Celestial Mushrooms.

    Mao Tong looked at her disdainfully and said, "It's a Moon Mushroom."

    Liu Yi You frowned. How could a Moon Mushroom be a Celestial Mushroom?

    She took the Moon Mushroom out of the Underwater Palace. She had only recently planted it, but the water in the Underwater Palace was like gourd wine, making plants grow rapidly. Now there were countless Celestial Mushrooms there.

    As soon as he saw the mushroom, the young man ran over, grabbed it, and cradled it like a precious treasure. No one said anything; they all just watched him quietly.

    The Liu Yi You group had little time and needed to head to the Guardian's Tomb, so they couldn't waste more time with anyone else.

    The tiger and the man who had been chasing each other for three days and nights were now exhausted but didn't dare stop running, still making noise around the forest. When they saw the strange group preparing to leave, they were relieved.

    However...

    Just as Liu Yi You was about to leave, the young man busy with his mushroom looked up. "Are these beasts Celestial beasts?"

    Liu Tan raised an eyebrow in surprise. "How do you know?"

    "High-level beasts can talk; Celestial beasts can fly," the young man replied.

    "And?"

    "I found a little bird. It's red but injured," the young man blinked, looking pitiful with a pouting face, and continued... "I wanted to help it. Before it passed out, it told me to find a Celestial Mushroom, so I came looking for one."

    Seeing his sincere demeanor, like a five-year-old in a twenty-something's body, Liu Yi You nodded.

    But she had no time to deal with anyone else's injuries now. She needed to hurry to the Guardian's Tomb, so she decided to give the young man a pill.

    "Give it this pill, and it will heal," Liu Yi You said, then prepared to take off on the auspicious cloud and use her divine wings to fly away.

    But the young man, still pouting and looking displeased, shouted after them, "That bird told me to find the Guardian Beast that is a Celestial beast. If you find it, tell it to go find the little bird!"

    However, these words…did not reach Liu Yi You and her companions.

    After they had gone far, the young man, though unhappy, could do nothing but stomp his feet a few times and start walking. He saw a tiger lying exhausted on the ground.

    The tiger and the thin man, who had been chasing each other for a long time, stopped running once they saw the people giving orders had left.

    You stay on your side, I'll stay on mine.

    However...

    "Hey, why did you two stop chasing each other?" The young man blinked.

    "I'm tired. Don't bother me," the thin man snapped irritably.

    "No, you can't. You two were playing tag. Now it's my turn to chase you. Come on!"

    Snap! A whip, seemingly from nowhere, struck the Cloud Tiger's rump, making it roar immediately.

    ROARRRR!

    Snap! The same whip struck the thin man's nearly fleshless bottom.

    Ouchhhhh!

    Thus, one man and one beast reluctantly became the playmates of the young man who acted like a five-year-old.

    The Cloud Tiger swore to itself that if it survived these people, it would devote itself to cultivation and never meddle with humans again.