Chapter 8

    Liu Yi You suddenly turned to look at Xiao Gui in disbelief.

    The giant tortoise, whose head and tail were indiscernible, stomped the ground, "You unworthy tortoise, daring to make deals with humans?"

    Hearing this, Xiao Gui even more deeply retracted his head, "Grandfather, Xiao Gui was just hungry."

    After all this time, whenever it was, it never retract into its shell. This was the first time she had ever seen him do it. Liu Yi You then pursed her lips inwardly and then grinned widely.

    Hehe, Xiao Gui, so prim and proper, she hadn't expected there to be such a powerful backstory.

    A booming voice echoed from the giant island that Liu Yi You still couldn’t see in its entirety.

    "Xiao Gui, really? Even using the name Xiao Gui disgraces the tortoise race."

    "Grandfather, Xiao Gui is the name my master gave me."

    "Stop…stop calling yourself Xiao Gui Such a tasteless name," said the old tortoise, invisible in the distance.

    Liu Yi You heard this, her eyes twitching uncontrollably. Tortoises have taste? She pursed her lips internally before interjecting politely,

    "May I ask the esteemed senior’s name?"

    "Huh! You humans, a tortoise like me doesn’t need a name," the old tortoise’s voice boomed across the area.

    The young girl smirked slightly. Although the other party ridiculed the name she had given Xiao Gui, she shouldn’t lose manners, especially since he was Xiao Gui's grandfather.

    "Then, how about we call you Ta Gui? Or perhaps Yi Gui would be better?"

    "Ta Gui? Perhaps Yi Gui is better," the voice of the old tortoise seemed to consider momentarily but quickly turned into a roar, "You insolent child! How dare you name me?"

    Naming him was like accepting the other as a master, the old tortoise was not about to agree easily.

    Liu Yi You secretly pouted, thinking she might have gained another legendary tortoise to enhance her prestige.

    "Alright, alright, you little pest, it’s good that you're back so I can rest. Go do your duties," the old tortoise finally spoke.

    "Grandfather, I’m not ready. I’m hungry here," the little tortoise peeked half out of his shell, looking both bold and fearful.

    "That’s not an excuse. Duties need to be fulfilled. You can't keep running away like this," the old tortoise was unyielding.

    Liu Yi You listened to the back and forth argument between the tortoise grandfather and grandson and felt a headache coming on. If Xiao Gui stayed here, what about her? Surely she wouldn’t have to stay as well.

    She still had many things to do.

    Liu Tan, who had been leisurely eating snacks from the start, seemed to guess the young girl's thoughts and decided to help his niece a bit. No matter how cunning Liu Yi You was, she was still inexperienced compared to him, a seasoned traveler.

    "Are you one of the four guardian beasts?"

    "Hmm?" The old turtle's voice conveyed surprise. "You know about this too?"

    Liu Tun nodded slightly. "I have heard some legends about Mei Guo."

    It is said that in the world of Qi, no sage has ever appeared, but there exist mythical beasts of the immortal level. These creatures are inherently sage from birth, inherited through their bloodlines. Yet, they remain mere beastly sage, unable to evolve beyond that. The immortal beasts include:

    - The Dragon, guardian of Qing Yun

    - The Turtle, guardian of Mei Guo

    - The Kirin, guardian of Fei Zhou

    - The Phoenix, guardian of Li Ya

    This is written in legends, yet no one has ever confirmed if these beings truly exist.

    Liu Tun was quite excited. Having lived till old age and become young again, this was his first encounter with a sage turtle. More importantly, he never knew that the descendant of the storm turtle would be his own granddaughter's mythical beast.

    Liu Tun watched the trembling island with reverence, guessing that it must indeed be the back of a turtle.

    "So, to put it simply," the old turtle sighed. "I want my descendant back. He is vital to this world of Qi."

    Liu Yi You had read about the legendary guardians of each continent as well, but never imagined that Xiao Gui would be the future guardian of the Mei Guo continent.

    Being a mature adult like this, traveling anywhere would be easy.

    The little brain of Liu Yi You calculated quickly. Originally, traveling to Mei Guo might take up to a year if compared to Xiao Gui's speed, but the grandfather would likely be much faster. Assuming a giant turtle could fly them, it would probably take no more than three months from now.

    "Grandfather, I’m not ready," the little turtle said sadly, almost crying.

    "Why?" asked the old turtle in a cold voice.

    "There is nothing to eat here. When I’m with Master, I have food to eat all day," Xiao Gui argued, then retreated back into his shell.

    "No, you must come and fulfill your duty. The world cannot afford to lose its balance any further," the old turtle stated.

    "Is it unbalanced?" Liu Yi You felt a twinge of realization, looking at Liu Tun, who was also frowning.

    Xiao Gui was unwilling to come out; he didn't care what would happen, knowing only that staying with Liu Yi You meant a full stomach. What Xiao Gui did not understand was that if this world lost its balance and collapsed, he would perish along with it.

    "One way or another, you must return to your duties." The island trembled violently again with a fierce voice.

    Xiao Gui rolled his eyes left and right, looking at his master, before suddenly shooting towards the center of the girl's forehead and disappearing. The island shook once more.

    "Are you the heir to the Underwater Palace?" The old turtle's voice seemed unsure.

    Liu Yi You pouted and thought to herself, 'Underwater Palace? It's clearly just a fish tank.' But she still nodded with an impassive face, not saying anything aloud.

    The large island trembled again, and soon, an object not much bigger than Xiao Gui shot rapidly towards the young girl. As it got closer, it became clear that it was a turtle,

    a turtle bearing a striking resemblance to Xiao Gui.

    "Master," the little old turtle looked at Liu Yi You with sparkling eyes.

    Liu Tun glanced at the little turtle and then at the island. Where were the guardians, the formidable giant turtles? How did it turn into such a small turtle?