Chapter 63: The Little Stone Man Begging for a Snack
Chapter 63: Chapter 63: The Little Stone Man Begging for a Snack
"CHIRP!"
This was a gift from the bird to its Xiao Wuwu; other humans were forbidden to touch.
Faced with the tyrannical little bird’s death threat, Lou Xiaotian could only put the Crystal Stone down with tears in his eyes.
A mountain of treasure lay before him, yet he couldn’t have it. Who could possibly understand his anguish?
Qin Zhan understood.
He understood all too well!
Because some of these Crystal Stones were things not even the Holy Sword Sect possessed.
And now, they were all laid out before Lu Wu for her to pick and choose.
Under their despairing gazes, Lu Wu gave a light cough and walked among the piles of Crystal Stones, picking out the ones that caught her eye.
She had no intention of taking everything. After all, the Stone Men had done nothing to offend her.
’This might be their pantry, for all I know. I can’t just leave them with nothing to eat in the future.’
With this in mind, Lu Wu collected about a third of the Crystal Stones. She only picked some of them after noticing Qin Zhan’s and Lou Xiaotian’s eyes twitching as they frantically tried to signal her.
’Good stuff!’
She read those two words from their expressions.
With her pockets now full, Lu Wu picked up Huohuo, who was urging her to keep picking, and shook her head.
"That’s enough. Let’s go back."
’The Stone Men are innocent, after all.’ Lu Wu’s conscience pricked her slightly.
"CHIRP!"
Huohuo understood Lu Wu’s meaning and nuzzled her cheek.
’Xiao Wuwu, I’ll find more good things for you later.’
’Anyway, all the demon beasts in this Secret Realm are my underlings. It’s only natural for the boss to take things from their subordinates.’
The tyrannical Huohuo led Lu Wu and the others back the way they came.
Light appeared ahead. Just as she was about to exit the Stone Man cave, Lu Wu glanced outside, then quickly scrambled back to hide behind Qin Zhan and Lou Xiaotian.
’She remembered Uncle Li’s advice clearly: know how to use your tool-people.’
Qin Zhan composed his expression as he looked at the group of Stone Men waiting outside in battle formation. His hand crept back, ready to draw his sword at a moment’s notice.
’It’s over.’
’The Stone Men are pissed.’
’So many of them gathered together... it looks like they want a fight.’
Qin Zhan couldn’t even gauge the cultivation of the old Stone Man in the lead. He had a feeling a tough battle was coming.
’Is it worth going through all this trouble just for a bite to eat?’
Qin Zhan’s answer was a resounding yes: It was worth it!
’Because it was so damn delicious.’
Thinking of the food in his Storage Space, Qin Zhan’s expression turned serious.
’No matter what, I have to ensure Boss Lu can get away.’
Lou Xiaotian, standing beside him, felt the same.
Seeing their auras rise and their fighting spirit boil, Lu Wu, hiding behind them, poked her head out and said weakly,
"They... don’t seem like they’re here to fight."
She couldn’t really understand the situation, but she guessed as much because Huohuo, perched on her, hadn’t reacted.
"ROAR!"
A Stone Man let out a roar, and one of the smaller ones suddenly lunged forward, hugging Lu Wu’s leg.
Its speed was astonishing.
Who would have thought that the clumsy-looking Stone Men could be as swift as the wind? It was impossible to guard against.
The little Stone Man clasped its hands together, its big eyes like flawless rubies.
It looked at Lu Wu and held something out in front of her.
It was the bowl used for the ice powder.
"You want more ice powder?"
Lu Wu asked tentatively, and the little Stone Man nodded emphatically.
"ROAR!"
’Human, yummy, want to eat!’
The thought had barely formed when Huohuo pecked the little Stone Man on the head. Huohuo may have been palm-sized, a pittance before the Stone Man, but in front of Huohuo, the Stone Man lowered its head and cast down its eyes, not daring to be presumptuous.
"CHIRP!"
’The human is mine! Don’t you dare eat her! If you try, I’ll eat you!’
Huohuo hopped around on the Stone Man’s head, pecking at it from time to time.
There was no telling what that beak was made of. The stone was so hard, yet Huohuo didn’t seem to use much force, chipping off a small piece with every peck.
"GROAN!"
The little Stone Man, in pain, burrowed right into Lu Wu’s arms.
’Little Stone eats ice powder, not human.’
’The vicious bird misunderstood me. Little Stone is sad, but Little Stone won’t say it.’
As the little one stared at her eagerly, Lu Wu felt like it was trying to act cute.
She hugged the little one, feeling its heavy weight in her arms.
Lu Wu patted its little head and placated Huohuo.
"I don’t have any more ice powder on me. I already gave you all the leftovers."
"If you still want some, you can come find me at the stone monument tomorrow morning. You know where the monument is, right?"
As Lu Wu asked, she saw all the Stone Men in front of her nod.
"Then I’ll make more tomorrow and wait for you."
Feeling the ache in her arms, Lu Wu reluctantly put the little Stone Man down.
’You know, the little guy felt warm to the touch, like a small furnace.’
"ROAR!"
Hearing Lu Wu’s promise, the Stone Men cleared a path and cheerfully saw her off.
Qin Zhan and Lou Xiaotian looked at each other, rendered speechless.
’Another day of getting carried.’ ’Why do we feel so useless?’
’It’s an illusion. It must be an illusion!’
Only after leaving the Stone Men’s territory did Qin Zhan speak, his brows furrowed.
"That group of Stone Men... they’re probably descendants of the Giant Clan recorded in the ancient texts."
"Legend says the Giant Clan was a mix of Human Clan and demon beast bloodlines, which is why their appearance mutated."
"In battle, the Giant Clan could change their form, growing as tall as the sky with limitless strength. They were an ancient and terrifying race."
"But for some unknown reason, they vanished into the river of history, and now only a few lines about them can be found in ancient texts."
"This led many to believe that the so-called Giant Clan was just something fabricated by their ancestors."
’Seeing them today, their fearsome reputation holds true.’
After wandering around the area and finding some Spirit Fruits to supplement her ice powder ingredients, the sky began to darken, and Lu Wu’s group returned to the stone monument.
With Qin Zhan and Lou Xiaotian keeping watch, Lu Wu slept soundly.
The two of them, in contrast, spent the entire night on edge, sitting back-to-back with their eyes and ears wide open.
The darkness concealed everything.
Qin Zhan’s Spiritual Sense scanned the vicinity, detecting packs of demon beasts lying in wait.
They didn’t attack. Instead, they seemed to be waiting for something, extraordinarily patient.
Even though the demon beasts made no move, it was hard for the two men to remain calm while surrounded by so many of them.
The night passed with them on high alert.
When the morning sun rose from the east, it painted the sky with the rosy hues of dawn.
Beneath the romantic glow, Lu Wu stretched lazily, only to see the two men with huge dark circles under their eyes.
’This scene feels strangely familiar.’
"Do you feel it? The temperature in the Secret Realm is higher."
Qin Zhan crouched down and touched the ground. The surface was hot enough to burn his fingers. After feeling it carefully, he asked Lou Xiaotian with a hint of confusion.
’I don’t know if it’s my imagination.’
’But it feels like the temperature at this hour is higher than yesterday.’
Qin Zhan, feeling an inexplicable sense of urgency, saw Lou Xiaotian nod. Clearly, the Secret Realm was indeed changing.
He looked over at Lu Wu, who just shook her head blankly.
She didn’t feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, she was perfectly content, as if she were at home.
After a simple breakfast, Lu Wu set up her stall.
’A new day has begun. Where are my customers?’
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!
A few sonic booms echoed out. Lu Wu looked up to find hordes of demon beasts emerging from all directions, glaring at them like hungry tigers.