Li Yin had more or less figured out how the Directed Random worked. With this latest item in her arsenal, she no longer had to worry about the game’s random mechanics screwing things up.
She vigorously stroked the kitten’s head a few times to mask her inner excitement.
The orange kitten meowed under the pressure of her fingers, snapping her back to attention. Only then did Li Yin remember that she hadn’t named the cat or the rat yet.
Li Yin lifted up the kitten, holding it face-to-face, and pondered the possibility of naming them Tom and Jerry.
Suddenly, a clear and gentle voice inquired from nearby, interrupting her whimsical thoughts.
“Are you a new disciple?”
It was a voice she’d heard not long ago. Li Yin turned her head and sure enough, it was Elder Yaoguang. He was looking at her with a smile in his eyes.
“Are you alright? We must have scared you earlier.” His ink-jade eyes shifted slightly, noticing the kitten and rat pup in her hands.
Without missing a beat, the man naturally reached out as if it were nothing and took the young beast from her arms. Silently, he demonstrated the proper way to hold it for the new disciple.
As he took the spirit beast pup, his jade-carved fingertips accidentally brushed against the girl’s slightly cool hand, leaving behind a fleeting warmth that quickly dissipated.
Yao Guanheng paused imperceptibly, but the smile on his lips remained unchanged.
His gaze dropped, no longer looking at the new disciple. Instead, he focused on stroking the orange kitten in his arms, his slender fingers gently combing through its fur.
Earlier, worried about her identity being exposed, Li Yin hadn’t gotten a good look at him. Now, she finally took the time to appraise the elder who had helped bail her out.
Though called an elder, most cultivators in the Cultivation World maintained their youthful appearances for centuries, remaining strikingly handsome, just like the one before her.
Elders didn’t have to wear the uniform disciple robes. He was dressed in a deep blue robe embroidered with subtle silver patterns resembling magnolia flowers. His long ink-black hair was tied up with a jade crown, falling silently behind him in a warm, gentle cascade.
With the kitten held securely in the man’s arms, he—as an elder of the Myriad Beasts Sect—naturally knew how to hold it comfortably. He patiently smoothed out the kitten’s fur until it started purring contentedly. Yao Guanheng’s smile didn’t fade as he soothed it.
“Good child, everything’s fine now. Were you scared earlier?”
He kept his eyes downcast, not looking at her, as if speaking only to the spirit beast. His clear voice was exceedingly pleasant to the ear.
Li Yin stared unabashedly at the elder’s dense, fan-like eyelashes.
As a player in a romance game, she’d seen plenty of male characters. She could spot the doting dad aura on him at a glance.
This was a beauty entirely different from Shen Ting’an’s—lacking the aggressive edge of Elder Shen. Elder Yaoguang was tolerant and mild.
A red camellia in the snow might be coldly alluring but prickly to touch, whereas the magnolia on the branch was refreshingly delicate.
A little scheme stirred in Li Yin’s mind.
Of course, it was perfectly normal for a player in a romance game to feel her heart stir within the game itself. If this line felt familiar, it was only because it would become even more so later.
She stared at him eagerly and unabashedly. Elder Yaoguang’s fingertips twitched. He took out a spirit beast treat from his spatial magic artifact and fed the orange kitten.
The kitten chomped down on the dried fish, but its teeth weren’t sharp enough. It gnawed away diligently, letting out muffled “ow-ow” sounds of effort.
Li Yin’s gaze shifted downward to her seemingly not-too-bright kitten.
“In another two days, the Immortal Boat will set off on the return journey,” Yao Guanheng said, eyes still on the kitten as it ate, speaking as if to it. “Once we’re back at the sect, things will be better. These little ones probably aren’t adapting well to being out here.”
Hearing that the dangerous period would pass in just two more days, Li Yin quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Xia Erruo, standing nearby, immediately assured him upon hearing this. “Elder Yaoguang, don’t worry. We’ll take good care of these pups.”
“Mm, I trust you.” The man finally raised his eyes, smiling as he continued, “Oh, right—get along well with the new disciple.”
Xia Erruo patted her chest. “Little Junior Sister, feel free to come to me if there’s anything you don’t understand!”
Suddenly thrust into the spotlight, Li Yin snapped back to reality. “Thank you, Senior Sister Xia.”
“Thank you, Elder Yaoguang.” She didn’t forget the man either, taking back her kitten, which was still gnawing on the dried fish, from his arms.
Elder Yaoguang handed the spirit beast pup back to her. His deep ink-jade eyes silently swept over her brows and eyes before lowering again.
He said nothing more, withdrew his hand, and left amid a glow of gentle warmth.
Though she found this elder’s looks and demeanor quite appealing, there was no rush—plenty of time ahead. Li Yin first tore the dried fish into strips for the kitten to make it easier to eat. Then, she chatted with Xia Erruo and settled on names for the two spirit beast pups.
She named the Copper Coin Rat pup Silver Gray and the Golden Thread Cat kitten Little Golden Orange.
Li Yin held Little Golden Orange and asked a few more questions about cultivation until nightfall. A Myriad Beasts Sect attendant disciple then arranged her accommodations and provided a set of Myriad Beasts Sect disciple magic robes.
She eagerly changed into the robes and tried cultivating in her quiet chamber.
The Myriad Beasts Sect’s cultivation method was called the Spirit Taming Art. As a player, she just needed to select it on the Game Panel to cultivate.
Running alongside the Spirit Taming Art was another method called the Spirit Capturing Method. During cultivation, any unabsorbed spiritual qi around the player would condense into Spirit Taming Pearls. Feeding these pearls to spirit beasts helped them level up and familiarize themselves with their master’s scent.
In player terms, the Spirit Taming Pearls not only gave spirit beasts experience points but also boosted affinity. Only when affinity was maxed could a contract be formed.
But with her Max-Level Charm cheat, their starting affinity probably wasn’t low. In a short time, she should be able to contract the cat and rat as her contracted beasts.
While the kitten slept, Li Yin selected the method and began cultivating.
The process was like going AFK—she didn’t need to meditate like the natives of the Cultivation World. So, she pulled out an illustrated manual to read.
The Game Panel in front of her displayed her cultivation status.
【Spirit Taming Art in progress……】
【Cultivation Progress: 0%】
【Current Cultivation: Foundation Establishment. Next Level: Golden Core Realm】
Half a shichen later, Li Yin set down the jade slip and stretched lazily on her meditation cushion.
She glanced at her cultivation progress and suddenly froze.
【Cultivation Progress: 0.001%】
Li Yin rubbed her eyes to confirm she wasn’t seeing things.
This efficiency was way too low. She muttered under her breath, then remembered something important.
She pulled up her status card and examined it closely—
【Jade Ecstasy Technique (Cultivating this method converts demonic qi and spiritual qi, stepping onto the path of Supplementation. Cultivation efficiency greatly reduced, dual cultivation efficiency greatly increased. Duration: Permanent)】
Li Yin’s gaze lingered on the words “cultivation efficiency greatly reduced.”
From memory, the base rate was at least 1% per hour at minimum. She hadn’t expected it to drop this low, straight into decimals.
She picked up the Spirit Taming Pearl that had condensed beside her cushion, fiddling with it idly as she thought. Her advancement would probably have to rely on dual cultivation.
But where was she supposed to find a kind man willing to let her supplement his spiritual qi?
Li Yin fretted all night. The next day, she composed herself, released Little Silver Gray from the Spirit Beast Box, and took the cat and rat to a corner of the deck for some activity.
The two spirit beasts had low cultivation and intelligence equivalent to two- or three-year-olds. They needed to be fed pills every so often to awaken their minds.
She took out two pills, but the little ones treated them like toys.
The rat pup rolled the round pill around playfully, while the kitten was even naughtier, batting the pill away with its paw before chasing after it.
Li Yin didn’t stop it in time. She let out a short cry of alarm, watching helplessly as the pill arced through the air in a parabola.
Suddenly, someone at the other end of the arc raised their hand swiftly, pinching the pill precisely between two fingers.
The person chuckled lightly, then bent down to scoop up the little orange kitten that had rushed to his feet.
His fingers gripped the kitten by the scruff of its neck, lifting it up.
“Such a naughty one.” Ji Lingyao dangled the kitten as he spoke.
Even after being bumped by it, he didn’t seem angry. The sharp gray in his eyes softened amid his smile, like morning mist.
Li Yin naturally recognized him and instinctively glanced down at her outfit.
She was now wearing the Myriad Beasts Sect’s ink-green magic robes, fully passing as one of their recognized disciples.
Suppressing her guilt, she looked up again to find Ji Little Dao Lord already right in front of her.
She only came up to his shoulder. As the youth leaned in, the sudden rush of air carried the wet, cold, sharp scent of water from his body, faintly brushing her nose.
The distance closed too abruptly, startling Li Yin into taking half a step back.
“Hey, I didn’t ask you to pay up—what’s with the nerves?”
Ji Lingyao smiled, narrowing his eyes slightly. “You’d better keep a close eye on this kitten. It’s so tiny, looks just like a rat—don’t let an eagle snatch it.”
He shook the kitten in his hand. Little Golden Orange, pinched by the scruff, dangled like a long strip of kitten towel, tail and paws limp and motionless.
“Sorry.” Li Yin flashed him an apologetic smile and reached out to take back her orange kitten towel.
The kitten curled up in her arms. The youth nodded slightly, gesturing in a certain direction. “That rat pup’s yours too?”
Li Yin turned to look. The Copper Coin Rat was pushing the round pill farther and farther away. She hurriedly dashed over, scooped up the little rat pup, and stowed it back in the Spirit Beast Box.
The girl was dressed today in ink-green robes embroidered with golden and silver threads depicting mountain spirits and wild creatures. As she moved, the hem danced, sparkling faintly with a lively charm.
The rich color made her skin seem even more translucent. A few stray locks by her ear swayed gently with the breeze, like inkweed in a mountain stream.
Ji Lingyao gazed intently at those inkweed-like strands for a long moment.
Her spirit beasts had misbehaved and been seen. A faint blush of embarrassment colored her ears, like clouds or rosy dusk.
She seemed perfectly normal. Could she really be a Demonic Cultivator?
His gray eyes maintained their curve, but the hand at his side lifted, plucking a white feather from his waist.
While Li Yin was picking up the little rat, the Game Panel suddenly popped up before her eyes.
【Your identity has been suspected. “Ji Little Dao Lord” wants to use a treasure to probe if you’re a Demonic Cultivator in disguise. Success rate of evading the probe is at least: 60】
【Use Directed Random?】
【Countdown: 10】
【9, 8, 7…..】
During the countdown, Li Yin’s heart skipped. She quickly made her decision.
【Directed Random used successfully!】
【Random Points: 100】
【Your success rate for evading the probe: 100. Guaranteed success.】
She controlled her expression slightly, stowed the little rat pup, and turned back. The youth with the high ponytail and red hair ribbon was smiling at her.
“You’ve still got one pill with me.” He stepped forward, seemingly to return the Wisdom Pill to her.
Li Yin responded with a shy, innocent smile, holding out her palm to indicate he could just place it there.
Along with the pill, a feather landed in her palm.
The girl looked up at him in confusion. “What’s this?”
The feather in her palm was pristine white, without the slightest hint of discoloration.
Ji Lingyao met her round, clear eyes and smiled brightly. “It’s a magic treasure that detects demonic qi. There was a Demonic Cultivator stirring trouble yesterday, right? Seeing your cultivation is low, I’m giving it to you as a warning. If the white feather ever turns black, it means a Demonic Cultivator is nearby—be careful.”
Li Yin thanked him, looking delighted at the gift and concern.
She carefully smoothed the feather and, mimicking his style, hung the white feather on her own waistband.
“Your spirit cat’s settled down now, huh?”
Seeing her put it away, Ji Little Dao Lord showed no sign of leaving. He changed the subject, pointing at the kitten in her arms.
Little Golden Orange—perhaps spooked by the stranger—was balled up tight, its round head and body tucked into Li Yin’s elbow like a little gourd with cat ears.
Li Yin glanced down at her quiet little cat gourd and heard the youth continue. “I have a cat too, but it’s white.”
She looked back up at the speaking youth.
Meeting her distinctly black-and-white eyes, Ji Lingyao paused briefly before adding, “Actually, it’s my master’s, but I take care of it every day.”
Li Yin latched onto the keyword. “Master?”
“Your master is that purple-robed elder, right? He seems so cold—does he keep cats too?” she asked curiously, trying to fish for info on her former capture target.
She’d miscalculated.
Instead of asking about the cat, the girl was curious about his master.
Ji Lingyao’s narrow gray eyes curved. “That’s why I’m the one taking care of it.”
He explained, “My master is all about slaying demons and upholding justice. He’s not great with people—not even warm to me, his disciple. Forget about taking care of a cat.”
Ji Lingyao had clearly mentioned his master’s awful personality, yet the girl in front of him blinked and said, “But I heard that your master is deeply devoted to his dao companion.”
Hearing the interest in her tone, Ji Lingyao looked down at her, his expression unchanged.
His tongue pressed against the roof of his mouth, barely maintaining the amiable smile on his face.
He almost forgot, he thought.
His master possessed unparalleled beauty. Even with such an unpredictable temper, he could still deceive little girls with that face.