As a result, I was discovered by that demon snake and ended up fleeing in panic!
"You little rascal."
Chen Ye twitched his lips, speaking with a hint of annoyance,
"I thought you knew how to repay kindness, specially bringing me here to find treasure. Turns out, you’re just a relentless little thief."
"Chirp chirp!"
The little white fox showed no guilt at all, instead, it chirped confidently, pointing with its front paws to the Earthfire Essence, then to itself.
Seeing its unreasonable behavior, Chen Ye nearly laughed in exasperation.
Such treasures of heaven and earth are meant for those with virtue!
Without him, this little white fox would’ve been serpent food long ago, and yet it’s still hoping to claim the treasure?
Besides, this is one of the Five Elements Spiritual Materials Chen Ye needs, so there’s no way he can give it to the little fox.
"In this Grotto Heaven, there seems to be endless opportunities. No wonder people dare to risk life and limb to venture inside..."
Chen Ye secured the Earthfire Essence, pondering silently.
Currently, he has collected the essences of gold, wood, and fire, only the earth and water elements remain.
"Chirp chirp..." The little white fox was dumbfounded seeing Chen Ye secure the spiritual object, sniffing and almost on the verge of tears.
"Master, stop teasing it."
Zhiwei came over, looking at her master helplessly.
Then she squatted down and took the pitiful, aggrieved little fox back into her arms, comforting it softly,
"Its mouth is still hurting."
As she spoke, she carefully emitted a strand of Water Series Spiritual Power to cool down the burn on the little white fox’s mouth.
Although Chen Ye didn’t care much about the thoughts of this little fox, he still needed to rely on it more in this Grotto Heaven.
With this in mind, he also squatted down, gathering a strand of green spiritual power at his fingertips to heal the little white fox.
At first, the little white fox was reluctant, but feeling the vitality of the spiritual power, it eventually relented to Chen Ye’s healing.
Chen Ye explained, "It’s not that I don’t want to give you something to eat. But this Earthfire Essence is too wild for you to consume directly. I’ll make a batch of pills for you later, how about that?"
The little white fox’s big eyes darted around, reluctantly nodding its head.
Once Chen Ye finished healing it, the fox immediately jumped into Zhiwei’s arms, licking its burnt paw while sulking alone.
...
In the following few days, despite still harboring some grievances, the little white fox responsibly led the way, considering the pills and Zhiwei’s influence.
During this time, they gradually encountered other cultivators and even came across the Medicine King Valley team.
These cultivators, though without a white fox to guide them, explored quickly in the early stages, relying on the experiences of predecessors.
Some cultivators stayed in Whimpering Wilds, seeking opportunities.
For forces like the Medicine King Valley, their goals were clear as they headed straight for the Stone Tablet Forest.
However, these forces indeed progressed rapidly in the initial exploratory stages.
Yet, once the experience of predecessors ran out, they were each surpassed by Chen Ye.
By the third day, Chen Ye rarely saw other cultivators on the road.
It seemed most of them had fallen behind.
That day, guided by the little white fox, Chen Ye and Zhiwei cooperated and successfully slew a demon beast at the Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer.
"It’s a pity... it’s just not the two elements I’m missing."
Chen Ye dissected the demon beast that resembled a pangolin, its body covered entirely in metallic scales.
He extracted a piece of purplish-gold stone emitting sharp, golden energy and sighed helplessly.
This piece of purple crystal is undoubtedly a precious Second Tier gold series spiritual object.
It could be used to forge a magical treasure, and in terms of value, it’s even higher than the Earthfire Essence he obtained earlier.
But for him right now, what he lacks the most are spiritual objects of the water and earth series.
"Master, no wonder so many people want to come to the Grotto Heaven for opportunities. In the outside world, Second Tier spiritual objects are rare to see, but in just four days here, we found two Second Tier spiritual objects."
Zhiwei was somewhat surprised. In the outside world, even First Tier top-grade Spirit Plants were enough to make many Loose Cultivators fight to the death.
As for Second Tier spiritual objects, even someone like Aunt Mao could only find two different attribute ones in a short time.
But in the Grotto Heaven, in just four days, Master found two spiritual objects.
"Speaking of which, it’s still thanks to this little fox."
Chen Ye smiled slightly, throwing out another pill to feed the little white fox,
"Little White, as long as you listen to me, there will be plenty of pills in the future!"
The little white fox leapt forward, swallowing the pill.
Upon hearing this, it looked at Chen Ye with suspicion.
Huh! This little fox even doubts me?
As the old saying goes, a promise worth a thousand pieces of gold...
Chen Ye thought for a moment, extending one finger: "For example, if you lick my finger, I’ll give you a top-grade pill!"
"Chirp chirp!"
The little white fox glanced at Chen Ye with disdain, then stretched lazily on the ground.
"Master..."
Zhiwei pursed her lips, not happy.
Chen Ye immediately recognized the little girl misunderstood him and hurriedly explained: "Master isn’t being frivolous, it’s just a way to make the little fox listen to me."
As he said this, he also explained the story of the promise worth a thousand pieces of gold to Zhiwei.
Only then did the little girl believe him, albeit with some hesitance.
After resolving the misunderstanding with Zhiwei, Chen Ye realized the little white fox was unimpressed. He knew he’d have to make a concession to win the fox over.
He gritted his teeth, taking out a Three-striped Pill, waving it in front of the little white fox.
As soon as the Three-striped Qi Nourishing Pill appeared, a sense of dao essence spread out; the pill’s radiance swirling around, the three profound pill patterns moving like living creatures.
The little white fox, previously lying on the ground in a "don’t bother me" stance, suddenly sniffed the air, frozen in place.
In a flash, it leaped up, gazing eagerly at the pill in Chen Ye’s hand, nearly drooling, with its fluffy tail wagging excitedly like a fan.
"So, how about now?" Chen Ye chuckled to himself, once again pointing out his finger, gently coaxing, "Are you willing to listen now?"
The little white fox struggled, its paws furiously digging into the ground.
Clearly, it wanted to eat that pill, but... but...
Chen Ye sighed: "Do you think I would deceive you? Rest assured, I, Chen Ye, am a man of my word!"
Zhiwei watched silently on the side.
She... She felt like Master was just enjoying the act of tricking an innocent little fox?
And thinking about how the little white fox, as a Spirit Beast, might shapeshift in the future...
The more she thought, the more uncomfortable Zhiwei felt, though surely, it wasn’t jealousy towards the little fox?
Ultimately, the little white fox couldn’t resist the temptation, resignedly moving forward, stretching out its tender little tongue, quickly licking Chen Ye’s fingertip.
"Hahaha, that’s a good fox!"
Chen Ye laughed heartily, in high spirits, and faithfully offered the Three-striped Pill to the little white fox’s mouth.
"Chirp..."
The little white fox was momentarily dumbfounded, unable to believe that just a lick of a finger could earn such a miraculous pill?
Being too easily attained left the fox confused.
It sniffed the pill, then looked at Chen Ye with big, pleading eyes.
It had... made such a significant sacrifice!
Surely, no tricking the fox, right?
"Eat it." Chen Ye urged with amusement.
Only then did the little white fox open its small mouth, curling the Three-striped Qi Nourishing Pill into its mouth.
"Chirp!"
The little white fox’s snow-white fur all stood on end in comfort.
It even couldn’t help but roll on the ground, its four little short legs kicking about, letting out a sound of utmost satisfaction.
It eagerly ran back to Chen Ye, then surprisingly extended its soft little tongue, implying for more.
Learning bad is easier than learning good.
All it took was a little lick to get a Three-striped Pill.
Isn’t this much better than leading the way for ages, just to earn a one-striped pill?
Zhiwei finally couldn’t stand it anymore, she said with a cold face, not looking at her master:
"Master, don’t spoil Little White! It... its mind is still immature!"
"How could I... how could I?"
Chen Ye chuckled awkwardly, confused about Zhiwei’s meaning!
Why does it seem like she thinks Master is doing something bad?
He clearly just wanted to tame this spirit pet!
"Master..."
Zhiwei kept eyeing her master’s fingers, then glanced at the frolicking little fox.
Suddenly, she realized she wasn’t so fond of this little fox anymore?
No...
But it’s not because of Master!
From beginning to end, only Qing Jun liked it.
She only saw it as a spirit pet!