Chapter 675: Cats Catching Birds Is Always Their Natural Instinct

Lihua clutched the candied hawthorn skewers and gnawed on them, dropping sugar crumbs all over Mo Yuan.

Mo Yuan didn't mind and simply let it eat.

It was simply impossible to get angry at this cat.

There was still some time before the Investiture of Immortals Assembly.

Likely a little tired from wandering the market, Ruyi sat down by the lake to rest.

Strands of hair at her temples were damp with sweat, clinging to her cheeks.

Who knew when it started, but the girl often carried a faint smell of sweat. Yet it wasn't unpleasant. Looking at the bright smile on her face only brought a sense of closeness—likely because of the carefree, unrestrained aura she carried.

"Nice lake," Ruyi remarked.

Lihua finished the candied hawthorn skewers, took a look, and said, "I wonder if there are any fish..."

Those words seemed to remind the rest of them.

Ruyi turned her head and looked at Lihua.

"Let's go get a fishing rod," Ruyi said.

"Huh?" Lihua blanked for a moment.

Ping'an said, "Sister, I don't think that's a good idea."

"We're just catching a fish. It's not like they'll arrest me for it," Ruyi replied.

Hearing them talk about fishing, Mo Yuan looked at Mister and said, "Mister, it seems you also enjoyed fishing in the past."

"I think about it occasionally," Chen Changsheng replied.

Ruyi said, "Then let's do it together."

"Wait for me!"

With that, Ruyi jumped up and ran off.

"Sister, where are you going?"

"Dummy, to find some poles, of course!"

Ping'an hurriedly followed her. The two siblings seemed to have returned to their childhood, with Ping'an tagging right along behind his older sister without a shred of a Metropolitan Governor's prestige.

It wasn't long before the two returned.

Ruyi carried several bamboo poles over her shoulder, while Ping'an held a few thin bamboo strips of unclear purpose.

Clatter. The bamboo poles hit the ground with a sharp rattle.

Mo Yuan asked, "You have rods, but no hooks. How will you fish?"

"You whittle down the bamboo strips, roast them over a fire, and bend them to make a hook," Ruyi explained. "As for the bait..." She pointed at the dirt. "We just have to dig some up."

Curious, Mo Yuan asked, "What about the line?"

"We can just pull a couple of threads from our clothes," Ruyi said.

"Whose clothes?"

"Ping'an's."

Standing off to the side, Ping'an froze slightly upon hearing this and looked at Ruyi.

Just as he was about to speak, he heard Ruyi say, "Ping'an, you aren't allowed to talk."

"..."

"Be a good boy. Your sister will buy you a new outfit later."

"..."

No matter how he listened to it, it sounded like a lie.

Mo Yuan chuckled. "There's no need to go to such trouble. I have line right here, and naturally, I have fishhooks too."

He carried quite a few things on his person.

Ping'an blinked. "Brother Mo, you even carry this sort of thing around with you?"

"I just have a bunch of odds and ends on me."

Mo Yuan smiled. Come to think of it, he hadn't sorted through his hidden trinkets in a long time.

Mo Yuan took out the fishhook and line.

Ruyi stared at the gleaming golden fishhook. Stunned, she asked, "This fishhook..."

"If it were real gold, it wouldn't be able to catch any fish," Mo Yuan said.

Pure gold was soft; it naturally wouldn't be suitable.

"It looks way too real," Ruyi said.

"It's a worthless trinket," Mo Yuan replied.

As for the fishing line, it looked quite ordinary.

"This line is pretty good too."

"Silkworm Thread."

Millennium Ice Silkworm Silk. He had a massive pile of the stuff back home, leftover from when his subordinates were making clothes.

"Fishing, fishing!" Ruyi cheered, immediately threading the line and tying the fishhook.

Watching his sister's skillful movements, Ping'an asked, "Sister, did you fish a lot in the past?"

"I've fished a lot these past two years," Ruyi said. "Sometimes, when I ran out of travel funds, I'd catch fish to eat or sell at the market. In my free time, I'd also catch some for Lihua."

Lihua nodded. "Ruyi once caught a really big fish! It was even bigger than Lihua."

Ping'an smiled. Although it sounded like his sister hadn't lived very comfortably, the genuine smile on her face couldn't be faked. Running out of money was a secondary concern; as far as he was concerned, as long as she was happy, nothing else mattered.

The group set up their fishing rods.

Chen Changsheng naturally joined in as well.

Ruyi grabbed a branch and started digging for earthworms. Fish ate them, and though they were a bit worse than fermented rice dough, they were still good enough to use.

After baiting the hooks, they cast their lines.

Sitting in a row, they simply waited.

Lihua walked up beside Ruyi, blinked, and said, "Lihua wants to fish too."

Ruyi patted its head and said, "I'll let you fish next time. It wouldn't be good if someone saw you."

Lihua didn't put up a fuss. Acknowledging her words, it said, "Then Ruyi has to catch a big fish."

"If Lihua says so, then I'll definitely catch a big one."

Sitting cross-legged by the edge of the lake, Mo Yuan stared at the calm surface of the water, occasionally glancing back at the people beside him.

In truth, he had occasionally felt a sense of incongruity over the past few days.

He had spent so much time fighting and killing in the Desolate Sea that he wasn't quite used to such peaceful days anymore. Yet, undeniably, these days truly put his heart at ease.

He didn't have to think about anything, didn't have to worry about anything.

It was nice.

Chen Changsheng spoke up. "If you don't want to go back yet, then stay and enjoy yourself for a few more days. As for the matters in Beicang, This Chen can ask someone to help take care of them for you."

"Mister knows water demons in the Desolate Sea?"

Chen Changsheng thought for a moment before saying, "They might give me a little face."

Mo Yuan realized what he meant.

The Desolate Sea Land was mostly ruled by dragon descendants and water demons. With a single word from Mister, there probably wasn't a single soul who would dare deny him face.

"We'll see..." Mo Yuan said.

The row of people fishing sat together, a rather conspicuous sight.

Anyone casting a glance in their direction could spot them.

Yan Zi flew low across the lake's surface and landed on the shore.

Chen Changsheng shifted his gaze and saw Yan Zi land right beside him.

Speaking in a human voice, Yan Zi said, "Mister is in high spirits."

"I have nothing better to do," Chen Changsheng replied.

Ping'an and Ruyi naturally heard the swallow talking as well.

The two paused for a moment but quickly regained their composure.

This swallow was probably a demon too.

Uncle Chen really knew a lot of demons.

Yan Zi said, "The water in Lake Mountain Lake has always been excellent, and the fish are plentiful. This is all thanks to a Fish Demon residing at the bottom of the lake."

"A Fish Demon?" Ruyi blinked. "There's a demon at the bottom of the lake?"

Yan Zi nodded.

"Then for us to be fishing here..." Ruyi said, a little worried.

Yan Zi looked at her. "That Fish Demon is simply engaged in Cultivation here. People fish here all the time, and it has never been seen causing trouble. It should be of a benign nature."

"That's good, then..." Ruyi breathed a sigh of relief.

Yan Zi added, "Besides, with Mao'er here, that Fish Demon wouldn't dare act rashly."

Saying that, he looked over at Mao'er.

Only then did he notice Lihua staring unblinking at him, its gaze locked on for a long time.

Ruyi looked down and immediately reached out to rap Lihua on the head. "This is Uncle Chen's friend. You can't attack him."

Lihua snapped out of its daze, rubbed its head, and didn't bother to explain.

Yan Zi smiled and said, "Cats catching birds is always their natural instinct. It's fine."

Hearing this, Lihua's eyes lit up. "Then can Lihua catch you just a little bit?"

Yan Zi coughed lightly. "Well..."

"You just said it was okay," Lihua asked with complete sincerity.

But immediately after, Lihua took another knock to the head from Ruyi.

"Ouch! Why is Ruyi hitting me again..."