Chapter 423 - 422: Fallen

On a deserted cliff in the territory, the Ice Crystal Dragon carefully folded its wings, making sure its movements weren’t large enough to throw anyone off.

Yu Zhizhi looked at Cang Lan, who was only inches away. A thought suddenly popped into her head. ’At this distance, what would happen if I just... went for a kiss?’

Her heart hammered in her chest at the mere thought.

She slowly rose onto her tiptoes...

Cang Lan sensed the movement of the young Rabbit Clan female before him. His body tensed, and he raised a hand to block her lips.

Yu Zhizhi looked into his deep, dark eyes and her heart trembled. Mortified that her kiss had been rejected, she suddenly hugged the man before her, burying her face in his chest. Her cheeks began to burn, and the tips of her rabbit ears turned red as well.

Faced with the young female’s rather brazen hug, Cang Lan didn’t push her away.

"Jeral, you may go back now."

Cang Lan commanded.

The Ice Crystal Dragon let out a reluctant cry. It didn’t want to leave, but it obediently teleported back to where it had come from.

The ground suddenly fell away beneath her. "Ah!" Yu Zhizhi cried, clinging even tighter to the Big Tiger before her.

Cang Lan held her as a gleaming golden sword hovered at his feet. He stepped onto it and, still holding the little rabbit, flew down from the cliff.

As he departed, the Barrier on the clifftop dissipated.

An aura-like ripple, unique to Cang Lan, instantly spread throughout the entire territory.

Jialou, who was sunning himself at the castle gate, looked up slightly to watch the distant approaching figure. A smile touched the corners of his lips—

’It seems the Crown Prince of the Moon Rising Empire can’t bear to leave the Lady Lord, after all.’

Yu Zhizhi had been a little scared at the start of the flight, but after a while, she slowly opened her eyes and looked down—

It was her first time seeing her entire territory from so high up. She saw the neatly arranged buildings, the uniformly colored flowerbeds, the lush, vibrant forest, and the exquisite white castle she called home...

Gradually, Yu Zhizhi’s fear faded.

’I always used to see Cang Lan just standing in midair,’ she thought. ’It must have been just like this. He was actually standing on his sword, just concealing its aura.’

The elderly councilor from the Moon Rising Empire stared, dumbfounded, at the figure approaching from the horizon.

He had just sensed it—the aura of the Crown Prince’s Transmission Ripple, originating from somewhere within the territory...

No one but the Crown Prince himself could do something like that.

’I can’t believe it. The Crown Prince actually left a personal Teleportation Array in the Rabbit Clan Lady’s territory?’

This type of ripple was part of a top-tier, Rare Spiritual Technique that male Beastmen could only unlock upon reaching a certain Realm. Typically, one could create a maximum of three, and they held immense strategic importance.

’I really thought the Crown Prince would cut all ties with the Rabbit Clan Lady,’ the elderly councilor mused. ’Given his personality, and after what happened, I thought it would be impossible for him to have anything more to do with Ms. Zhi Zhi.’

’Even with the Beast cub...’

’...it shouldn’t have changed the Crown Prince’s attitude.’

’Unless... he had a change of heart on his own.’

’Could it be that the Crown Prince and Ms. Zhi Zhi have made up?’

Cang Lan landed in front of the castle and set her down.

Once Yu Zhizhi was steady on her feet, she immediately fell in step behind him as they walked back to the castle.

The elderly councilor shuffled to the side. He certainly didn’t want to reveal himself and disturb the pair. In his haste, he accidentally bumped into the young knight sitting on the steps.

Jialou chuckled. "Careful there, Councilor. Don’t fall."

The elder, in a pleasant mood, replied, "Thank you for the warning."

’This man...’

’He seems to be the territory’s Guard Commander, from the Knight Alliance at Sun Ridge. His spiritual power is extraordinary. With him around, the territory’s security is certainly guaranteed.’

’But now, the territory is even safer.’

’Because Prince Canglan has left his Transmission Ripple. If any danger were to threaten the territory, he would sense it and could arrive in an instant.’

Yu Zhizhi followed Cang Lan like a little shadow.

He’d discovered it back at the Extreme Ice Palace. ’When this little rabbit gets clingy, she’s *really* clingy.’

’No matter how many times his bites made her eyes red with tears, she would always come back.’

Cang Lan returned to his room.

Yu Zhizhi stopped outside the door. She hesitated for a moment. ’Maybe I should head back for now?’ she thought. ’I’ve spent plenty of time with the Big Tiger today.’

’If I’m too clingy, he might start to resent it.’

Yu Zhizhi decided to head back.

Cang Lan had assumed that since she’d followed him all the way to the door, she would come right in. He was surprised to see her turn and leave.

He paused in the middle of rolling up his sleeves, staring at the empty doorway for a long moment.

The undeniable fact was...

...he had actually wanted the little rabbit to come in.

’How pathetic.’

Cang Lan felt he was becoming utterly ridiculous.

’What on earth was I hoping for?’

After Yu Zhizhi returned to her own rooms, the Little Octopus mysteriously pulled her into its chamber. It pointed a tentacle at the Incubator. "Look! The Pet Egg looks like it’s about to hatch!"

She leaned in closer and saw that the once-smooth, dark purple Pet Egg now had faint cracks on its surface.

There was just no telling exactly when.

"You’ve worked so hard~"

Yu Zhizhi said with a smile.

The Little Octopus had been keeping a close eye on these two Pet Eggs. Every day, besides watering the flowerbeds, it would come back to the room just to stare at them.

It didn’t run off to play nearly as much as it used to.

The Little Octopus was filled with a sense of accomplishment. It placed its tentacles on its ’hips.’ "I can’t wait to see what hatches from these two eggs!"

It knew they weren’t Beast Eggs, so they definitely wouldn’t hatch into Beast Clan cubs.

The aura emanating from the Pet Eggs was completely unfamiliar.

It was a scent it had never encountered before, which only made it more curious.

As Yu Zhizhi was squatting in front of the Incubator talking with the Little Octopus, she heard the door behind them go CREAK.

She turned to see the little roly-poly tiger cub, who had come looking for her.

It squeezed through the door and strode toward them with its head held high.

The little tiger cub went to Yu Zhizhi’s side and gently rubbed its head against her arm. Then, it obediently lay down. Whenever the cub woke up, it needed to see her immediately. If it couldn’t, it would grow agitated and yowl until she appeared.

It had gotten "smarter" now. Upon waking, it would follow the lingering trail of her scent to track her down.

Yu Zhizhi sat on the floor and gathered the little tiger cub into her arms.

The Little Octopus asked, "Is he leaving soon?"

The little tiger cub’s eyes suddenly shot wide, and it let out a roar.

Yu Zhizhi looked down, resting her chin on the little tiger cub’s fluffy head. "Probably soon," she murmured.

Cang Lan seemed to be completely recovered.

The Moon Rising Empire’s Delegation would probably be heading back in a few days.

’This time,’ she thought, ’even though I didn’t get to kiss him...’

’...I at least got a hug...’

’Plus, he left a Transmission Ripple. He’ll probably bring Jeral over periodically, and when he does, he can bring the little tiger cub with him!’

That way, she and the little tiger cub could still see each other often.

Once the little tiger cub leveled up, perhaps it could be added to her teleportation list, just like the little wolf cub.

Now that Yu Zhizhi had reached Level 8, she had two more slots available for teleportation.

Thinking of this...

...she realized she had been so busy she’d forgotten! Her list currently had three Beast cubs she could Summon. Besides the wolf cub she’d met last time, there were also the Snake Cub and the Mermaid Baby!