Chapter 63 Stingy

The courtyard slowly quieted down after the servants left. Before long, only the gentle breeze and the crackling fire beneath the stove were left. The rich aroma of steamed spicy fish still lingered in the air, refusing to fade, making Xue Yao’s stomach grumble in protest.

She stood by the empty stone table for a long moment, staring at the place where her breakfast had been only moments ago. Then she slowly raised a hand and rubbed the bruises around her neck, wincing the moment her fingers touched the swollen skin.

"...First they almost killed me," she muttered under her breath. "...Then they took my breakfast."

The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. She hadn’t stolen anything nor had she poisoned anyone. She had only caught a few fish, cooked them with her own hands, and before she had even finished eating, someone had tried to strangle her to death.

"...What kind of place is this..." She muttered under her breath completely annoyed. "... and the maids even talk to me like I’m a piece of shit."

Another wave of pain suddenly spread through her head. She immediately squeezed her eyes shut and pressed a hand against her forehead, waiting for the throbbing to settle.

"...Forget it." She let out a tired sigh.

Right now, she didn’t have the strength to argue with anyone anymore. Her head hurt, her throat hurt, she hadn’t eaten a single proper meal, and after everything that had happened today, all she wanted was to crawl into bed and forget the world existed for a while.

Dragging her feet, she slowly walked back into the room. Every step made her headache throb a little more, and by the time she reached the doorway, she felt as though her whole body had been drained of strength.

Just as she stepped inside, her eyes landed on the couch beside the bed.

"...Honghong?" She blinked in surprise.

Honghong curled into a tiny ball beneath a neatly folded blanket. Only the top of her fluffy head and her small beak peeked out from underneath it, while her little chest rose and fell in a slow, steady rhythm.

Xue Yao frowned in confusion. "...Didn’t I check here before?"

She was certain she had searched the whole room after waking up. She even remembered looking toward the couch because she thought Honghong might have rolled underneath it somehow.

"So... was my head hurting so badly that I missed her?" The thought sounded ridiculous, yet she couldn’t think of any other explanation.

She quietly walked over and crouched beside the couch, trying not to make any noise. Reaching out carefully, she gently brushed a finger across Honghong’s soft feathers.

Only then did the tight knot in Xue Yao’s chest slowly loosen.

"You little glutton..." A helpless smile finally appeared on her face. "You really scared me."

She carefully pulled the blanket a little higher, making sure it covered Honghong properly before resting her hand on the edge of the couch.

"I was going to let you have two whole fish," she said softly, almost as though Honghong could still hear her.

Her stomach chose that exact moment to growl again.

Xue Yao lowered her head and laughed bitterly. "...Now neither of us gets to eat it."

She stayed there for another moment before slowly standing up again. There was still one person she hadn’t checked on.

Closing her eyes, Xue Yao let her consciousness sink into the Beast Taming Space.

The familiar grassland slowly appeared before her. A cool breeze drifted across the endless sea of green, carrying the fresh scent of grass and earth. Above her, the sky stretched as far as she could see, so clear and blue that it almost didn’t look real. Everything was exactly the same as before, yet the silence hanging over the place immediately made her feel uncomfortable.

It was too quiet. Usually, the moment she entered, Tian Lan would already be talking. Sometimes she complained about not having enough beast cores. Sometimes she nagged her to cultivate faster. Sometimes she simply floated around making sarcastic comments about everything Xue Yao did.

Now... There wasn’t a single sound.

Not far away, the pile of rock rabbits was still lying exactly where she had left it. Xue Yao looked at them and couldn’t help shaking her head.

"You really are stingy," she murmured with a faint smile. "Other people’s systems preserve the meat and other resources in a well-storage room, but you left my meat out here" She pointed at the pile of rabbits before letting out a frustrated laugh. "...You’re perfectly happy living beside a pile of dead rabbits."

The smile only lasted a moment before it slowly disappeared.

"...Tian Lan?" Her voice drifted across the grassland.

No one answered. Only the breeze continued to blow gently through the endless field.

Xue Yao began walking forward. Her pace was slow, almost hesitant, as though part of her already knew what she was going to find but still hoped she was wrong.

"Tian Lan?" She called again.

The grass brushed softly against her legs as she kept walking.

Normally, she wouldn’t have taken more than a few steps before Tian Lan came floating out from somewhere, complaining and buzzing around like a fly.

However, now silence followed her wherever she went.

"...Tian Lan?" This time her voice came out much quieter.

She didn’t know when the worry in her heart had quietly grown so heavy.

After walking a little farther, a large stone finally came into view beneath the shade of an ancient tree.

Xue Yao instinctively slowed her steps, she had never been to this side of the space before. She could already see a pale blue energy surrounding the stone like a protective barrier.

As she approached, she saw Tian Lan had curled herself into a small ball on top of the stone as though she had simply fallen asleep. Wisps of pale blue energy drifted quietly around her body, rising and falling with each gentle breath she took.

Her little face looked peaceful, and for the first time since Xue Yao had met her. Xue Yao stopped in her tracks as she couldn’t help but stare at her.

She wanted to call out her name one last time, however her lips refused to move.