“Wake up, stop sleeping.” Luo Tangtang felt someone tapping her face in a daze, but her head ached terribly, and her whole body felt like it had fallen apart, unable to exert any strength.
Not long after, a few drops of icy liquid landed on her neck, cool and refreshing. At first, it was just one or two drops, but then it continued non-stop.
Is it raining? Luo Tangtang was a little confused, but why was there only water on her neck?
However, the next moment, a violent pain struck, as if a hard object had hit her nose bridge. A burning pain instantly surged into her nerves. Luo Tangtang hissed coldly, her eyes snapping open, only to see a white paw in front of her.
“You’re awake!” The little Qilin cried, looking at Luo Tangtang, its large eyes filled with tears, looking very pitiful.
Luo Tangtang’s pupils were slightly unfocused, appearing quite bewildered. When her consciousness gradually returned, Luo Tangtang realized she was completely soaked. It turned out they had jumped off the cliff and fallen into the water.
So the ‘jump off a cliff and survive’ trope is real! Luo Tangtang immediately sat up, feeling a bit smug.
“Stop being stupid.” The System’s weak voice sounded, like a kite with a broken string, its tail end trembling slightly.
“?” Luo Tangtang was a little confused.
“How could it be such a coincidence? There’s a river right below where you jumped?”
“The ‘jump off a cliff and survive’ trope is for protagonists. Are you one? Are you the protagonist?” The System sounded like it had eaten gunpowder, speaking in a rapid-fire barrage, going on and on.
“Luo Tangtang, you’re trying to kill me.” The System was half-dead with anger.
“So, you created this river?” Luo Tangtang finally reacted. She widened her eyes, looking at the river beside her with some disbelief.
The river was vast, and a waterfall descended like a silver river from the heavens, plunging into it. Luo Tangtang looked closely again and again, finding it hard to believe this was the System’s masterpiece.
“Hehe!” The System sneered. “Stop doubting! Thanks to you, I have to go into seclusion now to replenish energy.”
“You’re on your own from here. I hope you’re still alive when I wake up.” The System coldly dropped this sentence and went silent.
It’s just leaving? Luo Tangtang called out to the System loudly in her mind several times, but there was only silence.
It’s over, I messed up completely this time. What am I going to do now?
A wave of despair began to spread in Luo Tangtang’s heart. Her entire face turned pale and lifeless, and her lips trembled slightly.
“Smack—!” A clear sound startled the birds in the trees on both sides.
“You hit hard!” Luo Tangtang stared sinisterly at the little Qilin, whose face looked innocent.
The little Qilin blinked its large eyes and pouted. Coupled with its patchy fur, it looked particularly comical.
Luo Tangtang’s face darkened. She didn’t hold back and slapped the little Qilin’s head. “You little brat, how dare you hit me? So heartless!”
The little Qilin flattened its mouth, also feeling a bit wronged. “You looked like you’d lost your soul, I was afraid you’d die.”
Luo Tangtang rolled her eyes speechlessly. Seeing the little Qilin’s pitiful expression, she stiffly patted its head and said, “Hey… you know how to use idioms?”
Luo Tangtang didn’t want to pursue it. She stood up, and her gaze suddenly swept over a certain spot, causing her to pause.
Her originally relaxed movements suddenly became hurried. Looking at the ropes scattered on the ground, she widened her eyes in disbelief. She scrambled up in a panic, picked up the rope that had broken into several pieces, and furiously turned her head to look at the little Qilin. “Did you do this?”
The little Qilin’s large eyes sparkled, appearing a little guilty. It explained softly, “You were unconscious for a long time, and it was uncomfortable tying me up.”
“You were uncomfortable??” Luo Tangtang’s voice turned sharp. This was an Immortal-binding Rope, a high-grade magic artifact! And it was bitten through by the little Qilin just like that.
Ah… Luo Tangtang wanted to look up at the sky and howl, consumed by grief and indignation.
“Don’t be so emotional!” The little Qilin became even more guilty seeing Luo Tangtang’s indignant face.
It patted itself, and after a while, dug out a few scales shining with a moist luster. “These are my scales. Take them as compensation.”
“Cough cough, well, if you put it that way, I won’t be polite.” Luo Tangtang immediately put away her grief, replacing it with a serious expression. Her hand swiftly snatched the scales from the little Qilin’s paw.
After Luo Tangtang carefully placed the little Qilin’s scales in her storage ring, she finally looked up and had time to survey her surroundings.
She found that a hundred meters away, there was a vast expanse of mist. That area seemed very cold, emanating a chilling aura that was bone-piercing. Luo Tangtang shivered as soon as she got close.
Through the mist, she could vaguely see a few clumps of vegetation. The dark green leaves were covered in frost.
“You can’t abandon me.” Seeing Luo Tangtang’s movements, the little Qilin quickly shuffled over and hugged Luo Tangtang’s leg, not letting go.
A flash of inspiration struck Luo Tangtang’s mind. She smiled, her eyebrows curving, and tried her best to look kind. Then she tentatively asked, “How about, you sign a contract with me?”
The little Qilin immediately let go, shaking its head like a rattle drum, refusing very decisively. “No way, I don’t want to.”
“You don’t want to?” Luo Tangtang’s face instantly turned gloomy. “Then don’t follow me!”
Luo Tangtang turned and was about to leave. She had used up her trump card to save the little Qilin, and it still didn’t want to sign a contract with her. She was truly at a loss.
Just as Luo Tangtang tried to lift her foot, she was startled by the weight on it. Unable to lift it, she lowered her head and saw a pair of large, teary eyes.
“You… you can’t… can’t leave me… waaaah…”
“Ah—!” Luo Tangtang scratched her head in compromise. She nudged the little Qilin’s backside with her toe, her voice filled with helplessness. “Let’s go, I won’t leave you.”
“I’m hurt, it hurts so bad.” As if sensing Luo Tangtang’s tough talk was soft-hearted, the little Qilin became more demanding.
Luo Tangtang’s face darkened. Just as she was about to flare up, she saw blood flowing from the little Qilin’s abdomen. That area was already swollen and torn, and there was a black mass there, she didn’t know what had gotten into it.
Luo Tangtang sighed, resignedly treating its wound.
“What should I call you?” Luo Tangtang asked, looking at the little Qilin whimpering and yelping in pain. She couldn’t keep calling it ‘little Qilin’.
“Mo… Mother called me Xiao Xu,” the little Qilin stuttered.
“Then what’s your name?” the little Qilin asked.
“Me—?” Luo Tangtang lightly raised her eyebrow, saying word by word, “Luo—Tang—tang!”
“Oh, Tangtang,” the little Qilin shook its large head, looking very serious.
“Haha, call me Boss,” Luo Tangtang chuckled, looking at the little Qilin wrapped up like a dumpling. “Let’s go!” Luo Tangtang resignedly bent down and picked up the little Qilin. They couldn’t stay here for too long. What if that Golden-Winged Great Peng really flew down for a look? Without the System, they would both die.
As they left, Luo Tangtang looked up at the sky above the cliff. It was a misty expanse, layers upon layers of fog, as if separated by a sea of clouds.