"You don't reply to your senior sister's messages. Aren't you afraid she'll punish you when you get back?" Xu Xing asked.
"If I have to be afraid, it'll be the me who gets back."
Besides, she'd get a beating even if she didn't do this, Chi Jiuyu silently added to herself.
"Let's not talk about that. Martial Uncle, I looked it up on the Spirit Net on the way here. If we keep going uphill, there's supposed to be a really interesting show. They say you can interact with iron-toothed crocodiles."
Iron-toothed crocodiles were exotic beasts with astonishing bite strength. They could bite through iron and chew gold, and even Foundation Establishment body cultivators might not withstand their iron teeth and copper jaws.
They continued uphill until they reached halfway up the mountain. There, they saw a spacious, neatly carved-out area inside the mountain, reinforced all around with formations to prevent a cave-in.
[Iron-Toothed Crocodile Park]
The walls and floor were covered in layer upon layer of white tiles, making the place look bright and clean. In the very center was a shallow pool surrounded by a fence. A several-meter-long, rather vicious-looking crocodile-like beast lay inside, its scales a glossy, inky black.
When it opened its mouth, they could see rows of sharp, fearsome teeth gleaming with a metallic sheen.
This was an iron-toothed crocodile.
Since it was a weekday, there weren't many visitors, so the two of them easily found a spot with a good view of the show.
The performance was already halfway through.
A staff member in a light blue uniform was half-crouched, slowly lowering an arm into the open jaws of the iron-toothed crocodile.
The staff member had only just reached Foundation Establishment. If the beast took a bite, his entire arm would be chewed to pieces.
The visitors watched without blinking, holding their breath despite themselves.
Sure enough, no matter what kind of world it was, there were always people chasing thrills.
Chi Jiuyu took a bite of her cotton candy, her eyes fixed on the crocodile's mouth. She didn't find it thrilling; she simply thought this sort of suicidal stunt was fascinating.
Suddenly, the staff member seemed to sense something was wrong and quickly pulled his arm out.
Sure enough, the iron-toothed crocodile's jaws snapped shut the very next instant. Its iron teeth clashed, sending sparks flying.
"Oh!!"
Many visitors cried out in surprise. Not far away, a middle-aged man rubbed his right hand, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.
Once the staff member stood up, he instinctively clutched his hand, clearly shaken too.
Then he looked at the iron-toothed crocodile, his expression complicated.
Man and beast stared at each other.
"The Holy Emperor once said it best: 'If you walk by the river often enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet.'"
Chi Jiuyu turned her head toward the middle-aged man nearby. "Uncle, you seem pretty sentimental."
"You bet. I used to do this job, too." The man was clearly a talker. "This young fellow got off easy. Back in my day, I actually lost a whole hand."
Fortunately, he'd saved up some money. He'd paid a healer at the hospital to work with medicinal pills and grow his arm back.
"What happened to the iron-toothed crocodile that bit you?" Chi Jiuyu asked curiously.
What had they done with the crocodile that bit him?
"It's right here." The man took out a leather wallet. Cultivators rarely used things like that, actually. "It likes opening and closing its mouth, doesn't it? So I made it follow me around and let it close its mouth to its heart's content."
He'd made its teeth into a couple of boning knives, and now he specialized in selling iron-toothed crocodile meat.
Chi Jiuyu stared blankly at the wallet in his hand, then smacked her lips after a long moment.
Well... that did make sense.
Just then, another staff member came out and spoke briefly with the one who had nearly become Yang Guo.
"Dear visitors, we're very sorry, but today's show ends here. Please leave in an orderly fashion!"
A hint of innocence seemed to flicker in the iron-toothed crocodile's tiny eyes.
The visitors still wanted to keep watching, but they understood, so they gradually began filing out.
Chi Jiuyu and Xu Xing followed the crowd toward the exit.
She suddenly remembered what the uncle had said. "Martial Uncle, do you think that iron-toothed crocodile will perform with the staff here again?"
"Erm... I don't think any of those three things will come true."
Huh?
Hadn't she only asked one question?
Why were there three things?
On the other side of the animal park, a cartoonish Blazing Feather dropped from the sky and landed in a secluded corner.
Xiao Fan took off the mascot head and reached out to catch the flying sword, now drained of its spiritual light.
"Phew~"
He let out a long breath. He'd been flying all morning, and his true essence was nearly depleted.
Actually, after the Dharma Combat Test, he'd gone to file his withdrawal papers. After all, he was someone who'd lost his future; there was no point in continuing his studies.
The dean and principal knew his situation was unusual, so they hadn't blamed him. He was very grateful to them for that.
Fortunately, his big brother's treatment had gone well, and his injuries were stable. His cultivation had fallen somewhat, but at least his foundation had been restored.
With his big brother's talent, it surely wouldn't take long for him to regain his cultivation.
At the thought, a smile appeared on Xiao Fan's face.
As he walked toward the staff break room, someone in the same mascot costume came out.
"Go get some rest, Xiao Fan. Have something to eat, and drink plenty of Rejuvenation Spirit Liquid."
"Sure, Brother Li."
The man Xiao Fan called Brother Li nodded, walked past him, put on the mascot head, then used telekinesis to fly into the sky.
Up above, there were plenty of other cartoonish exotic beasts besides the Blazing Feather.
This was the job he'd found: dressing up as an exotic beast to draw more visitors to the park, mainly to attract younger children.
It was relatively easy, and the pay wasn't too bad.
There were quite a few jobs available after reaching Foundation Establishment, but he hadn't found one that suited him yet, so for now, he had to make do with this.
Inside the staff break room, a gentle breeze swept away some of his fatigue.
Xiao Fan took off the bulky mascot costume and set it aside, then reached up to take a bottle of Rejuvenation Spirit Liquid from the shelf.
He drank it all in one gulp, then went to the table near the back. Many boxed meals were laid out neatly on it. A temperature-maintaining formation had been carved into the tabletop, so there was no need to worry about the food getting cold.
He picked one at random, walked to the doorway, sat down on the steps, and opened the lid.
The boxed meal was generous, with meat and vegetables. Even the rice was a kind of spirit rice that could replenish his vital energy to some extent.
After wolfing down a few bites, he looked up into the distance and happened to see two children, around seven or eight years old, holding wooden swords and shouting things like, "When I grow up, I'm going to be the Sect Master of the Sword Sect!"
Their parents followed behind them, chatting and laughing.
"..."
When he was little, he'd wanted to become a sword cultivator too. But later, after his big brother joined the Dragon-Elephant Heaven-Supporting Sect, he gradually became drawn to body cultivation.
People were like that. When they were busy, they forgot many unpleasant things. But when they sat alone to rest, they became sentimental again.
After a long while, he set the boxed meal aside and took a jade box from his clothes.
The jade box was about the size of his palm, smooth and rounded.
It was a little uncomfortable to carry around all the time, but for some reason, he'd kept it with him.
"Heh..."
Xiao Fan gave a self-mocking laugh. He knew why, too.
He was just clinging to a sliver of unrealistic hope in what that pushy salesman had said—or perhaps in his own circumstances.
He hadn't opened it yet because he was afraid that sliver of hope would turn into a cruel joke.
Before you continue