Those remarks about "earning money for meals" left Xiao Yan momentarily speechless. He looked at Xiao Yi's matter-of-fact expression, then at the crystal-clear river.
Finally, his gaze settled on the presence he had deliberately ignored all this time-the octopus sprawled atop the purple-skinned gourd, which had just finished feasting on a plump fish.
The more he looked, the more extraordinary the octopus seemed. It gave off a faint, elusive aura that felt utterly out of place in this world. Remembering the magical gourd Supreme Lord Lao had given Xiao Yi, he suspected this octopus might be its artifact spirit.
Xiao Yan extended a finger, pointed straight at the octopus wiping its mouth with a tentacle, and said to Xiao Yi,
"I think I can guess where this fellow came from. It lives inside that gourd Supreme Lord Lao gave you, right? There's no other explanation. But what can it actually do? Are you keeping it as a pet?"
Just as Xiao Yan's finger nearly poked the octopus, the seemingly ordinary creature suddenly raised its thickest tentacle and pointed at him. At the same time, a distinctly disgruntled voice rang out.
"Hey! What's wrong with you? Don't you know it's rude to point at someone while you're talking to them?"
The sudden voice made Xiao Yan's movement freeze, but his expression barely changed. He simply withdrew his finger and nodded at the octopus with a hint of apology.
"Ah, sorry. My mistake."
That excessively composed response left the octopus dumbfounded instead. Even the tentacles it had been swishing through the water stopped moving, and its voice brimmed with incredulous dismay and frustration.
"Huh? What?! That's it? That's your whole reaction? Normally, aren't you supposed to scream in fright, then say something like, 'A monster! You can talk?!'"
Xiao Yan spread his