"Skinny Monkey!"
The old man's beard trembled with excitement, and he nearly jabbed his walking stick into Shi Hou's face. "This technique... can we roll it out? Can you do it for the whole village?"
Shi Hou wiped the sweat from his forehead. Just as he was about to say, "That'll cost extra," a rustling suddenly came from behind him.
He turned, and the corner of his eye twitched.
At some point, a pale lump had appeared on the stone table.
Shi Hao.
The little fellow had stripped down to a pair of beast-hide underpants and sprawled facedown on the table, his two short legs swinging contentedly.
Seeing Shi Hou turn around, he craned his neck, his big eyes blinking.
"Skinny Monkey, hurry up. I'm already in position."
"Ermeng looked like he was really enjoying it. My bones feel itchy too. Give me a couple of those... wham-whams with the back of your knife?"
Shi Hou's knife hand froze in midair, exasperation written all over his face.
"What are you joining in for?"
Shi Hou tapped Shi Hao's head with the back of the knife in annoyance. "You already swallowed every last bit of that vital essence, without leaving so much as a crumb. What do you need your bones loosened up for?"
He had noticed it while they were drinking the soup.
Everyone else was a cup that overflowed when full; this boy was an ocean embracing a hundred rivers.
He had already done all sorts of tricks with that Suanni phantom. Did he really need a physical cheat on top of that?
"I don't care."
Shi Hao buried his face in his arms, his voice coming out muffled. "Ermeng got pounded. Wouldn't I be losing out if I didn't? Besides, it looked pretty comfortable."
Was this about comfort?