The red panda

The red panda clearly could not understand what Fang Zelin said. Hearing him speak and seeing him look its way, it immediately called out to him.

Its cry was soft and babyish.

Fang Zelin was rather speechless at the sight.

From that cry alone, he could tell that it probably had no spiritual intelligence.

Perhaps because Fang Zelin had just driven away the giant python, the red panda was no longer particularly afraid of him. It quietly sat down nearby to shelter from the rain with him.

The thunderstorm passed very quickly.

Only a short while later, the clouds outside dispersed and the sky cleared.

Seeing this, Fang Zelin strode out.

Tucking his billhook at his waist, he swiftly climbed up the mountain.

A short while later, Fang Zelin returned to his previous spot, drew his billhook, and began hacking away with a series of swishes.

Only after the sun sank in the distance did Fang Zelin put away his billhook and leave the cliff face.

By the time Fang Zelin reached the foot of the cliff, the red panda in the cave entrance was gone.

Fang Zelin thought little of it and planned to return tomorrow to continue climbing.

By the time he returned to Yueyang City, the moon had already risen, its round disk shining exceptionally bright and clear.

The inn attendant had filled an entire bathing tub with hot water and left it ready for Fang Zelin.

The half-piece of lingzhi from before had fully covered Fang Zelin's recent expenses.

Fang Zelin stepped into the wooden tub, enjoyed a comfortable bath, and changed his clothes.

He would later hand his clothes to the inn attendant, who would take them to a washerwoman to be washed and bring them back once they had dried in the sun.

The inn attendant did not do this for nothing; he could earn a little extra quick money every day.

The various trades in ancient times were quite developed. Though they lacked modern conveniences, many services were available.

As long as you had money, there were plenty of servants who would take care of everything properly for you.

Fang Zelin changed into clean clothes, then opened the doors facing the street and leaned against the built-in bench by the railing. Looking down, he could see a whole street filled with lanterns.

Illuminated by the lanterns, all of Yueyang City shone with lights.

None of this, however, kept Fang Zelin from gazing at the bright moon in the night sky.

"What a strange world. This world actually has a bright moon too, and from the look of it, it's practically identical to the moon on Earth."

Leaning against the bench and gazing at the moon in the night sky, Fang Zelin could not help pondering.

Any other player would surely have immediately assumed that this was a game made using Earth's parameters.

So wasn't it perfectly normal for some things to be the same?

Unfortunately, Fang Zelin knew that this world was far from ordinary and might very well be a real world.

If that was the case, the moon in the night sky inevitably gave one something to ponder.

A trace of doubt stirred in Fang Zelin's mind.

He was puzzled, but did not dwell on it. Cultivation was more important right now.

After washing up, Fang Zelin locked the doors and windows of his room at the inn, then returned to Earth.

He needed to go back to Earth to eat something and tidy his room.

The next day.

Once Fang Zelin had finished everything he needed to do on Earth, he swiftly returned to the Seeking the Dao World.

The sky had only just begun to glow with a hazy light, and roosters crowed in the distance.

Fang Zelin quickly got up and headed toward Ten Thousand Blades Peak.

It was still early, but there were already quite a few people on the road.

There were plenty of traveling merchants, woodcutters, and fishermen.

There were also farmers heading out to work their fields.

Following the main road, Fang Zelin soon returned to the foot of Ten Thousand Blades Peak.

He raised his billhook and resumed his work.

By now, practice had made Fang Zelin proficient. He poured Spiritual Power into the billhook, and each stroke carved out a suitable notch.

After the sun rose in the distance, a red panda appeared below at some unknown point.

The red panda raised its head, seemingly spotting Fang Zelin clinging to the cliff. After staring up at him with wide eyes, it soon ran off again.

Only at noon did the red panda return, now carrying a few berries in its paws.

The red panda placed the berries, which gleamed with a rosy luster, on a rock, then lay down nearby as though waiting for Fang Zelin to come down.

Every so often, it raised its head to glance at Fang Zelin, then lowered it to look at the berries in front of it.

It looked for all the world as though it wanted to eat them but was holding itself back.

Fang Zelin was still on the cliff face and knew nothing of what the red panda was doing below.

"I've made quite a bit more progress today."

Fang Zelin looked delighted. With his feet wedged directly into the grooves he had carved, he glanced around. By now, a bank of clouds had concealed him from view.

Everything around him felt damp.

Fang Zelin rested for only a moment before continuing to climb toward the summit.

As the sun gradually sank in the distance, Fang Zelin leaped down.

Lately, Fang Zelin had been climbing higher and higher, but he had also been growing bolder and bolder.

As he descended, his feet tapped lightly against the cliff as though he were using lightness skills, and he landed on the ground with ease and speed.

"Heh, at this rate, I should be able to pick up the pace a little more and reach the summit sooner."

Fang Zelin thought it over, feeling thoroughly pleased.

He clapped his hands together to knock off some dust and was about to turn and leave.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar cry nearby.

Fang Zelin looked toward the sound and saw the red panda watching him from nearby.

At the sight of Fang Zelin, the red panda immediately cupped the berries it had picked in its paws and offered them to him.

Fang Zelin paused at the sight. From the looks of it, the little creature seemed to have been waiting for him for quite some time.

"How long have you been waiting for me?"

Whether or not this red panda possessed spiritual intelligence, it had actually picked berries and waited here. It was remarkably attuned to people.

He had seen a few things like this on Earth too.

The red panda could not speak and merely gave a soft, babyish cry in response.

Fang Zelin smiled at this, then reached out and took the berries from its paws.

He examined them from every angle but could not make out what kind of berries they were, then lowered his head to look at the red panda before him.

"These aren't poisonous, are they?"

Fang Zelin wanted to eat them, but asked another question first.

The red panda seemed to understand this remark and began hopping up, trying to snatch the berries from Fang Zelin's hand.

Fang Zelin could not help laughing at the sight and hurriedly popped the berries into his mouth.

The berries were somewhat crisp, their flesh slightly sweet and tart, with a flavor entirely unlike any fruit he had eaten before.

As soon as Fang Zelin ate them, delight flashed across his face.

"These berries really do taste good. Are there any more?"

Seeing that Fang Zelin had finished eating, the red panda gave a little grunt, turned, and ran off.

It seemed there were no more.

Fang Zelin felt a little regretful at this.

Whatever else might be said, these berries tasted excellent and had a superb texture.

Really, only the spirit rice he had eaten before surpassed the flavor of these berries. Everything else fell somewhat short.

Aside from their flavor, however, there was nothing else special about these berries.

At the very least, Fang Zelin sensed no Spiritual Power in them, and not even the slightest bit of his own Qi Force had changed.

It seemed these were merely particularly tasty berries.

Still, if there really were anything special about them, this red panda would probably have already awakened its intelligence.