Wu Jian sat with Hou Jingshu and Yōuměi in the mess hall, shaking his head as he stared at the pile of plates. All the plates belonged to Yōuměi. She sat at the table with them… sort of. It was weird. She couldn’t sit on the chair because her body was too massive to fit, but she had placed two paws on it and leaned over to scarf up food from her plate. Whenever she finished one plate, she would use the shadows to pile it atop the others and bring over the next plate.

And I thought I ate a lot…

Cultivators in general needed more food than most because their bodies burned more energy. Using techniques burned even more energy, thus requiring even more food. Magical beasts like Yōuměi needed even more food than the average cultivator.

“Watching her eat always amazes me,” Hou Jingshu murmured.

“You and me both,” Wu Jian said.

Wu Jian tried to ignore the people pointing and whispering as they eyed the giant panther like she was some kind of monster--well, he guessed she was. It was still rude.

He slipped a spoon under his mask and enjoyed the congee, which he had filled with nuts and berries. Congee had such a plain flavor. However, it was delicious when you mixed honey, nuts, and berries into it.

Someone walked up behind them as they were eating. It was Yu Qian. The young man grasped a tray in his hands. He glanced at the pile of plates for a second, then looked at him and Hou Jingshu.

“Mind if I sit here?”

“Feel free,” said Wu Jian.

Hou Jingshu smiled. “Please join us.”

Yu Qian smiled as he sat beside Wu Jian and began eating. He spoke with them about their plans, but they had no solid idea about what they should do right now. Both of them wanted to try and loosen their bottleneck. However, the manner in which they needed to do so was not something that could be done on a whim.

“It sounds like you both have it rough,” Yu Qian said with a smile.

“What about you?” asked Wu Jian.

“Me?” Yu Qian paused, eyes growing distant. Nobody said anything for the longest time. Yu Qian eventually shook himself from his daze, smiled, and said, “I’m planning to leave the academy.”

“I think… I understand why. You’ve reached the limits of what you can learn here, right?” asked Hou Jingshu. She must have felt the same way. She was stronger than most of the elders now, and the only thing she lacked that they had was experience.

“That is part of the reason,” he admitted, shrugging. His smile looked a bit bitter. “The other reason is because I realize my biggest weakness is my lack of worldly experience. I’ve been a part of this academy since I turned sixteen. I spent all my time here, diligently training and cultivating. I thought I was strong… but I lost to my rival. Sometime during our time apart, he had grown stronger than me thanks to the resources the Saintly Sword Sect has. The Shang Kingdom Imperial Academy can only provide so many resources to cultivators, and once we reach a certain point, none of the resources they have will help us. I’ve already reached the point where I can no longer grow if I stay here.”

“So you’re gonna go out into the wider world and try to attain cultivation resources as a rogue cultivator,” Wu Jian said with a nod. He slipped the spoon underneath his mask again. Meanwhile, Yōuměi licked another plate clean, set it aside, and grabbed one more with her shadows.

“Yeah. That’s about all I can do,” Yu Qian said.

“Where are you thinking of going?” asked Hou Jingshu.

Yu Qian stroked his chin. “I was thinking of traveling to the Yuan Peninsula.”

“Why there?” asked Wu Jian.

“Don’t you know? The Yuan Peninsula is well-known for having an abundance of cultivation resources and strong cultivators,” said Yu Qian.

Wu Jian shook his head. “I didn’t know that.”

“The Yuan Peninsula is the closest to the Da Continent. Of course, it’s still roughly several hundred lî apart, but that’s not enough to stop magical beasts from coming over to invade our land,” Hou Jingshu informed him. “I hear that something called a Stampede happens every so often. It’s when a horde of magical beasts from the Da Continent gather en masse to invade the Xaio Continent. Members from the Three Celestial Sects gather there during that time to repel them.”

“I won’t be going there during a Stampede,” Yu Qian admitted. “I’m not strong enough to help, but I was thinking of joining a mercenary group. Small incursions happen every so often and it’s the job of mercenary companies to combat them.”

The Da Continent was the largest continent on the planet. It was known as the Continent of Beasts because it was home to magical beasts. Even Wu Jian had heard about this continent, which was said to not have a single human living in it. Supposedly, any human who found themselves on the Da Continent would become food for the magical beasts who lived there.

Magical beasts increased their strength by eating natural treasures and other magical beasts. Of course, they could also grow stronger by eating humans, which they did quite often.

Of course, the same could be said for humans too. They often ate magical beasts since their meat was delicious and could increase someone’s cultivation.

It was a cycle in which the hunter and the hunted switched roles quite often.

“When are you leaving?” asked Hou Jingshu.

“In a few days,” Yu Qian said. “I need to speak with my uncle first, but he has already agreed to let me go off. I think he’s preparing something for me since I’ll be going somewhere dangerous.”

“You’ll have to spar with me when you return. I’ll want to see how strong you’ve become,” Wu Jian said.

Yu Qian grinned. “Don’t worry. I’ll be sure to get strong enough that I can even give you a run for your money.”

***

Wu Jian woke up with fur on one side and a beautiful woman on the other. He glanced at Hou Jingshu as she slept on his side, unfortunately still clothed.

We haven’t done anything since Yōuměi appeared again…

The good thing about having Yōuměi back was that he had a strong partner. The bad thing was that he and Hou Jingshu had not been able to become intimate together. He still remembered the one time they tried. Yōuměi had been running around in the garden and they had locked the door, but the panther had gotten bored of running around and slipped into the room via Shadow Walking. She’d caught the pair midcoitus. He would never forget how she so innocently asked him what they were doing.

Hou Jingshu had been even worse off.

He looked up at the ceiling, then turned his head and almost grimaced as he caught a whiff of Yōuměi. His furry companion hadn’t bathed in a while. She smelled awful. He was going to give her a bath first thing today.

Hou Jingshu eventually woke up, as did Yōuměi, and while the maids prepared breakfast, he and the princess tried to give Yōuměi a bath.

The keyword being tried.

“Get back here, Yōuměi!”

“No! Yōuměi doesn’t wanna take a bath! She hates getting wet!”

“Too bad! You stink! Get back here right now!”

“Don’t wanna!”

“Dammit!”

Yōuměi was far more agile than either him or Hou Jingshu, and she could slip away using the shadows. He was preventing her from doing that by using Spatial Lock to lock her in place every time she tried to use Shadow Walking. At this point, she seemed to have realized that her technique wouldn’t work in his presence and was simply bounding about. Her ability to jump greatly exceeded their own.

However, he and Hou Jingshu were no slouches either. They hadn’t caught her yet, but they had kept her from leaving the garden. Any time she tried to bolt via leaping over the gate, one of them was there to stop her. Sadly, they couldn’t corner the giant cat with just the two of them.

“Come on, Yōuměi. If you don’t take a bath, I’m not going to let you sleep in my bed anymore.”

“Then Yōuměi will sleep outside!”

“Do you really wanna do that?!”

“She doesn’t! But Yōuměi would rather sleep outside than take a bath!”

Wu Jian lunged forward to try and grab her, but Yōuměi leapt over him. He spun around and raised his hand toward her as though to grab her out of thin air.

[Spatial Lock]

He clenched his hand into a fist and willed his chi to manipulate the space around Yōuměi. The giant panther froze in place.

Hou Jingshu leapt into the air and tried to grab Yōuměi, but a shadow shot out from the ground and slammed into her, launching her away. The woman landed on the ground. She was unharmed. However, she was unable to reach Yōuměi again before she broke free of the Spatial Lock.

“She really doesn’t wanna take a bath,” Hou Jingshu muttered.

“She never has liked baths,” Wu Jian sighed. He rubbed his forehead to stymie his coming headache.

“We can’t just chase after her. We need a plan,” said Hou Jingshu.

“You’re right. We need to somehow trap her…”

“I was thinking we should solve this without violence.”

He glanced at the young woman by his side. “You’ve got an idea?”

“Maybe…”

Hou Jingshu stepped forward. Yōuměi eyed the woman warily, tracking her with heterochromatic eyes. Because she didn’t want the panther to bolt like before, she stopped just a few chih shy.

“Yōuměi, you mentioned that you hate water. Why is that?”

“Because water is cold and gross and my fur gets wet.”

Cats spent a lot of time licking themselves, and Yōuměi was no exception. While that helped her stay clean to a degree, strange odors would still sometimes cling to her, which meant grooming like she normally did wasn’t always going to work.

“But have you ever tried a hot bath? They’re very relaxing.”

“A hot… bath…? Like when steam comes out?”

“Yes, just like that.”

“No. Yōuměi doesn’t like cold, but she doesn’t like heat either.”

“I see.” Hou Jingshu paused. “Why don’t we make a bet. If you take a hot bath and don’t like it, I promise to never force you to take a bath again, but if you do, you’ll take baths more regularly?”

“Mmmm…”

Yōuměi seemed to be seriously considering it.

“No! Yōuměi doesn’t wanna!”

At least, she did for a second. Then she jumped into a shadow before either Wu Jian or Hou Jingshu could stop her.

Wu Jian ran a hand through his hair. “Well, that didn’t work out.”

“I thought for sure I could convince her,” Hou Jingshu murmured.

“Thanks for trying.”

Wu Jian and Hou Jingshu walked back inside after their failed attempt at trying to bathe Yōuměi--only to pause upon finding a woman lounging on their couch. She wore a red and gold dress that showed off her long legs. Slits on the side showed an even greater expanse of leg as she crossed one over the other. Her shoes were discarded and her hair had been braided, descending all the way to her knees. The amused look on her face as she stared at them said she had seen everything.

“That was an awfully amusing diversion. Thank you so much for the entertainment,” Zhou Lihua said with a giggle.

“Lili,” Wu Jian greeted. “How long have you been there?”

“Not long. I only saw the last few minutes of your valiant struggle to give Yōuměi a bath.”

“You saw that, huh?”

“It is good to see that she is the same as ever.”

“Since you’re here, why don’t you join us for breakfast?” Hou Jingshu suggested.

After uncrossing her legs, Zhou Lihua stood up. “I would like that.”

The three of them sat around a table soon after the maids arrived with breakfast. Yōuměi did not return even when they set out food for her, probably still wary they were trying to lure her back to bathe her.

Zhou Lihua told them about what happened after the tournament. She had apparently been holed up in her room, refining alchemy pills for the Zhou Clan. Her cultivation had increased. She wasn’t quite at the ninth subrealm yet, but she was pushing the barrier to it. He couldn’t even imagine how many pills she needed to refine to grow so quickly.

They adjourned to the living room after breakfast. Wu Jian thought Zhou Lihua would try to snuggle with him, but she instead sat on a chair. That made him curious. It was obvious she had something important to say.

“The Shang Kingdom’s Alchemist Association received a missive from the Alchemist Association Branch in the Zhou Kingdom. There’s an alchemy tournament happening there, and I have been formally invited as a participant.”

Zhou Lihua summoned a letter from her storage ring and waved it in the air. She handed it to Wu Jian, who read it with Hou Jingshu reading over his shoulder. It was just as she said--an official invitation to participate in an alchemy test.

She continued talking as they read. “The prize is, apparently, a heavenly flame. The Zhou Kingdom has several under their control. They’re offering their best heavenly flame to the victor.”

“This is good, though, right?” asked Wu Jian. “You were looking for a heavenly flame, and we need an alchemist who has a heavenly flame so we can cure Jingshu’s dad.”

Zhou Lihua nodded. “It is… but I am worried as well.”

Wu Jian didn’t understand why at first, but Hou Jingshu realized it right away.

“Do you think Cì Chuān will try something while you are there?”

Right. I completely forgot Cì Chuān is the second prince of the Zhou Kingdom and a talented alchemist in his own right. He’s also a complete scumbag.

“I would like to say he wouldn’t dare attempt something against a member of the Zhou Clan… but there is no telling with that man. If he believed he could kidnap me and get away with it, I’m sure he’d be willing to try,” Zhou Lihua said.

“I see. That is a tricky situation.” Wu Jian handed the letter back to Zhou Lihua, who stored it inside of her storage ring again. “What are you going to do?”

“I plan to still compete, but I’d like a bodyguard whom I can trust. The Zhou Clan will, of course, provide me with security, but I want someone who can remain by my side at all times.”

Zhou Lihua stared into his eyes. It was obvious what she wanted. He didn’t need to be psychic or a genius, and he wasn’t like those heroes who were so set on their goals they were blind to a woman’s feelings.

“When do we leave?” asked Wu Jian.

“We’ll be leaving one week from now,” Zhou Lihua said with a smile.

“I unfortunately won’t be able to travel with you,” Hou Jingshu said with a sigh. “Someone will need to remain here in case Hua Xue has information for us.”

Hua Xue planned to investigate the Burning Hands Sect. Wu Jian did not know how, but he knew she was planning to do it. She was going to let them know about her findings whenever she had the chance, which meant at least one of them needed to remain behind in case the woman showed up.

“It’ll be a bit lonely without you,” Wu Jian said.

“And what does that mean? Are you saying you’ll be lonely even though I’ll be there with you?” asked Zhou Lihua.

“You know that’s not what I meant,” Wu Jian said--only to squeak in surprise when Zhou Lihua stood up, leaned over, and placed her knee between his crotch. She leaned down until their noses were touching, eyes half-lidded as she smiled seductively at him.

“I, for one, am very much looking forward to getting some alone time with you,” she murmured in his ears.

Wu Jian shuddered as heat stained his ears and cheeks.

Hou Jingshu looked like a puffer fish as her cheeks swelled with air.