83. Natural Barrier (XI)

◎“How is this any different from imprisonment?”◎

Ran Qinghe turned to Hua Jin and asked casually, "When I came back, I saw some handymen disciples transporting venison. What were they doing?"

Hua Jin was taken aback for a moment and did not understand the hidden meaning in her words. She simply replied seriously, "They are basically sent to the Spirit Beast Mountain to feed the spirit beasts."

Ran Qinghe gave an amused "oh," then, as if suddenly remembering something, said:

"Hey, I've been fasting, and I completely forgot that Mu Tou is still hungry," she said, lifting Mu Tou up by the back of his neck with a worried expression. "You really are a blockhead, aren't you? You don't even complain of being hungry. Have you been eating wild fruits all the time?"

Hua Jin replied nonchalantly, "It's alright. I'll just let the disciple in charge of the spirit beasts' meals know and have him send some meat over here."

Ran Qinghe nodded solemnly and specifically instructed, "Thank you for your trouble. Please try to have him send some fresh ones, preferably... the kind that are still bleeding."

"The poor thing has been with me for months and hasn't even had a proper meal."

Ran Qinghe turned back again, as if to emphasize, and asked, "There shouldn't be any spirit beast that doesn't like to eat meat, right?"

It should be the ashes of a flower.

Upon hearing this, Wood's ears seemed to twitch, as if he was nervous about something.

Hua Jin was always efficient, and within half a day, a servant disciple knocked on Ran Qinghe's courtyard gate.

The disciple carried a heavy bamboo basket lined with large green leaves, on which sat a large, dark red piece of deer leg meat, its muscle fibers clearly defined. The pervasive smell of blood was mixed with the distinctive gamey odor of a wild animal.

"As instructed by the young sect leader, this is a wild deer that was just slaughtered this morning." The disciple respectfully placed the bamboo basket under the eaves.

Ran Qinghe searched through her storage bag for a long time before finally finding a celadon bowl and a pair of wooden chopsticks.

She slowly cut off a small piece of fresh venison with her knife, then cut it into smaller pieces and put it in her bowl.

The wooden creature beside her sat on the stone steps with its back to her, its tail unusually tightly curled up and motionless.

Here, eat up.

Ran Qinghe then deliberately walked around to its front and placed the small bowl in front of it.

Wood sniffed closer, wrinkled its nose slightly, and looked up at Ran Qinghe. She was leaning against the doorpost, a faint smile playing on her lips, as if observing something extremely interesting.

It hesitated for a moment, then lowered its head, stuck out its tongue, licked it very quickly, and then instinctively withdrew it in disgust.

"What, not to your liking?" Ran Qinghe squatted down, looking directly into its eyes with a wicked grin. "Don't follow my example. I'm a cultivator, and a cultivator who has already abstained from grains. It's fine for me not to eat or drink, but you can't handle it. Listen to me, eat a piece."

Wood's ears twitched again, this time even its fur stood on end slightly. But it still lowered its head, reluctantly and slowly picked up a small piece of meat, and swallowed it whole.

"Okay, okay, eat slowly. This plate is all yours. If it's not enough, I'll go cut some more for you."

A smile finally appeared on Ran Qinghe's lips.

The wooden figure raised its head, whimpered, and shook its head.

Ran Qinghe's smile froze. "Why did you stop eating after only one piece?"

She picked it up casually, holding its body with great force.

"It's alright. If you don't want venison, I'll have someone bring some more tomorrow, wild boar meat, goat meat... I'll cut them all up for you to try."

The wooden figure squatted on the couch, watching Ran Qinghe who was about to enter meditation. Her expression showed no abnormality, but for some reason, a sense of unease crept into its heart.

Perhaps it was the way she looked at it. Though still gentle, there was always a hint of indifference hidden beneath that gentleness.

Perhaps it was because her body inadvertently revealed stiffness when she touched it.

Although it knew that this day would come sooner or later, it was completely different from the angry questioning and direct confrontation it had expected. Instead, it used a gentle yet cruel method to test and torment it little by little.

The Heart-to-Heart Technique is no ordinary spirit beast contract, and Ran Qinghe is an extremely perceptive person; she cannot be kept in the dark forever.

But perhaps it's just its illusion?

Clinging to a sliver of hope, it slowly closed its eyes.

*

A few days later, Ran Qinghe received another package. She accepted it with a smile, closed the courtyard gate, turned around, and looked at the wooden figure squatting on the stone steps, the corners of her mouth curving into a deeper smile.

“A few days ago, I overheard the disciples in the sect chatting. Recently, there has been a trend in the sect to make clothes for spirit beasts. So, I also ordered one for you.”

She smiled as she opened the package, inside which were several brightly colored bells, a leather collar, a necklace made of several small luminous pearls, and a small mythical beast garment embroidered with red peonies.

"Come on, let me dress you up."

She picked up the little garment and yanked the piece of wood onto the couch.

The wood took a few steps back, but she picked it up again without saying a word. "Come on, try on this dress to see if it fits." She began to slowly put it on.

The dress was decorated with bright red peony patterns and had a fur trim around the neckline. Lou Tinglan had never worn such a flamboyant dress in her life, and she struggled slightly, trying to take it off.

"Don't move." Ran Qinghe pressed him down, carefully tied the belt of his clothes, then took two steps back and looked him over. "Hmm... really handsome."

She then picked up the black collar, attached the bell, and put it on the collar. The bell would ring crisply whenever the dog moved slightly.

"I almost forgot, there's this too." Ran Qinghe picked up the necklace made of luminous pearls and hung it around her neck.

Through her careful transformation, the wood instantly became a spirit beast wearing bells, glowing beads, and a red floral dress.

Utterly absurd.

Lou Tinglan felt uncomfortable and tried to tear off the thing around his neck with his claws, but Ran Qinghe had already carried him to the bronze mirror: "Look, how cute he is."

Ran Qinghe suddenly burst out laughing. The sound was very soft at first, but it gradually grew louder until she almost laughed until tears streamed down her face.

“This is so funny…” she said with a laugh, pointing her finger at the top of the wooden head. “If your former owner saw you like this, I wonder what he would think.”

Her fingers slid down its back, finally stopping at its tail, where she rubbed it vigorously.

The wood shuddered reflexively and jumped out of her arms, the bells jingling with the movement.

Ran Qinghe stopped laughing and slowly straightened up. Smile lines still lingered on her face, but there was no trace of amusement in her eyes.

"Why are you hiding?" she asked softly. "It's just a piece of clothing. I've never seen you react this strongly before."

Finally, as if she had lost interest, she turned and walked towards the bed.

"It's getting late, go to sleep."

That night, Ran Qinghe did not hold it. She lay on one side of the bed with her back to him, with a clear gap between them.

The wooden figure lay on the other side, the bell around its neck occasionally making a faint sound in the silence.

He knew she had already found out...

*

At dawn.

When Ran Qinghe got up and opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a figure sitting in front of her bed.

Their eyes met, and the room was so quiet that they could hear each other breathing.

Ran Qinghe's gaze moved from Lou Tinglan's face to the desk behind him, and then to the small red dress and bell on the table.

Her face was expressionless, devoid of surprise, anger, or even any emotion, as if she had known all along that this scene would unfold.

"Lou Tinglan," she began, her voice eerily calm, "or should I pretend to be blind and call you 'blockhead'?"

Lou Tinglan nodded.

Its movements were almost identical to those of a wooden block.

"Was it fun?" she asked, a sarcastic smile playing on her lips. "Watching me fall asleep holding you, completely defenseless, watching me being played like a fool..."

"Is it fun, Lou Tinglan?"

Lou Tinglan looked at her stubbornly: "At Yunya Academy, you said you wanted me to go to Feifeng with you."

Ran Qinghe leaned against the bed, still in the same position, her fingers gently twisting the corner of the quilt.

"I did say that, but it was just... a joke."

Lou Tinglan was silent for a moment: "I took it seriously." If he hadn't come along, he feared that the things he dreamed about that day would one day become reality.

Ran Qinghe questioned again, "When I first asked you if you were male or female, you actually said yes..." She stopped mid-sentence, seemingly finding it difficult to finish her sentence.

Lou Tinglan's eyes seemed to be filled with a layer of water, making her look even more innocent.

"That day, you were looking at it the wrong way; I was taking a picture of your left hand..."

Ran Qinghe felt even more frustrated. "Then... that day when we returned from the mortal valley, on the immortal ship, I said you were my contracted spirit beast, and why did you agree?"

"Is this my fault?"

Lou Tinglan slightly curled her fingers inside her sleeve. "No, it's my fault... I didn't listen to you properly before I nodded."

Ran Qinghe was speechless for a moment. She hadn't expected that Lou Tinglan had the ability to turn black into white.

never mind……

She said irritably, "Undo the Heart-to-Heart Technique for me. Go back to your Discipline Hall and be the head of the Discipline Hall. Don't follow me around for no reason, you haven't even broken through to the Nascent Soul Realm yet."

Only after the words were out did she belatedly realize, "When did you fall from grace?"

Lou Tinglan's eyes lit up for a moment, appreciating her concern, and replied with a hint of pleasure, "It's nothing serious, I'll try harder in the future..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ran Qinghe said impatiently, "Stop talking nonsense. As long as you don't die, just undo the Heart-to-Heart Mantra. From now on, we'll go our separate ways, okay?"

Upon hearing this, Lou Tinglan pursed her lips, seemingly a little aggrieved, but quickly composed herself.

"I...can't solve it."

Ran Qinghe's face instantly darkened. "Lou Tinglan, are you joking?"

"Can't be solved?! How could it not be solved? Does this mean we have to be inseparable for the rest of our lives, never even a hundred meters apart?"

Lou Tinglan lowered her head and said, "I can."

Ran Qinghe refused, saying, "I can't!"

It's utterly absurd. Has Lou Tinglan gone mad? It's already unbelievable enough that he came to Feifeng alone to find her, but he actually planted some so-called Heart-to-Heart Mantra with her.

Ran Qinghe's chest heaved as she forcefully clenched her fists to suppress the absurd rage: "Lou Tinglan, what right do you have to make decisions for me? How is this any different from imprisonment?"