The round, bulging ball transformed into a miniature beast sitting on the ground, its head raised, revealing a stoic, fierce face to the two of them.
Its two front paws were holding a half-eaten, fragrant piece of bread. Several bags full of food were also hanging from its waist.
Who are you?
Almost the instant it looked up, Wu Yue and the others recognized that this glutton was definitely Taotie.
Taotie's tone was wary, and his eyebrows twitched, making him look like someone not to be trifled with.
Yan Chiyu didn't say anything, but simply tossed it a badge engraved with the number "7".
Even though Taotie was unwilling to accept it, Yan Chiyu's gesture was extremely accurate, and the badge seemed to have recognized it, heading straight into its embrace.
"What?! Who are you?! What is this thing?!" Before Taotie could even question these two humans about why they could see him, they were attacked first. Could this be some kind of terrifying spell?
Wu Yue found it somewhat amusing to see it frantically waving its claws, and kindly reminded it, "That's a symbol of its identity as a mythical beast from the mountains and seas, not some poisonous snake or ferocious beast, so don't be afraid."
"..."
Upon hearing the words "mythical beasts of the mountains and seas," Taotie stopped moving, its eyes still wary, but much less so than before. "Why should I trust you?"
Yan Chiyu wasn't a robot that could answer questions, and he didn't care what Taotie said. His indifferent eyes casually swept over it, "What's with the mark on Mu Liuguang? Are you protecting her with your cultivation?"
As the boy spoke, he frowned in disapproval, "When the land of mountains and seas returns in the future, if you are tainted by ghostly energy and your cultivation and spiritual energy are absorbed, you may not be able to withstand the time travel during the return."
Taotie was starting to believe them a little.
"I know, thank you for your kindness, I know what I'm doing." It lowered its head and said with a wronged yet stubborn expression, "When I first fell here, it was Little Flowing Light who helped me. I won't let her be kidnapped by the underworld ghosts."
"So you don't want to go back?" Wu Yue actually admired Taotie's character of always repaying kindness.
"Of course I want to. But the Book God is gone. Without him, what use is it if you find me and give me the badge? The land of mountains and seas has been shattered. Even if we live for a hundred years, a thousand years, or ten thousand years, we will never be able to go back." Taotie complained dejectedly. It sat on the ground, head drooping, looking like a pitiful little thing.
The little gluttonous beast reached out and touched the badge it had just scorned, examining it closely for a moment. The feel of it in its palm delighted it; it could sense the presence of other mythical creatures from the mountains and seas on it…
The number '7' on the badge—does that mean there are six beasts ahead of it? Or does it mean its strength ranks seventh among the beasts?
Uh, never mind, that's giving it too much credit.
Yan Chiyu took in all of Taotie's little expressions, not missing the subtle changes in its eyes. "I already have a clue about the God of Mountains and Seas."
"Impossible. To find the Book God, you must find one of the Four Divine Beasts, or be one of the Book God's pageboys, because... because none of us have ever seen the Book God." Taotie kept denying the information Yan Chiyu gave it. After a pause, it suddenly looked up. "What clues do you have? And who are you?"
"My surname is Yan."
Compared to the boy's cold and disdainful demeanor, the girl was much more polite and enthusiastic: "My name is Wu Yue, and this is Yan Chiyu."
"Yan...is it the Yan family of Songcheng?"
As Taotie spoke, his fierce eyes narrowed slightly, "There's an old woman in your Yan family who's really outrageous. She actually lied to me! She said she knew the God of Books and wanted to take me home. Luckily, I was smart enough not to be fooled. Oh! Oh, I remember now, that old woman's name is... her name is Yan something-ru."
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