Survival challenge? Foodie paradise!
In the stone prison on the Food Accumulation Cliff, Xiaodou rolled around in the packaging of the sweet-scented osmanthus cake Bai Yan had sent him. The so-called "imprisonment" was merely a stone cave with a skylight, and the entrance was piled with snacks Bai Yan had secretly slipped in—peach gum candies, poria cocos pastries, and even the remains of half a piece of Xuanbing cake.
"The survival challenge will begin in three days," a mechanical voice swirled overhead. "Warm reminder: If the host fails, you will be wanted by the demon world, and your next life will be spent as a mining rat digging for spirit stones~"
Xiaodou shuddered, his claws accidentally knocking over the bronze lampstand on the stone table. Just as the lampstand rolled to his mouth, it was swept away by a flash of white light. Bai Yan had unknowingly sat on the windowsill, his fingertips still clinging to the spiritual energy he hadn't yet retracted.
"Don't chew it," his ears turned red, "I stole this... ahem, I borrowed it."
Xiaodou licked his paw and said, "Borrowed? Then why don't you lend me some magic weapons? I can return them after I eat them."
Bai Yan nearly fell off the windowsill: "How can you eat a magic weapon and then give it back?!"
"The Sky-Swallowing Rat's digestive system is a different dimension," Xiaodou puffed out his round belly. "Look at the jade pendant I swallowed yesterday. Hasn't it turned into ice chips and returned to you now?"
He opened his mouth, revealing ice chips that hadn't yet melted—sure enough, the pattern on the jade pendant around Bai Yan's waist was exactly the same. Bai Yan's pupils suddenly shrank, and his fingertips unconsciously stroked the center of Xiaodou's paw: "Your pattern..."
Suddenly, the earth shook.
"Attention everyone!" The voice of the Demon Realm High Priest exploded through the sound transmission talisman. "The survival challenge begins early! Contestants, gather at Chaohuangtai quickly—especially the Heaven-Swallowing Rat!"
Bai Yan scooped Xiaodou up and stuffed him into his Qiankun bag. As he leaped into the clouds, Xiaodou could hear his heartbeat in his chest, beating like a drum. By the time he emerged from the bag, the arena was already surrounded by monsters. Tiger monsters licked their lips, carrying maces, and snake monsters spat out their tongues and cracked their whips. Only the judges' table in the center held a table of "delicacies"—all fake dishes made from magic weapons.
"Level One: Monster World Food Eater!" the priest roared. "Contestants must finish the designated ingredients within one stick of incense. Those who exceed the time limit or cheat will be eliminated!"
Xiaodou stared at the "grilled dragon meat" (actually a Gengjin sword) and "steamed phoenix wings" (a Qingluan clan feather sword) on the judges' table, saliva dripping down his chin. Bai Yan held his paw aside, "Calm down, those are magic weapons..."
"start!"
The moment the flag fell, Xiaodou had already sprinted onto the judges' table. The Gengjin sword crackled in his mouth, a sound even more satisfying than the shrimp chips he'd eaten in his previous life; the Lingyu sword, like potato chips, even sent sparks flying when bitten. As he emptied the "Buddha Heart Lotus Cup" (actually a defensive magic weapon) and poured tons of water into it, the judges were collectively petrified. The "wine" in the cup was spiritual energy, which would burst the stomachs of ordinary monsters, but Xiaodou smacked his lips, "Is this wine diluted with water?"
"Stop, stop!" The tiger demon judge slammed the table. "The rule is to eat food, not swallow magic weapons!"
Xiaodou turned around with a mouthful of gold dust on his face: "But they look like edible things."
The audience erupted in laughter. The snake demon cracked his whip and started to jeer, "The Sky-Swallowing Rat is truly a glutton! He can't even distinguish between magical weapons!"
Bai Yan suddenly leaped onto the stage, condensing fox fire at his fingertips, and refined the remaining "ingredients" into a pile of spiritual energy balls: "Is this edible?"
Xiaodou's eyes lit up, and he swept his paw across the pile of meatballs, his cheeks puffing out like a hamster. By the time the last meatball was gone, the hourglass on the side of the stage had just run out of its last grain of sand—no more, no less, just the time it takes to burn an incense stick.
"You pass!" the priest gritted his teeth, "Next level..."
"Wait." Bai Yan suddenly spoke up and pulled out a brocade box from his sleeve. "This is the supply I gave to the Sky-Swallowing Rat."
The brocade box opened, revealing twelve pieces of osmanthus cake, each roasted to a golden golden color with foxfire. Xiaodou leaped forward with a howl, not noticing Bai Yan's fingertips brushing past his ear as he passed the cake to him. "The third piece contains a poison-repellent pill. We'll need it in the secret realm later."
The fox demon clan elder in the audience suddenly coughed: "Bai Yan, you and the Sky-Swallowing Rat have such a tacit understanding... Could it be that you have already secretly decided to spend your lives together?"
Bai Yan's ears instantly turned red. Just as he was about to retort, Xiao Dou nodded, holding the sweet-scented osmanthus cake in his mouth: "Bai Yan said that if you bring sweet-scented osmanthus cake next time, he will allow me to propose marriage!"
The whole audience was in an uproar. The fox demon elder stroked his beard and laughed until tears came out of his eyes. "Okay, okay, after the survival challenge is over, I'll host your engagement party!"
Bai Yan turned abruptly, his tail accidentally brushing Xiao Dou's nose. Xiao Dou smelled a burning smell—it turned out that the tip of Bai Yan's tail was smoking, and he had obviously been frightened by the elder's words.
As Xiaodou followed Bai Yan into the secret realm's entrance, the Heaven-Swallowing Mark on his claws suddenly felt hot. He looked down and saw a golden glow emanating from the edges of the mark, faintly outlining the Chinese character "林." Bai Yan, noticing his abnormality, reached out to touch him, but was swept away by the secret realm's gusts of wind, causing him to stumble.
"Follow me closely," he grabbed Xiaodou's paw, fox fire dancing in his palm, "This secret realm contains the remnant soul of an ancient ferocious beast. If it gets out of control..."
"Just eat it." Xiaodou shook his round head, the spiritual energy ball in his stomach was getting hot. "Besides, won't you protect me?"
Bai Yan's fingertips suddenly tightened, his Adam's apple rolling as he remained silent. But Xiaodou saw the redness of his ear tips spreading all the way to his collarbone, like a cinnabar flower blooming out of season in the dark blue light of the secret realm.
Deep in the secret realm, the roar of the remnant soul was getting closer and closer. Just as Bai Yan cast the spell, Xiaodou suddenly broke free from his hand and stabbed at the rock wall.
“Crack!”
The moment the rock cracked, countless glowing runes poured out, forming the complete Chinese character "林" (forest) in Xiaodou's claws. Bai Yan's pupils reflected the runes' light, and he finally remembered a forgotten legend:
When the Concept Rat is born, the prophecy of "seeing a deer in a deep forest" will appear between heaven and earth, and the deer...
"careful!"
The remnant's sharp claws grazed Xiaodou's nose, and Bai Yan pounced on him, protecting him in his arms. Xiaodou smelled the pine scent mixed with the smell of blood on his body, and was shocked to realize that Bai Yan's back had been cut open. Under the exposed skin at the wound, there were lines similar to the ones on his own claws.
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