Upon hearing this, the Taotie immediately shrunk to the size of a kitten, and then replied in its mind, "It's in the back, let's go get it from the back!"
Shi Xuan raised an eyebrow. It seemed this little red-haired guy knew quite a lot!
"Then you can lead the way," Shi Xuan said, moving behind Red Hair and letting it walk in front.
Seeing that he had a chance to prove himself, Red Hair was quite happy. He walked ahead with his head held high and stepped behind a tree next to the opposite wall.
The wall in front of them vanished as if an illusion had shattered, replaced by a golden archway. Through the gaps in the archway, one could see scattered green plants inside.
"Not bad, you're quite useful," Shi Xuan praised.
Little Red Hair shook off non-existent fur on his body and swaggered into the room first.
The archway leads to a courtyard, opposite which stands a row of houses with blue bricks and white walls. Compared to the golden palace in front, the layout here is more like a residential courtyard, bearing no resemblance to the style outside, yet it is very pleasing to the eye.
Several large trees in the courtyard grew very lushly, and Shi Xuan recognized one of them at a glance—it was the Enlightenment Tree!
Shi Xuan found a seed of the Enlightenment Tree inside Hong Mao's stomach; it seems that this guy ate it here as well.
The moment Zhao Cai entered the courtyard, it flew out of its nest and landed on the Enlightenment Tree. I had just said I would give it ten pieces of food when it grew up, but here there were far more than ten pieces!
It flew happily to the top of the tree, picked up a leaf and ate it. It ate five leaves before Shi Xuan caught it and brought it back.
This little guy really doesn't like to suffer losses, but once it's agreed to ten pieces, it's ten pieces. Shi Xuan picked five more pieces for it, and then forbade it from flying up to eat any more.
Letting it eat freely is like a cow chewing on a peony—an utter waste.
The little lucky charm darted around with its tiny black bean eyes, glanced at Shi Xuan, then at the five leaves in front of it, and then ate all five leaves in one go. It then turned back to Shi Xuan, conveying the message: "Look, that's too little! I ate them all at once, have some more!"
Shi Xuan ignored it. Zhao Cai had wanted to try again, but the chance was gone. It collapsed onto Shi Xuan's hand and fell asleep.
Shi Xuan looked at its disappointing appearance and put it in his pocket.
It can't even last ten leaves, yet it wants to eat more? Dream on, anything is possible in dreams.
Having encountered such a divine object as the Enlightenment Tree, Shi Xuan naturally couldn't leave empty-handed. Without harming the tree, he picked every leaf and branch he could.
There were also three giant trees that I had never seen before, which must be of the same level as the Enlightenment Tree. I couldn't miss them either, so before I even entered the house, I had already picked a whole basin full of them.
Red Hair squatted to the side, looking on with envy, his saliva practically dripping from his mouth. But remembering how he had just sworn that he wouldn't eat, he could only watch longingly.
Looking at its weak, pitiful, and helpless expression, Shi Xuan pursed her lips. Anyone who didn't know better would think she was abusing her spirit pet.
I picked two leaves from each of the different kinds of leaves and handed them to it, hoping it would replenish the spiritual energy that had just been absorbed.
Red Hair was overjoyed. He had agreed not to eat, but now he had an unexpected surprise.
It swallowed the leaf and eagerly led Shi Xuan into the house.
The house was simply built, and inside was furnished with extremely basic furniture. There was an ordinary table with writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone on it, and behind the table was a rocking chair, which showed that the former owner of this house had a very leisurely hobby.
At the other end of the room was a bed, which was kept very clean and tidy, as if no one had lived there for a long time.
There was nothing in the room at first glance.
Shi Xuan looked at the red-haired man with a questioning look in his eyes, "What happened to the promised spirit pet space?"
Redfur slowly circled the room, its spirit conveying a sense of longing. It seemed it had some affection for the place's former owner.
After walking around for a while, Red Hair finally came out of the room and turned to a side room.
It looked more like a warehouse, with shelves on three sides displaying various tools. Upon closer inspection, there were some exquisitely crafted ritual implements scattered around.
These ritual implements appear quite random, like everyday creations made spontaneously. Examples include a rain hat that can extend its reach, a puppet that automatically waters trees and weeds, or a broom that can sweep the floor automatically without human intervention…
They are not very useful, and their quality is not low.
Which master craftsman has retired here, having had enough of fighting and killing, and is now tinkering with everyday gadgets?
Red Hair walked to the far right of the shelf, where there was a hook on the edge with a small pouch hanging from it. Shi Xuan took the pouch down, emptied it out, and looked inside; it contained an extremely tiny ring.
"This is the spirit pet space you were talking about?"
Red Hair nodded and urged her to perform the blood oath ceremony.
Shi Xuan pricked his fingertip, and a drop of blood fell onto the ring, where it was instantly absorbed. Shi Xuan then became connected to the ring.
The ring has a large interior space, more than enough to hold a dozen or so red-haired creatures. This is a space specifically prepared for spirit pets, and it's more conducive to their cultivation when they stay inside.
It's a good thing.
Shi Xuan turned to look at the red-haired man, "After we go out, we'll bring you back in."
Although the shelves were mostly filled with everyday items and magical artifacts, it was better than nothing, and Shi Xuan still carefully put them all away.
There are three rooms in this row, and there is only one left. After entering, as usual, there is a recliner by the window, and behind it is a shelf with crystal boxes storing spiritual fruits, covering the entire wall.
Red Hair's eyes lit up as soon as he entered, as if he had eaten there quite a bit before.
Shi Xuan looked at the rows and chose a type of purple Moran fruit that she recognized and that was plentiful. She took out a box and shared it with Hong Mao.
The Moran fruit is a fourth-tier spiritual plant that melts in the mouth, is extremely sweet and juicy, and contains abundant spiritual energy that made both the human and the beast close their eyes in comfort.
All the spiritual fruits on the shelf could not be wasted, so the shelf and all were taken away and neatly placed in the storage space.
After finishing another fruit, Shi Xuan asked Hong Mao, "Are there any other places we can go?"
Red Hair shook his head and said, "This is the only size we have here."
Shi Xuan was somewhat surprised, "Such a large palace, and it's only this big?"
“No,” Red Hair said, “you chose this path, and it’s only this wide.”
So, everyone is placed in a different location after entering? Is the reason so many people haven't encountered it because the palace automatically selected a different location for each person?
“That’s right, then this road is the one I’m most destined for. So, it can be considered fate that you and I are connected.” Shi Xuan said to the red-haired man.
Red Hair pursed his lips almost imperceptibly; this connection had been forged at the cost of his life.
"Don't you think that other places might have more and better treasures?" Red Hair asked.
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