Chapter 109
After fully opening his meridians, he had awakened some of the primordial abilities of the Taotie.
One of those abilities was the influence over the mind.
This power was neither too great nor too small.
He didn’t dare use it on Chen Huai'an, nor could he use it on Lin Lingling, right?
Lin Lingling was unaware that she had already fallen victim; she only felt as if she had been enlightened.
It was all connected!
Everything made sense now!
No wonder Chen Huai'an and Ba Ji could coexist peacefully; it turned out they had this kind of relationship.
Ba Ji was actually the most mysterious and popular opportunity-type monster in the Demon-Slaying Division.
Chen Huai'an was the big shot, but Ba Ji was the real big shot.
Yet, for some reason, this big shot's voice sounded like that of a little child.
【Did you see that little guy holding the blue fish?】
Following Ba Ji's cue, Lin Lingling looked at the big blue fish, and then heard Ba Ji snicker, 【That blue fish is a monster I enlightened. I didn’t want to reveal my identity, so I turned it into a pet for this kid. Who knows, it might even become a mermaid one day to surprise him. But then… hmph!】
Lin Lingling shivered at the sound of that "hmph."
【What if you let this kid know the blue fish is a monster? What if he kills it?】
Just then, they heard Chen Huai'an mumbling, “Three eggs, huh? Have you ever eaten a monster? Do you think this fish would taste especially good if it turned into a monster? And why are you kneeling? It’s not even New Year yet.”
The big blue fish looked terrified, shaking its head left and right.
Its gills slapped against Chen Huai'an's hand with a 'smack.'
Clearly, it understood.
If a mere monster could comprehend human speech, Lin Lingling had to believe that this big blue fish was indeed a little monster enlightened by the high-level monster Ba Ji, completely different from those wild ones that awakened on their own.
She couldn’t let the big blue fish be eaten.
Otherwise, Ba Ji wouldn’t let her off the hook.
Thinking quickly, she stood up, her sweaty hands gripping the gun tightly, forcing a stiff smile on her face. “Uh, Chen Huai'an, not all monsters need to be killed. Besides, monster meat shouldn’t be eaten casually; it can cause problems.”
“But…” Chen Huai'an looked down, making eye contact with the big blue fish, hesitantly saying, “It looks really tasty.”
“Don’t! You really can’t eat it.”
“Are you sure I can’t eat it?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Isn’t it said that boiling water can eliminate everything? If the temperature isn’t high enough, cooking it in a pressure cooker should be acceptable.” Chen Huai'an swallowed hard.
He had never eaten a monster in his life.
Even if there were issues with monster meat, so what?
Who knew how long he would live? What couldn’t he eat?
Lin Lingling: “…”
Big Blue Fish: “…”
Ba Ji: “…”
Seeing that neither Ba Ji nor Lin Lingling could stop its demise, the big blue fish twitched, its gills and mouth opening wide, spitting out a pearl the size of a quail egg.
Then it looked at Chen Huai'an with eager eyes.
“You can produce pearls?” Chen Huai'an squinted, his expression serious.
The big blue fish nodded vigorously.
“How long does it take to produce one?”
The big blue fish stared at Chen Huai'an, confused.
“I’ll give you a time frame; if you get it right, just nod.”
The big blue fish nodded.
“One day?”
“A week?”
“A month?”
When he mentioned a month, the big blue fish quickly nodded.
“Too slow! I’m very disappointed!” Chen Huai'an’s face darkened, and he sneered, “I’ll only give you one week. You must present me with a pearl every week, or I’ll throw you into a pressure cooker and turn you into fish soup!”
The big blue fish nodded frantically.
“Alright, it’s a deal!”
Chen Huai'an revealed a kind smile, extending two fingers to shake the big blue fish’s fin.
Then he placed the big blue fish into a basin.
“From now on, you’re a new member of our family. We’ll call you Xiao Qing!”
Chen Huai'an tapped the blue fish’s head. “You’re a monster, and Ba Ji isn’t. You’re not allowed to bully Ba Ji!”
Bully that black cat?
Xiao Qing was completely stunned.
Even if she had a hundred times her courage, she wouldn’t dare!
…
“Selling a natural pearl of this quality should fetch around forty to fifty thousand, right?”
Chen Huai'an examined the pearl spat out by the big blue fish under the light.
Beside him, Lin Lingling poured cold water on his enthusiasm, “Xiao Qing is a freshwater fish. Not to mention how the fish produces pearls, this thing should belong to the category of freshwater pearls, which aren’t worth much. Even if the quality is excellent, it might only be worth two to three thousand.”
“Two to three thousand?” Chen Huai'an weighed his options in his mind.
Should he stew the fish or earn less than ten thousand a month?
Then Lin Lingling added, “However, from another perspective, it’s something produced by a monster, so it can be reported to the Demon-Slaying Division. Items produced by monsters of Xiao Qing’s level can be sold for around ten thousand based on their research value.”
Ten thousand sounds good.
If he didn’t care about size, he could make Xiao Qing produce one pearl every three days.
That would be ten pearls a month, totaling a hundred thousand!
The murderous look on Chen Huai'an’s face vanished, replaced by a kind smile. “You truly are a member of the family. Whether it’s being stewed into fish soup or producing pearls, you can find your own value. How wonderful!”
Lin Lingling rolled her eyes.
She felt that Xiao Qing would eventually be driven crazy staying here.
At this point, it was best to report Ba Ji and Xiao Qing as harmless opportunity-type monsters to the Demon-Slaying Division.
These two monsters could also serve as a basis for assessing Chen Huai'an’s strength.
Of course, the most important thing was to observe Ba Ji and Xiao Qing’s potential and see if there was a need for further contact.
The Demon-Slaying Division needed to leverage any power to develop.
So even if the channels for gaining power weren’t entirely safe, it was still acceptable.
“Chen Huai'an, I need to go out for a bit.”
Chen Huai'an looked at Lin Lingling, who was getting up, and thought, how convenient!
He was just pondering how to send her away when he nodded and said, “Sure, go ahead… By the way, I love the Si Hai Baozi from that place in the urban village. Can you pick some up on your way back?”
Lin Lingling’s face turned green at his words.
The urban village? It would take a long detour from here to the Demon-Slaying Division and then to the urban village. She wouldn’t be back for three or four hours, and by then, the baozi would be lunch! Besides, was she his servant?
“You…”
Just as she was about to argue, a sinister voice chimed in:
【This king also wants to eat Si Hai Baozi.】
Lin Lingling shivered.
She fell silent.
Immediately, she put on a cute smile, “Sure! I’ll go get it for you, big brother!”
…
Standing by the window, watching Lin Lingling get into a ride-hailing car, the carefree expression on Chen Huai'an’s face vanished.
He walked back to the sofa, took out a silver needle, and his demeanor turned serious.
“I’ve confirmed the safety of the meridian-opening needle… Now, it’s time to open my own meridians!”
…
…
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Chapter 116: Testing and Teaching
In a dimly lit room, with swaying curtains.
A mysterious black cat on the sofa.
A blue fish with strange eyes in a water basin.
And in the center of the room, a handsome man with his upper body bare.
“So, this is what it feels like to open the meridians?”
Chen Huai'an clenched his fists and took a deep breath.
The wind danced around his ears.
The grass on the windowsill was green, the bananas on the table smelled like bananas, and the litter box was stinky.
Just as he thought, it happened in a flash.
Chen Huai'an suddenly opened his eyes, stepped forward, and threw a punch at the wall in front of him.
Bang!
“Roar—!!”
A mournful howl echoed throughout the entire apartment building.
Countless people shivered, thinking someone was slaughtering a pig.
Ba Ji remained silent for a moment, then continued licking its paws.
The blue fish blew a bubble, flicked its tail, and sank back into the water.
…
Ten minutes later, Chen Huai'an had applied a layer of bruise ointment to his swollen fist.
While applying the medicine, he had come to a realization.
It wasn’t that opening the meridians was the problem.
It was that he hadn’t practiced any internal martial arts techniques.
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