Cultivation Struggles of a Lowly Fox
Chapter 480 – Campfire stories

Aiko and co went inside the foggy forest as it burned quietly around them.

It was quite the sight to behold as every trick slowly melted in the gentle fires.

"Princess." Yanyan whispered as she nudged her Princess.

"I know..." Yueying also noticed the abnormality of the flames and that they were actually not scorching.

It was odd that a flame could be gentle and welcoming.

Shaking her head, they followed her quietly.

...

The burning dead trees were a sight to behold as they slowly turned to ashes under the influence of Grandpa Flame.

Aiko happily walked in the sea of ashes, as she didn't need to do anything to explore it.

It was a nice change of pace as the sun warmly shone on her, and no puzzle got in her way.

"Should we camp?" Grandpa Flame asked.

"We can." Aiko glanced at the duo to see if it was all right to settle down.

"We don't mind." Yueying smiled gently. She would follow Aiko's arrangements, since she was the one clearing the path.

"Then let's do that." Aiko didn't mind stopping since their progress went along nicely.

It would take a few days to get to the centre, and they might miss it, but that was fine.

Those two would be able to sniff out the general location, and Grandpa Flame just needed to adjust his flames to burn in that direction.

Everything was handled and Aiko didn't need to do anything...

...

Wood was set, utensils were prepared, and soup was warmed.

"How about some stories?" Aiko smirked.

"Hmmmmmm..." Yueying pondered on it. "You know that black kitty?"

"Yeah." Aiko immediately knew that she was talking about a panther, but his nickname was too cringy to repeat.

"He is quite a nice guy, he also has a friend called Buddy and Jun. I met them when I joined the Beast Sect." Yueying started her story.

But since she was a Human-looking Beast, it was difficult to fit in.

There was a constant hatred against Beasts, and since she looked like that, she was at the centre.

That was until Buddy and others returned from the expedition.

They found her cute and fed her lots of yummy food, making her slightly recover from her predicament.

The strangest one was the black panther. He would often sulk and laze around her. He would always bring her some nice food before lying down lazily.

"I figured out he was just lazy, but I'm not sure any more." Yueying shook her head.

Buddy would often walk around with her, showing her how the Beast Sect worked.

That's also when she attracted the attention of her current Master.

Unlike Humans that have a single Master, Beasts didn't care about that.

What was important was to grow strong and slaughter Humans for them.

However, her Master was likewise kind and helped her recover by feeding her delicious medical soups.

"In turn, I was indebted, but I also made mistakes." Yueying sighed.

Since she looked mostly Human, she was often sent for negotiations between the Human Sect and the Beast Sect.

Of course, Humans didn't welcome Beasts, but Yueying's features made them softer on them, especially since she looked so fragile and gullible.

That's also when the harassment and advances on her started, but Yueying believed that she had to endure this for the kindness that her Master showed.

"That's just stupid..." Aiko blurted out, and Yueying giggled.

"En." Yueying agreed. "But at that time, I didn't see any other way."

"..." Aiko munched on a piece of meat inside the soup before focusing on her again. Her features were quite still, no wagging or snipping. It was hard to say if she focused or not.

"Later, I met you inside that small shop." Yueying giggled.

"Ah! I still have that Herb! I mean IOU for Six Coloured Blazing Lotus!" Aiko clapped her hands. She completely forgot about it.

"I can retrieve it for you, since you wouldn't be allowed inside." Yueying nudged her gently.

"Do you think they will give it?" Aiko narrowed her eyes.

"En. Otherwise, they would send Cultivators to retrieve it for you." Yueying licked her lips. She was looking forward to that harassing bastard's suffering.

"I should never sign an IOU..." Aiko nodded her head seriously.

Yueying giggled and continued her story.

After that, she reported all the happenings to her Master.

At first, he scolded her for how stupid she acted and that she should've told him sooner.

Her Master was from the Bull race, so it was obvious what would happen when he got angry.

2 Sects were destroyed just from his charge, and the others immediately caved in and sent many gifts of apologies.

"I was practically swimming in resources, and that further helped me." Yueying giggled.

Her heart was shielded from the burning sensation. It would never go away, but the Vitality-sapping slowed down thanks to precious Treasures.

Her Soul was protected against mind pollution, and everything turned around for her.

"It got so bad that at one time I was even sick of the delicious medical soups." Yueying laughed at her silliness.

"Were they that bad?" Aiko didn't understand.

"No, quite the opposite, but when you eat one thing too many times, there might be a chance that you will get tired of it." Yueying shook her head.

Aiko blinked a few times. Yanyan was very expressive when it came to her Dragon features, but Yueying wasn't at all.

Well, she did like to coil her tail around Aiko's waist, but that was about it.

"Hmmm..." Aiko nodded slowly.

Yueying smiled. After a while, Secret Realm opened, but Master was too worried about her. She honestly couldn't remember much about the Secret Realm, since she was constantly protected.

Then came the Tournament and other things, but they were honestly boring.

The Pills aren't too tasty, and the fights were quite boring.

Well, Aiko's intrusion was nice, but she left too quickly.

Then came the Sacred Realm, and her Master was finally willing to listen to her.

"You should learn as much as possible inside, but remember all the faces that have wronged you." Yueying mimicked her Master's voice and even that familiar snort.

Aiko giggled. "He's a good guy."

"That he is." Yueying nodded proudly.

Inside the Sacred Realm, she met the many Sects and Beasts. What was funny was that the Human Sects were friendlier than the Beast Sect.

She stuck around Humans, believing they change, but...

"Stabby stab." Aiko nodded her head. She somewhat figured out what happened.

"Yeah, but I have no idea why they are after me." Yueying sighed.

"They want to destroy your Treasures so that they can extract more from you." Yanyan suddenly chimed in.

"How nasty." Aiko clicked her tongue.

"Well, I got my heart back, so everything is alright." Yueying giggled.

"Yeah, your Grandpa stormed into that place and stomped them, leaving with your heart." Yanyan said proudly.

Yueying just smiled. She was slightly concerned about her Grandpa, but she also knew he was cautious.

'Having two hearts is both a blessing and a disaster, but...' Yueying was not as inclined to tell others about her heart, well, not up-front.

That way, she would be able to keep secret her newfound strength and possibly obtain another heart.

Yueying knew that Yanyan couldn't contact Grandpa, so there was no point mentioning that part, lest someone was eavesdropping on them.

"What about before joining the Beast Sect?" Aiko was quite curious.

"I would rather not say it with a happy ambience..." Yueying coughed awkwardly.

Aiko glanced around, but there were flames everywhere, quietly burning.

"You have a strange fancy..." Aiko shook her head.

Yueying slightly choked. "Hey! We love flames, it's not my fault!" She pouted, and Yanyan backed her up.

"We Dragons are 'born in flames' so we naturally like anything that is burning." Yanyan added.

"That's an overly fancy way to say that you are an arsonist..." Aiko was flabbergasted at their ways.

Yanyan choked. "That's not true! Just because we like flames doesn't mean we are arsonists!"

"If you want to be more convincing, you should stare at me and not at the flames behind me..." Aiko was speechless at their conduct.

Yanyan coughed awkwardly and decided not to talk with Aiko. She was sometimes too smart and made it feel like she would win anything.

"How about you, do you have any stories?" Yueying glanced at the Spiritual Flame that was quietly eating with them.

Aiko narrowed her eyes and licked her lips from the soup. She would definitely shock them if Feifei came out.

'Not a bad idea.' Aiko smirked as she ruffled her tails.

"Here, a cutie!" Aiko pulled a whole being out of her tails, shocking them.

But what was even more ridiculous was that it was a fledgling Dragon!

"Hello~!" Feifei always played along with shenanigans, so she was well-liked by everyone.

Yueying and Yanyan immediately sniffed her, trying to figure out what she was.

"She doesn't smell like the Southern Tribe..." Yueying was confused.

"Neither as the Flood Tribe..." Yanyan was even more confused.

Feifei sniffed them back, just because they did it, but-

"Oh! You smell like fish and something unfamiliar." Feifei's eyes shone, and Yueying recoiled.

Yueying pursed her lips. "What is she...?"

"It's a long story." Aiko expected something more from them, but their reaction was too grounded. 'Maybe if I tell them the story?' She smirked and cleared her throat.

...

It was a sight to behold as they were being told Feifei's story.

At times, they were crying; at other times, they were roaring.

There was even a time when they completely stiffened and stared at Aiko in disbelief! Something that Aiko liked a lot~!

Yueying and Yanyan became fond of Feifei through the stories, and she was already sitting between them.

They completely forgot to ask Aiko about how she did that, but that was not important.

"You need to roar from the bottom of your stomach; that way, it will carry your intent." Yueying patiently explained as Yanyan made demonstrations.

"I was forgotten..." That was yet another reaction that Aiko didn't expect. They didn't even react to her voice and were completely engrossed by Feifei.

'...' Aiko sniffled before getting back to her food...