The Aloof Master Relies on This Cat's Kisses to Survive - Chapter 15

East Street Dream-Talk

“What’s wrong, Wuwu? Is Ming Xi doing something wrong?” the Dream Beast asked, intentionally trailing off in a lazy, lingering tone.

They were of similar height—Ming Xi was perhaps even a bit taller—but whenever this rebellious beast leaned in, she acted as if she had no bones, radiating a delicate, indolent charm. Her face, bright and spirited like a peach or plum blossom, was full of vivid beauty; yet, she leaned the greater part of her weight against the other as if she could hardly stand. One would be hard-pressed to tell which of the two was actually the physically frail one.

“Right or wrong doesn’t matter to you,” Ji Wu squeezed out the words as a response.

She knew her current state was depleted. Spending too much time in a dream would cause her soul to dissipate; without Ming Xi occasionally pressing close to her, Ji Wu wouldn’t have been able to hold on for so long.

However, Ji Wu was accustomed to being cold-hearted and detached. Even though she knew Ming Xi’s actions were born out of concern for her injuries, she found it difficult to accept such intimacy.

“But Wuwu is very important to me,” Ming Xi said earnestly.

She lifted her eyes to look at Ji Wu. The Grandmaster’s face, pale and free of makeup, was naturally exquisite. She was stunning even without adornment, so why was her temperament so icy? Even with constant warming and holding, she never seemed to grow warm.

Ming Xi did not understand.

But Ming Xi did not give up.

Thinking that Ji Wu seemed to like her tail well enough, she was about to ask if she could let it out to swish it around—after all, with Dongfang Qianyao’s meager cultivation, she would surely forget everything here once they left the dream, so there was no need to worry about being seen.

However, Ji Wu spoke up at that moment, offering a stiff, formal, “Thank you for your trouble.”

Thank you for my trouble?

Ming Xi knitted her brows and huffed.

No tail for you. None at all. Hmph!

“It is a lot of trouble and very tiring, but luckily Wuwu is here to support me.” Her annoyance didn’t last three seconds before Ming Xi chose to continue leaning against Ji Wu.

“Then let us leave the dream quickly,” Ji Wu moved her arm, preventing Ming Xi from wrapping herself even tighter.

Ming Xi, however, lifted the hand that was draped around Ji Wu’s waist and once again flicked the decorative beads on Ji Wu’s sword. “Wuwu, can I have this bead?”

“You don’t use a sword.”

“Then what do I use?”

“…” Ji Wu looked down at Ming Xi’s hand. “You don’t need to use anything.”

Ji Wu knew all too well how sharp the claws hidden within those soft, boneless fingers were. Just as she had to remember that the Ming Xi who looked harmless right now was, in reality, a fierce wild creature.

Ming Xi was not a living being that could be restrained by a mere contract seal; Ji Wu must never be deceived by this temporary illusion of domestication.

“Hmm? Wuwu is spacing out again.” Ming Xi could sense Ji Wu’s distraction within the dream, but she merely assumed it was due to her soul-severed constitution—that she couldn’t gather her spiritual energy or steady herself. It was understandable.

She ought to protect and guard her more diligently. “Wuwu can lean on Ming Xi if you’re tired.”

As she spoke, she actually let go of Ji Wu, took half a step back, and added, “Or should Ming Xi transform into her true form and carry Wuwu on her back?”

“No need,” Ji Wu coldly refused, saying nothing more.

To the side, Dongfang Qianyao was already struggling with the various oddities of the dreamscape and naturally had no leisure to notice the tug-of-war between Ming Xi and Ji Wu. The little Junior Sister had been this delicate back at the mountain; it was only natural for her to cling to Ji Wu now that she was frightened inside a dream.

However, Ji Wu’s health wasn’t good either. Dongfang Qianyao felt she was truly useless and grew increasingly anxious. Just as she was about to urge Ji Fang to say more, she was interrupted by a loud voice from behind.

“Ah, you’re here!” The speaker was a burly female diner wearing a trendy floral headscarf. She looked to be in her early forties and worked as a kitchen assistant at a snack shop on the corner of East Street, known for cooking excellent melon seeds.

She usually enjoyed eating at the flatbread stall, and through her frequent visits, she had become somewhat acquainted with Ji Fang, who wore flowers in her hair. “Yo, yo, yo, have you latched onto people from the Xuanling Sect?”

The question was asked with a weird, mocking tone, yet Ji Fang still managed a welcoming smile. “Chef Wu, finished your flatbread? Would you like to buy a floral hairpin?”

“I can’t afford your things; they’re expensive.” Big-Voice Wu shook her head but still crowded forward, squeezing in front of the stall. “It’s perfect to sell them to these cultivators; they have money.”

Ji Fang only smiled, but Big-Voice Wu was relentless. “Do they know your name is Ji Wu? Perhaps if you gave them your name, they’d look upon you with a bit more favor, and you wouldn’t have failed to even scrounge a spot in the outer sect.”

“You… you don’t need to poke at people’s sore spots.” Dongfang Qianyao had rarely seen someone speak so rudely to another’s face and felt quite embarrassed for Ji Fang.

“It’s alright, guest,” Ji Fang shook her head.

Her birth name was indeed Ji Wu, which carried the beautiful hope of ascending and attaining the Dao.

But it wasn’t true that she wasn’t even good enough for the Xuanling Sect’s outer sect.

“Actually, I passed the outer sect examination, but I just didn’t stick with it.” Ji Fang sighed, though a faint smile remained on her face. ” I just have a bit of a knack for craftsmanship. When I was little, the adults noticed this talent when I was fiddling with toys; they said it was a good omen for practicing the immortal path.”

Ji Fang had been a bit smarter and more dexterous than her peers since childhood. Her elders had sent her to the mountains outside of town for inspection, and it was confirmed that she was indeed material for a cultivator.

However, Ji Fang’s mother wasn’t satisfied with her practicing in a small sect; she said she would wait until she was older to send her to the Xuanling Sect to try her luck.

“We were poor, so I came alone. I wasn’t chosen as an inner disciple, but I was very happy to be able to stay as an outer disciple. It’s just that outer sect cultivation was too exhausting.”

Ji Fang had decent talent, but her opponents were the elite selected through multiple rounds by various immortal sects and denominations. Forget about spiritual arts—which she wasn’t good at—even her favorite talent for artifice and creation didn’t amount to much here.

“I didn’t have enough money to practice making things, so I could only work in the town.”

At first, Ji Fang was very resilient, working as an apprentice in a jewelry shop while attending spiritual art classes at the Xuanling Sect every day. All the money she earned and the knowledge she gained was used to improve her skills as a tool cultivator.

Unfortunately, balancing both was too difficult, and she soon reached a point where she had to make a choice.

“I didn’t continue my studies; in the end, I gave up.” It was also at that time that Ji Fang gave up the name “Ji Wu.”

But she didn’t go home, because when her mother sent her away, she had instructed: There is no need to return.

At that time, Ji Fang was still young, and her mother never told her why; she simply spoke with a firm tone that brook no argument.

So, after giving up her outer sect cultivation, Ji Fang focused on learning the craft of polishing jewelry. A few years ago, she started her own business and set up her own stall on East Street, selling floral hairpins infused with spiritual energy.

Later, her family came once, but they were convinced she hadn’t made the cut for the outer sect from the start and was too ashamed to face the family to return. They made a scene, making her the laughingstock of the street.

As the story was passed around, Ji Fang became the “little country bumpkin” who overrepresented herself by carrying the Grandmaster’s name. Some pitied her, while others looked down on her.

Big-Voice Wu didn’t like her much, and neither did the flatbread stall owner. Whenever the two of them met, they would point at Ji Fang’s stall and make snide remarks—even in this dream, they wouldn’t stop.

“It’s just aiming too high and not working hard enough!” Big-Voice Wu glanced at the items on Ji Fang’s stall. “The trinkets you make are just like you—pretty to look at, but useless.”

“You made these hairpins very well,” Dongfang Qianyao truly couldn’t listen anymore. “There isn’t only one path in this world. Doing what you are good at and what you like, and being able to earn money—how wonderful is that?”

“Yes, guest,” Ji Fang smiled. “I am not unhappy, guest. On the contrary, I am very happy—but I feel ashamed of my happiness.”

“Huh?” Dongfang Qianyao froze, realizing that this was the part she needed to figure out.

Indeed, what on earth was Ji Fang so happy about?