Chapter 16 – Fox with Meat and a Fox with Inner Conflict
Aiko immediately snapped towards the spiced meat, only to get treated to a strange scene where the Fox was sitting near the fireplace stroking it with a stick and meat was levitating in the air being roasted by the fire.
The Fox noticed her and sneered. "What are you staring at, idiot?"
Aiko was taken aback. Frowning and slapping the ground with her paws.
Aiko stared at the Fox, yet noticed a thick scent of melancholy from her. Aiko calmed down and observed the Fox. Her sides still hurt, but that was mostly psychological pain rather than actual pain.
She stood up with some difficulty and looked at the flying meat while salivating.
"That meat is mine, hunt your own meat." The Fox growled, angry at this rascal, who was completely oblivious to the damage she had done.
Aiko was taken aback by her sharp attitude and her tail with ears dropped low.
The Fox narrowed her eyes. "You have ruined me! You destroyed my ring!" She growled at her.
Aiko shivered, shrinking back. The Fox was hostile, but more than anger, she could feel sadness from her.
Aiko still had a small pouch around her neck, looking inside there were no more Beast Cores, but she still had that strange warm stone and her own ring that she stol- *Cough* borrowed from that unfortunate person.
Looking at her own body, she noticed her arrow was removed and the wound was clean and healed. She realised that this Fox must've healed her. Aiko didn't believe that the Fox would have any owner since her tongue was too sharp, but that made it better since Aiko wouldn't have to worry about more Humans, Humans were scary after all...
Aiko slowly got closer to the Fox, her tail and ears still low. The Fox was hostile to her, but not hostile enough that she would bite her.
Aiko gently touched the Fox’s paw that was on the ground supporting her body, while the other paw was still stoking the fire.
"What do you want?" The Fox growled but froze once Aiko presented her with the ring.
Aiko knew she couldn't currently open up the ring, as the girl used some strange energy on it, but she couldn't produce that same energy, so for now it was useless for her.
'No way! This pipsqueak found a [Storage Ring] and Grade higher than I did!' The Fox’s eyes shook, but she took the ring from the little Beast. 'Hmpf, at least she knows how to repay her saviour.'
'I hope she doesn't hate me...' Aiko thought as she saw her freeze and scoff whenever she looked at her.
The Queen looked through her new ring only to pause again. 'So many Pills?! And they are either High or Excellent Grades?! There are even a few Perfect Grades?!' Her mind was burdened by this ring, hers was nowhere near as valuable as this one was!
The Queen looked at the pipsqueak shivering in front of her and her mind changed minutely. She didn't truly hate this little Beast, she might even like her a bit...
She tossed meat on a plate in front of the small Beast, which startled it.
Aiko looked at the salivating meat but didn't bite it. She stared at the Fox as if asking her if she was still hated.
The Queen saw the cute little creature wagging her tail, salivating, but still not biting. She wondered how long this little Beast would last in this state, but for some reason, she didn't want to disappoint her.
"You can eat that piece, but don't disturb me." The Fox snorted, but Aiko didn't feel as much sadness and dislike from her as she had felt before.
Aiko immediately pounced on the meat, she was oh so hungry from that arrow.
'I wonder who she is, considering she can already speak...' Aiko glanced at the Fox from time to time, trying to measure her strength and origin, only to always fail.
The Queen had a hard time not to smile from ear to ear. It had been quite some time since someone looked at her with pure adoration and not lust, a strange change, but a welcome one.
Her mind will be able to rest and recharge till she gets her [Pseudo-Human] form back. After that, she will be showered in gifts and affection from every side, exhausting her mind...
Aiko brainstormed what she needed to do. She should visit the Village as soon as possible to get more meat or something that might help her. She will have to find a way to purify her Beast Core. The system might be able to help with that.
[That is correct.]
Aiko was startled and almost jumped out of her skin as a voice she had not heard in quite some time appeared in her mind.
[Seeing like you rushed with your Evolution. I will have to adjust a few things. Geh- What did you do to your Core?! And since when can you achieve a Unique Rank in a few months?!]
The system fell silent for longer than necessary.
[*Cough* Well... since you worked so hard I will unlock the technique shop, you can find both Cultivation Manual/Scriptures and Martial Arts Technique, both Energy and Body.]
[You have unlocked [Cultivation Shop].]
Aiko was happy and annoyed at the same time. Why annoyed? One thing would cost her whole kidney! Well, not a kidney, but it cost a lot!
[Perfect Heavenly Phoenix Dragon Refining Cauldron][Cost: 1,000,000,000 Skill Points.]
'Are you fucking kidding me?!' Aiko screamed in her mind at the system.
[Why are you angry at me? Those prices are CHEAP! Cheap, I tell ya. It would cost you a lot more if it was in Spirit Stones! And don't forget that your Evolution came cheap the 'first' time! It will only get worse from here!]
The system yelled at her and her ears dropped low.
The Queen was observing her for quite some time, seeing her sadness mix with happiness, only to end with gloom.
She flung another piece of meat on Aiko’s plate, and her ears immediately straightened. The Queen thought that she was scammed by this little thing, but all was forgiven when she saw her munching on the meat happily… She ignored the scam part and munched on her own meat.
It was perfectly crisp and juicy, as she liked it. The seasoning was well done and not overwhelming, she had to do a lot for her boy toy since he was a miserable cook. He could ruin even boiled eggs!
Anger flared through her body as she remembered that he burned those phoenix eggs, which were the greatest delicacy under 35 heavens!
Aiko finished her meat and burped, using her paw to rub her eyes and clean her mouth from the oily meat.
The Queen's anger was suddenly doused and she couldn't help but sigh. 'If this cute little thing appeared in the the Upper World, she would be adored by all...'
She shook her head and smirked. 'But now this cutie is mine and everyone will envy me! Especially those from the Darkness Sect! Those bastards might die by coughing blood once they notice I have such a cute little Shadow Beast.' The Fox giggled in her mind, looking over her cutie as she swayed from side to side. She swiftly moved her onto the bear's nest, which was large and covered in different feathers and wool.
Once Aiko touched the bedding, she immediately dozed off into dreamland.
'But it seems she also has some kind of Spirit Stone with an Array.' She narrowed her eyes. 'Well... let's leave it be, since it doesn't seem harmful for the time being, no fool would want to enter this forest where all Humans are suppressed.'
...
Aiko woke up and seeing that her new roommate was still asleep, she browsed the shop.
[The 9 Heavenly Cultivation Technique][4 Spirit Cultivation Manual][1,000,000 Heavenly Soldiers Sutra]......
There were too many of them and they were very expensive for her currently. She was trying to find something that she could do that would help her with her Beast Core.
Fortunately, there was that search option, maybe it would help her find something for her?
[Body Technique][The Ever Shaping Cauldron]
'... That's such a lame name...' Aiko thought.
[This Cauldron can grow alongside the User, it starts very weak, but later it will be able to surpass even the greatest Cauldrons, creating the most wondrous Pills under 35 Heavens! But that's not all! It can even forge weapons and equipment inside!]
[This Cauldron is made out of oneself as such it would greatly increase the User Durability, moreover, in case of a lethal attack the Cauldron would take the hit instead of the User, granting the User additional life!]
[Warning! This Cauldron needs care and a lot of resources, in case the User would like additional effects and options he would have to consume somewhere between 10-20x as many resources in order to obtain those effects!]
'I take it back! This shit is dope as fuck! And it only cost 1,000 points! I can make this work If I save my points!' Aiko marvelled at the idea of having a furnace surrounding her body that would protect her, and she could even cook meat in it!
That's right, the thought of creating more Pills in this never crossed her mind! The only thing she thought about was 'How well will it cook meat.' and that was it. She didn't care about Pills, she didn't care about equipment. She was a Fox! Why would she need those things when she can get a portable stove!
Aiko giggled, not realising the Fox had already woken up and hovered above her.
The Queen lazily descended on her attendant and licked her attendant's side. The wound was almost completely gone. There wouldn't be any scars left. This Queen wouldn't allow her servants to have scars.
Her own Boy Toy never had a scar! She even travelled through 3 Heavens just to find a miraculous herb to heal his well-chiselled body! However, now she was actually regretting it since it might've helped her in advancing...
Aiko turned around and growled. She disliked being other people's pillows. Her fur slowly turned black and sinister, yet the Fox ignored her growling and only stared at her in amusement, even a twinkle in her eyes!
The Queen thought deeply. 'I see… When she is threatened she would turn her fur black blending with nearby shadows to escape her pursuers, but it doesn't seem like she has good control over her body or energy. She is leaking too much and is easy to spot to the trained eye.'
The Fox cleaned her fur with the [Clean] Technique and gave it a lick. As she thought, her fur was creamy! It was just kept in her dark version to blend better! She giggled at these revelations, liking this little Beast more and more. 'She would be the best Beast for this Queen.' She thought.
Aiko finally escaped her clutches. She felt refreshed as her fur no longer stuck to her body, but was now fluffy and nice to the naked eye. She snorted towards the Fox and ran out.
The Queen shook her head and returned to her lazy sleeping position.
She took some pills and was refining her insides to increase her Beast Core strength. This would take quite a long time to finish and she didn't want to rush or hunt. Luckily, that kind bear was kind enough and strong enough to leave his carcass behind.
This carcass wouldn't rot any time soon, as it was packed with energy.
That's why you can find Dragon corpses long after they have already died. Their own energy could sustain their souls even if their body was killed. Those were marvellous and pretty much Immortal creatures!
...
Aiko blended with her surroundings, trying her mastered [Shadow Walk].
She felt intimate with the shadows once again, but this time it didn't consume as much Stamina. It also felt like those white paws on the ground were much clearer, not sharper, but their intention or where they led were much easier to understand.
Aiko used her [Sprint] to further boost her speed. She wanted to eat more delicious meat and it didn't seem like the Fox would be welcoming of her leeching, but that Village was nice to her. Yes, they kicked her out, which she didn't understand, but it should be alright now since she had to claim her treasures!
