Second Master Huang said Chen Ji had suffered a major loss of vitality. The System Cat scanned him three times over, but it still planned to send him to the hospital—its data looked far too problematic to ignore.
Even if the hospital might not have any way to treat him, it was still safer than leaving him at home.
The System Cat rummaged through Chen Ji’s clothes and flipped out his phone. The screen was shattered like a spiderweb and wouldn’t turn on no matter how it tried. It picked up the phone with its mouth, intending to fix it—after all, things rarely went as badly as feared, but when they did, the consequences could be huge. If anyone investigated and discovered Chen Ji’s phone had been off yet somehow made a call, that would spell real trouble.
Suddenly, the two-meter-tall Second Master Huang hunched through the bedroom door, one paw clutching a box. He saw the System Cat staring at him in bewilderment and promptly snatched Chen Ji’s phone back. Grumbling under his breath, Second Master Huang said: 【Get lost, get lost! Stealing Chen Ji’s phone? Crawl away for your Second Grandpa!】
Second Master Huang knew what a phone was and understood how humans these days couldn’t live without them, carrying the things around like precious treasures. If this mangy cat ran off with it and lost it, Chen Ji would surely be upset when he woke up.
The System Cat was lightly shoved aside by Second Master Huang. It let out a reflexive meow, and Second Master Huang snorted in response. He tore open the box in his paw, and a clear, bitter, intensely fragrant aroma spread through the air. Inside was a ginseng root, cleaned and prepared to perfection.
Second Master Huang eyed the two-finger-thick ginseng, then glanced at Chen Ji. He muttered: 【How do you even eat this thing? Feels like it’ll choke him to death. Whatever, I’ll try a bite first…】
The System Cat: …?!
【Chen Ji! Chen Ji—! Wake up quick! Second Master Huang’s gonna choke you to death!】 the System Cat wailed.
The System Cat had figured it’d need to at least fake an electric shock to wake Chen Ji, but before it could shout a second time, Chen Ji came to. His eyes were threaded with red veins, sharp and alert despite everything. When he saw Second Master Huang and the System Cat beside him, his expression finally softened.
Delighted to see Chen Ji awake, Second Master Huang tossed the ginseng right into his lap. 【Perfect timing! Quick, eat this. Stuff yourself!】
“Thank you, Second Grandpa,” Chen Ji said, staring at the ginseng in his hands. He couldn’t help asking, “Where did this ginseng come from…?”
Second Master Huang waved a paw dismissively. His dharma image faded from behind him, and the little yellow weasel hopped onto the bed. He curled up in Chen Ji’s lap, belly exposed, and said: 【Oh, that? It was a thank-you gift from someone last time I helped them out with something.】
Chen Ji doubted that explanation. Weren’t offerings to Great Immortal Huang usually chickens, ducks, or fish? Who offered ginseng?
【You’d better eat it quick… With vitality loss this bad, delay any longer and your organs’ll start failing.】 Second Master Huang continued. 【How about you nibble a couple bites first?】
Chen Ji fixed his deep, dark eyes on Second Master Huang and reached down to rub his belly. Then he actually leaned in and bit off a section of ginseng root, letting it sit in his mouth. The bitter fragrance flooded his senses at once. “Second Grandpa,” he asked, “what happened to me?”
Second Master Huang’s ears twitched. 【How should I know~?】
He paused, then added: 【Who’d you piss off? Getting dragged into Grandpa Mountain Lord’s turf with a Dream Intrusion Technique… Did you take some serious damage in that dream?】
Chen Ji had no idea what the Dream Intrusion Technique was, so Second Master Huang explained briefly. As the name implied, it was a trick favored by spirits, monsters, and fiends alike—invading someone’s dreams to hurt them, with the dream wounds manifesting in reality somehow, like Chen Ji’s current vitality drain.
More powerful spirits or fiends could even manipulate a victim’s body through dreams. Chen Ji showing up on the back mountain was probably because he’d walked there himself.
As for the dream’s content, it varied. Some conjured their own scenarios, others pieced together bits from the target’s memories—endless possibilities.
“Feels like any old monster can pull that off…” Chen Ji murmured.
【True enough, anyone can do it…】 Second Master Huang grumbled. 【But who goes to such lengths? It’s more trouble than it’s worth—might as well just attack directly…】
At that, he suddenly leaped from Chen Ji’s lap. 【Once you’re feeling a bit better, stew that ginseng. I’m off to check on Grandpa White Tiger.】
Chen Ji’s lap felt abruptly empty. Thanks to Second Master Huang’s reminder, he also realized that just in those few exchanges, his energy had improved noticeably from moments ago.
All at once, his lap grew heavy again as the System Cat jumped up. 【Something feels off to me… Chen Ji, by that yellow-fur rat’s logic, if they had the power for this, why not just kill you outright?】
【They probably intended to.】 Chen Ji chewed the ginseng tendril in his mouth, swallowed it, and took another bite before throwing off the covers. He grabbed the ginseng and headed to the kitchen—probably meant to kill him, but then Chang Xu showed up, and it all turned on Chang Xu instead.
That black mist had pinned him down, forcing him to watch Chang Xu get swarmed… The culprit almost certainly knew Chang Xu—and hated him enough to want him dead.
But what did that have to do with him? Why was he the target?
If Second Master Huang’s initial attack stemmed from a grudge with his ancestors or greed for his grandpa’s magical treasure—and got rebuffed, so came back for revenge—what about the Crossing Peak Serpent? Was it because he’d trespassed on its territory?
So what was the reason this time?
He’d been on his best behavior lately, hardly venturing into undeveloped areas. His route up and down the mountain was the same old one—couldn’t be that Toona tree he’d snapped branches from had turned into a spirit, holding a grudge for the tender leaves he’d eaten, could it?
Did it really need to go that far?
Chen Ji tossed the ginseng into the wellness pot and filled it with water. He’d stew it like this first, then dilute and drink it once it was ready.
With that done, he glanced outside where Second Master Huang lay on the side couch. He grabbed the medical kit and headed over.
Sure enough, White Tiger sprawled across the two-meter couch, taking up every inch. Chen Ji caught a whiff of blood mixed with scorched stench the moment he entered. Second Grandpa Huang yanked his front paw back upon seeing him. Looking closer, Chen Ji saw a arm-thick ginseng stuffed in White Tiger’s mouth.
Second Grandpa Huang: 【…Ahem, Grandpa White Tiger’s different from you! He can eat it straight up!】
Chen Ji set the medical kit aside and examined White Tiger’s wounds. “Good to know. Thanks for the generosity, Second Grandpa Huang…”
【Psh, that’s nothing. Uh… I’m heading out!】 Second Grandpa Huang turned and bolted without a backward glance, fleeing like his tail was on fire. Chen Ji glanced up coolly before returning his attention to White Tiger.
The System Cat kept watch over the wellness pot in the kitchen. Under the circumstances, it linked their senses directly and muttered: 【Lucky Grandpa White Tiger’s a spirit monster too, or how else would we save him? We’d really have to call the Forestry Bureau…】
Chen Ji felt drained, but he couldn’t help chuckling at that. 【You’re right. Might even get ruled unfit for wild survival and handed a lifetime zoo gig—eight nannies waiting on you hand and foot every day.】
【That yellow-fur rat definitely knows something.】 The System Cat pivoted. 【But I doubt it’ll tell you.】
【We already knew that.】 Chen Ji said calmly. 【Looks like it just can’t say.】
Not that it didn’t want to tell him.
He stroked White Tiger’s filthy fur. “But we’re safe for now, at least…”
The top priority wasn’t unraveling the mystery—it was cleaning both himself and Grandpa White Tiger up fast. Otherwise, with this weather, they’d stink by tomorrow and sprout maggots the day after. Easy as that.
The System Cat sighed helplessly. 【You barely have any points left… Should’ve done more tasks… Fine, deducting one point for One-Click Full House Cleaning.】
Chen Ji agreed readily. A silver light flashed through the house, and in the next instant, everything—including White Tiger and Chen Ji—turned spotless. Chen Ji blinked and asked curiously: 【How does it actually work? What’s the science behind it?】
【Biological laser scanning the whole house. Set the parameters, and it clears dust, bloodstains, fur, and such… Don’t worry, it won’t shave you bald. It only targets stuff that’s already shedding from the follicles.】
【Sometimes I really wanna live over there with you…】 Chen Ji looked down at White Tiger, now sporting obvious bald patches. He strongly suspected that was just the System Cat’s excuse. Sure, animals needed fur shaved for wound care, but this was bald in the extreme!
The System Cat coughed. 【Work on surviving another millennium… Anyway, the ginseng tea needs half an hour more. Wanna lie down here with White Tiger for a bit? I’ll call you when it’s ready.】
“Sure,” Chen Ji replied. But he grabbed a simple blender instead, cut half the ginseng Grandpa White Tiger was holding into powder with a whir, and rigged a syringe from one he’d bought before. He forced it down White Tiger’s throat.
It was a gruesome sight, like the tiger had swallowed his hand.
The feverish tongue pressed against his forearm from below, the barbs pricking him a few times. Chen Ji shook his head and kept feeding.
By the time he’d finished, the ginseng tea was ready too. On the System Cat’s advice, Chen Ji diluted it with water and drank two bowls. He curled up beside White Tiger and lay down. It was cramped, but Chen Ji felt utterly secure. He drifted into a deep sleep.
…
When Chen Ji woke, his head was still foggy. Probably the effect of that pot of ginseng tea yesterday—at least today he wasn’t quite as feeble. He could utter more than one word without keeling over.
