My best friend asked me if I was still doing system tasks.

"Do you still have any robes?" Luo Hanying asked as she followed Ruan Chayan toward the stone platform where the ingredients were prepared.

Ruan Chayan looked troubled: "That's all. If it gets damaged again, I'm afraid I'll be left with nothing to wear."

Luo Hanying sighed: "It seems that staying away from people isn't an option either; humans still need to live in groups."

Even with the all-powerful String Song, the two of them couldn't do everything.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying each condensed a water ball and released a fireball to heat the water ball. Then they twisted the boiling water into a stream and poured it over the pheasant, clearly dividing the tasks of plucking feathers, cleaning, removing internal organs, and chopping into pieces.

Luo Hanying was a kitchen disaster, and Ruan Chayan didn't dare let her get involved, so she assisted Ruan Chayan, handling some trivial matters within her capabilities.

Ruan Chayan winked at Luo Hanying, hinting, "Let's make spicy diced chicken, spicy rabbit, and boiled fish for lunch today."

The ingredients were all collected from nearby; this is a beautiful place nestled between mountains and water.

Luo Hanying nodded, then gestured excitedly, her tone filled with exaggerated anticipation: "Wow! It's both numbing and spicy! I can't wait!"

Ruan Chayan showcased her culinary skills, as one delicious dish after another slowly emerged from the pot—

Those were things I was forced to do while studying in the United States.

She placed the three dishes on the stove, winked at Luo Hanying, and said, "Quick, I'll go with you to check the campfire and see if the vegetable garden needs watering."

Let's hurry up and finish the inspection so we can come back for dinner.

Luo Hanying pulled Ruan Chayan away, and the two of them calmed down and went through the process again to make it look realistic.

The two women stood facing each other in front of the vegetable garden.

"Does it need watering?" Luo Hanying asked hesitantly. "The climate in this secret realm is quite humid, so I don't think it needs to be watered every day."

Just as Ruan Chayan was about to answer, a sharp voice pierced through the protective spiritual energy of the two unsuspecting individuals.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying covered their ears, in great pain.

The sound was like a sharp blade piercing their minds, making them wish they could crush their own heads to end the pain.

The next moment, the sharp sound vanished into thin air.

"What's going on..." Luo Hanying's head was throbbing with pain. "My head, my ears, they hurt so much..."

Ruan Chayan felt her palm was wet. She looked at it and saw that it was blood: "Xiaoxue, you're bleeding. Take the medicine quickly."

Luo Hanying couldn't hear clearly, but she guessed that Ruan Chayan wanted her to take medicine.

That's true. He's in such a half-dead state, he can't go without medicine.

The two frantically rummaged through their storage rings, finding pills like Rejuvenation Pills and Qi-Nourishing Pills, stuffing them all into their mouths, and then meditating to refine them.

As the two women were breathing, Xian Ge examined their bodies and found that their injuries were slowly healing.

As if they had been given a second chance at life, Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying collapsed to the ground, still shaken.

"What was that sound?" Luo Hanying looked at Xiange and complained, "Is there some kind of monster nearby? Why didn't you warn us?"

Xiange said somewhat guiltily, "What other monsters could there be? Just that Jingyao Shrew, of course."

I never expected it to have such a talent.

It's probably because it's a hybrid that it mutated.

Ruan Chayan asked, "So it's already passed out?"

Xian Ge nodded: "That's right. It ate a few bites in a whirlwind and then realized something was wrong. Before it fainted, it let out that cry."

Ruan Chayan staggered to her feet, still feeling somewhat weak.

Luo Hanying got up as well: "Chacha, where are you going? Aren't you going to rest for a while longer?"

Ruan Chayan said indignantly, "I'll go and lock that Jingyao shrew in the formation so it won't escape."

"I will absolutely not let this go after I've suffered such a huge loss."

Upon hearing this, Luo Hanying was also furious: "I'll go with you!"

"Damn it! You beast, if you're going to faint, just say so! Why pull this stunt?"

The two wiped the blood off their bodies. Ruan Chayan walked ahead angrily, with Luo Hanying following closely behind.

Luo Hanying muttered that the Jingyao Shrew's cries were its weapon, and they had to find a way to gag it to prevent it from yelling in the formation and hurting them again.

Ruan Chayan rummaged through her storage ring for a long time, then took out the tiger-striped beast's tendon and tugged at it, a sinister smile on her face.

*

When the Jingyao Shrew woke up, it found itself trapped in a formation. It tried to open its mouth but found that its mouth was bound by something. It was in pain and no matter how much it scratched, it could not get it off.

"Oh, you're awake? Looks like the pills I gave you weren't wasted."

Ruan Chayan crossed her legs and looked at Jing Yaoshou, who was darting around in the formation and leaving only a blur, and said, "Don't waste your energy. I've set up three layers of formations to imprison you. You can't escape."

Also, a friendly reminder: the rope binding your mouth is made of tiger-striped beast tendon, its toughness is well-known, and you can't untie the knot I tied with your little claws.”

Surprisingly, Jingyao Shrew stopped after hearing Ruan Chayan's words; it was so angry that it trembled all over.

Luo Hanying, who was sharpening her knife nearby, exclaimed in surprise, "Eh? That's really strange. So it's seen humans before? Otherwise, how could it understand what we're saying?"

She muttered to herself, "I must have seen it when the secret realm opens once every ten years..."

Jing Yaoshou then noticed that the silly female cultivator was sitting in front of the whetstone, sharpening her spirit sword with a "sizzle-sizzle" sound.

Ruan Chayan chuckled: "See? Little one, this was prepared for you."

To be honest, if you hadn't woken up so early, you might not have had to face the torture of having your head chopped off.

The Shredder shuddered and froze in place.

Luo Hanying laughed and said, "Cha Cha, look! It's scared out of its wits, hahaha!"

Seeing that she had frightened Jingyao the shrew, Luo Hanying stopped her foolish act of sharpening the spirit sword.

The spirit sword doesn't need sharpening; she was just putting on an act for this little thing.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying saw Jing Yaoshrew kneeling down and bowing in the formation, tears streaming down his face.

Luo Hanying hissed and said, "You know what, it's so intelligent, it's kind of scary."

Ruan Chayan responded, "That's right, it makes me feel embarrassed to have killed it alive."

I still have some concentrated Toona sinensis extract. Should I give it some to help it pass away?

Jingyao shrew kowtowed, sobbing, and lay on the array's shield, staring at Ruan Chayan with pleading eyes.

Suddenly, Xiange asked, "[Neither of you two wants to sign a contract with it? It seems like it might willingly accept a master.]"

Luo Hanying asked curiously, "Is it like raising spirit pets in novels?"

Ruan Chayan seemed to be deep in thought: [“Could you elaborate further?”]