Tomb raiding: Trying to become a little painter

After watching Hei Xiazi carry Zhang Qilin step by step out of the Meteorite Cave, Qin Henian turned around and stared at Zhang Qilin, the thirty-first generation of the Zhang family.

"How much longer can you hold on?"

Qin Henian's vertical pupils remained fixed as he scrutinized the wisp of soul before him.

"Alas, the Zhang family's rules are indeed strict... We must not be careless, for there are always people more capable than us, and there is always something beyond our understanding."

The thirty-first generation Zhang Qilin sighed, looked at Qin Henian, his eyes clear.

"More than three hundred years ago, I was alone when the golden unicorn spirit of the Zhang family entered my dream and was entrusted to guard the location of the Queen Mother of the West here to prevent her from entering the world and causing disasters to the human world."

"But my Qilin bloodline is not high, and I can only guard it with my essence blood for 280 years. Now I am just a skeleton. If it weren't for you, senior, I probably wouldn't have lasted much longer."

Zhang Qilin swayed slightly, his white robe fluttering and appearing and disappearing.

"Um"

Qin Henian nodded and hummed in agreement.

He didn't know much about the mythical beasts in this world because their bloodlines weren't high enough to inspire any desire to learn about them. Even Hei Xiazi and Zhang Qilin were the same. If it weren't for Xiao Tiandao's pleading, he wouldn't have bothered with this mess.

Qin Henian lifted his foot and walked towards the meteorite jade wall. He placed his hand on it, and the temperature of his palm rose. Small blue flames floated out from his palm, piercing through the meteorite jade and burning with a faint golden light. Strands of meteorite jade energy gathered into a golden light surrounded by blue.

"Little Heavenly Dao, come quickly and collect the first portion of meteorite energy your father helped you collect!!!"

The Little Heavenly Dao, who was resting high above the world's rules, almost stumbled into the wall of rules.

Little Heavenly Dao grumbled, "Coming, coming, Little Crane~~"

Outside the meteorite, Fatty Wang and Wu Xie were squatting on the ground where mushrooms were growing...

"Naive! When do you think the guys will finally come out?"

Fatty Wang sighed, his eyes vacant, counting the few pieces of bread and compressed biscuits he had left.

"I don't know... it should be soon."

Wu Xie was also listless at this time. He had been sitting outside the Meteorite Cave for ten days to half a month.

During this time, his childhood friend was taken away by the thief, who brought them some food. So far, all they have left are the few pieces of food on the ground.

"You've said that so many times already..."

"How naive! It's not that Fatty doesn't want to wait for our little brother to come out, it's just that food is so scarce that we can only last for... one, two... three... three meals at most!"

Fatty Wang pointed at the food on the ground one by one with his chubby little hands and said something.

"How about this... let's go out and find a place with internet, have someone send some food over, and then we can keep waiting, okay? You can wait as long as you want. I, Fatty Wang, am willing to risk my life to keep you company. I can sit here and wait for you my whole life!"

bah bah bah!

"Get out of here! You fatso, stop talking nonsense! Let's wait and see..."

boom!

Just as Wu Xie and Fatty Wang were still chatting away, a sudden thud shook the dust off the ground.

The two were drawn by the sound and looked over at the same time. They saw a black rat dart out of the Jade Cave, grab a person, and jump to the ground.

"Hey bro? Blind man! You've come out!"

Wu Xie was the first to react and quickly got up and walked towards the two.

"They're out? Really? Am I seeing things??"

Fatty Wang muttered something under his breath, but his feet didn't stop. He lifted his leg and headed towards the edge of the Meteorite Cave.

"Hey~ You guys haven't left yet?"

Black Bear jumped out of the meteorite with his old buddies, only to be met by Wu Xie and Fatty Wang.

To be honest, the two Zhang brothers, who are both mute... are... just okay.

"Why are you leaving? Little Brother didn't come out earlier. People like Fatty and Comrade Innocent, who value loyalty and righteousness, naturally want to wait for their brothers to leave together..."

Seeing Zhang Qilin leaning against Hei Xiazi's chest for a long time without saying a word, Fatty Wang looked him over and, after confirming that there were no external injuries, felt a little relieved and replied.

"Hey everyone? Stop chatting! Make way... why are you blocking the entrance?"

Qin Henian poked his little head out of the meteorite. His long robe had disappeared, and he was now wearing a light blue t-shirt and jeans. His long hair was tied up high with a rubber band, and his eyes were looking at the four people blocking the entrance with a reproach.

"Year of the Crane!"

Hei Xiazi helped Zhang Qilin to the side, making room for Qin Henian, who then stepped down to stand next to them.

uh-huh?

Seeing that Hei Xiazi seemed to want to ask something but didn't say anything, Qin Henian raised his small face to look at the other person, and after finding that he was alright, he looked at Zhang Qilin.

A slender, fair hand rested on Zhang Qilin's forehead, feeling the intense heat...

"You blind fool! Stop standing there like an idiot, get Little Qilin to the hospital right now!!!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The weather in Hangzhou was unpredictable, alternating between sunshine and rain. The continuous drizzle for four or five days made Qin Henian, who was keeping vigil in the hospital room, feel stifled.

"Four twos!"

"do not want!"

"That blind man ran away! Give me the money, give me the money, give me the money!!!"

In a private VIP ward, Zhang Qilin lay unconscious on the bed.

In the middle of the ward, there was a simple square table. Wu Xie, Wang Pangzi, Qin Henian, and Hei Xiazi each sat in one of the four seats, playing cards idly. As another game ended, Hei Xiazi jumped up and stretched out his arms towards Qin Henian and Wu Xie with a big smile.

"Hei Xiazi! You're not cheating, are you?! This is the seventh round! How come you're still winning?"

Wu Xie's handsome face was filled with frustration, and he tightly clutched the few coins he had earned outside.

I don't want to give it! I really don't want to give it! Money!!!

"Trickery?"

"What are you saying, Third Master! I earned this money through my own hard work!!!"

Black Bear looked indignant. He had turned down several jobs to come and guard this mute Zhang! Of course, this also included the protection money given by Wu Xie's second uncle.

People are giving so much! There's nothing I can do about it!!!

One person, three uses: watching the mute, watching Wu Xie, and watching his wife! Hmm, perfect!!!

"I'm not playing anymore! I've lost everything, even my underwear! If I keep playing, I won't be able to afford the guy's hospital bills!"

Wu Xie ultimately failed to protect his little bit of money, which was snatched away by Hei Xiazi. Frustrated, he flipped the table (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻.

"Hey! No, please, let's play a little longer! It's just a small amount of money, Young Master!"

Hei Xiazi tried to struggle a little longer. He didn't have any extra income from working at the hospital, so he was making the most of every little bit he could.

"Heh! I'm not playing!"

"Rich Third Master, Poor Wu Xie! I've seen through him!!" Wu Xie declared that he had seen through Hei Xiazi's true nature in the past few days.

Boom boom boom!

A knock sounded at the door. Qin Henian was sitting closest to the door. His chair slid, he reached up and turned the handle, and clicked the door open in one smooth motion.

"Oh? Dr. Liang came for a check-up so early today?"

Qin Henian opened the door and saw the familiar female doctor in white coat and gown, and greeted her with a smile.