Chapter 187 - 186: Xiaobai: Master, I Had a Nightmare Last Night

Since he’d promised Xia He, there was no time to lose. Qin Yang decided to act tonight. After all, with the Beast Tide approaching, time was becoming more and more precious.

That evening, after getting home from work, Qin Yang grabbed a mop and, for the first time in forever, actually mopped the floor. He even took care of dinner, making three dishes and a soup for Xiaobai...

Mapo tofu, vegetarian-style fried pork slices, stir-fried greens...

Faced with the fragrant dishes, Xiaobai sat at the table holding her small bowl, her face a mask of utter confusion.

"???"

’What’s going on?’

’Master actually cooked?’

’And he cooked for this Fairy!!’

"Master, do you have a fever...?"

Xiaobai pressed her small hand against Qin Yang’s forehead, a worried look on her face. "We should still have some fever medicine at home. I’ll go get it for you in a bit."

"It’s nothing. Just relax and eat."

Qin Yang moved Xiaobai’s hand away and sat down at the table, picking up a piece of the fried "pork" and placing it in her bowl. "You’re so busy every day, you deserve a day off, don’t you... Your master has to dote on you a little."

"Huh???"

Hearing this, Xiaobai’s eyes grew even wider!

’Dote on me?’

’Are those words my mean Master would actually say?!’

She stared at Qin Yang without a word, blinking in disbelief. Cautiously, she took a step back, trembling as if she had just seen some terrifying monster.

"Tsk, are you going to eat or not? If you don’t... I’ll just throw it all out later."

Seeing her reaction, Qin Yang frowned slightly and, holding the edge of the plate, said, "Wasting all my effort."

"Hey, hey, hey! This Fairy will eat! How could I not eat?"

Xiaobai quickly shielded the dishes, picked up a few pieces of greens, and popped them into her mouth, secretly tasting them for any strange ingredients.

’No poison!’

’Master really cooked!’

"So? Is it good?"

"It’s delicious! Master’s cooking is the best!!"

...

After a leisurely dinner, Xiaobai lay on the sofa, her little belly round as a ball, and went back to scrolling through videos on her phone.

"Here, I’ll reward you with an Elixir Pill."

Qin Yang said with a smile, his eyes narrowed, holding out an Elixir Pill. "It’s for digestion. It’ll be good for you."

"Waaah, Master, you’re so gentle today..."

Xiaobai snuggled into Qin Yang’s arms, licking the Elixir Pill from his palm. After his earlier charm offensive, she was now as soft and clingy as a marshmallow...

GULP—

The round Elixir Pill rolled down her throat. Once it was in her stomach, the Pill began to take effect...

Drowsiness washed over her...

"YAWN... So sleepy... Master, this Fairy is going to sleep now... sleeeep..." Xiaobai yawned, rubbing her eyes. She slumped down, collapsing onto the sofa in a daze.

THUMP!

A few seconds later, the faint sound of snoring could be heard...

She immediately reverted to her original form as a small white fox. Her little pink tongue lolled out, and her four limbs went limp. She lay on her back on the sofa, completely motionless, like an inanimate object.

’Asleep?’

Qin Yang’s eyes narrowed. He reached out and poked her, prodding her little belly to test her state.

The effects of one Drowsy Heart Pill were potent. Even with Xiaobai’s Innate Power, she wouldn’t wake up until tomorrow at the earliest. The entire night in between would be more than enough time to gather his resources.

’That’s enough. Time to get to work.’

Qin Yang went to his room and took out the Ziwei Divine Sword. He then crouched by the sofa, flipped Xiaobai over, and began to scrape it along her body.

He started shaving her fur.

BZZZZZ—

With Qin Yang’s movements, white fur fell like rain.

In just a short while, the floor was covered in white fur, and the little White Fox on the sofa was completely bald.

’Not enough.’

Qin Yang looked at the pile of white fur and made a rough calculation. To make a hundred needles, he’d need a huge amount of material, and he was aiming for perfection.

’More!’

At this thought, Qin Yang placed his hand on Xiaobai’s forehead.

He activated the Wood Law!

Instantly, Xiaobai’s hair follicles regenerated. With a RUSTLE, her fur grew back, and she quickly returned to her fluffy state!

The electric razor descended!

Shave.

Regenerate.

Shave.

Regenerate.

After this was repeated for a full hour, Qin Yang finally stopped, his resource gathering complete.

’This should be about enough.’

Qin Yang clutched a handful of white fur, quite satisfied. He then began to infuse it with Star Force, following the steps in the *True Understanding of Refining* to refine it.

Now that he was above the Venerable rank, refining the Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle was naturally a simple task for him.

An entire night.

Passed by quietly.

...

The next morning at dawn, on the horizon of Jianghai City, the first light advanced like a tide.

Qin Yang, carrying a cardboard shipping box from home, walked into the library with the little fox trailing behind him.

"Master, I have something to tell you..."

Xiaobai tilted her head back to look at Qin Yang and whispered, "I think I had a nightmare yesterday. It was so, so scary!"

"What kind of dream?"

Qin Yang, still holding the box, stood by the time clock to punch in, casually glancing at the list of arrivals.

’Oh no!’

’I’m actually the first to clock in today!’

"That dream was terrifying, Master!"

Xiaobai’s fox ears drooped, and she lowered her head. "I dreamt last night that someone shaved off all my fur..."

As soon as she said it, Qin Yang stiffened for a moment before shaking his head with a laugh. "Dreams are fake. Look, isn’t your fur still there?"

"Mmm..."

Hearing this, Xiaobai turned to lick the fur on her tail. "I guess so. Master is right."

...

After placating Xiaobai, Qin Yang carried the cardboard box to the rest area by the entrance to wait. Xiaobai curled up on a table to sleep, looking completely listless.

The effects of last night’s Drowsy Heart Pill were still active; it would take the better part of a day for them to wear off.

"Master, I feel so sleepy."

"Then keep sleeping."

Qin Yang glanced at her, offering a perfunctory reply, and turned his attention back to waiting for Xia He to arrive.

A moment later, as the time approached eight o’clock, the revolving door opened, and Xia He walked in. He was dressed in a crisp police uniform and carrying a bento box, the same weary expression on his face.

"Morning, Old Qin. Eaten yet? I brought you something."

"Thanks."

Qin Yang took the bento box and gestured with his chin toward the cardboard box beside him. "The stuff’s all in here. You can inspect the goods yourself."

"Holy crap!?"

Xia He’s gaze fell on the box. He cautiously touched it and turned his head to ask, "Don’t tell me... this whole box is full of... Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needles?"

"Mm-hm."

"Fucking awesome! Old Qin!!!"

Hearing this, Xia He’s voice cracked as he yelled himself hoarse.

"You’re a beast! Did you really make over a hundred for me?!"

A single Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle could kill an Innate Realm expert. A hundred of them... killing Innates would be like slaughtering sheep and dogs!

It was hard to imagine the kind of boost this would be if added to the Police Chief’s forces.

How much of an improvement would it bring?

At this thought, Xia He looked at Qin Yang with pleasant surprise. "You’re really something else! For the sake of contributing to Jianghai City, you could at least give your buddy a little hint, right? How did you do it?"

"..."

As Xia He looked on with anticipation, Qin Yang remained expressionless and slowly took out his phone. "This is my bank account number. I’ll send it to you in a moment...

Pay up first!"

"...Tsk, you buzzkill!"

Xia He rolled his eyes and took out his phone as well.

But just then, Xiaobai, under the table, looked up and silently stared at the box on the tabletop. The fur on her back stood on end, and she felt an inexplicable chill.

’Why do I get the feeling that something’s not quite right?’