Chapter 331: The Fish’s Sky Has Collapsed
Thousands of miles away, in the Five Great Divine Palaces, Lan Yin and Lan Ying joined forces to trap the Divine Hall Spirit inside a stone statue in the temple.
"Let me out!"
The Divine Hall Spirit’s expression was grim. "Have you lost your minds? Are you trying to rebel?!"
"So what if we are?" Lan Ying kicked the stone statue. "Know your place. You’re trapped in this statue now. If it shatters, you’ll die with it."
Lan Yin met the eyes of the Merfolk statue and said unhurriedly, "The moment Lan Ying and I leave the temple, it will begin to collapse. It seems we’re pretty important, after all."
"But as for you, the Divine Hall Spirit... you seem to be completely expendable. Why do you suppose that is?"
By all rights, as latecomers chosen by the Divine Hall Spirit to be Divine Hall Guardians, they shouldn’t be this important—let alone be able to decide the temple’s very survival.
Counting them all, with the exception of Ao Wu, Mo Yan and the others had lived three lives in total.
In their first life, they were the Divine Hall Spirit. Because they lacked a physical body and couldn’t be with Yu An, they chose to reincarnate.
In their second life, the one in which they had physical bodies, they later awakened the memories of their first life and followed Yu An to the Beastman World.
Their third life is their current one in the Beastman World.
Ao Wu had a physical body from the very beginning, so he didn’t have a second life in the same way.
Unlike Han Li, who’d had a stroke of incredible luck and recovered all his memories and power, Lan Yin and the other three had not regained the memories of their first life. They had only recovered as far back as their second.
However, based on the clues they’d pieced together, they deduced that something was fishy about the Divine Hall Spirit. Or, to be more precise, that *they* were the true Divine Hall Spirit, and the one before them was a fake.
So, Lan Yin had bluffed. Since they couldn’t see the spirit’s expression, they had no way to be certain, but the slightly panicked edge to its tone helped confirm their suspicions.
After that, Lan Yin and Lan Ying paid it no more mind. They left the area with the statue and prepared to draw lots.
On two slips of paper, one had Yu An’s name written on it, and the other was blank. Whoever drew the name would go find Yu An.
The one who didn’t would stay behind to maintain the temple’s stability.
Besides Lan Yin and Lan Ying, there were other Merfolk in the temple. To keep things fair, Lan Yin had asked another Merfolk to write on the slips of paper.
Lan Yin casually picked one up and was about to open it when Lan Ying stopped him.
"Wait, wait, hold on! Before we draw lots, I need to bathe and burn incense. Just wait a minute!"
After performing a series of solemn rituals, Lan Ying, with a perfectly straight face... snatched the slip of paper from Lan Yin’s hand.
"Ahem," he said, his expression completely straight. "I’m younger than you. An older brother should indulge his younger brother."
Speechless, Lan Yin picked up the other slip.
Lan Ying eagerly opened it. ’Lan Yin’s luck is always good,’ he thought, ’so this one must be... ’
"I’m going to find An’an," Lan Yin said, waving the slip with the name on it. "You hold down the fort. And while you’re at it, clean the largest room every day. That way, when I bring An’an back, we can move right in."
Lan Ying: "..."
This fish’s world... had just collapsed!
Lan Yin paid no mind to the despondent Lan Ying, humming a little tune as he packed his things.
He packed the pearl jewelry he’d made for An’an, the pearl chest chain he’d brought for himself, and the gifts he’d prepared for the Zaizai...
Once he was all packed, he waved goodbye to Lan Ying and set off on his journey to find his wife.
A few minutes later, a sound like a boiling kettle’s shriek erupted from the temple, startling the birds from the trees.
Yu An knew where Tongtong’s family lived. As she arrived at their home, before she even entered the gate, she saw the little girl slumped over a stone table in the courtyard.
"Auntie An!"
Tongtong spotted Yu An and immediately hopped off the stone stool, running toward her.
She threw herself into Yu An’s arms and eagerly peered behind her. "Auntie An, is my little sister back... You didn’t find her?"
Hearing her words, Yu An knew that Fuzai hadn’t made it here yet.
"I haven’t found her, but Fuzai is very safe right now. She should be with her grandfather and grandmother."
Yu An said gently, "You two promised to meet in Tianhuan City, so she’ll definitely come. That’s why Auntie came here to wait for her."
"Oh, good," Tongtong breathed a sigh of relief. "Auntie, all of you, please come in! My mom’s home."
Xue Ying heard the noise outside and came out, hurrying to welcome Yu An and her companions inside.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Xue Ying suggested they stay nearby for a few days.
"Fu Fu knows our address, and you said yourself that she’ll come looking. Instead of searching all over the world, it’s better to just wait for them for a few days."
"There are many roads from Tianhuan City to Earth Geography City, so you might not have taken the same one. Of course, it’s also possible they’re just traveling slower, or they’re taking back roads to avoid pursuit from the Tian Family."
This was what Yu An had been thinking as well, so Xue Ying helped arrange for a courtyard large enough for all of them to stay in.
The Zaizai wanted to come out too, so Yu An let them out. When Tongtong saw them, her eyes went wide.
Xue Ying was stunned by Yu An’s ability to produce living people out of thin air, but she quickly composed herself and didn’t pry.
"So you have this many children," she said cheerfully. "Tongtong has been frail since she was little, so we were always worried she’d get bumped or hurt playing with children her age. We’ve always been a bit overprotective."
Yu An rubbed each of the Zaizai’s little heads. "Go on, go play with Sister Tongtong. Your Female Mother is going to go make you all a feast."
Xue Ying waved her hand dismissively. "An’an, you’re our guest. There’s no need for you to trouble yourself. I can handle it."
Yu An had already tied on an apron. She said with a wide smile, "Then let’s cook together, Sister Xiao Ying. You can have a taste of my cooking."
Xue Ying couldn’t refuse, so she had to agree. Han Li and Ao Wu took it upon themselves to help, deftly killing fish and butchering chickens with impressive speed.
The kitchen wasn’t very big, and since Mo Yan didn’t know how to cook, she didn’t go in to get in the way.
She and Han Xiaoyun drank tea in the courtyard, keeping an eye on the Zaizai.
Han Fengyun lingered at the kitchen door, hoping to secretly pick up a few skills. He was the best cook in his family of three, and if he learned some new dishes, he could cook them for Mo Yan himself in the future.
Han Li shooed him away. "Beast Father, you’re in the way. Have Mo Yan teach you later, his cooking is excellent."
"Alas," Han Fengyun sighed. "What a letdown. I, your Beast Father, have incredible culinary talent. How is it that you didn’t inherit any of it?"
Cooking a meal for one’s Female Master and watching her eat with satisfaction is one of the happiest moments in a Beast Husband’s life.
Han Li paused for a moment. "Allow me to remind you that no matter how great your talent is, it’s not something I would inherit."
He smiled. "Isn’t that right, Second Uncle?"
’Besides,’ he thought, ’as long as we have one Beast Husband who can cook, like Mo Yan, that’s enough. As long as I can satisfy our Female Master in bed, then I’m as qualified as a Beast Husband can be!’
Han Fengyun: "..."
That stung.
Tongtong grew bored of playing in the courtyard. If she hadn’t been waiting for news about Yu An and Fuzai these past few days, she would have long since gone to play with the other children in the alleyways.
As it happened, Da Hu and the other cubs were also finding it boring, so Tongtong led her five little brothers and marched spiritedly out of the courtyard.
Han Xiaoyun told Mo Yan to keep resting as he got up to follow. After leaving the courtyard, just as he was about to catch up to the Zaizai, a dark figure carrying a sack flashed past.
His body moved faster than his mind could think. He immediately intercepted the dark figure, subduing them in just a few moves.
The dark figure spat out a mouthful of blood and fled, not even bothering to retrieve the sack.