Chapter 11: Trading a Fragment of the Heavenly Dao for a Emperor Qing Yang

Unlike others, he only pondered for a moment before understanding everything.

Rising from the soft couch, his slender fingertips hovered over the surface of the water mirror. The next moment, he unconsciously froze at the scene that appeared.

At this very moment, inside Zefeng Cave Mansion, Chen Xi was sound asleep. He had a peaceful sleeping posture, and his naturally warm and handsome features appeared even softer in repose. Nestled against his neck was the Moonlight Celestial Beast, its silvery fur standing out starkly against Chen Xi’s white robes. The warmth from their touching skin spread a comforting sensation through his heart.

However, this was precisely the reason why the man was momentarily stunned.

Speaking of which, he had a deep connection with the Moonlight Celestial Beast. As for his identity, he was none other than the only Immortal Emperor in the Immortal Realm—Emperor Qing Yang.

Unlike the celestial beings of the Immortal Realm, Emperor Qing Yang was not human but a celestial beast. Born from the Heavenly Dao and in command of it, Qing Yang ascended to the Immortal Realm in less than a century.

Tens of thousands of years ago, the Immortal Realm was dominated by humans who controlled beasts—celestial beasts were mere slaves, treated as commodities for trade. However, after Qing Yang’s ascension, the Heavenly Dao was restored, greatly enhancing the strength of all beasts, turning them into the true rulers of the Immortal Realm.

This was the very situation that Chen Xi now found himself in.

As for the Moonlight Celestial Beast accompanying Chen Xi, it was actually a fragment of Qing Yang’s divine sense, separated before he entered seclusion out of concern for his kin. The original intention was to provide protection, but it unexpectedly became drawn to Chen Xi.

At this moment, both Chen Xi and the Moonlight Celestial Beast were sound asleep—one human, one cat—completely immersed in slumber. The celestial beast’s tail had even slipped inside the collar of Chen Xi’s robe, while Chen Xi’s face rested snugly against its fluffy head.

Too… too close…

The unexpected sight made Qing Yang’s body stiffen slightly. However, after hesitating for a moment, he didn’t close the water mirror. Instead, he replayed everything that had happened since Chen Xi arrived at Beast Island.

His remarkable culinary skills at their first meeting, his gentle temperament in daily interactions, the warmth in his eyes, and his soothing voice—through the Moonlight Celestial Beast’s perspective, every detail of Chen Xi seemed to be woven together with the word “good.” As Qing Yang watched, an inexplicable interest flickered in his gaze.

Leaning back onto the soft couch, he switched the water mirror’s display back to the present moment. Immediately, his brows furrowed even deeper.

It was unclear whether this had been planned in advance, but at this moment, Chen Xi was completely surrounded by Moonshadow Celestial Beasts. Not just the small ones—two half-grown cats of the same species had also climbed onto his bed. At a glance, it looked as if Chen Xi had fallen into a pile of fluff.

The Moonlight Clan was known for their keen sensitivity and ability to read human emotions. For them to grow so close to Chen Xi was highly unusual. However, even if that were the case, this level of disregard for propriety was unacceptable.

How could the Emperor’s personal personal chef be treated like a mere cushion for others?

With a light tap of his slender fingers on the water mirror, ripples spread across its surface. The Moonshadow Celestial Beasts snuggled around Chen Xi suddenly seemed to wake in alarm, instinctively leaping down onto the long-furred carpet beside the bed. Only the Moonlight Celestial Beast, still nestled against Chen Xi, remained unaffected.

Seeing that only Chen Xi and the Moonlight Celestial Beast were left on the bed, Qing Yang finally found the scene more pleasing to the eye. He took an awkward sip of wine, hiding his slightly flushed ears beneath his hair. Then, he simply continued watching in silence, making no further movements.

But just then, Chen Xi’s system points suddenly skyrocketed by 500,000.

—

The next morning, Chen Xi woke up, first startled by the pile of fluffy creatures sprawled out on the carpet, then completely shaken by his sudden surge in popularity points.

System: “Data statistics are normal. No errors detected.”

So what was going on? The abrupt increase left Chen Xi bewildered, but the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts, having also woken up from the commotion, gave him no time to think.

“Xixi Xixi, what’s for breakfast?” The chubby orange fluffballs flailed their stubby legs, desperately hopping onto the bed to grab his attention.

The Moonlight Celestial Beast, who had been sleeping soundly against Chen Xi, also stirred. Still half-asleep, it didn’t even bother opening its eyes, merely snuggling against Chen Xi’s neck and rubbing its face against his cheek. The dazed, clinging behavior made it look adorably silly.

“Good morning!” Chen Xi hugged it tightly and planted a kiss on its forehead.

The sudden intimate gesture jolted the Moonlight Celestial Beast awake.

How dare he take advantage of me?!

With a sharp swipe, it smacked Chen Xi across the face, its ears twitching and tail fluffing up in agitation. Unhappy, it jumped to the headboard, narrowing its eyes as it scrutinized Chen Xi, who had been getting increasingly out of line lately.

But Chen Xi only chuckled, then proceeded to tidy up the bed, put on his outer robe, and prepare breakfast for the room full of feline overlords.

Lighting the stove, the Zefeng Cave Mansion was once again filled with the warmth of a bustling morning. However, despite the familiar routine, Chen Xi remained full of unanswered questions.

Leaving aside the Moonlight Celestial Beast, the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts had always been close to him, but never to this degree. This was the first time they had ever left their cave in the middle of the night to find him.

After pondering for a long time, a sudden thought struck Chen Xi—could it be the effect of the 【Heavenly Dao Fragment】?

Recalling what immortals had said about Celestial Beasts, the more Chen Xi thought about it, the more convinced he became.

Celestial Beasts were different from immortals. They were born in accordance with fate, existing in harmony with the Heavenly Dao. According to the system’s explanation, the trace of Heavenly Dao within him was the purest form of ancient Dao law. Although his foundation was still weak, making it unnoticeable to most immortals, it held an innate attention for Celestial Beasts.

In other words, after obtaining the 【Heavenly Dao Fragment】, Chen Xi now had a built-in beauty filter in the eyes of Celestial Beasts. To them, he appeared flawless.

Previously, he had no idea what the scroll was for, but now, it seemed like a priceless treasure. As for the surge in popularity, it was likely due to the attention of some high-ranking Celestial Beast backing these little ones.

After all, with how meticulous Celestial Beasts were, there was no way a bunch of Moonshadow Celestial Beasts could sneak out without being noticed. The only question was—what kind of Celestial Beast was capable of providing such an immense boost in popularity points?

Even the Moonlight Celestial Beast, with its high combat power, had only given him a thousand. Still, more points were always welcome.

—

At the same time, huge changes also took place on Beast Island.

Just as Chen Xi was busy preparing breakfast, the teleportation array on the island suddenly activated. Over a dozen immortals emerged, their celestial robes distinct and their appearance were extraordinary.

More importantly, each of them wore an exquisitely crafted jade pendant at their waists, emanating powerful immortal energy fluctuations. A single glance was enough to confirm that these were top-tier artifacts. But despite the obvious envy, no one dared to show jealousy.

Because those pendants were Celestial Abodes, space-imbued artifacts capable of accommodating Celestial Beasts—an exclusive refinement technique of Beast-Taming Clans. Judging by the beast insignias on their pendants, their bonded Celestial Beasts were all high-ranking, with one even being a descendant of the auspicious Li Dragon—perhaps even on par with the recuperating Moonlight Celestial Beast on Beast Island.

These immortals, who carried their Celestial Beasts with them, were none other than the most distinguished second-generation disciples of the Beast-Taming Clan.

Although their clan was only a mid-tier sect in the lower Three Immortal Realms and not overwhelmingly strong in combat, even the Immortal Lords of the upper Three Immortal Realms treated them with respect.

Because they ranked second among the three remaining great Beast-Taming Clans of the Immortal Realm.

And their purpose here was clear—to test a newly developed Beast Elixir, rumored to be capable of altering the very constitution of Celestial Beasts.

Together with Immortal Wuyi, Wang Xun went to welcome the arriving elders. After meeting several of his martial uncles, his previously dejected expression finally improved.

“Martial Uncle.” Wang Xun took the initiative to greet them.

“The family head said you’ve had a hard time recently.” The leading cultivator from the Beast-Taming Clan casually tossed a jade bottle to Wang Xun, his expression completely natural.

Wang Xun was momentarily stunned. Then, after catching a whiff of the bottle’s contents, his expression became one of realization. With several martial uncles present this time, that mortal Chen Xi would surely be unable to continue his arrogance. As for his measly mortal tricks, they were bound to be crushed beneath the Beast-Taming Clan’s century-old legacy!

—

However, Chen Xi only learned of this matter a few days later. Originally, he assumed that these newcomers had deliberately come to Beast Island just to suppress him. But to his surprise, the second-generation disciples of the Beast-Taming Clan displayed remarkable patience. Not only did they refrain from causing trouble for him, but they continued to do their jobs obediently.

Interesting. Seeing this, Chen Xi simply chose to lay low as well, making no moves of his own.

For the time being, neither side interfered with the other, and the atmosphere on Beast Island returned to its usual calm. Whatever the Beast-Taming Clan was experimenting with remained unknown, but Chen Xi took advantage of this time to thoroughly study 【Holy Hand Treasure】.

He discovered that this skill was incredibly overpowered. Although it didn’t produce immediate results, it could gradually improve the physique of celestial beasts, eliminating hidden ailments within them. Take the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts, for example—under his care, they had recently started to refine celestial energy. Even the Moonlight Celestial Beast mentioned that these Moonshadow Celestial Beasts had a high chance of advancing in rank.

If that were true, it would give him another trump card for survival. This thought gave Chen Xi more confidence. But his peaceful days lasted only a few more days before an incident occurred that filled him with rare fury.

The Moonshadow Celestial Beasts had been injured!

That noon, after preparing a meal, Chen Xi noticed that the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts—usually the most eager to eat—were nowhere to be seen.

After waiting a while and still seeing no sign of them, he left his cave dwelling to search. Before long, he found them huddled in a corner of the courtyard, their plump little bodies covered in grass and dirt.

Chen Xi immediately rushed over, carefully picking them up one by one to inspect them. The moment he spotted a bleeding bite wound on one of their tiny legs, his expression darkened. “What happened?”

“Miyaa~” The orange fluffball in his arms twisted its round little body, looking around evasively, refusing to meet his gaze. But when it realized it couldn’t avoid the question, it copied human gestures, smacking its little chest with its stubby paws, making loud “pah-pah” sounds. “It’s nothing, Xixi! We’re brave! It doesn’t hurt at all!”

But this only made Chen Xi feel even worse, and the anger in his heart surged. However, since the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts clearly didn’t want to talk, he maintained a calm expression.

That night, instead of sleeping as usual, Chen Xi remained awake. When the Moonshadow Celestial Beasts sneaked out of the cave dwelling, he quietly got up, dressed, and followed them.

He wanted to see for himself—who dared to bully his cats?

—

Author’s Note:

Emperor Qing Yang: The emperor’s personal chef is not to be touched by these furballs!

Moonlight Celestial Beast: Hmph, I get kisses, hugs, and to be lifted high every day!