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Chapter 37 - Carrying the Pot

“Taste-wise, this restaurant’s pastries are average. These fragrant and tender rabbit cubes are their classic dish,” Zhang Ke picked up a rabbit head with the serving chopsticks and put it into his bowl. “Give it a taste.”

On his left was the plump rabbit pastry given by Zhuang Qing, and on his right was the mala rabbit cube Zhang Ke had taken for him. Opposite him was his many future colleagues, their faces wreathed in smiles. All of a sudden, Fu Li thought of a classical story he had once read in a literature textbook – Hongmen Feast.

An elaborate deception concealing murderous intent – was this an initial show of strength from the seniors to the newcomers?

He thought that he had concealed it very well, but had everyone actually known that he was a rabbit spirit? Many years ago when he had not reached the age of five hundred and hadn’t yet known how to transform into his human form, White Ape’s stories had aroused some curiosity in him towards the world beyond the mountain. Subsequently, there was a day when he playfully ran out and encountered two very strange looking snakes. Not only did they have wings, they even had two heads. Upon discovering him, not only did those strange snakes mock him for his weak and tiny appearance, they even opened their mouths and prepared to eat him. The still-young him had been so scared that he had not only broken out into shivers but even failed to prevent himself from urinating. If King Ganglie hadn’t rushed over to save him, he would probably have already been swallowed by those strange snakes.

Ever since then, he would feel disgusted upon seeing smooth, furless things. Only after the incident had passed did he find out that those strange snakes were called Feiyi. Even though White Ape said afterwards that eating the flesh of such snakes was good for health, he would feel disgusted just from thinking about their ugly appearance.

So what if he was a r-rabbit? As long as one cultivated well, even a rabbit could contribute to the world.

He pushed the bowl in front of him far away and looked pitifully at everyone from the bureau. “Rabbits are so cute, can I not eat them?”

It’s fine if you guys eat. It’s also fine if I sit at the corner and watch as you guys eat. But why did you have to put it into my bowl and urge me to eat? He wasn’t like that mallard who could even raise a hand against a fellow member of his race.

“Rabbits do look cute, but their meat is even more delicious, and their fur even prettier,” Xu Yuan said. “Senior, relax. The meat definitely doesn’t contain an excessive amount of veterinary drugs. This restaurant’s ingredients are carefully picked for quality, and the meat is from free-range rabbits, so it’ll definitely be fresh and tender.”

Thinking that Fu Li was tenderhearted, she said, “Although rabbits are cute, their main economic functions are to be eaten, skinned, and have their fur trimmed off.”

Even more cold sweat appeared on Fu Li’s face. His gaze became even more wronged. “You humans aren’t fond of eating humans, so why are you forcing a rabbit to eat rabbit meat?”

“What?” Zhang Ke thought that there was something wrong with his hearing ability. He turned foolishly and looked in a stupid and silly manner at Fu Li. The rest weren’t much better than him either. With their chopsticks still outstretched, the rabbit meat in their mouths felt like it was on fire, the heat so intense that it sent continuous pulsations through their stomachs.

Zhuang Qing threw the half-eaten plump rabbit pastry in his hand into a rubbish bin under the table and took a sip from his teacup as if nothing had happened.

“So what if I’m a rabbit?” Fu Li said with a wooden expression. “You look down on rabbits?”

“No, how can that be?” Xu Yuan threw aside her chopsticks. “Rabbits are cute and powerful, all of us like rabbits.”

“That’s right, that’s right. Rabbits are so cute, how could we eat them,” Zhang Ke, who had recovered from the shock, also threw his chopsticks aside. “There’s a lobster restaurant next door, let’s eat crayfish.”

The group of people switched locations and sat down. Fu Li looked at the freshly-served lobster, feeling like he had understood something.

He must have beaten the Suanyu too viciously at that time and frightened them, so these people deliberately wanted to give him a scare. No wonder Zhang Shan said that performing too well would incite jealousy. He would have to take note of this in the future.

None of the bureau employees had expected Fu Li, who had such high combat ability, to merely be a senior rabbit who had cultivated for 4000 years. Rabbits had short life expectancies and they had low cultivation even if they were fortunate enough to take on a human form. Someone like Fu Li...

Was probably an anomaly among the rabbit yao.

After two platters of lobster were polished off, Zhang Ke shifted to face Fu Li like a shy girl, “Senior, this junior didn’t know that your original form was a... majestic jade rabbit, and greatly offended you with the meal arrangements. I apologize.”

“I’m a-also not any majestic moon-gazing jade rabbit,” Fu Li put down the lobster he had pinched and smiled with some embarrassment. “We’ll be colleagues in the future, just call me by name.”

He used his fingers to indicate a length of not more than twenty-plus centimeters and said, smashing the cracked pot, “Actually, I’m a long-eared rabbit that’s this big. When King Ganglie and White Ape, the mountain’s elder, went fishing by the sea, they saw that I was still a baby and was without the protection of elders. So, feeling that I was very pitiful, they brought me back to the mountain and raised me.” Seeing everyone watching him foolishly, Fu Li’s cheeks turned a little red.

Hearing these words, Zhuang Qing thought of the kind little yao of Reflecting Mist Mountain who were buried in the bellies of dragons. His hatred towards the azure dragon clan increased by a few more notches.

“Benefactor, you’re amazing,” Chu Yu said with a face full of worship. “I’ve cultivated for more than a thousand years and my original form is only one finger long and two fingers wide.” Even if his benefactor was a paramecium and was only visible under a microscope, Chu Yu was determined to worship him, much less if he was a twenty-centimeter long rabbit.

The moment Chu Yu uttered these words, everyone looked at Fu Li with even more worship.

For an ordinary long-eared rabbit to cultivate to his current state, how much effort and sweat did he have to put in to achieve such profound cultivation?

He was a true iron-blooded man, how awesome!

They worshipped yao cultivators who were born powerful. But they had deeper veneration for unremarkable animals who cultivated till they were almighty!

“But the yao cultivators who raised senior are also quite impressive. If I saw a furry little rabbit, I might just bring it home to cook&#k2026;” Zhang Ke scratched the back of his head with embarrassment, giving a mischievous but hollow laugh.

Fu Li looked down and with a &#k2018;kacha’ sound, bit into the lobster’s head.

Zhang Ke swallowed and no longer brought up the matter of eating rabbits.

At the end of the welcome feast, everyone knew about Fu Li’s original form. In particular, the Suanyu, who was using the alias Song Yu, nearly fell apart after learning of Fu Li’s original form. For good or bad, he was still an ancient fiend. How could he have been beaten by a rabbit into weeping bitter tears?

No. The correct question was – how could a rabbit suppress the innate reverence it had towards great yao and attacked him till he ended up in such a state?

The ancient yao’s face had all been lost by him. Fortunately, the ancient yao cultivators were all either dead or in hiding. No one was aware how much of a sorry figure he cut. The moment he thought this way, Song Yu felt at ease.

Weren’t stories about poor kids making their comeback popular among humans nowadays? In the world of yao cultivators, Fu Li was the poor protagonist. This way, it also made sense that Fu Li had the ability to put him to shame.

In front of the senior workers, the few newcomers still couldn’t quite be at ease. Wei Cang was Zhang Ke’s junior; although he had joined the sect as a yao cultivator, he was still very much welcomed by his fellow disciples in Qing Xiao Sect. Therefore, after finishing his meal, he made his way to Zhang Ke.

“Senior, this is my junior Wei Cang,” Zhang Ke had the intention of letting Wei Cang and Fu Li form good relations, so he took the initiative to introduce Wei Cang to Fu Li. “In the future, I’ll have to request you to look out for him.”

“Didn’t I say to call me by name in the future? Calling me senior sounds strange and old-fashioned,” Fu Li could be considered easy to get along with. Although he suspected that these people from the bureau had set up a Hongmen Feast for him, he was broad-minded and wouldn’t be petty with the younger generation.

However, after seeing through Wei Cang’s human form and making out his original form, Fu Li was a little envious. He was actually a tiger.

Perhaps it was because he had witnessed Fu Li beating the Suanyu, but the moment Wei Cang caught sight of Fu Li, he involuntarily felt reverence towards him. Without the need for Zhang Ke’s guidance, he respectfully called out, “Fu ge.”

Although he appeared older than Fu Li by quite a bit.

“Fu ge, it isn’t very convenient to hail a taxi here. Let me send you back,” Seeing that Fu Li wasn’t fond of being called senior, he very astutely called Fu Li ge instead.

“No need,” Zhuang Qing walked over. “I’m more familiar with the area he lives at, I’ll send him back.”

“All right, Boss,” Zhang Ke pulled Wei Cang back, retreating a few steps.

Only after Zhuang Qing left with Fu Li did he tell his junior Wei Cang in a low voice, “I heard dragons and tigers don’t get along well and constantly get into fights when together. Remember to exercise restraint after joining the bureau. Boss might not have reached two thousand years old yet, but the depths of his cultivation are immeasurable. I’ve worked in the bureau for ten years but have never seen the boss losing to someone in a fight.”

“Senior, you’re thinking too much,” Wei Cang glanced in the direction in which Fu Li and Zhuang Qing had left, his eyes full of worship. “The supposed fights between dragons and tigers were all fabricated by humans. It’s the Fenghuang who doesn’t get along well with the dragon race.”

“Aren’t dragons and Fenghuang dual symbols of good fortune?” Zhang Ke felt his three views shattering.

“The truth isn’t important, it’s fine as long as you humans are happy. Anyway, I’ve never seen a Fenghuang since the day I was born. They might already be extinct. Despite the humans’ belief in dragons, only several tens of them are left. What fighting can there be?” Wei Cang thrust both hands into his pockets and shrugged, his attitude extremely nonchalant. “This land under the heavens has belonged to the humans since a long time ago.”

The past splendor and glory of the yao race were akin to the humans’ elegant historical records. Time could not flow backwards; they could no longer turn back. Only by raising their heads, moving ahead, and being in the present would their future have new hope.

Zhang Ke gazed at his extremely indifferent junior, feeling like he was looking at an aging hero past his prime. He felt a faint sadness.

“Senior, what are you thinking of?” Wei Cang sighed. Contained in his eyes were the transformations of the world that he had witnessed. “It’s fine. Anyway, times change. It’s okay as long as we get used to it.”

Zhang Ke: ?

As a human, he felt that his race seemed to have been cursed.

Fu Li got into Zhuang Qing’s car and looked all around. “Has your car been repaired?”

This question made Zhuang Qing recall the minor car accident not too long ago. His heart ached slightly. “En.”

“For a dragon, you’re really generous. You must have spent quite a lot treating so many people to lunch?” Fu Li buckled his seatbelt.

“It’s okay,” It wasn’t like the money was his anyway, since it would be reimbursed. This time, the bureau had recruited a yao with four thousand years’ worth of cultivation, as well as a great yao only recorded in ancient texts. The higher-ups were very happy, so they had specially sent down some funds.

“We didn’t know about your original form and offended you in our meal arrangements,” Zhuang Qing scrutinized Fu Li’s expression. “Please don’t take it to heart.”

“No worries, no worries. I don’t eat rabbit meat, but it’s fine if you guys do,” Fu Li replied. “For example, the original form of the king of my mountain was a pig, but everyone still had to eat pork.”

A very vivid scene suddenly appeared in Zhuang Qing’s mind – a pig was grilling rabbit meat, a rabbit was eating pork, a monkey was eating grilled sparrow, while a sparrow was eating fish on a branch. These four different animals were seated in a circle, the atmosphere friendly and harmonious.

Frightened by the things his own mind had thought of, Zhuang Qing shook his head. He had been led astray by Fu Li.

He hadn’t had the opportunity thousands of years ago to witness grand occasions in the yao world, but one thing he could be sure of was that Fu Li had lived in a simple environment. Although there were moments when he would strangely feel that Fu Li was dangerous, the qi on the other party was very clean. It was a spiritual aura distinctive to yao cultivators who hadn’t eaten humans nor been affected by karma or ill-fated relationships.

“Why are you still going to the hotel?” Zhuang Qing gave the steering wheel a smack. “You’re still going to work now?”

“I’m going to tender my resignation,” Fu Li took out a resignation letter from his coat. “Although Wang daoyou approved my resignation in advance, the regulations stipulate that I have to hand in my resignation to the human resource department.”

“You really abide by regulations.”

Zhuang Qing didn’t express any opinion on this. Many of the current yao cultivators had integrated into the human world, but a yao cultivator who abided by the rules to this extent was really quite rare.

When the car reached the hotel, Zhuang Qing cut the gas. “Go, I’ll wait for you in the car.”

If not for Fu Li’s diamond and Hunyuan pill, he wouldn’t be able to bear wasting so much petrol just to act as a rabbit’s free chauffeur. Truly, one who took other’s things would have their hands tied, while one who ate other’s things would soften their manner of speech. Moreover, he both took and ate, so his confidence was at its lowest point.

After handing in his resignation, Fu Li bumped into Zhang Shan on his way out. Zhang Shan already knew that Fu Li had found a good job at a certain biology company, so upon seeing him, he jokingly asked Fu Li to give him a treat.

After a few rounds of banter, Zhang Shan pulled Fu Li to a corner and told him in a low voice, “Little Fu, I specially went to investigate that Chang Long Biotechnology Company yesterday night after going home. I didn’t expect this company to actually be quite impressive. The medicinal makeup or something that they independently researched is very popular among the female population. It seems they also produce medicinal products. Anyway, it’s a low-profile company with an established reputation. It won’t be a scam, so you can go to work with peace of mind.”

Fu Li had mentioned to Zhang Shan a few days ago that he had been accepted by Chang Long Biotechnology Company but was unsure if he should join them. Zhang Shan had thought that Fu Li was worried that it was a sham company, so he specially went to investigate it.

He couldn’t be blamed for thinking so. There were too many sham companies under the name ‘biotechnology company’, what would Fu Li do if he encountered some disorderly organization?

If Zhang Shan hadn’t told him, Fu Li wouldn’t have known that the management bureau was really selling products in the market. It was truly... a very appropriate disguise.

“Thank you,” Fu Li looked at this cordial human and patted him on the shoulder. “I’ll treat you to a meal when I’m on holiday.”

“Sure,” Zhang Shan giddily patted Fu Li’s shoulder as well. “Rest early. Since you’re going to work at the new company tomorrow, you must have enough energy.”

“En!” Fu Li nodded.

However, on the first day of work at the management bureau, Fu Li didn’t do anything apart from familiarizing himself with the various formations inside the company. The next day of work, Fu Li stayed with everyone else in the huge work area and spent the entire day listening to ghost stories in the human world. He didn’t understand why a group of human and yao cultivators would be so interested in ghost stories written by humans.

On the third day, a senior employee gave the six newcomers a briefing on the staff rules and even distributed a huge pile of office materials. To the left of Fu Li’s office was Wei Cang, while Song Yu was to his right. There were many rooms in Chang Long biotechnology company since many cultivators had different habits and interests. Therefore, every person had an office to themselves. There was a public workspace and meeting room on every floor of the building. Cultivators who enjoyed a lively atmosphere usually liked to linger in the public workspace.

If a human were to enter, they would merely think that this was an ordinary biology company. Only cultivators in possession of the bureau’s work pass would have a clear view of the area.

The building with innumerable floors, the luxurious spiral staircase, the ancient paintings on the wall that had seen the lapse of time, and the seemingly-ordinary bonsai plants at the corner of the walls that were capable of breaking out into speech or song and even transforming into vines – all these was evidence of its uniqueness.

Any scene in a supernatural film appeared cheap and clumsy in comparison to the management bureau’s true image.

When Fu Li brought a thigh bone and drumstick to visit Seventh Uncle Sun, the clothes in his hands had already turned into a doll. Those black and short dog claws of his were particularly nimble. With a whoosh, he stuck the doll’s eyes on it.

Seeing that Fu Li had arrived, he very happily pushed the frame containing the doll to the side and lay on the ground near the entrance, his black tail wagging. “Little Fu, you finally came to visit me.” The formation on the door flickered, and the items in Fu Li’s hands appeared in front of Seventh Uncle Sun.

He leaned against his forelimbs, opened his mouth, and bit into the bone. Raising his head, he told Fu Li, “I really didn’t invite you into the city for nothing. You’re the only one who came to visit me in the past few months I’ve been locked in here.”

“Appearance is very important to humans. You gave the fox spirit fake identification and allowed her to use that to cheat humans on the internet into believing her and buying her shop’s fake masks. In the end, their faces were damaged. This is called aiding the evildoer.” Fu Li leaned against the door frame and spoke to Seventh Uncle Sun through the barrier, “Don’t swindle any more people after you complete your prison sentence.”

“What would I eat if I don’t swindle people?” Seventh Uncle Sun bit into the bone with ‘kacha, kacha’ sounds. A subtle callousness could be seen on his doggie face. “Are humans worthy of my kindness and goodwill?”

“They can only blame their stupidity for being fooled!”

Seventh Uncle Sun threw down these words, turned, and used his mouth to pick up the heat-preservation tupperware. He laid down a distance away, showing his buttocks to Fu Li as he continued to gnaw on the drumstick and bone. He didn’t forget to wipe the occasional splashes of gravy off his face with his claws.

Fu Li walked out of the prison and ran into Zhuang Qing and Chu Yu on his way to the dining hall. Chu Yu hurriedly called for him to walk with them.

“Fu ge, what were you doing at the prison? There’s no spiritual qi there and the air’s turbid,” Chu Yu asked curiously.

“I went to visit someone from the same village.”

“Oh, that field dog,” Chu Yu commented. “I never thought that that imprisoned dog was from your mountain.”

“Not Reflecting Mist Mountain.” Fu Li shook his head and explained, “The yao cultivators of Reflecting Mist Mountain never cheat people, and they would never do things that harm others. Seventh Uncle Sun was a yao cultivator I met at the place I woke from my sleep.”

Where on earth would they find a yaoguai who didn’t cheat others? Chu Yu cautiously glanced at Fu Li. Senior Fu Li simply hadn’t been in the know when they were doing the cheating.

After they returned from their meal, the management bureau received a report from a warm-hearted yao saying that a fox spirit had transformed into its human form and cheated humans of their money. The sum of money involved might have already exceeded two million.

“Why is it a fox spirit again?” Chu Yu hung up the phone and furrowed his brows. “The fox race was involved in quite a few cases this year. The one from that fake mask incident hasn’t even been released and there’s already another fox who can’t wait to break the law.”

“Zhang Ke, take Fu ge and Qing Xu out this time. It’ll be good to familiarize them with the workflow too.”

The Daoist priest was in charge of capturing the yao, while Fu ge would be responsible for beating it up; this made sense.

Late into the night, Fu Li watched a yao cultivator who was aggressively pulling at a certain human. He turned to look at Zhang Ke. “That’s a fox spirit?”

Who knew whether the cultivators nowadays had been influenced by television dramas? The moment they saw a yao cultivator enticing a human, they would think of fox spirits.

This was clearly a lemur. Biologically, lemurs were classified under the same category as monkeys, and had nothing to do with fox spirits.