Chapter 32:
Taishi
MO TIANLIAO PAUSED, realizing his posture was inappropriate. Since when would a disciple embrace his master? He coughed dryly. “Shizun fainted again. I’ll carry him inside.”
But the man in his arms didn’t appreciate his good intentions. Qingtong shoved him away, following that up with a smack to the back of his head. He smoothed his tousled hair and glared at Mo Tianliao, his meaning all too clear: Insolent disciple! You messed up my hair again!
Mo Tianliao sat on the ground awkwardly and turned to observe the sect leader.
The leader was more surprised at how they’d been positioned before than he was at Qingtong’s white hair. “You… You two…”
Mo Tianliao picked himself up from the ground and sighed. He was an idiot—the sect leader knew Qingtong’s divine soul was damaged, but Qingtong had been living well all these years, so he obviously had to know that Qingtong was a spirit beast. He turned to the tiger, who was still staring with his jaw on the floor, and frowned.
“Everyone, out. I’m going to…ugh…” Qingtong stood up, then groaned and held a hand to his forehead.
“Qingtong!”
“Shizun!”
The tiger and the sect leader rushed over at once, but Mo Tianliao, who was the closest, was faster. He promptly took Qingtong back into his arms, throwing all propriety out the window. “What’s wrong? A headache?” he asked anxiously.
Beads of sweat formed on Qingtong’s fair face. He closed his eyes and rasped, “Carry me back to bed.”
Mo Tianliao picked him up, hurried into the inner chamber, and set him down on the bed. His heart was aching as he stroked that sweat-soaked face. “Do you have any pills?”
Qingtong lifted his hand, and his sleeve slid down along his arm to reveal the blue-silver bracelet.
Mo Tianliao grabbed it. Anything made by Duantian was extraordinary, and this bracelet wasn’t just proof that this was his cat; it was also an inventory bracelet spirit beasts could use. The space within was huge, and as the owner, he could naturally access it whenever he needed to. It was very convenient for storing toys and treats for his cat.
There were a lot of items inside the inventory bracelet. Mo Tianliao noticed the small white-jade bottle labeled Heaven-Grade Soul-Condensing Elixir at the front and quickly took it out. Tipping one pill into his palm, he sniffed it. It was the right medicine, so he quickly fed it to Qingtong.
Qingtong looked a lot better after he swallowed the pill, though he still seemed listless and unwilling to talk.
The tiger stood on his hind legs by the bed and watched with concern. Seeing his master starting to feel better, he leaned in and tried to lick away his sweat, but Mo Tianliao grabbed him by the ear. “Stop messing around, Chubby.”
“GROARR—” The tiger was very displeased at the disrespect his junior was showing him.
Mo Tianliao flicked the tiger’s head with a finger. Taking the soft cloth from the attendant, he wiped away the sweat from the man on the bed. No way was he going to let that silly tiger slobber all over his fastidious white cat; he’d be lucky if Pawpaw didn’t throw a hissy fit.
When he saw Mo Tianliao using the inventory bracelet, Tianlang-zhenren understood everything. He patted Mo Tianliao on the shoulder and motioned for him to step out for a moment. Mo Tianliao nodded and covered his master with the blanket before following him out.
Now that they were gone, the tiger moved in again to lick his master’s fur. Qingtong didn’t even open his eyes to smack that big furry head. The tiger immediately behaved himself. Ears flattened, he rested his head on the bed and stared with wide, unblinking eyes at his master.