Ziyan stood in place for a few seconds, then came back to her senses. She touched the spot on her forehead where she had just been hit, relaxed her tense body, and then looked at the boy in front of her with a puzzled expression. Now that she was calm, she could sense the boy's inexplicable friendliness towards her.
"Who are you? I've never seen you before," Ziyan said as she sat down on the ground, looking at the boy.
"Lin Yuan, a little alchemist who just arrived at the inner courtyard. And you? Little girl?" Lin Yuan answered Ziyan's question and then asked knowingly.
"Don't call me little girl! I'm Ziyan!" Ziyan replied irritably.
"Ziyan, huh?" Taking advantage of Ziyan's moment of distraction, Lin Yuan quickly moved in front of her and placed his hand on her little head. "You're still young, so don't call yourself 'Auntie.' You have such a nice name like Ziyan!"
Looking at Lin Yuan's gentle smile and feeling the tone of his words, which was completely different from how others treated her, Ziyan, who appeared carefree but felt a bit lonely inside, didn't rush to shake off the hand on her head. She simply turned her head to the side and said in a muffled voice, "Then you shouldn't call me little girl either."
"Even though you're a magical beast and a Battle King, your personality is just like your appearance—you're still a little girl!" Lin Yuan thought to himself, his smile growing wider. He removed his hand from Ziyan's head, bent down, and placed his hand in front of her, saying with a smile, "Then let's be good friends, little Ziyan!"
Ziyan looked at the hand in front of her and, for some reason, felt a bit happy. She proudly extended her hand to shake Lin Yuan's, then stood on her tiptoes and patted Lin Yuan's shoulder, saying, "Little Lin, I really admire you. If anyone bullies you in the future, just tell them my name!"
"Little Lin? What kind of name is that?" Lin Yuan thought of something unpleasant and couldn't help but laugh, but he didn't dwell on it too much, knowing she would change her mind soon.
"By the way, Ziyan, were you trying to steal my spirit berry just now? Why?" Lin Yuan asked knowingly.
Perhaps a bit of friendship had formed during their brief and friendly exchange, as Ziyan felt a little embarrassed and honestly replied, "I can feel that this fruit has a lot of energy. I want to eat it to grow up."
"Grow up? Eat? Isn't that alchemy? Aren't you afraid of being overwhelmed by the energy?" Lin Yuan asked with a puzzled expression.
Upon hearing this, Ziyan placed her hands on her hips, wrinkled her nose, and proudly said, "I can eat it directly without any problem. It's your human bodies that are too weak."
"You humans? Ziyan, are you a transformed magical beast? But don't magical beasts need to reach the seventh rank to transform? You seem too weak to be at that level, considering you can't even beat me," Lin Yuan expressed his doubts, but his tone remained friendly despite Ziyan's identity as a magical beast.
Ziyan was initially worried that Lin Yuan would change his attitude towards her like some others had because of her identity as a magical beast. However, when she heard Lin Yuan say she was weak, she immediately felt a bit indignant: "What do you mean I can't beat you? I just didn't use my full strength earlier. If you don't believe me, let's compete again!"
Lin Yuan comforted Ziyan as if soothing a child, "Okay, okay, Ziyan is indeed very impressive. I was just curious. Your cultivation is still far from transformation, so how come you transformed so early?"
"I accidentally ate a very rare transformation herb, and then I became like this and couldn't change back. I eat these medicinal materials because I want to grow up quickly, so I can freely switch between my beast form and human form," Ziyan said, frowning. It seemed that she wasn't very enthusiastic about this topic, as her tone was somewhat dull.
"Transformation herb? No wonder," Lin Yuan nodded in understanding.
"What about your parents?" Lin Yuan asked casually.
"I don't have any," Ziyan said, lowering her head, curling her legs, and wrapping her arms around her knees. Her white, neat teeth bit down tightly on her lip, and her big, dark eyes glistened with moisture. "Since I became aware, I've lived alone in the deep mountains. When I was little, I was bullied by other creatures and could only run away until I later ate the transformation herb and met the elder of the inner courtyard. He brought me to the inner courtyard, and I've been here ever since."
Although she harbored many calculations in her heart, seeing the stubborn look on the little girl's face as she bit her lip made Lin Yuan feel a surge of affection. He sat beside her, gently patted Ziyan's little head, and comforted her, "It's all in the past. From now on, you have the elder as family and me as a friend. Life will get better."
After a pause, Lin Yuan looked at Ziyan with interest and continued, "I'm also alone. I have no blood relatives in this world. Hmm, I always feel like I'm missing a little sister. Would you like to be my little sister, Ziyan?"
Ziyan, who had been feeling a bit sad, instantly dispelled her sorrow upon hearing Lin Yuan's words. She stood up and looked down at Lin Yuan, who was sitting, and said defiantly, "Who wants to be your little sister? You should be my little brother instead!"
"Oh?" Lin Yuan chuckled playfully and stood up, taking out the spirit berry and tossing it in his hand, saying regretfully, "Ah, I was going to give this spirit fruit and some medicinal materials to my little sister as a gift. Since I don't have a little sister now, I might as well keep it for myself!"
"Brother!" Ziyan, who had been staring at the spirit berry, instantly changed her expression upon hearing this and sweetly called out to Lin Yuan.
"Hmm? Why is Miss Ziyan calling me that? I can't handle it," Lin Yuan teased.
"Brother, my real brother! I was just joking earlier, don't take it seriously!" Ziyan said, playfully shaking Lin Yuan's arm, her eyes constantly glancing at the spirit fruit in his hand.
Seeing the now docile Ziyan, Lin Yuan shook his head. "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Let's continue."
With that, Lin Yuan tossed the spirit berry to Ziyan. After catching it, a bright smile appeared on her cute little face, her eyes squinting with joy.
Seeing Ziyan so happy, Lin Yuan felt a bit of joy himself, perhaps influenced by the little girl's pure smile. He smiled and asked Ziyan, "Ziyan, can I ask you a question? Is it good to eat these medicinal materials directly? How do they taste? I'm quite curious since I've never tried them."
Upon hearing this, Ziyan's smile faded, and she complained, "They're really hard to eat, but I have no choice. If I want to grow up quickly, I have to eat these medicinal materials that contain powerful energy."
"Hard to eat? How about processing them like this?" As Ziyan looked on with slight confusion, Lin Yuan waved his sleeve, bringing over a few medicinal materials from not far away. He used the Qingling Flame to quickly melt them at an appropriate temperature, then took out some seasonings from his storage ring and sprinkled them into the melted medicinal liquid. He then controlled the liquid to form several dozen pills.
"Give it a try!" Lin Yuan handed the fragrant pills to the waiting Ziyan.
Ziyan eagerly tossed one of the pills into her mouth, chewing with her eyes squinting into a line, clearly enjoying the taste and texture. After chewing for a while, she swallowed and opened her eyes, looking a bit unsatisfied, "It's delicious!"
Hearing this, Lin Yuan smiled with satisfaction, thinking to himself, "Of course it's delicious. I specifically studied cooking for a while for this moment. Among alchemists, few can compare to my culinary skills."
Watching Ziyan toss another pill into her mouth, Lin Yuan said with a smile, "Since that's the case, in the future, if you have medicinal materials, don't eat them raw. Bring them to me, and I'll help you process them to make them taste better. I'm quite good at this. Also, these pills are only for you to eat; don't give them to others. Ordinary people can't handle this kind of violent medicinal power."
Ziyan, who was chewing on the pill, mumbled indistinctly, "Got it, got it."
"Swallow what you have in your mouth before you talk!" Lin Yuan rubbed Ziyan's little head.
Thank you to all the readers for your recommendation votes. The new book has set sail, and with little exposure, I kindly ask everyone to save it and cast your votes. If you have any opinions or suggestions, feel free to come to the review section to discuss.
(End of Chapter)