Chapter 021: Lickspittle x Scoundrel x Saintly Syndrome (3)

Chapter 021: Lickspittle x Scoundrel x Saintly Syndrome (3)

Si Jinghua was immobilized, his pent-up frustration unable to vent. Fortunately, his devoted disciple Sheng Jun appeared with a bowl of freshly brewed medicine, immediately noticing the Immortal Venerable and the golden-furred monkey in his arms.

"Yiyue Master!" Sheng Jun quickly set down the bowl and said anxiously, "Master is still severely injured. How could you bring such a filthy creature in here!"

Si Jinghua felt a bit relieved, as if he had gained a second voice.

Feng Qinqin, who had witnessed everything, chimed in, "What creature? That's my senior brother; he turned into a monkey."

"Your senior brother, Xiao Baiqiong?" Sheng Jun looked at the bewildered monkey, then at Rong Zijin, his face flushing red as he said, "Now Master is holding Baiqiong Senior Brother in his arms. Isn't this excessive closeness inappropriate?"

Si Jinghua nodded vigorously inwardly.

Well said! Throw that stupid thing out!

This is the Immortal Sect, not a marketplace for stray animals!

Rong Zijin, who was already shy, felt embarrassed by Sheng Jun’s words and placed the little monkey on the ground, allowing it to hold onto one of his fingers.

The small monkey, barely reaching his knees, could only loosely grip one of his fingers.

"Senior Brother Sheng, you’re being unfair," Feng Qinqin said. "It’s just a little monkey now, with the intelligence of a three-year-old. You might as well ask it to eat with chopsticks or bathe with soap!"

Rong Zijin came to his senses, finding the apprentice's argument quite reasonable.

He had always liked the fluffy texture and quietly opened his arms to the golden monkey.

The monkey scampered back into his embrace, and they hugged tightly.

Si Jinghua fell heavily back onto the soft couch, closing his eyes, not wanting to see anything. He felt so agitated that he wanted to spit blood again.

Once he recovered, he would definitely wield his sword and chop this monkey into pieces, feeding it to the dogs!

"Junior Brother, I’m truly sorry," Rong Zijin said to Sheng Jun. "I intended to feed you the medicine myself, but Little Jun has a point. I’ll go fetch some hot water to clean Baiqiong properly."

He hurriedly apologized again and left quickly, carrying the little monkey.

Sheng Jun sighed in relief, sat close to Si Jinghua, and fed him the bitter medicine.

"Master, let me feed you!"

Si Jinghua drank the medicine through gritted teeth, coughing repeatedly, feeling bitter both in mouth and heart.

His beloved senior brother was going to bathe that cursed disciple!

Preposterous! Outrageous! Unacceptable!!

With these thoughts, Si Jinghua felt both restless and furious, secretly casting a spell to send a paper crane flying out of the medical hut.

In Suyuzhai, steam rose from the wooden tub, with petals floating on the water's surface.

Keding: "Being bathed by someone else is a bit embarrassing..."

The Immortal Venerable tested the water temperature and gently placed the little monkey inside.

"Oh oh oh oh, feels so good—"

The monkey stretched its arms, lying flat in the warm water, enjoying the Immortal Venerable pouring hot water over its body, its eyes half-closed in bliss.

System: "Where’s your dignity?"

"I’m a monkey," Keding said. "I only care about what I’ll eat tomorrow."

On a rainy night, the damp air made it perfect for soaking in a large wooden tub, making one feel pleasantly dazed.

Rong Zijin used some flower essence oil refined by his junior sister to wash the little monkey thoroughly, cleaning all the mud and dried leaves, then dried its fur with magic, smiling gently.

"Little monkey, bath time..." He sang a lullaby to his disciple like a child: "Up high, sleep tight..."

Keding: "Comfortable, really comfortable."

System: "I get it now; this guy isn’t suffering from savior complex; he’s just overflowing with maternal love."

The little monkey, now fresh and clean, was almost asleep during the drying process.

The Immortal Venerable took a peach pit the monkey had left behind, blew on it, and conjured a wicker basket in the study, placing bedding inside before putting the golden-furred monkey in it, soothing it to sleep.

The paper crane watched from outside the window, causing the patient in the medical hut to spit out another mouthful of blood, alarming the disciple.

"Master! Let me replenish your spirit energy!"

"No need," Si Jinghua rasped. "The poison is coming out; I’ll be fine soon."

The system checked various values and whispered to Keding.

"This person only gains resentment points but not defense points; it’s tricky."

"There are such metrics?" Keding asked. "How much does he hate the supporting character?"

"On a scale of one hundred, it started at forty when the story began and is now up to seventy." The system said, "Wait and see; with all the elixirs and magical medicines in the Immortal Sect, Si Jinghua will be able to walk in three to five days. When he does, he’ll come after you."

Keding: "Understood. I’ll find some allies."

"Right, we definitely need help and an insider. That junior sister seems nice."

"You forgot; I’m a monkey."

"Huh?"

The next day, Rong Zijin went to the medical hut early in the morning to visit the sick, then as usual sat in meditation and cultivation, preparing fruits and water for her little monkey in advance.

The golden-haired monkey casually ate some apricots and pears, took advantage of its master's meditation to dash off to the kitchen, scoop up a bowl full of rice and grains, and skillfully ran away swinging on tree vines.

The Immortal Sect frequently interacted with the three realms, and naturally had servants to manage the pigeon coop, keeping the pigeons well-fed and plump.

The system guided the spider-like monkey through the air while saying, "I thought you were going to throw poop at Si Jinghua."

"I can't produce enough as one monkey," Keding humbly said, "the power of the masses is the real force."

The system finally caught on, "Holy shit, you're going to those pigeons...?"

It turned out that animal friends were easy to unite.

A handful of grains could make brothers, two handfuls of corn even closer friends.

Though they couldn't communicate verbally, a few gestures made for smooth exchanges.

The golden-haired monkey united hundreds of pigeons from the Immortal Sect, then went to unite the chickens, ducks, cows, and horses on the mountain, becoming buddies with the geese by sharing salted peanuts from the kitchen.

The macaques on Mount Emei rarely saw such a beautiful and clean golden-haired monkey; initially, they were slightly hostile, watching from afar.

Until the golden-haired monkey brought them a large basket of delicious fruits and an entire marinated chicken.

Uncle Fat from the kitchen waved his long ladle and roared, "Which little brat is stealing again! Even knows to wipe footprints, why learn this instead of something good!"

The macaques feasted happily deep in the woods: "Chomp chomp chomp—"

Chicken legs are so delicious! So delicious!!

The system said, "I instinctively feel you're planning something big, now I'm worried about Si Jinghua's safety."

"Isn't it still a few days?" Keding tossed a peanut into his mouth, "if he doesn't provoke me, I won't provoke him."

But if he does, then sorry.

Four days later, Si Jinghua was finally able to walk, slowly moving with the help of a cane.

According to the original plot, the supporting character should have extracted his golden core, losing all his cultivation, while Si Jinghua would eat the golden core and retain eighty percent of his power.

However, Xiao Baiqiong became a golden-haired monkey, and Si Jinghua survived the ordeal with his full cultivation and medicinal support, ending up with less than thirty percent of his spiritual energy.

The man was filled with hostility; the first thing he did upon being able to move was to go to Suyuzhai to find that monkey.

He had always wanted to be the only one to receive his senior brother's care and attention.

Yet his senior brother was always kind and gentle, surrounded by too many people, each disciple clumsy and foolish, taking up all his attention.

Xiao Baiqiong, in the past, I spared your life for my senior brother's sake.

Now that you act recklessly and pretend to be stupid, there's no need for Zijin to worry about you anymore.

He quietly walked into the bamboo corridor, getting closer to the sleeping monkey in the wicker basket.

A paralysis talisman was held between his fingers, and a long needle gleaming coldly was pressed against his palm.

—Senior brother treated me so kindly, never once giving me a bath.

What virtue do you have to receive such affection!

Before the monkey could react, Si Jinghua slapped the paralysis talisman onto its head and plunged the long needle deeply into its fur.

The system said, "Your amplification talisman has been successfully exchanged, consuming ten points of defense-breaking value."

The monkey screamed loudly, its cries echoing throughout the mountain.

"Squeak squeak squeak—"

Immortal Venerable Yiyue appeared in a flash, "Baiqiong! What did you do to him!"

The moment his senior brother appeared, Si Jinghua quickly withdrew the talisman, shocked yet seething with jealousy, "Baiqiong?"

"What happened these past few days? Why are you calling him that?!"

"Rong Zijin! Xiao Baiqiong is also a man, don't forget propriety and decorum!!"

Rong Zijin suppressed her anger, glanced at Si Jinghua, and reached out to pick up the little monkey.

"Why are you screaming so terribly? Did Master Uncle Si hurt you?"

The golden-haired monkey had tears in its eyes, flipped over, and showed the long needle still stuck in its buttocks.

Rong Zijin's expression changed, and she swiftly pulled out the needle.

"What is this?"

The system asked, "Does it still hurt?"

"It's okay, lots of fur on a monkey's butt." Keding said, "Not as painful as when I accidentally pricked myself during suturing practice, blood gushing everywhere."

"Learning medicine is really not easy." The system sighed, "when we get to another world, I'll help you find some zombies to practice on, no worries about mistakes."

"Great! It's a deal!"

The little monkey used the hand signs it had learned over the past two days to explain the situation in four or five gestures.

"Squeak squeak! Wah wah! Squeak wah!!"

Rong Zijin listened seriously, nodding sternly, "he came over and put a talisman on you, and stuck a long needle in your head?"

His goodwill towards Si Jinghua shattered in an instant, and when he looked at his junior brother again, his eyes were filled with disappointment.

"Qiongqiong is just a little monkey now, it hasn't provoked you or wronged you."

"Jinghua, how could you hurt a little monkey?"

"If it's about the Golden Pill, just hate me and hurt me directly!"

Si Jinghua snapped, "Nonsense, all lies!"

"I came to Suyuzhai to find you, and as soon as I saw this monkey, it started screaming. This needle might have been stolen from the embroidery room by it!"

"Zijin, you would rather believe a monkey than me now!!"

Rong Zijin took a step back, hugging the fragrant and soft little golden monkey tightly.

"You should not enter here for now. If there's anything, I will come to you."

Si Jinghua almost ground his teeth to dust, then swept away with a flick of his sleeve.

Before Si Jinghua had gone far, a gentle voice coaxing could already be heard, unhidden.

"Good little monkey, it doesn't hurt anymore. Master will blow on it for you."

"Shall we go eat some grapes later?"

"Squeak squeak!"

The man quickened his pace and left swiftly.

System: "Ding! Defense break value increased by ten!"

The little monkey buried its face in its master's arm, its long tail subtly swaying.

In the next moment, pigeon calls echoed from the treetops nearby.

As Si Jinghua stepped out of the study, he felt the sky suddenly darken, as if dark clouds were looming.

— Hundreds of pigeons flew out en masse, heading straight for him!!

"Today we're going to learn a few idioms," Keding said calmly, listening to the commotion outside: "Aimed arrow, arrow at the head. Arrow on the string, must be released."

Si Jinghua's startled cry could be heard from afar.

"Ding! Defense break value increased by ten!"

System: "Wow, this looks like both rain and snow, quite spectacular."