Chapter 152: Assembling the Critical Stone

Shen Junyi’s personality was far more detached than Wen Qian had imagined.

In this house, she maintained a distance from all the beastmen, and Shen Mqing was no exception.

Strangely, the usually arrogant Shen Mqing was as obedient as a cub in front of Shen Junyi, his eyes filled with adoration.

For the past few days, Yin Zhi had been staying with Wen Qian.

The Little Fox, who was shut out of the room every night, was more than a little unhappy about it.

Luckily, his heat cycle arrived right on cue. Three days later, he finally got his wish and moved back into Wen Qian’s room.

The Little Fox had just gotten a taste of victory when Gu Mian decided to follow his example. Now it was Yin Zhi’s turn to be frustrated. He never would have guessed that beastmen’s heat cycles could be so frequent.

’No, that’s not right. I should say that these beastmen’s methods are just despicable...’

Wen Qian wasn’t having an easy time either because of this. Physically, she was finding it a bit too much to handle.

Eventually, she didn’t even dare to hole up in her room anymore.

’Can’t afford to provoke any of them. Not a single one.’

When people get bored, they always look for something to do. So, Wen Qian decided to call over Chi Ye, Shen Junyi, and Shen Mqing for a game of mahjong.

Every time Yin Zhi and the Little Fox came looking for her, her mahjong partners would come up with all sorts of excuses to send them away.

Shen Mqing also belatedly realized he had chosen the wrong person to pursue at first. If he had gone after Wen Qian from the start, he wouldn’t have been stood up. After all, Wen Qian wouldn’t just abandon a game of mahjong and ignore everyone for the Little Fox.

Gu Mian’s heat cycle had just ended when the Little Fox tried to use the same trick to stay with Wen Qian. Yin Zhi, completely annoyed by the disruption, had no choice but to go find Wen Qian.

As soon as he came downstairs, he saw the four of them gathered around the mahjong table, deep in their game.

"Qianqian!" Yin Zhi raised his voice. "That fox is a liar! How could his heat cycles be so frequent?"

Wen Qian didn’t even look up, her fingertips expertly stroking a mahjong tile. "What can I do about it...? Why don’t you go reason with him? Two Bamboo!"

"One Bamboo!"

Shen Junyi looked up, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes. "Young Master, take my advice. No one can control a beastman’s heat cycle."

Yin Zhi’s gaze was as cold as ice. He sneered internally. ’Does she think I don’t know...? A fox grows another tail after a heat cycle.’

’His second heat cycle is over... so where’s his third tail?’

’Did a strong wind blow it away?’

’Or did it SPLASH into the sea?’

Ling Xuan stood to the side, looking like he wanted to intervene but didn’t dare. Just then, his phone notification chimed. He pulled it out for a look, and his face instantly turned pale. "This is bad! The beastman shelter in City A has been shut down..."

Everyone immediately put down their mahjong tiles. Shen Junyi stood up, her usual composure restored. "What’s the specific reason?"

Shen Mqing spoke rapidly, "Some beastmen attacked humans..."

Yin Zhi’s brow furrowed instantly.

Incidents of beastmen attacking humans were rare, let alone on a large scale. It was clear this had been planned for a long time, and now they could no longer hold back.

Both humans and beastmen suffered heavy casualties. When Fan Shang heard about the incident, she immediately gave Wen Qian a call.

She was someone who always considered the bigger picture and had long been prepared for something like this. She and her fox had loved each other without reservation. No matter the outcome, she had no regrets.

She hoped Wen Qian would restore the Critical Stone as soon as possible, for the good of both beastmen and humans.

Inside the villa, the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.

A wooden box was placed on the table, opened wide to reveal the ice-blue crystals inside, which gleamed with a faint luster. Shen Junyi leaned lazily against the sofa, glancing sideways in Wen Qian’s direction.

Yin Zhi held Wen Qian’s hand tightly, the warmth of his palm seeping through her skin.

At the same time, the Little Fox’s tail was wrapped securely around her waist like a soft rope, and he watched their surroundings vigilantly. It was as if he would pull her away to escape without a moment’s hesitation at the slightest sign of trouble.

Wen Qian stared at the faintly glowing Crystal Chips in the box, silent for a long time.

After a long while, she took a deep breath, trying to make her voice sound calm and composed. "Let’s begin."

Of course, she was afraid.

’One quiet night, she had hidden in her room, crying silently, clinging to this hard-won warmth... But she had experienced too many partings and deaths. She had long since learned to restrain herself, and she knew clearly what had to be done at a critical juncture like this, and which emotions could only be buried deep in her heart.’

’The beastmen had to leave, not just for the sake of the Beast World, but for Blue Star as well.’

The moment Wen Qian finished speaking, the previously still Crystal Chips suddenly began to vibrate violently. Wen Qian instinctively reached out and comfortingly grasped one of the fragments. The next second, all the crystals in the box returned to normal.

The room fell deathly silent. Everyone’s gaze was fixed on the scattered Critical Stone Fragments.

Other than Wen Qian, no one dared to rashly reach out and touch them.

Gu Mian stood with his arms crossed, his stern gaze wandering over the fragments. The faces of the others were also filled with apprehension. No one could predict what would happen after the fragments were pieced back together.

Wen Qian took a deep breath and was the first to break the silence. She began to carefully piece together the Critical Stone. As she worked, her fingers trembled more and more. Seeing this, Gu Mian leaned over and firmly grasped her slightly shaking hand. Their eyes met, and he gave her a faint smile. "We’ll do it together."

The two exchanged a smile, a silent understanding passing between them as they said no more.

Soon, only the last blue crystal was left. Wen Qian clutched the crystal tightly in her hand and took a deep breath...

"Don’t do it!"

Yin Zhi’s eyes were rimmed with red. He reached out to shove the nearly completed stone off the table, but Ling Xuan wrapped his arms around him, holding him back.

"Control him," Shen Junyi said seriously, kicking Shen Mqing, who was sitting opposite her.

Shen Mqing was scared, but thinking of the Beast World, he had no choice but to get up and walk toward Yin Zhi. The Little Fox and Chi Heng both looked terrible. Afraid of making a mistake, Wen Qian wanted to quickly place the last fragment.

But her hand was held by Gu Mian, and for a long moment, she couldn’t move it an inch.

She looked up at him and saw the man’s expression was dark and unreadable.

"I don’t want to gamble anymore," Gu Mian said after a long pause.

Her hand ached from his grip. Wen Qian didn’t speak, just looked at him quietly.

The next second, as if realizing he had lost his composure, Gu Mian suddenly let go of her hand. He watched helplessly as the woman pressed the fragment into the broken spot on the Critical Stone, but he remained motionless.

No one knew what would happen next, because everything was merely speculation.

The blue crystal in her hand suddenly emitted an intense light, so bright that no one could keep their eyes open.

Immediately after, the world spun, and everyone was swept into the light by an invisible force.

A pale yellow light swirled like a giant vortex, carrying countless flower petals upward. Inside it, Wen Qian smelled the scent of plants... but soon, the smell changed to the cloying sweetness of candy.

Then came many other pleasant scents that Wen Qian couldn’t describe.