Chapter 217: A Joyous Night at Qingfeng Temple

The autumn moon hung high overhead, and the wind had gradually begun to die down.

Ning Fei knew this was only a brief lull. A gale was bound to blow tonight, and the winds wouldn't truly stop until around noon tomorrow.

Inside Qingfeng Temple, two soft lamps illuminated the courtyard, giving the place a deeply idyllic, pastoral feel.

Ning Fei sat in a chair, playing fetch with Little Dog using a branch.

Little Dog was fast and possessed lightning-quick reflexes, repeatedly bringing the branch back in no time.

"Let's make this a little harder for you."

Smiling, Ning Fei picked up a small branch and tossed it with a flick of his wrist, sending it right over the courtyard wall.

Seeing this, Little Dog immediately dashed out to retrieve it.

"Haha, so Ning Guan master can be a bully too."

"Little Dog is smiling on the outside, but screaming motherfucker on the inside."

"That's just going too far."

"Little Dog is getting trolled."

The viewers watched the scene unfold and laughed in amusement.

The main doors of Qingfeng Temple were still open. Before long, Little Dog trotted back inside with a branch clamped in his jaws.

Seeing the branch in Little Dog's mouth, Ning Fei shook his head in helpless amusement.

He had thrown a branch about as thick as his thumb.

Little Dog had brought back a branch thicker than an arm and longer than his entire body, complete with several jagged forks.

Little Dog kept his head held high and wagged his tail, looking immensely proud of himself.

"Hahaha, what a goofy dog!"

The viewers laughed even harder.

Little Dog dropped the hefty branch at Ning Fei's feet, his tail wagging happily.

"Good boy."

Ning Fei patted his head, smiling helplessly.

Ning Fei then glanced over at the canary perched nearby.

This little bird had been drawn directly from the System. Its origins were completely unknown, and it had been able to fly the moment it was born.

What's more, Ning Fei could perfectly understand the meaning behind its chirps.

Everything about it was a little strange.

As the winds outside grew stronger, Ning Fei closed the courtyard doors, packed up everything in the yard, said his goodbyes to the viewers, and ended the stream.

"Xiao Feng." With the stream off, no one else could hear him, allowing Ning Fei to drop his guard.

The canary flapped its wings and flew over to him.

Ning Fei let Xiao Feng perch on his hand and asked, "Where do you come from?"

"Chirp, chirp?"

"Do you remember anything at all?"

"Chirp, chirp?"

"Keep playing dumb and I'll roast you."

"I hatched from an egg. I was just born, I don't remember anything."

Seeing the chilling look in Ning Fei's eyes, Xiao Feng realized he meant business and obediently answered.

Ning Fei scrutinized the little bird.

The little guy had actually tried to play dumb. Fortunately, Ning Fei was able to understand its chirps and didn't fall for it.

Ning Fei realized that the bird was exceptionally smart and possessed a certain degree of sapience.

"Maybe I should just hand you over to the scientists to be dissected."

Ning Fei muttered to himself, rubbing his chin.

His expression gave Xiao Feng a bad feeling, and it fluttered backward in fright.

"What a coward."

Ning Fei chuckled.

Naturally, he had no real intention of handing the Red Phoenix Canary over to scientists. The existence of the System was already impossible to explain, and even he still had no idea why it had chosen him.

However, he wasn't overly curious about those questions either.

Everything happened for a reason, and it was best to just let nature take its course.

"Stay in the courtyard tonight and don't go wandering off. I'll build you a birdhouse tomorrow."

"There are a lot of wild cats in the mountains, so don't go getting yourself eaten."

After giving Xiao Feng these instructions, Ning Fei headed back to his room alone, washing up and getting ready for bed.

Xiao Feng fluttered around the courtyard while the other four little guys settled down to rest.

Xiao Feng let out two more chirps, as if to say, 'Don't go wandering off? Like this crummy courtyard could ever hold me!'

It flapped its wings, soared over the courtyard wall, and flew outside.

But it hadn't flown far before it spotted a pair of green eyes hidden in the darkness, staring at it coldly.

As a spiritual bird, Xiao Feng instantly felt a wave of deadly danger wash over it.

It was a black wild cat, its eyes flashing with a vicious gleam.

Its entire body radiated killing intent.

'Never mind, sticking with the human is safer.'

Seeing the wild cat, Xiao Feng frantically spun around and flew right back into Qingfeng Temple, not daring to wander anymore.

It didn't even look back, terrified that if it flew too slowly, it would end up in the cat's stomach.

The black cat only watched it go, making no move to chase. With Da Huang guarding the outside of the Daoist temple and Little falcon on the inside, it didn't dare act recklessly.

The wind was incredibly strong that night, howling fiercely outside in great gusts.

Unable to sleep, Ning Fei slipped on his sandals and went out to check on the little guys.

Little Dog's kennel was anchored solidly to the ground. Right now, he was fast asleep, his front paws wrapped securely around a chicken.

That chicken was Little Fei. The two good buddies were sleeping soundly together.

Little Fox wasn't asleep yet. Seeing Ning Fei come out, she immediately scampered over to him and let out two whines, rubbing against him affectionately as if to say, "The wind is so loud, I'm scared."

"Come on, you can sleep inside with me."

Ning Fei scooped Little Fox up into his arms, comforting her.

Little falcon was already asleep; winds like these didn't have much of an impact on a bird of prey.

Xiao Feng, meanwhile, was huddled under the eaves. It didn't have a place to sleep yet, but it didn't dare share a spot with Little falcon or Little Fox, terrified they might eat it.

"Xiao Feng, you come inside too."

Ning Fei called out to the canary.

"Hmph, human."

Xiao Feng muttered under its breath, but flew into the house faster than any of them.

The canary was still very small, and Ning Fei was genuinely worried it might get blown away by the gale.

The moment they stepped inside the house, the howling of the wind vanished.

Ning Fei went back to his bedroom and lay down. Little Fox curled up into a ball on the edge of his bed, closing her eyes in absolute contentment.

Before falling asleep, Ning Fei gently stroked her fur, feeling a deep sense of satisfaction.

Although the wind howled that night, the animals of Qingfeng Temple slept exceptionally soundly, just as they always did.

...

Early the next morning.

Later that morning, Ning Fei gathered some wood to build Xiao Feng a birdhouse.

It was a fairly standard birdhouse, looking much like a miniature cabin. However, the entrance was a perfectly round hole, and inside there was a tiny swinging perch and a soft nest made of cotton.

The perch was designed for the little bird to stand on.

He also attached a small basin to the outside of the birdhouse for water.

Ning Fei had already checked with the System in detail: while Red Phoenix Pills were Xiao Feng's primary source of nourishment, it still needed to drink water and could eat other things just like a normal bird.

Xiao Feng watched him from the side.

'This nest is really ugly.'

'There's no way I'm living in that.'

It grumbled inwardly, chirping away.

Once the birdhouse was finished, Ning Fei hung it on the side of the house and secured it firmly in place.

"All done."

Ning Fei dusted off his hands and smiled at Xiao Feng.

Seeing the unique shape of the birdhouse and its perfect height, Xiao Feng immediately flew inside.

It didn't know what kind of material the birdhouse was made of, but despite the chilly weather outside, Xiao Feng felt instantly warm the moment it stepped inside.

It hopped onto the tiny perch, swaying gently back and forth as it examined the interior of its new home.

It was surprisingly spacious inside, giving it plenty of room to move around comfortably.

The hanging perch doubled as a swing for it to play on.

'Not bad.'

'This place is actually pretty good!'

Xiao Feng started chirping happily, all its previous complaints tossed completely out the window.