Chapter Twenty-Four: As It Turns Out, One Should Never Provoke a Tigress

Yet, Shen Qingli could clearly sense the monkey casting her a disdainful sideways glance.

“Caicai, it just looked at me sideways, didn’t it? Didn’t it?” Shen Qingli exclaimed, her eyes wide.

[Yes, Host, trust your instincts. It really did give you a sideways look.] The system nodded earnestly.

The next moment, Shen Qingli tossed the banana in her hand straight out.

“Bang!”

It landed squarely on the monkey’s head, and in an instant, a fierce battle broke out between the two.

In the end, Shen Qingli, her hair a tangled nest of straw, snorted coldly as she packed away her medicinal herbs.

The monkey, sporting several lumps on its head, cursed her under its breath.

“Well, so you’re not convinced, are you?” Shen Qingli said, waving her fist and grinning menacingly at the monkey.

The system muttered silently: How could a monkey ever stand up to a tigress?

Shen Qingli moved on to other spots, and soon, it wasn’t just monkeys that appeared—even a tiger showed up!

“Caicai, do something!” she whispered from her hiding place in the grass, desperately seeking backup.

[Host, that’s a tiger.] The system responded.

“Do you think I don’t know what a tiger looks like? Hurry up, is there anything we can trade? Otherwise, that fruit is going to end up in the tiger’s belly!” Shen Qingli said urgently, just as she sensed the tiger suddenly turn its head toward her.

She shivered and shrank further back, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Caicai, quick, think of something!”

After a moment, Shen Qingli felt a warm breath on her neck. Frowning, she slapped at it.

“I’m busy here, don’t mess around!” she said irritably, when suddenly the system’s trembling voice echoed in her mind.

[Host, maybe you should look behind you?]

Realization dawned, and she stiffly turned her head to the side.

“Whoosh!”

The tiger’s heavy breath blew Shen Qingli’s bangs clear off her forehead.

“Ah!” Without thinking, she squeezed her eyes shut and punched the tiger squarely on the head.

“Duang!”

With a tremendous thud, the tiger toppled onto its back, legs splayed in the air.

[Host, you’re incredible…] The system stared in awe at the scene before it, even more convinced now that Shen Qingli was not someone to mess with.

Even Shen Qingli herself hadn’t expected to knock the tiger flat with a single punch. Unbeknownst to her, it was the spiritual power infused in her body by Xie Jinchuan that gave her strength.

“All right, now there’s just one left!” Carefully picking the fruit and placing it in a box, Shen Qingli’s gaze shifted to a cliff not far away.

She could vaguely see a small fruit tree perched on the cliff’s edge.

“Caicai, is there any way I can get up there?” Standing at the base of the cliff, Shen Qingli squinted up at the fruit, speaking to the system.

[Host, I have flying shoes here, but they cost a hundred points to exchange and can only be used once.]

Shen Qingli’s eyes widened in surprise. “Are you trying to rob me?”

A hundred points!

She barely had two hundred to her name—this would wipe out half in one go.

[Alternatively, Host can choose climbing shoes. Guaranteed not to let you fall!]

Shen Qingli’s eyes sparkled instantly. “How much for those?”

[Special price, one hundred fifty.]

The smile vanished from Shen Qingli’s face. “Do you take me for a fool? Just give me the flying shoes—let’s get this over with!”

She spoke with obvious reluctance, but thinking of Xie Jinchuan bedridden at home, her conscience wouldn’t let her hesitate.

She gritted her teeth.

[Ding! One hundred points exchanged for flying shoes. Host is granted an extra chance as a bonus!]

Hearing the notification in her mind, Shen Qingli smiled and instantly felt as though wings had sprouted from her shoes.

She glanced around, then pushed off with her feet and soared toward the top of the cliff.

“This feeling of flying in the sky—I haven’t experienced it in ages!” Shen Qingli exclaimed, shifting positions in midair to get closer to the fruit.

Suddenly, a shadow swept overhead.

“Whoosh!”

A black figure shot past above her, bringing a gust of wind. Shen Qingli nearly lost her balance and was almost blown away.

She immediately became alert, and when she heard the sound of something slicing through the air, she instinctively dodged to the side.

Now she could see clearly what had flashed by—it was a giant eagle!

It was fully three times as large as Shen Qingli lying down, side by side.

[Dangerous creature detected: Giant Eagle. Cultivation time: three hundred years.] The system’s voice chimed in her mind, and Shen Qingli’s expression grew grave.

A cultivated beast! But that fruit…

[Host, I forgot to tell you: that fruit won’t be ripe for another three days, so we’d better make a run for it.]

“Why didn’t you say so earlier!” Shen Qingli gritted her teeth as the giant eagle swooped at her again.

She dodged swiftly, inadvertently moving closer to the spiritual herb.

“Caicai, if I pull it up by the roots, will it hinder its growth?”

[It will.]

Shen Qingli barely had time to complain before the eagle’s screech echoed all around.

Her head buzzed instinctively, and as she snapped back to herself she saw the giant eagle open its beak and spit a terrifying fireball straight at her.

“Boom!”

As the sound exploded, Shen Qingli took advantage of the eagle’s distraction and darted into the dense mountain forest to hide.

Even with her quick reflexes, her arm was burned by the fireball, leaving a scar.

Pain twisted her brow as she looked at the pursuing eagle and took a deep breath.

“Caicai, tigers and the like are fine—they don’t have spiritual power—but how come you know nothing about this thing behind me?” Shen Qingli panted, shouting at the system as she ran.

The giant eagle seemed to have locked onto her, relentlessly chasing her down.

From time to time, it spat fireballs at Shen Qingli.

Each one grazed her, never quite hitting directly, but the scorching heat made her break into a sweat.

“Damn, is it trying to burn me alive?” she muttered, swallowing hard as she watched a fireball burn a hole in the ground.

This giant eagle’s mastery of fire was unmatched.

[Host, I really didn’t detect the eagle—maybe because it’s up in the sky…] The system stammered, quickly searching for a solution.

[Host, there’s a cave nearby—do you want to hide there?]

Spotting the cave in the distance, Shen Qingli’s eyes lit up. She gathered her strength and sprinted toward it.