Chapter 8
Mons had been exceptionally busy today, and unless necessary for work, he really didn’t want to contact Huo Ranchuan in the middle of the night.
Huo Ranchuan’s spiritual power was among the highest in the entire Empire, but his powerful spiritual entity also brought him many troubles.
Although his spiritual entity currently seemed stable and didn’t show any signs of losing control or rampaging, Huo Ranchuan himself had a notoriously volatile temper!
Otherwise, how else could he have single-handedly pushed through the “Protect the Cubs Initiative”? It wasn’t because people agreed with him but because those who opposed him didn’t dare challenge him to his face.
Huo Ranchuan was the type who, when provoked, wouldn’t hesitate to punch the Empire’s Crown Prince. Who could handle such a fiery temper?
Now, it was already midnight. It took immense courage to call Huo Ranchuan at this hour.
In the video call, Mons nervously looked at Huo Ranchuan’s stern face and quickly said, “Commander, it’s like this—just now, Teacher Xiao Bai sent me a message saying a little black snake broke into his room…”
Huo Ranchuan: “……”
Huo Ranchuan’s eyelid twitched. So Bai Nuosi had reported this to his direct supervisor?
He stared at Mons with a strange expression, thinking that Mons probably hadn’t recognized that the snake was his spiritual entity.
The little black snake, acting all familiar, had burrowed into Bai Nuosi’s arms, its tail tightly wrapped around his waist, its head affectionately rubbing against Bai Nuosi’s cheek and neck.
Bai Nuosi was so frightened that he stood rigidly, not daring to move for several minutes. It was only after he slowly regained his composure that he carefully held the black snake and went to the bedroom.
With trembling hands, he picked up his smart wristband, awkwardly took a photo of the little black snake—including the shiny golden tag engraved with an “S”—and sent it to Mons.
Bai Nuosi: [Supervisor Mons! A black snake suddenly broke into my room!! He has a tag too; is he a cub? What should I do!!!! Can you help me contact his caregiver!!!]
Bai Nuosi: [Anxious cat with folded ears.jpg]
From the number of exclamation marks in Bai Nuosi’s message, it was clear his emotions were anything but calm.
Mons was stunned the moment he saw the photo. According to the laws of life, growth is irreversible.
Once a spiritual entity has evolved to maturity, it can’t revert to its cub stage.
But Huo Ranchuan’s spiritual entity, the Teng Snake, was different. Even after maturing, it still shed its skin every month—on average two to three times a month. Each shedding meant a new growth.
Not only did it grow, but it also had a special ability: it could change its body size.
Because of this skill, it had made significant contributions in combat.
Now, it had shrunk its body and broken into Bai Nuosi’s home. Could it be that something had happened over there?
But what kind of situation would require the Teng Snake to nestle in Bai Nuosi’s arms, wrapping around Teacher Xiao Bai as if claiming territory?
Mons was bewildered, unable to figure it out. Worried that he might say something that would interfere with Huo Ranchuan’s plans, he hurriedly called in the middle of the night.
He directly forwarded the messages from Bai Nuosi to Huo Ranchuan.
Nervously wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, he tentatively asked, “Um, Commander, don’t you think the little black snake coiled around Teacher Xiao Bai’s waist looks a bit familiar?”
It’s said that a spiritual entity’s behavior reflects the inner self of its main body. Now, looking at that little black snake tightly wrapped around Bai Nuosi, Mons cleverly pretended to be oblivious. He didn’t know if others recognized it, but he couldn’t admit that he did!
No matter what happened, he absolutely couldn’t mention that Huo Ranchuan’s spiritual entity was cuddling and acting spoiled with Bai Nuosi!
Huo Ranchuan looked at the chat history between Bai Nuosi and Mons, remaining silent for a long time.
His gaze involuntarily lingered on that photo of the little black snake.
Because the black snake’s head was affectionately rubbing against Bai Nuosi’s cheek, the photo not only captured the full view of the little black snake but also included Bai Nuosi’s face.
The black-haired, black-eyed boy with fair and delicate skin was cautiously tilting his head, trying to avoid the snake’s touch, yet seemingly reluctant to upset the little black snake, so he only moved slightly and then held still.
The black snake was intimately nuzzling the black-haired boy. Its black scales reflected the warm yellow light of the room, making Bai Nuosi’s neck appear even more slender and fair. The more Huo Ranchuan looked, the more severe his expression became.
Seeing his demeanor, Mons thought he was pondering something extremely serious.
In reality, what Huo Ranchuan was thinking was that Teacher Xiao Bai was indeed very gentle and good-looking—no wonder the Teng Snake liked him.
After all, who wouldn’t be drawn to someone gentle?
Huo Ranchuan coughed lightly, gave Mons a stern look, and said, “I’ll handle this matter; you don’t need to worry.”
Mons: “……”
Internally, Mons was amazed, his gaze toward Huo Ranchuan becoming increasingly peculiar.
What was Commander Huo up to? Could it be that Teacher Xiao Bai indeed had some secret, and the Teng Snake had discovered something?
At that moment, Mons’s phone rang—it was Bai Nuosi calling. Mons hesitated, unsure whether to answer. After all, even if he did, he didn’t know what to say.
Mons held the phone, looking at Huo Ranchuan.
Huo Ranchuan felt somewhat irritable. Due to the instability of his spiritual sea, he was already prone to impatience. Now, with the Teng Snake causing trouble, he was even more annoyed.
Not only did Teacher Xiao Bai attract the little black panther, but he also attracted the Teng Snake. Previously, one could argue that the issue was with the little black panther itself, but now, Teacher Xiao Bai seemed to be the common factor.
Standing by the window, he pondered for a few seconds before speaking seriously, “The Teng Snake will frequently go over there to patrol, but we can’t let him know it’s a spiritual entity.”
Key point: We can’t let Teacher Xiao Bai know that it’s his spiritual entity!!!
Mainly because the Teng Snake was behaving too much like a sycophant in front of Teacher Xiao Bai, making Huo Ranchuan feel embarrassed.
Mons understood. Commander Huo meant that the black snake would continue to stay with Bai Nuosi, perhaps to observe Teacher Xiao Bai up close, but lacked a legitimate reason.
Well, that’s simple enough. Since the little black snake can become small, they could just say it’s a cub from the S District.
Mons answered the call, “Hello, Xiao Bai.”
Holding the black snake coiled around him, Bai Nuosi had calmed down and didn’t find the snake as frightening anymore. It was just that the snake’s scales felt cool, making him a bit hesitant to touch.
“Supervisor Mons,”
Not wanting to disturb the sleeping little black panther cub, he spoke softly, his voice sounding gentle and soft over the phone, “What’s the situation with this little black snake? Did he get separated from his caregiver?”
Mons glanced at the video of Huo Ranchuan, apologetically saying, “Xiao Bai, this black snake also belongs to our S District. Um… he’s also a cub, but he doesn’t have a dedicated caregiver.”
Huo Ranchuan: “???”
What the heck? A cub?
Huo Ranchuan’s sharp gaze fixated on Mons. How could the Teng Snake be called a cub? Wasn’t this deceiving Teacher Xiao Bai?
Mons’s hand trembled, cold sweat instantly forming on his forehead.
He anxiously looked at Huo Ranchuan in the video, his eyes pleading: ‘Can’t we say he’s a cub?’
But if they wanted the black snake to frequently appear with Bai Nuosi and couldn’t say it was a cub, then what could they say it was?
Given the small size of the black snake, saying it’s a cub seemed appropriate. Mons didn’t know how else to explain it.
So why did the Teng Snake have to transform into a juvenile form?
Feeling wronged under Huo Ranchuan’s glare, Mons didn’t dare say or ask anything further.
After exchanging glances with Mons, Huo Ranchuan once again cursed his spiritual entity in his mind. The situation had become somewhat tricky.
However, on second thought, Huo Ranchuan realized that perhaps it was acceptable for the Teng Snake to stay by Teacher Xiao Bai’s side in the form of a cub. After all, people generally let their guard down around cubs. Maybe the Teng Snake could more easily investigate Teacher Xiao Bai’s background.
Bai Nuosi looked at the black snake in his arms. The snake was affectionately rubbing against his neck, then burrowing into his embrace, acting like it wanted to be petted.
Hesitating slightly, Bai Nuosi asked, “He doesn’t have a dedicated caregiver? Why not? He’s so well-behaved~”
Mons: “???”
What? Well-behaved?
Teacher Xiao Bai, are you serious? Are you telling a joke?
Huo Ranchuan gazed thoughtfully at Mons’s phone, which was on speaker, pressing his fist against his mouth as if deep in thought. Mons didn’t know what Huo Ranchuan was thinking, but suddenly, Huo Ranchuan didn’t seem angry anymore.
Teacher Xiao Bai was praising his spiritual entity for being well-behaved; the Teng Snake should be happy—it was probably the first time since its birth.
He thought.
Suddenly, Bai Nuosi let out a soft “Ah.” The little black snake seemed to get excited, moving closer to nuzzle his cheek, the tip of its tail wrapped around his waist, happily swaying as it affectionately rubbed against his back.
Bai Nuosi: “……”
The little black snake was happy that Teacher Xiao Bai praised it and wanted to kiss him.
Helplessly, Bai Nuosi reached out and gently patted the little black snake’s head. “Be good now, don’t be naughty. Teacher is on the phone; we can play later, okay?”
Huo Ranchuan: “……”
Mons: “……” [Stunned dog emoji]
Huo Ranchuan thought, Well, why not?
You even called it ‘sweetheart’!
In his mind, Huo Ranchuan scolded his spiritual entity, the Teng Snake: Show-off! Can’t you be less embarrassing?
It’s really too clingy!
Bai Nuosi softly said again, “Supervisor, what should we do? There’s already a black panther cub in the room next door; the black snake doesn’t have a place to stay.”
What Bai Nuosi was thinking was that since the black snake didn’t have a caregiver, he wouldn’t mind taking care of it. But caregivers and cubs are supposed to be one-on-one. Since the room next door already had a black panther, there was no place for the black snake. Maybe Mons could find another caregiver for it?
Mons looked up at Huo Ranchuan.
Huo Ranchuan expressionlessly sent Mons a message.
Mons read Huo Ranchuan’s message and was silent for a few seconds. “Ahem, Xiao Bai, you’ve been busy all day; you should rest early. Don’t worry about the little black snake; leave it to us. You can just put him… no, place him outside the door.”
Bai Nuosi was shocked. What? In the middle of the night, just leave the little black snake outside unattended?
Bai Nuosi felt this wasn’t right!
Bai Nuosi: “Supervisor, how can we leave the cub outside in the middle of the night without supervision?”
Mons: “……”
Bai Nuosi: “Are you arranging for a caregiver to come and get him? I can wait with him at the door.”
Mons: “……”
Mons cautiously glanced at Huo Ranchuan.
So, Commander Huo, who usually kept his spiritual entity well under control, why did he let it break into Bai Nuosi’s room today and cling tightly to him?
And even transformed into a juvenile form!
Soon, a new message from Huo Ranchuan arrived.
Huo Ranchuan: [Tell him the caregiver is on the way.]
After sending the message, Huo Ranchuan immediately turned and left. Clearly, the caregiver he mentioned was himself.
In any case, letting a newly appointed caregiver take care of two cubs—especially when one of them was a problematic little black panther—would be too much pressure. Huo Ranchuan decided to retrieve the Teng Snake first.
Mons: “……”
So, not only would Huo Ranchuan’s spiritual entity pretend to be a cub, but Huo Ranchuan himself would also pretend to be a caregiver?
This…
Although it made sense, it still felt somewhat odd.
Mons scratched his head, his expression serious. So, what exactly was going on with Teacher Xiao Bai that made Commander Huo make such a significant sacrifice?
