Chapter 178
A-Yan tilted his head with a cheerful smile, gently rubbing Su Ci’s ears. Whether this meant he agreed not to let it happen again… only he knew.
As Su Ci finished speaking, the metal door to Room 303 slowly slid open.
Ran Lie and Xue Wei, who had been waiting outside, both sighed in relief. They had been careful to stay quiet, afraid of waking Su Ci.
Having visited many times, Ran Lie confidently stepped inside first. Seeing his ease, Xue Wei calmed her own nerves and followed him into the caretaker’s quarters.
“Good morning, Su Su! Good morning, Brother A-Yan!” the two greeted in unison.
Su Ci gave a small nod, and A-Yan, already on his feet, went to the kitchen to prepare food and drinks for the two young ones. Neither of them found it odd that A-Yan was there.
After all, all the young ones had a shared understanding: Brother A-Yan was always with Su Su.
Xue Wei briefly considered whether she should help, but before she could decide, Su Ci’s voice broke the silence. “Do you need something?”
Startled, she glanced at Ran Lie. Seeing he remained silent, she took a step forward and explained the reason for her visit to Su Ci.
After finishing, she looked at him nervously.
She had already promised Su Su to help with farming in exchange for his assistance with Chirp Chirp. Surely, she couldn’t use the same offer again to ask for his help now?
Su Ci, however, didn’t mention anything about compensation. Instead, he looked at Xue Wei thoughtfully.
Controlling power…
Xue Wei’s strength came from her bloodline. If she could fully master her bloodline abilities, she would eventually gain control over her immense strength.
But that day would likely only come after she matured.
For now, the lack of control over such overwhelming power was indeed a problem. Was there a technique that could help her master her bloodline abilities sooner?
Su Ci rubbed his chin as he observed the anxious little girl. To ease her nerves, he reached out and gently patted her head, offering her a sense of calm.
Then it hit him—emotions.
Xue Wei’s struggles with controlling her bloodline power were likely tied to her emotions. Her sensitive and fragile nature, shaped by the loss of her parents, kept her trapped in grief. Emotional instability was also a primary trigger for bloodline berserk episodes.
This thought made Su Ci turn toward Ran Lie.
The boy, who had only come along as an excuse to “talk to Su Ci,” froze when Su Ci suddenly looked his way.
Why is Su Su looking at me? he wondered. Then he heard Su Ci ask:
“How are you progressing with the buddhism technique I taught you?”
Caught off guard, Ran Lie immediately straightened up, his nerves tightening. He hesitated before replying, “I’ve memorized the entire thing and can write down about half of it.”
The base’s central AI had turned the buddhism technique into his introductory reading material. After learning half of it, Ran Lie had made significant progress—once barely literate, he could now write many words.
Because the buddhism technique was crucial to mastering his bloodline power, Ran Lie took it very seriously, treating it like a lifeline. He wouldn’t dare approach it casually.
However…
“I haven’t grasped much of its deeper meaning yet.”
After all, he was only a child barely past ten years old. The meditative and philosophical nature of the technique was too profound for him to fully comprehend. Mastery would take a long, long time.
Su Ci nodded lightly. He had expected as much. However, based on Ran Lie’s ability to switch freely between human and beast forms, the technique was clearly effective in helping him find inner calm in critical moments.
That benefit alone would be sufficient for Xue Wei.
“Understood,” Su Ci said. “From now on, you will teach Xue Wei this technique.”
As A-Yan brought over the prepared food and set it down, he glanced at Su Ci after hearing the conversation.
Ran Lie was cultivating a Buddhist meditative technique… He then looked at Xue Wei and, after a brief pause, shifted his gaze away.
Who said girls couldn’t cultivate Buddhist techniques? Buddhist cultivation, also known as Zen practice, was one of the paths to the Dao and had no gender restrictions.
Besides, Su Su teaching Ran Lie the technique wasn’t necessarily to turn him into a Buddhist cultivator. It was more about cultivating his heart and calming his mind. If that was the case, Xue Wei could certainly learn it as well.
This was exactly what Su Ci had in mind.
In this era of diminishing spiritual laws, it was already fortunate to find someone to pass on a Buddhist technique. Even if those old monks found out about it, they should consider themselves lucky.
Ran Lie, stunned for a moment, eventually snapped back to reality. He looked at Xue Wei and found her watching him as well.
Pressing his lips together, he turned his gaze away and said, “Alright, I understand.”
Xue Wei immediately beamed with delight, her voice crisp as she said, “Thank you, Lie Lie!”
She then turned to Su Ci to express her gratitude, but before she could say anything, Su Ci stopped her. “There’s no need to thank me. Once this technique was passed to Ran Lie, it became his to teach to anyone he chooses. Thank him instead.”
Ran Lie blinked, sensing the weight of Su Ci’s words. But given his age and limited experience, he couldn’t fully grasp their deeper meaning.
Su Ci, however, didn’t feel the need to elaborate.
By passing these teachings to the young ones, he had effectively designated them as successors. He wouldn’t teach the same techniques to any other humans.
Whether the legacy thrived or not would depend on these children. Su Ci had no intention of intervening further.
If anyone came to him seeking guidance in the future, he would direct them to the children. Whether or not they chose to teach was entirely up to them.
Of course, if anyone dared to coerce the young ones, they’d first have to prove they had the capability to do so.
Su Ci was quite protective. As long as he was on this planet, he couldn’t imagine anyone harming the young ones under his watch. As for what might happen when the children eventually left the planet…
Well, that was a concern for a much later time.
After finishing the discussion about the technique, Su Ci turned to Xue Wei and said gently, “This technique will help you calm your mind. Learn it well, and don’t let your emotions control you anymore.”
Xue Wei nodded quickly. “I understand, Su Su!”
“There are also Buddhist techniques specifically for cultivating strength. Once you’ve mastered the basics of this one, I’ll teach you those as well.”
Though these techniques were primarily meant to enhance physical strength, they also included methods for control. With a few adjustments, they could be tailored to Xue Wei’s needs.
And with the Spirit of Rules by his side, modifying a technique was hardly a challenge.
“Alright, thank you, Su Su! Then…” Xue Wei hesitated, as though she had something else to say.
Su Ci could guess her thoughts. He glanced at her rabbit ears but quickly averted his gaze under A-Yan’s intense, watchful eyes.
“Continue helping me with the farming as repayment,” Su Ci said, then added after a moment’s thought, “and focus on experimenting with new dishes.”
Since coming to the nursery, Xue Wei had drawn on her past experience to create many fresh and innovative dishes with the limited resources available, greatly enriching the menu for the young ones.
Naturally, Su Ci had benefited from this as well.
Xue Wei nodded enthusiastically and said, “Okay, Su Su! I’ll do my best!”
Su Ci acknowledged her with a hum, then turned to Ran Lie. “Is there anything else?”
Ran Lie instinctively shook his head but quickly remembered he had told Xue Wei earlier that he needed to talk to Su Ci. He stopped himself and raised a few questions about the cultivation technique he had been practicing.
Since she would also be learning the technique, Xue Wei listened intently. While much of it was beyond her understanding at the moment, she thought she might understand better once she started practicing herself.
Finally, after Su Ci finished answering Ran Lie’s questions and was about to send the two children off, Ran Lie suddenly said, “Su Su, I have one last question.”
“Go ahead.”
“When will that little sparrow come back?”
Xue Wei froze for a moment. She glanced at Ran Lie, but he didn’t look at her, as if he was asking purely out of his own curiosity. Still, his question filled her with joy.
She turned to Su Ci, her clear eyes full of hope. She truly……missed Chirp Chirp so much.
To her, Chirp Chirp was the strongest connection to her past—a real family member.
Su Ci…
He had completely forgotten about the little sparrow. However, since he had left a mark on Chirp Chirp, he could sense that its condition was excellent, with even its aura growing stronger.
“If you want to see it, I can bring it back,” Su Ci said.
After all this time, it wasn’t ideal for a living creature like Chirp Chirp to remain sealed away. It was time to let it stretch its wings again.
After confirming that bringing Chirp Chirp back early wouldn’t harm it, Xue Wei smiled and agreed. She and Ran Lie then left Su Ci’s quarters together.
“Thank you, Lie Lie,” Xue Wei said sincerely once they were in the hallway.
Ran Lie waved his hand dismissively, clearly impatient, and stuffed his hands into his pockets, ready to walk away. But just two steps later, he almost stumbled when Xue Wei spoke again.
Her voice was sweet and cheerful as she asked gently, “So, Lie Lie, should I start calling you teacher now?”
Ran Lie barely managed to steady himself. Teacher?
The title was tempting, especially for someone like Ran Lie, who had always wanted to shake off the childish nickname “Lie Lie.” But in the end, he resisted the urge.
Shaking his head, Ran Lie replied, “Su Su is our teacher. I’m just passing on the heart technique on his behalf.”
“I see…” Xue Wei mused, recalling how similar situations were portrayed in TV dramas she had seen. With a smile, she corrected herself. “Then that means we share the same teacher, and since you started before me, that makes you my senior brother.”
Ran Lie blinked, momentarily stunned by her reasoning. Then he sighed and muttered, “Do whatever you want.”
“Then I’ll call you Senior Brother from now on, okay?”
Senior Brother…
Hearing this, Ran Lie immediately puffed out his chest. Although he had never heard this title before, it somehow made him feel a newfound sense of responsibility.
“Alright. I’ll teach you well, but you have to take it seriously too.”
“Got it, Lie Lie Senior Brother!”
Ran Lie, who thought he had finally escaped the nickname “Lie Lie,” suddenly choked. He glanced at the smiling girl, who had fully recovered from her earlier negative emotions, and opened his mouth to protest. In the end, though, he begrudgingly accepted it.
Still, his mood soured a bit, and he grumbled, “Let’s go!”
The two young ones entered the elevator, and after a while, a sneaky figure emerged from the stairwell—it was Lang Ze.
Wagging his fluffy tail, he approached Room 303. Wondering if Su Su was awake yet, he saw the metal door automatically slide open.
The little wolf pup let out a cheer and noisily rushed inside.
“Su Su, I need to talk to you!”
