Chapter 131

Chapter 131: A Dopey Bamboo Bear Clings to Her?

Because her Cosmos Pouch was packed with all kinds of treasures, she put the cut Bloodtear Jade Bamboo into a normal storage bag.

It did not take long; soon she was ready to head down.

Looking over the edge, she suddenly noticed a black and white creature on the rock wall. It was a chubby little cub, working hard to crawl up.

The Qiong Jade was slick as glass. Even with sharp claws, the Demonic Beast rolled down when it reached a quarter of the height.

Its round body bounced twice on the ground. The little ball stomped in anger, looking adorably silly.

Shen Sang Ruo smiled and looked away.

But the black and white Demonic Beast seemed to sense her. Its gaze locked on her, dark eyes staring straight at her.

Their eyes met, but she did not think much of it. She jumped down from the platform and rejoined Fang Yu.

After they walked for a good while, Shen Sang Ruo felt something watching her from behind.

She turned and saw that the cub from before had followed them all this way.

Its eyes sat inside big dark circles, and it stared at her without blinking.

She recognized it at once. This iconic beast of the Phantom Mirage Domain was a Bamboo Bear.

While she paused, the Bamboo Bear cub scurried to her with its four short legs.

Then it started climbing up her robes.

She froze and thought: [What?]

The cub’s sudden move caught her off guard, and for a moment she did not know how to react.

Fang Yu turned around and, seeing the round Bamboo Bear climbing her, blurted out in shock: “How did you grow a Demonic Beast on you in just a moment?”

Shen Sang Ruo sighed and explained: “It followed me on its own.”

She tried to pull the little thing off, but its claws felt welded to her body and would not budge no matter how she tugged.

Fang Yu rubbed his chin and said: “This is strange. What does it want?”

She could not tell its intentions, but she felt no hostility from it.

The little one climbed up to her waist and began to nudge her over and over with its head.

It was gentle. She could even feel how soft its head was.

She could not let it keep bumping her, so she took everything off her belt, including the Cosmos Pouch and the storage bag.

The Bamboo Bear immediately stopped, then climbed toward the hand holding the storage bag.

She watched it and said, half amused: “I think I know why it is following me.” She took some freshly cut Bloodtear Jade Bamboo from the bag and offered it to the cub.

The little one hugged the stalk and crunched away, finishing the jade-like bamboo in a few bites.

She was surprised it could smell the bamboo through the storage bag.

Fang Yu nodded in understanding and said: “So it wanted bamboo. This little one is picky.”

Bamboo was everywhere here, yet it only ate Bloodtear Jade Bamboo.

Fang Yu pointed back toward the platform and said: “Then why not go up there? There is a whole patch of it.”

Shen Sang Ruo pointed at the Bamboo Bear’s four short, fat legs to show him the reason.

Fang Yu sucked in a breath and said: “Right.”

It was not that the cub did not want to; it just could not climb up.

While it was busy eating, she lifted it off and stuffed a few more stalks of Bloodtear Jade Bamboo into its arms. She said with relief: “Now it should stop following me. Let’s go.”

But after a few steps, the Bamboo Bear cried out, hugged the bamboo with one paw, and charged at her like a boar, trying to climb her again.

She frowned and wondered aloud: “Did I not give enough?”

She looked at the high platform and told Fang Yu: “Wait here. I will take it to the top.”

Surely it would not think that was not enough. The whole grove up there would be its food.

She bent to scoop up the little ball and, taking the chance, petted it twice. Its fur was as smooth as You You’s, but a bit softer to hold. She decided: [It must be because this Bamboo Bear is too fat.]

It was still within what she could carry, so bringing it up the platform was not too hard.

If not for the situation, its silly cute look would have been very likable.

She set the Bamboo Bear down and turned to leave.

The little one stared at the patch of Bloodtear Jade Bamboo, eyes shining, and snapped off several stalks to eat. When it turned around, Shen Sang Ruo had already gone.

It looked at the bamboo in its paws, then at the direction she left, shaking its head so hard it almost became a rattle drum.

A conflicted look showed in its ringed eyes.

After hesitating, it tossed the bamboo and trotted after her.

It could not climb up, but that did not mean it could not go down.

It leaped off the platform, curled into a ball, bounced several times like before, and landed without a scratch.

It stretched, shook its short legs, and rushed to catch up with Shen Sang Ruo.

This time its goal was clear. It climbed only onto her upper body, found a comfortable spot, and hung there without moving.

Looking satisfied, it closed its eyes and thought: [So warm.]

Shen Sang Ruo fell silent.

She wondered: [Can someone tell me why this thing came after me again?]

Fang Yu eyed the black and white ball and said: “Sang Ruo, it seems stuck to you. It even gave up that whole patch of bamboo.”

He added with wonder: “Other than the Demonic Beasts trained by the Beast Taming Sect, this is the first time I have seen one so friendly to people.”

Shen Sang Ruo truly did not understand why the little guy clung to her. She thought with a mix of doubt and humor: [Was it because we locked eyes, just because I looked at it one extra time? Or because I laughed when it fell off the rock wall?]

She tried many ways to shake it off. No matter how far she set it down or how many detours she took, it always found her.

It knew the paths here as if this were its own home.

Out of options, she took it along, planning to hand it to the people who protected such beasts when they reached Wuqing Stockade.

Bamboo Bears were rare in the Phantom Mirage Domain, and each one was precious.

Luckily this was only a cub, not too eye catching. It would do as a silly, cute mascot for now.

So she gained a new Bamboo Bear pendant clinging to her.

First Fang Yu, then the Bamboo Bear. She had a feeling that if she lingered, even more people or Demonic Beasts would join her team.

She spoke under her breath: “I must find the Ten Thousand Year Myriad Transforming Wood as soon as possible.”

The pendant on her chest heard her. The Bamboo Bear yawned, twitched its nose, and looked toward a certain direction. It lifted its head a little, pride shining in its beady eyes within those dark rings, and thought: [I am no mascot.]