Ye Tiancheng was truly too thick-skinned. The fat man's voice had already turned strange, yet he was still angrily cursing those crows, ready to charge in and start a world war with them at any moment.
Fortunately, Lin Xue was still there. No matter how cold a woman was, she was far more perceptive than others. Lin Xue noticed the fat man's abnormality and quickly went to check on him.
"Heavens, Master, come quickly and take a look. Brother Fatty is injured, and we need to find a way to help him. This kind of injury is not good."
Lin Xue was very anxious. Ye Tiancheng rarely saw many expressions on this woman's face, but it was different now. A look of worry was completely visible on her face, no different from any ordinary woman.
Ye Tiancheng was also anxious and quickly came over to check with his true qi. He discovered that the back of the fat man's neck had been bitten by those detestable crows. A piece of flesh had been bitten off, revealing a bloody hole that was still bleeding. Moreover, the bloody hole was exceptionally terrifying, and black true qi was also emerging from it, making it a truly shocking sight.
"I'm sorry, Fatty. I didn't protect you well. You're just an ordinary person with slightly more strength than others. You can't withstand this."
"Brother Ye, don't say that. It's me who is useless. If I were even a little useful, this wouldn't be the situation today. I don't deserve to be your friend."
The main reason why Fatty hid his injury and didn't say anything was that he didn't want Ye Tiancheng to worry. He felt he was too weak; just a few crows had caused him to be severely weakened. He had initially felt he could help Ye Tiancheng with many things by his side, but now he felt like he was just a burden, and that feeling was too unbearable.
"No, after I heal you this time, I must find a way to make you stronger. I was wrong before. I thought it was enough for you to just do what you're good at, like driving and cooking for us, and handling the logistics. But now I realize I was mistaken. Our situation is too dangerous. Just doing logistics isn't enough. You must ensure your own safety. Even if we can save you, you still have to endure hardship."
As Ye Tiancheng spoke, he began to heal the wound with his true qi, but at the same time, he felt very anxious. The black energy around Fatty's wound was constantly lingering. Even though Ye Tiancheng's true qi could gradually force this black energy out of the wound, in this situation, Fatty was bound to suffer a lot.
The wound was on Fatty's body, and it would always be affected. It was unrealistic to expect that nothing would happen.
"Fatty, if it hurts, just shout."
Lin Xue was on the side, using her spiritual power as a support. If Lin Xue wasn't there to use her spiritual power to alleviate the pain, Fatty would have surely been unable to bear it. The pain would have likely caused him to grind his teeth to dust. He wouldn't be able to remain as calm and composed as he was now, as if nothing had happened.
"It doesn't hurt. It's fine. It's nothing to me."
Fatty gritted his teeth. If he shouted now, it would only make others worry more. So, Fatty decided not to think too much about it for the time being; enduring the present moment was victory.
Soon, the last trace of black energy was forced out of the wound. The entire wound now appeared bright red. Then, Ye Tiancheng applied medicine and bandaged it, reinforcing it with true qi.
Normally, such a large bloody hole would not heal easily. After Ye Tiancheng's reinforcement, the flesh and blood quickly closed together, finally forming a scab in the fastest possible way.
"Do you feel alright now?"
"Yes, it even feels a little itchy, like the sensation when a wound heals. Thank you, Brother Ye. You saved my life once again."
Ye Tiancheng comforted Fatty for a long time, then called Lin Xue aside to discuss. "Xue'er, Fatty's current condition is not good. This time, it was thanks to the combined efforts of you and me, but if there's a next time, I don't know what we'll do. We must make Fatty stronger. Only when Fatty is strong will he have the ability to protect himself when facing enemies."
"Master, Fatty has no foundation for cultivation, and his body cannot retain it. Let's find a magical artifact for him. For ordinary people, although they cannot fully control a magical artifact, they can protect themselves. I think that's enough."
In fact, Lin Xue had this idea before and had been looking for one for Fatty, but this matter was not that simple. The entire foundation depended on finding a suitable magical artifact. This was something that depended heavily on fate; it wasn't something you could have just by wishing for it. Sometimes, it required luck.
"I remember now. I collected some magical artifacts when I traveled around before. I had put them in my storage ring and never had the chance to take them out. I think now is the time to use them."
Ye Tiancheng quickly rummaged through his storage ring and finally found one. It looked a bit pathetic – a shovel that was still covered in dirt.
"Why is there still dirt on this shovel?" Ye Tiancheng was bewildered. "Is it really appropriate to give this to Fatty?"
"Master, you are mistaken. This is a magical artifact from a top-tier tomb robber. Do you think just anyone can own a magical artifact from such a person? This is extremely rare."
Hearing Lin Xue say this, the magical artifact suddenly gained a legendary aura and felt different. Since it was a shovel that had once dug up tombs, it must be different from other shovels.
"Then let's give this shovel to Fatty. This is not an ordinary shovel; it has spiritual energy on it. Ordinary evil spirits cannot get close to it. If you hit any ghostly thing with this shovel, it will be utterly destroyed."
Although it looked shabby on the outside, it had all the necessary qualities. This was also quite good, as it matched Fatty's appearance. Lin Xue's magical artifact was a "Heavenly Maiden Scattering Flowers Umbrella," a beautiful oil-paper umbrella. If that were given to Fatty, wouldn't it be out of place?
After a short rest, Fatty had basically recovered. With the enhancement of spiritual power, it was naturally quite different.
"Brother Ye, I'm completely fine now. You were talking about me being a burden, but you don't need to worry about that at all. As long as I'm by Brother Ye's side, even if I get injured occasionally, it doesn't matter. Since you're here, I won't die."
Ye Tiancheng quickly took out the magical shovel and presented it to Fatty with both hands, telling him that this was a very famous shovel that could be used to slay demons and vanquish evil, especially effective against evil spirits.
"This is too cool, Brother Ye! To be honest, I've never seen such a cool shovel before. And it really suits my temperament. I've dreamed of having a shovel like this in my dreams, and now my wish can finally come true. This is great!"
After taking the shovel, Fatty even wiped off the dirt with a tissue. His genuine excitement was undeniable, showing how much he truly liked it.
"As long as you like it. Otherwise, if the gift I gave you was too low-quality, I would have been a bit embarrassed. No matter how powerful it is, it's still just a shovel. I was afraid you wouldn't like it."
Fatty quickly shook his head. "No, I like it very much. I'm fine now. I'm going out to hit something later, otherwise, I'll feel stifled. I have to vent somehow."
Ye Tiancheng found Fatty particularly adorable at this moment. Holding the shovel, he was reluctant to let go and truly wanted to test if it had any magical power.
"Alright, it's almost evening. Fatty, don't go out and cause trouble. Be a little more patient. After Lin Xue finishes cooking, let's eat first."
As soon as he heard the word "cooking," Fatty became sensitive. In Fatty's heart, he was the one responsible for cooking. If that role was taken away, Fatty would feel very disappointed.
"How could you take away my chef position while I was sleeping? I've always been the one cooking, and you just gave it to someone else. I feel quite upset about this."
Seeing Fatty's genuine disappointment, Ye Tiancheng naturally had to go along with his wishes. After all, he was an injured person, and Fatty was usually pampered. If he rarely made a request, it would certainly be granted.
"Alright, as long as you're feeling well, I can agree to that. Go and give it a try, with Xue'er assisting you. You can be the head chef."
Finally reclaiming his dignity as a chef, Fatty was overjoyed and even pulled Ye Tiancheng to the kitchen with him.
Meanwhile, Lin Xue had just finished wrapping dumplings. She planned to boil some dumplings for dinner and serve them with flatbread. The flatbread was pre-frozen and just needed to be heated up. Lin Xue also drizzled oil and sprinkled chopped scallions on top, making the flatbread even more appetizing.
"It smells so good! I think Miss Xue's cooking skills are getting better and better." Fatty smelled the aroma of the food and was very happy. Then, he had a sudden idea. "I'll fry an egg later, and then we'll have a complete meal."
"Okay, as long as there's food, that's good. Do you hear the chirping of crickets outside? Black Wind Mountain is clearly much quieter than last night. It seems we can have a good night's sleep tonight."
After some tense and exciting events, Ye Tiancheng could finally relax a bit. He was becoming increasingly adept at entertaining himself. Arranging everything was the only thing he could do now.
"Okay, let's hope so."
The few of them were eating. The atmosphere was particularly good today. They chatted while eating, and everyone's mood seemed to be very high.
Just as they were letting down their guard, they suddenly heard some faint sounds. Ye Tiancheng had drunk a little wine today, and perhaps the alcohol had made his nerve responses less sensitive. The first to notice the problem was not him, nor Lin Xue, but the ordinary Fatty.
Fatty, by all rights, shouldn't have been able to do anything but help with logistics. However, after being injured this time, he had undergone a complete transformation. His entire demeanor had changed.
"Brother Ye, I feel like something is approaching. Listen carefully. I'm afraid something is going to attack us, and we'll be caught off guard."
Lin Xue listened carefully and also detected something amiss. "It seems that Black Wind Mountain is truly very hospitable. As soon as we arrived, all these demons and monsters came out to cause trouble. I want to see what these ghostly things are capable of."