’Where’s Master?’

"WOOF WOOF~" Bai Wan’s nose twitched. Although it couldn’t see anything, its keen sense of smell had caught a familiar scent.

’Master went out.’

"Woof?"

Leopard turned its head and looked at Bai Wan in confusion.

’You saw Master? How come I didn’t see anything?’

"WOOF WOOF~"

Bai Wan wagged its tail.

’I didn’t see him, but I smelled him.’

"Woof~"

Hu Zi barked in agreement.

’I smelled it too. It’s definitely Master’s scent.’

"WOOF WOOF!"

Leopard let out an irritated bark.

’That’s not what I mean!’

’I’m saying, Master is gone!’

"Woof?"

Bai Wan tilted its head, seemingly not understanding what Leopard was so worked up about.

’So what?’

’Master has lots of abilities we don’t understand.’

’Maybe Master just doesn’t want us to see him?’

Leopard: "..."

It was left speechless by Bai Wan’s matter-of-fact reply.

’Come to think of it, that doesn’t seem wrong, does it?’

Master did often pull off some magical feats.

"Meow~"

Xiaojiu, who had been quietly watching them communicate, let out a serious meow.

’Stop arguing.’

’Master went out to handle business. He naturally has his reasons.’

’Our job is to watch the house, stay quiet, and not draw the attention of the neighbors.’

"Whine~"

’Understood.’

Hu Zi whimpered in assent.

"WOOF WOOF!"

’Got it.’

Bai Wan and Leopard quickly fell silent and lay back down, though their ears remained pricked up alertly.

Invisible, Yang Qi couldn’t help but smile upon hearing this "conversation" between his furry children.

Xiaojiu’s intelligence and leadership were growing stronger and stronger.

Wasting no more time, he strode out of the courtyard.

Once outside, Yang Qi immediately blended into the shadows beside the villa.

His steps were light, his form like a cat, and he moved swiftly, sticking to areas untouched by the lights or cloaked in dimness.

The Zoo was silent at night, with only the occasional low cry of an animal breaking the quiet.

He followed a familiar path, heading quickly toward Bao Shun’s house on the other side of the employee residential area.

As a long-time employee, Bao Shun had been assigned a detached, cottage-style house with a small courtyard, located in a relatively quiet corner of the residential area.

The courtyard had been turned into a small vegetable garden, planted with some seasonal vegetables and enclosed by a simple bamboo fence.

Yang Qi soon arrived outside Bao Shun’s small courtyard.

Hidden in the shadows at the corner of the courtyard wall, he peeked inside the house.

A warm, yellow light shone through the window.

He was in luck. Bao Shun and the little girl, Tutu, were eating dinner.

Through the glass window, Yang Qi saw Bao Shun periodically placing food on Tutu’s plate as she sat opposite him, seeming to say something as he did.

Tutu ate in small bites. Her face still looked pale under the light, but her expression was calm.

’Perfect timing!’

With a thought, Yang Qi retrieved the Profound Yellow Blood Transformation Pill from his Hundred Pouches Belt.

The pill was the size of a longan, its surface a swirling mix of profound-yellow and earthy-brown, marked with cloud-like patterns. It emitted a refreshing medicinal fragrance.

Yang Qi quickly used a thread of Magical Power to contain the fragrance and prevent it from spreading.

He then mobilized his Magical Power and began to use the Object Manipulation Technique, which he had practiced diligently for the past few days and was now quite proficient with.

An invisible wisp of Magical Power, fine as a silk thread, gently wrapped around the Profound Yellow Blood Transformation Pill, lifting it steadily until it floated in front of Yang Qi.

The next moment, Yang Qi bent down, picked up a small pebble from the ground, and with a flick of his wrist, sent it flying silently toward the courtyard gate. It struck the wooden gate with a soft "TAP."

"Who’s there?"

Bao Shun’s wary voice came from inside the house.

Yang Qi held his breath.

Bao Shun waited a few seconds. Hearing no response, he grew uneasy, put down his chopsticks, stood up, and walked toward the front door.

"Tutu, you keep eating. Grandpa will go take a look."

Hearing Bao Shun’s footsteps approach the door, followed by the sound of it opening, Yang Qi knew his chance had come!

His focus absolute, his Spiritual Sense locked onto the small, thin figure inside the house as he pushed his Object Manipulation Technique to its limit.

’Go!’

With a silent command, the Profound Yellow Blood Transformation Pill, enveloped in Magical Power, shot out as if flicked by an invisible finger. It transformed into a streak of light, nearly invisible to the naked eye, and zipped through the crack in the open window, heading straight for the little girl at the dining table!

Yang Qi had practiced the Object Manipulation Technique relentlessly for days, and his control over force and trajectory was now quite precise.

The pill traced an arc, avoided the bowls and dishes on the table, and flew precisely into Bao Tutu’s mouth, which was slightly open as she was about to sip her soup.

’Success!’

Yang Qi rejoiced internally.

But just as the pill entered her mouth, perhaps because Bao Tutu moved unconsciously, or perhaps because Yang Qi’s control was slightly disturbed as it passed through the window...

The angle was off by a fraction as the pill rushed into her throat.

"Ugh..."

Caught off guard, Bao Tutu felt the foreign object enter her throat and instinctively choked, beginning to cough violently. Her little face turned beet red.

The small spoon in her hand fell onto the table with a CLATTER. She clutched her throat, looking to be in great pain.

’This is bad!’

’She’s choking!’

Watching from outside the window, Yang Qi’s heart leaped into his throat. This was not good.

"Tutu, what’s wrong, Tutu?"

Bao Shun, who had gone to the courtyard gate and found nothing amiss, heard the coughing from inside. His expression changed, and he immediately turned and sprinted back into the house.

He was horrified to see the little girl clutching her throat, coughing and unable to breathe. Fortunately, his age and experience allowed him to maintain a sliver of composure.

He lunged forward, swept Tutu into his arms, and began patting her on the back while anxiously glancing at the table.

"Are you choking? Quick, drink some soup to wash it down."

He picked up the still-warm bowl of soup from the table and carefully brought it to Tutu’s lips.

Bao Tutu was in too much discomfort to care about anything else. She drank several large gulps of soup from the bowl held in Bao Shun’s hands.

"GULP..."

As the soup went down, the Profound Yellow Blood Transformation Pill that had been stuck in her throat was finally washed down with it.

"Cough, cough... Hah... Hah..."

Once the pill was in her stomach, Tutu’s coughing gradually subsided, and her ragged breaths slowly evened out. Her little face was still stained with tears and flushed from the frightening ordeal.

"There, there, it’s okay now. It’s okay. It was Grandpa’s fault, Grandpa scared you."

Bao Shun patted the little girl’s back, his heart aching for her. He let out a long sigh of relief, realizing he himself had broken out in a cold sweat.

"How did you suddenly choke while eating? Were you eating too fast? Or are you not feeling well?"

Bao Tutu shook her head and whispered, "Some... something... flew into my mouth..."

Her voice was still tinged with tears and a hint of lingering fear.

"Something? Flew into your mouth?"

Bao Shun paused, looked at the table, then at the crack in the window. "What something?" he asked, confused. "Did you see it wrong? Or maybe you just choked on a grain of rice? Here, open your mouth and let Grandpa see."

Tutu opened her mouth, and Bao Shun inspected it carefully, even shining a flashlight inside, but he found nothing.

He assumed it was just a child’s misperception after choking and comforted her.

"It’s okay, it’s okay. It was probably just a gnat or something, and you’ve already swallowed it. You just have to be more careful when you eat from now on. Eat slowly."

From the shadows outside, Yang Qi watched the interaction between the grandfather and granddaughter, and the heart that had been in his throat finally settled back into his chest.

’The process was a bit of a nail-biter, but at least the pill was successfully delivered!’