A graceful purple figure carrying a bag of fresh peaches strolled leisurely along the road home.
"Little Yao..."
"Hmm?"
"Is something the matter? You keep squirming."
"Um... sorry, Sister Acheron..."
Hearing this, Little Yao's soft and delicate body immediately stiffened, trembling uncontrollably.
Even though Acheron's tone was calm and natural, Little Yao was still terrified, an indescribable sense of fear welling up in her heart.
However, Little Yao's sudden emotional turmoil caused Acheron to pause.
She could clearly feel the slight tremor coming from her chest, as though a feather had been stirred by the wind.
Seeing this, she slowly extended a jade-like finger and gently stroked the fluffy little head peeking out from her chest, her movements tender yet reassuring.
Feeling the familiar touch, Little Yao seemed to be enveloped by a warm current, and the turmoil in her heart gradually subsided.
Only after the trembling had completely stopped did Acheron softly sigh.
In the eyes of her family, Little Yao was merely a pet.
Yet Little Yao happened to dislike sleeping in those lonely, cramped little pet beds.
Now that she had successfully taken human form, she could freely transform into a white-haired, beast-eared little girl and had begun to enjoy the freedom that came with it.
Looking at the pitiful little creature, Acheron ultimately couldn't bring herself to refuse and had no choice but to let her sleep with her for the time being.
But at some point, Little Yao had accidentally discovered an extremely comfortable spot on Acheron's body.
Fortunately, Acheron was sufficiently well-endowed, allowing Little Yao's petite body to hide comfortably there.
The only downside was that Acheron constantly felt an itchy sensation on her chest, as if something soft were brushing against it.
Whenever she tried to object, Little Yao would immediately defend herself.
"But it's so comfortable sleeping here! Being a scarf for Sister Acheron is warm, but when we go outside, it's Yao who gets cold..."
Acheron (๑•. •๑): 'I should've refused this girl from the very beginning.'
A long while later, after Little Yao had finally calmed down, Acheron suddenly asked softly,
"What was wrong with you just now?"
Her voice carried a hint of concern as she looked down at Little Yao.
After all, this wasn't the first time Little Yao had hidden herself there. Logically speaking, she shouldn't have reacted so strongly.
Hearing Acheron's question, Little Yao's body trembled slightly.
Timidly poking her head out, she spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
"Sister Acheron... Yao feels inexplicably uncomfortable..."
Acheron's expression remained unchanged, but her tone became gentler.
"Did you sense something?"
After all, Little Yao was a Golden Core demon beast. It was unlikely that this was merely physical discomfort.
Little Yao nodded lightly. Her fluffy hair brushed against Acheron's chest again, causing a faint itch.
"Mmm...Yao isn't sure. It's just... while we were walking, I suddenly felt a vague sense of unease."
Hearing this, Acheron's brows twitched slightly.
Her gaze slowly swept over the surroundings.
The bluestone road stretched into the distance. Pedestrians came and went as usual. Everything appeared completely normal.
Unfortunately, even Acheron couldn't detect anything strange nearby.
The only thing she could confirm was that no one was secretly following them.
Thinking this, she chose not to dismiss Little Yao's intuition outright.
After a brief moment of thought, Acheron set aside the half-eaten peach in her hand.
The pace of her high heels quickened slightly, the crisp clicking sounds echoing clearly against the ground.
After walking for quite some time, although Acheron wasn't certain whether she had actually shortened the distance home, she was sure they were now far from the street where they had been before.
Only then did she lower her gaze and ask softly,
"Little Yao, is that feeling still there?"
"It hasn't disappeared yet..."
"I see."
Acheron fell silent for a moment before changing her approach.
"Little Yao, can you describe this feeling more carefully? And when did it start?"
"Mmm... it's like... Yao feels something creepy in her heart, like something bad is about to happen."
She paused for a moment before continuing.
"As for when it started... actually, it was a few days ago. Or maybe even earlier...Yao isn't sure."
Hearing this, Acheron was genuinely surprised.
Clearly, she hadn't expected the timeframe to stretch back that far.
'If that's the case, then the danger Little Yao senses might not be a specific person or object. It could be some kind of event... and we simply happen to fall within its scope.'
With that thought, Acheron's gaze swept across the surroundings once more.
Unfortunately, she still found nothing suspicious.
From this, she could roughly conclude one of two possibilities.
Either Little Yao had sensed something even she couldn't detect...
Or this was some kind of instinctive warning unique to Little Yao.
Much like how animals could sense changes in the weather before they occurred.
Thinking this, Acheron gently comforted her once again.
"Don't be afraid. I'm here."
"Mmm... thank you, Sister Acheron."
Hearing those gentle words, the now-calmed Little Yao once again buried herself deeper into her hiding place.
Acheron's gaze briefly lingered on the road ahead one final time.
She knew very well that Little Yao possessed a mysterious and difficult-to-explain sensitivity.
Naturally, she wouldn't casually ignore any warning that Little Yao sensed.
However, since she could confirm that the anomaly wasn't specifically targeting them, there was no need to pay special attention to it for now.
The next moment, Acheron resumed her journey home.
In truth, the reality of the situation was actually quite close to her speculation.
As an auspicious beast, Little Yao not only brought blessings but also possessed a vague ability to foresee impending calamities.
Whenever her fluffy tail curled up unconsciously and unease arose in her heart, it often signaled that something unusual was about to happen.
This ability likely originated from the special fortune she herself carried.
She also possessed a form of perception different from that of cultivators.
Rather than spiritual sense, it was closer to a hazy intuition—allowing her to vaguely sense the dangerous aura surrounding certain beings.
Unfortunately, Little Yao was still young.
She barely understood her own abilities, much less knew how to control them.
As a result, her fear was not entirely without reason.
A few minutes earlier, part of her panic had indeed come from the unease in her heart.
The other half, however, stemmed from concern for Sister Acheron's safety.
Because of that concern, she had unconsciously attempted to sense Acheron's "cultivation level."
And then...
As expected, she was instantly frightened by the boundless shadow looming behind Acheron.
The sight left her trembling from head to toe.