I woke up to find myself transmigrated into a disabled child.

Chapter 221 Underwater Creatures

Originally, Lezhi wanted to raise the chicks himself, and Maoqiu was only helping out of his pressure. But when things went wrong, he only blamed Maoqiu. Regardless of the cause of the incident, it was an innocent disaster for Maoqiu, a typical case of doing a thankless job.

If you put yourself in his shoes, you'd feel wronged if you were the one being criticized!

The more she thought about it, the more upset she became. The forced smile on Lezhi's face finally crumbled.

"Lezhi, what's wrong?" After washing herself by the pool, Le Ting turned around and saw the look on Lezhi's face that looked like she was about to cry. She quickly asked softly.

Hearing the commotion, Leyou, who was not far away, quickly stepped forward.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

“It’s nothing…” Lezhi shook her head, opened her mouth, but the words of concern seemed to be stuck in her throat, and she just couldn’t say them.

But even though Lezhi didn't say it aloud, the two who had gone through the whole thing together quickly understood what Lezhi was worried about.

They exchanged a glance for a moment, then Leyou frowned slightly, clenching and unclenching his fist before finally letting out a sigh, "Sigh, to be honest, given the situation, it's understandable that Maoqiu was angry. You really went a bit too far..."

"Hmm..." Lezhi, who had already reflected on his actions countless times in his mind, lowered his head and obediently listened to the reprimand.

"We didn't chase after it at the time, firstly because we really couldn't catch up—Maoqiu was too fast—and secondly because we wanted to let Maoqiu calm down," Leyou explained softly as she pulled Lezhi down to sit.

"Besides, you know Maoqiu's capabilities better than anyone else, so its safety is definitely guaranteed. So now you're worried that Maoqiu won't show up until it's still angry, right?"

Seeing Lezhi nod, Leyou and Leting exchanged a glance and continued, "Your concerns are valid. Birds and beasts have very bad tempers. It would be strange if you had gotten along so well with Maoqiu before. You see, Maoqiu hasn't even given any of the rest of us a second glance, so its current behavior is perfectly normal."

"Oh, what do I do now?"

"Cold salad."

"..."

After being rebuffed by Leyou, Lezhi's spirits, which had just been lifted, drooped again.

"Is there really no other way?"

"Not yet, you can only wait. Hopefully, the bird still remembers the days you spent together and will calm down and come back on its own soon. Otherwise, don't even think about finding a bird in the vast jungle, especially if it's deliberately avoiding you."

Because they clearly knew that the moment the furball left, the initiative to leave was no longer in their hands, Leyou and Leting did not urge Lezhi to chase after it. In this respect, they were indeed powerless.

Tracking birds and beasts is something only the most skilled hunters can do. However, the tree spirits have always kept to themselves and the birds and beasts. They will not disturb the normal lives of birds and beasts without reason. It is not enough for the tribe to take action if the birds and beasts quarrel and run away in a huff.

"The only person who is capable of helping and willing to listen is probably Lei Xiu, but it's not certain that we can find Maoqiu. After all, we don't know how long Maoqiu will stay angry. If it's determined to hide, it will be very difficult to find it. And even if we find it, it's uncertain whether Maoqiu will come back. So there's no rush. Lezhi, you need to be prepared."

Although Leyou's words sounded a bit too blunt at first glance, he didn't want Lezhi to have unrealistic expectations. If the result was not as expected in the end, Lezhi would definitely be even more heartbroken.

The cave was empty at the moment. Apart from the beautiful crystal clusters, there were only the three of them. The light of the crystals in the pool shone through the water and reflected in the cave, creating a dreamlike scene that showcased the beauty of nature.

But Lezhi had no heart to appreciate any of this. He had originally been hoping for the best, but Leyou's words were a wake-up call.

Yes, Maoqiu was originally a wild bird or beast, and their encounter in the forest was purely accidental. Maoqiu was always the dominant one in their relationship; it wanted to be good to Lezhi, which is why it spared no effort to protect him and even feed him when he was surviving alone in the wilderness.

Because it didn't want to leave Lezhi, when its people came looking for it and found that Lezhi was a disabled child without wings, the furball would take the initiative to change its form so that Lezhi could get around.

Aside from being greedy, Maoqiu had almost never asked for anything in return. The more Lezhi thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. Since they met, it seemed that Maoqiu had always been the one indulging him. He had never seriously considered Maoqiu's thoughts. Even this time raising the chicks was the same; it was all his wishful thinking that made Maoqiu take on the responsibility of feeding them.

With a pout, Lezhi remained silent for a long time. He had already despised himself to the extreme, and could no longer force a smile on his face.

Seeing him like this, Leyou and Leting didn't know how to persuade him. The incident happened too suddenly, and Maoqiu left too decisively, leaving no room for reconciliation.

"Alright, don't overthink it. I only mentioned the worst-case scenario. Look on the bright side, maybe Maoqiu will come to its senses soon and come back to you. Then you can apologize to it properly. You've been together for so long, what can't you resolve?" Leyou couldn't bear to see Lezhi so downcast, so she patted Lezhi's shoulder to encourage him.

"Yeah, yeah," Leting chimed in, "You and Maoqiu are inseparable all the time. Anyone who wants to get close to you has to get past Maoqiu. It's so protective of you, it definitely won't leave you alone for long. Maybe it's already on its way back."

"Yeah, I hope so." It was clear that the two of them were really worried about his condition. Lezhi didn't want to disappoint them, and besides, this whole thing was his fault, but now everyone was feeling uncomfortable. Lezhi felt really bad about it.

"I'm so sorry, Leyou and Leting. You meant well by bringing me here to have fun, but so many things have gone wrong. It's all my fault..."

"Why are you apologizing? It was just an accident, you didn't do it on purpose." Leyou didn't want to see Lezhi take all the blame, so she immediately interrupted Lezhi.

“Exactly, baby birds are naturally mischievous. You can’t predict whether they’ll eat random things out of curiosity. Don’t overthink it. We’ve come all this way, so we should enjoy ourselves to the fullest. After all, the journey was so tiring. It wouldn’t be worth it if we didn’t have fun, would it?” Le Ting’s deliberately cheerful tone worked.

The two obedient individuals recalled the arduous journey they had undertaken, their faces showing a simultaneous expression of reluctance to relive it. They wondered who had initially discovered the entrance; it was so difficult, yet they had managed to traverse it all. However, the breathtaking scenery before them was truly worthwhile, making the journey seem far less unbearable.

The three of them chatted and lingered by the pool for a while longer. When Leyou estimated that it was about time, he suggested that they head back.

"...I promised Le Jing that I would be back before the meeting, so we'd better set off early to avoid running out of time. If we're late, it will be harder to apply for solo travel next time."

Leyou's words made sense, so although Lezhi was still reluctant to leave the beautiful scenery in front of him, he didn't say anything and just quietly got up to leave.

Just as they turned to leave, a distinct splashing sound suddenly came from the previously quiet pool, stopping the three of them in their tracks.

"I think I just heard..."

"I also……"

"It can't be my imagination!"

If only one person heard it, it could be explained away as an illusion, but since all three of them heard it, what else is there to say?

"The legend is true, there are creatures underwater..." Leyou's exclamation echoed through the cave, the sound waves spreading outwards and guiding the furry ball that was searching for them in the distance.