The Quest for the Heart Seed

The Lake Heart Palace, reputedly the domain of the Heart-Eating Demoness, lay not far from the Magical Fairy Castle.

Tou had long yearned to explore it, yet his masters consistently forbade him from venturing out.

He, too, harbored a deep fear of the dreadful creatures lurking below the mountain, thus he had never once left their secluded abode.

Nevertheless, prolonged solitude inevitably stirred his thoughts towards the world beyond, until one day, while engrossed in a book, he stumbled upon information regarding the Heart-Eating Demoness and, quite by chance, realized that the Lake Heart Palace was indeed close by.

It was then that he approached Four-Master about the matter, expressing his desire to visit the so-called Lake Heart Palace.

Four-Master, however, firmly rejected his request, informing him that the place was sealed.

She further warned Tou of the numerous man-eating demons lurking within, ultimately elaborating that three Heart Seeds were required to break the seal and gain entry.

Moreover, those three Heart Seeds had long since vanished, making them incredibly difficult to locate.

Yet, Tou appeared to be exceptionally fortunate, for on his second day down the mountain, he discovered the Human Heart Seed.

“Hm-hm~, Human Heart Seeds prefer to reside within young, vibrant life forms, so I believe it must be inside Qiao Qiao!”

Tou leapt to the ground, pointing his miniaturized Heaven-Reaching Pillar at the three individuals, shifting his target back and forth as if making a selection.

Having spoken, he suddenly sprang up, seizing Qiao Qiao’s shoulders.

“How do I get it out? It seems I’ve forgotten!” Despite his words, Tou showed no trace of worry, turning his head to call out to his master.

“Master~, tell me quickly!”

“Little Tou, no! That would harm Qiao Qiao’s body! Besides, with only this one, you can’t use it without finding the other two!” Yue Ye Si shook her head, clearly unwilling to divulge the information.

“Harm my body?” Qiao Qiao, fearing that Tou might genuinely injure her, trembled as she tried to escape his grasp.

“Stop squirming, you little thing!” But Qiao Qiao was no match for Tou’s strength; with a single forceful push, he pinned her to the ground.

“Hey! You rascal, don’t you dare bully my adorable daughter!” Qiao Qiao’s father jabbed Tou’s stomach with his cane, his expression displeased as he issued a warning.

“That’s right, Master! If you hurt Qiao Qiao like this, we might be kicked out tonight! Please release her, and let’s talk properly!” Ji Jie stepped forward to persuade Tou, feigning concern for his well-being.

Upon hearing this, Tou’s expression drastically changed, not out of fear of being cast out, but as if he were staring at a corpse.

He cursed Ji Jie in a chilling tone:

“You useless dog, how dare you threaten me?”

A bead of sweat trickled down.

Ji Jie was momentarily speechless, retreating two steps, seized by a fear that rendered her unable to speak further.

“Little Tou, stop being so mischievous!”

Seeing Tou recklessly attempting to pull off Qiao Qiao’s clothes to inspect the Human Heart Seed’s mark on her chest, Yue Ye Si quickly rushed forward, embraced Qiao Qiao, and moved to the side, addressing Tou.

“Sister~, wuwuwu~” Qiao Qiao, who had been utterly wronged moments before, now embraced her freedom, clinging to Yue Ye Si’s neck and bursting into tears.

Tou, however, furrowed his delicate brows, glaring furiously at Yue Ye Si, and angrily cursed with profound dissatisfaction:

“Useless, dog-like master! Whose side are you on?! You won’t tell me… you won’t tell me how to extract the Human Heart Seed, and you’re hindering me… hindering me from finding a way myself! You big scoundrel! Don’t let me catch you again; if I do, I swear I’ll hang you up and torment you every day, making you wish for death but unable to die! Bastard!”

Tou shouted as if venting a torrent of emotions, leaving Yue Ye Si with a deeply unpleasant feeling in her heart, as if Tou now truly detested her.

It wasn’t that she forbade Tou from going to the Lake Heart Palace; it was simply too perilous inside.

Furthermore, the seals within were specifically designed to counter her, meaning she would struggle to protect herself upon entering, let alone look after Tou.

Her heart was now torn, caught between helping Tou fulfill his desire to visit the Lake Heart Palace and prioritizing his safety by having him abandon the notion entirely.

Suddenly, a thought struck her: three Heart Seeds were required to open the seal.

It seemed unlikely that the world would be so coincidental as to gather all three Heart Seeds right here.

‘No, it couldn’t be,’ she mused, ‘after all, I searched for years without finding a single clue, eventually having no choice but to give up.’

For now, the Human Heart Seed could still be extracted.

Without the Demon Heart Seed and the Devil Heart Seed, it would be nothing more than an ornament in Tou’s hands.

Perhaps, in the coming days, Tou would remain enthusiastic about finding the other seeds, but as time wore on and he grew frustrated, the Human Heart Seed would likely be tossed into his storage space, rarely to be retrieved again.

“Oh, Little Tou, your master didn’t mean it that way at all!” Ji Jie then extended her hand into Qiao Qiao’s clothes, smiling as she spoke to Tou:

“Little Tou, your strength is still too weak; extracting the Human Heart Seed would harm Qiao Qiao’s body.

But I am different.

I can remove the item completely unharmed.”

“Really!” Tou exclaimed with delight, realizing Four-Master was still on his side.

However, he quickly remembered he shouldn’t show Four-Master any favor.

He huffed twice, turning his head away.

“Hmph-hmph~, then hurry up and get it out for me! If you make me wait too long, I won’t forgive you!”

“Alright, Little Tou, look, this is the Human Heart Seed!”

No sooner had Tou finished speaking than Yue Ye Si’s hand emerged from Qiao Qiao’s clothes, holding a yellow, heart-shaped object emitting a golden halo.

Ji Jie’s eyes lit up; this was indeed the Human Heart Seed.

It bore a striking resemblance to the Demon Heart Seed left by Xiao Yuan, differing only in color: the Demon Heart Seed was emerald green, while the Human Heart Seed glowed golden yellow.

She had been observing their expressions and words, noting Yue Ye Si’s apparent lack of interest in the Human Heart Seed, even an inclination to keep her distance from it.

It was Tou who desired the Human Heart Seed.

Knowing it was Tou, she felt relieved; that fool was so simple-minded that anything in his possession, Ji Jie already considered as good as hers.

Tou, having finally obtained the Human Heart Seed, immediately began to examine it with curiosity.

He found it to be as light as a feather, yet it emanated a gentle warmth, much like jade.

“What… what exactly is this Human Heart Seed? Will taking it out have any ill effects on my Qiao Qiao?”

The Village Chief had watched his granddaughter grow up; how could he have never noticed such a large object within her body?

Moreover, this heart-like item easily brought to mind concepts of life and health, making its extraction from a person’s body an undeniable cause for concern.

“The Human Heart Seed is the very curse the Heart-Eating Demoness once used to control you! You gave your heart to the Heart-Eating Demoness, yet you don’t even know this?”

Tou rolled his eyes at him, then carefully put the item away.

“The Heart-Eating Demoness used it to control me… control me?” The Village Chief remained utterly bewildered.

His memories held no trace of anything that fit, and the term “Human Heart Seed” was completely foreign to him, no matter how hard he tried to recall it.

“In any case, this item is mine now! Those of you who should be preparing dinner, go prepare dinner! And those who should be inquiring about mission clues, stop slacking off!”

Tou chuckled gleefully, then hopped back onto Four-Master’s back.