XiShi exhaled, another day, another slice of strangely peaceful life in this transmigration mess. She and XueLing had just waltzed back from their beast market jaunt, bags heavy with the usual grub. Groceries, the cornerstone of any solid relationship, apparently. She couldn't shake the feeling that things were too chill. It was like the universe had hit the pause button on the usual chaos. According to the novel she'd unwittingly stumbled into―a hefty tome of 800+ chapters crammed with enough drama to make your head spin―things should be way more...spicy.

Plot points were popping off way before their scheduled airtime. HuanHuan, for example, had nuked infertility issues ages ago. As a thank you, she and XueLing had gifted her the mythical lotus seed, which, in the book, was supposed to hatch into HuanHuan and XueLing's kid. Plot twist! Now that little seed-baby was destined to be BaiDi and HuanHuan's spawn. And the rock mountain? It had, against all odds, blossomed into a real estate goldmine, with HuanHuan leading the charge on literacy, teaching all the beastmen how to read and write―something XiShi had secretly clued XueLing into ages ago, pretending she learned it from HuanHuan (she had, technically, in a here's a quick rundown sort of way).

XiShi, bless her soul, was actively avoiding drama. She was happily rocking the domestic bliss vibe with XueLing, and she knew that any foray into the plot's tangled web meant impending doom. It had been ages since she'd felt this relaxed, but she knew the infamous plot point was nigh. The ending would likely be the same, but the way they got there was now a total wildcard―thanks to her probably?

She'd also gotten to know XueLing intimately―and let's just say intimacy was one of his favorite pastimes. Plus, he had a fire for spicy food, and when pressured, he could morph into a domestic god. She had introduced him to the culinary wonders of the modern world (well, the ones she could manage), and the dude nailed them like a Michelin star chef.

They were on their way back to cave-sweet-cave, sharing random thoughts, when they rounded the corner and bam! HuanHuan and BaiDi appeared, looking all couple-y. ShangYun and SangYe,  standing nearby.

Cue the internal cringe.

"Hey!" HuanHuan chirped, her smile bright enough to blind a bat. She had small, bulging bags slung over her shoulder, and the wolf cubs were scampering around her ankles.

"Hello," XiShi responded, immediately dropping into a squat to hug the enthusiastic cubs. She was the favorite aunt, the one who snuck them treats when HuanHuan wasn't looking (a fact they clearly hadn't forgotten).

"You guys going somewhere?" XiShi asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Yep! The Beast City! BaiDi and I are making a trip. Wanna come?" HuanHuan asked.

So , it's time for that arc , huh ?