Who Stole My Eggs?

Xie Zuo and Huo Yao dived deep down into the cracks of the abyss. The Yin energy grew heavier, and the blood mist thicker.

Even though Xie Zuo could roam freely in the abyss, he knew he had to detour around the crack.

It wasn’t fear that stopped him, but the cold and darkness that made him feel psychologically and physically uncomfortable whenever he neared. Moreover, there was nothing edible here; it was a desolate wasteland to him.

Elsewhere in the abyss, suffering demons howled and roared, occasionally causing a commotion akin to a bustling market. There was not even a wind, and entering here felt like losing one’s senses.

Initially walking side by side with Huo Yao, as the temperature plummeted, Xie Zuo couldn’t bear the cold any longer. He transformed into a little snake and coiled around Huo Yao’s neck.

“This… disobedient egg, I’ll eat it when I find it later,” Xie Zuo’s teeth chattered in the cold, his words trembling.

“Absolutely not!” Huo Yao shouted firmly.

Xie Zuo stood up and rubbed his cheek. “You don’t really think of it as our child, do you?”

How could it be otherwise? They were clearly their flesh and blood! Huo Yao swallowed hard but finally said, “It already has intelligence. It’s just a baby now. It can’t be eaten. Don’t eat it!”

“Fine,” Xie Zuo snorted and suddenly caught a glimpse of golden light. He hastily tapped Huo Yao with the tip of his tail. “There, go quickly!”

Huo Yao hurriedly followed, but the golden light disappeared halfway. When they arrived, there were only bare black rocks around, devoid of life.

Slipping off Huo Yao’s shoulder, Xie Zuo returned to his human form and asked curiously, “The temperature has risen here. Could there be something good hidden?”

He had expected the deepest part of the crack to be icy and snowy. Surprisingly, upon reaching the bottom, it felt warm, and the Yin energy was less oppressive.

Huo Yao investigated and remarked, “They probably haven’t gone far. Wu Xiao is skilled at mimicry, so he must be disguised.”

“Could that foul-mouthed octopus be afraid of us finding him, so he brought the egg here? Should we investigate?” Xie Zuo picked up a stone casually. “Huo Yao, this stone is warm, like it’s been in the sun.”

Huo Yao hadn’t anticipated finding a cave at the crack’s bottom. He thought the large golden egg had followed Wu Xiao inside recklessly. Now he didn’t know what was going on, and increasingly worried.

“Don’t touch it and you can’t eat it. There’s something strange here, so be cautious.”

“Yeah,” Xie Zuo somehow felt very comfortable here, safe, almost like… being cradled in his mother’s arms as a baby in the human world.

Suddenly, Xie Zuo saw another flash of golden light and quickly called to Huo Yao, “It’s on the left front. Go and take a look.”

When they rushed over, they found the source of the shining light was not the large golden egg, but rather… a broken eggshell?

But if this were an eggshell, Xie Zuo couldn’t fathom how enormous the creature that hatched from it would be. Even this small fragment was as large as a building.

“What is this?” Xie Zuo wandered around the eggshell fragments curiously. “Are these remnants eaten and discarded by monsters, or are they fragments from where monsters were born?”

Could monsters have such beautiful shells? Xie Zuo looked at them with fascination. The golden-silver color was stunning.

As he approached, the eggshell felt increasingly welcoming to Xie Zuo. He reached out to touch it, but was stopped by Huo Yao. “Don’t move, be careful. If it’s still intact here, it must hold strong energy.”

“Oh,” Xie Zuo withdrew his hand reluctantly. “It seems we made a mistake. It’s this broken eggshell that’s glowing, not our egg.”

Huo Yao glanced upward diagonally. “That may not be entirely true.” He flew forward and landed on a nearby rock.

Xie Zuo hurried after him and saw a large golden egg standing on the stone, with a small purple octopus resting on its head. Wasn’t this their egg?

Xie Zuo compared the position of the large golden egg with the eggshell. “Ah, the golden light we saw earlier was the reflection from our big golden egg on the eggshell.”

.

Upon seeing them approach, Wu Xiao immediately jumped out of their reach, exclaiming, “I didn’t do anything to it! I just came to hang out!”

Huo Yao carefully inspected the large golden egg, finding no abnormalities. He sighed in relief and hugged it tightly.

Xie Zuo frowned slightly. “What’s the big deal? It’s just a magical egg. Why go through so much trouble? If you lose it, just lose it. I can always make another one for you!”

Seemingly offended, the large golden egg emitted a tiny bolt of lightning that jabbed at Xie Zuo.

“Don’t be rude,” Huo Yao scolded gently while patting the egg. The egg turned away from Xie Zuo, appearing aggrieved.

“It’s the same all around; it’s just an egg,” Xie Zuo remarked, unable to discern any difference even as the egg turned its back.

Feeling a pang of regret, Xie Zuo relented generously. “Alright, I won’t argue with you. Come on, let me hold you.”

The egg crackled threateningly with lightning.

“If you don’t want me to hug you, then I won’t force it,” Xie Zuo conceded.

“It’s really strange,” Xie Zuo pondered aloud. “This egg clearly contains most of my demonic power, yet it behaves just like Huo Yao’s thunder egg. It’s a pity it can’t be consumed; it even tries to run away from home!”

Now that he had found the child, Huo Yao urged Xie Zuo to go out. “There’s something weird here, let’s go up first.”

“Wait a minute, I’ll take another look at the eggshell,” Xie Zuo returned to the broken eggshell and circled it. He walked around it twice. “What should I do, Huo Yao? I still want to touch it.”

“Hah, just touch it if you want, look at how cowardly you are!” Wu Xiao shouted from the side. “Touch it!”

Saying this, Xie Zuo hesitated. “Why are you irritating me? What did you bring my egg here so sneakily?”

Wu Xiao was choked and immediately became furious, using his tentacles to hit the ground. “Ungrateful bastard! It looked so pitiful that you left the child behind all alone, so I took it out for a walk and play!”

“Oh, are you so kind?” Xie Zuo raised his hand and slapped him. He looked to the west from the pergola. “Look, the sun is coming out from there.”

“You plagued little demon king; you are saying nonsense!” Wu Xiao scolded.

Huo Yao glanced at Wu Xiao coldly, and Wu Xiao shrank back, not daring to curse anymore, but his black bean eyes stared closely at the huge eggshell.

Xie Zuo glanced at Huo Yao. While Huo Yao was looking at Wu Xiao, Xie Zuo quickly reached out and touched the eggshell. Suddenly, the eggshell emitted a dazzling holy light, enveloping everyone present.

When Xie Zuo’s eyes were able to see, he found himself standing in a strange, white, and empty place. He couldn’t help but regret in his heart. He should have known better than to touch it randomly.

Now that things had come to this, there was no point in regretting. He could only explore and see where they were.

Xie Zuo walked and walked for a long time, almost getting angry, when he suddenly hit the edge. He looked up and saw what seemed to be a towering mountain in front of him. The mountain was white and smooth, curving inwards.

The mountain was truly strange and impossible to climb, so he could only walk along the edge. After walking for a while, Xie Zuo suddenly realized that this was not a mountain, but the inner wall of an eggshell. He was now inside an egg!

Xie Zuo flew into the sky and flew for a long time. Finally, he reached the top and touched the head of the eggshell!

Xie Zuo didn’t know for a moment whether this was an illusion or whether he had been pulled into another time and space by the broken eggshell.

Staying here was not an option. Xie Zuo hesitated for a while and tried to knock on the eggshell. Unexpectedly, with just one tap, the eggshell cracked.

Xie Zuo watched as the eggshell split into two, the upper part becoming lighter and lighter, rising higher and higher, turning into a misty sky. The lower part became heavier and heavier, falling lower and lower, turning into a thick and steady earth.

And he was finally free.

Xie Zuo was about to take a look at this new world when he suddenly heard Huo Yao calling him. “Xie Zuo, Xie Zuo, come back!”

Xie Zuo’s whole body suddenly sank, and his consciousness returned to his body in an instant.

He opened his eyes to see the anxious Huo Yao in front of him.

“How are you?” Huo Yao asked urgently.

“I…” Xie Zuo shook his head. “I just entered a fantasy world.” He turned his head to look at the broken eggshell, which still stood there.

This time, Xie Zuo’s reflection appeared on the smooth shell surface. He looked at it with a solemn expression. Despite standing next to Huo Yao, only he was visible on the shell. There was no sign of Huo Yao, no large golden egg, and nothing else around him reflected.

Huo Yao also noticed Xie Zuo’s reflection on the shell. His hand trembled slightly as he held the big golden egg, looking between Xie Zuo and the shell in disbelief.

Xie Zuo leaned closer to examine it more closely, but suddenly, Huo Yao acted. A bolt of lightning shot out from his hand, shattering the eggshell into pieces.

Wu Xiao, who had been waiting eagerly, swiftly pounced on the fragments. His eight tentacles moved swiftly, swallowing them all up.

“Let’s go,” Huo Yao said urgently, wrapping his arms around Xie Zuo’s waist. He lifted him and flew out of the abyss crack swiftly.

Note

Xie Zuo’s real identity is very special