1617 A Fatty and Skinny

“Hey you big oaf, have a taste of this thing here, ” Traveling Buddha chuckled.

With a casual flick of his finger over his spatial ring, he took out his favorite tea set and began brewing a good pot of tea.

Xia Fan recalled that the tea leaves in his delicate canister were Traveling Buddha’s most precious treasure. Only after emerging victorious in battle would he make an exception and offer Xia Fan a cup, or it would not be brought out.

Perhaps Traveling Buddha found this Water Elemental to be precocious, or perhaps he wanted to curry favor with him. Whichever the case, he was being very generous today!

!!
“Bleh!” The Water Elemental spat the light green tea liquid into the ground and the fragrance of the liquid instantly filled the room. Sure enough, this was a tea of the highest grade, with a taste that would remain on the tastebuds, a permeating scent that lingered for days.

“It’s bitter. Not nice!” The Water Elemental shook his head.

Traveling Buddha’s face had practically turned green, lamenting that the Water Elemental did not know how to appreciate quality, and that it was a waste of a treasure. He was just like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

“Where do you learn that from?” Xia Fan mused.

“You, of course. Don’t you bribe creatures using candy and such treats whenever you summon your little critters? These are my best tea leaves, that even I am reluctant to drink,” Traveling Buddha moaned.

Xia Fan shook his head. “You may like tea, but not everyone shares the same as you. You can’t expect to force your hobbies onto others, right? We commoners might not have as refined a taste as you, the Little Old Buddha. To us, chocolate cake, honeyed almonds, and other such sweet treats would be much better choices.”

As Xia Fan explained, he pulled out several pieces of chocolate, some cream fudge, and a small piece of butter cake from his spatial ring. He put them in a basket and pushed them to the Water Elemental.

“How sweet!” The Water Elemental was all smiles, hugging the basket in his thick arms, humming to himself happily as he tasted them.

In no time at all, the Water Elemental was sitting beside Xia Fan, an arm around the human with an excited and affectionate look on his face.

The expression on Traveling Buddha’s face soured. Indeed, you’d only be angering yourself by comparing yourself to others. Xia Fan was a man born with a natural magnetism, such that animals, humans, and even Water Elementals, were more than willing to bond with him. Conversely, Traveling Buddha did not even have a good relationship with his own father, and he did not have anyone he could call as a friend, aside from Xia Fan!

“Are you the one protecting the Shimmers? That’s very kind and loving of you!” Now that closeness had been established Xia Fan tried to get to know the Water Elemental better.

“No, that’s my elder brother. He says I’m too stupid and would always mess things up. That is why he won’t let me join in battles, and I’ll just bring my toys and hide whenever a fight breaks out. My elder brother’s called Icy Wind. I’m Icy Rain.”

Xia Fan was startled. He suddenly recalled something that Moon in Water and Star in Water had once told him. Among the Elementals, all their children were born identical twins, and were either both boys or both girls, with no exceptions.

“The population of us Elementals is very small, maybe no more than a thousand across the three realms. Even the dragons are more numerous than us, but having twins means we will at least have a companion, so it won’t be so lonely,” was what the brothers had told him back then.

Xia Fan sighed. Icy Rain’s temperament and personality was no different from that of a child that had yet to grow up, and his elder brother should not be too different.

He thought back to the days when he was with Star in Water and Moon in Water, and just how kind and emotional those two Water Elementals were. Even a bird that was frozen to death during a cold and stormy night would send the two hugging one another in tears as they gave the little bird a burial.

‘How much more peaceful would this world be if every sapient lifeform were as kind as the Elementals,’ Xia Fan thought to himself.

Thus, he was liking this boy who could not seem to grow up more and more. Even Nikai made her way over and gave him some pastries that girls enjoyed. The elated Icy Rain bobbed his head as he thanked her repeatedly.

…

“I actually also like to eat such treats?” Hiding in the water was Icy Wind, who was quietly muttering to himself as he watched the scene unfold.

But he was already used to this. He distinctly remembered his mother had said that his younger brother had been intellectually challenged since birth, and would always be an innocent child. As the elder brother, Icy Wind ought to take care of his younger brother.

Actually, Icy Wind was still very young when their mother and father died. They were twins, born on the same day. Logically speaking, there should not be an issue of who should be taking care of whom, but it could not be helped. Icy Wind was too foolish. If Icy Wind did not take care of him, there was no way Icy Rain would have been able to survive on his own in the dangerous Lower Realm.

Quietly leaving via a water channel, Icy Wind was finally at ease. It looked like those three were decent humans, with no ill intentions toward his younger brother. It was fine to let them play awhile, since Icy Rain also seemed to enjoy the company of the three humans.

His transparent form left the waters, transforming into his human form, and sat down by the field beside the city moat.

If Xia Fan could see Icy Wind now, he would surely be stunned to see the huge difference between the two. Younger brother Icy Rain was thickset and strong, like a huge elephant, while Icy Wind was much skinnier, like a big boy who had worked hard all his life, but barely had anything to eat and was malnourished.

Water Elementals were a unique life form with two ways to grow: absorb and release.

Like a person that was pampered year round and lacked any sort of exercise, they would ultimately turn into a fatty, while another who spent his life working hard and whose intake of energy was far less than what they expend would find himself growing skinny.

Star in Water and Moon in Water looked similar because the two brothers took in energy together, and participated in fights to expend the energy together. Since their expenditures were equally plentiful, their body forms ended up being similar.

Meanwhile, Icy Wind had given all the energy to his younger brother, and he took on all the fighting himself. As his younger brother became big and strong, it was the elder brother that became skinnier over time, like an emancipated old horse.

But Icy Wind did not regret doing that. That was because his younger brother was also his only kin in this world, and protecting and taking care of him was his responsibility. He would continue to feed his younger brother, making him fatter, all the way until the day he died.

Icy Rain was unlucky in being born intellectually challenged, but Icy Rain was also very lucky in having such a good elder brother.

The glowing rock above Holy Spring City dimmed. Because they lacked any natural sunlight, the Shimmers depended on the brightness to tell time, when they ought to be at work, and when they ought to be resting.

Icy Rain and Xia Fan were having fun playing together. He had never seen a speedster before, and Xia Fan carried Icy Rain on his back as he ran like the wind. The latter cheered, his eyes wide, like a fledgling that had just learned how to fly.

Nikai’s Divine Wings of Color were also very interesting. When her wings were unfurled in full, displaying their colorful light, Icy Rain would clap his hands and dance happily as he watched the wings slowly ascend, like the prettiest rainbow in the sky, or dazzling fireworks exploding in the night sky.

“So pretty and beautiful!” Icy Rain clapped, and the adults and children of the Shimmer race came to watch when they heard the commotion. Children gathered around Icy Rain, breaking out into a happy dance together. They adored the Holy Spring God, as he was fat and soft. His personality was also very simple and honest. He was practically the cutest god in this world.

This cute god was even in charge of protecting the city, and was a great hero. Countless assaults from the many tribes had been thwarted by his hand.

Of course, while all this was happening, Icy Wind was sitting by the side of the moat. His entire body was transparent, so no one could see him clearly, and he had no intention of joining in the city’s festivities. That was because he still needed to protect this city, and his younger brother.

Recently, the various major tribes around had stopped fighting, and it seemed like they were all plotting something. Icy Wind had overheard this from the scouts of the city, which was why he had heightened his vigilance.

Actually, the Shimmers were completely mistaken. It was not the fat water god who had been protecting the city and its people. The true protector of the city and the Shimmers were none other than the one seated by the moat right now, the skinny Water Elemental who was so lonely and taciturn.