Tai Tan and Niu Tian Get the Gossip

Xiao Wu sensed her surroundings and found Tai Tan and Niu Tian.

The next second, Xiao Wu appeared behind them.

"Sister Xiao Wu, you... What brings you here?!"

Tai Tan and Niu Tian recognized Xiao Wu at a glance.

Although Xiao Wu had disguised herself, it wasn't difficult for them to recognize her.

Xiao Wu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Da Ming, Er Ming, I need your help with something."

Hearing Xiao Wu call them by their old names, Tai Tan and Niu Tian grew serious.

Sister Xiao Wu must have had something important to discuss, or she wouldn't have addressed them that way.

Xiao Wu took a deep breath. "I need you to help me look after that child named Jiang Wu. I'm not sure whether he's a relative of mine or... a child I had in the past."

Tai Tan: "?"

Niu Tian: "?"

Xiao Wu's words left them both dumbfounded.

Wait, was this something they were supposed to hear?

Tai Tan and Niu Tian exchanged a glance, each seeing the same emotion in the other's eyes.

We're done for. If Tang San finds out, the Sea God Trident might skewer us both like a tanghulu.

"Sister Xiao Wu," Niu Tian said carefully, keeping his voice extremely low, "what do you... mean by that? What do you mean you're not sure whether he's a child you had in the past?"

Xiao Wu pursed her lips. Her gaze passed over them and landed on Jiang Wu in the distance, as Wang Dong'er pulled him by the arm toward the snack street.

"I sensed a bloodline resonance," Xiao Wu said. "A strong one. The bloodline in his body comes from the same source as mine, and... his Martial Soul is the Soft Bone Rabbit, he can use Soft Skills, and he looks like me."

Tai Tan's mouth fell open and stayed that way for a long time.

Niu Tian fell silent for a moment, then asked the most crucial question. "Sister Xiao Wu, did you... have a child before?"

Xiao Wu shook her head. "I don't remember much about what happened before I gained intelligence. My mother had many children around her, and I hadn't gained intelligence at the time, so a lot of things are hazy. After I started following Third Brother, it became even more impossible."

She paused, a hint of complexity creeping into her voice that even she didn't notice. "But bloodline resonance doesn't lie. He's either a relative connected to me by blood, or... he's a child I once gave birth to."

Tai Tan and Niu Tian exchanged another glance.

This time, besides shock, a solemn look appeared in both their eyes.

"Sister Xiao Wu," Niu Tian said gravely, "does Tang San know about this?"

"No." Xiao Wu answered at once, her tone brooking no doubt. "He can't find out. At least not now."

"Why?" Tai Tan asked, puzzled.

Xiao Wu glanced at him. "What do you think Third Brother would do if he found out?"

Tai Tan opened his mouth, then closed it again.

He knew Tang San too well.

That man's desire to protect those close to him was every bit as strong as the ruthlessness of his methods against his enemies.

If he found out that Xiao Wu's blood flowed in Jiang Wu's veins, and that even Xiao Wu herself wasn't sure about it, Tang San would absolutely investigate Jiang Wu's origins from top to bottom.

With a God King's means, investigating a youth from the lower realm wouldn't be difficult.

When that happened, whether Jiang Wu went along willingly or was forced, his fate would no longer be his own to control.

"Then what do you want us to do?" Niu Tian asked.

Xiao Wu said, "Just look after him in secret and give him some resources from time to time."

Tai Tan and Niu Tian were silent for a moment before finally nodding.

"Don't worry, Sister Xiao Wu. Leave it to us," Niu Tian said gravely.

Xiao Wu looked at them and hesitated, but spoke up anyway. "Don't let Third Brother find out."

"Understood." Tai Tan thumped his chest in assurance. "Sister Xiao Wu, don't you trust me, Tai Tan, to handle things?"

Xiao Wu didn't reply. She only glanced in Jiang Wu's direction again.

In the distance, Wang Dong'er was pulling Jiang Wu by the arm toward the snack street. He wore a somewhat helpless smile.

Wang Dong'er looked up and said something to him, gesturing animatedly as she practically hung off him.

Xiao Wu watched the scene, the corners of her mouth curving up slightly. Then she looked away, turned, and vanished from where she stood.

Tai Tan and Niu Tian remained where they were. Only when Xiao Wu's presence had completely disappeared did they let out long breaths.

The air was quiet for quite a while.

Tai Tan spoke first, keeping his voice extremely low, as if afraid someone might overhear. "Big Brother, what do you think... is really going on with Sister Xiao Wu?"

Niu Tian shook his head. His expression had relaxed somewhat, but his brows were still knitted. "Hard to say. Sister Xiao Wu isn't even sure herself, so we have even less chance of guessing."

"That child has a bloodline resonance with her. That can't be false." Tai Tan scratched his head, looking thoroughly confused. "But Sister Xiao Wu has always been with Tang San. Where would a child have come from?"

Niu Tian didn't answer. He only gazed deeply into the distance, in the direction where Jiang Wu and Wang Dong'er had disappeared.

Tai Tan held back for a while before speaking again. "Do you think it could have been before Sister Xiao Wu gained intelligence..."

"Don't make wild guesses." Niu Tian cut him off, his tone heavier than before. "Even Sister Xiao Wu can't remember clearly. What good does it do for you to guess?"

Tai Tan sheepishly shut his mouth, but less than two seconds later, he couldn't help himself. "What do we do now, then? Are we really going to give that kid resources?"

"Sister Xiao Wu told us to do it. What do you think?"

"That's not what I meant." Tai Tan waved a hand and lowered his voice. "I mean, what if Tang San finds out? How are we going to answer to him? That's the Sea God, a God King! If he asks us, do we tell him or not?"

Niu Tian was silent for a while before he spoke. "Sister Xiao Wu said not to let Third Brother find out. So we won't let him find out."

"How can he not find out?" Tai Tan grew anxious. "That kid is right there with Dong'er, and Tang San checks on his daughter every few days. How could he miss him?"

Niu Tian sighed.

Tai Tan was right.

Over the past two years, while secretly following Wang Dong'er, they had also sensed some of the activity in the Divine Realm.

Although Tang San hadn't descended to the lower realm in person, every few days he would use the Divine Realm Core to check on Wang Dong'er.

"That's why Sister Xiao Wu said to look after him in secret," Niu Tian said. "Don't do it openly, don't let the kid notice, and don't let Dong'er find out either. Just treat it as... something we do along the way."

Tai Tan thought it over, then nodded. "All right. What should we give him? Soul Bones? Soul Rings? Or heavenly and earthly treasures?"

"Keep your voice down." Niu Tian glared at him. "That kid is only level sixteen. Would he dare use a Soul Bone if you gave him one? Let's observe him first and see what he needs."

"True." Tai Tan scratched his head again. "That kid's strength is ridiculous. His First Soul Ring is already four hundred years old, and his Soul Skill is even more powerful than someone else's Third Soul Skill... Honestly, even without his connection to Sister Xiao Wu, that kid is strange enough."

Niu Tian didn't deny it.

He had lived for so many years and seen plenty of geniuses, but this was indeed his first time seeing someone like Jiang Wu.

A Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul, Innate Full Soul Power, a four-hundred-year First Soul Ring, a First Soul Skill as powerful as other people's Third Soul Skills, and natural divine strength. Not to mention his mastery of Soft Skills, which was far too seasoned for a child only a few years old.