Setting Off Toward Tomorrow~

A forest breeze brushed across the water. In the bushes not far from the water, a hundred-year-old Soft Bone Rabbit cautiously ate Blue Silver Grass beaded with dew.

Over the past week, a black devil had been singling out lone rabbits and slaughtering them without mercy.

Many of its little wives had already fallen victim.

It never hurt to be careful.

The moment it lowered its head, a petite black figure sprang out. Before it could react, the figure pounced on it and pinned it to the ground.

A sharp blade slid across its throat, and in the blink of an eye, it sank into a sweet sleep.

The girl hurriedly took a couple of breaths, a sweet smile appearing on her slightly disheveled face.

"Master Stelle! I did it!"

Looking at the rabbit in her hands, the girl's eyes shone with happiness.

"Wonderful! Our Zhu Zhuqing really is impressive."

Stelle jumped down from a tree, holding an enormous bird's egg.

"Come on, come on. Today, your big sister will make you a charcoal-roasted bird's egg and red-braised rabbit. We'll catch a fish, too."

Zhu Zhuqing's eyes lit up at once, and a little glistening drool escaped the corner of her mouth.

"Master Stelle's beauty is unparalleled! Master Stelle is brilliant beyond compare! Master Stelle is so beautiful that fish sink and geese fall from the sky!"

Stelle hummed twice through her nose in contentment, then strode toward camp with her little follower, her swagger so great she seemed not to recognize even her own kin.

The morning chill had yet to fade, but Stelle had prepared a feast.

Little Zhu Zhuqing hugged a grilled fish half her size and gnawed away without stopping.

Whatever elegance she had once possessed had been completely led astray by Stelle.

"Master Stelle, am I really stupid?"

"Hmm?"

Stelle, who had been hugging a grilled fish the size of a person and tearing into it with her head down, looked up in confusion.

Her little tongue instinctively licked the grease from around her mouth.

Little Zhu Zhuqing opened her mouth, then finally spoke.

"It took me a whole week to catch just one prey. Am I really stupid?"

Seeing that the little girl was a little down, Stelle produced a straight wooden stick from somewhere and tapped her on the head.

"Ow! Master~"

"Why think so much? In life, comparison is the thing to fear most. Did you work hard?"

Zhu Zhuqing thought for a moment, then nodded firmly.

"See? You did your best, and that's enough. If you only care about the result, you'll miss out on a lot of fun. The result matters, but the process matters more. Trying your best to be yourself is more important than anything."

"Trying my best to be myself? I understand, Master!"

Stelle rubbed the little kitty's head. It felt so nice.

"Are you still eating your grilled fish?"

"Huh?" Zhu Zhuqing froze for a moment, unsure why Master Stelle had asked. But she looked at the grilled fish in her hands. "Yes."

"Then tear into it! Do whatever makes you happy!"

Seeing Stelle bury her head in her grilled fish again, Zhu Zhuqing followed her example and buried hers in it too.

A moment later, the two girls, one big and one small, lay on the grass, patting their slightly rounded bellies in unison.

"Ah, as expected of Xiangling's grilled fish. Delicious."

"Delicious."

Zhu Zhuqing's face was full of satisfaction.

This had been the happiest time of her life.

Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing had drifted off, Stelle silently took out a small blanket and covered the little girl's tummy.

To be honest, she really hadn't expected her to actually catch any prey.

She could catch prey because her physical abilities were already top-notch-in short, she was strong.

But what about this little girl? She had managed to find the best hunting rhythm through the melody of Harmony.

She had crouched motionless in the grass for a full eight hours, then twisted her body slightly as she attacked without making a single sound.

She was already better than many people.

The girl was learning with all her might.

The melody of Harmony could only take someone from zero to one.

Of course, which was the most important? It was really so hard to guess~

The girl's Soul Power had reached level ten. Should she get her a Soul Ring?

Don't underestimate the power of Harmony. On the Douluo Continent, this thing was the ultimate cheat, bar none. (Xingbao put her hands on her hips.)

Forget it. She wouldn't think about it for now. The most important thing was to sleep.

"Master Stelle, are you leaving?"

Stelle's hand paused slightly as she swung her bat.

Little Zhu Zhuqing was unusually sensitive now.

"Yes. I've been away for a long time. It's time I went back."

Zhu Zhuqing sniffled, and her gaze gradually grew firm as she watched Stelle clear the path ahead.

"Master Stelle, don't worry. I'll definitely do my best to be myself, and I'll cultivate hard too. In the future... can I still come find you?"

"Of course."

Xingbao stopped. Seeing the look in the girl's eyes behind her, she crouched down, rummaged behind her back, and took out a small square block.

"This is called a phone. It's the latest model from Tianshu City, the Tianshu 1086 Pro Max. You can use it to send me messages. It's faster than writing letters."

It was little Zhu Zhuqing's first time seeing such advanced technology, and her little face was full of curiosity.

"You've got it, right?"

"Mm-hmm."

"When you're not using it, you can turn it into a bracelet so it's easy to carry. The bracelet can also mimic things. It contains knowledge from some books, and I've brought it up for you. You can read and learn from it yourself."

Looking at the silver-white bracelet on her right wrist, Zhu Zhuqing's eyes grew a little moist.

"Sister Stelle, I..."

Stelle once again experienced the feeling of petting a cat.

"All right, stop crying. You're almost a little tabby cat already. Next, we're going to hunt for a Soul Ring. If you're scared, we can go back~~~"

Zhu Zhuqing wiped away her tears.

"I wasn't crying! I just got something in my eyes. I'm Sister Stelle's disciple! Nothing can defeat me! I'm going to! Trailblaze a future of my own!"

"Good! That's the spirit! Now that's my disciple! Then let's set off! We're hunting for a Soul Ring!"

Stelle took out her baseball bat and pointed it at the unfamiliar forest ahead.

"Toward tomorrow! Let's go!"

"Let's go!"

Meanwhile...

"Ding~ Congratulations, my lord, on creating a branch that changes the main storyline. You have received one basic NPC gift pack."

Wei Lin was using the toilet when the sudden voice startled him so badly that he clamped it off.

"Damn it! System, have you got nothing better to do?! You make an announcement at a time like this? Do you know I nearly sucked it back in?!"

The system said nothing, merely sneaking a little something extra into the gift pack as compensation.

"This artificial idiot. A side-story branch?"

Wei Lin could have guessed it with his toes.

He reckoned Stelle had done something bizarre again.

After all, around the protagonist, what couldn't happen?

Wait? Stelle? It seemed... he hadn't seen her since a few chapters ago?

She couldn't have... gotten lost, could she...

Wei Lin's expression changed a little. It seemed... there was some fun to be had~~~

Mm, he'd post something on the Tianshu Network.

"Shocking: The protagonist of the Astral Express has done something so bizarre. Is this civilization reverting to its ancestral state, or moral degeneration?"

"Jie jie jie~~~"