Attendant Knight Assessment (3)

"My lord, I don't know." Seeing that it was this middle-aged man, Balza hurriedly saluted him. This middle-aged man had only arrived at the Odin Sub-Temple a few days ago. Even Balza could not determine his identity or Cultivation Level; he only knew that he was an important figure from the Knight Temple branch in Bright Moon City.

The middle-aged man withdrew his gaze and said flatly, "Because he possesses spiritual power beyond that of ordinary people. Otherwise, why do you think he was able to awaken such potential?"

Long Haochen was overjoyed. He held the small glass bottle in his hand as though it were a treasure and ran happily toward home.

To the other children, the liquid in the bottle was merely foul-tasting medicine, but to him, it was the reason he had joined the Knight Temple.

As he walked, he muttered to himself, "Big Brother Jiang Hu was right. This Essence Replenishing Liquid really is good stuff. Ever since Mother started drinking a bottle every week, her health has improved so much. Mother, I'm sorry. You taught me that beneath a man's knees lies gold, but if I hadn't passed the assessment today, I wouldn't have been able to bring back Essence Replenishing Liquid for you. I don't want to lose you. For Mother, I'm willing to do anything."

If Balza had heard Long Haochen's words, he would surely have stared wide-eyed in shock.

Essence Replenishing Liquid was a medicinal concoction distributed by the Knight Temple. It strengthened the foundation and replenished vitality for children under fifteen, helping them cultivate and build a solid physical base. Long Haochen had nearly failed today's assessment because he had never drunk any Essence Replenishing Liquid himself! He had given it all to his mother. A year ago, he had merely been a frail little boy. Yet one year later, through his unrelenting efforts and the persistence of wanting his mother to drink the Essence Replenishing Liquid, he had forcibly broken through the threshold of ten spiritual power.

For a child of only nine, the difficulty involved had even surpassed the hurdle Quasi-Knights faced when becoming Knights. What astonishing talent and effort had it taken to accomplish this!

Sunlight spilled over Long Haochen, making him gleam with a golden radiance, just like his heart of gold.

Long Haochen's home was located in a remote corner on the western side of Odin Town. He even had to cross a small river to reach it. Before long, he crossed the single-plank bridge over the river. However, he did not head straight home. Instead, he followed a narrow path directly into a forest west of Odin Town.

Before giving the Essence Replenishing Liquid to his mother each time, he would first gather some wild vegetables, then mix the medicine into the strongly flavored Wild Vegetable Soup so that his mother would not taste it. He did not want Mother to know about this. Long Haochen clearly remembered Instructor Balza's teaching: a real man should bear everything himself.

After entering the forest, he quickly became busy. These past years, Long Haochen and his mother had depended on each other for survival. Even in Odin Town, their family was among the poorest. Poor children grew up early; while many children his age knew only how to play all day, he was already able to share some of his mother's burdens. Though mother and son survived only on the meager income Bai Yue earned each day by cutting clothes for others, he had always felt very happy.

Before long, quite a pile of wild vegetables had accumulated on the ground. Long Haochen was extremely familiar with them. Though they were merely wild vegetables, they did not taste bad. He had eaten plenty of them since childhood.

Just as Long Haochen was about to gather up the wild vegetables he had picked and head home, a soft puff suddenly startled him. This forest was far from peaceful; wild beasts occasionally appeared here.

Long Haochen looked toward the source of the sound and vaguely saw a petite figure that seemed to have fallen over. Driven by curiosity, he cautiously walked over. After only a few steps, he saw clearly that what had fallen in the woods was not some wild beast at all, but a little girl.

The little girl looked only seven or eight years old. She was very slender, with short Light Purple hair. Her rough cloth clothes were torn in many places, and blood seeped from at least six or seven wounds. Though she had fallen to the ground, she remained conscious and was struggling to get up, but it seemed extremely difficult.

Long Haochen hurried forward and supported her. "What happened to you?" he asked in surprise.

The little girl seemed startled as well. Her body moved instinctively, and she turned to look at him. Only then did Long Haochen see her face clearly.

Quite a bit of dirt stained her pretty little face, and a streak of blood hung from the corner of her mouth. Despite her miserable state, she was still strikingly beautiful. Yet her beauty differed from Long Haochen's. Long Haochen's brows and eyes were gentle, making him easy to approach. This girl, though young, had eyes and brows filled with stubbornness and coldness. The instant their gazes met, Long Haochen could not help but shiver.

The little girl seemed surprised to see Long Haochen as well, but perhaps Long Haochen's affinity was strong enough that she soon calmed down.

"Are you alright?" Long Haochen asked again.

The little girl barely raised one hand and wrote a line on the ground. "I can't speak. Bad people are chasing me. They'll be here soon. Sister, save me."

Long Haochen was startled when he read what she had written before, but when he saw the last few words, several black lines rose across his forehead.

"I'm an older brother, not an older sister." After gloomily explaining himself, he lifted the little girl into his arms, moved by compassion. After all, he had passed the Attendant Knight assessment, and his strength was already comparable to that of an adult. The little girl was especially light, and he could barely feel any weight at all as he carried her.

After picking her up, Long Haochen returned to the wild vegetables he had gathered, tied them up with a grass rope, and lifted them. At that moment, however, the little girl anxiously tugged at his lapel.

Long Haochen froze for a moment, then hurriedly set her down. The little girl swiftly wrote in the dirt, "I can sense their aura. They'll be here any moment. They can smell me. Hurry and leave, or it'll be too late."

Long Haochen furrowed his brow slightly and resolutely shook his head. "No. I'm a man. I have to protect you." Though he was only nine years old, his beautiful little face held several more traces of determination as he said this.

"Smell?" Long Haochen's eyes shifted. He quickly took several stalks from the wild vegetables, crushed them in his hands, and rapidly smeared them over both the little girl and himself. Then, carrying her, he ran toward a nearby thicket and carefully placed her among the bushes. He lay over her afterward, supporting his body with his elbows. He did not touch the little girl, yet used his body to completely shield her.

He did not notice that as he did all this, the girl he was protecting had been watching him with a strange look in her eyes, remaining quietly still without making a single movement.

Long Haochen had only just hidden himself when a series of whistling sounds tore through the air outside. Peeking through a gap in the bushes, he saw a group of black-clad men. They were all extremely tall, and a faint fishy stench drifted over. Several of them were forcefully sniffing the air.

"Why did the scent stop here? Could that little brat have been rescued?" A hoarse, grating voice echoed through the forest.