You Rogue Rabbit

Behind Nuoding Academy, in a secluded little grove.

Few people came here normally. The only sound around was the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Xuan Hao released Xiao Wu's hand. Without any unnecessary words, he directly activated his Soul Power. A gentle pink glow instantly enveloped Xiao Wu.

"Dream's Other Shore."

Xiao Wu only felt her vision blur before her consciousness was instantly pulled into a dream filled with warmth and familiar scents.

In the dream, she saw Ah Rou.

Not the Ah Rou who had been hunted to the brink of death by a Titled Douluo, covered in blood, but the mother who had gently braided her hair by the lake in the Star Dou Great Forest and told her stories about the human world.

Ah Rou told her the whole truth. She told her how Xuan Hao had risked himself to save them, how he had used Golden Dragon Roar to trigger a Beast Tide, and how he had tried to secure a chance for them to survive at the very end.

"Xiao Wu, don't blame him."

At the end of the dream, Ah Rou gently caressed her daughter's face, her eyes full of love. "If it weren't for him, Mom might have died at that Pope's hands long ago. You wouldn't have escaped either. He did everything he could."

"Even though Mom is gone, I'll always be with you—in this soul bone, by this Big Brother's side..."

"Out there on your own, you need to learn to protect yourself. And you also need to learn... to trust him."

"..."

Half an hour later.

Xiao Wu slowly woke up. Her already swollen red eyes now looked like two ripe peaches from all her crying.

But when she looked at Xuan Hao again, the hatred and hostility in her eyes had vanished, replaced by something complicated and dependent.

"Thank you..."

Xiao Wu's voice choked up. Lowering her head, she twisted the hem of her clothes between her fingers. "Mom told me everything. If it weren't for you... I might never have been able to see her again."

"No need to thank me."

Xuan Hao leaned against a large tree. "It's what I owed your mother. I don't like owing people favors, especially favors bought with someone's life."

"Alright, stop crying. Since I'm here to be your Gege, I should at least act like one."

"Come on. I'll take you to buy some things."

With that, he took Xiao Wu's hand again and led her out of the academy to wander around Nuoding City.

Although he was currently a "fugitive," that did not stop him from being rich.

During his more than two years at Spirit Academy, after expenses, he had saved over fifty thousand Gold Soul Coins in private funds. In this remote little city, that was practically a fortune.

In a single afternoon, he bought everything from bedding and toiletries to little accessories for girls. Xuan Hao was like a parent taking care of a child, preparing everything In Detail.

Anything Xiao Wu wanted, he bought for her.

By the time the two returned to Nuoding Academy, night had already fallen.

Xuan Hao did not take Xiao Wu back to the messy Dormitory Seven. Instead, he led her straight to the Academic Affairs Office again.

"Bang!"

Before Director Su, who was drinking tea, could even ask what was going on, a large, heavy bag of Gold Soul Coins slammed down on the desk, making the teacup jump.

"Director Su."

Xuan Hao looked at the utterly confused Director Su, his tone calm. "There are five hundred Gold Soul Coins here."

"I want to change my Younger Sister's dormitory. She needs a single room, somewhere with a good environment, preferably quiet."

"This..." Director Su had not quite processed it yet. "That's against the rules... Work-study students all live in Dormitory Seven..."

"Rules are dead. People are alive."

Xuan Hao took out an even larger money bag and gently placed it beside the five hundred Gold Soul Coins. "There are another thousand Gold Soul Coins here."

"Please take better care of Xiao Wu while she's at the academy. Don't let anyone bully her, and don't let people disturb her casually."

"Also, our family situation is somewhat special... Her mother just passed away. Due to some internal family disputes, she didn't want to stay at home, so she ran away."

"I don't want any gossip spreading around here. And I especially don't want certain people who shouldn't know anything finding out about her."

"Do you understand what I mean?"

Director Su looked at the fifteen hundred Gold Soul Coins on the desk, then at Xuan Hao's unmistakably noble bearing and Xiao Wu's proud manner that clearly did not belong to a commoner family. In an instant, he concocted an entire drama of wealthy family feuds in his mind.

An illegitimate daughter from a great family? Suppression by the legal wife? Her mother's unexpected death? Her brother protecting her in secret?

No wonder this little girl held proof that she was a work-study student from a village, yet possessed the talent of Innate Full Soul Power! Now it all made sense! It was all to conceal her identity!

"I understand! I understand completely!"

Director Su pressed down on the two bags of Gold Soul Coins at once. A solemn expression of understanding appeared on his face as he patted his chest and promised:

"Don't worry! At Nuoding Academy, this little girl is my, Su's, own niece! Whoever dares bully her will have to answer to me first! As for her background, my lips are sealed. I guarantee I won't breathe a word!"

"Good."

Xuan Hao nodded in satisfaction.

After settling the lodging and securing a "protector," Xuan Hao did not linger. He led Xiao Wu out of the Academic Affairs Office and returned once more to the little grove behind the mountain.

The night breeze was cool, and the shadows of the trees swayed.

Xuan Hao stopped and turned to look at Xiao Wu, who had silently followed behind him the whole way.

"From now on, you can live here without worry. No one will dare bully you. That Director Su took the money—he'll practically worship you like an ancestor."

Xiao Wu hugged her belongings and looked up at Xuan Hao, reluctance glimmering in her eyes.

"What about you? Are you leaving?"

"I can't stay long," Xuan Hao said. "My identity is too sensitive, and I escaped from Spirit Hall this time. There will definitely be a lot of people looking for me everywhere. If I stay by your side too long, I'll only bring you danger."

He pointed to the cloak and mask he had not yet had time to change out of.

"You saw it yourself. I kept myself wrapped up all afternoon because I didn't want anyone to remember my face. If Spirit Hall's spies discover me, we'll both be finished."

At this, the light in Xiao Wu's eyes dimmed somewhat. She lowered her head, anxiously twisting the hem of her clothes.

"However..."

Xuan Hao changed his tone. "Once I'm sure it's safe, or once I find somewhere to settle down, I'll definitely come back to see you whenever I have time."

"Then I'll use that soul skill on you again. Whenever you miss your mother, I'll let you have a good dream and see her there."

Xiao Wu abruptly raised her head, life returning to her reddened eyes. She looked at Xuan Hao, at this boy who appeared especially handsome beneath the moonlight yet carried a hint of roguishness, and an indescribable feeling welled up inside her.

It was gratitude, dependence, and the relief of having survived a disaster.

Suddenly.

Xiao Wu took a step forward, stood on tiptoe, and before Xuan Hao could react, leaned in and planted a heavy kiss on his cheek.

Xuan Hao's entire body froze.

He subconsciously covered his cheek and stared wide-eyed at the six-year-old little girl before him, his face full of shock.

"You... what are you doing?"

"You little brat, you're already learning bad things at such a young age? You're acting like some female hooligan and taking advantage of me? Are you a Rogue Rabbit?"

"You're the hooligan!" Xiao Wu's face instantly turned red, like a ripe apple. She took two steps back and hid both hands behind her back, explaining in embarrassment and annoyance, "This... this is to show gratitude! It's etiquette! Do you understand etiquette?"

"What kind of etiquette is that? Why haven't I ever heard—"

Xuan Hao had just been about to tease her a little to ease the mood when his heart suddenly clenched.

An unprecedented sense of dread surged into his heart without warning. Every hair on his body stood on end in an instant.

Tang Hao?!

That drunkard who only knew how to swing a sledgehammer was approaching this place!

"Listen!"

Xuan Hao spoke extremely quickly. He reached out and vigorously rubbed Xiao Wu's head, messing up her originally neat Scorpion Braid.

"I'm leaving."

"Be happy at the academy. Don't overthink things. Eat properly and cultivate properly."

"And... don't be so rowdy. Temper yourself a little and don't cause trouble."

"Mm... I'll remember." Although Xiao Wu did not know what had happened, she saw how Xuan Hao's face had suddenly become incomparably serious and obediently nodded.

"Hurry back! Director Su should already be arranging your dormitory. Don't keep him waiting too long!"

With that, Xuan Hao did not dare linger any longer. His figure flashed, and he swiftly slipped into the dense woods.

"Gege..."

Xiao Wu softly called out in the direction Xuan Hao had disappeared, then bit her lip and turned to run toward the dormitory building.

Elsewhere.

Xuan Hao raced through the shadows of the forest at top speed. He did not use Teleportation, because such an abrupt fluctuation of Soul Power would attract the attention of someone at that level. Relying entirely on his physical strength and his awareness of the terrain, he silently moved away from Nuoding Academy.

He ran madly for five or six li until that suffocating feeling of dread completely vanished. Only then did Xuan Hao finally stop.

"Whew... whew..."

Xuan Hao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and looked back toward Nuoding Academy.

Tang Hao had come to Nuoding Academy. Tomorrow, Tang San would be going to hunt for a Soul Ring, and Tang Hao would definitely follow in secret. That meant this guy absolutely would not return to the area around Holy Spirit Village for the next few days.

The tiger had left its den, so the tiger's lair was empty.

"This time, the advantage is mine!"

Without any hesitation, Xuan Hao got his bearings, slipped into the darkness, and headed straight for Holy Spirit Village.