Seeing this, Bai Jun sighed helplessly. He couldn't bear that form of address. Then he bent down, crouched before Sushang, rolled up her bloodstained sleeve, and wiped the blood from her wrist with a handkerchief. Once he was done, he gently patted Sushang's shoulder and comforted her:
"All right, stop looking like you're about to cry. Just don't do anything this foolish again."
"No, I can't!"
Sushang remained kneeling on the ground. Beneath her clear, translucent eyes lay a stubborn determination.
As Bai Jun carefully wiped the blood from his fingers with his handkerchief, helplessness flickered in his listless, half-lidded eyes. Though he had no idea what this little girl was trying to do, he still patiently asked, "Why?"
"Because..." The fingers clutching Sushang's hem loosened slightly, trembling faintly, only to suddenly tighten again the next moment. She looked pitifully close to tears, yet her tone was exceptionally firm. "I have to take responsibility for you!"
As though he had heard something utterly unbelievable, Bai Jun sucked in several sharp breaths and retreated all the way to the roadside. A look of disgust appeared on his cool, handsome face. "What kind of resolve did you summon to say something like that...? But let me make this clear first: Xianzhou law takes hooliganism very seriously. Don't think you can act without restraint just because you're a girl."
"A hooligan? Where?! This young lady definitely won't let him off!"
The moment she heard the word "hooligan," Sushang immediately sat upright and vigilantly looked around, wearing the expression of someone ready to ensure any offender never returned alive.
Yet after searching for quite a while without finding so much as a trace of the supposed hooligan, Sushang turned to Bai Jun in confusion—only to discover that the target of his deeply disgusted gaze had been her all along.
"Wait, Benefactor, the hooligan you meant... you were talking about me?"
Sushang swallowed with difficulty. An incredulous expression appeared on her delicate, pretty face, but she still refused to believe it. Her little head cautiously leaned forward as she looked around again before carefully asking.
Seeing how stupidly pure and innocent she looked, Bai Jun immediately dismissed his previous thought. No matter how he thought about it, a fool of this variety couldn't possibly cause trouble as a hooligan, could she? He helplessly shook his head and sighed. "No. Just take it as me joking earlier."
"Haha, Benefactor, you really gave this young lady a scare!" Only then did Sushang finally relax. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and smiled in relief.
All right, she really was an idiot... Bai Jun silently reached that conclusion. He bent down to pick up the shattered Qiongshi Bird Skewer from the ground, mourned it rather painfully for a moment, then relaxed his expression slightly and turned his head.
"But your answer was far too frivolous. Please think things through more carefully before answering in the future!"
With that, he turned to leave, but before he had taken two steps, he felt someone tugging at the corner of his clothes.
"No, Benefactor! My mother taught me that kindness must be repaid. You saved me, so I have to take responsibility for it!" Ignoring Bai Jun's utterly speechless expression, Sushang still tightly gripped his clothes and refused to give up easily.
"I understand your determination, but no matter what, saying something like that to a man you've only just met is somewhat inappropriate, isn't it?" Bai Jun took a deep breath, adopting the attitude one might use with a child as he solemnly and gently pried open her fingers.
"Inappropriate? But I just want to repay you!"
"Enough. How long are you going to keep pestering me? This is really improper." Bai Jun glanced back at Sushang, ignored her pleading eyes, and his tone grew somewhat impatient. "I'll just pretend none of this happened. Why don't you forget about it too?"
"Why would you say to forget it? You just saved my life... Saying I should forget it is way too strange!"
"What's strange about that? If we have to say someone's strange, it's you!" Noticing the odd looks from the pedestrians around them, Bai Jun, whose embarrassment was about to overflow, loudly retorted.
"Don't go, please! My conscience would never let me live it down—ah!"
Seeing Bai Jun turn to leave, Sushang immediately tried to stop him. But the instant she grabbed his wrist, she was so flustered that her left foot tripped over her right, and she fell to her knees with a thud.
"You really only ever think about yourself..."
Seeing how stubborn she was, and knowing she was impossible to persuade, Bai Jun helplessly took out a skewer. Under Sushang's puzzled gaze, he slowly said, "Fine. Since you insist on compensating me, just buy me a candied hawthorn skewer and we'll call it even. Also, don't call me Benefactor anymore. Just call me Bai Jun."
"I understand, Benefactor Bai Jun!"
Hearing that, Sushang, who had been frowning in worry all this time, finally relaxed. Without minding the wind-tossed strands of her long hair, she simply revealed a bright, cheerful smile.
Then, copying his phrasing, she added, "Benefactor can just call me Sushang!"
Unlimited Bounty
As the title says, I'll get straight to the point. I want to open a bounty and answer a few questions while I'm at it.
This is the second book I've written, and I've never opened a bounty before. On top of that, my updates have been relatively slow, so the comments are full of discussions about when I'm going to drop the book.
New books really need support. When a sapling gets no feedback, it really kills motivation, and there are also so many malicious comments...
Honestly, it makes me pretty sad.
I promised my previous book would reach one million words, and I did it. It's only on hiatus for now. Since I said I'd finish it, I definitely will. Please, show a little mercy with your words. Besides, if I really intended to drop it, why wouldn't I just make an alt account? Why would I use my main account just to get scolded?
As for this book, the outline is planned for around 1.3 million words. I won't go back on matters of principle or pull any tricks, so please rest assured. If you truly don't believe me, there's no need for sarcasm. Leave and read whatever you want instead. Come back later and see whether I was lying.
I still have around 110,000 words saved up. Here's why updates have been slow:
First, because of an operational mistake, I only got the contract signed after 50,000 words, which wasted a week and a half of recommendation slots. That's why I slowed my updates a little—at least this way, I can benefit from the recommendation slots for a few more days.
Second, I'm currently a sophomore majoring in foreign languages, and my academic workload is heavy. A lot of my saved chapters can only be written by squeezing time out of my free hours. To ensure stable updates and quality, I need to maintain a sufficient stockpile.
All right, that's enough complaining. That's all for the explanations. Next is the bounty announcement—from today until October 1, an unlimited bounty will be active. If I can't keep up, I'll close it early.
One extra chapter for every 3,000 recommendation votes.
One extra chapter for every 200 monthly votes.
One extra chapter for every 10,000 in tips or 100 blades.
Twenty chapters for a gold treasure chest, ten chapters for a silver treasure chest. It feels unnecessary to say, but I'll add it anyway.
The current numbers are 65 monthly votes, 1,314 recommendation votes, 4,652 in tips, and 32 blades. I'll tally the daily numbers in the backend after midnight.
And lastly, I hope everyone will leave more paragraph comments. Those comments will be a constant source of motivation for updates. Any suggestions are welcome—I'll read them all, meow!
Could She Really Be a Genius?
**Ding—** Praise for Noble Morality +15 60/100
The cold mechanical voice ringing in his mind made Bai Jun pause briefly. After collecting himself a moment later, before he even had time to be happy, he suddenly noticed that his wrist was tightly held by a small hand, and the skin where they touched was faintly warm.
"Sushang, have you held on long enough?"
He lowered his head and saw Sushang smiling foolishly across from him. He gave a soft cough, then gently and kindly nodded at her, hinting that she should let go already.
Who knew Sushang did not understand his meaning at all? Instead, she took it as proof that he acknowledged her. She smiled back and calmly, openly met Bai Jun's eyes, while her little hand clenched even tighter. Bai Jun's face darkened, and he unceremoniously smacked the back of her hand.
"Ah, that hurts! Benefactor, what was that for?" Sushang hurriedly pulled back her little hand, now red from the slap. As she rubbed the aching back of it, she complained in dissatisfaction.
"I was reminding you to hurry up and buy me a Qiongshi Bird Skewer. Also, remember to call me Bai Jun!" Seeing that she showed no remorse whatsoever and did not even know what she had done wrong, Bai Jun tiredly rolled his eyes and replied perfunctorily.
"Oh, oh! Okay, Bene—uh, Bai Jun!" The moment the words left her mouth, Sushang realized she had misspoken again and hurriedly corrected herself, while also shielding her head. "Can you tell me where to buy it?"
Though regions differed, many food styles within the Xianzhou Alliance still shared plenty of similarities.
For example, the candied hawthorn skewers mentioned earlier could also be called Qiongshi Bird Skewers. The name came from qiongshi birds, whose tails bore clusters of fruit. These birds were clever and adorable, and their calls were sweet and pleasant, making them very lovable. Thus, people gave candied hawthorn skewers this elegant name after the birds. Over time, everyone simply accepted the term.
Sushang vaguely remembered that Uncle Mu from next door often made them for her when she was little.
"Qiongshi Bird Skewers are sold everywhere in Starcruiser Sea Hub... Wait, don't tell me you don't know that?"
"I'm new here, so I'm not familiar with the place."
This time, Bai Jun was the one who looked surprised. He sized Sushang up again from head to toe, finally realizing that her clothing and manner of speech differed noticeably from those of the pedestrians around them.
Then, when the corner of his eye caught sight of the ancient Xuanyuan Sword at Sushang's side, Bai Jun slapped his forehead and suddenly understood. "Wait, is your mother Su Yi?"
"Hey, how did you know? D-Don't tell me, Bai Jun, you're from Yaoqing too!"
An old Xianzhou saying went: when fellow townsfolk meet, their eyes brim with tears.
Though Sushang had only left Yaoqing a few days ago, she was still a stranger in a foreign land. Combined with a young girl's sensitive, delicate heart, she could not help missing home and family. Now that she had met someone from her hometown—and someone who had just saved her life—Sushang was so moved that tears welled in her eyes as she rushed forward and hugged Bai Jun.
"Like hell I am!"
Bai Jun shoved away Sushang, who was wiping tears and snot all over his clothes, and pointed straight at the Xuanyuan Sword by her side.
Who in Yaoqing did not know the Great Void Sword Art's illustrious reputation? Its inherited sword, Xuanyuan, was even more renowned throughout the field.
Some said it had been forged from the remnants of the light arrow that the Aeon of The Hunt used to destroy the stars. Others claimed the sword was a demonic blade forged from the refined fire of a Suiyang. In any case, anyone who had seen that sword knew where it came from.
Sushang's usually slow-witted little head seemed especially sharp now. She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and blinked several times. Then an idea suddenly appeared in her mind. "Could it be... Bai Jun, you know my mother!"
Sure enough, he should not have expected anything from her. Bai Jun helplessly held his forehead, marveling at the fool's erratic train of thought. But he could not be bothered to mock her, so he simply followed along with Sushang's words.
"More or less. I lived in Yaoqing for a while and had the good fortune to see your mother a few times. We were rather far apart, though, and I never had any dealings with her. Strictly speaking, I only knew of your mother from my side."
"Oh, oh, I see. I understand..."
She claimed to understand, but Bai Jun looked at her clear yet foolish eyes and somehow felt she did not look like she understood at all. Unable to say anything else, he could only tell her where to go to buy Qiongshi Bird Skewers.
"Um, Benefactor, could you repeat that? I didn't hear you clearly just now."
Sushang scratched her cheek. Her confused yet somewhat embarrassed voice reminded Bai Jun that this girl was an idiot. He sighed, grabbed Sushang's wrist, and led her toward the snack stalls on the eastern side of Xuan Ye Avenue.
Sushang obediently followed behind Bai Jun. Like other Outworlders, she looked around like a curious child along the way, occasionally tugging at his sleeve to ask what things were. "Bai Jun, Bai Jun, what's floating in the sky? Is it someone's bedsheet?"
"That's a temperature and wind direction detector."
"Oh, oh! This must be the Luofu's morning glory! I saw it in a book before. It's so white and pretty!"
"No, those are hydrangeas. Morning glories only bloom in autumn, idiot." Bai Jun waved his hand irritably, then turned and put a finger to his lips. "Be quiet for a little while. I'm actually terrible with directions. If you keep distracting me, we might both get lost."
For the rest of the time, Sushang truly became much quieter. She silently followed behind Bai Jun, and even when she encountered something that piqued her curiosity, she only looked at it a few extra times, never speaking up to disturb him. It seemed she was genuinely afraid of getting lost.
They followed the main road, turned left onto Xuan Ye Avenue, and the first intersection ahead was where the snack stalls were. Many Luofu specialty snacks were gathered there, surrounded by numerous tourists lining up to buy them.
In terms of taste alone, they were not particularly delicious, and the prices were rather high as well. Luofu locals basically never spent money there. The only people willing to pay were Outworlder tourists who had just arrived.
Bai Jun stepped forward and ordered two Qiongshi Bird Skewers, naturally dumping the task of paying onto Sushang behind him. When she heard that two Qiongshi Bird Skewers cost 3,000 Credits, the fingers counting money from her wallet visibly paused. In the end, she gritted her teeth and handed the money to the owner.
"So expensive, and there's so little on it too. In Yaoqing, a huge candied hawthorn skewer only costs 400 Credits..." Sushang looked rather heartbrokenly at the Qiongshi Bird Skewer in her hand, which had only four pieces of fruit on it, and for some reason could not bring herself to take a bite.
"You're not eating it? Then give it to me."
"No! I'll eat it, I'll eat it!"
Bai Jun held his Qiongshi Bird Skewer between his lips and reached out to snatch the fruit skewer from Sushang's hand. Startled, Sushang hurriedly stuffed the Qiongshi Bird Skewer into her mouth. She did not want to spend so much money on candied hawthorn only to not get a single bite.
Seeing her adorable food-protecting appearance, Bai Jun shrugged with a silent laugh. It had only been a joke. He would never steal food from a little girl.
He casually leaned against a wooden railing, resting his loosely interlaced hands on it as he lazily looked toward the other end of the Starcruiser Sea. From time to time, he leisurely popped a qiongshi fruit into his mouth. His relaxed, carefree appearance made Sushang unable to resist stealing several more glances at him.
She had not had the time to look closely earlier, but now that she focused on him, Sushang discovered that Bai Jun really was quite handsome.
He had a tall, slender build, skin as white as fine snow, cool and handsome features, gentle eyes and brows, and clean, long fingers. His nails were neatly trimmed, while his fingertips bore faint calluses, as though they were marks left by years of sword practice...
Sushang gradually slowed her breathing, her gaze fixed blankly on his profile as though she had been drawn in.
Suddenly, she remembered a white flower she had tucked into her pocket earlier. Unable to help herself, she tucked it beside Bai Jun's ear, where it complemented his similarly silver-gray hair.
"What are you doing?"
"It looks good..."
Bai Jun suddenly came back to his senses and noticed the strange look in her eyes. He stared at her with an odd expression, and Sushang's face instantly flushed faintly red. Her voice became hesitant as she tried to defend herself. "Huh? I-I'm a little hot. Haha, why is the Luofu so hot?"
As she spoke, she repeatedly fanned her burning cheeks with the hand not holding the Qiongshi Bird Skewer. Then she suddenly pointed toward the broad star gate in the distance, trying to change the subject. "Oh, right! What's that huge thing on the Jade Realm Gate? It looks so cool!"
Bai Jun first looked at the white flower she had placed beside his ear. After considering it for a moment, he decided it looked pretty good and silently tucked it back into place.
Then his gaze followed Sushang's finger toward the Jade Realm Gate. He took a bite of his Qiongshi Bird Skewer and calmly answered, "That mighty spirit is called the 'Divine Monarch of the Heavenly Thunder Department, General of Thunder and Lightning, Pursuer of Demons and Sweeper of Filth.' The name is too long and hard to remember, so just cut off the beginning and end and call it the Divine Monarch."
"Um, the Pursuer of what, Sweeper of what, what Heavenly Monarch?"
Seeing Sushang's baffled expression, Bai Jun did not think his wording was unclear. Rather, he believed the fool before him simply had limited comprehension. He cleared his throat and switched to a simpler explanation. "Our great immortal is the old master of the Lei family, the one in charge of striking whoever needs striking across the Three Realms. The name's too long to memorize, so just call him Third Grandpa."
This time, she understood.
Sushang clapped her hands excitedly. "Oh, oh, Third Grandpa!"
Bai Jun pressed his lips together, doing his utmost to maintain a proper smile as he internally lamented that this girl truly was a huge idiot.
"Oh, right, Bai Jun, I want to ask you for something!"
Sushang seemed to remember something important. She suddenly grabbed the corner of Bai Jun's clothes, and a rare serious expression appeared on her foolish face.
"Well, I actually came to the Luofu to join the Cloud Cavalry. I've just arrived and don't know the way. Could you take me to the Cloud Cavalry registration office?" Halfway through, the expression she had tried so hard to keep serious accidentally broke into a silly smile, and she awkwardly scratched her head.
"The Cloud Cavalry registration office?"
Bai Jun froze. He looked Sushang over several times with disbelief, but then remembered that her mother was Su Yi and accepted it. As the saying went, a tiger father had no dog sons. The same should apply to mothers and daughters.
But seeing Bai Jun fail to answer for so long, Sushang thought he was about to refuse her, and disappointment inevitably filled her heart. "If you have something to do, that's fine. I can ask one of the patrolling Cloud Cavalry brothers..."
Bai Jun quickly stuffed the remaining qiongshi fruits into his mouth and tossed the skewer into a trash bin. Speaking through a full mouth, he said, "Fine. I've had a little too much sugar today anyway. I'll take it as a walk to burn some off and bring you along."
"You really are a great good person!" Sushang was immediately touched beyond measure, and her fondness for Bai Jun rose by several more degrees.
"It was just a convenient—hey! You idiot, stop wiping your tears on me all the time!"
Before you continue