Awkward

Zhu Zhuqing's thoughts ran wild, and her cool skin seemed to have ripened with heat.

Ye Lan followed Zhu Zhuqing's gaze. Seeing those two curves, he immediately understood what had happened.

When he had treated Zhu Zhuqing's injuries earlier, he had made a mistake and accidentally untied her chest wrap, creating this misunderstanding.

He might be socially dead any second! Zhu Zhuqing would mistake him for a lecherous thief who had taken advantage of her while she was unconscious.

Oh no, this misunderstanding had gotten huge!

Ye Lan used his brain and eight External Brains to frantically piece together an explanation.

This was the most useful his tactful heart had ever been!

"Sorry, sorry! I accidentally knocked it off when I used Blue Silver Grass to treat your wounds. You were completely wrapped up in Blue Silver Grass at the time, so I had no idea what was going on inside!" Ye Lan summoned Blue Silver Grass and tried to recreate the Blue Silver sphere from before, gesturing for Zhu Zhuqing to see.

The heat in Zhu Zhuqing's cheeks gradually subsided, and her heart settled. Just as she had thought, the person before her was no shameless scoundrel.

"I believe you. No need to demonstrate!" Zhu Zhuqing watched the flustered Blue Silver Grass before her as it helplessly tied itself into knots...

After Zhu Zhuqing let out a breath of relief, a faint sense of disappointment rose in her heart.

Was she not attractive to the man before her? She had been completely unconscious then, yet he had done nothing?

No, Zhu Zhuqing, what are you thinking?

You already have a betrothal!

Seeing the trust in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes, Ye Lan's tense body finally relaxed.

A gentle smile returned to his face. "I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Ye Lan!"

As Zhu Zhuqing looked at Ye Lan's gentle smile, her wandering thoughts kept convincing her that Ye Lan was simply kind by nature and eager to help others, not treating her in any special way.

"Come over. I grilled a Big Green Fish!" Ye Lan walked ahead and signaled for Zhu Zhuqing to follow.

With her Hell Spirit Cat, Zhu Zhuqing had actually smelled the fragrance of fish as soon as she woke up. But because her mind had been filled with all sorts of chaotic thoughts, she had forcibly suppressed her craving.

Now that Ye Lan had reminded her, Zhu Zhuqing finally came back to herself, and her stomach let out a growl.

Ye Lan pretended not to hear it, while Zhu Zhuqing's face turned red again.

Ye Lan divided the fish into two portions, one for himself and one for Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing accepted the grilled fish wrapped in some large leaf. Its exterior was golden and crisp, while the flesh inside was snowy white, sweet, and tender.

Beneath the sweetness was a slight hint of spice.

"It's delicious!" Zhu Zhuqing cried out instinctively. She found it unbelievable that Ye Lan could make fish this tasty. He did not look like someone who knew how to cook at all.

Ye Lan took a bite and found that it really was delicious. Though the seasonings could not compare to those from his previous life, the quality of the fish was on an entirely different level.

As long as one was not a terrible cook who grilled the fish into charcoal, it was unlikely to taste bad.

"The quality of the fish is just too good," Ye Lan said.

Ye Lan had barely taken two bites when Xiong Er and Da Ju silently moved closer. They stared at the half fish in his hand without moving or making a sound.

They simply stared quietly at the fish in Ye Lan's hand, making him uneasy under the gaze of the two fools.

He split half of his fish between them. Xiong Er and Da Ju instantly looked delighted, snatching up the fish and closing their eyes as they savored it.

Zhu Zhuqing watched the heartwarming scene of one man and two beasts. Though Xiong Er looked terrifying, the two soul beasts acted like a dog and a cat in front of Ye Lan.

Zhu Zhuqing gave some of her fish to Ye Lan and asked curiously, "How did you do it? These two soul beasts might not even be defeated by a powerful Soul Elder."

"I gave them a beating, and they became like this." Prompted by Zhu Zhuqing, Ye Lan realized that his Blue Silver Grass—Living Form—seemed to hold an enormous attraction for soul beasts.

Perhaps soul beasts in the wild were easily killed by other soul beasts once they were injured, so an ability that could heal wounds was especially rare to them?

Or were Xiong Er and Da Ju drawn in by the Ultimate Life attribute?

"Maybe it has something to do with my Martial Soul. These soul beasts seem rather close to Blue Silver Grass," Ye Lan answered casually.

"Blue Silver Grass? You're saying this golden vine is Blue Silver Grass?" Zhu Zhuqing could not believe it. While she had been lost in thought earlier, she had not clearly heard Ye Lan mention Blue Silver Grass, but now she had caught it.

Zhu Zhuqing could not believe that the Golden Patterned Blue Star Vine was the Blue Silver Grass found everywhere on Douluo Continent.

"Hard to believe, right? My Blue Silver Grass used to look exactly like the Blue Silver Grass found everywhere." Ye Lan also marveled at the change in his Blue Silver Grass.

"How amazing!" Zhu Zhuqing reached out to touch the Blue Silver Grass, filled with curiosity about it.

"What about you? What is your Martial Soul, Zhu Zhuqing?" Ye Lan asked.

"Hell Spirit Cat!" Zhu Zhuqing used Martial Soul Possession, and two black cat ears popped out.

Ye Lan stared at Zhu Zhuqing's ears. A cat-eared girl!

"Hell Spirit Cat? Zhu Zhuqing, are you from the Zhu family of the Star Luo Empire?" Ye Lan changed the subject, suppressing the cry of how cute in his heart.

"Yes. The Hell Spirit Cat is the Zhu family's inherited Martial Soul." Zhu Zhuqing seemed to think of something, and a despondent expression appeared on her face.

"As far as I know, the Star Luo Empire places great importance on inherited Martial Souls. Aside from organized trips to the Heaven Dou Empire for major events, Soul Masters from the Star Luo Empire rarely come to the Heaven Dou Empire," Ye Lan continued.

"..." Zhu Zhuqing remained silent in a low voice. She did not want to tell Ye Lan that she had fled her family to seek out her fiancé and fight for a chance at survival. Perhaps it was loneliness, perhaps concealment, perhaps fear.

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing remain silent, Ye Lan did not press her further. Instead, he raised his head and looked at the night sky over Douluo Continent.

The stars glittered brightly in the night sky, but Ye Lan's attention was fixed entirely on one dim star.

"I ran away from my family." Zhu Zhuqing lowered her head.

"Why?"

"I don't know. Maybe I was lost, unsure of what I was supposed to do. Wanting to make a change, I ran away from my family." Zhu Zhuqing recalled the confusion she had felt back home, as though she had lost everyone's support.

Everyone avoided her as if she were the plague. They were afraid that getting close to her would lead to them being purged by Dai Weisi, the future Star Luo Emperor.

From a young age, she had cultivated and grown up alone amid isolation and discrimination.

Ye Lan patted Zhu Zhuqing on the shoulder. After a brief pause, he said, "You looked really cool when you chose to make a change!"

Ye Lan began to understand Zhu Zhuqing's state of mind. She had once been nothing more than a character in words, but from her speech, Ye Lan felt her loneliness, confusion, and resilience.

A smile appeared on Zhu Zhuqing's dejected face, though her eyes were still red.

Having always been alone, Zhu Zhuqing was hearing someone acknowledge her for the first time. At last, she revealed a smile she had not shown in six years.

Ye Lan was so captivated by Zhu Zhuqing's smile that he briefly lost focus. Zhu Zhuqing, too shy to meet Ye Lan's gaze, did not notice.