Xiao Wu's Identity Crisis, Different Ways of Protection

Xiao Wu froze and looked up.

She met Bai Tang San's dark golden eyes, so cold there was not a trace of warmth in them.

"What... what do you mean, had enough fun?"

Xiao Wu's gaze darted away as she still tried to play dumb.

"Tang San, you... you were amazing just now. You actually dared to stop a Titled Douluo..."

"Shut up."

Bai Tang San cut her off coldly.

He turned and walked to the window, his back facing Xiao Wu.

"Hundred-thousand-year Rogue Rabbit."

"Rebuilding in human form."

"Juvenile stage."

With every word he uttered, Xiao Wu's body trembled violently.

By the time the final word fell.

The terror in Xiao Wu's eyes had reached its peak.

"You... you knew all along?"

Her voice carried a sob as she looked despairingly at that back.

Since he knew, why had he saved her?

Was it so he could fatten her up before killing her?

Or was it so he could sell her to Spirit Hall?

"Your disguise was far too crude."

Bai Tang San turned around and looked down at her.

"Before a Titled Douluo."

"You are not human."

"You are a walking, talking hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring."

"Along with two Soul Bones."

The naked truth was brutally laid bare.

Xiao Wu bit her lip hard, tears swirling in her eyes.

"I... I didn't want this either..."

"I wanted to live like a human..."

"Live?"

Bai Tang San gave a cold laugh.

"If I hadn't acted just now."

"You would already have been taken back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect by Gu Rong, raised in a cage, and slaughtered the moment Ning Fengzhi or Chen Xin broke through Rank Ninety."

"Is that what you call living?"

Xiao Wu lowered her head, tears pattering onto the floor.

She was powerless to refute him.

Because that was reality.

Suddenly.

"Catch."

Something arced through the air.

Xiao Wu instinctively reached out and caught it.

It was an ancient-looking Jade Pendant, its entire surface an unusual crimson red.

The instant it landed in her hand.

A warm aura immediately enveloped her entire body.

The sense of danger that had constantly haunted her, the fear of being seen through at any moment, vanished in that instant...

It was as though an invisible barrier had completely cut off the Soul Beast aura around her.

"This is..."

Xiao Wu's eyes widened as she stared incredulously at the Jade Pendant in her hand.

"A withered leaf from the Lovesick Heartbreak Red."

Bai Tang San spoke indifferently.

"I found it in a pile of discarded materials at the Auction House."

"Though the flower has withered, its divine nature of concealing fate remains."

"I refined it for forty-nine days with the Mysterious Heaven Skill, then combined it with several medicines that lock down one's aura to create this Concealment Talisman."

"Wear it."

"Unless it is a god-level powerhouse who has reached Level One Hundred and become a god."

"Even if a Level Ninety-Nine Peerless Douluo stood before you, they would not be able to see through your true form."

Xiao Wu held the Jade Pendant that still carried Bai Tang San's body warmth.

She was completely stunned.

The Lovesick Heartbreak Red... it was the king of all flowers!

Even if it was only a withered leaf, it was still priceless!

He... had simply given it to her?

"Why..."

Xiao Wu raised her head, her tear-filled eyes fixed on Bai Tang San.

"You are human, and I am a Soul Beast."

"By killing me, you could directly obtain a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring and Soul Bones."

"Why did you save me? Why give me something so precious?"

She had held that question inside for a long time.

Bai Tang San did not answer immediately.

He walked to the table and poured himself another cup of tea.

A glint that was impossible to read flashed through his deep eyes.

"Because."

"You are my employee."

Bai Tang San took a sip of tea, his tone as calm as if he were stating the most natural thing in the world.

"You ate my radishes and signed my Indentured Servant Contract."

"That makes you an asset of the Tang Sect Merchant Association."

"A boss protects employees."

"And protects his private property."

"Isn't that only natural?"

Xiao Wu froze.

Employee?

Asset?

Just because of that?

She looked at the young man drinking tea with a cold expression.

Then suddenly.

She burst out laughing.

Laughing as she wiped away her tears.

"Idiot..."

"Big idiot..."

What boss and employee?

He was obviously... obviously just protective of his own!

Xiao Wu pressed the Jade Pendant tightly against her chest.

That warmth traveled through her skin and all the way into her heart.

"Tang San."

"Hmm?"

"For the rest of my life... can I work for you?"

"...As long as you eat fewer radishes and don't bankrupt the merchant association."

[Black World]

Nuoding Academy, Dormitory Seven.

The cool night breeze blew through the window lattice.

Hei Tang San lay on his bed, sleeping soundly, a simple-minded smile still lingering at the corner of his mouth.

In his dream, he and Xiao Wu were happily sparring.

Yet on the bed across from him.

Xiao Wu was curled up beneath her blanket, trembling.

Her face was pale, and her eyes were filled with terror.

Just moments ago.

She had sensed a terrifying aura passing over Nuoding City.

It was the aura of a Titled Douluo!

Though it had lasted only an instant, the feeling of being locked onto by death had left her unable to recover even now.

"Third Brother..."

Xiao Wu called softly.

"Snore... snore..."

The only answer she received was Hei Tang San's steady snoring.

Xiao Wu bit her lip, and the light in her eyes dimmed.

She glanced at the endless darkness beyond the window.

Her heart was filled with helplessness.

"If one day, I am discovered..."

"Can Third Brother... really protect me?"

She touched her bare neck.

There was no Jade Pendant.

No Concealment Talisman.

Only endless worry and fear.

And while Xiao Wu trembled in apprehension.

Within the shadows outside the window.

A tall figure in a tattered cloak silently withdrew the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand.

Tang Hao.

He had just used Divine Slaughter's Domain to frighten off a passing Martial Soul Hall Bishop.

He looked at his sleeping son inside, then at the trembling Xiao Wu.

A complicated look flashed through his eyes.

"Xiao San..."

"When will you learn to protect the people you want to protect by yourself?"

"Relying on your old man to clean up your mess from the shadows..."

"Cannot go on forever."

The Sky Curtain's narration mercilessly pointed out the fundamental difference between the two worlds:

[Xiao Wu of the White World wore a Jade Pendant. It was a protective charm born of strength.]

[Xiao Wu of the Black World hid beneath her blanket, relying on luck's mercy.]

[One relied on her boss's absolute control.]

[The other relied on her father's secret charity.]

[That was the difference.]

[Real World]

Spirit Hall, Pope's Palace.

Bibi Dong watched the scene on the Sky Curtain where Bai Tang San placed the Jade Pendant on Xiao Wu.

A trace of daze unexpectedly flashed through her eyes.

Once upon a time.

Someone had also sworn with absolute certainty that he would protect her.

But what happened in the end?

"Hmph."

Bibi Dong snorted coldly, and the daze in her eyes instantly turned to ice.

"This is the responsibility a man should have."

"Use absolute measures to avoid risks."

"Instead of talking about death and survival all day, only to end up unable to do anything."

"That Bai Tang San..."

"Though he was an enemy, his temperament and methods..."

"Really made it hard to hate him."

The Sky Curtain's image gradually froze.

The comparison of the first stage had now come to a complete end.

From awakening their Martial Souls, to hunting Soul Beasts, to commercial planning, and finally, the ways they protected others.

Two Tang Sans, two completely different paths.

Now, it was time for a thorough reckoning.

Across the massive screen, lines of information began flashing wildly.

Those were the [Comprehensive Stage Ratings] for the protagonists of the two worlds!