The Golden-Haired Loli in the Desert

Su Wu took one look at this motley crew of criminal-looking types and had only one thought—this is in the bag.

They were probably just like him, candidates planning to take the 286th Hunter Exam.

Every member of this guard squad wore a vicious expression, radiating brutality; some even had bloodstains on their clothes and weapons.

When they saw a kid like Su Wu, whose vibe clashed completely with everyone else, joining the team, they didn't show any displeasure or surprise.

After all, what happened earlier... everyone had seen it.

But the Gordo Desert and its fringe towns didn't belong to any nation. This place was crawling with all sorts of shady factions. Aside from a few unwritten rules, anything went here.

No one stopped it, so gang members and bandits often showed up in the local taverns, inns, or brothels, occasionally starting fights when they drank too much.

That was why any caravan passing through needed a guard squad.

The ability Su Wu had shown earlier ensured no one underestimated him because of his appearance.

Even if he... didn't look serious or focused at all, instead playing around with the camel, making him seem like anything but a proper guard—more like the others were just escorting this young master's entourage.

Everyone packed up quickly. Su Wu sat on a camel, which also carried the caravan's luggage, water bags, and such.

His weight was nothing to the camel.

The rest also rode camels. The group soon left the town and entered the desert, a long line heading toward the sun, vanishing into the wind and sand.

The caravan trudged slowly through the desert. Su Wu sat on the camel, swaying with its movements, wrapped in a white robe that was soft, not coarse.

All because of the blazing sun and... the swirling sandstorms.

Even opening your mouth could get it full of grit.

Rough sand scraping across your face brought a sharp sting.

Su Wu could use Nen and Cursed Energy to shield his whole body tightly, but it still wasn't as good as Limitless.

"My Limitless..." Su Wu longed desperately for the Limitless skill right now, but he was still 40% compatibility away from obtaining it.

The system wouldn't unlock it, and even if he understood the principle, he couldn't use the skill on his own.

Because it was Gojo Satoru's exclusive skill.

If he could learn skills by himself, he wouldn't need to follow the system's lead and grind so-called compatibility.

Was the system planning to make him get his neck stabbed like Gojo Satoru before it would raise his compatibility?

Only Nen abilities belonged to him, but even those... weren't exactly under control.

And the Reverse Cursed Technique he could obtain came from Sukuna, also impossible to learn on his own.

As for Black Flash... the system didn't count it as a skill, probably because it depended purely on luck.

Anyway, the system had already stated that all interpretation rights belonged to it, so there was no arguing.

Thinking this, Su Wu continued training his Nen.

The caravan had been walking through the desert for most of the day, still seeing nothing but endless sand, until someone heard a faint crying sound.

"Crying in the desert? Could it be some magical beast luring humans?" one guard speculated.

"It's human. A little girl who looks about my age on the outside." Su Wu lifted his eyes listlessly, his voice cold.

Of course, he meant only her appearance. As for what she really was...

She could fool others, but not the Six Eyes. She was no ordinary little girl.

Even though she deliberately disguised herself as a normal person, letting her aura leak slowly from the top of her head, showing no trace of using Nen.

But the Six Eyes didn't recognize people by appearance—it saw through the surface to the core.

"A little girl?!" The caravan members were surprised. Only the leader reacted differently—he showed a hint of suspicion at first, then quickly put on the same surprised expression as everyone else.

"How could there be a little girl in the desert?" Everyone voiced the same confusion.

Su Wu yawned, his expression indifferent.

Yeah right. Did anyone really believe a frail, cute little girl was waiting in the desert for your help?

Believing that was about as likely as believing the desert was full of Medusas.

"Could you send someone to check it out?" the merchant leader said, looking at the guard squad.

According to unwritten rules, when there was a chance of danger, the employer didn't have to face it himself—otherwise, why hire a guard squad?

This was exactly the kind of situation they were for.

The guard squad had dozens of members. They exchanged glances, none of them wanting to be the first to stick their neck out into possible danger.

Seeing this, a guess popped into Su Wu's mind—

Could this be part of the exam too?

Testing kindness? Courage? Responsibility? Or vigilance?

If it was a test, what should he do right now?

Thinking it over, Su Wu climbed down from the camel. "I'll go take a look," he said casually.

"Boy, what are you...?" The Leader looked at the White-haired boy with some suspicion.

Rather than just checking things out, the other's cold expression and indifferent, piercing eyes seemed to be screaming, "I'm going to kill that person."

"Just in case it's a trap ahead, but we still have to go see. What if..." Su Wu paused briefly, his tone turning a bit mocking.

"There really is a weak, pitiful little girl waiting for us to save her?" A faint smile curved across his face.

It didn't look like pity for some unknown little girl, but more like... he was mocking something.

"We'll go with you." Three more Guards dismounted from their camels and horses, walking over to Su Wu.

Whether out of genuine kindness or because they shared Su Wu's suspicion that this was part of the test, they joined him.

Su Wu didn't mind. He walked step by step toward the source of the sound, even deliberately slowing his pace.

Just to make that little girl pretending to be weak act a little longer.

Since she liked playing the crying, fragile little girl, then let her cry her fill.

The girl's crying grew louder over time, even turning a bit hoarse.

When he heard her suddenly start coughing between sobs, Su Wu finally switched from his deliberately slow pace to a normal one, satisfied.

In a few steps, he reached the spot where the sound came from.

A twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl with blonde hair, big eyes, a short red cloak, and a little skirt sat on the sand, covering her face with both hands as she cried.

She's probably out of tears by now, so she has to cover her face.

Su Wu sneered inwardly, enjoying the spectacle, but on the surface he asked, "Who are you? Why are you here?"

"I... I'm Lu Qi..."

"Dad brought me here, told me to wait for them, and then they left..." The blonde girl spoke slowly, her voice choked with tears.

The three adults exchanged glances, piecing together some information from the girl's words.

If what she said was true, then she must have been abandoned by her parents.

Deliberately leaving a child in the Gordo Desert—they probably wanted her to disappear for good.

At night, the desert's magical beasts would come out to hunt, and a weak little girl would obviously be their first target.

"What do we do?" The three adults instinctively looked at the White-haired boy, only realizing something was off after they'd blurted out the question.

They'd just naturally treated this boy as their leader!

As if understanding that the White-haired boy was the one with the final say, the blonde girl suddenly stood up, crying as she reached out to hug his waist, saying, "Please, I don't want to stay here. At night, the magical beasts will come out and eat me..."

The next second, her expression froze.

"Stay away from me." The White-haired boy frowned. The moment she tried to lunge at him, he instantly retreated several meters, putting distance between them, while an invisible slash landed on her head.

Something light seemed to fall onto the sand.

The blonde girl, Biscuit, moved slowly to look down and saw half of her own braid.

Her twin tails—only one was left.

This...

Ugly little brat!!!

Su Wu: Cat dodge √