Hey! Kid, Stop!

He silently finished his meal.

Jiang Bai called over a waiter to settle the bill. Then he got up, went downstairs, and left the restaurant.

Jiang Bai did not linger in Nuoding City.

He followed the road he had taken into the city back out.

After traveling several miles beyond the city, he found a secluded clearing in the woods and summoned the Wind Dragon.

"Let's go. Fly north."

The Wind Dragon spread its azure wings and carried him into the sky.

Nuoding City swiftly shrank beneath him, eventually becoming a blurry gray dot on the horizon.

Jiang Bai glanced back in that direction, his gaze calm and undisturbed.

Two and a half hours later.

Outside Nuoding City's eastern gate, a veiled young girl walked down the main road.

She looked to be around twelve or thirteen years old. Tall and slender, she wore a fitted white combat outfit trimmed with silver along the collar and cuffs.

Her golden hair was tied into a neat high ponytail that swayed lightly with her steps.

The veil covered most of her face, revealing only a pair of captivating crimson eyes.

The girl stood outside the city gate, looking up at the modest city walls. A flicker of curiosity and excitement flashed through her mismatched eyes.

Then she took a deep breath and stepped into Nuoding City.

This was her first time entering a human city in human form.

Everything was so novel, so vivid.

Jiang Li'er slowed down and wandered aimlessly through the streets.

But before long, she frowned.

She closed her eyes and carefully sensed her surroundings.

"He's gone..." she murmured, a trace of barely perceptible disappointment in her voice.

Jiang Li'er pouted, but quickly pulled herself together. Since she was here, she might as well explore this human city properly.

As she wandered along, she stopped before a small stall selling sugar figurines.

The stall owner was an old man in his fifties. Holding a small copper spoon, he was drawing sugar figurines on a smooth marble slab.

Golden syrup slowly streamed from the spoon. Under the old man's deft movements, it swiftly formed a lifelike bird.

Jiang Li'er watched in fascination.

"Young lady, what kind of sugar figurine would you like?" After finishing one, the old man looked up and spotted Jiang Li'er in front of his stall. His eyes lit up as he greeted her warmly.

Jiang Li'er came back to herself. After thinking for a moment, she pointed at a dragon-shaped sugar figurine on display. "Make me a dragon! And make it... more imposing!"

"Certainly! Just wait a moment!" the old man answered with a chuckle, scooping up another spoonful of syrup and beginning his work on the slab.

His movements were practiced and skilled.

The syrup flowed, traced, and layered together. Soon, a majestic sugar dragon with claws and fangs appeared on the marble slab.

The old man gently lifted the sugar dragon with a small spatula, stuck it onto a thin bamboo skewer, and held it out to Jiang Li'er.

"Young lady, your sugar dragon. Five Copper Soul Coins!"

Jiang Li'er accepted the sugar dragon. Her eyes brimmed with delight as she looked at the crystal-clear little work of art glittering under the sunlight.

She took a Gold Soul Coin from the storage Soul Tool at her waist and casually dropped it into the wooden cash box on the stall.

"I don't have any Copper Soul Coins. Keep the change."

The old man froze.

A Gold Soul Coin!

"Th-this is far too much! Young lady, I—"

The old man wanted to say something more, but Jiang Li'er had already turned away with the sugar dragon. As she walked, she removed her veil and carefully licked the dragon's tail.

"Mmm..."

Sweetness melted across her tongue, accompanied by the distinct caramel aroma of malt sugar.

Jiang Li'er narrowed her eyes and revealed a satisfied smile.

Not bad!

Human food was actually pretty tasty.

She continued wandering the streets aimlessly, nibbling at the sugar dragon as she went.

Just then, a little boy who looked only six or seven years old appeared from the corner ahead.

The child was short and wore a blue academy uniform. With his head lowered, he hurried along as though something was troubling him.

Jiang Li'er ordinarily would not have paid attention to such an ordinary human child.

Yet for some reason, the instant her gaze fell upon him, an inexplicable feeling of disgust surged up within her.

She even faintly felt the urge to beat him up.

The feeling was completely unreasonable, yet overwhelmingly strong. It was like an animal's instinctive vigilance when facing a natural enemy, or perhaps some warning from fate itself.

Jiang Li'er stopped walking, her eyes fixed tightly on the little boy as he drew nearer.

The boy was none other than Tang San.

Although the fire in Yu Xiaogang's office had been put out in time, many patches of Yu Xiaogang's skin had suffered severe burns.

Nuoding Academy's healing-type teacher possessed only two soul rings, and his soul skill was limited in effectiveness. He could only temporarily ease the pain, not bring about a quick recovery.

As Yu Xiaogang's disciple, Tang San naturally could not simply stand by.

In his previous life, he had been a disciple of the Tang Sect. He was not only proficient in poisons, but also fairly knowledgeable about medicinal properties.

Thus, he had gone to a pharmacy in the city to buy several batches of herbs for treating burns, intending to return and brew them for his teacher to apply.

As he walked, he suddenly sensed a gaze firmly locked onto him.

Tang San instinctively looked up and saw a golden-haired girl with mismatched eyes standing several steps ahead.

The girl was beautiful—the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in either of his lives—but the look in her eyes as she watched him was... far from friendly.

"Hey! Kid, stop!"

A clear, pleasant voice rang out, carrying a commanding tone.

Tang San paused. He looked around, and only after confirming there were no other "kids" nearby did he uncertainly point at himself. "...Me?"

Jiang Li'er nodded and pointed at him with the bare bamboo skewer in her right hand. "You!"

"Young lady, may I ask what you want?" Tang San frowned. He was in a hurry to return and brew medicine for his teacher, and he did not want to invite unnecessary trouble.

Jiang Li'er tilted her head. A crafty glint flashed through her crimson eyes. "Nothing. I just want to beat you up!"

"Wha—"

Before he could finish, Jiang Li'er moved!

She was unbelievably fast!

Though they had still been three or four steps apart, in the blink of an eye, she had appeared right in front of Tang San!

That fair, slender fist, which looked completely harmless, shot straight toward Tang San's face!

Tang San's pupils contracted sharply!

In that split second, his body instinctively leaned back as he raised both hands to block.

But Jiang Li'er was too fast! So fast that his reactions could not keep up at all!

Bang!

Her fist landed squarely on Tang San's left cheek!

The tremendous impact staggered him back two steps. Stars burst before his eyes, and his ears rang.

Before he could steady himself, the second punch, the third punch, the fourth punch... came one after another!

Bang! Bang!

Several more dull impacts sounded.

Tang San was completely stunned.

He barely managed to open his eyes, only to see the girl's beautiful face inches away, plainly declaring, "I just want to beat you up."

Then, just as he came to his senses and used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to pull away, preparing to strike back, Jiang Li'er had already withdrawn her hand, turned around, and fled like a startled rabbit.

The entire process, from throwing the first punch to running away, took only a few breaths.

Several pedestrians on the street were left dumbfounded. By the time they recovered, Jiang Li'er had already vanished around the corner.

Tang San stood where he was. His left cheek had swollen, his right cheek burned with pain, and his jaw ached so badly that he could barely open his mouth.

He blankly touched his cheek, then looked toward the empty street corner. Fury surged up within him!

"Damn it!" His eyes were red with rage, and he panted heavily. His voice was slurred from his swollen cheek. "In broad daylight, she actually... acted so utterly unreasonable!"