Mu Qian gradually realized that Xirui wasn't merely good at acting or pretending so convincingly that her performance seemed real. She genuinely seemed inexperienced in the ways of the world.
He hadn't used his Third Soul Skill to probe her soul, but with his immense Spiritual Power, no emotional fluctuation could escape his notice.
This girl couldn't fake it at all, much less put on an act right under Mu Qian's nose.
"There are so many people on the road!"
"Why are there so many soldiers at the city gate? There weren't this many when I came!"
"Are those jade stones they're selling by the roadside? They look so fake~"
"That carriage is so pretty. I want one~"
Xirui was like a cheerful lark, chirping incessantly beside the two of them.
Mu Qian watched her helplessly, thinking that it was a good thing he hadn't let Little Flower out. Otherwise, Brother Flower would probably have been subjected to "inhumane" torment.
Mu Qian and Zhu Zhuqing were still young, but their life experience far surpassed that of their peers.
Though they hadn't known Xirui for long, to them, she was a blank sheet of paper—or perhaps an uncarved piece of jade.
Her world seemed very simple, free of hatred and ulterior thoughts. She was sunny and cheerful, curious about everything.
Moreover, she seemed to have no guard up around Mu Qian and Zhu Zhuqing.
Mu Qian even felt that if he wanted to, he could sell her off, and she'd happily follow the buyer away...
It was hard to imagine how someone with a personality like hers had grown up.
Had she really been protected that well?
It wasn't that Mu Qian viewed everyone with malice. It was just that his experiences over the past year had taught him to be wary.
But as he watched Xirui, he suddenly felt that having a chattering little girl at his side wasn't such a bad thing.
At the very least, it made the mood much livelier.
After thinking it over, Mu Qian ultimately couldn't bear to let such a pure girl meet her end in Death Canyon.
So, to look after her, he had Zhu Zhuqing pull Xirui back to their side when she ran off.
"When you signed up for the academy, didn't your family teach you about the precautions you should take when traveling around the continent?" Zhu Zhuqing asked curiously.
Xirui shook her adorable little head. "No. But your hair looks so pretty, Sister. Could you braid mine for me?"
The girl gazed at Zhu Zhuqing's cat-ear-like buns, her eyes brimming with envy.
Zhu Zhuqing helplessly rubbed her forehead. Mu Qian's mouth twitched, and he didn't know what to say.
"As members of the same team, I should explain the situation in Death Canyon before the trial officially begins."
Mu Qian sighed. "Death Canyon isn't a place to take lightly. To be precise, it's a primeval forest nestled between two enormous mountain ranges, and one of the largest Spirit Beast habitats apart from Star Dou Forest."
"Its actual area is much larger than that of other Spirit Beast forests, and it's filled with all kinds of powerful negative energy."
"Most of the Spirit Beasts living there have been tainted by that negative energy, making them extremely irritable and violent. Even the weakest Ten-Year Soul Beast will attack any enemy it sees."
As he spoke, a possibility suddenly flashed through Mu Qian's mind.
Death Canyon was so close to Spirit City. Logically, Spirit City shouldn't have been built here.
Not only did Spirit City border Death Canyon, it also lay next to the outskirts of Star Dou Forest. If a beast tide broke out...
Even with a considerable number of Titled Douluo inside Spirit City, the risk would still be enormous.
If even Mu Qian could think of this, there was no way the higher-ups of Spirit Hall hadn't considered it.
When he tried to think of a reason, Mu Qian found there seemed to be only one possibility...
Like Sea God Island, Death Canyon... might be the inheritance grounds of a deity!
Thinking of the negative energy widely said to fill the canyon, as well as its location, he felt he'd found the answer.
"Rakshasa God... could it be you?"
If that was true, then there should be a teleportation array inside the Pope Palace in Spirit City, leading to the trial grounds.
Mu Qian turned his gaze to the sky. But why had Angel God placed the inheritance grounds high in the clouds above Spirit City?
Mu Qian shook his head at himself, unable to help feeling that he was getting ahead of himself.
These weren't things he could consider right now. And who could say what the future would bring?
With that, Mu Qian set aside his wandering thoughts and continued explaining.
Time passed slowly.
At dawn the next morning, just as the sky began to brighten, the three of them finally reached the site of their final trial: Death Canyon.
Death Canyon truly lived up to its name. In the distance, two rows of towering mountain ranges stood silently on either side, appearing through the haze like colossal beasts asleep. They wound northward into the distance.
They were only at the entrance to the canyon, but Mu Qian could already feel a surge of powerful negative energy rushing toward him.
Under its influence, the surrounding vegetation had turned an eerie purplish black, from the branches to the leaves.
The color was lighter near the outskirts and grew darker farther in.
Mu Qian knitted his brows. Once again, he sensed the strange aura he'd encountered outside Guja City and at the hotel entrance.
It was faint, mixed in with the air's negative energy. Without exceptionally powerful Spiritual Power, it would have been nearly impossible to detect.
"That's not right. This aura isn't exactly the same as the two times before. It seems... not to be the same kind of energy?" Mu Qian murmured.
But that was only natural. If this really was Rakshasa God's inheritance site, it wouldn't be surprising for it to contain all kinds of strange and negative energy.
"Probably not. Isn't the Divine Realm unable to interfere in the affairs of the continent?" Mu Qian's brows relaxed.
That energy was definitely unrelated to this place. It was merely similar.
A crowd of newcomers gathered at the canyon entrance for the trial. Most were sitting cross-legged in groups of five, resting.
Judging by the traces around them, some people had already rushed into Death Canyon.
Those who could still wait patiently for daybreak were all clever enough to know that a Spirit Beast habitat at night was full of unknown dangers.
Mu Qian gave the area a quick look. Seeing no senior students or examiners, he led Zhu Zhuqing and Xirui to an inconspicuous corner.
"Zhuqing, Xirui, let's rest too. We'll recover our Soul Power and enter the canyon in peak condition."
As he spoke, Mu Qian took out the roasted meat and provisions he'd prepared earlier and handed them to Zhu Zhuqing.
For Spirit Masters, as long as their Soul Power was at its peak, going without sleep for a day wasn't much of a problem.
Over the past year, Mu Qian and Zhu Zhuqing had traveled between various Spirit Beast forests. Going several days without sleep had become routine.
"Okay." Zhu Zhuqing accepted the food. The two of them had grown quite attuned to each other and didn't need to say much.
Mu Qian nodded and helped smooth the strands of her hair, tousled by the wind during their journey. She returned his gesture with a gentle smile.
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