"Mm... ah..."
Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help letting out a moan. She startled herself and hurriedly covered her mouth, eyes wide.
Her ears instantly burned hot, and a tempting pink flush spread across her fair neck.
"Did I hurt you?"
"N-no!"
Zhu Zhuqing hurriedly shook her head, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz. "Keep going..."
Gu Chensha said nothing more. With his fingertips smeared in cool ointment, he continued gently rubbing it in circles over the abrasions on her back.
Then his movements suddenly stopped.
"Are you finished?"
Zhu Zhuqing's taut back shifted slightly.
"No, there's another wound here. It's a little big, so bear with it for a moment."
Zhu Zhuqing's heart gave an inexplicable leap. Something about those words sounded a little off.
What did he mean, "a little big," and why did she have to "bear with it"?
Before she could think it through, his fingertips had already pressed against the worst abrasion.
The pain of the ointment seeping into her broken skin hit her all at once, several times stronger than before.
Her whole body trembled, and she couldn't help speaking up.
"Teacher, go slower. It hurts a little..."
"Gently... ah..."
"Don't touch there..."
Her voice had come out far too soft and sweet, the tearful lilt at its end curling into something suggestive and enticing. It was nothing like her usual cool reserve.
She wanted nothing more than to find a crack in the ground to crawl into, so she could only bury her face even deeper.
Gu Chensha's movements paused for half a second too, then he eased his touch.
At last, he finished applying the ointment to the final wound on her back and withdrew his hand, asking casually,
"What about the other places? Like below—are there any spots you can't reach?"
Zhu Zhuqing stiffened all over.
A full three seconds passed before she belatedly realized he meant her waist, abdomen, and thighs.
But the words reached her ears and uncontrollably took on another, far more suggestive meaning.
She hurriedly tightened the beast hide wrapped around her, covering herself from head to toe. Her voice came out rushed and embarrassed.
"I-I've put ointment on all of them! I can reach them myself! I've finished all of them!"
Gu Chensha hesitated and glanced at her. Seeing that she'd buried her head until only a few strands of hair showed, he didn't press the matter.
"All right. Lie down and rest."
"Mm."
Only then did Zhu Zhuqing obediently nod and lie back down. She spoke softly.
"Teacher, I feel like my wounds are healing incredibly quickly."
"This ointment was made with Soul-Condensing Grass and Healing Flower, both unique to Star Dou. It speeds up the healing of skin and flesh."
Gu Chensha tidied the stone bowl. "At this rate, you'll be able to move around normally tomorrow."
"By the way, Qing'er, tell me why you came to the Star Dou Great Forest."
"Huh? Teacher, don't you know what I've been through lately?"
Zhu Zhuqing looked surprised.
She'd always assumed that even while Gu Chensha was asleep, her memories were synchronized with his.
"I don't."
Gu Chensha shook his head. "While I'm asleep, our souls are temporarily disconnected. Those memories weren't synchronized with me."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't say much about her daily training at Spirit Hall.
She only briefly described the mission, the hunt for the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent, and everything that had happened after she met Wangcai, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
After listening, Gu Chensha fell silent for a moment.
"So that's what happened."
"This wasn't an ordinary mission at all. It was another test by Spirit Hall."
Zhu Zhuqing froze.
It hadn't even occurred to her. She'd thought Spirit Hall's tests would let up for a while, and that some time would pass before they tried again.
She hadn't expected her very first mission to be a trap.
But she wasn't some naive little girl. If she'd been that innocent, she wouldn't have held out until the very last moment before releasing her Second Martial Soul.
Even so, at that moment, she was filled with worry.
"Does that mean I've already been exposed? Can I never go back to Spirit Hall?"
She bit her lip.
She could cultivate here in peace, but she could clearly sense that her teacher was determined to obtain something inside Spirit Hall.
No matter what, she couldn't hold him back.
But how could she go back?
She couldn't exactly say that she was friends with the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger and that it had let her go, could she?
Forget everyone else not believing that— even she thought it sounded absurd.
Seeing the turmoil in her mind, Gu Chensha chuckled.
"Qing'er, you're underestimating Wangcai's deterrent power."
"To us, he's a pampered little pet. But to outsiders, he's the notorious ten-thousand-year Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, powerful enough to match an ordinary Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast."
"High-ranking Soul Masters are rare in the outer reaches of the Star Dou Great Forest to begin with. And the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's fearsome reputation precedes him. Forget a Soul Saint—even a low-ranking Titled Douluo would run at the first sight of him."
"Don't worry. The moment that agility-type Soul Saint sees Wangcai, his first thought will be to run for his life. He won't have the guts to stick around and watch you fight."
Zhu Zhuqing breathed a sigh of relief, then furrowed her brow again.
"But how do I explain surviving? When I get back to Spirit Hall, they'll definitely question me."
"They can't avoid questioning you, but it's fine."
Gu Chensha had already prepared a plan. "When the time comes, just say you passed out from your injuries. While half-conscious, you saw the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger get lured away by a Three-Headed Red Gold Lion."
"A lion?"
Gu Chensha nodded. "That's right. It was five meters long, had three heads, and its fangs were red gold."
"If they keep asking, say you were too badly injured at the time and can't remember what happened afterward."
"Huh? Will they really believe something that simple?"
"Hmph. You were the only survivor at the scene. That's the best explanation."
Gu Chensha sneered. "Even if they're suspicious, they won't have any evidence."
"And besides... there's a reason people say the evil tiger gets attacked by everyone wherever it goes."
Wangcai, lying nearby, wasn't pleased. He secretly rolled his eyes and let out an unhappy whine, grumbling to himself:
The Demon Spider gets attacked by everyone wherever it goes too...
Gu Chensha silently reached out and gently pinched his ear.
Wangcai immediately launched into a dramatic performance, letting out a wounded whimper. He drooped his head and didn't dare make another sound.
"Besides, the fellows in the core region of Star Dou love to wander around under the banner of protecting Soul Beast interests."
Gu Chensha continued, "If they have nothing better to do, they might send a few underlings out to put on a show and hunt Wangcai."
"Like that stray dog called the Scarlet King."
"The Scarlet King?"
Zhu Zhuqing tilted her little head, looking utterly confused.
She'd heard of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's fearsome reputation, but she'd never heard of any Scarlet King.
"That's the 'lion' I just mentioned."
"Of course, it's not a lion at all. It's a Three-Headed Red Demon Mastiff."
Gu Chensha said calmly, "The eighth-ranked among the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts. A fire-attribute Soul Beast with part of a True Dragon's bloodline."
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes lit up, and she cried out in delight.
"Teacher!"
Gu Chensha lowered his head in confusion and met her sparkling, worshipful gaze.
"What is it?"
Before you continue