Chapter Twenty-Six: The Moon Travels With Us

Second update, requesting all kinds of support! Brothers, the ranking is not looking good!

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The martial arts tournament had already reached its final stages, and with such an unexpected turn of events, it naturally came to a quick halt.

Gao Xu was the first to scoop up Su Mei's petite body. Looking at the massive, bloody gash across her chest and abdomen, his heart truly felt as if it were being shredded by knives.

The Qi Sword Finger personally executed by Lin Tiannan was incredibly sharp; even if he hadn't used his full strength, it was still far beyond what a minor demon like Su Mei could withstand.

The little fox was severely wounded, and since Gao Xu lacked any medicine capable of healing plot characters, he had no choice but to immediately carry her to the Fox Demon and ask her to stabilize Su Mei's condition.

New sounds of combat soon erupted nearby; it was the furious Snake Demon, wielding a scythe as she sought to fight Lin Tiannan to the death.

At this moment, the weakened state from the Berserk Demon Art had already passed. Furthermore, knowing he was in the wrong, Lin Tiannan merely dodged without retaliating. The Snake Demon quickly gained the upper hand, yet due to the vast disparity in their strength, she was unable to actually injure Lin Tiannan.

Lin Yueru stood dazed on the side, lost in thought, whether due to the blow of her defeat or some other reason...

"Madam, how is she?" Seeing the Fox Demon spit out her inner core to heal Su Mei, her face turning deathly pale and her figure swaying, Gao Xu hurriedly pulled back the desperate Snake Demon to let her guard her mistress. After waiting anxiously for a moment, he finally couldn't help but ask.

The Fox Demon choked, unable to speak. Gao Xu's heart sank, yet after a moment of thought, he did not give up hope. The demon race was not naturally skilled at healing, but as long as Su Mei's life could be preserved, in a world of immortals and heroes, surely there would be a way to cure her?

Pity the hearts of parents everywhere; their daughter's critical condition had left the Snake Demon and Fox Demon completely distraught. At this moment, they could only pin their hopes on Gao Xu.

One thing was one thing, and another was another. Lin Tiannan's guilt was directed toward the little fox Su Mei, and her parents still had to go to the Demon Locking Tower to atone for their sins; everyone was very clear on this. Of course, according to the wager, the two demons would have ten days to heal, and if Su Mei was saved, they could still send word to reassure them.

At this point, the emblem had already signaled the completion of the side quest, and Lin Yueru's favorability had skyrocketed to 50 points. However, Gao Xu could not worry about Lin Yueru for the moment; he cupped his fists toward Lin Tiannan, picked up Su Mei, and rushed outward.

The 2500-point reward from the side quest brought Gao Xu's third main quest to a completed state. Fortunately, when he reached the entrance of the Hidden Dragon Cave, he discovered two Lin Family Fort disciples leading four young girls toward the north.

Gao Xu hurried to catch up. Through questioning, he learned that the other girls, the three plot characters, and the newcomers had already been escorted toward Suzhou City by the Lin Family Fort disciples. These four girls lived in the nearby Baihe Village, and as the sky was growing dark, kind-hearted disciples had stayed behind to escort them.

At the mention of Baihe Village, Gao Xu's heart stirred. He immediately stated that his next stop was also Baihe Village. Since they were going the same way, taking on the duty of escorting them was a matter of course.

He had left a deep impression on both Lin Tiannan and Lin Yueru, and it seemed he had some influence over these ordinary Lin disciples as well. Without much persuasion, the two agreed.

The four girls had all been indirectly saved by Gao Xu, so they naturally followed his lead. The optional quest changed to an "in-progress" state, and his return time was automatically postponed.

In a Tier 1 space, whenever all main quests are completed, reincarnators can choose to return immediately or stay for a period of time.

The authority to return immediately is quite extensive and can even take effect during combat, which is why Gao Xu had used it as his final trump card in the previous battle against Tang Mei'er. While staying behind allows a reincarnator to gain extra benefits, it also means losing the convenience of returning during combat, so the risk of encountering danger is not small.

How one chooses is a matter of personal judgment.

However, even if the accident of Su Mei's injury hadn't occurred, Gao Xu had planned to stay behind to scrape together as many benefits as possible. Eliminating a menace like Tang Mei'er didn't mean his future would be smooth sailing; on the contrary, his true enemies were a hundred times more formidable than her. If he didn't strive even harder, he feared that one day he would be trampled underfoot once again!

Su Mei's severe injury was also a tremendous opportunity. Gao Xu was so anxious not only because he felt a connection with the little fox, but also because of the favorability system set by the space.

Once favorability rises above 90, even for ordinary plot characters, raising it further is a very difficult task, requiring at least the completion of a side quest, such as with Dongmei. The true effect of favorability only manifests at the maximum value of 100, so if he could heal the little fox, the favorability rewards from this entire family would be a massive fortune.

Killing two birds with one stone—everyone is willing to do something that benefits both sides. Gao Xu had originally been at a loss as to how to treat Su Mei's injuries, but hearing the name "Baihe Village" suddenly reminded him that the village head, Han Lu (the Immortal Physician Han), and his daughter Han Mengci possessed extraordinary medical skills. In the game, during the zombie plague in Heishui Town, the Immortal Physician Han had done his utmost to treat the afflicted. Although he lacked martial prowess and could only treat the symptoms rather than the root cause, the strength of his medical skill was evident.

In his previous life, a friend of Gao Xu's had once learned medicine from the Immortal Physician Han; it was an extremely powerful support skill. If not for the strict limitations, the threshold of the Immortal Physician's house would likely have been worn down by reincarnators.

Gao Xu's only worry was that Su Mei was a demon, and he didn't know if the Immortal Physician could treat her. But considering that in the game, Zhao Ling'er was pregnant and the Immortal Physician had helped her with prenatal care, he hoped that the doctors in this world of immortals also doubled as veterinarians...

Perhaps because life in the sunless Hidden Dragon Cave had been too bitter, even on the rugged and difficult mountain paths, the four girls walked with their heads buried, silent, their eyes filled with a longing for home.

Gao Xu was naturally very satisfied with their speed. He handed Su Mei to one of the physically stronger girls to carry, and with the Flying Rainbow Sword in hand, he escorted them at a steady pace.

His caution was justified. Although the greatest difficulty of this optional quest lay in rescuing the girls from the Hidden Dragon Cave, since the quest required the reincarnator to escort them home, there was no guarantee there wouldn't be minor demons blocking the path. He couldn't afford to fail at the final stage; that would truly be unacceptable!

Completing the optional quest not only provided points but also had a significant impact on the final clearance evaluation. Unless absolutely necessary, Gao Xu would never miss it.

Half an hour passed, and the journey remained very peaceful. Aside from the occasional wild animal passing by, there wasn't a single minor demon to be seen, yet Gao Xu's expression did not show the slightest joy.

He suddenly stopped, listened intently for a moment, and shouted toward the bushes behind them: "Which friend has been following us? Please, show yourself!"

Gao Xu's words were polite enough, but the only answer was a cold snort, followed by silence.

"Eh, why did she follow?" Gao Xu was stunned. Judging the identity of the follower from the sound, he muttered to himself, "This young miss is not easy to deal with..."

The expression he inadvertently revealed fell into the eyes of a certain woman, triggering a violent reaction. A red cloud drifted out, blocking the path in front of the group. The young Miss Lin, hands on her hips, glared at Gao Xu and said bitterly: "What, it seems you are very unwilling to see me? If it weren't for my father feeling guilty and being unable to leave, do you think this young lady would have the spare time to protect you?"

"Protect... me?" Gao Xu touched his nose, feeling both amused and frustrated.

"Of course!" Lin Yueru habitually tilted her head, only to realize that she had just been defeated by the man in front of her, causing her pretty face to flush as she turned away.

Gao Xu was most afraid that this proud young miss wouldn't be able to let it go and would come looking for trouble. Otherwise, she would indeed be a very strong helper.

Fortunately, although Lin Yueru had a strong personality, she was not an unreasonable person. During the rest of the journey, she didn't cause Gao Xu any trouble, only grumbling in a low, angry voice: "Just happened to win a move or two, what's there to be proud of," and "So annoying, why aren't there any minor demons coming out for me to vent my anger on~"

Not to mention the sweating Gao Xu, even the four girls felt the wisps of anger radiating from the young Miss Lin and timidly stepped aside.

In this strange atmosphere, Baihe Village finally came into view in the distance...