An ancient voice came from the bead. Su Qing's eyes lit up with anticipation, and he immediately released his spiritual power to attract its attention. Unexpectedly, the bead flew straight toward Huo Yuhao.
"Since we're not meant to be, then forget it. Besides, I'm not used to having a little person living in my head."
Su Qing sighed. What kind of taste did this guy have? His Sea of Consciousness was clearly spacious and stable, so why had he chosen Huo Yuhao?
"Who are you? How dare you fight your big brother for territory!"
On the other side, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had just opened up a Sea of Consciousness for Huo Yuhao and hadn't even had time to take a look around when someone else beat him to the punch. He was furious. What was this gray bead, barging in with its bags packed and making itself at home? Outrageous! But even after he made a huge scene, the other party remained completely unmoved.
Seeing that, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had no choice but to give up and quietly move farther away.
Nearby, Huo Yuhao was still absorbing the information he'd received from Sky Dream Ice Silkworm: a Million-Year Soul Ring, a second Martial Soul, a Sea of Consciousness, and the possibility of becoming a powerful expert one day and avenging his mother!
"All right, that's enough for now. Sealing myself away took a lot out of me. I'll take a nap. With that white-haired guy by your side, you should have no trouble getting out safely."
With that, he forced Huo Yuhao's consciousness out of the Sea of Consciousness.
"Big Brother Su, could you keep what just happened a secret...?"
Huo Yuhao woke up and called out to the dejected-looking Su Qing, asking him to keep it secret. Ever considerate, Su Qing readily agreed, though he did make a few conditions.
"Big Brother Su, would treating you to grilled fish count as taking you out for a meal?"
Huo Yuhao asked tentatively. He didn't have any money right now, so treating Su Qing to a meal would be a real strain on his empty pockets.
"Is grilled fish good?"
Su Qing's eyes lit up as soon as he heard the words grilled fish. Huo Yuhao's Succubus Grilled Fish was famous far and wide, and he'd brought up this condition so he could try it without making it seem like he was asking out of the blue. If he let the other party offer first, then agreed, it would feel perfectly natural.
"Of course it's good!"
Huo Yuhao was confident in his cooking and immediately thumped his chest in assurance. As soon as Su Qing agreed, he led him back to the stream they'd been at earlier.
"Big Brother Su, wait here a moment. I'll get a fire going, then catch a couple of fish and grill them for you!"
As he spoke, he arranged the dry branches he'd gathered and took out his flint to start a fire. But Su Qing said there was no need to go to all that trouble. The next moment, a flame sprang up in his hand as if by magic, and he lit the kindling. Huo Yuhao stared in amazement. He remembered that Su Qing's Martial Soul was a spear. Where had this ability to start fires come from? Could he have Twin Martial Souls?
The thought filled him with envy, but he quickly remembered that he, too, could become someone with Twin Martial Souls, and felt better. With Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's help, he believed his potential would surely surpass Su Qing's. Maybe next time, he'd be the one rescuing Su Qing from danger...
"What're you thinking about, Master Huo? Catch!"
Su Qing had volunteered to catch the fish and plucked two out of the stream. Seeing Huo Yuhao standing there in a daze, he called to him a couple of times. When Huo Yuhao came to, Su Qing tossed the fish his way.
"Oh, right!"
Huo Yuhao hurriedly caught the fish Su Qing had thrown him. He cleaned them, skewered them on wooden sticks, and set them beside the fire to roast. Soon, the savory aroma had Su Qing drooling. The cooked food he usually ate was nothing more than meat that had been roasted through—filling his stomach and little else.
Today, Master Huo's grilled fish had opened his eyes. Such delicious food truly lived up to the divine title of God of Grilled Fish!
"So delicious! So delicious!"
Seeing Su Qing eat as if he'd forgotten the world around him, Huo Yuhao felt a little awkward. Just how long had this guy been hungry? He seemed even more pitiful than Huo Yuhao himself.
"Sniff, sniff—"
Tang Ya and Bei Bei had just woken up where they'd fallen. They were still worried about Huo Yuhao's safety when they caught a familiar smell. Well, actually, only Tang Ya smelled it, so she dragged Bei Bei straight over to Su Qing.
"That smells amazing! Little Yuhao, thank goodness you're all right. There are so many grilled fish—you can't eat them all, can you? Big Sister Xiao Ya will help..."
She hadn't even finished speaking when she saw the familiar figure sitting beside the bonfire, eating grilled fish. The sight of the white-haired boy was like a spark landing in an autumn reed bed, setting off a blaze that shot into the sky. All her memories came surging back at once, and Tang Ya could no longer hold back her tears. She shot forward and wrapped Su Qing in her arms.
The way he wolfed down his food and his clothes, ragged and patched with animal hide, both spoke volumes about all the hardships he'd endured over the years. She was filled with regret. When the Tang Sect had been destroyed, she hadn't managed to warn Su Qing in time.
In her mind, Su Qing had suffered so terribly because the Iron Blood Sect had discovered him on his way to the Tang Sect to find her, then hunted him down all the way. That thought had gnawed at her like a bone-deep parasite for years. Whenever she was alone at night, she would think that she'd caused Xiao Qing's death. She had lived with guilt and remorse ever since.
"Big Sister Xiao Ya..."
Su Qing had just wanted to tell her he needed to wash his hands before they hugged, but the moment she heard his voice, Tang Ya began to cry even harder. She clung to him as if she'd lost her mind, holding him tight in her arms.
"I'm sorry. I'm the reason you ended up like this. I'm so sorry..."
Her voice grew muffled, and Su Qing could barely make out that she was apologizing over and over. He had never faced anything like this before and didn't know what to do. Meeting Bei Bei's helpless gaze, he sighed. Ignoring the grease on his hands, he gently patted Tang Ya's back and whispered in her ear:
"Big Sister Xiao Ya, I'm doing just fine. I'm already a three-ringed Soul Master, and soon I'll be able to go with you to get revenge on the Iron Blood Sect."
Even so, Tang Ya still didn't let go. She seemed determined to cling to him, as if she didn't want to climb down from his arms. Still hungry, he turned his gaze to Bei Bei again.
"Brother-in-law, aren't you going to do something?"
Su Qing's call of "brother-in-law" made Bei Bei's heart soar. Thinking, If I don't step in, my poor brother-in-law will starve to death right here because he can't get any food, he felt a surge of heroic resolve and slowly walked toward the pair locked in each other's arms.
"Little brother-in-law, I'm coming to save you!"
Meeting Bei Bei's confident gaze, Su Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He'd never imagined that his appearance could change Tang Ya's heart so profoundly. In the original story, she had almost never shown her vulnerable side. Even when she sought revenge, she'd gone alone.
"The Iron Blood Sect... You really were ruthless."
Tang Ya's family had lived peacefully in Heaven Dou City and had never offended any other faction, yet the Iron Blood Sect had still wiped them out...