"Her wing is broken. Could you please hold it down here?"
Xiao Yi Xian calmly examined Blue Eagle's injuries and identified the worst of them.
Xiao Li did as she asked. Blue Eagle didn't struggle at all, only fixing Xiao Li and Xiao Yi Xian with its still-young eagle eyes.
Xiao Yi Xian didn't hesitate. She put all her strength into pressing the wing back into place. With a sharp crack, Blue Eagle's wing bone was set, and Xiao Yi Xian let out a breath of relief.
Xiao Yi Xian took out her medicine pouch and rummaged through it, pulling out a great many herbs. She crushed them between stones and carefully applied them to Blue Eagle's wounds, then took out a roll of bandages and wrapped them around the bird.
Xiao Li watched Xiao Yi Xian quietly and sighed inwardly. What a kind girl. What a shame... The existence of the Woeful Poison Body meant she was destined never to fulfill her wish of becoming a physician.
Thinking of this, Xiao Li sighed with a pang of sympathy. Poor little girl.
Xiao Yi Xian had just finished bandaging Blue Eagle when she heard Xiao Li's sigh and curiously turned her head. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just think you're very kind." Xiao Li smiled.
At the word "kind," Xiao Yi Xian's expression stiffened a little, and she managed a strained smile. "Maybe."
Someone who had killed an entire village—could such a person be called kind?
Seeing that Xiao Yi Xian seemed to have recalled something from her past, Xiao Li gently patted her head in comfort.
Xiao Yi Xian tilted her head. Her smile grew a little more genuine. His hand felt so warm.
"What's your name?"
Xiao Yi Xian suddenly asked, looking somewhat less guarded.
"My name's Xiao Li. What about you?"
Xiao Yi Xian paused, her expression unreadable. "I... don't have a name. Mr. Yao from the Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion named me Xiao Yi Xian. He hoped I could help more people in the future."
Xiao Yi Xian scoffed inwardly. Help more people? That man named Yao just wanted to make a name for himself through her. He'd given her a name that sounded friendly, that was all. She had only accepted it because she'd always wanted to become a physician.
"All right, then I'll call you Xiao Yi Xian from now on. Now that we've told each other our names, how about we give this little Blue Eagle a name too?" Xiao Li smiled warmly, making Xiao Yi Xian feel an inexplicable sense of closeness.
Xiao Yi Xian froze for a moment. Compared to Master Yao, who wore a human face but had a beast's heart, the boy in front of her seemed to be much more sincere toward her.
"It's blue all over. Why not call it Little Blue?"
Seeing that neither Xiao Li nor Blue Eagle objected, Xiao Yi Xian smiled with innocent delight.
With little time to spare, Xiao Yi Xian had no choice but to let Little Blue hide on its own for now, so it wouldn't run into danger. They would come back for it after gathering the herbs.
Xiao Li's thoughts stirred.
"Why don't you come with me? I'm going to secludedly cultivate in the Magical Beast Mountain Range for a year or two. It probably wouldn't be convenient for you to stay with me."
After thinking it over, Xiao Yi Xian considered that someone might snatch Little Blue, still a fledgling, and raise it as a pet. She agreed without hesitation.
Carrying Xiao Yi Xian on his back, Xiao Li made several leaps up the cliff and returned to the group. By then, most of the mercenaries had awakened.
"Little Brother Xiao, where did you go?"
Gan Mu smiled with narrowed eyes, his tone carrying a hint of reproach.
After thinking it over for a night, Gan Mu had finally been unable to resist the urge to make a move on Xiao Li's Storage Ring.
A single Storage Ring was worth at least tens of thousands of gold coins. If they could get their hands on it, the Wolf Head Mercenary Group wouldn't earn that much in a whole year.
Seeing Gan Mu's unfriendly tone, Xiao Li moved Xiao Yi Xian behind him. "That's none of your business."
She wasn't your subordinate. Who did you think you were, speaking to her like that?
Mu Li, standing beside Gan Mu, frowned. His arrogance nearly spilled from his eyes.
"You're nothing but a Dou Zhe, yet you dare speak to Uncle Gan like that? You've got some nerve!"
The Wolf Head Mercenary Group's men silently closed in. Seeing that things were taking a bad turn, the independent mercenaries nearby hurriedly backed away.
This time, Gan Mu didn't stop Mu Li. Instead, his gaze turned cold. "Xiao, I gave you a chance, but you didn't know what was good for you. Don't blame me for showing no mercy!"
Xiao Li swung his spear, and streaks of lightning burst forth. "Let's see what you can do to me!"
There were as many as thirty Wolf Head mercenaries around them. Xiao Li couldn't win a drawn-out fight, so he had to strike first.
Lightning covered the spear as the Dou Qi Vortex within his body spun rapidly. Dou Qi surged out of him, and a complete Dou Qi veil appeared over his body.
Gan Mu's pupils shrank. "A Dou Master!"
"Only just figured that out? Too late!"
A cold shout rang out, and Xiao Li's figure vanished from where he stood. "Lightning Flash Strike!"
Lightning spat from the spear, transforming into a long bolt of spear-light that filled Gan Mu's vision.
The ferocious force caught Gan Mu off guard, sending him flying with a single blow.
His body hurtled seven or eight meters before he rolled several times and finally came to a stop.
Touching the terrifying, charred wound across his chest, Gan Mu sucked in a breath of cold air. "Damn it! Get him! There's no way one man can take on all of us!"
At Gan Mu's roar, the others snapped out of their daze and forced down their fear as they charged forward.
Xiao Yi Xian cowered behind Xiao Li, gripping the hem of his clothes with both hands. "W-what do we do?"
"Don't worry. I'm here."
Xiao Li's gaze turned icy. He held the Thunder Scale Spear across his chest and spun it around, his movements as swift as lightning, his voice like thunder.
With just three thrusts, he pierced two men through the throat, shocking the others into holding back.
Mu Li's eyes were filled with terror. Damn it! This kid was so much younger than he was, yet he was already a Dou Master.
"Get him! Follow me!"
Gan Mu leaped forward. Fortunately, he'd barely managed to channel his Dou Qi to protect his chest just now. Otherwise, he wouldn't have merely been gravely wounded—he would have lost the ability to fight altogether.
Remembering that spear strike, Gan Mu still felt a lingering fear. The boy's Dou Qi was so mighty that even the regiment commander, Mu She, might not match him. They'd picked a fight with a real tough nut today.
Gan Mu regretted it, but he knew they absolutely couldn't let Xiao Li get away. Otherwise, he would become a threat they'd live to regret!
With Gan Mu taking the brunt of the pressure up front, the others finally dared to advance. Two or three skilled Dou Zhe, at five or six stars, were helping him.
Xiao Li's heart sank. There were thirty Dou Zhe. Even if he used up every bit of his Dou Qi, he could kill at most half of them. He might as well head into the mountains first and cultivate for two years. By then, he could wipe out the Wolf Head Mercenary Group with a flip of his hand.
He glanced at the Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion herb-gathering team's leader, who stood nearby, wanting to speak but not daring to. Then he lowered his voice to Xiao Yi Xian.
"I'll take you back to your group in a moment. Stay close to your leader."
Looking down at the porcelain-doll girl barely a meter and forty centimeters tall beside him, Xiao Li's lips curved into a faint smile.
Xiao Yi Xian looked up. In the morning light, the boy's figure seemed rather tall and slender. The warm smile on his face stirred an indescribable feeling in her heart.
"I can't go back. I'm standing with you, so Gan Mu will definitely drag me into this. The Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion would never oppose the Wolf Head Mercenary Group for my sake. Big Brother, please, take me with you!"