Teasing

Zhao Linchuan walked over to Xiao Wu, crouched down, and held out his hand. His tone carried a hint of teasing. "Well, my little maid? You don't have to be scared now, right? That woman just now was one of us."

Still shaken, Xiao Wu looked up and timidly placed her cold little hand in Zhao Linchuan's warm palm, letting him pull her to her feet.

She looked at Zhao Linchuan, her big eyes full of suspicion and fear. "You... You knew who I was all along, didn't you?"

"That's right." Zhao Linchuan admitted it frankly. He brushed the dust off her clothes, then put on a slightly serious expression. "I don't just know who you are. I also know that Nuoding City is going to be very unsettled soon."

"For some reason, several, perhaps even more than a dozen, powerful Titled Douluo may gather here."

He deliberately paused and watched Xiao Wu's face turn pale. "If you want to run now, I won't stop you."

"But the outside world is a snake pit right now, crawling with spies and powerful people. If you, a Soul Beast who's taken human form, wander out alone... tsk, I can't be held responsible for what happens to you."

"More... more than a dozen Titled Douluo?!" Xiao Wu was so frightened that her legs nearly gave way again. Her little face was white as a sheet, and her lips trembled.

To her, that number was nothing short of a death sentence!

She'd originally planned to find a chance to slip back to the Star Dou Great Forest, but now... going outside would be walking straight into a trap!

She looked up at Zhao Linchuan's calm face, torn between two choices.

Stay here?

This mysterious young man seemed capable of protecting her. Even that terrifying woman had treated him with such respect... But was it really safe to stay here?

Could he...

After hesitating for a moment, her fear of the Titled Douluo ultimately overwhelmed everything else.

She bit her lip and asked cautiously, "Then... if I become your maid, can you... can you protect me?"

"Keep others from finding out who I am, and stop them from hurting me?"

"Of course."

Zhao Linchuan took her hand and gave it a gentle tug, drawing her a little closer. A reassuring smile spread across his face.

"Since I agreed to take you on as my maid, you're mine now."

"Stick with me and be a good little follower. I promise, no one will be able to harm a single hair on your head."

His tone was sure, his gaze calm and confident. Without a word, he made her feel she could rely on him.

Xiao Wu looked at him, and the panic in her heart miraculously eased a little.

She nodded gently and answered in a small voice, "Mm... I-I believe you. I'll be a good maid..."

"That's more like it." Zhao Linchuan ruffled her hair, his smile growing wider. "Come on. I'll show you your new room, then get you some carrots to calm your nerves."

Xiao Wu followed close behind him, one small hand held in his. Her thoughts were a tangled mess...

Outside Dorm Seven,

Zhao Linchuan pushed the door open and glanced at Tang San's empty bed.

The bedding was folded neatly, just as it had been when he left.

It's been seven days already... How have Tang San and Yu Xiaogang still not come back?

They were only two Goblins. Could they really have... A disturbing thought came to him. ...Could they actually have died in the Soul Hunting Forest after all?

But then he shook his head, rejecting the thought. That can't be. Tang San is the fated protagonist personally "arranged" by the Asura God. He can't—and won't—die so young.

If he died that easily, where would I find such a suitable long-term "experience farm" and "plot trigger"?

Still... I can't be completely sure. Zhao Linchuan tapped the edge of the bed with his fingertip. To be safe, I should go check the Soul Hunting Forest later.

The crops haven't even grown, and I can't let the bugs eat them down to the roots.

Almost at the very moment Zhao Linchuan was thinking of him, deep in the Soul Hunting Forest, inside a hidden, damp cave,

"Heh... heh..."

Ragged, suppressed panting echoed through the darkness.

Tang San's face was smeared with dried blood and grime. Strands of hair clung to his forehead, and his bloodshot eyes were haunted by lingering terror.

He propped up the unconscious Yu Xiaogang, whose breathing was faint, and staggered forward on trembling legs set at an odd, splayed angle. Several times, he nearly pitched face-first to the ground.

The brief span of seven days had felt like an eternity spent cycling through hell.

Those two green, humanoid creatures that had suddenly appeared had been the strangest, most persistent, and most... utterly disgusting nightmare of his life across both lifetimes!

If Tang San hadn't died once before, leaving him far more resilient than his peers, and if he hadn't seized the moment when his enemies seemed to let their guard down in their games with him, he might have been tortured to death in that lightless hellhole. He'd managed to kill them only by using his Silent Sleeve Arrow together with his Mysterious Jade Hand.

Even so, he'd paid a heavy price. His Soul Power was in disarray, he was covered in external wounds, and, more importantly, a thick shadow had fallen over his heart.

With Yu Xiaogang propped against him, he looked back at the cave mouth, so deep it seemed ready to devour anyone who approached. He shuddered, then quickened his pace, staggering into the dappled shadows of the trees outside. All he wanted was to get away from that nightmarish forest as quickly as possible.

That afternoon, at the residence on the west side of the city,

As Zhao Linchuan returned and stepped through the gate, Yan Fei blocked his path, her anger tightly suppressed.

Her bright eyes blazed with fury as she glared at Yue Shen, who stood nearby.

"Young Lord!" Yan Fei's voice trembled with anger. After bowing to Zhao Linchuan, she pointed a shaking fingertip at Yue Shen. "Yue Shen... she's gone too far!"

"A scholar can be killed, but not humiliated! I beg you, Young Lord, give me justice!"

Zhao Linchuan froze and turned to look at Yue Shen.

Yue Shen, however, looked calm and composed. She stood with her hands elegantly folded in front of her, a faint, unruffled smile at the corner of her lips, as if Yan Fei's accusation had nothing to do with her.

"What happened?" Zhao Linchuan's gaze moved between them before settling on Yue Shen. "Yue Shen, what did you do to her?"

Only then did Yue Shen bend slightly. Her voice was calm and even, with just a trace of innocence. "Reporting to the Young Lord, this matter truly has nothing to do with me."

"Elder Sister Yan Fei woke up this morning and found that she had... well, met with a bit of an embarrassing mishap. Her bed was soaked."

"Perhaps something went wrong during her cultivation, or perhaps it was a nightmare. But Elder Sister Yan Fei insists that I tampered with things while she was cultivating. I've truly been wronged."

"Wet the bed...?"

Zhao Linchuan's expression turned exceedingly strange. He glanced at Yan Fei, whose face had gone so red it looked ready to drip blood, and did his best to keep his tone serious.

"Yan Fei, how... old are you? With your level of cultivation and control, how could you...?"

"Young Lord!" Yan Fei stomped her foot in desperation, her eyes reddening from sheer humiliation and indignation. "That absolutely isn't what happened! How could I possibly... Yue Shen must have used some underhanded trick!"

"I'd rather die than endure such slander! I beg you to investigate this carefully, Young Lord!"

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