Su Mo looked at her.
Xiao Wu tilted her head and said matter-of-factly, "The weak are prey to the strong, and only the fittest survive. That's been the Soul Beasts' way of life since ancient times."
Su Mo blinked.
Xiao Wu continued, "Soul Beasts eat other Soul Beasts to fill their stomachs or improve their cultivation. I ate quite a lot when I was little."
"As long as they're not the same kind, they can be food or medicine."
She said it so casually, as if she were talking about what she'd had for lunch.
"Besides," Xiao Wu added, "even among the same kind, just like you human Soul Masters, people hurt each other for all sorts of reasons. Isn't that normal?"
Su Mo understood.
He remembered the arguments about "Soul Beast rights" from his previous life and suddenly found them a little amusing.
In this world, the Soul Beasts' rules for survival were far simpler than humans imagined.
The weak were prey to the strong. Only the fittest survived.
As long as they didn't slaughter indiscriminately or threaten the survival of an entire group, everyone survived by their own ability.
That was the Soul Beasts' logic.
Su Mo nodded. "Got it."
Xiao Wu smiled and went back to watching the rabbit over the fire.
After a while, her expression suddenly dimmed, as if she'd thought of a painful memory.
"Only if I become strong enough can I avoid being bullied, protect the people I want to protect, and do the things I want to do."
"Xiao Wu has to cultivate hard."
Her voice was soft, carrying a seriousness that was usually absent.
"I'll cultivate until I'm really strong and protect Master."
"And I'll find the enemy who killed my mother."
"Then I'll kill her with my own hands and avenge my mother!"
Su Mo's movements paused.
Tang San also froze.
He looked at Xiao Wu. Her face, usually all smiles, now held a resolve far beyond her years.
Xiao Wu didn't cry.
She simply said it calmly, as if stating a fact.
Tang San was silent for a second.
Then he walked over and patted Xiao Wu on the shoulder.
"Bajie."
Xiao Wu looked up at him.
Tang San said earnestly, "Your senior brother will help you."
Xiao Wu blinked.
"Really?"
"Really."
Xiao Wu smiled, returning to her usual carefree self.
"Then it's a promise! From now on, you go first whenever there's a fight!"
Tang San nodded. "Sure."
Xiao Wu said, "And if there's something delicious, you have to let me try it first!"
Tang San hesitated. "...Sure."
Xiao Wu said, "And if Master asks, you take the blame for me!"
Tang San's face darkened. "That one's a no."
"Cheap."
"That's not being cheap!"
The two started bickering, and the heavy mood from a moment ago vanished.
Watching them, Su Mo's lips curled into a faint smile.
The rabbit was ready.
Xiao Wu rushed over first, tore off a leg, and devoured it until grease shone around her mouth.
Tang San took a piece too and ate slowly.
Su Mo accepted the meat Xiao Wu handed him and took a bite.
Mm, not bad.
Crispy on the outside, tender inside, and cooked just right.
Big Black Ox lay nearby with a pile of grass in front of him, but he looked at the rabbit, now picked clean down to the bones, with a mournful gaze.
"Moo." (I was the one who found that rabbit first.)
Su Mo glanced at him. "Aren't you supposed to eat grass?"
Big Black Ox was silent for a second.
"Moo." (Sometimes I want a change of taste, too.)
Su Mo nodded and handed him the bone he'd finished gnawing.
Big Black Ox stared at the bone, his expression complicated.
He felt like Su Mo was messing with him.
But he had no proof.
He resigned himself to eating grass, only to discover a big rabbit leg hidden in it.
Well, now he had proof.
But... should he eat the evidence? It looked so delicious!
After eating their fill, everyone gathered around the campfire.
Tang San sat off to one side, holding his Blue Silver Grass and trying to twist it into the shape of a sword.
His face turned red as he twisted hard—
The Blue Silver Grass drooped limply, like a noodle that had been boiled too long.
He twisted again—
It was still limp.
Tang San refused to give up and tried twisting it from another angle.
Still limp.
Like an impotent husband.
Watching him from the side, Su Mo couldn't help teasing him.
"Sanzi, you're no good at this."
Tang San looked up. "No good at what?"
Su Mo said nothing. He chewed on a sweet grass root and glanced sideways at Tang San, his eyes casually dipping down before he broke into a meaningful smile and shook his head.
He hadn't said a thing, but it somehow felt like an insult...
You're no good.
A "hee-hee" came from nearby.
It was Big Black Ox.
He was lying in the shadows, his eyes gleaming mischievously as he laughed like a scoundrel.
Xiao Wu looked up at them in confusion. She hadn't understood, so she buried her head and went back to gnawing on a carrot.
Tang San flushed red. "I'm not!"
Su Mo spread his hands. "I didn't say anything."
Tang San grew flustered. "Your eyes said it!"
Su Mo drawled, "Oh? Did they? Why would you think that? ⌓⌣⌓(benevolent)"
Tang San: "???"
Big Black Ox laughed even harder, his whole body shaking as his tail whipped back and forth.
Tang San held it in for a long time before finally blurting out, "Master, you're picking on me!"
Su Mo smiled and said no more.
The campfire crackled, sparks flying up into the night sky before disappearing into the endless darkness.
Above them, stars dotted the sky.
Deep in the forest, the occasional beast's roar rang out, distant and mysterious.
Xiao Wu leaned against Su Mo, clutching the gnawed bone, her eyes half-closed.
Tang San put away his Blue Silver Grass and silently added a few logs to the fire.
Big Black Ox lay in the shadows, his tail swishing back and forth lazily.
"Moo." (By the way, where'd that guy who calls himself Grandmaster and rides a dog go?)
Su Mo thought for a moment, then said, "Who knows?"
The night grew deeper.
The next day.
Yu Xiaogang finally stood at the entrance to the Royal Hunting Park, gazing at the familiar forest before him with a confident smile.
The Royal Hunting Park was the imperial family's private hunting grounds in the Heaven Dou Empire. Various Soul Beasts were kept inside for nobles and Soul Masters to hunt and obtain Soul Rings.
In his previous life, Tang San had encountered a hundred-year-old Datura Snake here and nearly lost his life.
It was Yu Xiaogang who had arrived just in time, using his extensive theoretical knowledge and decisive judgment to save Tang San.
From then on, Tang San had been utterly devoted to him.
At least, that was what Yu Xiaogang believed.
He took a deep breath and pulled a small bottle from inside his clothes.
The bottle contained a dark red liquid that gave off a pungent odor.
Berserk Potion.
It could drive Soul Beasts mad and make them far more aggressive.
He'd just bought it outside the hunting grounds from a shifty-looking peddler.
It had cost him his last fifty Copper Soul Coins.
Yu Xiaogang smiled sinisterly.
That brat Su Mo was so good at fighting, wasn't he?
Once they encountered Soul Beasts inside, he'd secretly sprinkle the potion over them—
The Soul Beasts would go berserk and grow much stronger.
Then he'd see how that brat died.
Even if he survived, he'd be left half-dead.
And Yu Xiaogang could take the opportunity to "save" Tang San and win back his disciple's heart.
Two birds with one stone.
Perfect.
Yu Xiaogang put the potion away and strode into the hunting grounds.
An hour later.
Yu Xiaogang stood in a patch of woods, drenched in sweat and panting heavily.
"Something's not right..."