Soul Douluo Teacher flapped his wings and shot into the sky.
As the distance between them grew shorter, he sensed that familiar, mountain-like presence and caught sight of the disheveled figure.
He slammed to a halt in midair, then silently turned around and flew back.
It was Elder Xuan. No problem, then.
High above, Xuan Zi glanced down without a word, then carried Su Ling and the others straight toward the Sea God Pavilion.
From above, the Sea God Pavilion appeared to be embedded within an ancient, towering tree known as the Golden Ancient Tree.
Ten thousand years ago, before God King Tang ascended to the Divine Realm, he had transplanted it from the heart of the Star Dou Great Forest. Back then, it had not been called the Golden Ancient Tree, but the Life Ancient Tree.
Su Ling knew it was the Life Core of the Douluo Continent. In the future, God King Tang would fuse his mother, the Blue Silver Emperor Ah Yin, with the Golden Ancient Tree, allowing her to seize the Douluo Plane and take complete control of the Douluo Continent.
But none of that had happened yet. Hao Zi and Ah Yin were probably off honeymooning in some remote corner.
They entered the Sea God Pavilion.
Xuan Zi casually set Chen Yangyu and the others down to one side.
The five of them had suffered the least. The Nether Thunder Evil Qi had not penetrated deeply, and they only needed to rest beside the Golden Ancient Tree for a while.
Zhang Lexuan, however, was another matter. She was the most severely injured. Although Su Ling had promptly drawn out the Nether Thunder Evil Qi, her damaged essence still needed to be nourished by the power of light.
"Kid, take Lexuan to that quiet room. It's where she usually cultivates. I'll go fetch Mu En."
"Okay."
Su Ling nodded slightly at the door Xuan Zi pointed to, then carried Zhang Lexuan inside.
The door opened to the scent of books mingled with a faint fragrance. The room was simply furnished: a bed, a meditation cushion, and a desk, with a few old books nearby.
Su Ling carried Zhang Lexuan to the bed and carefully laid her down. He had just bent over to take off her shoes when—
His gaze was caught by a few tiny blue dots.
Her torn black stockings loosely covered the tops of her feet. Her toes pushed little creases into the fabric, and her blue-painted toenails showed faintly through the sheer material... a little alluring, perhaps?
Su Ling's Adam's apple bobbed. He lifted her long legs, stained with flecks of blood, and carefully straightened them on the bed. Then he smoothed her tousled hair.
He stepped outside, brought back a basin of water, and wiped the grime from her face with a clean cloth, revealing her lovely features.
Just then, Xuan Zi returned with Mu En.
After sending a wave of the power of light toward the five outside, Mu En wheeled himself into the room with Xuan Zi. They happened to see Su Ling tenderly wiping Zhang Lexuan's face.
Good, good, good!
The unease in Xuan Zi's heart vanished in an instant, replaced by delight. The corners of his mouth curled wildly upward.
Mu En's expression remained unchanged, but he let out a quiet sigh inwardly. So be it. Bei Bei had that little girl Tang Ya. The young would make their own fortunes...
Hearing them behind him, Su Ling set down the cloth, turned around, and bowed slightly.
"Elder Mu, Elder Xuan."
"Heh. I never expected you to be even more exceptional than I'd imagined, young man. Xuan Zi told me about the Soul Hunting expedition on the way here."
At that, Su Ling's heart gave a jolt. He instinctively looked toward Xuan Zi, who only winked at him furtively.
All right, looks like that old geezer hadn't let slip the secret of my Martial Soul.
Su Ling breathed a quiet sigh of relief and cupped his hands toward Mu En. "You're too kind, Elder Mu. I only did what I should have."
"Humility is a fine quality, but too much of it can have the opposite effect. When someone praises you, accept it openly. Be forthright."
"Heh. You needn't be so formal with me from now on. If you don't mind, just call me Grandpa."
"Yes, Grandpa Mu." Su Ling obediently addressed him that way.
Mu En was nearly three hundred years old. It was just a form of address, so Su Ling didn't think much of it. Besides, those words showed that Mu En truly accepted him now!
That was a good thing.
"Mm, good. In that case, let me take a look at Lexuan." Mu En nodded with a smile.
Seeing this, Su Ling took the initiative to wheel him to the bedside.
Mu En glanced at Zhang Lexuan, then circulated his Soul Power and drew in the surrounding energy. He raised a hand and sent a stream of pure light, touched with the Golden Ancient Tree's power, toward her.
The sacred golden light flowed slowly into Zhang Lexuan's body through the space between her brows. In an instant, the room filled with a holy aura.
Before long, color returned to Zhang Lexuan's face. Her lips grew rosy, and her eyelashes began to tremble.
As Su Ling watched the dazzling golden light, his brows lifted slightly and he took several steps back.
The Dark Evil Qilin Emperor was acting up again...
Just then, Xuan Zi noticed Su Ling's reaction. He walked over as if to take a closer look at Zhang Lexuan, but in reality, he quietly placed himself in front of Su Ling.
Su Ling felt warmth in his heart.
A little while later,
Mu En withdrew his Soul Power, leaned back in his wheelchair, and seemed to speak with less strength than before.
"Xuan Zi, wheel me out. Ling, stay here and look after Lexuan until she wakes up. As for the Outer Court, Xuan Zi, go find Shao Zhe later and let him know. Get Ling a day off."
"Yes!" Su Ling and Xuan Zi answered at the same time.
Xuan Zi wheeled Mu En beneath the Golden Ancient Tree, then hurried back to the quiet room.
"Kid, Lexuan won't be waking up anytime soon, and she usually likes to keep clean. Since she's made you her younger brother, I'll leave it to you to wipe her down and change her clothes."
"Ah?" Su Ling didn't know what to make of that.
Him? Wiping Zhang Lexuan down? Changing her clothes?
Xuan Zi's mouth curled as he pointed to a tall cabinet in the corner, putting on a rueful tone.
"Alas, all the female students are in class right now, so there's nothing I can do. There, Lexuan usually keeps her clothes. You're careful with your work, kid. I'm sure you can handle it."
With that, Xuan Zi gave him a meaningful look, turned, and left, closing the door behind him.
Click.
The quiet-room door shut.
Su Ling looked at Zhang Lexuan, whose breathing was steady, then let his gaze drift back and forth over her torn clothes. He couldn't help swallowing.
How could he not know what Xuan Zi was up to?
But did that old geezer really have to play matchmaker like this? That was way too direct...
Way too thrilling...
Su Ling's ears turned faintly red. He went to the corner and opened the tall cabinet. When he saw the clothes inside, his ears grew even redder, as if they were burning.
Good grief. Zhang Lexuan seemed so gentle and sweet. Who knew she'd be so alluring in private?
In the end, he chose a white nightgown and walked toward the bed, feeling awkward.
Calling it a nightgown was generous; it was really a gauzy dress. But he had no choice. It was the most normal thing in the wardrobe.
He set the nightgown aside and gently nudged Zhang Lexuan, tentatively calling, "Sister Lexuan? Sister Lexuan?"
When she didn't respond, Su Ling shook his head with a wry smile and rolled up his sleeves.
Xuan Zi had told him to do it. What did he have to be afraid of?
With that thought, Su Ling grew bolder.
He carefully took off Zhang Lexuan's tattered top and loosened her bloodstained skirt. Of course, he also removed the black stockings, torn in several places...
Looking at her lovely body, dirty and smeared with blood, Su Ling suddenly felt his compulsive neatness kick in. Without a trace of improper thoughts, he took a clean cloth from his Sumeru Ring, picked up the basin, and began carefully wiping her down.
Was it his imagination, or did Zhang Lexuan's body seem to be growing hot?