Sweet Times with Xiao Wu in the Star Dou Great Forest

The other side of the Star Dou Great Forest was an entirely different scene.

After killing the Man Faced Demon Spider, Lin Chen retraced his route. Passing through a dense thicket, he found Xiao Wu beside a clear stream.

She was crouched by the water, scooping up the clear stream water with both hands to wash her face. Sunlight filtered through gaps in the canopy, falling on her wet face and glimmering in tiny flecks.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up. When she saw Lin Chen emerge from the woods, she immediately smiled.

"You're back? That was fast."

"I killed a spider along the way. It delayed me a little," Lin Chen said casually as he sat down beside her.

Xiao Wu did not ask further. Shaking the droplets from her hands, she stood up. "Let's go. I'll show you around inside. Da Ming and Er Ming should be waiting for us."

She held out her hand and naturally took Lin Chen's.

Lin Chen clasped her hand, and the two walked side by side upstream along the creek.

The deeper they went, the taller the trees became.

This was the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, one of the most dangerous places on the continent.

Ordinary soul masters would not dare enter; they would not even dare approach.

But to Xiao Wu, this was home.

She had lived in this forest for a hundred thousand years. Every tree and every inch of land was as familiar to her as the lines on her palm.

Holding Lin Chen's hand, she skipped along ahead like a little rabbit returned to the mountains, completely relaxed.

Pointing at an especially enormous ancient tree in the distance, she said she had often climbed it as a child.

Pointing at a patch of purple wildflowers