Setting the Rules

After her brain stalled for a moment, Qian Renxue pondered briefly, then stepped forward and gently grabbed the corner of Jiang Xuan's clothes with her chubby little hand:

"Um... I was wrong just now. I shouldn't have doubted you. Don't be mad anymore, okay? Let's keep looking for medicinal herbs."

Hearing Qian Renxue apologize of her own accord, Jiang Xuan's tense nerves finally relaxed.

Sure enough, in her current state, she didn't dare completely fall out with him!

That made it easy to keep her under control.

After letting out a breath, Jiang Xuan opened his eyes, lowered his head, and looked indifferently at Qian Renxue, who was still clutching his clothes.

"Was doubting me the only thing you did wrong?"

That question made Qian Renxue grit her teeth at once.

What the hell?

She had already taken the initiative to apologize. Why was he pushing his luck?

But seeing Jiang Xuan's unyielding attitude, Qian Renxue thought it over carefully again.

Forget it. Since she had already apologized first, there was no harm in making the apology more thorough.

Considering that pill had indeed increased her soul power... she would just treat it as her older self humoring a child!

With that thought, Qian Renxue put on a shy expression and spoke softly again.

"I also shouldn't have attacked you so casually, nor should I have willfully taken out my temper on you. You're a boy, so be more broad-minded and don't hold it against me anymore, okay? I already know I was wrong. I won't make you unhappy again~"

Qian Renxue's attitude had initially satisfied Jiang Xuan.

But when he heard the words, "You're a boy, so be more broad-minded...," his nerves immediately tensed again.

Why did that sound like... moral blackmail?

No. No matter what Qian Renxue was thinking, he absolutely could not turn a blind eye to such unhealthy thinking.

Otherwise, if Qian Renxue developed a habit of relying on that approach, he would be the one suffering in the future.

With that thought, Jiang Xuan's expression turned serious.

"No. Your attitude toward apologizing is seriously flawed. I'm not satisfied!"

The moment those words came out, Qian Renxue's head filled with question marks.

Had she shown him too much kindness?

Why was this brat getting more and more outrageous?

Didn't he know when to quit while he was ahead?

Her patience had limits too, okay?!

"I'm an absolute believer in equality between men and women! No matter what happens, I will insist on equal treatment. For example, if a man and a woman provoke me at the same time, I will not hesitate to attack them with complete equality. I will never deliberately go easy on one of them just because she's a woman, because in my view, that is an extremely foolish thing to do!"

Qian Renxue was instantly dumbfounded.

Why had this brat suddenly dragged the conversation into the subject of gender equality?

Wait, did the concept of equality between men and women even exist in this world?

Seeing that Qian Renxue did not respond, Jiang Xuan assumed his speech had stunned her, so he continued.

"Therefore, don't say things like, 'You're a boy, so you should give in to me a little.' That not only has no effect on me, but also makes me feel intensely disgusted! If you've realized your mistake, then hurry up and apologize to me!"

Qian Renxue still could not understand why Jiang Xuan had suddenly gone crazy, but since the demand was not overly unreasonable, she did not mind going along with it.

As before, she would just treat it as humoring a child.

After resolving their conflict, the two walked side by side.

Qian Renxue had originally wanted to climb back onto Jiang Xuan's back.

However, Jiang Xuan directly refused, saying that he was somewhat tired.

Although Qian Renxue was displeased, she could not push things too far.

After all, a nine-year-old child carrying her for several hours straight would naturally be tired.

Although the Sunset Forest was not as vast as the Star Dou Forest, its actual area was still considerable. Without an accurate map to guide them, finding the valley containing the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well in a short time could only depend on luck.

However, Jiang Xuan did not particularly care about that.

After all, he was in no hurry.

Yet as they walked, Qian Renxue began to lose patience.

"Jiang Xuan! Do you even know where the medicinal herbs are? Why do I feel like you're just wandering around aimlessly?"

That question did not make Jiang Xuan particularly angry.

After all, Qian Renxue was telling the truth...

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Xuan explained in a more tactful manner.

"How can you say that? I'm certain the herbs I need are somewhere in this Sunset Forest. Don't be so anxious. As long as we search patiently for a few days, we'll definitely find enough!"

The moment he said that, Qian Renxue bristled again.

"What? It will take several more days? Are you serious?"

"If there were some way to make us move faster, the time we need might be shortened considerably."

Jiang Xuan had essentially said something useless, but Qian Renxue took it to heart.

"We need to go faster, right? Fine, I'll satisfy you!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she summoned her Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul, causing angel wings to emerge from her back. Then she directly picked Jiang Xuan up, pressing his back tightly against her chest, and took flight.

Flying was naturally faster than walking.

But Jiang Xuan promptly raised a question.

"You can fly? Since you're in such a hurry, why didn't you carry me here through the air when we were traveling before?"

That question directly left Qian Renxue stunned.

Right. She had been so eager to restore her body, so why had she not simply flown Jiang Xuan straight to the Sunset Forest earlier?

Could it be that, deep down, she had deliberately been enjoying that rare period of relaxation?

The thought surfaced in her mind, and Qian Renxue found it absurd.

That definitely wasn't it!

It was only because becoming smaller had made her so angry that she had been muddleheaded and temporarily forgotten that her Martial Soul could carry people through the air.

After using that excuse to convince herself, she replied to Jiang Xuan irritably.

"Shut up! It's because you made me so angry earlier that I forgot, and only just remembered now. That's the reason. Don't ask any more questions!"

With her holding him, that scolding naturally rang right beside his ears.

Honestly.

Qian Renxue, acting all fierce despite her childish appearance, was really adorable!

It would be great if she could stay like this forever.

At that thought, the corners of Jiang Xuan's mouth began to curl upward uncontrollably.

But just before Qian Renxue could notice his strange grin, a powerful fluctuation of soul power suddenly came from afar, instantly drawing both of their attention.

At the same time, an exceedingly effeminate voice reached their ears.

"Oh, oh, oh! I thought this trip would merely involve carrying out a simple mission, but my luck is so good that I actually came across a hundred-thousand-year soul beast that has already completed its transformation! If I present you to His Holiness the Pope, I will surely receive an extremely generous reward!"