Seeing Xiao Wu again

Jiang Lan, with Doro in tow, jogged back to Honey Snow Ice City. Pushing open the back door, she yelled, "Sister Rongrong! Sister Zhuqing! Zhu Yun! Come out! I have something important to announce!"

Ning Rongrong was sitting under the old locust tree flipping through account books when he shouted at her, startling her so much that she almost poked her face with the pen.

Zhu Zhuqing came out of the house, holding a half-finished cup of milk tea in her hand.

Zhu Zhuyun followed behind her, looking languid, clearly having just woken up from a nap.

"What's all the fuss about?" Ning Rongrong put down her pen and closed the ledger.

Jiang Lan jumped onto the high stool next to the stone table, placed Doro on the table, took out the charter she had gotten from Qian Renxue from her pocket, and spread it out.

"The All-Continent Genius Soul Master Tournament." Jiang Lan patted the paper with his short, small hands. "It's a joint event organized by the six major powers, to be held in Spirit City a year from now. Anyone under thirty years old can participate. There will be individual and team competitions, with seven members per team."

Ning Rongrong leaned over to take a look at the plan, and her eyes lit up.

Zhu Zhuqing walked over with the milk tea, glanced at the words on it, and didn't say anything, but the fingers holding the cup tightened slightly.

Zhu Zhuyun leaned against a pillar and raised an eyebrow. "You want to participate?"

"It's not that I wanted to participate," Jiang Lan corrected her, "It's that we're participating. Me, Doro, Sister Zhuqing, Sister Rongrong, Zhu Yun, plus Sister Yanyan and Sister Lingling, that makes seven."

"Yanyan and Lingling are not in Heaven Dou City," Ning Rongrong reminded him.

"They'll always come back," Jiang Lan waved her hand. "And even if they don't make it back in time, I can find others."

"Who are you looking for?" Ning Rongrong asked.

Jiang Lan thought for a moment and said, "Feng Xiaotian counts as one."

Ning Rongrong's expression became subtle.

"Your apprentice?"

"Yes, he should be close to level 70 soon." Jiang Lan counted on her fingers, "He's been practicing the Wind Breath Art I gave him for several years now, and with the Pill I left him, breaking through to level 70 shouldn't be a problem."

"And what's the last one?" Zhu Zhuyun asked.

Jiang Lan's gaze swept around the courtyard, finally landing on Doro, who was squatting on the corner of the table eating Ju Zi.

"Doro counts."

Doro raised his head and blinked his big purple eyes.

"There are seven people in the team competition. Me, Doro, Sister Rongrong, Sister Zhuqing, and Zhu Yun make five. Feng Xiaotian is the sixth, so we're one short." Jiang Lan thought for a moment, "If all else fails, I'll ask my niece for one."

Seeing this, Ning Rongrong and the others smiled helplessly.

Three days later, Jiang Lan handed over the affairs of the Body Sect to Guga One, locked the land deeds and documents in the safe of Honey Snow Ice City, and packed a bundle.

"Sister Rongrong, Sister Zhuqing, Zhu Yun, I'm going to find Sister Xiao Wu in the Star Dou Great Forest." Jiang Lan, carrying a bundle, stood at the back gate of Honey Snow Ice City and called out into the courtyard.

Ning Rongrong leaned halfway out of the window. "Be careful on the road!"

"Got it!" Jiang Lan waved, picked up Doro, and ran off.

Zhu Zhuqing stood by the window, watching the small black and white figure disappear into the alleyway, and remained silent for a while.

"He'll come back." Zhu Zhuyun leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed.

Zhu Zhuqing didn't reply, but simply closed the window.

Jiang Lan and Doro left Heaven Dou City and headed east along the official road.

Jiang Lan didn't rush on her journey. She traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping whenever she came across a small town to enjoy a local meal, and resting for half a day whenever she encountered a scenic spot in the countryside.

Doro followed him, picking wild fruits by the roadside during the day and peeling Ju Zi by the campfire at night, living a life no different from traveling and sightseeing.

After traveling for more than a month, the outline of the Star Dou Great Forest finally came into view.

The endless expanse of towering trees, seen from afar, resembles a green city wall, its canopies layered upon layer, almost obscuring half the sky.

"Doro, we've arrived."

Doro stood on the hillside, looking up at the vast forest, his large purple eyes reflecting the lush greenery.

"Doro," Doro called out.

Jiang Lan and Doro rested on the hillside for a while, ate two Ju Zi to replenish their energy, and then jogged along the hillside towards the outer edge of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Jiang Lan stepped onto the soft layer of fallen leaves, her short legs sinking halfway in. With each step she took, she sank deeper, pulling herself out with a clump of broken leaves.

Doro fared even worse; his round body rolled halfway through the pile of fallen leaves, becoming covered in withered leaves, his white fur turning into a mottled pattern.

"Doro, you look like a drowned rat." Jiang Lan turned around and laughed.

Doro struggled out of the pile of leaves, shook off the fallen leaves, grumbled at him in dissatisfaction, and continued walking.

The man and his soul walked for a while, and the surrounding trees grew taller and taller, and the light grew dimmer and dimmer.

Let's have a race to see who gets to Sister Xiao Wu's house first.

"Doro."

As soon as Jiang Lan finished speaking, before Doro could react, her two short legs were already tumbling across the leaf litter, and she darted forward with a whoosh.

Doro paused for a moment, his big purple eyes widening in surprise. Then, he took off running after it, his round body bouncing across the leaf-strewn ground like a white ball being kicked around.

"Little Guga Little Guga Little Guga-- "

"Dorodorodoro--"

The human and his soul rampaged through the outer edge of the Star Dou Great Forest, startling a flock of birds dozing in the treetops. Several Hundred-Year Soul Beast peeked out from the bushes, glanced at him, and then silently retreated.

Creatures that can swagger around so freely on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest are either stupid or too dangerous to mess with.

This person and this soul don't seem to resemble the former at all.

After running for a while, the two arrived at the lakeside.

Across the lake was a wide meadow with several simple Wooden House. In front of the Wooden House hung several animal hides to dry, and next to them was a small stack of chopped firewood.

In the open space in front of the Wooden House, a girl dressed in pink with a scorpion braid was squatting on the ground picking at a bunch of mushrooms. Hearing the noise behind her, she looked up.

Xiao Wu.

Jiang Lan stood on the lakeshore and waved her short hand towards the opposite side.

"Sister Xiao Wu!"

Xiao Wu dropped the mushroom in her hand to the ground. She stood up and squinted at the opposite shore of the lake.

Across the lake, Xiao Wu saw a small black and white figure standing on the shore, waving its tiny arms at her. Next to it, a white ball of fluff was squatting, also waving its tiny arms.

Xiao Wu was stunned for a moment, then she stood up from the ground, her whole body like a pink streak of light skimming across the lake.

Before Jiang Lan could react, Xiao Wu scooped her into her arms.

"Little Guga! How did you get here! How did you find this place! When did you arrive! Do you know how much I missed you!" Xiao Wu lifted him up and spun him around, then lifted him up and spun him around again, until Jiang Lan's penguin hat flew off.

"Little Guga-- Put me down-- I'm dizzy--"