A Glance That Lasted a Lifetime

"Bang—"

A deafening explosion went off beside Zhu Zhuqing's ear.

Huh? Is this what death feels like? It didn't hurt at all.

Zhu Zhuqing's lashes fluttered for a moment before her eyelids cautiously opened.

Then she saw a sight she would never forget for the rest of her life.

A boy about her age, dressed in fine clothes and standing as elegant as a jade tree, stood before her. He bent slightly and held out a small but clearly jointed right hand.

The warm smile at the corner of his lips left her briefly dazed, and a faint blush quietly spread across her chubby cheeks.

"Y-you... are you an angel?"

Her mother had told her that after people died, angels would come to take them to heaven.

Xu Peinian froze for a moment at her words.

An angel? He was no angel, though he did know someone connected to angels.

"Little sister, what are you talking about? I was just passing by and happened to see you in danger, so I lent a hand."

"Ah?!"

Only then did Zhu Zhuqing realize she had misunderstood. Her pink cheeks instantly turned crimson.

"I-I'm sorry, I got it wrong. And thank you for saving us."

The naturally aloof girl rarely spoke much to begin with, and after embarrassing herself so badly, her words came out somewhat stammering.

"No need to thank me. If you really want to, could you stand up first? My arm will get sore if I keep holding it out like this."

Hearing Xu Peinian's words, Zhu Zhuqing remembered that the boy's hand had been stretched out the entire time, making her feel even more embarrassed.

Still, she turned her face aside and gently placed her soft little hand in his palm.

Looking at the little girl covered in dirt, Xu Peinian took her hand and gently pulled her to her feet.

"What's your name?"

Xu Peinian casually asked, hoping to ease the awkwardness.

"My name is Zhu Zhuqing."

Zhu Zhuqing?! I just came out to hunt a soul ring, and I ran into a member of the protagonist group. Is this the effect of the Emperor Luck Constitution too?

Xu Peinian was deeply shocked. After all, the little girl before him was only six and had not begun to develop yet, so there was no sign at all of her astonishing figure once she grew up.

Still, those cat ears and tail certainly matched his impression of Zhu Zhuqing.

Ahem. He was not some furry fan; he simply remembered the original novel's descriptions particularly well.

Zhu Zhuqing's bright, watery eyes secretly glanced at the boy before her. She tilted her little head to one side, seemingly wondering why he had gone quiet after hearing her name.

Xu Peinian came back to his senses, his smile still as warm and perfectly measured as the winter sun.

"My name is Xu Peinian. Pei as in timely rain and sweet dew, Nian as in having a good year."

"Xu Peinian..." The little girl murmured his name, and a glimmer flashed through her eyes.

His name sounds so nice!

Xu Peinian did not continue talking with the girl whose face was as red as a teapot. Instead, he turned toward Qian Jun Douluo in the distance and asked:

"Teacher, how is that auntie?"

Qian Jun Douluo still had to maintain the bearing of an expert before outsiders. He answered calmly:

"She is unharmed. She was merely knocked unconscious by the shockwave."

After a pause, Qian Jun Douluo spoke again, seemingly directing his words specifically at the beautiful mature woman lying on the ground:

"Are you still not getting up? The danger has already passed."

At that, the woman's fingers twitched. She slowly opened her eyes and climbed to her feet.

"Greetings, Senior. Thank you for saving us, Senior."

The beautiful woman bowed, then hurried toward Zhu Zhuqing.

"Second Miss, are you all right?"

Zhu Zhuqing shook her head and tersely uttered two words:

"I'm fine."

Seeing that both of them had suffered only minor injuries and were otherwise all right, Xu Peinian finally relaxed.

The two worshippers, Qian Jun and Jiang Mo, deliberately maintained a cold demeanor to establish their image as masters. The beautiful woman did not dare say much before such great figures, while Zhu Zhuqing was naturally aloof and taciturn.

Thus, the scene fell into silence, broken only by Brother Ox's mournful mooing as he lay on the ground in the distance.

"Ahem." Xu Peinian lightly coughed to break the deadlock and draw everyone's attention. "Um, Zhu Zhuqing, right? How did you provoke this ten-thousand-year Mountain-Splitting Kui Ox?"

In his view, a Soul King who had only just reached level fifty-one dared to bring a six-year-old girl this deep, near the heart of the forest. They were even braver than Brother Jie.

"There was a battle over there earlier, and the disturbance was enormous. This Mountain-Splitting Kui Ox was startled, locked onto us, and chased us relentlessly."

For some reason, Zhu Zhuqing, who was normally sparing with words, was quite willing to speak in front of Xu Peinian.

After hearing her answer, Xu Peinian's expression became a little awkward.

It can't be such a coincidence, can it? Did I cause them to be chased? Good thing I got here in time and saved them. Otherwise, innocent passersby would have died because of me... Xu Peinian gave an embarrassed laugh and changed the subject.

"Hehe, I see that your arm is scraped. I have medicine specially for abrasions. Take it and use it."

Taking the small medicine bottle Xu Peinian handed her, Zhu Zhuqing quietly said, "Thank you."

Then, with Xu Peinian taking the initiative to start conversations, the two chatted quite a bit. Still, it was mostly Xu Peinian asking questions and Zhu Zhuqing answering them.

So, when Xu Peinian learned that Zhu Zhuqing had traveled all the way from the Star Luo Empire to obtain a soul ring, he asked in confusion:

"Why didn't you go to the local Soul Hunting Forest? Why travel all this way to the dangerous Star Dou Forest to hunt your first soul ring?"

"Because... sometimes, people are more dangerous than soul beasts."

Zhu Zhuqing gave this seemingly unrelated answer.

Thinking of the bizarre succession system of the Zhu Family and the Star Luo Imperial Family, as well as her current situation within her family, Xu Peinian understood what she meant.

They had probably come to the Star Dou Forest because they feared being stabbed in the back by their own people, or some similar assassination scheme.

Seeing that she did not wish to say more, Xu Peinian did not press the matter.

After resting for a while, Xu Peinian decided to see his good deed through and help them obtain her first soul ring before leaving.

"Clang—"

A clear blade cry rang through the forest.

A jet-black blade light flashed through the shadows of the trees.

Everything fell silent in an instant.

"Thud!"

The sound of a body hitting the ground rang out, and Xu Peinian immediately shouted to Zhu Zhuqing behind him:

"Go quickly. It can no longer resist."

"Mm."

Zhu Zhuqing nodded her little chin, stepped forward, and ended its life with a single dagger strike. Then she sat on the ground and began absorbing the soul ring.

Xu Peinian, meanwhile, was savoring his earlier strike. That was the first soul skill he had gained by absorbing the soul ring of the Nether Demon Wolf—Netherworld Demon Slash.

Its effect was straightforward and without any flashy tricks: it released a dark blade aura compressed and condensed from Soul Power. It had a chance to deal a critical strike against enemies, and the more it killed, the stronger it became.

It could only be said that it was very fitting for a Nether Demon Wolf.

Judging from its performance just now, its power was quite good. One slash had nearly killed a soul beast close to two hundred years old. As expected of a soul skill gained from a five-hundred-year mutated soul beast.

Two hours later, Zhu Zhuqing successfully absorbed the soul ring and obtained her first soul skill, just as in the original novel: Hell Stab.

Once Zhu Zhuqing was done, Xu Peinian and the others immediately headed toward the forest's outskirts.

At the edge of the Star Dou Forest.

Life had many crossroads, north and south, and the two had finally reached the moment of parting.

"Zhu Zhuqing."

"Mm?"

"Sometimes fate may be unfair, but I believe that people can shape their own destiny, and humanity will surely triumph over heaven."

The two stood on opposite sides of a stream. At his words, the usual coldness in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes abruptly froze, and her pupils shrank to pinpoints in an instant.

Xu Peinian's words shook her deeply. She stood there in a daze for a long time, only coming back to herself after he had already walked far away—so far that he was nearly beyond the range of clear hearing.

Zhu Zhuqing could no longer maintain her aloof pose and anxiously shouted into the distance:

"Xu Peinian, you still haven't told me where I can find you in the future!"

"If you want to come, I'll be waiting for you in Spirit City!"

Xu Peinian did not turn around. He merely waved behind him and continued onward with an easy, carefree air.

"Spirit City..."

The girl softly murmured as she watched the finely dressed boy disappear at the edge of her vision.

And so, the two parted ways,

You go toward Xiaoxiang, while I head toward Qin.