Zhu Zhuqing, Soft and Fun to Play With, Guga

At the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest, beside a stream.

The campfire crackled, flames licking at the Iron Skewers propped on stones. Three pieces of Wild Boar Meat hung over the fire, their fat dripping into the flames and sending up a wisp of blue smoke.

Guga crouched beside the fire and reached out with her little hand to turn a skewer.

Dark Gold Guga slapped her hand away.

"...It's not cooked yet, guga."

"It's almost cooked, guga!"

"It's not cooked, guga."

The moment Dark Gold Guga turned her head, Guga snatched a piece of meat and ran. Dark Gold Guga chased after her.

"Give it back, guga!"

"No, guga!"

The two Gugas raced around the campfire, one running with the meat held high, the other close behind. Sparks scattered beneath their feet. Guga stuffed the meat into her mouth as she ran, her cheeks puffed up like a hamster's.

Little Moon crouched on a branch, watching the two pieces of meat left by the fire. The corners of her mouth lifted. Silver-white light flashed, and she Teleported beside the fire. Her little hand shot out, and she stole both pieces.

Guga froze. The meat nearly fell from her mouth.

Dark Gold Guga froze too. She stopped and stared at the empty rack with her slit pupils.

Little Moon Teleported back to the branch with the meat in her arms. She swung her short legs and laughed.

"It's mine now, guga!"

Starry Guga sat beside Lin Yuan, tearing the roasted meat into tiny pieces. She blew on each piece to cool it before holding it to Xuanwu Guga's mouth. Curled up in Lin Yuan's lap, Xuanwu Guga opened and closed her mouth, chewing slowly, the flesh of her cheeks moving with every bite. Once she finished one piece, she opened her mouth again and tilted her head, waiting for the next.

"More, guga."

"Okay, guga." Starry Guga tore off another piece, blew on it, and popped it into her mouth.

Lin Yuan leaned against a tree trunk, one hand resting on Xuanwu Guga's head while the other turned the meat skewers over the fire. Dark Gold Guga and Guga were still chasing Little Moon. Three tiny figures darted through the trees, silver-white light flashing as branches shook beneath their feet.

The dull thud of colliding Soul Power came from the distance.

The skewer in Lin Yuan's hand stopped moving.

Several more thuds followed. Branches snapped, and someone shouted. The sounds carried through the dense forest, drawing closer.

Lin Yuan stood and set Xuanwu Guga on the ground.

"Let's take a look."

At night in the Star Dou Great Forest, moonlight broke into fragments beneath the canopy and scattered across the ground. Lin Yuan leaped from branch to branch, the five Gugas following behind him. He passed through a thicket, and the view suddenly opened onto a clearing.

A girl in black was running.

Her long black hair spilled over her shoulders, and her fitted clothes were covered in mud and shredded leaves. She had been running for two days; her steps had grown unsteady. Five people pursued her—three Soul Ancestors and two Soul Kings—their Soul Rings gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

Lin Yuan landed on a thick branch and looked down. The glow of the campfire still lingered behind him, stretching his shadow long.

The girl missed her footing. A branch broke beneath her, and she plunged downward. A burst of Soul Power struck her shoulder from behind. She tumbled through the air as the ground rushed closer.

Lin Yuan kicked off the branch and shot after her. Soul Power surged through his right leg as he caught her in midair, one arm around her waist and the other supporting her back. He landed steadily.

Zhu Zhuqing fell against his chest. It was hard, but his hold on her was steady. She looked up at his face. He was twelve or thirteen, with black hair and a sharp jawline.

Lin Yuan set her on the ground. Zhu Zhuqing stumbled and nearly fell. She glanced at his face, then at his feet.

Four Soul Rings lit up. Every one of them was black.

The five Gugas sprang out of the forest and landed in a line before Zhu Zhuqing.

The Ghost Leopard Soul King's pupils contracted. He raised a hand, signaling the others to stay still. He stared at the four Soul Rings for a long time before speaking in a low voice.

"Young man, we're from the Star Luo Zhu Family. We're pursuing the second young lady. This has nothing to do with outsiders."

The four Soul Rings revolved once.

Guga took a step forward and planted her little hands on her hips.

"She's coming with us, guga."

The Ghost Leopard Soul King looked at the four Soul Rings again. A boy of twelve or thirteen with four Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings—what kind of power could raise a monster like that? He did not dare think further. After a long silence, he stepped back.

"Let's go."

The five pursuers vanished into the dense forest.

Zhu Zhuqing leaned against a tree, her chest rising and falling, her breathing still ragged. She looked at Lin Yuan, then at the four Soul Rings. She was still alive.

Starry Guga came forward, and starlight fell across Zhu Zhuqing's shoulder. The wound slowly stopped bleeding. Zhu Zhuqing tried to take a step, but her leg gave way and she pitched forward. Lin Yuan reached out and caught her.

Guga ran over and patted her Penguin Suit with a little hand.

"I'll carry you, guga!"

Guga barely reached Zhu Zhuqing's knees. Zhu Zhuqing looked down at the round little creature, and the corner of her mouth twitched.

Dark Gold Guga walked over and swept her slit-pupiled gaze over Zhu Zhuqing.

"...I'll carry you, guga."

Starry Guga bent down.

"Let me. I'm taller, guga."

Little Moon Teleported right in front of Zhu Zhuqing and leaned close. Then she turned around, crouched, and offered her back.

"I'll carry her, guga."

Xuanwu Guga tilted her head and watched for a long while before speaking with innocent solemnity.

"She can ride on my shell, guga."

Guga poked Xuanwu Guga's belly with a little hand.

"You don't have a shell, guga."

Xuanwu Guga looked down at her belly and blinked.

"Oh."

She tilted her head and thought about it.

"That's right, guga."

Lin Yuan sighed.

"Enough fooling around. I'll carry her."

He crouched and turned his back to Zhu Zhuqing. She hesitated, then put her hands on his shoulders and climbed on. Lin Yuan stood, supporting the backs of her knees with both hands.

"What's your name?"

"Zhu Zhuqing."

"Lin Yuan."

Zhu Zhuqing rested against his back, her cheek touching his shoulder. The boy's shoulders were broad, sturdier than they looked.

"Where are you going?" Lin Yuan asked.

"The Heaven Dou Empire."

"What a coincidence. I'm headed there too. Want to go together?"

Zhu Zhuqing was silent for a long time. Star Luo City, her sister, the pursuers, and the person she was engaged to. He was in the Heaven Dou Empire too. She did not know what would happen when she arrived, but she had nowhere else to go.

"All right."

Lin Yuan started walking. Moonlight fell across the ground, and fallen leaves rustled underfoot. The five Gugas stayed close around them.

Guga pushed aside the bushes ahead with her little hands, humming a tuneless song.

Xuanwu Guga walked at the back. She stopped to stare at a bug on a tree until Starry Guga turned and pulled her along. Xuanwu Guga obediently took two steps, then tilted her head at something else. Starry Guga sighed, took Xuanwu Guga's hand, and kept her close.

Lin Yuan glanced back. All five Gugas were there. Not one was missing.

Moonlight slipped through gaps in the canopy and fell over the group. Lin Yuan kept his steps steady, trying not to jostle Zhu Zhuqing.

Against his back, Zhu Zhuqing's breathing grew slower and softer. She had gone two days without food or sleep. She was exhausted.

Guga slowed down and looked back. Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"She's asleep, guga."

"Mm."

Lin Yuan kept walking. The weight on his back was light, and warm. The five Gugas surrounded him, their footsteps rustling through the fallen leaves.

Moonlight covered the road ahead. The Star Dou Great Forest receded behind them, the dark treetops blurring together beneath the moon.

The Heaven Dou Empire lay ahead.