Early the next morning, dawn had barely broken.
The snow on Nuoding City's streets had yet to melt, crunching crisply underfoot.
Xiong Shaoqing pulled together the collar of his rather thin clothes and walked out through the city gates with a simple bundle on his back, never looking back.
He had paid for a ride in a merchant caravan's carriage bound for Suotuo City in the Balak Kingdom.
Not only had the system used its mighty power to fabricate a legitimate identity for him as the orphaned scion of a fallen noble family, it had also shown enough conscience to leave him a meager bit of starting capital beneath the bed in the dilapidated house.
Unfortunately, the money was pitifully little, barely enough for the cheapest hard seat, crammed into a shabby, drafty carriage with cargo sacks and mercenaries reeking of cheap tobacco and sweat.
As someone from the modern world who had been accustomed to high-speed trains and airplanes in his previous life, he would normally have roasted this terrible transportation and the stingy system inside out in his head.
But now, leaning against the jolting wooden boards with his eyes half closed, Xiong Shaoqing's heart burned with irrepressible excitement.
Innate level-five Soul Power really is pathetic, but my cheat is just too broken.
He silently circulated the newborn Soul Power within him. Under the terrifying boost of the system's tenfold cultivation multiplier, the surrounding free-floating heaven and earth essence poured madly into his meridians as though sucked in by a pump.
Coupled with the enormous progress feedback Bibi Dong, Xiao Wu, and the others had provided after the diary shattered their composure last night, he could clearly feel the barrier between levels five and six dissolving at a speed visible to the naked eye.
At this insane rate, he would definitely break through by the time the carriage rattled into Suotuo City. He could even start preparing to hunt for his first Soul Ring.
Still, Soul Power alone was not enough.
His core advantage now was the information gap afforded by being a Reborn God King. He had to wear that disguise without a single seam showing.
Xiong Shaoqing swayed slightly with the jolting carriage, while his mind constantly rehearsed the script for his arrival in Suotuo City.
Chapter 4: An Unexpected Breakthrough
Zhu Zhuqing, that little kitten with a cold exterior and a warm heart, was probably braving pursuit by the Star Luo Imperial Family right now, heading for Suotuo City with hope and apprehension to seek out her cowardly fiancé.
And after her worldview had collapsed so thoroughly last night, Xiao Wu absolutely could not keep obediently following Tang San through the original plot.
She was now like a bird startled by a bowstring. The mere thought of the sacrificial scheme hidden behind Tang San's gentle smile would surely send chills through her.
She was very likely to choose to flee.
But vast as the world was, with Spirit Hall searching everywhere for Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, where could an inexperienced little girl like her go?
The answer was obvious: to find the God King big brother who had solemnly vowed in his diary to protect her, and had even died fighting for her in his previous life.
So I absolutely cannot show any eagerness or make any deliberate attempt to approach her.
A deal that comes chasing after you isn't a good deal.
Xiong Shaoqing repeatedly warned himself, his brows drawing together slightly as he began practicing his expressions at the empty air.
Style. The most important things are style and a sense of distance.
When I run into them by chance in Suotuo City, my gaze has to have the depth of someone weathered by the vicissitudes of life, with a touch of helplessness and sorrow over the fate of my previous life.
Yes, that broken quality of someone who loves you desperately, but can only restrain himself and keep his distance to protect you without changing the course of history.
Only then will they firmly believe the diary, wildly fill in the gaps themselves, and finally conquer their own hearts willingly, staying devotedly by my side.
At the most satisfying part of his thoughts, Xiong Shaoqing nearly laughed aloud. He hurriedly drew in a deep breath of cold air mixed with flecks of snow and forcibly pressed down the corners of his mouth as they threatened to soar.
The carriage gradually disappeared into the wind and snow, its wheels carving two deep ruts through the snow.
Tang San, as of today, I hereby unilaterally declare your road of fortune under my control.
With a slight stir of his thoughts, Xiong Shaoqing could clearly sense the Destiny Diary, glowing with dark golden light, floating quietly in the deepest reaches of his sea of consciousness, though there was nothing against his chest.
To put it plainly, this thing was a virtual construct condensed from the system's laws.
Normally stored in his sea of consciousness, it was completely invisible and intangible to outsiders. Not only was it theft- and robbery-proof, he could also update it by touch-typing with his thoughts anytime, anywhere. It was practically an indispensable divine tool for any mastermind traveling or staying home, plotting and scheming against others.
Listening to the wind and snow howling outside the window, Xiong Shaoqing slowly opened his eyes. The trace of a smile deep in them looked particularly unfathomable on this cold winter morning.
Morning light streamed through the gaps in Dorm Seven's battered windows, scattering mottled patches of light across the scratched wooden floor.
Tang San opened his eyes, a trace of purple flashing deep in his pupils.
He habitually turned toward the bed not far away, his lips curving into his usual gentle smile, and was just about to call out, "Xiao Wu."
The words caught in his throat.
The pretty face that should have worn a sweet smile was now covered in frost.
Xiao Wu huddled in the farthest corner of her bed, both hands clutching the edge of her quilt so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
The affection that usually filled her eyes when she looked at Tang San was gone, replaced by unconcealable horror, wariness, and even a measure of disgust.
The words in Xiong Shaoqing's Notes last night sliced repeatedly through Xiao Wu's mind like poisoned blades.
"Raised in captivity," "sacrifice," "Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast."
This gently smiling Third Brother before her was plainly a demon wearing human skin, a sharp blade in hand, ready to rip out her tendons and bones at any moment.
Tang San was exceptionally perceptive and instantly noticed that something was wrong.
Frowning slightly, he lifted his quilt, got out of bed, and took half a step forward. "Xiao Wu, did you sleep badly last night? You look awful."
Xiao Wu jerked backward as though electrocuted, her back slamming hard against the cold wall.
"Stay away." Her voice was shrill and cracking, piercing the eardrums of everyone in the room.
Several sleeping work-study students jolted awake and poked their heads out, their faces blank with confusion.
Tang San stopped. A trace of darkness flashed deep in his eyes, but he swiftly put on a mask of concern. "Xiao Wu, what happened? Who bullied you? Tell your Third Brother. I'll stand up for you."
At the words "Third Brother," Xiao Wu felt her stomach churn like an overturned sea, nausea surging straight to the crown of her head.
A hypocrite. A murderer. She did not want to stay in this room a moment longer.
Xiao Wu snatched up the little pink bundle beside her pillow. Without even stopping to put on her outer clothes properly, she slipped her bare feet into her cloth shoes and dashed out the door like a gust of wind.
She left only a bone-chilling sentence to strike Tang San across the face. "I'm fine. Leave me alone."
Tang San stood frozen, his fists slowly tightening until his nails nearly pierced his palms.
The internal power of the Mysterious Heaven Skill rampaged through his meridians. No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand.
Everything had been fine yesterday. Why had Xiao Wu's attitude turned heaven and earth upside down after a single night's sleep?
Had someone been whispering gossip in her ear?
Hundreds of miles away, on an official road swept by wind and snow.
Inside the jolting, drafty caravan carriage, the system's crisp notifications broke the quiet in Xiong Shaoqing's mind.
``` [Ding! Detected intense fear and rejection of Tang San from Xiao Wu. Feedback: Soul Power advancement progress +15%!]
[Ding! Detected shock, gloom, and frustration from the Child of Fortune, Tang San. Feedback: Spiritual Power refinement +5%!]
Xiong Shaoqing opened his eyes. A sharp gleam flashed through his deep black eyes, and an irrepressible smile tugged at his lips.
The show in Dorm Seven has finally begun.
He adjusted his posture, resting his back comfortably against the hard wooden boards of the carriage. Letting the cold wind blow through the gaps in the curtain and strike his cheeks, he rapidly assessed the current situation.
Xiao Wu fleeing Tang San was only the first link in his plan.
Once an inexperienced Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast left the shelter of Nuoding Academy, that beginner village, and entered a human society filled with hunting and greed, where could she go? Where would she dare go?
In all the world, there was only Suotuo City.
She could only seek out the Reborn God King in the diary who was willing to give his life for her.
That little rabbit's head is full of tragic images of me dying in battle and being reborn. The more afraid she is of Tang San, the more she'll imagine about me, and the thicker her rose-colored filter will become.
Xiong Shaoqing lightly tapped his knee with his fingertips, silently pondering.
Once she's suffered every hardship in the wind and snow, when she's utterly alone and helpless, I'll appear, still gravely wounded but forcing myself to silently protect her...
No, that's wrong. Showing up on my own would be second-rate.
Xiong Shaoqing shook his head, overturning his previous idea.
I have to sit in some secluded tavern in Suotuo City, drinking the cheapest bitter liquor and coughing as I watch the wind and snow outside.
Wait for her to come to me.
Playing hard to get, the suffering ploy, and the devoted supporting male character, all stitched into one combo-Xiong Shaoqing rehearsed it to perfection in his head.
As long as he established the persona of a devoted God King who deliberately kept his distance to protect them, these Heaven's Favored Daughters would become his most fanatical believers.
Not only would they ask for no official status, they would instead feel sorry for him, protect him, and seek out heavenly materials and earthly treasures to restore his divine power.
Tang San was raising Xiao Wu as a Soul Ring.
He, however, would raise her into the sharpest blade against Tang San.
Xiong Shaoqing closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness into the depths of his sea of consciousness.
Under the immense feedback Xiao Wu provided, the Soul Power barrier stretching between levels five and six gave a crisp crack and shattered with a crash.
Soul Power flooded into the new realm like a tide. Comfortable warmth spread through every limb and bone, driving away winter's bitter cold.
Level six. Reaping this crop of chives really does taste sweet.
Chapter 5: First Meeting with Xiao Wu
On a winter night in Suotuo City, the cold wind swept ice and snow across the gray-white city walls like knives.
Carrying her pink bundle, Xiao Wu walked down the long street through the snow.
Though she had eaten in the wind and slept under the open sky during the days since leaving Nuoding Academy, she still had the foundation of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast cultivating anew. With Soul Power in the teens circulating throughout her body, this little bit of wind and snow could not even freeze through the hem of her clothes.
Just half an hour earlier, several wandering mercenaries outside the city had lusted after her and tried to trap her in a dead-end alley.
Without even activating her Martial Soul, she had cleanly broken those burly men's ribs with a few consecutive kicks.
The outside world was dangerous indeed, but she, Xiao Wu, was no soft persimmon for anyone to squeeze.
What truly made her feel secure in this world of ice and snow was Xiong Shaoqing's Notes [Xiao Wu Copy], deep in her sea of consciousness.
The notes continuously emitted warm, primal Origin Soul Power, nourishing her meridians and further strengthening the foundation of her human transformation.
Just then, the notes in her sea of consciousness trembled slightly, and a new line slowly appeared:
[The snow in Suotuo City is really heavy. I picked a secluded tavern called the Old Oak at random to rest my feet.]
[I ordered a plate of sliced braised beef with some cheap ale, just enough to warm myself a little. I wonder how that girl Xiao Wu is doing.]
[At this point in my previous life, she was still foolishly following Tang San around, calling him Third Brother. Now that I've been reborn, I really hope I can set off a little butterfly effect in fate.]
[Let her see that hypocrite Tang San's true face sooner, so she won't retrace the disastrous path of being raised in captivity and sacrificed.]
After writing those lines, Xiong Shaoqing furiously rubbed the goosebumps rising on his arms.
Ugh, this sanctimonious, two-faced concern is seriously disgusting.
Xiong Shaoqing picked up the cheap ale on the table and took a fierce gulp, savagely mocking it in his head.
To think that he had been single for eighteen years in his previous life, yet could now write such cringe-inducing lines without blushing or skipping a heartbeat.
To earn a little more Soul Power feedback, he had thoroughly thrown his dignity on the ground and trampled it.
Xiao Wu, please don't blame your big brother for his deep schemes. I'm only doing this to escape poverty and get rich sooner.
After ruthlessly mocking himself in his mind to ease the embarrassment, Xiong Shaoqing maintained an unchanged expression and continued pouring out his "devotion" into the diary only he could see:
[The world is so chaotic. The thought of an inexperienced little girl like her wandering through the wind and snow really makes my heart ache. If I still had my divine power, even a tenth of it, I would have torn through space long ago and brought her to my side to protect her.]
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the Star Luo Empire.
In her dim boudoir, Zhu Zhuqing stared at the newly updated lines in her sea of consciousness, ripples stirring in her cool gaze.
"Suotuo City, the Old Oak Tavern."
Zhu Zhuqing murmured to herself.
Suotuo City was precisely where that man, Dai Mubai, had hidden to escape his family's fate.
The diary had said that Dai Mubai had women in both arms there, a coward who had abandoned her.
On this point, Zhu Zhuqing was actually half convinced and half doubtful.
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