A wooden building.
Its walls were covered in mottled marks.
Under the dim light, another person had appeared.
The stunning girl stepped aside, clearing a path.
As she studied the boy before her, her pretty face was filled with embarrassment.
"Our home is a little shabby. Please forgive us."
Cao Yu surveyed his surroundings.
So this was where Jiang Nannan lived?
There was pitifully little room even to stand.
The room could fit only two beds and some daily necessities.
A pale-faced woman lay on one of the beds.
It looked like this was Jiang Nannan's mother.
The woman had already woken up. Opening her eyes, she saw the stranger before her, then turned her gaze toward Jiang Nannan and asked weakly.
"Nannan, who is this?"
"Mom, this is Young Master Cao. He's here to treat your illness."
The woman looked at him doubtfully.
"Young master, thank you very much for your kindness, but I know this illness better than anyone. There's no need to trouble you."
She signaled with her eyes for Jiang Nannan to see him out.
She really could not trust this stranger before her.
Nannan, that child-she was already so grown up, yet still foolish enough to trust a stranger.
Wasn't she afraid of being deceived?
Sigh! If I passed away, what would Nannan do?
She was so kind. With that personality, she would suffer sooner or later.
The woman felt terrible inside, and her spirits sank with it.
Naturally, Cao Yu saw the distrust in her eyes. Without saying much else, he simply took out a Black Tortoise Divine Pill.
The pill's distinctive scent filled the entire room.
Holding it to her lips, he said, "This is a Black Tortoise Divine Pill. It can cure your illness. Once you've recovered in a few days, come with me to the Star Luo Empire."
Without offering much explanation, Cao Yu left.
The room fell quiet for a moment. Mother and daughter looked at each other, and in the end, after Jiang Nannan's persuasion, the woman swallowed the pill.
A few days later.
Jiang Nannan's mother finally recovered from her illness, and mother and daughter could only leave the Dou Ling Empire with Cao Yu.
The two followed behind Cao Yu, each carrying a small bundle.
They were too poor to afford Storage Soul Tools, so they could only carry their luggage in the most primitive way.
Seeing this, Cao Yu said little and did not help them.
There was not much luggage anyway, so carrying it by hand would hardly wear them out.
Just then, Jiang Nannan blushed and said, "Young Master Cao, how much did that Black Tortoise Divine Pill cost? I'll earn money to pay you back."
Cao Yu was amused. "Heh! Can you afford to pay it back?"
"Then I'll just keep working to earn money!"
"Then you might as well work for me. Come on, let's go!"
An immense force instantly lifted them up. Shadow Clones surrounded them as they floated in midair and left the Dou Ling Empire at tremendous speed.
On the journey back.
From the conversations between Jiang Nannan and her mother, Cao Yu also learned that Jiang Nannan actually used her mother's surname.
As for who her father was, Auntie Jiang did not reveal it.
Looking at the boy before her, Auntie Jiang could not help asking, "Um... Young Master Cao, may I ask what your relationship is with the Black Tortoise Sect?"
"My relationship? Does an honored guest count?"
Auntie Jiang was quite surprised. "You aren't from the Black Tortoise Sect?"
Cao Yu turned back to look at her. "Auntie Jiang, what made you think that?"
Hearing his answer, Auntie Jiang immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, the more she looked at Cao Yu, the more pleasing she found him, just like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law.
Then she glanced at her daughter and said, "That's good, that's good. As long as you aren't from the Black Tortoise Sect."
After seven or eight days.
Cao Yu's group finally reached the Core Circle of the Star Dou Great Forest.
That familiar voice started calling out again, loud and utterly miserable.
"Hey! Human, get me out!"
"Get me out of here!"
Trapped inside its cage, the big white worm shouted with all its might.
Yet even though it screamed its throat raw, the people in the sky still ignored it.
The Ferocious Beasts raised their heads.
Xiong Jun muttered angrily, "This is infuriating!"
"Argh! I really want to... forget it."
Di Tian and the others, who had been preparing to enjoy the show, withdrew their gazes.
To be honest, they really wanted to see Xiong Jun fight those people.
That way, they could find out just how large the gap between the two sides was.
They had not expected Xiong Jun, all brawn and no brains, to have his clever moments too.
Even as the Three-Eyed Golden Lion watched them disappear into the distance, Cao Yu's group never stopped.
As onlookers, Jiang Nannan and her mother naturally felt the terrifying presence of the Soul Beasts below, each several hundred thousand years old.
Without the protection of the Shadow Clones' Soul Power, they would probably have been frightened straight to their knees.
In contrast, Cao Yu looked completely at ease.
Jiang Nannan grew increasingly curious.
Just which faction did this handsome boy come from, that he did not even take these Soul Beasts several hundred thousand years old seriously?
"What! Little Yu is back?"
"Yay! Dad, I'm going to play with Little Yu."
"Go ahead. If you aren't coming home tonight, remember to have the butler send word."
"Got it!"
News of Cao Yu's return to the Cao Clan immediately spread, prompting Xu Jiujiu, Tang Ya, and Ning Tian to hurriedly dress themselves up before rushing to the Cao Clan without stopping.
Cao Yu had barely rested when he felt something soft against his back and was suddenly hugged.
Then his eyes were covered by a pair of warm, slender hands.
A peach-blossom fragrance drifted from her body, and Cao Yu recognized it at once.
It was Tang Ya's scent.
"Little Yu, guess who I am?"
She rose onto her tiptoes, lifting herself up and draping herself entirely over Cao Yu's back.
Cao Yu pretended to think. "Hmm... Big Sister Tang Ya, the peach-blossom fragrance on you smells wonderful."
Tang Ya's pretty face flushed red. Clinging to him and refusing to get down, she said, "Little Yu, you're so naughty!"
"When did you become such a smooth talker?"
"Confess!"
At that point, Xu Jiujiu and Ning Tian could no longer stand watching. Together, they lifted her off him.
Xu Jiujiu pointed at her. "Tang Ya! How could you bully Little Yu?"
Ning Tian nodded. "Exactly! If anyone's going to bully him, it should be us."
But Tang Ya did not fall for that. She made a face and said, "Bleh~ I'm bullying him, so what? Let it drive you mad! Haha!"
"You're asking for it." Xu Jiujiu and Ning Tian reached out and tickled her armpits, sending Tang Ya into a fit of laughter.
"Haha~ Hahaha!"
Only then did Jiang Nannan shyly ask from the side, "Young Master Cao, didn't you say I would work for you? Where's the shop you run?"
Jiang Nannan and her mother stood uneasily where they were, looking completely at a loss.
They had never truly toured such a luxurious residence before.
This vast Cao Clan estate was clearly not somewhere they belonged.
The only thing that could put them at ease was finding a stable job.
At that moment, Xu Jiujiu, Tang Ya, and Ning Tian froze.
They studied the breathtaking beauty before them without blinking.
It was as though they had encountered an enemy unlike any before. This was an intense sense of crisis!
Do not ask. If asked, it was a woman's sixth sense.
Xu Jiujiu demanded, "Little Yu! Tell me, have you been out fooling around these past few days?"
Tang Ya and Ning Tian also stared at him indignantly. If looks could kill, Cao Yu would already have died who knew how many times!
"Big sisters, hear me out!"
More this afternoon.
(End of chapter)