Xiao Wu Awakens and Finds Some Peace of Mind

The night was dark as ink, and Five Souls Village had fallen completely silent. Only the Yan family's little house still glowed with the light of an oil lamp.

Xiao Wu was awakened by the faint scent of herbs.

Her eyelashes fluttered gently several times, and she carefully opened her eyes, as if afraid of disturbing something.

An unfamiliar roof met her eyes. A string of dried herbs hung from the beams beneath the thatch, and the air held the mingled scents of fresh vegetation and faint hearth smoke.

Suddenly, the weakness she had felt during her transformation, the Wind Wolf's fangs, her flight through the mountains and woods-all those terrifying memories flooded back in an instant.

Xiao Wu's body went rigid. Like a young beast whose tail had been stepped on, she curled up at once, pressing her back tight against the cold wall. Her big, moist eyes were full of wariness, her pupils narrowing slightly. Her lips drew back involuntarily, revealing two small, sharp canine teeth and a fierce expression that was still somewhat childish.

Her injuries had yet to heal completely. The wound on her back still ached faintly, and she had recovered less than thirty percent of her Soul Power. Even so, her Soul Beast instincts made her assume a defensive posture, as though everything before her was a potential threat.

"Awake?"

A gentle voice sounded beside her ear, without a trace of malice. Instead, it carried a note of careful reassurance.

Xiao Wu looked toward the voice and saw a little boy sitting on a wooden stool beside the bed, holding a piece of bright green medicinal herb. When he saw that she was awake, there was no greed or malice in his eyes, only genuine concern.

The boy looked no more than five or six. He had fair skin and clear black eyes, and wore a coarse cloth shirt that had been washed until its color faded. Yet he carried himself with a composure beyond his years.

It was Yan Zu.

He had stayed by the bed the whole time, and when he sensed the fluctuations of Soul Power in Xiao Wu's body growing steady, he knew she was about to wake.

Seeing her looking as though she faced a formidable enemy, Yan Zu did not approach rashly. He merely moved forward half a step, leaving her plenty of safe distance.

"Don't be afraid. It's safe here. The Wind Wolf has already been driven away." Yan Zu's voice was as gentle as a clear mountain spring. "My name is Yan Zu, and this is my home. My father and mother brought you back after saving you. They're both good people. They won't hurt you."

As he spoke, he began circulating the Nine Yin Manual's cultivation method. Soft, enduring Soul Power flowed through his body, giving off a comforting presence that intertwined with the vitality of the qilin's shadow behind him, forming an invisible barrier that shut out all malice and unease.

That presence was as warm and gentle as the purest spring water deep within the Star Dou Great Forest. Xiao Wu's taut nerves relaxed a little despite herself, but the wariness in her eyes did not fade.

After a Soul Beast Transformation, she was already wary of humans, all the more so after her recent brush with death. As Xiao Wu understood it, most humans were greedy and dangerous. They hunted Soul Beasts and took their Soul Rings and Soul Bones, making them the natural enemies of every Soul Beast in the Star Dou Great Forest.

If the family before her had not saved her, she would already have turned and fled into the mountains and woods.

"Who are you? Why were you in the mountains?" Yan Hu's voice came from the doorway, somewhat rough but not at all oppressive. He and Su Qing came in carrying a bowl of warm rice porridge. When they saw that Xiao Wu was awake, they instinctively softened their steps.

Su Qing set the porridge on the little table beside the bed and carefully looked Xiao Wu over, her eyes full of heartache. "Child, are you hungry? This is millet porridge, cooked until it's very soft. Would you like some?"

Faced with their questions, Xiao Wu only pressed her lips together and shook her head, still saying nothing. Her big eyes remained fixed on them, afraid she might miss the slightest sign of danger.

Her little hands clutched the bedding beneath her so tightly that her knuckles turned slightly white. As her body tensed, a trace of blood seeped from the wound on her back.

"Don't press her," Yan Zu said softly, stopping Yan Hu from questioning her further. "She's just come back from the gates of the underworld. She must be terrified."

He turned to Xiao Wu and discreetly took a packet from his Storage Soul Tool. It was the latiao he had received from an earlier sign-in, and its red wrapper stood out beneath the dim yellow lamplight.

Such a thing was a rarity on the Douluo Continent. Its spicy, savory flavor held a powerful attraction for anyone who had never encountered it before.

Yan Zu tore open the wrapper, and a rich, spicy aroma instantly filled the air.

Xiao Wu's nose twitched instinctively, and a flicker of curiosity crossed her eyes. In the Star Dou Great Forest, she had eaten only wild fruits and plants. She had never smelled anything so unusual, and that strong, enticing aroma instantly stirred the hunger in her belly.

"These are latiao. They're delicious." Yan Zu picked up a strip and held it out to Xiao Wu, coaxing her. "Want to try one? Once you eat it, your wound won't hurt so much."

A faint trace of qilin vitality lingered around his fingertips, and its warm, gentle presence made Xiao Wu instinctively lower her guard a little.

She hesitated, looking at Yan Zu's clear eyes and then at the strip of latiao with its unusual aroma. In the end, she could not resist. She cautiously reached out her little hand, snatched the latiao from his fingertips, then retreated into the corner and quickly stuffed it into her mouth.

"Ah... so spicy..." She sucked in breath after breath from the heat, but could not bear to stop eating, even as her eyes reddened.

Su Qing's heart ached at the sight, and she held out the bowl of porridge. "Eat slowly. Don't choke."

Xiao Wu took the porridge and gulped it down to the last drop before she finally recovered. She stole a glance at Yan Zu and found the boy smiling at her, his eyes clear and free of malice.

She looked at Su Qing next. The gentle woman was wiping the oil from the corners of her mouth with her sleeve, her movements as tender as if she were tending to her own child.

Finally, her gaze fell on Yan Hu.

The burly man stood in the doorway without coming closer, quietly watching her with his tiger-like eyes. They were full of... heartache?

"You..." she began, her voice still hoarse but less hostile. "Why did you save me?"

Yan Hu grinned, showing a row of white teeth. "We couldn't just stand by and watch that beast eat you, could we?"

"But I'm..." Xiao Wu bit her lip. "I'm a burden."

"Who says?" Yan Hu strode in and crouched beside the bed, bringing his eyes level with the girl's. "All my life, I, Yan Hu, have never been able to stand the strong bullying the weak. That Wind Wolf was chasing you down. Once we saw it, we couldn't just ignore it."

"But..." Xiao Wu lowered her head. "I don't have anything to repay you with."

"Who wants you to repay us?" Yan Hu waved a large hand and said heartily, "When I save someone, I do it for peace of mind, not for a reward."

Su Qing spoke gently as well. "Child, don't be afraid. This is Five Souls Village, and this is our home. Rest and heal without worry for now. We can talk about everything else once you're better."

Xiao Wu's eyes reddened.

She remembered her days in the Star Dou Great Forest, how her mother, in order to protect her, had drawn the greedy attention of Soul Masters who hunted Soul Beasts, and in the end...

She did not want to think about it anymore.

"My name is Xiao Wu," she said suddenly, her voice soft but firm. "The 'Wu' in dancing."

"Xiao Wu, that's a lovely name." Yan Zu smiled. "My name is Yan Zu. You can call me A-Zu."

He pointed to Yan Hu and Su Qing. "This is my father, Yan Hu, and that's my mother, Su Qing."

"Yan... Hu..." Xiao Wu repeated the name, then looked at Su Qing. "Su... Qing..."

"That's right," Su Qing replied with a smile. "How old are you?"

"Six."

"Then you're a year older than our A-Zu." Su Qing looked at her son. "A-Zu is only five."

Xiao Wu raised her head and looked at Yan Zu. "I'm older than you, so you have to call me Sister Xiao Wu," she said seriously.

There was a hint of anticipation in her eyes, along with a little unease, as though she were announcing her status as the "older sister."

Yan Zu could not help laughing. "All right, Sister Xiao Wu."