Chapter 8. The Tree Demon's Secret Realm ③: A Minor Misfortune...
After a few days of getting to know each other, Lin Xiaoxiao has become a part of the Dragon Tooth team.
No longer as apprehensive as before, she has become much more relaxed, and her face is beaming with smiles.
The group of people also got into the habit of having her draw lots before setting off each day.
As luck would have it, the last few days have all been the worst possible divination results, indicating that the direction is somewhat dangerous, but there will be gains.
The Dragon Fang Squad members were not afraid of danger.
Every time I draw the worst possible fortune, I only look at the fortune slips that indicate good fortune and start cheering in advance, completely ignoring the dangers ahead.
Over the course of several days, Lin Xiaoxiao resolutely adhered to one policy: obediently hiding behind Xiao Weizhi, neither causing trouble nor making a fuss, acting as a well-behaved mascot.
As for why it was behind Xiao Weizhi.
It was because he was hiding behind Cheng Cheng when he was suddenly swallowed by a man-eating flower that was about one story tall.
She hid behind Jiang Tao; he wouldn't care about her behind him during the fight, and his figure would simply disappear.
Hiding near Chen Feng, Wang Hao, Liu Huihui, Li Junxuan, and Chen Yijin will lead to all sorts of unexpected events...;
The end result was that Lin Xiaoxiao had fewer and fewer self-defense tools on her.
For the sake of her life, Xiao Weizhi, who could no longer bear it, personally pulled her behind him to protect her, and from then on, the few remaining protective items on her body stopped being used up.
This was the day before we set off.
Everyone in the team surrounded Lin Xiaoxiao and asked her to take out her fortune sign to see which direction would be better to go today.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Lin Xiaoxiao held the divination tube with both hands and shook it, revealing a slightly ominous result:
[Minor misfortune: Heading east, danger lurks, old grudges and conflicts arise from unexpected encounters; gains depend on one's own strength, fortune and misfortune vary!]
Her face was pale, and her hands were trembling slightly. The past few days had all been bad omens, so why had it turned into a minor misfortune today?
But the Dragon Fang Squad members didn't care about the dangers; all they saw was the phrase: "What you get is based on your strength."
Their eyes were filled only with the desire for a harvest, without the slightest hint of fear.
The main reason was that the harvest in the past few days had dazzled the seven of them. The harvest in just five days was equivalent to the next D-level dungeon.
Based on the time it took to clear dungeons in the past, this new instance is estimated to take two to three months to complete.
They've made so much in just five days, what will the remaining dozens of days make them rich?
Li Junxuan clenched his fist and said excitedly, "If we head east today, the harvest will be right before our eyes."
"That's right," said five people in unison (including the remaining men, but excluding Xiao Weizhi).
Cheng Cheng said happily, "Yes, today is another great harvest day."
Seeing how excited everyone was, Lin Xiaoxiao couldn't utter the discouraging words that were stuck in her throat.
Mustering her courage, she reached out her small hand and gently tugged at the corner of Xiao Weizhi's robe sleeve, muttering a warning in a low voice: "Today's fortune slip is slightly ominous, very dangerous."
Xiao Weizhi's gaze fell on the communicator in her hand, and she quickly flipped through the pages on the screen, casually replying without any concern, "Mm."
Seeing that Xiao Weizhi didn't take the matter to heart, Lin Xiaoxiao stopped talking and silently retreated several meters, almost out of his protective range.
Xiao Weizhi seemed to have eyes on the back of his head and asked calmly, "Where are you going?"
Lin Xiaoxiao chuckled and made an excuse: "I didn't go anywhere, I just wanted to go to the restroom."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Weizhi immediately turned off the communicator's screen.
He took her to a safe place and silently made a mental note that when they returned, the whole team would need to upgrade their equipment and buy several ultra-luxury tents with portable toilets.
With everything ready, the team hurried eastward.
After wiping out several groups of plant-like monsters of various appearances along the way, they successfully arrived at a picturesque valley.
The valley is covered with lush green grass, with wildflowers of all sizes scattered among them. In the distance, there are forests and mountains, and a large lake can be vaguely seen. A gentle breeze carries a refreshing fragrance.
Lin Xiaoxiao peeked out from behind Xiao Weizhi and exclaimed, "Wow, so beautiful!"
In contrast to Lin Xiaoxiao's relaxed state, her teammates were all tense, holding their weapons warily, as if afraid that a group of plant monsters would jump out from some corner at any moment.
After all, what we've experienced these past few days has fully demonstrated that even seemingly harmless roadside weeds can pose a threat.
This dungeon may contain hidden boss-level monsters.
Suddenly, an arrogant voice came from behind the group:
"How come I keep running into you everywhere I go? I've told you, I don't want to see you again." The woman's voice was clearly irritated.
Lin Xiaoxiao turned around with the Dragon Tooth Squad and found that the newcomers were the female lead Liu Duoxin, as well as her old acquaintances behind her—the male lead Chen Zhuoran, and her former teammates from the Rising Sun Squad.
Lin Xiaoxiao frowned as she looked at Chen Zhuoran, who was strolling leisurely with Liu Duoxin, and felt a surge of disgust.
Liu Duoxin walked up to Xiao Weizhi, crossed her arms, raised her chin, and looked at him with disgust: "Why do you have to keep bothering me?"
Xiao Weizhi looked at the woman before him, whom he had pampered for over a decade, as if she were a magical creature, his head slightly lowered as he gazed at her.
Cheng Cheng, unable to contain himself any longer, snapped, "Are you out of your mind? Do you own this secret realm? What do you mean our boss is following you? How dare you be so shameless?"
Lin Xiaoxiao nodded repeatedly, indicating that she agreed very much with Cheng Cheng's words.
And I sighed in my heart: Liu Duoxin (the heroine)'s train of thought is a bit magical, so Xiao Weizhi is obsessed with her magical train of thought, thinks she is special, and therefore loves her very much?
Liu Duoxin pointed at Cheng Cheng, stomped her foot, and said angrily in a commanding tone, "Xiao Weizhi, aren't you going to do anything about her? She actually dared to insult me."
Lin Xiaoxiao was full of questions and looked at Liu Duoxin with the eyes of someone looking at a strange creature.
No, sister, didn't you say you had nothing to do with Xiao Weizhi? You insulted the team leader, and as a team member, she couldn't stand it and insulted him back. Is there a problem with that?
Before Xiao Weizhi could speak, Chen Zhuoran (the male lead) had already approached with his Rising Sun Squad.
Chen Zhuoran reached out and patted Liu Duoxin's shoulder, gently comforting her: "Xinxin, don't be angry. Whatever happens, I will help you solve it."
Then Chen Zhuoran turned his head and looked directly at Lin Xiaoxiao, who was standing behind Xiao Weizhi, and reached out to her: "Xiaoxiao, it's been a long time. I haven't received a reply from you. I thought something had happened to you. Everyone in the team is very worried about you."
Lin Xiaoxiao's gaze swept over the former teammates of the Rising Sun Squad, taking in their eyes that held either disgust, disdain, or hatred.
He couldn't help but admire Chen Zhuoran's increasingly impressive ability to lie through his teeth.
I'm genuinely worried that back then, in that secret realm teeming with demonic beasts, they would have kicked the original owner, a merchant with little combat power, out of the group for some unfounded reason, and then ignored him, only leaving a hypocritical message on Feixin.
This person would love for the original body to just die in that secret realm, yet they're still worried. How hypocritical.
She scoffed, "Oh, thanks for worrying. I'm doing just fine now."
Liu Duoxin was furious when she saw Lin Xiaoxiao dare to speak like that: "What do you mean? Brother Zhuoran has already apologized to you, how dare you laugh at him?"
Lin Xiaoxiao's mouth twitched. Is this young lady unable to distinguish between the big and small kings? In the past, she spoke to the original body in the tone of commanding servants, which was fine.
She's not the original owner of this body, and she's no longer a member of the Rising Sun Squad, yet she still speaks like this. Is she out of her mind?
Just before Lin Xiaoxiao was about to utter those harsh words.
Chen Zhuoran quickly stopped Liu Duoxin, speaking gently and sincerely: "Xinxin is young and doesn't know any better. If she has offended anyone, I apologize on her behalf."
Then he showed Lin Xiaoxiao a hearty smile: "Xiaoxiao, if you are unhappy staying in the Dragon Fang team, Xu Ri welcomes you back anytime."
The implied provocation was almost palpable.
Liu Duoxin stomped her foot angrily behind Chen Zhuoran, but didn't say anything more.
Then Chen Zhuoran said, "Although meeting is fate, Xinxin's health isn't very good. I'm afraid we'll run into each other frequently in this resource-rich area. Captain Xiao, could you please make the difficult decision to let her go?"
The words all imply that Liu Duoxin is in poor health and cannot bear to be bullied. As her ex-fiancé, Xiao Weizhi should understand this very well. Since he is a man, shouldn't he be more generous and give up this resource land?
Lin Xiaoxiao laughed in anger, standing behind Xiao Weizhi, and said with a cold sneer: "Mr. Chen, you just talk about giving up something you don't want. At least when people hunt, they will put out some bait. You are stingy and only rely on your words to ask us to give up a resource land. On what grounds? On what grounds do you think you have more face than the boss?"
The sarcastic and mocking words caused the Dragon Fang team members, who were still angry, to burst out laughing.
His gaze lingered between Xiao Weizhi's handsome face, which resembled that of a top star, and Chen Zhuoran's delicate face, which could only be described as slightly handsome.
In comparison, her face is indeed much bigger than the older brother's.
Chen Zhuoran's face fell slightly, and he looked at Lin Xiaoxiao with cold eyes, his voice sounding as if it were being squeezed out from between his back teeth: "Xiaoxiao, after knowing you for so many years, I never realized you were so eloquent."
Lin Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes in exasperation: "That's right, you've always been the better talker. Every time you borrow money from me, even the best salesperson can't compete with your eloquence. But when it comes to paying me back, you always manage to change the subject by talking about other things."
Lin Xiaoxiao thought of the grievances her original self had suffered before, and became more and more angry. She directly revealed all the bad things Chen Zhuoran had done in the past and stepped on his face.
The Dragon Fang team members all tacitly displayed a gossipy look, as if to say: "So it turns out that the captain of the Rising Sun team likes to borrow money and not pay it back."
Chen Zhuoran looked a little embarrassed and was about to say something in his defense when...
Standing behind him, Liu Duoxin, unable to bear it any longer, threw a gold coin card at Lin Xiaoxiao: "There are ten million gold coins in here. I'll return it to you on behalf of Brother Zhuoran. A heartless woman like you deserves to join that perverted Xiao Weizhi's team."
The gold coin card did not hit Lin Xiaoxiao, but fell to the ground two meters in front of Lin Xiaoxiao.
She stared at the character "Xiao" boldly engraved on the card and wondered if this card was given to Liu Duoxin by Xiao Weizhi.
Use the ex-fiancé's money to pay off the debt of the current boyfriend or girlfriend.
Even though Lin Xiaoxiao had been following gossip for years, this was the first time she had encountered something so absurd.
Lin Xiaoxiao bent down to pick up the gold card, flicked the surface with her finger, and said with a smile, "Thank you for your generous reward, Miss. Actually, Chen Zhuoran only owes me a little over five million gold coins. Consider the rest as interest and my salary for the past three years. Thank you again."
After saying that, he even bowed respectfully.
She rattled off a string of words, effectively trapping Chen Zhuoran and Liu Duoxin in place, preventing them from asking for the remaining gold coins.
Chen Zhuoran's smile was somewhat forced: "Xiaoxiao, thank you so much for your help to the team over the years. Even if we can't continue to be teammates in the future, I hope we can still be friends."
Liu Duoxin was unhappy. She had spent ten million gold coins, and she didn't want to hear this. She immediately threw a tantrum and said to Xiao Weizhi in a spoiled manner, "Take her away right now. I don't want to see you, and I don't want to see her either."
A glint of light flashed in Xiao Weizhi's eyes. For some unknown reason, he said nothing and silently led his team away, leaving this resource-rich area to the Rising Sun Squad.
As Lin Xiaoxiao left, she thought to herself: "As expected, the female lead agrees to everything as soon as she speaks. She truly deserves to be the top-tier love-obsessed villain in the story."
Continue walking east for more than ten kilometers.
The Dragon Fang Squad encountered a large group of strangely shaped plant monsters. After several hours of fierce fighting, each member of the team had many wounds of varying depths.
Even Xiao Weizhi, who usually pays the most attention to his image, rolled around in the dirt several times in order to avoid being injured by the attack.
After a narrow victory, they discovered that it was a large group of medicinal plant monsters with plant attributes, and they entered a big harvest mode.
Wang Hao: "Wow, this is a medicinal essence that can sell for tens of thousands of gold coins even in a small piece! This piece is huge, we're rich!"
Jiang Tao: "High-grade medicinal herbs have been discovered! They're here too! They're here too! What a bumper harvest! What a bumper harvest!"
Li Junxuan: "Hurry up and put them away, put them all away, quick, quick, quick!"
Liu Huihui: "Hmm." (His hand and foot movements speed up again and again)
...
Lin Xiaoxiao, who hadn't been seriously injured while mingling among them, tried her best to keep up with their movements, but she was still the slowest one.
As for Young Master Xiao, his obsessive-compulsive disorder flared up. Once he regained his strength and could move again, he quickly set up his tent and went to take a shower.
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