Chu Hongluan met Song San's resentful gaze directly, her calm eyes devoid of any emotion, yet they inexplicably chilled Song San, causing him to shrink back and tremble uncontrollably.
At this moment, Song San was unaware that it was the look of someone staring at a dead person.
On the high platform, Liu Jinghong stared at Song San with a thoughtful look in his eyes. He beckoned to several disciples, pointed at Song San, and the disciples understood and withdrew.
Gu Chunxiao sheathed her sword and followed Chu Hongluan to her side.
"My benefactor."
Chu Hongluan ruffled her fluffy head: "Why are you here too?"
“My benefactor wouldn’t take me with him, so I came by myself.” Gu Chunxiao took out her number plate, which clearly read: 500.
On the ladder of inquiry, she followed Chu Hongluan from a distance, not daring to go forward, for fear that her benefactor would drive her away if she got too close.
Chu Hongluan rubbed her throbbing temples and said helplessly, "You should go find your family."
"I want to follow you." Gu Chunxiao stared at her, his dark eyes clearly devoid of emotion, yet Chu Hongluan inexplicably sensed a hint of grievance.
"You—hey! Never mind, you're already here." Chu Hongluan pinched her cheek again and said, "Then do your best. If you can stay, you can be my junior sister, and I'll protect you."
"Thank you, my benefactor."
"Don't call me your benefactor, just call me Sister Hongluan."
"Sister Hongluan," Gu Chunxiao called out obediently.
Oh dear, Chu Hongluan couldn't resist pinching her chubby, expressionless face again.
Why are you so well-behaved?
Gu Chunxiao was a little girl she rescued by chance when she first came out of the wilderness.
At that time, a group of female cultivators in white robes were besieging a convoy. A fierce battle was raging, with flashing swords and thunderous battle cries.
Chu Hongluan had just emerged from the secret realm, and the surrounding area was completely deserted. She finally managed to find a remote town, only to discover that it was near the Western Regions. She quickly bought some clothes that night and planned to head to the Southern Regions, but unexpectedly, she encountered a bloody battle between the two sides as soon as she left the town.
Chu Hongluan didn't want to meddle, but seeing the sedan chair standing quietly in the very center of the battle, she suddenly had a wicked thought.
One of these two forces was there to protect the person inside the sedan chair, while the other was there to kill the person inside.
What if she kidnapped the person in the sedan chair?
Without hesitation, Chu Hongluan leaped into the air and, in the blink of an eye, crossed the crowd and arrived in front of the sedan chair.
She lifted the curtain and saw a pretty young girl sitting upright in the sedan chair. There was no trace of panic on her face. Her large eyes looked at her, the uninvited guest, with calm and indifferent eyes. Her eyes were dark and lifeless, without any vitality.
Chu Hongluan blinked, then suddenly laughed: "Aren't you afraid?"
The little girl shook her head.
So Chu Hongluan reached out her hand to her: "Will you come with me?"
The little girl stared at her blankly, as if deep in thought.
Just when Chu Hongluan thought the little girl was going to refuse, the little girl placed her cold little hand into her palm.
Chu Hongluan's beautiful phoenix eyes curved into a smile, revealing a gentle warmth. "Then let's go."
Chu Hongluan pulled her up, scooped her up in her arms, and with a gust of wind, they flew far away amidst gasps of surprise.
Gu Chunxiao nestled in her arms and couldn't help but slowly close her eyes.
So warm.
Her eyes, her hands, her embrace.
Chu Hongluan took her back to the town and treated her to hot dumpling soup on the street.
Gu Chunxiao held the bowl, her small face, no bigger than a palm, appearing somewhat blurred in the rising steam. She sipped the water slowly and gracefully.
Chu Hongluan waited quietly for her to finish eating before gently patting her head. "Alright, you're safe here now. You should know how to contact your family, right? When they come looking for you, you can go home."
"Didn't you say you were going to take me away?"
Gu Chunxiao looked at her.
Chu Hongluan blinked, somewhat embarrassed, "But I have important business to attend to, so I can't keep you with me all the time."
I'm going to kill someone.
“I can help.” Gu Chunxiao lowered her head. “I eat very little.”
"Silly girl," Chu Hongluan sighed helplessly, "that's something I should do, and it's something only I can do."
Where are you going?
"Go to the nameless immortal mountain in the Southern Region. Once you've reunited with your family, you can come visit me if you have the chance. My name is Hongluan, Chu Hongluan."
"My name is... Gu Chunxiao."
"Okay, Chunxiao. Then... goodbye."
"Goodbye."
The recollection ended there; she hadn't expected Gu Chunxiao to come along alone.
At this time, the second round of martial arts trials had already begun.
Ten stages, with contestants numbered 1 to 10 appearing together, displaying their drawn numbers, and someone loudly announcing the start:
"Number 1 Song Nanhe vs. Number 276 He Yu!"
"Number 2 Liu Yuan vs. Number 333 Li Dan!"
"Match 3 between Yuhang and..."
Chu Hongluan focused her gaze on the number one competition stage, wanting to see what kind of person was the first to pass through the "Asking the Heart Ladder".
Song Nanhe, the second male lead in the original book, was always openly and passionately in love with the female lead, Shen Jiaojiao... a deeply affectionate man.
My deep regret for that beautiful woman who died young.
Song Nanhe had an extremely captivating appearance, with a pair of bewitching fox eyes. He preferred white clothes, which made him look even more noble.
From the moment he stepped onto the stage, Chu Hongluan heard the girls gasp in surprise.
Chu Hongluan nudged Gu Chunxiao lightly with her elbow, "Chunxiao, what do you think of number 1 on stage?"
Gu Chunxiao blinked, seemingly not understanding her meaning, but still honestly said, "It looks good."
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