"Poor little kitty, do you already have an owner?"
"If not, are you planning to find one?"
"If you do, would you consider switching to a new one?"
"And if you don't want to switch, would you mind having an extra—forget it, I'm not into that."
Bai Mu wore a bright, sunny smile.
"Who are you? Why did you help me?"
Zhu Zhuqing looked at Bai Mu warily, her cool voice carrying a trace of barely concealed nervousness.
She had thought her rescuer was a good person, but Bai Mu's words and behavior… didn't really seem very good at all.
"I'm just a passing Trainer,"
Bai Mu lifted his chin slightly, a hint of pride showing on his calm face.
"As for why I helped you…"
He paused, glanced at the cat ears on her head, and chuckled.
"A real cat-eared girl. Who wouldn't like that?"
Zhu Zhuqing's heart tightened. Her peripheral vision flicked toward Zygarde, which had effortlessly wiped out the wolf pack nearby, and she quietly shifted into a combat stance.
"Why are you so nervous? Do I look like a bad guy?"
Bai Mu spread his hands and walked toward her as if completely unguarded.
"Or is this how you treat your savior?"
"…"
Zhu Zhuqing stayed silent, her gaze cold and probing.
Kind by nature, she couldn't bring herself to repay kindness with hostility.
But if Bai Mu dared to make any improper move, she would never tolerate it—even if it meant mutual destruction.
"That injury's pretty serious. This little kitty can really take a beating."
Bai Mu stepped closer, clicking his tongue as he examined the wound on her shoulder, then raised his hand toward her.
"Hell Hundred Claws—"
Zhu Zhuqing instinctively prepared to strike, but suddenly noticed three spirit rings lighting up beneath Bai Mu's feet—
One yellow, one purple, one black.
A hundred-year spirit ring.
A thousand-year spirit ring.
A ten-thousand-year spirit ring.
A chill shot straight from her spine to her scalp. Her body froze completely.
Her eyes shifted, and she saw Zygarde staring intently at her neck.
It was obvious—if she made a reckless move, it wouldn't hesitate to give her a "separate-head operation."
"Good girl. Nice texture."
Bai Mu reached out and stroked her cat ears twice, patting her head with satisfaction.
"Yiya—"
The moment her ears were touched, a tingling numbness surged through Zhu Zhuqing, like an electric shock. A faint blush spread across her normally cold face.
"As a reward… I'll treat your injuries."
The first spirit ring lit up, and a strange fluctuation spread from Bai Mu to Zhu Zhuqing.
The bleeding wound healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.
No—not just the injury.
Even her depleted spirit power was restored.
A healing-type Spirit Ability?
Surprise flashed through Zhu Zhuqing's beautiful eyes. She stared at Bai Mu for several seconds, then glanced at his spirit rings again.
If a hundred-year spirit ring was already this powerful, how terrifying were the thousand-year and ten-thousand-year ones?
"…Thank you."
Only after confirming that Bai Mu harbored no hostility did Zhu Zhuqing lower her guard slightly.
"No need to thank me. Just lower your head obediently and let me play with you for a while."
As Bai Mu spoke, he reached for her cat ears again.
"…"
Zhu Zhuqing's expression turned cold as she decisively stepped back.
Bai Mu showed no embarrassment and instead asked,
"Tell me—why are you alone in the Star Dou Great Forest?"
Zhu Zhuqing frowned faintly, stayed silent for a moment, then whispered,
"The path is shorter here. I need to go to Suotuo City."
"Suotuo City?"
Bai Mu feigned confusion.
"What are you going to do in that godforsaken place?"
"…To find someone."
She clearly didn't want to elaborate.
But those two words were already enough.
According to the original course of events, Zhu Zhuqing's arrival in Suotuo City wouldn't be far from Tang San's.
In other words, if Bai Mu reached Suotuo City with her, he should meet Tang San within a few days.
"Let me think…"
Bai Mu put on a thoughtful look.
"There's an academy in Suotuo City called Shrek, right? The person you're looking for wouldn't happen to be there, would they?"
Zhu Zhuqing suddenly looked up.
"You know about Shrek too?"
"I heard it's an academy that only accepts monsters,"
Bai Mu grinned.
"But I don't believe there's a Spirit Master more monstrous than me."
"…That might be true—wait! Your spirit rings!"
Zhu Zhuqing nodded subconsciously, then abruptly widened her eyes at the rings beneath Bai Mu's feet.
The rings that had been yellow, purple, and black moments ago had somehow become yellow, yellow, and purple.
"My spirit rings?"
Bai Mu looked down in confusion.
"Do the colors look bad? If you don't like them, I can change them."
As soon as he finished speaking, all three spirit rings turned a brilliant, terrifying red.
"Three… ten-thousand-year ones…"
Zhu Zhuqing's breath caught.
The next instant, the colors shifted again, cycling continuously through red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.
Seeing her stunned expression, Bai Mu smiled.
Zygarde's invisibility relied on light refraction. With enough practice, hiding spirit rings or altering their colors was effortless.
"Spirit rings… can actually change color…"
It took a long time for Zhu Zhuqing's heart to calm down.
"Bai Mu. Spirit: Zygarde. Level 40 attack-type Battle Soul Venerable."
Bai Mu raised an eyebrow.
"And you?"
"Forty…"
Zhu Zhuqing's heart skipped a beat. Forcing herself to stay composed, she replied,
"Zhu Zhuqing. Spirit: Hell Civet. Level 27 agility-attack Battle Spirit Grandmaster."
"Oh! So you're Young Miss Zhu of the Star Luo Empire."
Bai Mu suddenly looked enlightened.
"I heard there's a rich young master from Star Luo in Suotuo City named Dai Mubai. His name sounds a lot like mine. You wouldn't be going to find him, would you?"
"…" Zhu Zhuqing's face darkened as she shot him a cold glance.
"None of your business."
"That relationship's a big deal."
Bai Mu smiled faintly, then asked,
"Do you know the flower language of a stray kitten?"
Zhu Zhuqing froze.
"What?"
"Whoever gets there first wins."
Bai Mu looked at her deeply, then moved like lightning, grabbing the nape of her neck—her destiny.
"Since I caught you first, you belong to me now!"
"Let go of me!"
Zhu Zhuqing struggled like a wild kitten, but no matter how she fought, she couldn't break free from his grip.
At last, she pursed her lips and said stubbornly,
"I already have an engagement! Let go of me!"
Bai Mu nodded seriously.
"Exactly. That's your bonus point."
"…" Grinding her teeth, Zhu Zhuqing revealed the truth.
"I am the second young miss of the Zhu Family, the fiancée of the Star Luo Empire's second prince."
"Future imperial consort?"
Bai Mu's eyes lit up.
"Even more bonus points!"
Zhu Zhuqing: "???"
"Alright, you might think I'm joking, but actually…"
Bai Mu released her and spread his hands.
"I'm serious."
"It's meaningless. My fate was decided long ago…"
Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a moment before whispering,
"To survive, I have to seize that one and only hope."
Her voice was soft, yet filled with unwillingness and despair.
"Only one? There's nothing singular in this world—especially fate!"
Bai Mu laughed.
"And besides… your fate is decided by me, not by heaven. Understand?"
"By… you?"
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes flickered, her expression complicated.
"By me."
Bai Mu nodded.
"Coincidentally, I also want to go to Shrek Academy and see what kind of monsters are there. Want to go together?"
With that, he turned and walked toward the nearest wolf corpse.
"…"
Zhu Zhuqing didn't answer. She stared at his back for a long moment, then suddenly burst forward at full speed, vanishing into the dense forest.
She ran away. Should I help you catch her back?
Zygarde let out a questioning cry.
"No need. Let her go."
Bai Mu smiled casually, already focused on his Time Hunting.
Slowly, he absorbed the wolf corpses scattered around into the Time Domain.
"As expected of the Douluo Continent's must-eat list… truly excellent."
Thinking of Zhu Zhuqing's pure yet alluring, cold cat-eared image, intense interest flashed through Bai Mu's eyes.
Of course, what truly excited him even more was that once he found Tang San and confirmed Tang Hao's whereabouts, he could find a chance to go and "exchange feelings" with the Blue Silver Emperor.
"Ah Yin—wait for me!"
-----------Author---------------
There should be 10 advanced chapters by time this chapter is uploaded
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