215: You are such a good person

Elder Ren lowered his head, pretending not to see anything, and the other Elders followed suit, scanning around, not knowing what they were looking at.

The noise here disturbed the girl on the stone platform, who stopped what she was doing and looked over curiously.

"Who are you?"

The girl's eyes were filled with curiosity, and she craned her neck, peering around; if one ignored the severed limb in her hand, she looked somewhat cute.

Listening to her naive voice, Xu Sanyan's eyes flickered, and he instantly had a plan in mind.

He curled his lips into a kind smile and said softly, "Hello, what are you doing here?"

His voice was so affected that Elder Ren, who was behind him, could not help but twitch his mouth.

The girl held up the severed limb in her hand, "I'm playing a game, do you want to play too?"

"Alright,"

Xu Sanyan turned to glance at the Elders, signaling them to stay here and not move, then walked towards the high platform alone.

"Little sister, what's your name?" Xu Sanyan asked casually.

"What is a name?" The girl tilted her head, her big eyes blinking as she looked at him, full of confusion.

Xu Sanyan confirmed what he was thinking in his heart: after the Nether Phoenix developed consciousness, it had never left the underground, and its only companions daily were those Corpse Yao, so its mind must be very simple.

One could tell just by looking at the human form she had condensed; generally speaking, the external changes of a Yao Beast are a manifestation of its mind. Since she condensed the appearance of a girl, her mind was equivalent to that of a seven or eight-year-old child.

Since that was the case, it would be much easier...

"Little sister, how long have you been here?" Xu Sanyan slowly approached.

"Hmm..."

The girl rolled her eyes in thought, then slowly shook her head a moment later, "I don't know, I've always been here."

"Aren't you lonely?"

The girl pointed at the Corpse Yao in the darkness, "They play with me," she said.

Her tone paused slightly here, as if she had just realized something. She turned to look at Xu Sanyan, "Why can you talk, and why can't they?"

Xu Sanyan smiled, showing his teeth, "How about I take you out to find some talking toys?"

"Oh, really!?"

The girl's voice was filled with surprise, and she waved the severed limb in her hand, gesturing wildly. She had long been tired of staying here; she wanted to go out.

The girl then thought of something and hesitated, "But... I can't get out, do you have a way to take me out?"

Xu Sanyan's smile became even more amiable, and he pulled out his ruler from behind his back.

What a coincidence, the previous tenant's lease had just expired, and he had been invited to leave.

"Try to see if you can come in."

The Soul-Shocking Wood could be used to house a Divine Soul; although the girl's form was solid and indistinguishable from a normal person, she was ultimately just a wisp of a soul, so there should be no problem.

The girl had no guard against him; she casually dropped the severed limb, and her body swayed, turning into black smoke that drilled into the ruler.

"Oh, I'm in!"

A surprised voice came from the ruler, and then the ruler began to shake, "I can see you!"

"Isn't it fun?" Xu Sanyan's tone was gentle, as if he were coaxing his own child.

"Hehehe... it's so much fun." The girl's laughter was continuous.

Xu Sanyan's internal magic power surged, and a layer of light sealed the ruler. The brown wooden ruler emitted a faint white glow, which then receded.

After a while, she seemed to have gotten tired of playing and wanted to come out. The white light on the ruler swelled, and then the girl's slightly panicked voice came, "Oh, why can't I get out?"

"It's alright, I'll let you out once we're outside."

Xu Sanyan put away the ruler, scanned the empty hall, and seeing no other treasures, he turned and left.

"Okay then, but you must remember to let me out," the girl said pitifully.

"Mm, don't worry, I'm a man of my word, I never lie, and everyone who knows me says I'm reliable," Xu Sanyan guaranteed.

"Mm, you're really a good person."

The girl relaxed, and her gaze, through the ruler, curiously observed the group of people.

"Of course, everyone says so."

Elder Ren and the others looked at each other, then lowered their heads.

"Let's go."

Xu Sanyan said softly.

"Yes."

The group returned the way they came. Passing by the previous battlefield, Xu Sanyan curiously asked the girl, "Did you create these Corpse Yao?"

"Yes, they are my friends, why have they become like this?" The girl looked at the bloody ground without any fear, and her tone didn't even fluctuate, only showing a hint of curiosity.

"Can you control them?"

"I can make them stand still nicely."

Xu Sanyan nodded and continued to walk forward.

He wasn't planning to refine the girl now; the effect would be better after he achieved Perfection in the Mystic Path Realm. He would let her live a few more days.

Xu Sanyan looked at the ruler with a beaming smile, muttering to himself, "It's almost time..."

The girl was puzzled, "What's almost time?"

"Hehe, you'll know when the time comes."

"Oh..."

Arriving at the wellhead, Xu Sanyan looked up and could only see a patch of darkness. The girl's voice sounded, "Every time I want to go out, I can only reach here; something is blocking me there."

Xu Sanyan ignored her. A gentle breeze rose beneath his feet, and his figure floated straight up, quickly stepping out of the well. The girl, hidden in the ruler, did not encounter any obstruction.

"Oh, I really got out!"

The girl looked around excitedly, gazing at the scenery that was completely different from underground, and urged, "Quickly let me out, quickly let me out!"

"Hehe... no rush."

Xu Sanyan mobilized his magic power, strengthening the ruler even more.

...

At the same time,

In a narrow alley, Zuoqiu Shu held a long sword, cautiously walking at the very front, followed by Zuoqiu Hui and the others in order, with her second sister, Zuoqiu Chen, bringing up the rear.

Their group of twenty-two people had been walking for a long time, but this alley seemed endless, with no end in sight.

"Big Sister, let's split up. I'll take some people and go that way." Zuoqiu Hui's tone was solemn, pointing behind her.

This was the solution she had thought of for a long time. They had previously tried all imaginable methods like climbing walls, breaking walls, and flying, but none had worked.

The walls were built of unknown Materials; no matter how much they exerted themselves, they could not harm them in the slightest.

Flying was also impossible; there seemed to be an invisible barrier above their heads, allowing them to rise only a few meters. When they looked into the distance, their vision was obscured by a faint mist, and they couldn't see anything clearly.

As for climbing the wall...

Zuoqiu Hui felt a bit sad in her heart; they had twenty-six people before, and now only twenty-two remained.

The four who had climbed over the wall never returned.

Zuoqiu Shu stopped and looked back at her third sister. She didn't want to separate; there was some sense of security in numbers. But now, besides this method, there seemed to be no other path to take...

"Second Sister and Fourth Sister will go with you."

Zuoqiu Shu assigned the two most powerful members of the Huai Lake Seven Heroes, besides herself, to Zuoqiu Hui.

"Okay, Big Sister, be careful." Zuoqiu Hui nodded.

"Mm, you too."

Zuoqiu Shu was still a bit uneasy; these younger sisters were like her own children. She had watched them grow up since childhood, and their bond was incredibly deep. She was afraid of any accident happening to them, but at this moment, they had no choice but to separate.

Zuoqiu Hui led half of the people in the opposite direction.

Zuoqiu Shu watched their retreating figures completely disappear before turning and walking forward.

Inside the alley, day and night were indistinguishable; the sky was always gloomy. After an unknown amount of time,

Suddenly, a faint sound came from ahead.

"Big Sister, there's a sound!"

Zuoqiu Zhen's voice was excited; this monotonous repetition was driving her crazy. At this moment, even a Corpse Yao would be welcome.