allendalepharm Chapter 40, Part 1: Beasts
Chapter 40, Part 1: Beasts
It was approaching evening.
"Xiao Wu, where are you going?"
Xiao Wu, who wanted to leave under the cover of darkness, had just quietly walked a short distance from the blacksmith's shop when she was stopped by a voice that seemed to have been prepared all along, and her body stiffened.
Behind Xiao Wu, Tang San gazed at her with a complex and indescribable look.
Is Xiao Wu still going to leave?
"I……"
Xiao Wu turned her head to the side, her once lively face now pale. She bit her lip and after a long while whispered:
"Sorry, mistress, I have to go... We'll see each other again sometime."
"Why?! Didn't we agree on this?"
Tang San stepped forward urgently, "I will protect you. We are family. I am your brother! I've said it before, anyone who wants to hurt you must first step over my body."
"If the enemy is too strong, you can tell me, and we can work together to find a solution. If all else fails... we can hide or leave, become stronger together, and then come back."
"But why, why must one person leave?"
When Tang San mentioned "alone," his voice paused slightly, and a trace of loneliness flashed in his eyes as he thought of his father who had left without saying goodbye.
Why is my father like this... and Xiao Wu like this too?
Is there something you can't say?
We're family...
Seemingly noticing the deep melancholy in Tang San's eyes, Xiao Wu's eyes also lowered involuntarily.
This trip to the human world has been much happier than she had imagined, but humans are humans after all, and soul beasts are soul beasts after all.
She wants to go back to the Star Dou Great Forest.
Leaving together? No way!
Staying here? Absolutely not!
She felt almost constantly a chilling gaze upon her.
It felt like a hallucination, yet so real it sent chills down her spine.
She can't stay here any longer!
But when her gaze fell upon Tang San, her thoughts involuntarily flashed back to that evening under the setting sun, those promises, agreements, and every word Tang San had said...
She suddenly fell silent.
Seeing Xiao Wu remain silent, as if he had seen a glimmer of hope, Tang San took half a step forward.
"Xiao Wu, believe me, okay? Believe in our promise. I will protect you, I swear on my life!"
His tone was just like on the day they made their promise, each word clear and firm.
"I……"
Xiao Wu looked conflicted and wanted to say something more.
"Xiao Wu, Father has already left me." Tang San looked at her, his eyes filled with undisguised pain. "Does this mean you're leaving me too? Aren't we family?"
"Home, family..."
Xiao Wu's eyes widened in surprise, but at the same time, images of Daming, Erming, and her mother flashed through her mind.
"I……"
Seeing that his words had had an effect, Tang San, with his last remaining feelings, uttered the words that had been buried deep in his heart:
"Don't abandon me, okay, Xiao Wu?"
"I...I..."
Countless struggles flashed in Xiao Wu's eyes, but in the end, for some reason, she softened little by little under the gaze of those persistent eyes.
She nodded very lightly and with great difficulty.
But the deep-seated apology in his eyes did not disappear.
She couldn't leave in front of Tang San, and it was precisely because of her family that she had to leave.
But neither fighting nor talking can dispel or persuade the mistress, unless...
"I'm sorry, mistress, please don't blame me."
Tang San's eyes immediately welled up with the joy of something lost and found, and his smile widened completely.
"Let's go home, Xiao Wu. I specially prepared your favorite carrots!"
"Um……"
……
But then, for three consecutive days...
Another morning.
Loud noises can be heard almost every day from the back mountain of Holy Soul Village.
But no one went to investigate, not even the Spirit Hall sent anyone; it wasn't that everyone had already gotten used to it.
Instead, they silently chose to avoid it.
Many villagers in Holy Soul Village have already begun to flee, leaving only Tang San and Xiao Wu among those who have entered the village.
"boom--!"
At the blacksmith's shop, Tang San wearily gazed towards the direction of the back mountain from which the booming sound had come, his heart in turmoil. He longed to investigate, yet feared that if he left, Xiao Wu would be nowhere to be found when he returned.
Even though Xiao Wu seemed to agree after he calmed her down that night, he could still sense that she was only reluctantly staying on the surface.
Now he stays indoors all day, curled up in bed, and has even been secretly digging holes in the past few days.
This situation also made him dare not leave for even a moment.
He was terrified that if he wasn't careful, Xiao Wu would leave him silently, but...
"Why? Why don't you trust me?"
Tang San clenched his fist tightly. They were all family!
Why, why can't we explain this clearly?
But whenever he inquired about her, Xiao Wu would only turn pale, her voice trembling slightly and weak, or she would change the subject and simply not answer.
He was at a loss for what to do; Xiao Wu's condition was clearly getting worse.
Is it really impossible to stop it?
Tang San sighed deeply and helplessly.
At this moment, he was exhausted not only physically, but also mentally.
To keep watch over Xiaowu, who might leave at any moment, he had barely slept for the past three days and three nights.
This is for a body that is only seven years old.
It's already close to its limit...
But he didn't want it to be like this!
I don't want to be alone anymore!
However, the harder he tried to stay awake, the more overwhelming the drowsiness became, his vision gradually blurred, and his thoughts sank heavily.
"No, I can't sleep..."
"If she falls asleep, Xiao Wu might..."
The thought of not wanting to face it arises.
Tang San forced himself to muster his last bit of energy.
He pulled out a thin needle from the moonlit night at the Twenty-Four Bridges, intending to prick his leg to refresh himself.
However, at the very moment he raised his hand...
One hand steadily blocked the force of his downward swing.
Tang San suppressed his drowsiness and forced himself to turn his head, only to meet a pair of eyes that radiated a pink light.
"I'm sorry, mistress."
A soft apology came from beside me.
Tang San tried to struggle, but his consciousness was already fading, and he collapsed weakly to the ground.
Looking at the unconscious Tang San, Xiao Wu's eyes were filled with complex and indescribable emotions. She carefully helped him into the house and settled him in. She glanced one last time at the clean carrots on the table, bit her lip, and ultimately did not linger. She turned around and quickly walked out of the blacksmith shop.
She didn't take the main roads that people usually travel, nor did she pass through any places that might be seen. Instead, she went straight to a secluded, dense forest on the edge of Holy Soul Village.
Leave as quickly as possible.
The longer she stayed there, the more anxious she became.
The heat has not subsided in the past three days.
Just as her figure completely disappeared into the shadows of the forest.
Lake in the back mountain.
Tang Hao abruptly turned his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the direction where Xiao Wu had disappeared, muttering in a low voice:
"Why...why didn't you listen to the mistress...?"
"Why...why are you leaving..."
He glanced one last time at the empty pit, and the fierce look in Tang Hao's eyes was no longer suppressed.
The next moment, he vanished from the spot in a flash.
But just a moment after he left!
The silver light reappeared.
"Fuck you—!"
Xiao Yan emerged from the crowd, but before he could speak, he was no longer treated the same as before. He subconsciously looked around, a hint of confusion on his face:
"Huh? Where did everyone go?"