The Death Canyon Trial.
Su Linfeng had long been prepared.
In addition to short-term food supplies, he had brought all the essential medicines—antidotes, hemostatics, wound salves, and recovery pills.
No one knew the dangers of the spirit beast world better than he did. At critical moments, these things could mean the difference between life and death.
Besides the personal storage soul tools carried by each member of the Golden Generation, Su Linfeng had also loaded Xu Yu with no fewer than five storage devices. Each was filled with long-term survival supplies necessary for such a trial.
Xu Yu slipped a golden ring from his thumb and handed it over.
Su Linfeng accepted the ring, then turned to Yan. "You're responsible for standing guard outside. Drag the corpses of those Death Spiders around the camp. Their deathly aura will ward off most soul beasts."
"You—" Yan started.
"What?"
Su Linfeng's brows knit. "You have an objection?"
Yan had never accepted Su Linfeng, and he certainly didn't want to follow his orders.
But his hostility wasn't entirely baseless—it mostly came from jealousy. He couldn't stand that Hu Liena's attention was drawn away by Su Linfeng. It was like a child throwing a tantrum during playtime, refusing to swallow his pride.
Still, this was about treating Hu Liena's injury. However unwilling he was, he couldn't refuse now.
In the end, he could only nod.
Once everything was arranged—
Xie Yue returned with clean water, and Su Linfeng entered the tent.
Inside the simple camp tent—
Zhang Ping held the pale-faced Hu Liena, flustered and helpless. When Su Linfeng stepped inside, she quickly said, "Linfeng-ge, Nana already took an antidote pill, but it didn't work. She's even starting to run a fever."
"Don't panic, little rascal."
Su Linfeng had already taken out medicine. He reassured her: "The fever is likely due to blood loss, not poison. Help Nana remove her armor. I need to clean and stop the bleeding; otherwise, the wound could get infected."
Little rascal?
Are you sure you're not the rascal yourself?
Zhang Ping muttered under her breath, then looked at him doubtfully. "Linfeng-ge, are you sure you can handle this? Only healers know how to treat wounds."
She turned to Hu Liena as if asking for her approval.
"Listen to Su-gege."
Hu Liena was young, but already mature beyond her years. She nodded faintly, lips trembling: "I trust him."
Just those few words seemed to drain the last of her strength.
The wound was worse than she'd imagined. Blood loss was sapping not only her body, but even her spirit power.
Each breath left her drifting between consciousness and fainting.
Finally—
Her long lashes trembled, and she slowly closed her beautiful eyes.
Zhang Ping didn't hesitate anymore. She shifted to a kneeling position, letting Hu Liena's head rest on her shoulder, then loosened the fastenings of her silver battle armor, revealing the soft inner garments beneath.
Su Linfeng opened the Golden Flame Domain once again, sitting cross-legged behind Hu Liena. Gently, he pulled back her inner armor.
The moment his hand brushed her—
Hu Liena's body shivered visibly. Her lips trembled, but she said nothing.
No one knew what she was feeling inside. But in the end, she simply closed her eyes again, lashes trembling.
Proof enough of her turmoil.
Huh?
Why's this little fox so jumpy at just a touch?
Su Linfeng frowned slightly as he noticed the flush spreading from her back, up to her neck, and even to her ears.
Weird…
What he didn't know was this—Hu Liena herself understood little, but her Martial Spirit was the Enchanting Fox, a spirit steeped in charm. Her very physique had been altered since awakening, granting her beauty, allure, and extreme sensitivity.
To put it plainly, she had the so-called charming body, like a mimosa, folding at the slightest touch.
But this was no time for distractions.
Su Linfeng steadied his breathing. Carefully, he slid the inner garment down to her slender waist.
Is her Martial Spirit really a fox, not a snake?
Why's her waist so thin?
He forced his thoughts away. Before him lay the deep, bone-cutting wound, blood still seeping with every uneven breath.
"This will hurt. Bear with it."
He pulled a dagger from the storage ring, burning it red-hot with soul flame to disinfect it. Then he scraped away the bloody scab around the wound. To stop the bleeding, he had to clean it first, or risk venom re-infecting the flesh.
"It hurts~~~!"
Hu Liena flinched violently, crying out, "Su-gege, be gentler!"
What the…?
If you're in pain, just say so clearly! That sounds way too misleading!
Su Linfeng swallowed dryly, then quickly scraped the wound clean.
The agony was too much. Hu Liena's eyes flew wide, her body arching backward in a reflexive curve. But before she could scream again, she collapsed onto Zhang Ping's shoulder and fainted dead away.
Su Linfeng immediately scattered hemostatic powder, guiding it with the sacred aura of his Golden Flame Domain. The medicine seeped into her wound, and miraculously, the bleeding stopped. The gash even began to knit shut.
Without wasting time, he took her clothes and told Zhang Ping to dress her again.
Time passed.
It wasn't until dawn broke that Hu Liena stirred awake.
Su Linfeng had stopped channeling soul power by then.
"Nana, you're awake!"
Zhang Ping, who hadn't slept all night, beamed in relief.
"Mhm."
Hu Liena gave a soft reply, then turned her eyes to the pale-faced Su Linfeng. "Su-gege… are you still okay?"
Su Linfeng: "…"
Kids really shouldn't phrase things like that.
If an adult overheard, this would sound… very wrong.
"Thank you, Su-gege."
Hu Liena's lips curved into a sweet smile. "Anyway, I'm already yours now. I'll make it up to you when I grow up."
Su Linfeng: "???"
What?
When did you become mine?
What kind of compensation are you even talking about?!
His head filled with question marks. Hu Liena had left him completely speechless.
And Zhang Ping, too, was staring at her in utter confusion.
"What are you looking at me for?"
Hu Liena tilted her chin proudly, like a little victor. "Didn't your mother say—if someone sees you, then you belong to them?"
"Su-gege not only saw me, but he also touched me."
So when I grow up, I'm definitely going to give Su-gege a baby.