"Why call yourself Chen Xia?"
The woman smoothed her skirt and sat up straighter, blocking the setting sun, which made her appear even taller.
The small, thin child answered directly.
"Because I can."
Indeed he could, since no one had dictated what name he should have.
The woman chuckled softly, her eyes scanning the blood stains and wounds on Chen Xia's body. Noticing that some of the injuries had already disappeared, her eyes brightened again, and she asked with another gentle laugh.
"Have you heard of cultivation?"
"No," Chen Xia shook his head honestly. He could barely eat enough, let alone concern himself with cultivation.
This left the woman somewhat at a loss. If he hadn't heard of it, how should she introduce it? She tilted her head slightly, thinking for a moment, then smiled and said.
"Cultivation is about becoming better and better. You can fly in the sky, move mountains and seas, split mountains to make roads, encounter dragons and slay them, come across rivers and part them."
"Can you do that?" Chen Xia asked curiously.
"Almost," the woman laughed, clasping her hands behind her back. She asked with another light chuckle, "So, do you want to come with me to cultivate?"
"No," Chen Xia shook his head. He lay back on the ruins, his muddled mind not wanting to think about anything, and simply replied.
"Not interesting."
The woman was quite taken aback. It was the first time she had heard someone say cultivation wasn't interesting. Throughout history, countless people had yearned to step onto the path of cultivation, yet this child found it uninteresting.
Heh.
"Why don't you want to cultivate? Given your current situation, you should have no reason to refuse. To give you the simplest example, after cultivation you'll have endless food, never go hungry again, wear luxurious clothes, be high and mighty..."
There was no response. The woman didn't continue speaking.
Because the child had fallen into a deep sleep, his snores rising from the ruins under the sparse moonlight.
The woman couldn't help but chuckle softly, finding a kind of intellectually deficient beauty in this child named Chen Xia, very much in line with her imagination of this constitution.
Ancient texts recorded that mortals with strong physiques often had some intellectual shortcomings.
The ancient texts do not deceive me, she thought.
Fearing Chen Xia might catch cold in this chilly weather, she waved her hand, and a subtle Fire Method lit up, becoming a warm campfire.
"Elder Princess," a sudden voice broke the night's silence. A figure in a moonlit hood appeared and bowed to the woman.
The woman paused briefly, then pinched the bridge of her nose and laughed bitterly, "You've found me again."
"Emperor Zhou is very worried about you, so he dispatched the Sky Patrol to request your return," the figure said respectfully.
"Let's wait a while. Father still has over ten thousand years of lifespan in the Heaven Mending Realm. There's no rush," the woman waved her hand lightly, rejecting the figure's words.
The figure nodded and added, "There aren't many powerful cultivators on this small star. If the Elder Princess wants to relax and have fun, it's best to do so quickly. After all, the Great Zhou Dynasty has been having some conflicts with the Seven Great Sects recently."
"Alright," the woman nodded slightly. Her face was revealed in the moonlight, a crescent moon mark on her brow, her eyes a pale white like a hazy moon. Her expression was a mix of coldness and softness, two contradictory emotions appearing on her face, making her seem even more gentle and beautiful.
The figure said nothing more and vanished into the night.
The woman glanced at Chen Xia once more and smiled helplessly.
"It's rare to come across something interesting, and they're already rushing me. Really now."
Her figure slowly faded away as well.
The next day.
It was a rare clear day in the rainy season.
Chen Xia sat on the ruins, his injuries mostly healed, but still sitting there blankly, staring at the old tree and small stream before him.
His mind was muddled, unable to recall anything. He sat like this from morning until noon, until his stomach began to growl again.
He slapped his head hard with his hand and shouted, "Move! Come on, move a bit!"
Then his head could turn normally again.
Today the bun shop wasn't open, and other stalls had no ready-made food. It seemed he wouldn't be able to eat anything.
At times like this, Chen Xia would always wait by the wine shop, stealing the peanuts others had left behind.
One or two peanuts clearly weren't enough for him, but if he stole enough, it would fill him up.
Some patrons nearby were chatting idly.
"Winter's coming soon. Those big cats up in the mountains can't find food, so they'll come down to harm the farmers again. The day before yesterday, a farmer's sheep was eaten."
"What a menace! Have they reported it to the officials? Get some tiger-hunting heroes to come and kill all these big cats. It would be a public service!"
"Ah, if only it were that easy," a patron beside them shook his head and sighed.
"Dealing with big cats isn't like ordinary fighting. Even tiger-hunting heroes wouldn't dare go up the mountain without knowing the terrain. Otherwise, when a several-hundred-pound fierce tiger pounces, crushes, and bites, even if you were the martial arts champion, you'd still die!"
"Is it that mystical? Why not invite immortals to come? I heard there are several immortals enshrined up there..."
"You think immortals would come specially to hunt tigers for you? Are you dreaming?!"
After chatting for a while, they noticed Chen Xia nearby and couldn't help but wave him away.
"Shoo, little one. Don't listen to this stuff. Go play somewhere else, or the tiger might come eat you tonight!"
Chen Xia had swiped a bowl of peanuts and quickly ran away.
Today was a clear day.
But the night became even colder.
Chen Xia sat blankly in the ruins, still clutching the uneaten peanuts in his hand, eating one every half hour.
He suddenly turned his head.
In the darkness, eyes flashing with a fierce light appeared. Light footsteps carrying killing intent approached leisurely. Heavy breathing accompanied by white mist.
The silhouette of a several-hundred-pound tiger emerged in the cold night.
Before it stood the frail Chen Xia, who looked even thinner than one of the tiger's legs.
A completely mismatched battle.
The tiger greedily licked its lips, saliva dripping, its eyes showing an almost human-like delight.
Chen Xia also sized it up, his face showing not the slightest trace of fear, just staring straight into the tiger's fierce eyes.
What's the difference between a tiger and a wild dog?
Chen Xia's muddled mind really couldn't figure it out. He only felt that the tiger looked a bit bigger.
But what use was that?
He didn't understand.
"Roar!" The tiger let out a deep howl and suddenly pounced, its blood-reeking maw going for Chen Xia's throat.
At the other end of the town.
The woman's brow suddenly furrowed, as if sensing something. Her gaze turned towards Chen Xia's direction. She made some calculations with her fingers, her expression tightening further. In a flash, she rushed over.
Now she could only hope that Chen Xia could hold on for a moment. Even if he died, she hoped he wouldn't die too thoroughly. That way, she might still find a way to save him.
If he was truly torn to pieces, even she would be helpless.
One could only say this was Chen Xia's pitiful fate.
The woman's speed was very fast. Within three breaths, she arrived at the other side of the town, ten miles away.
The intense smell of blood almost instantly rushed into her nostrils.
The woman's expression sank as she hurriedly looked inside.
Her face suddenly froze.
Because in the sparse moonlight, the frail youth was holding up a tiger's head as big as his body, examining it.
Behind the tiger's head was the rest of the tiger's body, torn to pieces.
The woman's mouth opened slightly.
Because from the tiger's roar until now...
It had been only thirty breaths.