Chapter 155 Maybe

In a different world, on the land of Beijiang.

Inside a cave, Jiang Xiao was surrounded by the corpse of a huge White Ghoul, with a bonfire burning in front of him.

He held a branch, skewering some roasted meat. Despite the lack of seasoning, the sizzling, oily meat made Jiang Xiao's mouth water.

"Hmm?" Jiang Xiao's eyes, fixed on the roast, suddenly narrowed slightly. He turned his head and looked towards the cave entrance.

Who was that blind idiot daring to come here?

Weren't there enough corpses to eat?

Besides, most creatures in this different world possessed some intelligence. Even the brutal White Ghouls and White Ghoul Witches knew who they shouldn't provoke.

Jiang Xiao faintly heard footsteps.

Humans?

A thought flashed through Jiang Xiao's mind, and he slowly stood up, looking towards the cave entrance with anticipation.

"Hello, friend, fellow Hua Xia?" A surprised voice called out, and then an elderly man walked in.

A pioneering senior - He Yun?

"Senior He?" Jiang Xiao couldn't quite believe it, looking He Yun up and down. After so long, he didn't seem to have changed much.

Hearing this, He Yun was visibly stunned.

That voice...Jiang Xiao?

Jiang Xiao wasn't wearing his ring-shaped mask, nor did he have his signature giant blade by his side.

Immediately afterwards, Jiang Xiao saw a slender and graceful figure, wearing a white cloak with a hood, her face still covered with a white cloth strip.

The Blind Woman, a powerful, eerie Star Warrior whose fighting style sent chills down one's spine. Jiang Xiao still didn't know her name.

He Yun walked in quickly, saying, "Little friend? Is that really you? My lure was in the upper snowfield, went to the canyon residence, but it was empty, the stationed soldiers had all moved away.

I guarded the entrance to the different world for a long time, but I couldn't wait for you. Turns out, you've already entered the different world!"

As he spoke, Senior He Yun smiled a little embarrassedly, "Last time I didn't protect you well, you were eaten by that fish, I thought you wouldn't want to come back!"

Jiang Xiao also smiled and shook his head, saying, "How could that be? I've been here all along, but in the upper snowfield, I didn't know where to find you. After entering the different world myself, I was held up..."

At this point, Jiang Xiao paused, looked at He Yun, and asked, "Have you two been looking for me?"

He Yun nodded and said, "Sort of. Seeing so many corpses of the White Ghoul race, I felt that something was wrong here. There shouldn't be any species in this area that are far stronger than the White Ghoul race.

When I found someone in the cave, I thought it was some powerful Star Warrior who had strayed into the different world, but I didn't expect it to be you..."

He Yun looked admiringly, saying, "Your strength has grown so fast! You've reached such a level. You wouldn't be..."

He Yun looked at Jiang Xiao's face, thinking of the hellish scene outside, and said, "You didn't come here in your true form, did you?"

Jiang Xiao shook his head, "No, I'm still the lure."

He Yun nodded repeatedly, "That's good, that's good. Why aren't you wearing a mask this time? Where's your knife?"

Jiang Xiao licked his lips and handed over a piece of roast meat, "If you've been looking for me, have you seen a girl in the process? Fifteen or sixteen years old, about..."

Listening to Jiang Xiao's description, He Yun shook his head, "I haven't seen her. How did you meet this girl?"

"I..." Jiang Xiao hesitated for a moment, sighed, and described his magical journey into the Shangri-La, but he didn't mention the specific location of that Shangri-La, only told a few stories.

The Blind Woman listened quietly, without saying a word from beginning to end.

"Ah...that child has suffered." He Yun sighed heavily, "Your little girlfriend is a bit reckless."

"I don't have any romantic feelings for her, I'm the master, she's the disciple." Jiang Xiao quickly explained.

He Yun: "Oh?"

Jiang Xiao scratched his head and said, "She's still young, she's just a child in my eyes. I wouldn't have any ulterior motives. Besides...you might not believe it, but I feel more like a dad, and she's a daughter."

He Yun looked at Jiang Xiao's young face and couldn't help but grin.

Are you even an adult? And you want to be a dad?

"What are you planning to do next?" He Yun asked with concern.

Jiang Xiao twirled the branch in his hand and said, "Keep looking, it's good to have a goal."

"If you can't find her, could it be that you're going in the wrong direction?" He Yun asked slowly.

"Hmm..." Jiang Xiao thought for a moment and said, "Maybe. I've searched the Beijiang region, including part of the Da Meng region, and even the outer reaches of the Russian Federation. Nothing."

"Come south with us." He Yun said, taking a bite of the roast meat and patting Jiang Xiao on the shoulder, "Don't give up."

Jiang Xiao nodded, "Okay."

Unexpectedly, He Yun said directly, "Then let's go."

"Uh...sure."

He Yun: "If you're tired, you can turn into a crow, I'll carry you."

Jiang Xiao didn't stand on ceremony and directly transformed into a crow, landing on He Yun's shoulder.

He Yun ate the roast meat in a few bites and walked out.

At the entrance of the cave, the Blind Woman suddenly reached out her hand.

He Yun was stunned for a moment, and the one-eyed crow on his shoulder was also stunned.

Jiang Xiao hesitated for a moment, flapped his wings, and flew into the Blind Woman's palm.

The next moment, the Blind Woman spoke!

She actually spoke!?

The Blind Woman gently stroked the little head of the black crow with one hand, her voice surprisingly gentle, "Maybe she's not looking for you, maybe she just wants to see the outside world."

Jiang Xiao: ???

As she spoke, the Blind Woman picked up the one-eyed crow and placed it on her own shoulder, her white cloak fluttering gently as she walked out.

Behind her, He Yun sighed deeply.

Everyone has their own story. Over the years, he had rarely heard the Blind Woman speak, and even almost thought she was a mute. He didn't expect her to have such a gentle side.

On the Blind Woman's shoulder, the one-eyed crow slowly "sat" down.

He was indeed a little tired. He'd think about things when he woke up.

That solitary scarlet eye slowly closed.

......

Seven days later, Earth, Imperial Capital City.

Jiang Xiao took a leave of absence from the chief examiner, Zuo Yiheng, and went to report to the national team's individual competition.

As for why he was going today, it was because the final ten-member group for the individual competition would be determined today. Their selection process was indeed faster than the team competition.

Jiang Xiao delayed going until today because he was held back by the chief examiner, Zuo Yiheng, to assist him, acting as an examiner.

This experience was actually quite interesting for Jiang Xiao.

Standing in a different position, looking at problems from a different angle, how to deploy troops, arrange combinations, match personnel, and maximize the characteristics of each individual in the team, truly tested one's abilities.

Jiang Xiao also discovered a particularly serious problem. On paper, several students from different schools should have been particularly strong when paired together, but in reality, their performance was far from as good as that of a school's fixed team.

After all, the Star Warrior competition wasn't a cold comparison of data. Otherwise, there would be no need to hold the competition at all; experts could just make predictions.

If it were based on paper strength and expert predictions, Jiang Xiao would probably have been eliminated in the first round of the last World Cup.

Jiang Xiao wore a baseball cap and a mask, verified his identity with the security guard, and quietly slipped into the Imperial Capital City's San Shan Stadium, sitting in the back row of the huge stadium, choosing an inconspicuous spot.

From his high vantage point, he watched the one-on-one matches between two Star Warrior students.