Chapter 276 Little Gu Man

Having broken the mental link with Zhu Que, Gu Shen still felt a little unsatisfied.

Words that strike at the heart are the deadliest.

When he sent the link, he hadn't even thought that Zhu Que would agree to the invitation.

"He's quite angry."

Chu Ling said, "Those words of yours were more powerful than the final arrow of 'Extinguish Candle'."

"Is that so?"

Gu Shen smiled. "It's a pity he left a bit hastily."

"..."

Chu Ling was silent.

How could he not be hasty? If he hadn't left, he probably would have been angered to death.

"This Grade A beast tide, although it seems fierce, won't actually have much impact on East Kun." Chu Ling borrowed the authority of the 'Heaven's Eye' and said, "Red Dragon has already rushed back to Zone e7. At the last moment, the Four Divine Envoys should still be able to complete the arrangement of the 'Sky Domain' barrier..."

Once the 'Sky Domain' is formed.

With the power of the S-grade barrier, stopping the beast tide wouldn't be too much of a problem.

"Mm."

Gu Shen nodded. He hadn't expected to change anything with this beast tide anyway.

The most important thing about this beast tide was to confirm the existence of the "Child of Divine Grace"!

He spread out his mental power and saw a familiar figure in the mansion's corridor.

...

...

"Is this...where the Church 'Lord' lives?"

Xiao Man held her basket, walking cautiously in the mansion's corridor. She looked at the carved and painted pillars and felt instinctively afraid.

"Lord?"

Bai Xiu was a little puzzled.

"That's what they all call them..."

Xiao Man muttered softly.

Bai Xiu was silent for a second, then said, "They're all people. There's no big or small."

Xiao Man was still nervous. She understood the logic Bai Xiu spoke, but it wasn't of much use...

Those who didn't call them Lords ended up in miserable situations.

At that moment, Gu Shen's voice rang out leisurely.

"Those 'Lords' you speak of are all dead."

Xiao Man heard the voice and suddenly looked up, seeing a familiar face in the open window of the pavilion. She couldn't help but say with delight, "Gu Shen?"

Gu Shen flipped down.

He smiled softly. "It's me."

The little one exerted strength, slung the big basket behind her, tightened it, and then quickly ran towards Gu Shen, taking three steps in two, and crashed into Gu Shen's arms.

"..."

Bai Xiu silently watched this scene. He looked at Gu Shen, his expression a little subtle.

If he remembered correctly, Gu Shen and the little girl had spent less than a day together.

Maybe not even as long as he had.

Why wasn't Xiao Man so enthusiastic with him?

Was it that he wasn't liked by children, or was Gu Shen too liked by children?

Chen Mo, Zhuang Su, Qi Mo, and others who came out of the door all saw this scene... Their expressions were different. Chen Mo leaned against the door, arms crossed, watching this heartwarming scene with relief.

Zhuang Su and Qi Mo's breathing became heavy.

They exchanged glances.

That ragged, dirty little girl... was the "Child of Divine Grace" that Little Gu had found?

For so many years.

The Neutrals waited, searched, and found nothing.

After meeting Little Gu... only a few days, and they had found her?

At this moment, Zhuang Su and Qi Mo felt unreal. They felt like they were dreaming. Now, the Neutrals could openly come to the surface to carry out activities, and they had also seen the legendary "Child of Divine Grace."

A hint of warmth appeared in Gu Shen's eyes.

He gently rubbed the little girl's head, and a wisp of blazing fire came out of his palm, entering the little girl's body. The "Fire of Life" dispelled the remaining chill and the long-accumulated injuries in her body.

In the past three years, the little one had suffered too many grievances.

Picking up garbage in the back streets of Zone e0, she was beaten at every turn. If she was lucky, she could eat a meal, but if she was unlucky, she would have to go hungry all day.

Her body had many bruises.

The little one was gifted, and some injuries could be healed in a day of rest and sleep, but she couldn't stand the accumulation. After the "Fire of Life" went around, Gu Shen felt very sorry for her.

Qi Mo didn't know what had happened in Zone e0. The little girl's reunion with Gu Shen was like a reunion after many years.

But regarding the "Child of Divine Grace," he had been waiting for twenty years.

So, Qi Mo took a deep breath, sent a mental message, and whispered a reminder: "Little Gu... the Neutrals need a tube of blood from the 'Child of Divine Grace.' We need to do a 'genetic test' to see what her extraordinary ability is."

"This matter is not urgent."

Gu Shen didn't turn his head and said softly, "Now that the person has been brought back, what are you still worried about... You need to know that the Child of Divine Grace is not those 'dead people' in the bronze pillars. She is alive and has feelings."

As soon as he said this, Qi Mo immediately realized his mistake.

The experiments over the years had repeatedly run into walls.

The highest ideal he had been pursuing was finally about to be realized today.

For a moment, he had overlooked this point.

Qi Mo was a little ashamed. "Sorry... I lost my composure."

"It doesn't matter."

Gu Shen shook his head and said nothing.

His blazing fire detected Xiao Man's mental state... The little one's mind was very tense. She had finally escaped Zone e0 and come here, seeing the magnificent Church mansion, which only reminded her of those unbearable past events.

However, these negative emotions came and went quickly.

These Neutrals all had good hearts. As long as they spent a few days together, Xiao Man would feel a different warmth from Zone e0.

"I'll take her to find a room to rest first."

Gu Shen looked around and said sincerely, "As for other things, we'll talk about it after she's rested."

...

...

The mansion complex built by the Church of Blazing Waves looked classical and elegant, like the architecture of Snow Forbidden City...

Gu Shen took Xiao Man to find a small courtyard in the mansion, but in fact, the technology of these mansions was not backward. There were many artificial intelligence devices here.

However, after the awakening experiment began, Deepsea had disconnected from the Sangzhou Cave.

Now that Gu Shen had moved in, Deepsea was providing services again.

Gu Shen sat outside the mansion, and Chu Ling took over the program, taking the little one to wash up. When she came out again, the dirt on Xiao Man's face had been washed away, and she had also changed into a clean and brand-new snow-white robe.

In the Church of Blazing Waves mansion, most of what was prepared was this style... This set of clothes had been cut, and all the Church logos had been removed, so you couldn't tell "which faith it belonged to."

Xiao Man looked much cleaner, but because she had been hungry for many years, her complexion was not good, her face was sallow and thin, and even her hair was yellowish.

A drone was parked in the courtyard, hanging up a large floor mirror. Xiao Man lifted the robe and looked at her appearance, her eyes full of unfamiliarity.

This teaching robe was still a bit long after being cut...

There was nothing she could do, so she could only lift some of it to avoid inconvenience when walking.

The little one's expression was strange. She looked at the "clean" self in the mirror and was very uncomfortable.

Although this robe was comfortable to wear, it seemed that her muddy cloth shirt looked better?

"Brother Gu Shen..."

Xiao Man carefully called out this name. She hesitated and asked, "Should I wear my old one back?"

"..."

Gu Shen sighed softly. The one the little one had taken off had already been sent to the robot to be cleaned... In fact, cleaning was unnecessary. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to throw it away directly.

Xiao Man didn't know how many times she had fallen along the way. The cloth shirt had a bunch of holes. How could she wear it again?

"Tomorrow, I'll send you clothes that fit." Gu Shen said softly, "You don't have to wear that one anymore."

Xiao Man pursed her lips and was a little dazed.

"The few you met at the mansion earlier..."

Gu Shen opened up carefully, projecting the spiritual images of Zhuang Su and Qi Mo with a wave of his sleeve, as well as some bystanders, "Do you still remember the final parade in Zone e0?"

The little girl nodded seriously.

Of course she remembered!

If it weren't for the bell and drum parade in Zone e0, she wouldn't have been able to escape at all... Those marchers went to the streets, smashed the drones, and broke through the city gates. Although she left from the south gate, she heard the sound of the opening of the first two city gates. The parade was large in scale and couldn't have been a coincidence.

"It wasn't just me who saved you."

Gu Shen said softly, "They also paid a lot..."

Xiao Man was very smart, and she understood when she heard this.

She murmured, "That parade, they organized it..."

"Mm."

Gu Shen nodded and said, "If you heard the word 'Neutral' when you lived in Zone e0, then you should know what kind of people they are..."

Xiao Man's eyes were a little dim, and she said in a hoarse voice, "I know 'Neutrals'... They are all good people..."

Gu Shen found himself.

The Neutrals opened the city gate.

It's just... that parade was destined to be just a fleeting firework. Many people would die in the parade. The enforcers of the Origin Tower didn't care about these people's lives.

"Those people... are many of them already dead?"

Xiao Man clutched her sleeves and asked very softly.

This question made Gu Shen stunned.

"...Yes."

He could only answer truthfully, revealing the bloody and cruel truth to the child.

Xiao Man asked again in a low voice, "Then they... did they die for me?"

"Yes... and no."

Gu Shen lowered his eyebrows and said slowly, "These people are more for their own freedom. If the city is not broken tonight, it will be difficult to find a day to break the city in the future... Instead of dying like this, it is better to try to break through the cage. Just like a moth throwing itself into the fire, it dies for the light and burns for itself."

Xiao Man was confused.

"So..."

She pursed her lips, thought for a long time, and summoned the courage to ask, "You saved me... is it to let me avenge these people? Against the Church, against the Origin Tower?"

Gu Shen's expression was a little surprised, but he was immediately relieved.

How could a child who grew up struggling in the mud in Zone e0 believe that there is truth, goodness, and beauty in this world?

The law of the jungle is cruel.

Contention, alienation, deception, utilization...

"I saved you, it has nothing to do with what you do in the future."

Gu Shen smiled softly, "I hope you live well. As for revenge... you think too much."

He snapped his fingers.

Blazing fire lingered.

Xiao Man felt as if her brow had been gently pressed, and she sat back on her butt. When she raised her head again, it was a majestic world. Pure Land was snowing, and the towering giant trees that reached into the clouds almost supported the sky.

She stared blankly at this magnificent scene, feeling only her mind rippling.

It took a long time for the little girl to recover. She looked at Gu Shen, who was squatting in front of her with a smile... That man, under the care of countless golden branches and leaves, seemed to be the center of the entire Pure Land world.

Yes.

She really thought too much. The Church and the Origin Tower were such terrifying behemoths. Those who were capable of declaring war on such things should be people like "Gu Shen," who were shrouded in the divine light of the world.

The little girl, who had been full of pride just a moment ago, suddenly stopped talking.

She shrank back without any backbone and whispered after a long time, "Since you have no relatives and seek nothing... then why did you save me?"

Although the Pure Land world was snowing, under Gu Shen's mental manipulation, these crushed snows were not cold when they fell on Xiao Man.

This was a good question.

Gu Shen was silent for two seconds. He looked at Xiao Man with a complicated mood.

Of course, he saved Xiao Man in Zone e0 because the "Iron Box" reacted. This was probably the "Child of Divine Grace" he was looking for.

But what about aside from these factors?

From the moment he saw this little girl... Gu Shen felt an indescribable subtle connection.

Very strange.

Perhaps because he had used too many "Destiny Objects," Gu Shen felt the guidance of karma at this moment.

The Goddess of Destiny seemed to be reminding him that there was an unusual bond between him and Xiao Man—

Unspeakable.

But it had already been engraved in karma.

Was it because they were "both orphans"? Or because of... something else?

"Saving you... there are not so many reasons."

Gu Shen smiled softly, "That child in the basket, did you have a reason to save him?"

"..."

Xiao Man was stunned. She opened her mouth, wanting to answer, but couldn't say a word.

There are indeed things in this world that "seek nothing."

But only fools would do it.

And she was such a fool.

She clearly couldn't even feed herself, but she still had to bring a burden, a beggar wandering the streets. What qualifications did she have to have a family?

Stupid people do stupid things. No one had asked her these years, so she naturally wouldn't think about it.

But now Gu Shen asked.

Just as she asked Gu Shen.

"I... want a family..."

Xiao Man lowered her eyebrows, recalling the little one in the basket who was smaller than herself, and couldn't help but smile, "Even if we starve to death together, it's better than starving to death alone... That way, we won't be alone on the road."

"Pa!"

On the top of her head, she was hit with another forehead flick.

The little girl sat back again, and this time she returned to the real world. The snow-white teaching robe suddenly fell on the ground, and the little girl grimaced in pain, but the first thing she did was check whether the robe was dirty—although she said she wasn't used to it, her behavior was still honest.

She raised her head angrily, glared at Gu Shen, and was just about to open her mouth.

"Don't say these words again in the future, they're unlucky."

Gu Shen's words dispelled all her temper.

"Also..."

"Since you don't have a surname, why don't you take mine?"

Xiao Man sat on the ground blankly.

She stared blankly at the young man in front of her.

Gu Shen's brow was burning with a warm fire, and he still had a faint smile on his face: "Take my surname Gu. It's a very good surname. I guarantee you that no one in the world will dare to bully you after you report your family name in the future."

"..."

The little one tried hard to clench her teeth, her body trembling, but she couldn't hold back in the end.

This child, who had tasted all the suffering in the world, and hadn't shed a single tear.

Suddenly burst into tears.

Xiao Man, Xiao Man, Gu Xiao Man.

From now on, she had her own name.