# 992
Chapter 993: Little Beggar
Lu Baoyou glanced at the broken bowl and the several worn banknotes clutched tightly in her hand, falling into silence.
He pulled out a twenty-yuan bill from his chest and stuffed it into the beggar girl's hand, speaking calmly: "I'm going to sleep here for three nights."
The little beggar froze.
She looked at the money in her hand, then at Lu Baoyou who continued to rest with closed eyes. After hesitating for a long while, she finally tucked the money into her clothes and walked alone to sit against the wall across from Lu Baoyou.
"Oh... okay."
She set the broken bowl aside, gathered the collected firewood and weeds into a pile, and lit a bonfire with a candle, briefly warding off the cold of the winter night.
Then she took out a stack of ragged blankets from a hole behind her and wrapped them around her body. In the biting cold wind, only a red face was exposed to the outside, and a pair of curious eyes gazed at Lu Baoyou across the way.
Lu Baoyou closed his eyes again.
"You're not a beggar, are you?" After a long while, the little beggar couldn't help but ask.
"No." Lu Baoyou answered calmly.
"I thought so too. Your clothes are very clean... Did you run away from home?"
"No."
"Then were you kidnapped by human traffickers?"
"No."
"...Then why did you come here?" The little beggar said in confusion. "You have money, why not stay at an inn?"
She was somewhat dissatisfied about her nest being occupied.
Lu Baoyou didn't answer. His right hand inside his pocket silently rubbed against the only remaining ten-yuan bill and two coins, feeling somewhat helpless in his heart...
He didn't have much money to begin with. On the way to Shangjing, almost all of it had been spent. He only had thirty-three yuan left, scattered in various amounts. During this time at the training camp, he didn't need money, but once he left the training camp on vacation, these thirty-something yuan wouldn't be enough for anything in Shangjing City.
Borrow money from the other recruits? Follow them and eat their food for free?
Absolutely not.
Lu Baoyou wasn't unfamiliar with hardship. This little difficulty meant nothing to him. Staying under the bridge, buying some mantou or having a bowl of noodles with the remaining money—the three days would pass. Moreover, this place was far from the city center, very quiet, and he could continue training here, even practicing his swordsmanship.
He could have no place to stay, could endure the cold wind, but training was something he couldn't skip for even a single day.
Seeing Lu Baoyou say nothing, the little beggar shrugged and shifted her gaze to the black box beside Lu Baoyou, blinking curiously.
"What's in this box?"
Lu Baoyou remained silent.
Seeing that he had no intention of answering, the little beggar muttered to herself and quietly curled her body into a ball, leaning against the fire, and began to sleep with closed eyes.
The long night stretched on.
Seeing the little beggar fall into deep sleep, Lu Baoyou tucked both hands into his sleeves, gazed at the bonfire for a moment, and gradually drifted into sleep as well.
A little beggar and a one-eyed boy, leaning against the fire, dozed off together.
It was unknown how much time had passed,
A cold, eerie gust of wind swept through, instantly extinguishing the dancing flames in the bridge tunnel.
A诡异森然的磨牙声传来，像是指甲在黑板上摩擦那样刺耳——from the darkness came a sound like grinding teeth, as jarring as nails scraping across a blackboard. Lu Baoyou's eyes snapped open. He turned to look at the darkness beside the bridge tunnel, one hand gripping the handle of the black box.
Seemingly sensing the cold air, the little beggar also opened her sleepy eyes. She raised her head to see that in the shadows beside the bridge tunnel, the outline of a beast was being slowly drawn.
It was a blood-red wolfhound with seven eyes. Its body was almost taller than the little beggar. Its crimson fur fluttered in the wind. A low whimpering sound emerged from its throat. Its seven eyes opened and closed alternately, sending chills down one's spine.
The little beggar shrieked. She tried to scramble up from the ground, but her legs went weak and she collapsed onto the ground.
"Hey! Run!" The little beggar shuffled backward while shouting toward Lu Baoyou, who was still leaning against the wall.
Lu Baoyou's eyes narrowed slightly. He gave no answer. He simply lifted the black box from the ground and pressed his finger on the handle. A Straight Blade弹出。
Lu Baoyou gripped it firmly.
The one-eyed boy held the blade, stepping over the dying embers, positioning himself between the little beggar and the seven-eyed wolfhound. A 赤红色的光芒自眼眸中燃起—a reddish glow ignited within his gaze.
"A mere 'mystery' at the 'pool' realm..."
Lu Baoyou murmured to himself. Just as he was about to strike, Lin Qiye's reminder from when he left the training camp suddenly echoed in his mind. His gaze fell on the terrified little beggar girl behind him.
"Hey." Lu Baoyou said calmly, "Close your eyes."
"Huh?"
"Close them."
"Oh..."
Lu Baoyou's figure blocked the little beggar's view of the wolfhound. She sat瘫在地上，目光从Lu Baoyou的身上挪开，乖乖的闭上了眼睛。gazed at the ground, her gaze shifting away from Lu Baoyou, and obediently closed her eyes.
Seeing this, Lu Baoyou turned his head back, held the blade, and walked toward the seven-eyed wolfhound. A cold smile curved his lips.
"A decent training opponent..."
...
On top of a tall building.
Chen Han gazed at the city below. Patch after patch of shadow was quietly expanding.
He hesitated for a moment, about to step out, when Shao Pingge's voice leisurely rang out: "No need to rush. Right now, all the ones coming out are just small fry. Those young people can handle them. The real big shots are still hiding in the dark, watching. They're your real targets."
Chen Han slowly withdrew his right foot that had been about to step forward.
Just then, a sliver of night bloomed from the nothingness behind them. A figure draped in a 深红斗篷，背着黑匣，缓缓走来—Crimson Cloak, carrying a black box on their back, walked over slowly.
"Hm?" Shao Pingge raised an eyebrow and turned to look. Seeing that familiar face, he smiled, "You came too?"
"Finished dinner, feeling bored. Came out to join the fun."
Lin Qiye smiled faintly. "Besides, I'm quite curious about this new squad leader of the Shangjing City squad..."
His gaze landed on Chen Han, who was wearing a military coat, and he froze for a moment.
Chen Han also stood frozen upon seeing Lin Qiye.
The two stared at each other for a long while before Lin Qiye spoke in surprise:
"Chen Han?"
"It's me." Chen Han smiled helplessly. "Surprised?"
Lin Qiye studied him carefully for a long time, then nodded and said: "Quite surprised indeed. And the aura you're carrying..."
From the moment Lin Qiye first saw Chen Han, he noticed that Chen Han's aura had undergone a dramatic change. The temperament he displayed reminded Lin Qiye of another person...
Or rather, another god.
"Li... Fengdu Dadi?" Lin Qiye said in astonishment. "You became his agent? What happened?"
"Two years ago, when Anta County returned from the mist, I met Uncle Li." A trace of回忆之色浮现在Chen Han的眼眸中—reminiscence appeared in Chen Han's eyes. "At that time, I was already burning with a high fever, on the verge of death. He used a power to repair my body, and told me everything... After that, I could sense that something more had appeared within me."
"Later I learned that was Uncle Li's God's Ruins."