Bai Luo had been wandering the mountains with Qiqi for more than two days. Perhaps because he had gotten along well with her at Bubu Pharmacy, she didn't seem to mind his company.
In these remote mountains, having a companion didn't seem so bad, did it?
The only issue was that she often forgot his name and what he looked like. The only way she could recognize him was by his all-black attire. However, the taste of something called "sour" had stuck in her mind.
Because, apart from hot and cold, it was the only flavor she could discern.
"What's your name?"
This was the seventeenth time Qiqi had asked Bai Luo his name on their journey. The girl kept saying she would remember it, but for some reason, she always forgot.
For instance, once, after Bai Luo told her his name, she kept repeating it over and over, trying to commit it to memory.
"Bai Luo, Bai Luo, Bai Luo..."
But then she tripped over some loose stones on the mountain path, and when she got back up, the name had somehow twisted in her mouth.
"Luo Bai, Luo Bai, Luo Bai..."
At this, Bai Luo could only sigh softly. At least she only got the order wrong—she hadn't called him "Bai Jie" or something else entirely.
"Just call me Little Bai."
"Little Bai..."
It sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite remember.
Check the notebook... Ah, it's under the basket, can't get it out.
Having the notebook trapped under the basket wasn't ideal, as Qiqi's commands were all written inside. If she didn't regularly issue commands to herself... unexpected things could happen.
Like now, Qiqi had already chased after a strange squirrel and disappeared. If Bai Luo hadn't left a mark on her, it would have been difficult to find her again.
When Bai Luo found her, she was crouched on the ground, her medicine shovel in hand, having dug a hole over a meter deep. She was covered in dirt.
This was the downside of the commands. If no one helped her undo the command, she would keep digging until she caught that squirrel.
Unfortunately... she would probably never catch it, because the little creature wasn't a squirrel at all—it was a Treasure Hoarder rodent.
With a helpless sigh, Bai Luo stepped into the hole and lifted Qiqi, who was still digging.
Even as he picked her up from behind, Qiqi's hands continued the digging motion, making her seem almost like a robot.
"I like you the most."
After picking her up, Bai Luo said these words, and Qiqi, who had been repeating the digging motion, finally stopped, looking confused.
The commands were indeed troublesome, but there were ways to undo them. For example, Bai Luo lifting her from behind and saying those words was one way to break the command.
"Luo Bai?"
Her dirty little face showed a hint of confusion as she looked at Bai Luo, who had set her down. She tilted her head and called out his name.
Or at least, something close to it.
"It's Bai Luo... but whatever makes you happy."
After being apart for so long, she still managed to call him "Luo Bai." The girl must have been trying really hard to remember him. Best not to push her further.
The herbs in her basket had scattered everywhere while she was digging, but that wasn't a big deal. At least the notebook underneath had been retrieved.
After helping her gather the herbs, Bai Luo wiped the dirt off her face. However, he didn't dare touch the talisman stuck to her forehead. He wasn't sure what would happen if he removed it, so it was better not to tempt fate.
"Little Bai... best friend. Hmm... same as Luo Bai."
After flipping to the last page of the notebook, Qiqi pulled out a brush, licked it, and wrote in delicate handwriting:
"Little Bai, best friend."
There were also some other notes:
"Little Bai, best friend."
"Ningguang: white, big, yellow. She's the Tianquan."
"Yaoyao: like a little finch, so tiny and cute. Want to keep one."
"Sunsettia fruit: sour, tasty. Want to plant one."
"Luo Bai: black, best friend."
"Coconut sheep: milk is white, delicious. Want to keep one."
"Just now, our brothers were wondering why our Treasure Hoarder rodent was so panicked. Who knew... we'd stumble upon such a lucky find."
As Bai Luo and Qiqi were packing up, a sneering voice rang out. At the same time, a group of shady figures emerged from the bushes, clearly intending to surround them.
When Bai Luo saw the Treasure Hoarder rodent earlier, he had suspected that there might be Treasure Hoarders nearby, as these creatures were often kept as pets by the group.
He had thought the little thing was still hiding in its burrow, but it had apparently dug another exit and brought reinforcements.
Though these "reinforcements" didn't seem particularly impressive.
"Hmm..."
Seeing the Treasure Hoarders, Qiqi instinctively reached for her sword. Since she occasionally encountered such situations while herb-gathering, she had long since given herself a command: when meeting such people, she should teach them a lesson.
But Bai Luo undid her command just then.
"Leave it to me."
After setting Qiqi down, Bai Luo drew his dagger from behind his back and surveyed the surrounding group.
True, his "Hei" wasn't suited for group combat, but it depended on the situation.
If it was just a bunch of Treasure Hoarders, they wouldn't be much of a challenge.
At most, it would just mean swinging his dagger a few more times.
"Hey, since you've got a kid with you, we'll go easy on you. Leave half the herbs, and you can go."
Perhaps sensing Bai Luo's unusual aura, or maybe having heard of Qiqi's reputation, the Treasure Hoarders inexplicably backed off a bit, offering the condition of leaving half the herbs.
This might sound strange, but considering the herbs in Qiqi's basket, it wasn't that surprising.
Qiqi wasn't an ordinary herb gatherer; the plants she collected were often from remote, hard-to-reach places. In short... the herbs in her basket alone were of considerable value.
Half the herbs could indeed be considered a toll.
But Bai Luo was the kind of person who plucked feathers from a goose as it flew by—he wasn't about to let someone else shear him.
His dark figure flickered like a ghost, appearing beside one of the Treasure Hoarders. His dagger had already pierced the man's body, but Bai Luo made sure to block the view.
He didn't want the child to see this.
Well... a child who might be thousands of years old.
"Huh..."
The leader felt a chill in his chest, and all his strength seemed to drain away with that cold sensation, which then spread throughout his body.
As the others looked on in stunned silence, Bai Luo acted as though he were helping an old man who had almost fallen, propping the man, who was now coughing up blood, against a tree.
"Who else wants to take a break?"
Flicking the blood off his dagger, Bai Luo's mask had somehow slipped down, revealing a pale, deathly visage that resembled a grim reaper from the depths of the underworld, sending a chill through everyone who saw it.