At that time, He Qiu had just been reborn not long ago.
He had been taken care of by his mother and sister almost all day since childhood, and had rarely even stepped outside the village.
His understanding of the world was limited to what he read in books.
The books said that the vast world was full of wonders, with rare beasts and treasures everywhere…
For example, the mysterious Spirit Deer of the ten-thousand-year immortal realm…
Or the Fire Phoenix reborn from ashes, and the Purple-Gold Divine Dragon soaring high above…
And the Phoenix’s close relative, the legendary Immortal Bird with cherry-white feathers streaked with red?
The world in books was always full of romance, with every kind of Spirit Beast described, making He Qiu feel as if he were there, as if he existed in another world.
But that was only in books, only in the fantasies of his mind.
In reality, on the mountain where He Qiu lived, around him, such Spirit Beasts had almost never appeared—not even ordinary wild beasts with any hint of aggression had ever been seen.
So he had always believed that the contents of the books the old man told him about were like the Classic of Mountains and Seas from his Previous Life—all mythical creatures invented from thin air by the ancients, fictional species that simply didn’t exist in reality.
But that belief of his was shattered one day when he went to play in the back mountain alone—
“Grab her!”
“This is the Nine Nether Realm, we shouldn’t linger. Let’s complete our mission as quickly as possible!”
“Yes!!”
Beneath a cliff, several black-clothed masked figures lurked furtively, seemingly chasing some kind of prey.
He Qiu nimbly leaned against a tree, not daring to make a sound.
In this life, he was only a seven-year-old little boy—running into such murderous black-clothed figures, who would dare go up and court death!
Sister Yao Xi, Mother Yao Qing, save me…
The boy held his breath, observing the black-clothed figures below the mountain with sharp eyes, leaning against the tree, waiting nervously for a long while.
Finally, the footsteps of the black-clothed figures completely faded away, their backs no longer visible. Only then did he let out a long sigh.
“Phew! Phew!”
“Phew ha~~”
Wait, hold on—why were there two sounds of breathing?
Following the sound, He Qiu abruptly turned his head, only to discover that in the grass not far away, a little girl with pink-white short hair was hiding.
At the same time, the girl also noticed the boy’s presence.
Her beautiful eyes slowly widened, her expression astonished.
The two locked eyes, their gazes filled with complex emotions.
He Qiu took two steps back.
He seemed to sense something dangerous, and already wanted to go home to find his mother and sister…
In his Previous Life, he had been reborn inexplicably.
In this life, he was only seven years old—he didn’t want to be dragged into trouble for no reason, swept into danger like some melodramatic novel plot.
So he turned and bolted.
And at that very moment, the pink-haired girl behind him spoke up:
“Hey, don’t run!”
“You! You idiot, why do you run away from me like I’m a ghost!”
He didn’t look back, running ahead.
Her expression anxious, she chased after him at lightning speed.
The boy was young, but he was agile, seeming very familiar with this mountain path, running extremely fast.
After chasing for a while, the pink-white girl ran out of stamina, gasping for breath.
“You, you stop running…”
“I told you, stop right there for this young lady!”
Finally, the girl couldn’t hold back anymore.
Mid-sprint, she suddenly spread her arms wide—flames burst forth all around, her arms transforming into a pair of flaming feathered wings.
Her whole body soared into the air, and with a single flying pounce, she tackled the boy to the ground.
“Ah—!”
He Qiu was pinned beneath the girl, having fallen hard, utterly miserable.
He was seven, physically immature, his strength actually very small.
She was also seven, but not human.
Relying on her bloodline advantage, she easily straddled the boy, leaving him unable to break free.
“Little brother, this young lady asks you—why did you run?”
“Because… because you’re suspicious!”
“I—this young lady is clearly cute! I’m not suspicious at all. A cute little girl like me, would I be a bad person?”
“But, those black-clothed men just now—the one they were trying to catch was you, right?”
“You! How do you know?”
After a brief exchange, the girl’s little face turned pale, frightened by the boy’s sharp intuition.
She was a mythical creature with ten thousand years of cultivation, having just transformed into human form.
Her body flowed with the bloodline of the Immortal Bird—every single drop of her blood was priceless.
And a juvenile Immortal Bird was pursued by countless cultivators who wished to imprison her as a spirit wife and forcibly perform Dual Cultivation.
That was why she had been targeted by bad people and fled all the way to Nine Nether Spirit Mountain.
She had heard this was a famous neutral territory in the immortal realm, guarded by the powerful retired Immortal Venerable sisters of the Mu family—no force dared to trespass…
So she came here.
But unexpectedly, those black-clothed men refused to give up, risking their heads to capture the Immortal Bird at all costs.
She had just transformed and was still unfamiliar with everything in this world.
She didn’t know the terrain of Nine Nether Spirit Mountain.
Running around blindly, being caught was only a matter of time…
So she needed a local to help!
So she met him and latched onto him, refusing to let go of the lifeline she had so painstakingly found!
So she chased him down, and straddled him…
“Miss, you and I have no grudges. Why treat me like this?”
Thinking of those black-clothed men radiating dangerous auras, He Qiu was terrified.
He truly didn’t want to stay with a girl in such a dangerous situation—what if they were discovered, and those black-clothed men killed him too?
“Don’t be so heartless! I’m in trouble now—can’t you just help me?”
The pink-haired girl refused to give up.
This was a life-or-death situation; how could she let go of the lifeline she had worked so hard to catch?
“You’re sitting on me, pressing me down—is this how you ask for help?”
“Ah, oh oh, sorry, sorry…”
At He Qiu’s words, the girl suddenly realized her rudeness and quickly sat up from the boy.
But the next second, He Qiu retreated two steps, staring warily at the suspicious girl before him—
Pink-white hair, a shrine maiden–style short skirt with white socks.
The girl’s face was pure and cute, but her skin was dirty—clearly she had been fleeing for days without time to tidy herself up.
And what attracted He Qiu’s attention most was the fiery red jade pendant on the girl’s chest.
He felt that the pendant was priceless—this was the first time he’d had such a clear intuition since being reborn!
“Hey, help me out, pretty please!”
Seeing He Qiu staring at her so intently, the girl thought the boy was charmed by her beauty.
She coquettishly walked up and grabbed the boy’s little hand.
“Little brother, won’t you help your big sister? Big sister hasn’t slept in days. Big sister is so pitiful, wuu wuu wuu~~”
Her acting skills were superb, her voice sweet and adorable.
This was how she used to act spoiled with her parents, and she always got doted on—everyone indulged her whims.
But this time, she hit a wall—
“No.”
He Qiu refused coldly, his eyes full of disgust, as if even being touched by the girl’s dirty little hand made him uneasy.
He struggled to shake off her grip, not wanting to spend a single moment courting trouble with the suspicious person before him.
He was just a seven-year-old boy.
He didn’t have the ability to play hero and save a damsel in distress from bad guys.
He genuinely didn’t want to stir up trouble for himself, because he had promised his sister before leaving that he would never do anything dangerous…
His sister doted on him greatly, so he couldn’t just brush off her words—that would make his sister very sad.
Therefore, He Qiu refused with absolute certainty—
“I refuse!”