“I was thrown in,” Xiao Man said, sitting by the fire after tidying herself up. She took over the task of roasting fish, skillfully flipping it. Once it was cooked, she sprinkled on some seasoning and handed it to the man. “May I ask where this place is?”
“This is the bank of the Ruo Shui River,” the man said, pointing to the river not far away. “I fished you out of it.”
“This river water…”
“Here, no flying birds cross, and nothing floats,” the man said slowly. “You were unlucky enough to fall into the Ruo Shui River.”
“My name is Xiao Man. May I ask my benefactor’s name?”
“My name is Huo Lei, and I live in the nearby White Wolf Village,” Huo Lei introduced himself. “By the way, you still haven’t told me why you came here.”
“I was being chased and fled here,” Xiao Man said, looking around. “My spiritual power seems unusable here.”
Huo Lei nodded. “The Wastes are a separate space. The rules here are different from outside. The people here cultivate something other than spiritual energy. Those from outside who come here naturally cannot use their spiritual energy.”
“Excuse me, how can I leave here?” Xiao Man didn’t want to stay in the Wastes for too long. She wanted to find a way out as soon as possible and reunite with Nangong Yu and the others, so they wouldn’t worry.
“Leave here?” Huo Lei scratched his head with some difficulty. “I’ve never left here. Perhaps the Shaman knows how to leave. Come back to our village with me, and ask the Shaman.”
“In that case, please lead the way, benefactor.”
After they finished the roasted fish, Huo Lei signaled Xiao Man to follow him. They walked for about an hour before they saw a village.
“That is White Wolf Village. We worship the White Wolf God,” Huo Lei explained to Xiao Man. “In the Wastes, when we encounter a white wolf, we offer it our hunted prey to pray for the White Wolf God’s protection.”
“Are there many villages like this here?”
“Yes, there are twelve villages in total, and each village worships a different deity,” Huo Lei said, walking in front of Xiao Man. “In our Wastes, if a man brings a girl back, he must carry her…”
Xiao Man looked Huo Lei up and down, then nodded. Huo Lei was about to pick Xiao Man up when she stepped forward and slung Huo Lei over her shoulder. Although Huo Lei was strong and her spiritual power was unusable, her physical strength was still rarely matched.
Huo Lei was a bit confused by Xiao Man’s actions. “Miss Xiao Man, something seems to be wrong.”
Xiao Man walked towards White Wolf Village, saying, “Can’t I carry you on my right side? Should I switch to the left?”
“It’s not that.”
“Is the carrying posture wrong?” Xiao Man stopped. “Should I hold you with both hands to go in?”
“No, I should be the one carrying you in,” Su Dan Novel Network.
“Isn’t it the same if I carry you?” Xiao Man asked, confused. “Look, if you hadn’t saved me, I would have drowned in the Ruo Shui River. How could I let you continue to be tired? It’s the same if I carry you.”
Huo Lei’s expression was a bit strange. This girl looked frail, yet she could carry him. She was much stronger than the girls in their village. It seemed one couldn’t judge a book by its cover.
“You look quite thin, Miss Xiao Man. Won’t it be too tiring to carry me? How about I carry you instead?”
Xiao Man said seriously, “I’m not tired. When I hunted demonic beasts before, those beasts were much heavier than you, and I could carry them back. Carrying you is no problem.”
“Miss Xiao Man, a girl carrying a man is perhaps a bit improper,” Huo Lei said, blushing. “Let me carry you instead.”
“What’s improper about it? Your village rules state that when bringing a girl back to the village, she must be carried. It doesn’t say that a man must carry the woman. A girl carrying a man is also carrying, it’s all the same.”
Huo Lei thought about it and agreed. It was all carrying, so who carried whom didn’t make a difference.
But looking at his build and then at Xiao Man’s, he felt as if Xiao Man was carrying him like a wild boar. He couldn’t help but wonder if this girl mistook him for a wild boar.
The people of White Wolf Village watched as a girl carried a man towards their village. The man’s clothes looked familiar.
“Is that Huo Lei?”
“It seems so!” another person replied. “And he’s brought a girl!”
The villagers, hearing that Huo Lei had returned and brought a girl, all ran out to see. When they saw Huo Lei being carried back by a girl, their smiles froze. They all looked at the two with disbelieving eyes!
Huo Lei was the warrior of their White Wolf Village, and he was being carried back by a girl!
“Huo Lei, what happened?” the Shaman, hearing that Huo Lei was being carried back, thought he was injured. When he came out, he saw Huo Lei being carried by a girl.
Huo Lei signaled Xiao Man to put him down. “Shaman, I’m fine. This is Miss Xiao Man. She wants to know the way to leave the Wastes, but I’ve never left the Wastes, so I don’t know the way. I brought her back to ask the Shaman.”
The Shaman looked at Xiao Man. She was slender and looked frail, but carrying Huo Lei back proved she was not as weak as she appeared.
“Look at her small arms and legs, how did she carry Huo Lei back?”
“Who knows? She probably looks frail but is actually very strong,” the villagers whispered. In the Wastes, when a warrior fancied a girl and wanted to bring her back to the village, he would carry her, indicating that she was the woman he desired. But today, Huo Lei was being carried back by a girl. Did it mean the girl didn’t fancy Huo Lei, or that she fancied him and wanted to snatch him away?
“Girl, you followed him back just to ask for directions?” the Shaman asked, confused.
Xiao Man cupped her fist. “ I inadvertently stumbled into your sacred place, unfamiliar with the land. Fortunately, benefactor Huo Lei’s righteousness and assistance saved me from peril. I did not wish to trouble you further, but I do not know the way out. I implore the Shaman for guidance.”
The Shaman sighed. “Girl, once you enter the Wastes, you cannot leave.”
“Cannot leave?” Xiao Man asked, confused. “Don’t you people ever go out?”
“The Wastes are a self-contained realm. Here, everything is self-sufficient, and there is no need to go out. We do not go out, therefore, there is no way out,” the Shaman explained. “However, since you were able to enter, there must be a way out. It’s just that I’m afraid I cannot help you.”
“If even the Shaman doesn’t know, then who knows the way out?” Huo Lei asked, puzzled.
“I don’t know either,” the Shaman shook his head. “Since you are here, girl, why not stay here for now? It’s not too late to leave when you find a way.”
“In that case, I will impose upon you.”