Chapter 1535: Little Girl

Chapter 1539: Little Nannan

A strong wind blew, sending wild leaves dancing and stirring up layers of sand. Many weeds were uprooted. This was Luzhou in the north, a desolate and bitterly cold place.

Ye Fan and his companions crossed the strait, traveling northwest until they reached this place. They no longer concerned themselves with what was happening behind them, but news occasionally reached their ears: the Golden Crow tribe was utterly defeated. Numerous powerful cultivators flapped their wings wildly, fleeing to the ends of the earth, astounding the entire world.

No one had imagined that the mere child from back then would grow to this extent today. After years of exile abroad, he returned and piled up the corpses of the Golden Crow lineage into mountains.

Ye Tong forged a formidable reputation on Ziwei Star, all for the sole purpose of avenging his parents. All those who had taken action against them in the past were within his hunting range.

The starry sky was stained with blood, the earth reeked of malice. The Golden Crow tribe's blood flowed like rivers, and disheveled feathers scattered.

Shenzhou, Hezhou, Luzhou, and other regions were all in an uproar. A dignified and supremely powerful tribe had thus fallen into ruin, their ancestral land breached by outsiders, shocking the entire world.

The Golden Crow tribe was finished! This was the common consensus.

On this day, many people kicked them while they were down, taking action one after another. Major powers and some powerful rogue cultivators specifically targeted isolated Golden Crows, causing this tribe to be almost annihilated.

As for the Golden Crow tribe's assets in various places, they were naturally completely divided up. This was reality: when a fierce tiger falls, packs of wolves rise up and attack en masse. A formidable major tribe was thus annihilated.

The Golden Crow King had his head personally severed by Ye Tong and placed before the ruins of the Sun God Court, a blood sacrifice to the vengeful spirits. On this day, Ye Tong cried bitterly as years of blood feud, repressed indignation, and immense sorrow all poured out.

The eastern Shenzhou surged with chaos and hubbub, and Luzhou in the northern lands was also restless. Everyone moved with the wind, going to fish in troubled waters. All of this was unrelated to Ye Fan and Li Tian, and no one paid them any attention.

The Golden Crow tribe was on the verge of annihilation; there was no need for them to take action or pay attention. Finding Little Nannan was most important.

However, after seeing them display their divine might, some people followed their tracks from behind. They vaguely felt there was something unusual about these three and wanted to get to the bottom of it.

There was no telling how many eyes across the world were watching the situation.

"Do these people have dog noses? They actually want to track us!" Li Tian exclaimed.

In this world, few could naturally track them; they could shake them off in an instant. However, they couldn't stop determined individuals from persisting. Some major powers secretly investigated, observing their path from the past few days. When they discovered the group was heading northwest, suspicions arose in their minds.

The north wind swept across the land, snapping white grass in the northwest. In some places, scattered snowflakes drifted year-round.

The further Ye Fan walked, the more he frowned. Could Little Nannan, with her frail body, truly survive in this desolate place? He felt a pang of worry.

"It seems that only in bitter cold lands can one avoid those Holy Sects," Yan Yixi said. "The more abundant the spiritual energy, the more dangerous the place."

How Little Nannan managed to travel so far alone was perplexing and likely unexplainable; the poor little one carried many secrets.

"Is that little girl very special, making you all this tense?" the Divine Child pouted.

"Dummy, talk less; no one thinks you're mute," Li Tian said, habitually slapping him on the backside.

"Pervert, I remember this is the 105th time! You'll regret this someday!" the little fatty said indignantly.

Mountains undulated. Some regions were covered in white snow, while others still had lush greenery. This was the northern land, where different parts of this bitter cold region showed varying characteristics.

Of course, the mountain peaks were always silvery-white, and greenery only appeared below the slopes. But occasionally, even those parts would be entirely covered by snow.

Passing through a small town, Ye Fan saw a child begging in the street and immediately rushed over, but he was extremely disappointed. Although the child was of a similar age, it wasn't the one he sought.

He left some food, quietly slipped her some money and valuables, and then silently withdrew.

Upon reaching the north, resources were scarce and the lives of mortals were very impoverished, far inferior to the warm southern lands. There were many vagrants, all heading south.

Half a month later, they entered the ice plain. It was even colder here, a complete scene of a northern land with howling cold winds.

Of course, even in this extremely cold region, there were some special places where spiritual energy gushed forth, turning the severe cold ice and snow into streams, creating oases where vegetation grew.

Upon reaching here, Ye Fan's frown deepened even further.

"Caw!"

In the distance, snowy white ice crows were flying. They were a special kind of ominous bird, similar to crows but entirely white with the same calls.

A fierce beast had died, attracting hundreds of carrion birds that pecked at the icy flesh and fed on the decaying bones. The scene was bloody.

"These carrion birds have demonic aura," Yan Yixi said. "Some individuals are close to becoming demons. The extremely cold lands are home to unique fierce beasts and demonic birds. Although ordinary people can kill them, living in such an environment is truly difficult."

Along this journey, they witnessed the hardships of life in desolate lands. The fertility of a piece of land was crucial to the survival of certain ethnic groups.

"Some people are truly capable of harboring mischievous intentions," one observed. "Even if they don't understand the reason, they've sent out so many people. They're also heading northwest, and quite a few cultivators have appeared over the past few days."

"It seems there will be complications in finding Little Nannan. These people have smelled blood and might have guessed something."

Although some people had also found their way here, Ye Fan and his companions weren't too worried; they simply felt disgusted. This group of people seemed to have dog noses.

"The Immortal Burial of Luzhou, left behind by our sect's ancestors, is forbidden to you all," someone declared.

Someone in the northern lands keenly sensed something and sternly rebuked the outside forces, forbidding them from approaching, fabricating a tale about an "Immortal Burial of Luzhou" that didn't exist.

This naturally had no effect; instead, it caused more people to gather.

Some major powers adopted a "let's give it a try" attitude, sending out their forces, hoping that if they could stumble upon a divine treasure, it would be a worthwhile trip.

"Come on, come on, chase me!" This was a very desolate corner of the northwest, a small village where snow and ice flew. Some children dressed in animal skins ran and chased each other in the snow.

These children, born in a harsh land, were all very robust and not spoiled or pampered. Some slightly older children even carried small wooden bows and arrows and had hunted snow rabbits.

In the distance, in front of the village, a lonely small figure appeared. She watched the children in the village with longing and a hint of fear.

She was covered in dirt, her small clothes already torn. She was a true little beggar, having fallen countless times in the icy snow, and her body was covered in ice chips.

Her small face was red from the cold, and her whole body was ragged and pitiful. Only her pair of large eyes remained somewhat bright, showing a look of hope as she gazed longingly at the children in the village.

"The little beggar is here again..." a child shouted.

Many children simultaneously looked over, all turning to the little girl, who was about three years old, and staring at her for a long time.

"Don't play with her!" a slightly older boy shouted.

"Little beggar, don't come here anymore! We won't give you food! Go away quickly!" some others shouted.

"Go away quickly!" many people shouted.

The little girl, about three years old, lowered her head aggrievedly, looking at her torn little shoes. With tears in her eyes, she quietly said, "I'm not here for food, I just want to play with you."

"We won't play with you, you're a monster!" a slightly older girl shouted angrily.

"Nannan is not a monster; I'm human."

The little girl said aggrievedly, lowering her head even further as tears welled up in her eyes.

"You still say you're not a monster!" a teenage boy said indignantly. "Grandpa Xu and Grandma adopted you, but after nearly ten years, you still haven't grown up. They raised you to care for them in their old age, yet both old people died first, and you haven't changed at all. You're the one who killed Grandpa Xu and Grandma!"

"Nannan didn't harm Grandpa and Grandma, really not," the little girl said, shaking her head as tears fell, facing the snowy ground all alone.

"Go away quickly! You're a monster! You're the one who killed Grandpa Xu and Grandma! Go away!" many people shouted.

"Don't be like this, the little beggar is very pitiful," said a girl who wasn't very old. "She drifted to our village like this back then. If you drive her out now, she'll freeze or starve to death."

"Xiao Cao, don't pity her recklessly. She's a monster," another child retorted.

"She often forgets things; I really don't know what kind of monster she is."

"Nannan hasn't forgotten everything," the little girl said quietly. "I remember Grandpa Xu and Grandma, and Nannan also remembers a big brother and a dog."

"Hmph, you used to meet with us often, and sometimes you'd forget," another child scoffed. "We don't want to bother with you anymore."

"Nannan didn't mean to. I don't know what's wrong; I wasn't like this before. Nannan might be sick," the little girl said timidly, tears welling up.

"Never mind. If she won't go, we will. Let's ignore her," many children decided, running towards the village.

The little girl turned around alone, wiping away tears. She set off on her own, walking into the wind and snow. Her small, lonely figure looked heartbreaking.

"Little Nannan!" someone called from behind. The girl who had sympathized with her earlier, named Xiao Cao, ran out and quietly asked, "Are you hungry?"

"Very hungry," the little girl said quietly, lowering her head.

"Here," Xiao Cao said, taking out some food and putting it in her hand.

"Xiao Cao, come back quickly! She's a monster; she eats people!" a child shouted from behind. "Last time, an old Daoist priest passed by here and took her into a demon tower to refine her, but people say the old Daoist priest himself died instead."

"Thank you, elder sister. Nannan has a bead here for you," the little girl said, wiping her tears and handing a diamond-like crystal to Xiao Cao. She murmured, "I only get this kind of thing when I'm most sad. When Grandpa Xu and Grandma passed away, it appeared by my side."

Finally, a little girl in ragged clothes walked alone into the wind and snow, heading into the distance. Her figure was lonely, and the heavy snow almost engulfed her.

Her voice was very tender, and with tears on her face, she murmured, "Nannan still remembers a big brother and a dog, but they're all gone now..."

Wind and snow danced. The lonely little body left shallow footprints in the deep snow, leading far into the distance.