Douluo Continent: Martial Soul Young Gilas, Sandstorm King!

Chapter 154 I can't stand it!

The tense body gradually relaxed as the wheels swayed and Lin Xia brought a sense of security, no longer in a state of constant stress as it had been at the Zhu residence.

Although Lin Xia's eyes were closed, her powerful mental energy, like an invisible spider web, had already enveloped the area within hundreds of meters around the carriage.

Less than half an hour after the carriage left Xingluo City, he clearly sensed two powerful yet subtle auras creeping up on him like a persistent, insidious infection.

Their auras were extremely well concealed, like shadows blending into the air. If it weren't for Lin Xia's spiritual power being far beyond that of ordinary people, and the passive ability of Young Gilas that was enhanced by dragon blood and made him exceptionally sensitive to energy fluctuations, ordinary soul masters would have no way of detecting them.

These are two Soul Saints!

Moreover, he was no ordinary Soul Saint; he was an expert who was extremely skilled in stealth and tracking!

Lin Xia understood.

This must have been Zhu Zhan's doing.

The ruthless patriarch ultimately couldn't let go of his beloved youngest daughter.

After the anger came a deeper worry, and this was the only way to ensure safety.

Sending a Soul Saint to protect him secretly, rather than launching a high-profile pursuit, was the limit of compromise Zhu Zhan could make between rules and family ties.

A barely perceptible smile appeared on Lin Xia's lips.

He didn't point it out or make any statement, as if he were completely unaware.

It's good to have Zhu Zhan send someone to follow them; at least it will save us a lot of real trouble.

Lin Xia would be happy if these two "shadows" were sensible enough to protect them from the shadows and not interfere with their actions.

He refocused his attention on his plans.

Get a replacement for the gem on the Starry Crown!
The journey is indeed long; at the speed of an ordinary carriage, it will probably take some time.

However, this was exactly what Lin Xia wanted.

Away from the suffocating political vortex and family infighting of Xingluo City, Zhu Zhuqing was able to temporarily escape those cold calculations and malicious gazes, and catch her breath in a relatively free environment, to see the vast world.

"Yo-ji?"

Young Gilas seemed to sense Lin Xia's thoughts, raised its little head, and uttered a short question.

"Yes, we'll be there soon."

Lin Xia opened her eyes, rubbed Young Gilas's increasingly hardened head, and looked gently at Zhu Zhuqing, who was still gazing out the window across from her.

"Zhu Qing".

Zhu Zhuqing turned her head at the sound, her clear eyes looking at Lin Xia with less of the emptiness before and more focused questioning.

"We'll pass through a small town ahead, where we'll rest and resupply."

Lin Xia's voice carried a calming power.

Zhu Zhuqing looked at Lin Xia, then at the spirited young Gilas beside him, before turning her gaze back to the boundless greenery and distant mountain shadows outside the car window.

She nodded gently, without a trace of fear. Instead, something seemed to be quietly awakening in the depths of her silent eyes as the wheels rolled on.

"Ah."

She responded softly, but her voice held a faint hint of liveliness that was more pronounced than when she was at the Zhu residence.

"Brother Lin Xia".

Her voice was very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something, with a clear and melodious quality unique to children, yet with a calmness far beyond her years.

Why are you so good to me?

She paused, her long eyelashes fluttering slightly like butterfly wings, casting shadows on her pale face.

"They've all given up on me." She said this with unusual calmness, as if stating a fact that had nothing to do with her.

But Lin Xia could hear the deep-seated confusion and bewilderment beneath that calm tone, as well as a longing for this "untimely" warmth that she herself had not fully realized.

The family rules are cold and cruel; the father tacitly approves of indifference; the sister is tempered through suffering; and the servants are sycophantic…

The whole world seemed to have quietly closed the door to kindness the moment her ghostly cat awakened.

Lin Xia's presence became the only oasis in this desert, but it also made her feel an almost illusory unease.

Lin Xia was silent.

Young Gilas lay beside him, its scarlet eyes glancing at Zhu Zhuqing, then at its master. It seemed to sense the stagnant air brought about by this heavy question, and let out a low "yoji" sound.

Time seemed to stretch out for a few breaths.

Lin Xia's gaze swept over Zhu Zhuqing's clenched knuckles, which had turned white—these were the scars she had left when she was struggling in the Star Soul Palace. Although they had scabbed over, they were still like a silent brand.

He remembered the way she held her breath behind the vase, the quiet profile of her sitting in the corner with a book in her arms, and even more so, the small face under the moonlight, streaked with tears and forcing a broken smile.

Finally, Lin Xia raised her head. In her dark golden pupils, there was no perfunctory comfort or pitying sigh, only a calm and almost sharp clarity.

"actually……"

He spoke, his voice not loud, yet it pierced through the heavy fog in Zhu Zhuqing's heart.

"I do not know why either."

This opening made Zhu Zhuqing pause slightly.

Lin Xia did not avoid her gaze and continued speaking, his tone carrying a youthful, unpretentious frankness.

If I had to give an explanation, it would probably be—

He paused, as if searching for the most precise words, then clearly uttered those three words:
"I can't stand it."

"I can't stand those people's faces, I can't stand this rule that treats people as pawns and sacrifices, and I can't stand their indifference and trampling under the pretext of 'fate'."

Lin Xia's voice was calm, without any fierce accusations, but it contained an undeniable and firm strength, like a rock that had sunk to the bottom of the water.

"Therefore, I choose to help you."

He took a small step forward, getting closer to Zhu Zhuqing, his gaze falling on her upturned face, trying to dispel the last trace of hesitation in her eyes.

“This is neither a favor nor an investment. So Zhuqing, you don’t need to feel any burden. It’s like seeing a wildflower about to be trampled by the roadside and helping it up. That’s all.”

"Yoji!"

Young Kiras responded promptly, as if to confirm its master's words, and nuzzled Zhu Zhuqing's cool little hand with its head.

The hard carapace, covered in the dark red sheen of dragon blood, was warm, conveying a clumsy yet genuine sense of comfort.

Zhu Zhuqing did not press the matter further.

She just sat there quietly, letting the young Gilas rub against her hand, with only Lin Xia's words "I can't stand it" echoing repeatedly in her mind.

There were no false promises, no condescending pity, only a heartfelt and frank "disapproval".

This feeling of "disapproval" was like a ray of light, instantly piercing through the heavy gloom of "being abandoned" that shrouded her heart.

It turns out that not everyone is subdued by the so-called rules of fate. At least this person in front of me doesn't care about those things; he only cares about what he "can't stand."

A faint yet incredibly clear ray of light, like a tender sprout breaking through the soil, quietly ignited deep within her eyes, which were as still and cold as a deep pool.

That wasn't blind optimism about the future, but a rekindled awareness of "possibilities"—that the world wasn't just about the cold rules of the Zhu family and the cruel iron laws of Xingluo, but also about a force called the persistence of "not being able to stand it."

Although the light was faint, it possessed a newfound resilience, stubbornly shimmering in her pupils.

(End of this chapter)