In the frigid lands, after my exile, I began to slay demons and monsters.

Chapter 137 System Testing

The ice-blue snowflakes haven't changed much, except that there's now a pink flower center in the middle.

Ning Xiaoxi didn't move her two raised fingers, just watching as the snowflakes with their flower-like centers gradually blushed with pale pink onto the icy blue background. The color was becoming more and more adorable, but... but how did it just blend in so naturally?

Ning Xiaoxi stretched out her fingers and rubbed them heavily on the wristband a few times, finding that the light pink color had become even darker and cuter!

The spiritual energy circulated and covered the entire snowflake, causing a few drops of water to cling to it, just like morning dew.

"Tuanzi, you're lying to me! The spirit mark hasn't been dispelled; it's still there!"

[Who's lying to you? Who's lying to you? I never lie. The soul trail was removed when you obtained the Snow Maiden's Heart. It's the Snow Maiden's Heart, formed from the essence of demonic energy of a transcendent being. Having lost its home, it naturally needed to find a vessel, and the soul trail you encountered was its vessel!]

Ning Xiaoxi was exasperated. [What? I'm supposed to keep it?]

"There's nothing we can do about it. You were afflicted by the Soul Mark! It can only be effective here. If placed elsewhere, it will quickly disappear because it can't absorb the demonic energy."

"You mean, it's consuming the demonic energy emanating from the Soul Trace!"

[Just enough to keep us from starving!]

【Then let it starve to death! Aren't we here to slay demons and monsters? If we feed it and it comes back to life, who's to blame?】

Tuanzi froze, blinking her little black eyes as she stared at the snowflake, somewhat puzzled. "How do I know about demons?"

Ning Xiaoxi narrowed her eyes. The Snow Maiden's Heart was something that had never been recorded on the continent before. Later, seeing the carnage of the demon race being slaughtered on the mountain, Tuanzi even felt compassion. [Tuanzi, what happened to you while you were getting the skills?]

Tuanzi turned to look at Ning Xiaoxi with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong?"

You've leveled up?

No!

Did you format it?

"How is that possible?" The voice became shrill.

"How could I let you know if I really formatted it?" Ning Xiaoxi raised an eyebrow. "Shut down!"

[System is shutting down...]

The system has been shut down.

Ning Xiaoxi then noticed that the creatures in the cave were all obediently gathered under the three mulberry trees, quietly sensing something.

【Dumpling?】

No response.

【Dumpling?】

There was still no response.

Could it be that he's lying to her like last time? The black bead soaking in the mulberry sap popped up, turned left once, turned right once, and then quickly turned left and right once.

The jade cabbage hanging on the branch swayed from side to side.

The Spirit Crystal Heart hung obediently, having transformed all day; it was quite tired.

Two faint shadows appeared on the distant spirit crystal dragon, both shaking their heads at Ning Xiaoxi.

Ning Xiaoxi lowered her head and urged the reindeer to continue walking. She then took out a piece of dried meat from her pocket and began to chew on it.

She already had humans and demons living in her cave, so raising a demon wouldn't seem like a big deal. But she didn't want to! What if they grew up and started a war between humans, demons, and monsters inside her body? What would she do then?

Haha, that's her cave dwelling. If that day ever comes, she'll clear it out!

Ning Xiaoxi suddenly froze! Her heart began to pound uncontrollably.

Stop thinking about it, stop thinking about it!

Ning Xiaoxi wiped non-existent sweat from her forehead. Ha, ha, ha~, nothing's wrong, nothing's wrong!

At this moment, a thin black line slowly appeared on the horizon to the right.

Ning Xiaoxi blinked, realizing she had spotted the caravan. She straightened up and looked again, but it was still quite far away.

【live streaming!】

Huh, there's no reaction. Looks like this skill doesn't belong to her, it belongs to Tuanzi.

We need to find a way to get this skill! It feels like a loss that such a useful ability isn't ours.

Regardless, after two days of traveling alone, it's not easy to run into a group, so let's say hello!

While pondering, Ning Xiaoxi spurred the reindeer toward the direction of the caravan.

In response to her thoughts, the team dispatched three cavalrymen from afar to meet her.

As Ning Xiaoxi watched the three cavalrymen getting closer and closer, she inexplicably felt a strange sense of mutual attraction and couldn't help but chuckle to herself.

"Ning, the official?" The cavalryman's brief words carried powerfully from afar.

"Lord Xiong." Ning Xiaoxi couldn't help but slap the reindeer's side when she saw that it was Xiong Wei, the escort officer from Youzhou. The reindeer then ran away quickly.

The two sides quickly joined forces, with Xiong Wei leading the way. The other two cavalrymen lagged behind by two horse lengths and did not approach.

"Is Officer Ning finished with your business?" Xiong Wei's cold face softened when he saw Ning Xiaoxi, after all, she was a comrade-in-arms who had fought alongside him.

Ning Xiaoxi was also very happy to run into an acquaintance. "Yes, I've finished everything and am on my way to Fufang County! I didn't expect to meet you again, sir. What a coincidence!"

"We delivered the people safely this time, and the mission went very smoothly, so we'll give the caravan a ride on the return trip." Xiong Wei was unusually talkative. "The weather is starting to warm up, and the caravans are starting to travel again. I heard from Lord Ning that your maternal relatives are merchants. If you have the chance, you can visit them more often. We have many specialties from the north."

“My uncle is thinking the same thing. Our family wants to settle down here. My family is worried about my mother, so they will keep in touch. Merchants need to be able to travel all over the country to do good business.” Ning Xiaoxi subconsciously took out a handful of dried meat from her bosom and handed it to Xiong Wei. “When my uncle arrives in Youzhou, I will have him come to you to see if our army needs any goods from the south. My family is familiar with the roads in the south, and it is convenient for goods to travel there. Just tell my uncle what you need.”

Xiong Wei didn't stand on ceremony with Ning Xiaoxi. He took the jerky and took a bite. He felt a surge of heat flow into his stomach with the jerky. He looked down at the jerky and exclaimed, "This is the meat of a demon beast?"

"Ah!" Ning Xiaoxi was a little confused. She accepted the Kuiwei Mountain Moon when it was given to her. She used it to chew because it was chewy, but she didn't think there was anything special about it!

Xiong Wei carefully put the handful of jerky into his pocket. Really, Ning Xiaoxi's hands were a bit small, so there weren't many pieces in a handful.

Seeing how much Xiong Wei cherished it, Ning Xiaoxi wasn't stingy at all. What did it matter if her hands were small? She could just grab a few more handfuls.

Xiong Wei quickly stopped him, "This is unacceptable, this is unacceptable, enough is enough!"

Ning Xiaoxi grabbed a few more handfuls and gave them to Xiong Wei before stopping, saying, "Good things should be shared with friends!"

Xiong Wei smiled gently. "When Ning Shuguan's maternal uncle arrives in Youzhou, he must come to my house as a guest. I will ask my elder brother to treat him well."

Ning Xiaoxi's eyes lit up, and she took out two more and handed them over, "Don't worry, my uncle is the most honest person, he never cheats anyone, young or old."

As they spoke, the caravan had already arrived.