One thousand meters, two thousand meters, amidst the sound of winds above the sea of clouds, an airplane was racing against Little White Jiao, with Xiao Xian’s face turning the color of a chili pepper.
"Report to the captain, there’s a suspicious creature approaching ahead," the pilot onboard observed the red dot on the radar. As the speeding airplane affected the radar signal, he was sure that there was a lifeform ahead, not particularly large in size, and it hadn’t come too close, maintaining about a thousand meters distance from the plane. The speed of the plane remained constant. The captain hesitated on whether to inform the airport authorities.
Inside the cabin, a little boy had a pair of binoculars hanging around his neck. It was his first time flying, and no sooner had the plane stabilized, he climbed onto his seat against his father’s wishes and started looking outside at the clouds.
"Such tiny houses, so many clouds. Dad, come and look, over there is a little girl, she’s riding a... horse," the little boy was certain, if it wasn’t a horse being ridden, then what else could it be.
If White Flood Dragon heard this, it would surely vomit blood in frustration. It’s not a horse, why doesn’t anyone understand?
"Sit down quickly, or the flight attendant auntie will come and take your binoculars," the little boy’s father took away the binoculars, ignoring the boy’s wailing.
"Enough, dumplings, let’s go down." Xiao Xian felt utterly drained, barely managing to hold onto White Flood Dragon’s scales. If Little White Jiao had any ill intentions, a slight shake of its body would be enough to throw Xiao Xian off to her demise, but it didn’t do that. It didn’t dare.
At around six thousand meters in the sky, Xiao Xian’s face had turned from red to a color of red copper. Inside the space, Little Xianmiao quivered and sprouted a few leaves, no longer just two seed leaves, but four — two emerald green and two red copper.
The garbage space had upgraded, in mid-air, from Iron-grade to copper-grade, truly a hair-raising moment for her.
Little White Jiao couldn’t wait to return to the space to see if the upgraded space’s Spiritual Power had also undergone corresponding changes. It looked back at its owner, its already large eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets, "Little Master, your face, no, not just your face, but your height as well."
Before the space upgrade, eight-year-old Xiao Xian was a plump little girl with cheeks like buns and her hair always tied in a braid.
During the recent sudden ascent, her hair had been tousled. Now, aside from having a bit of flesh still on her cheeks, Xiao Xian’s chin was pointier, her features had changed; the corners of her eyes lifted slightly, her nose became pointed, her lips a rosy red, and even her hair had grown a few inches longer, smooth and sleek as it flowed with a black luster. Her height had shot up by about thirty to forty centimeters from her previously short and stout frame, now standing at roughly one meter forty, she looked like a beautiful young girl of about twelve or thirteen.
"What’s wrong, is my complexion that bad?" As Little White Jiao followed the railroad tracks to Guiyang, checking the time, the train journey of several hours was covered by Little White Jiao in just an hour—indeed, a great mount for traveling.
Xiao Xian dismounted from the dragon, stretching her limbs. Her first trip "riding a dragon" had coincided with a space upgrade, and she wondered if this was a stroke of great luck. As she stretched, she finally noticed her own hands and feet. She had dressed to enter the city today, so she had changed into a pair of denim jeans and a checked shirt brought over from Beijing. Over the last two years, Xiao Xian hadn’t grown much, so her clothes still fit her, but now everything was out of order.
The knee-length shorts had directly become hot pants, while the checked shirt had turned into a crop top. The shoes on her feet no longer fit either. Looking at her arms, they were long and strong, and her fingers were thin and lengthy, seeming incredibly nimble.
"The breakthrough of the space even brings the benefit of growing taller, haha, I want to see how Yezi will still mock me for being short after he comes back." Xiao Xian landed near Guiyang Railway Station where there was a bustle of passengers, and her current appearance was indeed eye-catching.
Since the sports shoes she was wearing no longer fit, the length of the pants didn’t matter much, but the top needed to be changed. Xiao Xian knew that going out required money, so she had brought all her savings—two years of New Year’s money and occasional pocket money from her grandfather, which added up to about three hundred yuan. For an eight-year-old child, this was definitely a considerable amount of money.
In a big city, a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl standing alone at the train station would certainly raise doubts, but Guizhou is a province with a large number of migrant workers—it’s common for teenagers as young as thirteen or fourteen to leave home for work.
Xiao Xian let White Flood Dragon into the space and walked out of the train station. There was a clothing vendor nearby. After some thought, Xiao Xian chose a fitted T-shirt and a proper pair of shoes; the shorts did not need to be replaced.
After leaving the clothing vendor, she blended in with the middle school students on the streets of Guiyang.
"Let’s grab something to eat first, then ask around where Blue Sky Apartment is?" Xiao Xian mumbled to herself, searching for a place to dine.
While she was looking, a young woman in a hurry brushed past her from behind. Neither of them paid attention to the other and bumped into each other.
"Sorry," Zhuo Feng was quick to apologize, but the other person just smiled, shook her head to indicate it was not a problem.
"How could they let a young child alone at the station, parents nowadays are too careless," Zhuo Feng watched the girl walk towards a noodle stand and couldn’t help thinking about his own shortcomings as a guardian. After such a long search, he had finally found news of Zhu Shijun at Guiyang Police Station and rushed to Guiyang. This time, he must find his niece.
And so, Xiao Xian and Zhuo Feng brushed past each other without recognizing each other. In Xiao Xian’s memory, there was no Zhuo Feng. And Zhuo Feng’s memory of Xiao Xian was also frozen when she was a six-year-old girl.
"Boss, a bowl of pickled vegetable and pork shredded noodles." Xiao Xian found a noodle stand and ordered a bowl for two yuan, it was the afternoon and there weren’t many people eating noodles.
After finishing her noodles, Xiao Xian chatted with the owner and found out the location of "Blue Sky Apartment" in Guiyang’s Baiyun District. (To be continued. If you work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket, monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation.)