Fang Hau lightly knocked on the wall before pushing it open. Once the door opened, he stepped inside with a plain expression. In his right hand, he held a brown cane with silver flower patterns inlaid into it.
He glanced at Zixin, tossing the cane without a care in the world. Zixin's hand reacted, catching the cane.
"Oh, thank you," Zixin spoke lightly, shifting his gaze to his new cane.
He weighed it and thought: It's actually pretty light. I bet I could swing it around… wait, I probably shouldn't, I mean, if it breaks, how would I walk?
Forget it, I should rest for now since my injuries are all patched up. Zixin nodded in approval, closing his eyes and taking a rest.
"That's a strange-looking cane. Really, a flower pattern?" Hope shot Fang Hau a curious look, her expression mixed with a hint of confusion as though her worldview was being contradicted by the sight at hand.
"And what of it? It seemed suitable when I searched through the storage room." Fang replied plainly, leaving the room the next second.
Hope leaned back on her chair with a haggard expression.
"This morning is too eventful… I just want some good-old sleep." Hope soon fell asleep, her body subconsciously leaning back on the chair.
A few hours later, Zixin woke up. He quickly stood up, holding the cane in his left hand, and left the room.
Inside the hallway, he walked with a cane in hand. Before he took a step, he would first raise the cane and move it forward before finally taking his step; he repeated this over and over again until it started to become an instinct.
Once he stepped inside the Throne room, he swept his gaze across the vast space but found no trace of blood or any trace of the wolf at all.
How did it disappear? I swear that I left it here. Hmm? Sigh, Fang Hau probably took it. The question now is: where did he place it? Zixin's gaze fell, but a second later, his eyes lit up.
But before he left, he noticed that one of the banners hanging on the walls had a water with steam pattern woven onto it. He didn't give it much thought before deciding to leave.
Zixin shifted his body, heading back to the empty hallway. After half an hour had passed, he found a large wooden door.
Its edges were covered with a thin metal; however, due to time's influence, they were already rusty. The wooden door showed signs of decay with some dark spots at the edges. Zixin's gaze landed on the metallic handle.
He raised his cane slightly, pushing the door open with the cane's endpoint. The door creaked open, revealing a dim green light illuminating half the room.
However, this wasn't what caught Zixin's attention. A disgusting scent infiltrated his nostrils, so he quickly squeezed his nose closed.
He inhaled a large gulp of air, holding his breath as he stepped into the room.
The sight of boxes stacked upon one another entered his vision, causing his thoughts to race: This place might be a storage room, and based on this scent, the corpse is probably nearby.
He searched around, shifting his gaze, but he found nothing; all he had was the scent.
He exhaled, letting out an irritated expression, but the next moment, the boxes started floating before flying to the corners the next moment.
Zixin crossed his arms, taking in the hits from the boxes, and a second later, the boxes were left neatly organized at the edges.
Zixin scratched the back of his head before a strong scent of decay infiltrated his nostrils.
His pupils dilated, and before long, he vomited. His breathing quickly grew heavy as his sight drifted to the wolf corpse.
Zixin's vision grew blurry as he rightfully closed his eyes, splitting his mind and entering the White Palace.
After a few steps, he sat down, stretching his hand out to the corpse. Suddenly, a wave of killing intent originating from the corpse surged through his hand, infiltrating his mind.
He puked out blood, his fingers turning numb through contact.
He breathed deeply, closing his eyes and concentrating.
He manipulated his thoughts, creating a gigantic spherical barrier that slowly condensed into a smaller form. The purple thought–the killing intent was locked inside, unable to escape as the sphere's size became a dot, crushing all the killing intent.
Zixin withdrew his hand, staring with an unreadable expression at the corpse. He let out a heavy sigh as his thoughts moved: Monsters are truly odd creatures. Despite them being at the end of a day, simply animals who gained amplified strength, they still manage to surpass the norms. I wonder, how do monsters connect back to Restrictions? After all, aren't they born in restriction-abundant areas? Could it be less about the Restrictions but more about the nearby life essence?
Zixin shook his head, tossing the thought aside and placing his attention on the corpse.
Inside the White Palace, he gathered his thoughts, which were like light spheres and formed a brick wall that seemed to reach the heavens.
He took a deep breath before stretching his hand out. Killing intent surged, his hands going numb the next second. An intense burning sensation came from the flowing killing intent.
The killing intent entered the White Palace, surging like waves, crashing into the wall. Zixin's mind raised both arms forward, his palms facing the walls, holding them together.
The waves grew taller and taller, smashing the walls and testing Zixin's mental fortitude. Once an area was broken through, he would send out a thought, fixing the spot.
Hours later, the walls were left as thin as paper. The walls soon crumbled, and debris fell like rain as Zixin noticed a figure behind.
Zixin took a deep breath, reforming the walls just as the figure began to condense into a wolf.
Its eyes were bloodshot with fury, whilst its fur was ash-grey, giving off a deathly aura. Purple fog emanated from its figure, creating a purple mist that accompanied the beast.
The wolf started moving forward, and Zixin's mind subconsciously took a step back, but once the wolf reached the wall, it stopped and howled.
Howl
Although this seems like a meaningless action, due to its current state, Zixin managed to understand to the point that words began to form.
"You are a foolish human who dares to disrespect a wolf's honor!"
Zixin shook his head and spoke with a solemn tone, "My sincerest apologies if I offended you, but I need your help to learn 'Lending'."
The wolf's howl grew louder as Zixin's mind translated the words, forming a complete sentence.
"Humans have always stood in our path, and thus, we hunt them down, devouring their flesh and blood, and yet you… You dare to ask for a favor!"
"You are my killer!"
Zixin frowned and spoke, "I understand our difference,s but this is an opportunity for both of us. Think about it, you have already perished, what remains now is your 'will,' and it has taken the form of a 'killing intent,' so aren't I–the living, giving you the chance to change the world even after death?"
The wolf shook its head, howling once more.
"Humans are deceitful pests, especially a monster like you. I will use my remaining will and make you suffer the consequences!"
As soon as the wolf's howl ended, its body erupted, losing its form and transforming into a wave of killing intent.
Zixin's gaze turned heavy, planning his countermeasures.
An hour later, after dealing with the wolf's barrage, he left the White Palace, shoving the corpse aside the next second.
He rubbed his chin and thought: That was too tiring… I'd better get some rest, or else my body might just give in. Hmm, wasn't there a water banner somewhere? I wonder if that's a hot spring.
Zixin quickly stood up, grabbed his cane, and headed off in search of the banner.
Inside the hallway, his thoughts raced like wildfire: What action would help me gain the wolf's trust? Even if it's intelligent, at the end of the day, it's just an animal with limited intellect, so there should be a way for me to…
Suddenly, a light bulb flickered inside his mind. He halted in his tracks, his mouth parting, but no voice came out.
And then, the light bulb lit up–he realized something: Wolves are famous for their tenacity, even their hierarchy supported this claim. Those who worked the hardest gain the higher position,s whilst those who slack off would just be a grunt. However, there were a few exceptions, the most notable one was the–
"The Wolf Lo,d." Zixin muttered and nodded.
If I could somehow show my perseverance to the wolf, then perhaps it would consider cooperating with me. Zixin smiled lightly, his gaze drifting to a blue banner.
This banner had a water pattern woven onto it, but above the water was what seemed to be steam. After a thorough observation, it looked like a naturally occurring hot spring.
Zixin pushed the wooden door open, stepping into the small room.
The wooden chairs and tables were neatly organized into a pattern, and on the walls were wooden boxes. After a closer inspection, Zixin found white towels folded inside each box.
He grabbed a towel before undressing himself, revealing his porcelain-white skin and thin waist. His hair, which was already cut short by Hope several hours ago, was covered with sweat, giving off an awful scent.
He carefully folded the white robe before placing it in the box and using the towel to cover his lower body.
Without a second thought, he walked into the hot spring. The heat was immediately felt by his skin, his body beginning to sweat crazily.
He scanned his surroundings, finding nothing out of the ordinary. The sight was plain, and only the pool made sounds besides him.
He nodded his head in approval, carefully dipping his finger and measuring the heat. After some calculations, he muttered, "Suitable enough."
He stood up and washed himself in the nearby basin with water before entering the hot spring himself.
The warmth instantly made his mind melt, his body relaxing on its own accord. He leaned back, closing his eyes and enjoying the moment.