The wound had completely healed. I was gasping for breath, exhaustion weighing down every part of my body. Blood was still dripping steadily into Sylvia's mouth. Suddenly, Sylvia regained her senses, her eyes wet and tears spilling down her cheeks. She choked out her words.
"Don't keep doing this. You'll die."
I quietly watched Sylvia, saying nothing. Our eyes met. Sylvia sobbed, her tears falling silently as she pressed her lips together. I reached out to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes, then immediately pressed down on the artery in my right hand.
Sylvia gently reached out, holding my hand. Then, with effort, she pulled herself up. Entity 001 seemed to be completely drained of strength, stopping about ten meters away from us.
Little by little, Entity 001 lost all her strength and could no longer move. She stared at us, her mind blank.
"Why..."
Sylvia placed her hands on my shoulders, struggling to stand. She turned and staggered a few steps, then looked back at me with a gentle smile and said,
"Let's go."
I responded with a soft "okay." My body had recovered a bit. After a few steps, I saw Sylvia collapse again, her body weak. The thing that had just delivered the decisive blow to Entity 001 surprised me—I sensed a familiar scent from it, but couldn't quite place what it was.
I walked over to Sylvia, wanting to help her up, but she shook her head.
"You go on ahead. I'll catch up after I rest for a bit. We must save Roxie as soon as possible."
I let out a soft sound of acknowledgment and lay down next to Sylvia, signaling her to climb onto my back. I could still walk.
"No need..."
"Hurry up and get on."
I called out, and Sylvia widened her eyes at me, then happily climbed onto my back, resting her forehead gently against my neck. I tried to walk as steadily as possible, avoiding the raised ground. Behind us, Entity 001's weak cry echoed.
"Wait for me..."
I stopped and turned to look at her.
"Aren't you going to finish me off...?"
"There's no need."
"There's no need."
"You know Roxie too?"
I asked, and Qi was stunned for a moment, then shook her head with a slightly sorrowful expression.
"No, but I know she is a very gentle and beautiful woman."
I responded, and Qi put down the pendant, rested her chin on her hand, turned her head and said thank you, a smile spreading across her face.
"It should be me thanking you."
Today was far too dangerous. Without Qi, I would have been finished. I’m no match for Entity 001 at all and could only be caught by her again. Judging by her anger, this time being caught wouldn’t be as simple as becoming her pet.
Qi walked over with the pendant, tied it around my arm, then climbed onto the bed and said good night before falling back asleep. She still looked tired. I climbed to the window, opened the door, and stepped onto the balcony, gazing at the distant starry night, lost in thought.
Although the Four Sacred Realm won’t be destroyed for now, the real problem is the Azure Luan Egg. If I can’t awaken it, things will get very bad.
Looking back at Qi, I decided to leave tomorrow after she’s fully recovered. I wasn’t in a hurry to set out. I didn’t know what was happening in the Four Sacred Realm, especially with 016 and 013. Would they try something while I’m gone?
After a short nap, I didn’t feel sleepy anymore. I leaned against the wall to rest my body. In my current state, maybe only Entity 001 could help me recover. Even returning to the Four Sacred Realm might not work.
Only when the moon was sinking in the west did I return inside. Qi was sound asleep. I lay down beside the bed, closed my eyes on the floor.
A sudden, dazzling light made me open my eyes slightly. I immediately felt something pressing on my back—sure enough, it was Qi. Because I moved, she woke up too.
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"Sorry."
Qi apologized, then got off my back, stretching and shaking her messy hair, combing it with her hands. I noticed her bare feet were covered in mud, so I said:
"Put on a pair of shoes."
Qi immediately shook her head and said:
"I've gotten used to it after so many years. Let's go."
We continued on our way. Qi seemed to know the direction and walked ahead. After a night’s sleep, she had fully recovered; she no longer looked weak as she did yesterday.
"By the way, I saw how you fought yesterday. Who taught you?"
I asked, and Qi suddenly hunched over, hands behind her back, turning sideways and grinning, showing her neat white teeth.
"Not telling you. We’re almost there, hurry up."
For a moment I was stunned, but quickly sensed something—sure enough, it was the Four Sacred Realm. By noon, we arrived. The distant Four Sacred Realm looked as usual; its general shape was visible. Qi began running ahead, like a child, hopping and skipping.
I hurried after her, getting closer and closer. Qi was in high spirits, but when she stopped, her happiness suddenly vanished.
"Go on, I’ll see you off only to here."
I stared at Qi and asked:
"Where are you going?"
Qi shook her head.
"I don’t know, I..."
"Come with me."
I didn’t know why, but I really wanted to spend more days with Qi. She was hesitating, so I started walking quickly.
"Hurry up, I won’t wait for you!"
"Wait for me..."
Qi ran up to me, her face full of joy.
We stopped at the edge of the Vermilion Bird Realm. All Four Saints arrived. Lan Yin stared at me wide-eyed, but quickly shifted his gaze to Qi, swallowing nervously.
"Has the quality of her soul changed? No wonder we couldn’t find her."
The Vermilion Bird muttered. Lan Yin came out laughing and tried to approach me, but pushed me aside—his target was Qi behind me.
"Little girl, you..."
"Get lost."
I looked helplessly at Lan Yin. Qi behind me glared at him with cold, distant eyes. Lan Yin was stunned.
"Ethan Zhang, I..."
At that moment, the Azure Dragon stepped forward, glanced at Qi, then closed his eyes and nodded silently.
"Don’t say it out loud, okay?"
Qi suddenly pleaded. The Azure Dragon and the other Three Saints nodded and said no more.
"Eat something first. Later, I want you to come quickly to the Black Tortoise Realm."
The Black Tortoise spoke, and the White Tiger called for the Sacred Spirits to disperse. Many Sacred Spirits noticed the numbers on Qi’s arm, but none showed hostility. Lan Yin led us away. We planned to get some food in the Azure Dragon Realm first, then head straight to the Black Tortoise Realm.
"Ethan Zhang, where did you find such a beautiful girl?"
Lan Yin asked, and I looked up at him.
"Aren’t you even a little curious about how I look now?"
Lan Yin looked down at me, then burst out laughing and patted my furry head.
"You’re adorable! If I had a camera, I’d take your picture and keep it as a souvenir."
I immediately stood up and blocked Lan Yin’s hand with my paw.
"Alright, Ethan Zhang, I’ll stop teasing you. What you said before—though I still can’t prove it—I believe you."
I grunted in response. After entering the Azure Dragon Realm, some Sacred Spirits had already prepared food. Both Qi and I were starving and ate ravenously. On a garden table, the colorful fruits were all small, but tasted wonderful.
After eating, I felt revived. Qi squatted beside the flowers, sniffing their scent curiously.
"Hey, little sister, come sit over here. What’s so interesting about flowers?"
Qi’s tranquility was broken by Lan Yin’s words. She immediately turned and glared at him.
Lan Yin waved his hand helplessly, looking defeated. Qi walked over to me.
"Can you take me to see Roxie?"
Seeing the longing in Qi’s eyes, I nodded.