This game of hide-and-seek continues for hours. At several points during it, Lan Xiaohui has a close encounter with the fox in pursuit — the monster’s furious screeching and howling originating from only a few rows of shrubs and trees away. Lan Xiaohui has no choice but to hide in the bushes, thickets, roots, and hollows of trees, waiting for the fox to pass by.

Even though it is such a dangerous situation — her life would end in an instant were she to be discovered — she remains calm. At those times, when she dares not even make a single motion, she circulates her inner energy, trying to regain stamina and heal some of her wounds. At some point, she even begins to think of these close encounters not as a dangerous thing, but as an opportunity to rest.

Even after dragging Wu Yulan’s unconscious body for several dozen kilometers, over such a long time that day changed to night, she never shows even a moment of hesitation or any indicator that she is considering leaving Wu Yulan behind.

She must know that at some point she will be discovered; she must know that her chances of survival are much greater if she left Wu Yulan behind. Through her bond with the girl, my owner must know that Wu Yulan would wish for this as well. There is no reason for both of them to die.

It is only this foolish creature, sentimental as it is, that considers termination the end of the journey. Death is not the end. Wu Yulan can be repurposed and recycled. Her body contains a vast amount of essence that I could absorb, and her spirit may even live on — as a simulation — inside my Inner World.

Lan Xiaohui knows this too, but she never stops dragging Wu Yulan.

Her actions speak louder than any words: If we must die, we will die together.

It is simple. It is straightforward. It is befitting of a sword cultivator.

It is foolish.

But why has the fox not found Lan Xiaohui yet? Even though Lan Xiaohui uses her qi to cover the tracks she leaves behind, dragging Wu Yulan behind her, it is not perfect, and I use my own reserves to not only perfectly conceal them but also create false leads to mislead the fox.

However, this fox is a fifth-rank beast — such methods should be easy for it to see through. Yet, the closest it ever got to Lan Xiaohui is thirty steps.

No matter how much qi Lan Xiaohui uses, she cannot conceal the heat of her body, the scent of her person and blood, or even the consciousness that still retains its killing intent. A beast, like the fox, should especially be attuned to sensing killing intent.

Even if I take into account that its eye may still be maimed — a wound that likely should’ve healed by now — it does not explain this strange outcome.

I have a theory, however. This valley may be used by the You clan to train their disciples in concealing their aura. If this is a testing ground, it is likely not to eliminate the demonic beasts that inhabit it, but to hide and escape from them. Concealing one’s aura into the background of the already powerful sword force that exists naturally here would be the most optimal way to escape this land.

In support of this theory is the fact that Lan Xiaohui’s and Wu Yulan’s aura are very weak, but not entirely concealed.

When the presence of the fox disappears into the distance, rather abruptly, it supports another one of my theories which places my owner in an even more dangerous situation than it already was.

There should be more than one fifth-ranked beast in this valley, but even after so many hours, Lan Xiaohui has only been in contact with one, and I have only seen evidence of one.

If this valley were densely populated with demonic beasts, surely, they would have, at some point, cooperated and invaded the surrounding lands in search of better resources and cultivation spots. Even though this valley is extremely useful in cultivating sword force, this harsh blizzard likely destroys a large number of potential resources. It would be advantageous, even to a creature with bestial intelligence, to expand into lands with more resources, and return to this place to cultivate.

In other words, the number of beasts in this valley must be low, and they are most likely extremely territorial. When the fox stops following Lan Xiaohui, it can mean only one thing: Lan Xiaohui has crossed into the territory of another fifth-ranked beast.

What is the possibility of running into it? Assuming that the fox was for some reason unable to detect Lan Xiaohui and Wu Yulan due to battle damage or mental state, then this beast would certainly be far more perceptive.

Perhaps Lan Xiaohui realizes this as well, and when the fox stops following her, she finds a place in the hollow of a tree and brings herself and her companion to its shelter.

At this point, Lan Xiaohui is so exhausted and so weak that even the weakened sword force is capable of leaving wounds on her body, though this is also in part due to her using most of her protective qi to defend Wu Yulan instead.

After nearly two hours in this new shelter, with the darkness and blizzard now making it impossible for Lan Xiaohui to see even ten steps ahead, Wu Yulan suddenly coughs and slowly opens her eyes.

She truly appears to be surprised to still be alive, even going as far as to touch her broken ribs as if to confirm that she can still feel pain and that this was not merely a strange dream.

“Xuelian…?” Wu Yulan murmurs the words, staring up at my owner’s glazed-over eyes.

“Xuelian!” Wu Yulan exclaims and grabs the tattered remains of my owner’s dress, near the collar, and shakes her. “Wake up!”

My owner’s eyes focus again, and she looks down at her companion and smiles weakly.

Slowly, Wu Yulan pulls herself up from Lan Xiaohui’s lap and sits next to my owner. “You mustn’t fall asleep, Xuelian. Please promise me you won’t fall asleep.”

Lan Xiaohui nods after a long moment.

Wu Yulan winces as her latest maneuver reminds her of the awful state her body is in. I already sense her circulating her qi, trying to support her broken bones. I assist her with this, but at a reduced output to prevent my own aura from attracting more beasts.

“Where are we, do you know?” Wu Yulan asks.

Lan Xiaohui shakes her head. “I think I made a mistake,” she says, cadence slow and volume weak. “I went the wrong way. I think we ended up deeper in the valley.”

Wu Yulan remains calm after hearing this, nodding. “It’s fine. It’s fine,” she says, repeating the phrase twice. “Which direction did you go in?”

“… south,” my owner replies, eyelids drooping.

Going south was not a bad decision. It is common knowledge that, on the Sky Continent, the north is colder than the south. With this blizzard and cold, it is reasonable to assume that they were in the northern regions of the continent. However, they may be in the northern part of the valley itself.

The greater issue at hand is whether or not Lan Xiaohui could truly tell north from south in this blizzard. In this darkness, it is absolutely impossible to tell the compass directions, but even during the day, with how heavy the blizzard is, it is also extremely unlikely. Not even I could confirm or deny whether Lan Xiaohui truly walked toward the south.

Perhaps, while falling, while they were still above the heart of the blizzard, she caught a glimpse of the sun and remembered in which direction it was.

Seeing Lan Xiaohui become more and more listless, and falling asleep, Wu Yulan winces again.

My owner’s companion slips her head under Lan Xiaohui’s shoulder and lifts herself up, supporting Lan Xiaohui into a standing position.

“Xuelian, we have to keep moving. I will think of something, but for now, we have to avoid freezing to death,” Wu Yulan says. “Night is falling and we have to find shelter.”

Lan Xiaohui nods.

The two take off into the darkness, and after nearly an hour of walking aimlessly, but not in a circle thanks to my subtle interventions, they come across a strange region in the valley.

Abruptly, in front of them, the blizzard simply stops. An exit?