Chapter 118: A Night of Terror

Bai Xiaozhi was brought into a lavish, dazzling hall.

The hall was adorned everywhere with gems, each one larger and more radiant than the Koh-i-Noor on the Queen of England’s crown.

Reflected in the crystal walls, the girl felt a bit dizzy and dazed.

The decorations hanging in this hall represented wealth that couldn’t be gathered even by hollowing out the entire Earth.

And now…

“Welcome, Your Highness the Princess!”

Just after crossing the threshold, the sharp, synchronized clatter of armor echoed.

Soldiers knelt down like dominoes falling one after another.

From the hall itself, and then extending along the corridor at the far end of the hall, reaching every cabin.

“Welcome, Your Highness the Princess!”

Through the transparent crystal ship’s hull, Bai Xiaozhi could clearly see the countless soldiers—the entire ship’s soldiers—layer upon layer, row upon row, all kneeling before her.

In front, behind, left, right, above, below—soldiers knelt on the ground, heads bowed in submission.

It was as if she had conquered the sky and earth, as if the whole world belonged to her.

She was the center of the world.

An overwhelming sense of control that Bai Xiaozhi had never experienced before washed over her.

In that moment, she clearly felt—the magnificent Crystal City and all the military might and wealth within it were at her command.

A single thought from her could make anyone bow and scrape. A single glance could decide life or death.

The pleasure brought by such power was enough to make one forget everything else.

Just as the Demon Hunter had said, anyone who experienced this would willingly sever ties with their past.

“This is truly your home.” The Demon Hunter knelt respectfully, holding out the Princess Crown before Bai Xiaozhi. “Welcome back.”

…….

“Zzz—”

Wu Xiaomi used Water Blade to kill the tiger trying to break into the house, but was unfortunately slashed across the shoulder by a Heiwuyouli in a sneak attack.

The Siren Dance momentarily faltered.

Fortunately, the Heiwuyouli did not continue the attack; after all, its goal was simple—a full meal.

The tiger’s corpse was nearby, cut into manageable strips of meat, so it had no reason to take further risks.

Wu Xiaomi finally caught her breath.

She used Floral Fusion to staunch the bleeding and hurried to check on the Witch’s condition.

—So cold! This one’s body temperature is dangerously low!

Early winter, coupled with the torrential rain flooding in through the cracks in the house, continuously stole away the Witch’s body heat.

If this continued, she would surely die of hypothermia!

But the rain was too heavy to stay outside.

This was a blunder. If she had known, she would have stored a diesel generator and heater in her inventory… but those items were all in other Manggu Raiders’ inventories, and those Raiders had all been captured.

With no other option, Wu Xiaomi took off her outer garment and covered the Witch.

She wore as lightly as possible.

Then curled herself into the Witch’s embrace, allowing her body heat to transfer through the thin, almost translucent innerwear to the other.

Thankfully, because she had been moving vigorously, even being soaked by the rain didn’t chill her skin too much.

The Witch still could not move.

She quietly watched the girl in front of her.

Watched her fumbling rescue efforts.

Her methods were crude, but under current conditions, it was the best she could do.

She was fighting with all her strength to protect herself.

Fighting so desperately for the Scythe?

That idiot must have lost her mind.

Didn’t she understand that if the Debt Owner died, her debts would be wiped clean?

Stupid little Chive!

Go out for a fight, take down a tiger or a lynx.

Then clean yourself up and come back to the Witch’s embrace, helping to maintain her body temperature.

After the just-killed tiger or lynx was devoured, go out again and fight another round.

Fight, then return.

Repeat this cycle.

Wu Xiaomi didn’t know how many times she had done this already.

“Agah!”

The forest rain night was cold.

Around midnight, Wu Xiaomi noticed her body starting to shiver.

The rain was draining her heat, and her thin clothes were far from enough.

Moreover, her fighting style was near desperate.

If this continued, she would soon succumb to hypothermia as well.

At 1 a.m., Wu Xiaomi suddenly found herself no longer cold.

And the world began spinning; her mind was inexplicably excited.

This discovery made her very happy.

She touched her forehead.

A fever—hooray!

With the help of the fever, the Witch’s body temperature finally began to recover rapidly.

The small nest made with clothes grew warmer.

They continued this cycle.

The rain gradually lessened.

Without the interference of rain sounds, even with the high fever, Wu Xiaomi could clearly sense her surroundings, and the hit rate of Water Blade improved slightly.

Finally, at 3 a.m.,

the surrounding beasts were nearly full.

The clever beasts had feasted all night, while the newly arrived ones, still eager to bite the Witch, became the feast themselves.

The world was truly strange.

At 5 a.m.,

the sky showed no sign of dawn, but the nocturnal beasts were beginning to disperse one by one.

Satisfied and sated, they would rest well, then return to continue their buffet at nightfall.

Seeing the large fierce beasts finally leave,

Wu Xiaomi collapsed exhausted onto the ground.

Her small body usually felt like jelly after half an hour of dancing.

But tonight she had danced all night.

Wu Xiaomi could hardly believe she had really managed it.

Gasping heavily, her throat felt like it was cracking dry, even the dampness of the rainy night air failed to soothe it.

Fortunately, it was finally over.

At 6 a.m.,

a sliver of dawn light spilled over the horizon.

Wu Xiaomi crawled out from the Witch’s embrace again.

She forced her stubborn, half-closed eyelids open.

After a sleepless night filled with nonstop exertion, all she felt now was sleepiness.

Her upper and lower eyelids seemed like magnetic poles, fiercely attracting each other; she had to muster all her strength to keep them apart.

…

What a mess…

With the light, Wu Xiaomi could finally see the state of the room clearly.

Blood splattered everywhere and broken bones scattered around, resembling a horror movie scene.

The sunlight brought a sense of safety, prompting Wu Xiaomi to temporarily deactivate Spirit Hunting Instinct to conserve Lingyuan.

There were no more fierce beasts outside.

Perhaps it was time to set off early to avoid being caught by pursuers.

Hmm, time to leave.

“Hiss—!”

Just as Wu Xiaomi stepped outside,

a sudden chill crept up her neck.

At first, she thought it was raindrops falling on her skin.

But soon she realized something was wrong.

These raindrops… why did they sting?

Hmm~ and tingle too~

Ah ha, it was growing more and more numb~

The girl, already dazed from sleeplessness, smiled and turned her head.

Oh.

It was a snake.

A huge one!

Her first time seeing such a large python, and it seemed to be a Poison Python with its fangs bared!

So you had been hiding under the eaves all along~

No wonder she hadn’t noticed.

You’re quite the little trickster.

“Ugh—”

Her body fell forward.

But she collapsed onto the snake’s thick body.

The hard serpent quickly slithered up her waist, thighs, and all over her body.

Its coils tightened.

Tighter.

Tighter still.