The next morning.
When Xuan Xi opened her eyes, she felt something strange in her hand.
At some point last night, SigrdrÃfa had taken her hand, and hadn’t let go all night.
Her long hair was spread across the moisture-proof mat, her eyelashes trembling slightly in the morning light, her breathing steady. Xuan Xi didn’t move, afraid of waking her.
She looked down and saw the now-complete Jade Pendant resting at her collar, the Azure Dragon pattern on it seeming to absorb the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth.
And beneath her right eye, the five Destiny Marks lay quietly. She touched them with her fingers and found nothing different.
SigrdrÃfa’s fingers twitched. Xuan Xi pulled her hand back, pretending she’d just woken up, and yawned.
“Morning.” Her voice was a little hoarse.
SigrdrÃfa’s eyes opened, her amethyst pupils reflecting the morning light. She looked at the scabbed wound on Xuan Xi’s face, at her messy hair from just waking up. She sat up, folded her sleeping bag, and rolled up the mat, quick and steady.
“Time to get up,” she said. “The Patrol Team is packing up the tents. We need to head back to the Academy.”
Xuan Xi crawled out of her sleeping bag. Her right arm wasn’t fully healed yet, but the pain was much lighter than last night. The Wolf Family Healing Potion was truly effective—the wound was closing faster, and the bruise on her shoulder had faded from dark purple to pale yellow.
Outside the tent, Elsa was already up. She was applying an Ice Pack to her shoulder, and when she saw Xuan Xi emerge from the tent, her eyes lit up. “Xuan Xi! Are you feeling better?”
“Much better.”
“Your face—” Elsa pointed at her right cheek. The wound cut open by gravel had formed a thin scab, its edges slightly curling up.
“Will it leave a scar?” Elsa leaned in to look.
“It shouldn’t.” Veralis’s voice came from nearby. She was already fully dressed, her pale gold fishtail braid re-done, her ice-blue eyes examining the wound on Xuan Xi’s right cheek. “The Wolf Family Healing Potion contains regenerative herbs. Once the scab falls off, there won’t be any scarring.”
Elsa let out a sigh of relief. “Good, good. If you ended up with a scar, Sige would be heartbroken.” SigrdrÃfa happened to step out of the tent at that moment. She paused briefly at the words but didn’t look at Elsa. She didn’t deny it either.
The Patrol Team was packing up the tents, their movements quick and efficient. Gray-green canvas was folded into neat squares and stuffed into backpacks.
The five members of the Wolf Squad were up as well. Rex Wolf’s right arm was still in a sling, but his complexion was much better than yesterday. He nodded at Xuan Xi but said nothing.
“Form up!” The Patrol Team Captain’s voice echoed through the canyon. Once everyone had assembled, they followed the Patrol Team Captain back to the Teleportation Array.
The Teleportation Array lit up, pale blue light rising from the ground and enveloping everyone’s bodies. Xuan Xi touched the Jade Pendant at her collar. Her mother’s last words seemed to echo in her ears—”Live. Return to the Eastern Dragon Domain. Then, save all living beings.”
The five Destiny Marks glowed faintly in the morning light. She took a deep breath and stepped into the Teleportation Array.
The light grew brighter, and the canyon of Echo Valley—its rock walls, vines, and carvings—dissolved piece by piece in the glow.
Back at the Academy, the ten members of both teams were ordered by the Teacher to report to the Infirmary for examination. The white walls here gleamed harshly in the sunlight.
Doctor Yilian, wearing thin-framed glasses, unwrapped the bandages on Xuan Xi’s right arm layer by layer.
When the bandages came off, the skin beneath was revealed—the dark purple bruising had mostly faded, barely showing signs of serious injury. The wounds from the gravel had scabbed over, revealing pink new skin underneath. Doctor Yilian pressed on her right shoulder, then her ribs. “Recovering faster than expected.”
She adjusted her glasses. “The Wolf Family Healing Potion really is effective. But you still need to rest. No strenuous activity for three days. Stay in the Infirmary for a few days and avoid using Spiritual Energy.”
Xuan Xi nodded and pulled her sleeve back down.
“And the wound on your face.” Doctor Yilian turned her face to look. “Let the scab fall off on its own. Don’t pick at it. A scar wouldn’t look nice.” Xuan Xi nodded again, looking very obedient.
SigrdrÃfa stood at the Infirmary door, leaning against the frame with her arms crossed. She hadn’t come in, but she hadn’t left either.
Doctor Yilian glanced at her. “Your Spiritual Energy is also dangerously depleted, and it hasn’t fully recovered yet. You need proper nutrition. The Cafeteria has meal plans—make sure you go get yours.” SigrdrÃfa nodded to show she understood.
The Assessment results were delivered to the Infirmary personally by Teacher Cecilia.
She stood at the foot of Xuan Xi’s bed, holding a dark brown kraft paper envelope stamped with the Academy’s gold-embossed crest, sealed with red wax.
“Xuan Xi Squad,” she read slowly, every word clearly pronounced.
“All Nodes completed. High-tier Magical Beast Hunting Mission completed. Bonus points: After completing the mission, the squad encountered a Top-tier Magical Beast and assisted the Wolf Squad, who were fellow Assessment participants. The two teams worked together to slay the Rock-armored Dragon Lizard and achieved zero casualties. Overall rating: SSS-level!”
Elsa’s mouth formed an O. “SSS-level… We actually got SSS-level!”
Reggie stood beside her. The burly man’s eyes were unusually moist, and he nodded. “Yeah!”
Xuan Xi lay in bed, looking at the dark brown envelope, but didn’t take it. She turned to SigrdrÃfa, who sat beside her. “Can you accept it for me? I’m not really in a position to right now.”
SigrdrÃfa nodded. She stood up, took the envelope from Cecilia’s hands, her slender fingers gripping the edge of the kraft paper, and tucked it into the pouch at her waist.
The motion was natural.
Cecilia looked at her, then at Xuan Xi, as if she understood something. But she said nothing, turned, and left. Before leaving, she wished everyone a pleasant vacation.
After Cecilia left, Elsa and the other lightly injured patients made their excuses to leave under the pretense of packing.
The Infirmary quieted down.
Sunlight streamed through the window, falling on the white sheets, landing precisely on the complete Jade Pendant at the head of the bed.
“Your Jade Pendant. You found the third piece?” Sige’s voice was soft.
“Yeah.”
“When?”
Xuan Xi paused for a moment. “Last night. After you fell asleep.”
SigrdrÃfa didn’t press further. She just looked at the Jade Pendant for a while, then reached out and touched the spot on Xuan Xi’s cheek where the Destiny Marks were. “The fifth Destiny Mark appeared too? Also after I fell asleep?”
“Yeah. Also last night.”
SigrdrÃfa seemed to guess something, but she didn’t ask. She placed the Jade Pendant back at the head of the bed.
“Time to pick up the Winter Vacation Homework. You rest well. I’ll bring yours over.” She turned and left the Infirmary.
Xuan Xi ended up lying in the Infirmary for another three days. During those three days, she couldn’t exercise, couldn’t use Spiritual Energy—basically couldn’t do anything.
Her only forms of entertainment were chatting with the School Doctor and Sige, or pulling out the Communication Stone Tablet Sige had given her to browse the School Forum.