Countless rays of light appeared in Fang Hau's Chamber and started to gather, slowly forming the appearance of two people. A second later, the light faded, and Hope and Schizel arrived. Upon regaining her senses, Hope's gaze swept past the surroundings, but what she found was the ruins of the throne room.
The once round wooden table was in pieces,s and the three thrones were in a mess. The banners hanging on the walls were torn, and when she saw this, her pupils shrank.
Noticing the not-so-subtle shift in atmosphere, Schizel glanced at her, giving her a meaningful look.
Hope said without much thought, "It's my secret base, ok?"
Schizel, who couldn't care less, loosened his body and plopped to the floor with a loud sound. His vision turned blurry, and her body lost control, falling unconscious on the hard floor.
She glanced at him and continued looking around, but after a while of searching, found little to no clues. She sighed and opened her bag, taking care of Schizel's wounds.
"Since we're together, I might as well help him. We both want to live; at least I hope he does… either way, since he helped me, I shall return the favor. This way, when he wakes up, he might be more willing to aid me." Hope muttered to herself while treating his wounds.
When she finished, she wiped her forehead and stood up.
"But where is Zixin, and what exactly happened here?"
She shook her head and went to search for Zixin. She walked towards the hallway and spent an hour looking through the rooms but found no signs at all. All she saw was the mess and the rubble left behind. behind
She pondered for a moment while walking down the hallway, "Where could he possibly be? Is there a secret room? Knowing Fang Hau… probably."
Just as she thought of this, she heard the sound of footsteps. She paused and peeked down the hallway, leaning in slightly.
When she turned to look, she saw three Hunters.
"Eh?" She blurted out, but immediately bit her lip, slowing her breathing so she wouldn't make sounds. Fortunately, the three didn't seem to notice since they weren't that close and had their backs against her.
She leaned closer and heard the scrawny one talking to the shorter Hunter, "Boss, it's been a few days, and we still haven't found him. We're running low on supplies; if it weren't for the fact that this place had food, we'd be starving already!"
The tall Hunter chimed in, "Right, right! But when did we eat? Wasn't that three days ago?! Shouldn't we eat first?"
The short one, supposedly their boss, shouted, scolding them, "You two are really blind. How can you still not see the bigger picture? We've stumbled into someone's scheme and a scheme that involves a member of the Longevity Bloodline. The gains would definitely outweigh the risks!"
The two shifted their gaze towards each other, not convinced at all, forcing their boss to say, "If we kill Zixin and bring his head back, then wouldn't we gain fame and respect?"
These three are… really short-sighted. Even if they fight, I can't imagine Zixin losing to them. Hope sighed, shaking her head, but her thoughts came to a stop when she heard another footstep.
The sound was light, completely different from the thudding sound of the three. She glanced and saw Schizel walking towards the three.
The three stood frozen from shock, but when they finally awakened from their shock, they ran back, running past Hope and not noticing her at all. Their steps were hurried, as they ran like they were up against their natural predator.
"Who are they?" Schizel walked sluggishly over, stopping and leaning against the wall to keep himself steady.
"Who knows? I don't recognize them; they're probably the cause of the destruction." Hope spoke solemnly, shifting her gaze towards where the three ran off to.
If Fang Hau was still here, this wouldn't have happened, but it seems like he vanished. Maybe he left, but he can't be far. Hope thought internally, shaking her head.
Schizel glanced at her and said coldly, "I can knock them out."
Hope paused and furrowed her brows, replying, "That's unnecessary. I have to find Zixin first."
She held her bag tightly, feeling the surface curve under her pressure. A portion of the surface took the shape of the small artifact shell, and upon touching it, her hand gripped tighter.
After agreeing, they spent a few hours looking for Zixin but found no clues. It seemed like everything had been taken by the three Hunters.
She bit her lip and thought bitterly: Did he leave? No way, it's too risky. Knowing him, he wouldn't dare gamble. But where is he? He's definitely hiding, but if he's not in any of the other rooms, where would he be?
Schizel suddenly sat down, his back facing the wall. He closed his eyes and spoke slowly, "Maybe there's a secret room?"
"That's possible, I mean, it's not like I know this place like the back of my hand…" She muttered, taking time to think it over.
While they were talking, the three Hunters were peeking through and watching them from one of the rooms.
The scrawny man suggested, "Boss, maybe we should help them? We're both looking for the same person, after all."
The tall man nodded his head, but before he could even continue, the short one, their boss, turned bright red with anger.
"You two are idiots! Helping the enemy is the same as asking to die. What if they obtain the treasure before us?" He paused, pointing to Schizel, and continued, "Not only that, but that monster came. How are we supposed to even negotiate fairly?"
The two glanced at each other in discontent with his words. They weren't buying it at all.
The tall one spoke, "But boss, cooperating now doesn't sound too bad either."
Their boss clenched his fist,t but before he could even speak, they heard Schizel speak, "We might as well interrogate them."
Their boss sucked a breath of cold air, sweating buckets in an instant. His eyes widened, and he dashed forward, kneeling on the ground, his forehead hitting the floor as he shouted, "I beg for forgiveness!"
He added, "I'll speak! I'll speak!"
The two mouths opened wide from shock,ck and they immediately followed, begging as well.
"Please spare us!"
"Lord is magnanimous!"
Hope's lips twitched at the sight of the three begging for their lives. It was too sudden, so even she couldn't help but feel bewildered.
She sighed and thought: Oh well, I guess Schizel does have a reputation for being ruthless to his foes. But… can I trust them?
Her eyes narrowed, her skepticism showing itself. Although the hallway was at a normal temperature, it suddenly seemed like a cold wind blew by when her gaze fell on them, causing them to tremble.
The short man spoke, "Please, if you do not trust me, then I, Eman, am willing to be inches from your blade!"
The two followed.
"I, Leeman, also swear!"
"I, Jack, owe my life to Lord!"
Hope frowned, but Schizel remained unfazed. She moved over and sat in front of them.
"Tell your story, no nonsense."
Eman gulped and slowly raised his head and said, "We were originally sent to scout by Vanor, but due to unfortunate circumstances, we were attacked by the Wolf Lord. Fortunately for us, we had happened to be transported here of all places and barely escaped."
It left these three alive? Wait, no, these three escaped like her and me… I feel like the Wolf Lord doesn't intend to let so many survivors out; it just sounds like a bad habit to me. Schizel noted, his gaze dull as always.
"What then?" Hope asked, tilting her head.
The three continued to tell the tale.
The three had just been transported to Fang Hau's Chamber, and after they regained their senses, they immediately noticed their strange surroundings. Eman saw the three thrones around the round wooden table.
Leeman's eyes widened at the sight of the precious gems engraved on the thrones. He laughed loudly and walked forward to loot the place clean.
Jack followed after, pillaging and destroying the throne. Leeman asked, "Boss, why are we not asking the elephant in the room? What is this place and how did we get here?"
Eman paused before continuing to steal, "So? Will knowing change our situation? We can think about it later. For now, let's grab what's ours."
"Yes, let's show those pricks whose boss., " Jack added with a laugh.
However, their banter didn't last long. Leeman noticed Zixin's lone figure, standing in the hallway with a cane in hand, watching them with a wary expression.
Leeman whispered, "Boss, look."
He casually pointed, and Eman spoke, "What are you looking for? We have three people; he's alone. What can he do?"
Jack laughed and grabbed one of the throne's broken legs and threw it at Zixin. The leg flew through the air, closing the distance. Zixin stepped to the side, but before he knew it, Leeman had arrived and held a dagger in his hand. It gave off a cold glint as it stabbed forward, curving upwards.
Zixin paused for a moment and split his mind. A surge of strength entered his body, and thanks to the Body Enhancements, he stabbed his cane back at Leeman, aiming for his chest.
The cane landed and pushed Leeman away, but unfortunately for Zixin, the dagger had managed to stab into him, creating a shallow wound.
But right on time, Eman arrived on the side with a large club in hand. He smiled ferociously, ready to strike the next second.
Zixin bit his lip and leaped forward, flying above them and landing on the table. He immediately rolled over and fell to the floor. He kicked the table over, and it stood up, creating a temporary blockade.
The three snorted and moved. Jack and Leeman arrived from left and right,t but what greeted them was nothingness.
Their eyes widened, their gazes passing by each other. Suddenly, a tearing sound echoed across the area, catching their attention. Their gazes shifted, locking onto Zixin, who hung on one of the banners, and when they saw him, he didn't hesitate to leap towards another in the matter of seconds.
Not even three seconds later, he jumped and landed in the hallway. The three gritted their teeth and grew wary, running after him.
Zixin glanced back and immediately ran for his life.
After they finished telling the story, Hope frowned and asked herself: This… where could he possibly be?
Noticing her confusion, Schizel chimed in, "Maybe he just… left."
Left… but that's too uncharacteristic for him. He wouldn't rush into danger… if he could help it, that is. She quickly shook her head and suddenly thought: But why is he telling me this? In fact, why did he even help me? Is it because I saved him… wait, that still makes sense.
She shook her head again and continued: Do his words have implications? Is he telling me his intention to leave? But the outside is still too dangerous. He hasn't even fully recovered yet. She paused and dug through her memories, searching for information regarding Schizel.
A moment later, her eyes lit up: This guy… he does things out of interest. Whatever interests him most becomes his priority. He's weirdly similar to Zixin, huh?
She suddenly shook her head with a wry smile: Zixin, it seems like your overthinking has rubbed off on me.
She sat down, her back facing the wall. She raised her head and closed her eyes, her body in deep need of rest.
But before she could fall asleep, her bag suddenly started to shake. She quickly opened her bag, and the black cat leaped out.
When the black cat came out, the three Hunters looked in confusion whilst Schizel remained indifferent.
Does it want attention? Oh well, might as well. I like cats, and this one is pretty cute too. When she saw the cat, she felt herself calming down and a sense of warmth slowly enveloping her. Her gaze softened, but the cat didn't pay her any heed and raised its paws and tapped the wall behind her.
Just as it did, the wall suddenly vanished in an instant. Everyone paused, and the three Hunters rubbed their eyes, as if they were hallucinating.
In front of them lay an unexplored hallway.