150: Waiting for a turning point

It was only after Xuan Mo finally stopped his painful writhing and fell back into a deep slumber that Bai Yao slumped onto the edge of the bed as if exhausted, raising her hand to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead.

The scene just now had left her with lingering fears.

She turned her head to look at Xing Che, who was standing to the side, her voice still somewhat unsteady.

"Just now... what exactly happened?

Is Xuan Mo awake? What did he say to you?"

Xing Che shifted his gaze away from the small snake curled into a ball on the bed and shook his head. "He was already like this when I came in."

This was a half-truth; Xuan Mo had indeed only been awake for a very brief moment, but that heavy entrustment had now become a secret weighing on his heart.

Bai Yao stared at him for a few seconds, a flicker of suspicion crossing her eyes.

She always felt these two were hiding something from her, but since Xing Che was unwilling to speak, she had no heart to investigate further at this moment.

Her gaze fell back onto Xuan Mo; that fragile little body made Bai Yao's chest feel tight.

She took a deep breath and stood up. "The food is ready, let's go eat something first."

Walking to the door, she suddenly paused and turned back to ask:

"By the way... what do snakes usually eat? Raw meat?"

Xing Che nodded. "Yes, small beasts or birds."

Bai Yao looked thoughtful. She carefully tucked the still-unconscious little snake into a specially made soft animal hide pouch in her bosom before heading to the dining room.

After taking her seat, she used a small knife to cut the most tender piece from the cooked gugu meat, shredded it into fine strips, and placed it on a small saucer, pushing it to the center of the table.

"It's better to eat it cooked; raw meat isn't clean."

She spoke softly, as if Xuan Mo could hear her.

Xing Che watched her actions, his lips twitching slightly. The Snake Clan had always eaten raw food; cooked meat might actually be hard for them to adjust to.

But seeing Bai Yao's focused and worried profile, he ultimately said nothing.

Several bowls of steaming noodles were set on the table, the broth clear and bright, garnished with emerald-green wild vegetables.

A flash of surprise appeared in Xing Che's eyes; this was yet another food he had never seen before.

"Time was short, so I just made something simple,"

Bai Yao explained, her tone carrying a hint of exhaustion.

The meal was finished in silence. The atmosphere was heavy, making even the light clinking of bowls and chopsticks sound distinct.

After the meal, Bai Yao briskly cleared the dishes and then tidied up the room where the wolf used to live.

"The three of you can stay here tonight,"

She said to Xing Che and the two guards.

However, Wu Liang and the other guard cupped their hands and said, "We can just keep watch outside, My Lord."

In the end, only Xing Che moved into the room.

In the dead of night, Xing Che lay on the unfamiliar bed, completely devoid of sleep.

The words Xuan Mo spoke while weak but conscious echoed in his ears word for word:

"This poison has no cure... No need to tell her... Let me accompany her to the very end..."

Should he tell Bai Yao?

If he did, with Bai Yao's temperament, she would surely rush into the City of Ten Thousand Evils regardless of the cost, which would be no different from seeking death.

If he didn't... he would become an accomplice in hiding the truth, watching Bai Yao wait in hope, only to meet despair in the end.

When did I become so indecisive?

Xing Che thought mockingly.

As the High Priest, he was accustomed to calmly weighing options and making the most advantageous choice.

But now, this choice was mixed with too much personal bias that shouldn't be there.

Wait—personal bias?

He was startled by the thought that flashed through his mind.

His feelings for Bai Yao... had they really surpassed the concern for an ally, or even the subtle goodwill born from the illusionary realm?

Admitting this affection made him feel unfamiliar and flustered.

He was the Fox Clan High Priest, carrying the rise and fall of a clan on his shoulders; his fate had long been tied to the Beast God Priest, and he should not and could not have such personal entanglements.

——

In the other room, Bai Yao was also tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

She lay on her side, using the faint moonlight filtering through the window to gaze at the little snake quietly coiled by her pillow.

Xuan Mo's body rose and fell slightly with his breathing, his ink-colored scales shimmering with a dull luster under the moonlight.

"Xuan Mo..."

She reached out a finger and very lightly touched the cold, smooth body of the snake, her voice very low. "You have to get better quickly."

"Once you're better, if Lin hasn't come back, we'll go to the north together to find him."

"The Beast World is so big, there are still many places we haven't been to. When everything settles down, shall we go traveling?"

"If... if one day we can find a way back, I'll take you to see my world. Although it's not as vast and magical as here, there are many interesting things..."

She rambled on, knowing full well he couldn't hear her, yet acting as if this could transmit strength.

By the end, her voice gradually choked up.

"So, you must hold on, okay? Don't leave us behind."

The little snake remained quiet, without any response, as if it were truly just an empty shell that had lost its soul.

Bai Yao remembered that when she used the diluted Spring Water to wipe Xuan Mo's body in the evening, his painful twitching seemed to have eased a bit.

Could it be that the Spring Water also has an inhibitory effect on this poison?

This discovery caused a faint spark of hope to reignite in her heart.

She would have Xing Che take a careful look again tomorrow.

If even Xing Che was helpless... then she might have to consider making a trip to the City of Ten Thousand Evils herself. Although this thought was dangerous, it quietly took root in her heart.

Exhaustion finally triumphed over anxiety, and she fell into a deep sleep.

After her breathing became even and long, beneath the closed eyelids of the little snake by the pillow, a momentary, almost imperceptible golden light flashed very faintly.

The next morning, Bai Yao woke up with an inexplicable palpitation.

She instinctively reached out toward her pillow—it was empty!

"Xuan Mo?"

She jerked upright and looked around in a panic; on the bed, besides the messy animal hides, where was there any sign of the little snake?

She didn't even have time to put her shoes on properly before rushing out the door.

Xing Che was standing in the courtyard, seemingly having just finished his morning meditation.

"Xing Che, have you seen Xuan Mo? He's gone!"

Xing Che was also taken aback and shook his head with a solemn expression. "I haven't seen him."

Just as the two were feeling anxious, a light "clatter" came from the direction of the kitchen.

Bai Yao immediately rushed over and pushed open the door. By the stove, a small snake was struggling to push open the heavy wooden pot lid, appearing as though it wanted to crawl into the hearth which still held last night's residual warmth.

Her suspended heart instantly dropped back into place, followed by a sense of being caught between laughter and tears.

Bai Yao stepped forward quickly and carefully scooped up the little snake. "So you're here... are you hungry?"

She turned and took a piece of fresh gugu meat from the stone cupboard, sliced it into extremely fine mince, placed it on a small saucer, and pushed it in front of the little snake.

The little snake's tongue flicked out tentatively, and then it slowly began to eat.

Watching this scene, Bai Yao finally breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Xing Che, who had followed her in. "Where are your two guards?"

"They have gone ahead,"

Xing Che replied. In fact, he had sent them to rush to the Black Rock Tribe and its surrounding areas to deliver a warning.

According to the intelligence Xuan Mo had brought back at the risk of his life, the City of Ten Thousand Evils was likely to strike those relatively independent Tribes soon.

Bai Yao nodded, hesitated for a moment, and still asked the question weighing on her heart:

"Is there really no way for Xuan Mo's poison?"

Xing Che was silent for a moment. He could have continued to hide it, but seeing the unquenchable fire of hope in Bai Yao's eyes, he chose another answer:

"It is not entirely without a turning point. The Spring Water you used last night seems to have a weak inhibitory effect on the toxicity."

He paused and continued, "You can continue trying to use the Spring Water to nourish him, but remember not to act rashly. As for the antidote... I will seek another way."

"You must not act on impulse; going to the City of Ten Thousand Evils now would be no different from walking into a trap."

He took a step forward and looked at Bai Yao. "I have already arranged for personnel to secretly guard the outskirts of the Tribe for the next few days."

"Even if the City of Ten Thousand Evils has designs, they may not easily succeed for a while. You must be even more careful yourself."

"Are they... really going to start attacking the Tribes?"

Bai Yao remembered Xing Che's previous warning.

"Yes."

Xing Che nodded. "Therefore, the weapon blueprints you improved before are crucial. I will have the craftsmen produce them according to the designs as soon as possible. If there's anything unclear, I will come to consult you again."

"Okay."

Xing Che's gaze swept over her exhausted face and then looked at the little snake eating quietly, the complex emotions in his heart surging once more.

In the end, he said nothing more, only: "There are still some Fox Clan matters I need to handle, so I will head back first. If anything happens, have a guard send word at any time."

Bai Yao saw him to the courtyard gate, watching that slender but straight back gradually disappear into the morning mist, a wave of hard-to-describe emptiness rising in her heart.

She shook her head, suppressing the inexplicable emotions.

Turning back into the house and seeing the little snake that had finished its minced meat and coiled up again, Bai Yao took a deep breath.

Winter was coming.

In the crisis-ridden Beast World, the cold winter itself was a massive challenge.

Now, with Xuan Mo heavily injured and not yet recovered, Lin not yet returned, and powerful enemies surrounding them, she had to be even more calm.

She needed to stockpile enough food and firewood for the winter, needed to further test the effects of the Spring Water on the Dragon Poison, and needed to stay alert to the movements of the City of Ten Thousand Evils at all times.

She also needed... to wait for a perhaps slim turning point.