Master of Nine Stars

「Three days later.」

A campfire burned inside the cave.

Gao Lingwei sat leaning against the wall, a snow-patterned camouflage jacket draped over her as she rested with her eyes closed.

Not far above her, a figure stood on the ceiling of the cave. The points where his military boots touched the rock were two beautiful ice flowers.

Rong Taotao hung upside down, the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow in his hands ringing softly. His movements were simple and monotonous, drawing and sheathing his blade over and over, tirelessly.

Rong Taotao had been worried about disturbing Gao Lingwei’s rest, but now, the repetitive, almost mechanical sound of his blade being drawn and sheathed had become a lullaby, helping her drift to sleep.

"Promotion! Soul Technique: Heart of the Snow Realm, Two-Star Advanced-Rank!"

A sudden notification appeared in his Inner Soul Map.

Rong Taotao’s movements faltered for a moment. At that exact instant, Gao Lingwei’s drowsy eyes fluttered open. She looked up at Rong Taotao. "Is it time?"

"No, not yet. It’s still early. Go back to sleep," Rong Taotao said quickly.

Although Gao Lingwei was far stronger and had better physical conditioning than him, that didn’t stop Rong Taotao from worrying about her.

"Mm," Gao Lingwei replied, pulling the camouflage jacket tighter around herself. She didn’t close her eyes again, instead saying softly, "It’s been three days. The second wave of attacks hasn’t come. It seems the Snowflake Wolf Pack is more patient than we thought.

"Or maybe they’ve already left. I don’t think I’ve heard any howling for a while."

Rong Taotao, still looking at his Inner Soul Map, nodded. "Yeah, that’s possible."

’Holy cow, my Soul Technique was promoted?’

’Not a skill, not my Soul Power, but my Soul Technique?’

’Geez... this Nine-Petaled Lotus is making me completely lopsided in my abilities!’

For a normal Soul Martial Artist, Soul Techniques were the most difficult to cultivate. For Rong Taotao, however, it was the area where he progressed the fastest. Compared to any of his other aspects, his Soul Technique: Heart of Ice and Snow was leaving everything else in the dust...

An idea sparked in Rong Taotao’s mind. ’At this rate of cultivation, will I be able to use third-tier Soul Skills—ones that are supposed to be for Soul Captains—while I’m still a Soul Soldier?’

Gao Lingwei suddenly spoke up, "You’re going through the candy pretty quickly. We brought a lot, but you should still try to conserve it."

Rong Taotao snapped back to reality. Hanging from the ceiling, he looked at the upside-down Gao Lingwei, hesitating for a moment before finally saying, "It’s not that bad. Only about ten pieces a day. I’ve been controlling myself."

Gao Lingwei asked, "Hm?"

Seeing her reaction, Rong Taotao thought for a moment and said, "If you didn’t eat them, then maybe the Cloud Dog or Hu Bugui stole them. Probably while we were resting."

Rong Taotao, Gao Lingwei, and Snow Night Shock took turns on watch in eight-hour shifts, so there was plenty of time for someone to sneak a few.

Gao Lingwei shook her head. "It wasn’t Hu Bugui. It’s been with me for years and knows how important supplies are for my survival. It only absorbs Soul Power to sustain itself and would never compete with me for food.

"When I’m training in the wild, it absolutely never eats my food, not even a single bite."

Rong Taotao laughed. "And even if the Cloud Dog did sneak some, its appetite can’t be that big."

As he laughed, the smile on Rong Taotao’s face suddenly froze.

At the same time, Gao Lingwei also seemed to realize something and shot upright.

Rong Taotao immediately dropped from the ceiling and walked over to their supply packs, rummaging through the backpack that held the candy.

He thought about summoning the Cloud Dog for a confrontation, but figured he wouldn’t get any answers out of the adorable-looking little creature.

His expression turning serious, Rong Taotao asked, "If Hu Bugui doesn’t eat food, then where did all the soup we’ve cooked these past few days go?"

Gao Lingwei’s gaze was fixed on the dark depths of the cave. "I thought you had a big appetite and drank it all while I was resting."

Rong Taotao replied, "No, I specifically left that for Hu Bugui to replenish its energy during its watch. I took over from it a few times, and the soup was gone. Are you sure it didn’t drink it?"

Gao Lingwei slowly stood up. "I’m certain. Its loyalty to me is beyond question. It would sooner starve to death than take even a bit of my food."

Rong Taotao felt the hair on his arms stand on end, and a layer of goosebumps broke out across his skin. He gripped the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow slung across his lower back. "Is there really some other creature in this cave besides the two of us?"

Gao Lingwei was silent for a moment, her mind unusually calm as she analyzed the situation. "If that’s the case, we don’t need to be nervous.

"If this creature can live alongside us right under our noses, even eating our candy and drinking our soup without us noticing, it means it could have easily harmed us in our sleep and taken all the supplies for itself.

"But for three whole days, while we were completely unaware, it never tried to hurt us."

Hearing this, Rong Taotao’s expression turned a bit strange. ’She kind of has a point, doesn’t she?’

WHOOSH...

Gao Lingwei directly summoned Snow Night Shock and asked, "Are there any other creatures here besides the two of us?"

Snow Night Shock stared at Gao Lingwei with its huge eyes but gave no indication of anything.

Gao Lingwei and Rong Taotao exchanged a glance. "You stand guard here. I’m going to take another look."

Rong Taotao said, "Let’s go together."

Gao Lingwei shook her head. "The Snowflake Wolves are no joke. This cave is our lifeline. We can’t let our guard down. Stay put."

Rong Taotao: ???

’You’re the captain, I’m a team member. Couldn’t you have just given an order?’

’Why add those last two words?’

Resting one hand on Snow Night Shock’s jaw, Gao Lingwei strode toward the back of the cave.

"Hey, try taking this with you." Rong Taotao summoned his Cloud Dog and casually tossed it to Gao Lingwei.

"Yip?" The Cloud Dog had just appeared when it felt itself flying through the air before being caught in a cool hand.

It blinked its small, glossy black eyes and looked up curiously, only to see Gao Lingwei unzip her jacket and place it inside her warm embrace.

Gao Lingwei copied Rong Taotao, placing the Cloud Dog at her collar and zipping up her jacket, leaving only the little dog’s head peeking out.

"Woof~" The Cloud Dog happily tilted its head back, nuzzled Gao Lingwei’s neck, and flapped the two large ears that were sticking out of her collar, seeming quite pleased.

Gao Lingwei walked quickly to the middle of the cave tunnel. Standing at the highest point, she used the light from Snow Night Shock’s eyes to peer deeper inside.

It was utterly silent, with no sign of any living creature.

"Woof!" The Cloud Dog suddenly barked, making Gao Lingwei’s heart clench.

She scanned the cave’s interior meticulously but still couldn’t see anything.

"Woof~ Woof!"

Gao Lingwei immediately led Snow Night Shock and walked deeper in.

"Woof!" Following the Cloud Dog’s series of barks, Gao Lingwei finally arrived in front of a wall deep inside the cave.

Under the deep blue searchlight glow, the wall looked perfectly ordinary and normal, with nothing out of place.

"Woof woof woof!" But the Cloud Dog kept barking. Gao Lingwei’s brow furrowed, and she slowly pressed a hand against the wall.

At that exact moment, a vertical pupil lit up from within a tiny crack in the wall.

THUD! Gao Lingwei’s expression changed dramatically, and she jerked back a step!

The tiny stone crevice was just large enough to fit a single vertical pupil.

"POP~"

The vertical pupil suddenly vanished, as if something had shattered.

Bits of frost and snow drifted out of the tiny crevice and gradually coalesced before Gao Lingwei’s eyes.

"Hah... hah... hah..." The Cloud Dog panted, its little pink tongue hanging out as it gave a dopey grin. Its body also broke apart, but instead of turning into frost, it dissolved into a cloud of mist that settled on the ground.

Gao Lingwei’s heart tightened. She quickly bent down and scooped the Cloud Dog back into her arms.

This was Rong Taotao’s Lifebound Soul Beast! If anything happened to it, Rong Taotao would have nothing left!

However, this very action caused the eyes of the little creature that had just assembled itself opposite the Cloud Dog to dim with sadness.

Cradling the Cloud Dog, Gao Lingwei warily studied the creature before her, unable to stop herself from feeling a little dumbfounded.

It was a small, pure white kitten?

It looked a lot like a Ragdoll cat from human society, and it was so cute it was almost outrageous!

’What kind of Snow Realm Soul Beast is this? How have I never seen one before?’

If it hadn’t just materialized out of frost and snow, Gao Lingwei might have really mistaken it for something else.

But even without witnessing that scene, it obviously couldn’t be a pet cat. In the lands of the Snow Realm, where Hunters were everywhere, a creature without some serious skills would never have survived long enough for Gao Lingwei to meet it. It would have long since been devoured by other Snow Realm Soul Beasts.

"Hah..." Gao Lingwei let out a deep breath, suppressing her astonishment. She had enough reverence to be wary of an unknown species of Snow Realm Soul Beast.

The little Ragdoll-like cat before her had azure eyes, as clear and bright as the sky, which looked especially beautiful in the relative darkness of the cave.

Gao Lingwei had been puzzled before—how could such a natural shelter not be occupied by some wild beast? Before she had even decided to enter the cave, she had already prepared to be attacked from both front and rear.

But at the time, her doubts didn’t last long. Rong Taotao had clearly stated there were no Soul Beasts in the cave, and the battle at the entrance had started immediately, so Gao Lingwei had pushed the thought to the back of her mind.

Now, Gao Lingwei understood perfectly. For this little creature to occupy this natural cave as its resting place and steal their food without anyone on the team noticing, its strength was absolutely not to be underestimated!

Gao Lingwei slowly knelt down, trying to appear as friendly as possible. In a gentle tone, she said, "Hello?"

"Mew~" The little creature, whose eyes had been dim with sadness, couldn’t help but lift its head at the sound of her voice. Its pair of sky-blue, gem-like eyes looked at Gao Lingwei with curiosity.

Its fluffy tail swept back and forth as it tilted its little head.

Gao Lingwei thought for a moment, then took a Little Rascal candy from her pocket. Not daring to feed it directly, she placed it on the ground in front of it.

The little creature peeked its head forward cautiously and picked up the candy with its mouth.

"Pfft~ Pfft..." The next moment, it spat out a few torn pieces of a Little Rascal wrapper.

Gao Lingwei was about to say something when she saw the little creature pick up the scattered wrapper pieces from the ground and swallow them again. The paper obviously didn’t taste good, but it clearly didn’t intend to leave any "evidence" behind.

Apparently, it was a repeat offender.

"Mew~" After finishing the candy, the little creature put on a pitiful expression and looked up at Gao Lingwei again, blinking its big, beautiful, flawless eyes.

Gao Lingwei was astounded.

She was certain that its strength was not to be underestimated, but this little creature was also incredibly clever!

’It’s not only powerful, but it even knows how to use its own assets to act cute and get what it wants?’

’Is this one of its survival tactics in the perilous lands of the Snow Realm?’

Gao Lingwei stood up and slowly backed away. "Wait here a moment, I’ll go get you some more."

"Meow~" The little creature sat where it was, watching Gao Lingwei cautiously retreat. Or, to be more precise, it was watching the Cloud Dog in her arms with a look of envy.

The little creature tilted its head, blinking its big azure eyes, its thoughts a mystery...