Chapter 35: Thirty-five spirituals, it must be a baby.

The wind and snow in the Forbidden Zone grew fiercer and fiercer, the soft snowflakes striking the face like stones.

Yin Que stared into the thick, impenetrable white fog, planning the next move behind them.

“We’ll rest for two days, then set out for the Xiu Luo Prison.”

At the mention of Xiu Luo Prison, Ting Rui’s face, which had been smiling with relief, tightened slightly, a deep bitterness rising in his eyes.

Pei Yujiu was there—in the Xiu Luo Prison.

He knew the Commander intended to go there with him and bring Yujiu back home.

Five whole years had passed.

His old friend endured the scorching flames in Xiu Luo Prison day after day.

Even after so many years, hearing Yujiu’s name again still made Ting Rui’s heart ache painfully.

Pain. It was simply unbearable.

But now was clearly not the time to dwell on the past.

His expression grew serious as he said, “Commander, I want to see Yujiu as much as you do, but I’m afraid we’ll have to stay here for a while.”

Through the thick snow and fog, Yin Que vaguely caught sight of a brightly colored Bawanghua flower swaying nonchalantly through the storm, seemingly indifferent to the raging wind and snow.

But that glimpse was fleeting—the Spirit Body’s silhouette was quickly swallowed by the blizzard.

Yin Que was momentarily stunned.

Bawanghua?

Could Ning Li be here too?

He stood up and hurried forward a few steps, but saw no trace of the Bawanghua anymore.

“Commander?”

Yin Que turned to look back.

“What’s going on here?”

Ting Rui didn’t explain why they couldn’t leave for the time being but instead brought up another matter first.

He cut to the chase.

“Back then, when we learned you were in trouble, Yujiu and I searched everywhere for you. But sadly, your body seemed to have vanished into thin air—we couldn’t find you anywhere.”

“We went to so many places for you. Almost every place we could get to, we went to. But one day, passing by an Abandoned Building, we ran into Qi Sihui by chance. From that day on, Yujiu and I were hunted relentlessly.”

Yin Que pondered for a moment.

“That Abandoned Building had a secret?”

“Probably. Unfortunately, when Yujiu and I went back later, all the traces inside had been cleaned up. We found nothing.”

Ting Rui let out a heavy sigh, suppressing memories of the relentless chase and skipping over how Yujiu was caught to let him escape, directly stating the result.

“I stole something from Qi Sihui.”

He never regretted stealing it.

He only regretted that Yujiu died, not himself.

Now, after carrying this secret for so many years, Ting Rui finally found someone to confide in, feeling a rare sense of relief.

“Yujiu, you would never have imagined that I would see the living Commander again.”

“So, the changes here are related to that thing?”

Ting Rui nodded heavily.

“That item seems very important to Qi Sihui. Unfortunately, I never truly figured out its secret over the years. I only noticed that when it enters different Forbidden Zones, it triggers different chain reactions. This time, I never expected it to cause such a huge blizzard after entering Ku Gu.”

“If I hadn’t met Yin Que, this blizzard would have been his salvation. All the pursuers would have been lost in the snowstorm with him. The blizzard treats every Sentinel and Guide inside the Forbidden Zone equally—it rages indiscriminately against everyone.”

A trace of worry appeared in Ting Rui’s eyes.

“From my experience, the blizzard won’t stop for a week.”

Even though he had brought this storm, he had no confidence about what would come next.

Despite entering many Forbidden Zones to escape, this was the first time he had encountered such a difficult situation.

Why would that thing behave so violently in Ku Gu?

Yin Que sensed something unusual in the snowstorm.

He reached out to catch the stone-sized snowflakes, observing their state before asking, “Is that thing on you?”

Ting Rui shook his head.

Seeing the Messenger, he assumed Qi Sihui had learned about it, so he prepared to gamble everything and didn’t dare carry the thing on his person.

Instead, he buried it in a hidden spot.

Unfortunately, with such heavy snow now in the Forbidden Zone, even though he knew where it was buried, it would be difficult to retrieve anytime soon.

Still, since he had buried it so deep and remote, it probably wouldn’t be found by anyone, right?

After Xiao Hei heard the word “treasure,” she was told to stay put and not move around.

Ning Li began asking for more detailed information.

“What did you find?”

Xiao Hei’s voice rang clearly in the spiritual sea:

[A silver sphere.]

“What is it?”

[I don’t know.]

[But it’s definitely a treasure!]

[It must be a treasure!]

[Trust me, Master!]

The Amber Eye was also found by Xiao Hei originally.

Perhaps Xiao Hei had a natural talent for finding treasures.

Could this silver sphere be something similar to the Amber Eye?

From the information gathered so far, it seemed their group would find it hard to leave Ku Gu anytime soon.

This blizzard was beyond anyone’s expectations; the exit had disappeared, and no one knew if it would reappear.

She had a premonition that the upcoming Forbidden Zones would become increasingly hostile to survival.

In such a situation, sitting and waiting to die was no different than simply dying.

Since the Forbidden Zone changed, past experiences no longer applied.

The thick Experience Book in the hands of the team leader was useless now.

Since Xiao Hei found something special, Ning Li didn’t mind investigating personally.

Taking the initiative was better than doing nothing.

After calming Yuan Yuan down, Ning Li spoke to her briefly and then quietly stood up.

Yuan Yuan grabbed the hem of her pants, her voice tense, the breath she exhaled masking her overly pale face.

“Li Zi, it’s dangerous outside.”

Ning Li bent down and patted her shoulder.

“I know.”

Precisely because she knew, she had to take the initiative to find a way out.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.”

A minute after Ning Li left, the team leader quickly noticed someone was missing.

She had just received news that the most experienced Sentinels were still wandering nearby and the exit had disappeared!

Knowing Ning Li was gone, she was nearly frantic.

“Yuan Yuan, did Ning Li say where she was going?”

Yuan Yuan bit her lip tightly.

“No. But she said she’d be back soon.”

During the time spent with Ning Li, Yuan Yuan had noticed Ning Li seemed to live day by day, but once she decided on something, it was hard to change her mind.

So when Ning Li intended to leave, Yuan Yuan hadn’t stopped her because she knew it would be useless.

Wrapped in thick cotton clothes, the team leader still felt the biting cold seeping through the seams, a chill not only from the weather but from the uncertainty of the future.

“You stay here. I’ll go find Ning Li! Yuan Yuan, which direction did she head?”

Yuan Yuan pointed north, hugging herself as she stood.

“Teacher, I’ll come with you.”

“Don’t be a burden. I’ll go alone.”

While the two spoke loudly, a clear, clean voice suddenly cut in.

The owner sounded quite young, with a pure tone, but his words carried an inexplicable weight that immediately comforted the soul—each word warm and steady.

“Who are you looking for? Ning Li?”

Yuan Yuan’s worried heart instantly calmed.

How strange.

In this world, there was actually a third person whose voice had such power.

The two people who could previously stabilize her emotions with just a few words were the former Commander Yin Que and Ning Li herself.

Now this person—

Who was he?

This silent yet powerful aura vaguely felt familiar, as if many years ago she had already been protected by this vast, wordless force.

The other whispered voices also quieted down.

Some people just had this magic—simply one sentence could attract everyone’s attention.

Yuan Yuan opened her mouth, and hearing her own question, “You know Li Zi?” she looked at the man who spoke.

He was tall, wearing a black baseball cap and a thin mask, head slightly lowered, only a clear-lined section of his chin visible beyond the mask.

In this raging snowstorm, he wore only a thin jacket but stood unmoved, each step full of strength as if unaffected by the harsh climate of the Forbidden Zone.

“Yes.”

Seemingly to gain the trust of Ning Li’s classmates and teachers, he pressed his hat brim down and slowly said, “I know you, Yuan Yuan.”

Since he even knew her nickname, he must truly know Ning Li!

Even the team leader only called her full name, Yuan Yuan!

Yuan Yuan exhaled deeply.

“Li Zi went north. I don’t know why; she didn’t say.”

Yin Que nodded slightly.

“Thank you.”

With that, he strode away.

As he was about to pass the team leader, he glanced sideways and warned, “The Forbidden Zone is dangerous. Everyone please remain quietly in place. I will bring her back.”

Then he quickened his pace heading north.

Ting Rui looked around in surprise, then hurried to follow after learning this group were students from the Guide Academy of the Frontier.

He watched the Commander’s back, confused.

Why would the Commander know students from the Guide Academy of the Frontier?

Who was this Ning Li?

What was their relationship?

When had they met?

As Yin Que and Ting Rui left, Lu Shuangshuang and the others immediately began loudly discussing.

“Did you feel that?”

“Felt it!”

What they felt was obvious to all.

Just a single phrase, a single silhouette, could bring a sense of safety and warmth—the kind of charm they hadn’t encountered in a long time.

“He has the aura of my white moonlight!”

“You actually… I think so too!”

“I finally understand what ‘Wan Wan like you’ means!”

Though the Guides saw a familiar figure in Yin Que, none thought much of it.

After all, that notion was beyond reason, impossible and would never happen.

Yuan Yuan licked her dry lips, scratched her head, and couldn’t help but think:

Li Zi actually knew this kind of friend, and she didn’t even know it.

When Li Zi returns, she would definitely ask her about it.