Late at night, beneath A City, the Starfall Society Branch.
Bai Li pushed the door of the Hall open a crack, like a mouse stealing food, poking half her head in and glancing left and right.
After confirming no one was there, she slipped through sideways.
The Hall was empty, with only the firewood in the Fireplace crackling away.
The air carried a mix of wax and burnt wood, the kind of smell that only old houses had.
‘It’s this late, everyone should be asleep by now…’
Bai Li walked on her tiptoes, step by step, each one as cautious as if she were treading on thin ice.
She really had grown bold, sneaking into a Strange Person’s territory to steal something.
Usually, it was Strange People who stole from humans—when had a Strange Person ever stolen from another Strange Person to give to a human?
If the Madam found out, this little life of hers would probably end right here.
‘Lin Du, Lin Du…’ Bai Li screamed in her heart, ‘This is all for you! You’ve really done me in!’
To keep him from falling into that wicked woman Shijo Shizhi’s hands, she had gone through no end of trouble.
Once this was done and the money repaid, Bai Li would wash her hands of it and walk away.
As for that guy?
He could do whatever he wanted! Just stay far away from me.
Bai Li stood in the center of the Hall, looking around.
Six deep-purple doors stood in every direction, thick panels with no markings, even the pull rings were identical iron loops.
She stared at the doors, trying to tell them apart, but couldn’t see any difference at all.
Damn it, she couldn’t remember which door led to the Warehouse.
Last time the Wind Attribute Staff was delivered to the Warehouse, Martha had brought her. She’d just followed behind and hadn’t bothered to remember the way.
‘Do I really have to open them one by one?’
Bai Li bit her Lips.
If she opened them one by one, what if behind one door was the Madam’s Bedroom, or Martha’s resting room, and she ended up face-to-face with them the moment she opened it?
‘Hiss—’
One more glance and she might just explode.
She paced back and forth in front of the six doors twice, looking left and right, but absolutely couldn’t recall where the Warehouse was.
‘Forget it, today I’m going all in!’
Bai Li took a deep breath, walked to the nearest door, and carefully pulled it open a crack.
The door hinges were old, creaking and groaning.
She paused, waited for the sound to die down, then pulled the gap a little wider.
Inside was pitch black, so dark she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face.
She squinted, using the faint light from the Hall’s Fireplace, and vaguely made out something like shelves.
‘Bingo~’
A smirk tugged at Bai Li’s lips as she slipped through the door and gently closed it behind her.
Her pupils dilated as she waited for her Eyes to adjust to the darkness.
There were no windows here, only a few wall lamps that hadn’t been lit in who knew how long, covered in dust.
Bai Li walked forward, and the toe of her shoe kicked something.
“Clang—”
A sharp sound echoed through the empty space.
She crouched down to look—it was an Iron Basin, with dark red stains still caked at the bottom.
‘Weird, why is something like this here?’
Bai Li scratched her head and stood up, continuing further in.
The deeper she went, the colder it got, and the air carried a faint musty smell.
Bai Li shivered and wrapped her arms around herself.
Finally reaching the shelves, she leaned in close and squinted at the items on them.
She’d expected to see Alchemy equipment, but what appeared before her were rows upon rows of cold torture instruments!
An iron Shackles sat in the most prominent spot, its surface rusted, dried dark red traces still hanging from the locks.
Beside it lay a Whip, the tip split and the leather surface hardened.
And there were things she couldn’t name, twisted in shape, their purpose unknown.
Every single one sent a Chill Down Her Spine.
Bai Li swallowed hard. She recognized this place.
This wasn’t the Warehouse—it was the Punishment Room.
She’d been brought here before by Martha, tied to an iron frame, and punished with a Whip.
She’d thought she’d forgotten those memories, but standing here, they were dredged back up, so clear it hurt.
The howling wind, the pain in her back—it all seemed to surge back, making her skin crawl.
Bai Li quickened her pace, wanting to get out of this room as fast as possible.
‘This is bad, I need to get out of here…’
But she’d only taken a few steps when she noticed a Huge Iron Bed in the center of the room.
A White Cloth covered it, and beneath the cloth bulged a Human Form silhouette.
Suddenly, that silhouette moved.
With the Fox Clan’s vision, she could see it very clearly.
The White Cloth moved again, and this time she saw it even better—it was a person’s shoulders shifting.
Bai Li froze, her Eyes locked onto the White Cloth.
‘A ghost—!’
She nearly screamed, clamping her hand over her mouth to choke the shriek back down.
She stumbled back two steps, her shoulder knocking into the shelf, metal clattering loudly.
The White Cloth slid off the bed and fell to the floor.
A massive figure sat up from the Iron Bed, its skin a deep purple, bone spikes jutting out from its shoulders and spine.
Its yellow Eyes half-open, as if just waking from a dream.
The Yellow-Haired Monster slowly turned his head, his yellow Eyes gradually focusing, landing on Bai Li’s face.
Bai Li recognized that face.
She let out a sigh of relief, then sucked in another breath.
“Yellow Hair? You’re not dead?”
She asked in Surprise.
“I… almost died.”
His throat let out a hoarse voice. “Back then… my life flashed before my Eyes.”
“Oh, so you’re pretty tough to kill.”
Bai Li calmed down and patted her chest.
“Haven’t seen you in a long time, thought you’d been shipped off somewhere else.”
Yellow Hair didn’t respond. He slowly stood up from the Iron Bed.
His joints cracked and popped, like a machine that hadn’t moved in ages starting up again.
His body was even bigger than before, his shoulders nearly reaching the Ceiling.
The Yellow-Haired Monster’s Shadow cast against the wall, swallowing Bai Li’s entire Fox form within it.
Beneath the purple skin, black veins spread like tree roots.
Yellow Hair lowered his head, his Eyes fixed on Bai Li, his voice low.
“Grew this big, what’d you eat? Nine Dragon Power?”
Bai Li was momentarily stunned, then recalled how Yellow Hair had nearly been blown to death by the Blazing Knight before.
“The Blazing Knight… where is he? You… you juiced up or something?”
Bai Li tilted her head up, looking at this mountain of flesh in Human Form.
“Right now…”
She chose her words carefully.
“The Blazing Knight hurt someone before, and got viciously roasted online. His name doesn’t even show up in the news anymore.”
“Dream Demon?”
Yellow Hair frowned, the bone spikes on his forehead shifting with the movement.
“…Who’s that?”
“That’s a long story.”
Bai Li waved her hand.
“Anyway, she’s one of ours now. She flies around outside dressed as a Magical Girl, wearing a Pink Dress and holding a Star Staff. She’s super popular, I hear she even has a fan club.”
Yellow Hair was silent, his Gaze drifting away from Bai Li’s face.
He stood there, as if processing the information, or as if just staring into space.
After a long while, he finally spoke.
“So, no one needs me anymore.”
Bai Li didn’t know how to respond to that. The words sounded a little sad.
She lowered her head, then suddenly remembered something and snapped it back up.
“Hey, by the way. Do you know where the Warehouse with the Alchemy equipment is? The one where Martha took me to drop off the staff last time.”
She gestured with her hands.
“An emerald-green staff, glowing green all over.”
Yellow Hair turned around, extending his thick arm to point at a door on the other end of the Punishment Room.
“That door… go through it and you’re there. I’ve seen Martha… go in to grab stuff before.”
Bai Li followed his Fingers and nodded.
“Thanks.”
She stood on her Tiptoes, skirted around the pile of torture devices, and headed toward that door.
Bai Li walked a few steps, then stopped and looked back at Yellow Hair.
He was still standing there, motionless, like a statue.
Bai Li shook her head, turned around, and pushed open the door.
The Warehouse was much bigger than the Punishment Room, and much more organized.
The shelves were iron, painted gray, extending row after row into the depths like library bookshelves.
But instead of books, they held all kinds of weapons, tools, and jars and bottles.
Bai Li followed the labels along the shelves, muttering softly to herself:
“Alchemy, Enchanting… Illusion Magic!”
Her Fingers traced across the labels, and she found it on the shelf.
A Crystal Ball the size of a fist, its surface smooth, heavy in the hand like a solid ball of ice.
She tried channeling a little Magical Energy into it, and immediately faint blue lights appeared inside the sphere, forming something like an interface, floating slowly within the glass.
Bai Li nodded in satisfaction and stuffed it into her backpack.
“Next, a cool-looking sword…”
The weapon shelf was at the very back of the Warehouse, with blades, spears, swords, and halberds covering an entire wall.
Bai Li tilted her head up, walking from one end to the other, her Gaze sweeping across the weapons of every shape.
In the end, she picked a gleaming golden longsword, with a Red Gemstone embedded in the golden hilt.
She gripped the handle with both hands and swung it—the blade cut through the air with a soft whoosh.
“Not bad.”
Bai Li also found a Wooden Staff, its shaft a deep brown with a transparent gem set into the top.
She laid the sword and staff side by side into her backpack, zipped it all the way, and slung the bulging bag onto her back.
With that done, Bai Li dusted off her hands and turned to head back.
When she walked out of the Warehouse, Yellow Hair was already gone, but Bai Li had no time to look for him.
She hurried past the row of torture shelves, reached out to push the door, and the hinges creaked again.
The Hall outside was still silent.
She skirted around the Conference Table and was about to leave.
“Good evening, little Fox.”
Bai Li’s hand froze on the doorknob, her body stiff as if frozen solid, cold spreading from her Fingertips to the soles of her feet.
She turned her head mechanically, slowly.
The Madam was sitting on the King’s Throne in the Hall, one hand propping up her chin, one Leg crossed over the other, completely at ease.
The Silver Mask reflected the Fireplace’s flames, those violet Eyes watching Bai Li from behind the Mask, a faint, ambiguous smile curving at her Lips.
“It’s so late. What are you up to?”