Chapter 39

What stood before him was not a wall, but countless ancient white wolves!

Ning Shiting vaguely remembered that there was a book in the study of the Qing Wang’s Mansion called The Book of All Things.(1) It recorded all the spiritual beasts, flora, and minerals of the Nine Great Immortal Continents throughout history, somewhat akin to the mortal world's Classic of Mountains and Seas. Occasionally, it would also contain methods for sealing ancient beasts that had long since disappeared. However, these topics were too obscure, and few people would think to consult this book.

Ning Shiting himself had not studied this book thoroughly; he had only glanced through it briefly. The content seemed too lengthy, and it was not the most urgent matter that Ning Shiting needed to understand at the moment, so he set it aside. Regarding the Snow Yao of the Winter Continent, perhaps there was information about it in the book. However, the problem Ning Shiting encountered that day was, as he searched everywhere inside the study, he could not find the book. Then he finally had an epiphany.

This Book of All Things was also a Boundless Book,(2) making it incredibly small and nearly weightless. Ning Shiting wasn’t someone who was careless or forgetful. After thinking about it for a long time, he realised that it was possible he had accidentally mixed it in with a miscellaneous collection he had brought to Gu Tingshuang some days ago. In other words, The Book of All Things might now be in the Shizi’s Residence.

The calamity caused by the snowstorm had already reached an unknown level of severity. Every day of delay could potentially result in countless more injuries and deaths. After contemplating until midnight, Ning Shiting saw that everyone had fallen asleep and finally decided to go out and retrieve the book himself.

He prepared a mask soaked in Soul Returning Incense as a backup, wrapped himself up tightly, and took a magical artefact with him. This artefact was called the Fire Lotus, which resembled a parasol. When opened, the surface of the parasol could emit Samadhi True Fire. Although this artefact was powerful, its lack of precision made it unsuitable as a weapon. In the past, it had been used by the Qing Wang’s Mansion’s chef to incinerate kitchen waste.

He quietly and lightly stepped out of the door alone. As soon as he stepped outside, he was nearly forced back by the violent wind and snow. The bone-chilling wind, laden with hard snowflakes, seemed as though it could pierce through one's very bones.

Ning Shiting stifled a few coughs, tightened his grip on the Fire Lotus parasol, and steadied himself as he walked forward. Before his eyes, there was nothing but white; the heavy snow had buried any possibility of seeing his surroundings clearly. Though somewhat disoriented, Ning Shiting relied on the Jiaoren's keen sensitivity to sound. He could discern differences in the wind's howl as it was obstructed by buildings and hear the various sounds produced by different types of structures being eroded by the wind and snow. This allowed him to roughly determine his direction and the shapes of objects along his path.

It wasn’t until Ning Shiting suddenly tripped over a stone railing crossing his path that he felt a twinge of danger—he had found the right direction but had taken the wrong route. The place where he now stood was the Thousand Lotus Pond in the Qing Wang’s Mansion, which was usually teeming with koi. As a Jiaoren, Ning Shiting was not afraid of water, but lurking beneath the surface were Ghost-tooth Jiao, with their beautiful scales and fierce temperament, raised under Gu Feiyin's orders. If not for the fact that the entire lake had now frozen into solid ice, even Ning Shiting, falling into the water, would have faced considerable peril.

Ning Shiting held the Fire Lotus parasol tightly to prevent it from being blown away by the wind. Cold sweat on his hands had frozen into ice, fusing his skin to the gloves made of Luo water mist. His hands had become so numb with cold that he could barely feel them. This layer of ice was quickly melted by the warm breeze from the Fire Lotus parasol. Water dripped from his sleeves as the ice melted, but as soon as it rolled a bit further down his arm, it would immediately refreeze into ice. His hands were like this, and so was his entire body; even his bone marrow seemed to have frozen stiff.

He had experienced this kind of cold in his previous life, and experiencing it again now didn’t feel as despairing or frightening as he remembered. The fear of death is innate to humans, but from the moment he was born, Ning Shiting had endured all kinds of pain—physical and mental. Over time, he grew accustomed to it and began to see his own life as insignificant. Though he was a rare and valuable medicinal Jiaoren, he was still just a person. If he were gone, the sun would continue to rise and set as usual. In his previous life, his Shifu told him he would inevitably suffer the pain of a burning heart. He spent so many years charging headlong into it that, in the end, he didn’t have a single thought before his death. Now, living a second life, he had no lingering thoughts at all.

Killing the Qing Wang was certainly desirable, but what would happen after that? If he still had one life left by then, and his sole reason for staying alive was the thought of “not being able to die together with that person,” then what was the point of living? Recklessness, the heart-devouring pursuit of vengeance, and impassioned obsessions were no good, but a life devoid of attachments and concerns was equally devoid of joy.

The cold and harsh environment gnawed at Ning Shiting’s consciousness. Ever since his rebirth, his nightmare disorder had never truly been cured; the more muddled his mind became, the more chaotic his thoughts grew. He wasn’t afraid of death, only of the cold, and of dreams.

Just before the onset of a nightmare, Ning Shiting bit down hard on his own lip. Because of the numbing cold, he didn’t even feel pain when he bit down. Warm blood rolled over his lips, quickly congealing into dark ice before the pain finally surged. Using this trace of pain, Ning Shiting managed to find a spot where the wind and snow were blocked before he lost consciousness.

In an instant, the wind and snow were reduced significantly, as if a massive, invisible wall had risen to shield him. Ning Shiting raised his eyes, straining to make out something amid the white expanse. He thought he had stumbled into some wind-sheltered pavilion or hall, but with the lessening snow, that wasn’t the case.

In the darkness and falling snow, he raised his lantern to illuminate the scene, only to discover in shock that—

What stood before him was not a wall, but countless ancient white wolves!

These wolves stood silently in front of him, their bodies swelling to enormous sizes, one after another. They used their massive forms to create an endless wall of flesh, blocking out the raging wind and snow.

Seeing such a shocking—or perhaps terrifying—sight, Ning Shiting abruptly halted his steps. As the wind and snow calmed, he could even hear, mixed with the sound of the wind falling gently, the heavy breathing of these wolves—deep, bestial breaths.

He thought for a moment, then tentatively took a step in their direction. Ning Shiting wasn’t sure what these wolves were doing. The behaviour of the ancient white wolf gods was beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. The only thought in his mind was that if anyone else in the mansion saw this scene, it would likely cause a great commotion.

Fortunately, since the last incident involving Gu Tingshuang, the barrier between Spirit Mountain and the Qing Wang’s Mansion had never been reopened. Otherwise, on such a snowy night, even on Spirit Mountain, the wolf pack would have nowhere to hide. At least now, they could temporarily take shelter in the Qing Wang’s Mansion. All creatures on Spirit Mountain had their own spiritual essence, but with the Snow Yao rampaging unchecked, it was uncertain how severe the devastation had become. The creatures on the mountain were struggling to survive. Once the white wolves’ lair was destroyed, they would never easily find another one. The only possibility left for them was to seek out their alpha wolf, Gu Tingshuang.

Now the behaviour of the wolf pack was unpredictable. Ning Shiting worried that they might run into unsuspecting servants in the mansion, which could lead to unnecessary misunderstandings. He wanted to go up and ask about the whereabouts of their golden-backed wolf. However, an unexpected situation occurred.

Every time he took a step towards the wolf pack, they would step back. In the snow, it appeared as though this wall of flesh and blood was following his every movement.

Ning Shiting paused, thinking the wolves were rejecting his approach. He took a step back and nodded slightly, expressing his gratitude: “Thank you all, though I don’t know why you’re doing this, I still owe you my thanks for your protection.”

After speaking, he continued forward with his lantern. The Shizi’s Mansion was not far off. As Ning Shiting moved, the wolf pack immediately followed in his direction. From this, Ning Shiting confirmed: these wolves were indeed protecting him, forming a barrier against the wind and snow.

Although Ning Shiting didn’t understand why they were doing this, he felt somewhat honoured. He quickened his pace through the snow and wind. Upon arriving at the gate of the Shizi’s Mansion, he spotted the golden-backed wolf at the end of the wall of wolves. It was squatting by the door where Gu Tingshuang usually drank tea. As its golden eyes looked over at him, it dropped something at its feet.

It was the very book Ning Shiting had come to retrieve: the Book of All Things.

These creatures, imbued with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, were terrifyingly intelligent. After picking up the book, Ning Shiting saw the golden-backed wolf dart past him, stopping at the door and looking back at him, signalling him to follow.

Ning Shiting glanced at the Shizi’s Residence—it was just as he had suspected. The roof, which they hadn’t had time to repair, had partially collapsed, and several giant trees in the back had been broken in half. It was a scene of ruin. Luckily, he had made early arrangements to evacuate important people and items, but now he wondered if this broken-down place could still provide a safe haven for the wolf pack.

Recalling the scene he had witnessed in the civil affairs hall the other day, and connecting it with today’s events, Ning Shiting realised that the ancient white wolves might have the ability to change their body size at will.

As the wolves escorted him back, Ning Shiting couldn’t help but speak softly, “Would you like to… rest in the study pavilion? I mean… if you don’t mind.”

The golden-backed wolf turned to look at him, its steps pausing cautiously as if it were considering something. However, this time, the wolves’ deliberation was clearly shorter than the last time.

Ning Shiting safely returned to the courtyard outside the study pavilion. He saw the golden-backed wolf hesitating at the entrance, peering inside. Smiling, he waved his hand, “Come on in, but be quiet. We wouldn’t want to startle anyone.”

The golden-backed wolf stepped into the courtyard. Ning Shiting grinned and made a gesture, “Can you make yourselves a bit smaller? This place is already packed with people; there’s probably only one warm room left for you to squeeze into. I hope you don’t mind.”

The golden-backed wolf shrunk down accordingly. The snow and wind suddenly intensified, but the golden-backed wolf reduced in size several times, becoming roughly the size of a small wolf, and followed Ning Shiting inside.

The other wolves in the pack followed suit, transforming into cub-like forms, trailing behind Ning Shiting.

The only room left unoccupied was Ning Shiting’s study, where Gu Tingshuang had just gone to sleep not long ago. At least it was warm. Ning Shiting didn’t even have time to count how many wolves there were; countless wolf cubs paraded inside, their paws pattering softly. He noticed the door appeared as if someone had opened it, and Gu Tingshuang’s wheelchair had been moved.

Did Gu Tingshuang go out?

A twinge of concern flashed in his heart, but when he went to check inside, he found Gu Tingshuang lying there, still asleep, his back facing Ning Shiting.

The little wolf cub seemed to sense something in its sleep, its ears twitching as it opened its eyes to look toward Ning Shiting. Seeing that Gu Tingshuang hadn’t wandered off, Ning Shiting let out a sigh of relief and stepped forward to tuck in the corners of his blanket.

Gu Tingshuang would be turning fifteen in a few days. He was a young man full of energy, yet he only had a thin blanket covering him. Ning Shiting couldn’t understand it; he felt that it would make him sick. When Ning Shiting directly brought this up to Gu Tingshuang, Gu Tingshuang had simply ignored him, saying he needed to practice asceticism.

Just as Ning Shiting moved to pull out a thicker quilt from the bed to cover him, Gu Tingshuang suddenly reached out, swiftly grabbing Ning Shiting’s wrist through the thin blanket.

“What are you doing?”

Ning Shiting hesitated for a moment and said, “I wanted to add another blanket for Dianxia.”

Gu Tingshuang’s voice showed no signs of drowsiness, but it wasn’t aggressive either. He simply said in a cool tone, “No need. You should go get some rest yourself. Haven’t you slept yet?”

It was rare for him to speak so gently. Ever since Gu Tingshuang’s cultivation had gone astray last time, Ning Shiting had sensed a subtle shift in his attitude toward him—perhaps he felt a little closer than before. People’s hearts can be warmed, especially Gu Tingshuang, whose nature was similar to that of his wolf pack: suspicious, fierce, yet sincere.

Seeing that Gu Tingshuang was probably still awake, Ning Shiting glanced back at the four or five dozen "wolf cubs" milling about outside. He carefully considered his words before speaking, “I just went out to get a book.”

“Ng.”

“On the way, I ran into… your white wolves. They cleared the way for me and shielded me from the wind, sparing me from a solitary struggle. Thank you.”

“I know.”

Gu Tingshuang released his grip, still lying with his back to Ning Shiting, his tone as indifferent as before.

How could he not know? If he hadn’t changed his mind before leaving and chosen to command the wolf pack to protect Ning Shiting through his spiritual consciousness, rather than searching for the Jiaoren himself, who knew if Ning Shiting would have returned safely?

“Also…” Ning Shiting began again.

Also?

“The Shizi’s Mansion has been neglected for many years and is unlikely to offer much protection against the wind and snow. So I… invited your white wolves inside to rest. Is that alright?” Ning Shiting asked, somewhat uncertain. He wasn’t sure how Gu Tingshuang felt about the wolves interacting with people. Perhaps, given how harsh he was with himself, Gu Tingshuang might believe that leaving the wolves outside in the snow was a form of training.

As expected, Gu Tingshuang sat up at the head of the bed, following Ning Shiting’s gaze to look outside. A bunch of fluffy little wolf cubs peeked in from the doorway, looking back at them. Ning Shiting’s eyes sparkled.

Gu Tingshuang: “…”

Foot Notes

1. The book is called “万相” (Wàn xiàng) or “Ten Thousand Pictures” sounds like 万象 (Wàn xiàng) which means “all phenomenon on earth” or “every manifestation”.

2. 无穷 (Wúqióng) also could be called “endless” or “infinite”.