Chapter 44

“Gongzi, is there something urgent? We can handle it for you.”

The Alpha went out so the wolves led the way.

After Ning Shiting left the house, Gu Tingshuang waited for the animal trainer to arrive while checking the remaining twenty or so "little wolves" in the house. Aside from the real Little Wolf who was still recovering and lying by his leg, the rest of the wolves had stayed behind out of a desire to protect him.

Gu Tingshuang knew his subordinates well and noticed two wolves were missing at a glance. He realized then that two had followed Ning Shiting when he left. One of them was “Yueya,” a wolf Ning Shiting had casually named.

What annoyed him the most was that the other wolves didn’t seem to care. Even the prestigious Golden-Backed Wolf remained silent.

Thinking of this, Gu Tingshuang felt displeased. He glanced at the Golden-Backed Wolf patrolling the corner and called out coldly, “Come here.”

The Golden-Backed Wolf came over obediently and crouched in front of him, ready to take orders.

“...”

After a moment of silence, Gu Tingshuang waved his hand dismissively. “Forget it. There's nothing. You can rest now. This place is safe, no need to worry about me.”

The Golden-Backed Wolf raised its head slightly, then returned to curl up by the fireplace.

By the time the beast trainer from the Qing Wang's residence arrived, it was already afternoon. Just like last time when Gu Tingshuang’s spiritual sense went astray, and he was trapped on Spirit Mountain, the wolves had surrounded the gates, and the household had been in a panic. The only solution was to summon the beast trainer to understand what the white wolves wanted. But that time, Ning Shiting had resolved the issue before the trainer could be found. The old man, a being transformed from an earth spirit, was often found sleeping under the stones of the Menagerie’s stream.

The door opened, and the trainer entered, covered in frost, looking like a snowman. As the warmth of the room met the cold outside, the frost began to melt, dripping onto the floor.

Upon closer inspection, he was an elderly man with white hair and beard, yet his posture was straight, and his eyes were sharp, exuding both the acuity and affinity unique to his lineage of beast trainers.

“I heard Dianxia was looking for this old man.”

Gu Tingshuang had already dismissed everyone else, leaving only the two of them in the room. Sitting in his wheelchair, the firelight illuminated him and the pack of white wolves with ears perked up behind him. Yet the trainer showed no fear, his gaze briefly sweeping over the wolves before respectfully lowering his eyes.

“Yes, I have a question for you,” Gu Tingshuang said, picking up a pen from the table and writing a few words on paper. He then handed it over with a nod, indicating for the trainer to take it.

The trainer, without much hesitation, took it and glanced at the note, which read: “Find out what the pack thinks of Ning Shiting.”

The old man bowed. “A small matter, Dianxia. I can provide an answer shortly.”

Gu Tingshuang’s expression turned slightly unnatural. “There’s no rush.”

He was the alpha wolf. He should be able to understand the emotions of all his subordinates and grasp the movements of the pack. However, right now, his spiritual consciousness was temporarily unavailable, and he absolutely could not admit that he had lost the ability to comprehend them. He certainly couldn’t openly reveal that he would ask a beast tamer about it.

Doing so would be unbecoming of a leader.

With that in mind, he waved his hand, “Report back to me later on this matter. You may leave for now.”

The beast tamer replied, “Yes, Dianxia.”

A puddle of water remained where the old man had stood, and fragments of half-melted ice clung to his cloak. Gu Tingshuang suddenly asked, “Is it cold outside?”

“I’ve grown used to the cold, but the snowstorm is quite heavy. Thank you for your concern, Your Highness, but I am a stone by nature, unafraid of the cold and able to melt ice and snow. I can still tend to my plants. I hurried over, though, and may have soiled your place. Please forgive me,” the old man replied.

Gu Tingshuang asked, “What about someone whose body isn’t strong or just a regular mortal?”

The old man thought for a moment. “That would be unbearable. It’s extremely dangerous.”

Gu Tingshuang said, “You may go.”

The door closed again, and Gu Tingshuang turned his head to gaze out the window. What he saw was the sky above the Shizi's residence, encased in ice—clear, bright, and utterly silent.

At midday, Ning Shiting’s group set out and arrived at the entrance to Xizhou within a little more than half an hour. Thanks to their thorough preparations, they encountered no problems along the way. The snowstorm was so fierce that visibility was nearly nonexistent. As they travelled, they set up ice barriers and windbreak pits, storing supplies in the pits. Part of the group went door to door notifying the residents and recording each household’s damages and injuries.

By the time they reached the main gate, their breath, oppressed by the freezing air, finally became more manageable. Warm air greeted them, dispersing the overwhelming snow. It felt as if they had stepped into an invisible barrier. The area, about the size of half a city, was controlled by fire magic. Hundreds of fire elamentalists stood watch around the clock at this emergency shelter, expending their magic and spiritual power to clear a path through the storm.

However, even with such efforts, the shelter wasn’t crowded. Only a few tents were set up, while the rest of the space was piled high with supplies and spiritual medicine. Occasionally, small teams of fire elamentalists would deliver some supplies, but it was barely enough to make a difference. The storm was so powerful that even paper talismans would be blown away, and even protective wards offered little defence.

As Ning Shiting's group approached, the soldiers inside immediately took notice. Recognising the emblem of the Qing Wang’s residence, they exchanged hushed words and sent someone to the main tent. Before long, Su Yue himself emerged, bundled up tightly.

With the absence of wind and snow, the conversation became much clearer. Su Yue glanced at Ning Shiting’s group, smiling thinly, “It’s been two days. If the Qing Wang’s residence is truly short on capable people for disaster relief, you might as well head back early.”

Ning Shiting responded, “We are indeed late. It took us a long time to prepare, and I ask for your understanding, Immortal Chief. The disaster is severe, and the supplies from the Immortal Emperor have been slow to arrive. Let’s work together to overcome this hardship.”

Hearing this, Su Yue’s expression softened slightly. His eyes flicked over Ning Shiting’s people, and he let out an ambiguous chuckle. “Ning Gongzi wants to do good, but what we need most right now is manpower. Yet I see… only two fire elementalists from the Qing Wang's residence. The rest are all water elamentalists?”

Several unfamiliar fire elementalists sitting around the fire chuckled quietly along with him, neither too loudly nor too softly. “Are they here to help or to seek refuge? Has the Qing Wang’s residence been buried in snow? Are they here to mooch off our fire camp?”

Hulu and Lingjiao, standing beside Ning Shiting, exchanged a nervous glance. The relationship between the Immortal Chief’s residence and the Qing Wang’s residence had grown increasingly strained, whether over the matter of Xizhou’s governance or the military efforts of Baili Hongzhou. Tensions were rising to the point of open hostility. With both sides making such barbed remarks, they feared a conflict might break out at any moment.

Hulu secretly transmitted a message, “Why are they so arrogant?”

Lingjiao responded, “Isn’t it obvious? Our Gongzi is disadvantaged for having entered the palace late. Earlier this year, Dianxia the Qing Wang expressed interest in reclaiming control over Xizhou. Before the rumours even settled, the Su family had already recruited all the best talent into their residence—the top incense masters and fire elamentalists included. What do we have left to compete with?”

Ning Shiting, however, remained calm. “The Qing Wang’s residence is offering sincere assistance. We’ve devised a method that may seem like a lazy shortcut, but the Immortal Chief need not worry. While we lack fire elamentalists, we are making use of water elamentalists. Every talent in Xizhou is valuable. I’ve also considered your situation. Constantly expending spiritual energy to fend off the storm isn’t a sustainable solution.”

Su Yue had no response to that.

Following Ning Shiting’s gaze, he saw the fire elamentalists around the camp, many of whom had gone days without proper rest. Their fire energy was nearly depleted, forcing them to stop and rest, yet their efforts were still nothing more than a drop in the ocean. Even as immortals, they were as fragile as mortals in the face of such a catastrophe.

Su Yue fell silent.

Ning Shiting clapped his hands.

His subordinates quickly understood the signal, and the water elamentalists moved efficiently to set up formations, with two fire elamentalists leading the way. A fire dragon rose from the ground, and everyone turned to watch.

A fierce flame shot into the sky, cutting through the endless snow. After some time, red light pierced through the pale white expanse, gradually expanding into a disc that hovered over their heads. The snow passing through the disc transformed into warm rain, falling gently to the ground.

The flame acted like a giant umbrella, creating a snow-free space overhead. The water elamentalists quickly followed up, directing the flow of water along the perimeter of the fire disc. As the water froze layer by layer, the fire elamentalists gradually reduced the size of the disc. When it became small enough, the fire dragon descended, precisely piercing through the ice, leaving gaps in the solid ice wall where people could seek shelter.

This method was simple and crude, but it was the result of a night’s worth of planning—designed to conserve the energy of the elemental elamentalists and get the job done as quickly as possible.

In no time, dozens of ice walls and fortifications were erected. The coordination between the water and fire elamentalists was flawless, completing the construction in the blink of an eye.

Ning Shiting turned to Su Yue and asked, “How about this? The immortals are suffering from severe losses. If the Immortal Master doesn’t mind, we can collaborate.”

Su Yue remained speechless.

“How should we collaborate?” he eventually asked.

Ning Shiting smiled faintly. “The fire elamentalists from the Immortal Chief’s residence and the water elamentalists from the Qing Wang's residence can work in groups of four. In the shortest time, we can create shelters for all the immortals.”

Su Yue was silent for a moment.

In that brief silence, both sides understood the unspoken undercurrents. How would the relief supplies be divided? Who would manage communications with the outside? And when it came time for official reports, which side would take the credit? When that moment came, it would be up to each to claim what they could.

Su Yue averted his gaze and gave the order, “Do as Ning Gongzi says.”

With the personnel organized, the work proceeded smoothly.

Though Ning Shiting was not in the best health, he always appeared energetic when working, showing no signs of fatigue.

The original camp had been replaced with new ice fortresses. Supplies and spiritual medicines had new storage locations, and once the storage capacity increased, logistics became much easier. By the afternoon, pathways from the main gate to areas densely populated with immortals had been established. Immortals began spontaneously collecting supplies and helping build the ice camp, significantly improving efficiency.

Hulu and Lingjiao stayed by Ning Shiting’s side, assisting with coordination. As the evening approached, Hulu asked, “Gongzi, will you return to the Shizi's residence tonight? Your camp has already been set up. If you plan to stay overnight, we can have your belongings brought over.”

They knew Ning Shiting’s nature well. Once he began working, he wouldn’t stop for rest. Seeing how focused he was now, they figured he had no plans to leave.

Ning Shiting made a sound of agreement but quickly changed his mind and stopped Hulu. “Wait… I’ll return tonight and stay in the ice camp starting tomorrow. I have something to take care of.”

Hulu looked puzzled. “Gongzi, is there something urgent? We can handle it for you.”

Ning Shiting said, “It’s nothing serious. I just promised Yinbing I’d return before the You hour to train with him.”

Hulu responded with an "Oh," clearly understanding the situation. Everyone in the palace knew how much Ning Shiting cared for the little crown prince.

"When the time comes, we’ll accompany you back, Gongzi. Dianxia will surely be happy to see Gongzi return as promised."