Chapter 67: The Amulet
The Rose Corridor swayed gently, but it didn’t attack again.
Zhou Qian stood still and waited quietly for a moment, then let out a long sigh along with the others:
“It’s in a good mood today after all.”
But why?
Is it because it saw Wu Yue, the one who nurtured it?
But General Wu didn’t even come into contact with it… Could it be that they had some close encounter while I was away? Or could it sense from such a distance?
Thinking about General Wu’s encounter, his expression darkened again. As he looked at Huai Yu, kneeling on the ground, tear-streaked and in a sorry state, his silence turned into heavy guilt.
“Xiao Yu, I’m sorry, we shouldn’t have barged into your house…”
General Lin Xuefeng’s orders were indeed too important, and General Wu’s command had to be carried out.
But he didn’t expect that it would end up making such a mess of Xiao Yu’s home.
“Was it you?”
Huai Yu stared blankly at him, looking at his silent and guilty expression, at this moment, she couldn’t even bring herself to feel anger.
She only felt extremely, extremely wronged.
So much so that she stared at Zhou Qian, and large tears fell one by one.
She didn’t cry out in anger, but it was much more heartbreaking than a loud shout.
Not only Zhou Qian, who was closest to her, but even the few soldiers who had followed him stood awkwardly, not daring to look her in the eye.
Zhou Qian felt even more ashamed.
He still remembered how Huai Yu had crawled out from the foundation of the Rose Corridor, looking so disheveled, and how she had eagerly brought a pile of pine cones.
And now, the treehouse in front of him, which he hadn’t known about, was meticulously tidied up by this girl, who had made it look like a home with everything she could manage.
But all of this…
Especially now, as Huai Yu looked at him without questioning or anger, but with tears falling into the soil, it made his heart ache.
It felt like a towel being twisted and wrung, with each drop of water representing a bit more of his guilt.
“I’m sorry.”
He could only sincerely apologize again. “General Wu came personally, wanting to investigate the whereabouts of General Lin Xuefeng.”
“I heard that you have an ice sculpture of his here and wanted to take it to verify its authenticity.”
Originally, Zhou Qian was sent here for reconnaissance, but since Huai Yu’s house wasn’t locked, he hesitated at the door and decided to wait for Huai Yu to return and ask for her consent.
However, General Wu said he had urgent business and needed to leave tonight, so time was tight… and he came directly.
……
What Zhou Qian didn’t know was that General Wu had come because of the Rose Corridor.
He hadn’t gone to the place where General Wu had stayed, so he didn’t know that it had been completely destroyed by the Rose Corridor’s leaves, and the soil had been turned over.
But the two places were far apart, and it wasn’t really about a life-or-death struggle, so the Rose Corridor hadn’t harmed Wu Yue, now a top-tier wood-type ability user.
Compared to the threat, that turmoil felt more like a vented frustration, and once the mood had passed, it was over.
But Wu Yue wasn’t in a good mood because of this.
Coincidentally, Zhou Qian reported that the master was not at home and it would be better to wait for a while…
So he drove over, his elegant and handsome face now filled with a sense of cold determination:
“General Lin Xuefeng’s safety concerns the entire Guard Army, this is an urgent matter! If that girl, Huai Yu, doesn’t return today, are you planning to wait here forever?”
“Moreover, we can’t even be sure if that ice sculpture is really from General Lin Xuefeng. If we wait for a few days and find it’s fake, wouldn’t that delay many plans?”
His words were firm and powerful, with persuasive reasoning.
Zhou Qian hesitated.
He could clearly sense General Wu’s anger and impatience, but he didn’t know that the emotions weren’t about the ice sculpture—
But about the Rose Corridor and Huai Yu’s name.
The sound of the Rose Corridor’s branches angrily swaying echoed around, a mix of guilt and impatience clouding Wu Yue’s emotions, prompting him to go ahead and open the treehouse door.
The light from outside flooded in.
His gaze immediately went to the pink roses in the white porcelain vase.
Then, he froze.
Was that… the flower from the Rose Corridor?
No, that can’t be! It’s got such a bad temper, how could it allow a girl with weak wood-type abilities to pick its flowers?
But his doubts were quickly dismissed, just like the gently swaying purple wisteria at the door.
Because in front of that vase, the crystalline ice sculpture was emitting a faint cold aura.
From a distance, he couldn’t make out the small characters on it, but just feeling the icy breath made him think of Lin Xuefeng.
For some reason, the name “Huai Yu” and Lin Xuefeng’s name connected in his mind, making his mood even more irritable.
So, without stepping inside, he stood at the door, one hand holding the curtain, while the other gestured, and a seed in his palm quickly sprouted.
Then, like a snake, it reached forward, unceremoniously—
But what Wu Yue didn’t expect was that even the ice sculpture, a small token left behind by a girl he barely knew, contained extraordinarily sharp icy blades!
Sensing his unfriendly aura, the ice sculpture shattered with a sharp sound!
Then—
The sharp fragments were swept away by a sudden gust of wind, slicing in all directions!
Caught off guard, Wu Yue dodged frantically in the cramped space, his movements clumsy. Even Zhou Qian, behind him, was grazed by the shards of ice.
And as for the house…
The house now…
Zhou Qian lowered his head heavily.
He had no way of explaining to Huai Yu why General Wu could barge into her house and attempt to take her belongings.
Nor could he explain why he didn’t approach with kindness, which triggered the violent resistance from the ice sculpture.
“I’m sorry.”
He could only whisper and repeat his apology.
“There are some extremely powerful ability users who can seal their powers within materials. When they encounter specific situations—like the sharp stimulation of their ability’s aura—the sealed power is triggered!”
“Have you ever read novels? It’s like the talismans or magic scrolls in fantasy novels.”
“Some exceptionally powerful ability users leave such protection methods for their family or task participants.”
“But… it’s difficult, and very draining… We… we didn’t expect it.”
They didn’t expect that even though Lin Xuefeng was on the verge of breaking through the threshold of pollution, he would still be so powerful.
And they certainly didn’t expect that after just one encounter, he would quietly leave Huai Yu such a valuable gift.
It wasn’t just a parting gift, it was clearly a powerful amulet for this little orphan girl in the wilderness—a deadly weapon.
