A soft sensation pressed against Yevenko's face. What little vision he had dimmed into pitch black.
At that moment, Yevenko—dragon between his hips, peach at his nose.
Not only the shape but even the faint fragrance carried the sweetness of peach.
Probably because Raiden Ei had been snacking on peaches nonstop lately.
Realizing what he had touched, Yevenko scrambled backward, cheeks flushed.
No shff-shff of crawling followed—Ei hadn't moved. To cover the awkwardness, he said:
"What's wrong? Why'd you stop?"
"If you don't want the Feixiao Inner World Tour, I can't refund you—mainly because I never charged you."
In the dark passage, Ei's amethyst eyes glowed faintly, sensing something. But in the end, she found nothing.
"…Nothing. Probably my imagination," she murmured.
Her left hand brushed the spot Yevenko had touched. A fleeting blush flashed on her pale cheek before she shook her head and crawled on.
Hearing her shff-shff movements, Yevenko followed.
...
The land was shadowed, mist curling thick, thunder flickering above a brooding sky.
Feixiao stood firm upon the ground.
BOOM—!
She turned at the sound, and there loomed Hoolay's hulking form. His voice was slow, gravelly:
"Feixiao… You always take the hardest fights yourself."
"Like now—you never knew what it meant to flee."
"Strange, isn't it? As your enemy, I know you better than your comrades do."
He thought she'd flare in rage, strike without hesitation.
But her face twisted oddly instead.
"Hoolay," she said.
"Your appearing here must be calculated. But you don't know—I didn't swallow the Red Moon to sacrifice myself."
"Before I could, Tom just… wrapped it in cloth."
Hoolay: "…"
He almost said a cloth can't contain the Red Moon—then remembered it was that cat. He let the thought go, and rasped instead:
"Then why are you here?"
Feixiao pressed her lips.
"I don't know why I see you, dead as you are. But it's just as well. I have something to ask."
"My healer Jiaoqiu said the Red Moon could cure Moonmadness. I asked Yevenko for it, wrapped by Tom. You, as warleader, must know if it's true."
Hoolay laughed, a harsh bark skyward.
"Hahahaha… So your medic knows a thing or two."
"That a fox—vermin—could be a Xianzhou General, I never expected. How ironic."
"And more ironic still—I waited for this day, but not like this. Still, I'll take it."
"For it's not the worst end."
"The Borisin warleader who devours the Red Moon never dies to Moonmadness."
"The only pity? I can't weigh your worth with my own claws. But the weight of a Lord Ravager… will do."
"Win, Feixiao!!"
He bent, howling in agony. His form twisted—
Then eyes burned cyan-green.
A voice slithered out, charming and cruel, jarring from that bloody maw:
"Hoolay's plan was amusing. Too bad it failed."
"This big wolf pup ruined my script. Should've just died quietly."
"But… upgrading from a Borisin body to a Xianzhou General? What a gift."
Phantylia.
Her scheme had been the Arbor body—divine vessel of Abundance, like an unconscious Emanator. Fused with her, she'd have risen beyond envoys.
But Jerry's meddling forced the Luofu to catch scent. The Arbor was destroyed.
She still forced a fusion, wielding both Destruction and Abundance—yet in the end, that giant of light toyed with her like a doll.
Regeneration only prolonged her humiliation. Better to pivot to the second plan.
Take Hoolay's flesh.
Not top-tier, but serviceable.
And now… through his last act, she had the chance to seize Feixiao's instead.
A general of the Luofu. A true Hunt Emanator's vessel.
This was no loss—this was fortune.
Her grin twisted Hoolay's muzzle. She raised her will.
A storm erupted, cloaking her—
When it cleared, Feixiao herself floated there, perfect likeness. Behind her loomed Feihuang, her wolf-god, but its aura twisted dark.
She crossed her arms, eyes burning cyan instead of azure.
"Feixiao!"
"I'll wield your beast as my weapon, wear your name as my prey!"
"In this one-on-one world, none can interfere. I will be the sole vict—"
Zing—!
A brown mouse darted past.
Her voice broke. She rubbed her eyes in disbelief.
Gone. An illusion? Her fear of that mouse playing tricks.
This was Feixiao's inner world—there was no way…
She inhaled.
"Victory will be mi—"
Zing—!
A blue-gray cat bounded by.
Phantylia: "…"
This time it was no illusion.
And then—a pop rang. She and Feixiao turned.
A black archway had appeared. Out of it crawled familiar figures.
March 7th hugged herself against the cold wind and thunder.
"Whoa… this is General Feixiao's inner world? So bleak. So lonely."
"If mine, it'd be rainbow-bright, full of my photo-memories hung across the sky."
"Stelle, you?"
Stelle hesitated. "Maybe a giant baseball bat stuck in the earth. If I pull it out, I'm the Monkey Bat-King."
Moze and Jiaoqiu scrambled up, eyes darting. They found Feixiao—two of her.
Moze frowned. "Two Generals?"
Jiaoqiu: "Doesn't matter. We just need close sight. I'll know the true one."
Jing Yuan emerged, stroking his chin.
"This is her inner world. If we intrude too freely, might we cause harm? Still—a probe may be safe."
Raiden Ei and Yevenko crawled out last.
Seeing Jing Yuan move, Yevenko blocked him.
"Wait! What kind of tourists wander off without their guide?"
"This attraction's like a zoo—observe from distance. No touching the exhibits."
"This is Feixiao's battle with herself. If she wins, she masters the Red Moon. If not… well, then we deal with it. For now, don't disturb her."
The three stopped. Jing Yuan's gaze flicked to Tom and Jerry, chasing circles around the two Feixiaos. He wisely asked nothing.
When they looped past, Yevenko seized them—scruff and tail.
"Enough fighting. Build the spectator stands."
The cat and mouse turned away with folded arms—but obeyed.
Tom fetched stools and tables, arranging them neatly. Jerry hopped across them like a ski slope, firing plates onto each.
The group exchanged glances—then sat.
Yevenko called out:
"Snacks, drinks—front row seats!"
"…That gag is a bit old."
March shouted back anyway:
"Milk for me!"
Yevenko set a bottle on her table.
Moze and Jiaoqiu had no attention to spare. Their eyes fixed on the battlefield—Feixiao versus Phantylia.
Phantylia didn't know why the others hadn't intervened—but she couldn't waste time. She had to win before they did.
Feixiao, bare-fisted, faltered under the storm of her doppelgänger and beast.
Yet she did not yield. The will of the Hunt burned bright.
Her voice rang:
"Born to fight, to die in battle."
"So I pray to heaven—though they never answer—may the Hunt's arrow pierce the monster's heart!"
Vmmm—!
Resonance thrummed.
Above, a meteor blazed down, and for a heartbeat a colossal figure of centaur and bow—the Hunt Aeon—shone.
About to fade.
But Yevenko smelled exploration points.
He bellowed:
"TOM!!"
Tom's eyes gleamed. He whirled into cowboy garb, rope in paw, and cast it skyward.
The lasso hooked the Aeon's neck.
The fading form solidified.
Lan: "…"