A few days later.
Deep within the Land of Evernight lay the beastman city-state of Hector City, also known as Little Night City.
On the outer fringes of this snowfield, the city-state of Little Night rested peacefully in perpetual twilight, resembling the very end of the world.
Here, daylight appeared only faintly around noon—a mere brief interlude in the endless veil of night.
The city-state sat in the vast snowfields closest to the entrance of the Demon Realm. Majestic mountain ranges encircled it like guardian deities, their ridges cloaked in thick blankets of snow, turning them into a throng of gray giants.
Snow fell frequently upon the city-state itself, pure white, held firmly in the embrace of eternal winter.
At the heart of Little Night City was a grand plaza. Beside it rose a towering spire of carefully laid dark stone brick. Snow constantly slid from its conical roof like a shimmering silver-white cloak, and crystal wind chimes hanging beneath the eaves swayed with the breeze, producing light, clear rings.
This was the most renowned hotel in the city-state. Beyond catering to wealthy merchants willing to pay exorbitant rates, it also served as the place where the Grand Lord entertained distinguished guests.
In a spacious executive suite on the top floor, the interior was bathed in soft, warm light no matter how bitterly the wind and snow howled outside.
Every now and then, pages beside a round, tall wooden table were gently turned, accompanied by faint rustling sounds.
"Today is the thirteenth day of your new job."
"News arrives from the front lines of the neighboring Kingdom of Bliss, leaving you burning with anxiety."
"Yet you know that, aside from keeping your focus on the work before you, you have no other choice."
Suddenly, Lanqi gently pressed down on Boss Cat's head, silencing it.
Boss Cat gave a broadcast like this once a day now.
While the oven was baking pasta, Boss Cat had trotted over once more to lecture Lanqi.
Lanqi appreciated that Boss Cat was gaining more and more functions, but right now he was trying to read.
Moreover, on a chair on the other side of the round table...
Xigelei sat slumped forward with her head resting on the edge of the table, fast asleep, letting out soft snores from time to time.
Boss Cat nodded lightly.
It had not even realized she had fallen asleep so abruptly.
Throughout their journey, Xigelei had barely slept. Most of her waking hours had been spent concentrating intensely on driving the carriage through the snowy nights. An ordinary person would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago.
Yet she had managed to stay entirely focused on her task.
Only during rare moments of leisure like this did she seize the chance to get some rest.
Lanqi had already successfully repaired the statue of the God of Night and Silence this morning—the final statue among the six relatively prosperous city-states in the Land of Evernight.
Now, Lanqi and Xigelei were taking a brief respite in Little Night City. Once lunch was over, they would set out on the final leg of their journey to the Demon Realm.
There would be no city-states along the road where they could stop and rest, and they would likely arrive at the Demon Realm around dawn tomorrow.
"Who would've thought your affinity for small animals would work on beastmen too?" Boss Cat climbed onto Lanqi's shoulder and whispered into his ear.
That way, it would not wake Xigelei.
"..."
Lanqi tilted his head, looked at the little black cat, and smiled faintly.
Perhaps it was not affinity, but simply that they naturally took a liking to him.
For instance, Grand Lord Algom in Little Stone City had not been particularly warm toward him at first, but later on, the Grand Lord had seemed as adorable as a little bear in front of him.
In this region, the rabbit beastmen of Little Night City had grown accustomed to the long nights and fleeting days, their pace of life attuned to darkness. Yet thanks to the city-state's unique geographical location and abundant natural resources, it still drew scholars, hunters, explorers, and travelers seeking a temporary haven.
Aside from the rabbit-folk who governed the city-state, figures of the demon race could also be seen within its borders.
Being so far removed from the human nations, it would be exceptionally dangerous for any human who lacked sufficient strength or bodyguards.
Fortunately, Lanqi had forged good relations right from the start in Little Stone City. Every subsequent lord had held a far better initial impression of him. And once he completed the restoration of each divine statue and had a proper conversation with the Grand Lord, they had all grown exceptionally fond of him, offering him a wealth of assistance.
Consequently, the six-day journey from Little Stone City to Little Night City had gone remarkably smoothly, with virtually no unexpected crises. At most, the terrain in the latter half had grown mountainous, and the two travelers and their cat had been caught in a sudden blizzard, forcing them to take brief refuge from an avalanche inside a cave.
Perhaps seeing his work restoring the statues that day had sparked Xigelei's curiosity about his painting tools and carvings while she was packing the luggage.
Lanqi had patiently explained the purpose of each tool, his experience using them, and how to appreciate fine art.
In any case, the two of them chatted for most of the journey; whether learning or teaching, it made the perceived passage of time fly by much faster for both of them.
Xigelei was not as averse to learning as she appeared on the surface. She merely pursued efficiency in many things—such as her manner of speaking and her way of handling tasks.
Lanqi pondered quietly.
"Meow, what are you reading?"
Seeing Lanqi ignore it once more, Boss Cat leaned close to his cheek and followed his gaze.
Lanqi was still reading this era's version of the Tome of Creation.
While traveling through the Land of Evernight, there was hardly a suitable environment for reading, so this peaceful time spent lingering in the hotel while waiting for food to bake was exceedingly precious.
The little black cat peered along beside him.
The translation of the Tome of Creation from this era contained many subjective interpretations that differed from those in the modern world, though they mostly took the form of fairy tales and legends, unrelated to divine magic itself.
For instance, regardless of the version, the Tome of Creation always contained thirty-three chapters. The first was the Chapter of Origin and Void, while the last was the Chapter of Fate and Samsara. Neither of these two chapters left behind any divine magic, whereas the remaining thirty-one chapters all recorded divine magic that could be deciphered.
Yet the final chapter noted that the Goddess of Fate would occasionally bestow gifts upon mortal children who prayed to her.
This aligned with what Lanqi had heard from the three clergy members during the Banquet of Sanctuary Villains—
The divinity of the Goddess of Fate lay in the fact that as long as you prayed to her, she gained the power to faintly intervene in your destiny. The more devout and prolonged your prayers, the more of your innermost thoughts would reach her.
Vows made to any deity could never be spoken lightly; whether those gods still existed and whether they could intervene in the mortal realm or not, such words could still forge karmic bonds.
For that reason, legends spoke of a protective talisman known as the Samsara Jade.
It could be any stone connected to the Church of the Goddess of Fate. So long as it served as a medium, the deity could faintly influence the world from a conceptual level.
The Samsara Jade was a gift meant for those bound by fate. If one prayed devoutly to the Goddess of Fate, she might grant a sweet dream—perhaps a mere coincidence, or perhaps a dream of past lives.
Yet such things were profoundly abstruse and impossible to verify, so they were widely regarded as nothing more than legends and fairy tales.
"Meow, meow, meow... does reincarnation really exist?" Boss Cat asked in a small voice, staring at the translation of the Tome of Creation that Lanqi was nearly finished reading.
It did not understand these things very well, but whenever it did not understand something, asking Lanqi was never wrong.
"Believe it and it exists; disbelieve it and it does not. Whether reincarnation exists depends entirely on your own perspective," Lanqi answered in a tone soft enough not to disturb Xigelei's sleep.
"Even if past lives truly exist, letting go of obsession means bearing no grudges toward your past self, feeling no anxiety over your future self, and refusing to let present matters sway your emotions or disrupt your composure. Once you see through this, why cling to even half a shadow from an old dream?"
Naturally, this was merely the absence of the notion of self: following one's heart's desires without overstepping the bounds. It did not mean being devoid of desire, but rather mastering and transcending desire.
Not clinging to the judgments of others, for hell is other people—this was the absence of the notion of person.
The absence of the notion of being meant the equality of all living things.
The absence of the notion of lifespan meant seeing through life and death to uncover the true meaning of existence.
"If you can grasp the absence of these four marks, you will realize it makes no difference whether reincarnation is real or false."
"Stop preaching, stop preaching, you're going to convert me into monkhood, meow!" Boss Cat muttered, clapping both paws over its ears.
It was only a little kitty and could not fathom what Lanqi was talking about.
Soon, Boss Cat leapt down from Lanqi's shoulder and scurried briskly toward the kitchen, leaving behind only the faint sound of Xigelei breathing by the table.
Her face appeared unusually relaxed in the quiet, no longer bearing the guard she maintained while working. Her eyelashes fluttered gently, as though wandering along the threshold of a dream.
Eventually, she drew a breath and slowly opened her eyes.
To tell the truth, she had never been to Little Night City before either.
The interior before her was decorated entirely in warm-toned raw wood, bringing a distinctive sense of warmth against the harsh winter.
Xigelei's gaze soon settled on the figure in the chair not far away.
He was an elegant gentleman who carried himself like a headmaster, holding a book in one hand, his posture solemn and serene.
In the dim light, his silhouette appeared remarkably tall, dressed in a non-traditional dark suit with a crisp, immaculate collar.
His eyes were profound, shining with the glow of wisdom and worldly experience, as though gazing into a deeper realm. His left hand steadily held the spine of the book as he immersed himself in the sea of words. The occasional soft rustle of a turning page sounded exceptionally crisp in the wooden room, resembling the gentle whisper of time itself.
"Awake? The food will be ready in just a moment," Lanqi asked softly.
He turned his head slowly, the warm lamplight of the room and Xigelei's drowsy gaze reflected in his eyes.
"Sorry, I fell asleep."
Waking up in this weather, Xigelei felt cold all over and wanted nothing more than to burrow into a warm quilt. But she could not indulge herself; her job required her to stay alert, even in a safe place like this.
She gave her head a vigorous shake, trying to force herself awake.
Chapter 551