After night fell, this white town also merged into the darkness.
But unlike other places plunged into darkness due to power outages and stopped supplies, there were no lights on the main roads here. All illumination came from the faint light emanating from the houses lining the road.
But early on, most houses had already turned off their lights.
In the darkness, Shu opened his eyes, glanced at Kiana on the other bed, already wrapped around Mei like an octopus, and Bronya sandwiched between them. After a moment of silence, he got up and left the bed.
Fortunately, the back door wasn't shut so tightly as to make any startling noises. Gently pushing the door open, Shu stepped out of the house.
It was still winter weather; the village night was somewhat cold, without many insects chirping.
Shu stood in the open space behind the house, took a deep breath, removed his glasses, and bent down slightly.
The next moment, Shu's body shot up from the ground like a bullet, straight into the high altitude.
Compared to the ground, the wind at high altitude felt much colder. Using the cover of night, Shu hovered in the air, looking down at the village.
From above, the layout here was identical to the footage captured by the drone Bronya launched later.
Sparse trees surrounded the village. The village itself sat on relatively flat ground, encircled by a sizable river...
Wait... River?
Did they see this river when they arrived?
Shu looked somewhat puzzledly around the ring-shaped river. From above, the river formed a peculiar "Ω" shape, almost a perfect circle.
At a glance, the river resembled a cage, firmly locking the village inside, preventing those within from escaping and making it difficult for outsiders to enter.
It was indeed quite cold up here.
Shu began to lower his altitude while observing everything here more meticulously.
What stood out most was undoubtedly the color. The entire village was pure white, as if covered by a layer of thick snow.
As his altitude decreased to a certain point, Shu clearly felt the surrounding temperature rise.
Besides that, the most astonishing feature here was the exceptionally large white stone located in the very center of the village.
It was a long strip of stone. Viewed from the side, the stone's cross-section had a peculiar "D" shape.
One side was flat, almost smooth, as if cut, while the other side was unprocessed, retaining its most primitive form.
It's a pity not to carve a few words on the flat side of such a stone, was Shu's first thought upon seeing it.
Or perhaps paint a picture on it? Add some reliefs?
Having seen the other areas, Shu slowly landed on the roof of the house they were currently staying in, gazing at the white stone in the distance.
"So... who are you?"
Shu's voice turned icy cold. He spoke gravely, turning his head to look at the white-clad girl who had appeared on the roof at some unknown time.
The replica Xuanyuan Swords stored inside the house instantly flew out, landing beside Shu.
A gentle breeze blew across the rooftop, stirring Shu's robes, causing the flames on his clothes to ignite.
The previous fleeting glimpse was too distant, and Shu hadn't taken off his glasses in time, so he hadn't seen clearly then.
Now, with the distance closed, Shu could see distinctly.
The girl wore a grayish-white long dress. Her hair, though also white, wasn't the beautiful snow-white like Kiana's, but a grayish-white that looked extremely oppressive.
And those eyes...
They were grayish-white eyes, only slightly darker than the whites of her eyes. One wouldn't even notice them without looking closely.
This appearance is a bit creepy...
Facing Shu's questioning, the girl placed her hands flatly before her and bowed slightly towards Shu. "Welcome to [White Mist City]—Depascal..."
Shu paused, taking half a step back as the swords circling him slightly raised their tips.
Depascal... a somewhat familiar name... as if he had seen this name somewhere before... and more than once.
The girl looked up at Shu and murmured, "We haven't had new guests here in a long time..."
"Is appearing on the rooftop in the middle of the night how you welcome guests here?" Shu asked, looking down, his hand already raised, the tilt of the replica Xuanyuan Swords increasing further.
The girl smiled apologetically. "After all, to meet you, I could only appear here..."
"You mean... you can only appear near me?"
The girl nodded, bowing apologetically to Shu again.
"You're not human?" Shu asked bluntly.
"..." The girl paused, then nodded with some difficulty. "No."
Shu's hand stopped mid-air. He ceased his defensive posture, looking at the white girl. "Then what are you? A ghost? An earthbound spirit? Or the master of this place?"
"You may call me [Depascal]..." the girl said.
Hm?
Shu frowned. He instinctively wanted to say something, but couldn't utter anything, as if he had instantly forgotten what he intended to say.
Something's wrong... but I can't pinpoint what's wrong...
Shu's frown deepened. The replica Xuanyuan Swords beside him, following his silence, showed offensive intent again.
"Please believe me, I really don't have any ill intentions," the girl sighed, seemingly having anticipated this scene.
"You're telling me... in such a weird place, you're normal?!" Shu looked at the girl wrapped in white cloth before him, his eye twitching.
Especially when the girl nodded seriously, making Shu's eye twitch faster.
"Fine, I'll temporarily believe you have no ill intentions," Shu said after a moment of silence.
However, the replica Xuanyuan Swords beside him were now fully aimed at the girl, like arrows nocked on a bowstring, just waiting for Shu's hand to release.
"So why didn't you appear before? What are you doing appearing at this time?" Shu asked.
The girl glanced at the replica Xuanyuan Swords containing inexplicable power, subtly hiding the fear in her eyes, then spoke to Shu.
"I want to remind you, now is the last chance to leave here... Please take your companions and leave."
"..." Shu fell silent. "Is there... something threatening here?"
The girl sighed.
"From the moment you stepped in here... it had already begun..."