Song Xue and Crow disappeared over the wall and into the darkness beyond. He wasn’t sure how good her vision was, but after his transformation, his vision switched to something almost omniscient.

At times, it felt like he was watching himself move like a ghost hovering over himself. It was an awareness of his surroundings that was surreal and difficult to process without his Sage’s Mind. The downside was the best vision in this darkness lacked a depth of color. Everything was shades of gray, black, and white, but unlike other night vision, he retained dimensional awareness. Details were distinct, but the dreary landscape left him in a less-than-stellar mood. It finally dawned on him why he didn’t care for these caves, and it was because they weren’t open and filled with life like a forest was.

During the first few hours of their journey, he kept switching weapons from bow to falcata. He couldn’t decide which was more effective in this place. With the bow, he worried about the line of sight; for the falcata, it was the noise of hitting his surroundings. The bow won the internal debate, leaving him less anxious than holding the cold metal blade. Thinking about it, he rifled through his collection of arrows and handed a quiver to Faelan.

“What is this?”

“Drop Dead Arrows,” Crow told her, but he didn’t name those; Barnes did. They were light and silent, which made them ideal for assassins. The scariest thing about them was their penetrating power. Rarely would one get stuck in the target, punching all the way through and striking the target behind them. Many cultivators were sensitive toward killing intent, and aiming at the person in front of their target was a method used to disguise that intent. The sinister-looking arrow would pass through the unlucky bastard, taking down their prey.

Faelan nodded and accepted the quiver. She still used the bow Crow made for her and was aware of most of the arrows he could craft. They’d practiced enough with each of them, and he sought her out first when he created a new type of arrow. Some were Crow’s designs, but most came from the journals Barnes left behind.

Half a day and that was the most they’d said to one another. The two didn’t need to say much because they said, but they kept in close proximity to each other. All they needed to communicate was a few gestures. Their connection was strong enough that it wasn’t necessary to voice things out. The only time they split from each other was at an intersection. Both would travel down it about a hundred meters and then come back and share their finding before consulting the map.

The guards gave them the map, and they’d drawn their ideal path along the tunnels. The problem was the Scath which they couldn’t predict. That was why they split, to confirm their direction and that it was clear. Occasionally, they’d find a small side cavern and take a small snack break.

By Crow’s estimate of time, it was almost night. With his exemplary vision and luck, he found a hole they could crawl into. It made two sharp right turns before arriving in a chamber roughly three meters squared. Faelan helped him set up the formations and even placed a Nightstone in the tunnel to prevent Scath from entering.

“Sofa?” Faelan asked, seeing Crow’s unusual choice of bedding.

“We’ll need to take turns on watch, and I figure we can cuddle and use our bodies for warmth.”

She smiled and sat beside him on the sofa. Her body had an abnormally cold temperature because of her physique, and sitting next to Crow allowed her to sap his warmth, which he didn’t mind. The Song sisters were powerful enough that the weather didn’t bother them, but the type of cold they felt came from their Souls. It was that coldness that Crow helped melt away to prevent them from losing all emotion.

Crow knew it was also the reason she left her master from the Sky Torn Sect. That evil woman wanted Faelan to give up on him and become a killer without emotion or remorse. Song Xue still respected the woman that was like a mother to her for almost two years, but that woman underestimated her disciple’s desire for Crow’s warmth.

While they sat there, Crow handed her a meal Nadia cooked. They both ate in silence, and strangely, it was a romantic dinner.

“Faelan…” Crow finally spoke, causing her to look up at him. “Thank you.”

“For?”

“Not hating me. I don’t regret how things are, but I do feel guilty about the things I made you suffer. That Soul trial made me realize many things about life and existence. All I can offer in solace is that I loved you first.”

Song Xue giggled and leaned her head on his shoulder.

“I remember my childhood fondly because of you. No matter what, even at the age of four, you were protecting me. Caring for me. At that time, I felt you were mine. Only mine. No matter who approached you, they didn’t stand a chance because you always had your eyes on me.”

“I still do.”

“I know. Seeing you and my sister back then tore me apart. I know now that other powers were at play,” Song Xue sighed. “That time away from you, I researched the unfated. Anything I could find on them, I read. Do you know every story ended tragically?”

“I do. The life of an unfated is usually intense and short.”

“When I realized that… I knew if I remained stubborn about my feelings, I might lose the only man I’d ever love in this life. It terrified me—living a life without you in it. I’m not happy that you keep bringing women into our circle, but as dysfunctional as it is, I love this family you’ve given me. I love my sisters, brothers, and, most of all, you. But Crow, you should know one thing. Even hurt, I know one thing: your love for me has never faltered, and neither has mine. If those women you bring back will help me keep you alive—prevent that tragedy—bring hundreds of them home. I’ll embrace them all as sisters as long as you don’t leave me.”

Song Lin’s tears cascaded endlessly down her face, and her body trembled as she sobbed. It was the first time Crow had seen her really let down her guard and show him how raw her soul was. He didn’t know that the others witnessed her speech, and none of the women had dry eyes. Crow held her and, for the first time, realized how much impact his demise would have on everyone. He wasn’t an idiot and knew there were times they all looked at him with deep forlorn, but he didn’t understand why until now.

“I’m not going anywhere, my little snow wolf,” Crow whispered fiercely and hugged her tightly until her bones were about to crack.