Chapter 9: She Did Very Well

Yu Xia found the sentry’s stammering a bit endearing. Although he was somewhat large in stature, his youthful face was tender and delicate, with refined features and a head of golden-brown curls, looking no older than eighteen or nineteen.

“What’s your name?” she asked.

Baru’s face flushed deeply at being asked his name. “I-I’m Ba-Ba-Baru.”

Yu Xia repeated, “Baru?”

“No, no—it’s Ba-Ba-Ba-Baru,” he stammered again.

Yu Xia didn’t understand their language, but through mental communication, she could grasp their names. Hearing Baru deny that he had said the same syllables twice, she was puzzled and echoed his name once more.

Baru, flustered by her mimicking his stuttered name, felt like his head was about to burst and dared not say more, fearing he’d lead her astray.

When Huo Lin and Nyx returned, Yu Xia was eagerly gnawing on a large piece of dried meat Baru had given her. Though this high-protein ration was ideal for them, it was tough on her teeth, and she hadn’t made much progress after a while.

Yet Yu Xia neither complained nor was picky; she kept at it diligently. People from her era never took food for granted and cherished every bite.

Nyx stepped forward and took the dried meat from her hand. “Who gave this? So clever—if she goes out, she’ll need dental care.”

“It’s as hard as stone. Can she even gnaw on it?” they asked.

Baru immediately lowered his head like a scolded puppy. “I—I gave it to her.”

Nyx patted him on the head.

Yu Xia looked up at Nyx and said, “Don’t blame Ba-Ba-Baru. I can manage to gnaw it.”

Nyx glanced down to see Yu Xia looking up at him, her tousled pink hair framing her delicate, palm-sized face, making it look even smaller. Her sapphire eyes were round and beautiful; seeing her like that nearly made him clutch his chest in a swoon.

Though he kept a composed expression, inside he was howling—this little dolphin guide was just too adorable!

When he heard her call Baru’s name, Nyx gave a strange look toward Baru. “Ba-Ba-Baru?”

Baru clutched his woolly curls, nearly wanting to bang his head against the wall.

Yu Xia asked, “Is there something wrong?”

Nyx tried to hold back a laugh and said to Yu Xia, “His name is Baru. He just stutters a little when he’s nervous.”

Yu Xia immediately apologized to Baru. “Sorry, Baru, I wasn’t laughing at you.”

Baru quickly waved his hands, wanting to say something but afraid that the little guide, who didn’t understand the common tongue, might pick up his stutter. So he shut his mouth tight and stepped aside.

Huo Lin placed a small thick slice of custard cake and a large bottle of water in front of Yu Xia.

Nyx rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a flattened milk candy, offering it to Yu Xia.

“Thank you both,” Yu Xia said, handing the cake and candy back to him and Huo Lin. “I think you need high-energy food more than I do.”

Since she had been with Huo Lin, she hadn’t seen either of them eat or drink anything and guessed they had been giving their food and water to her.

Nyx suppressed the urge to ruffle her hair. “We’re not lacking. You’re the guide; your energy needs are smaller. It’s more efficient to replenish you.”

After he said this, the other returning sentries also placed the food and water they had found in front of Yu Xia.

Yu Xia was silent for a moment, looking at the food before her, then met their gazes. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

“No need,” Nyx said. “Your safety is paramount.”

The other sentries looked at her longingly but didn’t voice any requests.

They knew that in such circumstances, the guide couldn’t properly provide mental counseling for the sentries.

“I can...” Yu Xia hesitated, glanced at Huo Lin, and said, “I can help you like I helped Huo Lin.”

She recalled that after entering the so-called spiritual landscape that Huo Lin had mentioned, his condition had greatly improved.

Seeing Yu Xia volunteer to provide mental counseling, Nyx did not refuse. They were all on the verge of mental breakdowns, and repairing their spiritual landscapes would help them maintain clarity and regain composure, providing Yu Xia with safer protection.

But could Yu Xia focus in such an environment?

Guides typically needed a safe, quiet space to conduct mental counseling for sentries. They could create a mental barrier to shield Yu Xia from outside noise.

However, if Yu Xia experienced fear, anxiety, or other negative emotions, it would affect the counseling and might even drag her into a negative state.

“She can do it,” Huo Lin, who had been silent, finally spoke. “She did very well.”

“Are you willing to risk it?” Nyx asked. “You’re bound to her.”

Though there was no rule forbidding a guide with a guardian from counseling other sentries, sentries’ possessiveness rarely allowed others near their guide.

“Bound?” Yu Xia asked.

Nyx was surprised. “You don’t know?”

Yu Xia shook her head.

“Oh...” Nyx said meaningfully to Huo Lin, “Looks like she hasn’t accepted you.”

In his view, Yu Xia didn’t want Huo Lin as her guardian; it was all one-sided on Huo Lin’s part. After all, Yu Xia didn’t even understand her own identity as a guide.

How pitiful—being bound without any status.

Yu Xia looked at Huo Lin in confusion, not understanding Nyx’s meaning.

Huo Lin stroked her head. “I’ll explain it to you later.”

Yu Xia nodded. For now, it was time to get to work.

Nyx was itching to ruffle the little guide’s head but restrained himself.

He wanted to touch the little guide’s fluffy hair—it must be so soft.

He also wanted to punch Huo Lin, especially seeing how much the little guide trusted him.

After Yu Xia decided to provide mental counseling for the sentries, Huo Lin and the others quickly prepared a room for her. Though small and confined, it was quiet—an environment in which a guide would feel safe and could concentrate.

They placed some stuffed toys and exquisite ornaments they had scavenged from nearby houses, arranging the space like the White Tower’s quiet rooms for guides—silent and cozy.

Although these items were old and nearly dilapidated, they still offered some visual comfort.

Yu Xia didn’t feel much difference between the living room and the room and didn’t understand why they went to such lengths to prepare it. To her, it felt like they were preparing for some ancient ritual.

But seeing their earnestness, she supposed there was a reason.

After setting up, Nyx was the first to undergo mental counseling.

His last session had been a year ago. Though he held the rank of major, it was difficult for him to secure a spot.

His family background was only slightly better than Huo Lin’s. The home planet was filled with powerful and influential people, and among the privileged class, the rare guides were like untouchable “deities” to ordinary sentries.

Most ordinary sentries might never see a guide in their lifetime.

For the past year, Nyx had relied on a mental therapy pod to repair his spiritual landscape, but it was merely a temporary fix.

To fully restore it, only a guide could help.

Nyx sat before Yu Xia, straightened his posture, removed his gloves, and extended his hands to her.

Huo Lin sat between them, activating the mental barrier and withdrawing his pheromones to lower his presence, so as not to disturb Yu Xia.

Typically, when guides counsel sentries, no one else is around to avoid interference.

But Yu Xia lacked experience, so it was safer to have someone keep watch just in case.

After resting and eating, Yu Xia felt fairly well.

She grasped Nyx’s long, broad hand, closed her eyes, and recalled how she had helped Huo Lin before. Soon, her spiritual energy condensed into fine threads that penetrated Nyx’s body.

Nyx cooperated, suppressing his own spiritual energy to avoid overwhelming her, allowing her to enter his mental landscape.

A blizzard raged in the sky.

A pink little dolphin emerged from the snow, curiously observing the icy world.

All around were withered branches and broken trees, as if ravaged by a hurricane or some disaster. Sparse groves stood here and there, barely revealing that this had once been a forest.

Yu Xia shook the snow from her head and scanned the surroundings, searching for Nyx’s figure.

She drifted through the snowy landscape for a while, then spotted a gray-white wolf half-buried in the snow nearby.