The four of them sat down in the room. Meng Yiran gave a brief account of her experiences in the clan grounds. The small gray cat perched on her knee, its front paws playfully prodding the big black cat crouched beside it. The big black cat bared its teeth at the offender, only for the little one to redouble its kicking. Finally, the big black cat flopped onto the floor, paws over its ears, utterly ignoring the small gray cat.
Meng Yiran had just reached the part where her attempts to draw the magic array kept getting disrupted when she saw this. Huffing in annoyance, she grabbed the small gray cat by the ears and held it still until it stopped squirming.
Teacher Liya stared in astonishment. “You mean… you met the High Priest in the clan grounds?”
“She said so herself,” Meng Yiran replied. “I think that’s who she was.” She described the woman’s appearance in detail. “Uh, does that match the High Priest from your memories?”
Teacher Liya shook her head with a smile. “No need for that.”
Her gaze shifted to the small gray cat and the big black cat. “The fact that both spirit beasts submitted to her so obediently proves she’s definitely our priest.”
Meng Yiran blinked, glancing at the two creatures beside her. “You mean…”
She could hardly believe it. “These two are the spirit beasts that protected our clan back then?”
Teacher Liya’s eyes crinkled in a smile. “Didn’t you see the wall paintings?”
Meng Yiran gave an awkward smile, but inwardly she thought that was exactly why it seemed so ridiculous—
In the wall paintings, those two spirit beasts were as huge as small mountains, standing heroically and tragically against the enemy. They were nothing like these two naughty little furballs.
Teacher Liya asked, “What did the High Priest tell you?”
At the mention, Meng Yiran’s expression grew complicated.
She sorted through her memories and summarized, “Two main things. First, the priest warned me to be careful of the royal family members. Second…” She hesitated, her tone uncertain. “She said I might have awakened the gift of foresight.”
Silence fell over the room.
Once she processed it, Teacher Liya bowed deeply to her. “You are the future High Priest.”
“No, no, please don’t!” Meng Yiran waved her hands frantically, her face flushing. “I don’t know about that. I don’t feel like I have any foresight powers…” She asked, “Do you know how to activate this ability or something?”
Teacher Liya shook her head. “Didn’t the High Priest tell you?”
She explained, “Such knowledge is passed down only among successive priests. We ordinary Golden Marten Clan members don’t know much about it.”
Meng Yiran sighed. “We only got halfway when I was sent back. That elder just said that when the secret realm opens next time, you should send me there. She wants to meet me personally.”
Teacher Liya’s lips curved up. “That settles it.”
Unable to contain her excitement, she stood and paced back and forth. “We need to make proper arrangements to ensure you meet the High Priest.” She pondered for a moment, then glanced out the window at the darkening sky and came to her senses. “It’s so late already… You all should head back and rest.”
With that, she turned to Ling Ze and Ling Ge. “I’m entrusting her to you two.”
“Yes,” Ling Ze and Ling Ge replied in unison.
Meng Yiran shifted uncomfortably.
Standing up, she cradled the scruffy little gray cat. “Teacher Liya, what about these two?”
“They were summoned by you,” Teacher Liya said. “Naturally, they’ll stay with you from now on.”
She exhaled deeply. “Spirit beasts obey their summoner’s commands and protect their safety.”
Meng Yiran voiced her concern. “Won’t it be a problem walking around school with them in plain sight?”
The little gray cat meowed twice, baring its white fangs and pink tongue.
Ling Ze stepped forward and handed her an exquisite pouch. “Other students in the summoning department have one or two devil beasts with them; it won’t stand out. But if you want to keep them hidden for now, you can store them in this devil beast pouch.
“To summon them, just open the mouth of the pouch, and they’ll come out.”
Meng Yiran let out a relieved breath.
The big black cat yawned and hopped into the pouch on its own, quite cooperatively. The little gray cat, however, twisted and turned, refusing to go in. Luckily, with Ling Ge and Ling Ze’s assistance, Meng Yiran managed to physically persuade it inside.
Afterward, the three bid farewell to Teacher Liya and returned to their dormitories.
Meng Yiran and Ling Ge shared a room, while Ling Ze parted ways midway. Meng Yiran couldn’t shake the feeling that Ling Ge was looking at her differently than usual.
Back in their dorm, she grabbed Ling Ge’s arm. “Don’t look at me like that. Can we just go back to how things were before?”
“That won’t do.” Ling Ge shook her head vigorously like a rattle-drum. “You’re already the future High Priest now.”
“Not necessarily yet,” Meng Yiran sighed. “All of this happened so suddenly—I haven’t even had time to process it myself.”
She muttered under her breath, “I thought it was just going to be an ordinary day. Who could have imagined so much would happen?”
Ling Ge leaned in closer and patted her shoulder. “Don’t overthink it. You’ve been wandering out in the world for so long—it’s only natural to feel some pressure.”
She added, “Why don’t you take a bath and get some early sleep? We can talk more once you’ve rested up.”
Meng Yiran nodded.
She returned to her room for a quick wash-up. Exhausted as she was and tempted to simply collapse into bed, she decided instead to shift her awareness back to the Little White Cat clone in Tong Yuwu’s dormitory. She wanted to check one last time before sleep whether Tong Yuwu had returned.
But the sight that greeted her gave Meng Yiran a real scare.
Tong Yuwu lay on the bed with her eyes closed, lost in a deep slumber. Yet she seemed to be trapped in some utterly terrifying nightmare, tossing and turning restlessly. Cold sweat poured from her forehead, soaking the stray locks of hair at her temples and plastering them in disarray across her pale face.
Startled, Meng Yiran leaped to the pillow and called out loudly, but she couldn’t rouse her.
No time to hesitate—Meng Yiran used the cat’s body to give her a quick once-over. Apart from the clear signs of a nightmare, Tong Yuwu showed no other abnormalities anywhere on her body. There wasn’t a single wound or injury to be found.
Meng Yiran refused to believe it was just a simple nightmare. Glancing around, her gaze fell on a pale blue bottle tucked under the bed.
She remembered that bottle all too well. It had been compensation from the school after the Illusion Realm Incident—she had one just like it. Ming Yi had explained back then that it was meant to treat spiritual power trauma.
The bottle was now empty, which meant Tong Yuwu had almost certainly drunk it.
But if it was supposed to be a healing item, why was Tong Yuwu in such obvious agony?
Meng Yiran pondered for a moment, then withdrew her consciousness to her human body. She slipped out of her room and knocked on Ling Ge’s door.
Ling Ge hadn’t gone to bed yet. She opened the door promptly and blinked at Meng Yiran’s anxious expression. “What’s wrong? What happened?”
Meng Yiran’s brows furrowed as she rapidly recounted everything she’d seen in Tong Yuwu’s dormitory.
“From what you’re describing…” Ling Ge rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “It sounds a lot like the aftereffects of taking a Mental Power Soothing Potion.”
Meng Yiran’s furrowed brow eased slightly. “So it’s actually normal?”
Ling Ge let out a tsk. “Normally, yeah—but the reaction shouldn’t be this intense.” She paused, considering. “Maybe she has some serious hidden damage to her spiritual power. That could explain the nightmare-like response.”
“Under normal circumstances, the treatment feels great. You’d be having sweet dreams left and right—nightmares shouldn’t even be on the table.”
Meng Yiran was utterly baffled. “So what’s really going on with her right now…?”
Ling Ge gave her shoulder a reassuring pat. “But you don’t need to worry.”
She continued, “No matter how you slice it, there’s no real harm to her. A healing potion is a healing potion—it’s all about the cure in the end.”
“By tomorrow morning, when she wakes up, everything will be fine.”
Meng Yiran nodded and let out a sigh of relief. “Okay, got it. As long as she’s alright.” She thanked Ling Ge. “Sorry for dragging you out of bed so late.”
Ling Ge waved it off. “No worries at all.”
She leaned in close to Meng Yiran, her round eyes sparkling with mischief. “You seem awfully worked up about her, don’t you?” She pouted. “We really shouldn’t get too tangled up with humans, you know. Otherwise, down the line…”
Meng Yiran opened her mouth, then let out a sudden sigh.
“I can’t help it,” she said, meeting Ling Ge’s gaze without flinching. “She’s the first person I met in this world. She’s more than just a regular friend—to me, she’s like family.”
Ling Ge opened her mouth as if to argue, then thought better of it and stayed silent.
Leaning against the doorframe, she said, “My parents died in an accident. I grew up in the clan with my older brother… If Tong Yuwu means to you what he means to me, then I get it. I understand how you feel.”
Meng Yiran smiled at her. “Thank you.”
Ling Ge shrugged. “What for? No need to stand on ceremony.”
She shooed Meng Yiran away with a wave. “Off with you—I really do need to sleep now.”
Meng Yiran murmured a soft “Good night” and headed back to her own room.
She shifted her awareness back into the Little White Cat’s body. Tong Yuwu still lay on the bed, her brows tightly knitted, even her dreams denying her any peace.
The little white cat meowed a few times, trying to comfort her, but it was all in vain.
Just as Meng Yiran resolved to keep watch over her like this through the night, her gaze fell on the empty potion bottle beneath the bed. A sudden thought flashed through her mind.
She drew her consciousness back into her human body and rummaged through the room for a moment, pulling out an exquisite small box.
When she opened the box, three vials of potions in different colors lay inside.
Ming Yi had mentioned back then that Kangsi, in gratitude for her speaking up on his behalf, had given her an extra bottle. The effect of that potion allowed the drinker to enter another person’s dream—and crucially, no real harm would come to them within it.
Meng Yiran clutched the purple potion bottle tightly.
What was Tong Yuwu dreaming of right now? What could have appeared in her dream to terrify this unflappable young lady into breaking out in a cold sweat?
She didn’t deliberate for long before making up her mind.
Meng Yiran lay down on the bed and followed the instructions Ming Yi had given her earlier. She swallowed the potion and closed her eyes.
The potion worked swiftly. The very instant her eyes shut, she felt her soul lift and float free.
Without hesitation, she turned and drifted toward Tong Yuwu’s dormitory.
Her soul lacked any physical form, slipping effortlessly past every obstacle in her path. At last, she reached her destination, hovering in the air above the bed where Tong Yuwu lay.
