What Hao didn’t know was that Kurome wasn’t just watching.
She was studying!
To her, the Sunblind Burst wasn’t just a technique of light.
It was structure.
It was design.
She saw how solar qi gathered in precise layers before bursting in a wave of explosive brilliance.
But she wasn’t interested in light.
As a Pumbral Void Lynx, her domain was the opposite.
Where Hao drew on radiance and flare, Kurome saw potential for darkness.
The same patterns could be reversed.
If light could blind, then darkness could swallow.
Where he blasted visibility into nothingness, she could make the world collapse into still black.
The concept thrilled her.
Silently, in her own way, Kurome began to imagine it.
A mirrored technique.
One that did not burst outward, but collapsed inward.
No shout, no shine. Just the sudden suffocating hush of absolute shadow.
Tomorrow arrived quickly.
Yesterday, Hao had asked Kurome if she could accompany him outside. It wasn’t a grand request.
No announcement. No long explanation.
Just a simple sentence – one that held more weight than Hao probably realized.
It would be Kurome’s first time seeing her master step beyond the store doors.
Kurome agreed. Without hesitation. She did not ask why. There was no need to.
That was her master. And if he was stepping into the world, then she would follow.
The night before, Hao had also gone to Mo Xixi and asked if she could swap her shift from afternoon to morning.
He told her he needed to go out for a bit. Nothing urgent.
Mo Xixi had wanted to come. But she didn’t say it aloud. She already knew her place – she had responsibilities in the store now.
Still, her small fingers had curled slightly at her side after Hao left. And her lips were pressed together, tight.
When the morning sun brushed across the Sovereign City, Hao opened the store early.
The shelves were clean. The counters dusted.
Mo Xixi was already behind the register, arms resting on the counter.
Yoru and Tsuki were flopped belly-up on the floor nearby, snoring softly. One of them twitched.
Hao stepped toward the front.
“We’re going out now, Little Xixi.”
“Should be quick. We’ll be back before lunchtime.”
Mo Xixi glanced up at him, blinking once. Then she gave a tiny snort and crossed her arms.
“Hmph.”
“Don’t worry about the store, boss.” she said, nose in the air.
“I can already manage it just fine on my own.”
But after a second, her voice dropped a little.
“…Just don’t forget to come back before lunch, boss.”
She didn’t pout. Not exactly.
But she also didn’t not pout.
It wasn’t fair.
Kurome got to go outside with Hao.
Outside.
She was the first employee of the store!
She was the first!
Mo Xixi peeked at Kurome from the corner of her eye, then quickly looked away. Jealousy poked her heart like a tiny, stubborn needle.
But she didn’t say anything more.
Kurome, meanwhile, was waiting calmly near the door. She wasn’t wearing her usual store guardian uniform today.
Mo Xixi gave a small nod toward Kurome.
’Lady Kurome, take care of boss.’
Kurome returned the nod.
’Naturally, Little Xixi.’
’I shall return our master in one piece.’
With that, Hao pulled the door open.
A gust of city air rushed in, and the light outside greeted him – or at least, that’s what he thought would happen.
Instead of a bustling street or a clean sidewalk, Hao was greeted by… a wall.
A very plain, slightly cracked wall.
“…Huh?”
He took another step out. The light was dim. Too dim for morning.
The alley they had stepped into was narrow, boxed in by tall structures on both sides, and it barely let any sunlight in at all.
It took him a second to realize where the store had opened its door to.
“…A back alley? Really?”
That explained a lot.
Like why he barely got any customers.
Like why only people who were already looking for the store ever seemed to find it.
And why his so-called “regulars” could be counted on two hands.
He looked around with a wry smile. A few steps away, there was a small pile of trash bags.
He wrinkled his nose.
If not for the store’s glass walls and glass door – clean, bright, and completely mysterious from the outside – he probably would’ve never gotten any customers at all.
People were curious by nature. If they couldn’t see inside, they’d want to know why.
That was probably the only reason a few brave souls even wandered in!
Hao shook his head.
A flicker of movement caught Hao’s eye. Near the trash, a small black rat scurried into view.
He narrowed his gaze.
His senses had changed ever since he became a cultivator.
Heightened.
More alert.
That rat… it wasn’t just moving. It was watching.
’…Is that thing… observing us?’
’A demonic beast? Is it planning to attack us?’
Another pause.
’No way, right?’
Hao stared at the rat again. He laughed inside his head.
If that thing really charged at them, it was done for.
Kurome was right there. One wrong move, and she was gonna slap it into minced meat.
No claws needed. Just her shadow – and her will.
But the rat didn’t run away.
Instead, it scampered forward. Quick little paws tapping against the alley stones as it headed straight toward them.
Kurome moved closer without a word and positioned herself in front of Hao.
She didn’t crouch low or tense for a fight. She simply sat, tail curling loosely around her front paws.
Just watching.
The rat reached them in seconds. And instead of biting, screeching, or summoning evil wind qi like Hao expected… it suddenly leapt up.
Its tiny forelimbs stretched forward, paws outstretched like it was going in for a full-body tackle.
Hao’s face twitched. He already knew what was about to happen.
Hao stared blankly.
“…”
It hugged her.
The rat was hugging Kurome!
It latched onto her chest fur and clung tightly, like a baby beast returning to its mother!