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The return journey was uneventful, calm and peaceful. Mengdie and her companions traveled from sunrise to sunset. If they reached a village or town, they would stay in an inn, bathe, and refresh themselves. If in the wilderness, they would set up a campfire and tents, falling asleep under a star-filled sky...
Today was the seventh day of their return journey, spent camping in the wilderness.
The sky was cloudless that night, with countless stars hanging in the firmament, twinkling mesmerizingly. The Milky Way stretched across the sky, its white light seemingly drawing in the gaze. The grass whispered with unknown insect sounds, and the occasional breeze, lifting the edges of everyone's clothes, brought the coolness unique to summer nights...
With the campfire lit, Xiu crouched beside it, stirring the flames with a stick, cooking a pot of porridge.
Edward sat on the grass in front of his tent, diligently maintaining his obsidian sword with oil, wiping it over and over.
Nia lay on the grass near the campfire, legs swinging back and forth, her hands supporting her chin, watching two bugs fighting in the grass.
And Father Kotton...
Stepping out of his tent, Father Kotton chatted briefly with the others before his gaze settled on Mengdie, who was training herself. While Edward and the others seemed accustomed to Mengdie's training methods, Father Kotton found her current regimen puzzling.
"(Mandarin) 3...! 4...! 5...5...!"
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Sweat streamed down the girl's cheeks like a waterfall, her teeth clenched, her slender arms exposed under the stars now flushed red. Her trembling body and tense ears and tail all indicated she was undergoing strenuous effort, far surpassing any previous training.
She was doing push-ups, but not ordinary ones. Her fingers were bent, pressing the first knuckles into the ground. The true challenge came from the white wolf, which raised its front paws and exerted all its strength onto Mengdie's back.
"(Mandarin) 6...6...6...!!!"
Mengdie, known for her strength, met her match in the white wolf. Barely managing six push-ups, she was already panting heavily. Sweat soaked her clothes, and her fingers, supporting her on the ground, were now deeply embedded in the earth.
Under the bright moonlight, the white wolf howled involuntarily! Suddenly, it arched its upper body, pressing its weight further onto Mengdie's back.
“Oof...!”
The sudden increase in weight forced Mengdie's arms, which had barely held up, to collapse. But just as her chin was about to touch the ground, she gritted her teeth and resisted, slowly... slowly... pushing against the white wolf's strength, rising again.
“(Mandarin) 7——!!!”
The arduous training continued until the count of twenty, after which the white wolf finally lifted its paws. Mengdie lay on the ground, gasping for air, her face flushed, sweat pouring down. But the training wasn't over yet; after strength exercises came endurance training. Mengdie flipped onto her back, bending her legs and crossing her hands from behind her head to her opposite shoulders. The white wolf then approached, pressing its paws gently onto Mengdie's chest. She bit her teeth and began doing sit-ups under this absolute weight.
Each movement was slow, indicating the intensity of the exercise. The Milky Way shone brightly, and the white wolf too started to exhale white mist. Exhaustion invaded Mengdie's body but couldn’t penetrate her spirit.
“(Mandarin) 2...2...20——!”
Another set of twenty exercises completed. As the white wolf lifted its paws, Mengdie, no longer able to hold herself up, collapsed to the ground. Her body scent, steamed by sweat, dispersed under the starry sky...
“Huff... huff... huff...”
Mengdie breathed heavily, and after regaining some energy, she got up and took a towel from a nearby stone. The white wolf quickly positioned its large body between her and the others, blocking their view to give her privacy to wipe her body... although Mengdie felt somewhat resentful of the white wolf's "worldly wisdom."
After cleaning herself, Mengdie untied her hair band, holding it in her mouth. She sorted her sweat-stuck hair with her fingers, brushed her long black hair, and swung it, scattering droplets that sparkled in the moonlight.
Once her hair was done, Mengdie happily took the hair band from her mouth and tied up the ends of her hair. Then she noticed Father Kotton, who had been watching her, and smiled at him.
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