Xueyan’s gaze shifted.
To Daoist Chu.
To Elyon.
To Meng Bai.
And finally—
Back to Lin Mu.
A realization dawned.
"I didn’t pay attention before..."
His voice was quiet now.
"But... everyone here..."
He swallowed.
"They’re all terrifying."
His tail, which had been wagging nonstop just moments ago, slowed slightly.
But then—
It started wagging again.
Even faster.
His eyes lit up once more.
"...This is amazing."
Meng Bai blinked.
"...He’s enjoying this?"
Lin Mu simply shook his head lightly.
’Another one.’
Just like that... Their group had gained a new member.
One who wagged his tail like a puppy... And chased space like it was a toy.
.
.
.
It took a few minutes.
A full few minutes.
Only after pacing around the courtyard twice, speaking half-sentences out loud to himself, and nearly grabbing Lin Mu’s sleeve again out of sheer excitement, did Xueyan finally manage to calm down... somewhat.
And even then, "calm" was a very generous term.
His tail had stopped wagging like a blur, but it still swayed from side to side in a steady rhythm. His ears twitched constantly, reacting to every little movement and sound around him, and his eyes still carried that bright, almost sparkling curiosity that made it clear... this foxkin was anything but composed.
What had faded was the explosive excitement.
What remained was a more controlled... but still very enthusiastic energy.
Xueyan straightened his robes, took a breath, and then quickly turned toward the group.
"Ah! I haven’t properly introduced myself yet!"
He cupped his hands politely.
"My name is Huli Xueyan. Disciple of Temple Head Puyi, practitioner of the Spatial Legacy of Wu... well... a beginner," he added sheepishly.
Then, without waiting, he turned to each person individually.
"You must be Daoist Chu!" he said, bowing slightly. "I’ve heard you are a formation master, do you incorporate spatial anchoring into your arrays? I’ve always wondered how multi layered formation nodes interact with spatial distortions—"
Daoist Chu blinked once.
Then laughed.
"Hah! I like this one."
He returned the greeting warmly.
"Yes, I do. Though I suspect you might have better insights into that than me someday."
Xueyan’s eyes lit up again.
"Really!?"
Then he turned to Elyon.
"And you must be the Dark Wolfkin! I’ve read a little about your kind, your sensory perception with darkness is supposed to be extremely refined, right? Can you detect spatial fluctuations with them too? Or is it purely instinctual—"
Elyon paused mid-bite of a fruit.