Lin Zhixia's Heart: Warmth Beneath the Cold Blade, Slowly Melting into the Team

Training days at Shrek Academy always lasted from the morning dew before dawn until dusk fell. That evening, the group had just finished an intense simulated team battle and slumped around the stone tables on the training grounds, gasping for breath. Oscar passed around Recovery Sausages, and Ma Hongjun wolfed his down. Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong leaned together, discussing the flaws in their earlier tactics, while Dai Mubai reviewed the details of the frontal offense and defense with Tang San.

Only Lin Zhixia stood alone at the edge of the training grounds, her back to the others as she wiped down her Starwood Arrow Shafts. The Void Piercing Feather Fletching glinted coldly beneath the setting sun. Her movements were focused and gentle, as though she held not weapons, but precious keepsakes. When Zhu Zhuqing approached, she saw Lin Zhixia carefully place a Whetstone into her quiver—the Fine Sandstone Tang San had specially brought back from Suotuo City yesterday after seeing her sharpen arrows. He had said it would make the shafts smoother.

"Thinking about our coordination just now?" Zhu Zhuqing's voice was soft, carrying her usual coolness. Lin Zhixia turned around, wariness flashing through her eyes before she relaxed and nodded. "When we ambushed the dummy target, my Void Penetration arrow was half a second late. Boss Dai nearly ended up within the enemy's control range."

Zhu Zhuqing followed her gaze toward the stone tables, where Ma Hongjun was fooling around with Xiao Wu while holding a sausage, and Oscar laughed as he egged them on. "You're much more relaxed than when you first arrived." Lin Zhixia's hands paused. Her fingers stroked the star patterns on the arrow shaft, and after a moment of silence, she said, "They... are different from the people I knew before."

She rarely spoke of her past, but Zhu Zhuqing could sense the guardedness in her heart from her tense shoulders and the way she clutched her quiver tightly in her sleep. Like last week, during a rainstorm, when they had sheltered in the wooden cabin. Xiao Wu had accidentally knocked over her quiver, and Lin Zhixia had almost instinctively shielded it in her arms. The terror in her eyes had stunned everyone present—until Tang San softly said, "I'll help you pick them up. I won't damage them," and only then did she slowly loosen her grip.

"There's field combat training tomorrow. Dean Flanders said we're going to the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest." Zhu Zhuqing changed the subject and looked at her quiver. "Do you have enough arrows? I can help prepare more fletching." Lin Zhixia looked up at her, and the corner of her lips curved almost imperceptibly. "Enough. I sorted them yesterday. There are twelve Void Piercing Feathers left. But... thank you."

That "thank you" was quiet, yet it made Zhu Zhuqing raise an eyebrow slightly. Lin Zhixia rarely expressed gratitude on her own, usually responding through actions instead. Like during training the day before yesterday, when Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda had accidentally fallen to the ground. Lin Zhixia had been the first to rush over, pick it up, silently wipe away the dust, and return it to Ning Rongrong with only the words, "The tip is easily damaged. Don't leave it near the edge of the table." Or when Ma Hongjun had accidentally burned his training uniform while practicing Evil Fire Phoenix. The next morning, a freshly washed outfit with its holes mended had appeared on his clothesline. When everyone asked about it, only Tang San noticed the needle marks on Lin Zhixia's fingertips.

Early the next morning, everyone packed their bags and prepared to set out. While checking his Blue Silver Grass, Tang San discovered a small bottle of Antidote inside his Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night. A small note was attached to it, written in neat handwriting: "There's poisonous miasma around the outskirts of Star Dou. This can be used in an emergency. I mixed it according to the proportions in Master's notes." There was no need to ask. It had to be Lin Zhixia. Last night, while he had stayed up reading Master's Spirit Beast Notes, Lin Zhixia had sat beside him sharpening her arrows. So she had been paying attention to the antidote recipes in the notes all along.

The first "target" of the field combat exercise was a thousand-year Nether Wolf. Dai Mubai restrained it from the front, Tang San used Blue Silver Grass to Entangle its limbs, and Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing prepared a Flank Assault. But unexpectedly, the Nether Wolf suddenly released a cloud of poison and lunged toward Oscar and Ning Rongrong in the rear.

"Watch out!" Lin Zhixia's voice rang out sharply. She drew and fired almost instantly. Her Void Penetration arrow tore through the poisonous mist with a piercing whistle and struck the Nether Wolf precisely in its left eye. The Nether Wolf howled in pain and faltered. Dai Mubai seized the opportunity to unleash his soul skill, his tiger claw slamming viciously into its skull and ending the battle.

Still shaken, Ning Rongrong held onto Oscar. "That was close. Thanks, Zhi Xia!" Lin Zhixia paused as she lowered her bow, then shook her head. "I only predicted that it would ambush the support positions." But everyone had seen it: her arrow had not only struck the Nether Wolf, but also dispersed the poisonous fog. She had deliberately adjusted her Soul Power so that the starlight on the arrow erupted into a faint wave of light, one that would not affect her teammates while still driving away the toxin.

On the way back that evening, Ma Hongjun had overexerted his Soul Power, and his steps grew increasingly heavy. Lin Zhixia walked at the back of the group, watching his staggering figure. She silently slowed down and took a Spirit Power Crystal from her quiver. It was a relic left behind by her parents, capable of slowly releasing Soul Power to replenish physical strength. She quietly slipped the crystal into Ma Hongjun's backpack, then turned and quickened her pace to catch up with the group, never seeing the surprised look Ma Hongjun gave her when he discovered it.

When the campfire was lit, everyone gathered around to roast meat. Xiao Wu pulled Lin Zhixia to sit beside her and handed her the most tender piece. "Zhi Xia, your arrows were incredible today! Can you teach me how to predict an enemy's movements next time?" Lin Zhixia looked into Xiao Wu's sparkling eyes, hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "During the next training session, I'll teach you how to observe a spirit beast's Soul Power Fluctuation. Before they attack, their meridians give off a faint glow."

Firelight fell across her face, driving away her usual chill. Tang San watched the scene with a faint smile. He still remembered their first meeting, when Lin Zhixia would avoid even making eye contact with others. But now, she quietly prepared Antidote for her teammates, shared her Spirit Power Crystal, and patiently agreed to Xiao Wu's request. The icy shell around her was slowly melting beneath the warmth of the team.

Lin Zhixia lowered her head and took a bite of roasted meat, its fragrance spreading across her tongue. She remembered how, when her parents were still alive, they had also roasted meat with her in the courtyard. Back then, she had not known what hatred was, nor what loneliness was. But now, the liveliness around her and the smiling faces of her companions let her feel the warmth of "home" once more. She quietly tightened her grip on the roasted meat in her hand, and a voice in her heart said: Perhaps I no longer need to be a lone wolf pursuing revenge by myself. These people are worth protecting with the arrows in my hands.

The night deepened, and the campfire crackled. Leaning against a tree trunk, Lin Zhixia watched the others playing around by the stone tables. Her fingers gently caressed the Whetstone in her quiver—Tang San's gift. Beside it lay the small arrow cover Ning Rongrong had woven, the fletching Zhu Zhuqing had helped her organize, and the candy Ma Hongjun had secretly tucked inside. For the first time, a clearly visible smile bloomed on her lips, like warmth hidden beneath a cold blade, quietly unfolding.