Wu Changyan led everyone into the villa. As they passed through the main hall, an enormous, aged painting hung on the wall.
On the canvas, a mighty white tiger had been rendered in vivid detail, every strand of its mane distinct and the "king" marking on its forehead clear. An intimidating air of dominance seemed to rush out at them.
Beside the white tiger was the dim outline of another enormous feline beast. It was a massive spirit cat, its entire body cloaked in a dark purple glow. With the passing years, some of the paint had faded and flaked away, leaving its outline half hidden, half visible, as though it might dissolve into the shadows of the canvas at any moment, impossible to make out clearly.
Only after passing through several lavish corridors did they glimpse the true heart of the villa.
The ostentatious domestic scenery ended abruptly here. A deep, secluded passage paved with bluestone slabs stretched farther into the building, shutting out the lights and clamor outside. As they walked inward, even the surrounding temperature seemed to drop a little.
After they had advanced several dozen meters, the view suddenly opened up, revealing a lofty, spacious family hall.
There was none of the reception room's elaborately crafted opulence here. The beams, pillars, and stone all bore the marks of time's erosion. A faint scent of aged wood drifted through the air, and a quiet solemnity born of a bloodline passed down through generations permeated every corner.
On either side of the hall stood a towering stone beast.
One was the imposing Evil-Eyed White Tiger, and the other was the Hell Spirit Cat, its body wreathed in dusky purple mist.
These two statues were the very bloodline totems depicted in the ancient painting in the main hall. Painting