The graceful young Duan Tianxia leapt with his sword to the entrance of White Cloud Temple, perching on the rooftop and looking down.
An enormous snow-white wolf, nearly two meters tall, stood at the gate, its piercing eyes fixed on him. Around the wolf's neck was what seemed like a red bundle, and upon closer inspection...
Heavens above, was that a baby?
Duan Tianxia stumbled back in fright. A wolf, carrying what appeared to be a newborn child, at the entrance of their White Cloud Temple. He turned and scurried to the back courtyard, his earlier bravado nowhere to be seen.
"Senior Brother, Senior Brother, come quick!"
"There's a child, a tiny one, and a huge white wolf, an immense one." His words tumbled out in a panicked rush.
On the other side, his three fellow disciples heard the cries of the second senior and rushed out. They caught sight of his scampering figure.
"What's going on? What child?" Ouyang Xu asked.
"At the entrance, there's a huge white wolf, and it's carrying a child, a very tiny child," Duan Tianxia exclaimed.
"A very tiny child?" Xuan Little Four peeked out from Ouyang Xu's embrace, his eyes sparkling.
"Let's go, let's go take a look," Xuan Little Three said, dragging Duan Tianxia toward the entrance.
The four of them hurried to the gate, where the great white wolf stood its ground. Upon seeing them, it let out two low growls, "Woooo..."
Xuan Little Four shuddered and buried his head back in his senior brother's embrace, though he couldn't resist stealing furtive glances. Ouyang Xu's face was expressionless, revealing nothing. Duan Tianxia was brimming with excitement, while Xuan Little Three gazed at the wolf without fear. The white wolf eyed the four humans and wolf, unsure how to react.
As the four of them faced off with the wolf, a hearty laugh rang out, "Hahaha, I never thought I'd have such a fortuitous opportunity to take in a female disciple." An otherworldly figure in white robes appeared before them, Master Xuanji's powerful voice preceding him.
"Master!"
"Master!"
"Master!"
"Master!"
The four disciples greeted him in unison.
"Master, you've finally emerged from seclusion," Xuan Little Four wriggled free from his senior brother's embrace, scurrying over to cling to Master Xuanji's leg, trying to climb up.
Master Xuanji's lips twitched as he patted the boy's head.
"Good boy."
He then extricated himself and approached the white wolf.
Gazing at the tiny girl swaddled in the red bundle, his eyes filled with affection. "Old Master has glimpsed the secrets of fate and knows that in this life, I will have one more disciple – you, this little girl. Hahaha, good, very good."
He reached out to touch her, but the great white wolf retreated a step, eyeing the old man warily.
The white wolf: I didn't want to cower like this, but this old man's aura was too formidable. Even as the Wolf King, I couldn't hope to overpower him.
Still, I wanted to protect this child as best I could, to help her find her destined companion, for she was the one our wolf clan had awaited for a thousand years, our master.
Master Xuanji understood at once and spoke sternly, "Wolf Brother, rest assured in entrusting this girl to me. I, Master Xuanji, will raise her as my own and impart to her all that I have learned in my life."
This girl's arrival would bring great upheaval to the realm. But these secrets of fate, he could not divulge. He could only hope that this change would steer events in a positive direction.
After a moment, the white wolf slowly lowered itself, fully exposing the little girl to Master Xuanji's gaze. Master Xuanji took the red bundle and cradled the girl in his arms. Upon closer inspection, the child's face was purple from the cold, barely clinging to life.
"Xuan Little Three, quick, heat some water," Master Xuanji instructed.
Xuan Little Three, still dazed, snapped out of it at his master's call and rushed off to the fire room.
The other three disciples huddled around their master, gazing worriedly at the barely breathing infant.
"Master, how is she?" Ouyang Xu asked.
"With me here, there's no great cause for concern," Master Xuanji replied, carrying the child back into the temple.
But then the white wolf grabbed his robe with its teeth, tugging gently. Master Xuanji turned to face it.
The wolf let out two more howls, "Woooo..." before darting off into the forest.
"Tianxia, follow it and see what happens," Master Xuanji instructed.
"Yes, Master," Duan Tianxia said before giving chase.
A short while later, after the disciples had cleaned and tended to the baby girl, Master Xuanji examined her pulse and administered medicine, managing to stabilize her condition. However, she remained unconscious.
"Master, here," Xuan Little Four handed over the crescent-shaped jade pendant he had found, placing it in Master Xuanji's hands.
Master Xuanji examined it, removing the bloodstained red cord, then placed the pendant in the infant's tiny palm.
"Find a new red cord and hang it around her neck. It must have belonged to her parents and may prove useful in the future."
"Yes, Master," Ouyang Xu acknowledged.
"Master, does this mean she'll be our junior sister from now on?" Xuan Little Four asked.
Ouyang Xu and Xuan Little Three looked to their master as well.
Master Xuanji gazed deeply at the slumbering baby. "Yes, she is destined to be my disciple, your junior sister."
"Hooray, that's wonderful! I have a junior sister now, which means I'm a senior brother too," Xuan Little Four danced excitedly. He then climbed onto the bed, peering at the sleeping girl and gently touching her face.
"Little Five, I'm your senior brother. From now on, you'll be my junior sister. Wake up soon, and your senior brother will play with you."
Xuan Little Three: ...Little Five...Xuan Little Five, the poor junior sister, at least Little Four and I are boys, so our names aren't too bad. But for a little girl, it's just too pitiful.
Ouyang Xu: ...
Master Xuanji: ...
"Um, yes, Little Five, Xuan Little Five," Master Xuanji's eyes flickered, a hint of unease showing before he issued some final instructions and prepared to leave.
"Master, Master, I'm back," Duan Tianxia barged in, breathless. "I want to see my junior sister."
"Keep your voice down," Master Xuanji eyed his most troublesome disciple, taking in his mud-caked appearance. He glared, "What have you been up to, making such a mess of yourself?"
Duan Tianxia shrank back meekly, "Master, you told me to follow the white wolf, didn't you?" Sensing his master wouldn't strike him, he regained his vigor, continuing, "Master, let me tell you, after following the white wolf into the forest, we ran and ran for so long."
"Get to the point," Master Xuanji said impatiently.
"I am getting to the point!"
The whole room rolled their eyes.
"The white wolf led me to a large tree, where I saw a dead woman – a very beautiful woman. From what I could tell, she must have bled to death during childbirth." He paused. "Master, I think that woman was Little Sister's mother."
The others let out sighs of sympathy.
"Then, then I found a place to bury her. After all, she was Little Sister's mother, I couldn't just leave her body in the wilderness," Duan Tianxia glanced around. "Don't worry, Master, I chose a spot with good feng shui, so she can rest in peace."
Everyone: ...
"Alas, the twists of fate," Master Xuanji sighed deeply. "You all must take good care of Little Five from now on."
"Yes!" they answered in unison.
