“Is anyone there?”
After all, in the interstellar world, Lu Mingming subconsciously dismissed the idea of ghosts and cautiously voiced her question.
In the darkness, the white figure suddenly froze. A pair of large, verdant green eyes abruptly turned towards Lu Mingming, unblinking. It was like a stray black cat, silently observing an opponent, enduring its fear while waiting for an opportunity to strike.
Lu Mingming couldn't see the other party's features clearly, and a bead of sweat trickled down her temple. She did her best to remain calm, feigning fearlessness as she stared back.
The white figure was clearly not large, reaching only about Lu Mingming's thigh. A strange bulge protruded from its back.
Rather than a figure, it was more like the entity was wearing a snow-white dress. Coupled with the cool night breeze blowing through the corridor, it created the illusion of it floating.
Lu Mingming vaguely felt a sense of familiarity with the figure, yet she couldn't recall where she had seen it before.
Before she could ask any more questions, as if wary of something, the white figure retreated silently down the corridor. It continued to retreat until it reached the end of the corridor, where it suddenly vanished without a sound, leaving behind a blank, grayish-white wall.
Lu Mingming unconsciously held her breath, even her heartbeat pausing for a moment. Her earlier assumption that it might be a cub of a beastman wavered.
"Did I see wrong?"
Lu Mingming mumbled to herself in disbelief as she opened her room door.
In truth, she hadn't seen wrong. Although Lu Mingming lacked excellent night vision, both the little white tiger and the little Samoyed had seen the white shadow perfectly clearly.
The little white tiger unconsciously adopted an aggressive stance, baring its sharp fangs without any pretense. Its gaze was cold and ruthless, as if it intended to dismember the other party piece by piece. Only when Lu Mingming entered the room did it retract its defensive posture.
Meanwhile, the little Samoyed sat thoughtfully on the bed, a hint of gravity appearing in its eyes.
If he hadn't seen incorrectly, the faint power it unleashed just before disappearing should belong to the wizard clan… However, how could the wizard clan, which had disappeared for a hundred years, become a cub of a beastman?
Unaware of her cubs' thoughts, Lu Mingming quickly took a hot bath, washing away the fatigue and weariness accumulated from the long journey, and then lay down to sleep.
After all, she needed to be well-rested to perform better in tomorrow's competition.
The sweet, clear scent of peach-flavored shower gel lingered in the air, as if the entire room was being submerged in a faint sweetness.
Waking up early the next morning, Lu Mingming was full of energy. A layer of dewy redness still graced her cheeks, plump and juicy like tender peaches in spring, making one want to take a bite.
Having lived with Lu Mingming, the cubs had developed healthy sleep schedules early on. The little Samoyed sat energetically by the bed early in the morning, ready to go with Lu Mingming at any time.
Breakfast was delivered to the door by someone arranged by the organizers. A dedicated staff member would come to remind them half an hour before the competition started, so there was no need to worry about time management.
With twenty minutes left until the competition began, Lu Mingming was worried about the little white tiger being alone in the room. In case it got hungry and couldn't find food, she prepared a basin of milk and biscuits in advance, and also left a large bag of fresh egg yolk biscuits. Before leaving, she repeatedly instructed the little white tiger to call her if anything happened, and she would rush back as soon as possible.
The little Samoyed replaced Tangyuan's position, standing on Lu Mingming's shoulder. It gave a subtle nod of acknowledgment to the little white tiger left behind.
"Room number 0318. Be careful of that little girl."
Morian's voice transmitted into Orlanar's spiritual sea.
"I've read in books that in the southern regions of ancient planets, there are mysterious wizards. The last appearance was a hundred years ago. The effect of their spiritual power is currently unknown."
The little white tiger responded indifferently, indicating it had heard.
After delivering these warnings, the little Samoyed felt at ease and followed Lu Mingming to the main hall.
The remaining matters, he believed, Orlanar would handle. Otherwise, he wouldn't be worthy of being called the genius leader of the alliance for nearly a thousand years.
The media's cameras and filming equipment were already set up in the main hall, and many staff members in black work clothes were stationed around to maintain order.
The live broadcast hadn't started yet, but several contestants had already arrived at the central venue, each occupying a small area and greeting each other amicably. However, as soon as Lu Mingming appeared, vigilance flickered in many eyes, with a hint of disgust mixed in a few.
Everyone naturally regarded Lu Mingming as a formidable rival, as if she were a top contender for the championship, yet they also felt disgusted by her pure human identity.
Lu Mingming touched her nose. First, she went to settle the little Samoyed in the family area, leaving it a bag of biscuits and two milk candies, then quietly returned to her own seat.
No beastmen came to talk to her for a while, and she was content to be alone, taking out the remaining milk candies from her bag to pass the time.
The homemade milk candies, modified by Lu Mingming, did not have the inferior artificial flavor that permeated Earthly candies. Instead, they focused more on enhancing the milky aroma and softening the texture. With one bite, the once-hard milk candy quickly turned into a soft, sweet cloud.
A thick, sweet milky aroma gradually wafted through the main hall. The beastmen looked at each other, trying to locate the source of this pleasant milky scent.
“Do you smell something? It smells like… candy?”
“No, it’s a very fragrant milk smell!”
“Hiss, did someone bring milk powder to feed their child? But it doesn’t smell like ordinary milk powder.”
Whispers of the beastmen echoed throughout the hall. Unfortunately, by the time the milk candy had completely melted in Lu Mingming's mouth, no one had found the source of the aroma. It was only when the milky fragrance gradually dissipated into the air with the wind that the search ended.
The beastmen spoke amongst themselves with Lu Mingming behind their backs, so she had no idea what they were talking about. She completely cleared her mind, waiting for the competition to begin.
The first person to greet Lu Mingming was the dark-skinned strong man ranked third.
The strong man, clearly just back from a run, greeted her with a head full of sweat, "Let's both do our best in today's competition!"
Lu Mingming nodded and took a milk candy from her pocket, casually asking, "Would you like one?"
The strong man touched his buzz cut and readily accepted with a smile, "Thanks, I'm Cheng Shiqin. I watched your livestream, the interview segment."
"Oh, really?"
Upon hearing that a contestant, and one as formidable as him, had watched her livestream, Lu Mingming felt a little flattered and repeatedly expressed her thanks.
Lu Mingming never expected that a two-meter-tall, dark-skinned strong man would have such a refined and gentle name, sounding more like an energetic, hot-blooded university student.
Lu Mingming subtly sized up the bulging muscles visible beneath Cheng Shiqin's sports vest and nonchalantly chewed another milk candy.
Indeed, one shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
Cheng Shiqin immediately said cheerfully, "We're just talking, don't be so reserved."
He asked a staff member for a towel, wiped the sweat from his body, and leaned in, saying, "My spiritual power only works after exercise. It shouldn't be too smelly, right? I have the wood element."
"No, no."
Lu Mingming waved her hands repeatedly. She truly didn't smell anything.
As if remembering something, Cheng Shiqin turned his head and whispered, "I just saw the Nine-tailed Fox at your room's entrance. I don't know what it was doing."
Lu Mingming's heart tightened, and a sense of unease spread through her.