Lin Tianyu didn’t remember climbing the stairs.
One moment, he was deep beneath the zoo.
The next…
He was sprinting through the underground tunnel as fast as he could.
Behind him, Hei Bao lumbered along with surprising speed, while Sun Xiaohou swung effortlessly from the tunnel ceiling.
“…Boss!”
The monkey grinned.
“…Slow.”
“I’m running!”
“…Humans slow.”
“Very encouraging.”
The System interrupted.
Reminder: Running while panicking reduces decision-making efficiency by 37%.
“I’m aware!”
Host’s heart rate has exceeded normal parameters.
“I’m also aware of that!”
They emerged from the hidden passage behind Monkey Mountain.
Tianyu hurriedly closed the entrance, waiting until the waterfall slid back into place before breathing a sigh of relief.
No one could know about the Sanctuary.
Not yet.
Especially not strangers wandering into animal enclosures.
The zoo was unusually quiet.
It was nearly nine o’clock at night.
The gates were locked.
The pathways were empty.
Yet the lights around the panda habitat were still on.
Zhao Ming stood outside the enclosure, gripping a broom like a spear.
The moment he saw Tianyu, he nearly cried.
“Boss!”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know!”
“You called me saying someone entered the enclosure!”
“I didn’t let her in!”
“Then how—”
“I blinked!”
“…What?”
“I blinked once!”
“And suddenly she was inside!”
Tianyu stared.
“…That’s impossible.”
“I KNOW!”
He slowly approached the enclosure.
Then…
He stopped.
A young woman sat cross-legged beneath the old apple tree.
She couldn’t have been older than twenty-two.
She wore a simple white hoodie beneath a light brown jacket, faded jeans, and worn hiking boots dusted with dirt, as though she had traveled a long way on foot.
Long black hair rested loosely over her shoulders.
Her eyes were closed.
She looked…
Peaceful.
As if she had fallen asleep beneath the tree.
And beside her…
Hei Bao.
The enormous panda lay quietly on the grass.
His massive head rested near her shoulder.
He wasn’t sleeping.
He was…
Guarding her.
Tianyu had never seen Hei Bao behave like this.
The panda noticed him and slowly stood.
Hei Bao bowed respectfully toward the young woman.
Only then did he turn to Tianyu.
“…Safe.”
Tianyu blinked.
“You know her?”
Hei Bao tilted his head.
“…Feel.”
“Feel what?”
“…Familiar.”
The girl’s eyelashes fluttered.
She slowly opened her eyes.
For a brief second…
Tianyu felt as though the entire world had become strangely quiet.
Her eyes were unlike anyone else’s.
Deep amber…
Almost golden.
The same color…
As Hei Bao’s.
She looked around, confused.
“…Where am I?”
Her voice was soft.
“You…”
She looked directly at Tianyu.
“…Are you the Keeper?”
Every hair on Tianyu’s body stood on end.
“You know that title?”
She frowned.
“…Keeper?”
“I said that?”
“You did.”
The girl looked genuinely surprised.
“…I don’t remember.”
The System suddenly activated.
Scanning…
Unknown Human
Identity…
Searching…
Searching…
Error…
Bloodline Detected.
Spiritual Signature…
Incomplete.
Memory Suppression…
Confirmed.
Warning
Target possesses ancient spiritual resonance.
Probability of Sanctuary Connection:
97.3%
Tianyu’s breathing slowed.
“…Memory suppression?”
“What does that mean?”
Her memories have been sealed by an unknown method.
Before he could ask anything else…
The girl looked around again.
“I…”
She pressed a hand against her forehead.
“I only remember walking through the forest.”
“There isn’t a forest near here.”
“…Forest?”
She frowned harder.
“…Wasn’t there?”
Sun Xiaohou suddenly dropped from a nearby tree.
The monkey landed directly in front of her.
He stared.
Very carefully.
Then…
He sniffed the air around her.
His playful smile disappeared.
“…No…”
Hei Bao immediately looked toward him.
“…What?”
The monkey whispered.
“…Smell.”
“…Same.”
The panda’s pupils contracted.
“…Impossible.”
Tianyu looked between them.
“What?”
Neither beast answered.
Instead…
They both stared at the girl’s right hand.
Confused, she looked down as well.
Nothing was there.
Then…
A faint silver glow appeared beneath her skin.
Lines of light slowly spread across the back of her hand.
They formed…
A paw print.
Not golden like Tianyu’s.
Silver.
The System froze.
Its screen flickered repeatedly.
Critical Alert
Second Keeper Authority Detected.
…
Impossible.
…
Verifying…
…
Verification Failed.
Tianyu’s eyes widened.
“Second Keeper?”
The girl looked even more confused than he was.
“…What’s a Keeper?”
Before anyone could answer…
A cold wind swept through the zoo.
Every animal fell silent.
The birds stopped singing.
The insects stopped chirping.
Even the leaves became still.
The System’s warning changed.
Danger
Hostile Spiritual Barrier Detected.
The Sanctuary…
Has been surrounded.
Outside the locked zoo gates…
Three black-robed cultivators stood silently beneath the moonlight.
The oldest among them raised a small bronze compass.
Its needle pointed directly toward the panda enclosure.
He smiled.
“…We’ve found the entrance.”
With a wave of his hand…
The padlock on the front gate crumbled into dust.
“Enter.”
[End of Chapter 9]