He is the leader of the Tantric sect in Chagdu.

Chapter 133 [The Twilight of the Shattered Ring]

—An unexpected gain.

As Aina browsed through the messages in her memory bank, she quickly discovered that although the outskirts were nearly unified before she was sent to the bottom nest, the "Mirror of Radiance" that Grey had initially established, including the secret teachings collected by his initial group of disciples, and all sorts of wealth, had not been recovered.

This batch of goods, whose value was "unknown," vanished into thin air—even the fox eventually suspected that the spendthrift Hui had personally thrown all the good stuff into the dumpster and melted it down, without leaving anything for him.

As a result—in the desolate, godforsaken place of the bottom nest, across geographical boundaries, Aina once again witnessed something related to "gray." From the little girl in front of her who called herself "White Rabbit," she saw the echo of that ruthless king. This quality, for beings like "spiritual liquid life" that are close to light, is a color that cannot be completely hidden no matter how deeply it is buried.

That's why she was so excited—no matter what happens next, it's definitely not going to be boring.

"Lady White Rabbit—" Hugh stammered, standing to the side. He was aware that the atmosphere was a little off, with a hint of tension.

But as the one who brought Aina here, he could only try to explain.

"I know the family's size has been a bit out of control lately—we need to control the influx of new members, but this person is truly special. She," Hugh glanced at the excited bird, opened his mouth, and seeing no reaction from the other, continued, "Aina, she comes from the upper echelons, definitely not from the lower nest—really! And, just like you've been telling us before, she possesses the same abilities that distinguish her from mortals, and she's even more proficient in them than I am—"

That's enough.

The white rabbit holding the gun didn't react much, while Aina yawned, waved her hand casually, and interrupted the former impatiently, "That's enough, little kitty. Now it's time for adult topics."

The next instant, an irresistible drowsiness surged into Xiu's mind, his thoughts became chaotic as if cut off from all contact, his beautiful blue pupils lost focus in an instant, and his body slumped limply to the ground.

"Great, the new colleagues can't get a word in edgewise, it's time for us old colleagues to catch up."

2

Aina stared at the dark muzzle of the gun without blinking. The life form of the bird of debris allowed her to ignore almost all physical damage. Even if she was shattered into pieces, she would simply revert to her liquid form and slowly respawn.

As long as Radiance continues to acknowledge her superior, her fluid rationality will not solidify, unless she encounters some kind of overwhelming mysticism attack.

But that doesn't matter.

Even if things really go wrong, it's nothing to Aina, who lacks the "life and death perspective" of a normal intelligent being.

Thoughts that operate like a program, even if interrupted, are simply restarted.

Ethical views like those concerning the Ship of Theseus are meaningless to the scoundrel.

—Not only is it incredibly durable, but it also has no concept of death.

Even in a chaotic place like the Bottom Nest, such a "monster" seems a bit too much.

The near-infinite tolerance for error and the uncertainty of whether there was a bottom line made Aina feel that sending someone like her to the bottom nest seemed like an inhumane act.

"Don't play dumb with me." She winked at the white rabbit. "Although your reaction is indeed a bit strange—if it were a thief who stole that property, you wouldn't be so calm if you heard my boss's name, would you?"

—It's really strange.

If you consider an ordinary person's vessel as a simple glass container, the red liquid flowing inside is crystal clear to Aina. She can easily capture people's emotions and even their superficial thoughts.

But before my eyes, the fluid in the white rabbit's skull was like a tranquil, deep pool, frozen to the bottom, as cold and solid as ice and snow, without any gaps of wavering.

—The Ashes.

besides----

Aina frowned, and at that moment her soft, delicate voice rang out.

"I don't understand what you're talking about—"

White Rabbit said softly. After a moment's hesitation, she silently put down the gun in her hand and took off the brim of her hat.

The next instant, with the girl's movement, a pair of beautiful, long rabbit ears covered in white fur slowly stood up from the top of her head. But perhaps because they had been pressed down by the hat and looked a little droopy, they only stood up halfway before stopping, hanging down on both sides of her long hair of the same color like special hair accessories.

Aina tilted her head and thought the little girl was quite pretty.

In stark contrast to the pure white, those crimson pupils appeared almost infinitely vibrant, as if something frozen beneath the icy pool was churning within them—like fresh, still-flowing blood within a human body.

—The white-haired, red-eyed lady, the White Rabbit.

"My name is Nuocheng." Her tone was flat, without much emotion, yet it gave people—indescribable feeling, like a burning warmth emanating from the numbness after the limbs have been frozen stiff.

If I had to describe it, it would be like frozen snow—a gentle warmth that is both intoxicating and agonizing.

Ms. White Rabbit stated bluntly: "I apologize, sir, please forgive my overreaction. In my eyes, you are very dangerous, like a gun that could shoot out sparks at any moment, or an eagle with sharp claws about to peck at someone's eyes—as glaring as can be."

"strangeness----"

Aina didn't care that her apology sounded sarcastic; her focus was on something deeper. "You don't seem to be lying, which is strange, but you must have touched the gray indifference. The icy chill that surrounds your soul proves my guess."

—A person who once knew Grey appeared at the bottom of the nest, next to Grey's former possessions, which could not be found in the entire suburbs.

But she had no idea about "gray's" reaction, yet she meant no deception: the moth's rules proved this.

—I initially thought he was a traitor who absconded with the stolen money, but now it seems there's still some room for maneuver.

Based on the creator's stereotype of Mr. Grey, Aina felt that the cunning and wicked man would never allow any betrayal against him to happen as long as he lived.

This is what top villains are like.

So Aina decided to change her approach.

"Maybe I've mistaken you for someone else." It was a very poor attempt to divert attention. Aina wasn't trying to make the other person lower their guard instantly, and she was too lazy to test the waters. She just wanted to casually make a connection. "I just suddenly realized that you and an old friend of mine are very similar to you—is it possible that you didn't originally belong here?"

She chuckled softly, "Are you natives of the bottom nest? Or, like me, from somewhere else, from a higher place?"

Seeing Nuocheng's unconsciously furrowed brows, Aina realized she was right.

—This group of people were also once "parts" of Gray.

Perhaps it was to protect his last legacy under the intercalation system, or perhaps it was for the unfolding of a grander conspiracy.

The bird of a feather felt that this was not a problem it needed to consider.

If one gets caught up in such a conspiracy theory trap, it's easy to become like Di, and Aina doesn't like to become that kind of silly person.

"We may not have originally belonged here."

As if his words had touched on some key word, the butler beside him suddenly murmured.

He looked at the white rabbit as if questioning something that had been there from the beginning.

"Miss----"

"Wait a moment," Nuocheng said softly.

From Aina's appearance to her uttering certain specific "names," it seemed as if a mechanism was triggered, causing those events buried deep in memory to slowly surface.

Ashes are the criteria of remembrance. When the membrane of cognition is broken from the outside world, like thin ice being broken, what was hidden by light surges out from below.

The white rabbit's bright red eyes were filled with the outlines of memories.

Seeing this, Aina felt she understood.

—Hmm, I think I understand!

—Because Gray has already placed his name in the pecking order, his existence has become a question in a world outside of a "specific group of people".

Even these—those who are suspected to be his former disciples.

Looking at Nuocheng, who was lost in thought, Aina smiled enigmatically.

Things are getting more interesting.

From a conspiracy theory perspective, perhaps the person who inexplicably receives the hidden mission is part of a pre-set "trigger system" during their journey to the bottom nest.

After all, the beginning of this journey was also a question in her mind: Aina had forgotten the process of passing through the "wall" and how she ended up in Hugh's house.

The "connection mechanism" between the lower city and the bottom nest is actually quite mysterious.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Until the white rabbit, who had been thinking, slowly raised its head.

"I'm sorry, I still can't remember everything." There was no apology on her face. "But your appearance is indeed a variable—in fact, from the very beginning, I realized that I had forgotten the most crucial part, about me—why I'm here."

She lowered her head, her long, soft rabbit ears twitching dramatically. "Although there are still many things I can't explain, thank you anyway."

—Wrong, it seems like the problem can be solved through negotiation.

Although the atmosphere wasn't great at first, Aina managed to turn things around through sheer hard work, and she felt like she was on a successful "journey of becoming a person".

It went quite smoothly.

"Don't mind my reaction just now." She pointed to the secret communication walls.

"After all, my boss is always complaining about being broke, and he gets extremely anxious about supporting such a large organization. Although he doesn't directly complain about me, those impressions are still quite annoying in my mind."

The bird, acting all familiar, pulled over an expensive-looking wooden high-backed chair and plopped down. "If that fox had come here in person, he'd probably go crazy—my boss is used to being poor and all he dreams of is getting rich quick. Luckily, I'm here, so this matter is still negotiable."

—To be honest, Aina hasn't yet found a way to establish stable communication with the higher-ups, so even if she gets a large inheritance, it won't be of much use in the short term.

Then there's even less of a rush.

Thinking of this, she decided to abandon all pretense of shame. "How about we talk about something simpler and clearer, like—how large is our organization in the bottom nest right now?"

—Grey is dead, and his things belong to the fox boss. As a "creation" created by the fox using his own personality sample, Aina is essentially his daughter.

Therefore, what the fox owns is what I own.

Rounded down, the organization created using Mr. Gray's legacy is essentially mine!

The rightful heir, do you even know what "rightful" means?

Having successfully derived this series of inequalities, Aina suddenly felt that her "great cause of dominating the bottom nest" had taken a significant step forward, at least not starting from scratch.

The old butler stared at her blankly, feeling that her sudden "taking over" attitude was not something a normal person would do.

He could only secretly wink at Nuocheng, but the latter still wore that gentle smile.

"Let's talk about your joining first," she said softly.

"The family has now expanded to its limit, and the internal power transition will be turbulent—even though—the power behind you, the one we once followed, may have been the original owner of this wealth, but please understand that we cannot yet reveal the whole truth."

"Please give us a transition period. For Copper Moss, you can start as 'Elder,' a title of honor within the family. This will at least help you be respected in every corner of the nest. Once things are less abrupt, I will naturally return this right to its original owner."

Aina raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised that everything would go so smoothly.

Indeed, the white rabbit in front of them showed absolutely no attachment to this right.

"Then, shall we do it your way?" She watched as Nuocheng stood up and draped a luxurious yellow shawl around her neck, which she had been preparing a few minutes earlier.

"Congratulations, Ms. Aina, you are now the new patriarch of the Prometheus family." I swear by the pure yellow rose, may glory and authority accompany you.

The next instant, a rose-patterned rapier, still sheathed, gently touched her shoulder.

Looking at Nuocheng, who was always smiling, Aina frowned. Even with her strong heart, she felt that all of this seemed too "childish".

"Is that all?"

"That's fine." The white rabbit nodded, and at the same time, because she was distracted and didn't use her energy to maintain the "induction spell" on Xiu, the cat also shakily got up from the ground. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw Aina next to her dressed in yellow and purple.

"ah?!"

Xiu rubbed his eyes, staring wide-eyed at the shawl.

"no----"

He pointed tremblingly at the arrogant little bird, feeling that his worldview might be being challenged.

Getting in through connections is one thing, but how can someone become a senior executive the moment they walk into the company?

Who are you to the boss?

"Ms. White Rabbit, this—"

He looked at the old butler standing quietly to the side, who gave him a helpless bitter smile, but could only say softly, "Young man, you must show respect to your elders."

"But—" Hugh stammered, a little frantic. He hadn't expected this unexpected turn of events before bringing Aina here.

Originally, I thought that it would be the best outcome if my family could accept this unregistered person of unknown origin, but now it seems that my previous "expectations" were a bit too conservative.

Still accepting? They're practically taking over!

In the power structure of Copper Moss, it originates from the first, mysterious "ancestor" and extends downwards in the form of a family that accommodates later members—"elders." Regardless of whether they are elders in age, they are all objects of "respect" to the later "juniors." This is the foundation upon which Copper Moss is able to maintain its massive size and stable pattern.

The "elders" are already the next level after the "godfathers and godmothers," a class that can directly bestow surnames upon those below them. Measured by the traditional power framework, they have already stepped into the threshold of the ruling class.

What did the bird say to Ms. Rabbit while it was unconscious?

Hugh had a bad feeling, as if his "family," which he had always treasured, was about to become a plaything in the hands of a strange man.

There's also a sense of powerlessness, a feeling of being unable to do anything about anything.

Aina, oblivious to everything, patted the kitten on the shoulder.

"I'll protect you from now on!"