I'm not just human!

God knows how much he longed for sunlight after emerging from the dark, damp cave.

"Hopefully the Mithril Holy Symbol will arrive by tomorrow morning. And that nobleman mustn't cause any more trouble..."

Just as he was praying this in his heart, he saw Benedict land on the ground, right next to him.

Before Xia Fa could even speak, Benedict immediately glanced at him, and then her delicate face showed obvious anxiety and worry.

"Xia Fa, you...you've been possessed by a snow demon? How many days has it been?"

Xia Fa was surprised that she could tell, so she replied:

"Yes, including today, it's been exactly three days."

The doll-like girl breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness, there's still time. Wait for me, I'll go back to the Endless Realm and get you a Mithril Holy Emblem. Hmm... I should be back by tomorrow afternoon at the latest!"

Xia Fa was somewhat surprised, but then he suddenly realized that the puppet civilization that Benedict belonged to, located in the Endless Domain, was definitely a considerable force.

After all, according to Banli, the Endless Domain, as a cluster of civilizations, is as large as a super-large galaxy!

It's normal for such a force to possess the Mithril Holy Symbol.

After thinking for a moment, Xia Fa asked:

"If you go back to the Endless Realm, will there be any dangers, like being locked up by other puppets or something?"

Beneath said quite easily:

"No, in the Endless Realm, besides the sisters, there's only the Queen and elders, but they're all very kind. However..."

"But what?" Xia Fa asked.

With a flick of her wrist, Benedict revealed a notebook with a brass cover in her palm.

"Now that we've signed the contract, I'll need you to perform the ceremony when I go back."

"ceremony?"

Xia Fa curiously took the notebook with the copper cover. The notebook was very new, with light yellow paper, but it gave people a sense of antiquity and solemnity.

He tried to turn to the first page, but as soon as he took a closer look, he froze, his face showing an expression as if he had seen a ghost.

"This...this is...!"

Chapter 11 The Doll Girl's Trials!

The brass cover was quite heavy, and it was surprisingly difficult to open.

But what surprised Xia Fa even more was the contents of the first page of this notebook.

On the rough, pale yellow paper, there was a full-body portrait of the doll girl Beneath!

A tall, slender figure of 168cm, long, smooth, straight golden hair, noble and mysterious golden-red eyes, and an unreal, exquisitely beautiful face...

But none of that is the key point. The key point is... the portrait of Benedict Cumberbatch is also wearing a wool coat with slightly stained fur and knots!

Moreover, she also has a pair of long, fair, and delicate legs, and even her tender little feet are meticulously painted with a little bit of mud and broken leaves.

Xia Fa looked up at Benedictine, who was staring at him, and then at the doll-like girl in the portrait. Well, it wasn't exactly the same, but there was almost no difference.

He shifted his gaze from the portrait to the bottom half of the paper.

There are three squares on top.

It looks like it was drawn with a pencil, square and neat, but the lines aren't straight enough.

For some reason, these three compartments gave Xia Fa the feeling of a locker, as if he could just take something out of his pocket and put it in.

The feeling was so clear and distinct that he was surprised even when he realized it.

"What is this for?"

Xia Fa pointed to the three squares and turned his head to look at Benedict on his left.

The doll-like girl had already moved close to him, sticking out her little head and looking at the first page of the notebook, her face almost touching his cheek, and they could even feel each other's heat.

Without hesitation, she answered:

"The first compartment is for food, like fried dried anchovies, stewed dried anchovies, smoked dried anchovies, and so on. Hehe, the second compartment can be used to store secret treasures or sealed items!"

Xia Fa confirmed:

"Can I just put the item into this compartment as soon as I touch it?"

Benedict nodded vigorously:

"Uh-huh!"

Xia Fa asked:

"What about the third square?"

Benedict smiled and said:

"That's for my support, in case I run out of supplies during my training."

Xia Fa admitted that there were some things he didn't understand:

"Support? Training?"

The doll-like girl, Jin, chuckled:

"Yes! As you know, the Endless Realm where we dolls live is huge, almost as big as a super-large star system in the universe. Apart from our daily dwellings in the Ingenious Castle and Gear Garden, the rest of the Endless Realm is almost full of things like eerie things, ruins, and supernatural creature nests."

Xia Fa couldn't help but ask:

"Will your survival be threatened by these things?"

Benedict nodded, then shook her head:

"Sometimes it will, sometimes it won't; it mainly depends on the results of everyone's experience!"

Before Xia Fa could ask a question, she continued:

"This is a rule set by the God of Puppets countless years ago. Once the puppets reach adulthood, they need to train and hone themselves in the Endless Realm, while eliminating as many strange and hostile supernatural creatures as possible to reduce the risk of the Ingenious Castle being besieged and the Gear Garden being destroyed."

Xia Fa finally understood:

"So, put food in the first slot, and treasures in the second slot for your training in the Endless Realm. If you run out of food along the way, you can replenish it in the third slot."

Beneath said happily:

"Yes, yes! That's it! So those sisters who haven't acknowledged a master are actually quite envious of the other sisters who have, because they can receive strategic support from their contractors during their training, which means they can bring back more spoils for their contractors!"

Xia Fa was slightly taken aback:

"There are also spoils of war?"

Beneath said matter-of-factly:

"Of course, according to the rules of the God of Puppetry, half of the spoils brought back by a puppet without a master must be handed over to the Machine Fortress. If there is a contractor, the spoils can all go to the contractor."

Xia Fa suddenly realized:

"So, the Mithril Holy Symbol you mentioned... it wouldn't be something you'd have to retrieve from some ruin in the Endless Realm, would it?"

The doll-like girl said smugly:

"That's right! Don't worry, I've been to that ruin several times already, there won't be any danger. I'll definitely be back tomorrow afternoon!"

Xia Fa was still a little worried and couldn't help but confirm:

"Really no danger? Actually, we might not even need this mithril emblem, because Archbishop Chestnut might be able to send the church's mithril emblem over tomorrow morning."

Benedict shook his head firmly:

“No, this is a matter of life and death for you. Tomorrow will be the fourth day, and the Snow Demon could descend at any moment on the fifth day. If I go, there will be an extra layer of protection. What if they still can't deliver the Mithril Holy Emblem by tomorrow?”

She seemed to remember something, and her tone became worried:

"Springtime is the peak season for snow demons. I've heard too many stories from my sisters, especially about the Mithril Holy Symbol falling into the hands of nobles..."

The doll girl's expression suddenly became more serious than ever before, as if she were making a promise or pleading. The gaze in her golden-red eyes was clear and without a trace of impurity.

"Xia Fa, I don't want anything to happen to you."

Xia Fa fell silent, because to be honest, he was also really afraid that the Mithril Holy Emblem still wouldn't be delivered by tomorrow morning. Once something like this happens, it'll happen again.

On the other hand, since there is no danger in going to the ruins for training, it is indeed possible to let Benedict try it.

Perfect timing! He could also try using this notebook to work with Benedict Cumberbatch and provide her with strategic support when she goes on her training missions in the future.

"Don't worry! I'll definitely become stronger and stronger in the future, and I'll bring you back lots and lots of spoils. There are so many good things in the Endless Domain, like secret contracts, extraordinary essences, and secret treasures... there are just too many to count!"

Benedict suddenly laughed again, her delicate little face full of eagerness.

Seeing this, Xia Fa could only let out a long breath and say:

"Okay, so how can I help you with the ceremony?"

Benedict replied without hesitation:

"Place your hand on my portrait, and then mentally sketch this cryptic text."

She extended a hand as white as goat's milk, and a secret script slowly emerged in the palm.

At first glance, the cryptic text looks very much like the Chinese character for "door" that Xia Fa had seen before.

He was actually quite curious about the secret text, especially after Chestnut helped him test his mental stability in the cave.

Clearly, the other superhumans confirmed his safety by observing the three runes that emerged from the citrine at the end.

But he couldn't understand it at all.

However, not understanding it didn't affect his ability to use it. At this moment, according to Benedict, he placed his palm on the portrait of the doll girl on the first page of the bronze notebook.

Immediately afterwards, Xia Fa closed his eyes slightly and mentally sketched out the secret script that looked very similar to the character "door".

Almost the instant the sketch was completed, an extremely strange scene unfolded!

Chapter 12 Notes

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