"It turns out this guy isn't here to eat people... Why didn't it turn into a human earlier? It nearly scared us to death!" Shòu Zi and the Pàng Zǐ, hiding outside the door, peeked inside while whispering to each other in a lewd manner.

  "This is the first time I′ve invited someone for tea in the dead of night, and this 'someone' happens to be a rare species that's almost extinct from the martial world—a golden lion."

  "Do you want me to ask the King of Hell for help?" I took a sip of milk and yawned. "You really are a lion yawning, with quite the attitude."

  His body leaned slightly forward. "I know you′re on good terms with the current King of Hell, and you even wrote an autobiography for her called My Husband is Not Human."

  I coughed for a moment and quickly said, "That was years ago. This and that... don't really have anything to do with each other, right?"

  "The only one who controls life and death in this world is the King of Hell. And only you can help me," he lowered his always proud head, took a sip of ′floating life tea′, and smiled. "Bitter. But within my tolerance."

  He looked at me sincerely. "I know you have connections with the Baili family, right? You even met Wei Bu when she was little..."

  "Compared to the pain of not finding her, the taste of this tea is nothing," I interrupted him, smacking my lips and licking the milk from the corner of my mouth. "Who broke the barrier? I should really give them a beating. Letting you out has ruined my flowers and pnts."

  He set down his teacup. "Wei Qing came back, and she revealed everything. Her father broke the barrier. The old feud between the Baili family and the Golden Lions is now over." He paused for a moment, a look of relief in his eyes. "And also, Wei Yu can py football now. If she knew, she'd be really happy."

  "Once, Golden Lions really did feast on humans, right?" I tend to ask offbeat questions that don’t really connect with what’s being discussed.

  "This..." He nodded. "But we only ate... evil people."

  "It seems that I'm not the only one who likes gold," I said with a sly smile. "So, the key reason you became prey is not because you ate so many people, but because your bodies are filled with pure gold bones. That's the real treasure for many 'hunters,' including those distant retives of Baili Weibu. Saving people might not be the real reason; they are here to collect gold from you."

  I could still recall, from the ancient texts, that the Golden Lion’s body was covered in bones of pure gold beneath its skin, worth a fortune. Since ancient times, many have sought to acquire it. They could transform into human form, with a golden seal on their forehead, hiding among the people.

  He let out a wry smile and shook his head. "It's not just us, is it? Anyone who piques humanity's interest, they'll find a way to take it. If they like fur, they’ll skin other animals; if they want to cure themselves, they lock a bear in a cage to harvest its bile; if they want to satisfy their cravings, they can kill innocent cats and dogs without a second thought."

  I quietly finished my milk and stood up. "It's te. I need to sleep. You should go now."

  He didn't move.

  One week ago, I sent Kevin a message with an address, far across the world, in a small country. In a certain neighborhood, in a particur household, a baby girl had just been born.

  As I pced my phone down, I opened my computer and wrote a simple entry on my blog:

  'Life is full of unexpected encounters, paths crossing in ways we never imagined. Sometimes, the most unlikely connections can change everything. There are moments when everything seems to come full circle, and we realize that perhaps we were meant to meet all along.'

  I didn't say much, but it felt like everything needed to be said in that one line----

  Inside the box, there was a beautiful, intricate lion's pelt, golden and gleaming. It wasn′t just any pelt—this one was different. It carried an aura of strength, of sacrifice, and of courage. I could feel its weight, not just physically, but emotionally.

  Attached to the pelt was a small note, written in the familiar, graceful handwriting I had come to recognize.

  ′If you truly love someone, you give them the strength to be who they are, even if it means letting go of yourself. I did what I had to do. Now it's your turn.′

  It was from her.

  I ran my fingers over the fur, feeling a strange connection, a bond that reached beyond time and space. I didn’t need to see her to know she had made her choice. She had given up everything for love, for courage.

  The message was clear:

  'Sometimes, true bravery isn't just about fighting the battles around you but also about knowing when to step aside and let someone else take the lead′.

  And so, I stood there, holding the pelt, wondering what would come next.

  As I held the golden sculpture in my hands, I couldn't help but smile, the weight of the gold no longer about the size of two fists—a lion proudly stands on the stone, and next to it stands a girl holding a bow and arrow. Two figures frozen in time, frozen in a single moment of strength, courage, and love. It was more than just an ornament; it was a reminder.

  I chuckled at the thought that I, a tree yaokai, had somehow become part of this strange and wondrous story. Who would have thought I could earn such a big piece of gold just by calling an old friend to get some information? A simple phone call, a few whispered words, and a bit of cleverness could bring me such a treasure. I am really grinning from ear to ear.

  I decided then and there to pce the sculpture somewhere it would catch the light, in the center of my home, as a reminder to myself and anyone who saw it.

  Because, in the end, it's not about being the strongest or the most powerful—it's about having the courage to act when it matters, the wisdom to know when to fight, and the grace to let go when the time comes.

  Even if I am just a tree yaokai, I am also a Sagittarius.

  I think whether it′s a yaokai, an archer, or a lion, we all need a little courage to find our pce in this world. And sometimes, that′s the hardest part.