The surrounding area lay in complete silence, Jun Beiyue’s shadow guards already searching the area in every direction.

Jun Beiyue had, by now, calmed down considerably. Meng Wanyue had fled immediately after trapping them within the barrier — clearly she knew herself that the barrier couldn’t hold for long!

Setting aside her barrier techniques, Meng Wanyue was simply no match against so many of them at once — she had no choice but to flee!

Regardless of exactly how she’d colluded with Xuanyuan Lige, the most urgent priority now was to find them immediately!

Meng Wanyue was an extremely dangerous individual — if this woman were pushed too far, she would surely, without hesitation, reveal Ziqing and Baili Weisheng’s secret to the entire world.

What she couldn’t have, she would rather destroy.

This was precisely what worried Jun Beiyue most of all!

Just then, Baili Weisheng suddenly kicked a large hole in the grass. “Found it!”

Everyone immediately gathered around, and sure enough, there was indeed a mechanism hidden beneath the ground — an entrance to a secret tunnel!

“This looks freshly dug. Heavens, who could possibly have this kind of ability!” Baili Weisheng exclaimed in amazement.

“Whoever it is, chase them down!” Jun Beiyue said coldly, about to leap down, but Xiong Bao stopped him. “Daddy, let me do it!”

As he spoke, Xiong Xiaobao immediately summoned a sea serpent!

Everyone was startled, instinctively dodging aside. Before anyone could even get a clear look, the slippery sea serpent had already slid into the tunnel entrance, its body streaking forward at blinding speed — so fast that even Jun Beiyue couldn’t have matched it.

Clearly, the sea serpent that had been absorbed into Xiong Xiaobao’s Qiankun poison pouch had already been tamed by the four great poison beasts!

The tunnel didn’t seem to run very deep — the sea serpent’s massive body, burrowing through, was visible even from the surface as it moved!

Ziqing and the others immediately followed the trail left on the ground, pursuing all the way!

Who would have guessed — this pursuit lasted three full days and three nights!

Even though, by the time they’d discovered the tunnel, Meng Wanyue had already fled quite far ahead, one had to admit — the speed at which this tunnel had been dug was simply staggering.

Jun Beiyue finally understood why Xuanyuan Lige’s massive contingent of sound-killing troops had seemingly appeared out of nowhere within Xi Chu’s territory.

On the fourth day, the sea serpent suddenly burst up through the ground!

Everyone came to an abrupt halt, watching as the sea serpent raised its head and looked toward Xiong Xiaobao, clearly having discovered something.

Situ Haonan and Yelu Qianqian immediately dropped down and rushed into the tunnel, but the moment they saw what lay before them, they were both stunned speechless!

Heavens, this was no mere tunnel — this was practically an entire vast underground world!

Jun Beiyue and Ziqing caught up as well, finding themselves at the end of the newly dug tunnel — a massive underground chamber capable of holding no fewer than a hundred people!

Beyond the chamber lay a deep, ancient passage, long since constructed, leading off toward some unknown distant destination!

As for Meng Wanyue and the others, there wasn’t even a trace of them to be found!

“Could we have gotten the direction wrong?” Baili Weisheng muttered to himself, considering that even with Meng Wanyue’s speed, she was still dragging along an injured man — surely not enough to outrun even the sea serpent.

“Look, it’s Xuanyuan Lige’s zither!” Yelu Qianqian exclaimed, spotting a zither deep within the passage.

“The direction’s right!” Situ Haonan said coldly, the first to press onward.

Ziqing and Jun Beiyue exchanged a glance and could only follow.

The group pressed forward, continuing the pursuit for another full day and night.

As they delved deeper into the passage, heading toward the direction of the Innocent Ravine, they finally became completely certain — Xuanyuan Lige’s sound-killing troops had indeed come through this very passage!

Jun Beiyue and Ziqing, the fastest among them, soon pulled ahead of Situ Haonan and Yelu Qianqian. Finally, after three more days, they spotted a woman running desperately ahead — Mi’er.

Ziqing flipped forward and blocked Mi’er’s path. The moment their eyes met, Ziqing couldn’t help but freeze.

The hatred in this girl’s eyes was so plain, so intense, it left even Ziqing momentarily at a loss.

Did they… know each other?

“Where’s Xuanyuan Lige!” Yelu Qianqian arrived second, seizing Mi’er’s hand and pinning her against the wall.

Mi’er said nothing, her clear, autumn-water eyes filled with hostility as she looked at them.

“Who are you? Where are Xuanyuan Lige and Meng Wanyue!” Situ Haonan demanded as well.

Yet Mi’er still said nothing. She vaguely understood they were asking about her young master’s whereabouts, but exactly what they were saying, she had no idea!

“Not talking, are you!” A cold glint flashed through Situ Haonan’s eyes, and he was about to press her further, but Jun Beiyue stopped him. “She’s deaf.”

“Deaf or not, we still need answers out of her!” Situ Haonan, unable to stay calm, gripped Mi’er’s hand and flung it hard to the side. “Stop pretending to be deaf and mute — why are you here!”

Mi’er didn’t resist, didn’t speak — only stared at them coldly.

She simply wouldn’t talk. Let’s see what these people could possibly do to a weak woman like her.

If she said nothing, she could buy her young master a little more time.

Even if she had to hold out with these people until death, she wouldn’t say a word!

“Seems like we’ve been chasing the wrong direction,” Ziqing said flatly. This girl had clearly been left behind on purpose, deliberately leading them on this chase.

Meng Wanyue had probably already fled with Xuanyuan Lige to some other location entirely.

Situ Haonan clenched his fists, nearly throwing a punch straight at Mi’er, but in the end, the blow landed against the wall instead!

Just then, Jun Beiyue seemed to realize something, suddenly crying out in alarm, “Retreat!”

Yet no sooner had the words left his mouth than a cold smile curled at the corners of Mi’er’s lips. Instantly, the ground shook violently, the entire tunnel seeming on the verge of collapse!

This tunnel was nothing like the earlier one!

The earlier tunnel, they could burst out of in an instant — but this one lay deep beneath solid bedrock, and even the sea serpent couldn’t tunnel its way out!

The collapse came from behind them, leaving them no choice but to keep fleeing forward.

Xiong Xiaobao summoned the sea serpent once more, and everyone leapt onto its back. Situ Haonan seized Mi’er by the arm, and the whole group, riding on the serpent’s back, shot forward without pause!

Yet this rush carried them straight to the Innocent Ravine. As the sea serpent burst free from the cave, soaring over to the cliff face opposite the Innocent Ravine, the tunnel behind them had already collapsed completely.

Mi’er’s wrist had very nearly been snapped by Situ Haonan’s grip.

“Wretched girl, courting death, are you? I’ll be happy to oblige!”

Situ Haonan raised his hand to strike her, but at that moment, Baili Weisheng stopped him, saying with an easy smile, “Calm down, let’s bring her back first — I’ll interrogate her slowly.”

After all these days, the man had already escaped, chasing after him now would be futile — if they lost their only remaining lead, where else could they possibly search?

Jun Beiyue and Ziqing both said nothing, one staring coldly at another cave not far off, the other with brows furrowed tight, seemingly worried about something.

“Someone, send word to the southern border — no one is to be allowed through!” Jun Beiyue soon issued the order. “And seal off every coastline!”

Whatever purpose Meng Wanyue had in abducting Xuanyuan Lige, under no circumstances could she be allowed to reach Nanzhao!

The final stop on the musician’s ancient map was, after all, in Nanzhao itself!

At this critical juncture, absolutely nothing could be allowed to go wrong!

The moment Jun Beiyue said this, everyone immediately grasped the gravity of the situation.

“We need to make a trip to the Meng clan as soon as possible,” Ziqing said flatly. The fact that the Meng clan had been able to send false word claiming Meng Wanyue had already been found was proof enough that the clan had already fallen under Meng Wanyue’s control.

Yet just as Jun Beiyue and Ziqing had finished settling everything and were about to set off in haste, Meng Duo’er’s confidential letter arrived…