The fish soup was brought around to every person.

Tonight was destined to be a lively night. One bowl of fish soup per person — each with at least half a fish inside — was something almost unthinkable for people who had been traveling hard for half a month. It was Feng Jiu’er they had to thank for turning what had seemed like a dream into reality.

By the time Mu Mu came down, it was already past midnight.

He glanced toward the river — still a dozen or more brothers out there with Feng Jiu’er and Tuoba Keyan, hauling in fish.

Because the current was so swift, each wave of fish was replaced by another, and each time they pulled in the net, there was a fresh catch.

If they kept at it through the whole night, by morning they could easily have hundreds of fish.

From the look of things, Jiu’er and the brothers were only growing more excited as they worked — showing not the slightest sign of wanting to stop.

“You’re really not going back?” Mu Mu sat down not far from Jiu Qing, the same as him — holding a bamboo-tube cup in hand.

Jiu Qing said nothing, withdrawing his gaze from the mountain slope across the way and looking instead at the group of people not far below.

Mu Mu’s eyes also traveled toward the opposite mountain peak. The peak that had been quite active not long ago was now nearly emptied of people, with only a few left behind to keep watch.

But on this entire road, such watching eyes had been too common. So long as those people made no move, they had no need to act for the time being.

Below, Xue Gu looked at yet another batch of fish coming up and frowned. “Jiu’er, that’s enough. If you keep netting them, people won’t be able to finish them all.”

They would manage at most another meal come early morning. After that, once daylight came, everyone would be setting off again.

All these fish would be extremely inconvenient to carry, and not at all suitable for the road.

“Right — these fish will need to be treated.” Feng Jiu’er had been so caught up in netting fish with everyone that she had forgotten what came next.

She looked at Yanu, who had just returned with Qiao Mu, and said, “Find a few brothers, get the fish cleaned right away — remove the scales and the innards, then string them up on the Feng-ce Orchid cord.”

“Why?” Yanu was somewhat puzzled. If they were strung up, how would anyone eat them?

“String them up first. Tomorrow you’ll understand.”

…And so the following morning, all three of their carts were hung on the outside with cleaned fish.

When the sun came out, everyone understood what Feng Jiu’er had intended.

She was planning to sun-dry the fish. That way, the fish could actually be taken along on the road with them.

The proprietor of Tianji Hall truly had a quick and clever mind.

No wonder Tianji Hall had been open in the imperial capital for less than half a year, and yet already had several branch halls.

As they pressed deeper into the mountains, the strange thing was that for three full days after entering, aside from the eyes that continued watching from a distance, they encountered not a single obstruction.

On the fourth day, they entered the most difficult stretch — Black Valley.

Once inside Black Valley, those watching eyes paradoxically vanished.

Those people seemed entirely unconcerned, needing no one to trail them at all — as if they were perfectly free to roam through Black Valley, with no fear of them ever getting out.

“Passing through this Black Valley will bring us to Black Pool.” At the noon rest, Mu Mu spread the terrain map out across a rock.

“But we still know nothing about what Black Pool is actually like. Charging blindly in — won’t that be dangerous?”

Qiao Mu had spent so many years as a bandit in Bei Mu — and yet entering Black Valley now, she felt that this place was truly, deeply strange.

Everything felt off — the air, the terrain — though she could not quite say what.

Looking around at the surrounding ravines, they seemed nothing more than jagged rock formations — no different from an ordinary mountain pass, on the surface.

But looking further into the distance, though the sky was perfectly clear and bright, she simply could not make out anything in the landscape far ahead.

“It’s not only Black Pool. This valley itself is peculiar.”

Xue Gu stood and gazed into the distance.

Suddenly, her brow creased tight and she instantly withdrew her gaze.

“Xue Gu, what’s wrong?” Feng Jiu’er immediately noticed something was amiss — Xue Gu’s face had turned pale in an instant.

“When looking at the surroundings, do not channel your inner energy.” Xue Gu steadied her breath with some effort, then looked sharply at Mu Mu. “Quickly, pass the word — no one is to channel their inner energy to look into the distance!”

Mu Mu asked no questions and immediately had Long Eleven carry the order down.

Once Xue Gu’s breathing had settled somewhat, Jiu’er asked, “What happened?”

Xue Gu’s cultivation was deep and formidable, yet merely gazing at the distant landscape had sent her vital energy surging in turbulence.

For someone who knew no better — someone with shallower cultivation — surely they would easily have their inner energy go haywire?

Jiu’er was relieved that she herself had not looked around carelessly just now. She had glanced about a bit, but since she had not looked attentively, nothing had happened.

Xue Gu sat back down, caught her breath, and said, “The rocks in the distance look somewhat strange. They appear to form some kind of pattern… don’t look!”

Seeing Feng Jiu’er tilt her head up, Xue Gu immediately pulled her head back down.

“I saw what looked like a pattern, but it was very blurry. The more intently I tried to see it clearly, the more it distressed me?”

Mu Mu and Jiu Qing exchanged a glance — and simultaneously raised their heads to look into the distance.

These two…

Jiu’er shot a glare at their profiles as they turned away, but there was no stopping them.

They simply had to test for themselves just how formidable their own cultivation was! Were they not afraid of their inner energy truly going haywire?

Before long, Mu Mu was the first to withdraw his gaze. Jiu’er immediately understood — Mu Mu’s inner energy cultivation was indeed not equal to Jiu Qing’s.

How many people in this world had inner energy stronger than Mu Mu?

Jiu Qing — are you or are you not the Ninth Imperial Uncle?

Not long after Mu Mu drew back his gaze, Jiu Qing withdrew his as well.

He turned, and met Feng Jiu’er’s eyes directly.

Their gazes collided — hers full of helplessness and worry, with a trace of uncertainty. Jiu Qing looked at her calmly for only a moment, and Feng Jiu’er found herself startled by his gaze. She hurriedly looked away, not daring to hold his stare.

If he was the Ninth Imperial Uncle, that was all well and good. But if he was not?

That faint medicinal fragrance clung to him always, thoroughly masking his natural scent. Trying to guess purely by scent whether he truly was or was not — that was no easy task.

The Ninth Imperial Uncle had always been fond and indulgent toward her, but Jiu Qing was genuinely cold — distant and serious.

She could understand it, if Jiu Qing truly was the Ninth Imperial Uncle, then being cold and stern with her was only right.

Given how important his identity was, it must not be carelessly revealed.

It was not that he did not trust her. It was only that the more people who knew, the greater the danger.

But this state of not knowing either way — it was truly uncomfortable.

What method could she use to carefully examine him — to see whether he was truly wearing a specially crafted skin mask?

She herself had only learned disguise techniques halfway through — faced with a genuine master, she would simply be no match.

If the mask had truly been crafted by Elder Shi himself, how could she possibly find a flaw in it?

And yet… would Elder Shi help him with this? It would essentially be harming him — surely that was impossible…

“What happened?” To hide the turbulence within, Jiu’er looked at Mu Mu and asked, “Is something wrong? Could you make out the pattern clearly?”