Mo Li

Before long, Le Jiang’s footsteps sounded again. Returning to the room, his face darkened as he tossed a small wooden box to Master Liang. “I’ve already ordered people to dispose of those four. You’ve got what you wanted. I’ll have someone escort you to the capital of Nanzhao shortly.”

Master Liang opened the box and examined its contents before nodding in satisfaction. “Good. In that case, let’s not waste any more time. Where are my steward and bodyguard?”

Le Jiang scoffed disdainfully. “Your steward is still too weak-kneed to walk. As for that bodyguard—even more useless. He fell off the cliff on the way down. You Central Plains folk are nothing but weaklings!”

“You—” Master Liang suppressed his anger. “Fine. Just get me to Nanzhao as quickly as possible.”

“Good.” Le Jiang nodded in approval. “Rest for now. We’ll depart soon.”

Outside the hall, Ye Li glanced at Han Mingxi, who shook his head silently. The bottom of the cliff was indeed littered with corpses, but they were all weathered skeletons, long exposed to the elements. There was no sign of Zheng Kui’s body. It was likely that Zheng Kui hadn’t fallen accidentally—he had been disposed of by these Southern Border men.

Sick Scholar was in no hurry to act against Master Liang, as the two Southern Border men he had poisoned earlier had already been discovered. The once-quiet Underground Palace quickly grew chaotic. With Master Liang leaving under heavy guard, Ye Li and the other three had no choice but to split up, evading the patrolling guards as they prepared to escape.

An San naturally stayed with Ye Li, while Han Mingxi reluctantly followed Sick Scholar.

“Young Master, should we…?”

Ye Li shook her head. “Not yet. Let’s take a look inside first.” Without Sick Scholar and Han Mingxi getting in the way, the two of them could move more freely. They carefully infiltrated the deeper parts of the Underground Palace.

The palace wasn’t particularly large, consisting of only seven or eight rooms. After searching through them all, they found nothing of value. Finally, their attention turned to the innermost chamber. Unlike the others, this room had tightly shut doors guarded by two armed Southern Border men.

Ye Li exchanged a glance with An San and swiftly made a hand signal: You take the left, I’ll take the right.

An San nodded. Silently, they approached the entrance and simultaneously subdued the two guards. An San snapped his target’s neck without a sound, while Ye Li frowned at the unconscious man in her grip before stashing him in a hidden spot.

Examining the lock on the door, Ye Li frowned again, then pulled a golden hairpin from her sleeve. With a deft twist, she extracted a slender, sharp needle from within and manipulated it inside the lock. A soft click later, the lock disengaged.

She signaled to An San, who remained hidden in the shadows, keeping watch. Then she slipped inside. After some time, she emerged again, relocking the door behind her.Probably because Han Mingxi and Sick Scholar's group had drawn away most of the pursuers earlier, Ye Li and An San clearly noticed that the number of searchers had significantly decreased. Following the marks Han Mingxi had secretly left along the way, the two reached the light at the cave entrance in less than half an hour. However, even before they got close to the exit, they could already smell the dangerous floral scent wafting in from outside—identical to the fragrance from the mountain earlier. An San took out a few pills from his pocket and handed them to Ye Li. She crushed one and sniffed it, chuckling softly, "Did you get these from Sick Scholar?" With no outsiders around, An San's expression became much more animated. He grinned smugly, "Yes. He carried too many poisons on him. I didn’t dare take much in case I grabbed the wrong ones. These are the same antidotes he gave us before. They should last about an hour and a half."

"Perfect." Each of them swallowed a pill, and An San stepped forward first to scout the cave entrance before waving Ye Li over. As they cautiously slipped out of the cave, the sight before them left them stunned—an overwhelming expanse of crimson red. The cave exit was less than two meters above the base of the cliff, and the valley below was entirely covered in large red Delicate Bloom flowers. Worse, coiled beneath nearly every flower was a red-and-black snake, with some even slithering along the stems and petals. Ye Li finally understood why Han Mingxi had cursed so vehemently after descending earlier. This damned place was enough to send chills down anyone’s spine. Still, with the exit positioned in such a treacherous spot, the Southern Border people didn’t need many guards—it wasn’t arrogance, just practicality.

"Can we make it across?" Ye Li pointed toward the opposite cliff.

An San studied the distance and nodded. "Should be possible."

"Be careful. If you fall, no one can save you." A single misstep into that sea of flowers, and one would be devoured instantly by the blooms and snakes, leaving no trace behind. An San frowned. "How will you cross, Young Master?" He could use his Light Body Skill to leap over, but carrying someone was out of the question. And Ye Li’s own Light Body Skill likely wasn’t strong enough to make the jump alone. The terrain was too low for ropes to be useful, and the risk of being bitten by the lurking snakes was ever-present. Ye Li sighed helplessly. "This wretched place is such a headache. But if we can get out, this adventure will have been worth it. You go first. I’ll find another way."

An San didn’t move. Though he knew his mistress was capable, he couldn’t see any alternate path. Staying here wasn’t safe either—just because no one was around now didn’t mean they wouldn’t come later.

Seeing An San’s stubbornness, Ye Li waved her hand in resignation. "Fine. I’ll go first. You stay here and watch. Once I’m across, you follow. Honestly, I don’t get why you’re all so obstinate." An San replied firmly, "We are your shadow guards. Our duty is to prioritize your safety." Ye Li rolled her eyes skyward. "Thanks. It’d be even better if you had a little more faith in me."

It wasn’t until dusk began to fall that Ye Li finally climbed out of the cave, using her dagger to scale the cliff. After ascending a short distance, she glanced down at An San, who was following closely behind, and asked, "What are you doing?" An San answered solemnly, "I’m coming with you.""Do you think I want to do this? If I had your Light Body Skill, I'd just fly over." Ye Li shot An San an annoyed glance before continuing her climb upward. An San had already reached her side and said, "This cliff is at least a hundred zhang high. It might be too difficult for you to climb all the way up, Young Master."

Ye Li chuckled softly, "Who said I plan to climb all the way? Just a bit higher. There’s a protruding rock up ahead—that’s our target." An San looked up and spotted the sizable protruding stone not far above, nodding in understanding. "I see. Young Master, I’ll go first."

"Be careful," Ye Li cautioned.

An San nodded, then pushed off the cliff face with his left foot, launching himself forward. However, perhaps due to his earlier climbing posture, his momentum faltered mid-air. While he could have used the flower bushes below to regain footing, the risk of snake bites was too great—they had no antidotes on hand. Cursing under her breath, Ye Li flung a dagger from her left hand beneath An San’s feet. Using the dagger as a stepping point, An San propelled himself again, landing safely on the opposite slope after a few leaps.

Now missing a dagger, Ye Li took extra effort to reach the protruding rock. The stone was small—even pressing tightly against the cliff, she barely had enough space to stand. It seemed to be part of a massive boulder embedded in the mountain. Once steady, she caught her breath before retrieving a rope from her pack. She fastened one end to a sleeve arrow and shot it across to An San.

On the other side, An San caught the rope, secured it, and gave it a shake to signal readiness. Ye Li anchored her end firmly, tested the tension, then slid down the rope toward the lower ground.

"Young Master!" An San exhaled in relief as Ye Li landed safely. Brushing off her clothes, she said, "Let’s go. This should be the backside of the village we stayed in earlier. We should find a way out from here."

An San nodded, following her while adding, "Young Master, I think I know where we are. This is Serpent Valley."

"Serpent Valley?"

"Yes," An San confirmed. "Some senior shadow guards once accompanied the prince on a campaign to the Southern Border. They mentioned a Serpent Valley there, filled with red Serpent Venom Flowers. It’s said the prince burned the entire valley to ashes, yet it’s regrown in less than ten years. But… the location doesn’t match. Serpent Valley should be in the southwest of the Southern Border. How is it so close to Snowbreak Pass?"

Ye Li shook her head. "This place must have been deliberately arranged. Didn’t you notice? The Serpent Venom Flowers are planted in neat rows, evenly spaced—definitely not natural growth. And those snakes… Even if the flowers regrew, there shouldn’t be so many Red Serpents here. Both the flowers and the snakes were cultivated and released by someone."

Recalling the eerie tranquility of the flower sea, An San muttered, "Are the Southern Border people insane? Such dangerous things..."

"Southern Border people aren’t afraid of snakes," Ye Li said with a faint smile. "I suspect they created this terrifying Serpent Valley to hide whatever lies within this mountain."“Weapons foundry?” An San asked in confusion.

Ye Li smiled, “No, there’s something even more interesting. Let’s leave this place first. Did you see any marks left by Han Mingxi?”

An San was squatting on the ground, examining something, “They might have run into trouble. This mark… it’s placed haphazardly.” It was already nighttime, making it impossible to spot footprints or similar traces. An San had searched for quite a while before finding this mark left by Han Mingxi. Ye Li frowned, crouching down to study it while murmuring, “It’s been two hours since we parted ways with them. On foot, one can cover about twenty li in an hour. Both of them know Light Body Skill… though it’s not meant for long-distance travel, let’s assume thirty li. Under normal circumstances, they should be about sixty li away by now. So… was Han Mingxi ambushed? Or were both of them captured?”

“Sick Scholar wouldn’t ambush Han Mingxi. The Pavilion of Heavenly Unity has many informants—someone in Yonglin City must have seen Sick Scholar with Han Mingxi. If anything happens to Han Mingxi, Sick Scholar won’t be able to explain it to the Lord of Tianyi Pavilion,” An San said. Ye Li frowned, “Then… they might have been captured? An San, let’s split up and search. See if Han Mingxi left any other marks.” If something happened to Han Mingxi, not only would Sick Scholar be in trouble, but they’d also have a hard time explaining it to Han Mingyue. After all, it was she who sought out Han Mingxi first, leading him to follow her to the Southern Border. If they were truly captured, they could only pray Han Mingxi hadn’t been killed yet.

In a hidden village deep in the Southern Border, Han Mingxi lay limply on the ground, tightly bound with ropes and unable to move. Nearby, Sick Scholar was in even worse shape—shackled and covered in wounds, coughing incessantly as if barely clinging to life. Unfazed by his own sorry state, Han Mingxi grinned at Sick Scholar and asked, “How are you holding up? Still alive?”

“You’re so sure they’ll come to rescue us?” Sick Scholar coughed lightly and raised his head to ask.

Han Mingxi chuckled, “I believe Jun Wei won’t abandon me.”

Sick Scholar scoffed, “I’d say he’s more likely coming for you out of respect for the Pavilion of Heavenly Unity.”

Unbothered, Han Mingxi laughed, “So what? He certainly won’t come specifically for you just because you’re the Third Leader of the King of Hell Pavilion. Right now, it seems we can only wait for Jun Wei to save us, no? Speaking of which, Third Young Master, why don’t you call on someone to rescue us?” Glancing up at Sick Scholar, who was suspended in chains, Han Mingxi couldn’t help but feel a surge of resentment. If it weren’t for this guy forcing them to search for the Underworld Flower, how could he have ended up in the hands of these people? Now, not only had he failed to find the Underworld Flower, but they might soon be heading straight to the Yellow Springs. It truly fit Jun Wei’s saying—searching the heavens above and the underworld below.The Sick Scholar coughed violently a few times and said, "Since you have so much confidence in Chu Junwei, why keep worrying here?" Han Mingxi choked for a moment before lowering his voice, "Didn't you see the place we came out from? Junwei isn't like you—he doesn’t have any medicine to counter the venomous snakes. Who knows if they can make it out? They might have been knocked out by those ghostly flowers right at the cave entrance. And... those snakes..." The Sick Scholar fell silent for a moment before replying indifferently, "When we descended the cliff, Zhuo Jing took some medicine from me." Noticing Han Mingxi glaring at him, he curled his lips slightly and added, "Don’t look at me like that. I only found out after we parted ways. He took the antidote for narcotic drugs and Tendon Weakening Powder from me—the same kind I gave you on the mountain."

Han Mingxi rolled his eyes. "So that’s why you could only give me one type of medicine later—the stinking one!"

"Rest assured, they’re fine," the Sick Scholar suppressed a cough and said firmly.

Han Mingxi shot him a glance. "How do you know?"

"That Liang guy was practically itching to kill us on the spot. But Le Jiang hasn’t made a move yet—he must be waiting for them to arrive."

"They want to wipe us all out at once?" Han Mingxi frowned. The Sick Scholar replied, "Don’t forget Chu Junwei was always behind us, and they didn’t follow when we exited the cave. They must have done something afterward. That’s why these people are determined to capture them. Do you really think they didn’t notice the marks you left along the way?" Han Mingxi snapped angrily, "If you knew they were using us as bait to lure Junwei, why didn’t you warn me?" The Sick Scholar scoffed disdainfully. "Why should I? At least now there’s still a chance for Chu Junwei to rescue us. If he doesn’t come, we’re dead for sure."

"He might die with us if he comes!"

"So what?"

Tap-tap...

Two light knocks sounded against the window frame outside. Both men froze and turned toward the window. A nimble figure swiftly flipped in through the window, turning back to grin at them. "Brother Han, don’t worry. I definitely won’t die with you."

"Junwei!" Han Mingxi exclaimed in delight.

"Shh..." Ye Li pressed a finger to her lips and winked at him. Han Mingxi immediately lowered his voice. "How did you get in? This stronghold is crawling with ambushes." Ye Li smiled. "No security is foolproof—it just depends on whether you can find the weak spot. Well... Brother Han, Third Boss, you both owe me a life now." The Sick Scholar snorted. "That only counts if we all make it out alive." He and Han Mingxi’s earlier conversation must have been overheard by Chu Junwei, but faced with the young man’s bright and carefree smile, the Sick Scholar couldn’t be sure whether he held a grudge or not."Alright, you're right," Ye Li conceded helplessly. She swiftly drew her dagger and cut the ropes binding Han Mingxi, tossing him a sword casually. "Decent weapons are hard to come by in the Southern Border. Make do with this." Han Mingxi caught the sword with a grin, "Thank you, Jun Wei." While Han Mingxi's ropes were easily dealt with, the chains on Sick Scholar proved more troublesome. It took Ye Li some effort to free him. Once released, Sick Scholar stretched his limbs and asked, "Where's your guard?" Ye Li smiled, "He's preparing a grand gift for the Luo Yi Tribe." Moving to the window, she mimicked a series of bird calls of varying lengths. Soon, commotion erupted in one part of the village, quickly spreading until the entire settlement seemed to buzz with activity. Satisfied, Ye Li declared, "Good, let's go!"

As Sick Scholar pushed the door open, several arrows shot toward him. Han Mingxi yanked him back just in time, while Ye Li kicked the door shut. Thudding sounds followed as arrows embedded themselves into the wooden door. Sick Scholar shot Ye Li an annoyed glare, to which she responded with a benign smile, "Consider this my thanks for Third Leader's earlier invitation to die together with you."

Knowing he was in the wrong, Sick Scholar snorted and said no more.

Outside, archers kept wary eyes on the door. With a loud bang, the door burst open again, and a shadowy figure dashed out. A volley of arrows whizzed through the air.

Thud! Thud! From the windows on either side of the building, two figures leaped out. A few swift whooshes later, the archers crumpled to the ground, clutching at the sudden, searing pain in their bodies. Ye Li stepped out, glancing at the cloth bundle now riddled with arrows like a porcupine and the scattered corpses with a somber expression. "Let's hurry. Any longer, and Zhuo Jing won't be able to hold out." The village was in chaos, flames licking up from several spots—Zhuo Jing had clearly set fires in key locations. Strange bird calls echoed from a distance, and Ye Li, with Han Mingxi and Sick Scholar in tow, sprinted toward the sound without hesitation.

Passing by a spring, Sick Scholar sneered and tossed something from his pocket into the water. Han Mingxi noticed but said nothing, quickening his pace to keep up with Ye Li. By the time they arrived, An San was already surrounded, barely holding his ground. Scanning the scene, Ye Li noted all the village's key figures were present—no wonder only a dozen guards had been left to watch their prisoners. Recalling the item she had taken from the Underground Palace, it was clear that in Le Jiang's eyes, it was far more valuable than the lives of Han Mingxi and Sick Scholar.

"Rescuing two only to lose one—that's hardly cost-effective," Ye Li muttered, frowning. "Brother Han, can you grab that old man?" She pointed at Master Liang, heavily guarded in the center. Han Mingxi frowned, "Too many people around him. And... the old man's too fat." Sick Scholar handed over two objects, "Scatter this in the air, and force-feed this directly into that Liang fellow's mouth."

"Much better," Han Mingxi said, weighing the items in his hand with a nod.

An San stood impassively, surrounded by Southern Border tribesmen in their traditional garb, his weapon swinging relentlessly.“Zhuo Jing, hold your breath!” Han Mingxi’s voice suddenly rang out as a shadowy figure darted through the air toward the crowd. An San instantly held his breath. Unlike Western Liang, few in the Southern Border understood the Central Plains’ language. The moment Han Mingxi landed, people began collapsing to the ground with dull thuds. Seizing the opportunity, An San broke free from the encirclement and leaped onto a nearby rooftop.

Han Mingxi smoothly landed beside Master Liang. Ignoring the man’s groans as he lay sprawled on the ground, he pried open his mouth and shoved medicine inside, then patted his cheek cheerfully. “Old man, you’re done for.”

Le Jiang was one of the few Southern Border tribesmen still standing. His expression darkened as he took in the scene of bodies littering the ground. Glaring at Master Liang, who was whimpering pitifully for help, his gaze was filled with hatred and resentment. “Damn Central Plains people! What have you done?!”

Han Mingxi, now in high spirits, felt most of the day’s frustrations melt away. He grabbed Master Liang and flung him toward Sick Scholar, laughing. “Chief Luo Yi, how dare you ask what we’ve done? Shouldn’t you be reflecting on your own actions?”

Le Jiang snorted disdainfully. “Do you think some petty poison can trouble our Luo Yi Tribe?”

Han Mingxi shrugged nonchalantly. “The poison isn’t mine—whether it works or not has nothing to do with me. Why don’t you try getting your people back on their feet?”

Sick Scholar dragged out the corpulent Master Liang, whose face had turned as black as ink by now, looking utterly lifeless. It was clear at a glance that he had been poisoned with a deadly toxin. Le Jiang was horrified. Though skilled in poisons and snake handling, he couldn’t immediately discern what poison Master Liang had been afflicted with. Yet this detestable Central Plains merchant absolutely could not die now. "What do you want?" he demanded.

Sick Scholar replied coolly, "Let us leave, and don’t send anyone after us. Otherwise… I’ll kill him."

After a moment of contemplation, Le Jiang nodded. "Fine. But… return what you took from the Underground Palace!" He pointed at Ye Li and An San, his gaze laced with murderous intent. Ye Li blinked innocently and grinned, "It’s not even anything valuable. Is it really worth it? Here, take it back—who could even make sense of those scribbles of yours?" Le Jiang eyed him suspiciously. "If you couldn’t read it, why take it?" Ye Li chuckled, "If it’s something important, I suggest you stop decorating it so lavishly next time. That’s practically inviting people to take it. This young master has always had a fondness for pretty little trinkets. Here, take this useless thing back." With that, he tossed an object over. Le Jiang caught it—a dark wooden box with twisted carvings on the lid that could be either characters or drawings. The box’s surface, once adorned with decorations, was now pockmarked with uneven dents, its embellishments clearly stripped away.

After checking that the box’s locking mechanism hadn’t been tampered with, Le Jiang exhaled heavily in relief, his expression softening. He watched as Ye Li arrogantly toyed with a glittering golden object in his hand, adding with a smirk, "Oh, and there were a few other things I took from the table. I trust Chief Le Jiang isn’t so petty as to deny me a little keepsake?"

Le Jiang snorted. "You may go." He knew exactly which other insignificant items were missing from the Underground Palace and couldn’t be bothered to pursue the matter further. Sick Scholar hauled Master Liang along and issued a final warning, "Don’t try anything, or I’ll make sure he dies without a trace."

Ye Li and An San had prepared horses in advance. Once outside the village, the four mounted up and galloped northwest. Only when dawn broke and they finally reached the main road did they relax. Han Mingxi laughed, "What an exciting night we had—all thanks to Jun Wei. Let’s rest here for a bit. The next town is only about ten miles away. We can stay there for a day. If all goes smoothly, we should reach the Nanzhao capital in seven or eight days at most."

Sick Scholar vetoed the idea. "We’ll bypass the town and head straight for the Nanzhao capital."

"You might not be tired, but we are," Han Mingxi grumbled.

Sick Scholar shot him a cold look. "Do you really think we can check into an inn with him in tow? And don’t assume Le Jiang won’t send people after us."Han Mingxi snorted disdainfully, "Who's 'we' with you? The person you're looking for has been found. Go ask him yourself where the thing is. Let's go our separate ways. Haven't we suffered enough because of you yesterday? Jun Wei, right?" Ye Li played with an exquisite gemstone accessory in her hand and smiled faintly, "It's alright. But... if we part ways now, will Third Master still give me the promised reward?" The Sick Scholar's eyes flickered, "So it's best if we continue together, isn't it? Otherwise, Young Master Chu wouldn't feel at ease either." Ye Li chuckled, "After all we've been through, a little more won't hurt. Giving up halfway would mean everything I did yesterday was for nothing, wouldn't it?"

Seeing Ye Li's stance, Han Mingxi could only nod helplessly, "I just hope this young master won't end up dead because of you."

Ye Li smiled, "Actually, Brother Han could return to the Central Plains early. After all, you have no interest in what Third Master is looking for, right?" Han Mingxi turned his head away and refused outright, "This young master finds it more fun to follow Jun Wei. Wherever Jun Wei goes, this young master will go. If we're going together, then so be it! Who has this young master ever feared?"

The four decided to rest briefly. The Sick Scholar, unwilling to wait even a moment, dragged Master Liang aside to interrogate him harshly. Han Mingxi, bearing a grudge against Master Liang, followed to watch. Ye Li expressed no interest, and while An San was curious, he would never show it in front of outsiders, so he stayed by Ye Li's side for protection. Ye Li walked to a large tree and sat down, glancing at Han Mingxi and the Sick Scholar in the distance before pulling out various small items from her sleeve. Among them were two blank sheets of paper. Satisfied, she took out a sharpened charcoal pencil from her bag and began sketching on the paper.

An San stood guard nearby, watching the strange, twisted characters on the paper with curiosity. "Young Master, didn't you say you couldn't read these words? Were you lying to them?"

Ye Li shook her head with a smile, "I don't know them well, but others do. Though it's a bit hard to remember things you don't understand. I should have written it down yesterday, but I was worried about getting caught. Now... I think I've got it right." She lowered her head and continued drawing intricate lines on the paper, adding to An San, "Truthfully, I don't really know what this thing is, but I do recognize that box. The piece I pried off seems to bear the mark of the Holy Maiden of the Southern Border, so it must be important." In fact, she had seen even more interesting things, but since she understood those, she remembered them clearly. She had glanced at them once before tossing them back, so there was no need to write them down now.

An San nodded silently, feeling a pang of pity for the Luo Yi clan leader who thought his treasure was untouched. He would never know that while waiting for nightfall at the entrance of Serpent Valley, Ye Li had already taken out the contents and studied them for over an hour before putting them back. Privately, An San greatly admired his master's lock-picking skills and wondered when he could ask for a lesson.

After a while, Ye Li finally filled one sheet of paper. Satisfied, she checked it twice against her memory before handing it to An San. "Have someone deliver this home as soon as possible. Let's see what this thing is."An San nodded, then hesitated as he looked at Ye Li, seemingly wanting to say something. Ye Li found his behavior amusing and said, "Just say whatever's on your mind." An San glanced at the paper in his hand and asked softly, "We've been away for quite some time. Since you're sending a message home, shouldn't you write a letter to let them know you're safe?"

A letter home? Ye Li froze. Ever since leaving, she had deliberately avoided sending any messages to Mo Xiuyao to prevent revealing her whereabouts. She hadn't even contacted the shadow guards stationed in various regions. Recalling Xiu Yao's instructions to her, Ye Li couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. Looking at the extra paper still in her hand, she thought—since there was some left, she might as well write a letter.