Chapter 24

The journey to Beijing is long, requiring half a month of travel even with swift horses and relentless day-and-night riding. Lin Qing was followed by over a hundred Tianlu Guards. After five consecutive days of travel, everyone was beginning to show signs of exhaustion.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, there was no sign of smoke from cooking fires ahead. On both sides lay patches of tangled weeds, and beyond them stretched an endless, bottomless forest. Lin Qing had no choice but to slow down.

Meng Jie rode his horse up beside her. "Chief, it's almost dark. I fear we won't reach a village to rest tonight."

"Very well." Lin Qing sighed, glancing back at the weary expressions of her men. "Find a suitable place to camp. This area likely has wolves, so have the men take turns in two patrol groups to rest. We shall rest properly once we enter the city tomorrow."

Following Lin Qing’s orders, the Tianlu Guards sprang into action. Finding a good spot for a camp was no easy task, but by nightfall, they finally located a site beside a creek.

Clear, jade-like water flowed from the forest ahead, winding through delicate, short grass toward an unknown horizon. The meadow was spacious and near a water source—a perfect spot, save for the fact that a group was already resting there.

There were two campfires and about a dozen people. The leader, dressed in white, had a slender, refined frame. His belt was cinched tight, accentuating his lithe waist, and his hands—currently stirring the fire with a wooden stick—were as pale and delicate as soft tofu. Looking up, one saw ink-black hair, narrow, slightly upturned fox eyes, and lips that glowed with a faint, reddish hue.

Lin Qing’s eyes glimmered with a playful light. *Oh, a familiar face: Mu Wantang.*

Mu Wantang allowed Lin Qing’s gaze to linger on him. His fingers twitched slightly, signaling his men to remain calm, before he offered Lin Qing a cool smile. "Officer Lin, am I a pleasing sight?"

"Very pleasing," Lin Qing replied with a cheeky grin. "Young Master Mu possesses a beauty that makes one long to peel off your skin and keep it as a collection."

These words turned the indignation in the eyes of Mu Wantang’s men into murderous intent. Lin Qing, however, remained indifferent.

Meng Jie whispered, "Shall we find another spot?"

"No need. Young Master Mu has always been generous; he surely wouldn't mind sharing this space with us." Lin Qing’s gaze was calm, her voice crisp yet tinged with a cold detachment.

The sun had already set, leaving only a faint streak of red in the sky; it was too late to find another place. With Lin Qing's word, the Tianlu Guards divided into small teams to clear the ground, gather firewood, and hunt.

Mu Wantang waved his hand, and his men moved to the other campfire, leaving him alone by his own massive blaze. "Though it is summer, these deep mountains and forests are quite chilly at night. If Officer Lin does not mind, come over and have a bowl of hot soup."

Lin Qing was puzzled by what game Mu Wantang was playing, but she simply sat down beside him. Mu Wantang opened the small iron pot hanging over the fire. It contained fine rice, white as milk, not as thick as porridge, and it wafted with the fragrance of grain.

Mu Wantang took a bowl from his side, ladled some rice soup into it, and handed it to Lin Qing. "This bowl is mine. I haven't used it today. I trust Officer Lin will not mind."

"I am a man, not some young lady. Why would I mind?" Lin Qing took it, blew on the steam, and took a small sip. After a day of riding, her stomach had been uneasy; the hot liquid seemed to warm her from within.

Mu Wantang watched her finish every drop, his long, narrow eyes flickering with interest. "Is Officer Lin not afraid that I might have poisoned it?"

Lin Qing grinned. *What a joke.* With her nose, if there had been poison, it would never have reached her lips. "Young Master Mu has no reason to harm me."

Mu Wantang curled his lips. "Who says there is no reason? In the Prince Rui estate, Officer Lin caused me quite a significant loss."

Lin Qing asked, puzzled: "You didn't get what you wanted?"

Mu Wantang’s smile stiffened. He had...

"Since you got it, how did you suffer a loss?" Lin Qing didn't care. She washed the bowl clean and set it beside Mu Wantang. As she bent down, she leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Young Master Mu should know that without my nod, your men wouldn't have been able to carry so much as a needle out of the Prince Rui estate."

Mu Wantang felt a breeze brush against his ear, but the gentle words felt like a sharp blade, causing goosebumps to break out across his skin.

Lin Qing sat back down beside him, looking at him with luminous eyes. "I helped Young Master Mu get what he wanted, but what has Young Master Mu helped me get?"

Mu Wantang: "..."

Lin Qing: "Nothing at all. So, clearly, it is Young Master Mu who owes me a favor."

Mu Wantang’s expression shifted. He was silent for a long time, as if finally coming to a realization. "A few 'Young Master Mu's' are enough to demand a favor from me? By comparison, I find that 'Mu the Fox' you called me earlier actually pleases me more."

"You don't want to be a proper person, but insist on playing the fox spirit? Fine, I shall accommodate you." Lin Qing truly laughed this time. "Mu the Fox, why don't you tell me why you're heading north instead of returning to Yuzhou in the south?"

Mu Wantang did not answer directly, only staring into her eyes. "Is this a collaboration, or are you calling in that favor?"

Lin Qing did not mind at all. She rested her chin on her left hand, admiring Mu Wantang’s beauty, while her right hand toyed with the hilt of her sword. "That depends on the sincerity of certain people."

If the sincerity was sufficient, she wouldn't mind a collaboration where they might sabotage each other at any moment. If there was no sincerity, she would simply leave Mu Wantang’s life right here.

Lin Qing’s smile grew sweeter; her delicate face now looked like arsenic mixed with honey.

Mu Wantang could clearly see the murderous intent hidden in her eyes, but he remained unfazed. He produced an invitation and handed it to Lin Qing.

It was a bright red invitation with a large peony painted on it. Upon opening it, she saw it was an invitation to an auction, taking place two months later at the Lu Family Manor near Weicheng.

The Lu Family Manor!

Lin Qing suppressed the shock in her eyes. The Lu Family Manor near Weicheng was a hidden stronghold of the Tianlu Department’s Dark Division—and one of the most important ones at that.

If the Lu Family Manor were still in their own hands, they would be keeping it hidden; why would they be hosting an auction?

Something had clearly gone wrong, and was this an act of provocation against the Tianlu Department?

Any sign of turmoil was wiped clean from Lin Qing’s face by the time she looked up. She carelessly tucked the invitation into her robes. "It is merely an auction. What significance could it have to make you care so much?"

Mu Wantang watched her movements, his mouth twitching slightly, though he did not ask for the invitation back. "It is an underground auction; only those with an invitation can enter. It is rumored that it contains clues regarding the location of the previous dynasty's treasure."

The world is currently divided into three: the Yuan, Sheng, and Shuo empires, with smaller nations clinging to them for survival. Yet, a hundred years ago, the land was a single entity named the Qi Kingdom. The "previous dynasty" refers to the few remaining descendants of Qi.

Legend has it that before the fall of Great Qi, the monarch hid most of the national treasury somewhere, mapped it out, and split the map into four parts, entrusting them to four loyal ministers. Those four ministers then vanished, as if they had evaporated from the face of the earth.

Lin Qing had naturally heard this legend, but she had always scoffed at such things. Spending one's life searching for ethereal treasure was far less productive than developing the wealth one already possessed. It was like buying a lottery ticket in her previous life—hardly likely to pay off.

Mu Wantang was equally cynical. "There are always those who dream inappropriate dreams—refusing to hear, see, or listen. It is a logic even you can understand."

"What do you mean, 'even I'?" Lin Qing was displeased. "I call this being 'clear-eyed about the world.'"

"A fine 'clear-eyed' view indeed." Mu Wantang smiled, his gaze softening toward Lin Qing. "If only everyone else could be so clear-eyed."

Lin Qing: "Do not try to wake someone who is pretending to sleep, unless the pain is like being flayed alive and having one's bones dug out."

"True." Mu Wantang lowered his head, speaking only that one word before seemingly falling into his own thoughts.

The night had fully darkened. After eating, the Tianlu Guards rotated in shifts around the campfires. The surroundings gradually grew quiet, leaving only the chirping of insects and the crisp sound of the creek flowing by.

Lin Qing lay by the fire, having watched enough stars, and slowly closed her eyes. It was then that she caught a faint sound, like something brushing against branches.

She snapped her eyes open, her right hand already gripping the hilt of her longsword. With just a slight exertion, she could draw it. Her left hand quickly signaled the patrolling Tianlu Guards.

*Enemy attack. Danger.*

The guards immediately understood. They dispersed quietly, gently waking their sleeping comrades and reaching for their weapons.

Mu Wantang also caught the movement. He communicated with his subordinates via secret signs, and they, too, drew their weapons.

No one knew who stepped on a branch, but a crisp snap echoed, and everyone moved.

Dozens of figures in white descended from the sky, wielding long sabers, hacking at anyone in their path. Their clothes were like loose, draped white cloth, and they wore white masks, each marked with a small black lotus on the forehead. In the depth of the night, they moved without a sound, like ghosts.

Lin Qing’s longsword shrieked as it left its scabbard. With the draw came a trail of blood; the head of the white-clad figure before her flew from his shoulders.

She pivoted, swinging her sword downward. Her potent inner energy surged into the blade, leaving a faint silver arc in the air as she cleaved her enemy in two.

Lin Qing’s swordplay was sharp, rigid, and possessed a wild, inexplicable madness. Though she looked like a half-grown child, in combat, she was like a lead wolf charging into the fray, willing to tear a chunk of flesh from her enemies even if it meant her own death.

Though the white-clad figures were numerous, they were outnumbered by the Tianlu Guards, and since Lin Qing had brought her finest men, they gradually gained the upper hand.

But Lin Qing’s heart was not at ease. These strange, ghostly figures were likely from the Lotus Sect, but Lian Renyu had not yet appeared, nor had the white tiger that had caused even Zhuge Xu to suffer.

Lin Qing leaped to the top of a tree. Looking out, she saw layers of shadows stretching toward the distant mountains. Suddenly, a faint, fishy stench caught her nose.

*Here it comes!*

Following the wind, she looked toward the forest, where a flash of white darted rapidly through the trees. At the same time, Lian Renyu, wearing that weeping-yet-laughing ghost mask, rode the wind toward them. Her weapon was a soft sword, and in the blink of an eye, she was before them.

Knowing full well how formidable Lian Renyu was, Lin Qing dared not let her engage the other Tianlu Guards. Gritting her teeth, she launched herself from the treetops to meet her. Her longsword danced, leaving trails of silver light that blocked Lian Renyu’s strike.

Lian Renyu took the opportunity to switch from sword to palm. Lin Qing could not dodge in time and was forced to channel her energy to meet the blow. With a single strike, she felt as if her internal organs had been struck by a club.

*This woman was struck by my master, yet her inner strength is still this terrifying.*

It was truly maddening to compare oneself to others.

Lin Qing retreated to where Meng Jie had arrived and used a few more secret hand signs.

*The enemy is too strong. Withdraw. I will cover the rear.*

Suddenly, a tiger’s roar shattered the air.

"Go!" Lin Qing dared not delay, pushing Meng Jie aside.

Meng Jie’s eyes were bloodshot. He turned and ran, passing the order via secret signals to the nearby guards. Within moments, all the Tianlu Guards were swiftly covering their retreat, vanishing into the deep mountains.