Chapter 1348: Another Peddler

The fisherman flashed onto the flying mount. He said nothing more, his manner somewhat aloof.

Niu Youdao extended a hand toward Zhuge Chi. "Please."

Zhuge Chi drew a deep breath.

If he had not been forced into a corner while knowing nothing about the situation, he would never have stepped onto such an inexplicable road.

But now he had no better choice. He could only get through one pass at a time and judge the situation later.

Suppressing the helplessness in his heart, he caught Hai Wuji by the arm, rose into the air, and landed with him on the flying mount.

Niu Youdao watched them go and suddenly sighed with feeling. "Now that's what I call a truly obedient, useful enforcer."

Yun Ji gave a disdainful snort, as though to say, And why exactly should I obey you? Her tone carried a trace of sarcasm. "Congratulations."

Niu Youdao chuckled. "The same to you."

Yun Ji asked, "You're certain Shao Pingbo will still make his move?"

Niu Youdao chuckled again. "If he doesn't, then he isn't Shao Pingbo. That bastard isn't a timid man. Just wait and watch the show. For all we know, news about Zhuge Chi may already have reached Nanzhou by now."

He looked around for a while. "We shouldn't stay here any longer either. Let's go."

Yun Ji raised her hand and shook a finger bell.

Soon, another flying mount rose from the mountains and swooped toward them.

When it climbed into the sky again, both of them were already standing on its back as it flew toward the horizon...

Some things did indeed unfold exactly as expected.

Not long after the two returned to Maolu Annex, Guan Fangyi came to find them.

"Here. The message you've been waiting for from Shao Pingbo has arrived."

She tossed a sheet of paper onto Niu Youdao's desk.

To keep abreast of developments and respond to the situation in time, the messenger Goldenwing used for communications between Jia Wuqun and Shao Pingbo had temporarily been requisitioned by Nanzhou.

Niu Youdao picked up the message and read it. "Well, well. Lord Shao certainly handles things efficiently. He hasn't disappointed us. His warning has finally arrived."

He casually passed the paper to Yun Ji.

Yun Ji read it and shook her head slightly.

They had already finished handling the matter, and only now had the warning arrived.

Niu Youdao asked Guan Fangyi, "When did this message come?"

Guan Fangyi thought for a moment. "Last night. About half a day ago."

Niu Youdao turned back to Yun Ji and teased, "See? Interesting, isn't it? And that's after saving the time it would have taken to send the message through the Song capital. The timing of when they released it was calculated very carefully. It doesn't delay our affairs, and it doesn't interfere with theirs."

Yun Ji understood what he meant.

This side had already received its own information and completed the operation before Shao Pingbo's message arrived.

Judging from the interval between the incident and the message reaching them, there was a good chance the information had been held back in Shao Pingbo's hands for some time.

Why hold it back?

Most likely for exactly the reason Niu Youdao had predicted.

That bastard had kept a move in reserve.

Of course, it was also possible Lan Ming had simply received the intelligence late. But given their assessment of Shao Pingbo, Yun Ji still could not help shaking her head. "Looks like Shao Pingbo really does want to lead off a sheep while he's at it."

Niu Youdao smiled playfully. "I only hope Shao Pingbo and Lan Ming don't make a mess of things."

Guan Fangyi suddenly cut in. "Nothing else, right? If there's nothing else, I'm going back."

Niu Youdao stared at her, realizing something about the mood had changed. He tried asking, "You're not going to press us about what's happening right now?"

Guan Fangyi said disdainfully, "Two old foxes biting each other. You obviously don't take this message seriously and are plainly playing with the other man. That fellow has always had rotten luck whenever he falls into your hands, and you're not going to suffer any loss. What is there to ask? My mind can't keep pace with the two of you anyway. I can't be bothered worrying about it. I'm leaving."

She turned and walked away.

Niu Youdao called after her, "Where are you going?"

"To cultivate harder. Who do you think forced me into it?"

Guan Fangyi dragged out the final words as she disappeared.

After her figure vanished, Niu Youdao and Yun Ji stared at each other for a long moment before recovering.

She no longer even cared enough to ask about matters involving Nascent Soul cultivators.

This Guan Fangyi no longer seemed like Guan Fangyi.

Neither of them was used to it.

...

High above the vast sea, several flying mounts raced through the sky.

On the lead mount stood Huo Kong, Presiding Administrator of Misty Pavilion, his expression grave.

Now that Zhuge Chi's location had been found, Huo Kong had no choice but to leave the Sacred Realm and personally travel there to oversee the matter.

...

At Daluo Sacred Land, Sha Rulai stood at the railing of a pavilion, hands clasped behind his back as he gazed into the distance. His mood was exceptionally heavy.

More precisely, a string inside his heart had been pulled taut.

He was deeply nervous.

His side had already received the information about Zhuge Chi. Under the arrangements Niu Youdao had made in advance, that meant the plan had automatically been triggered.

Wang Zun's side had probably already moved.

Because of the distance and the time needed for messages to travel, Sha Rulai had no idea what the situation would be by the time he received the next report.

Please don't let anything go wrong.

Although Niu Youdao had personally designed the plan and Sha Rulai's people were only responsible for carrying it out, Sha Rulai still could not help worrying.

Before he received definite confirmation of success, there was no way for him not to worry. The consequences of any mistake would be unimaginable.

To tell the truth, he had become somewhat afraid of Niu Youdao.

Niu Youdao often did things he himself considered safe but which, in Sha Rulai's eyes, were extraordinarily dangerous. The man's courage was simply too great.

How long had it been since the last time he released information to stir up trouble between Lü Wushuang and Yuan Se?

Because he constantly had to handle messages from Niu Youdao's side, Sha Rulai could not even find a reliable stretch of time to enter seclusion and make use of the Wuliang Fruit.

And given the environment he lived in, he feared exposing himself.

After considering it again and again, he had decided not to retrieve the Wuliang Fruit hidden with the Fox Clan for now, and not to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm yet.

His thoughts were in such turmoil, and he was so distracted, that he did not notice someone approaching until a warm, fragrant body pressed against his back and a pair of jade-like arms wrapped around his waist.

His body and mind jolted.

The fragrance alone told him who it was.

He caught the arms around his waist and pulled sharply, drawing Luo Fangfei around in front of him.

Luo Fangfei stared at him wide-eyed.

It was rare for him to show such intensity.

Naturally, Luo Fangfei knew what he wanted.

In truth, she very much wanted to bear Sha Rulai a child.

Strangely enough, there seemed to be nothing wrong with either of their bodies. She had tried very hard, yet she simply could not become pregnant.

...

At Shouque Villa, Yuan Se flashed down from the sky.

A group of people bowed in greeting, and he waved for them to dispense with ceremony. With another flash, he appeared inside a pavilion, his enormous body wobbling slightly as he walked toward Zhangsun Mi, Sacred Venerable of Wuming Sacred Land.

Zhangsun Mi sat behind a table in the shadows. His face was corpse-pale and his lips blood-red, as though he had just drunk blood. Wherever he appeared, the atmosphere seemed to turn sinister.

"What, Mu Lianze still hasn't arrived?" Yuan Se asked as he approached.

"Fatty Yuan is here," Zhangsun Mi said heavily, turning his head.

Yuan Se followed his gaze.

Behind one corner of a great pillar, the hem of a sky-blue robe fluttered.

"You're the one who arrived last." Mu Lianze stepped out from behind the pillar and walked over.

Yuan Se laughed and slapped both hands against his belly. "No helping it. I'm fat and heavy. Surely it's understandable if I'm a little slower."

Mu Lianze snorted. "What a convenient excuse. We're dealing with one Zhuge Chi. Do we really need three people to act?"

Zhangsun Mi said indifferently, "More people won't hurt. Better to be safe. If he escapes, finding him again will be difficult."

Mu Lianze looked at Yuan Se again. "You've confirmed there's no problem over there? Don't alert the snake by striking the grass and let him escape."

Yuan Se said, "Relax. Huo Kong's arrangements were sound enough. No one will approach. They're only watching secretly to see whether the targets try to leave. They'll wait until we arrive before reacting."

Mu Lianze said, "Then stop waddling around like a fat man and moving at a crawl. Let's go!"

The three figures flashed out of the pavilion and dropped directly toward the Sacred Realm exit.

...

Morning had only just passed. The sun still hung at an angle when another peddler appeared on the mountain road.

People who rose early to scrape out a living never had it easy.

Under the watch of hidden eyes, the peddler walked unhurriedly toward the quiet mountain village with a carrying pole over his shoulder.

"A peddler? Does the village have someone like that?"

"Yes. According to the earlier investigation records, there really is a peddler in the village. But they say his leg is bad and he stopped traveling for business. No idea whether this is the same man."

"Watch him carefully. Get a clear look at his face. Don't let someone pass himself off as another man and slip away right under our noses."

The peddler entered the village.

His cries attracted the villagers' attention, and quite a few came over to see what he had for sale.

The children were even more interested. Before long, a crowd of them had gathered around the baskets hanging from his pole.

Naturally, the peddler was not a real peddler.

He had come with a purpose.

Yet no matter how he asked around, no matter what methods he tried, he seemed unable to accomplish his objective.

As the delay dragged on, he gradually grew anxious.

His superiors had given strict instructions: he had to leave before a certain time, or he would be in danger.

As that dangerous time drew closer, he no longer dared remain.

He had been given another order as well: better for the mission to fail than for him to expose himself.

In the end, after selling some of the things he was supposed to sell, the peddler had no choice but to shoulder his pole and leave.

A group of children followed him a long distance before finally turning back.

Along the mountain road, hidden pairs of eyes continued staring after him.

Two men, one tall and one thin, quietly crept toward a patch of brush. They whispered to the man hiding inside, "Deacon, there may be something wrong with that peddler."

The man in the brush turned his head. "What problem?"

The tall man said, "That carrying pole doesn't look light, but he's carried it all this way without once stopping to rest. Isn't that suspicious?"

When someone wanted an excuse, one could always be found.

At those words, the man in the brush immediately fixed his eyes on the departing peddler.

He could not be certain, but now that it had been pointed out, it did seem somewhat strange.

The thin man said, "Deacon, the two of us want to follow him for a while."

The man in the brush turned sharply and warned them, "Are you joking? Our orders are clear. We watch only. We do not approach anyone. What if he's one of the target's contacts? If you alert the snake by striking the grass and something goes wrong, who is going to bear the responsibility?"

The thin man said, "We won't approach him. We'll only follow."

"No!" The man's tone was firm. "That isn't within the scope of our mission."

The tall man said, "Deacon, this man is obviously suspicious. What if he discovered something and came to warn the targets? What if the people in the village have already slipped away, and later it's discovered that we noticed something wrong with this man but failed to react in time? We won't be able to bear that responsibility either!"

The man in the brush hesitated.

The tall man pressed on. "Deacon, we'll follow from far away and absolutely won't approach him. Send out a flying mount as well, with another two men moving on the flank. If we discover anything wrong, we'll seize him immediately and won't give him any chance to alert the snake by striking the grass."

[End of Chapter 1348]