“I don’t like this,” Tan Xiaoling said once they’d passed beyond the far edge of the sect town at the base of the mountain.

“What’s that, exactly?” He Yu asked. Of course, he had some thoughts of his own on the subject. It wasn’t so much that he’d had to kill the agents of the court that bothered him. Rather, it was the part about not showing mercy.

Then there was the fact that he was away from the sect and his home again. He and Tan Xiaoling would be gone for at least a month this time, given the distance they’d be traveling, and it was starting to feel like he was spending more and more time away these days. He supposed that he’d better get used to it, especially if tearing out the court “by the root” was what his life was going to be for the foreseeable future.

“If the Sunset Court is as dangerous as we’ve been led to believe, why send two low-ranked inner disciples who’ve only just formed their cores?” she asked.

“You think they’re lying to us about the threat the court poses?”

Tan Xiaoling shook her head. “Hardly. We both saw what happened in the western wilds. The way I see it, there’s good reason that area’s restricted. There’s good reason they keep information restricted. If anything, I’d say the court’s more dangerous than they’re admitting. To us, at least. If anything, they’re throwing us to the tigers.”

They lapsed into silence for a time as He Yu digested what she’d said. The surrounding farmland passed by quickly, rice paddies racing by as they both used their full speed. Being at equal stages of advancement, neither of them had to hold back and slow down for the other. The ground flew by beneath them, and the Shrouded Peaks grew steadily smaller at their backs.

After a time, He Yu said, “I don’t think they’re doing that.”

“You’ve more faith in that Yi Xiurong than I do, then,” Tan Xiaoling said. At least now a bit of her wry humor crept back into her voice. She still sounded dry and a bit creaky, as though she needed a drink after a long day of walking a dusty road.

“You don’t like her, I take it,” he said.

“What makes you think that?” she laughed.

“Just a hunch.”

“Of the women that make up the core sect, she’s now my least favorite after that meeting.”

He Yu was well aware that Tan Xiaoling didn’t particularly care for Zhang Lifen. It apparently had something to do with the deal she’d made with the princess before the sect tournament. In exchange for staying her hand, Zhang Lifen had offered Tan Xiaoling the opportunity to take revenge on Xiao Jun for the humiliation she’d suffered at his hands. That it would cost Li Heng his opportunity to place highly in the same tournament hadn’t been mentioned.

That Tan Xiaoling and Li Heng were romantically involved had turned into something of an open secret in the sect over the past year. It was difficult to hide such dalliances from immortals, and the nobility were wont to talk. He Yu still didn’t understand the implications of the relationship fully, but he trusted that his friends knew what they were doing.

“What would be the point?” he asked. “I mean, if you’re right, why would the sect just throw us away?”

“More trouble than we’re worth? Maybe my uncle bribed them? Or the Mo clan?”

“What does the Mo clan or your uncle have to do with this?” He Yu knew full well why the Mo might want to see him end—he did maim one of their sons, after all. There was some disagreement in the Jade Kingdom between Tan Xiaoling and her uncle, but beyond that, he’d largely stayed out of it.

“Well, first we’re headed into territory controlled by the Mo. I thought you knew.”

He Yu had not known. Pushing aside his newfound worry about that particular revelation, he asked, “What about your uncle, then?”

“I’d have thought you would have heard by now. Apparently, there’s talk and my secret’s out.”

“You know I don’t really pay attention to all that,” He Yu said.

“Makes sense. Too busy cultivating and fighting duels.” She was poking at him, and he knew it. At least that meant he hadn’t crossed any lines. “Well, the short version is he wants to kill me.”

He Yu looked over at her as they sped through a dense bamboo thicket. Just to see if she was making some sort of grim joke. Given the lack of her typical smirk, she was completely serious.

“It’s how things work in the Jade Kingdom,” she said. “The strong rule. I told you it’s a harsh land. Unlike the empire, we can’t afford weakness. Especially not in the royal family.”

“But your father,” He Yu began. King Tan Zihao was a legend in his own right. Fully in the Seventh Realm, and in good health all things considered. The only thing He Yu knew for certain was that he’d not named a successor, despite Tan Xiaoling being his only child.

“My uncle, Tan Qingshen declared that a woman wasn’t fit to rule the Jade Kingdom. In doing so, he’s all but stated his intent to kill me. In keeping with my family’s traditions, my father will stay out of it unless our conflict threatens the kingdom itself. My uncle is several hundred years younger than my father, so he’s well within his right to challenge me, rather than my father. It was the whole reason I fled and came to the Shrouded Peaks Sect.”

“Well, I’ll help you in any way I can,” He Yu said.

“I’ll take your offer in the spirit you made it in. This is between my uncle and myself, however. Your help isn’t necessary.”

He Yu let the matter drop. Since their match in the tournament finals, he’d realized that Tan Xiaoling had come to regard him with a fair amount of respect. More than she gave to most other disciples outside her immediate circle. That she hadn’t threatened him, or worse, was sign enough of that.

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Still, he meant what he’d said. He didn’t particularly care what she thought about his offer. She was someone that he considered a friend and an ally, and he’d help her in whatever way that he could. And it had nothing to do with the fact that she was Chen Fei’s best friend.

After their mildly uncomfortable exchange about Tan Xiaoling’s uncle, they passed the rest of the day in silence. They traveled all through the night, and the next day. Over the next two weeks, they kept up a pace that would have seemed impossible less than a year ago. They could go for days at a time, covering vast distances with their immortal endurance and speed. Both had formed their Golden Cores. They hardly needed to sleep or eat, either. A night’s worth of cultivation was enough to keep them going for days.

Over the weeks, the landscape changed as well. From the mountains that gave the Shrouded Peaks Sect its name, to the foothills and then farmland of flooded rice fields. Then finally, as they ventured further east, to the rocky and fairly desolate hills that Zhang Lifen had taken He Yu to train in. From there, they passed beyond the sect territory. The terrain grew ever more rugged. Stones turned to boulders, canyons to chasms. And as the land grew rough and inhospitable, so too did its denizens.

Stone spirits were abundant. Most were equal to the Third Realm, but the occasional Fourth Realm spirit would appear. He Yu and Tan Xiaoling would avoid fights if they could, especially with the Fourth Realms. The closer they got to the target location, the more important it became that they hid their presences. They didn’t want to give any more warning they were coming than they absolutely had to.

Aside from spirits, there were lizards the size of a full-grown man that frequently basked on top of boulders. They even saw signs of a golden tiger, and Tan Xiaoling wanted to take a detour to hunt it. But duty soon won out, and they kept to the mission at hand.

As they went deeper into what was now clearly the western reaches of the Mo clan’s territory, signs of settlements became fewer and farther between. Even the tiny dirt tracks that could only barely be called roads were unwarded. For a mortal, traversing such lands would be akin to suicide. It seemed the Mo weren’t particularly interested in allowing people to easily move around this portion of their lands.

After a full two weeks of travel, they finally arrived at a large formation of stones that resembled pillars. The instructions Yi Xiurong had given them the morning they left had said to watch out for this landmark. According to both the work of the sect geomancers and the preliminary scouting of the area, the mine should be within half a day’s travel. The geomancers had found clear evidence of mining, and the scouts had discovered multiple layers of concealing scripts. Despite this, the precise location of the mine remained unknown.

Finding it was their first task.

“Does that technique of yours have anything to say?” Tan Xiaoling asked.

He Yu shook his head. “Not at the moment.”

“Could have used someone like Chen Fei,” she said. “Or even Yan Shirong. Either of them would have been a huge help.”

“I don’t disagree,” He Yu said. “But they didn’t send either of them. We have to assume that a Third Realm would be a liability.”

“They could always hide. Sects frequently send groups of mixed advancement to handle tasks like this. Yet another reason I think they’re trying to kill us both.”

Tan Xiaoling had mentioned her suspicions about the job several times on their journey. Although He Yu remained mostly unconvinced, he was beginning to agree with her.

“Maybe Senior Sister Yi just has confidence in the capabilities of my perception art.”

Tan Xiaoling’s silence told him exactly what she thought of that.

After several hours of searching, they finally found a promising lead. A trail that was little more than a footpath wound through the dense shrub nestled between the hills. For such a desolate and remote area, the trail certainly looked as though it had seen recent and frequent use. An examination using the Cloud Emperor’s Peerless Judgment, with its ability to show the truth of things, showed that both signs were correct.

They followed the trail. Unlike when they’d been traveling here, they both moved slowly and cautiously. They kept their spirits as restrained as they could. Even so, they were both Golden Core, and they weighed on the world around them. Tan Xiaoling had the easier time hiding herself; her spirit was conveniently similar to their surroundings. The only thing that gave her away was the unseasonable warmth that surrounded her.

He Yu couldn’t have stood out more. The surrounding area was parched and dry. The sky was clear, and the area’s natural qi was mostly earth aspected. This was not a land that often saw rain. At least the constant murmur of the wind winding through the gullies and hills was in keeping with his spirit.

Despite that, they still did what they could to hide their approach to what they hoped was the mine. Perhaps that was why Yi Xiurong saw fit to send two early Fourth Realm disciples. Certainly easier to hide a Fourth Realm spirit than a Fifth or beyond. A cultivator’s qi weighed more heavily on the mortal world the higher they advanced their cultivation base, after all.

At length, the Cloud Emperor’s Peerless Judgment gave He Yu his first real evidence they were in the right spot. A formation stone nestled among some shrubs clinging stubbornly to a rockfall. Without the aid of his hybrid cultivation and perception art, he’d never have seen it. Although the stone itself was weathered, the script carved into it was well maintained. It had been here for some time, but it was also being kept in working condition.

He Yu pointed to the stone, and Tan Xiaoling nodded. They crept forward to examine it. From what he could tell, there was no alarm script. It was meant to keep any qi emanating from inside the script from escaping, and thus potentially revealing the location of a potent source of the same. It also had minor defensive aspects, likely meant to keep out any curious spirits.

Together, they crossed the boundary. When no alarm sounded, or no defenses activated, He Yu allowed himself to relax a bit. They advanced, staying as close to the hills and the dense shrub as they could. They skirted rocks and moved with ease and grace through tangled thickets that would have been impossible for mortals. Eventually, they found what they were looking for.

The mine itself was little more than a hole dug into the side of a hill, braced with wooden beams. From what He Yu could see, it looked like it went steeply down into the earth just inside. Clustered around the entrance were half a dozen low, crudely made huts. Other than the potent qi coming from the mine itself, no doubt from the spirit stone veins within, there was no sign of any power of note.

“Is it abandoned?” He Yu asked in a whisper.

“No,” Tan Xiaoling replied in kind. “The miners could be below?”

“We should investigate the huts first,” He Yu said.

Tan Xiaoling nodded her agreement, and they crept forward. They had barely taken two steps when a presence revealed itself atop a nearby hill. They both stood to face the newcomer as one, weapons falling into their hands from their storage treasures.

A man dressed in ragged robes stood atop a low hill. Behind him was a noticeably better constructed home than the huts around the mine entrance, that He Yu could have sworn hadn’t been there a minute ago. The man wore a mask that covered the lower half of his face, resembling the visage of a demon. He held a farmer’s sickle in one hand.

Killing intent rolled out from him, sharp and dangerous, along with his presence. He was a pustulant disease—poison and decay made flesh. His touch was rot, and his sickle was a horrid, agonizing, and slow death. Worst of all, he was firmly at the middle stage of Golden Core.

“My mine! The sect dogs have come to my mine!” the overseer cried, his muffled voice harsh yet gleeful. “The emissary will reward this one well for your putrid corpses.” The sickle gleamed. The overseer activated a movement technique and was upon them.