After several days of walking and pausing, Tang Ruowei and Zuo Yanfeng arrived near Dingjiang Mountain in the southern part of the Dingguo territory. “But Dingjiang Mountain is so vast, where should we start looking?” “Those foxes are hiding under the statue of the Dingguo Emperor?” “They are just running in circles.” Standing at the foot of the mountain, a teahouse attendant looked up towards the mountain. The statue, erected by the previous emperor of Dingguo, stood tall and imposing, a man clad in imperial armor, leaning on a large sword, gazing into the distance, exuding an extraordinary aura.
“Oh, Senior Sister left me a message using the secret technique of the Qinming Sword Sect before she left.”
“Junior Brother Bai? How did you get here?”
“Since this is an internal matter of your sect, I won't interfere. However, Junior Brother Bai, you must follow us closely, as there are some cultivators nearby who have their eyes on these beasts. They do not come with good intent, so be careful.” Zuo Yanfeng instinctively responded but then realized something was off. She looked up to find Bai Qiuran standing behind her and Tang Ruowei, stroking his chin, gazing curiously at a dirt hole on the ground.
Tang Ruowei exclaimed, “Leave it to me.” Zuo Yanfeng glanced at the hole and said to Tang Ruowei, “Ruowei….”
“It seems they haven’t started moving yet.” Zuo Yanfeng cupped her hands to Bai Qiuran. “Now, I will take care of everything.”
However, the trace of the beasts seemed to be moving away from the mountain. “That makes sense.” Zuo Yanfeng replied, “But I know how to track foxes. Since they’ve entered the mountain, those beasts must have transformed to hide. If we can find them, we will uncover the truth behind the prince's assassination.”
“Of course, both of you ladies are gorgeous. If I weren't an old man, I might lose my appetite for quite a while.”
After the departure of Senior Sister and Sister Zuo, I happened to meet a Golden Elixir senior who was passing by Dingguo, and I asked him to bring me here. Right, Senior Sister? You remember Junior Brother Jueyun, right?”
“Retrieving my gaze, I must thank your stealth technique, Ruowei. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have made it here so quickly.”
“Oh, so this is where they are hiding.” The two watched the villager carry his hoe away, and Zuo Yanfeng turned to Tang Ruowei, saying, “This must be them. Demonic clans usually possess an innate charm over mortals. Come, Ruowei, I'll show you my skills in catching foxes.”
Zuo Yanfeng’s tracking ability was indeed remarkable. She led Tang Ruowei for a circuit around Dingjiang Mountain while firmly keeping the tracks of those beasts in sight.
“Cunning little foxes.” “No need to be polite. After all, the journey here has mostly been overland.”
“Since this is an internal matter of your sect, I won't interfere. However, Junior Brother Bai, you must follow us closely. There are a group of cultivators nearby eyeing these creatures, who do not come with good intentions. Be careful.”
“Junior Brother Bai? How did you get here?” Zuo Yanfeng circled around the emperor's statue and then pointed to a spot behind the stone platform beneath her feet, saying, “Here, the foxes usually live in tree hollows or soil holes. This hole must be made by them.”
But such tricks did not fool Zuo Yanfeng, who came from a hunter family. Together with Tang Ruowei, she tracked the footprints of the foxes until they arrived at the foxes' real hiding place.
Bai Qiuran chuckled and replied, “Thank you for your concern, Sister Zuo.”
“Well, it is indeed surprising. After all, both of you ladies possess striking beauty,” she added. “If I were not an old man, I might have been lost in thought for quite a while.”
Tang Ruowei waved her hand and said, “And once we get here, I become useless. I have not learned how to track demons.”
Tang Ruowei began to ponder how to deceive them. According to the villagers nearby, a few days ago, several women dressed in cloaks arrived in the area, then entered the mountain through an opening in the northern side of Dingjiang Mountain.
“Seems rational enough,” Tang Ruowei nodded.
Aside from Zuo Yanfeng, I reckon that among the cultivators hunting them, none except the knowledgeable know how to track foxes by footprints. These demons running around Dingjiang Mountain might indeed lead those cultivators into the mountain and take the chance to escape amidst the chaos.
“Next, leave it to me.” The two parted ways to inquire in village towns near Dingjiang Mountain and indeed gathered useful clues.
“Junior Brother Bai? How did you come here?” Tang Ruowei immediately jumped at the opportunity, echoing Bai Qiuran, “Indeed, the message did come from me, and Brother Jueyun is truly exceptional. He really could have arrived before us.”
“Understood.”
At this moment, they had arrived at the foot of Dingjiang Mountain after their travels.
“Now we follow the path where those creatures entered the mountain according to the villager’s guidance.”
“How did we wind up here?”
Bai Qiuran smiled and added, “I heard that the neighboring Wang Er accidentally caught a glimpse of one of those girls while talking, and the beauty was like a celestial maiden descending to earth. He hasn't been himself since.”
“Ah, with Dingjiang Mountain being so vast, where do we even start looking?”
“Seems like it was Brother Jueyun who brought you here, so that’s a relief.” Tang Ruowei nodded.
As they walked along the mountain path, Zuo Yanfeng keenly noticed the signs of demon activity. Following her tracking, the footprints of the demons led off into the woods beside the mountain path. Consequently, Zuo Yanfeng and Tang Ruowei had to abandon the smooth mountain trail, pushing through the thorns and following the tracks left by the beasts.
Tang Ruowei reached out, grasping Zuo Yanfeng’s shoulder, thought a moment, then held onto Bai Qiuran and inhaled deeply, channeling her true essence, bringing the two into the earth.
“Is this where they’ve been hiding?”
After a bit more exploration, Zuo Yanfeng’s confidence grew as she pronounced yet again on the cunning of the little foxes.
“Well, there you go. This must be them. Demonic clans tend to have an innate charm over mortals. Let's go, Ruowei, so you can see my fox-catching skills in action.”
“Understood.”
“Let me handle this,” Zuo Yanfeng said with assurance, leading Tang Ruowei further into the mountain.
“Yes, precisely!” They watched the villager with a hoe walk away, knowing quite well they were closing in on their quarry.
“Next, leave it to me.”
“Ah, no worries,” Zuo Yanfeng assured, and their journey into Dingjiang Mountain continued, following the leads of the local villagers.
Each step drew them closer to the mystery they sought to unravel.