Dai Luan thought carefully. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, at midnight, they should have packed up and dispersed. After all, they still had things to do the next day. Wu Qi might have hidden the soul-returning incense after nightfall—
—Xue Yanchi is the most likely possibility. Dai Luan can’t explain why, it’s probably intuition.
The day is finally over.
Dai Luan remembered that it was still bright at this time in autumn, but when winter came, darkness came too quickly. Originally, Mo Liang Xiyu had other children who wanted to play with her, but she refused. She hoped that she would not refuse too abruptly, so that
They became suspicious. After all, she was always there for any activities among children. Although Xi Yu claimed to be the child king of Xue Yan Sect, it was Dai Luan, a foreign girl, who had the "real power".
Dai Luan knocked on Shi Wuqi's door first, but no one opened it. She lay down outside the window and listened, but there was no movement. She thought to herself that she must be late, right? The room he lived in was very remote.
The road is also dark. She is usually not afraid of anything.
Not seeing the stone, she was extremely nervous today. She thought for a while, weighing whether she should go to Shanhai or Mu Wan first, or whether she should go directly to the Xueyan Pond to take a closer look. Maybe they had already left, so she should hurry up.
Go to the Snow Inkstone Pond.
The road leading to the Snow Inkstone Pond was narrow, secluded, and stumbling. She really regretted not bringing a lamp with her. There was a thin crescent moon in the sky, and the light was too weak to pass through the dry branches.
Not much light fell. When stepping on the few dry leaves, the clicking sound was very obvious.
Dai Luan suddenly remembered that when she occasionally wiped Duan Chen Huan at night, the sword blade was bright. Although it was not "bright", it might have some light. So she untied the cloth strips as she walked, revealing the slender and
The undulating sword body. Under the weak moonlight, Duanchenhuan was filled with sparkling waves, like the ripples of the water's surface at night.
Scattered light spots were projected onto the ground, making the surrounding situation a little brighter. Along with Dai Luan's steps, it looked strange and strange. She couldn't help but think of the time she was in the Zanglan Sea - she was transported into the sea by Mu Yuejun, and she looked up.
Those light and shadows that penetrate the sparkling sea surface peeking out from under the water are such a scenery.
When she came to a slightly open place, she felt a strong chill. This kind of cold had existed before, but it was especially obvious now. She gradually realized that this was not the temperature that should be in winter, but a kind of coldness.
A different feeling than usual.
Have those rustling figures in the forest been lingering here since yesterday and the past few days?
Dai Luan stopped and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
This is the winter solstice.
It is the longest night of the year.
In the dark forest, Shi Wuqi held Miss Qi's wrist and walked quickly through the shadows of the trees.
"Have you thought about it?" Another person asked, "Trouble will happen today. I wonder how Mr. Shi is preparing?"
"There's no other way. I've weighed it up." He still jumped forward lightly, not looking at the person who was always parallel to him. "Although I feel like betraying my friend, I didn't seek benefit from him. Now in the blink of an eye, everything is gone."
There is no room for delay.”
"Please remember, there are seven quarters in the clock, even one more blink and one less blink is not enough."
"I know, I know it well."
"But you have to be careful." The man said, "There are bad guys guarding you when you cross the river ahead."
"……What?"
After stepping onto a tree branch, he stopped and looked down at the gurgling river from a high place. For a small stream of this size, the water outside would be almost dry in November, and only the river in Xueyan Valley would be dry.
He still had some momentum, but the water level was a little low. There were no trees or rocks on the other side, and there weren't many shelters. He didn't see any shadows for the time being. After being touched by the man, his senses became sharper, and he could vaguely feel that someone was indeed there.
Hiding on the other side.
"Oh...this is too dangerous."
"When did he show up?"
"We came before dark. But the good news is that the mercenaries you hired are on their way here and will arrive soon... Then, I'll take my leave first."
"good."
He handed something to Miss Qi and crossed the river directly. The too bright bait easily attracted a big fish - a dark fish.
A glimmer of light cut through the darkness, the sword was unsheathed, and there was a metallic buzz in the wind.
"The wild dogs smelled the fishy smell so quickly." Shi Wuqi clapped his hands, "It shouldn't be. I keep the time information very confidential. Who informed you in advance? You are really an early bird.
There are worms to eat.”
"Whatever you say." Tang He stared at him, his sharp pupils like an eagle shining with cold light.
"I don't want to fight with you. After all, we can't waste time. You don't want to stop me, do you? I believe you can't find the location of the soul-returning incense. I have this confidence. But why do you jump out at this time?
What about trying to scare the snake away?"
"Because there are more than just you and me here." He said coldly, "It's not impossible to wait until you lift the lid of the pot before grabbing it, but I'm a little worried because there are more than one pair of chopsticks hanging on the pot. Although... they don't necessarily
They’re all here for this bowl of rice.”
"Young Master Tang, if you grab this meal too quickly, it will burn your mouth."
On the dark riverside, Tang He looked at him secretly. He knew that Shi Wuqi didn't even take out his fan, so he had no intention of fighting with him. In fact, he didn't think it was necessary. It was a waste of time. In order not to delay
As the two sides got down to business, Tang He did not accept the boring sarcasm. Instead, he cleared his throat and said something else in a subtle tone.
"I would like to say hello to you first. Zuo Renmen has assembled a team of Jianghu and has already sneaked into Xueyan Valley, preparing to ambush a close friend of yours. If she is in danger, it will be your fault.
"
"Of course I know, but compared to my unnecessary concern, the other friends are not decorations. Why, you want to use psychological warfare to put pressure on me? Do you think I will tell you the location of the incense burner? No, but
I can also say hello to you - the child you are taking care of is on the way to Xueyan Valley. Don't ask me why I know, I only know that she will be put in danger because of you. You won't even do this
Do you want to thank me for my gift?"
Tang He didn't know whether he was shaken for a moment after hearing these words. But it was more unexpected. He didn't really doubt that Shi Wuqi's words were just disturbing his mind. After all, Yun Waijing was in the Snow Inkstone Valley.
, of course it is possible that he knows something that would otherwise be impossible to know. But why Jiang Doudou... how? With whom?
He gritted his teeth slightly, thinking that Shi Wuqi was lying.
"Don't waste time." He raised the knife, "It will be neither good for you nor me to delay for too long."
"You want the soul-returning fragrance?" Shi Wuqi smiled and spread his arms, "You want to beat me first?"
Tang He would never be provoked by explicit provocations, but as a gentleman, don't blame him for wielding a knife and a gun so decisively. With a slight adjustment of his wrist and force under his feet, the horizontal knife stabbed forward in an instant, startling him.
There was dust among the weeds. There was a loud sound and fire burst out of thin air. When he was less than half the distance from Shi Wuqi, another knife interrupted.
His attack was blocked. The end of the knife was connected to a thorn chain. The clattering sound continued, as if a woman had descended from the sky, half kneeling and half rising. She held the handle of the knife with one hand and looked up at him from below. She felt an astonishing feeling on her hand.
A little surprise appeared in the corner of Tang He's eyes at the strength. The small half of the blade half-submerged in the ground reflected her cold gaze, as if a thousand needles were shooting at the same time, and a thousand arrows were fired in unison.
He immediately retreated and distanced himself from the woman. The woman stood up and fished the dagger out of the soil.
That's not a dagger...it's a broken sword.
"...It's you." Tang He changed the angle of the blade, "You are still alive. Just tell me why you have the aura of a third person."
"Unfortunately, I'm still alive." Tang Huailan said lightly.
"I remember that your relationship wasn't very good." Tang He quickly glanced between the two people opposite, "When did you stand over there?"
"Use money to do things and avenge private revenge."
At the end of the words, two darts came out of his sleeves. Tang He quickly tilted the blade, knocking the first dart off track with the first blow, and bounced the second dart back with the second blow. Tang Huailan hit it accurately.
Hold it between your fingers. The cold wind blows, and the hair and clothes of the three of them are like the remaining butterflies after autumn.
"Miss Tang, I'm leaving this to you."
Huailan nodded slightly, his bottomless eyes always staring at the enemy in front of him, as if he was ready to devour him at any moment.
A stray cloud passed over the waning moon, making its brilliance even hazier.
Shan Hai and Mu Wan were further away from the Xue Inkstone Pond. Although Shi Wuqi mentioned that the time was Chou Shi Si Ji, they were all planning to come to the Xue Inkstone Pond early after dinner. The two of them did not walk together at first, but
We met on the road. Both of them were prepared in advance, so they met by chance.
"Will Ah Luan come alone later?" Mu Wan asked, "I'm a little worried about her."
"I don't worry about her." Shan Hai frowned, "But when I knocked on her door, she was not in the room. I asked Xi Yu, and she said she didn't know. I was a little worried whether she was going
earlier."
"To be honest, I always feel something is wrong. Although I am in a place like home, I always feel like I am being watched, with many pairs of eyes watching." Mu Wan frowned, "It seems that ever since Wu Qi told us the truth
That’s it. Am I a little sensitive?”
"It's always good to be alert, not to mention I have those feelings too. I tried to look for those 'eyes', but they were like ghosts and there was no trace." Shanhai took a deep breath, and the cool wind filled his lungs.
, "I'm worried...forget it."
"What are you worried about?"
As soon as Mu Wan asked, there was a faint sound behind him. Someone's footsteps were coming from far away, very light, but very hurried. They both turned around at the same time, and saw a cool white figure holding a lamp, heading this way.
Come running.
He was running a little hastily, and he didn't say anything for a long time, stumbling over a few words. Mu Wan patted him on the back, and Shan Hai told him to take it easy and speak slowly. It seemed that he didn't even dare to use his internal strength and was running for real.
Came here.
"You guys, have you seen Aluan?" He was still breathing.
"Never seen her before." Mu Wan frowned slightly, "We thought... uh, thought she was playing with you."
"She has been looking in the direction of the Snow Inkstone Pool all day long." Mo Liang was worried. "I haven't seen her since the afternoon. I asked other disciples and they all said they had never seen her. Only one said they saw her.
I knocked on Mr. Shi's door. I expected
Mr. Shi is afraid that he has left the incense burner there and will take it out in the near future. I was not worried at first, but today a disciple fainted in the mountain stream. When he woke up, he could not remember anything and there was no injury on his body. I was afraid that he might have suffered
I'm drugged. I'm worried..."
Mo Liang's suspicion was very reasonable. With his intelligence, it was natural for him to connect these things. Shan Hai immediately felt that something was wrong all over his body. But since Xiao Liang had made a rough guess, they were not going to hide it.
"You're right... we are indeed going to the Snow Inkstone Pond. The bad thing is that there is no fixed way to get there, and there are too many ways to walk. I don't know where Aluan went, but she is alone, which is really uneasy.
Okay, is it convenient for you to go with Mu Wan?"
"Okay." He tightened his grip on the sword.
"Shan Hai, you have to be careful too! In fact, we even..."
"Yes, we are not even sure of the real location of the incense burner. Wu Qi is telling us to go to the Snow Inkstone Pond for granted. But I believe there is a reason. I have Aluan's headband, I will go find her
, you must also be careful!”
He stepped onto the branch in a few moments and walked quickly through the sparse forest. On the one hand, he hoped that Mo Liang and Mu Wan would not get into trouble, and that they could only take care of each other; on the other hand, he prayed for Aluan
