Chapter 21 Visitor Ⅱ

　　Deep in the night, with the moon once again hidden behind clouds, Zhou Ge leaned against a tree, confirming that no one was around and no strange sounds could be heard. He no longer bothered with pretenses.

　　Silently reciting an incantation in his mind, "Reflect the illusion, achieve the real-time feat."

　　Not far from the tree, a three-foot-tall fox spirit stood, its hands raised overhead, awaiting something.

　　Zhou Ge produced a gold coin, rubbing it between his fingers several times before reluctantly tossing it towards the fox spirit. One gold coin was worth one hundred silver coins, which would take over two years to save up if one didn't spend a dime. If it weren't for the crucial information he needed, he wouldn't have parted with it.

　　"Go," he whispered.

　　The fox spirit, upon hearing the command, walked towards Fangding Mountain with the gold coin in its hands.

　　At the foot of Fangding Mountain, a patrol of bandits had just passed by, leaving two guards standing watch. One complained about the feast taking place on the mountain, lamenting that they could only smell the delicious food and drinks without getting a taste. The other echoed his sentiment.

　　As the first guard spoke excitedly, he suddenly caught sight of the fox spirit holding the gold coin.

　　"Oh my God, third, look at that, What is it?"

　　The person who is called the third turned around, his face pale with fear as he sat on the ground and took a few steps back. The two men looked at each other and exclaimed in unison, "A ghost!"

　　The fox spirit turned slightly and said, "I pay for passage."

　　The two men huddled together in fear, one of them waving his hands and stammering, "Please, ghost lord, be our guest. Please..."

　　The sound of a gold coin hitting the ground could be heard.

　　"Here's your money for passage," the fox spirit said, watching as the two men remained motionless. "Take the money, or how can I pass?"

　　One of the men, after swallowing nervously, asked tremulously, "For...for us?"

　　"Yes, take it," the fox spirit replied.

　　The person who is called the third stretched out his trembling arm, but before he could touch the gold coin, the other man pulled him back. "Don't touch it! You might not live to spend it!"

　　"That's right, right... Ghost lord, please feel free to pass. Please..."

　　The fox spirit tilted its head and stared at them for a moment before asking, "Are you trying to block my path to immortality?"

　　"No, no..." the two men shook their heads in unison.

　　"You usually collect tolls from others. Why not take it when it's offered to you today?"

　　"Can...can we take it?"

　　The fox spirit pretended to be perplexed. "To make you feel more at ease, I'll ask you a few questions. If you answer correctly, you can take the money and go, and I'll continue on my path to immortality. We'll part ways and never meet again. But if you answer incorrectly and hinder my path, I won't let you off easily."

　　The two men looked at each other again and agreed.

　　The fox spirit looked up for a moment before asking, "I'm afraid you wouldn't know the answers to my other questions, so I'll ask you about the mountain. Did a guest arrive at the mountain today? Who is it?"

　　Lao San quickly replied, "A man named Qing Hu."

　　"Hmm... How many leaders are there on the mountain?"

　　"Three. The main leader is called Tang Li, and he's skilled in martial arts. There are also two vice leaders..." The other man interrupted, "One is called Li He from the Flying Star Sect. I heard he committed some offense and was exiled from the sect, ending up here..."

　　Lao San interrupted again, "The other is called Huang Yan, a sorcerer from Mt. Zhibing."

　　"Mt. Zhibing? I've never heard of it," the fox spirit said.

　　"It was originally an unnamed mountain. But because he can draw soldier-dispersing talismans, he named the mountain he occupied Mt. Zhibing," the other man explained.

　　"What do they intend to do with my path to immortality?" the fox spirit asked.

　　The person who is called the third quickly understood the implied question.

　　"Ghost lord, we didn't mean to deliberately block your path. It's just temporary..." The other man also understood, "Yes, temporary. We're just here temporarily."

　　"Temporary? What do you intend to do?"

　　The two men calculated the time and realized that the patrol wouldn't return for at least two hours, and there was no one else around. After some deliberation, they decided to speak.

　　"We're planning a big heist," the fox spirit prompted.

　　"What are you going to steal?"

　　"We're thieves. What else could we do but rob people? We're going to rob someone," the other man replied.

　　"Who?"

　　"He Muxian, the daughter of the prefect of He. We heard she's going out to buy medicine for her fourth senior sister and will be carrying some valuables with her when she returns."

　　"You dare to rob the daughter of the prefect? Don't you know that the prefect is often aided by immortals? How could you possibly touch his daughter?"

　　Upon hearing the word "immortals," the two men broke out in a cold sweat.

　　The person who is called the third quickly explained, "We wouldn't dare under normal circumstances, but we have some help this time, so..."

　　"So you've mustered up your courage?"

　　"Yes, yes... We've lost our senses, lost our senses. Ghost lord, how did we answer?"

　　"Very well. Take the money," the fox spirit said as it walked away.

　　The two men watched from a distance until the fox spirit disappeared, and then they reminisced about what had happened, feeling as if it had been real.

　　One of them picked up the gold coin and said, "Third, let's change locations."

　　"Right, let's pretend we didn't see anything," Third agreed.

　　"That's right, let's have a drink tomorrow... Heh heh heh..."

　　Through the fox spirit, Zhou Ge had learned a lot and his suspicions were confirmed. The target of these men was indeed the young lady of the He family.

　　As he pondered how to relay this information to Shen Huan and the second miss, a voice sounded behind him.

　　"I never knew you knew sorcery. What was that thing called?"

　　Looking back, he saw a figure sitting on a nearby tree. The person's face was covered with a black cloth, but unlike the usual attire of a night traveler, the black cloth had lace trimming, and they were wearing a night dress that was a bit short, revealing a green skirt hem. In their hand was a wooden sword.

　　After spending so many days together, Zhou Ge recognized the voice instantly.

　　"Is that the second miss?" he asked.

　　He Muyu jumped down from the tree, removed the lace-trimmed black cloth covering her face, and asked, "What was that thing just now?"

　　"Er... It's called the Binding Spirit Stanchion Rune Magic. It's used to gather information. When did the second miss arrive? Where is Shen brother?"

　　"I just got here a while ago. I came alone. Shen brother isn't here," she replied.

　　"What's a Binding Spirit Stanchion Rune Magic? Show it to me. Quickly, quickly..."

　　Zhou Ge reluctantly retrieved the bronze mirror and handed it over.

　　"Here it is."

　　He Muyu examined it in her hands but saw nothing more than two ordinary bronze mirrors. "Are you tricking me? Where's the pile?"

　　"Carrying a pile around would be too cumbersome... The bronze mirror used to activate the incantation is enough," Zhou Ge explained.

　　The second miss became even more intrigued. "The second lady was even more interested: "Worthy of the inquisitor of Xiyue, That's impressive. Can you teach me how to do it?"

　　"Er... The Binding Spirit Stanchion is with my teacher, and my teacher is in Huajun County..."

　　Before Zhou Ge could finish, He Muyu interjected with a disappointed expression, "You're not going to be that stingy, are you?"

　　"No, it's just that..."

　　"You found out something, didn't you?" she asked eagerly.

　　"He Muxian is..."

　　"My elder sister. They really intend to harm her?"

　　"It was Shen brother who..."

　　"I know. Shen brother guessed it, and it turned out to be true."

　　"Prefect He..."

　　"Knowing that Qing Hu had gone to Fangding Mountain, my father was extremely worried. How could we dare tell him anything else? Zhou Ge, let's go back to the prefecture's guesthouse and discuss this with Shen brother."

　　The situation was urgent, and they returned to the prefect's private residence in the starry night. On the way, Zhou Ge explained the news he found one by one.

　　When they entered the courtyard, there was no one to be seen.

　　He Muyu kicked off the table anxiously: "Oops, where did Brother Shen go?"