’Could it be... that we have a mole in Ye Weiyang?’

Yue Yan considered the possibility but didn’t dare say it aloud.

"There’s a mole," Zheng Xiu stated bluntly, then instructed Yue Yan, "It seems we can no longer use the Ravens to send information freely. The enemy is very familiar with Ye Weiyang’s methods. If we rashly send a message back, we’ll fall right into their trap."

Yue Yan looked at Feng Bei. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

’Zheng Shan might look like Master Zheng, but he isn’t him, after all.’

’Besides, I have to act the part of a Ye Weiyang agent. Right, I should just listen to Lord Upper Three.’

But Feng Bei pointed at Zheng Shan. "It’s fine. Listen to him."

Yue Yan was left speechless.

The four of them resumed their journey, traveling day and night.

After leaving Yizhou State, they faced a treacherous, winding mountain road.

Taking the official road would have meant a detour of nearly a hundred miles, adding several needless days to their journey by horse.

However, by passing through Celestial Lique Pass and taking the treacherous mountain path into Shuzhou, they could save three days, despite the difficult trek.

Along the way, they found traces of five separate ambushes laid for Xu Shu and Jin Niu.

This all but confirmed the existence of a mole in Ye Weiyang. Otherwise, there was no way the enemy could have known Xu Shu and Jin Niu’s route like the back of their hand.

However, Zheng Xiu learned through [Scouting] that Xu Shu and Jin Niu were getting better at handling the enemy’s Miracle Techniques. They’d had close calls but were ultimately unharmed.

There was one question, however, that Zheng Xiu hadn’t asked.

His current identity wasn’t appropriate for it.

Zheng Xiu remembered that at the end of the Immortal Maiden Temple incident, the three flawed Can members had self-detonated simultaneously. The blast was so powerful that even Zheng Xiu wouldn’t have dared to withstand it directly with one of his personas.

’So why hadn’t they self-detonated in front of Xu Shu and Jin Niu this time?’

Everyone was lost in their own thoughts.

「By now, twelve days had passed since leaving the Imperial City.」

They finally descended the mountain path and set foot on an official road once more.

After two consecutive days of camping in the wild, both Yue Yan and Feng Bei felt grimy and uncomfortable.

Zheng Xiu even suspected that Feng Bei was intentionally keeping a distance of two fists’ width between them as they rode. He figured she was afraid her scent might offend him—usually, she would intentionally or unintentionally press close.

Feng Bei’s strange behavior even made Zheng Xiu wonder if her "Omen" had prevented her from ever having normal contact with others. Now that she had finally met "Senior Zheng Shan," who was unafraid of the Omen, she was trying to make up for a lifetime of lost closeness.

As they traveled down the road, they finally saw a signpost for the Jiayang post road in the distance.

Another eight miles would bring them to Jiayang City.

Jiayang City was located right next to Yizhou State. Whether Xu Shu and Jin Niu took the flat official roads or a treacherous mountain path like their own group, Jiayang City was an unavoidable stop on their journey south.

「After thirteen dusty days on the road, Feng Bei and the others finally crossed the Shuzhou border marker.」

The morning sun was rising, melting the ice and snow. In the distance, Jiayang City seemed to be bathed in a crystalline golden light, making it exceptionally brilliant.

"Go."

Yue Yan fed the fat cat in the Black Box, then nudged the Raven on her shoulder. The Raven took flight, circled over their heads a few times, and then flew toward the city.

Before Zheng Xiu could ask, Yue Yan smiled and explained, "Ye Weiyang has hidden offices in many places. They’re so well-concealed that not even ordinary people, let alone visiting Night Guards, Constellations, or even members of the Twelfth Moon, can easily find them. Only a Raven from the same nest can lead us to a hidden office. If Xu Shu and Jin Niu passed through Jiayang, they would have certainly left a message here."

Meanwhile, on one side of the story...

Zheng Shan, the "Mighty Painter," was venturing deep into the heart of Shuzhou with Ye Weiyang to track down the "Cannibal Painting."

He had been gone for half a month.

And back in the Imperial City, Zheng Xiu would occasionally find excuses to leave, return to his true identity, and take care of various matters.

First, Zheng Xiu found time to return to Heaven-Gazing Prison and retrieve the golden silk vine he had been cultivating for several years.

After recuperating at home for a few days, he went back to Heaven-Gazing Prison. The scenery both inside and outside the prison gave him the strange feeling that a lifetime had passed.

No matter how perverse, no normal person enjoyed being locked up in prison and losing their freedom.

If not for the rules and Restrictions of the [Prisoner] Path, with Tycoon Zheng’s wealth and status, he should have long been living a blissful life—a wife at home, mistresses on the side, surrounded by children and grandchildren.

Everything had changed the day Zheng Xiu was imprisoned.

Zheng Xiu had told everyone a monstrous lie.

He admitted that he was one of those who had glimpsed a Path.

During his conversation with the Great Emperor in the carriage that day, Zheng Xiu had also vaguely "confessed" everything.

At the same time, he came to understand something.

Based on various clues, Old Wei was all but certain that Zheng Xiu was on the [Merchant] Path, and Zheng Xiu had gone along with it.

In turn, when Zheng Xiu subtly probed about Old Wei walking the [Emperor] Path, Old Wei didn’t deny it.

If Old Wei’s words and actions had to align with his identity on the [Emperor] Path, then many of the things he did could be explained.

But it was still the same person, the same Old Wei. Before the history of Baili Village was reflected into reality, Old Wei had been old and decrepit, on the verge of death. Yet after the history of Baili Village was changed, he had somehow glimpsed the [Emperor] Path. To this day, Zheng Xiu couldn’t understand how rescuing Feng Bei alone could have triggered such a massive change.

「On the third day of the Mighty Man’s journey,」 Zheng Xiu held a banquet at Fragrant Pavilion, in the Jiazi No. 1 Private Room named "Abundant Wealth," to host Scarface Liu.

The minimum charge for the "Abundant Wealth" private room was three thousand taels of silver.

Fragrant Pavilion had a long-standing rule: the more opulent the name of the private room, the higher the minimum charge, all to signify status.

Reservations were booked ten days to half a month in advance. Many people held banquets here, seeking a sense of prestige. It gave them face.