Stellaron Hunters on the Move

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the waterside pavilion. A messenger from the Cloud Knights rushed in and knelt on one knee. "General, urgent report."

Jing Yuan took the secret report, glanced at it, and then slowly raised his eyebrows.

"What's wrong?" Jingxing asked.

"Stellaron Hunters." Jing Yuan placed the intelligence report on the table and tapped it with his fingertips. "The intelligence says they've sent men to infiltrate Luofu. The target is unknown."

Jingxing said "Oh," stood up, and stretched.

"Alright, General, take your time investigating. I'm going home to cook."

Jing Yuan paused, then said, "... What did you say?"

"I'm going home to cook. Xuan'er has been working so hard lately, so I found a recipe that seems suitable at the company cafeteria and I'm planning to give it a try."

"The Stellaron Hunters have already reached Luofu, and you still have the mind to make soup?"

"I'm not from Xianzhou native. With you here, it's none of my business as a nobody in Luofu." Jingxing gathered the hem of his trench coat, his tone nonchalant. "Besides, I'm really here in Luofu to visit relatives."

After he finished speaking, he casually picked up the coat draped over the back of the chair and shook it.

Jing Yuan looked at him with a half-smile.

Jingxing walked away without looking back.

Jing Yuan's hand, holding the teacup, froze in mid-air for two breaths before he put it down.

He pressed the secret report under the teapot, afraid the wind would blow it away.

The lamp under the eaves flickered in the wind. The rain had stopped, but water still lingered on the stone steps. Jingxing waded through the water, leaving a trail of dark footprints on the soles of his shoes.

Jing Yuan watched his retreating figure and shook his head. When he looked down at the secret report again, the smile on his face faded slightly.

"Their infiltration of Luofu has caused quite a stir; they seem to have no intention of hiding at all, as if they want us to capture them."

"Stellaron Hunters... what exactly do you want?"

Back inside the house, the fire in the stove was burning brightly.

Jingxing casually pulled the apron over his shoulder, tied it into a tight knot, and put the mushrooms in the porcelain basin that morning. After taking them out and squeezing out the water, he threw them into the earthenware pot along with the casually sliced bamboo shoots. The knife blade made a dull thud on the cutting board, and the steam from the gradually boiling white broth made the small lattice window facing the street appear hazy white.

He scooped up some soup with a long-handled wooden spoon, blew away the foam, and took a sip. Finding the salt a little lacking, he reached into the earthenware pot, plucked a pinch, sprinkled it in, and then covered the pot with the lid, leaving only a narrow gap for ventilation.

As darkness fell, the door hinges creaked very softly.

Fu Xuan stepped across the threshold, accompanied by the night breeze. The purple gauze shawl outside still carried the unique ink scent of the Divination Commission archives. She casually hung her outer cloak on the wooden rack beside the door, her gaze sweeping over the rising white steam in the room. Her tightly pursed lips subtly relaxed.

Why did you suddenly decide to do all this today?

"You look a bit tired lately." Jingxing brought out two prepared celadon bowls and pushed them towards her. "Wash your hands and drink it while it's hot."

Fu Xuan pulled out a wooden chair and sat down. He warmed his hands against the warm bowl for a while before picking up a porcelain spoon and taking a small bite. The bamboo shoots were cooked to a perfect tenderness, and the soup warmed him from his throat all the way into his stomach.

She breathed a slight sigh of relief, and unconsciously raised her fingertips to touch the tightly closed Dharma Eye between her eyebrows.

"Your head hurts again?" Jingxing picked up some fresh bamboo shoots and put them in her bowl. "Although your celestial beings have countless advantages, this fixed physical condition is truly a double-edged sword."

The Dharma Eye on Fu Xuan's forehead was a gift from the Nous, so after it was implanted, she had to endure the pain caused by rejection.

"Speaking of which," Fu Xuan stroked his forehead, which was faintly flushed purple, his gaze falling on his face, "After I observed the stars and made divinations these past two days, the stinging pain that should have been there has actually faded considerably. Did you do something?"

"I saw you rubbing your brow so many times the other day, so I used a little bit of my Imaginary Energy to help relieve it." Jingxing lowered his head and drank his soup. "It won't interfere with your understanding of divination; it'll just reduce the dull pain. Unfortunately, it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause."

Fu Xuan raised his finger to his forehead, his tone becoming serious. "When the Omniscient Heavenly Lord descended with his Dharma Eye, he clearly stated that this thing possesses both wisdom and suffering. The position of Diviner of Luofu is to bear this cause and effect. Since I have taken on this burden, this pain is my duty to endure."

"You got this position because of your meticulous planning, not because you can endure the most pain." Jingxing pressed some mushrooms from her bowl into the soup with a spoon. "Why force yourself to grit your teeth and bear it if you can suffer less?"

Fu Xuan paused, his hand holding the porcelain spoon still, his gaze falling on the chopped scallions swaying in the soup. "... You always act so impulsively."

"Same here. When you got this eye-shaped mark on your forehead, you didn't even tell anyone, did you?"

Fu Xuan glared at him, but there was no anger in her eyes. The two sat across a square table, and a small spark from the lamp wick in the copper dish illuminated her slightly reddened ears.

She turned her face away, scooped up two spoonfuls of hot soup and drank them rather hastily, whispering, "Don't act on your own next time."

"Alright, I'll submit a report before I take action next time."

"Glib and smooth-talking..."

Before the words were finished, a flash of green light suddenly streaked across the window. A paper crane wrapped with a vermilion seal slid in through the crack and landed with a thud next to the open bamboo slips, its wingtips still glistening with dew.

Fu Xuan's expression hardened slightly, and with a flick of his finger, he peeled off the sealing wax. On the unfolded silk were only two lines of bold, powerful seal script characters, the strokes penetrating the paper.

"The Stellaron Hunters showed himself at Cloudford and was captured by the Cloud Knights in an ambush."

Fu Xuan flipped the silk cloth face down on the table, stood up, and went to retrieve an outer cloak from the rack. "The Seat of Divine Foresight wants the Divination Commission to take over immediately, and I will personally oversee the escort of Zhenzhenyan. The arrested person is a wanted criminal who has been on the Xianzhou's wanted list for many years, named Ren."

Jingxing put down his chopsticks.

He had seen this name on the Interastral Peace Corporation's bounty list before; the files were mostly filled with ruthless and menacing acts that kept strangers at bay.

Jingxing stood up, pulled his apron back to untie the knot, and casually draped it over an empty chair. "I'll go with you."

Fu Xuan paused for a moment, his fingers tightening around the sash, and turned to look at him. "The Seat of Divine Foresight is arresting serious criminals, what are you doing getting involved?"

"The important matters of the Xianzhou are your responsibility, but my wife needs to cross two corridors in the middle of the night to interrogate a criminal, so I should at least go along and take care of her." Jingxing Xing reached for his trench coat on the hanger. "Let's go, Cloudford is by the water, it gets chilly at night, wear more clothes."

Fu Xuan watched him straighten his collar, without uttering a word of protest. He simply fastened the hidden buttons on his outer cloak even tighter, then turned and pushed open the door. "It's late and the dew is heavy, hurry on the road."

The guide stone lanterns on both sides of the long street were lit one by one, spreading a warm yellow glow on the damp bluestone slabs. From the direction of the connecting bridge outside the Seat of Divine Foresight, the sound of uniformly clanging metal armor plates could be faintly heard, as the Cloud Knights' sentries were spreading out one after another toward the ferry.

Jingxing, with one hand in his pocket, lagged half a step behind Fu Xuan. Deep in his palm, the thin thread that had been connected to Yaxche taut silently, as if slightly tugged by the malevolent energy in the distant Cloudford.

"Stellaron Hunters, let's hope you're not the ones causing turmoil in Luofu."