Mountain Villages

"Yan Qing, Yan Ding, twin swords!" a couple flashed the longswords in their hands and said.

"Chi Defeng, staff techniques."

"Feng Yu, walking stick!" an old crone tapped the walking stick in her hand.

Chen Fei glanced at this old crone, his nose twitching slightly. A trace of a fishy, sweet scent drifted vaguely at the tip of his nose; this was the scent of potent poison.

"Chen Mu, archery!" Chen Fei patted the longbow slung across his back.

"Alright, the hour is not early, let's go. Heading to Xingfen City from here, if things go smoothly, we can arrive in about five days."

Qian Jijiang nodded and stepped forward first, the others following in succession.

They were all martial artists. Both their physical stamina and movement techniques were much faster than ordinary people's. Although they could not compare to horses, their speed was definitely not slow.

Chen Fei looked back at Pingyin County. Because they were several miles away, Chen Fei could only see some blurry outlines at this moment.

Having stayed in this county town for several months, from a miscellaneous laborer who couldn't even afford meat to someone now possessing skills, Chen Fei could not help feeling a degree of emotion in his heart.

Chen Fei lowered his head and glanced at the mark on his arm. The further they got from Pingyin County, the lower the activity level of the mark became.

Earlier, Chen Fei had been somewhat worried that this mark would attract powerful anomalies. Now it seemed that this mark was purely a negative status effect added to him.

If an ordinary person had contracted this kind of mark, they would probably have been sucked dry by now. Chen Fei's rapid progress had instead suppressed the mark.

Of course, there was another possibility. Compared to the massive food source that was Pingyin County, a tiny millet grain like Chen Fei simply could not arouse the attention of that anomaly.

After marching nonstop for over two hours, the group finally paused briefly to rest.

"There's no one here, hurry up and split the money." In the dense forest, Chi Defeng looked at Qian Jijiang, his face brimming with excitement.

"What's the rush, it's not like I'm not giving it to you."

Qian Jijiang looked at Chi Defeng, couldn't help laughing and scolding him, and said, "To think that an old fellow like you is also willing to leave Pingyin County; I thought you were going to die of old age right there."

"Things are a bit weird over at Pingyin Mountain, I don't dare stay there anymore."

Chi Defeng took the hundreds of silver taels handed over by Qian Jijiang, shook his head, and said, "Especially these past few days, I've constantly been restless in my sleep. Something major is probably about to happen in Pingyin County."

Qian Jijiang's expression shifted slightly. He still believed the words of this old friend. No wonder the other party kept instigating him, having him lead a team to leave Pingyin County.

"When we reach Xingfen City, are you still heading further?" Qian Jijiang asked.

"I'll see when the time comes, let's get there first before talking." Chi Defeng thought for a moment, then shook his head.

Dozens of meters away, Chen Fei had returned from relieving himself. Watching Chi Defeng and Qian Jijiang mumbling and muttering over there, his teeth couldn't help aching a little.

Although he didn't know what they were talking about, money was definitely involved.

Earlier Chen Fei had suspected that the two knew each other, because back then Chi Defeng had handed over the money much too decisively—this was hardly something a person greedy for money would do.

However, Chen Fei didn't feel any heartache over that money; relative to leaving Pingyin County, that bit of money simply didn't amount to anything. Having mastered alchemy, wanting to earn this sum of money was merely a matter of a few cauldrons of pills.

The group rested for a moment and began their journey anew.

At the very beginning, there were still main roads to walk, but the further they went, the more blurred the boundaries of the road became. Clearly, it had been far too long since any caravans traveled through, and many paths were overgrown with wild grass.

The group hurried along all the way, without running into any trouble. They only encountered a few refugees along the way, but everyone gave them a wide berth.

"There should be a dilapidated temple nearby, we can rest inside it tonight."

Qian Jijiang glanced at the surroundings, identifying their orientation. Qian Jijiang had been a man of the escort agencies in his early years, traveling far and wide, only retiring in recent years.

He had thought he could enjoy his old age in peace in Pingyin County, but as a result, he had encountered so many things that he was forced out once more.

Qian Jijiang led the few of them in a few detours and finally found that dilapidated temple.

Seeing the ruined temple, Chen Fei felt a tightness in his chest. His first two encounters with anomalies had both been in places like this. Yet, with a place to shelter from the wind and rain for rest, it was impossible not to go.

The ruined temple was very old, and even more cluttered inside. Clearly, quite a few people had been here recently.

They set up a fire to boil water, and the few of them sat huddled together, silently eating the dry rations in their hands. Chen Fei watched his surroundings vigilantly, discovering no abnormalities.

He sensed the mark on his arm, and there was nothing unusual about it either.

This bone-attached sore was now used by Chen Fei as an anomaly detector; most of the time, it was effective. This made Chen Fei wonder whether he should continue to keep a bit of the mark on his body once his internal energy grew stronger in the future.

The night passed peacefully without encountering any strange occurrences. Chen Fei's heart relaxed slightly; it seemed that although the outside world was unsettled, not every place would run into anomalies.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed quickly.

Compared to their freshness when they first set off, the group now appeared travel-worn. Along the way, the few individuals also began to grow familiar with one another. Moreover, the smoothness of their journey made everyone's hearts a good deal calmer.

Qian Jijiang possessed very strong path-finding skills, and Chen Fei felt somewhat fortunate to have followed this group. Otherwise, if Chen Fei had set off on his own, to say nothing of anything else, even figuring out which route to take would have left him completely blind.

By the time the food inside his Space Grid was exhausted, Chen Fei reckoned he would be wandering in circles out in the wilderness.

"We're going to spend the night in the forest tonight, everyone quicken your pace, it's getting dark soon."

Qian Jijiang glanced at the sky and urged them on. The others did not speak, unconsciously accelerating their pace. Everyone strictly obeyed Qian Jijiang's orders.

"There are lights ahead."

Under the cover of night, Yan Qing unexpectedly pointed straight ahead. The group raised their heads and truly saw distant lights flickering vaguely.

"Is there a village nearby?" Chi Defeng turned his head to look at Qian Jijiang.

"I don't remember."

Qian Jijiang frowned slightly. Having not ventured out for many years, Qian Jijiang only remembered some general matters; it was impossible to remember every single thing with absolute clarity.

"Should we go into the village to seek lodging?"

The old crone Feng Yu asked in a low voice. A village was undoubtedly much safer than the wilderness. If they had a choice, of course they would go to the village.

The others looked at Qian Jijiang, leaving the choice to him.

"No. The outside is torn apart by war and chaos, and a village suddenly popping up here is a bit strange, we'll skirt around it."

Qian Jijiang decisively shook his head, and the others raised no objections.

The group swept past in an arc and continued on their journey, unconsciously moving even faster in speed. It seemed that subconsciously, they wanted to give that village a wide berth.

"There are lights ahead."

Under the cover of night, Yan Qing pointed straight ahead. The group raised their heads and saw distant lights flickering.

"Is there a village nearby?" Chi Defeng turned his head to look at Qian Jijiang.

"I don't remember." Qian Jijiang frowned slightly.

"Should we go into the village to seek lodging?" The old crone Feng Yu asked in a low voice.

Chen Fei was listening in silence when suddenly the Serene Heart Incantation operated on its own. Chen Fei's mind instantly cleared up, and following that, his expression changed drastically.

This conversation, this scene—hadn't it just occurred a moment ago? Why say it all over again, and besides, hadn't they just skirted around that village!

Good grief, had everyone collectively lost their memories?

Chen Fei looked around. At some unknown point, wisps of white fog began to pervade the surroundings, and visibility became extremely low, while the village in the distance instead grew increasingly distinct.