Departure

Yun Yun's stern shout gave Nalan Yanran a fright. It had been a long time since she had seen her teacher wear such a grave expression.

"Teacher, is it dangerous?" Nalan Yanran asked instead.

Yun Yun did not answer directly. "If everything goes smoothly, we'll be back soon."

Nalan Yanran did not ask any further questions.

Chen Mo, who knew how this would end, did not ask either.

It would be a miracle if this went smoothly.

The Snake People Tribe was no easy target.

"You must be tired. Go back and rest," Yun Yun said, turning her back to them. A trace of worry appeared on her face.

Chen Mo was the first to leave.

For the past few days, Nalan Yanran had been staying with Yun Yun in the main hall. But from the sound of it, she was clearly being told to return to her own quarters now.

After leaving the main hall, Nalan Yanran looked at the figure about to close the doors of the side hall.

Nalan Yanran's expression changed. She had nearly forgotten something important.

"Senior Sister Nalan, what are you..." Chen Mo looked at Nalan Yanran, who already had one foot inside the hall, and lecherously thought, Could it be that tonight is destined to be anything but peaceful?

"Tomorrow? What a coincidence."

After hearing Nalan Yanran invite him to her home tomorrow, Chen Mo showed a troubled expression.

If he had not just received the mission, he would have agreed. He wanted to wander around the Imperial Capital too.

But now that the mission had been issued, he naturally had to complete it first. The journey to the Snake People Tribe was quite long.

Chen Mo swore that Queen Medusa was absolutely not the reason he was itching to go.

"Senior Sister Nalan, could we do it another day?"

"If you have something to do tomorrow, the day after tomorrow is fine too," Nalan Yanran said considerately.

"Uh, well, I have something the day after tomorrow too..." Fine, Chen Mo told the truth. "I have something very urgent to take care of. It'll take quite a while, so..."

Nalan Yanran understood, but she still refused to give up. "Can I go with you?"

"This..."

"I understand." Nalan Yanran turned away in disappointment. "Then I wish you a smooth journey, Junior Brother."

Watching Nalan Yanran's dejected figure gradually fade into the distance, Chen Mo ultimately could not bear it—bah, his lust got the better of him—and called out to her.

"Senior Sister Nalan, if you don't mind the hardship, gather at the Alchemy Room tomorrow at dawn."

The moment he said it, Chen Mo regretted it and wished he could slap himself.

He began questioning and answering himself in his heart.

"You already have Sister Yun Yun. Why are you going after Senior Sister Nalan?"

"But Senior Sister Nalan is just too irresistible."

"You want to keep two women at once?"

"Not just two."

"I don't mind the hardship. I'll go back and pack right away." Nalan Yanran left happily.

Early the next morning.

By the time Chen Mo got up, Yun Yun was already gone from the main hall.

When he arrived at the Alchemy Room,

sure enough, Gu He was gone as well.

After packing a large pile of pills for healing and restoring Dou Qi, he stepped outside and ran into Nalan Yanran, who had come to meet up with him, as well as Liu Ling, who had come to refine pills in the Alchemy Room.

Nalan Yanran was dressed differently from usual. She wore a fitted disciple's robe, her silky black hair gathered into a bun. Her eyes were gentle as water, but with Liu Ling standing nearby, they carried a faint chill.

At this moment, she possessed the air of a wandering martial heroine.

As for Liu Ling, he was still dressed in an alchemist's robe. He could not bear to change out of clothing that so clearly displayed his status.

Upon seeing Chen Mo, their expressions changed in opposite directions.

"Good morning, Senior Brother!" Chen Mo politely greeted Liu Ling, then said to Nalan Yanran, "Senior Sister, let's go."

"Mm." The young girl smiled sweetly.

"Where are you going?"

Neither of them answered as they left the Alchemy Room side by side.

To avoid attracting attention, Chen Mo specifically went to the Mission Hall and accepted a mission of just the right difficulty.

But the two of them were far too famous, and before long, a large group of disciples had surrounded them, clamoring to come along.

After finally shaking them off, they were stopped by a deacon just as they were about to leave the sect.

For certain exceptionally gifted disciples, the Elder Council had specifically instructed those below that these disciples had to report their departure whenever they left the sect.

Only after they had registered did the deacon allow them to leave.

At the same time, in the Elder Hall.

"What? Chen Mo and Yan Ran left the sect together?"

"Yes. Before leaving, they accepted a mission from the Mission Hall to collect a fourth-tier medicinal herb."

"I understand."

"Great Elder, what should we do?"

"Send Sixth Elder after them. Have him protect them in secret."

Below the Misty Cloud Sect lay an endless, sprawling forest. As far as the eye could see was lush green stretching beyond sight.

Above the sea of trees was a blue sky. At this moment, two enormous figures streaked rapidly across the open heavens.

Green Beak Eagles.

A type of flying magical beast raised by the Misty Cloud Sect. These magical beasts were not very large, with each one able to carry only one or two people. They were mild-tempered and extremely fast, but raising them was too costly, and their endurance in flight was limited. Usually, only wealthy major sects would use these magical beasts as transport for their sect.

The two Green Beak Eagles crossed the vast forest in less than half an hour.

The journey from the Misty Cloud Sect to the Tagor Great Desert would take two days.

However, because Green Beak Eagles lacked endurance, they would need to rest at least twice along the way to recover their strength. Thus, even at top speed, the trip would take three days.

The Tagor Great Desert lay along the eastern border of the empire. Chen Mo's first stop was Black Rock City, a city on the eastern route.

As the two rode the Green Beak Eagles eastward, Nalan Yanran finally noticed the problem. "Isn't Wild City in the northern part of the empire? Why are we heading east?"

"That mission was only a cover. Our real destination is the Tagor Great Desert."

"The Tagor Great Desert? Isn't that the territory of the Snake People Tribe? Junior Brother, you aren't planning to enter the Snake People Tribe's territory, are you?"

"Mm." Chen Mo gave a vague reply, but inwardly he thought, It's not as simple as entering the Snake People Tribe's territory. I'm going deep into their headquarters and bringing out their Queen.

Upon hearing this, Nalan Yanran frowned. She had originally thought they were merely going out to sightsee, but now, their lives might be in danger.

She said worriedly, "Junior Brother, why didn't you tell me earlier? In a situation like this, we should apply to have a sect elder accompany us."

The moment the words left her mouth, Nalan Yanran regretted them. Since he had accepted a mission but was not heading toward its location, he clearly did not want anyone to know.

Wasn't asking that just making her seem especially foolish?

Chen Mo merely smiled and offered no answer.

And that silent confirmation made Nalan Yanran want to collapse.

The status of a Misty Cloud Sect disciple was still quite useful in the central regions of the empire. At the very least, when they encountered several groups whose cultivation was higher than theirs along the way, none came to cause trouble after seeing the Misty Cloud Sect disciple robes they wore.

But near the empire's borders, things were completely different. The region was remote and loosely governed. To the people there, the identity of a Misty Cloud Sect disciple was merely a fat fish waiting to be caught.

Of course, that was not absolute. Those with large spheres of influence still had to show the Misty Cloud Sect some respect on the surface.