Dawn

"This guy's IQ... really gives certain nobles a run for their money," Xiao Fan remarked.

"What is IQ? Where are the nobles?" Ji Xuanyuan poked half his head out of the donkey cart and asked.

Xiao Fan had no desire to answer him, worried his own intelligence might be affected.

"So, Your Excellency really is... unlucky."

Wang Mazi hung his head and stomped his feet. "Isn't that so? I don't even know what to do next."

Xiao Fan was only half-convinced by Wang Mazi's words.

The reason he dared believe him was that the man seemed rather foolish, so his skill at lying should be limited.

But why did he still doubt him? Naturally, because as a ranked sorcerer, he should not have been so down-and-out.

As far as Xiao Fan knew, cultivation in the arts emphasized harmonizing heaven, earth, nature, and the cosmos. Their ability to sense the natural environment and geomantic directions should have been quite strong.

A sorcerer might get lost, but a sorcerer getting lost also seemed unlikely.

After some thought, Xiao Fan voiced his doubts. "As far as I know, sorcerers can sense heaven, earth, and nature. You shouldn't have gotten lost."

"That's true, but heaven and earth are vast—not all of it can be sensed. My clan... ah, no, our school spends all year at sea and excels at sensing ocean currents. But once we reach land, we're not so capable."

Eastern Yue bordered the Eastern Sea, and there were indeed many people who made their living by the sea.

As a martial artist, Xiao Fan knew little about the arts and had no idea whether Wang Mazi was right. But considering the other man was not particularly bright, yet could speak so reasonably, it was probably the truth.

"How about this? It is fate that we met, and we are also heading to the capital. Your Excellency may travel with us." Seeing the man's pitiful appearance, Xiao Fan thought, I'll just take him along the way.

Wang Mazi was first overjoyed, like parched land meeting sweet rain after a long drought!

But just as he was about to offer thanks, he suddenly remembered something and turned his head aside. "Hmph, I'm an evil creature. Aren't you afraid I'll eat you halfway there?"

At those words, Xiao Fan did not know whether to laugh or cry. So Wang Mazi is the tsundere type? Why is he still holding a grudge...

"Everything before was a misunderstanding. I hope Your Excellency will not take it to heart. Oh, and we prepared quite enough food. If Your Excellency does not mind..."

The moment he heard the word "food," Wang Mazi immediately beamed and scampered over. "I don't mind!"

Only when Wang Mazi came closer did Xiao Fan notice that his skin was smooth and dewy, white as congealed fat, like freshly lifted pork belly from the water—not greasy in the slightest...

The pockmarks on his face instead seemed utterly out of place, as though someone had forcibly dotted them on with a brush.

That can't be right, brother... How do you take care of your skin?

Xiao Fan suppressed his curiosity and planned to notify the young master in the donkey cart, symbolically "asking for permission."

To his surprise, Ji Xuanyuan had somehow already sprawled out on all fours, snoring soundly. Sure enough, he was thick-skinned and carefree.

The night passed without incident. Even when the red sun rose in the east, they did not encounter Night Erosion.

Xiao Fan had stayed awake the entire night, not daring to sleep. With heavy dark circles beneath his eyes, he gazed at the rosy clouds on the horizon and let out a long breath.

At last, dawn had come...

Hm?

Squinting at the red sun slowly rising beyond the horizon, Xiao Fan felt that something was off.

The sunlight was still dim. Within that fiery-red solar disc, he seemed to make out several faint, tiny cracks?

Looking closely, it resembled a cracked egg yolk...

This isn't right!

Xiao Fan searched his memories. Daytime in this world had always been perfectly normal. Though he had never paid special attention, the glow at sunrise and sunset was beautiful, and whenever he saw it, he would always look a little longer. He had never noticed cracks like these.

At that thought, his scalp went numb...

Gradually, the sunlight became ever more dazzling, and the cracks within the solar disc disappeared along with it.

"Whew... I must have seen it wrong." Xiao Fan did not dare dwell on it and could only comfort himself.

The donkey cart continued onward. Xiao Fan had originally worried that the young master would be angry over his unauthorized invitation for Wang Mazi to join them, but he soon realized he had overthought it.

Wang Mazi was naturally familiar with everyone. He got along fairly well with the equally not-too-bright Ji Xuanyuan, and they quickly lowered their guard around each other.

"I can see that this brother possesses extraordinary bearing. May I ask which family's young master you are?" Wang Mazi bluntly asked.

Ji Xuanyuan was no less forthcoming. The moment he opened his mouth, he said, "A pleasure, a pleasure. I am Ji—"

Before he could reveal himself, Xiao Fan hurriedly cut him off. "He's my cousin, Ji Laowu." As he spoke, he shot the young master a vicious glare.

Only then did Ji Xuanyuan understand, nodding repeatedly. "Ah, right! Ji Laowu."

Ji was a homophone for Ji, and the Fifth Prince was ranked fifth. Nothing wrong with that!

"Oh... then what about you?"

"I'm Xiao Laoliu."

Wang Mazi, Ji Laowu, Xiao Laoliu—the names were casual and straightforward to the extreme.

And so, those three people who could not have been more casual or slapdash set out together toward the capital.

This time, Xiao Fan learned from the lesson that donkey carts were slower than horse carriages. He planned their daily itinerary properly and never again spent the night in the wilderness.

The donkey cart had stopped and started all the way, battered by torrential rains that washed out the roads. They crossed mountains and wound around rivers, and after two months, they finally arrived beneath the capital's walls!

The three of them, filthy and disheveled like beggars, stood beneath the western city gate. Gazing up at the towering city wall five zhang high, they sighed from the bottom of their hearts...

"We're finally here!"

The three looked at one another, their eyes brimming with relief.

"What are you doing?!"

Just then, a woman's shout rang out from the city gate.

"You woman look highly suspicious. Brother Bin is conducting a routine search. Please cooperate."

Three sleazy soldiers at the gate let out vulgar laughs as they dragged a young woman into a corner, about to forcibly "search" her.

Seeing this, the old man traveling with the woman hurriedly dropped to his knees. "Please, sir, don't hurt my daughter! I beg you!"

The leader of the thuggish soldiers was named Zhang Bin. Shortest of the three, with shifty eyes and a rat-like face, he walked up and kicked the old man to the ground. "What the hell are you? I suspect your daughter is an Eastern Yue spy. What, you don't like it?"

The kick was far from light. The old man was frail, and clutching his chest, he began coughing incessantly.

"Father!"

Tears streamed down the woman's face, but two soldiers held her fast on either side. She could not break free at all.

More and more people gathered to watch, yet though they were angry, none dared speak. They seemed deeply wary of the thug leading them.

"My lord, please let me go. I really am not a spy!"

The woman pleaded desperately, but Zhang Bin turned a deaf ear.

"Hehe, whether you're an Eastern Yue spy or not, this young master will know after giving you a thorough inspection!" As he spoke, the lecherous Zhang Bin reached out to "search" her.

Watching helplessly as his daughter was bullied, the old man threw caution to the wind and clung to Zhang Bin's leg. "Please, my lord, spare my daughter!!!"

Slap!

With a backhanded blow, Zhang Bin struck the old man hard enough to make him spit blood. "You old bastard, if you don't let go, I'll charge you with harboring an enemy spy!"

As he spoke, he drew the sword at his waist and pressed it to the old man's neck.

The onlookers could hardly bear to watch, but the words that rose to their lips were swallowed again, afraid they might be implicated.

The old man refused to let go, still crying, "Please, my lord, spare my daughter!!!"

The moment his words fell, Zhang Bin flew into a rage from shame and was about to swing his sword to kill him!

"Stop!"