Setting Fire to the Forest

"Just the two of us? But it's completely dark now. The wolf beasts could show up at any moment."

No sooner had Hu Liena finished speaking than a chorus of wolf howls rose from the distant woods, as if taunting the human settlement.

"The sooner we handle this, the better. If we go too late, we could lose important evidence. Hu Liena, do you want to protect these villagers? If you trust me, gather the firewood in the house and put it into your soul tool. We leave immediately."

The weak lamplight illuminated Meng Xuanji's resolute face. The confidence radiating from him instantly dispelled the last trace of hesitation in Hu Liena's heart.

"Alright, I'll go with you."

At this point, Hu Liena had no idea of Ice Soul Ghost Shadow's true strength. Her choice was practically exposing her own safety to the wolf pack.

Only by daring to face danger could one grow into a powerful Soul Master.

Meng Xuanji wanted more than just to look cool while taking a girl along. He truly needed a dependable helper who could support him in the future.

Clearly, Hu Liena had never disappointed him.

A short while later, Hu Liena returned with a pile of dry firewood and stood beside Meng Xuanji.

"I'm ready. What do you need me to do next?"

"Just follow me."

Meng Xuanji led Hu Liena to a dense grove.

The bright moon hung high overhead. In the cold night, a man and woman appearing in such a quiet, romantic place would inevitably lead to some kind of story.

But neither Hu Liena nor Meng Xuanji had any such thoughts at the moment.

"Spread all the firewood out here. We're starting a fire."

"What did you say? Here? Start a fire? Are you crazy?! You know this is setting fire to the forest, right?!"

"That's exactly what we're doing. Trust me, it won't go wrong."

Out of trust in Meng Xuanji, Hu Liena still chose to do as he said. His ideas could sometimes be difficult to understand, but it was undeniable that he had rarely run into trouble.

Very quickly, the firewood was spread evenly across the ground, tucked as much as possible into patches of thick, easily flammable weeds.

With a crack.

Meng Xuanji struck a match and tossed it into a pile of dry grass they had prepared.

Crackle, crackle.

Cheerful flames blazed fiercely through the dry grass. A fire demon that would soon devour the entire forest was beginning to take shape, rapidly growing stronger.

In just a few breaths, flames had climbed onto the tree branches. Rows of raging fire shot into the sky, releasing endless clouds of black smoke.

The sky gradually turned dark red beneath the flames' scorching glow, like the afterglow of a setting sun.

"That should be enough. Let's go."

Meng Xuanji immediately led Hu Liena away from the scene of the crime and headed decisively toward Heavenly Spring Town.

Along the way, the shouts of villagers often rang in Meng Xuanji's ears.

"The north! The woods north of here are on fire! Someone, come put it out!"

"Come put out the fire! If we don't, it'll spread to the village! Everyone, wake up! Grab buckets and get up to fight the fire!"

Lights came on from house to house. Groups of villagers hurriedly brought out wooden buckets. Watching the fiery glow soaring into the sky, they rushed like mad toward the nearby river to fetch water.

"Don't panic! Water- and earth-element Soul Masters, come with me. As long as I'm here, this fire won't burn down our village."

Mayor Qin Potian appeared on the main street with his trusted men, soothing the villagers' tense emotions.

"Those with strength, bring buckets and follow me. Those without, stay inside with the children and don't come out. Everyone, maintain order. Don't let a mere fire bring harm to our town."

"Yes!"

Before leaving, Qin Potian turned to Qin Xiao and quietly gave him some instructions. Qin Xiao nodded, then turned and disappeared alone into the night.

"Follow me! Move out!"

Qin Potian led the main force out of Heavenly Spring Town at full speed, and the town's defenses instantly fell to rock bottom.

Hu Liena and Meng Xuanji hid behind a large boulder by the roadside, taking in Qin Potian's every move.

With Ice Soul Ghost Shadow concealing them, the two seemed practically invisible. Even though they were less than fifty meters from Qin Potian, they went unnoticed.

"Hey, Meng Xuanji, aren't you afraid the wolf beasts will launch a night raid after what you've done?" Hu Liena asked cautiously in a low voice.

"If my assumption is correct, then the wolf beasts definitely won't launch a night raid tonight. Compared with snatching a few livestock, they have a more important operation to carry out tonight."

The wolf beasts Meng Xuanji had released earlier had already sent him their locations through Ice Soul Ghost Shadow. They were now lying in ambush in the woods to the northeast, waiting for someone destined to arrive.

If Meng Xuanji's guess was right, the one they were waiting to ambush was Old Wu. As the former captain of the guard, Old Wu, with the strength of a four-ring Soul Ancestor, was undoubtedly the person most likely to threaten them aside from the mayor.

Their continual weakening of the guard force this month was likely all for tonight's operation.

Perhaps they had already made this plan during the day, but Old Wu had been asleep at the time, allowing him to escape disaster.

"With all those people fighting the fire, Old Wu probably won't die tonight. Hu Liena, let's go. I'll take you somewhere."

Meng Xuanji had said from the start that he would take Hu Liena to a place where secrets were buried, and now her curiosity was fully aroused.

"Hurry up. I can't wait any longer. You really know how to keep someone in suspense. Can't you just tell me directly?"

"Don't rush. Aren't we here already?"

Meng Xuanji led Hu Liena to some ruins. In one corner lay a shattered signboard, and the characters for Cherry could faintly be seen on it.

"Oh! I remember this place. Isn't this Cherry Tavern, the place the wolf beasts attacked last night? What are we doing here?"

"Of course, we're here to uncover the truth."

Meng Xuanji led Hu Liena into the ruins and carefully searched through the wood splinters and broken bricks.

"What are you looking for?"

"A cellar. As far as I know, taverns should have a large underground cellar for storing wine. I think that was the only place that might not have been affected by last night's battle. If there's any valuable information left here, it must be hidden down there."

With Ice Soul Ghost Shadow's help, Meng Xuanji's spiritual power suddenly locked onto a stone slab hidden in a corner.

"Found it!"

Meng Xuanji and Hu Liena walked over to the stone slab. Its surface still looked relatively intact. Perhaps it had been thick enough to avoid being shattered during the battle.

"Then let's move it aside quickly." As Hu Liena spoke, she stepped forward to move the slab.

"No! Wait!"

At that moment, a bone-chilling coldness brushed against Meng Xuanji's neck, like the low growl of a ghost pounding deep into his heart.

And all because he had heard footsteps coming from underground.

They were the sounds of leather boots stepping on wooden stairs, drawing ever closer to them.

"Not good! There's someone down there! Hide with me, quickly!"