After leaving Hui Chun Valley, night had already fallen, and the lights throughout Mochou City gradually blazed into brilliance.
Zhang Xiaohua stood with his hands clasped behind his back in midair. He did not release his divine sense, relying only on his naked eyes as he looked down.
Within Mochou City, every household had lit its lamps. The lights around Mochou Lake reflected upon its surface, along with the unseen night sky, making it seem even more... like a star-filled sky than the real one.
"Eh? Why is it... so deserted here? Could there be something strange going on?" Zhang Xiaohua had been admiring the view when he suddenly noticed an enormous stretch on the western side of Mochou Lake. It was pitch-black, without a single light, utterly different from the surrounding splendor. Under normal circumstances, Zhang Xiaohua might not have paid it any heed, but... at Shuiyunjian, Bai Yanqiu's sleeping quarters had lacked lights at night, allowing him to identify them easily and gain no small benefit! How could he forget?
With that thought, Zhang Xiaohua released his divine sense and swept over the area.
He immediately frowned. The area was an enormous estate pressed tightly against Mochou Lake. Although most of it lay in darkness, with scarcely any sign of people, quite a few people lived around its perimeter. There were also many men in fitted martial garb stationed around the estate, carrying lanterns as they kept watch without pause.
It is probably the estate of some high official... No sooner had this thought arisen than another followed. Oh! When Meng and I came to Mochou City that day, it seemed... Meng appeared somewhere near this estate. Could this... be the Incense-Passing Cult's place in Mochou City...?
Just then, on the southern side of the estate, a black