The valley lay quiet and secluded, with strange birds occasionally flying past. It was early morning, and mist shrouded the valley, obscuring what lay within.
Ordinary people would have found it difficult to see anything inside the valley under these conditions, but the mist also concealed the group's movements extremely well. This unusual environment had its own advantages.
On Shadow City's side, Qinglin and Heitian stayed together, with Han Shuo and Andrina naturally following them. Jifei of Phantom City and Eugene of Veilshade City spread out to form two wings on either side of Han Shuo's group.
Gradually, they drew closer to the valley.
Eugene advanced stealthily on his own. Elsewhere, Jifei kept his team in formation while quietly making his way over to Han Shuo. "It's the valley down there, right?" he asked softly.
Han Shuo nodded and answered just as quietly, "Right below us. Tell your people not to get too close, or they'll easily trigger a response from the Energy Towers!"
Jifei held no prejudice against Han Shuo. On the contrary, he admired him quite a bit. At those words, he gestured toward his distant team, signaling for them to stay where they were and not move about.
Mist shrouded the valley floor. Mountains surrounded it, their peaks towering into the clouds and enclosing the valley in an arc. Han Shuo, Qinglin, and the others lay lightly against the side of one peak, looking down to observe the valley.
"We can't see much down there. What exactly is the situation?" Qinglin asked Han Shuo quietly.
Extending his index finger, Han Shuo scratched a rough diagram into the hard rock, depicting the valley as an arc. He pointed to several positions and explained to Qinglin and the others, "I've examined it carefully. Here, here, and here, there are