"Son, what's wrong? You seem restless all the time?"
"During the meal, Mrs. Shen asked with concern."
Since settling in Nanming with her son, her life has become increasingly smooth. The only thing that's not going smoothly is that her ex-husband and son are relentlessly pursuing and harassing her.
Out of consideration for their blood ties, Shen Yuan intervened and allowed them to stay in Jiangnan. However, his younger brother was indeed a good-for-nothing. Even now, he still hasn't passed the academy entrance exam, and his personality has become extremely violent. It is said that he often beats and scolds the maids he brought with him.
She's now entirely dependent on her son. No matter how much the father and son resent her, they can't do anything to her; she still has to try to please them.
But what if the son loses power one day, or...
She was actually quite worried; Shen Yuan seemed to be going through a lot of dangerous things lately.
"It's alright, Mother." Shen Yuan smiled. "It's just some stuff about the formations that I can't figure out. Don't worry, eat quickly, or the food will get cold."
"What are you thinking about formations while eating? Forgetting to eat and sleep is the worst thing you can do," Shen's mother rolled her eyes at him. "Good health is the most important thing. I'm counting on you to give me a grandson soon."
"Uh..." Shen Yuan was taken aback, not expecting his mother to suddenly bring this up.
"What? You're complaining about your mother nagging again?"
"No. It's just, Mother, I haven't considered that yet."
"Still no plans? Look at your age! You'll be thirty after the New Year. They say a man should be established by thirty, but you're still not married. What kind of man are you?"
Shen Yuan: "."
"By the way, since you've been following that Lord Chen around, haven't you found any outstanding women you fancy? And what about the ones in your courtyard?"
"Mother," Shen Yuan said weakly.
"I thought that Miss Murong from last time was quite nice, although... her attire was a bit daring. But, she's from beyond the borders, and supposedly a general at that; her children are sure to be strong and healthy."
"Mother, don't talk nonsense!" Shen Yuan was speechless for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "That's my widowed sister-in-law from the Shen family, and by seniority she's my eldest aunt."
"Oh, there's this connection? Cough cough, haha, even Mom didn't know?"
"And how is the girl?" Mother Shen's eyes suddenly lit up.
Shen Yuan turned around in confusion upon hearing this, and his skin twitched when he saw the person behind him. "Mother, that's Dean Chen Ying, Lord Chen Qing's concubine."
"Uh, haha, well..." Mother Shen was immediately extremely embarrassed. "Well... Mother won't say anymore, come on, have a bowl of soup."
Shen Yuan rolled his eyes, but immediately stood up to greet him.
Chen Ying was originally in Liuzhou, so her sudden arrival at this time was probably not just a coincidence; she must have come to look for him.
" Shen Yuan." Chen Ying approached and saw Shen's mother, giving a slight bow. "Auntie."
"Oh dear, Dean Chen, you're too kind," Mrs. Shen quickly stood up to return the greeting, though she was secretly very pleased with herself.
My son is really a source of pride; even the dean of the academy has to call me aunt.
"You're too kind, Auntie," Chen Ying replied with a smile, then looked at Shen Yuan: "There's something I want to tell you."
"Okay, Dean, this way please."
Once outside, Chen Ying's expression immediately turned serious. " Southeast Commandery has fallen!"
"What?" Shen Yuan, usually a very composed person, couldn't help but exclaim upon hearing this news.
"How is that possible?" Shen Yuan immediately lowered his voice.
Tiannan Pass in the Southeast Commandery was a key defensive project. He personally supervised the setup of the grand formation back then, and the investment in its formation was no less than that in the North Pass. It also had the Blazing Yang Grand Formation, and the female sorcerer guarding it was Huang Xin, one of the best in the Heaven Academy. How could it have fallen so easily?
" Huang Xin is dead, Bai Lie, who was guarding the city, is also dead. The gatekeepers have fallen. There's no mistake. The Southeast Pass has fallen. It happened two hours ago. The lord has already sent Tian Heng to Yunzhou to deploy troops, but the problem is that he's not sure whether any experts have infiltrated."
"Huh?" Shen Yuan was taken aback. "If an outsider were to intrude, would the master be able to sense it completely?"
"Normally it's detectable, but if there are hidden security measures, it's hard to say," Chen Ying said in a low voice. "Now, you come with me immediately."
"Where to?" Shen Yuan asked, frowning.
"Let's go somewhere safe." Chen Ying said as they walked, "From the moment the incident happened, our lord felt that the enemy would target the Four Spirits. Now, two of the Four Spirits of the Ancient Demon Clan are in Jiangnan, namely you and me. We will become targets for experts. You can't stay in Nanming."
"Since it's so dangerous, why did you, Dean, come personally? Aren't you here too?" Shen Yuan glanced at his mother's location not far away; clearly, he was very worried about her.
"I came because I'm the only one in our forces capable of traveling quickly. Even Master Shen San can't return as fast as me. Our lord hasn't recovered his strength yet, so only I can come."
"I see." Shen Yuan nodded. "So, are we going to Liuzhou now? Why didn't you take the courtyard with you?"
"It might not be safe for your mother to go to Liuzhou with you; this place is far away from the conflict."
Shen Yuan nodded in agreement. "That's true, let's go then."
"Hmm, that's about right." Chen Ying led the other person to a secluded corner, where she formed hand seals, creating a complex spatial array.
Shen Yuan glanced at it, said nothing, and stepped directly into the opponent's spatial formation.
With a dazzling white light, both of them vanished from their original spot.
Shortly after the two disappeared, a white figure appeared in Nanming Prefecture, quickly heading towards Shen Yuan's mother's location. That figure was none other than Chen Qing!
"Um?"
At this moment, Chen Ying seemed to be heading to Liuzhou with Shen Yuan, was slightly taken aback. The two of them did not appear in Liuzhou or anywhere else, but instead entered a spatial turbulence. This could only happen if there was a teleportation error. This made Chen Ying suddenly look at Shen Yuan.
"You"
"Your words have no flaws," Shen Yuan replied calmly. "Everything makes perfect sense. With the southeast fallen, the Four Spirits ' successors are vulnerable to sniping. I am in the Nanming, not in Liuzhou, making me the most vulnerable to attack. Therefore, you must cover my escape to Liuzhou for protection as soon as possible."
"Within the entire force, apart from Lord Ziyue and the Lord, no one's mastery of spatial arrays can match Dean Chen Ying Ying's. Dean Chen Ying was the first to come to me and used a spatial array to bring me back to Liuzhou. Everything seems to be going smoothly."
"Then how did you see through it?" At this moment, Chen Ying's voice became incredibly deep, clearly a male voice!
"Technique." Shen Yuan coldly stared at the other party. "I've seen Lady Chen Ying's techniques a thousand times. Your spatial array, though skillful, is far inferior to hers!"