Before the shock and contemplation brought by Meng Po's meeting had fully settled, an urgent mission order from the Inspection Department shattered the inn's peace. The order had been personally conveyed by Judge Cui Jue, whose tone carried an unusual gravity.
"A small outpost downstream of the Forgetting River, near a weak point in the Yin-Yang Barrier, lost all contact half a day ago. The outpost is small, usually garrisoned by a squad of ten yin soldiers responsible for monitoring the stability of the surrounding Yin-Yang Nodes. There was nothing unusual in the last transmission. The loss of contact was extremely sudden." Cui Jue handed Su Yan a jade slip marked with the outpost's location. "The Ten Courts have decided that you are to investigate immediately. This concerns a Yin-Yang Node and is of great importance. Proceed cautiously and report back at once once you determine the cause."
Another mission from the Inspection Department, and one directly involving the sensitive Yin-Yang Nodes. Su Yan accepted the jade slip, vaguely sensing that something was wrong, but duty left no room for refusal.
"This junior accepts the order."
Without further delay, the four of them and their pet set out at once. Through Fengdu City's teleportation array, they reached a relatively desolate riverbank downstream of the Forgetting River. Following the jade slip's guidance, they traveled south along the shore for roughly a hundred li until a stretch of hills shrouded in faint gray mist appeared before them. The aura here was more chaotic than around Fengdu City. The boundary between yin and yang energy in the air seemed blurred, making this precisely the sort of place where unstable Yin-Yang Nodes could easily form.
They soon found the small outpost built against the mountain, its walls laid with Nether Foundation Stone. It was