But none of the people Han Yu talked to had real answers. At best, they confirmed the same rumor: Mist Eye Sect disciples had started showing up more frequently in the last few weeks, and no one really knew why.
One shopkeeper, a heavyset woman selling dried meat strips, offered a bit more.
"They don't talk to us much," she muttered. "Come in, buy what they need, leave. But they're not rude or anything. Just… quiet. Cold. I heard they're here for some 'high-level' mission. Beyond our understanding, y'know?"
Han Yu let her ramble for a bit, then asked, "They have a base nearby?"
"Not in town. Not even close," she said. "Their nearest stronghold's all the way to the south. Big one. Near the Mist Shroud Mountains. You can't miss it. They've got walls, banners, and a full patrol of cultivators. Supposed to be their biggest post outside their actual sect territory."
Han Yu raised an eyebrow. "That far, huh?"
