As the ship neared the city of Lizo, Tian Yao jumped down from the ship, carrying with her the baggage known as Xiaomeng, bundled completely in her soft spiritual cloth, still dozing off.
Tian Yao's feet touched the sandy ground as her knees bent down, transferring the force below. Xiaomeng was jerked awake by the sudden movement. Her vision rolled as she was thrown out of the spiritual bedding. Using her quick reflexes, she avoided falling down, balancing herself in midair.
As her feet touched the ground, Xiaomeng glared at Tian Yao, who was folding the sheets. She moved her eyes around the surroundings and from the corner of her eyes saw a long line of people extending out from the front of a large wall. "It is Lizo," Tian Yao said while doing her work. "It is the place where the client is staying for now."
Not allowing Xiaomeng a chance to talk, Tian Yao turned and moved toward the city wall, raising the folded cloth to shield her head from the scorching heat. All kinds of people were waiting for their turn to enter the city. The young, the old, the loners, and also those with families. Their clothes were a mix of colorful and black.
Ignoring the long line, Tian Yao walked to the front, Xiaomeng following in her footsteps, the people giving them weird looks. Tian Yao had changed her clothes to normal ones, and Xiaomeng was in her crumpled dress. They seemed like a pair of rich and delicate ladies out for the first time.
The guard standing in the front verifying the papers of entry stopped the pair. Tian Yao took out her sect token and the mission paper from her small leather bag. The guard looked at the paper, and then his gaze drifted toward the two small girls. "Are you really going to take this mission? It has been troubling not only the client but also the guards of the city."
Tian Yao took the paper back from his hands and said nonchalantly, "Just tell us where we can find him."
"Just walk along the main road, and when you see the highest building, you will have found Merchant Wang," the guard replied.
Xiaomeng ran ahead, not waiting for her companion. She didn't know the mission, but from the looks of the guards, it was definitely not something good. If she disappeared among the crowd in the city and avoided Tian Yao, would she not have to do it? At that time, her stomach grumbled. Having a good meal was also a good idea.
Suddenly Xiaomeng stopped, realizing something. Her hand went to her waist, not finding her small money pouch. Turning back, she could only smile at Tian Yao, who raised the small pink leather pouch jingling in her hands. Damn it! "I was just enjoying a morning exercise," said Xiaomeng while the sun was just above her head.
Tian Yao ignored Xiaomeng's antics and went along the long road. The things written in the books were really effective. She would give the big brothers a gift after returning to the sect. As soon as she stepped inside the city, she felt a thin layer of spiritual energy wash over her. Most likely a high-level protective array to keep away demonic cultivators at Core Formation and below from infiltrating.
The guard watched the girls' disappearing backs in the bustling crowd, worry clouding his mind. His partner asked what happened, to which he could only shake his head in silence.
Since they had not eaten any breakfast, Tian Yao bought a few snacks from the street vendors for Xiaomeng. After reaching Core Formation, the reliability of the body on food would decrease, and they would only need to eat once every few days, but it was not that time yet. Xiaomeng happily munched on the fried meat skewers and the dough sticks covered in oily red spices.
Soon they reached the center of the city, where the people were the most crowded and the streets the widest. And spotting the largest building here was the easiest thing to do. A large white construction with elaborate carvings on each wall loomed higher than any other. The people going inside and coming out were dressed in so much luxury that even someone like Tian Yao could tell it was the right place.
The armored guards tried to stop them from going inside. But as Tian Yao showed them the mission letter, they treated the two girls like honored guests. The female attendants wearing flowing white clothes took the two girls to the highest floor of the building. Although not exhausted, Xiaomeng felt a little bored with all the climbing. It would have been easier for her to just jump up a few times, or get thrown by Tian Yao.
Wait! Why were her thoughts stirring in weird directions? Her eyes fell on Tian Yao's dancing silver hair. Yes, it was definitely the fault of the girl walking in front of her.
Leaving Xiaomeng and Tian Yao in front of the door to the last floor, the attendants took their leave. Xiaomeng felt a strong presence coming from behind the door. There was at least a Foundation Establishment cultivator inside. The door was pushed open, and a scholarly man welcomed the two girls inside. Ignoring him, Xiaomeng's eyes focused on the middle-aged man sitting at the table, smiling at her with a cordial smile.
Not standing on ceremony, the two walked toward the table and sat opposite the man. The scholarly man closed the door and joined them, standing at the side. Nobody touched the beautiful meals placed in front, even though their fragrance tickled at their senses.
The silence was broken by Xiaomeng. "So, what is the mission?"
The middle-aged man's smile froze as he looked at Xiaomeng. Lightly coughing, he explained the mission in detail. "For a month now, the farmers in the villages around here have been sending less and less produce, leading to losses in running such a large establishment. And I have several of them throughout the city."
He continued in a serious voice. "At first, we thought that there was some problem with them, so we sent out a few of our people. But the news they brought back made us seek help from the Jade River Sect as quickly as possible. A whole village had all their people, nearly two hundred, disappear out of thin air. Even as the people we sent searched, not a single trace was found. We concluded it was most likely the work of a cultivator."
His words got Xiaomeng thinking. This was at least a Nascent Soul cultivator or multiple Core Formation ones working together. In any case, not something she could handle. As she was about to voice her own thoughts, Tian Yao said, "We will take the mission."
The middle-aged man's face brightened with a big smile. He signaled to the scholarly man, who brought out a small box. Opening it, there were at least a thousand middle-grade spirit stones. "Regardless of whether the mission is a success or a failure, this is my personal gift to you."
Xiaomeng's fists unconsciously clenched, and with a half-crying, half-smiling face, she nodded and took the wooden box colored in black.
Standing in front of the tall Moongazing Pavilion, Xiaomeng felt like beating herself up. She must have a wish for seeking death. Tian Yao, on the other hand, had a very slight smile at the corner of her lips. The spiritual bedding and the box were left in the pavilion to be taken when going back.
Tian Yao took out the notes of the first group sent out by the Pavilion Master of the Moongazing Pavilion. It just detailed the disappearance of the villagers, nothing more. The second one was from the guards sent by the City Lord. They had a similar experience, just added with the fact that they found several decaying trees a little way off the village that had completely turned green and smelled like rotting meat. Since they used poison, they must very likely be from the Gravebone Hall.
The new village they were going to check was quite far, so the pair took horses provided by the Moongazing Pavilion. As they rode out of the city, the scholarly man and the Pavilion Master Wang of the Moongazing Pavilion observed them from the top floor of the pavilion.
"Is it really okay to let a pair of little girls handle the task? There were also traces of Core Formation cultivators that we intentionally hid during the investigation." The scholar's voice grew serious. "Moreover, these two are not even at Core Formation. If something happens to them, will the Jade River Sect stay still?"
The Pavilion Master lightly chuckled at these words. "Word had come from the upper echelon a few months ago. The new generation of the Jade River Sect is said to be even more talented than that of its current Sect Master, Lu Wancheng."
Removing his hands from the railing, the Pavilion Master Wang strolled inside after seeing the pair pass the city gates. He continued, "The mission was given specially for Inner Disciples. Since these two small girls came here without being at Core Formation, they must be among that group. And if so, they must have already been given life-saving treasures by their Elders."
Pavilion Master Wang sat down at the table and started to play with the fish, removing its bones. "If for some reason the two die, how is it our fault? They simply face the repercussions of their actions. Should the Jade River Sect not ensure that only the right person does the mission?"
The scholar could only nod his head at this. He just hoped that this matter would not escalate further.
By the time evening rolled in, Tian Yao and Xiaomeng had reached near their destination. Xiaomeng was suffering. Nobody told her riding horses would be this hard. She got off under the shade of a tree and, without even a sound, fell flat on her stomach. Even breathing felt like a chore. She didn't know whether she rode a horse or a raging bull. All the while, her hands were tightly clutching the saddle, her knuckles going white, all in a bid to stop herself from falling off.
Conversely, Tian Yao also got down without a crack in her face and sat down beside her. Moments passed as the wind grew colder. Two incense sticks' worth of time passed, and the pair continued on their journey. The ability of a cultivator to rapidly heal physical wounds felt like a curse to Xiaomeng while bouncing on the horse's back.
Before the sun went down, they reached the village nearby that they had been sent to investigate. Xiaomeng instantly knew that something was wrong before even looking. The smell of rotting flesh, like a sickly sweetness mixed with rotten eggs, assaulted her senses. Her eyes grew watery as she wanted to vomit.
Getting down from the horse, she bent down and retched while putting one palm on the ground for support. A hand came from behind and gently rubbed her back. It took some time for her to get her bearings back; still, the smell was unbearable. And she still had not entered the silent village in front of her.
"A lot of corpses must be piled together to get this effect. Carefully look at your surroundings and be ready to flee at a moment's notice." As she said this, Tian Yao got up and moved toward the village. Xiaomeng stood in place for a few moments before following behind her, one hand placed on the sword at her waist.
The streets were empty, devoid of all life. And from the looks of the leaves crowding the streets, it seemed nobody had been here for quite some time.
Passing a large rock situated at the intersection of the village, Xiaomeng and Tian Yao split up. Xiaomeng felt it was a wrong choice, but to get this matter dealt with early and leave this place quickly, she accepted it. The red rays of the setting sun colored the world in red. Even after searching a third of the village, she had not found a single corpse. Just as she returned to their meeting point near the large rock, someone crashed into it, breaking the rock and dispersing dust all around.
In a breath, a figure walked out of the dust. Tian Yao's mouth had bloodstains as she said one single word, "Run!"
And run Xiaomeng did, without looking back. If someone was able to bring Tian Yao to this state, she herself was just a fish on a chopping block, waiting to be slaughtered.