Seeing the situation turn grim, Jie Shui quickly thought on his feet and shouted loudly, “That’s right, that’s right! We are members of the Demon Revival Society! But to meet our mission contact on time and avoid unnecessary trouble, we had to lie… Here is our Mission Commission Form. Please have a look.”
Only after Jie Shui produced the form did the expressions of these cultivators soften a bit.
“Since you’re from the Demon Revival Society, that means there are two reconnaissance-type Rangers in your team?”
“Exactly! Two reconnaissance types and two combat types,” Jie Shui nodded vigorously, sweating profusely. “Those two girls over there are reconnaissance.”
Jie Shui was referring to Jiang Ke’er and Mu Guoguo.
Mu Guoguo’s keen sense of smell went without saying, and when Jiang Ke’er declared her Ranger category, she had chosen reconnaissance as well.
Jiang Ke’er understood that her combat ability mainly depended on swordsmanship, but she didn’t want to reveal that to avoid suspicion about her identity as Jiang Ke’er… so she had picked reconnaissance instead.
After all, with her Appraisal Technique, she knew a bit about reconnaissance.
The leading human cultivators exchanged glances, then nodded. “Then let’s get moving.”
“Eh? Departing overnight? Aren’t you worried about Xubeasts?” Jie Shui was taken aback.
At the Realm of Novice Cultivator, going out into the wild at night was obviously unwise.
Though this group of cultivators was numerous and each held at least third-tier skills, having many people meant a bigger target, increasing the risk of being surrounded by Xubeasts.
“There are no Xubeasts in Yugui Prefecture,” the black-clad sword cultivator in charge shot him a glance and said, “Also, from now on, shut up. Say as little as possible.”
“…Yes,” Jie Shui hurriedly nodded.
Strength was king. To survive, Jie Shui had no choice but to swallow his pride and suppress any sign of dissatisfaction.
The situation was clear now — this mission was a death trap!
Judging by how this group treated the scattered cultivators they encountered, they were clearly not benevolent.
To keep their secrets safe, they didn’t hesitate to use force to detain passing Scattered Cultivators.
That showed how little regard they had for human life… With only four of them left now, their lives were hanging by a thread. Whether they survived depended entirely on whether they still had any use.
Jiang Ke’er’s hand was already gripping her sword hilt, but after a moment’s thought, she decided to hold back a few rounds more.
She could never show weakness, but before making a move, she needed to be absolutely sure — she had to gauge the strength of these hundreds of people and formulate a sensible battle plan… to avoid acting rashly and endangering Mu Guoguo and the others.
Not showing weakness and acting recklessly were two different things. She would not be the latter.
“You two go ahead and scout,” the black-clad sword cultivator ordered.
“Yes!” Mu Guoguo dared not disobey and immediately pulled Jiang Ke’er to the front.
Changsun Qingyue and Jie Shui hurriedly followed, assuming protective stances.
【Qing Yi, can you hear me?】
Suddenly, Jiang Ke’er’s ear caught Changsun Qingyue’s voice, but Qingyue hadn’t spoken aloud… meaning this was a secret voice transmission.
Jiang Ke’er hadn’t yet learned to send such transmissions and could only receive them passively, so she nodded to indicate she could hear.
【I’m sorry for leading you into danger because of my indecision…】
【I know you’re hiding many secrets. Though you claim to be a reconnaissance cultivator, you’re strong — strong enough that even these hundreds of people can’t stop you… So if we run into danger, please don’t hesitate. Run! Once you’re out, find Li Shi Min at the Li Mansion in the Imperial Capital and tell him what’s happening here. That’s our only hope!】
Jiang Ke’er couldn’t reply, so she gave a slight nod to agree.
Changsun Qingyue exhaled, her gaze firming.
The atmosphere was suffocating. Facing the thick mist and marsh ahead, full of unknown dangers, the demons had no choice but to steel themselves and step forward.
Several narrow, winding paths cut through the marsh, stretching into the mist, and Jiang Ke’er and Mu Guoguo walked along one of these thin paths.
“Do you have Treasure-Avoiding Pills?” the black-clad cultivator suddenly asked.
“Yes,” Jiang Ke’er replied. They had prepared these in advance.
“There’s miasma inside. Take the pill before entering the mist,” the sword cultivator, clearly experienced, reminded them.
The demons obeyed.
After taking the Treasure-Avoiding Pills, Jiang Ke’er turned to the black-clad cultivator and smiled, “According to the Ranger Guild’s code, before carrying out a mission, we have the right to know the mission details and objectives…”
The black-clad cultivator sneered, “Knowing too much is dangerous.”
“Knowing too much? Oh, are you talking about your identity?” Jiang Ke’er blinked innocently.
“A disciple of Heaven Six Hall of the Nine Palaces Chamber of Commerce, sword cultivator Qian Duan? Or Zhen Ting, a disciple of Thunder Three Hall standing behind you?”
“Shut up!” The black-clad cultivator’s face darkened.
“Looks like those scattered cultivators behind you don’t know,” Jiang Ke’er said calmly. “If so, then that means… their purpose, like ours, is cannon fodder?”
“That’s enough,” the black-clad cultivator’s face turned as black as his clothes. “Lower your voice!”
“I’m already speaking quietly,” Jiang Ke’er smiled. She had purposely lowered her voice to avoid pushing these two to lose control.
During that time, Jiang Ke’er had not been idle — she had appraised every cultivator behind her.
The results were surprising — although most were elite disciples of the Nine Palaces Chamber of Commerce, there was a mixed group of scattered cultivators among them.
As she suspected, these scattered cultivators had been deceived into becoming cannon fodder.
“You lied about the mission objective from the start — clearly searching for cannon fodder reconnaissance agents, yet you said it was a logistics mission,” Jiang Ke’er didn’t back down.
“Do you think being strong means you can do whatever you want? I may be weak, just an ordinary unarmed reconnaissance cultivator… but if you don’t clarify the mission objective, I can make those scattered cultivators go berserk right here, do you believe that?”
“Sorry, being strong does mean you can do as you please,” Qian Duan wanted to arrogantly laugh like a villain, but if Jiang Ke’er really made a scene, it would bring huge trouble to the Nine Palaces Chamber of Commerce’s operation, greatly reducing efficiency.
Business first.
Qian Duan swallowed his anger and thought, I’ll make you pay later. But his face remained smiling.
“This is the Mingzhou Secret Realm,” Qian Duan said.
Jiang Ke’er gasped.
No wonder it looked so familiar.
“You probably haven’t heard of Mingzhou,” seeing Jiang Ke’er’s shocked expression, Qian Duan sneered inwardly, thinking she was just another excited little scattered cultivator who didn’t realize the key point was the word “Mingzhou.”
“But you don’t need to know. Like you think, this is a lost secret realm filled with treasures and opportunities,” Qian Duan said, grinning slyly. “If we cooperate in exploring and reach the palace on the hill ahead, we’ll find all sorts of rare treasures… Then we’ll divide the spoils. How about that?”
“Sounds great!”
Jiang Ke’er’s eyes sparkled, looking like a naive girl utterly convinced by the bait.