Chapter 10: Tracing Clues in the Mountains and Swamps

Both sides of the coin were embossed with a dancing kite.

The copper coin was a greenish-blue, making this kite a "Green Kite."

"Yes, these Sheji tokens are categorized by color," Huyang Shanze recalled with a start. "Wait, no, this Green Kite coin isn't yours!"

The youth in white robes cut him off: "I lent it to Mr. Sha to use."

Huyang Shanze spoke in a slow, measured tone, which made the man in gray impatient. "Since you’ve already come out, I have one thing to ask you. Answer quickly, and I’ll leave quickly."

"Ask away."

A *Shanze* is a mountain deity, though in some places, they are given a more common, easy-to-understand title

Earth God.

In places where spiritual energy gathers and living things thrive, a *Shanze* will slowly be born. If they receive an official investiture from the human emperor, the *Shanze* can master and wield primordial power, thereby managing the local land and water.

If the empire vanishes or the investiture expires, the *Shanze’s* primordial power will fade accordingly, eventually returning them to a wild state.

Although Huyang Shanze had once received an investiture from the Kite Empire, it didn't even have a mountain god temple. The main reason was that it spent years sleeping soundly, ignoring the miscellaneous affairs of its territory. When the local creatures sought help, it never responded, and over time, they simply ignored it.

But it had to respond to the summons of the man in gray before it.

Huyang Shanze still had some lingering grogginess from its nap, but its reason told it that the person before it was not someone to be easily offended.

"Forty or fifty days ago, a sand leopard ran here. I want you to find out where it went," the man in gray said bluntly. "That creature only nests in the Western Mountains; it should be rare in your territory."

"A sand leopard? Hmm—" Huyang Shanze drew out the tone. "Let me look."

The two waited quietly for over a quarter of an hour.

Suddenly, a small deer emerged from the bushes. It wasn't afraid of them, even shaking its head in front of the two men.

Huyang Shanze said, "Follow it."

The deer turned and bolted, and the two men took off after it.

After crossing two mountain peaks, the deer headed toward a cliff, finally stopping at the edge of a steep, large rock.

"The sand leopard came here?" The youth in white robes crouched down and found a few dark, dirty spots on the stone.

"Bloodstains, but it’s been a long time."

The deer poked its head out over the edge of the large rock.

"It jumped down?"

The deer nodded.

Strange. A severely wounded sand leopard had fled all the way here, so why jump off a cliff to its death? The two exchanged a glance, then followed the mountain rocks down along the side, climbing to the bottom of the ravine.

The ground here was damp and humid, much cooler than on the mountain, and as a result, the vegetation was much denser. The two searched the bottom of the ravine for quite a while but found no leopard carcass.

The youth in white robes looked up at the cliff. "It was already severely wounded; falling from such a high cliff, it couldn't possibly still be alive." There were no large trees under the cliff, so it was impossible for leaves or vines to have cushioned the sand leopard's fall. "Huyang Shanze, is it still in the mountain?"

"If you want to find its whereabouts, I will point them out to you." A tree beside them spoke—this time, it was a beech tree. "It is not in the mountain."

A mountain breeze blew, whipping up a small tornado on the ground. As the branches, leaves, and dirt swirled, they actually took on a shape.

The shape molded by the wind from the mud and leaves was not just a leopard, but also a creature with four limbs!

The youth in white robes stared, astonished. "Falling from the cliff, besides the sand leopard, there was also a... person?"

The two things lay on the ground, motionless.

"They killed each other?" The youth in white robes frowned. "Then where did the bodies go?"

Soon, two more tornadoes swirled, molding new shapes in the wind.

"Two people came, and were... killed?" The youth in white robes’ expression changed. "Good, very good. No wonder my two subordinates didn't return. So that’s what happened!"

"Another group of people came, picked up these two corpses... and carried them away?"

The youth in white robes tried to identify them carefully, but unfortunately, the shapes molded from mud and leaves could only be described as "vague and indistinct." They were barely human-shaped, but there was no hope of seeing their faces clearly.

"Who are these people, and where did they come from?"

He asked twice before the beech tree replied in a muffled voice

"I don't know. Too much time has passed, and all traces have faded. Only the wind spirits remember even this much."

The man in gray was not discouraged and took over the conversation. "At least you know which direction they headed after leaving Hulu Mountain?"

The beech tree joined two of its branches together and pointed in a direction.

It was exactly where they had come from—

"Blackwater City?" A sharp glint flashed in the eyes of the youth in white robes. "I knew it. Most of the clues regarding the missing guards from Donglai Prefecture would be found there."

But even if they tracked it this far, they had only found a vague direction. Blackwater City wasn't exactly large, but it wasn't small either.

"Went to Blackwater City? That makes things easier," the man in gray smiled. "The most direct method is often the most effective."

The mountain forest fell silent, and Huyang Shanze departed.

The two walked about a hundred paces toward Blackwater City when the man in gray paused, suddenly raising his hand to strike out a beam of white light.

A sharp cry came from the woods ten yards away, followed by the flapping of wings.

The two followed the sound and found bloodstains appearing at the base of a large tree.

The blood spots on the ground were not obvious, but fortunately, the youth in white robes was skilled in tracking. After walking another fifteen or sixteen yards, they found a harrier lying on the ground. It was larger than an ordinary eagle, with its wings and abdomen pierced through.

The blood flowing from the wounds had turned a dark green.

"Ever since I left Blackwater City, I’ve felt like I was being watched. So it was a little monster." The youth in white robes stepped forward, pressing his toe against the harrier's neck. "Who sent you?"

The harrier opened its beak, gasping for air.

"Speak," the youth in white robes increased the pressure. "Otherwise, the poison will reach your heart, and you will be dead within a quarter of an hour!"

The harrier let out a pained cry and finally spoke: "I’ll tell the truth, will you let me go?"

"Of course," the youth in white robes laughed. "Why would a swan concern itself with a sparrow?"

The harrier immediately said, "I’m just a mercenary. I was resting my eyes at the Red Mountain Tavern when someone came in and asked me to track your actions and report back."

"What is that person's background?"

"I don't know. I just take money to do the job!"

The man in gray suddenly said, "Don't listen to its nonsense. This is a house-raised monster!"

A house-raised monster—that, of course, meant it had a master.

The youth in white robes’ gaze turned fierce, and he stepped down, saying no more

"Speak!"

￥￥￥￥￥

The next morning, the He family was still eating when a servant hurried in to report

"Two guests have arrived, claiming to be from the command of the Great General Conquering the North in Xunzhou!"

He Lingchuan’s heart skipped a beat, and he looked at his father. He Chunhua was also slightly startled, his expression tightening. "Invite them to the Suhong Hall and serve tea."

The Suhong Hall was where the master of the He residence received guests, suitable for small gatherings.

He stood up and gestured to He Lingchuan: "Lingchuan, come with me."

He Yue and Madam Ying were both a bit surprised.

Why would the master bring his eldest son to meet guests from Xunzhou?

The most convenient power of a head of the household is that he doesn't need to explain his actions. He Chunhua didn't say anything more, taking the butler and He Lingchuan toward the front hall.

(End of chapter)