Several people stood on the mountaintop, gazing at the brightly lit town in the distance, and couldn't help but sigh.
After many days, they had finally returned to this place. However, times had changed, and with an old friend by their side now, their state of mind was different.
"Lu Zhu, let's go!"
Gu Qianying took a deep breath of air and turned to ask Lu Zhu. Receiving Lu Zhu's nod, the group continued forward. It wasn't too late when they arrived, and the city gates had not yet fully closed. Taking advantage of the night, they managed to sneak into the city.
"It's getting late, let's head back to the inn first. I sent a carrier pigeon to the owner earlier, but I haven't received a reply yet. Let's go check on it, at least we'll have a place to stay."
After entering the city, Gu Qianying and the others first sent their three bay horses to the stable to be fed. They also appeased little Yi Hao, who had been clamoring with hunger, before making their decision.
However, Gu Qianying felt something was amiss. The proprietress was kind-hearted and beautiful; such a thing had never happened before. With no news for such a long time, something must have happened.
A bad premonition arose, and she felt something was strange but couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. It seemed the problem lay with the inn, and she had to go there.
Today seemed to be some festival in Nan Yi Kingdom. The streets were brightly lit, with people coming and going, and everyone had smiles on their faces. However, these smiles didn't seem to reach their eyes.
In short, the atmosphere of the entire capital felt strange. Everyone seemed terrified, unsure of what they feared. But both Su Cheng and Gu Qianying wore peculiar expressions.
"Why do I feel something is wrong?"
Su Cheng said softly, his brow furrowed tightly.
"It's alright, we'll continue to the inn. We don't need to worry about these things for now. Finding a place to stay is the most important thing."
Although she sensed the atmosphere was off, the priority was to get back to the inn and then make plans.
However, as soon as they arrived at the inn, they were stunned. In the few days they had been gone, the inn had changed ownership. The current owner was the former waiter.
"Waiter, where is your proprietress?"
Gu Qianying frowned, looking at the dusty, dilapidated inn with sparse customers. She fell into thought, while Su Cheng, sensing something was wrong, asked the question.
Gu Qianying was usually reserved and likely deep in thought.
Lu Zhu, not understanding what was happening, didn't interfere and quietly held little Yi Hao, staying to the side.
Unexpectedly, the waiter was evasive and spoke unclearly, acting as if he didn't recognize Gu Qianying, even though they had gotten along well before.
"Boss? The boss is out, not in the shop!"
The waiter's eyes darted around, not daring to look at the two. He continued to wipe the table with a rag, but the table's paint was peeling and needed repair.
When the former proprietress was there, the tables were always new. If she were out, the staff wouldn't be so careless. There was definitely something fishy going on.
But the waiter stammered and couldn't provide any clear explanation.
Gu Qianying, however, had a quick temper. She drew her sword and held it to the waiter's neck, saying, "Tell me where your proprietress is, or I'll kill you right here."
The waiter repeatedly begged for mercy, saying, "Esteemed guest, please spare me. I truly dare not speak of these matters. Why don't you go out and see for yourself, or ask the people outside? Perhaps they can tell you."
As soon as the waiter finished speaking, he quickly dodged the sharp sword and ran towards the kitchen. Looking at the empty inn, Gu Qianying fell into thought. Su Cheng nudged her and said, "Let's go check the street, perhaps we'll find something."
It seemed that was the only option. She nodded and turned towards the center of the street.
However, as people saw them coming out of the inn, they retreated as if they had encountered some venomous beasts, even showing fear towards them. Gu Qianying was truly puzzled and turned to Su Cheng, saying, "Why are they so afraid of us? We don't have any blood on us!"
Su Cheng shook his head. Gu Qianying turned and pulled an old man, asking, "Why do you have that expression on your face?"
The old man replied, "Don't you know? The proprietress of that inn was a demoness. You still dared to go in. That demoness was killed long ago, and her corpse is hanging on the city gate. If you don't believe me, go and see."
Gu Qianying fell into thought and hurried towards the city gate.
Indeed, the proprietress's corpse was hanging at the city gate. It turned out that everything had a traceable cause.
She fell into thought and spoke a few words, after which several masked men with tattoos on their faces emerged from the shadows and knelt before her, saying, "Greetings, Sect Master!"
Gu Qianying's expression was cold, and she said softly, "Rise, all of you. What is going on?"
One warrior, dressed in black night-blooming clothes, with brown tattoos on his face and a blue ribbon tied around his arm, respectfully reported, "Reporting to the Sect Master, since you left Nan Yi Kingdom, many things have happened. We first went to the imperial palace to rescue your elder brother, but the rescue failed, and our people lost contact with us. To date, we have not found any trace of them."
"However, the Nan Yi Kingdom's imperial palace seems..."
Gu Qianying interrupted after listening, saying, "No need. That's enough for now. The priority is to arrange for Lu Zhu and little Yi Hao first. Only then can we deal with more matters. Otherwise, we will only be hesitant and unable to fully utilize our skills. You go and handle this matter first!"
After hearing this, the men exchanged glances and clasped their fists, saying, "As you command!"
Then, like Rakshasa ghosts, they vanished from Gu Qianying's sight, as if they had never been there.
Gu Qianying ended the conversation and turned to look at Su Cheng. They looked at each other, their eyes conveying an understanding they both shared. They had to enter the imperial palace tonight to investigate. They couldn't let those people disappear in the palace for nothing, otherwise, they would never be able to accept this fact in their lives.
Tonight was destined to bring a storm. Gu Qianying sighed softly and looked at Su Cheng, saying, "Let's go."
Su Cheng nodded gently. The two of them walked towards the imperial palace. They had arrived in the capital of Nan Yi Kingdom, which was very close to the imperial palace. In just a quarter of an hour, they reached the palace gates. However, the palace was heavily guarded, and with the brightly lit surroundings, they couldn't easily enter.
They had to wait until midnight before they could quietly enter and gather intelligence. Otherwise, if their whereabouts were exposed, it would not be a favorable situation for them.