Lionheart Emperor Oro suggested that Xia Fei strike from the Exiled Grounds, hiring whatever reinforcements he needed and then coming up with a plan before launching an assault. Xia Fei accepted everything after some deliberation.

It was basically impossible for him to defeat Yu Hua, as well as that organization with a Law Overlord behind him, given his current strength. He needed information from the Law Realm and sufficient manpower to do so. Everything must be obtained from the Exiled Grounds, and since it was a region independent of the two peak races, plenty of nameless Law Adepts had taken up residence there.

After discussing the details about their plan to head to the Exiled Grounds with Oro, Xia Fei took out his Fig Corporation Precision Edition 100 series spatial compass. This compass was unregistered, meaning that there was no way for it to be tracked even when used to contact others.

He dialed the number Chen Dong had left him.

Several seconds later, an image of a lady appeared. Her petite yet voluptuous body with a flawlessly alluring face and distinct eyebrows appeared. She was, of course, none other than Moon Song.

At this very moment, she was sitting by the bedside, munching on a half-eaten cucumber. The decorations behind her were fairly tasteful; a large tapestry hung on top of the wall behind her, while ice silk sheets were spread on the bed.

It was nighttime, and she happened to be wearing a thin sleeping gown, sheer enough so that the outlines of her body could be made out. She was sitting with her bare legs crossed over each other in a fairly carefree manner.

Upon seeing Xia Fei, Moon Song froze. The cucumber was still in her mouth, for the slightest motion could be seen by her neck, causing a different idea to surface and inadvertently intrude Xia Fei's thoughts.

With a harmless smile, Xia Fei softly greeted. "Moon Song."

"You're still alive!" Moon Song exclaimed as she sprang to her feet, pointing at Xia Fei with her half-eaten cucumber.

Seeing that crazed look on Moon Song's face, Xia Fei shook his head helplessly. "Hey, we could be considered friends before. How could you be wishing for me to be dead?"

Moon Song coldly snorted as she sat back down on her bed, munching on her cucumber as she asked, "What do I care whether you're dead or alive? Quick, tell me! How did you find me? Could you have been secretly stalking me? I say, I've recently been constantly sensing someone's eyes on my back. Honestly, if you wish to contact this lady, it's very simple. There's no need for you to learn from those stinking hooligans and track me."

It seemed like Moon Song's sense of self was as strong as ever, so Xia Fei shrugged. "Chen Dong's the one who gave me your number."

Moon Song was slightly disappointed, her voice turning a little harsh. "That darn Maniac Chen; is this lady's number something that he could give away so casually? He didn't even ask for my approval!"

Though she was reprimanding the man verbally, Moon Song's heart was actually beating wildly, leading her to tidy her long hair and temper the uneasiness she was feeling.

"What have you sought me for? You've caused quite a big scene this time; if you wish to die, do so far away from me. Don't implicate yours truly," Moon Song said dismissively, pretending to be unconcerned with his affairs.

Xia Fei knitted his eyebrows, feeling that he was being quite ungracious. He barely kept in contact with Moon Song, and he only sought her because he had to use her. This was indeed quite unreasonable of him.

"Oh, nothing much really. Just wanted to check in and see if you're doing well."

Moon Song felt a wave of warmth flood her heart. Just hearing that made her heart aflutter.

With that said, Xia Fei was about to end the call when Moon Song hurriedly reached to stop Xia Fei.

"Hey! How can you just leave like that? It's not as if I'm chasing you off. Since you called, let's chat a little. Why don't you just speak what you want to ask from me; if I'm in a good mood, I may just lend you a hand," Moon Song said.

Her attitude changed very quickly, so Xia Fei could not help but chuckle. "Why don't you get dressed first before we chat more."

Moon Song looked down and saw that the top two buttons of her gown had loosen itself when she leaped up before; it was as if her ample bosom was gasping for air as they fought to gain more air time.

Blushing deep red, Moon Song gritted her teeth and lifted her head. "This is normal. You can look more if you want. In fact, say the word if you wanna see more and I'll gladly let this feast-for-your-eyes be ogled by you."

Xia Fei was rendered helpless by Moon Song's overbearing personality. He had done his best to avoid catching a glimpse of her pale and generous chest, but it was simply too eye-catching. No mortal could resist a peek, and Xia Fei could feel his own heart racing.

"Did you know that something had happened involving me in the Yu family?"

Moon Song laughed as she drew her legs in and hugged them tightly. "'Something'? You sure love keeping things low-key; the entire circle already knows what happened, yet you're still claiming it's just something small."

"Whatever you say." Xia Fei knew Moon Song's unreasonable personality too well, so he did not care to analyze things too much. "Right now, I need to know about the situation in the Law Realm. You're the only person I know and trust, which is why I've come looking for you."

Trust?

Moon Song was slightly startled, her expression then turning much more pleasant. Wordlessly buttoning her gown, Moon Song was no longer being cheeky like before and, instead, showed a look of seriousness.

"Let's hear it, then. What do you wish to know?"

Xia Fei spoke. "If I'm not mistaken, Yu Jin should be the one presiding over the Yu family's matters, while Yu Hua is using this chance to get back into the clan. Pretty soon, Yu Jin will hand over the seat of the family patriarch to Yu Hua, with excuses of not having enough strength or insufficient cultivation. I'd like you to help me keep an eye on the Yu family. Inform me the moment you hear of any trouble in the air."

Moon Song giggled. "To think you'd ask the right question. I just happen to have learned what's happening with the Yu family."

Thus, she sent all the information in her terminal over to Xia Fei, who could not help but be shocked upon receiving the data. It turned out that Moon Song had already compiled every single movement of the Yu family in an entire document; she separated facts from fiction, along with all the details pertaining to the former. It turned out that ever since something happened to Xia Fei, Moon Song had been keeping an eye on the Yu family, and the reason was of course him.

Xia Fei felt inexplicably moved by this, uncertain of just how he could show Moon Song his gratitude.

"This is the information I've collated till now. I'll be sure to send you what I learn once in a while. Hmm... Why is your compass without a name? Is there no number for me to contact you?" Moon Song was unperturbed, almost as if what she was doing was very natural, without any hint of hesitation.

"My compass is unregistered, so there's no way for you to contact me unless I seek you," Xia Fei said.

Moon Song laughed loudly. "I see that you're still as secretive as ever. I'm still the same as well."

Her two eyes stared at Xia Fei as if she was trying to hint something. Xia Fei hurriedly changed the subject and spoke of something else. The kindness from a beauty was the hardest to enjoy, and Xia Fei knew perfectly about Moon Song's thoughts about him. It was just a pity that he simply had no way of taking on such a burden.

"I know what you mean. Next time, contact me once in a while, best if it's done during the dead of night."

Xia Fei nodded. "Understood. I only need you to help collect rumors and data, so there's no need for you to risk yourself."

"What, could you not bear to lose me?" Moon Song asked weirdly.

After a moment of pause, Xia Fei nodded. "Yeah. I don't have many friends to begin with, so of course I can't bear to lose any one of them."

"Tsk!" Moon Song looked somewhat annoyed, though her heart was actually beating hard in her chest.

"So how are you going to repay me once you settle your problem?"

"What do you suggest?"

"You must agree to what I ask, and you're not allowed to say no, no matter what it is." A cucumber had magically appeared in Moon Song's hand, and she said this while taking a loud crunch on the vegetable.

"You got it."

"You agreed! This lady will have you castrated if you dare to go back against your word!" Moon Song glared with her big, round eyes, a leery stare in her eyes as she made a cutting motion, her hot-tempered personality still the same as before.

Xia Fei suddenly felt conflicted inside, and he felt a weird sense of foreboding rising in him.

...

Turning off the screen, Xia Fei wiped sweat off his forehead. He was truly helpless over Moon Song's brash personality. All he could hope for was that Moon Song's request would not be too harsh. He felt that he would be fortunate if it was just a request for him to commit murder or arson, but given how strange Moon Song was, he strongly believed that there was really nothing she did not dare to do.

As he made his way out with all these wild thoughts in his mind, he arrived at Sentinel Goddess Sophia's room. Now that she was used to using her own humanoid frame, she also stayed somewhere not too far from Xia Fei.

Unexpectedly, Sophia actually did not wish to hand Phantom back to Xia Fei, while Phantom himself was even more eager to stay.

Xia Fei was depressed. When did the two become so close to each other?

"Just what sort of secret project are the two of you up to? Why aren't you telling me a word about it?" Xia Fei asked, puzzled.

Phantom had no idea how to answer him, and it was Sophia who stood up and earnestly explained, "Xia Fei, it isn't that we wish to keep this from you, but it's truly that serious of a matter, and we can't predict how the future will unfold. When we succeed, I'll be sure to explain everything to you in detail, but until then, I ask that you give us the benefit of the doubt.

If it were Phantom who said this, Xia Fei would surely dig until he learned of the root of the issue, but since it was the ever earnest Sophia who had requested this, Xia Fei felt awkward to press for more information. Giving the matter some thought, he figured that there would not be too much of a problem with not bringing Phantom to the Exiled Grounds; he would only lose him pitching ideas from the sideline, which was something Xia Fei was not particularly used to.

On the way to meeting Avril, Xia Fei felt more and more strange as he thought about it. There were many machines all over Sophia's room, and there was even a blueprint which had been covered. From what he could see from the uncovered part, it seemed like a blueprint for some sort of machinery.

'Could Phantom and Sophia be designing something? Sophia's the Sentinel Goddess, and she has a wealth of knowledge, but Phantom doesn't seem to be proficient with machinery, right?' Xia Fei wondered to himself.

Shaking his head, Xia Fei decided not to think about this anymore.

...

Avril was already used to Xia Fei leaving every once in a while. Though she was worried deep down, she still sent him off with a sweet smile on her face. This way, Xia Fei would not worry about her, allowing him to concentrate on what he needed to do. She did not ask where Xia Fei was going or when he would be back.

Packing his luggage, Xia Fei brought along Furball and the old demon lord, leaving Pod with Avril and Phantom with Sophia. It was a lot less crowded than before.

*Whoosh!*

It only took a second for the spatial compass to send Xia Fei over several billion lightyears to the Exiled Grounds, placing him on the peak of a mountain range, with clouds hanging like fog and big trees shooting up to the sky. There was a cold and evil atmosphere that vaguely permeated in his immediate surroundings.

Lionheart Emperor Oro looked around, a look of excitement etched on his face.

"The Exiled Grounds. It's been a very long time since I was last here."

Xia Fei pursed his lips and thought to himself, 'Who knows how many tens of thousands of years you were trapped in the Eternal Ice Plains? Of course, it's been ages!'

"Follow along the valley ahead and you'll reach a small city of the Exiled Grounds. We'll set ourselves up there first to gather information as well as get news about this region before we head to the more important metropolises," Oro said.

"What's the name of this city?"

"It has no name."

"Will the information we learn in the city be accurate?"

"But of course. Though it's just a small city, it is the most important slave trading market throughout the Exiled Grounds. Those slavers travel all around, which naturally means they are very well informed. We won't get any better information from such people. After all, merchants like them value profits and benefits, so as long as you've got the cash, they'll have the information, which makes it easy for you to deal with."

Xia Fei nodded and went speeding toward his first stop in the Exiled Grounds.