After finishing her meal of plain rice with poorly cooked veggies, Fengli set out to explore the rest of the outpost- and hopefully, successfully conclude her investigation into her origins.

Figuring out that average civilians wouldn’t know much, she decided to play it tactically from now on, and prioritize her targets.

—No one should be as knowledgeable about these things as much as a fortune teller!

And chance would have it, there were several of those around the encampment. Divination was always a popular profession in the south, and nowhere were these services more desired than during a crisis such as this one….

But what is it….palm reading…face reading…divining future from star alignment…foretelling one’s destiny based on the date of birth….

Ahh, that would be difficult, she only knew the year!

…giving up on asking a fortune teller, she went for the second-best option and asked the guards stationed around.

“Spire? No, never heard of it miss, and I’ve been serving my post for 20 years. In fact, I’m just 5 years before retirement..hey where are you going?”

“Spire? That’s a weird name for a village. I wonder why would anyone name it such?”

“Surely you mean Jianding campaign, that took place 10 years ago?”

That last answer intrigued her, so she inquired more about it.

“Uhh, so you know how 10 years ago a lot of cultivators passed around and ventured into the jungles? Around the time when there was much trouble around, kinda like now? Well, I overheard them calling the operation “spireshot” or something like that. I always assumed it’s a fancy name like the sect names and weapon names and other nonsense…what? no, I don’t know what their target was. Somewhere in the wildlands…..”

On the other hand, that was rather unhelpful…

Fengli actually knew about Jianding campaign- it was the very conflict that was waged by unified forces of northern cultivators against the heretics who lived among the Yaren in the bamboo forests beyond the Scar of the Land.

The war that orphaned her. Her mother, Wen Feili, was supposedly among these devil cultivators, and she was killed over the course of it….or so Lan Caolu found out, after concluding throughout the investigation of the matter. However, given how he didn’t participate directly, he wasn’t able to provide any more details, beyond knowing for sure that the Spire still existed, and her family was there.

Now that Fengli found the old yearbook, and knew that he lied or withheld some information from her for whatever reason, she grew to question everything she ever heard from the old man. Yet, the guard’s words at the very least confirmed one thing to be true- that there was indeed a conflict involving a lot of cultivators, and there was indeed a settlement called the Spire somewhere within the uncharted territory beyond.

Well…perhaps calling it uncharted was a bit of an overstatement. There were people who actively navigated these treacherous lands…

…that’s right, the native, nomadic yaren tribes. The only challenge is to find them….

…which, fortunately, didn’t seem to be much of a problem. Apparently, the refugee camp was formed due to relentless beastman attacks over the last months, which meant…

…that there was very likely a group of native yaren around, and all she had to do was to find them and ask!

That reminded her. The weird girl from before mentioned something about incoming attack….she looked quite out of it, but maybe there was some truth to that warning? If so, Fengli was in a lot of luck- the luckiest wolfgirl on the planet- for that meant that if she just waited, the people who had all the answers would just come to her, and there was no need to bother seeking them out at all!

She couldn’t wait to tell Annu the good news….

…ah, that reminded her, she was going to ditch him here. And would probably have some unpleasant conversation with him about it soon. A nervous chill ran down her back.

If there is one thing Fengli hated, that would be prolonged argumentation. The way she preferred solving conflicts is ‘my way or the highway’.

……..

Xiani was hopping from one crudely carved stair to the other. Having already left the outpost behind, and descending down the eastern slope of the cliffs, she was shrouded by darkness- thus she had to be careful not to slip and fall. Despite having spent a lot of time underground, her eyesight wasn’t used to the dark, and the stars occasionally shining through the dark autumn clouds were her only source of light. One wrong step would invite disaster….

Additionally, these stairs were made in such a way that it wouldn’t be overly easy to climb up or down their length- a preemptive measure before unwarranted moving of large amounts of people or goods. No horse nor chariot would be able to climb them- even when trading, there would usually be two camps- one above, one below- and people manually bringing goods up and down.

However, this time, this night, this natural border wouldn’t be able to protect the fort above from what was coming. Unbeknownst to the humans of the upper plains, ever since the time of Wen clan, the yaren tribes have been growing stronger and evolving. They inherited the power of clockwork and black powder, and once again domesticated legendary beasts once thought extinct. The Jianding campaign only postponed the inevitable.

She took out the round amulet and strained her eyes to once again study its surface. The method for the relatively safe production of demonic cultivators was now in her grasp, and soon enough, it would be back in the hands of the Remnant, where it belonged.

As for what happens after that…she didn’t know, and it wasn’t her place to know.

….But on the other hand, she wasn’t stupid, so she figured that the current leadership would attempt to turn the Spire once again, and subdue the local tribes by force, in a never-ending pursuit of power…

And that probably meant turning on their current allies soon….

Xiani reached the hidden cave beneath a particularly inconspicuous ledge and ventured inside. The warriors stationed inside drew their weapons immediately, but having recognized her, let her pass wordlessly without further issues.

Frankly speaking, she really didn’t have to do it, but as long as the alliance held, a certain degree of goodwill was in order. After all, the only reason these forces didn’t attack yet was in consideration for her- she asked them to wait until she was done with her mission- and Xiani was a person to repay her debts no matter what.

Thus, she took this little detour to report her successful search and greenlight the invasion.

……

Fortunately, Annu wasn’t asleep. He waved to her, smiling, and beckoned her to come inside the medical tent.

Fengli thanked the heavens he wasn’t moody anymore; it made the task ahead of her seem that much easier! …As always, heavens didn’t answer.

However, as she approached him, she sensed that something was wrong. His pupils were unusually wide, and his voice was just about a tone too high when he spoke to her.

“Fengli, you wouldn’t believe me, I had the most unusual guest!”

…a guest!?

“Uhh, tell me more….” said the wolfgirl apprehensively, sensing that something wasn’t quite right. To say that she didn’t expect guests would be an understatement in this situation.

“It was a cultivator from Shuangshan sect! A messenger from master Lan!”

“Ohh, and what did he say? Maybe an apology? For all the lies and withheld information, that is.” muttered Fengli cynically, remembering the contents of the yearbook.

However, the sheepboy’s face clouded suddenly and he pointed a finger at her, alongside an accusation

“That’s right! You should apologize, Fengli! You misled me!”

…that wasn’t far from the truth. The wolfgirl bit her lips and shook her head. No matter how she looked at it she was partially at fault. But still…

“I told you to take the donkey and leave! I pity you for getting hurt, but you shouldn’t have followed me into the orphanage!” she was planning to stand her ground on this issue to the end.

“No, not about that!” exclaimed Annu once again, and his previous cheerful mood was once again turning into agitation, and at quite a terrifying pace. Fengli wasn’t exactly unused to emotional people who had sudden mood swings- she lived with herself 24/7, after all- but still, to see the usually rational Annu behave like that was both unexpected and frightening.

She turned around to leave.

“I see you’re still not over that, I’ll come back later when you’re feeling better…”

“Why did you lie to me about the amulet?”

—What? How did he know it was still connected to her with invisible thread? For now, she made a clueless facial expression and decided to play stupid for a while longer.

“You stole the amulet from master Lan!” he put additional emphasis on ‘stole’ and his eyebrows furrowed.

“Eh?”

“The cave beneath the waterfall…was a hidden vault where that amulet was stored! You took a detour after we left Chenfei to retrieve it, didn’t you? And here I thought you actually cared about the wooden sword I made for you! You were lying to me all along, and you betrayed me!”

“No, actually, I did go there just for that” the heavy wooden stick that vaguely resembled the sword had, indeed, quite a sentimental value to her. Not only did it accompany her during countless lonely training sessions, but it was also something Annu made for her two years ago. It was a shame it got lost in Kiyi.

“No, you didn’t! Why are you lying to me even now!?”

“Yes..I mean, no!”

“You lied!”

Now confusion was being slowly replaced by frustration, so she decided to play the villain and tell him what he wanted to hear.

“Ha! A sword is better anyway.” She barked and looked to the side, trying to force a smirk.

However, she soon regretted her words, because tears were now running down Annu’s cheeks, and he looked seriously hurt.

“Look, the stick was pretty good too, ahahaha” she quickly added, and waved her hands around, trying to mitigate the damage.

“I knew it…” he muttered, and seemingly lost all his previous agitation “Chen Mengyao was right. You really did steal that amulet from the sect…”

Chen Mengyao, huh? Now Fengli knew the name of the culprit. Frankly speaking, she never heard of the guy, but nonetheless resolved to have a ‘talk’ with him if he ever crosses her way.

“Why would I steal it?”

“Because you were dissatisfied with your life..and wanted to become a cultivator.”

“That’s right. I wanted to become a cultivator and finally reached that goal. I didn’t steal that, nor did I know about any hidden vault, but I wouldn’t put it past myself to resolve to theft even if I actually knew about it.” She was playing the villain again, yet at the same time, she didn’t feel like she was lying a whole lot right now.

“This amulet is evil! Look how it changed your eyes! And after using it, you often sweat and don’t behave like yourself! Chen Mengyao told me that it’s a demonic artifact, and it will kill you if you continue doing it!”

—Eyes? Not eye? Nevermind, there would be time to check it out later…

“That’s right Annu, it’s a demonic artifact.” She felt her heartbeat accelerate, and weird agitation overcame her “And I’m the descendant of devil cultivator clan, Wen Fengli! I will reunite with my family, master this new power, and show everyone! Wang Shunji, yourself, Lan Caolu, everyone! Even if it kills me!”

Perhaps exclaiming these things out loud in the middle of a camp full of refugees, many of when remembered the times of Jianding, wasn’t smart… but then, who would believe that a wolfgirl is a cultivator or descends from one? They’d all think she’s mad or delusional, little knowing she’s anything but!

“I don’t even need you anymore” she continued “you are free to take the valuable papers, take the donkey and leave! I will continue my journey alone! In fact, I have a perfect lead now!”

He once again looked like he was about to cry, but stood his ground, and looked like he’s preparing to throw some counterargument at her.

However, at that moment, their emotional exchange was cut short by slow clapping from behind.

There was a tall, insanely handsome man standing at the entrance of the medical tent. He had long brown hair, hazel eyes, and incredibly proportional facial features that made him look not unlike an immortal or a saint from the legends of old. Seeing him, Annu’s eyes immediately brightened up.

“Chen Mengyao! You tell her!”

—This is the culprit!? Now that Fengli thought about it, she did see this jerk multiple times in the past. He didn’t change much, other than he wasn’t wearing the white robes of Shuangshan now, and there was no red ribbon tied around his arm.

“I learned a lot of interesting things now. Wen, huh? Hmm….well nevermind…” he said, and looked around as if he found various medical objects and crates scattered around the tent insanely interesting. “You should do as the sheepboy says, and give back that accursed amulet. Nothing good can come out of you having it…for neither of us!”

“I didn’t steal it!” exclaimed Fengli again, clenching her fists.

“I know” he said and smirked.

——What?

At this moment, their eyes crossed, and her wolf instincts detected a terrible killing intend within. She immediately jumped back, and reached for the sword….only to find nothing at her hip.

Nevermind, there is an alternative option! Although an adult cultivator is a no laughing matter, hopefully, he didn’t know what she was capable of now!(even she wasn’t quite sure….). A risky plan quickly formed in her head.

“Haha, you want it! Fine, I’ll give you it, as long as you leave us alone…” she tried to make her voice as pleading as possible. He smiled again and nodded.

“It will be as you ask. Now, if you’d be so kind…” he extended his hand towards her.

The plan was to take out the amulet, throw it at him, and while he was busy catching it, blast him to smithereens. If a jiangshi didn’t survive it, neither should a human!

She rolled back her sleeve and revealed….absolutely nothing.

—What? It should be strapped there!?

“Ahahaha, wrong arm~” no, it wasn’t wrong, there is no way it would be wrong. She briefly closed her eyes and projected her meditative realm. The stars symbolizing her foundation were above, the black sun was beyond, and she could clearly feel the presence of the amulet nearby.

Then where was it? She could feel the panic rise within her chest, not as much at the lethal predicament she found herself in now, as at the prospect of having lost the most important thing, or have it stolen from her.

—Stolen!? Wait a minute….

“Fengli! You mustn’t joke around now!” screeched Annu in a hysteric voice. He thought she was fooling around now and showed them the wrong arm on purpose.

“Indeed, I very much agree. Your help was very much appreciated, boy” nodded Chen Mengyao, though his voice, too, was slightly tainted with irritation.

——Wait, ‘was’?

And without saying anything further, he waved his hand, and a sharp blade of wind swept through the tent like a slash of the saber. Fengli heard of this technique- Air Cutter- known to be preferred by people synchronized with Wood element.

She immediately formed what she imagined to be a shield in front of herself, and thankfully, there was enough resentful energy in the camp that a shield of liquid black manifested in front of her and blocked the strike.

Annu, on the other hand….