November 26th.

At noon, the dark guard camp.

"Dan Zuo, you've been in the Dark Guard Battalion for three months now. Let me see the results of your training during this time."

An San, dressed in a crimson-purple suit and wearing a half-gilded butterfly-shaped mask on his head, looked at the boy in front of him with a firm gaze and a courageous character, and a hint of admiration flashed across his eyes.

Despite his young age, Shan Zuo possessed a sharp mind, quick thinking, and a willingness to work hard. While others rested, he diligently studied and practiced. His attacks were swift, accurate, and ruthless, a natural fit for a secret guard role.

During his time at the Dark Guard Camp, Shan Zuo had undergone rigorous training and had already defeated many girls taller and stronger than him, standing out from tens of thousands of other soldiers. As long as he passed today's test, he would become a qualified Dark Guard.

"Master An San, as long as I pass today's test, can I leave the Dark Guard Camp and return to my master? (And see my younger brother Ayou?)" Shan Zuo looked at the heroic woman in front of him with burning eyes and anticipation.

An San glanced at Shan Zuo when he heard this, but she opened her thin lips slightly and said leisurely, "Let's see how you perform."

Although the master said that he would let the boy go only after he performed well, he did not specify the specific time, which means that An San, who is responsible for training the secret guards, has the right to decide.

"Yes, Master An San. Shan Zuo will definitely do his best." Shan Zuo saluted An San with a fist.

"Dan Zuo, your mission this time is to find five designated objects representing 'gold, wood, water, fire, and earth' before nightfall. They are located in five different locations in the capital. Of course, I will give you hints, and you can use them to sort out the clues and find them. You only have about six hours, so hurry."

"Yes, Master An San. Please give your instructions." Shan Zuo saluted An San again.

"Purple jade is silent, golden sand is audible. The North Sea is vast, and it has been a world of vanity for thousands of years. The lotus emerges from the water, unstained by dust. The red phantom fascinates the world. It subdues dragons and tigers, and slays demons and monsters." After An San finished speaking, he glanced at Shan Zuo and turned away.

This test is no easy one. It tests not only physical fitness but also reasoning and critical thinking. Even they might not be able to complete it within the time limit. But if Shan Zuo wants to achieve his wish, he must face the difficulties head-on, overcome the obstacles, and complete the mission. Only then can he obtain the master's pardon and return to his position as soon as possible.

"Yes, Master An San."

Although the words from An San's mouth were a headache, Dan Zuo knew that this was a great opportunity for him to leave the Dark Guard Camp, and he had to forge ahead no matter how difficult it was.

After leaving the Dark Guard Camp outside the western suburbs of the city, Shan Zuo began to recite the hints given by An San and tried to find clues in them.

"Gold, wood, water, fire, earth, gold, wood, water, fire, earth… Purple jade is silent, while golden sand makes sounds. It is said that the purple clay teapot belongs to the earth element. The most famous purple clay teapot in the capital is undoubtedly the 'Liusha Teapot' owned by Master Ci'en, the abbot of Baiyun Temple.

After locking in his idea, Shan Zuo immediately mounted his horse, whipped it, and headed towards Baiyun Temple on the western outskirts of the city.

At three quarters past noon, Shan Zuo stole the precious quicksand pot from the meditation room of Master Ci'en, the abbot of Baiyun Temple.

After finding "earth" among "gold, wood, water, fire and earth", Shan Zuo began to think about where the next item was.

"The vast North Sea, a thousand years of vanity. A lotus emerging from the water, untainted by dust."

Dan Zuo muttered to himself, frowning slightly. Not finding any clues, he decisively chose to skip it.

"'Red phantom, enchanting the world.' This refers to the Red Ghost, which is of the Fire element. Rumor has it that the richest man in Beijing, Qian Duoduo, recently acquired a bracelet made of the finest Red Ghost. So it must be in his house."

After clearing his mind, Shan Zuo rode his horse towards Jinxi Street, the most prosperous street in the city. The residence of Qian Duoduo, the richest man in the capital, was only two streets away from Jinxi Street.

At one o'clock in the morning, Shan Zuo successfully took out the red ghost bracelet that Qian Duoduo had hidden in the secret compartment of her room, and swiftly turned around and left the Qian Mansion.

After finding the "fire" item in the Five Elements, Dan Zuo started to move on to the next target.

"'Subdue dragons and tigers, slay demons and exorcise evil spirits.' Isn't that a favorite Taoist motto? They're probably referring to the 'Raging Dragon Slash' sword made of peach wood, rumored to ward off evil spirits and exorcise demons."

After finding the clue, Shan Zuo mounted his horse again and galloped all the way to Xiangyang Temple halfway up Qifeng Mountain in the north of the city.

At seven quarters past nine, Shan Zuo successfully stole the Xiangyang Temple's treasure, the "Angry Dragon Slash", from Wang Zhenyi's dormitory.

An San only knew that Dan Zuo was agile, but he didn't know that Dan Zuo was good at stealing things. As long as he had clues about the items and knew where they were, it was not difficult for Dan Zuo to "take" them away.

The "Angry Dragon Slash" is made of peach wood, which belongs to the wood element. Now that the "wood," "fire," and "earth" of the "gold, wood, water, fire, and earth" have been found, only "gold" and "water" remain...

Dan Zuo, who was riding a horse and leaving the northern suburbs of the city, began to think carefully about An San's words.

"The North Sea is vast, a thousand years of vanity. The North Sea is vast, a thousand years of vanity. The North Sea, the North Sea..."

Shan Zuo, who was muttering to himself, suddenly had a bright look in his eyes.

"It's Beiming Black Iron!"

As far as Shan Zuo knew, wasn't the owner of the North Sea Black Iron Feng Qiyan, the daughter of the Grand General's Mansion? The "gold" in "gold, wood, water, fire, and earth" must refer to the short sword in Feng Qiyan's hand, made of North Sea Black Iron and capable of slicing through iron like mud.

However, when he thought of Feng Qiyan's dagger, the light in Dan Zuo's eyes dimmed a little.

He had originally used that dagger forged from the North Sea Black Iron to assassinate Emperor Nalan Yunzhi, and because of it, he had nearly been executed. Although his master pleaded for him and spared his life, he was forced to separate from his brother, Ah You, and go to the Dark Guard Camp...

Now, whether he can leave the Dark Guard Camp depends on whether he can find this black iron sword. Dan Zuo's thoughts are turning around and around, extremely complicated.

"Hurry~"

No matter how he felt in his heart, he had already found three of the five items representing the five elements designated by An San, so he had to hurry to find the remaining two.

After sorting out his thoughts, Shan Zuo rode his horse away from the north of the city.

In order to save time, Shan Zuo took a small road directly, crossed the woods, came from the north of the city to the east of the city, and went straight to the back mountain of the Imperial College from the woods at the junction of the east and central cities.

While Shan Zuo was running around, he was occasionally stopped and checked by soldiers, but he didn't care too much because he was focused on completing his mission.

At six o'clock in the afternoon, after riding his horse into the woods at the junction of the east and central parts of the city, Shan Zuo inexplicably smelled a dangerous scent.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Dan Zuo heard a faint "woooooooooooo" sound, similar to the sound made by covering the mouth and nose, and the voice seemed to be young, probably a child.

Dan Zuo, who was very vigilant, immediately slowed down his horse's pace and carefully identified the source of the sound.

After a while, Shan Zuo saw a large deep pit with a number of children lying in it with their hands and feet tied and their mouths stuffed with rags. There were about twenty or thirty children.

And, most importantly, there were more than a dozen masked men in black shoveling dirt at the edge of the pit to bury them...