Chapter 24 Gathering at Qinglin Bay

“Okay, I’ll be wandering around the mountains for the next couple of days. Let’s go together tomorrow.” Shi Yuan agreed without hesitation.

If that huge dark shadow really comes to Qinglin Bay, it's better for everyone if we catch it sooner.

"Shi Ling, your nephew has arrived!" Li Mingfen led Shi Ming over with a big smile.

"Nephew?" Sheng Yunhua looked at Shi Ling in surprise. How come she didn't know that there was someone in the Shi family?

Shi Ling smiled at her, said nothing, and opened the courtyard gate to let her in.

"It's you?" Sheng Yunhua was surprised for a moment, then chuckled. Her Ling-jie still liked to pick up people and take them home.

She was a child who got lost because she was playing around and deliberately avoided adults, and was picked up and taken home by Sister Ling.

Li Mingfen was unaware of the inside story. Her son had a promising future, and she was full of enthusiasm for everyone in Qinglin Bay. She led Shi Ming to Shi Ling and praised him profusely before waving goodbye and leaving.

"Aunt, cousin." Shi Ming smiled shyly at Sheng Yunhua, unsure of how to address her.

"You can call me Aunt Yun, just like Shi Yuan does," Sheng Yunhua said, extending a friendly gesture.

"Aunt Yun!"

After exchanging greetings, the family sat down around the table for dinner. No one was surprised that a bird was allowed on the table. However, Fengcheng, who had been hiding, was a little unhappy because he was the only one not allowed to sit on the table.

"By the way, Wu Xingzhou asked me to give this to you." Shi Ming handed a note to Shi Yuan, on which was a string of numbers.

Shi Ling glanced at it: "It's a call from the Wu family."

"Just throw it away, it's useless," Shi Yuan said casually.

Upon hearing this, Shi Ming threw the note into the wastebasket and then brought up another matter: "When the educated youth were getting supplementary materials, they were still missing something, so I went to the post office with Wu Xingzhou to make a phone call."

“I heard from the post office that someone else has sent money to Sun Guangyao.”

Upon hearing this, Shi Yuan and Shi Ling exchanged a glance, swallowed the food in their mouths, and asked him, "Is it a remittance from Beicheng?"

Shi Ming shook his head: "At that time, Wu Xingzhou was making a phone call not far away, so I didn't ask."

Shi Yuan glanced at the note, wrote down the number, smiled, and ate with Shi Ling without saying anything.

After the meal, Shi Ling accompanied Shi Ming to the educated youth home to settle in, while Shi Yuan prepared to take Huan Ni to the post office.

Sheng Yunhua smiled and stopped the person: "Sun Guangyao's disappearance case has caused quite a stir. It's unlikely you'll get any information if you go directly to the post office."

"I'll go with you."

"Thank you, Aunt Yun."

"You're welcome." Sheng Yunhua's smile held a hint of disgust. "I also want to know if it was that person from Beicheng who wired the money to Sun Guangyao."

She and Shi Yuan exchanged a glance, both reading in each other's eyes the intention to teach Xie Minyin a lesson from afar.

Things went smoothly. Sheng Yunhua showed her identification and saw the original remittance slip. She took out her camera to take pictures as evidence and asked Shi Yuan for his opinion.

Shi Yuan smiled and said, "We are law-abiding citizens. Of course, we would report any clues related to the missing persons case to the police."

When they arrived at the police station, Qi Zhang was on his way to Qinglin Bay to investigate clues in the missing persons case. Upon hearing their purpose, he took them to give their statements.

After taking the statement, Shi Yuan said, "I know the remitter's home phone number. Captain Qi, do you want to know why the other party remitted money to Sun Guangyao?"

Qi Zhang certainly wanted to know. Sun Guangyao's case had been under investigation for so many days, and even a detective from the Seventh Bureau had been implicated. He was under so much pressure that he was going bald.

"No matter what happens later, please keep quiet, Captain Qi."

"certainly!"

Shi Yuan and Sheng Yunhua exchanged a glance and dialed the number on the note.

The phone kept ringing, but no one answered. Shi Yuan waited patiently.

Finally, the call was answered before it automatically hung up.

The other party answered the phone but did not speak.

At this moment, Huan Ni made a dazzling entrance. She casually called out into the microphone, "Auntie," and then said, "I've received the money. Please feel free to ask if you need anything." Her voice, filled with obsequiousness, was unmistakably Sun Guangyao's!

Sheng Yunhua raised an eyebrow, admiration flashing in his eyes. He thought to himself that Shi Yuan was truly extraordinary; even the little bird she raised had special skills.

Feng Cheng glanced at Huan Ni with an ambiguous expression, rubbed his fingertips together a few times, and thought that Shi Yuan had called him uncle, so that was his niece. This person and the bird, if they were outstanding, they were outstanding. He could protect them.

Among all the calm people, Qi Zhang's shock seemed a bit like an overreaction. He subconsciously closed his agape, thinking that he was just being naive.

There was still no sound on the other end of the phone. Huan Ni said again, "Auntie, don't you trust me? I treat you like my own mother!" After saying that, Huan Ni stuck out her tongue and felt disgusted with herself.

But these words worked. Xie Minyin finally spoke on the other end of the phone, her voice very low: "Find a chance to kill that idiot!" Then she hung up.

Shi Yuan raised an eyebrow at Qi Zhang and said with a smile, "Captain Qi, I am that fool."

"I want to report this to the police! Someone has hired someone to murder me!"

Qi Zhang: ...

“In this situation, we cannot file a case,” Qi Zhang said with difficulty.

"The result is not important. Captain Qi should just contact the Beicheng Public Security Bureau to inquire about Xie Minyin according to procedure."

What could Qi Zhang do? Of course, he accepted the case.

So, instead of waiting for Wu Guanhai to return home after finishing his official business, Xie Minyin was met by the police who arrested her.

Of course, since the attempted murder was unsuccessful and Sun Guangyao was actually a missing person, Xie Minyin's crime was not established, but her reputation as a vicious stepmother spread.

Wu Guanhai became even colder towards her, and even considered divorce.

Of course, compared to the chaos in Yang Fuguo's family home, the Wu family home was very quiet, so quiet that it became the norm for the male head of the household not to come home.

Qi Zhang had analyzed the situation for Shi Yuan and concluded that Xie Minyin was unlikely to be punished.

Firstly, Sun Guangyao has already disappeared, so the murderer who hired him doesn't exist. Secondly, Xie Minyin and Shi Yuan have a special relationship. If the Wu family uses some connections, Xie Minyin can change her story and say that she took her anger out on her stepdaughter because of marital discord, and that it was just something she said in anger. This matter can be resolved with a few words of verbal reprimand.

Shi Yuan knew, of course, that what she wanted was not to send Xie Minyin to jail right now, but to strike at the heart of the matter. If she did that, Xie Minyin's marriage would be in grave danger, and then she would have achieved her goal.

This matter is mainly meant to cause Xie Minyin some trouble and to give Wu Guanhai some cause for conflict.

After reporting the case, Shi Yuan and Sheng Yunhua agreed to search the mountain the next morning and then left Qingzhen.

Huan Ni felt like she had suffered ten thousand points of damage and insisted that Shi Yuan condense ten thousand needles for her as compensation. Shi Yuan laughed at her for taking advantage of her misfortune and joked around while bargaining with her.

By this time, it was completely dark. Shi Yuan remembered the eagle that had hunted Huan Ni last time, so she asked her, "Did you find out why the eagle was behaving strangely?"

Shi Yuan didn't understand Huan Ni's suppression of animals' bloodlines, but she knew that lower-level mutated animals would never dare to provoke higher-level mutated animals.

“Something unusual must be going on. Do you think the eagle’s strange behavior might be related to the secret of Qinglin Bay?” Shi Yuan speculated wildly.

“If that’s the case,” Huan Ni stroked the bird’s chin with her wing, “how about we set up a sting operation? I’ll fly high again, and that’ll be perfect for her to get revenge!”

"Are you sure?" Shi Yuan was still quite concerned about Huan Ni's safety.

"Of course, and besides, you're here." Huan Ni had a lot of faith in Shi Yuan.

"Okay, then you go ahead, I'll back you up."

As soon as Shi Yuan finished speaking, Huan Ni soared into the air, but she didn't fly far, hovering above where Shi Yuan was hiding.

Under the moonlight, the tiny Huan Ni almost blended into the darkness.

"Screech!" A sharp eagle cry rang out, and Shi Yuan immediately went on alert. Huan Ni, with her sharp eyes, spotted the eagle and immediately spat out golden needles.

"Clang clang clang!" A slight metallic clanging sound reached Shi Yuan's ears, and her expression became slightly solemn. The golden needles she conjured with her supernatural power were capable of piercing through mutated animals.

Just how powerful is this eagle? Even a golden needle can't pierce its defenses!

Thinking of this, Shi Yuan became fully alert, her right hand already forming several explosive talismans. Once the eagle came into view, she would immediately take action.

As the eagle's cry rang out again, Shi Yuan seized the opportunity to throw out a talisman. A streak of crimson flashed across the night sky, followed by Huan Ni's cursing voice: "Here we go again!"

"Stop bothering me!"

"I'm fishing! No! I'm fishing for eagles, don't ruin it!"

The eagle, struck by the talisman, became ferocious and swooped down towards Shi Yuan without regard for anything else!

Shi Yuan remained fearless, her talismans flying in her hands, protecting herself completely.

Seeing this, Huan Ni became agitated and pecked at the peach branch that was entwined around her a few times: "Let me go! I need to go help!"

The peach blossom branch felt a little aggrieved, but obediently loosened its restraints.

Before Huan Ni could return to help, several peach leaves shot through the air, hitting the eagle's head. Shi Yuan raised a finger, and an explosive talisman was aimed directly at the eagle's eye.

"burst!"

With a loud "boom," the talisman detonated precisely, and the eagle let out a sharp cry, knowing it was no match for the enemy and had to flee.

Where would Shi Yuan possibly give it such an opportunity?

He raised his hand and placed several talismans to block the eagle's path. The talismans exploded one by one, temporarily trapping the eagle.

Huan Ni flapped her wings and cheered in the air. Then, she opened her mouth and spat out dozens of talismans—a sneak attack!

The eagle, struggling to find a way to escape, was driven to its wits' end and swooped down recklessly.

Countless peach leaves suddenly appeared in front of Shi Yuan, protecting her completely. Shi Yuan was a little surprised, but she appreciated the peach leaves' kindness and did not rush out to face the eagle directly. Instead, she hid behind the peach leaves and kept throwing explosive talismans at the eagle.

As the eagle continued to charge, the Peach Leaf Shield became slightly unstable.

After the eagle struck again, the peach leaves scattered, and Gu Linyuan appeared in front of Shi Yuan.

If the occasion weren't inappropriate, Shi Yuan would at least offer a compliment like "Beautiful."

She's beautiful, and her entrance was beautiful too.

The eagle was already exhausted from Shi Yuan's attack. Gu Linyuan took the opportunity to use Tao Ye to tie the eagle up by connecting its head and tail. The eagle was very strong and struggled, almost escaping several times.

Shi Yuan, fearing that accidentally injuring Tao Ye would affect Gu Linyuan, stopped throwing talismans and instead conjured a golden needle, stabbing it hard into the spot where Tao Ye hadn't entangled the eagle.

"Screech!" The eagle cried out a few times before finally collapsing to the ground.

Huan Ni flapped her wings and flew to Shi Yuan's shoulder: "Well done!"

Atop her head, peach blossoms coiled themselves into a crown, and perhaps in response to Huan Ni's words, the peach blossom crown bounced a few times, appearing very lively.

Shi Yuan glanced at the tall and elegant Gu Linyuan again and felt that the phrase "like master, like pet" might not be accurate.

"Comrade Shi, are you alright?" Gu Linyuan's voice was as gentle as ever.

"We've fought together, so we're friends," Shi Yuan said with a smile. "Just call me Shi Yuan, Master Gu."

Gu Linyuan readily agreed, saying, "Shiyuan, don't call me Master Gu anymore, just call me by my name."

Shi Yuan nodded and introduced Huan Ni: "This is my partner, Huan Ni."

Huan Ni nodded somewhat aloofly.

The peach blossom branch got anxious and flew around Gu Linyuan in circles.

Gu Linyuan's lips curled into a helpless smile: "This is Linfeng, my younger brother."

Satisfied, the peach blossom branch flew back to Huan Ni's head and coiled into a flower crown.

Shi Yuan was somewhat surprised; it was actually her younger brother? She had thought…

However, this is not something she can comment on.

"By the way, what are you doing here?" Shi Yuan asked.

“He Tian has disappeared,” Gu Linyuan said. “I found a feather at the place where he was last seen.”

“He Tian is quite strong; ordinary birds of prey can’t even get close to him.” He took out the feather and showed it to Shi Yuan. “The base of this feather has a strange reddish hue.”

"I suspect he encountered a beast demon."

“He disappeared at night, and some people said they saw a huge dark shadow leaving Qingzhen and heading towards Qinglin Bay on the night Sun Guangyao disappeared.”

"Lin Feng and I went out at night to look for clues."

Shi Yuan and the others all looked at the enormous eagle at the same time.

Huan Ni couldn't keep a secret: "Could it be that Sun Guangyao and He Tian's disappearances were both caused by it?"

Gu Linfeng suddenly shot at the eagle, lashing it hard across its body. The eagle's initial cries were sharp and violent as it struggled incessantly. Its uninjured eyes glared fiercely at Gu Linfeng, as if it wanted to fight him to the death.

The peach blossom branch showed no fear, and split off two more branches to strike the eagle from all three angles.

This eagle is really something. An ordinary eagle would have been drained of blood long ago, but this eagle was only bald, with feathers flying everywhere and bloodstains all over its body, but its skin and flesh remained intact.

Fortunately, he knows what pain is.

When it cried out in anguish, Shi Yuan knew that the eagle had been subdued.

Once you're convinced, things become simple.

Huan Ni stood majestically on the peach blossom branch, interrogating the eagle. It's unclear whether Brother Gu Linyuan understood her, but Shi Yuan certainly didn't.

She's waiting for Huan Ni to finish her work so she can translate for her.

At first, the eagle was a little unconvinced that Huan Ni was so small and dared to point fingers at it, but after Gu Linfeng slapped it a few more times, it became completely obedient.

When animals are obedient, they are truly obedient; they will answer any question asked.

Soon the truth about Sun Guangyao and He Tian's disappearances was revealed.

Sun Guangyao knew that he had borrowed money from many people before leaving Qingzhen. He was too proud and forgot himself. Before leaving, he went to have some fun with a former lover.

When it comes to seeking pleasure, how can one do without alcohol?

When he drank too much, he couldn't control his mouth. He boasted to his girlfriend that he had made a lot of money and was going to make his way in the north of the city, and that he would become a respectable person in a few years.

His lover rolled his eyes and said he wanted a whole set of gold jewelry; otherwise, Sun Kuan Yew was just bragging.

How could the drunken Sun Guangyao resist such provocation? He told his mistress to wait, saying he would get her the gold jewelry right away!

Everyone knows that gold jewelry is a good thing, but who would dare to openly do this now?

But his accomplice was determined to squeeze money out of Sun Guangyao, so he coaxed Sun Guangyao to buy it on the black market.

This is why Sun Kuan Yew disappeared near the black market.

Shi Yuan couldn't help but say, "This eagle knows quite a lot. Did they chat during the kidnapping and being kidnapped?"

Huan Ni couldn't help but roll her eyes again: "Are you going to listen or not?"

Listen, listen!

Huan Ni continued speaking.

Sun Guangyao was just a drunkard; the eagles weren't even targeting him.

But he owes it!

Eagle was stalking near the black market. Fueled by alcohol, he had a wild idea: to capture Eagle. The black market was right ahead, and he could sell him for a good price. This way, he could save money on buying gold jewelry and make another fortune!

The result? The report was submitted to the police station, and Sun Guangyao became a missing person.

Gu Linyuan asked, "Who is Eagle targeting in the black market?"

Huan Ni looked at him.

Gu Linyuan suddenly realized: "Why are you staring at me?"

Huan Ni scratched her head and then whispered a few words to the eagle.

"It said its master told it to keep an eye on you, but the real target is the Ghost King."

"Fengcheng?"

"That's right."

Before Gu Linyuan could ask why, Huan Ni said, "As for why, it doesn't know."

"A huge footprint was left at the scene of Sun Guangyao's disappearance. Whose was it?" Gu Linyuan asked, taking the opportunity to inquire about the case.

Huan Ni shook her head: "I don't know."

"Doesn't it belong to its owner?"

Huan Ni's expression was somewhat strange: "Its owner is not human." This was a statement, not an insult, and Huan Ni quickly added, "Its owner is a strange plant that grows deep in the mountains."

"Please ask it where He Tian is? Also, is Sun Guangyao still alive?"

“Sun Guangyao fed it to its owner that very night, and it’s probably digested by now,” Huan Ni said gleefully, spreading her wings.

"What about He Tian?"

"The eagle discovered that its owner really liked to eat Sun Guangyao. That night, it was rare that it didn't eat him and instead spat him out to play with. So it started thinking about catching people for its owner."

However, the eagle was clever. Knowing that it wouldn't work to openly arrest people, it planned to wait until late at night to target lone individuals.

He Tian was the one who got caught by the eagle and ended up alone.

But compared to Sun Guangyao, He Tian was a tough nut to crack; it took the Eagles a long time to finally capture him.

"It said that He Tian was very cunning, pretending to faint to deceive him and his master, and escaped just before being swallowed by his master."

“However, he was seriously injured,” Huan Ni added.

Because of this sentence, Gu Linyuan decided to go up the mountain overnight to find He Tian.

The person had just helped Shi Yuan, and Shi Yuan offered to help search the mountain, saying that she was familiar with it and that she had searched many places in the past two days without finding any trace of He Tian.

Before Gu Linyuan could agree, Gu Linfeng jumped up excitedly, twisting the branches into the shape of the word "Go!"

Gu Linyuan smiled helplessly and quickly thanked Shi Yuan.

"No need to thank me. He Tian is someone I know, so it's only right that I do my part." This was purely a polite remark; Shi Yuan wasn't exactly a warm-hearted person!

Shi Yuan asked Huan Ni to pass on a message to Sheng Yunhua, telling her about her going up the mountain to look for someone: "Tell Aunt Yun that I will wait for her on the mountain tomorrow."

"Understood." Huan Ni flapped her wings and flew away, with Gu Linfeng following behind.

After fighting and interrogating the eagle, it was already past midnight. However, Shi Yuan wasn't worried about waking Sheng Yunhua, since she had Fengcheng by her side who didn't need to sleep.

Gu Linyuan slightly raised his wrist, and the rope formed from the peach leaves pulled the eagle into the air.

Shi Yuan watched with envy, and felt a pang of regret that she hadn't systematically learned talismans from Ji Ying back then.

However, she only felt regret for a short while, and then it passed after a brief sigh.

What's past is past!

Neither Gu Linyuan nor Shi Yuan were the type to initiate conversations, so they remained silent on the way up the mountain, though neither of them felt awkward.

Upon reaching the mountain, Gu Linyuan asked the eagle to guide him to his master. The eagle pretended to be dead, closed its eyes, and lowered its head. A peach blossom branch then appeared in Gu Linyuan's palm.

Under the moonlight, Gu Linyuan's expression was unusually cold and somber. The jade-like man holding the scarlet peach blossom branch added an unexpected touch of allure.

However, Shi Yuan dared not disrespect this person, as he was the director of the Seventh Division and had a younger brother named Tao Huazhi, whose background must be extraordinary.

Before Gu Linyuan could make a move, the eagle's eyelids rolled back and it woke up again, then it obediently began to give directions.

Its owner indeed lived very deep in the mountains, and in a very secluded place. Shi Yuan thought he had explored almost all seven peaks in the past few days, but he had never been here before.

The eagle led them to a valley. Its wings and claws were entangled in peach leaves. Gu Linyuan and Shi Yuan could not understand what it was saying, so they could only struggle in vain and cry out a few times.

Shi Yuan looked around and said, "This valley has no entrance. Could it be saying that we can't get in?"

"Screech!" The eagle let out a short cry, as if mocking.

Shi Yuan raised an eyebrow. Had she guessed correctly?

The eagle flapped its wings a few more times.

Shi Yuan guessed, "If we release you, will you lead us in?"

"Screech!" He nodded frantically.

Shi Yuan smiled and turned to Gu Linyuan, saying, "This eagle is quite clever."

Gu Linyuan nodded: "It's treating us like fools." As soon as he said it, he realized the familiarity in his words and couldn't help but look at Shi Yuan.

Under the moonlight, Shi Yuan burst out laughing: "I heard that disobedient monsters are eventually refined into magical artifacts and become the public property of the Seventh Division."

Gu Linyuan nodded: "You're quite well-informed."

Shi Yuan glanced at the eagle and asked, "Is this guy a monster? Can it be forged into a magical artifact?"

"If we can't, since we've already plucked the feathers, let's roast it and have it as a midnight snack."

"Screech!" The eagle struggled frantically, its cry growing increasingly mournful.

A rustling sound came from the valley, adding a touch of eeriness to the quiet night.

Shi Yuan and Gu Linyuan exchanged a glance and simultaneously became wary.

For an eagle, a creature as formidable as an impenetrable fortress, to call someone else its master suggests its strength is not to be underestimated.

Shi Yuan couldn't help but think that she had miscalculated; she should have invited her Ghost King uncle, who was also at the pinnacle of combat power.

Before she could think any further, a branch thicker than her thigh emerged from behind the valley.

"Screech!" The eagle saw its master was extremely agitated and struggled and rolled around, trying to get its master to save it.

At the same time, Shi Yuan raised her hand, and thousands of golden needles shot towards the branches. Her experience in fighting mutated plants told her that it was best to strike first!

Gu Linyuan pointed, and a row of peach leaves transformed into sharp blades in the direction of his finger, attacking the branches one after the other along with the golden needles, coordinating perfectly with Shi Yuan.

As expected of the eagle's master, its body was as tough as the eagle's; the golden needles and peach leaves were swept off the branches just as they pierced the bark.

Seeing this, Shi Yuan stopped using the golden needles as weapons and instead threw out several explosive talismans in succession.

The branch, in pain, retreated back into the valley.

Shi Yuan and Gu Linyuan exchanged a glance, both with solemn expressions.

Compared to this guy, Sang Rou is just a fragile piece of trash.

When Sang Rou was mentioned, Shi Yuan seemed to be deep in thought. She asked Gu Linyuan, "You should have interrogated Sang Rou, right? I remember she achieved success in her cultivation in Qinglin Bay. Do you know exactly which place that is?"

Gu Linyuan nodded. The seventh location contained a book called "Records of Strange Demons," which detailed information about all kinds of monsters, spirits, and exotic plants.

Sang Rou was interrogated and her records were kept immediately after she was taken to the Seventh Division.

He looked around and said, "Sang Rou was seriously injured and separated from her original body. In addition, she has been giving demon blood to Ma Rong for many years, so she has lost some of her memories."

"According to her, the place where she attained enlightenment was very suitable for plant cultivation, and there were other companions around who were about to attain enlightenment."

"As for the exact location, she couldn't say. She only said that there was a spring nearby with excellent water quality, which was coveted by all the surrounding plants and animals."

Shi Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously thought of the first line of the couplet in his ancestor's handwritten notes: "The moon shines on the empty spring, attracting the spirits!"

"What else did she say?" Shi Yuan asked. "Is there anything special about that spring water?"

Gu Linyuan shook his head: "She only remembers the spring water, nothing else."

Shi Yuan looked towards the valley: "Could it be that the spring is in the valley?"

Seeing that the branch was no longer emerging, she took a few steps forward and nudged the eagle: "Tell me, is there a spring in the valley?"

The eagle was already disgruntled when it saw its master being driven back. Seeing Shi Yuan's dismissive attitude, it was so angry that it wanted to kill Shi Yuan with its head. However, the situation was stronger than the eagle's, and it had no choice but to passively resist.

What? It can kill Shi Yuan with its beak?

Don't be ridiculous. If it uses its head to make a wish, it might get a beating at most. But if it uses its beak, well, it doesn't want to become a person's midnight snack!

"Tell me now, or I'll roast you!" Shi Yuan threatened, and it really was just a threat. This eagle could catch people and feed them to its master; maybe it had even eaten them itself. She couldn't accept that!

But eagles can't read minds, and when they heard that Shi Yuan was going to roast them, they immediately cowered.

"Screech!" It confessed. It didn't know if there was a spring in the valley, but it knew that there must be treasure in the place its master occupied!

Its owner was able to leave the valley long ago, but for decades he has guarded the valley like a miser, not even moving a single pit. Any demon could see that something was wrong!

Of course, Shi Yuan didn't understand what the eagle was saying, but what a coincidence! Huan Ni returned at the crucial moment, and even better, Sheng Yunhua and Feng Cheng came together!

Tonight is definitely the perfect time to explore the valley at night!

Feng Cheng raised a finger, and a cloud of black mist disappeared into the eagle's body. Sheng Yunhua explained to Shi Yuan in a low voice, "This is to make it obediently lead the way."

Shi Yuan suddenly realized, feeling both amazed and impressed; the Ghost King's methods were indeed formidable!

She looked at the valley, then at her own camp. Apart from the Wu family, everyone she suspected who was interested in the secrets of Qinglin Bay was here.

After the black mist entered its body, the eagle's originally red eyes turned black, making it look more normal than before.

Gu Linyuan retrieved the peach leaf that bound the eagle. The eagle cried out, shook its body, and assumed a backward-leaning posture, about to fly into the air.

It was embarrassing; it couldn't fly because Gu Linfeng had plucked all its feathers off.

Fortunately, Fengcheng didn't let the eagle feel embarrassed for too long; he used black clouds to make a pair of wings for the eagle.

In our camp, Fengcheng can control the black clouds to fly, and with Sheng Yunhua in his arms, flying into the valley will not be a problem.

Needless to say, Huan Ni and Gu Linfeng can fly ahead of the eagle.

All that's left is Shi Yuan, who can't fly, and Gu Linyuan, who doesn't know if he can fly at all.

Shi Yuan looked at Huan Ni, but Huan Ni turned her head away, indicating that she couldn't help.

She gave a dry laugh and said, "I'll go in by the eagle's claws."

“Then I’ll grab the eagle’s claws and go in too.” After Gu Linyuan finished speaking, Gu Linfeng flew around him once, seemingly not understanding why he said that.

"Then let's go." Feng Chenghua glanced deeply at Gu Linyuan, and without needing to borrow strength, he carried Sheng Yun lightly through the air, looking both beautiful and powerful.

Shi Yuan gripped the eagle's claws tightly, the night wind making her hair a mess, while Huan Ni chattered beside her about how Feng Cheng initially told her not to wake Sheng Yunhua, and so on.

Shi Yuan didn't really want to talk to Huan Ni, because every time she opened her mouth, she would be filled with the night wind.

She remembered someone telling her when she was little that eating wind would cause hiccups.

Imagine her hanging in mid-air, holding onto an eagle's claws, and constantly hiccuping. Wouldn't that look good?

A chill ran through her as a row of peach leaves secured her wrist to the eagle's claws. Shi Yuan looked at Gu Linyuan, who smiled and said, "This is safer."

The two were so close that their breaths mingled.

But Shi Yuan didn't sense any ambiguity at all; she was only impressed that Gu Linyuan's hairstyle and clothes were still in perfect order.

As if knowing what Shi Yuan was thinking, Gu Linyuan lowered his eyes and said, "I'll shield you from the wind." As soon as he finished speaking, a peach leaf shield appeared around Shi Yuan.

Shi Yuan felt much better and sincerely said, "Thank you."

"Screech!" The eagle began to swoop down.

Thanks to Gu Linyuan's Peach Leaf Shield, Shi Yuan was unaffected. However, she strongly suspected that although the eagle was under control, its self-awareness had not disappeared. Its sudden swooping down was definitely to take revenge on her and Gu Linyuan!

As they approached the ground, Gu Linyuan removed the peach leaves that were wrapped around Shi Yuan's wrist, and at the same time, the peach leaves that were protecting Shi Yuan came to her feet.

"Jump!" Gu Linyuan's voice reached her ears. Without hesitation, Shi Yuan released the eagle claws, bent her knees, covered her head, and jumped to the ground.

The expected pain did not occur. She rolled a few times on a soft peach leaf to dissipate the force and then stood up unharmed.

When she looked up, she saw Feng Cheng carefully placing Sheng Yunhua on the ground and even reaching out to help her tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

This damn ubiquitous PDA!

Shi Yuan withdrew her gaze and thanked Gu Linyuan.

Gu Linyuan smiled and shook his head, then raised his hand to accept the peach leaf, saying, "No need to thank me."

Their commotion wasn't loud, but it still alerted the eagle's owner, and several thick branches attacked them from different directions.

Shi Yuan had previously tested the branches with golden needles and talismans, and knew their power. Now she was not fighting alone. After condensing the explosive talisman, she did not throw it at the branch immediately, but instead condensed several more to form an explosive talisman array and threw it at the branch.

Her talismans were already quite powerful, and when they were condensed into a talisman array, their energy increased exponentially, directly blasting several bloody holes in the branches.

"Roar!" The eagle's owner cried out in pain, then disappeared, dragging the injured branch with him.

In just a moment, new branches attacked from all directions, clearly indicating that this time, the eagle's owner was serious.

Gu Linyuan slightly raised his hands, and a ball of green gradually condensed in his palms. The green grew larger and larger, and finally, he pushed his palms slightly, and the green ball shot out like an arrow towards the jagged branches.

"Boom!" The damage caused by the green ball was similar to that of Shi Yuan's rune array.

However, the eagle's owner did not retract the branch this time, but instead attacked Shi Yuan and his group even more frantically.

Upon seeing this, Fengcheng first shielded Sheng Yunhua with a layer of black cloud, then raised his hand, and the black cloud transformed into a bow and arrow, launching an attack.

Sheng Yunhua's weapon is a Browning pistol, which never misses its mark.

Huan Ni was spitting talismans and golden needles onto the branches from the side. Gu Linfeng followed suit, turning peach petals into small arrows and sticking them straight at the branches, just like Huan Ni did.

It wasn't very harmful, but it annoyed the eagle's owner a lot. Several times, the branches lashed straight at them, but they were small and incredibly agile, and they dodged each time.

While Shi Yuan and his temporary companions were fighting to the death with the eagle's owner, Wu Xingzhou was packing his luggage at the guesthouse, preparing to head north.

He hasn't slept properly for the past few days!

Wu Xingzhou forcefully threw the clothes in his hand into his suitcase and sat on the bed in a somewhat dejected manner.

He didn't know why Shi Yuan had such a strong opinion against the Wu family!

She actually orchestrated a scheme that caused the Wu family to lose face!

Wu Xingzhou was somewhat annoyed. If he had known, he wouldn't have deliberately kept Sun Guangyao's disappearance from Shi Yuan's mind because of Aunt Xie's targeting of her.

He could imagine how his acquaintances in Beicheng would laugh at the Wu family.

His girlfriend's family already objected to their relationship because of the extramarital affair that Wu Guanhai and Xie Minyin had made back then.

Now look what's happened! He'll be waiting to go back and get dumped!

Time is of the essence!

She's a member of the Wu family too!

How dare you!

As dawn broke, a staff member from the guesthouse knocked on Wu Xingzhou's door, saying that someone was calling for him.

Wu Xingzhou rubbed his face wearily and went downstairs to answer the phone.

The call was from Wu Guanhai, whose tone was extremely tense. He instructed Wu Xingzhou over the phone, "Bring Wu Yuan to the Wu family immediately!"

Gu Xingzhou smiled wryly: "Second Uncle, she doesn't listen to me at all." After thinking for a moment, he took a deep breath, "Also, Second Aunt changed Wu Yuan's surname, and she is now called Shi Yuan."

The phone was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. He heard Wu Guanhai pant a few times, then take a few deep breaths before speaking again: "Call her over to the phone. I'll talk to her myself!"

Wu Xingzhou thought Shi Yuan wouldn't pay any attention to them, but he still agreed. He said, "I bought a train ticket for this afternoon. If she listens to her second uncle, I'll give her the ticket and let her head north first." Just in case things get complicated!

But he always felt that he was being blindly optimistic, and the most likely scenario was that Shi Yuan would not come to town to answer the phone call from her father, whom she had not seen for more than ten years!

The situation was worse than he had imagined; he didn't even get to see Shi Yuan!

It's not that she prefers to avoid him, but rather that she prefers not to be at home.

"Second Aunt, when will Shi Yuan come back? I'll wait for her." Despite Shi Ming's wary gaze, Wu Xingzhou insisted on expressing his request.

"She's been very busy lately, and I don't know when she'll be back." Shi Ling's attitude was lukewarm, and she closed the courtyard gate after speaking.

Wu Xingzhou smiled bitterly and could only swallow his question about Shi Yuan's whereabouts.

Just then, he vaguely heard some noises coming from the mountain, and his gaze involuntarily turned towards the mountain.