Tang Nian took a short break to calm herself, burned a soul-suppressing talisman, used the talisman ash to make a cup of tea, drank it, and then left the inn.
She didn't notice that Lou Mu watched her leave from the window, and only closed the window after she was out of sight.
"Senior, are we really going to send Master Tang alone?"
Jing Yao stood behind Lou Mu and asked cautiously.
She didn't know why, but seeing Tang Nian's eyes gave her a sense of oppression, and she couldn't help but want to run away.
“We should trust her, shouldn’t we?” Lou Mu revealed the string of beads on his wrist and gently rubbed it.
In fact, Lou Mu had already realized that what was written on the paper was probably just to fool them. Only Tang Nian herself knew what the evil spirit had told her.
"Has Wang Chengping completed all the tasks assigned to him?"
Wang Chengping is that Magistrate Wang.
"Yes, he also asked his junior to bring this to you." As she spoke, Jing Yao took out a letter from her sleeve.
After Lou Mu opened and read the letter, the letter turned into a pile of ash and fell to the ground.
"By the way, is there any news about Ming Huan that I asked you to investigate?"
That Bifang has too many secrets. Now that he's run into it, Lou Mu has to investigate it thoroughly to see if it's qualified to stay by Tang Nian's side.
Jing Yao shook her head, somewhat frustrated and worried: "I can only find out that he has some connection with the God. As for the rest, Jing Yao is powerless."
Her family wanted her to train alongside Lou Mu, fearing that if she failed in her duties, Lou Mu would send her back to Qingqiu.
"It's a high god again..."
“Senior, um…” Jing Yao hesitated, remembering the letter that Qingqiu had sent a while ago.
"Once things are settled in the capital, I will go back to Qingqiu with you."
"Yes, senior."
Lou Mu opened the window a crack again, and the setting sun shone on his face. He squinted and looked into the distance.
Tonight, another fierce battle is on the horizon.
He plucked a bead, muttered something under his breath, tossed it out the window, and disappeared.
Since it was still early, Tang Nian decided to go and see the river in the city first.
There was indeed a faint black smoke floating on the river. If Ming Huan hadn't been sensitive to these things, Tang Nian probably wouldn't have noticed it.
However, according to Ming Huan, it seems that he watched the black smoke drift down from upstream.
Indeed, if black smoke had been billowing earlier, Ming Huan wouldn't have rushed back to the inn in such a panic.
Tang Nian took a deep breath, immediately covered her mouth and nose, and coughed uncontrollably.
Is there poison in this smoke?
Tang Nian could be considered a master of poisons, so this amount of poison was nothing to her, but it was a different story for the people in the city.
However, Tang Nian couldn't discern the effects of the poison, nor did she know what would happen if the people inhaled it.
Judging from the black smoke here, the black smoke on Muyun Mountain will only be more severe.
For some reason, Tang Nian thought of that bronze cauldron, which had disappeared after she saw it in Muyun Village.
The four of them searched for so long, but found no trace of the bronze cauldron.
She had an urge to ask Minghuan to go with her, but she quickly restrained herself.
Ming Huan's appearance today really bothered her, but she felt at ease leaving him with Lou Mu and Jing Yao.
not to mention……
The paper originally had more than ten characters written on it, but the extra characters disappeared after Lou Mu went upstairs.
The bloody smell she detected did not emanate from those ten characters, which were written with the finest cinnabar.
These ten characters seemed to be just a smokescreen. What Tang Nian saw first was: "At 1:15 PM, at Mirror Lake, one man protects the entire city."
Tang Nian had her own way of protecting herself, and besides, the evil spirit had only been targeting her, so she didn't want to involve Lou Mu as well.
Under the last rays of the setting sun, Tang Nian stepped out of the city gate and headed towards Muyun Mountain.
As the sun set, Muyun County became even quieter. Just like the previous two days, apart from two guesthouses that were still brightly lit, there were no other lights on.
The black smoke that had been just floating above the river slowly spread outwards, silently engulfing the entire city.
Lou Mu and Jing Yao stood on the second-floor corridor of the inn, looking down at the Celestial Master below.
"Senior, aren't we going to help?" Jing Yao asked, looking at the group of Taoist masters rushing out of the inn.
Lou Mu turned his head and glanced at the still-closed door not far away, then gently shook his head: "The time is not up yet, let's wait a little longer."
Jing Yao looked down at the group of Taoist masters again, feeling a pang of pity.
"Jingyao, as one of the heirs of Qingqiu, you need to think carefully about the responsibilities you bear." Lou Mu didn't look at Jingyao, but simply said this before returning to his room.
Lou Mu lit an oil lamp and sighed softly.
As the voices downstairs grew quieter, Lou Mu ripped a bead from his bracelet and muttered something under his breath.
Tang Nian didn't know what black smoke was, but Lou Mu knew a little about it.
Lou Mu couldn't draw talismans, and the Soul-Suppressing Talisman that Tang Nian gave him wasn't enough to save everyone in the city.
The only way to save these people is to find an excuse to put everyone into an illusion.
This was also what he asked Magistrate Wang to do.
Jingyao only knew that he had asked Magistrate Wang to invite those Taoist priests to exorcise the demon tonight, but she could not imagine his true purpose.
With her like this, Lou Mu was not at ease handing over the leadership of Qingqiu to her.
Jing Yao stood there, stunned. She understood Lou Mu's meaning, and she believed that Lou Mu would not ignore the fate of those people, but she could not remain calm like Lou Mu in this situation.
"What's wrong?" At this moment, Ming Huan came out of the room. After resting for an afternoon, he could no longer be seen to have any problems.
He followed Jingyao's gaze downstairs, where the once bustling first floor was now deserted.
"This is……"
Jing Yao didn't speak, but turned her head to look at Lou Mu, who was seemingly lost in thought in the room.
"Let's go, it's time for us to set off." Lou Mu stood up, patted his clothes, and said to the two people outside the door.
Ming Huan noticed that there were no lights in Tang Nian's room. He pushed open the door and found the room empty.
"Where is Sister Tang?"
Lou Mu walked out of the room and closed the door: "Her? She went up the mountain."
"What? You didn't stop her?"
Ming Huan was taken aback at first, his eyes clearly showing his worry for Tang Nian, but Jing Yao, who was standing next to him, keenly noticed that there was also a hint of relief deep in his worry.
He didn't even bother with Lou Mu and the other man before rushing out.
Lou Mu's lips curled into a smile, which he quickly suppressed.
He handed the stack of talismans Tang Nian had given him to Jing Yao: "Go and give this to Ming Huan."
Jingyao held the talisman, pursed her lips, and glanced downstairs. Minghuan was already gone. She then looked at Lou Mu, nodded, and ran downstairs to chase after Minghuan.
After Jingyao left the inn, Lou Mu smiled and touched his chin. The bracelet, which should have been missing two beads, was now hanging perfectly on his wrist.
That should be enough to fool them, right...?
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