Treading over damp soil and withered leaves, crossing through bushes and brambles, Qiao Muyi was led by Ren Suo by hand, stealthily but resolutely following him through the mountain forest, moving towards their destination in the dark.

It's going too smoothly.

Qiao Muyi had never imagined that this final adventure would proceed so effortlessly.

In the morning, when they entered the mountain, Qiao Muyi noticed that the Metropolitan Police Department had already blocked the mountain's main roads and highways. Furthermore, Transcendents from the Martial Soul Hall, Iron Sun, Tactical Bureau of Mysterious Country, Watchers, Wizard Council, and Winter Castle had also stationed themselves within the Missile Mountain Range. They were setting a trap, waiting for Qiao Muyi and Ren Suo to walk right into it.

The moment she entered the mountain, she already regretted it. When she realized her location was exposed, she guessed that her purpose might have been deduced by the enemy as well. Flying Missile Mountain—the name of the place was a clear hint. She just hadn't expected that the enemy could actually influence the Joint Investigation Team formed by the Six Great Supernatural Organizations, and even direct its strategy, leaving her no opportunities for an indirect breakout!

After days of investigation, Qiao Muyi connected the clues and vaguely understood the enemy's aim: under such a perfectly executed framing, her responses were supposed to be limited to two—surrender or violent resistance, possibly just what they wanted to see.

Only because of Ren Suo's appearance had Qiao Muyi stubbornly forged a third path: investigating the evidence and making a desperate turnaround!

However, by today, Qiao Muyi felt that this third path had also come to an end. Venturing further into the mountain for investigation would almost inevitably lead to an encounter with the Joint Investigation Team's Transcendents. An encounter with a Transcendent would surely lead to a fight. Fighting, in turn, would mean falling into a cycle of endless Resentment.

This was exactly what the enemy had hoped for.

The more Qiao Muyi thought about it, the heavier the hate and killing intent became inside her. As she pondered, surrender was out of the question. Even if she flew back to Mysterious Country now, she still couldn't pass the Tactical Bureau's Slaughter Spell test. To account for the Slaughter Spells she bore and to give the world an explanation, her execution was inevitable. Rather than living so stifled, she might as well... But no matter what she planned to do, she had to first make Ren Suo leave. Lest he see her in danger and foolishly rush over to protect her, which would be both joyous and heartbreaking. She didn't want Ren Suo to fall into danger, nor did she want to tarnish the image he held of her in his heart. Don't let him see my injuries when I look miserable. Don't let him see my madness when I struggle. Don't let him see my distortion when I'm angry. Human wounds are ugly. Bodies that fall and get covered in mud appear filthy. The sight of a dead body is even more fearsome. These scenes that could tarnish her perfect image—she couldn't let him see them.

However, just as Qiao Muyi was finding the words to persuade him, Ren Suo suddenly pulled her onto a rugged trail into the mountain.

"My intuition tells me this way is safe," he glanced at Qiao Muyi, pointing at the thorny path ahead that barely counted as a beast trail, full of confidence. "We definitely won't encounter anyone else."

"Your... intuition?"

"Yes, my intuition. Trust me, Brother Suo won't deceive you," Ren Suo patted his chest, giving her a look-at-me expression.

Qiao Muyi stared at him dumbfounded for a few seconds, then burst out laughing and chopped him lightly on the head with a hand-blade. "Give you an inch and you take a mile, Xiao Suo, are you itching for a beating?"

Ren Suo's intuition was always accurate; Qiao Muyi knew that. He could always use that brute-like intuition to comfort her in very awkward ways whenever she was upset.

But she hadn't expected his intuition to be *this* accurate.

After a peaceful day passed, under the watchful eyes of the Joint Investigation Team, they moved east and west, traversing nearly twenty kilometers of mountain road, undiscovered by anyone, continuously nearing their destination!

Along the way, Ren Suo instructed Qiao Muyi to hide in the dark underbrush. They would wait for a patrol team to pass by, then immediately knock them out with the Sealing Staff, ensuring the force was just enough to keep them unconscious for 15 to 30 minutes.

Then they would quickly move to another location. Once the unconscious patrol members awoke and shot their signal flares, nearby patrol members would converge on that spot. Ren Suo and Qiao Muyi would then jump out again to knock out these rescuing patrol members.

This repetition created the illusion that they were still in those mountains. In reality, after they knocked out the third patrol group, Ren Suo had already led her rapidly elsewhere.

As for why he specifically used Sakura Kinomoto's Sealing Staff, Ren Suo's explanation was, "Since we have to knock them out anyway, why not use something that will make them feel endlessly humiliated upon recalling it? Being knocked out by a Magical Girl's Magic Wand might even make their leaders think they've gone insane."

Although it sounded unreliable, Ren Suo's strategy worked: they were almost at their destination.

This could no longer be called mere intuition; perhaps, this was Ren Suo's true Awakening Ability. Future prediction? Rebirth from the future?

Following Ren Suo as they neared their destination, Qiao Muyi's heart grew increasingly uneasy—not because they were about to obtain crucial clues, but because she was pondering why Ren Suo was helping her like this.

If it's future prediction, why is he so desperate to come help me? In the future he saw, am I an essential part of his life? If it's rebirth from the future, what role do I play in his future that makes him risk everything to help me?

Thinking about these things, Qiao Muyi felt as if she had swallowed a large scoop of ice cream, sweetening her heart completely.

However, at this moment, a frightening thought surfaced in her mind—could it be that Ren Suo's acquaintance and interaction with her were all part of his scheme?

"Shush."

Ren Suo suddenly slowed his pace, motioning for Qiao Muyi to move silently, and pointed towards a bright area in the distance.

Although the main troops had been lured away, the Martial Soul Hall was not foolish enough to put all their eggs in one basket. At crucial intersections, a team of samurai was still stationed—two Red Armored Samurai and five Black Armored Samurai.

Unlike the Tactical Bureau of Mysterious Country, whose uniforms hardly varied, the Martial Soul Hall of the hierarchical Flourishing Sakura had invested considerable effort in their attire. Ordinary samurai wore Black Armor, while team leaders wore Red Armor to distinguish their ranks.

The internal network didn't mention whether Red Armor was stronger than Black Armor. Presumably, it only added an extra Attribute: "Causes a Suppression effect on Low-Level Samurai, making them too afraid to resist your insults and attacks."

Ren Suo had anticipated this and pulled Qiao Muyi towards another path leading down the mountain.

However, at this moment, he tugged at Qiao Muyi but failed to move her. He turned his head to see Qiao Muyi standing still, her eyes revealing an ineffable tension.

Ren Suo blinked, hesitated for a moment, and whispered, "Let's wait to pee after we get through this part; it's dangerous here."

Qiao Muyi was stunned for a moment. Then, she stretched out her left hand to cover his mouth and, under Ren Suo's puzzled gaze, forcefully twisted the flesh around his waist!

Watching Ren Suo gasp in pain, Qiao Muyi covered her mouth and snickered. With his kind of mind, there's no way he could have schemed to meet her! Moreover, if he really could see into the future and then used that information to pursue her, wouldn't that be great? It's similar to those men who go to great lengths to research a girl's interests and then continuously close the distance between them, only in a more sophisticated and accurate form.

"Young Master…" Ren Suo gave her a pitiful look. She must be seeking to replenish her happiness energy from me, he thought, and without saying much, continued leading her forward.

Scratching his palm and sniffing behind his neck, Qiao Muyi dropped all trivial conjectures and obediently followed Ren Suo, completing the last stretch of the path.

If there's someone whose touch you like, whose scent you like, whose appearance you like, whose voice you like, and whose company you utterly adore, what's there to overthink? Qiao Muyi couldn't see the future; she only knew that in the present, she was his one and only protagonist.

...

"We've arrived."

After descending one mountain, ascending another, then descending again and winding into the woods, they finally reached their destination—a flat area piled with broken stones.

In the Moonlight, amidst the encircling mountains, it seemed as if a shovel had forcibly dug out this spot located halfway up the mountain. Nearby vegetation had also suffered; tree roots that should have been deeply buried were ripped out. Although the area was described as flat, many parts were pockmarked with depressions, as if bombarded.

It was as if a monster covered in angles and acne had once rolled around here.

"It's snowing, and yet there's Moonlight…"

Ren Suo extended his hand, catching the tiny snowflakes. "I guess it's the same principle as being able to see the sun when it rains…"

He turned his head, looking at the woodlands to the north and south—Martial Soul Hall samurai were stationed on both sides. They had just managed to find a gap to slip through without alerting them.

"It's very bright outside from the Moonlight, Young Master, don't step out."

"All right."

Qiao Muyi crouched in the Shadow at the edge of the forest, extending her hand to touch the broken-stone flatland illuminated by Moonlight, and murmured quietly, "This is it… All traces converge here."

"Detective's Eye," activated.

Ren Suo watched the wind for a while. Thinking the timing was about right, he crouched down, just in time to hear Qiao Muyi's mutter, "I see it now…"

"When he fought the Mountain Fiend, the Source of Disaster, the Mountain Fiend was incredibly strong. But in front of him, it was very weak; its hard rock body could not withstand his casual strike… He's the natural enemy of the Source of Disaster… No, he's the natural enemy of all Demons in the world, and also my natural enemy."

"He could locate the existence of the Source of Disaster… Maybe even further—able to locate the position of Demons? Scouting evil?"

"No wonder he could find me…"

"I understand why he wants to slay the Source of Disaster now… This is the foundation of his fame."

"But were those Demon King's Followers his creation? What relation do they have with him? And framing me, what good does that do him…"

Lost in the web of clues, Qiao Muyi suddenly came back to her senses, her body stiffening.

Ren Suo hugged her.

Unbeknownst to her, Ren Suo had crouched behind her, wrapping his arms firmly around her slender waist from behind. His upper body was almost completely pressed against her back, and his breath tickled the back of her ear.

Qiao Muyi blinked, watching the fine snow land on the back of her hand, then dissolve and melt away.

She didn't turn around or fidget. Her mind swirled with myriad thoughts, a brainstorm erupting within her. Is it the suspension bridge effect? Being outdoors? Or does snowy weather pair better with being in heat?

"They're coming."

As Ren Suo's calm voice echoed in her ears, Qiao Muyi saw a glimmer of light, like the Dawn Morning Star, blossoming in the distant forest.

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