In a sheltered spot by the river bend, someone had set up a felt tent. Next to the tent was a makeshift stone stove, where pinewood was burning, and two people were roasting meat.

He Kao, wearing the Hidden Moth Gauze, used the Stealth Skill to quietly approach from the downwind direction. Encountering campers in such a place, he instinctively remained cautious, yet his curiosity got the better of him, leading him to come closer and take a look.

He slowly poked his head out from the forested heights and saw the two people, one of whom was burly and wore a thick elk fur coat, while the other wore less bulky professional mountaineering gear.

He Kao also had a set of that cold-resistant clothing, which he had worn recently. It's specialized gear for climbing the world's major peaks, usually in bright and eye-catching colors.

However, this person's outfit seemed deliberately dyed white with mottled black and brown stripes, making it an excellent camouflage in this environment. He was sitting on the snow with a tiger skin underneath him!

Animal hides need to be tanned into leather for preservation and use, but He Kao sensed this seemed to be a fresh rawhide. Could these two be poachers who had just hunted a tiger in the mountains?

And could what they were roasting now be tiger meat?

He Kao dared not use his Divine Sense to investigate, but fortunately, his eyesight had improved tremendously, allowing him to clearly see the two men's faces from afar. He inexplicably recognized one of them.

The man in the cold-resistant outfit appeared to be around thirty years old and was a Tier Four Sorcerer of the Xingshen Sect named Zeng Hongye.

The Divine Thought Heart Seal left by Elder Jiang was indeed mysterious. He could recognize a cultivator he didn't even know or had heard of before, just by seeing them.

Zeng Hongye's original name was Zeng Hongye. Possibly finding the name unappealing or lacking grandeur, he started calling himself Zeng Hongye after middle school and officially changed his name when he graduated high school.

He is thirty-five this year, residing in Northeast Yimei City. Two years ago, he reached Tier Four cultivation to become a high-tier sorcerer, considered a rising star of some renown in the Magic Sect.

This information is current as of last October.

As for the other person, He Kao didn't recognize him. With messy brown hair and beard, his age was indiscernible, but his skin color and features were obviously not of the Eastern Country, resembling an old foreigner from Maoluo Country.

Zeng Hongye's parents were lumberjacks in the forest, while he himself was a former forest ranger... For relatively important figures in the Magic Sect, the "database" Elder Jiang provided had some extra details.

Xingshen Sect's Tier Four Sorcerer, nicknamed beggar or huazi, not only mastered various high-tier spells but also knew many Jianghu tricks.

Why would he be so far outside the country at this time of year? Could it be that he's colluding with the foreigner to poach?

Getting caught in such an act could provoke a violent reaction. While He Kao was already a Tier Three Explorer, he still considered himself no match for Zeng Hongye, at least not in a direct confrontation.

So he quickly lowered his head, maintaining stealth and concealing his breath, avoiding using his Divine Sense, and instead listening intently to the sounds carried by the wind.

From such a distance, it would be difficult for Zeng Hongye's Divine Sense to detect him, and in such a place, the other party wouldn't aimlessly gather their Divine Sense in one direction for investigation.

The foreigner spoke fluent Eastern Country language with a very standard Northeast accent.

In places like Acheng in Longjiang Province, there are actually many Maoluo Country people who have lived there for years and speak the Northeast dialect fluently, so this person might be in a similar situation.

"Master, do you really think that kid could come here?"

Zeng Hongye: "We chased him across the Wulong River, at that time a snowstorm wiped out the tracks... but this morning, we discovered traces in this river valley.

Someone dug through the ice layer on the riverbank, seemingly to take a large river clam, with footprints around... At this season and in this place, who else but him would come?

It seems that kid got hungry and is looking for food nearby. He shouldn't have gone far!

We should keep an eye out for smoke at any time... He might not dare light a fire during the day, but at night, he would be hiding somewhere sheltered and out of sight, maybe a snow burrow or a cave.

As soon as he moves, he'll inevitably leave traces, so we needn't rush; we'll find him soon enough."

The foreigner: "Fetching a living person from such a place isn't easy. Since he's under a Joint Punishment Order, why not simply kill him to avoid the hassle?"

Zeng Hongye: "We need him alive, and as for why, that's not for you to worry about. Once captured, we don't need to take him back, just find a nearby place to keep him guarded, and someone will come to take over.

Xiaosi, remember that no one should know I taught you magic. The Magic Sect forbids the external transmission of magic and wouldn't allow a foreigner like you to practice... you'll have to step aside then."

Xiaosi: "Just follow Master's instructions." Thinking again, he added, "If we capture that Wu Yanjun... won't he tell others about you teaching me techniques, and expose us?"

Zeng Hongye waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, it won't be exposed. Someone just needs to ask him a few things, and as long as we capture him, he won't have a chance to leave alive...

Since he violated the Joint Punishment Order just issued by the Magic Sect, eliminating him is only logical... The Magic Sect needs a typical case, who can say anything against it?

Besides, his Master died early, and he doesn't have any other fellow disciples, relying on his uncle's sect, no one cares about his life or death... Even if his uncle wants to investigate, he can't do anything!"

Upon hearing this, He Kao felt a bit suffocated, because he clearly heard the name "Wu Yanjun," and presumably no one in the Magic Sect would have the same name.

That foreigner is Zeng Hongye's disciple, whom Zeng Hongye calls Xiaosi.

Zeng Hongye secretly teaches Xiaosi techniques, but doesn't report it to the Magic Sect. Last year's general survey on the Magic Sect disciples also doesn't have Xiaosi's information.

Either Xiaosi has not yet started cultivating, or Gao Hongye is deliberately hiding it... Looking at Xiaosi's appearance, it seems he has cultivation, so the latter is the case.

Listening to Gao Hongye's tone, he probably deceived Xiaosi, saying that the Magic Sect forbids passing techniques to foreigners.

But as far as He Kao knows, there is no such rule in the Magic Sect. Though normally, the elders of the Magic Sect are quite wary of recruiting overseas disciples, and may even be quite resentful, it's not to the point of punishing without reason.

What is Gao Hongye's purpose for doing this? Perhaps like the Huiming Shi Family cultivating cleaners, cultivating subordinates to serve him for some shady business... like poaching.

But what He Kao is most concerned about is not these; these two are actually here to track Wu Yanjun, and Wu Yanjun has crossed Wulong River into Maoluo Country!

During this big New Year, Xiaowu doesn't return to Nanhua to see his parents, so why has he come here?

These two also said that Xiaowu violated the latest Joint Punishment Order issued by the Magic Sect... It should be noted that the issuance of the Joint Punishment Order by the Ancestral Hall was a result of He Kao's suggestion, so why was the first cut on Wu Yanjun, after all, what did he do?

These two people think they found Xiaowu's trail, but it actually was a mistake. The traces on the riverbank were actually left by He Kao yesterday, and they likely followed the riverbank to find him, just happened to rest and eat something at that place.

He Kao no longer had the mood to listen to them, his figure quietly disappeared, leaving only the shape of a prone figure imprint in the snow.

He started from He Ling City, using the Invisibility Ability to travel through the Forest Sea Snowfield, usually without a phone, sometimes even if he did, it was on airplane mode to avoid signal irregularities.

Most places deep in the mountains have no signal, but occasionally there might be signal in some places. As for when crossing the border, he had not brought a phone at all.

Returning to the hotel in Crane Ridge, He Kao took out his usual phone, surprisingly there were no messages.

If Xiaowu had committed an offense, and violated the latest Joint Punishment Order issued by the Ancestral Hall, someone should have told him... At least Qian Guran knows their relationship is good, Elder Jiang should also know.

Qian Guran sent He Kao a message a few days ago.

He Kao took two weeks leave, and after the holidays, Old Qian took an extra week off, already returning early to Qi Yuan. The Sect's second transmission ceremony was successfully completed, Old Qian also found an elder to help refine the magical artifact.

He Kao even sent a congratulatory message back to Old Qian, and by his estimation, Old Qian should return to work tomorrow... He Kao immediately dialed Qian Guran's phone, which rang for quite a while before being picked up.

He heard Old Qian's voice say: "I'm here accompanying a few leaders playing cards... Heard you went to Acheng to explore the ice and snow world, still haven't had enough fun, don't want to return to work?"

He Kao: "I haven't stayed in Acheng, these days I've gone further north, to dig wild ginseng."

Qian Guran: "You have that skill? Bring me a piece of top-quality ginseng!"

He Kao: "I've already prepared something for you. But I want to ask you about something, heard that the Micro Realm Sect disciple Wu Yanjun, violated the latest Joint Punishment Order issued by the Ancestral Hall, what's the situation?"

Qian Guran's response was a bit confused: "Wu Yanjun is the Xiaowu you know, right? I haven't heard anything about him having problems."

He Kao: "I met two people in the wild mountains and valleys, and overheard their conversation, they should be Magic Sect disciples... They are tracking Wu Yanjun."

Qian Guran: "I haven't heard a thing, that's strange, don't worry, I'll find someone to inquire immediately. Aren't you close with Elder Jiang? You have his contact information, right? You can also ask Elder Jiang..."

**

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