Chapter 594: Chapter 594: The People in the Mountains

"That place... It’s said to be a bit troubled these days." Perhaps seeing that Su Qing was a young woman traveling alone, the proprietress felt compelled to add a word of caution. "A little while back, several people who went into those mountains for fun mysteriously disappeared. Many of the search party members who went in after them didn’t return either. Eventually, two of them made it back alive, but they had both gone insane, just rambling on about ghosts. In any case, whatever is happening up there, you definitely shouldn’t go near it. Something is definitely going on in those mountains."

The proprietress let out a soft sigh. "To be honest, the scenery in those mountains is truly beautiful. If this incident hadn’t happened, now would be the perfect time for a visit."

"Didn’t anyone call the police?" Su Qing asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Of course they did," the proprietress sighed. "The police went into the mountains, and they didn’t come back either. After that, even the police didn’t dare to go in anymore. Without understanding the situation, rushing in blindly is just a death sentence, isn’t it? Ugh, but there are always those stubborn types who don’t believe the warnings. They just stroll right into the mountains and never come out. In the end, the police had no choice but to set up roadblocks on the trails, trying to keep people away. But that can’t stop those who are too curious. They go in one after another, and none of them ever come out."

The proprietress shook her head in resignation. The story had been spreading like wildfire lately. Some tourists from out of town, refusing to believe the rumors, insisted on going in to see for themselves. She never saw any of them again. A wave of sadness washed over the proprietress as she thought about it. They were all such young kids.

"It’s that serious?" Su Qing feigned a look of astonishment.

"It really is," the proprietress said with a nod. "I’m just giving you a heads-up. A young woman like yourself, you can’t be going over there. That place has been seriously strange lately."

Su Qing immediately replied, "Thank you so much for the warning, ma’am. I promise I won’t go anywhere near there."

"Good, good. Don’t you go now, it’s too dangerous." The proprietress smiled and nodded. "Alright, you should eat before your food gets cold. I’ll let you be."

"Okay."

After the proprietress left, Su Qing glanced toward the mountains bordering the town, her eyes narrowing slightly. ’Logically, this is Japanese territory,’ she thought. ’Whatever is happening here should have nothing to do with me. But... this area is the closest part of Japan to Hua Country by sea. If someone really is up to something in those mountains, could it be targeted at Hua Country?’

Su Qing wasn’t certain. After thinking it over, she decided to head into the mountains that night to investigate. If it had nothing to do with Hua Country, she could just leave it be. But if it was related to Hua Country, she couldn’t possibly stand by and do nothing.

And so, instead of rushing to Ban City, Su Qing waited for the dead of night and slipped quietly into the mountain range beside the town, known to the locals as Putai Mountain.

The moon was hazy that night. Putai Mountain’s forests were dense, with overlapping layers of branches and leaves that blocked out the moonlight almost completely. Only a few stray slivers of light filtered through the gaps in the foliage. Instead of illuminating the gloom, this only served to cast indistinct, shifting shadows, adding a sinister quality to the dark woods.

Su Qing pressed her lips together. She didn’t know if it was just the proprietress’s story getting to her, but the moment she stepped into the forest, she sensed an unsettling aura. It was strangely similar to the one she’d felt from Little Master Wen’s peace charm, back when she was with A Tai.

’Someone’s trying to steal luck or fortune again,’ she thought. ’And with a setup this large, it’s probably not something as simple as a mere talisman.’

Su Qing didn’t let her guard down. This was her first time in Japan, and she was unfamiliar with her surroundings. She fully unfurled her Domain. Tiny vines crept silently across the ground, bringing everything within a three-kilometer radius under her surveillance.

Sure enough, a little over ten minutes after entering the mountain, Su Qing detected movement.

Su Qing sat quietly under a large tree, observing two men in the distance through the eyes of her vines. One of them let out a huge yawn, his face a mask of exhaustion. "Damn, I’m so tired," he grumbled. "The higher-ups are really something else, making us stand guard out here in the middle of the night. Who in their right mind would come into the mountains at this hour anyway? It’s killing me, I can’t get any sleep. Ugh, I’m so wiped, I can barely keep my eyes open."

"You’d better sober up, and fast," the other man said to his partner. "This operation is supposed to be a big deal. They say even His Majesty is paying close attention. Haven’t you seen? The elders from the Ye Yue Family and the Shengchuan Family are both involved. With something this important, of course we have to be on guard around the clock. What if, like those other days, some idiot barges in and the whole thing gets leaked? You tired of living or something?"

"I just think guarding this place in the middle of the night is pointless. Forget people, you can’t even see a damn ghost out here." The first man let out another massive yawn, rubbed his eyes vigorously, and slapped his cheeks to stay awake. "And you know, this whole thing must be costing a fortune in manpower and resources. I’m surprised His Majesty even approved it."

"Tch. You know as well as I do, the Yin Yang Master Families have always held a high status," the other man’s voice dropped to a whisper. "Besides, whatever an Onmyoji from Japan says, His Majesty is bound to take it seriously. Hey, let me tell you something."

"What?"

"I heard... this whole thing was proposed by the Ye Yue Family. They’re trying to get revenge for one of their own."

"Huh? Revenge for what? What happened to someone from the Ye Yue Family?" Hearing this, the man who’d been about to pass out from exhaustion was suddenly wide awake, pressing for details.

"You seriously don’t know about this?!" his companion exclaimed in astonishment, before lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "You really don’t know that Lord Ye Yuefeng of the Ye Yue Family died in Hua Country?"

"What! When did that happen?"

"Several months ago," his companion said. "Word is, the Qiutian Clan was involved. Apparently, Lord Ye Yuefeng went to Hua Country on the Qiutian Clan’s invitation to help them with a job. Next thing you know, he ends up dead over there."

"You’re kidding. I heard Lord Ye Yuefeng was supposed to be incredibly powerful."

"Well, as they say in Hua Country, there’s always a higher mountain to climb. Who knows what kind of person Lord Ye Yuefeng ran into over there? All I know is, he’s definitely dead, and apparently a lot of people from the Qiutian Clan died in Hua Country right along with him."

"No wonder... So, does that mean this whole operation is about getting revenge on Hua Country?"

"How the hell would I know? We’re just nobodies. Everything I told you is just gossip I picked up from others."

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