Mo Mu faced the direction where everyone was. Although she couldn't see their figures, she could see the fires they had lit.
After an unknown amount of time, she suddenly heard a sound from behind her.
Mo Mu turned her head slightly, but did not turn around. "Fourth Young Master, are you ready?"
No one answered, and even the sound that had just been made disappeared.
Mo Mu felt an inexplicable panic. "Fourth Young Master, I'm turning around."
Still no answer, Mo Mu no longer hesitated and quickly turned around.
But the next moment, a magnified dark shadow suddenly lunged at her.
Before Mo Mu could see clearly what it was, she felt a heavy blow to her forehead.
With a dull thud, Mo Mu's vision went black, and she fell directly to the ground.
A hole had appeared on her forehead, and bright red blood flowed out, a shocking sight.
...
Li Yue Shu stirred the pot with a spoon, her gaze fixed in the direction Mo Mu had taken Shen Zhi Yu.
Was A Yu having diarrhea? Why was he taking so long to come back?
Li Yue Shu felt a bit worried and looked back at Qin Mo Yuan. "Go and see how A Yu is doing."
Qin Mo Yuan nodded, put down the bowl in his hand, and turned to leave.
A moment later, Qin Mo Yuan's voice suddenly came from a distance, "A Shu, A Yu is gone!"
"What?!"
The spoon in Li Yue Shu's hand slipped instantly, and her face turned pale.
She didn't have time to think, and quickly got up and ran over. Everyone else hurried to follow.
Seeing Li Yue Shu approach, Qin Mo Yuan said directly, "Aunt Mo is injured. You tend to her. I'll go chase A Yu."
Without waiting for Li Yue Shu to reply, he quickly followed the traces left behind.
Li Yue Shu, who had rushed over, saw Mo Mu lying on the ground with a bloody face. Her heart tightened, and she hurried forward to check.
She moved quickly, stopped Mo Mu's bleeding, and bandaged her wound. After confirming that she was not in mortal danger, she handed her over to Mo Lian.
Then, she followed in Qin Mo Yuan's direction.
Qin Mo Yuan was very fast, so it took Li Yue Shu some time to catch up to him.
But when she saw Qin Mo Yuan, he was standing at a crossroads, looking with a grave expression in the direction ahead.
Li Yue Shu was confused and asked anxiously, "What's wrong? Where is A Yu?"
Qin Mo Yuan turned back, his expression slightly somber. "Ahead is the Qing Yong Mountain territory marked on the map."
Li Yue Shu didn't immediately grasp the meaning of his words, only that the name Qing Yong Mountain sounded familiar.
But then, her expression changed.
When she had looked at the map earlier, she had noticed that the route Qin Mo Yuan had planned was a bit circuitous. She had asked about it, and he had mentioned Qing Yong Mountain at that time.
"A group of bandits has been entrenched in Qing Yong Mountain for years. The imperial court has sent troops to suppress them many times, but all have failed. We are too conspicuous. Once we enter Qing Yong Mountain territory, we will surely become live targets for those bandits."
Li Yue Shu couldn't help but clench her fists. "You mean, the bandits from Qing Yong Mountain kidnapped A Yu?"
In a daze, Li Yue Shu felt like she had overlooked something, but couldn't recall what it was.
Qin Mo Yuan pursed his lips, not answering, but his heart felt heavy.
The bandits of Qing Yong Mountain had always been a major threat to the imperial court. Every attempt to suppress them had ended in failure, and the bandits had not even been slightly harmed.
He had long suspected that there was something unusual about Qing Yong Mountain, but he had never had the opportunity to deal with it.
If A Yu had fallen into the hands of these people, he didn't know what would happen.
Qin Mo Yuan's heart was heavy, and he turned around. "A Shu, let's go back and make a plan. A Yu is still in their hands. If we act rashly, I'm afraid it will harm A Yu."
Li Yue Shu's brows were tightly furrowed, her anxiety and worry almost overflowing.
But she knew that at this critical moment, rash actions were the last thing they should take.
She looked deeply at the distant rolling mountains, clenched her fists tightly, and finally suppressed the impulse in her heart.
The two walked back in silence, exuding a low pressure.
Qin Mo Yuan looked at the tense person beside him and, without reaching out to hold her hand, said, "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to A Yu."
Li Yue Shu kept her head slightly lowered, but did not withdraw her hand.
She seemed to... remember something she had overlooked.
Li Yue Shu's lips were slightly pale.
The original book had mentioned that Shen Zhi Yu became a great demon who would massacre a city because he was kidnapped as a child and had witnessed much killing and bloodshed during his wanderings.
Would his current kidnapping by bandits be related to the plot of the original book...
Li Yue Shu was preoccupied, her expression becoming more solemn.
Qin Mo Yuan noticed her unusual expression and tightened his grip on her hand, as if conveying a comforting strength.
Soon, they returned to the place where they had been camping. The others hurried forward.
When they saw that only the two of them had returned, and Li Yue Shu's face was unusually pale, their hearts sank.
Under their hesitant gazes, Qin Mo Yuan spoke directly, "Xing He, take my token and go to Hong Ning City. Have Wei Tong Hao quickly send troops to Qing Yong Mountain."
Chai Yang Xing He looked up, his heart tightening.
Was his master about to reveal his identity?
Although they were shocked, they did not dare to question his orders and immediately accepted the command.
As soon as Xing He left, the others were not idle. They packed up their belongings and headed towards a nearby town.
The name of the Qing Yong Mountain bandits was well-known, and there were no people within a dozen miles. After walking for half a day, the group finally encountered a dilapidated small village.
After finding a family willing to take them in, Li Yue Shu quickly inquired about the situation in Qing Yong Mountain.
As soon as the bandits were mentioned, the villagers gritted their teeth in hatred.
"Those bandits are all scumbags, burning, killing, looting, and committing all sorts of evil!"
"There used to be many people living near Qing Yong Mountain, but since those bandits arrived more than twenty years ago, they have committed all sorts of atrocities. People around here have either died or fled, leaving the area completely desolate."
"If our village wasn't so far away and so poor and dilapidated, we would have suffered the same fate!"
...
Listening to these words, Li Yue Shu grew more worried, wishing she could rush up Qing Yong Mountain and rescue A Yu right away.
Qin Mo Yuan, who had been silent beside her, kept an eye on her expression and almost instantly guessed her thoughts.
He couldn't help but hold Li Yue Shu's hand. "A Shu, I'll go to Qing Yong Mountain tonight. You wait for my news here."
Li Yue Shu naturally refused and immediately said, "I'll go with you."
Qin Mo Yuan knew she wouldn't agree easily and said, "The bandits of Qing Yong Mountain are different from other bandits. Two people going up the mountain is too conspicuous. Let's wait one more night. After I figure out the situation, we can discuss countermeasures."
Li Yue Shu's lips were pressed tightly together, clearly unwilling, but she also knew his words made sense.
Her understanding of this world came from the novels she had read, and the original book had never mentioned the name Qing Yong Mountain.
Qin Mo Yuan clearly knew more about Qing Yong Mountain than she did, and was more suitable for investigating.
Finally, Li Yue Shu nodded stiffly.
But what no one expected was that they waited until dawn, and Qin Mo Yuan still hadn't returned.