Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

"That's the Silent Mountain over there..."

The next morning, Ren Fengjue and the others arrived at the foot of Yashan Mountain under Zhu Peng's guidance.

Accompanying her were Zhao Wan, her personal maid Xiao Xizi, and a group of Golden Feather Guards.

Such a grand display was not what Lord Ren had hoped for.

But Princess Fenghua insisted on coming, and he really couldn't stop her.

However, this also has its advantages, as all the city gates and checkpoints along the way are easily accessible.

After all, in the northern borderlands, no one can stop the Martial King's Mansion.

Following the direction Zhu Peng pointed, the group saw a vast mountain range stretching out before them, and the Yuebei Mountains paled in comparison to the Yashan Mountains.

"Is this the back side of Mount Epeii?"

Yu Lang squinted and gazed at the terrain for a long time before finally calculating their current location.

Yan Zhengchu was also pondering this, and upon hearing this, he added, "It is indeed the back side of Yuebei Mountain, and..."

He suddenly asked Zhu Peng, "What is that mountain over there?"

Zhu Peng replied, "It used to be called Yanshan. I heard that evil spirits were suppressed there, so few people dared to go. Later, it was renamed 'Buyushan' (Mountain of No Encounters)."

"Yanshan...it's actually here?"

Previously, Yan Zhengchu had only heard of the "Yanshan Evil Ghost," but had no idea where this mountain was actually located...

At that moment, it all became clear.

Zhu Peng added, "I've only heard about Yanshan from the village elders. To date, almost no one has dared to set foot there, and I don't know if it's true or not."

Yan Zhengchu smiled noncommittally.

The group followed the path at the foot of the Silent Mountain, but there was no one around.

When they saw the stone marker with the three characters "Zhu Family Village" carved on it, the scene before them was terrifying.

Despite the long snowfall, it couldn't conceal the "remains" of the houses burned by the raging fire.

Zhu Peng's expression also turned serious. He didn't speak, but led the group westward along the main road in the village.

Next came the former "Dinu Camp".

Like Zhujia Village, it has been destroyed by fire and is almost unrecognizable.

Zhu Peng pointed to the villages not far away, his eyes blurry with tears, his voice choked with emotion: "Over there are Zhangjia Village and Liujia Village, the situation is the same as here..."

A month has passed.

Since the onset of winter, the North has been experiencing continuous heavy snowfall, making it even more difficult to find clues...

Yu Lang, unusually serious, said, "This matter definitely requires the government to intervene."

Zhu Peng looked dejected: "After the incident, I appealed all the way from the town government to the county government, and now I only have to go to the prefectural government."

Yu Lang understood the implications of this situation, so he asked Ren Fengjue, "Sir, should I go to the prefectural government office?"

Ren Fengjue shook his head: "It's not needed."

Yu Lang asked, "Does Your Excellency have a good plan?"

Ren Fengjue turned to look at Zhao Wan, "With Princess Fenghua here, there's no need for us to make a trip; they will send someone themselves."

Last time, when thieves broke into the Prince Wu's mansion, they were able to create such a big commotion in Liangzhou City.

if…

He walked directly up to Zhao Wan and whispered a few words to her.

Upon hearing this, the princess found it amusing and said, "Sure, let's do it this way for now."

As he spoke, he directly summoned the commander of the Golden Feather Guard and instructed him, "Take a few men and go to the nearest town government office. Tell them that I, the princess, have gotten lost near Yashan and ask them to send people to look for me immediately."

Upon hearing the princess's words, the general was clearly bewildered. "Princess, this..."

Zhao Wan retorted, displeased, "Is this so difficult to do?"

"No problem, no problem, I'll take care of it right away."

The general dared not disobey Zhao Wan's wishes, so he left two men behind to look after the place, while he took two others and rode off on horseback.

Ren Fengjue glanced at the sky and estimated the time in his mind.

Before nightfall at the latest, people from the town government and the county government will arrive one after another. As for the prefectural government, it is currently leaderless, and it will probably depend on the attitude of the Marquis of Zhenbei.

The disappearance of Princess Fenghua is no small matter; it concerns the careers of these officials…

Therefore, they certainly dare not slack off.

The mountains and fields were vast and empty, and after staying in the snow for a long time, everyone felt the chill.

Ren Fengjue turned his head and glanced at Xia Ximo, seeing her standing silently in the snow, like a proud red plum blossom braving the snow.

Today, everyone is wearing the new clothes given to them by the princess.

Xia Ximo wore a reddish-brown jacket with silver thread, the collar and cuffs trimmed with white fox fur, a matching skirt, and a pair of brand-new deerskin boots.

The material is the same as the shoes Zhao Wan is wearing.

This shows that the princess's attitude towards Xia Ximo surpasses that of many others.

Just as he was about to walk towards her, he saw Zhao Wan's maid, Xiao Xizi, run up to Xia Ximo and hand her a hand warmer.

"The princess is warming your hands."

Xia Ximo was clearly taken aback.

Xiao Xizi ran away in a flash.

Ren Fengjue saw this and couldn't help but smile. He slowly walked up to Xia Ximo and couldn't help but say, "It seems that my previous worries were unnecessary. The princess values ​​you more now."

Xia Ximo glanced at him, puzzled, and blurted out, "Jealous?"

Ren Fengjue was taken aback by these words, and then replied, "If it were some prince or nobleman, I might be jealous."

Xia Ximo's expression was indifferent, but his eyes drifted elsewhere, as if he were avoiding something.

"This place is eerily clean."

She suddenly changed the subject.

Ren Fengjue was initially confused, but then she realized what she meant by "clean"...

If so many people really died tragically here, then the resentment would be overwhelming.

But there wasn't a trace of yin energy to be seen here.

"This matter is indeed strange, and the secrets hidden behind it are likely related to Jiang Ting."

Xia Ximo nodded, then added, "Moreover, I have another guess."

"What?"

"Xiao Yun's ghost didn't follow Zhu Peng for no reason."

Ren Fengjue had also thought about this.

Last night's search for the soul went too smoothly, and the sudden appearance of the Three Holy Sons seemed to have been foreshadowed.

Therefore, he also suspected that Xiaoyun's appearance was all arranged by him.

As for the purpose, it should be to deter them.

"I also suspect that this matter is related to the Three Holy Sons."

Xia Ximo said, "I have already had Daoist Yan temporarily seal Xiaoyun's soul, but with the Three Holy Sons' abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for them to stir up any trouble with this."

She then looked at Ren Fengjue: "In short, you need to be careful."

Ren Fengjue felt inexplicably happy upon hearing these words, and for a moment, he forgot to continue his analysis.

Xia Ximo also felt the atmosphere suddenly become strange, but then she heard him say, "I knew the journey to the Northern Border would be extremely perilous, but I'm so glad that Miss Mo is traveling with me..."

"..."

In the silence, a plaintive voice came from behind them.

"Sir, we can't stay here in this freezing weather forever before the authorities arrive, can we? Why don't we find a place to make a fire and warm up? I'm almost frozen stiff."