Huang Rong from The Return of the Condor Heroes: Brother Jing, let's get a divorce.

The night wind in the mountains and forests was chilly.

Yang Guo walked at the very front.

Cheng Ying clung tightly to his left side, their arms occasionally bumping together.

Lu Wushuang gripped his curved sword and stood guard on the right, vigilantly watching the surrounding movements.

Following footprints won't get you very fast.

First, we need to identify the traces.

The land in this desolate wilderness is covered with a thick layer of fallen leaves, and the mud underneath is perpetually shrouded in darkness.

The footprints left by the leather boots were extremely deep, and the soil at the edges curled up, presenting an eerie dark color.

Yang Guo would stop every few steps, use his toes to brush aside the fallen leaves, and check the moisture of the soil.

Secondly, Cheng Ying's steps are not large enough.

She had just entered the Innate Realm, and the massive innate true energy within her dantian had not yet been completely tamed.

The internal energy surged wildly through her meridians, forcing her to devote most of her energy to suppressing it.

With the restriction of "within three steps", as long as you walk a little faster to increase the distance, the yang energy mark on your lower abdomen will become hot.

The scalding heat rushed up her Ren meridian to her Qi Sea, forcing her to slow down.

The mountain path was so narrow that only two people could walk side by side.

The stone walls on both sides are constantly moistened by the waterfall's moisture, and moss grows wildly along the cracks in the rocks, making them extremely slippery to walk on.

The mountain terrain where Dugu Qiubai used to practice his swordsmanship was meticulously designed.

The earth's veins here are tightly locked by the water flow, and the dense moisture suppresses the meridians of martial artists.

When ordinary experts arrive at this place, the speed of their internal energy circulation will suddenly slow down by half a beat.

When the flow of vital energy in the meridians is obstructed, breathing also becomes rapid.

Yang Guo cultivated both the orthodox and inverse Nine Yin Manuals, and also had the Qiankun Technique to harmonize them.

The red and black primordial energy beads in his dantian slowly rotated, emitting warm ripples.

Before the cold, damp vapors that had invaded the body could cause any trouble, they were all pulverized by the Yuan Qi Pearl.

His steps were steady, and with each step he took, the moss beneath his feet was shattered by his inner energy.

Cheng Yinggang had just broken through to the Innate Realm, but his cultivation level was still superficial.

The Fallen Petals True Qi of Peach Blossom Island is inherently light and agile, but under the pressure of such heavy moisture, its circulation becomes extremely sluggish.

The core technique of the Falling Flower Divine Sword Palm emphasizes unconventional energy flow, but now it is completely suppressed by the moisture covering the mountain.

She hadn't walked far when beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and her breathing became erratic.

Fearing she would slow down the journey, she could only grit her teeth and persevere, her fingers constantly gripping Yang Guo's sleeve.

The fingertips turned bluish-white from excessive force.

"Take quiet steps."

Yang Guo spoke without turning his head.

"The ground here is damp, and the footprints are old. The fact that the other person dared to walk through here means that he is familiar with the snake pit and the changes in the mountain's energy."

He raised his hand and pointed to the woods ahead.

"Look at those tree trunks. The bark on the sunny side is cracked, while the shady side is covered with poisonous mushrooms. This shows that the earth's energy here has been polluted by toxins."

Lu Wushuang lowered her voice and asked:

"Husband, do you think he's coming for the Sword Tomb?"

"The entrance to the Sword Tomb is sealed by a stone gate, making it difficult for outsiders to find."

Yang Guo stepped over a protruding rock, his tone steady.

"That stone door weighs ten thousand catties, and without a specific mechanism, even if an outsider finds it, they won't be able to push it open."

"The snake den is different. After the snake king dies, the snakes are less restrained, and the venom will spread outward with the wind. Experts who know venom can find their way there by the smell."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Ying's brows furrowed tightly.

She had studied geography and directions with Huang Yaoshi and had also memorized several books on strange poisons.

The bile of the Bosqu snake can help people increase their martial arts skills, while its blood can be used to make rare poisons.

If it falls into the hands of people like those from White Camel Mountain, they can mix snake blood with poisonous sand and refine it into a poisonous mist that can kill on a large scale.

Simply ignite it at a windy spot, and the toxic fog can cover an area of ​​ten miles.

Once the soldiers defending the city are infected, their meridians atrophy, and they lose all the strength to even draw a bow.

"Brother Yang."

Cheng Ying spoke softly.

"If this person is truly connected to the Mongols, his purpose in taking the snake is not merely for cultivation."

"Xiangyang City is surrounded by a dense network of waterways. If poison is thrown into the upstream water source, it will travel downstream and poison the entire garrison of Xiangyang City."

She raised her head and looked directly at Yang Guo's profile.

"The consequences will be troublesome. I'm doing this for your own good; we need to take precautions early and not let this poison fall into enemy hands."

Yang Guo paused for half a step and glanced at her from the side.

"Butler Cheng is finally getting down to business. I thought you were only interested in scheming to escape from me."

Cheng Ying pursed her lips, her ears burning slightly.

With her thoughts exposed, she could only lower her head and pretend to check the ground beneath her feet.

Lu Wushuang snorted and twirled her curved sword in a beautiful motion:

"She's all talk; if it really comes down to a fight, she'll have to take a look at the knife in my hand."

She flicked her wrist, and the willow-leaf scimitar drew a cold arc in the moonlight.

This knife was her life-saving weapon, but now it couldn't even cut down an eagle, which fueled a deep-seated rage within her.

"you?"

Yang Guo glanced at the curved sword in her hand.

"Who was the one whose knife was snatched by the giant eagle just now? And who was rolling around in the mud?"

Lu Wushuang choked, her cheeks turning bright red.

She kicked a dead branch off the roadside.

The withered branch struck the stone wall with a crisp sound.

"That's because I was letting it have its way. Once I've mastered the Nine Yin Body Technique, I'll pluck all the hairs off its tail."

"You've only mastered the basics of the Yi Jin Duan Gu Manual, and you're already thinking about dealing with that hairy beast?"

Yang Guo chuckled softly:

"Okay. I'll tell the eagle to sleep with its rear end covered, so you won't sneak up on it."

Lu Wushuang was so angry that she ground her teeth, but she was afraid of alerting the people in front, so she could only suppress her anger.

She glared at Cheng Ying fiercely, venting all her resentment on her cousin.

Cheng Ying leaned against Yang Guo's side, listening to the two bickering, and the tension in her chest eased considerably.

She used to be used to keeping things under control and always planning her escape route.

The teachings of Peach Blossom Island taught her to plan carefully before acting.

However, after following Yang Guo, the situation often became surprisingly chaotic.

But every time, he would smash it open with brute force.

He faced Leng Feng's pursuit at Tongguan and subdued seventy-two hidden agents in Xiangyang.

This man never plays by the rules, yet he always manages to escape danger.

This kind of person is both dangerous and reassuring.

She had just lost her focus when she stepped on a slippery, wet pebble.

His shoes slipped, he lost his balance, and veered to the side.

Yang Guo stretched out his arm, firmly grabbed her waist, and pulled her back to him.

His large palm, through her Taoist robe, pressed precisely on her waist acupoint.

Cheng Ying bumped into his chest, her breath catching in her throat.

She hurriedly grabbed the stone wall to try to back away, but the hand on her waist didn't let go.

"Butler Cheng."

Yang Guo said in a low voice.

"Are you deliberately walking this way to bump into me?"

"My foot slipped."

Cheng Ying didn't dare to look up, and kept her voice very low.

"The road ahead is bad. If you keep dawdling like this, by the time we get there, they'll have already skinned the snakes."