I work as a security guard at a cemetery, and I overhear the dead chatting about getting rich quick.

The edges of the newest footprint haven't collapsed yet.

Lin Ye squatted outside the stone wall.

My fingers brushed over the mud surface without touching it.

Three sets of footprints.

Two large and one small.

The sole pattern is clear, indicating it's a modern tactical boot.

The most crucial thing is the direction.

They didn't come from the mountain gate.

Instead, they came out from the woods on the other side of the medicinal herb field, stayed for a while, and then went back into the mountains.

After reading it, Cheng Fang only asked one question.

"how long?"

"At most half an hour."

Lin Ye stood up.

"It might be even shorter."

They came in from the entrance, around the same time.

In other words, the other side entered Cangfeng Mountain at almost the same time as the first exploration team.

Even earlier.

However, only one stable channel is currently open at the seven locations.

The entrance was monitored the entire time.

Nobody can sneak in from there.

Cheng Fang turned his head immediately.

"Sampling has been suspended in the medicinal herb fields."

"Leave two men to guard the beacon, the rest of you follow me."

Xu Mian had already taken the gun down.

Zhou Xiao, however, did not move.

He stared at the direction the footprints extended.

"There's no road over there."

"Never before?"

"no."

Zhou Xiao shook his head.

"There's a cliff just ahead."

Lin Ye glanced at him.

"That may not be the case now."

Even the protective vines of Cangfeng Mountain have changed.

More than two thousand years have passed.

The least trustworthy thing here is "the past".

The group followed the footprints.

There are no stone steps.

Only ever-growing weeds.

The ground is wet.

The footprints are easy to recognize.

The other party clearly knew this as well, and after walking a few dozen meters, they began to step on the stones and tree roots.

The footprints broke off.

Cheng Fang raised his hand.

Everyone stopped.

"Linye."

"I'm listening."

Lin Ye had already closed his eyes.

The normal footsteps are gone.

But when people walk by, there are more than just footprints.

Spiritual energy also leaves traces.

The sound echoed.

He narrowed his spiritual hearing, focusing only on any unusual spiritual energy fluctuations that had occurred recently.

The wind was stripped off the leaves first.

The sound of the underground formation was suppressed again.

soon.

Three intermittent echoes appeared ahead.

It's very shallow.

It looked like someone had just drawn three thin lines through the air.

Two of them are relatively stable.

The third lane is clearly chaotic.

The person walking must have been injured.

Or perhaps there's a problem with the spiritual energy within the body.

Lin Ye opened his eyes.

"Front."

"To the left."

Qin Zhao went over first.

Several tens of meters later.

Sure enough, blood was found on the back of a dark green rock.

Only two drops.

It has already begun to condense.

Cheng Fang squatted down and took a look.

"The one who got injured."

"Um."

Lin Ye did not touch the blood.

His attention was on the side.

There were still some burn marks behind the rocks.

It is not Qin Zhao's embers.

The temperature has long since dissipated.

The residual spiritual energy is still very fresh.

He remembered how it worked.

It's urgent.

Very fragmented.

Unlike the path taken by those who received formal training at seven different institutions.

Lin Ye listened for another two seconds.

"The Candlelight Gathering".

Cheng Fang looked up.

"Sure?"

"Eighty percent."

Lin Ye pointed to the scorch marks.

"Their method of externally transmitted Qi-inducing techniques."

"The energy dissipates quickly but is poorly retained."

Previously, in order to recruit a large number of people, the Candle Yin Society released incomplete methods of sensing and guiding Qi.

Lin Ye had encountered this more than once.

It's very difficult to completely mistake this kind of lingering sound.

Cheng Fang stood up.

His complexion didn't change much.

They just moved faster.

"continue."

The other party can get in.

This indicates that Cangfeng Mountain has a second entrance.

This is far more serious than a few people sneaking into the secret realm.

The first stable channel is now in the hands of seven entities.

But if other openings also allow people to pass through, then the so-called blockade is just a thin layer of paper.

Further on.

The trees are getting sparser.

The wind has changed too.

The cliff that Zhou Xiao mentioned has appeared.

The area below the cliff was shrouded in mist.

There's no bottom in sight.

Logically, the footprints should have disappeared completely here.

But after Lin Ye stopped at the edge of the cliff, he heard the clearest lingering sound.

Not in front.

on the right.

"Over here."

He walked along the cliff to the right.

Less than twenty meters.

Behind a drooping vine.

The air quality is definitely off.

It looks like there's nothing there.

But the edges kept trembling slightly.

Like a water film that could break at any moment.

The technician scanned it with the detector.

The numerical value will immediately trigger an alarm.

"Spatial fluctuations".

Cheng Fang peeled back the outermost layer of vines.

A black slit less than half a meter wide was visible behind it.

The gaps are very unstable.

It will open in a moment.

It will close in a while.

Through the light, one can vaguely see the rocks and modern lights outside.

There are not seven entrances.

It is a natural crack.

Three black metal cones were nailed to the ground.

Each cone was wrapped with fine copper wire.

The technician's expression changed.

"Someone is manually supporting it."

Lin Ye immediately understood.

The crack was not strong enough to allow for stable passage.

The other party used something to force it open for a few minutes.

Those three people crawled in from here.

One of them was most likely injured during the journey.

No wonder the spiritual energy has been so chaotic.

Cheng Fang took photos and marked them directly.

"Send out the coordinates."

The technician tried twice.

The signal is intermittent.

Fortunately, the entrance beacon can still act as a relay station.

The data was finally sent out.

The seven external blockades will be traced back to the corresponding locations of the cracks.

Zhou Xiao squatted down to look at the three metal cones.

"This is not from Cangfeng Mountain."

"Of course not."

Qin Zhao used a tool to pick one up.

The bottom is engraved with fine lines.

Not ancient.

It is clearly a modern process.

Wanling suddenly spoke.

"But the array patterns on it are old."

Everyone looked over.

"What's so old?"

"Boundary markings".

The Way of Ten Thousand Spirits.

"It was done terribly."

"But the approach is correct."

Lin Ye's eyes darkened slightly.

The Candlelight Society has begun to combine ancient formations with modern techniques.

And it was faster than expected in seven places.

This group of people didn't come just because they heard about the price of the medicinal herbs.

At least prepare in advance things to stabilize the space crack.

Cheng Fang had obviously thought of this as well.

"They may have been monitoring the spatial anomalies for a while now."

"Or perhaps someone knew about the Returning Realm even before we did."

No one responded.

The second possibility is more troublesome.

Lin Ye turned and looked into the depths of the mountains and forests.

The three echoes had not completely dissipated.

After they entered, they did not head straight for the mountain gate.

I didn't contact Zhou Xiao.

Instead, they bypassed the main area and first reached the outer medicinal field.

This shows that the goal is very realistic.

Resources.

And they probably know what to look for.

"Should we pursue them or not?"

Qin Zhao asked.

Cheng Fang only thought for a second.

"Chase for twenty minutes."

"Outside the outer exploration zone, retreat."

The first batch of tasks is not about fighting the Candlelight Society to the death.

But it's impossible to ignore the three hostile agents who have already infiltrated the area.

The team resumed their journey.

This time it was much faster.

Linye is at the front.

They followed the sound all the way east.

The other party clearly noticed that they had left traces.

In the latter half, they deliberately avoided water and diamond forests, and even used something to disrupt the residual spiritual energy once.

With regular tracking, it would have been disconnected long ago.

But Lin Ye wasn't listening to footprints.

It is the "echo" left in the environment after they used magic.

As long as it's still new, it can't be wiped clean.

Ten minutes later.

Lin Ye suddenly raised his hand.

The whole team stopped.

There was no one in front of us.

There is only one slope.

Down the slope, a broken tree branch was stuck in the ground.

A black cloth was tied to the tree branch.

When Cheng Fang saw that thing, his eyes immediately turned cold.

Temporary contact markers for the Candlelight Society.

verified.

Lin Ye didn't touch it.

He looked into the distance.

The three echoes separated there.

Heading north together.

Both roads lead east.

The enemy has split their forces.

And to the east...

This is exactly the direction Zhou Xiao just mentioned.

The source of the Yaotian Lingqu Canal.

That spirit well was almost dried up before the mountain was sealed off.

Lin Ye suddenly understood.

"They didn't just come in randomly."

Cheng Fang also looked up.

"They are looking for the Spirit Well."

The voice just fell.

In the distant valley.

A beam of white light shot into the sky.

The spiritual energy detector instantly spiked.

Zhou Xiao's expression changed drastically.

"That's the old Spirit Well over there!"

Lin Ye had already rushed forward.

Someone else found the place before them.