Our convoy consisted entirely of sedans, and we weren't going too fast. As we approached Yanan's location on the navigation, we saw her stop and begin to circle. I carefully checked her position; it was a highway exit called "Haitang Pass." We hadn't traveled far and were still within Fucheng City limits, just in a rural area.
Yanan was likely circling because the enemy had slowed down, heading for the highway toll station. Exiting the highway would definitely require deceleration. Sure enough, after circling twice, Yanan's flight path veered off the highway and followed a dirt track, heading due south. We had no idea where she was going.
"Hey?" the fox demon in the passenger seat suddenly pointed at the screen. "Isn't that Chrysanthemum Mountain?"
Chrysanthemum Mountain, Nine Immortal Caves? I switched to the terrain map and saw it was indeed. The enemy was using the ring road to make a loop and was luring us from another direction towards the Nine Immortal Caves. Could they have set a trap there?
Yao Yao must have seen it too. Fearing she might go in alone and be in danger, I immediately ordered everyone to accelerate, trying to close the distance.
When we got off the highway, the map showed we were only five kilometers from Yanan. I activated my qi sensing technique and successfully located Yao Yao. She was about half a kilometer ahead of us, not moving very fast, perhaps waiting for us.
Two minutes later, I spotted the taxi driving slowly ahead. We pulled up alongside it and looked inside. Yao Yao nodded, signaling the driver to pull over. Before getting out, Yao Yao said something to the driver that made him tremble and turn pale, nodding obsequiously. Finally, Yao Yao tossed a wad of cash and got out, entering our car.
"Did you discover anything unusual?" I asked quickly.
"People from the Cangjing Group."
"Is there an ambush at Chrysanthemum Mountain?" I asked again. We were only eight kilometers from Chrysanthemum Mountain, and Yao Yao's qi sensing technique could already reach that far.
However, Yao Yao shook her head. "I didn't see any ambush. Near the Nine Immortal Caves, there are only a few humans with low qi levels, likely sentries left by the Mohe. But I can't see what's happening on the mountain side."
"We should still be cautious," I said.
The convoy continued its advance and soon arrived at the foot of Chrysanthemum Mountain. This was the back of the mountain, the same place Bing Bing and I had climbed up to rescue Yao Yao. We couldn't drive up the mountain. Yao Yao said the enemy had gone ahead by car, bypassed Chrysanthemum Mountain, and entered Fanshen Village from the front. Due to the mountain blocking our view, Yao Yao and I couldn't see into the village and therefore couldn't confirm if there was an ambush.
I decided to surprise them. I instructed only Chen Ke and Meng Meng to drive two sedans and pretend to follow the enemy's route, but not to enter the village, just to stop nearby. The rest of us would abandon the cars and proceed on foot from the back of Chrysanthemum Mountain for a surprise attack.
Compared to the last time we climbed the mountain, this time was much easier for me. I was basically not far behind the demons. After five minutes, everyone reached the rocky area near the summit. Looking up, Yanan was flying high in the sky above the mountain, appearing only as a black dot. This was a safe distance; even with a gun, it couldn't be hit.
Yao Yao and I lay in the crevices between the rocks, both activating our qi sensing techniques to observe the village below the mountain. The entire village was empty, but centered around the village, the surrounding smaller mountains were filled with killing intent. Over twenty streams of purple qi were positioned around, forming an impenetrable encirclement. The closest one to us was in the Han Yin Temple below our feet, and it was the strongest stream of purple qi, indicating a high-level expert in the middle stage of purple qi!
Before long, I saw the white van slowly drive into the flat area of the village. Ice Bing didn't get out, but two men did. They casually smoked and chatted while they talked. Including them, I counted exactly thirty streams of purple qi!
It seemed Cangjing had lost the antique and was willing to pay a heavy price, setting up a trap to capture us all here…