Night, pitch black!

  The night wind was bleak and howling, blowing through the entire Wu'an County city, while Teng Qing Shan sat on the second floor of the building, where there were no candles lit, and it was pitch black. On the table, two jars of wine were placed, and from time to time, he would take a sip, but the bleak night wind blew his robes, yet Teng Qing Shan remained seated by the table.

  In the dark tower, Teng Qing Shan sat silently.

  "Little cat, I never thought that in this life, I would still meet a girl who looks so much like you! I wonder if she has grown up. Is she still as beautiful as you?" Teng Qing Shan said softly, "Alas... originally, I thought that after the past life and this life, I had almost forgotten about you! But seeing this little Juan, I realized... your smile, your frown, even the words you spoke to me, I still remember clearly. All of these things are as if they were carved into my soul, and even with a new birth, I am unable to forget."

  A faint smile appeared on Hong Qingshan's face.

  "Little cat, it seems that your man is going to have a hard time finding another woman to love in this life! This is all because of you." Teng Qing Shan took another sip.

  ……

  That night, Teng Qing Shan did not sleep and did not meditate. He simply sat alone in the well-ventilated, pitch-black building for a whole night.

  ******

  Early morning.

  Li Kun, dressed in a green robe, rushed through the mansion, searching for Cong Qingshan.

  "Xiao Juan, you're up so early!" said the fat boy with a smile.

  "Where's Wang Da Bo and Teng Da Ge?" Li Kun asked anxiously.

  "The leader set out early in the morning and headed into the wilderness." said the fatty with a smile.

  "Left?" Li Kun was taken aback.

  Fatso continued: "General asked Miss Xiaojun to stay here and take care of herself. As for the revenge, General will help you solve it. Also..." Fatso took out a gold note from his pocket, "This is a 100-tael gold note, which was given to me by General before he left. If Miss Xiaojun wants to buy a house or get married in the future, she can use this gold."

  Li Kun looked at the golden ticket and couldn't help but have tears well up in her eyes.

  One hundred and two gold tickets, that's ten thousand taels of silver. With normal eating, drinking, living and traveling, it's enough for a lifetime.

  "Buy a house, get married..." Li Kun's tears flowed silently down.

  ……

  Helping Xiao Jin once, Teng Qing Shan's memories of his past life became even more profound. His mood turned somewhat melancholic and he didn't have the leisure to tour the mountains and rivers. Instead, he advanced quickly along the way. By evening that day, Teng Qing Shan arrived at a small city in all of Yangzhou that was closest to the Barbaric Mountains - Nan Man City!

  Nanman Castle is a castle roughly the same size as Wayi Castle.

  However, since Nanman City is the closest to the Barbaric Wilderness within Yangzhou's borders, it is quite prosperous. Some warriors who dare to venture into the Barbaric Wilderness and some herbalists who go to the edge of the wilderness to pick medicinal herbs all gather in Nanman City. After all, although the Barbaric Wilderness is dangerous, many rare medicinal herbs that are hard to find elsewhere grow there.

  Nanban Castle Interior.

  "Landlord, prepare a room upstairs." Teng Qing Shan stepped into the lobby of a two-story inn and instructed, "Also bring another table of wine and dishes." As he spoke, Teng Qing Shan chose a seat by the window.

  "Sir, what would you like to eat?" The waiter immediately brought over the menu.

  They ordered some wine and dishes, and Ceng Qing Shan started eating and drinking.

  "Little Jun, this child, having lost all her relatives, is probably going to take some time to fully recover." Teng Qing Shan thought to himself as he ate his meal. As for that Li Jun... Teng Qing Shan didn't have any romantic feelings towards her in his heart, after all, Li Jun was just a thirteen-year-old little girl, even younger than his own sister Xiao Yu.

  Teng Qing Shan's mental age is probably old enough to be Li Kun's father.

  It's just brotherly concern.

  "En, she is in Wu'an County City, with Old Wang taking care of her, it's not too dangerous. In the future, she will have to rely on herself." Teng Qing Shan understood that he was just a passerby in Li Kun's life.

  Wow!

  A middle-aged man in a grey robe with a bamboo hat walked into the inn, took a glance at Teng Qing Shan, and a hint of surprise flashed across his eyes. Afterwards, the middle-aged man went straight up the stairs.

  ……

  On the third floor, a luxurious room, on the round table was a sumptuous feast, surrounded by three middle-aged men and two elderly people. All five were wearing gray robes. One of the elderly men was Wei Canglong, the elder of Yangzhou's Chuguang 'Iron Clothes Sect', and the five were laughing and chatting while eating.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  The knock at the door sounded, and the five people in the room fell silent.

  "Come in." Wei Canglong said.

  After the door was pushed open, a middle-aged man in gray robes walked in. The five people at the wine table saw the newcomer and secretly let out a sigh of relief. This person closed the door of the room, took off his hood, and immediately said: "The matter has been settled! However... I just came up from downstairs. On the first floor, I saw Tuo Qing Shan of the Return to the Origin Sect!"

  "Teng Qing Shan!" The five of them were all somewhat surprised.

  Wei Canglong turned his head to look at the middle-aged man with a white streak in his temples and a handsome face: "Brother, since Teng Qing Mountain has come, will he be the Return to Origin Sect, knowing the secrets of our Iron Clothes Sect?" From Wei Canglong's tone, this handsome-faced middle-aged man was actually the leader of this group.

  "Among us, the Iron Clothes Sect, very few know this secret! It's unlikely that Guiyuan Sect knows." The handsome middle-aged man shook his head, "But, we also obtained this secret in Xuyang County. Could it be that Guiyuan Sect also discovered some clues in Xuyang County?"

  The six people in the room fell silent.

  This matter is of great importance.

  "Big Brother." Wei Canglong furrowed his brow and said, "Teng Qing Shan is the leader of Guiyuan Sect's Black Armor Army. What is he doing in Nanman City for no reason? I couldn't think of any other business he has here. So, I'm worried that he might be secretly following us. Moreover, it's not just him alone, but also others we haven't discovered."

  Several people present were worried by these words.

  "If we're targeted by them, we'll be in trouble."

  "What shall we do, Master?"

  ……

  Everyone looked at the handsome middle-aged man.

  "Don't scare yourself!" The handsome middle-aged man shook his head and said, "If there were other people from the Guiyuan Sect, we should have discovered them by now. But with Teng Qing Shan alone... Hmph, if he doesn't know his own strength, that's seeking death. Never mind these things, let's finish dinner. Rest for a night, and set off into the Barbaric Mountains early tomorrow morning!"

  "Yes."

  The other five people all respectfully echoed in agreement.

  ******

  Early in the morning, the six people from Tiejimen wore gray robes and conical hats, quickly leaving Nanman City, then walking into the wilderness. After all, there are many mountains and hills in the wilderness, where horses cannot be ridden, and only two legs can be relied on. Deng Qing Shan was a bit later than the six people from Tiejimen.

  The sun rises.

  Teng Qing Shan left the South Barbarian City from the south gate and headed south.

  "It's so desolate... I really don't know just how vast this wilderness is." Looking out at the endless, dark expanse in the distance, even vaguely visible in the far-off haze were towering mountain peaks shrouded in mist and cloud. This was the Wilderness! The most perilous region of the entire Nine Provinces.

  From Yangzhou in the southeast of Jiuzhou to Yan Zhou due south and Rongzhou in the southwest, the southern borders of these three states are all barbarous lands.

  As for the depth, it is not recorded in the book at least.

  "The map of the Return to the Origin Sect only records up to two thousand miles in. Further ahead... a vast emptiness." Teng Qing Mountain lowered his head, took a glance at the map in his hand, slightly identified the direction, then put away the map and continued to advance with large strides.

  ……

  In the wilderness, human footprints are rare, and the withered leaves on the ground have accumulated, making a sound when walked upon. The ancient trees, unknown how many years they have grown, stood towering. After walking for only a few hours, Teng Qing saw the largest tree, which was about three zhang wide.

  "This is barbaric, compared to the Amazon of my past life, I don't know who's bigger!" Teng Qing had trained in the Amazon in his past life, "But the Amazon was mostly water. And this, it's mountains and forests, and it's full of wild beasts, venomous snakes, poisonous insects, and even demonic beasts, it's much more dangerous!"

  The withered branches and rotten leaves filled the air in the mountains. The dense foliage of the towering trees made the air here very stifling.

  Hong Qing Shan walked with a light step, this ancient wilderness was as familiar as his own home.

  Right next to it was a dark and sinister tree with a similarly dark venomous snake coiled around it, staring intently at the rapidly advancing human - Teng Qing Shan!

  "Hiss!" The venomous snake, which had been lurking for a long time, suddenly darted out like a black lightning bolt and bit towards Tun Qing Shan.

  "Ah!"

  Teng Qing Shan's pace didn't change in the slightest, the Blood Drinking Knife in his hand flashed a red light, and the poisonous snake fell from mid-air, its two halves still twitching on the ground. Its vitality was indeed strong. But Teng Qing Shan didn't even glance at it, continuing to advance with large strides, and in the blink of an eye, he had already gone far away.

  Poisonous snake?

  Hong Qingshan was not afraid of poison at all. Moreover, with his keen six senses, these venomous snakes and ferocious beasts could not escape his detection.

  ……

  Heng Qing Shan advanced at a rapid pace, while the six Iron Clothes Sect members walked relatively slower. Although they were all skilled fighters, one of them was even a congenital expert... However, in this desolate wilderness, those snakes and insects were not to be underestimated. Especially for acquired experts, once bitten, it would be disastrous.

  Either dead or seriously injured!

  "Yinjiao Mountain, over two thousand miles deep. This barbaric land is all mountains, forests and lakes, with snakes, insects and ferocious beasts... I'm afraid it'll take us half a month to get there." Wei Canglong and his group were all gripping their weapons tightly in the wilderness, even if they were listed on the "Earth List", being bitten by an insect could still be fatal!

  Crisis is everywhere!

  "Someone's coming!" The handsome middle-aged man's face was cold and stern, with a low shout.

  The other five immediately fell silent.

  All I saw was a figure flashing by in the distance, and it glanced this way once.

  "It's Tian Qing Mountain!" Wei Canglong's face changed color.

  Several people's faces turned ugly.

  "That Teng Qing Shan is following us..." Another Iron Clothes Sect expert looked at the refined middle-aged man, "Master Ancestor, that Teng Qing Shan is probably really tracking us! Just out of Nan Man City, a vast plain stretches as far as the eye can see. He didn't dare to chase quickly. It wasn't until we entered the Barbarian Wastes that he hurriedly gave chase. If Master Ancestor hadn't detected the sound just now, we probably wouldn't have discovered him."

  "It's possible that it just so happens..." someone said.

  The handsome middle-aged man said in a low voice: "Last time we met, this time again. Maybe it's just a coincidence. But it's also possible that he is following us."

  "Whether it's true or false, our Iron Clothes Sect's secrets must not be exposed! Once they are exposed and spread... our sect will not only fail to prosper, but will instead invite disaster!" The handsome middle-aged man said coldly, "Liu Jian, go with him and kill Teng Qing Shan!"

  （）