Li Wuyu said, "With such heavy rain now, the Deputy General should have put up a tent to avoid getting wet, just like us."
An Jing simply smiled but said nothing more, though unease still lingered in her heart.
...
It wasn’t just An Jing who felt uneasy; Gong Juechen at Xilin City was also restless.
Gong Juechen had been on edge for a while.
Even before the rain started, he had been uneasy—extrely uneasy. His right eyelid kept twitching, and he couldn’t sit still.
Seeing the skies grow dark, as if a torrential downpour was on its way, Gong Juechen’s worry deepened. He felt unable to stay in Xilin City any longer. Fearing that sothing might happen to Ye Zhi, he ignored the military order of "no leaving the camp without permission." Not only did he leave the camp, but he also exited Xilin City.
In fact, last night, he had already learned from Shi Shi where Ye Zhi and her group planned to go today.
This morning, he had approached Xiao Changyi to ask where Ye Zhi and her group went. In truth, he was just unsettled and felt too agitated staying alone in his tent. That’s why he sought out Xiao Changyi, hoping that a chat with him might distract him.
However, Xiao Changyi’s deanor made it obvious that he was also deeply worried.
This only amplified Gong Juechen’s anxiety. He couldn’t concentrate on anything else.
As soon as Gong Juechen left Xilin City, the rain began to pour—and it was a downpour. Undeterred, Gong Juechen pressed forward through the storm.
Thankfully, the dense clouds and torrential rain disrupted the vision of Jingye City’s patrolling soldiers, preventing them from spotting him.
Once Gong Juechen entered the mountains, he searched for a while and discovered two paths.
Both paths seed newly ford. Fresh branches littered the ground, and the distinct marks of swords cutting through were very obvious. Logic alone was enough to deduce that An Jing and her group had split into two teams.
But which path was Ye Zhi on?
Standing at the fork, Gong Juechen looked at the path leading northeast, then at the one heading southeast. He had no clue which one to choose. Finally, unwilling to waste any more ti, he randomly picked one—the mountain path heading northeast.
Consud by worry, Gong Juechen walked quickly.
Even though he was drenched to the bone and the mountain was teeming with wild beasts, he didn’t care. At this mont, his mind was singularly focused on finding Ye Zhi.
Only by seeing Ye Zhi safe and sound could he feel at ease.
anwhile, with Ye Zhi’s group, the area of Jingye City they were observing was not very large. Since she had started drawing a map of the terrain at midday, by the ti Ye Zhi had finished mapping the area and packed up the parchnt, the rain had already begun to pour down in torrents.
Having completed the map, Ye Zhi decided not to spend the night in the mountains. She planned to descend the mountain instead.
The mountain was far less safe than the city, so it was better to descend sooner rather than later.
And thus, they began their descent in the rain.
Due to the relentless downpour, the road was extrely slippery. They couldn’t move quickly and kept sliding and falling.
Originally, it had taken Ye Zhi’s group four hours to climb to the location where they worked on the map, but now, even after an hour of descending, they had yet to cover even one-fifth of the route they had taken in the morning.
By now, everyone was completely soaked.
Ahead was a steep slope, incredibly dangerous. As soon as Ye Zhi spotted it, she turned and shouted loudly to the five female soldiers behind her: "Everyone, be extra careful! Watch your footing!"
The rain was so heavy that, even though Ye Zhi yelled at the top of her lungs, Shi Shi, Su Chengyuan, Lie Qi, Shi Hua, and Ting Shu could barely make out her words. It felt like they were in a daze, drenched by the overwhelming rain that left them almost in a dreamlike stupor.
The sheer intensity of the rain, combined with the darkness, prevented anyone from noticing that the steep slope was subtly shifting, giving signs of an impending landslide.
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