Chapter 22

After Yu Qing left, Chong'er found a corner to open the oil paper package. To his surprise, it contained ten steaming hot white flour buns. Taking a bite, the fresh and fragrant filling oozed out, and it turned out to be a meat bun. He immediately enjoyed a delicious and satisfying meal, his face beaming with happiness.

Despite his small stature, he had a considerable appetite. The ten buns were quickly devoured in no time.

As the sun rose, the group set off again. The bearded soldier did not break his promise, and Chong'er was indeed assigned to watch the luggage, sitting on a pile of luggage inside the luggage cart, which was definitely more comfortable than the previous day.

Actually, he didn't feel particularly tired after the whole day yesterday; his energy remained fairly abundant. He found it strange to see others looking so exhausted.

What he didn't know was that the three bowls of spirit rice had such an effect. Since he didn't practice martial arts to consume energy, nor did he cultivate to absorb and refine spirit energy, the spirit energy from the three bowls of spirit rice had spread throughout his body. He wouldn't starve to death even if he didn't eat or drink for a month, and walking for a day wouldn't consume much energy.

Day after day passed, and five days later, the group left the territory of Liezhou.

Upon crossing the border, they were greeted by vast mountains with a unique aura.

Beyond the border lay the mysterious ancient tomb wasteland.

Before entering, the candidates had been informed that the ancient tomb wasteland was vast and would take about half a month to cross. During this period, the restrictions on everyone would be stricter. This was the only section of the journey to the capital where they would stay at a station, as there were no towns along the way, only stations that had been established.

Of course, the station where they would stay had already been prepared by relevant personnel.

When towering ancient trees appeared on both sides of the road, the eerie atmosphere of the ancient tomb wasteland gradually unfolded.

About an hour after entering, someone in Yu Qing's carriage suddenly pointed out the window and shouted, "Over there, look! That should be the landmark of Liezhou entering the ancient tomb wasteland. Seeing this means we have already delved deep into the ancient tomb wasteland."

Everyone crowded to the windows to look outside, and Yu Qing was no exception.

On the side of the road was a canyon, and at the end of the canyon, there was a huge dark gray skeleton, almost as tall as the canyon itself. It seemed to be embedded in the mountain in a seated position, with its hands seemingly supporting the sides of the canyon, like a king on a throne waiting for people to pay homage, exuding an awe-inspiring presence.

Unfortunately, the travelers just passed by the canyon entrance, and no one went to pay homage.

"The ancient tomb wasteland, the burial ground of giants, this is the legendary laborer who served the immortals."

The speaker's tone was full of emotion, the initial visual impact of the powerful scene evident in his words.

Yu Qing was also seeing it for the first time, but his gaze soon fell on the Great Archer riding past on a horse. While the candidates were amazed by the fantastical scene before them, the Great Archer had already taken his bow and arrow in hand, clearly on high alert.

This made Yu Qing's heart tighten. The Great Archer's actions at least indicated that they needed to be more vigilant in this area, which made him also raise his guard.

That day passed without incident, and the group arrived safely at the destination station.

Due to the special environment, there were no other places to rest along the way. Ordinary people neither dared nor had the ability to operate inns on this route. The only place where normal people could stay and rest was the official station. Due to special circumstances, the stations on this route were open to both officials and civilians, which helped maintain the stations and meet the high demand. Therefore, the stations were both large and functional.

This station was to serve a special function today and was not open to the public, only receiving the group of candidates heading to the capital.

Travelers would be notified at the previous stations to either rush to the next station in the dark or rest early. The station ahead would not accommodate them no matter how much money they offered, and they were on their own if anything happened.

As the sun set and the sky filled with evening glow,

"Great scenery is often found in dangerous places!"

The candidates, getting off the carriage, were moved by the beautiful scenery, and many of them expressed their admiration and poetic inspiration, one after another.

Before them was a beautiful inn surrounded by a circle of towering ancient trees, creating an open space. The inn was situated in this open area, with picturesque peaks and clear water outside. There were many tree houses on the ancient trees, and people were seen hanging and drying clothes on the platforms outside the tree houses, the red glow of the sunset making the scene even more beautiful.

The group of scholars couldn't help but be captivated and wanted to go up to admire the view, but they were not allowed, as the upper areas were not for their use and could be dangerous.

The escort official, Fu Zuoxuan, didn't pay attention to the scholars and walked briskly toward the main hall of the station.

On his left was a man in gray, a special envoy sent by the Sining Mansion to Liezhou to participate in the protection of the candidates, named Jin Huahai.

On his right was an old man with gray hair named Jiang Yining, the most senior Great Archer in the Liezhou military, whose disciples and grand-disciples made up nearly half of the Great Archers in Liezhou.

At the bottom of the steps outside the main hall, a dark-skinned man bowed and said, "Sir Fu."

Fu Zuoxuan stopped and asked, "What's the situation?"

The dark-skinned man replied, "We have already swept the area within three miles of the station, and there are no suspicious signs. We have set up hidden sentries around, and any abnormal approach will be warned in advance. The entire station has been treated with medicine, and snakes, insects, and rodents will not dare to come close."

This man was from the Liezhou military. The governor, Lu Jikui, was still not confident about the route through the ancient tomb wasteland and had ordered the military to send two teams of elite personnel to arrive at the station where the candidates would stay, to take full military control and defense of the station and its surroundings.

The dark-skinned man was the leader of the first team, while the second team was already resting and preparing at the next destination station. In short, the two teams would take turns preparing for the stations where the candidates would stay each day, providing layered support.

Fu Zuoxuan nodded, "Thank you for your efforts."

"It's my duty," the dark-skinned man said politely and then left.

Fu Zuoxuan turned to face the two men on either side, "Old Jiang, Mr. Jin, although the governor has sent additional scouts to protect us, we must not slack in our own defenses!"

Jiang Yining replied, "I will arrange shifts, with nine Great Archers per shift."

Jin Huahai added, "The Sining Mansion will deploy some people inside and outside the station as hidden sentries. Sir Fu can rest assured."

As he said, the night passed peacefully without any incidents.

Day after day, the road through the ancient tomb wasteland was filled with endless fantastical scenery. The official road seemed to be a miracle itself.

Along the way, they often saw the skeletons of giants, either abandoned in the wilderness or partially exposed on the ground. The candidates had gradually become accustomed to these sights...

Deep in the mountains, on a flat-topped peak, stood three men and two women.

The man and woman standing side by side were the "Black and White Duo" who had spied on the governor's residence at the Yuelai Inn in Liezhou.

The other two men and one woman were all demon cultivators. The tall, thin man with a hooked nose and disheveled hair was named Gao Yuan. The bald, muscular man in white was named Jiang Shan. The old woman in gray, with a hunched back and a cane, was known as Rat Old Lady.

The three demons were local demon cultivators in the ancient tomb wasteland, invited by the Black and White Duo to join in a major plan. However, their words were not friendly, and they seemed unhappy.

As the five demons exchanged cold words, an eagle broke through the dark clouds, descended from the sky, and released a bamboo tube when it reached the heads of the five demons.

Gao Yuan raised his hand, caught the bamboo tube, opened it on the spot, and pulled out a scroll of paper. After reading its contents, he looked into the distance and took a deep breath, saying, "The group of candidates has already set off and should reach our ambush point by noon. It's broad daylight..." He looked up at the overcast sky, "Fortunately, the weather is cooperating." He then turned to the Black and White Duo, "I really don't understand why you didn't act before the candidates gathered, but instead waited until they were escorted by a large group, leading to a bloody confrontation?"

Bai Lan said with hatred, "It's not that we didn't want to, but those officials are too cunning. First, the Sining Mansion set traps using some candidates as bait. Moreover, storming into the city and fighting would be a serious offense. Additionally, the methods to transfer the candidates were varied, and we couldn't just stop everyone on the road, which would be suicide. Most infuriatingly, when someone finally succeeded, the officials publicly announced that the dead had not registered for the exam, claiming they were not candidates, and who could verify this?"

Gao Yuan snorted, "The escort force is formidable, and a direct confrontation would result in heavy losses. I advise you to reconsider before it's too late!"

Hei Yun Xiao laughed, "Brother Gao, there's no need to worry. With the help of the three of you, this plan will surely succeed."

The bald man in white snorted, "I've made it clear that I'm only assisting, and my people will not participate in the fighting."

Hei Yun Xiao replied, "With Brother Jiang's help, those Great Archers will be rendered ineffective. As long as Brother Jiang summons a dense fog, it will be like a thousand troops. The fighting will be done by my three hundred brothers, and you only need to provide strong support. I promise to share the benefits equally after the deed is done. However, I must say this: if anyone fails to keep their word or pretends to help but doesn't put in the effort, don't blame me for reporting to the Lady."

Upon hearing this, Gao Yuan, Jiang Shan, and Rat Old Lady all had dark expressions and remained silent.

They had heard about Lady Qixia, but they did not want to get involved in this matter. Even knowing that the candidates would pass through the ancient tomb wasteland, they had planned to pretend they knew nothing.

In the end, it came down to one reason: Lady Qixia's strength was far inferior to the Sining Mansion.

The Black and White Duo were freelancers who could run after the job was done, but what about them?

They had cultivated in the ancient tomb wasteland for many years, establishing their own territories and power bases, which took years of effort to build. It would be foolish to provoke the most powerful force in Jin State right in their own backyard.

As soon as they took action, they would be exposed, and the Sining Mansion would surely raze their strongholds to the ground.

Not just them, but any demon cultivator with a territory and significant power would not get involved in this matter. Running away was easy, but losing their base and power was not worth the risk.

Yet the Black and White Duo found them, and they initially refused. But when the duo mentioned Lady Qixia,