Sure enough, when Jin Ming approached, Feng Fei noticed that while Jin Ming hadn't changed his entire face, some subtle adjustments made him look quite different from his original appearance. If Feng Fei hadn't known it was Jin Ming, he probably would have mistaken him for someone else.
"Everything's ready, let's go!"
With a wave of his hand, Jin Ming strode forward, clearing a path.
Before long, the four of them arrived at the gate of the city lord's mansion.
When the gatekeeper of the city lord's mansion saw four people dressed in fine and noble clothes, he assumed they were noble scions from somewhere and immediately came out to greet them. At the same time, another gatekeeper went inside the mansion to find Chief Steward Zhang.
Before the doorman could even speak, Yuan Jue flipped his right hand, and a red name card with gold script appeared in his palm.
The gatekeeper obediently accepted the gifts, and just as he was about to ask about Feng Fei and the others' origins, he saw Chief Steward Zhang come out of the mansion to greet them.
Large red lanterns hung in front of the city lord's mansion, and even the heads of the two majestic stone lions at the entrance were decorated with large red flowers.
"Everyone..."
As soon as they approached, Steward Zhang was about to ask a question, but the gatekeeper who had come to fetch Steward Zhang took the name card and handed it to Steward Zhang.
Steward Zhang took the document and glanced at it. His expression immediately changed drastically. He looked at Feng Fei and the other three with suspicion and uncertainty, but finally his gaze fell on Yuan Jue. "This... is this Mr. Yue?"
Yuan Jue glanced at Steward Zhang indifferently, and his slight smile sent a chill down Steward Zhang's spine.
"It's really... Mr. Yue, your presence is truly an honor... Ah, everyone, please come in!"
Steward Zhang seemed to be startled by Yuan Jue's smile and hurriedly ushered Feng Fei and the other three into the city lord's mansion.
Yuan Jue and Feng Fei led the way, Ming Feng followed slightly behind, holding Feng Fei's hand, while Jin Ming entered the gate last.
Jin Ming glanced smugly at Steward Zhang, then shook his robes and immediately caught up with Feng Fei, who was walking ahead.
Manager Zhang stood there wiping the sweat from his forehead. Seeing that Feng Fei and the other three had walked a distance, he quickly jogged over to them.
After glancing cautiously at Yuan Jue, Steward Zhang hesitated, opening his mouth as if searching for words, before finally asking with slight unease, "Mr. Yue, should I inform the City Lord?"
Yuan Jue kept walking without stopping, and his expression remained unchanged. Jin Ming, on the other hand, said, "You go ahead, we're just taking a look around."
But Steward Zhang seemed to think that Jin Ming's words were not very reliable, so he looked at Yuan Jue and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Yuan Jue nod: "Then I will take my leave."
They were now almost at the courtyard where a banquet was being held for the people of Mochou City, and the lively sounds from inside could be heard from afar.
Upon hearing Steward Zhang's words, Jin Ming immediately waved his hand and said, "Let's go, let's go."
However, Steward Zhang still looked at Yuan Jue, believing that only Mr. Yue's words should be obeyed.
However, this response angered Jin Ming, who immediately turned to Steward Zhang and angrily rebuked him: "How dare you disobey me?" Then, he kicked Steward Zhang.
Seeing that Mr. Yue tolerated the man's aggressive behavior, Steward Zhang guessed that the man must have some status, especially since Mr. Yue hadn't stopped him from attacking. Thinking this, Steward Zhang gritted his teeth and stood motionless, taking Jin Ming's kick without flinching. This startled Jin Ming.
Why didn't you move aside?
"You deserved to kick him, sir." Steward Zhang put on a fawning smile, secretly relieved that Jin Ming hadn't used much force.
This reaction from Steward Zhang immediately killed Jin Ming's interest in provoking him.
Seeing that Mr. Yue was still walking forward, and even the young master who had kicked him earlier was chasing after him, Steward Zhang stopped and stood there for a while before hurriedly leaving. He had to inform the city lord that even if it was a wedding, this "Mr. Yue" could not be ignored.
As Feng Fei and his companions walked forward, the lively sounds from the courtyard ahead seemed very close, but upon closer inspection, they felt quite a distance away.
Suddenly, Mingfeng tugged at Fengfei's sleeve and whispered, "That Steward Zhang is gone, and there's no one watching around."
Upon hearing this, Jin Ming's eyes immediately lit up.
But Feng Fei frowned and pulled Ming Feng aside to confirm, "Is there anyone around?"
Mingfeng nodded heavily, while Fengfei looked at Yuanjue and asked, "Is there something wrong with this?"
After thinking for a moment, Yuan Jue said in a deep voice, "I'm afraid there's something unusual. Jin Ming, you go quietly. Feng Fei and I will still go to the courtyard. Steward Zhang will probably go and inform Lu Fei."
Jin Ming nodded excitedly, and before Yuan Jue could say anything more, he vanished.
Feng Fei glanced worriedly in the direction Jin Ming had left. "Is this alright?"
Yuan Jue smiled and gently brushed the stray hairs from Feng Fei's temples behind her head: "It's nothing. Let's go take a look at the courtyard first."
Yuanjue's smile always amazed Fengfei.
"Then let's go."
Meanwhile, after leaving Feng Fei and the other two, Jin Ming leaped into another garden.
The layout of the City Lord's Mansion was somewhat strange, seemingly a collection of square courtyards stacked together. The courtyard that Feng Fei and the others first arrived at was the City Lord's largest flower garden. Adjacent to this flower garden on three sides were also three flower gardens. One of them was the courtyard where the people of Mochou City ate and drank, which Feng Fei and the others went to, while Jin Ming went to the courtyard on the right.
As soon as he flew into the courtyard, Jin Ming immediately disappeared.
You can't be too ostentatious in someone else's residence.
The courtyard was just like the previous one, bursting with flowers, but there was no one in sight. It seemed that all the vitality of the city lord's mansion was concentrated in the area where the banquet was being held.
Despite not being able to see anyone, Jin Ming continued to move forward cautiously.
He's just a bit too curious, not a reckless person.
Carefully observing the situation in the yard, Jin Ming suddenly frowned, squatted down, picked up a handful of soil from the ground, and sniffed it carefully.
Suddenly, Jin Ming seemed to have touched something terrifying. He hurriedly threw away the soil in his hand and searched the flowerbed for something, but he couldn't find it. Gradually, Jin Ming's consciousness began to blur.
At the same time, footsteps could be heard coming from the deserted courtyard.
Jin Ming had a bad feeling, but he was starting to lose control of his body. He bit his tongue to clear his mind and quickly took out an antidote pill from his storage ring, which made him feel a little better.
However, this antidote could not help him escape his current perilous situation.
The footsteps grew closer and closer, and Jin Ming had no choice but to run around the pavilion by the water and head towards the wall.
A pavilion was built on the west side of the flower garden, which bordered the water to the north and leaned against a wall to the west. The cliff was covered with green vines.
Jin Ming planned to hide under the vines, which were green and had the effect of refreshing the mind.
Jin Ming, who had just hidden under the vines, noticed that the owner of the footsteps suddenly stopped.
Jin Ming's nerves immediately tightened. Coupled with the poison he had been poisoned earlier, he felt that the antidote was much less effective, and that drowsy feeling returned to his mind.
The man chuckled softly, and then fell silent.
Jin Ming felt a throbbing pain in his head. He had no idea what kind of poison he had been poisoned with. He was always skilled in medicine and the properties of medicine, but this time he had been poisoned without even realizing it.
While still thinking about how he was poisoned, Jin Ming gradually lost consciousness.
Just as he lost consciousness, the vines blocking his way were suddenly ripped aside.
Chapter Fifteen: Blood Pool
Yuanjue walked in front, Fengfei lagged slightly behind, and Mingfeng held Fengfei's hand as they walked side by side.
Suddenly, Feng Fei stopped in her tracks, a sense of unease crossing her heart.
Perhaps sensing Feng Fei's pause, Yuan Jue turned around and asked, "What's wrong?"
Feng Fei frowned, staring straight at Yuan Jue, but unconsciously tightened his grip on Ming Feng's right hand: "I suddenly feel that something is very wrong."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Jue couldn't help but frown.
Yuan Jue looked towards the noisy courtyard; they were just one turn away from entering. However, a strange feeling lingered in his heart—not exactly unease, but something that made him extremely uncomfortable.
After thinking for a moment, Yuan Jue still spoke up: "Let's go take a look. Steward Zhang should have gone to inform Lu Fei, and we're not familiar with this City Lord's Mansion. Along the way, besides Steward Zhang, we've only seen the two gatekeepers at the entrance. There should be quite a few people in the courtyard ahead, but the rest of the place feels very strange to me."
Feng Fei nodded vigorously; she also felt that something was very wrong.
The closer Fengfei got to that courtyard, the thicker the air seemed to become. Instinctively, Fengfei didn't want to go in.
However, there was nothing wrong with Yuan Jue's words. After a while, Feng Fei finally spoke up: "Why don't we stay here and wait for Steward Zhang to bring Lu Fei here?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Feng Fei frowned, feeling a sudden surge of fear. But remembering what had happened at the inn, she quickly dismissed her worries.
She looked up abruptly, her eyes flashing with determination and fearlessness: "Let's go in."
If it was a trap, they'd already stepped into it. Moreover, she didn't believe Lu Fei could be certain they'd come back and forth, so he deliberately set this trap. If it wasn't, then it was highly likely that the City Lord's Mansion was simply different from other places, and their actions would seem rather ridiculous.
Yuan Jue smiled and nodded, but then stepped forward and took Feng Fei's hand before continuing to walk forward.
The noisy courtyard seemed to be deep within this flower garden; Feng Fei and his companions had to turn several corners to reach it.
Now, only one last bend remains.
The path was lined with lush bushes dotted with red flowers, which looked quite lovely. This actually helped Feng Fei, who was a little nervous, to relax a bit.
As they rounded the last bend, the gate to the courtyard came into view of Feng Fei and his companions.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue exchanged a glance, then smiled and continued walking.
The moment Feng Fei and the other two stepped into the courtyard, Feng Fei felt the noise in the courtyard suddenly become even more deafening.
However, there was no one in front of them, only the annoying sound of laughter.
Could it be that we've entered an illusion?
The thought flashed through Feng Fei's mind, but she dismissed it the next moment.
Because she clearly felt Yuan Jue's presence, and felt Ming Feng holding her hand tightly. She could clearly distinguish that this was not an illusion, but a real feeling. Perhaps guessing what Feng Fei was thinking, Yuan Jue turned his head and smiled at Feng Fei: "Don't worry, this is not an illusion."
"Hmm. But I don't feel good about this place, let's leave first."
Yuan Jue agreed with Feng Fei's words and picked up Feng Fei and Ming Feng to leave, but suddenly found that his spiritual power was stagnant.
"I can't control my spiritual power."
"What?" Upon hearing this, Feng Fei hurriedly checked his spiritual power, only to be surprised to find that although his spiritual power was very sluggish, it could still circulate.
Feng Fei explained her situation to Yuan Jue, while Ming Feng also stated that she was unable to use her spiritual power. Ultimately, the three concluded that Feng Fei's jade-gold spiritual power was unlike any other.
"Even if they are different beings, they can't help much right now. In the end, it's still because my cultivation level is too low." Feng Fei was very frustrated. If he were stronger, he wouldn't be in this predicament.
“Even with our strength, like me and Jin Ming, we never expected to encounter this situation. Actually, it's my fault. If I hadn't insisted on coming in, we wouldn't be in this situation…” Yuan Jue suddenly stopped talking and looked towards the small grove to the northeast: “There seems to be something different there.”
The sounds from that location seemed even louder, and one could vaguely sense a hint of pain mixed in with the noise.