Xue Yanluo returned to his temporary home and told his two attendants the little information he had gathered on his trip.
When he finished, he looked at Hua Zhenfeng. "Go to our camp and see how things stand there," he ordered.
"Yes, my lord." Hua Zhenfeng said his goodbyes immediately and left toward the other group.
"Bao Qingcao, try to talk to some of the sect's disciples or elders and get information. Anything will do."
"Understood."
Xue Yanluo was alone now and looked up at the sky, which still held the same shape as when they had entered. He went back inside and sat on the floor, took a bluish bottle from his emblem, and prepared to cultivate. After pouring its contents into his mouth, he closed his eyes and focused on refining the strand that had formed in his dantian.
Hours passed, and he opened his eyes, sighing heavily. Damn father and damn this realm. This blood is almost useless now, and it's nearly impossible to get anyone's blood here… Not a single one of these disciples has died since I joined them…
Xue Yanluo reached into his clothing, and in his hand now rested an emblem bearing his name. Every time he looked at it, he was grateful his vampire energy worked with these emblems—otherwise it would have been his biggest problem.
From it, he looked at two things—one was a pile of bluish bottles, four in total, and though they were no longer useful for cultivating, he could use them to stave off his hunger.
The other was a scroll, the same one Eunuch Mo had given him with His Majesty's secret mission. He took it out of his emblem and tried to open it again, but nothing changed—no matter the force applied, the emblem remained unchanged.
When he stopped pressing, he let it rest in his palm. Xue Yanluo fixed a hard stare on the yellow emblem with its single written character, and his mind complained.
How am I supposed to look for something when I don't know what I'm looking for…? This is the eighth… Is the object His Majesty wants even in this place? Eunuch Mo had said it would only open if he found the object… No, what exactly had he said? Xue Yanluo frowned, trying to recall Eunuch Mo's words, but they seemed blurred. Every time he got close to them, they dissolved like waves pulling back into the sea.
Xue Yanluo began turning the emblem between his fingers as he tried to remember Eunuch Mo's words.
His vacant gaze drifted across the floor until it fixed on the only thing that seemed active—the emblem playing between his fingers.
"Was it always yellow…?" he murmured. He stopped the emblem between his fingers and took it in his other hand, looking at it more closely.
The seconds passed unnoticed in the tent. Xue Yanluo wanted to see through the emblem if he could, inspecting every corner of it just in case.
"It was red…" he murmured finally. "It was red—that I do remember. Does this mean I've already completed the mission?" Xue Yanluo stood up all at once, eyes wide open, his mind connecting all the pieces.
When was that? Damn—why does the part where they erase my memory work so well? If I hadn't taken out the scroll… Though isn't it a little… stupid? If I ask those two about my schedule and my actions, I can compare them to my memories and… that easy…?
I'll verify it later—the important thing is that I've completed it. The emperor's pass… At last I have that in my hands. Xue Yanluo stored the scroll back in his emblem, and his shoulders relaxed after that.
It was as though a rope had been cut—the one that had kept him walking in endless search of the emperor's object.
Xue Yanluo stepped out of the tent, and the people outside were moving about in an agitated state. Bao Qingcao approached when she saw him come out and explained the situation. "The sect's masters and General Huo with Eunuch Mo have reached an agreement—in five hours we march toward the pillars."
"Good, it was about time we left this place," Xue Yanluo nodded. "How has your training been going these days?"
Bao Qingcao bit her lip and said, "Badly. All the vials have lost their energy, and now they only serve as food."
"I imagine the same happened to Hua Zhenfeng."
"Yes," she answered without embarrassment. "It happened to him two days before me, and he came to ask me for a couple to cultivate with."
We need to get better emblems—otherwise storing blood for cultivation will be a nightmare, Xue Yanluo thought, touching his emblem.
"For now, I'll give you some that still have their potency." Xue Yanluo said, handing her six blue vials. "Give half to Hua Zhenfeng."
"When he gets back, I'll give them to him right away."
"He still hasn't returned after all this time?"
"I don't know either—he's probably overexerting himself as usual." Bao Qingcao shook her head, used to that habit of his.
Xue Yanluo didn't think much of it, as it wasn't a bad trait in itself—he only feared he might end up wandering into somewhere dangerous and dying. What would happen to the vampire crystal in his heart then? Would he recover the energy spent turning him, or would it be lost forever?
An hour later, Hua Zhenfeng returned and went straight to Xue Yanluo's tent. He was agitated, breathing hard, trying to speak, his words cut off by his lungs still grasping for air.
Xue Yanluo rubbed his temple with his fingers and told him, "Quiet. Get yourself under control, and then you talk."
Hua Zhenfeng's ears turned scarlet, and he nodded, taking a seat in a nearby chair. He controlled his breathing while relaxing his body, and slowly his breath grew slower, calmer.
A couple of minutes later, Hua Zhenfeng stood up from the chair and reported on what he had found. "My lord, back in the empire's camp, the great majority of people were injured, and a good number ended up losing consciousness."