Chapter 104: Pilgrimage

Before long, Han Li and the other two arrived at the predetermined landing spot—a certain beach on the western side of Red Moon Island.

To the trio's slight surprise, this area was quite desolate and uninhabited, but recalling that Red Moon Island had been sealed off for thousands of years, there was nothing strange about it.

As for the warning禁制 set up here, though fairly clever and concealed, they were naturally easily avoided by three True Immortal cultivators.

Even so, the three did not dare to be careless. They concealed their auras and slowly flew along the predetermined route toward their first target, a place called Maple Sea City.

At this moment, the sky was thick with clouds, and flying within them made the trio even more hidden.

Han Li flew while surveying the island's environment below.

The western region of Red Moon Island was flat, with few mountain peaks, mostly plains. As far as the eye could see, vegetation was lush, with连绵 forests stretching to the horizon.

Perhaps due to the soil, the trees on the island were almost all a crimson red.

When the sea breeze blew, the leaves undulated like a leaping sea of fire, a spectacular sight.

When the three finally flew out of the forest area, a plain appeared ahead. Dozens of miles from the forest sat a city of considerable size. From afar, one could see three large characters above the city gate: 'Maple Sea City.'

Sheep-Faced Jiao Nine, flying at the front, suddenly raised a hand and halted his遁光.

Han Li and Tiger-Faced Jiao Sixteen also stopped immediately.

“Have you found something?” Jiao Sixteen asked, scanning the surroundings.

“Since entering the island, this is the first city we’ve seen. Let’s confirm our position. After all, the map given by Lord Jiao Three is not precise; we might stray off course,” Jiao Nine replied solemnly.

“Alright,” Jiao Sixteen nodded upon hearing this.

Han Li naturally had no objection, as flying for half a day indeed required a direction check.

The three silently descended from midair and walked toward the city.

But when they reached the city gate, they were all slightly taken aback.

In this seemingly sizable city, not only were the city gates tightly shut, but the city was deathly silent, with no sound emanating—as if it were completely empty!

“Be careful, it might be an enemy trap!” Jiao Nine transmitted to Han Li and the other.

Han Li and Jiao Sixteen nodded slightly, quietly approached the city, and after confirming there were no禁制 outside, they climbed onto the city wall.

Due to Jiao Three’s叮嘱, the three did not directly release their divine sense to probe the city, but after using other means to search, they found nothing unusual.

“It seems it’s just an empty city. We were overreacting,” Jiao Nine murmured.

“Strange. The city doesn’t look old; people should have lived here not long ago. It doesn’t seem to have been attacked either. Why is it empty?” Jiao Sixteen said in confusion.

Han Li frowned slightly, also puzzled.

He had just used his spiritual eye technique and saw that many houses in the city were empty, with shops tightly shut, but traces of habitation remained, as if people had left not long ago.

Wind blew through the empty streets, howling; some unlatched doors and windows rattled, making clacking sounds. Occasionally, stray cats and dogs darted by, giving off an eerie atmosphere.

“This matter has nothing to do with us. Since we’ve confirmed our location, let’s go. The mission is important,” Jiao Nine said, clearly unwilling to get involved.

Han Li and Jiao Sixteen nodded, having no interest in such trivial matters.

The three bypassed the city and continued flying forward.

Ahead, the terrain grew even flatter. Before long, a fertile grassland appeared before them, with many cattle and sheep grazing scattered about, but no people in sight.

Even in the small villages deep in the grassland, not a single person was seen.

At the edge of the grassland, another city appeared.

After the empty city incident and what they had seen along the way, the three had no intention of stopping, but they still subconsciously glanced down.

This glance startled them again.

“Eh, still no one in the city. Another empty city,” Jiao Sixteen said in surprise.

“Don’t mind it. Perhaps something happened in this area recently, so everyone moved away,” Jiao Nine said after a brief thought.

“If the next city is also empty, I think we should inform the others,” Han Li said.

“Let’s see. According to the map, there’s a large city less than two thousand miles ahead,” Jiao Nine nodded.

Sure enough, a moment later, a city appeared before them.

This city, named An City, was quite large, spanning several hundred miles.

Contrary to their expectations, this city was normal: the city gate was bustling with people, and shops lined the streets, lively and bustling. Apart from mortals, there were also many low-level cultivators, forming a stark contrast with the previous two empty cities.

“Hey, this city has plenty of people. Could it be that everyone from the previous cities came here?” Jiao Sixteen said, seeming slightly relieved, in a teasing tone.

Han Li frowned. An City was not far from the previous empty city; why were the conditions so different?

“Fellow Daoists, we have ample time. The empty city incident is quite strange. As they say, ‘when things are abnormal, there must be a reason.’ It’s better to investigate a bit. We can also gather some information about Red Moon Island from this city,” Han Li suggested after a moment’s thought.

“Jiao Fifteen is right. It’s better to be cautious,” Jiao Sixteen glanced at Han Li and nodded.

“Since you both think so, let’s investigate a bit in this city. But be careful,” Jiao Nine said, pointing to a square in the center of the city below.

In the center of the square stood a blood-red statue, emitting a faint blood-red glow that covered an area of a hundred zhang.

Nearby people, both mortals and cultivators, seemed to hold great reverence for this red statue, bowing as they passed. However, the cultivators in the city seemed to be of low cultivation, at most at the Core Formation stage.

Han Li had also noticed the statue earlier—it was an ordinary statue used by earthly immortals to collect faith power.

Gongshu Hong, the lord of Red Moon Island, was an earthly immortal, so it was not unusual to have such statues in various places.

However, according to intelligence previously gathered by the Wuchang Alliance, Gongshu Hong practiced a special technique that seemed to allow him to perceive conditions in various places through these statues. Therefore, they were warned not to cause trouble in any city while infiltrating Red Moon Island.

Han Li had always been skeptical of this claim.

Recently, he had consulted many materials about such statues. These ordinary statues were merely special containers for collecting faith power, not incarnations of earthly deities, and lacked the five senses themselves.

But since the Wuchang Alliance had given prior warning, he naturally would not deliberately test it.

The three landed in a hidden spot outside the city, each activated the禁制 in their masks to change their appearances, transforming into three merchants, and mingled with the crowd into An City.

Despite the masks, the three still tried their best to suppress their auras.

Looking at the lively scene around him, Han Li felt a surge of emotion, recalling the time in the Spirit Realm when he traveled with Liu Le’er through the mortal world.

Although his mind had not fully recovered then, these fragmented memories remained.

In the harsh environment of the cultivation world, it was especially rare for that young girl to truly treat him as an elder brother and care for him diligently. It seemed he had found in her a faint shadow of his younger sister, now somewhat blurred in his memory.

Now, that girl had been taken away by her so-called clan, and he had no idea where she had gone.

Just as he was pondering, Jiao Sixteen’s voice came through:

“There’s a tavern ahead. Let’s check it out.”

Han Li snapped back to reality and looked in the direction indicated. It was a three-story tavern, seemingly doing good business.

As soon as the three entered, a sharp-looking waiter greeted them.

“Give us a quiet private room,” Jiao Sixteen said before the waiter could speak.

“Right away! Please follow me, esteemed guests,” the waiter nodded repeatedly and led them to an elegantly decorated private room on the second floor.

“Warm two pots of wine and stir-fry a few of your restaurant’s best dishes to go with it. Be quick. Here’s some silver; keep the change,” Jiao Sixteen said, pulling out a silver ingot from his pocket and tossing it to the waiter.

Han Li glanced at Jiao Sixteen, noting how familiar he seemed with such mortal taverns.

Jiao Nine also gave Jiao Sixteen an extra look.

The waiter took the silver, beamed with delight, agreed profusely, and hurried out.

“Heh, forgive me, fellow Daoists. Although I have long since transcended the need for food, I’ve never been able to give up these worldly dishes,” Jiao Sixteen said, a bit embarrassed by their gazes.

“What are you saying, fellow Daoist? To each his own. Speaking of which, I too recall some of these worldly delicacies. Today, let’s enjoy them and satisfy our cravings,” Jiao Nine said with a laugh.

The waiter soon returned with a tray laden with various dishes and wine.

The tavern’s skill was evidently good; the wine was fragrant and the dishes aromatic, whetting the appetite.

Jiao Sixteen filled their cups, didn’t stand on ceremony, and drank two cups in a row, a look of satisfaction on his face.

Seeing this, Han Li smiled slightly, picked up his cup, and took a small sip.

“Please take your time, esteemed guests. I’ll take my leave now,” the waiter said, turning to exit.

“Wait, waiter,” Jiao Nine suddenly called out.

“Do you have any other orders, sir?” The waiter paused and turned around.

“We are merchants from the south. A few days ago, we passed through Maple Sea City and Molin City, but they were completely empty. Do the people of An City know about this?” Jiao Nine asked with a smile.

“Oh, those two cities! They were recently summoned to Red Moon City for a pilgrimage, so naturally they’re empty,” the waiter said with a smile.