Star Trace Gate

It’s past midnight and dawn is approaching.

The cool morning breeze blew across the Bulao Mountain. A thin layer of dew floated on the green of the mountain, making people feel damp and biting.

Ren Ye, Fatty Dragon, Weng Sanren, Baihuaxian and four others, along with a dozen guards, returned from the direction of the spiritual tunnel and entered the territory of the Bulao Villa.

They met on the way back, and Baihuaxian had already told Ren Ye that after Guitoudao found that he could not act alone, he decisively used a talisman to run away.

Ren Ye was not too surprised about this. After all, Guan Feng and Du Jiu Hu had been planning this for a long time, and they had someone to support them. It was normal for them to have some strong life-saving methods.

Otherwise, he would not be worthy of the title of "planner", and would not have the ability to cause such a big stir in southern Xinjiang.

As soon as the group entered the villa, they saw the housekeeper waiting on the path.

As the leader of the team, Ren Ye naturally went over to greet them and said, "We have fulfilled our mission and successfully escorted the thirteen generals and their families out of Funan."

"Very good, thank you all for your help." The butler replied happily, and then asked, "Why don't you see the ghost-head knife and the poison wine pot?"

"We don't know either." Ren Ye immediately shook his head and said, "Brother Gui Toudao suddenly disappeared after sending his family out of the spiritual tunnel; and Poison Wine Pot disappeared after entering the tunnel. My group searched the mountain for half an hour and didn't see them. Later, I was anxious to report to the witch master, so I took people back first..."

When the housekeeper heard this, he immediately frowned: "Why does this ghost knife behave differently every time?!"

Upon hearing this, Weng Sanren immediately stepped out, like a treacherous minister in the throne room, and reported, "So many big things happened tonight, but these two behaved abnormally. I hope my master and the housekeeper can take a closer look."

"Well, I will report the truth to the witch master." The butler nodded slightly and said, "Four of you, follow me into the hall first. When the ghost-head knife and the poison wine pot return, the witch master will summon you six."

"Yes."

After the four of them responded, they followed the butler into the main hall of the Bulao Villa, while the other accompanying soldiers went to report to their superiors.

……

Soon, in a side hall of the villa.

"You four have been running around all night, you must be a little tired. My master has ordered people to prepare good wine and food for you. You can eat here while waiting and take a rest." After greeting them, the butler walked away.

The four of them looked up and saw that the room was brightly lit, with an eight-person table placed in the center.

The table was filled with delicacies from land and sea, fine wines and delicious food, the aroma was so fragrant just from a distance.

Seeing this scene, the four of them felt that it was a bit unlucky.

Weng Sanren was the first to speak: "It's not even daybreak yet, and they've prepared such a sumptuous banquet... Why do I feel a little discouraged?"

"Do we want to have one last meal before the final story happens?" Ren Ye looked at the delicious food and wine on the table and his heart was beating fast.

"I heard that the last meal before execution is very delicious." The fat dragon didn't care about that. He just walked forward and chose a seat on the north side to sit down.

He reached out and picked up the wine jug, and gulped down half of it as if he were drinking water.

"You really eat it?"

Ren asked with a sidelong glance after he sat down.

The fat dragon wiped the corner of his mouth boldly: "Those who deserve to die will die even if they don't eat."

"That makes sense. I'm really hungry." Ren Ye grabbed a chicken leg and bit off half of it in one bite.

Next to her, Baihuaxian also started eating. She was a woman of the world, and she was not particular about details. Even if it was really the last meal before execution, she would eat and drink.

Only Weng Sanren was really cautious. He just sat beside them and said, "Everyone, I think this meal really has the meaning of being the last one. I wonder what the final story will be like. It won't really be a life-or-death mission, right?"

"You are a born ghost," said the fat dragon speechlessly, "You said you had a narrow escape from death, so it must be true."

Weng Sanren rolled his eyes and said sharply, "Whoever eats the most will die first."

"Alright, brothers, stop fighting." Ren Ye waved his hand and changed the subject, "I have a question in my mind. What do you think will happen if the ghost-headed knife and the poisoned wine pot don't return?"

The three were stunned when they heard this. Weng Sanren had the answer in his mind, but he did not respond in person.

The fat dragon pondered for a while, and said solemnly: "That shouldn't trigger the final story. After the four of us finish this meal and wait for the sunrise to rise, we will most likely receive some rewards from the witch master and be dismissed."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Ren nodded in agreement.

"The chess game is clear." Baihuaxian suddenly interrupted: "If I were the Poison Wine Pot and the Ghost-Headed Knife, I would never return to the villa to report. I would just find a secret place to hide, and when the time comes, I would leave. Only in this way can I ensure my life is safe."

"No." The fat dragon shook his head and said, "They will definitely not do that."

"Why?" Ren Ye looked at him with greasy mouth.

The fat dragon reached out to pour the wine and said faintly, "Because I want it, and because I am unwilling to give it up."

……

Outside the villa.

Poison Wine Pot was sitting cross-legged in the woods, circulating the power of the star source to recuperate his body.

Gui Tou Dao stood beside the valley, facing the wind, looking at the bright moon in the sky, which was about to disappear when the sun rose.

"You don't want to leave, and you don't want to go back. What do you want to do?" asked the poison wine pot.

"Wait." Gui Toudao turned his back to him and said softly, "If the reminder comes, then go back; if not, then don't go back."

"Earth Dragon Six Jia is great, but you need a life to control it." The Poison Wine Pot slowly opened his eyes and spoke faintly: "You and I have both endured humiliation for many years. Even if we lose a game, it is nothing more than adding a tiny part to the first half of our failed life. There is no need to risk our lives."

Gui Toudao turned around upon hearing this and suddenly asked, "Guess who the Fatty Dragon is?!"

"...What do you want to say?" Poison Wine Pot asked back.

"I want to say that no matter who he is, he is loyal to the Southern Xinjiang court." Gui Tou Dao's clothes rustled in the cool breeze. "He must have seen the six people in this secret realm clearly. After leaving the door, the Southern Xinjiang court will definitely take action. If we still act according to the previous plan, I'm afraid it will be extremely difficult and we will not achieve our goal."

The poison wine pot did not refute, but just frowned and nodded.

"If we don't take the Earth Dragon Six Armors now, we may never have another chance." Gui Tou Dao sighed, "After leaving the sect, we must implement the plan in advance."

"Yeah." The poison wine pot responded.

……

Bulao Villa, inside the main hall.

Wu Yuanjun was wearing a white robe and sitting cross-legged behind a desk. "Neither the ghost-headed knife nor the poisoned wine pot have returned to report?"

"Yes." The butler nodded: "The behavior of these two people is indeed abnormal."

"I have reached a dead end. If I am a spy for the imperial court, why haven't I defected yet?" Wu Yuanjun was holding a brush and writing something on a booklet.

The butler was thinking about the witch master's words, his mind active.

"Tap!"

Just then, the sound of footsteps rang out.

"Report——!"

A hurried shout was heard outside the hall. A guard general, wearing armor and holding a steel knife on his waist, walked into the hall, knelt on one knee and said, "Report to the witch master, Shadow Bird from the guard camp has returned with a secret letter."

"Whose letter is it?" Wu Yuanjun asked.

"It's a letter from General Xu Ersan, who was in charge of escorting the young master and his wife. The letter was sealed with beeswax, and I did not open it to check."

"Present it." Wu Yuanjun waved his hand.

Upon hearing this, the butler immediately took the letter and waved his hand to let the guard leave.

Soon, Wu Yuanjun opened the letter himself and looked at it.

The content of this letter was extremely explosive and far beyond Wu Yuanjun's imagination, and it was only related to one person.

"My Lord, I see your face.

I have fulfilled my mission and have now brought the young master, his wife and other family members to a safe place, so I am writing to report.

There is an important matter, and I should report it truthfully.

Tonight, my group arrived at the canyon leaving Funan County as planned.

At that time, when we were about to move forward, Gui Tou Dao sent a message to his subordinates, claiming that the canyon ahead was located in a remote area, the road was extremely narrow, and it was very easy to set an ambush. If there were bandits there, we would have no chance of survival.

He suggested that I split my forces to explore the way ahead.

Because this person was previously involved in the family home case, his subordinates did not believe what he said at first, but he volunteered to step forward to explore the way.

I considered that if there was an ambush ahead, my lord's only son and his wife might be in danger of losing their lives. Therefore, I sent Weng Sanren and Baihuaxian to go with him, and secretly asked them to keep an eye on the ghost-head knife.

Unexpectedly, after he and his group of more than ten people entered the canyon, they were ambushed.

After a bloody battle outside the canyon to break out, Weng Sanren and Baihuaxian got separated, and only Gui Tou Dao returned in time to assisted his subordinates in dealing with the ambushed men in black.

My group of people fought with the bandits for nearly half an hour, and everyone was seriously injured. More than a dozen old brothers died tragically in the wilderness.

The wooden box containing the young master was also stolen by thieves once. The thieves' purpose was not to kill him on the spot, but to abduct the witch leader's family or to threaten him.

In the end, he rushed into the group of thieves with a ghost-head knife, snatched back the wooden box where the young master was, and successfully protected it.

For more than half an hour, the black-clad men chasing after us continued. Finally, Gui Tou Dao found a small river leading to the outside of Funan County. He suggested to his subordinates to drive the carriage away to attract the pursuers, while we pushed the wooden boxes and drifted along the river.

In short, if it weren't for Guitoudao's help and timely reminder, we would have had a hard time breaking through the siege, and my master's family might have suffered an accident...

At this moment, he should be credited with the first achievement for successfully breaking through the encirclement.

Also, the reason why I wrote to report only after I had arrived at a safe place was because Gui Toudao specifically begged me to do so.

He said that there were villains in the Bulao Villa who wanted to kill him. If I informed him in advance, he would be afraid of being besieged by the villains, so he asked me to write to him again at dawn.

The subordinates agreed to this request considering his great contribution.

At present, the lady, the son, and other family members have woken up. We will continue our journey tomorrow evening to find the paradise that my Lord mentioned...

I hope my Lord takes care of himself.

Written by Xu Ersan, the Left Captain of the Imperial Guard Battalion.

Under the bright light, after reading the letter, Wu Yuanjun sighed and said, "It seems that I have wronged Gui Tou Dao before. He is indeed a profit-seeking person, but he is very loyal."

This letter was written by Xu Ersan himself, and there is a trace of residual scent between the layers of letter paper, so there is absolutely no possibility of it being forged.

The content of the letter was straightforward and clear. Guitoudao saved Wu Yuanjun's entire family at the critical moment.

If this is not a great achievement, then what else can be a great achievement? !

Guitoudao and Dujiuhu said that they had already made a move that could reverse the situation, and they were referring to this one.

He begged Xu Ersan earnestly to wait until dawn before writing back, for he was afraid that if he appeared too dazzling at that time, it would arouse King Huai's vigilance and thus suffer a fatal blow.

Therefore, it was just the right time for him to reveal this card before the last story came.

Wu Yuanjun slowly stood up, looked up at the sky outside the palace which was already getting light, and said softly: "After the meal, order the six gentlemen to follow me out of the camp...!"

As soon as he said this, everyone heard the reminder of the Star Gate.

[Congratulations to Gui Toudao, for his outstanding performance in escorting the witch master's family, which earned him the highest trust from Wu Yuanjun, and his trust value skyrocketed.]

[Congratulations to the six gentlemen, you have successfully survived to the last scene and triggered the hidden story. Please rush to the main hall of Bulao Mountain and fight with the witch master on Bulao Mountain. ]

"Fuck!"

After hearing the reminder, Ren Ye uttered a national quintessence with a hint of surprise.

Mountains and wilderness.

Gui Toudao smiled slightly: "We can go back now."