A piece of Japanese incense

Feng Jinqi was no fool. Leyu was once the capital of the Western Qi Kingdom. Zhi Yihe had just mentioned the "Wanling Butterfly," a dangerous poison originating from the secret land of Western Qi, and now it was directly targeting Leyu... Thinking back to her previous speculations about the emperor and the emperor's coveting of the Yun family's wealth, all the clues gradually connected in his mind...

He didn't ask further questions, nor did he question the decision. He just said, "Okay."

He then ordered his subordinates, "Pack your luggage immediately and prepare all necessary supplies, medicine, and dry food. Travel light and select the most capable personnel for escort. In half an incense stick of time, all troops will gather outside the inn and set off immediately!"

"Wait!" Feng Yan rushed to Zhi Yihe in disbelief. "Hey! What do you mean?! You clearly promised me that you would go with me to see the Lord! You promised it yourself! What's going on now? You want to change your mind and go to Le Yu? Are you going to betray me?!"

Feng Yan's fingers almost poked Zhi Yihe's nose.

Zhi Yihe responded calmly, "Aren't you offering the 'Xiqi National Treasure'? It's in Leyu. Why don't you go find it with me and present it to me personally? Wouldn't that be more sincere?"

"Ah?!" The anger on Feng Yan's face turned into shock. The national treasure of Xiqi... is in Leyu?!

Zhi Yihe continued, "Going to Leyu now is our only hope of saving Yu Nian, and it's also the only way to find the national treasure. Perhaps if we get the national treasure, you won't have to ask anyone for help. So, stop worrying about whether to see the Lord. If you want answers and the national treasure, then come with me to Leyu. Once we get there, everything will be clear."

Feng Yan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but after thinking for a moment, she swallowed back all her dissatisfaction and questions. If what Zhi Yihe said was true, then following her to Leyu was the right path.

In the end, she simply glared at Zhi Yihe, tacitly agreeing to the plan. She didn't try to stop him, but her eyes were complicated, clearly showing her doubts and calculations.

Feng Jinqi watched all of this unfold, and his understanding of Zhi Yihe's decisiveness and skill deepened. Without further delay, he urged, "Did you hear that? Hurry! Leave in half an incense stick!"

The carriage was covered with thick cushions, and the unconscious Yu Nian was carefully placed there. His breathing was weak but still steady, and he was barely able to survive thanks to Agu's silver needles, Zhiyi, and a few drops of blood dripped into his mouth from time to time.

Zhi Yihe sat against the wall of the carriage, his body exhausted but his mind remarkably clear. The palace coup three years ago replayed in his mind with incredible clarity...

The cries of battle shook the earth. Her men were not the main force, and relying on her familiarity with the palace, she avoided the most brutal battlefield and infiltrated the depths of the harem with a clear goal. Finding her grandmother and mother was her top priority, but even as she ensured their temporary safety, a powerful urge compelled her to take the risk and find the Pearl Mirror Palace, the heavily chained and forgotten palace.

The hall was thick with dust and covered in cobwebs. She casually lit a candlestick, and the faint light flickered in the empty and dilapidated hall, barely illuminating a small area. Following the eldest princess's description, she discovered the mysterious scroll behind a huge screen.

It wasn't hung on the wall, but rather casually, even roughly, rolled up and tucked away in an inconspicuous corner. She held her breath, brushed off the dust that had settled on the scroll, and slowly unfolded it.

In the candlelight, the painting came into view. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary painting of a landscape with figures, a profound artistic conception, delicate brushwork, and ingenious composition. But upon closer inspection, Zhi Yihe's heart began to beat wildly.

The landscapes and figures were not painted with pen and ink, but were carefully pieced together from countless tiny fragments with a special glaze sheen. She was very familiar with that luster and texture, which was exactly the same as the back of the pipa.

So here it is! This painting, lost during the abduction of Princess Zhaoren, ended up in this abandoned palace. Was it discovered by chance, presented to the emperor, and then abandoned? Or was it deliberately hidden here? It remains unknown.

Just as her fingertips unconsciously stroked the fragmented patterns on the picture, the white jade ring on her left thumb, which could mobilize 70,000 people, suddenly began to heat up slightly without any warning. At the same time, the candlelight became much brighter.

Zhi Yihe lowered her head in astonishment. Through the white jade ring and the suddenly bright candlelight, she clearly saw that on the originally static collage, countless tiny lines emitting a faint soft white light had emerged. These lines wandered and connected between the fragments, changing the overall pattern of the painting.

The outlines of the landscape are reconstructed with lines; the figures’ postures shift direction in the flow of light. Overlaid on the original landscape and figure painting is a completely unfamiliar map, filled with specific markings and paths, depicted by soft white light.

Zhi Yihe stared intently at the map illuminated by the white jade ring and candlelight, noting the winding rivers, the strangely steep peaks, the special star-shaped markings...

She didn't know where this map was from, but she felt that the terrain was mysterious.

Emperor Zhaoding, despite his painstaking efforts, probably never dreamed that the clue to the Xiqi national treasure he so diligently sought would be right under his nose. Even more ironic, this white jade ring, capable of mobilizing over 70,000 people, belonged to his favorite concubine, Concubine Xin, who was the most powerful in the harem, and he had quietly given it to her.

This thrilling discovery was suppressed deep in her heart. The situation after the coup was chaotic, and she was in danger. Furthermore, the map's direction was unclear, so she dared not, and could not, mention it to anyone. She could only imprint every detail of the map deep in her memory, waiting for the opportunity to unlock it.

Le Yu and her companions are not only searching for Yu Nian and the dangerous Myriad Spirits Butterfly, but also for the purpose of discovering the legendary "Western Qi National Treasure," which allowed the king of Western Qi to control the three great families, maintain a century-old foundation, and once made Western Qi the most powerful of all nations. Is it a fortune capable of overturning the world? A divine weapon capable of destroying heaven and earth? Or perhaps some other power... beyond mortal comprehension? Does it truly exist?

The clatter of horse hooves, like the pounding of drums, pounded the official road to Leyu, raising clouds of dust. The troops marched day and night, but this reckless gallop was undoubtedly another form of torture for the severely injured and unconscious Yu Nian.

The violent turbulence caused Yu Nian to lose his breath several times along the way, his face turning purple. Each time, Zhi Yihe would cut his wrist or fingertips, dripping blood into his mouth, barely pulling Yu Nian back from the brink of death.

Feng Jinqi rode his horse closely beside Zhi Yihe's carriage. Every time the wind blew the curtains and he saw Zhi Yihe's pale, slender wrists, covered in old and new knife scars, his heart felt like it was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand. He watched her bleed again and again, and saw her face turn pale at a visible speed.

Even more worrying for him was that Zhiyi's and his own condition had begun to deteriorate rapidly. Perhaps it was the exhaustion of days of traveling, or perhaps it was the side effect of the Nine Revolutions Pill being forcibly drained from her body, but the "addiction rash" that had been dormant for years on her body began to violently relapse.

At first, it was just a few small red rashes on her neck and inside her wrists, so itchy she couldn't sleep. She tried to hold it in, fearing scratching would interfere with her progress. But soon, the rash spread, even to her face. Tiny blisters appeared densely on her skin, itching and painful, making her unable to sit still. When the itching reached its peak, she would scratch unconsciously in her hazy state, and her nails would rupture the blisters, oozing a yellowish fluid, leaving scars and scabs on her body, a shocking sight.

"Stop catching me! Zhi Yihe! Do you hear me? You are not allowed to catch me!" Feng Yan's scolding voice often sounded in the carriage.

This little princess, who had always been accustomed to being waited on, had become the busiest person around Zhi Yihe. She clumsily wiped the tissue fluid from Zhi Yihe's skin and applied the ointment prepared by Agu, cursing and complaining as she applied it: "I told you to eat properly, but you didn't! I told you to stop scratching, but you kept scratching! Look at what you look like now! You're half-human, half-ghost! What if you collapse before Yu Nian wakes up?! You promised to find the national treasure! You can't go back on your word!"

Feng Yan's tone still carried her unique arrogance and harshness, but her movements were unexpectedly gentle.