It's not a hidden fact that while the sun goes from east to west, the moon moves opposite, from west to east.
The position of the stars and the moon is critical to understand the sense of time.
And when Jun Xie's eye fell on the moon, he noticed that the moon had moved.
But he was so confused at that time that he couldn't think about discussing this with others.
After confirming it a few more times, Jun Xie became sure that some time had indeed passed.
But the problem was - he couldn't explain it to others, neither would others believe him.
He tried to talk to Kai Yang about it, but he just brushed it off.
"I couldn't be bothered to pay attention to the moon when I came across a weird man drinking wine in the middle of the forest at night."
This was what Kai Yang said before heading out to sit with Fu Kai.
Fu Kai, too, agreed with this.
No one had the thought of looking at the stars and the moon when they encountered the man.
They were on guard and even thought that this was a possible ambush.
Jun Xie could only sigh and keep his thoughts to himself.
But he couldn't sleep.
He felt vulnerable when he thought he didn't even know what he did in those thirty minutes.
Being an orphan, Jun Xie may have the talent, but inside, he was hollow and weak.
He had his insecurities.
And this made him quite paranoid about not fully knowing last night's incident.
"We're here."
Just then, Fu Kai's voice rang out.
Jun Xie moved and put his head out of the curtain.
In front of him was a huge mountain.
"This is Silver Mist City?" Kai Yang asked in confusion.
Even though he had already noticed the huge mountain, he hadn't thought this was the destination.
Fu Kai replied, "This is the Silver Mist Mountain. The Silver Mist City is behind this mountain."
"Behind it?" Jun Xie frowned.
None of the disciples in this entourage had been to this place before.
"Why is it behind the mountain?" Kai Yang asked.
Jun Xie, too, nodded; he had the same question.
Why was it behind the mountain?
The city should have been in the front because from what it looked like; everyone had to make a round trip around the mountain to get to the city and then come back the same distance to get back to the main path.
[A/n: consider the gas station to be the city and the highway to be the main road.]
"It is because of what this city has to offer." Fu Kai smiled.
"Hm? Does it have Qi Stone mines? Or Herb gardens?" Jun Xie asked.
Fu Kai shook his head. "This is just a small city. There are no Qi Stone mines or Herb Gardens. There's only one thing - a plant."
"This plant is unique to this place and grows in the valley or plateau - whatever you call that place - that's in front of the city."
"This plant is an important spice and can also be used to remedy fatal diseases and in a few medicinal pills."
"What's this plant?" Kai Yang asked.
Fu Kai replied, "Silver Mist Holy Basil."
"This grows here because of the mystic environment and also makes this place important enough for traders to move out of the main path and get to the city."
Jun Xie and Kai Yang nodded their heads.
As they moved closer to the city, the mountain grew more and more in size.
It was evident that they had clearly underestimated its massive size.
"What if there's a landslide?" Kai Yang frowned, "Wouldn't it bury the whole city?"
Fu Kai shook his head, "It has never happened in the last thousands of years, and I don't think it will happen again."
"Do you see those reddish trees on the mountain?"
Kai Yang and Jun Xie nodded their heads.
"Those trees are called Blood-Claw trees. Their roots are like claws. And these are what hold the ground. Even though it rains a lot here, there has never been a landslide."
Just then, they saw a few people standing at the side of the road.
"Who are they?" Jun Xie asked.
"They seem to be wearing Zheng Clan guard robes." Fu Kai frowned.
"Ah, didn't Crown Prince Xin say Zheng Clan will be the place where we need to stay?" Kai Yang asked.
Jun Xie nodded his head, "He did, and these guards are most probably waiting for us. But we can't go to the Zheng Clan. We have already discussed this earlier, right?"
Kai Yang nodded his head, "Because we don't want to implicate their clan?"
Jun Xie shrugged, "One of the reasons."
Soon, as they came closer to the group of guards, they were noticed by them.
The guards immediately got into action and came to them.
"Greetings, I am Hu Jin. Head Guard of Zheng Clan."
Jun Xie cupped his fists and greeted back, "I am Jun Xie, Core Disciple of the Gracious Sword Sect."
The Head Guard, Hu Jin, nodded his head and said, "Young Master, please come with us. Crown Prince Xin has informed us about your arrival, and we have already made arrangements for your stay."
Jun Xie took a breath and said, "Brother Hu Jin, we are thankful for your help, but few things happened along the way, and we have decided not to implicate Zheng Clan in our troubles."
"This…" Hu Jin slightly frowned.
Jun Xie shook his head, "Please don't say anything; we can't change this decision. We can't stay in the Zheng Clan, nor can we openly associate with you."
"Uh…" Hu Jin scratched the back of his head and said, "Young Master, we have already prepared for this too."
"We have arranged a Tavern for your stay, and I am here to bring you to the tavern."
"Oh?" Jun Xie couldn't help but frown, "You knew beforehand that we wouldn't be staying in the Zheng Clan?"
...
A/n(6-aug): Only two chapters for today because I need to go out so i couldn't write more.. Will resume 4ch/d from tomorrow. Please vote ps and head on for the next chapter!