Chapter 610 - 382: Arrival at Lishi City

Chapter 610: Chapter 382: Arrival at Lishi City

Firm in her resolve, Xiaomi didn’t even bother to change clothes. She shoved the letter into her brother’s hand and looked at her parents.

"Don’t worry, Dad and Mom, my brother will be alright. Wait for me; I’ll definitely bring him back."

After speaking, Xiaomi didn’t wait for anyone to react and turned around, hurriedly leading her horse from the stable.

A whistle: "Ling’er, let’s go find my brother!"

A magpie descended from the sky, landing on Xiaomi’s shoulder. With a squeeze of her legs against the horse’s flanks, she rode away swiftly.

Behind her were her parents and siblings calling out, but Xiaomi couldn’t hear them, her mind focused solely on rescuing her brother.

But even though she was intent on rescuing him, she hadn’t forgotten to prepare. The first step was to enter the city and storm into the County Magistrate’s office to find the anxious Liu Hongcai and get a travel permit for the frontier.

"Xiaomi, are you sure you want to head to the border? A thousand people have gone missing, and no one has found any trace of them. What can you achieve?"

Liu Hongcai was worried.

"Uncle Liu, as long as my brother is alive, I will definitely find him."

Xiaomi’s expression was resolute: "And that letter, whether you believe it or not, was definitely written for me!"

Unable to persuade her, Liu Hongcai quickly prepared the travel permit. He was about to arrange some funds and food, but Xiaomi had already ridden off.

Liu Hongcai was frantic, stomping his foot in anxiety, neglecting his official duties, and hastily calling for a carriage to go to Xiangmu Village.

Meanwhile, this was no longer within Xiaomi’s focus. Earlier at the County Magistrate’s mansion, she had already determined the route to the border.

Calculating the speed at a fast gallop: two days over two thousand kilometers.

She wasn’t sure if she could reach such speed, but she would rush there as quickly as possible!

"Master, do you need my assistance now?"

Outside the city, Ling’er, perched on the magpie, finally spoke freely.

"Go into the space first and let Little Eight rest well. When we get close to the border, I’ll bring Little Eight out. After we know which direction my brother left, you can scout from the sky."

Little Eight is the magpie itself.

After years of harmony, Ling’er could possess Little Eight for six hours, and due to the nurture from spiritual energy, both Little Eight and Ling’er had extremely fast speeds.

A speed of a hundred kilometers an hour was no problem.

Unfortunately, the distance was a bit too far, and Ling’er couldn’t ride on Little Eight tirelessly; otherwise, Ling’er could have set out first to find him.

Ling’er nodded to indicate understanding, and in the next second, Xiaomi whisked him into the space.

Still on horseback, Xiaomi ate something and drank water. This horse was a fine steed given to her by Yingying years ago, and it was exceptionally fast.

Having been fed with Spiritual Spring water over the years, it grew even stronger, with speed and endurance surpassing ordinary horses greatly.

Even so, after galloping quickly for half a day, it started breathing heavily, and all four legs grew weak—half a day was its limit.

Just then, finding herself nowhere near a village or inn and not a soul in sight, Xiaomi dismounted, raised her hand, and stored the horse into the space.

She then used her spiritual power to travel, her speed exceeding even horseback riding by a few degrees.

If spiritual power was sustainable, she definitely wouldn’t choose to ride a horse!

Unfortunately, less than half an hour later, her spiritual power was almost depleted, with no time for replenishment.

Fortunately, she soon saw a new city ahead. Gathering her energy, she entered the city, bought a horse, and, upon exiting, draped herself over its back.

With her spiritual power spent, she was incredibly weak, and recovery was painfully slow.

She drank copious amounts of Spiritual Spring water until her stomach was filled with water, finally feeling better before continuing her journey.

For two consecutive days, Xiaomi didn’t sleep, eating and drinking on horseback; midway, she bought two more horses, letting them rest in the space when tired.

The spiritual power exhausted on the first day was finally replenished by over half in two days and nights—but without the time to enter the space, recovery was too slow.

When the large, weathered city finally came into view, Xiaomi breathed a sigh of relief.

She finally made it.

With a wave, Little Eight appeared on her shoulder.

This city was called Lishi City, named after a nearby large stone forest.

"Halt, who are you? Do you have a travel permit?"

Distracted, Xiaomi followed the crowd in line, getting stopped by the guards.

Xiaomi slapped her forehead: "Yes, yes, I’m from Cheng County, seeking General Song Wu in the city. This is our County Magistrate’s letter."

Song Wu was the general who had sent Liu Hongcai the letter; Xiaomi only knew his name and not his rank.

The travel permit and letter, both indeed written by Liu Hongcai, had official seals on them.

After verification, the guard let her through, kindly pointing her to General Song Wu’s residence.

Lishi City, a frontier fortress, had soldiers stationed outside, with officers having residences in the city.

The city was bustling, merchants abounding, and unique novelties Xiaomi had never seen before.

But she had no time to look at them now; following the guard’s directions, she quickly found General Song’s mansion.

The residence wasn’t large, many walls bore scars from swords and blades, yet it didn’t diminish its grandeur and intimidating presence.

Zhao Xiaoyu took a deep breath, calming herself and tidying her clothes.

Only then did she realize she was still wearing the outfit she left home in.

Indeed, she hadn’t thought about changing clothes along her journey.

Fortunately, it wasn’t too hot recently; though dusty, at least it wasn’t smelly yet.

Of course, maybe she had gotten used to the smell, and couldn’t tell if it was bad anymore.

Encouraging herself, Xiaomi moved forward and knocked on the door.

Perhaps it was just her mind playing tricks, but the solid sound of the mansion’s door felt different from those of ordinary homes.

"Who is it?" A soldier in armor answered, frowning at the girl before him: "Who are you looking for?"

Xiaomi presented the letter: "I’m Wei Ziang’s sister, from Cheng County. This is our County Magistrate’s letter for General Song Wu."

She introduced herself straightforwardly, without wasting time!

The soldier was initially impatient, but hearing she was Wei Ziang’s sister, he was astonished: "Wei Chiliarch’s sister? Weren’t you in Cheng County? How are you here?"

"I received the General’s letter and rushed over specifically. May I meet the General? I want to know the direction my brother disappeared from."

Xiaomi rubbed her temples; she hadn’t slept in two days and nights and had been riding hard. She was now very exhausted.

But she didn’t dare rest, worried that even a second’s delay could pose additional danger to Wei Ziang.

The soldier took her letter: "Wait a moment, I’ll ask the General."

Immediately, he closed the door again.

Xiaomi understood; given her appearance, if she were an enemy assassin allowed entry, it would be dangerous for the General without precautions.

Fortunately, after a short wait, the door reopened: "Miss, please come in; our General invites you inside."