Devour: Can you also draw entries from clone projection worlds?

After the start of spring, you took Mu Wanqing south to Dali.

This time, you didn't leave her alone by Taihu Lake.

It's not that you're not worried about her safety, but you feel that some things need to be faced.

Mu Wanqing's past is a thorn in her heart, stuck there for over twenty years. She will never be truly happy until it is removed.

The two traveled south, stopping frequently, and through tireless practice day and night, your horseback riding skills have become quite good.

Mu Wanqing rode her chestnut horse ahead, glancing back at you every now and then, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"What are you laughing at?" you ask.

"I laughed at the way you ride a horse; you look like a penguin."

You're speechless. She's said this joke so many times, she says it every time, and she never seems to get enough.

Dali City is much more prosperous than you imagine. The streets are wide and clean, and the shops on both sides are lined up one after another, selling all kinds of things, such as tea, silk, jade, medicinal herbs, and all sorts of strange and unusual items.

The streets were bustling with people, including Bai girls in white, Yi men in straw hats, and many merchants dressed in Central Plains attire.

You found an inn to stay at and then began to inquire about Qin Hongmian's whereabouts.

You know Qin Hongmian lived in the mountains outside Dali City. In the original novel, she used the pseudonym "Yougu Ke" and lived alone in a secluded valley.

But since you don't know the exact location, you can only search slowly.

Fortunately, you can talk to the locals and glean clues from their words and expressions, piecing together Qin Hongmian's address bit by bit.

After searching for three days, we finally found the secluded valley in the mountains north of Dali City.

The valley is not large, surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on one side.

There was a wooden house in the valley, with several peach trees planted in front of it. The peach blossoms were in full bloom, and the pink and white petals covered the ground.

A middle-aged woman sat on a stone bench in front of the house, holding a sword in her hand and wiping it.

Qin Hongmian.

Mu Wanqing stood at the entrance of the valley, staring at the woman, completely frozen in place.

Her hands gripped your arm tightly, her nails digging into your flesh, but you didn't make a sound.

"Go," you said softly. "She's your mother."

Mu Wanqing took a deep breath, released your arm, and walked step by step toward the wooden house.

When Qin Hongmian looked up and saw Mu Wanqing, the sword in her hand clattered to the ground.

Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened, but no sound came out.

"Mother," Mu Wanqing called out as she stood before her.

Qin Hongmian's tears welled up instantly. She stood up, reached out her trembling hand, wanting to touch Mu Wanqing's face, but her hand stopped in mid-air, not daring to fall.

"You... why are you here?" Her voice was so hoarse it was almost unbelievable.

"I want to see you," Mu Wanqing said. "I have many things I want to ask you."

Qin Hongmian glanced at her, then at you standing in the distance, and seemed to understand something.

She sighed, took Mu Wanqing's hand, and sat down on the stone bench: "Ask away."

You didn't go over there; this is a matter between the mother and daughter, and you don't need to be there.

You found a rock to sit on, turned your back to them, and looked at the distant mountains.

Mu Wanqing's voice came from behind, intermittent, sometimes calm, sometimes choked with sobs.

Qin Hongmian's voice was very low, and it was hard to hear what she was saying, but you could hear the guilt and pain that she had suppressed for more than 20 years.

After a long while, Mu Wanqing came over, her eyes and the tip of her nose red. She sat down next to you and rested her head on your shoulder.

"Did you get a clear answer?" you asked.

"I've found out," Mu Wanqing said, her voice a little hoarse. "My father is Duan Zhengchun, the Prince of Zhennan in Dali."

You didn't say anything, even though you already knew about this, but it has a different meaning when Mu Wanqing says it herself.

"She said she didn't not want me, she just couldn't have me." Mu Wanqing's voice was very calm, unnaturally calm. "Duan Zhengchun has a princess and a family, so she can't take me to find you. That's why she raised me on the mountain, taught me martial arts, and made me call her master."

"Do you hate her?" you ask.

Mu Wanqing was silent for a while, then shook her head: "I don't hate her, she had a hard life too."

You put your arm around her shoulder without saying a word.

The two stayed in the secluded valley for three days. Qin Hongmian's attitude towards you changed from initial wariness to acceptance. It wasn't because she thought you were so good, but because she saw the light in Mu Wanqing's eyes when she was with you.

She hadn't seen that kind of light in her daughter's eyes for many years.

Before leaving, Qin Hongmian held Mu Wanqing's hand and said a lot of things, nothing more than "Take good care of yourself," "Don't be willful," and "Come to your mother if you need anything."

Mu Wanqing agreed to all of them, then took out the precious sword forged by the descendants of Ou Yezi from her bosom and handed it to Qin Hongmian.

"Mother, this is for you."

Qin Hongmian took the sword, drew it, glanced at it, and her eyes lit up immediately: "What a fine sword!"

"You gave it to me," Mu Wanqing said. "I gave it to my mother so she could keep it for self-defense."

Qin Hongmian glanced at you, a hint of warmth in her eyes. She put away her sword, then took off a jade bracelet from her wrist and placed it in Mu Wanqing's hand.

"I'll accept the sword. It was given to me by your grandmother, and now I'm giving it to you," Qin Hongmian said. "In the future... I'll give it to your daughter."

Mu Wanqing's face flushed red. She put the jade bracelet on her wrist, lowered her head, and dared not look at you.

You smiled, clasped your hands in a respectful greeting to Qin Hongmian, and said, "Take care, Auntie. We're leaving now."

Qin Hongmian nodded, watching their figures disappear at the valley entrance, remaining motionless for a long time.

After returning from Dali, you began to pay attention to the developments of the Zhenlong Chess Game.

You know perfectly well that the Zhenlong Chess Game is an important turning point in the original story, and the time should be within the next year or two.

You don't intend to steal Xu Zhu's opportunity, even though it's nearly sixty years' worth of internal energy, but for some reason, you just feel a bit uncomfortable with it.

You just wanted to see how Xu Zhu used his divine move to break the Linglong Chess Formation; that's simply outrageous!

It's not that you didn't want to take Mu Wanqing with you, it's that she herself didn't want to go.

"Go ahead, I'll wait for you at home," Mu Wanqing said. "I don't want to get involved in those fighting and killing."

However, you know that she doesn't not want to get involved; she just doesn't want to distract you.

With her around, you might always be thinking about protecting her when you're fighting, and you won't be able to go all out. But if she doesn't go, you can fight more freely.

"Wait for me to come back," you said.

"Um."】

Leigushan is located in Henan Province, and it took you more than ten days to get there.

When you arrived, a large number of people had already gathered at the foot of the mountain, including members of the Shaolin Temple, the Beggars' Sect, the Xingxiu Sect, and various other minor sects.

"I heard that Su Xinghe has set up a chess game, and whoever can solve it will inherit your master's mantle."

"Who is your master?"

"The leader of the Free and Unfettered Sect, Wu Yazi, is a figure akin to a god."

"It's a pity, they went missing more than 20 years ago."