A group of people were sitting around a bonfire.

From picking firewood to starting the fire, Jian Mi personally saw to the whole process. He ended up perspiring all over.

“Jian Mi, you can return to the tent. We're going to have a meeting, you can't be around to hear what we have to say,” Ji Wengui said.

Jian Mi touched the back of head, and smiled sheepishly. “Alright, I'll go back to sleep.”

After watching Jian Mi entered his tent, only did Ji Wengui speak, “I've gathered everyone for this meeting because I would like to hear everyone's views. Uh, let me express my topic of discussion first. We've found clues that will help uncover the civilization and city of the Feminine-moon people very soon. What do you think about Doctor Ning coming at this time and requesting to join our team? Don't worry, just speak what's on your mind.”

A few team members exchanged glances, but n.o.body spoke. It was oddly quiet.

Ji Wengui said, “What's wrong? It's not a small thing, it's a big matter, don't you have any thoughts?”

Ma Tongtong hesitated before saying, “Leader Ji, you said you want to know how we feel, but rather, I want to know how you feel.”

Ji Wengui was slightly surprised. “Xiao Ma, what do you mean?”

Ma Tongtong said, “If it weren't for Doctor Ning the previous time, we would have died in the toxic fumes. Every one of us here owes our lives to him.” He came here and requested to join us because he wanted to protect us, but you said you wanted to report it to our superiors, then gathered us for this meeting to hear about our thoughts. What could you be thinking?”

Ji Wengui looked somewhat displeased. “What am I thinking? I'm thinking for the benefit of everyone, and of our nation. Even though he had saved us and we indeed owe him our lives, that's still a different thing. He appeared just right at the time when we've finally made an important discovery, and had even requested to join the team. Do you really think this is pure coincidence? Also, who is he really? Where does he stay? Do we really know him? We don't know him at all, yet we're allowing him to join? So should we announce to the world that the city and civilization of Feminine-moon people were discovered by him or us?”

Ma Tongtong's lips moved. She seemed like she wanted to say something but she did not.

It all boiled down to a conflict of interest. If the team had not found any clues, they would probably have no such trouble, and would get along amiably with Ning Tao. However, it was a different story that this involved a piece of finding which would potentially shock the world, and offer an opportunity to have one's name go down in history.

Ji Wengui said, “It was all an excuse that I've mentioned to report to the superiors. The decision is in our hands. If you all were not going to say anything, let's vote. Anybody who agrees to Doctor Ning joining in, raise your hands. If you object to it, then don't raise your hand. Vote now, who agrees to Doctor Ning joining in?”

Ma Tongtong raised her hand.

Apart from her, n.o.body did.

When Ma Tongtong was raising her hand all alone, Ning Tao had arrived at the end of the valley. A mountain of thousands of meters stood before him. A distance after crossing the mountain would be the area where he and Qing Zhui had initially found out about the abyss.

Ning Tao took out his phone, the time displayed was 10:03 p.m., but there was no signal. After a while, he had decided on a route, and charged his legs with spiritual power, and ran towards the hills.

Ladder under Feet had allowed him to not only borrow the power of air to leap gracefully like a white stock, but also allowed him to run faster and more effortlessly. It was like the effect of “flying on gra.s.s” in Wuxia novels. Even though he was not light enough to bounce off the tip of the gra.s.s, but he was like a flea jumping around the gra.s.ses, with the gra.s.s blades bending upon the touch of his feet, he was launched back up.

Ladder under Feet could allow him to borrow power from air, so all the more he could work with gra.s.s!

At 11:03 p.m., Ning Tao had reached the peak of the mountain of a few thousand meters of height. Cold gust of wind blew at the peak. The temperature had instantly fallen to 50-odd degrees Fahrenheit. Some corners had acc.u.mulated snow, which gave a feeling that winter had arrived during autumn.

Ning Tao looked far away, and very quickly spotted the location of the abyss. Another mountain peak beneath it was the end of it. He observed the topography of the area, thinking to himself, “If that abyss were an oceanic trench and that mountain would be a blockage, then could there be a hidden trench below it? Otherwise, how could that brick which Yang Chen had found be washed outside?”

The time he spent on observing the topography and determining a travel route had also doubled as a break. After a few minutes, Ning Tao left a blood lock at the peak of the mountain, then he ran down the mountain.

At three in the morning when Ning Tao had arrived at the foot of the mountain which was just a few kilometers away from the edge of the abyss. Just like before, the abyss was shrouded in white mist, so it was impossible to see what was it like below.

Ning Tao opened the small medicine chest, and tore off from an ordinary booklet of prescription form a page with a blood lock drawn on. Then he wrapped it with some wild gra.s.s he collected, then threw it into the abyss.

A few minutes later, a convenient door opened at the bottom of the abyss. Ning Tao walked out from the door. Even though there was a certain level of risk in doing this, he did not want to hang the herb-collecting rope off the cliff. He did not know where he was going and for how long. It would be troublesome to return to retrieve the rope. Besides, he was more daring now with his improved abilities. He would not have the guts to do it in the past, but he had grown more confident with his powers grown stronger. Given that it was a mud swamp below him, he would be able to use Ladder under Feet to help himself to jump out of it, or he could directly return to the clinic with the convenient door.

Outside the convenient door was not a mud swamp, but instead, a rocky beach. With the faint light from his phone screen, Ning Tao could tell that the size of rocks was not huge, but they were in abundance. This had verified his guess that this place used to be an oceanic trench, which later became a river. Rocks around downstream were usually very small because of the erosion experienced throughout the course of the river.

Even though Ning Tao knew that it was the end of the abyss, he continued walking in the direction. He did not walk far until he saw a cliff that was almost perpendicular to the ground. There were signs of collapse on the cliff, and the debris from the cliff was stuck at the end of the abyss, forming a hill. If there were indeed a tunnel which had washed the brick outwards leading Yang Chen to find it, it would have originated from here. However, if he wanted to prove this point, he would have to move the huge amount of debris, which he was not interested in doing, nor had the ability to do so.

Ning Tao left the edge of the abyss, and with the help of the faint light from his phone screen, he walked deeper into the abyss. He was prepared this time round. He had even brought his portable charger along in his small medicine chest, so that he could charge his phone.

With every specific interval traveled, Ning Tao would activate his power of sight and smell to detect the situation around him. He would occasionally also bring out the Soil-seeking Inkstone, pouring some out to check for spiritual soil.

At 3:15 a.m., Ning Tao arrived at the place where he and Qing Zhui had first discovered the white-jade holy lotus. Along the way, he had to jump over a few mud swamps. If he had not learned Ladder under Feet and could walk on the mud like the ordinary ground, he couldn't have come this far.

The mud swamp which had nurtured the white-jade holy lotus was still present. Yet the white-jade holy lotus had already been moved to the House of Sword Pavilion Cave. When he stood beside the mud swamp, Ning Tao could not help but recall the scenes of that day. There was Qing Zhui in her snake demon form with a tail full of scales, and also the King Kong-like Shennongjia wild men.

Ning Tao forced a smile. “Qing Zhui is my destined concubine. It's not that I don't want to… but thinking about her snake demon form just makes me…”

He simply could not toughen up in a particular situation.

Ning Tao shook his head, shaking away the imaginations in his mind. Then he drew a deep breath, and charged his legs with spiritual power, then jumped right into the mud swamp. His right leg was in front, his left leg was behind. The moment when the tip of his right leg had touched the surface of the mud swamp, he was immediately launched into the air like he was bouncing on a trampoline. When his left leg landed on the surface, his body was launched into the air once again. In just a few leaps, he had crossed the mud swamp.

Ning Tao continued charging forward after he had crossed the mud swamp.

Being shrouded in the thick fog had left the abyss in complete darkness. The light from the phone screen could only light up the area of around two to three meters. Yet, with such an unfavorable environment, Ning Tao was running at a speed of about 30km/h. Among the fog and darkness, the rapidly swaying phone screen like an unstably flickering ball of ghost fire.

At 4:07 a.m., Ning Tao stopped in his tracks. There seemed to be a still presence among the fog ahead. His sixth sense had also detected a sense of impending danger, clearly and acutely. He held his breath, activating his sight and smelling powers, and countless types of different scents invaded his nostrils. There was the rotting stench of the mud swamp, smell of the rocks, odor of defecation, and also the smell of Shennongjia wild men! He also saw a ball of colorful innate aura, which was far stronger than the innate aura of humans.

Clearly, the thing hidden among the fog was a Shennongjia wild man.

Ning Tao grew instantly anxious. A lone Shennongjia wild man was not a threat to him, but if the guy were to summon a group of his companions, it would be a different story. At the same time, he was excited, because the presence of Shennongjia wild men meant that he was getting closer to the ancient ruins of the Feminine-moon people's city. It had been a difficult journey here, so there was no way he could back out now?

Ning Tao regained composure very quickly. He shut his phone screen, then held his breath and approached stealthily. He had his Mauser pistol with him, which was fully loaded with 20 bullets. However he was not armed with it, except, he was holding a piece of ordinary prescription form with a blood lock drawn on. If he were to be discovered, shooting the gun would attract even more Shennongjia wild men. Furthermore, he was never thinking of killing any Shennongjia wild men, unless he was left with no choice.

Among the fog, the colorful and intensely strong innate aura was growing closer…