The Ningxue Sword slowly felt, could there be something strange about this place?

So it moved high in the sky, wanting to see what was peculiar about this area.

The result was... the Ningxue Sword was intensely intimidating the North City day and night.

The Heavenly God Sect members below were directly living in fear, unable to rest easy.

"What’s going on? Why is this calamity solely targeting the North City? Did something give us away?"

Kou Yifang didn’t dare to move a muscle.

Ordinary people were even afraid to practice martial arts, fearing that the spiritual energy fluctuations might arouse the Ningxue Sword’s suspicion.

Such days felt like years.

...

Fang Che came to the Worldwide Escort Agency at night, continuing to disguise as the Starlight Master, performing his duties as the Chief.

Now, no one dared to address him as ’Leader’; everyone referred to him as Chief.

With the Ningxue Sword looming overhead, the Worldwide Escort Agency was more harmonious and loving than usual.

"Another one hundred and fifty people have received orders to return." Zheng Yunqi reported.

"Right, how long since Meimei and the others left?"

"Sixteen days now."

"Sixteen days... it should be about twenty thousand miles." The Starlight Master thought for a moment and said.

"More than that."

Zheng Yunqi said: "Our escort vehicles are specially made, and overtly speaking, traveling eight hundred miles a day is no problem. However, the guards are deep martial artists, capable of speeding up. The horses used have spiritual beast bloodlines, with ordinary elixir pills, they can run non-stop for two days without issues."

"So the daily journey should be around two thousand miles. The day before yesterday, they reported back that they were approaching the Fire Phoenix Mountain Pass, but that segment is all mountain roads. The horses can’t gallop, and surely they wouldn’t abandon their escort vehicles. So... the speed will be slower, but they should reach the Fire Phoenix Mountain Pass by tomorrow or the day after."

Zheng Yunqi calculated.

"Right, prepare a new batch of items and let the one hundred and fifty people who received the order to get ready to leave."

The Starlight Master’s eyelid lifted slightly and said.

"The same specifications as last time?" Zhao Wushang asked.

"Of course, why discriminate?" The Starlight Master exclaimed in surprise.

"Last time cost 1.5 million taels of silver," Zhao Wushang reminded.

"Go do it!"

The Starlight Master widened his eyes.

"Yes."

Zheng Yunqi and Zhao Wushang both had red-rimmed eyes.

The Starlight Master had always been stingy, even a bit miserly, but this time for those leaving, he was uncharacteristically generous.

He wished to load all the good things from Baiyun State onto them, so they could return with honor.

They could keenly sense the deep bond and reluctance the Starlight Master felt.

But for the Starlight Master himself, he had no attachments. It was all laying the groundwork for the future, the last chance to show his favor to this group.

So, the heavier, the better!

The more they carry, the more they will remember him in the future.

On the third day morning.

The Worldwide Escort Agency, with a large team of heads of the escort, set off once more, with the escort leaving the city.

On this day, the north wind howled, and the thick clouds gathered.

As the escort team passed through the city gates, the gusts of wind blew so strongly that eyes could barely open.

Kou Yifang mingled in the crowd, watching the escort vehicles of the Worldwide Escort Agency leave the city. After careful inspection by the city guards, they were allowed to pass, and suddenly his eyes brightened.

...

Zhao Wushang reported back.

"Chief, over a hundred members cried almost the entire way, taking advantage of the wind."

"Damn it!"

The Starlight Master was both amused and exasperated: "I’m sending them home, not to their deaths, why are they crying so much."

Zheng Yunqi and Zhao Wushang wanted to laugh but couldn’t.

Because they were unwilling to part.

"Six hundred ninety-six people, three hundred have left. Three hundred ninety-six remain."

The Starlight Master said indifferently: "With two more rounds, they should all have left."

Zheng Yunqi felt a wave of sadness rise, saying: "Chief, I really don’t want to leave, can’t you help me think of a way?"

Zhao Wushang also looked hopeful.

The two of them truly didn’t want to leave! Staying here for a lifetime was fine!

"Me?"

The Starlight Master pointed at his own nose: "You want me to find a way for you?"

Zheng Yunqi and Zhao Wushang nodded vigorously like chickens pecking at rice.

"Hehehe..." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The Starlight Master sneered strangely: "Do you still think I’m some big shot... If it were up to me, none of you six hundred ninety-six would leave!"

The two were almost in tears, nearly breaking down.

And on this very day.

Fire Phoenix Mountain Pass.

Zhou Mei’er and the others saw the people who had come to receive them, their own family members, and headquarters’ people; they had reached the territory of Xin Chu Country, and were in the inland mountain area.

Safe.

Home.

From here to headquarters, it was smooth sailing.

At the moment they saw their family, the one hundred and fifty people burst into tears.

The young women turned into tearful messes one by one.

Their family members were deeply gratified: having suffered outside, they clearly recognized the goodness of home. They were so overwhelmed seeing us, they cried.

But then the crowd began to cry even more fiercely.

The family members comforted them: "Alright, you’re home now, don’t cry, don’t cry."

And they sobbed even harder.

The more they comforted, the more they cried, tears streaming, struggling.

Everyone was at a loss, understanding only that the children were too emotional.

Then someone said: "There are still so many large carts, let’s see what’s been brought back."

This sentence unleashed chaos like poking a hornet’s nest.

None of the criers wept anymore, suddenly rushing to guard by the carts: "Who dares touch our things! We’ll fight them to the death!"

"..."

The welcoming party was dumbfounded.

Have these kids gone crazy?

Then they saw the group open the escort vehicles themselves.

And... it was all very systematic.

Wu Lianlian took notes while another girl distributed. Zhou Mei’er supervised.

When a name was called, that person came to receive a share.

When they went back holding their share, they turned into tearful messes again.

All the escort vehicles opened up, exactly one hundred fifty shares.

Zhou Mei’er was the last to take her share, embracing the broken escort vehicle, she cried into a tearful mess.

Wu Lianlian stepped forward: "Meimei, according to the Leader’s instructions, we must destroy the escort vehicles here, burn the escort flags, and create the illusion of having been robbed."

"No!"

Zhou Mei’er cried like a fountain, holding the escort flag tightly in her arms, pleading: "Lianlian, let me keep one... please."

Wu Lianlian’s face showed difficulty.

Seeing a chance, the other girls darted out, each grabbing a small escort flag.

There were thirty escort vehicles, each with a small escort flag. Thirty young ladies rushed out, sweeping them all away.

Those who didn’t manage to grab a flag immediately welled up with tears.

Then all thirty-one turned their tear-filled eyes pleadingly at Wu Lianlian.

"Sigh..."

Wu Lianlian sighed: "If you take them back, don’t ever show them again, otherwise, it’ll be hard to explain."

"Thank you so much, Sister Lianlian!"

The girls rejoiced.

Then they gathered the escort vehicles together and burned them.

Thick black smoke billowed, and fierce flames roared.

One hundred and fifty people cried uncontrollably, kneeling and facing the east, sobbing until they couldn’t get up.

The welcoming family and headquarters people: "..."

"What exactly happened?"

"I don’t know."

"These kids seem utterly bewitched..."

After dealing with the escort vehicles.

Each person tightly held onto their share of the gifts, turning back every three steps as they followed their family onward.

Crying continued non-stop.

The bewildered family could only accompany them on the journey back, improved moods eventually leading to questions: "What exactly..."

Then, the topic of conversation for the journey became the Starlight Master!

"The Leader is like this and that..."

"...Mighty and wise, resourceful..."

"The Leader is like this and that..."

"The Leader was to us..."

"At first, it was actually... but later, and then later... the Leader was like a benefactor to me..."

"Leader, Leader, Leader..."

"..."

The welcoming family members were filled with surprise, continuously scratching their heads, silently pondering: "This Yixin Sect actually has such a person?"

"Even though this group didn’t display their abilities at home, in fact, each one has some skills, otherwise, they wouldn’t be sent out for training. After all, those who are purely useless aren’t even qualified to die outside..."

"Someone actually made them all submit to such an extent..."

"It’s like a maiden shedding her pants, not simple indeed."

Zhou Mei’er’s parents came in person, worried as they saw her subdued mood, shedding tears every few steps. Mrs. Zhou worried she might cry herself dry on the way home, turning into a husk...

So she patiently inquired, gently soothing, comforting her in her arms while asking questions.

As she listened, Mrs. Zhou sighed.

No one knows a daughter better than her mother.

That girl’s heart... seems unlikely to return.

What should be done about this, with a marriage engagement still valid...

Zhou Mei’er walked along, filled with longing, constantly turning back to look.

Her mind still replayed the Starlight Master’s parting shout as he sent them out of the city.

The sound echoed in her heart, eyes teary and blurred.

The group moved further and further away, yellow sand rising behind them, obscuring the path back home.