Following the direction indicated by the fish scale, Qiao Xixi arrived outside a stone building.

The surrounding stone wall was so high that it was impossible to see what was inside, but the thin line on the fish scale pointed directly at the building.

If Xijing was imprisoned inside, the place should have been heavily guarded by beastmen, yet there was no one outside.

’Could it be like last time? A trap set inside to lure the enemy in?’

After some thought, Qiao Xixi put on her Invisibility Cloak, found a relatively hidden spot, and took a Bubble Fruit from her storage space, throwing it toward the main gate.

BOOM!

The powerful explosion rattled the heavy wooden door.

Qiao Xixi heard the roars of fierce beasts from beyond the gate, but even after a while, no beastmen came to investigate.

’What’s going on? Is this place really unguarded by beastmen?’

Feeling uneasy, Qiao Xixi forcefully threw another Bubble Fruit over the courtyard wall.

BOOM! BOOM!

ROAR!

The roars of fierce beasts mixed with sounds of crashing echoed from within.

Curious, Qiao Xixi came out, shifted into her beast form, and leaped onto the courtyard wall. Before she could even get a firm grip, an enormous snake head shot out from within.

Startled, Qiao Xixi nearly fell.

The green snake head rested on the wall, its glowing green eyes scanning the area outside before it slowly retracted.

Qiao Xixi climbed back onto the wall. One look was all it took to nearly make her jump in shock.

The huge courtyard was filled to the brim with Mutant Beasts!

They must have been startled earlier and were now warily observing their surroundings.

Qiao Xixi saw many stone huts within the courtyard, and Xijing was likely imprisoned in one of them.

’Those beastmen from Tiger Beast City are clever, taming Mutant Beasts to guard their prisoners. No wonder they felt confident enough to leave the place completely unguarded.’

Qiao Xixi took out a scent-altering powder from her storage space and applied it. These Mutant Beasts had a sense of smell even keener than that of beastmen, and she worried they would detect her scent even while she was invisible.

Once ready, she waited for the Invisibility Cloak’s cooldown to finish, then put it back on, emerged from the shadows, and leaped onto the wall.

By now, the Mutant Beasts in the courtyard had calmed down considerably, and many were lying down to sleep.

However, the green snake Mutant Beast that had appeared earlier remained coiled vigilantly in the middle of the courtyard, observing its surroundings.

Sticking close to the wall, Qiao Xixi took out the fish scale to pinpoint the exact direction. She followed its guidance to a stone hut in the farthest corner. There, the scale in her hand suddenly began to glow faintly.

Qiao Xixi marveled, ’This is even more accurate than GPS.’

But as she looked at the stone hut, she saw it was sealed shut with stone on all four sides. There was only a single air vent on one wall. She had found the location, but getting inside was the problem.

"Xijing, Xijing?"

Inside the stone hut, Xijing was resting against the wall with his eyes closed when a familiar voice suddenly reached his ears.

Xijing opened his eyes, at first thinking he was hearing things. But when the voice called out again, he quickly stood up and moved to the fist-sized air vent.

"Xixi?"

"You’re really here!"

"Xixi! Why are you here?!"

Xijing could hardly describe his feelings. He was overjoyed, yet also panicked.

"Xiya sensed you were in danger, so I brought her to find you. Do you know how to open this door? I’ll get you out."

"Xixi, I can’t leave yet."

"What?"

Qiao Xixi was dumbfounded. ’I came all this way, and he’s not leaving?’

Xijing’s voice was full of apology.

"Yes. I had a chance to escape earlier, but I didn’t. I let them bring me here on purpose. Xixi, you need to leave this place and go back to the sea. Don’t worry about me. I’ll return as soon as I’ve taken care of things."

"What is it you need to take care of?"

Xijing pressed his lips together and said softly, "I knew Huang Ying would be coming to the salt fields. I need to see her. There are some things I have to ask her in person."

"Huang Ying... you mean the female who lied to you, claiming to be Xiya’s mother?"

"Yes."

Qiao Xixi also wanted to know what this female’s objective was.

"Do you know when she’ll appear?"

"Soon. I can already sense her presence nearby."

"Okay, I’ll wait outside. Take these Bubble Fruits. If you need me, throw them at your enemies. I’ll come in as soon as I hear the noise."

The Invisibility Cloak’s effect was about to wear off. Qiao Xixi had to move.

"But Xixi, it’s dangerous here."

"Don’t worry, I’ll protect myself. I’m leaving now."

"You have to be careful."

Just as Xijing finished speaking, he sensed a familiar presence approaching, and his expression changed slightly.

"Xixi, get out of here, now! They’re coming."

Qiao Xixi hadn’t expected such a coincidence. She glanced around, then dashed into a dark gap between two stone huts. Once hidden, she took off the cloak to let it go through its cooldown.

Leaning against the stone wall, Qiao Xixi could only hear the heavy breathing of the Mutant Beasts.

Suddenly, a commotion came from the sky. She looked up to see two phoenixes, one white and one orange-yellow, flying over. They finally landed on the courtyard wall.

The moment they landed, all the Mutant Beasts in the courtyard scrambled to their feet, staring warily in their direction.

The largest of them, the green snake Mutant Beast, even began to sneak closer, hoping to launch a surprise attack.

Huang Ying glanced coldly at Fenglin. "These eyesores. Get rid of them all."

Fenglin spread his massive wings and dove toward the green snake Mutant Beast.

A chaotic battle broke out in the courtyard.

The Wing Clan beastmen held a massive advantage against Land Beasts. Although the Mutant Beasts were powerful, their inability to fly high left them vulnerable to Fenglin’s attacks. After a prolonged battle, they were enraged to their limits and began recklessly ramming into the stone huts.

At that moment, the two male Black Bear Beasts waiting outside heard the commotion and frowned in displeasure.

"We could have easily made those Mutant Beasts obey. Why are they deliberately causing such a ruckus? If any of the Mutant Beasts are lost, can they even afford to compensate us?"

"If the City Lord weren’t on such good terms with Wing Beast City, I never would have let them in."

Amidst the chaos, Qiao Xixi saw the white phoenix fly to Xijing’s stone hut and call out urgently, "Xijing, Xijing, I’m here to save you! Are you in there?"

"Yes... Huang Ying?"

"Yes, it’s me, Xijing. I’m getting you out of there right now."

Unexpectedly, however, Xijing refused.

"Huang Ying, I’m truly happy that you came to save me, but I can’t go with you right now."