One-Eyed Monster

Word always gets out.

The Black Crow's abnormal activity on Guru Mountain was like a stone dropped into a placid lake; at first, it made only an ordinary sound, but then it unknowingly sent out layer upon layer of ripples.

Unfortunately, Guru Mountain was remote, so most could only watch the Black Crow's actions with envy, unable to keep pace. By the time they made their way there after various delays, the Black Crow would likely have already retreated. At that point, they could only eat dust, not even getting a taste of the soup the Black Crow left behind.

After all, entrenched beneath this Guru Mountain were quite a few characters dreaming of striking it rich.

Despite its remoteness and the arrival of these Treasure Hunters, Guru Mountain's existing road conditions remained unchanged. Normally, its ability to attract so many pioneers should have garnered the attention of the Administrative Office. But in reality, from Luona to Gaga County, not a single Politician was willing to lay a steam railway track to this place, not even a spacious stone-slab road for carriages; the simple reason always being a lack of gold coins.

The terrain leading to Guru Mountain was haphazardly uneven, so laying steam railway tracks would undoubtedly be costly, and no Politician was willing to foot that "unjustified bill." Besides, on the Empire's map, this mountain was just a simple symbol, without even a proper annotation. Which Politician would think of adding to their achievements there?

Most importantly, the people rushing to Guru Mountain were mostly from the lower rungs of society, all dreaming of striking it rich. If a steam railway were built, they would probably only buy tickets after making their fortune. Most of the time, they were more likely to sneak aboard.

These people would willingly spend gold coins on alcohol, but ask them to pay for a steam train ticket? They must be dreaming.

However, the world is strange.

For instance, Governor Rostov of Luona somewhat regretted not having built a railway between Luona and Gaga County, which would have allowed him to quickly reach his coveted Guru Mountain.

His fixation on Guru Mountain stemmed from two main reasons: first, his son was missing there, and second, the Black Crow was making moves in that remote place. Of course, the second reason occupied most of his thoughts. Governor Rostov wasn't overly worried about his son, despite his wife's constant nagging in his ear.

The Hound Organization, one of the Empire's mercenary groups, was also itching to act regarding the Black Crow's movements. A few days ago, they received a Mail Bird from a subordinate. The bird's message rambled on with a lot of strange talk—mentioning an Alchemy Workshop one moment and the Black Crow the next. The Hound Organization didn't make out much else, but they clearly understood that the Black Crow was about to make a move on Guru Mountain. Against a competitor, one could never relax their vigilance, no matter the opponent. Now, having received this news, they wished all their members could fly to Guru Mountain.

Similarly, Dean Hoffman of Yonder Travel Academy also harbored some concerns. As a Scholar, he knew too many secrets, Guru Mountain being one of them. He worried that the secrets he knew would be exposed by the Black Crow, and also that if the secret was kept for too long, it might change in nature. Unfortunately, he couldn't personally set foot on Guru Mountain and could only silently pray for his old friend to overcome this crisis. Honestly, Dean Hoffman had run calculations and scenarios many times, but no outcome put his mind at ease. All indications suggested that Governor Rostov would investigate Guru Mountain. It seemed Guru Mountain was about to be completely exposed to the world, and perhaps the continent itself was about to undergo a great upheaval.

The Wizards of Luona's Wizard Alliance Branch were also very busy. Some time ago, a witch had appeared out of nowhere, dressed flamboyantly and carrying herself with immense pride. The apprentices were filled with resentment at her arrival, but Chairman Rolin treated this witch with utmost respect. The apprentices could only suppress their tempers and serve her well.

Now that this witch had departed for Guru Mountain, the apprentices felt a sense of relief, but Chairman Rolin still wore a worried frown.

The apprentices dared not inquire too much; after all, Chairman Rolin wasn't known for his good temper. They only had a vague feeling that the matter was related to Guru Mountain. Now, they wished they could rush to Guru Mountain to see for themselves, but alas, they lacked the physical ability. On this continent, apart from Holy Robe Wizards, probably no one could travel from Luona Capital to Guru Mountain in just a few days.

At this moment, without exception, whether it was the Governor, the old dean of the academy, or even the apprentice Wizards of the Wizard Alliance, they all envied the daydreamers searching for treasures on Guru Mountain.

Regardless, these daydreamers would be the first to know what was going to happen on Guru Mountain.

So, what was going to happen on Guru Mountain?

The Gold Alchemists in the Lubin Tavern had no idea. They were originally just following standard procedure, acting on their chief's instructions to lay out bait and wait for the fish to bite. But now, that fish hadn't taken the bait; it had jumped right up itself. For a moment, they didn't know how to react.

Kuyi Tulan was naturally also astonished, but things still had to be handled step by step. Even if they were truly being used by someone now, they had to achieve their own desired outcome before making any further plans.

Elder Rostellum had also been very busy recently, with no idea what was about to happen on Guru Mountain. After being warned by some unknown party, he had become jittery, fearing that disaster might strike any day. Still with no news from his Housekeeper, he currently had to rely on Aliusan from Black Mountain and Old Hamu, the village head of Guru Village.

One of these two was responsible for monitoring and reporting, the other for running errands. Don't let their apparent inexperience fool you; the results they delivered were not bad at all. Elder Rostellum had at least figured out that a large band of strange characters was heading for Guru Mountain. In order to be the first to get a piece of the pie—no, it was to prevent the scope of the potential disaster from widening—Rostellum and his men were as busy as bees.

Even the usually leisurely Mayor Babasha and Guard Goding had been hurrying about recently. They too were wondering what on earth Guru Mountain was up to, and why the Lord Governor kept sending inquiries via Mail Bird.

The people at the foot of the mountain were each engrossed in their own affairs, paying no mind to the presence of others.

「Meanwhile, those on the mountain were different.」 They were all trying by any means possible to find another group of people.

Qi Liu and his group were painstakingly searching for Hustace. After the Great Witch's advancement, their team had seen much less sarcastic banter, and Qi Liu had naturally become the small team leader. According to Qi Liu, on this path down the mountain, they were certain to encounter those two Hunters who were also descending. Yet, a whole night passed, and still, there was no sign of anyone.

It wasn't that Stan Sol and Baharo didn't want to descend the mountain; rather, the path downwards had suddenly changed. No matter how they walked, they couldn't get out. The two Hunters, one of whom was an ancient Hunter, were now as if trapped in a maze, unable to escape no matter how much they struggled.

Kadi and Igor, those two who had fled from Dawn Peak, were currently larking about in Ghost Wind Valley, seemingly without a shred of crisis awareness. Kadi had completely forgotten the time, and before they knew it, the sky had darkened. They had failed to leave Ghost Wind Valley before sunset.

And those who had gone up the mountain later—Joela, Hector, and Brad from the Alchemy Workshop—had also, at this moment, lit a bonfire, preparing to spend the night on the mountain.

The three leaders of the Black Crow were furtively holed up in some corner of the mountain, plotting who knows what...

All of this—whether at the foot of the mountain or on its slopes, whether within the mountain or beyond its borders—was imprinted in the eyes of this great mountain...

This Guru Mountain, saying nothing, watched all of this, certain bloodlines within its body stirring restlessly...