Li Wei and his team began to gather their belongings, extinguishing the faint embers of their campfire to avoid leaving any trace of their presence. The forest around them seemed to pulse with a hidden life, its shadows dense and its silence almost unnatural. As the last embers were smothered, Li Wei scanned his teammates' faces, noting a blend of exhaustion and determination. This journey was proving more dangerous than any of them had anticipated, but they knew they couldn't afford to back down.
Jin Rui stretched his shoulders, rotating his staff as if testing its weight. "The royal team might have left, but I don't like the feeling of having them nearby," he muttered, glancing toward the direction in which Liu Qing and her team had disappeared. "They're after something big, I can feel it."
Li Wei gave a subtle nod. "They have a mission, just as we do. We'll let them continue on their path… but it's best we stay aware of their movements."
