In response to Ning Yan’s question, Xu Qing shook his head. Gripping the flustered Ning Yan by the neck, he stepped onto the teleportation portal. Glittering light surrounded them, and they vanished from the Swordsage Palace.8

A moment later they materialized near the border of the county capital’s territory, very near the desert, at one of the Swordsage Palace’s teleportation portals. A shimmering defensive shield surrounded both them and the portal. The Swordsage Palace operated a lot of teleportation portals, and not all of them were in cities. There were some located out in the wilderness, and they had built-in defensive shields to make it safe to teleport in.0

The moment they materialized, Xu Qing scanned the area vigilantly. Before leaving, he had been able to use a function of the portal on the county capital end to confirm that the destination portal was safe. But checking his surroundings was an instinct that he wouldn’t abandon. After confirming they were in no danger, he stepped off the portal onto the weed-covered paving stones beyond.0

He looked up into the sky. It was still the dead of night, and clouds covered most of the sky. A steady rain fell, bringing with it a bone-chilling cold. Because there were no large buildings in the area, there was nothing to...0