Warning, Do Not Pick Wildflowers by the Road

When you enter a village, you follow its customs. Since they were secretly leaving the Capital and blending into the jianghu, they had to adopt the mannerisms of wandering martial artists and merge into that world.

Ninth Royal Uncle and William Wang Jinling abandoned their usual high-profile luxury from the Capital, changed into plain traveling clothes, and restrained their aristocratic aura, dressing as jianghu heroes.

Unfortunately... a young lord is still a young lord, and a brute is still a brute. Young men raised on fine food and silk can't fake the aura of rough jianghu fighters, no matter how they dress. Even in coarse outfits, they still looked like sons of great families. However...

The swords at their sides lent them less refinement and more edge, making them look like senior disciples from a prestigious sect out traveling.

As for Serena?

Cross-dressing as a man was out of the question. No matter how a woman tries, she can't pass for a man—her height, her aura, none of it fits. Serena never considered disguising herself as a man; she just wanted to dress as a proper young lady from a major sect, traveling with her two senior brothers. The result...

Whether it was that their auras were too strong or hers too weak, she looked like a little tag-along no matter what. Walking between Nolan and William, she broke their elegant vibe and dragged down their status.

Serena wanted to fix it, but Nolan and William's presence was just too overpowering—they completely overshadowed her. Fine... since she couldn't compare, she might as well behave and play the role of a junior follower. Anyway, this wasn't her moment to stand out.

Yes... the reason Serena went from young lady to little tag-along was her disguise. To avoid exposing herself too soon, she darkened her face and drew a faint scar across it—not obvious, but enough that people wouldn't look twice.

Her face was both an asset and a curse. She believed the Skyvault Palace Master probably didn't know about her yet, but Madame Skyvault certainly did.

She looked very much like Sienna Skyvault. Whether Madame Skyvault wanted to silence her or avenge Sienna, she would never let Serena reach Skyvault Palace Sect alive.

In the Capital, it would be hard for Madame Skyvault to kill her. But once outside, in the jianghu and within Skyvault's sphere of influence, it became much easier. To avoid unnecessary trouble, Serena disguised her face as soon as she left the city.

When Nolan and William saw her altered face, both were startled. Nolan immediately asked, "Don't you trust that I can protect you?"

Nolan nearly told her to wash her face clean, but Serena refused to cooperate: "What's wrong with this? The stuff I put on my face won't hurt my skin and even prevents frostbite. In this freezing weather, if my face gets ruined, that would be a real loss."

"Besides, with a little disguise, I can avoid unnecessary trouble and won't have to worry about attracting lecherous men. You two want any? With your looks, you'll definitely attract girls. William's feud with Skyvault started because of his face, didn't it?"

With New Year approaching, Serena definitely didn't want to go out with a frostbitten face.

"Thanks, Serena, but I don't need it. There is only one woman like Sienna Skyvault," William replied politely, declining. William had his own pride—he knew his face could cause trouble, but he'd never admit it, nor would he disguise himself for that reason.

To Serena, it was just avoiding trouble. But to them, it seemed timid and lacking confidence. Since William was traveling as himself, he'd never disguise his face unless he took on a whole new identity.

Nolan swept his gaze over Serena from left to right, then turned away and said, "As long as you like it."

Apparently, Serena's last argument won him over, so Nolan agreed to let her disguise herself. As for himself?

Since Nolan was going to Skyvault Palace Sect as Eastlyn’s Ninth Royal Uncle, he wouldn’t use any disguise.

With Serena’s disguise approved, they could set off. Before departure, William rode up beside Serena and handed her a pair of furry gloves: "Serena, take these—don’t let your hands freeze."

Serena already wore thin leather riding gloves—light and practical, but not very warm. William’s gloves were extremely insulating and clearly top quality.

If they weren’t good, William wouldn’t have offered them.

Uh...

Serena reached out to take them, but suddenly felt a wave of cold pressure. She looked up and met Nolan’s icy gaze, so sharp it nearly made her pull her hand back.

"What’s wrong? Don’t you like them?" Serena hesitated to accept, and William, knowing the reason but pretending ignorance, gently prompted her. His warm eyes held a trace of expectation, making it hard to refuse.

"No, they’re great—very nice." Under William’s soft insistence, Serena forced herself to accept the gloves. "Thank you, William, I really like them. It’s not that cold yet, so I’ll wear them when it gets colder."

Under immense pressure, Serena took William’s gloves but didn’t dare wear them openly, only stashing them in her travel bag. Thankfully, Nolan didn’t make a fuss, and the group continued on their way.

Since none of the three were in a hurry, and with the freezing weather slowing them down, their journey was leisurely. To outsiders, they might have looked like nobles on a pleasure trip.

William was knowledgeable and well-traveled, familiar with local culture and geography. Along the way, he introduced Serena to the scenery and customs they passed.

Nolan walked alone at the front, back ramrod straight, looking cold and aloof. But his pricked-up ears showed he was listening to the two behind him, even as they carried on their own conversation, ignoring his presence.

Half a day passed, and the two were still chatting enthusiastically. Nolan was so angry he could cough up blood—did Serena even notice he was there?

In the end... Nolan realized, to his dismay, that Serena hadn't noticed his irritation at all. In a huff, he sped up and rode ahead.

Serena was genuinely interested in all this, occasionally asking pointed questions. Their conversation quickly became lively, and then...

They completely forgot about Nolan, letting him walk on ahead alone. By the time they realized, he was nowhere in sight.

Uh...

The two fell silent in unspoken agreement and hurried their horses forward. They found Nolan’s horse waiting outside a roadside teahouse—but as for Nolan himself, he was nowhere to be seen.

Exchanging a glance, they sped up and reached the teahouse, reasoning that if Nolan’s horse was here, he must be nearby.

William wasn’t in a hurry, but he knew Serena was anxious, so he matched her pace and quickly reached the teahouse.

They dismounted, handed their horses to the stable boy to be watered and fed, and had barely stepped inside when they overheard a group of burly men loudly discussing Skyvault Palace Sect.

"What do you think—a royal clan, a noble house, and a jianghu sect going head to head? Is it about power or martial skill? I just don’t get it—how did a jianghu sect get mixed up in a feud with the imperial families?"

In the rustic teahouse, several rough-looking men sat around drinking hot tea, dressed in shabby fur coats, rusty knives laid on the table. Judging by their appearance, they were struggling jianghu wanderers.

Serena ignored them and searched the teahouse for Nolan’s figure...