By nightfall, Sophie Grant was still deep in thought. Not only had the enemy abandoned resistance, but they hadn’t even sent soldiers into the forest.
"We’ll continue tomorrow."
Sophie Grant spoke as she gazed northward. Beyond that lay the former territory of the Qiao Clan. She had visited once as a child with her father and still remembered it.
"We can’t go any farther north. Tomorrow we’ll harass them once more, see how the enemy reacts, and then we’ll head back."
Lucille Xing nodded. The night was already deep, and everything that had happened today left her confused.
In Zou City, at this hour, many torches still burned in the communal house. In one room, Leonard Tang sat quietly on the bed, surrounded by ghosts and monsters. Tang Lan stood nearby, looking helpless.
“Sigh, I wonder if it’ll work this time.”
Tang Lan had grown increasingly old over the years. Her once rosy complexion had turned black again.
"There’s not much time left. This is your last chance. If your nephew still can’t produce a male heir, you may truly die."
"Is there really nothing we can do? You should’ve recovered by now—can’t you use your stone box to come up with something?"
Wraithshade shook his head.
"Lately, I keep feeling uneasy inside."
"Is it that Yuna Ji again? By rights, she should have married far away to Grant City and shouldn't be causing you any trouble now."
Tang Lan spoke, then quickly added, "Where is he? Is there still time?"
"You once cast divinations too, and the Grant Family's fate is nearly exhausted. The outcome of this war is already set."
"But as for divinations, while the results can be known, they're filled with variables—especially now, with the positions of the Sha Star and the Wynn Star shifting so much. If this time you still can't produce a male heir, what will you do?"
Tang Lan's expression grew heavy as he stared at Wraithshade.
"Then we'll have no choice but to use ghostly control over Tang Shi, making him work day and night. After all, my old symptoms are returning."
As Tang Lan spoke, he extended his arm—now blackened and mottled with green patches.
"At best, your body might hold out for another two years."