For several days after uncovering the truth behind the Shades, Lin Mu and his companions stayed within the thawed valleys, debating what they should do next.

The sky above was finally clear, the air no longer thick with frost or gloom. It should have been a relief, yet the stillness only made their uncertainty heavier.

They had successfully eliminated all the areas affected by the strange snowfalls and destroyed the malevolent masses buried beneath them, but now they had reached a dead end.

There were no more traces, no more corrupted lands to purify, and no more leads pointing to where the Ephemera Sect might strike next.

The six of them gathered near a dying campfire as dusk crept across the horizon. The flames flickered lazily, the orange glow reflecting on their thoughtful faces. Little Shrubby lay quietly beside Lin Mu, occasionally twitching his tail, his lightning streaks pulsing faintly under the dim light.

"So, what now?" Cattaleya asked, breaking the silence that had stretched for several minutes.

Her voice carried a rare weariness, as though the long months of searching and fighting had finally caught up to her. "We have no more snowfields to check, no more masses left to destroy. The trail’s gone cold."

Daoist Chu sighed deeply. "We could try to track traces of the Shades’ presence, but that will likely be futile. They dissolve entirely upon destruction. Even residual Qi fades too quickly."

Lin Mu leaned back slightly, gazing at the darkening sky. "We have accomplished what we could in this region. The immediate threat is gone, but that does not mean the enemy has stopped. If anything, they will simply move their operations elsewhere."

Meng Bai frowned slightly. "So we just wait for the next sign? That doesn’t sound like us."

"That’s the problem," Lin Mu replied. "The Ephemera Sect has mastered secrecy. They can plant their corruption anywhere, and by the time we find out, the damage is already done. We cannot simply chase after symptoms forever. we need to understand the disease itself."

As they spoke, Monk Hushu sat cross-legged a few feet away, quietly fingering his prayer beads. His eyes were closed, and the low hum of a Buddhist chant drifted softly from his lips. After a few moments, he stopped and opened his eyes, looking toward Lin Mu.

"Perhaps," he said, "the Silent Lotus Temple can help with this. Our order has dealt with spirits and corrupted souls for millennia. The temple archives may contain scriptures or mantras that speak of Shades or similar entities. Even if they do not mention them directly, we may find clues about how to cleanse or seal them properly."

Daoist Chu’s expression brightened slightly. "That might work. The Silent Lotus Temple has one of the most complete spirit record collections in the entire Silenet Lotus World. If anyone has knowledge on purging malevolent entities, it would be them."

Monk Hushu nodded. "I can send a message to the abbot. He has the means to reach the main archives and gather what information we need. Though it may take time, it will give us a foundation for how to deal with the Shades more effectively."

While Lin Mu had certainly read the archives and records in the Silent Lotus Temple in his time, that didn’t mean he had read or copied all of them. Even when he was reading them, he was mainly focused on techniques, skills, and the like.

Lin Mu thought for a moment before replying. "Good. I’ll pass on all the research I’ve gathered so far, including what we discovered about the masses, the formation residues, and the differences between Shades and hollows. That should make their investigation faster."

He reached into his spatial ring and withdrew a few glowing jade slips, placing them before Monk Hushu. The monk accepted them reverently, bowing slightly before storing them in his sleeve.

"In the meantime," Lin Mu continued, "we cannot stay idle. If the Ephemera Sect has shifted locations, there might still be traces of their activity elsewhere. Elyon, do you have any other leads?"

Elyon nodded immediately. "I do. Before we began focusing on the snowfall regions, I had compiled a list of disappearances across the Darkhan Dynasty that didn’t match the same pattern but felt suspicious nonetheless. Some were too isolated to investigate earlier, but with the snowfall areas handled, we can shift our attention there."

"Then that’s what we’ll do," Lin Mu decided. "While the Silent Lotus temple searches for knowledge, we’ll follow these other trails. Even if most turn out to be unrelated, one clue could lead us to the Ephemera Sect’s next operation."

Cattaleya smirked slightly, her confidence returning. "Back to traveling, then. Good. Sitting still was starting to make me restless."

Meng Bai chuckled quietly. "I suppose Little Shrubby agrees," he said, noticing the beast’s tail flicking eagerly.

The large feline yawned, stretching his limbs as sparks of lightning crackled faintly between his claws. He was ready to move.

Little Shrubby’s main element was still fire, but since he had been focused on cultivating lightning more and adapting to it, there was often lightning and sparks flowing across his body.

While Lin Mu had no issues, Meng Bai and the others had been shocked more often than not by the high static charge that built up in the beast’s fur. As such, they had become a bit more careful when touching him. Though overtime, Little Shrubby was also getting better at controlling it.

The next morning, they set off once more.

The skies were a perfect blue, and the land beneath them stretched endlessly, marked by rivers, forests, and mountain ranges. Elyon led the way, guiding them toward their next destination; a major city known as Pale Dusk City, located near the heart of the Darkhan Dynasty.

Traveling there was not a short journey.

Even with Little Shrubby’s speed, it took nearly a week to reach the outskirts, as they allowed him to rest and feed along the way. The group made temporary camps in the open plains and sometimes stayed at small villages to resupply.