Chapter 121: Burrowing Underground (2)

"Excuse me, miss, could you tell me where this is?" Ye Lang was deeply confused. He had no idea where he was, and why wasn't his location marked on the map?

"Little brother, this is Mivela City. Are you lost?" the kind woman replied.

"This isn't Chelsea City? But Mivela City should be to the northwest, and I'm supposed to be heading southeast." Ye Lang looked at his map, found Mivela City, and realized he was heading in the exact opposite direction of his intended destination.

"It seems you really are lost. That place is two hundred miles from here. How did you not notice you were so far off?" The woman, clearly a kind soul, looked at him with some concern.

"I don't know. I've been trying to stay hidden; I'm afraid of my tracks being discovered!" Ye Lang shook his head and honestly confessed his current predicament.

"Hiding? Who are you hiding from?" the woman asked curiously.

"I'm hiding from... I can't tell you that, it would reveal my identity!" Ye Lang shook his head. "I should get moving. Which way is the fastest route to the Vermilion Bird Empire?"

Ye Lang still had his guard up, though it was admittedly quite thin.

Seeing Ye Lang searching the map, the woman asked again, "Little brother, which part of the Vermilion Bird Empire are you heading to? Tell me, and I'll help you find it."

Ye Lang suddenly stopped. He had just realized a serious problem: he had no idea where in the Vermilion Bird Empire he was supposed to go, or where he was meant to meet up with anyone. Everyone kept saying "go to the Vermilion Bird Empire," but no one had specified where!

Even his cousin hadn't mentioned a specific location, just the empire. What was he supposed to do? Should he just pick a random spot?

Ye Lang stood there blankly, pondering his options. He ultimately decided he would just pick a place at random and figure it out later. In truth, if it were before, all Ye Lang had to do was enter the Vermilion Bird Empire and show his cousin’s jade token, and someone would immediately come to collect him. Now, it was even simpler; as soon as he revealed his identity, someone would immediately protect him and escort him to the rendezvous.

"Just pick one at random. Which one is closest?" Ye Lang asked.

"If you're starting from here, the closest is Red Dusk City. It’s the largest city in the Vermilion Bird Empire near here. I'll draw the route for you, so please, don't get lost again." The kind woman took out a pen and drew a line on his map. This type of pen was used for temporary markings in this world; the ink would disappear on its own after a while.

"Oh, I see. Thank you, miss!" Ye Lang thanked her and set off along the route.

"Wait!" the woman called out.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" Ye Lang turned back, looking puzzled.

The woman looked at him, her expression strange. "What are you planning to do now? Are you going to rest nearby for a while, or are you heading straight out?"

"I don't have time. I need to keep moving. I have to get to the Vermilion Bird Empire!" Ye Lang looked as if he had no time for games.

"If that's the case, then you should take this road. How exactly do you read a map?" The woman pointed to a path in the completely opposite direction, curious about Ye Lang's map-reading skills.

"I just look at it like this!" Ye Lang held up the map to show her.

If anyone else had seen how Ye Lang was holding the map, they would surely have asked, "Little brother, are you in the habit of reading maps upside down?"

That was exactly right—Ye Lang had been holding his map upside down!

"You’re holding it upside down! No wonder you were heading in the complete opposite direction," the woman said, sounding a bit drained.

"Ah, upside down? That’s not right. The needle is pointing up, isn't that North?" Ye Lang asked, confused.

"Who told you the needle points North? It points South! Have you never looked at a map before?" the woman said, losing her patience.

Ye Lang scratched his head. "Well... no, I haven't. Others always looked at them for me. This is my first time traveling far away." He had been about to say that the maps he had seen previously always marked North, but the maps on this continent were just the opposite—they all used a compass needle pointing South. Since he was a child, Ye Lang had always been waited on and had never had the chance to touch a map of this world. He rarely went on long journeys, and when he did, someone was always leading the way.

"You really are a sheltered young master," the woman muttered. "Even if you didn't know that, didn't you notice all the text on the map was upside down?" She was now convinced that Ye Lang was a pampered noble son who had run away from home or was playing some sort of "lone adventurer" game. On this continent, many young nobles enjoyed such games, so she didn't find his identity particularly shocking.

"I did notice, but I'm used to North being up and South being down, so I just flipped it," Ye Lang replied.

The woman was speechless. Couldn't this young master have thought for a second that he might be holding it wrong?

"I understand now! I'll definitely be able to reach the Vermilion Bird Empire quickly!" Ye Lang straightened the map, took a look, and began running in the other direction.

"Get back here! You're still going the wrong way!" The woman grabbed Ye Lang as he passed. Even though he had straightened the map and corrected his orientation, he was still slightly off-course. This error would only grow larger the further he traveled, and at this rate, he might end up in the Ayla Empire.

Looking at Ye Lang’s track record, that was exactly what would happen. It was a strange quirk; when he played with alchemy arrays, he was precise to the smallest fraction, never deviating by a hair.

"Wrong again? Forget it, I'll just go rent a carriage. I wanted to keep a low profile and travel alone, but this is such a hassle!" Ye Lang frowned, seemingly having made a grand decision.

"Wait!" The woman kept her grip on Ye Lang, making it impossible for him to dash off.

"What now? I won't be wrong this time. I'm very good at spending money!" Ye Lang said proudly.

The woman fell silent for a moment. It went without saying that this young master was the type to squander money. She hadn't particularly liked such pampered types before, but she didn't dislike Ye Lang. In fact, she felt a certain fondness for him; he gave her a sense of familiarity, as if he were a younger brother.

"You don't need to go looking for someone else. You said you didn't care where you went, as long as it was in the Vermilion Bird Empire, right?" she asked, looking at Ye Lang with a smile. She had just thought of a plan.