Chapter 109: Being Followed

As night fell and the campfires were lit, a sense of unease took hold of the group. Many, particularly the young scions of wealthy families who had tagged along, found their resolve crumbling; they were terrified to even approach the edge of the firelight.

In truth, they were not alone in their fear. Most of the others shared the same anxiety. Would that ghostly phantom truly stop harassing them? Could Zhang Pu’s words really be trusted? This question weighed heavily on many minds, yet they had no choice but to wait and see.

Within this large expedition, there was one small, reclusive circle that had seemingly avoided a direct encounter with the phantom the previous night—the group led by Lin Hongbin, which included the ninja already subdued by Zhang Pu. At the time, Lin had been on the far side of the campfire, deep in meditation. Given his temperament, even if the other side of the camp had been thrown into total chaos, he would have done little more than send his subordinates to investigate.

Lin had never expected the situation to escalate to such a degree. Although there had been no actual casualties, the incident left a lingering, profound sense of unease throughout the entire party. When Lin finally arrived at the scene, the phantom was gone, leaving behind only a lingering mist. Unlike the others, however, he felt little terror.

As a middle-aged man of vast experience, Lin had seen it all. He was well-acquainted with charlatans and tricksters, even encountering such types during his time in Japan. Within this very expedition to the Poison Dragon Pool, he had already identified two individuals he considered masters of deception: Old Yang and Liu Yingde. Having once assisted his own master in exposing the sorcery of such frauds, Lin had pegged both men as charlatans from the moment he joined the group.

While he acknowledged that some people could indeed topple experts using such "ghostly tricks," Lin had reached the level of a Martial Arts Grandmaster himself. He knew that few things could truly threaten him anymore. Having defeated two other Grandmasters in the past, he was brimming with confidence; he was certain he could handle Old Yang and Liu Yingde without any trouble. Consequently, he viewed the previous night’s events with nothing but disdain, convinced that the phantom was merely a more sophisticated trickster than the likes of Yang or Liu. At one point, a surge of battle-lust had even flared within him, though he regretted that the phantom had vanished before he could test his strength against it.

Could the phantom really be gone, as Zhang Pu claimed? Zhang Pu—a person whom Lin had lately begun to observe with growing interest.

Initially, Lin had dismissed Zhang Pu as nothing more than a student. Yet, at some point, he began to feel a strange, heavy weight whenever he thought of the boy, though he could not put his finger on why. Now, this student had seemingly become the protagonist of the drama, the one to declare that the phantom would return no more. What did this mean? By what authority could a mere student be so certain?

Could it be that he...?

Lin was a clever man with a wealth of life experience. He increasingly sensed that there was something deeply unusual about Zhang Pu—something that made him more significant in Lin’s mind than even Old Yang or Liu Yingde. A keen observer, Lin had also noted the way Liu Yingde behaved toward Zhang Pu. He had heard Liu address the boy as "Little Martial Uncle." Regardless of seniority, a man like Liu would never show such profound deference unless this "Little Martial Uncle" possessed the genuine skill to command it.

In fact, almost no one in the group had seen Zhang Pu display his true abilities. Last night, just as Zhang Pu was about to intervene, the phantom had moved with such startling speed that all anyone saw was Zhang Pu being snatched away, only for him to reappear later on his own. Whether Zhang Pu was a true master remained a mystery to the vast majority of the group.

Perhaps because of his intense focus on the boy, Lin noticed later that night that Zhang Pu had slipped away from the firelight. With everyone else trembling in fear, how could this student be so bold as to venture out alone? Lin decided to follow him.

He watched Zhang Pu leave the camp, and when the boy did not return after some time, Lin grew certain that something was amiss. While others moved in groups of three or five, Zhang Pu did not even take his own men. Lin concluded that the boy was hiding something. Unlike the others—including Old Yang and Liu Yingde, who were clearly shaken by the phantom—Lin felt no fear. He was eager to hunt the ghost down.

Without further hesitation, Lin gave brief instructions to his subordinates and slipped away from the camp alone, moving with such stealth that no one noticed his departure. Though he started later than Zhang Pu, Lin immediately employed his superior tracking skills.

Zhang Pu, for his part, seemed unconcerned about being followed; he appeared to assume that no one would dare venture out after him. He simply wanted to see the current state of the phantom, Elder Ge, and whether he was naturally lingering around the edges of the group as Zhang Pu had anticipated. He had avoided speaking to Ge during the day to avoid drawing attention, but the cover of night made things much easier.

Shortly after leaving the fire, before he had even located Elder Ge, Zhang Pu sensed someone emerging from the camp. A moment later, he was certain he was being followed. Who could it be? Zhang Pu immediately became vigilant. Although the tracker was incredibly subtle, Zhang Pu began to lead him on a cat-and-mouse game. Given his own cultivation, he could easily observe the pursuer through subtle movements. Even if he could not see the man clearly, he could make an educated guess. The group was small, and he had already memorized everyone in it.

To his surprise, the leader of that reclusive team had come for him personally. After the chaos of the night, this man still had the leisure and interest to investigate him? Zhang Pu felt a strange sensation. As they continued, he noticed the leader was not moving to intercept him with great speed, and a plan began to form in his mind. He decided to let Elder Ge test this man; in his recollection, Elder Ge had not yet crossed paths with the leader of the reclusive team.