Chapter 134: Rescuing Zheng Lan Once More

Now that the mist had completely dispersed, everyone could be accounted for—everyone except Zheng Lan.

Zhang Pu, too, felt that something was amiss.

A strange detail from earlier suddenly came back to him. He could still vaguely recall seeing a fleeting phantom just before Zheng Lan and the others arrived.

But now, no matter how he thought it over, Zhang Pu could not bring himself to believe that the phantom had been Lin Zhifa. Nothing about it added up.

Although no one could explain exactly what had happened, Zhang Pu nevertheless turned his suspicions toward Lin Zhifa.

Yet because their thoughts were now linked, he also knew that Lin Zhifa had not been responsible, despite the fact that he could practically be called the master of this mountain.

Everyone felt that Lin Zhifa was the only one capable of unraveling the mystery.

A moment later, Lin Zhifa said to Zhang Pu, “Follow me.”

Zhang Pu immediately went after him, while Old Ge drifted along in the shadows behind them.

Several people from Zheng Lan’s group wanted to follow, but Lin Zhifa refused to allow it.

Zhang Pu explained that they might be approaching someone else’s forbidden ground. Moreover, after witnessing the terrifying strength Lin Zhifa had displayed earlier, those behind them ultimately did not dare continue. In any case, as long as Zhang Pu followed Lin Zhifa and brought back the restless Zheng Lan, that would be enough.

Still, how Zheng Lan had entered someone else’s forbidden ground when the mist arose—and why she had gone in alone—was difficult to understand. Unless they found her and heard her explanation firsthand, no one would likely be able to guess what had really happened.

Whatever the others might have thought, Lin Zhifa soon led Zhang Pu back into the Bottomless Cave.

He took Zhang Pu toward one of the cave’s farthest reaches, and Zhang Pu guessed that this had to be Lin Zhifa’s forbidden ground.

Once they entered, Zhang Pu seemed to hear a voice in the distance.

Because their minds were connected, Lin Zhifa sensed what he was thinking and immediately quickened his pace.

“You think I don’t dare kill you?”

The voice sounded vaguely familiar. Zhang Pu felt as though he had heard it somewhere before.

Someone up ahead seemed to be preparing to strike.

Zhang Pu guessed that Zheng Lan had probably fallen into someone’s hands. He immediately activated his mental link and ordered Lin Zhifa to intervene.

Soon, Lin Zhifa led Zhang Pu into a stone chamber deep within the Bottomless Cave. There, they saw a man blocking Zheng Lan’s escape with a great saber.

It was the Ghost-Head Saber.

And the man wielding it was none other than Lin Hongbin.

Zhang Pu immediately thought of the phantom he had seen earlier.

Although Lin Hongbin was powerful, Zhang Pu knew that Lin Zhifa would have no trouble dealing with him.

With a loud clang, the Ghost-Head Saber fell to the ground.

Lin Zhifa had indeed made his move.

Lin Hongbin turned around and stared at his senior brother in utter disbelief. He had no idea that his senior brother’s soul was now under someone else’s control.

He was still stunned. No matter what, his senior brother should never have knocked away his weapon. It was an extremely discourteous act.

But before Lin Hongbin could erupt in anger, Lin Zhifa had already taken the initiative, shouting at him to release the girl named Zheng Lan at once.

“Senior Brother,” Lin Hongbin said, forcing down his anger, “this girl is very important to us…”

At that moment, both Zhang Pu and Zheng Lan were astonished to discover that Lin Zhifa and Lin Hongbin were actually fellow disciples. They could also see that the two men fought in entirely different ways. One relied mainly on spells, while the other appeared to depend purely on physical strength.

Lin Zhifa, however, rudely roared at Lin Hongbin, “I told you to let her go, so let her go! Why are you still babbling?”

Lin Hongbin had sensed that something was wrong with Lin Zhifa, but by then he was already furious. He wanted to explode, yet he also knew that he was no match for Lin Zhifa.

His gaze immediately shifted to Zhang Pu behind Lin Zhifa. In his eyes, this stranger was unquestionably the cause of his senior brother’s strange behavior.

“So it’s an old acquaintance!” Lin Hongbin said, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he looked at Zhang Pu.

Without waiting for Zhang Pu to respond, he continued addressing Lin Zhifa. “Senior Brother, did this little brat sweet-talk you into something? He’s our enemy! He’s an exceptionally powerful fighter. I fought him at Poison Dragon Pool, and he stole the fruits of everyone’s battle—the Black Dragon Essence. He has the Black Dragon Essence on him—”

By the time Lin Hongbin reached this point, even Zheng Lan understood that he was doing everything he could to turn Lin Zhifa against Zhang Pu.

But after listening to his torrent of words, Zhang Pu merely gave a faint, meaningful smile.

When Lin Hongbin finished, he waited for his senior brother to attack.

What happened next, however, was completely beyond his expectations.

Lin Zhifa suddenly bellowed at him, “Get out!”

For a moment, Lin Hongbin could hardly believe his ears. He looked at Lin Zhifa, then at Zhang Pu, and was left speechless.

Zheng Lan was equally surprised.

Suddenly, Lin Hongbin spun around and bolted wildly into the depths of the forbidden ground, vanishing from sight.

Only after Lin Hongbin had fled did Zhang Pu feel a trace of regret. Yet the feeling was fleeting, for the man seemed to be of little use to him anyway. Zhang Pu could tell at a glance that Lin Hongbin was human, which meant he could not use the Spiritual Seed Grand Cultivation technique on him. And if he had to capture Lin Hongbin by other means, keeping someone like him at his side would hardly make Zhang Pu feel secure.

His regret disappeared almost at once. After communicating with Lin Zhifa through their linked minds, Zhang Pu realized that with Lin Zhifa here, he would still have opportunities to lure Lin Hongbin out in the future if he truly wished to capture him.

Zheng Lan also felt dissatisfied, but Lin Hongbin had been intercepted by Zhang Pu. She seemed to feel that she had no right to demand that Zhang Pu hand him over for her to deal with.

Was everything here finally over?

Not at all.

Zhang Pu knew that Zheng Lan had also come in search of the Golden Wood, and that she was not acting alone. Behind her stood an entire family.

But Zhang Pu wanted the Golden Wood as well.

Now, Zhang Pu and Lin Zhifa were of one mind.

The situation had changed. It was no longer Zhang Pu and Zheng Lan’s two groups joining forces against Lin Zhifa. Instead, Zhang Pu and Lin Zhifa would be uniting against Zheng Lan.

From that point onward, Zhang Pu did not merely keep watch himself. He even instructed Lin Zhifa to observe, from the shadows, every move Zheng Lan and her people made within the Golden Wood Forest.

On the surface, Lin Zhifa naturally continued to present himself as the master of the place.

He magnanimously allowed both Zhang Pu’s people and Zheng Lan’s group to admire the splendor of the Golden Wood and collect a few small samples.

But in secret, Zheng Lan and her subordinates could not help sensing that Zhang Pu and Lin Zhifa had formed an alliance. Whether intentionally or otherwise, the two seemed to be excluding their group.

Zheng Lan was already deeply afraid of Zhang Pu. Now, to make matters worse, he had unexpectedly become something like a close friend of Lin Zhifa. And Lin Zhifa himself was terrifying beyond measure; earlier, he had effortlessly defeated the two strongest experts under her command all by himself.