"What...?"
Duan Chen was stunned, not even grasping his meaning.
"Instructor."
He then saw Lu Shuishui, Tian Ximeng, Su Baiyi, and Long Yi huddled in a corner, each holding a piece of meat, their eyes fierce.
In the center of the wooden house, a small pot was stewing plain meat with no flavor.
"You... ate Wang Zihao?" Qin Ze stepped back two paces.
"What are you thinking?"
Bai Ye glared, letting the group in first. Duan Chen introduced Qi Qing and Sheng Chen, then asked, "What exactly happened? Where is Wang Zihao?"
It was Long Yi who answered.
"Wang Zihao has gone mad!"
"What?!"
Duan Chen still didn't understand, his brow furrowed tightly.
Su Baiyi took a deep breath and explained, "Instructor, do you remember the first mission you took us on?"
"Yinshan Village... the Magician?"
Duan Chen was startled.
"That's right! Back then, that man used a method to make others unconscious. Both Wang Zihao and I are mental ability users. I wasn't affected, but Wang Zihao, because he reacted slowly, fainted for a few minutes. At that time... did the Magician place a pocket watch on his chest?"
"You mean..."
"Wang Zihao seems to be controlled by that pocket watch. Everything he does is very similar to the Magician!"
Su Baiyi's expression was grim.
Long Yi and the other two were utterly confused. Su Baiyi had promised Wang Zihao not to tell anyone about this, so before today, they didn't know about it.
Bai Ye coughed.
"Putting aside who that Magician is, I came to this area after receiving a mission from Xiao Li. The client was anonymous and explicitly stated that there were strange occurrences nearby and requested a swift resolution. Although the forest isn't large, it's difficult for me to search alone, so I called them here."
"And then?"
Duan Chen's brow remained tightly furrowed.
"Then... Wang Zihao, for some reason, suddenly went mad, muttering about 'Godfather' and 'abandonment.' He manipulated the trees in the forest to move frantically, and would occasionally attack us. We were helpless, our psychic energy was almost depleted, and it was only after a great effort that we found a safe wooden house."
Bai Ye looked like he was about to cry.
"If that's the case, it must have been the Magician's doing."
"So who exactly is that Magician?"
Bai Ye spread his hands, and Jia Yunlian and the others also looked at Duan Chen with confusion.
"He is the Apostle Number 08 that I mentioned to you before. In the secret realm, Jun Ci and I also encountered him."
In Duan Chen's opinion, that man was a completely deranged lunatic.
But every time he saw him, Duan Chen felt a sense of familiarity, as if they had known each other for a long time.
"How could there be an 08?"
Bai Ye jumped up, and even Jia Yunlian shook her head.
"When I was with Nia, I never heard of an Apostle Number 08. The apostle numbers seemed to stop at 07."
"When I was an apostle, I never heard of it either. Besides, as fellow apostles, how could he be so much stronger than me?" Bai Ye looked somewhat unconvinced.
"You were an apostle before?"
Qi Qing glanced at him, his expression unfriendly.
"Don't stare at me like that, I've already abandoned evil for good." Bai Ye got goosebumps from his gaze.
"Sorry, my close friend back then was harmed by an apostle."
"Instructor, what should we do now?"
Long Yi, Lu Shuishui, and Tian Ximeng looked at him with some resentment. Duan Chen also felt quite guilty. If only he had taken Wang Zihao for an examination back then, they wouldn't be in this situation.
"I apologize, I will take responsibility for this. You all stay here, and Bai Ye and I will go investigate the situation."
"I'll go too."
Qi Qing stood up, his face grim.
"Master, are you going to undress here?" Sheng Chen's mouth twitched.
"You little brat!" Qi Qing's old face flushed, and he slapped him.
"I'm going out to help! What does it have to do with undressing!"
"But your ability requires you to undress to use it." Sheng Chen rubbed his head aggrievedly.
Facing everyone's suspicious gazes, Qi Qing felt like he couldn't wash himself clean even if he jumped into the Yellow River, so he cursed and walked out of the wooden house.
"I'll come too."
Mi Xue'er quickly followed, and Jia Yunlian was right behind her. The rest either hadn't recovered their psychic energy or their abilities weren't suitable for combat. To avoid being a burden to Duan Chen, they chose to stay inside the wooden house.
"Qin Ze." Duan Chen suddenly called out.
"Mm."
Qin Ze muttered in his heart and tossed the Coin of Right and Wrong.
When he saw the "Yes," he visibly relaxed.
"It's possible, Instructor."
"Mm."
Stepping out of the wooden house, Mi Xue'er asked curiously, "Brother Duan Chen, what did you ask him to inquire about?"
"Nothing, just a simple question."
"Hey, hey, hey, I say, if you don't take that female secretary, can we still get back?"
"Yes."
Duan Chen's tone was light but unquestionable. Qi Qing also fell silent, took a dagger from his waist, and followed behind him.
"Xue'er, clear the area first. Let me see your current strength."
"No problem!"
Mi Xue'er's eyes lit up. She took out paper and pen from her backpack and drew a sword on the paper.
Whoosh!
A real, sharp longsword appeared in her hand.
"Next time, draw it beforehand, and you can directly turn it into a real sword to use in battle, understand?"
"Yes."
Mi Xue'er took it to heart.
She gripped the sword hilt with both hands, her eyes instantly sharpening. A gust of wind suddenly swept around them, and the wind seemed to carry sharp sword energy, causing their faces to ache.
"Tsk... you should really witness this. When I first saw this move, it scared me quite a bit," Bai Ye exclaimed.
"This sword energy..."
A hint of doubt flashed in Qi Qing's eyes.
"It's comparable to the First Swordsman, wouldn't you say?" Sheng Chen was equally shocked.
How could her strength have improved so rapidly in such a short time? Jia Yunlian wondered.
Unwavering Sword Technique, First Stance: Sever!
Mi Xue'er had practiced this stance countless times, and it had already formed muscle memory.
Clang!
With a crisp sword chime, the longsword slashed horizontally, and invisible sword energy shot out like cannonballs, striking the roots of all the trees in front.
Squeak!
The trees actually let out groans, like some sort of living creatures. The sword energy paused for a moment, then with a swish, it slid past the tree roots.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The trees fell one after another, and the space in front became a flat plain. And from the roots of each large tree, green viscous fluid spurted out, like human blood.