Yu Daohan followed the direction Pan Lun indicated and looked up. He saw one of Wang Fei's subordinates already hanging from a large tree, eyes wide with terror, all five fingers on both hands severed, blood dripping onto the ground.
"The next victim is Wu Furang!" Pan Lun read aloud the blood-red characters beside him.
Yu Daohan followed Pan Lun's gaze and saw several large characters written on the trunk of the tree where Wang Fei's subordinate was hanging.
"The next victim is Wu Furang!"
Yu Daohan instinctively looked at Wang Fei's subordinates. He saw one of the older men, his face deathly pale, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
Without a doubt, this must be Wu Furang.
"Boss, what do we do now? Could it really be them?" Wu Furang asked nervously.
Before Wu Furang could finish, Wang Fei snorted, "What are you afraid of? With these in hand, we'll kill anyone who stands in our way, Buddha or demon."
Yu Daohan took the opportunity to scan the crowd but found nothing out of the ordinary.
"Could it really be the work of ghosts?" Yuan Jiuan, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up.
Hearing this, Wang Fei and the others all looked towards Yu Daohan and Pan Lun.
"We have experts here, don't we? They'll know if it's the work of ghosts."
Pan Lun, seeing everyone looking at him, instinctively turned to Yu Daohan beside him.
Yu Daohan walked over and touched the large characters written on the tree with blood. He frowned. This method didn't seem like the work of ghosts, and he couldn't feel any ghostly aura around.
"I can't be sure yet," Yu Daohan turned to face the crowd.
Seeing that Yu Daohan was also unsure if it was the work of ghosts, Wang Fei looked at his subordinates. "Since even the master is not sure, don't scare yourselves. Whether it's ghosts or not, this gun in my hand shows no mercy."
With that, he ordered two subordinates beside him to bury their fallen brother.
Everyone knew that Wang Fei's words were also directed at them.
Wang Fei led the remaining subordinates towards the tents.
"Alright, stop looking. Let's go back," Yu Daohan said, preparing to return to his tent with Pan Lun.
"Master Yu, you think this..." Yu Daohan was stopped by Yuan Jiuan before he had taken a few steps.
Seeing Yuan Jiuan's nervous expression, Yu Daohan understood. A young master from a wealthy family had never witnessed such a scene, so it was normal for him to be afraid.
"Young Master Yuan, your tent will be pitched next to ours from now on. As long as I am here, no evil will be able to harm you," Yu Daohan said.
Yuan Jiuan quickly nodded, "Then I'll trouble Master Yu."
On the way back, Pan Lun sidled up to Yu Daohan. "Master Yu, is this really the work of ghosts?"
"Probably not, I can't feel any ghostly aura," Yu Daohan replied, then shook his head again. "I'm not sure either. Perhaps the ghost's power is too strong for me to sense."
Pan Lun nodded, not understanding.
Yu Daohan said no more, but an answer was forming in his mind. Among this group, only he and Pan Lun possessed such strength. Wang Fei's group, without their guns, were no different from a bunch of thugs. Yuan Jiuan, a rich young master, was incapable of this. The only possibility was Liu Guanjia, who had been silent beside Yuan Jiuan.
If someone were to have an accident tomorrow, seeing whether Liu Guanjia was present would reveal who the ghost was.
Back in their tent, Yu Daohan and Pan Lun soon fell asleep. After all, they had a full day of travel ahead of them, and they couldn't do it without sufficient rest.
In Wang Fei's tent, one of the two subordinates beside him spoke, "I saw Yu Daohan and Pan Lun come out of their tent with my own eyes."
Wang Fei's expression turned grim. "So you're saying they didn't leave their tent?"
The two subordinates nodded affirmatively.
Wang Fei nodded, "Alright, you can go."
The two subordinates acknowledged and left the tent.
The next morning, everyone packed up and began their journey. Lunch consisted of compressed biscuits, as they were not the only ones seeking the spiritual spring, and if they delayed, the spring might belong to someone else.
The further they went, the more difficult the path became. In some places, a single misstep could send them tumbling down.
After crossing a small hill, they arrived at a pool of water. Wang Fei and his group, seeing the water, prepared to take a bath.
Pan Lun also breathed a sigh of relief. He had been sweating for days and could finally wash.
Upon reaching the pool, Pan Lun's expression changed as he looked at the footprints in front of the water. "Someone's here!"
As soon as Pan Lun spoke, Wang Fei and the others stopped and looked around.
"Well, well, I didn't expect to find fellow travelers here."
Yu Daohan followed the direction of the voice and saw two men emerge from the nearby woods.
Wang Fei and his group immediately raised their guns and aimed them at the two men.
One of the younger men clicked his tongue. "I just ran into some fellow travelers and came out to say hello. Is it that serious?"
Seeing that Wang Fei and his group hadn't lowered their guns, the young man remained unfazed. He walked closer, took a good look at Pan Lun, and smiled, "So it's Master Pan. I thought it was someone else."
Pan Lun glanced at the young man and then realized who he was. "I didn't expect your Fu Men to come as well."
The young man speaking was Fen Yue, known as a once-in-a-century genius from Fu Men.
Fen Yue grinned, "Master Pan, are you short on money again? That's why you're doing this kind of work."
Pan Lun laughed heartily and nodded, saying nothing.
Author's Notes:
How to put it, I feel completely lost these days. I apologize, everyone.