Chapter 38: Where on earth have you brought me?

"Met someone? Who?" A flicker of suspicion crossed Zhao Zhen's eyes. Could this old man have encountered that top-tier "succubus"?

"You've come into contact with this person before—he is the leader of our Quanxing sect, Wugensheng."

At these words, an expression of "so that's it" flashed across Zhao Zhen's face.

"You brat, you don't seem surprised at all?"

"I've dealt with Wugensheng before. This man..." Zhao Zhen couldn't help but frown.

"What's wrong? Do you have some opinion on Wugensheng?"

"Opinion is a strong word, but after interacting with him, you realize this person is a bit troublesome," Zhao Zhen shook his head.

"Troublesome? What do you mean?" Duan Chuan narrowed his eyes.

"I won't deny that he has great personal charisma and lives with remarkable clarity. But if he could stay that way forever, it would be fine. The moment he can no longer hold himself together, it will be a disaster for everyone who has grown too close to him."

Duan Chuan frowned, truly baffled by Zhao Zhen's cryptic words. "You've only met Wugensheng twice, right? How do you sound like you know him so well?"

"Twice?" Zhao Zhen sipped his tea and looked at Duan Chuan with interest. "Old man, how do you know how many times I've met him? So, did you end up being the one who took out Liu Wanshan?"

Duan Chuan smiled slightly, offering no direct answer, though his silence was a tacit admission.

"I knew Liu Wanshan's death was too suspicious. So it really was your handiwork. Have you been secretly following me for these past five years?"

"I don't have that much spare time. I just had friends in the circle keeping an eye on you. But it is true that I killed Liu Wanshan, and before I acted, Wugensheng found me. He was right there by my side when I did it."

"He went with you? Did he participate?" A look of confusion flickered in Zhao Zhen's eyes.

"No, he’s the leader; how could he help me kill one of his own? He just watched from the sidelines the whole time." Duan Chuan shook his head.

"He just watched you kill Liu Wanshan?"

"Yes."

Hearing this, a complex emotion welled up in Zhao Zhen's heart. "Old man, tell me, is Wugensheng nearby right now?"

Duan Chuan’s eyes flashed with surprise. "How did you know? Though I heard you were learning skills from people everywhere these years, I didn't expect you to pick up fortune-telling too!"

"Old man, where is Wugensheng? I want to see him! Right now!"

Seeing the rare, serious expression on Zhao Zhen’s face, the smile on Duan Chuan’s face stiffened. "What’s this about?"

Zhao Zhen didn't speak, his eyes locked onto Duan Chuan.

"Fine. I was planning to see you and then go meet up with the leader. Since you insist on seeing him, come with me."

With that, Duan Chuan reached out and grabbed Zhao Zhen's shoulder. As he produced a Golden Light Travel Talisman between his fingers, their figures vanished into a streak of golden light, disappearing from the teahouse.

...

In Hehe Town, dozens of miles away.

Wugensheng was holding a sugar-coated hawthorn skewer, asking Gu Jiting, "Little Gu, want a bite? These are actually quite sweet."

"No thanks, I don't care much for sweets," Gu Jiting declined. "Leader, aren't you quite interested in that Zhao Zhen? Why aren't we going over there with the Master this time?"

Wugensheng crunched into a large hawthorn and chewed as he answered, "I personally would love to be friends with him, but after these two encounters, I've realized he seems very repelled by me. Can't be helped. People, after all, need to trade sincerity for sincerity. If I keep offering a warm face to a cold shoulder, it gets a bit tiresome."

Wugensheng smiled slightly. "Besides, our main target during this period is the Master, so we must prioritize his arrangements. Can't you tell? The reason the Master told us to wait here instead of bringing us to see his disciple is simply because he doesn't want Zhao Zhen to have too much contact with us in Quanxing."

"Whatever else may be true, the Master really dotes on this disciple," Gu Jiting remarked.

"Hahaha, if I had a disciple who could make the Heavenly Master and the Great Immortal of Daying step forward to vouch for him in front of all the orthodox leaders, I’d dote on him too."

"It's a pity, though. Even if the Master wants to draw a line between Zhao Zhen and Quanxing, the orthodox sects were never going to truly accept him from the start. By doing this, isn't he putting Zhao Zhen in an awkward position, neither orthodox nor evil?"

"That is one of the reasons why the Master asked for my help."

"Sigh, the depth of a father's love..."

Just as Gu Jiting was sighing, a golden light suddenly erupted in front of them. When the light faded, the figures of Zhao Zhen and Duan Chuan appeared before them.

"It's you?" Gu Jiting’s eyes widened in surprise upon seeing Zhao Zhen beside Duan Chuan.

*Isn't he supposed to be keeping us away from Zhao Zhen? Why would the Master take the initiative to bring him right to us?*

Unlike Gu Jiting’s surprise, Wugensheng merely surveyed Zhao Zhen with interest. "Brother Zhao, what a coincidence. We meet again."

"Leader, my apologies. This brat insisted on seeing you, and I couldn't stop him, so I brought him along," Duan Chuan said, a hint of helplessness on his face. Zhao Zhen noticed that the old man treated Wugensheng with considerable respect.

"No matter, Master, no matter. Since Brother Zhao came to find me of his own accord, I am naturally delighted. So, Brother Zhao, what brings you to me this time?"

Zhao Zhen took a deep breath, walked up to Wugensheng, and took the initiative to place his right hand on Wugensheng's shoulder.

*Whoosh!*

A sudden flash of golden light erupted, and in the next instant, both of them vanished from the sight of Duan Chuan and Gu Jiting.

"..."

The air fell into a deathly silence.

Duan Chuan and Gu Jiting stood there, staring at each other in bewilderment. They opened their mouths, but could not find the words to say.

"Master, what... what does this mean?"

Duan Chuan was silent for a long time before rubbing his forehead in frustration. "I have no idea what that brat is planning..."

"Master, can you sense where they fled to?"

"No. The Golden Light Teleportation is a unique technique, and this brat’s mastery of it has likely surpassed even my own by now."

Duan Chuan shook his head, a glimmer of pride in his eyes.

Meanwhile, in a forest hundreds of miles away, Wugensheng looked around in confusion. "Wait, where exactly did you bring me?"