Chapter 3018 — There Is Another (Midnight Bonus Update! Summoning [Moon] Tickets!)

After unleashing the Hellfire Frenzy Fist, Wei Zhao's physical strength and true qi were drained in an instant, and he collapsed limply onto the ground. The Heaven-Rank freak, by contrast, was brimming with vigor at this moment; having beaten Old Six to death, he showed not the slightest trace of fatigue.

"Li'er, we master and disciple have slain the enemy! Put this thing here for now—it's something your master stole for you from the enemy's lair. Take a look at it first. Your master is hungry and is going to find something to eat!" With that, the Heaven-Rank freak pulled a bamboo slip scroll from his bosom, tossed it before Wei Zhao, and then, without waiting for Wei Zhao to speak, turned and ran off deep into the mountain range...

"Master..." Wei Zhao called out hastily, but the Heaven-Rank freak paid him no heed, his figure receding farther and farther until it vanished!

Wei Zhao did not even have the strength to stand up and chase after him, and could only watch helplessly as the Heaven-Rank freak departed. From his past experience, Wei Zhao knew that when the Heaven-Rank freak left, he left for good—he probably would not be coming back, and who knew when their next meeting would be!

Wei Zhao still wanted to wait for the Heaven-Rank freak to regain his lucidity and ask him how he had provoked Old Six and Old Twelve, how he had come to be chased all the way here by them, and just what this bamboo slip scroll he had given him actually was.

But all these questions, Wei Zhao could only keep bottled up in his heart, and could only wait for their next meeting to ask them!

After putting the bamboo slip scroll away, Wei Zhao did not look at it directly. Instead, he quickly entered the jade pendant space and began circulating the second level of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art to restore his lost physical strength and true qi! Though the enemy had already been dealt with, Wei Zhao feared that some further mishap might arise, so restoring his strength was his first priority!

As for the bamboo slip scroll, he could look at it whenever; there was no rush at this moment. Once his strength was restored, it would not be too late to look then!

However, just as Wei Zhao sat cross-legged on the ground circulating the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art to restore his physical strength and true qi, footsteps came from not far away, startling him somewhat. Could the Heaven-Rank freak really have come back?

Of course, if it were the Heaven-Rank freak, that would not matter—but what Wei Zhao feared was that someone else might be passing by, such as a villager from West Star Village. If they saw the two corpses on the ground, would they be frightened out of their wits?

Only, Wei Zhao truly had no strength left now to dispose of those two corpses, and could only grit his teeth and continue restoring his physical strength and true qi. If a villager really did pass by, Wei Zhao would simply have to make up some excuse.

The footsteps drew closer from afar, but once Wei Zhao heard them clearly, a relaxed expression appeared on his face, for these footsteps were very familiar to him—it was actually Ergoudan! Wei Zhao thus set his mind at ease and let the footsteps approach.

Ergoudan had come to West Star Village this morning to hunt. Now that he had a family, Ergoudan had to work even harder to earn money and support his household, so coming to West Star Village to hunt every morning had become his job.

But today, Ergoudan sensed something unusual in these mountains—the smell of blood! Could there be some wild beasts fighting here? Ergoudan was not afraid; holding the mindset of a spectator, he ran over—only to freeze on the spot the moment he saw the scene before him!

"Leader? What are you doing here?" Ergoudan had never expected to run into Wei Zhao, who was far away in East Sea City, while out hunting. And when he saw the two dead men not far off, he was even more astonished: "Who are these two corpses?"

"Ergoudan, you've come at just the right time. I'm restoring my physical strength and true qi. Help me patrol the area—don't let anyone come near this place, except for a wild-haired madman carrying two battle-axes!" Wei Zhao had no time to explain all this to Ergoudan for the moment, so he simply gave the order directly.

"Okay!" Ergoudan nodded in agreement without a second thought, then vanished into the nearby woods to patrol back and forth.

As for Wei Zhao, he continued circulating the mental chant of the second level of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art, rapidly restoring his physical strength and true qi.

Old Seven—the man Old Six had spoken of—had been struck by the Heaven-Rank freak's battle-axe while the latter was lucid, suffering severe injuries, and had no choice but to sit on the ground first and heal his wounds, while Old Six and Old Twelve went to track the Heaven-Rank freak!

However, as Old Six and Old Twelve pursued, they left behind on the ground some markers unique to the Five Luminaries Sect, which was how Old Seven had been able to follow all the way here...

Ergoudan patrolled and hunted at the same time, neglecting neither. In the blink of an eye, he already had a wild boar slung across his back. There were so many wild boars here that one could bag one at random. Of course, this was deep in the mountains; few villagers of West Star Village dared to enter the mountains alone, for though there was abundant game, there was also abundant danger—leopards, fierce wolves, and the like often prowled about.

Footsteps came from afar, putting Ergoudan instantly on guard. He came hunting every day and could even tell the footsteps of each kind of wild beast apart, and today's footsteps were definitely not those of any beast, but of a person!

Yet though Ergoudan was wary inside, nothing showed on the surface; he looked every bit the harmless, honest country youth.

Soon the footsteps drew near, and a man dressed in a black Eight-Trigram robe, styled like an elder yet appearing only around thirty by his features, came striding quickly toward him!

Ergoudan glanced at him. He held no battle-axe, only a sword at his waist, so he was clearly not the mad Heaven-Rank fellow with the battle-axes that Wei Zhao had mentioned. Therefore, an expression of surprise appeared on Ergoudan's face.

This man was, of course, Old Seven. Old Seven had pursued all the way to West Star Mountain, and having seen neither Old Six and Old Twelve nor the Heaven-Rank freak, he saw instead a country youth, and could not help but be taken aback!

Old Seven sized Ergoudan up carefully: coarse cloth clothes, a wild boar on his back—this figure must certainly be a local hunter. So he felt no wariness toward him, but walked over and asked directly: "Young man, are you hunting here?"

"Yes... Grandpa... oh no, Uncle, where are you from? How come I don't know you?" Ergoudan asked with honest simplicity.

"This old man has come here looking for someone; I'm not a local. Let me ask you something: while hunting here, have you seen three people? Two of them dressed much like me, and the other an old fellow holding two great axes?" Old Seven had pursued to this point but could no longer see the clues left by Old Six and Old Twelve, so he questioned Ergoudan.

As for the smell of blood in this patch of woods, Old Seven automatically ignored it, for Ergoudan still had a dead wild boar on his back—it was only natural to smell blood! As for Wei Zhao restoring his physical strength and true qi, that was taking place inside the jade pendant space, completely imperceptible from the outside. RS