Zhang Tinglei secretly sighed in pity.
Right now, he could only exert the strength of the peak Houtian Rank at most, not even reaching half-step Xiantian.
Furthermore, Zhong Cheng was a Houtian Rank expert who had spent years galloping across battlefields and specialized in external martial arts. With such thick skin and tough flesh, Zhang Tinglei—not being in the Xiantian Rank—truly couldn't do anything to him in a short amount of time.
Zhang Tinglei frowned in contemplation. Though he appeared fine on the outside, he was actually severely injured. He was only able to maintain his current rank by using that obscure secret technique to force himself through at the cost of his lifespan.
If he went all out, he could naturally force Zhong Cheng to retreat and obtain the leaf. However, once he exerted his full strength, the rank he could maintain afterward would likely plummet to the First-Rate Rank.
Meanwhile, Zhong Cheng would still be at the Houtian Rank. It simply wasn't worth the cost, and he couldn't use his talent to kill him either.
How difficult!
How incredibly difficult!!
Zhong Cheng took a deep breath, then let out a loud shout.
Then, his thick palm swept across a withered tree beside him, snapping it right in half. He grabbed the trunk with both hands and swung it toward Zhang Tinglei.
“Die, you old thief!!”
Zhang Tinglei frowned slightly and swiftly retreated to dodge the attack.
However, fearing that if he backed away too far, the specter item leaf might be taken by Zhong Cheng, he simply circled around, constantly harassing and keeping his opponent at bay.
Seeing that he couldn't find an opening, and that Zhang Tinglei might eventually get the specter item if this dragged on, Zhong Cheng decided to go all the way. He swung the thick, withered trunk directly toward that direction!
The withered tree kicked up a gust of fierce wind, sweeping countless leaves in front of them along with that branch right off the cliff.
Zhang Tinglei watched the countless leaves fluttering down the cliff, raising an eyebrow in surprise.
“Hmph!”
“Quite bold of you!”
Since the specter item was no longer here, he naturally had no intention of entangling himself with Zhong Cheng any further. With a light tap of his foot, his figure drifted backward and vanished into the darkness.
It seemed he wanted to search at the foot of the mountain to see if he could find it.
As for Zhong Cheng, knowing that his speed was no match for the other man, he could only remain where he was, angrily tossing the withered tree in his hands to the ground.
“Dog thief, if you can find it, consider it your good luck!”
What neither of them knew, however, was that as the branch drifted down from the cliff, a gentle breeze carried it right to the vicinity of the puddle.
Zuo Lin'an turned to look at the branch not far away, blinking in surprise.
“Simply unbelievable.”
He slowly stood up, walked over, and picked up the branch.
After plucking the leaf, Zuo Lin'an didn't hide it on his person. Instead, he casually tossed it away. The leaf drifted down gently, blending in with the countless withered leaves around.
It was completely indistinguishable!
If Zuo Lin'an weren't the dungeon boss, even he probably wouldn't be able to recognize which one it was.
As for the branch?
He walked back to the campfire, sat down, and casually threw the branch inside.
The flames slowly wrapped around it, and the slender branch was quickly burned to ashes.
“Perfect.”
After a while, Zhang Tinglei arrived at the foot of the mountain and began searching thoroughly within a certain area beneath the cliff. However, after searching for a long time, he still came up empty-handed.
In the end, he could only shake his head and return in disappointment.
Zuo Lin'an was in a good mood. Seeing him return, he even greeted him.
Zhang Tinglei nodded as usual, sat cross-legged nearby, and closed his eyes to rest.
His condition was actually not good.
Doing it once or twice was fine, but if he fought frequently, his body might give out.
After all, he still had to endure for three days.
He hoped that Zhong Cheng would behave himself over the next few days.
Perhaps Zhang Tinglei's prayers had been answered, for Zhong Cheng really didn't cause any more trouble over the following days.
During this time, Zuo Lin'an also kept a close eye on Zhong Cheng.
The man never approached the puddle. Instead, he searched elsewhere for stray wild chickens and rabbits, and even had the good fortune of finding some water hidden by Jin Youwu.
Just like that, he managed to survive.
He even successfully survived for three days!
Zuo Lin'an had been bored to tears over the past few days.
His conversations with Zhang Tinglei probably didn't even add up to ten sentences in total.
And now, it was finally time for his specter body to respawn.
Two minutes... There were still two minutes left.
He reached out to touch the withered grass beneath him.
Having nothing to do over the last two days, he had gathered some hay to make a nest for himself, and he was currently lying on top of it.
Or rather, he had basically spent these three days lying here to kill time.
His gaze swept forward, landing on Zhang Tinglei.
The older man was still sitting there resting with his eyes closed, just like before. However, his complexion seemed much worse than it had been three days ago, and even his white hair was visibly increasing.
However, Zhang Tinglei didn't care much about any of this.
In any case, once he returned, everything would be restored.
Zuo Lin'an withdrew his gaze and stretched.
One minute left.
Sigh.
How boring, so incredibly boring!
With Zhang Tinglei around, he couldn't even play with his phone to pass the time. He could only sit there blankly every day, and his brain was starting to feel a bit rusty.
Time's up!
A flash of joy crossed Zuo Lin'an's eyes.
He could very clearly feel the blood mist inside him beginning to rapidly reconstruct.
It happened almost in an instant!
He sensed his specter body once again!
Excellent.
It was finally time for the final game.
Zuo Lin'an stood up.
Zhang Tinglei looked at him. “What is it?”
“Nothing. It's about time. Let's go.”
Zhang Tinglei paused, and then his eyes lit up.
“Is that so?”
In his view, Zuo Lin'an's words meant the specter had restored, and he could now repel it, complete his main quest, and clear the dungeon!
Zuo Lin'an stepped forward in a certain direction.
“Let's go.”
He seemed calm on the surface, but his mind was racing with thoughts of what was to come.
He hadn't wasted his time over the past three days; he had come up with an excellent plan.
He hoped Zhang Tinglei would be able to hold up and not cough up blood out of sheer anger.
Naturally, Zhang Tinglei had no idea what Zuo Lin'an was thinking, and a smile even formed on his face.
“Alright.”
He assumed Zuo Lin'an was taking him to a different spot, so he followed.
Thus, the two of them left the area, one in front of the other.
However, after walking for a while, Zhang Tinglei gradually sensed that something was off.
“Are you taking me to see the specter?”
Walking ahead with his back to him, the corners of Zuo Lin'an's lips curled up slightly, though his tone remained calm.
“The specter?”
“Why would we go see the specter?”
Zhang Tinglei's face shifted slightly, and he halted.
“What do you mean?”
Zuo Lin'an stopped as well. He turned back to look at Zhang Tinglei, a hint of displeasure on his face.
“What do I mean? I'm simply fulfilling the promise I made a few days ago.”
Zhang Tinglei frowned in thought, then suddenly snapped out of it.
He had got it wrong!
Only now did he realize he had made a mistake.
The person in front of him was a native. He had absolutely no concept of main quests or dungeons!
To him, “leaving alive” simply meant leaving this place.
It didn't mean clearing the dungeon.
In other words, Zuo Lin'an was currently leading him toward the edge of the white mist, intending to escort him out!
Zhang Tinglei took a deep breath.
While the white mist was a path of survival for the natives, it was a path of certain death for players.
Seeing his silence, Zuo Lin'an's expression darkened as well.
“What? Don't tell me you don't want to leave?”
Rate on N.U.
