Chapter 41

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Chapter 41: What I Robbed Is… Life!

In the reception room, there were five people seated: three men and one woman, aside from Ji Rubi.

One of the men, sporting a scruffy beard, was at the twelfth level of Qi Refinement, while the other three were at the tenth level.

As soon as Fang Yu walked in, the gazes of the four people focused on him.

The man at the twelfth level was the first to look away, his expression filled with disdain.

The other three, after scrutinizing Fang Yu, also showed their contempt.

“Miss Ji, is this brat the Mr. Fang who made us wait for over half an hour? From the way you spoke of him, I thought he would be impressive, but he’s just a little kid at the fifth stage of innate talent,” the woman sneered, glancing at Fang Yu with a look of impatience.

As the eldest daughter of the Zhong family, she was used to others waiting for her, rarely the other way around!

Thus, she felt quite displeased!

Just as Ji Rubi was about to speak, the highest-ranked man interjected, “His cultivation is too low; having him with us will only hold us back.”

The expressions and words of the four martial artists conveyed their disdain for Fang Yu.

Ji Rubi looked at Fang Yu with concern.

Yet Fang Yu remained calm, seemingly unfazed.

“I’ll introduce you all. This is…” Ji Rubi attempted to break the awkwardness and began introducing Fang Yu.

The man with the scruffy beard and fierce eyes was Tu Feng, a notorious bounty hunter in Jianghai City.

A bounty hunter is someone who gets paid to do jobs for others, usually involving the use of force.

With his half-step Master level strength, Tu Feng was a tyrant in the dark forces of Jianghai City, solving troubles for one wealthy patron after another, earning a fearsome reputation.

The woman was named Zhong Li Yu, the eldest daughter of a famous martial arts family in Jiangnan, the Zhong family.

The other two men were subordinates brought by Zhong Li Yu, one named Zhou Bei and the other Zhu Lingjia.

Tu Feng was hired at great expense by Zhong Li Yu to provide protection; their goal was to enter the primitive forest to search for rare medicinal herbs or treasures.

Zhong Li Yu regarded this expedition as a training exercise, a tradition of the Zhong family. Every adult family member must undergo a trial.

After Ji Rubi finished her introduction, Fang Yu remained silent, sitting on the sofa.

Zhong Li Yu looked at Fang Yu with disgust.

This kid actually thought he could join her team?

Was he trying to get a free ride?

“Miss Ji, I respect you, but… I really can’t allow this Mr. Fang to join the team. It’s for his own good; no one knows how dangerous that forest is. What if something happens…” Zhong Li Yu shook her head, not continuing.

“Miss, why say so much? Just refuse him directly! This kid is so weak; what use is he? What if he gets scared and wets his pants in danger?” Zhu Lingjia mocked with a laugh.

Ji Rubi’s expression grew increasingly unpleasant. She had never said she wanted Fang Yu to join their team; she merely wanted him to communicate with them.

But this group had jumped to conclusions, acting as if Fang Yu was begging to join their team, which was truly arrogant.

Just as Ji Rubi was about to speak, Fang Yu interjected, “I don’t think I ever said I wanted to join you.”

“Then what are you here for?” Zhong Li Yu frowned.

“I just wanted to find out if you have any information about that forest,” Fang Yu replied.

Zhong Li Yu sneered, “Even if we do, we won’t tell you. I spent quite a bit of money for this information; why should you get it for free?”

“Besides, you can’t even go; what use is it for you to ask?”

“Who says I can’t go?” Fang Yu countered.

“You mean you want to go in alone? With your innate fifth stage strength?” Zhong Li Yu covered her mouth and laughed.

After laughing for a while, she turned to Ji Rubi and said, “Miss Ji, this kid must be some distant relative of yours, right? You better keep an eye on him; otherwise, he’ll be going to his death.”

With that, Zhong Li Yu stood up.

“Miss Ji, we’re leaving for Sanhua City tonight. I thought you brought us here and made us wait so long to introduce a powerful martial artist, but it turns out… never mind, let’s leave it at that. Come visit my house sometime.”

Zhong Li Yu cast a casual glance at Ji Rubi, and the group left.

Ji Rubi’s expression was very grim, her beautiful eyes filled with anger.

She had thought Zhong Li Yu would at least maintain a neutral attitude out of respect for the Ji family.

But unexpectedly, Zhong Li Yu seemed to disregard the Ji family and her entirely.

People from martial arts families were truly too arrogant.

Ji Rubi apologetically said to Fang Yu, “Mr. Fang, I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine.” Fang Yu waved his hand; he hadn’t expected to gain any useful information anyway.

Whatever was in that primitive forest, he would find out after going in.

…

Sanhua City was not far from Jianghai City; it only took two hours by train.

Fang Yu set off at six in the morning and arrived in Sanhua City by eight.

He hailed a taxi and told the driver, “I want to go to the primitive forest north of Sanhua City.”

“What forest… oh, you mean that Ghost Forest!?” The driver widened his eyes in surprise.

“Ghost Forest?” Fang Yu’s eyes flickered.

“Yes, the Ghost Forest! It’s said that countless strange sounds can be heard every day, and many people have gone in and never come out! It’s all sealed off now! If you want to go there, find someone else; I won’t take you, it’s too creepy!” The driver finished speaking and stepped on the gas, driving away.

Fang Yu tried to hail several more taxis, but no one was willing to take him.

It seemed that the locals in Sanhua City had all heard about the incidents in that forest.

After being repeatedly rejected, Fang Yu gave up on the idea of taking a taxi and decided to walk there directly.

But as he turned around, an old man with sparse hair approached him.

The old man was very frail, with white hair and beard, emaciated, but his face was somewhat dark.

However, Fang Yu knew that this old man was a cultivator, at the tenth level of Qi Refinement, not weak at all.

“Kid, if you want to go to that Ghost Forest, those drivers won’t dare take your fare,” the old man said with a kind smile.

“Can you take me there?” Fang Yu asked.

“Yes, I’m nearly forty and no longer believe in superstitions. However, if you want me to take you, you’ll have to pay a bit more,” the old man nodded.

“How much?” Fang Yu inquired.

The old man held up two fingers.

Two hundred yuan? Not too expensive.

Fang Yu accepted the old man’s price.

The old man’s vehicle was a diesel tricycle, and it moved quite fast.

Once Fang Yu got in, the old man took the driver’s seat and stepped on the gas.

No one noticed the glint of malice that flashed in the old man’s murky eyes.

The distance from Sanhua City’s train station to the primitive forest was about twenty kilometers.

At the speed of this diesel tricycle, it would take about half an hour.

So, after getting in the vehicle, Fang Yu began to rest his eyes.

About twenty minutes later, Fang Yu felt a jolt and opened his eyes.

At this point, he had arrived at a desolate area, with not a single person in sight.

“How much longer until we arrive?” Fang Yu asked.

The old man did not respond.

Fang Yu frowned slightly, took out his phone to check the map, and found they had strayed far off course.

This old man had issues.

But since they had already taken a detour, Fang Yu decided to wait and see what the old man intended to do.

After walking for about another five minutes, the old man stopped the vehicle.

In front of them was a cave, which seemed very deep and pitch black.

The old man turned back, looking at Fang Yu with a sinister smile, revealing a mouthful of blackened teeth.

At that moment, Fang Yu realized that this old man had a wicked demeanor and was clearly not a good person.

The previous kindness was obviously a facade.

If Fang Yu had paid a bit more attention earlier, he would have noticed.

But regardless, he had been tricked.

“Robbery or something more sinister? I guess you’re after money, but you’ve picked the wrong person; I only have five hundred yuan on me, and you won’t make much from that,” Fang Yu said calmly.

The old man looked at Fang Yu, grinning widely, chuckling ominously.

Seeing that ambiguous smile, Fang Yu frowned.

This old man wouldn’t really be thinking of something lewd, would he?

“You’re all wrong; what I’m after is… your life,” the old man said in a hoarse and sinister tone.