Chapter 696 - Divine Lake (1/2)

Translator: Legge

Ever since last night, Cheng Yu and Song Qiao had suspected that Luo Lan had the backing of someone in the camp. However, Cheng Yu could never have expected the person would turn out to be Ren Xiaosu.

If it had been someone else, such as Wang Yun or any other person, Cheng Yu would surely feel a sense of superiority like “I saw through everything” as he lurked in the shadows and watched everyone. It would be as though he had gained an advantage over Luo Lan after finding out about his trump card.

But when he realized the person was Ren Xiaosu, the other party’s odd behavior left him in some doubt. Following that, questions started popping up in his mind: ‘Did I see wrong? Could I be blind? Is Luo Lan blind as well…‘

‘Could Luo Lan be trying to mislead everyone?‘ Cheng Yu knew that Luo Lan was always a very meticulous person. Although he appeared to be very carefree, he had never done anything that would expose his trump cards. Therefore, when Ren Xiaosu pretended to be crazy, Luo Lan followed suit to give people the impression they were in cahoots. This way, wouldn’t there be someone to share his burden when things got critical?

He could even take it a step further and conceal the identity of his real teammate!

Cheng Yu suddenly felt like he was enlightened!

But no matter what, Ren Xiaosu’s importance in Cheng Yu’s eyes skyrocketed. Regardless of which of his guesses were right, Cheng Yu felt he could no longer look at Ren Xiaosu in the same way as before.

Actually, when Luo Lan saw Ren Xiaosu, who had always been hiding at the back of the group, come forward to say that they should continue, he understood that Ren Xiaosu must have something very important to do in the Sacred Mountains. Moreover, Ren Xiaosu must have already made an assessment of the people in the group and felt these people would not pose a threat for the time being.

Although there was a disconnect in their unspoken communication earlier, Luo Lan was quick-witted and managed to react in time. In just an instant, he figured out the details and came forward to support Ren Xiaosu’s decision.

“Pack up and continue moving!” Luo Lan gave a wave of his hand and said to Wang Yun, “Only cowards would be too scared to continue heading into the Sacred Mountains. If you’re afraid of death, stay behind by yourself and don’t affect us.”

Wang Yun stood in his spot and suddenly felt there was something wrong with Luo Lan’s words. Wait a minute, weren’t you the one that wanted to retreat at the start!?

However, Luo Lan had no intention of staying behind to continue arguing with him. Instead, he turned around and walked back to the camp to pack his belongings before leading the group forward!

“Tour guide! Where’s the tour guide?” Luo Lan shouted at the front of the group.

The Great Hoodwinker ran over happily. “Over here, over here!”

“Which direction should we head in next?” Luo Lan asked.

“Are we following the original plan?” the Great Hoodwinker asked.

“Yes, we’ll continue based on the original plan,” Luo Lan said.

“That means we’re heading in the direction of Mt. Shenchi.”

Over the years, the farthest place the Great Hoodwinker had traveled to in the outer periphery of the Sacred Mountains was Mt. Shenchi. This was not a name someone had come up with after The Cataclysm, but came from the words “Shenchi” that were originally carved into a cliff wall of the mountain.

Based on the mountain’s name, it would suggest there was a divine lake within the mountain. However, the Great Hoodwinker had never come across any divine lakes on his two previous trips to Mt. Shenchi.1

Instead, it was always foggy on Mt. Shenchi, and the air was extremely humid. When the Great Hoodwinker came here two years ago, he had stayed on Mt. Shenchi for four days. However, there was heavy fog during three of those four days.

The Great Hoodwinker said, “If y’all want to pass through Mt. Shenchi together without getting lost, you’d better stick close to me. Otherwise, you won’t be able to find your way out of the heavy fog. If you get lost on that mountain, you’re gonna end up falling behind.”

A person next to him asked, “And we’ll get lost in there forever?”