You Go Ahead, I'll Be Right There

As the sky darkened, people in the group began taking roll.

"Everyone handling the pickup, come to the old bridge! Don't all go your separate ways!"

"Where's Xu Sheng? Didn't he just say he was coming?"

Xu Sheng leaned against a tree and first glanced down the slope. A medicine cart was slowly making its way along the road. The driver's face was hidden beneath a wide robe, and several covered wooden crates were piled in the wagon.

Only then did he reply: "You go ahead, I'll be right there."

After sending the message, Xu Sheng closed the interface and moved over beside Du Wenhe.

"At least six people have reached the bridge. The ones in the woods haven't reported in yet, and someone's watching the road to the south too."

Du Wenhe nodded and gestured toward South Gully. Two hall guards covered the insignia on their collars and lay low again.

The man originally stationed here was a driver Zhou Xiang had hired in the city. He had already been subdued and tied up behind a rock. Xu Sheng had questioned him: he had never seen the otherworlders at the bridge and only knew the signal for the pickup.

The real medicine cart had been diverted during the day. The one before them didn't contain a single medicinal herb; the crates were full of stones.

Xu Sheng had made a point of watching them load it. The top crate was especially heavy.

"The people handling the pickup at South Gully agreed to cough twice." He added, "When someone comes, please don't make a sound at first. Let them get closer."

Du Wenhe glanced at the two hall guards struggling not to laugh, then drew his green vines back into the grass.

Xu Sheng gripped his sword in satisfaction.

Come on. Don't you dare change your minds at the last minute.

As the cart reached the bridge, a log was suddenly pushed down across the road.

"Stop the cart!"

A short, stout man jumped out, accompanied by two others carrying ropes. None of the three activated their Martial Souls. Each held a weapon, but their gazes were fixed on the wagon with considerable excitement.

After the cart stopped, a thin, long-faced man emerged from the woods and rested a hand on the edge of a crate.

"Pull back the cloth."

The driver didn't move, and black armor slowly grew over the man's fingertips.

Xu Sheng recognized the face at a glance. It was Zhou Xiang, the man in the portrait.

"Mr. Zhou, we've got the rear covered too!" The short, stout man hurried over, suppressing his excitement. "They can't get away. Rest assured!"

Zhou Xiang nodded in satisfaction, grabbed the covering cloth and pulled it away, then lifted the lid off the top crate.

Half a crate of rubble greeted his eyes.

The smile froze on his face. The lid fell from his hand and slammed down as he backed away.

"It's an ambush! Run!"

Unfortunately, it was too late to run now.

The driver threw off his wide robe. Stone armor rapidly covered his arms, and four Soul Rings lit up in succession, illuminating the dim bridgehead.

"Shen Zhaolin!"

Zhou Xiang cried out involuntarily. The three players in front of the bridge froze on the spot. The short, stout man who had come closest even forgot to drop the rope in his hand.

Shen Zhaolin leaped down from the cart and struck at Zhou Xiang's shoulder with his palm.

A scarlet scorpion tail whipped out from behind Zhou Xiang, stabbing straight at Shen Zhaolin's face. Shen Zhaolin raised an arm to block, and the stinger scraped against his stone armor with a piercing screech.

Three Soul Rings, two yellow and one purple, appeared. Zhou Xiang used the opening created by the block to turn and bolt for the woods.

But his leg suddenly tightened: green vines from the roadside had already wrapped around his calf!

"The person you injured last time is still lying in the infirmary, and today you're after the medicine cart again?"

Du Wenhe stepped out from behind a tree and raised a hand, tightening the vines.

Zhou Xiang had no time to answer. His scorpion tail stabbed backward, forcibly tearing a length of vine apart. But in that brief moment, Shen Zhaolin had caught up, his stone palm slamming into Zhou Xiang's raised arms.

With a dull thud, Zhou Xiang crashed back into the wagon, splitting half its wooden side apart.

Xu Sheng's eyes shone as he watched. Those four Soul Rings were even more conspicuous at night than they had been during the day. One palm strike had sent a three-ring Soul Elder flying back into the cart!

He nearly cheered, but caught sight of the short, stout man at the bridge turning to run south. He hurriedly pointed toward the gully.

He still had his own business to take care of here!

Du Wenhe followed the direction he pointed and continued using his Soul Skill. His second yellow ring lit up, and several thick vines emerged from beneath the cart, rapidly spreading along both sides of the road.

Only then did the players in front of the bridge come to their senses.

"Didn't they say there was only one guard with two rings? Four rings-how are we supposed to fight that?!"

"Fight what? Run!"

Weapons were thrown all over the ground. Some turned and fled, while others grabbed their companions and hurriedly explained that they hadn't attacked yet. Footsteps also sounded one after another from the woods. Those who had sensed something was wrong early on were the quickest to retreat.

Xu Sheng looked down and opened the group chat. It was already in chaos.

"There are city guards behind us. Don't go that way!"

"Where are the people handling the pickup to the south? Are they still there?"

Xu Sheng immediately replied, "I'm heading that way. You find the agreed signal first!"

He had barely sent the message when two coughs sounded from down the slope.

The short, stout man froze for a moment, then was overjoyed and waved to those behind him.

"Over here! We've got people on our side!"

Sure enough, someone rose from the grass and helped him up.

He was just about to thank him when a weight came down on his shoulder and both his arms were twisted behind his back. The other man pulled open his collar, and the hall insignia flashed in the firelight. The short, stout man instantly forgot even to shout.

The two behind him turned and ran. One was caught by a green vine, while the other actually scrambled up the slope and swung a saber at Xu Sheng.

"Out of the way!"

White wings snapped open.

Xu Sheng turned sideways to evade the blade, seized the man's wrist with his left hand, and slammed it against a tree trunk. The man's short saber fell from his hand. He tried to struggle, but a kick struck the back of his knee.

"Don't crowd. There's still room down below!"

Xu Sheng gave him a push down the slope, sending him to the hall guard who had just freed his hands. Du Wenhe added another coil of green vine. Together with the driver who had been waiting for the pickup, that made a neat total of four in South Gully.

The short, stout man looked at his companions beside him, then at the white wings on the slope. Before long, his message popped up in the group chat.

"Who said we had people on our side here?!"

Xu Sheng looked down and saw someone reply below it.

"Didn't you shout that?"

He held back a laugh and closed the interface.

Meanwhile, Zhou Xiang's Third Soul Ring suddenly lit up, and the shell on his body grew a layer thicker. Abandoning the search for another route, he lowered his head and charged, intending to force his way between Shen Zhaolin and Du Wenhe.

Shen Zhaolin planted his feet, thrust his right shoulder forward, and met him with a charge of his own!

Two deep furrows were plowed through the earth and stones beneath their feet, but Zhou Xiang staggered back several steps, the shell that had just formed over his chest cracking on the spot. Before he could steady himself, a stone hand had clamped firmly around his wrist.

This time, he could no longer break free.

By the time Xu Sheng came down the slope, Zhou Xiang's legs were tightly bound with vines, and two hall guards were adding restraints.

Shen Zhaolin lifted the broken wagon board and first let the frightened horse beneath it recover before asking how many had been caught in South Gully.

"Four. The first one even called the people behind him over," a hall guard said with a laugh.

Shen Zhaolin turned to Xu Sheng.

"Your signal worked."

"Mostly because they were so eager to help. I didn't even call them over; they ran here on their own."

Du Wenhe smiled and handed the confiscated short saber to a hall guard. "He subdued one of them too. His injured hand didn't stop him from catching someone."

Xu Sheng had been about to offer a modest reply, but hearing that, he simply couldn't keep the corners of his mouth down.

"As soon as that one came over, he dropped his saber."

"Saved you the trouble of drawing your sword, too."

Shen Zhaolin glanced at Zhou Xiang as he was led away and pushed his steel sword back into its sheath.

"You'll get credit for tonight when we get back. If you get information like this again, come straight to me."

Xu Sheng readily agreed.

It was only his first day here, and the team leader already knew his name. After a few more days, would he still have to worry about finding a place for himself in the hall?

Back at the main hall, the city guards took Zhou Xiang and the people who had stopped the cart and carried weapons at the scene. The hall still had to check each person's account of what had happened.

As for those who had left halfway through, Xu Sheng didn't report their names one by one. Coming and acting were never the same thing; he simply gave a clear account of what he had seen and heard.

Shen Zhaolin was still busy in the inner hall. Xu Sheng had been sent out to rest his hand, so he sat under the covered walkway and slowly read through the group messages.

Some people demanded to know who had leaked the information, while others cursed Zhou Xiang for setting them up. The group owner, Ye Xiao, never showed up until the very end, when he left a message saying that this batch of people had taken the wrong path themselves. He then immediately disabled messages in the group chat.

Xu Sheng stared at the name for a moment.

Things had been lively when he was recruiting people, but the moment something went wrong, he washed his hands of the whole affair. Xu Sheng would have to keep an eye on him in the future.

Yu Cheng had also sent a message.

"None of the four people on my side went. I just ran into a few who escaped from the bridge, and I heard even the city guards showed up. How are you?"

"I didn't go onto the bridge."

"That's good. I left the group. If I run into something like this again, I'll have to ask about it face-to-face."

Xu Sheng asked what he planned to do next.

"Find my First Soul Ring first. Today was a waste of time, but everyone's safe and sound, so it's fine as long as none of us got caught up in it. What about you? Found a way forward yet?"

Xu Sheng glanced toward the inner hall. Shen Zhaolin was still talking to the city guards, and Du Wenhe had a register spread out in front of him. Neither would be free anytime soon.

"I have a bit of a lead. I should be able to go in a few days."

"That's good. Once we both have rings, want to find a place to practice? I'd also like to see what someone else's Martial Soul is like."

"Sure! I'll let my hand heal first, then go hunt for a ring. When I get back, we'll find somewhere spacious."

Yu Cheng sent a clenched-fist emoji.

"Don't hold back. My Black-Armored Rhinoceros can take a beating."

Xu Sheng was delighted. That was exactly what he had been waiting to hear. He'd keep Yu Cheng in mind, and once he had his First Soul Skill, he'd have someone sturdy to test it on!

Someone else sent him a private message asking whether he had actually made it to the bridge.

"I heard something had gone wrong halfway there, so I turned back," Xu Sheng replied.

The other person was still shaken too, saying it was fortunate he hadn't gone close. He then hurried off to find his other companions. No one at the bridge had seen Xu Sheng send messages in the group chat, and the people in South Gully only recognized a pair of white wings. For the moment, they hadn't thought of him either.

Even so, Xu Sheng didn't dare relax just yet. The two who had escaped that morning had seen his face and white wings. If they met again, they would still recognize him.

Fortunately, they didn't know his name, much less that tonight's ambush had anything to do with him.

"Why are you still sitting here?"

Du Wenhe came out of the inner hall and placed two Gold Soul Coins in his hand.

"Your reward for providing the lead tonight. Keep it safe. Also, your name has been added to the reserve field personnel register. Train with everyone tomorrow morning."

Xu Sheng had just hefted the coins when he heard the second part. He immediately leaned over to look at the register.

The name Xu Sheng was written clearly on the white paper.

When his fingertip touched his name, a notification suddenly popped up before his eyes.

[Officially joined Spirit Hall.]

[First in the current batch of Soto otherworlders to complete this. Received a Golden Recruitment Token.]

With a flash of golden light, a token landed in his private storage.

Xu Sheng's breath caught, and he nearly laughed out loud on the spot.

A Golden Recruitment Token! Joining Spirit Hall actually came with this reward?

He had been taking a beating by the roadside that morning. By evening, he had food and lodging, a way to cultivate, and now even a recruitment token! If he had known this path would work, why would he have insisted on lining up at Shrek's gates?

He hurriedly closed the interface to keep himself from grinning too foolishly in front of Du Wenhe. There had been no announcement in the channel, and no one around him knew about the reward. He would leave it for now and take a good look once he was back in his room.

"Deacon Du, when I leave the city on assignments, can I use a different name?"

Du Wenhe recalled the people who had tried to rob the cart and understood somewhat.

"Field personnel can use code names, but they must be clearly recorded in the register so we can find them if something happens. Have you decided what to call yourself?"

"White Wings. Would that be all right?"

"Sure. Anyone who hears it will know it's you."

Du Wenhe added the code name and handed him his registered field personnel badge. A set of identity details immediately appeared before Xu Sheng's eyes, bearing the name White Wings. But when he opened the player channel again, it still displayed Xu Sheng.

He looked back and forth between them, delighted.

The hall recognized the field badge, while players recognized the channel name. As long as he didn't go around shouting about it, he could at least spare himself some trouble.

Du Wenhe took him to collect a set of field clothes, then found an ordinary half mask and handed it to him with a reminder: "Covering your brows and eyes helps a little, but your Martial Soul is too conspicuous. Don't think no one will recognize you just because you're wearing a mask."

"Understood. Even if it means I'm recognized a few fewer times, that's good enough."

Xu Sheng put the items away and thanked him again before returning to the guest quarters.

The little room finally fell quiet. He first set his first settlement point beside the bed. A prompt told him that normal travel between the two worlds required him to enter and exit through here. He had now used one of the three available locations.

But how could he be in the mood to go back now?

Xu Sheng shut the door, took out the Golden Recruitment Token, and cradled it in his hands, turning it over and over. Someone in the next room was washing their face and talking, and tree shadows swayed gently outside the window, but his mind was full of those four Soul Rings.

He had a Martial Soul and a way forward. If he could get a companion to cultivate and carry out assignments with, this start would truly be complete.

With that thought, he hesitated no longer and used the token.

A golden light spread through the room. Xu Sheng hurriedly stepped back, but his eyes remained fixed on the center of the light.

A young man carrying an iron sword in his arms stepped out of the light.