Have I Met You Before

Qin Yang's face was ashen as he stood at the edge of the swamp, watching the bubbling puddles, a chill running down his spine.

Whatever was in there, a single hit would surely mean death or serious injury.

It was too fast, the poison too potent. Even the Blood Lama in his hands might not be able to block it, or rather, the Blood Lama in his hands couldn't unleash its full, miraculous effect.

Repeated probes only revealed a fleeting black shadow, confirming that the strange entity emerged from the puddles. It had a large upper body, large claws, a body, and four limbs. It moved on the ground, its claws carrying fierce corrosive toxins.

But as soon as it left the swamp, the strange entity would vanish without a trace, leaving no aura behind.

After several attempts, Qin Yang had a rough idea of how to get through.

Just then, spiritual power fluctuations came from behind. Looking back, he saw spiritual light gathering in the distance, noisy and chaotic, like a dense array of lights echoing each other, ripples rising and intertwining.

Many people were coming, and none of them were weak. At least, there were many powerful magical artifacts with strong spiritual power fluctuations.

Qin Yang's heart stirred. He activated the Conceal Void Art, concealing his own spiritual power fluctuations, and hid in the sparse forest behind, looking ahead. A group of Foundation Establishment cultivators arrived together, including disciples from the Boundless Dao Academy and employees from the Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce.

Most obvious was Zhang Zhengyi, mixed in with the Boundless Dao Academy group.

"This grandson really didn't die, a scourge lives for a thousand years..." Qin Yang sighed, curious about how Zhang Zhengyi had managed it. He had checked him thoroughly several times, and he was indeed completely dead, even showing signs of rigor mortis.

But now, he couldn't see any injuries, as good as new.

Qin Yang's heart stirred, and he stopped concealing himself, walking over proactively.

As soon as he appeared in their sight, Zhang Zhengyi shouted, "Senior Brother Qin, are you okay? I thought you were dead!"

"I'm fine." Qin Yang walked over, subtly glancing at Zhang Zhengyi. "Junior Brother Zhang, what's going on? Where is this?"

"I don't know. This seems to be some kind of Secret Realm. Oh, right, Senior Brother Qin, didn't you say you always wanted to meet Senior Brother Bai Yutang? This is him." Zhang Zhengyi kept a straight face, introducing Bai Yutang to Qin Yang.

"Oh, so this is Senior Brother Bai Yutang. I thought he looked familiar last time. I only saw him from afar once, not very clearly. Later, I heard that Senior Brother Bai's Swordplay had improved, and he went into seclusion. I didn't expect to see him here..." Qin Yang said with a happy expression, trying to get close...

"Oh, Junior Brother Qin, you're too kind..." Bai Yutang responded vaguely, not remembering Qin Yang at all...

Zhang Zhengyi stood aside, admiring him. As expected of Senior Brother Qin, he didn't know how he had dealt with that Demon Tiger, not only without any injuries, but now he was making up stories that sounded so real, he almost believed them...

"Humph!"

Steward Qiu on the other side stared at Qin Yang with a dark face, his eyes flashing fiercely. "So you're Zhang Zhengyi's Senior Brother Qin Youde. If it weren't for you provoking Dole Ghost King's daughter, why would my Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce have gone to so much trouble, spending three high-grade spiritual artifacts to get Dole Ghost King to let us pass?"

"Who is this?" Qin Yang asked, puzzled.

"This is Steward Qiu from the Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce. He tried a little trick before, but Senior Brother Qin, you were captured, so it didn't succeed."

"Oh, so it's about that. At this point, does Steward Qiu still believe that's true?" Qin Yang chuckled, looking like he wanted to laugh but didn't dare to.

Bai Yutang was confused, so Zhang Zhengyi explained it briefly, adding, "We're just trying to share the burden for the sect. Anyway, we heard they were going to attack, so we wanted to paralyze the Ghost King first, and then cause some trouble inside..."

"Junior Brother Zhang, you have a good heart. Although it didn't succeed, your intentions were good." Bai Yutang patted Zhang Zhengyi's shoulder with a look of satisfaction...

Steward Qiu's face turned black with anger. From the Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce's perspective, he wanted to skin Zhang Zhengyi and Qin Yang alive, but from the Boundless Dao Academy's perspective, these two were model disciples, good disciples who dared to put the sect first.

Their strength might not be great, but their heart was commendable. After all, everyone knew what the outer sect was like.

"Have I seen you before?" Steward Qiu stared at Qin Yang, his brow furrowed, his eyes flashing, even with a hint of killing intent. He felt that Qin Yang looked a lot like a Corpse Collector he had seen before, but unfortunately, that young man had been mysteriously blown up.

Qin Yang's heart skipped a beat. He thought he had already changed his appearance with the Shape Shifting Art, and hadn't used his original face for a while. Could this grandson still recognize him? "I've been in Green Forest City recently. It's normal for Steward Qiu to have seen me." Qin Yang said calmly, vaguely admitting it.

Steward Qiu didn't speak further, inwardly wondering if he was overthinking things. There were quite a few outer disciples of the Boundless Dao Academy in Green Forest City. It would be normal to have seen them before. Besides, one was a Qi Nurturing ninth layer Boundless Dao Academy disciple, and the other was a hopelessly weak Corpse Collector. They might look alike, but the difference was worlds apart...

This matter was brushed aside, but the thought of being played by these two junior brothers stoked the fire in his heart. His eyelids drooped slightly, a fierce glint in his eyes. Even if these two weren't the ones he was looking for, they were bound to be closely related. The people from the Boundless Dao Academy probably had their own agenda already.

It was normal to think that way. Who wouldn't want to monopolize everything here? This time, they were forced to cooperate, but once they found something good, that might change.

The little interlude passed, and the two groups continued forward, reaching the desolate swamp.

Anyone with eyes could see that this swamp was not simple. The group didn't venture in rashly, but instead spread out to investigate the surrounding area.

Zhang Zhengyi sidled over, winking at Qin Yang.

"Senior Brother Qin, have you been here before? What's the situation?"

"There's something strange inside. I don't know how strong it is, but one hit is enough to kill you again."

"Huh? Senior Brother Qin, tell me more."

"Go get Bai Yutang."

Zhang Zhengyi pulled a face, grunted a couple of times, and obediently brought Bai Yutang over.

"Junior Brother Qin, what's the matter?"

"I went around the swamp before, but I instantly returned here. There's something strange in the swamp. I don't know what it is, but its claws are highly poisonous and extremely corrosive. The miasma inside is also poisonous. When you go in, restrain your spiritual power fluctuations and just focus on rushing forward." Qin Yang directly told Bai Yutang a portion of what he had discovered.

He had used Bai Yutang before. If he hadn't stopped that crazy woman Imperial Concubine De, he would most likely have fallen into her hands, taken back to be ravaged night after night until he was drained dry...

He had to repay the favor, even if Bai Yutang himself was still confused...

"Ah?" Bai Yutang was really a bit dazed...

"Alright, there's no time. The people from the Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce are back. Senior Brother Bai, remember, that old bastard Steward Qiu is no good. Be careful of him."