Niu Dali was somewhat surprised, and even more puzzled. He asked,
"So, people from the Pudu Cult came to White Bottle Mountain?
But that makes no sense. Though Yuan Bin had a poor temperament and was dull and uninteresting, he rarely provoked trouble. He devoted himself wholly to tending the flowers, grasses, insects, and birds in his valley, living almost completely cut off from the world. Why would the Pudu Cult come here, and with such ill intent?"
Meng Zhao was likewise perplexed, unsure whether the Pudu Cult had come with hostile intentions or whether Yuan Bin had thrown in his lot with them.
He had too little information to form a complete chain of clues, and could not deduce what connection Yuan Bin had with the Pudu Cult. He could only say,
"Never mind what the Pudu Cult came here for. Our top priority is to get up the mountain and find Yuan Bin as soon as possible.
If he is in trouble, we can lend him a hand and save him, depending on the circumstances.
If all is peaceful and nothing is amiss, then we should quickly find out the origin of the Human-Form Worm in my possession."
Niu Dali was worried out of friendship with Yuan Bin. Meng Zhao was different. He neither knew Yuan Bin nor had any friendship with him. His fundamental purpose in coming here was to determine exactly what kind of Human-Form Worm he held, so naturally he would prioritize his own affairs.
For the sake of the Human-Form Worm, he had not hesitated to offend a demonic prodigy like the Heaven Swallowing Dao Child. Though he had killed Wei Qi to conceal the matter somewhat, there was no telling when the truth might come to light. Naturally, he had to digest the