Unexpected Situation

This sudden turn of events left both of them with expressions of uncertainty and alarm.

The rising of a signal arrow meant that a Guardian had discovered an uninvited guest.

But were they not the very uninvited guests of this night?

Shen Mu could not help but say, "Brother Wei, it seems our operation for tonight must come to a temporary halt."

Wei Bo nodded, his face showing regret as he replied, "It seems we have no other choice."

According to the plan made last night, if any Guardian ignited a signal arrow to sound the alarm, they were to immediately abort the operation and retreat back to Zhou Xuan's bamboo shed.

Such an emergency had already been accounted for in their planning, yet it remained an unavoidable circumstance.

Once the signal arrow ascended, those Guardians who had not fallen into a deep sleep would be startled awake and would inevitably rush to provide reinforcements, making any further attempts to capture the Origin Cicadas unrealistic.

"Let's go, head back. Once everyone has returned, we can ask them exactly what happened."

After Wei Bo finished speaking, the two of them hurried together toward Zhou Xuan's bamboo shed.

When they arrived outside the shed, the team consisting of Yuan Wenxuan and Sun Jing had already arrived.

"What happened?"

Seeing Shen Mu and Wei Bo approach, Yuan Wenxuan could not help but ask.

"We don't know. We were quite far away as well; we will only know once everyone else returns."

Wei Bo shook his head.

Shen Mu felt a sense of relief; the range at which the signal arrow was launched was still quite far, allowing him to retreat safely.

If it had been the exact area he and Wei Bo were searching that the Guardian had discovered, escaping would likely not have been so easy.

Now, he could only pray that the two fellows whose tracks were discovered by the Guardian would also be able to escape unscathed.

However, Shen Mu was not worried about them being captured alive by the Guardian.

The reason they were paired up in teams of two was precisely to prevent such unexpected situations.

There was only one Guardian, while those participating in this operation were in teams of two.

Even if the Guardian discovered them, he would likely be scared half to death himself and would not dare to act rashly, choosing instead to fire the signal arrow for help, which gave the exposed individuals a chance to slip away.

About half an hour passed, and teams returned one after another, all discussing what had happened, until Hong Jingcheng returned with a grim expression, accompanied by Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan.

"Brother Hong, what is the situation?"

Wei Bo could not help but ask.

The eyes of the others also turned in unison toward Hong Jingcheng.

Facing everyone's gaze, Hong Jingcheng gave a bitter smile: "It seems our luck tonight was poor, and I am to blame for not carefully checking whether there was a Guardian inside the bamboo shed..."

Through Hong Jingcheng's explanation, the expressions of the group turned somewhat strange.

It turned out that after Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan finished searching one Origin Mulberry Field, they had gone to rendezvous with Hong Jingcheng to head to the next one.

After Hong Jingcheng had released the stupefying smoke into the bamboo shed, Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan had commenced their search again.

Unexpectedly, a surprising scene unfolded.

While searching for Origin Cicadas in the Origin Mulberry Field, Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan had accidentally bumped into the Guardian.

And that Guardian happened to be carrying a cloth bag, busy stealing Origin Mulberry Fruit...

Because both men had their faces covered with black scarves, the other party mistook them for thieves coming to steal the Origin Mulberry Fruit and immediately fired the signal arrow.

Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan had no choice but to abort the operation and flee immediately...

Hearing everything Hong Jingcheng said, the group's expressions were somewhat odd, and Ji Shixian and Guo Jinchuan also wore bitter smiles.

It was a situation no one had ever anticipated.

Hong Jingcheng looked around the circle and said, "Tonight's operation must end here."

"I, Hong Jingcheng, was negligent for this change of events during the operation."

"As for the Origin Cicadas captured by everyone tonight, I will not take my cut; you all can split it equally. How about that?"

Wei Bo could not help but urge, "Brother Hong, no one could have foreseen this. You put in the effort too; how can you not take your share? Isn't that right, everyone?"

"That's right, Brother Hong. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't even know that we could make money by catching Origin Cicadas. This was completely an accident..."

"Brother Hong, your share is yours by right. This was planned beforehand; how can we change it just like that?"

The others chimed in one after another.

Hong Jingcheng shook his head and said with an apologetic smile, "Thank you all for your kindness, but one must admit their mistakes. If I hadn't been careless, this situation wouldn't have occurred."

"There is no need to try and persuade me further."

Hearing this, the group fell into silence.

However, Shen Mu understood clearly that the reason Hong Jingcheng did not want to participate in the split was that he realized everyone had not captured many Origin Cicadas.

If he were to take his fifty percent cut, the remainder for each person would likely not even amount to ten taels of silver.

As a leader, one must learn to concede profit to win over the hearts of the people.

Everyone said they had no complaints, but who knew what they were really thinking?

Because of your negligence, such an incident occurred, yet you still want to take fifty percent of the profits; it is inevitable that everyone harbors some resentment deep down.

"Everyone, count the number of Origin Cicada you have captured, then put them all into one cloth bag."

Hong Jingcheng suggested.

Immediately, everyone took the cloth bags from their waists, removed the Origin Cicada inside, and after counting them, placed them into a single bag.

After the count, the nine teams consisting of seventeen people, plus the Origin Cicada captured last night, totaled three hundred and forty-seven.

Since Hong Jingcheng is not taking a share, everyone present can receive about twenty taels of silver.

"Since the number of Origin Cicada has been counted, everyone should go back and rest tonight. Tomorrow, after I sell these Origin Cicada, I will distribute the corresponding silver to everyone."

Hong Jingcheng put away the cloth bag, looked around, and said.

Shen Mu's expression was a bit strange; he hadn't expected that he would be able to get a sum of silver for nothing.

Eight Origin Cicada tonight and five last night—he had only captured thirteen in total, yet he would end up receiving twenty taels of silver.

It was equivalent to receiving an extra month's salary for free.

For him, this was an unexpected joy.

Truly, getting something for nothing makes one happy.

Shen Mu sighed in his heart.

"Brother Hong, when shall we schedule the next Origin Cicada hunt?"

Just then, Wei Bo couldn't help but ask.

Everyone's eyes also turned toward Hong Jingcheng; clearly, they were not satisfied with tonight's harvest.

To improve their blood energy, they must consume beast meat, and their monthly salary was not enough to maintain their daily needs.

And this opportunity to make money by capturing Origin Cicada only came once a year—how could they let it slip away?

Hong Jingcheng sighed lightly: "Given the current situation, we have to wait for this storm to pass. The next operation will be at least half a month away."

Half a month later?

Many people present frowned.

Guo Jinchuan couldn't help but say: "Brother Hong, in another half month, the Origin Mulberry Fruit will be ripe. If we act then, we might run into outsiders sneaking into Emerald Cloud Valley to steal the Origin Mulberry Fruit..."

"That's right."

Zhou Xuan chimed in: "When we capture the Origin Cicada, we are bound to put the guards into a deep sleep. If we run into those people in the Origin Mulberry Field, a conflict is inevitable, and the danger to us will increase significantly."

After hearing what the two said, Hong Jingcheng was also taken aback.

Indeed, if they waited half a month to take action, there would undoubtedly be more variables.

Hong Jingcheng was also extremely unwilling, as his own mistake tonight had caused such a major incident and forced them to stop.

After all, he could only make a big profit through the Origin Cicada; how much could he earn in a year relying on that meager salary?

If he missed this year, the next time would be a year later.

Hong Jingcheng's heart stirred as he asked: "Then what is everyone's opinion?"

Wei Bo couldn't help but say: "In my opinion, let's set the next operation for three days from now."

Everyone nodded one after another, all agreeing with Wei Bo's proposal.

"Alright, three days it is."

Hong Jingcheng nodded, looked around, and made the final decision: "Then we will meet here at dawn three days from now."

Having confirmed the time and place for the operation, the group walked out of Zhou Xuan's bamboo shed one after another, heading toward the Origin Mulberry Fields they were each guarding.