Probing and Cooperation

Clang!

Almost the instant Zhou Zheng nodded, a pitch-black longsword had already left its sheath. Empowered by the Mystery of Wind and Thunder, it moved far faster than an ordinary Transcendental, arriving before Herk in the blink of an eye.

Herk had not expected Zhou Zheng to strike the moment he said he would. Faced with such extreme speed, his first reaction was to dodge.

But the instant Herk moved, everything around him slowed down. His movements immediately became sluggish.

Whoosh!

The longsword suddenly halted three inches before Herk's plump chest. At that moment, waves of black mist burst from within him. More than half of his fat-man disguise had vanished, revealing most of his Demon appearance—curved horns and sharp fangs.

However, Zhou Zheng stopped his attack, and Herk did not continue transforming. He quickly reverted to his plump appearance.

"No wonder you were so confident. Truly..."

Herk gave Zhou Zheng a deep look. He no longer had any objections to this plan.

"I just want to earn more Time-Space Points," Zhou Zheng said calmly as he sheathed his sword behind his back.

"If it really works, you'll make a killing!" Herk said. "But before that, we need to find them first!"

"You won't be returning empty-handed either." Zhou Zheng said this, then nodded.

Indeed, finding Herk did not mean the matter was settled.

If the three Transcendentals from the other team simply hid themselves away, there would be no point even considering it. Finding three hidden Transcendentals within seven days would be like looking for a needle in the sea.

But Zhou Zheng was betting that the other team had not yet completed its mission concerning the Wang Family of Black Wind City.

As long as those three continued carrying out their mission outside, they would have a chance to find them!

If he won the bet, he would make a fortune. Even if he lost, he would merely waste these final seven days.

"How do you intend to find them?" Herk asked.

"Either through the newly advanced Transcendental Vikke, or through the surviving members of the Wang Family," Zhou Zheng replied without hesitation.

When Zhou Zheng mentioned "Wilco," a strange glint flashed through Herk's eyes. It was faint, however, and he immediately concealed it.

"Going through Wilco probably isn't a good idea. Wilco is just as difficult to find as the Transcendentals from the other team. Besides, it's hard to say whether he's even still in contact with that other team," Herk said. "It would be more reliable to search for the Wang Family members. As long as the three Transcendentals from the other team are still carrying out their mission, there's a strong chance we'll run into them!"

"You have a point." Zhou Zheng smiled and offered no rebuttal.

Because that was what he had been thinking all along.

Compared to finding members of the other team through Wilco, looking for the Wang Family was naturally far more reliable.

The reason Zhou Zheng had mentioned Wilco was merely to test Herk. This fellow's current location was rather suspicious. It was too close to Black Wind City, only around three thousand li away.

If Herk had merely chosen to hide, why stay so close to Black Wind City?

The safest place was the most dangerous place?

That was indeed possible!

But there was another possibility: the Transcendental Wilco.

Wilco and the Wang Family were the two opposing sides of this mission. The Wang Family was the party they were protecting, while Wilco was the enemy.

Then killing Wilco would surely bring additional rewards, right?

Of course, Herk had previously feared the local powerhouses of this Material World and had not dared to act against Wilco. But what if he acted only shortly before the mission ended?

By then, he could simply return to the Temporal Temple. Who could do anything to him?

Of course, all of this was merely Zhou Zheng's own speculation.

But after that little test just now, he was at least fifty percent certain of it.

However, Zhou Zheng still had to cooperate with Herk for now, so he naturally would not expose such a matter. Everything could wait until later!

Herk had yet to realize that Zhou Zheng had led him around by the nose. Seeing Zhou Zheng nod, he said, "Then the next question is how we find the remaining Wang Family members."

"If I help you find the Transcendentals from the other team and you kill them, my contribution should count too, right?" Feng Zhuhong, who had been coldly watching the two cooperate, suddenly asked.

"Oh?"

Herk smiled strangely, then nodded. "Naturally. The Temporal Temple knows everything that has happened in the Past. It will know your contribution as well and grant you the corresponding reward!"

"I hope you're not lying to me!"

Feng Zhuhong said, "Give me one ton of Wang Chongshan's blood. I can create a map showing the distribution of Wang Family bloodlines within a hundred thousand li. It will take three days!"

"One ton? No problem!"

Herk nodded with great ease.

It was Wang Chongshan's blood being drained, so of course he was relaxed. Besides, in practical terms, Wang Chongshan was a Pseudo-Transcendent. His body had already undergone Transcendental transformation, so drawing a ton of blood from him would not be a problem.

"..."

Zhou Zheng said nothing, but he was somewhat surprised.

He had originally planned to seek help from some renowned Mages in this Material World. He had not expected Feng Zhuhong to possess such a spell.

Ordinary Mages would not study such an obscure spell, would they?

Feng Zhuhong looked young. Could she already be nearly a hundred years old?

The path of a Mage required one to settle down and study everything. In Zhou Zheng's impression, Mages who mastered obscure spells were generally quite old.

Young Mages could not even finish studying mainstream spells. How would they have the time to research obscure ones?

Of course, there were exceptions to everything. Perhaps Feng Zhuhong was exceptionally talented and learned quickly, allowing her to master these spells at such a young age.

Wang Chongshan had now entrusted his entire life and fortune to Herk. Thus, when Herk demanded a ton of his blood, Wang Chongshan was extremely unwilling, but in the end, he could only obediently let them drain it.

After obtaining Wang Chongshan's blood, Feng Zhuhong immediately took it and hid herself away, beginning the refinement of the Wang Family bloodline distribution map she had mentioned.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhou Zheng carefully began studying the Time Deceleration Profound Mystery he had mastered.

Ever since comprehending this Mystery of Time, he had been constantly caught up in one event after another. Now that he finally had some free time, he naturally needed to study it properly.

PS: A word about this book.

First, this book has finally been signed. I hope those of you who have made it this far can offer some support—recommendation votes, monthly votes, investments, anything is fine.

After all, a new book's performance is very important.

Second is the issue of the title. Qidian apparently does not have the fanfiction rights for Snow Eagle Lord, so the synopsis and title cannot contain related content. I was forced to change the title and synopsis once before in order to sign the contract.

But this title and synopsis really are practically guaranteed to flop. Barring any surprises, I'll change them again later. One book with three titles—this is my first time experiencing something like this, but there's no helping it. I have to change it. Just a heads-up, so no one will be surprised later.

Of course, if you have any good title ideas, you can tell me in the comments. If they're suitable, I'll consider them.