"Brother Ding, Brother Lin, I'll leave the Forge-Fire Cave to you two."
Thousand-Household Commander Lu looked at Lin Hao and Ding Tianyou as he gave them his instructions.
The temperature inside the Forge-Fire Cave was much higher. Going inside was already a thankless task compared with staying outside.
Thousand-Household Commander Lu had initially planned to go in himself, but Ding Tianyou had volunteered.
Afterward, Lin Hao had also offered to enter, saying he wanted to see whether he would have a chance to behold a grandmaster's bearing. That was how things had ended up this way.
The two of them brought five more people into the cave: the three Embroidered Uniform Guards following Ding Tianyou, along with Lin Hao's two senior brothers, Qin Yu and Xue Cheng.
"Yes. Take care yourself, Thousand-Household Commander Lu. You haven't been possessed by a shadow fiend yet, so you should stay on your guard."
Ding Tianyou glanced at Lin Hao. Deep down, he did not particularly want this fellow tagging along, but Lin Hao's claim that he wanted to behold a grandmaster's bearing made it difficult to refuse him outright.
All he could do now was offer a gentle reminder, hoping Thousand-Household Commander Lu would worry about his own shadow fiend and keep Lin Hao behind.
"Huh? Has your shadow fiend been dealt with too, Thousand-Household Commander Ding? And those of our fellow Embroidered Uniform Guards?"
Lin Hao seemed rather surprised and looked at the other three Embroidered Uniform Guards in the group.
They had barely spoken along the way, but they had followed Ding Tianyou the whole time. Lin Hao vaguely suspected they might be Ding Tianyou's companions, people from Prison as well.
"Not quite."
Ding Tianyou paused, then nodded. "It's just as well that you're coming with me, Brother Lin. If a