38: Chapter 38 The Stalker, The Battle Begins

"My Lord is benevolent and cannot bear the suffering of this world, so He manifests an Incarnation to save the world."

"All living beings are firewood to nourish my Lord, and my Lord bestows graces to strengthen our sect."

"Believe in my Lord to receive enlightenment; become a believer of our sect to be saved."

"Give thanks to my Lord."

The old man put away the divine liquid and once again made a strange gesture. Zhang Tianrui did the same, his eyes filled with reverence as he muttered, "Give thanks to my Lord."

This eerie scene appeared even more bizarre within the dim secret chamber.

"Deacon, the mission from the sect..."

Zhang Tianrui was still thinking about the mission that would allow him to truly become a follower, while the old man narrowed his eyes and looked at Lu Zheng, who was standing motionless behind Zhang Tianrui.

"You have been tracked, yet you are still unaware."

"What!"

Upon hearing the Deacon's words, Zhang Tianrui was shocked, his eyes widening as he instinctively replied.

"That's impossible, Deacon. I have been very careful; I even took a detour on the way back."

At this moment, Lu Zheng was also startled by the old man's words. Could he have been discovered? However, he calmed himself down and did not immediately break the mental imprisonment.

"Do not blame yourself. The person tracking you is stronger than you, so it is normal that you did not notice."

"If she hadn't slipped up just now, I would have almost missed it too."

"I am just curious, why would an Evolver take notice of you?"

The old man spoke slowly, and without waiting for Zhang Tianrui to answer, he looked behind Lu Zheng, toward the dim secret passage.

"Since you have come, do not hide. Come out and show yourself."

"An Evolver from Jianghai City."

As the old man spoke, a powerful Aura erupted. He transformed from a harmless-looking old man into a formidable warrior. Under the pressure of this Aura, Zhang Tianrui even felt a tremble of fear.

In that instant, movement came from the dim secret passage—a sharp cracking sound and the sound of something cutting through the air as it rapidly retreated toward the exit of the secret chamber.

"Running away quite fast."

"Unfortunately, you have encountered me!"

The old man bellowed, his voice laced with a hint of contempt. His clothes burst apart, and his entire body swelled in size, rippling with muscle. An evil Aura emanated from him as he pursued at an even faster speed.

Teacher Li Shuang's expression was grave. She had already unleashed her full strength, but the terrifying figure behind her was getting closer and closer.

Her heart sank; it seemed she would meet her end here this time.

She had not expected this. She thought it was just a simple protection mission, yet she had encountered these eerie cultists and overheard their conspiracy.

After hearing their conversation, she was truly terrified, which caused her to slip up and get discovered.

She was truly out of luck.

"Lu Zheng, oh Lu Zheng, your luck is terrible to run into this kind of mess."

"It is my own fault for meddling; I shouldn't have come. Now, both of us are done for."

"Sigh, am I lucky or unlucky!"

Teacher Li Shuang thought helplessly. She had already agreed with Lu Zheng's sister, Lu Wen, to be responsible for Lu Zheng's safety at school. Today, she was not supposed to be involved.

While shopping, she unexpectedly encountered a controlled Lu Zheng and immediately sensed something was wrong.

She also noticed the middle-aged man beside him.

She immediately sent a message to his sister, Lu Wen. There were too many people at the time, and she couldn't intervene. Furthermore, she didn't know how Lu Zheng had been controlled and was afraid that a sudden attack might cause an accident for Lu Zheng, so she could only follow them here.

She thought it was just that middle-aged man, but she hadn't expected such a terrifying old man to be there.

Looking at the secret passage exit less than two meters away, this short distance felt like a chasm. With a hardened heart, she spoke to the terrifying figure behind her.

"I am not an official; I didn't hear anything. Let me go, and I will act as if I know nothing."

"Hmph, I would be wary of officials, but you dare to meddle even when you are not one!"

The old man's voice was getting closer.

"Then what if I am an official?!"

"Then you must be eliminated even more!"

"Damn it!"

Teacher Li Shuang cursed angrily. She knew that no matter what she said, she couldn't escape. She was only trying to stall for time so that Lu Wen could arrive, but the terrifying old man saw through it at a glance.

"Then let's fight!"

Teacher Li Shuang unleashed her full combat power. Three Water Arrows appeared instantly and shot backward. At the same time, three more Water Arrows appeared above the old man and plummeted down fiercely.

However, facing Teacher Li Shuang's attack, the old man Zhou Guangyuan simply threw a punch, shattering all the Water Arrows, and immediately appeared before Teacher Li Shuang.

Looking at the terrifying figure in front of her, Teacher Li Shuang extended her middle finger.

"Bang!"

Teacher Li Shuang, who had lost her combat ability, was thrown into the secret chamber. The terrifying Zhou Guangyuan had returned to his original appearance. Because he wanted to figure out why Zhang Tianrui was being tracked, he did not kill her.

However, Teacher Li Shuang had sustained significant injuries and could only lie on the ground.

Seeing Teacher Li Shuang, Zhang Tianrui's face showed panic. He hurriedly knelt before Zhou Guangyuan; he hadn't even realized he was being tracked, and it was fortunate that no major disaster had been caused.

"Deacon, I really didn't know I was being tracked... Deacon, please give me another chance..."

"Who on earth are you people!"

Teacher Li Shuang spat out the blood in her mouth and asked. At the same time, she looked at Lu Zheng behind Zhang Tianrui. Fortunately, Lu Zheng was still unharmed for now.

Lu Wen, oh Lu Wen, hurry up and come. If you come early enough, perhaps your brother and I might survive.

Honestly, you should find an opportunity to have your brother's fortune told; his luck is truly unparalleled.

At this moment, when Lu Zheng saw the figure, he was shocked. The person tracking them was actually his homeroom teacher, Teacher Li Shuang.

Why was she here?

Because Lu Zheng was controlled, he hadn't used his Perception skill and had absolutely no idea that his homeroom teacher was following them. Seeing her in this state, he felt extremely anxious.

He had underestimated the people of this world too much. Relying on his current combat power, he had been too confident, leading to him being caught off guard. If he had been more cautious, this wouldn't have happened.

After all, the conditions for falling under the spell of that wooden carving were too harsh. Based on his deduction, it required eye contact with the wooden carving, and the person making eye contact could not have their guard up.

This incident served as a lesson for him.

"Almost there."

"Just a little bit more!"

Lu Zheng thought to himself, accelerating the speed of erasure once more.

"You should have heard what we were saying just now. As for who we are, don't you already know!"

Zhou Guangyuan said slowly, while pointing at Zhang Tianrui, who was kneeling on the ground, flustered and at a loss.

"You are not an official, why were you tracking him?"

"I took a fancy to him and thought he was handsome. Is that not allowed?"

Teacher Li Shuang struggled to lift her head and spoke. However, neither Zhang Tianrui nor Zhou Guangyuan believed Teacher Li Shuang's words, which were obviously meant to stall for time.

"You came for him, didn't you!"

Zhou Guangyuan noticed the look Teacher Li Shuang had given Lu Zheng earlier and said immediately.

Upon hearing that she had been seen through, a flash of panic crossed Teacher Li Shuang's eyes.

"How is that possible!"

Teacher Li Shuang denied it, while an unpleasant expression appeared on Zhou Guangyuan's face. He already had some guesses in his mind and said to Zhang Tianrui.

"Is this your so-called caution?"

"You didn't even know you were followed after someone noticed something unusual."

"Fortunately, this person is not an official, so you have not been exposed yet."

"Get up. The sect still needs you. I will give you one more chance. If you complete the mission well, this matter will be dropped."

"Thank you, Deacon! Thank you, Deacon! I will definitely complete the mission properly."

After hearing the Deacon's reprimand, Zhang Tianrui breathed a sigh of relief. He hurriedly stood up, his face showing a trace of relief.

"Deacon, what about the mission?"

In Zhou Guangyuan's eyes, Lu Zheng and Teacher Li Shuang were already dead men, so he made no attempt to conceal anything and said slowly.

"The sect's mission this time is for you to capture one person..."