The man, of course, understood.
Even though he now hated You Siqi to the core, he was still the fish and they were the knife. He knew what he should and shouldn't do.
Taking a few deep breaths, he nodded obediently. He even offered Liu Buli a smile full of fawning, saying, "Immortal, please don't hold this against me. Who wouldn't want to keep some of their own stash? Don't you agree? I found that thing after entering the secret realm, before I encountered that ghost. Fortunately, I hid it, or that ghost would have taken it by now."
As he spoke, Liu Buli responded with a cold laugh.
Looking into the man's eyes, he said, "If you hadn't been so clever and hidden it beforehand, we would have gotten the item directly from that ghost. We wouldn't have to follow you all this way."
At these words, the man's expression stiffened. He had clearly seen the scene of Liu Buli and the others fighting the ghost, and he had also seen them searching the ghost afterward.
So Liu Buli was right.
If he hadn't chosen to hide it from the start, then after Liu Buli and the others defeated the ghost, everything the ghost possessed, including the alchemy furnace, would have become Liu Buli's.
In that sense, it was indeed his fault that he had caused Liu Buli and the others some extra trouble.
Upon reaching this conclusion, the man's face was filled with embarrassment.
Fortunately, Liu Buli didn't dwell on it this time. He simply waved his hand and said, "Just lead the way obediently. If you behave well, perhaps I'll be in a good mood and show you leniency. But if you continue to be so short-sighted and hide things from me..."
"Never, absolutely never again!" the man quickly pledged his loyalty with all his might, saying, "This time, I will tell you everything and hide nothing. Whatever you are interested in, whatever I have, no matter what it is, I will turn it over to you. Believe me!"
He sounded very sincere, and it seemed genuine. So Liu Buli waved his hand, signaling him to stop talking and just lead the way.
In fact, at the very beginning, when he used that magical artifact to lure You Siqi, the man's idea was that if his luck was good enough and he was traveling alone with You Siqi, he could find an opportunity to sneak away when You Siqi wasn't paying attention.
After all, even though he didn't know You Siqi's strength at the time, he was confident in himself if he only had one opponent.
However, things had turned out completely differently than he had imagined. Now that everyone was traveling together, with him caught in the middle, even if he had the desire to escape, he absolutely lacked the ability. Even though he was a hundred times unwilling, he could only obediently continue to lead the way if he wanted to survive safely.
But as if to ensure his anger didn't reach its peak, the culprit behind this situation, the man with almost no cultivation, once again approached him.
Looking at his face with a curious expression, You Siqi tilted his head and asked doubtfully, "By the way, I just remembered something very important. In this secret realm, the changes in direction and the intensity of the magnetic field are problematic. If you search using ordinary methods, you definitely won't find the original location. In that case, are you sure you can still find the exact location of that magical artifact? You're not just going to lead us astray in this secret realm, are you?"
At his words, the expressions of those around him changed.
Especially Liu Buli, who remembered the time he got lost with Lu Wuming. He immediately felt that the current situation was very similar, and this man was clearly trying to stall for time.
A hint of anger appeared on his face, and Liu Buli glared at the man, saying, "If you can't lead us to the magical artifact, I will assume you are lying to me. At that time..."
The man felt a headache from his threat.
Hearing Liu Buli's words, he could only sigh helplessly and explain earnestly, "Immortal, please rest assured about this. I dared to hide it, which means I definitely have a way to find it back. It's my other magical artifact, which I placed nearby. As long as it's there, I can always sense its exact location, so there will be no mistake."
Such tracking magical artifacts were never uncommon. Liu Buli had also given a few to Lu Wuming before, but most of these artifacts couldn't be used in secret realms.
After all, as You Siqi had said, the magnetic field and spiritual energy in the secret realm were problematic. Most ordinary magical artifacts would lose their effectiveness inside, and those that could still be used normally in the secret realm were basically very remarkable items.
It was precisely because he knew this that Liu Buli's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing the man's explanation.
However, before he could say anything, Lu Wuming, who was beside him, spoke first. Putting on a thoughtful expression, he said, "It can detect the presence of the other party anywhere. This is a good thing. It works for objects, and it works for people too, right?"
The man was indeed afraid of Liu Buli because Liu Buli was a smiling tiger. He could chat with you with a smile, but you never knew what his reaction would be the next second.
Unlike him, Lu Wuming was simply a madman.
If he wanted to, he could kill people at any time. He was a madman who was completely out of control.
Precisely because he knew this, the man was even more afraid to provoke Lu Wuming. Hearing his question, even though he was very reluctant to answer, he could only nod and respond obediently, "That's right. This magical artifact is a pair. The way I'm using it now is to carry one with me and place the other on another item. No matter how far apart I am from that item, the magical artifact on me will always remind me where its other half is. If two people each take one half, the effect is the same as with an item. However, instead of unilateral sensing, it becomes mutual sensing. When you two are separated, the person holding the other half will also sense your existence."
Upon hearing this, Lu Wuming's eyes began to shine.
He desperately needed such a magical artifact.
After all, the several secret realms he had entered recently were all like this. It was as if heaven itself was against them, and every time he entered a secret realm, he could feel the chaotic spiritual energy trying to separate him and his master.
This time he had managed to resist, but whether he could succeed next time was uncertain. So, although emotionally he didn't want to be separated from Liu Buli at all, rationally, having such a magical artifact was very important.
Sensing his thoughts, the man was much more observant this time. Without even giving Lu Wuming a chance to speak, he proactively said, "The other half of the magical artifact is currently with the alchemy furnace. Once we get there and retrieve it, I will give them both to you. Consider it my apology for my previous concealment. Will that be acceptable to you Immortals?"