"You're blackmailing me," Gui Jianchou stood up, roaring with anger.
I picked at my ear, flicked a non-existent piece of earwax with my finger, and said, "We're not related, so why should I tell you the news for free? Do you expect people to sell you things without payment? If you ask others for information, won't you give them a reward? Are you out of your mind?"
"You..." Gui Jianchou's face turned red with anger, his handsome face contorted, his fists clenched so tight they creaked, ready to beat me up at any moment.
Zhang Dabiao let out a strange chuckle, blocking between me and Gui Jianchou. As he passed me, he patted my back, praising me for a job well done.
Wang Defa was completely stunned, his body trembling slightly. He opened his mouth and mumbled, "Didn't you say you were saving someone? Why are you extorting them now?" I pretended not to hear him.
It was because Gui Jianchou had given me a very bad first impression. So, it's better not to be too arrogant in life.
After about five minutes, Gui Jianchou finally spoke again, "I can give you the money. But you have to go up the mountain yourself and lead us to find Shui Dao Ren and Elder Master Fang."
"Naturally, if I don't give you a map, you won't find them..." After giving him a disdainful look, I asked how much money.
"You'll definitely get your share. Give me your card number." After a series of operations, he said he would give me half the money first, and the other half after we found the people.
I nodded in agreement. I didn't have my phone with me; it was charging in the car. Although I watched Gui Jianchou operate, I didn't know how much he had transferred. After the transfer, Gui Jianchou still had a grim expression and asked me to briefly explain the route into the mountain.
When I entered the room, I saw the map hanging on the wall. Since I had taken their money, I should provide them with the deserved return. I picked up a pen from the table and asked if I could draw on it.
After getting Gui Jianchou's approval, I quickly drew on it based on my memory of the previous map.
Ten minutes later, I moved aside and called Gui Jianchou over. He looked at the red circle I had drawn on the map and asked what was going on.
"The night before last, Qingfeng Mountain experienced a sudden mountain flood, and a landslide destroyed that area, so we have to go around it." I said, pointing to the route next to the red circle.
"This way will waste several days. Is there no other way?" Gui Jianchou asked with a worried expression.
"You haven't been here before. This is the only way to enter Chenghuang City. I checked it carefully last time. Only here can you pass with ropes. The terrain elsewhere is relatively complex. Only this place is the easiest to pass."
I wasn't lying about this. When I was scouting, I had walked almost every possible path, all to enter the valley without alerting the mountain spirits. I didn't expect it to be useful last time, but it turned out to be useful this time.
Gui Jianchou looked at the map and fell silent. He was reluctant to come on this mission in the first place because he knew what kind of place Qingfeng Mountain was, but he had to come because of orders from above.
"I understand. I'll keep the map for now. I'll arrange for people to scout the path tonight." As soon as he finished speaking, Gui Jianchou prepared to see me out.
Hearing that Gui Jianchou was going to send people into the mountain, Wang Defa quickly said, "Don't send anyone in at night, or else..."
Before he could finish, Gui Jianchou cut him off, "A useless person who can't even protect his own team, how dare you boss me around? If you were my subordinate, I would have shot you long ago."
Wang Defa's face turned red from Gui Jianchou's retort. He had intended to kindly warn him about the dangers of Qingfeng Mountain, but the other party didn't appreciate it. Angrily, he stomped his foot and left the makeshift hut.
Zhang Dabiao gave Gui Jianchou a look of utter stupidity before leaving as well. I helplessly shook my head, wondering if I should take this opportunity to extort them again.
Their departure made Gui Jianchou realize that he might have done something foolish. However, due to his proud nature, even though he knew he had done something foolish, he wouldn't pursue it or apologize. He could only look at me expectantly, open his mouth, and then close it again.
Seeing his hesitant look, I couldn't bear it and briefly told him about the dangers of Qingfeng Mountain at night, not only the sudden attacks of mountain spirits but also some vengeful spirits. Finally, I advised him not to send anyone up the mountain at night, or the consequences would be his own.
Gui Jianchou nodded in agreement, but his expression suggested he didn't take it too seriously. Whether he believed it or not, his life or death had nothing to do with me. It was more important to hurry back to the car and check how much money had been deposited.
As I left the camp, I saw Zhang Dabiao arguing with someone, with Wang Defa trying to mediate. Before I could get close, I heard Zhang Dabiao angrily shout, "I don't care if you stole anything from our car. If you dare to come near our vehicle again, I'll chop you to death with my knife."
"Aren't you being too overbearing? I was just going to take a look. I felt there was a Yin energy there. We were doing it for your own good, thinking there was an evil spirit there... Why don't you know what's good for you?" The person arguing with Zhang Dabiao was a bearded man, nearly two meters tall, a head taller than Zhang Dabiao. If someone hadn't held him back, he would have gone forward to teach Zhang Dabiao a lesson.
"Good intentions? Who believes you..."
"Kid, don't be so arrogant. If it weren't for our captain's orders, I would have beaten your balls out." The bearded man shrugged, throwing off the people holding him. His fists collided with a metallic clang. Upon closer inspection, it turned out he was wearing iron knuckle dusters.
Provoked by the bearded man, Zhang Dabiao also got angry. With a slight exertion of his arm, he threw Wang Defa towards me. The force of the blow was just right, and Wang Defa stumbled back several steps before stabilizing himself in front of me.
Just as I was about to step forward to stop them, I reached out and patted his shoulder. He turned to look at me and quickly said, "You try to persuade Old Zhang. If they really start fighting, we'll be at a disadvantage. Besides, it's not good if anyone gets hurt..."
"Are you afraid Brother Zhang can't beat him?"
"That's not what I meant..."
"Then that's that. Some things can be compromised, but some things absolutely cannot." I didn't explain why outsiders weren't allowed near the vehicle. Knowing they were approaching Yue'er's vehicle, I had decided to teach them a lesson. This was not only for her safety but also for my own future.
If Yue'er's identity were leaked, I would never have peace. To prevent this from happening, it was better to fight.
While we were talking, Zhang Dabiao had already started fighting with the bearded man. Although Zhang Dabiao was tall, his speed was extremely fast. After dodging the bearded man's punch, he threw a punch at his stomach.
I thought this punch would completely take care of the bearded man, but to my surprise, the one who let out a muffled groan of pain was Zhang Dabiao.
"You cheated..."