Chapter 238: Twisted Tree

　　Huzi was taken aback, pointing at himself. "Me? But, boss..."

　　"No buts, this is an order!" Lu Fei handed the little black dog to Huzi. "It's not safe for Xiao Hei to go either. Jing Jian and I are enough."

　　Although Huzi knew martial arts, he had no magical powers, so he was the most suitable choice to stay behind.

　　The little black dog, although a spirit hound, was still very young. It could provide warnings, but it was still too dangerous for it to face a powerful evil like a zombie.

　　Leaving it to Husi, he could also help him and Zhao Fengchun watch out for Old Bear Lady.

　　"Woof?"

　　The little black dog struggled in Husi's arms, extremely unwilling.

　　"Listen! Behave well with Brother Husi, and don't let them get eaten by Old Bear Lady! I'll open a can for you when I get back!"

　　Lu Fei patted its little head, his tone leaving no room for argument.

　　The little one's ears drooped, looking at Lu Fei with pleading eyes, but it didn't struggle anymore.

　　"Brother Lu, can just you and Brother Jing handle it?" Zhao Fengchun showed concern, thought for a moment, and said, "How about this, I won't go down the mountain yet. Brother Husi and I will wait here for you. If you encounter any danger, we can come to your aid."

　　"Can Uncle's illness wait that long?" Lu Fei was somewhat delighted.

　　It would be best if Zhao Fengchun could wait for them here. With the mountain keeper leading the way, going down the mountain would be much easier.

　　"The old village doctor said that as long as we find the ginseng within half a month, there's plenty of time. I was prepared to search for it for half a month, but I didn't expect to meet you and get the ginseng root so quickly."

　　Zhao Fengchun smiled.

　　"Brother Lu, you guys can go ahead with peace of mind. Try to find the herbs as soon as possible and come back early."

　　"Okay! Husi, take good care of Brother Zhao!"

　　Lu Fei didn't bother with further formalities, nodded to the two, and then, with Jing Jian, slung their bags over their shoulders and crossed the moss-covered stone tablet.

　　"Boss, be careful!"

　　Husi held the small black dog and watched as their figures were swallowed by the darkness, his face full of worry.

　　"Nothing will happen. With Boss's sharp mind, he'll definitely return safely... Instead of worrying about them, we should think about how to deal with that treacherous Xiong family matriarch."

　　Husi shook his head, retracted his gaze, and cautiously looked around.

　　The mountain breeze blew, causing the shadows of the trees to sway everywhere.

　　Every bush and tree seemed like an enemy, as if something terrifying was lurking everywhere.

　　"Xiao Hei, you'd better be on your toes!"

　　Hu Zi quickly put down the little black dog and took out the pot spoon from his backpack.

　　Not knowing how long they would have to wait, Zhao Fengchun built a small campfire.

　　"Brother Hu Zi, I have a thermos. We can boil some water and keep it. If that old bear really comes, we can splash it with the boiling water; it's more effective than hitting the pot."

　　"That's great."

　　Hu Zi immediately set up the pot to boil water and filled Zhao Fengchun's large thermos.

　　The two of them were on edge, nibbling on their dry rations, and vigilantly keeping an eye on their surroundings, not even daring to blink too much.

　　The little black dog lay next to Hu Zi by the fire, its ears perked up, constantly looking in one direction, suspicion gleaming in its dark eyes.

　　In that direction, far away.

　　A large, bulky figure lurked sinisterly in the pitch-black bushes, its red eyes watching the flickering flames from a distance.

　　Sssss.

　　The faint sound of footsteps echoed in the dark mountain forest.

　　Lu Fei and Jing Jian each held their magical instruments, carefully feeling their way through the woods.

　　After crossing the stone tablet, the night became exceptionally dark.

　　The thick darkness seemed to swallow up the light, the flashlight dimmed a lot, and the range it could illuminate became very limited.

　　"Lu Fei, have you noticed anything?" Jing Jian spoke in a low voice.

　　"What?"

　　"It's too quiet here, there's not a single sound of insects or birds. Are we close to finding the place?"

　　Living beings have an instinct for survival, avoiding danger and seeking safety. Where there are terrifying evil spirits, these living creatures will instinctively stay away.

　　"That would be for the best."

　　In such an environment, Lu Fei's heart was tightly wound, not relaxing for a moment.

　　"That temple only appears at night; it must be a haunted one." Jing Jian added, "What resides in such a temple are not deities but demons. If we encounter them, how confident are you?"

　　"The ruined temple is just a reference point. Our goal is the coffin fungi near the temple. We don't need to go inside the temple."

　　The two of them walked for a long time in the woods, sometimes stepping deep, sometimes shallow.

　　"Something's not right. Old Brother Zhao said the ruined temple is about 200 meters from the stone tablet. We've been walking for about half an hour. Why haven't we found it yet?" Lu Fei stopped, feeling suspicious.

　　"Did we go in the wrong direction?"

　　Jing Jian raised his hand and shone the flashlight around, then walked to a large tree behind them, showing a stunned expression.

　　"Hmm, where is the mark I left here earlier? It's gone."

　　"Is it this tree?"

　　"Yes, it's this crooked-necked tree. I absolutely didn't make a mistake! I chose it because its shape is very recognizable, so I marked it."

　　Jing Jian searched up and down, left and right around the big tree, but he couldn't find the mark he had left.

　　"That mark was carved with my knife. Even if it was scratched off, there should still be a trace, but now there's nothing on this tree trunk, as if the mark never existed."

　　As he continued searching, Jing Jian became increasingly confused.

　　"This is the end. Even if we get the coffin fungus, without finding the way back, we're as good as dead!"

　　"Shut your raven's mouth!"

　　Lu Fei took out his knife and recarved a triangular mark on the tree trunk.

　　After waiting for a few seconds.

　　In the blink of an eye, the mark on the tree trunk mysteriously disappeared.

　　"Could this be another enchanted tree?" Jing Jian turned pale with shock and immediately drew his peachwood sword, guarding cautiously.

　　The crooked old tree showed no unusual movement, only its branches swayed gently in the breeze.

　　"Try another tree."

　　Lu Fei picked up the dagger and carved a mark on a nearby big tree.

　　He waited for a few seconds.

　　Sure enough, the mark on the tree trunk also vanished in a strange manner.

　　"What's going on? Don't tell me all the trees here have become spirits?" Jing Jian's hair stood on end.

　　The mountains are full of trees. If they all became spirits, that would be a disaster!

　　"I told you not to jinx it!"

　　Lu Fei glared at him fiercely and shone his flashlight around.

　　The dim light swept over the surrounding trees. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the trees here were different from those in other places.

　　The branches were unusually twisted, resembling terrifying ghostly hands.

　　"There's definitely something wrong with these trees, but there's no abnormal movement for now, so let's not provoke them," Lu Fei felt a chill down his spine, but the more it was like this, the more he had to stay calm.

　　"We can only do this," Jing Jian nodded helplessly.

　　The two of them lightened their footsteps and continued to search cautiously in the twisted and eerie forest.

　　The trees around were very quiet.

　　After walking for what seemed like an eternity, Lu Fei suddenly stopped, his eyes fixed on something ahead.

　　"Brother Jing, look!"

　　A faint light was shining through the dense bushes not far ahead.