Chapter 201: Too Strange

Bei Tian hesitated, and by the time he snapped back to reality, Lu Fang and the Water Python beast were nearly out of sight; he immediately sprinted after them, muttering inwardly: “This Brother Fang is too reckless.”

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuan, who had been anxiously waiting above the cold pond, saw her message talisman glow brightly; she let out a relieved expression and said, “They must have lured the Water Python beast away.”

“Then let’s go down.”

Wu Jie eagerly said.

“Go.” Jiang Yuan replied, swallowed a Water-Repelling Elixir, and dove into the cold pond; the two quickly oriented themselves and swam toward their destination.

Throughout this time, Jiang Yuan kept watching her message talisman, fearing Lu Fang and Bei Tian might not hold out and would choose to retreat early.

Fortunately, the talisman did not glow again.

Jiang Yuan exhaled in relief and sent a mental message: “It seems the two of them think they can hold off the Water Python beast—let’s move as fast as we can.”

Wu Jie replied mentally: “With Bei Tian’s strength, even if he can’t kill the Water Python beast, holding it off should be more than enough—especially with Brother Fang beside him.”

Though they now felt reassured, they still increased their speed.

Not long passed before Jiang Yuan and Wu Jie reached the rocky wall at the bottom of the cold pond and saw the frost-knot grass growing there.

The closer she got, the more the bone-deep cold pierced her; she unconsciously rubbed her arms, and after confirming no danger lurked nearby, she began harvesting the frost-knot grass.

Harvesting was not difficult—in fact, it was easy.

Less than a cup of tea’s time, Jiang Yuan had collected twenty third-grade frost-knot grasses into her storage pouch; having finished, the two swiftly swam toward the pond’s entrance.

The faster they moved, the sooner Lu Fang and Bei Tian would be safe.

Four people facing the Water Python beast was far better than two.

Below the pond, Jiang Yuan sent a mental message to Lu Fang and Bei Tian, informing them she had harvested the frost-knot grass and urging them to lure the beast toward her so all four could escape together.

After waiting about fifteen minutes.

A figure rapidly approached; as it drew near, Jiang Yuan realized it was Bei Tian. After watching for a moment and seeing neither Lu Fang nor the Water Python beast behind him, she frowned and sent a mental message: “Why are you alone?”

Wu Jie, standing nearby, also looked puzzled.

Bei Tian’s face looked grim, swollen and bruised—from being struck by the Water Python beast’s tail in the water.

He looked anxious and sent separate mental messages to Jiang Yuan and Wu Jie: “I lost track of Brother Fang. That’s why I’m late—I searched around for a while. Let’s go look together; three of us will find him faster than one.”

“Alright.”

Jiang Yuan replied and swam toward the direction Bei Tian had come from; behind her, Bei Tian and Wu Jie followed.

While searching, Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but send a mental message to Bei Tian: “What exactly happened? How did you two get separated?”

At this, Bei Tian frowned and scratched his head; he himself was still bewildered. After entering the pond and encountering the Water Python beast, things had spiraled beyond his expectations.

That fellow Fang Hou was as single-mindedly reckless as they come—it left him stunned. How could anyone be like this?

Didn’t he fear death?

Though his own realm was higher, in battle with the Water Python beast, Fang Hou acted as if he were the main force in every move.

Even stranger, no matter how hard Bei Tian tried to draw the beast’s attention—with every trick he knew—it had no effect.

The Water Python beast seemed determined to kill Lu Fang alone.

Just as Bei Tian stepped forward to distract the beast, a tail whipped him away; when he regained his senses, Lu Fang and the Water Python beast had vanished.

At first, Bei Tian didn’t take it seriously.

He thought, with Lu Fang and the beast fighting each other, how far could they possibly go? But after searching for a while, he was dumbfounded.

The man and the beast had vanished as if erased.

This shouldn’t have happened—why was it like this?

Even now, Bei Tian could not make sense of it.

Suddenly, Jiang Yuan halted her advance; Bei Tian and Wu Jie stopped too, all three staring at their glowing message talismans.

Jiang Yuan sensed it—Lu Fang had sent a message: he’d been fighting the Water Python beast and hadn’t noticed his talisman; he asked for their current direction.

Bei Tian’s and Wu Jie’s talismans displayed the same message.

The three exchanged puzzled glances, but breathed a sigh of relief—Lu Fang sending a message meant he was unharmed.

Jiang Yuan moved toward the direction of the message and prepared herself.

But only Lu Fang arrived—no trace of the Water Python beast. There was no time to explain; the four ascended the pond in sequence.

After each emerged from the pond, the four moved in unison toward a distant location, stopping only at a secluded spot.

Jiang Yuan scanned the surroundings, then took all the frost-knot grass from her storage pouch and laid it on the ground; due to its unique nature, frost immediately formed on the nearby stones.

“There are twenty frost-knot grasses here, nearly identical in size, plus two smaller ones. I’ll divide them into four portions—Brother Fang and Brother Bei Tian, who lured the beast away, each get one extra small one.”

She looked at Lu Fang and Bei Tian, seeking their approval.

Lu Fang’s storage pouch held the corpse of the Water Python beast, so he didn’t care about one more or less; he nodded in agreement upon hearing the proposal.

Bei Tian waved his hands frantically and chuckled bitterly: “After entering the pond, I contributed nothing to luring the beast—it was all Brother Fang’s doing. That extra frost-knot grass should go to him. I couldn’t possibly take it.”

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, “Then Brother Fang takes seven.”

Wu Jie also nodded in agreement.

After stowing his frost-knot grass, Bei Tian couldn’t help asking: “Brother Fang, I’m truly curious—how did you and the Water Python beast suddenly vanish in the pond?”

“Weren’t you terrified facing it alone?”

“I didn’t just leave—I searched the area for a long time without finding you, which is why I went to find Jiang Yuan and Wu Jie to search together.”

“I swear I’m not lying. When you were fighting, you couldn’t have gone far—I truly searched with all my effort.”

Before Lu Fang could answer.

Jiang Yuan instinctively sniffed the air and nodded: “When you came over, I smelled blood on you—not yours. Could it be from the Water Python beast?”

A fifth-grade Water Python beast, in water—how could a sixth-grade, third-stage Confucian survive facing it alone? It was nearly impossible.

Yet Lu Fang was unharmed.

This was too strange!