Chapter 2402 - 402: The Mysterious Old Chen

"Forty-five seconds are up!" Ye Qing looked at Old Chen and said, "You have fifteen seconds left!"

As Ye Qing spoke, he gestured, and Helian Tiehua and the others understood immediately, starting to pack their things, making it look as if they were ready to leave.

"You..." Old Chen opened his mouth, seeing Ye Qing about to leave, he quickly changed his tone and said, "Okay, okay, I'll talk, I'll talk. I... I'm here to rescue you!"

Everyone simultaneously put down what they were holding and turned to look at Old Chen in unison, eyes filled with shock, doubting if they had misheard him. What did this old guy just say? He's here to rescue us? Really? How could this old guy possibly rescue us?

Ye Qing was a bit excited too, could it be that this old guy was finally about to tell the truth? That's right, Ye Qing had always thought Old Chen was not that simple, and now he finally slipped!

"You're here to rescue us?" Ye Qing looked at Old Chen and said, "So, you're admitting that it was you who knocked down that skeleton frame?"

"Huh?" Old Chen was taken aback, looking at Ye Qing in surprise and said, "What? What did I knock down?"

"This skeleton frame!" Ye Qing pointed at the skeleton frame and said, "Isn't it you who knocked it down?"

"Damn!" Old Chen immediately widened his eyes and said, "Young Ye, I'm telling the truth here, don't slander me like this!"

"What's going on?" Ye Qing was puzzled, not understanding why Old Chen suddenly said something like that.

"Nonsense!" Old Chen said, "If I had knocked down that thing, would I still be trapped in here? If you don't want to rescue me, just say it, no need to slander me like this."

"Uh..." Ye Qing scratched his head and said, "Didn't you just say you were here to rescue us?"

"I said I came to rescue you, but I never said I knocked down that thing!" Old Chen glanced at everyone and said, "Damn, where did your thoughts go? What I mean is, I got the news that you were trapped in Panlong Valley. I thought, after all, we are friends. Young Ye, you rescued me from the Tomb of Ghost Valley Master. Repaying kindness is something I understand well. In this regard, I am completely different from you ungrateful guys. Someone gives me a favor, and I'm eager to repay it even by climbing a mountain of swords or diving into a sea of fire. That's my noble demeanor. If you could learn that, you might achieve lasting fame!"

"Alright, alright, stop with the nonsense, tell me the specifics!" Ye Qing interrupted Old Chen irritably, why does this guy speak so unreliably?

"Oh, that's right, a bit off-topic!" Old Chen coughed twice and said, "Here's the thing. I heard that Bai Li Xi is trapped here, and so is your lover, Young Ye. I thought, you saved my life, how could I not pay you back? So, I happened to have some free time and decided to come over to see if I could help you rescue them!"

"You're kidding!" Ye Qing said, "You're here to rescue people? Do you know how many experts the Wanyan Family has arranged here? What gives you the confidence to rescue people here?"

"Hey, I don't like the sound of that. Even though my skills aren't great, I am still a genuine Tomb Raider Captain. If I can't outrun them on flat ground, can't I dig a hole?" Old Chen glared at Ye Qing and said, "Besides, I didn't plan to fight them head-on, I just came to scout. Since they don't recognize me, I thought I'd just wander over to take a look. Even if I can't rescue anyone, I could at least gather some intel for you, wouldn't that be helpful?"

Old Chen's words indeed left Ye Qing speechless.

"Who would've guessed, before I even reached Panlong Valley, I stumbled upon this unfortunate mess." Old Chen patted the skeleton frame dejectedly and said, "Hey, I say, let me out first. I came all this way to rescue you, and you're just going to watch me trapped here, is that fun?"

Everyone exchanged glances and finally looked at Ye Qing in unison. The others didn't know Old Chen well, but Ye Qing knew him the best. Whether or not to rescue Old Chen depended on Ye Qing's decision.

Ye Qing still had deep suspicions about Old Chen, but he realized it wouldn't be easy to get Old Chen to talk. So, in the end, he just gestured to the others to release Old Chen.

Old Chen, feeling much more spirited after stepping out of the skeleton, immediately ran over to Ye Qing and started clamoring, "Young Ye, did you bring any food? I haven't eaten for over a day since entering the mountains. Hurry up and get me something to eat, I'm practically starving! And some water too, my throat is nearly on fire!"

"Your throat is nearly on fire, yet you haven't stopped talking!" Ye Qing shot Old Chen a glare and took out some dry rations and water to hand over to him.

"Compressed biscuits, huh? Is there nothing else?" Old Chen looked at the dry rations with disdain and asked, "Do you have roast duck? Chicken leg? Pig's trotters?"

Ye Qing almost spat blood. Are you here for a picnic or something? Asking for roast duck, chicken leg, pig's trotters? You really have the nerve!

Ignoring Old Chen, Ye Qing and Helian Tiehua, along with the others, collected the skeleton to bring back for proper examination. According to Wanyan Hongsheng, this was the corpse of a Divine Clan member. As for what exactly the Divine Clan is, Ye Qing and the others had no idea. However, the two pairs of wings on this corpse were wondrous enough to warrant further study.

Seeing Ye Qing disregarding him, Old Chen sulked but eventually started devouring the dry food in large bites. This guy must have been famished; he ate both compressed biscuits without leaving a crumb.

Once Old Chen finished eating, Ye Qing inquired about his situation. After the previous battle in Shenchuan City, Ye Qing hadn't had the chance to check on Old Chen. Later on, when the Wanyan Family took over the World Alliance Manor, Old Chen slipped away unnoticed in the chaos. Fortunately, not many people knew him, so no one stopped him. Subsequently, Old Chen wandered for a while, without being pursued by the Wanyan Family, and enjoyed some rather leisurely days. Eventually, Old Chen heard about Bai Li Xi being trapped in Panlong Valley and came to help.

Of course, these were all Old Chen's own words, and Ye Qing wasn't sure how much of it was true. Truthfully, seeing Old Chen again after the battle in Shenchuan City gave Ye Qing a sense of kinship. Many of those once fighting side by side with him were never seen again, while others had joined the Wanyan Family. Although Old Chen was shameless, greedy, lustful, and verbose, he consistently stuck with Ye Qing, which was indeed touching.

After tidying up the skeleton, they all took a short rest before quickly leaving Panlong Valley. The elite members of the Wanyan Family had gone to the Sword Saint Sect and wouldn't return for some time, providing an opportunity for the group to recuperate. After all, Helian Tiehua and the others were severely injured; even if healed, they needed time to recover.

Leaving Panlong Valley, the group found a few vehicles and drove several hundred miles overnight to another city, where they sought a place to rest temporarily.

The Seven Steering Committees of Hong Alliance had a base in this city, but Helian Tiehua didn't lead the troop there. After the battle in Shenchuan City, most members of the Seven Rudders had pledged allegiance to the Wanyan Family, and even Helian Tiehua wasn't sure whether this base would still heed his command. Conversely, had the people at the base betrayed them, visiting it would reveal their whereabouts to the Wanyan Family, compromising their security.

In the outskirts of this city, they found a secluded country manor where everyone stayed. After all the chaos and commotion, everyone was quite exhausted. Upon reaching their rooms, they each retired to rest.

Old Chen was an exception; upon arriving at the manor, he immediately requested the chef to prepare delicious meals for him. The menu was filled with meat dishes, and if Helian Tiehua hadn't prepaid, the chef probably wouldn't have dared to prepare them. Where Old Chen got such a hearty appetite was anyone's guess.

Huangfu Ziyu stayed closely by Ye Qing's side like a little woman. Even when returning to the room to rest, she stuck close to Ye Qing, snuggling in his arms, sleeping peacefully. Huangfu Ziyu wasn't a shy little woman; she was a bold and independent female, unafraid to love and hate. Having chosen Ye Qing, she disregarded others' opinions.

Holding his beloved in his arms, breathing in the familiar fragrance from Huangfu Ziyu, Ye Qing felt a bit sentimental. The relationship between him and Huangfu Ziyu certainly had its ups and downs. All this time, moments when they could truly be together were few. Now that he could hold his beloved close, Ye Qing cherished it immensely, longing to protect her with his life.

He wasn't sure how long it had been when Ye Qing fell into a deep sleep until a sudden sound of footsteps outside awakened him.

"What happened?" Huangfu Ziyu also woke up, and Ye Qing gestured for her to be quiet, sneaking over to the door for a look outside.

Standing in the hallway were three people: Helian Tiehua, Ding Lianshun, and Yin Xianzi, guarding their door. Everyone else had rushed out, and it wasn't clear what had happened.

From Helian Tiehua and the other two's looks, they seemed to be guarding Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu.

Ye Qing motioned to Huangfu Ziyu, pushed open the door, stepped out, and asked in a deep voice, "What's going on?"

Helian Tiehua took a deep breath and said quietly, "The corpse of the Purple-robed Elder has vanished!"