Under everyone’s watchful gaze, the sound of slow clapping echoed from the forest nearby, reverberating through the silent valley.
A few seconds later, five figures gradually stepped out from behind the dense bushes.
Leading them was a slightly overweight middle-aged man. A greasy smile hung on his face as his sharp eyes repeatedly sized Lin Mao up with clear curiosity.
“So,” the man said with a grin, “not only are you strong, but your senses are quite sharp too. I didn’t expect you to notice us so quickly.”
The moment Qian Yuxuan saw their faces, her expression changed instantly.
“It’s you people!”
Lin Mao turned slightly and glanced at her.
“What? You know them?”
Qian Yuxuan quickly nodded, then immediately shook her head.
“I don’t actually know them,” she explained hurriedly. “But when our caravan left the shelter, we ran into them before. Back then, they kept staring at our supplies with these gloomy looks on their faces. I already felt something was wrong… I just didn’t expect they were really targeting us!”
She raised her head and glared furiously at the middle-aged man.
“We never offended you! We stayed out of your business, so why are you attacking us?!”
The men exchanged glances before bursting into laughter, as though they had just heard the greatest joke in the world.
The middle-aged leader laughed the hardest. He even wiped tears from the corners of his eyes before his smile slowly turned cold.
“Little girl,” he sneered, “you’re still too naive. Haven’t you ever heard the saying, ‘A man becomes guilty the moment he possesses treasure’?”
He stepped forward, his gaze locking firmly onto Qian Yuxuan.
“We’ve been watching your caravan for a long time. Plenty of resources, but not enough strength to protect them. And today, you just happened to travel through this isolated forest on your way to the abandoned city.”
A cruel grin spread across his face.
“It was the perfect place for us to close the net.”
Then his eyes shifted back toward Lin Mao, the smile on his face completely disappearing.
“The only thing I didn’t expect,” he said coldly, “was for some outsider to suddenly appear and ruin our plans.”
At this moment, the remaining members of Qian Yuxuan’s caravan slowly gathered around Lin Mao and Qian Yuxuan, supporting their injured companions.
The middle-aged man ignored their hostility completely. Instead, he kept staring at Lin Mao with a fake friendly smile.
“Little brother, I can tell you’re capable. That little girl probably can’t offer you much in return for helping them.” He spread his hands casually. “But if you join us instead, I guarantee the rewards you’ll receive will be far greater.”
“What do you think?”
The moment Qian Yuxuan heard him trying to recruit Lin Mao, her face turned pale.
Her heart tightened instantly as she looked nervously toward Lin Mao, unable to hide the worry in her eyes.
The other caravan members also became uneasy. They instinctively moved closer together, protecting Qian Yuxuan while looking at Lin Mao with wary expressions.
Lin Mao, however, felt no dissatisfaction toward their distrust.
After all, today was their first meeting. From their perspective, a stranger suddenly appearing and being offered better benefits by the enemy would naturally make anyone suspicious.
He merely swept a calm glance over the group, his expression remaining completely indifferent.
Seeing this, the black-clothed men all revealed smug smiles, clearly believing Lin Mao would abandon these “burdens” for profit.
The middle-aged leader urged again,
“Well, little brother? Have you made your decision? I’m only offering this because I recognize your strength. Ordinary people wouldn’t even qualify for such treatment.”
The moment his words fell, both he and another man beside him suddenly released powerful waves of energy.
Faint red energy rippled around their bodies.
They were both clearly Level 2 Awakeners.
The display was obviously meant as a threat — forcing Lin Mao to understand the situation and obediently join them.
Under the tense gazes of both sides, Lin Mao suddenly chuckled softly.
“Your suggestion is pretty good,” he said lightly. “But in the future, you should stop giving advice altogether.”
The smile faded from his face as his eyes turned cold.
“Because I’m someone who values trust. Once I promise something, I keep my word. I won’t betray others just because of a little profit.”
The middle-aged man’s smile froze instantly.
His expression twisted with fury as he glared viciously at Lin Mao.
“Good! Very good! Since you refuse my kindness…” he growled through clenched teeth, “then you can die together with them!”
He waved his hand violently.
“Attack! Kill this ungrateful bastard first, then clean up the rest!”
At the same time, he and the other Level 2 Awakener stepped forward, slowly closing in on Lin Mao.
The moment Lin Mao rejected them, Qian Yuxuan finally let out the breath she had been holding.
But when she saw two Level 2 Awakeners approaching together, the overwhelming pressure made it hard for her to breathe.
Her heart instantly rose into her throat again.
“Mr. Lin Mao…” she asked anxiously, “what should we do now? They have two Level 2 Awakeners. We—”
Lin Mao slightly turned his head toward her.
“What you need to do now,” he said calmly, “is take your people and move to the back. Find somewhere safe and stay there.”
“Don’t get in my way.”
Qian Yuxuan widened her eyes.
Instinctively, she wanted to warn him not to underestimate the enemy. But when she met Lin Mao’s calm, unwavering gaze, the words stuck in her throat.
After biting her lip, she nodded firmly.
“Alright. We’ll listen to you.”
She immediately turned around and shouted to the others,
“Everyone, follow me! Retreat deeper into the valley!”
Although the caravan members were still worried, they ultimately chose to trust Lin Mao.
Supporting the injured, they quickly retreated behind him and hid near the far corner of the valley.
At that moment, a petite girl quietly approached Qian Yuxuan and whispered nervously,
“Yuxuan… where did you even find this guy? We don’t know anything about him. Can we really trust him?”
She hesitated before lowering her voice further.
“Maybe… while they’re fighting, we should escape now. Staying here is too dangerous.”
Before she could finish, Qian Yuxuan sharply interrupted her.
“Enough!”
Her voice was not loud, but everyone immediately fell silent.
“Lin Mao clearly had the chance to join those men and gain even greater benefits,” she said firmly. “But he chose to help us instead. How can we do something so shameless and ungrateful?”
Qian Yuxuan subconsciously glanced toward Lin Mao.
He stood alone with his back facing them, calmly confronting the five black-clothed men by himself.
Taking a deep breath, she clenched her fists tightly.
“We stay here and watch. If Mr. Lin Mao is in danger, we’ll go help him.”
“Even if we can’t win…”
“At the very least, we won’t let him fight alone.”
The petite girl lowered her head in shame, no longer daring to speak.
The other caravan members also nodded silently as they fixed their nervous gazes on the battlefield ahead.