Extra's Strategy: Cultivate Protagonists, Become Invincible
Chapter 70: Reason For Retreat

Chapter 70: Reason For Retreat

If Han Xuhan provided them with no valuable information, then Feng Jun and his group wouldn’t have any reason to risk their lives to help him.

People who understood and operated under the rule of equivalent exchange were easy to deal with.

Han Xuhan knew what Feng Jun wanted, Feng Jun understood what Han Xuhan wanted. There was no reason to act like savages and deceive each other when both parties could reap the benefits with a bit of silent cooperation.

And it took only a single exchange of looks between Han Xuhan and Feng Jun to understand each other’s intentions.

Han Xuhan didn’t hide much from them. Apart from his tussle with Shen Kai and Mu Ran’s obsession with the foggy area, there was no reason for him to keep anything else a secret.

Hearing that Mu Ran was fighting a monstrous, reanimated corpse of a mortal, the cultivators from the Stardust Sect looked rather relieved.

"Rest assured, Brother Kai. Even if the poisonous fog can turn a corpse into a zombie, it shouldn’t be able to enhance its strength too unreasonably. Not so quick, at least. We can help you."

Feng Jun exchanged a glance with the girl who had pushed Han Xuhan for details and the two seemed to come to a tacit agreement. With a gesture from him, nearly a dozen disciples from their group moved forward while the rest stayed in their positions.

"Well, lead the way, Brother Kai."

Han Xuhan suppressed his disgruntled snort. Cautiousness seemed to be ingrained into their instinct. There was no use in protesting against the arrangement.

He jumped back into the portal after sharing one last nod with Feng Jun.

On the other side, Mu Ran looked like he was barely holding onto his life at the edge of the canyon. His spear was nowhere to be seen. Bloody streaks covered his entire body, and the clothing of all four of his limbs was torn into shreds, revealing cuts and slashes as deep as his bones.

Han Xuhan silently counted his lucky stars that he hadn’t tried to stay and fight this nightmarish creature.

"Boss, I got us some reinforcements! Retreat!"

Too surprised to even question how absurd Han Xuhan’s yell was, Mu Ran simply dodged a deadly swipe of the zombie’s elongated arm and ran toward the portal. It didn’t take long for the disciples of the Stardust Sect to appear.

While Mu Ran panted in exhaustion and Han Xuhan handed him some water from his abandoned backpack, the other cultivators slowly drove the zombie back with continuous attacks of unknown Mystic Arts.

Some were manipulating flames and soil, some were relying on telekinetic strikes, and one girl even cast a bolt of lightning right on top of the monster’s head.

After Feng Jun came in through the portal alongside the other female cultivator whose authority in the group seemed to rival his own, the two joined in on the confrontation excitedly.

Within a couple of minutes and suffering no substantial injuries, the monstrous zombie was thrown off the cliff into the bottomless abyss of the canyon.

From observing the battle, Han Xuhan could gauge that all of these disciples had reached the upper tiers of at least one Mystic Art.

Now that the danger had been taken care of, his head had cooled down. Within mere seconds, he foresaw how things would progress from this situation. And what he foresaw wasn’t a good outcome.

The development here wouldn’t be advantageous toward him and Mu Ran in the slightest. There was only one way out of this.

"Brother Jun, it seems to us that this mysterious world is far too dangerous for rookie cultivators like ourselves. Both of us are injured. So it is hardly a wise decision for us to continue to explore alongside you.

"My friend and I have decided to return to our sect and report this to our sect master. Goodbye!"

The person who was surprised the most by Han Xuhan’s sudden announcement was Mu Ran. But an imperceptible elbow strike and a wink from Han Xuhan made him shut his mouth.

Feng Jun was taken aback as well, but he hid his surprise swiftly and nodded.

"Tell my martial siblings outside this exact line- ’The stars are shifting as always’. That’s your pass. If you try to leave without saying it, they’ll attack you. We fixed it just now in case you two betrayed us here and tried to escape. Goodbye!"

"...."

Speechless, Han Xuhan and Mu Ran gathered their backpacks and jumped back into the portal as fast as possible.

Looking at their disappearing silhouettes, the girl standing beside Feng Jun frowned.

"Martial brother Jun, we could have used them to test the hazards of this hidden realm and explore further into the foggy area. They looked quite naive and enthusiastic.

"The allure of some treasures should have made it a simple affair for us to use them as cannon fodder. With some assurances and a bit of coercing, they might even have volunteered for the job."

Feng Jun smirked superciliously as he replied with one word.

"Wrong!"

The disdainful response surprised the whole group. The girl looked doubtful as well. Feng Jun chewed on his tongue for a moment before explaining his reasoning.

"Heh, did you just say that they looked enthusiastic? Then why do you think they suppressed their greed and backed off despite this? Or did you believe him when he said they were injured?

"Not only was the first guy totally unharmed, his partner’s injuries aren’t anything substantial either for a Martial Cultivator of that calibre.

"Perhaps you guys even failed to notice that the cultivator who was fighting the zombie actually held a slim advantage over it despite being tired? I could sense the stability in his movements!"

Everyone looked enlightened by Feng Jun’s explanation.

"You’re saying that Shen Kai foresaw that we might use them as cannon fodder? That’s why they ran away in a hurry?" The girl asked.

"Correct!"

"Big brother Feng Jun, you’re so perceptive! If we hadn’t agreed to let them go, someone that cunning might have found a way to deceive us once we entered the foggy area!"

"Hehe, brother Feng Jun has always been the smartest among us. Is that a surprise?"

The group of cultivators fervently praised Feng Jun’s wisdom while he forced an awkward smile on his face. He had a feeling that things wouldn’t end so simply like that.

Outside the portal, far away from the group guarding the grove, Han Xuhan and Mu Ran rested on the branch of an ancient tree while Xuhan explained the situation to Mu Ran.

But Mu Ran grew even more agitated after his explanation ended.

"But I need to go in! Even if it’s dangerous, I must do it! If I can’t find it... Xuhan, just listen to me. If I fail to accomplish a certain mission inside the fog, I may not live for long. I can’t tell you what it is, but I have to go in again. I understand if you don’t want to risk it..."

Han Xuhan sighed and patted him on the back.

"Boss, put some trust in this underling! After all, I was supposed to be sharing the benefits with you when the exploration ended. Do you think I gave up that easily? Not a chance."