Chapter 1383: Uninvited Guest

Shennongjia.

When Yang Xiao arrived, it was already deep into the night.

Outside the car window, ink-like clouds slowly drifted over the continuous mountain ranges. A light drizzle fell, and the air was filled with the scent of damp earth. In the distance, the silent mountain ridges resembled gigantic beasts crawling in the darkness, majestic and mysterious.

Yang Xiao sat in the military vehicle, his body swaying involuntarily with the bumps in the road. He looked through the window at the primeval jungle shrouded in rain in the distance, feeling a moment of daze.

The same Shennongjia, the same night, the same light rain...

Everything seemed to have returned to the night of the Red Star exploration.

"Dr. Yang, the car can't go any further on this road," a voice said from the driver's seat. "But please don't worry, command has already sent people to set up a camp in the primeval jungle. We'll escort you there, and someone will meet you."

Yang Xiao nodded slightly. "Thank you."

The car door opened, and someone immediately stepped forward to hold an umbrella for Yang Xiao. Not far away was a military encampment. Under the high-power floodlights, the fine drizzle looked like floating gossamer. Camouflage tents billowed in the wind under the lights, and several figures had been waiting outside the tents for a long time.

Yang Xiao walked directly towards the tent ahead.

"Has anyone arrived yet?" Yang Xiao stepped forward and asked.

"Yes, Dr. Su arrived an hour before you and has already gone inside," a figure replied.

"After your last exploration, we set up a research camp at the meteorite crater, equipped with electricity, food, water, and some scientific equipment. You can go directly there to meet up, and we will send someone to take you."

"Thank you."

Yang Xiao put on the military's special black raincoat and boots designed for walking freely through muddy mountain terrain. Just as he was about to set off, the person hesitated for a moment before speaking again:

"Dr. Yang, there's one more thing I need to inform you about."

"What is it?"

"We've received intelligence that the United States has reportedly deployed some of their hidden Transcendent individuals and a suicide squad within our country, and they are approaching Shennongjia. We suspect they might be targeting you all."

Yang Xiao's brows furrowed slightly.

The incident of Yang Xiao eliminating the Seventh Fleet had likely caused a huge uproar among the US high command. It was inevitable that they would employ means to investigate his origins. Once they conducted a deep investigation, the existence of the Nine Sovereigns would eventually be discovered, as there's no such thing as an impenetrable wall.

It now seemed they had likely realized how strong the threat of the Nine Sovereigns was, and therefore, specifically sent people to Shennongjia to attempt an assassination.

They might not dare to assassinate him, but the other colleagues were a different matter. Their current combat power levels varied, and even if these Transcendent individuals and suicide squad only managed to eliminate one of the Nine Sovereigns prematurely, it would be a gain for them.

"Although we've already set up ambushes in this vicinity, Shennongjia is simply too vast for us to guarantee absolute safety. If possible, I would still highly recommend that you transfer to the capital for the meeting; the security there would be much greater."

Yang Xiao glanced down at his watch and shook his head:

"No need... With me here, they won't be able to stir up any trouble."

Chen Ling had repeatedly emphasized to him that the Nine Sovereigns meeting had to conclude within 24 hours. Just mobilizing the other Nine Sovereigns from all corners of the country to Shennongjia had already taken nearly twenty hours. If they were to then travel to the capital, there definitely wouldn't be enough time.

Furthermore, Yang Xiao's strength had advanced by leaps and bounds. In this era, there should be no Divine Path practitioners who could threaten him. He could completely suppress the Americans on his own.

Since Yang Xiao had said so, the others naturally had no objections. They immediately led Yang Xiao towards the meteorite crater deep within Shennongjia.

As Yang Xiao walked, his gaze fell upon the shadows of the jungle beside him...

A fleeting shadow, clad in a large red opera robe, flashed past.

"They actually made it..."

Lu Xun glanced at the time in the car and looked at Wu Tongyuan, who was sitting next to him, with a strange expression. "You shortened a 20-day journey into 20 hours... How did you manage that?"

Wu Tongyuan blinked. "I don't know either... It must have just been luck."

"Luck?"

Lu Xun seemed to be amused to the point of laughter. "Alright, then I won't ask any more. Go ahead and keep playing innocent while you're actually powerful..."

"No, Old Lu, I genuinely don't understand how my ability works... This time really was just good luck!" Wu Tongyuan waved his hands in exasperation.

"Alright, alright."

The vehicle stopped at the end of the road in Shennongjia. The two got out one after another. In the distance, the floodlights above the tent blurred the surrounding rain.

"Dr. Lu, Dr. Wu." Someone was already waiting outside the tent.

Lu Xun and Wu Tongyuan walked into the tent. Wu Tongyuan immediately took a dry towel to wipe the rain from himself and casually grabbed a piece of chocolate from the table. Seeing this, the figure nearby simply took out more than a dozen energy bars and handed them to him.

Lu Xun didn't pay any attention to Wu Tongyuan's actions. He glanced at the time on the wall again; less than 3 hours remained until Yang Xiao's 24-hour deadline.

"Besides us, everyone else should have arrived, right?" Lu Xun asked.

"Yes," the person nodded. "Dr. Su was the first to arrive, followed by Dr. Yang and Dr. Ji... Dr. Qi and Dr. Wen arrived together and went in just over half an hour ago..."

"The main characters always make a grand entrance at the end," Wu Tongyuan added with a laugh.

Lu Xun suddenly remembered something:

"Oh, right, where's Lou Yu?"

"Dr. Lou... I don't know. Dr. Yang didn't mention he would be coming."

Although puzzled, Lu Xun nodded slightly. "Anyway, let's go inside first..."

Lu Xun and Wu Tongyuan put on their gear and were about to head towards the meteorite crater. Just then, two beams of headlights cut through the Shennongjia night, driving straight towards the tent.

Wu Tongyuan was startled. "Didn't they say no one else was coming? Whose car is that then?"

The figure in military uniform also looked puzzled and picked up a walkie-talkie to ask something. The next moment, the car door parked at the tent's entrance opened.

A frail figure, shielding himself from the rain with a document bag, jogged out of the car and into the tent.

Due to the distance and the dim lighting, neither Lu Xun nor Wu Tongyuan could clearly see the person's appearance. It wasn't until the person had spoken a few words to someone inside the tent that their gaze suddenly shifted towards them, and upon seeing Lu Xun, they paused in surprise.

"Lu Xun!" The person's tone was one of pleasant surprise.

"Lou Yu??"

Hearing the familiar voice, Lu Xun and Wu Tongyuan exchanged a glance, then turned and walked back towards the tent.

"Didn't they say Yang Xiao didn't contact him... So how did he get here?"

Wu Tongyuan mumbled, clearly puzzled.