"Du Chong, you'd better have something more important to do, or something else that's necessary. Otherwise, we've come all this way, and you won't be able to settle this score."

Duan Yu had always looked down on Du Chong, so it was natural that his words were tinged with resentment and confrontation.

"Captain Duan, what are you saying? Do you think I would call you over for something so trivial?"

Du Chong laughed heartily, his face beaming with undisguised joy.

Duan Yu rolled his eyes at him, pulled Jiang Yan in first, and didn't give Du Chong and Jiang Yan a chance to greet each other.

"This guy, it's been so long, why is he still the same!"

Jiang Ruan smiled slightly. Seeing them playfully bickering like this, she felt somewhat gratified. After all, it proved that they were all living, breathing people who had not yet been corrupted or harmed.

After a brief silence, Jiang Ruan was led to the inner hall, where Du Chong, Li Jie, and Du Nuo were present.

When old friends meet, they inevitably exchange a few pleasantries, but the conversation quickly turns to rumors.

"You mean you saw the person spreading the rumor with your own eyes? Then why didn't you arrest him, or did you find out why such a rumor existed?"

Jiang Ruan was referring to the rumors that she was dead.

"Um... I'm sorry, my earth-based ability is not easy to control. I was almost discovered while hiding underground. I was only focused on escaping and didn't dare to catch him."

Li Jie was somewhat annoyed. If he had been a little stronger, this wouldn't have happened. He blamed himself for neglecting his training.

"We can't entirely blame him. No one would dare to arrest someone like that. Even Miss Jiang Ruan would have to think it over carefully on the spot. So, what he did isn't really a big deal."

Du Nuo sat leisurely to the side and said.

Jiang Ruan gave him a deep look. She didn't see any murderous intent in his eyes, but rather a different kind of magical power.

"So you were there at the time?" Jiang Ruan thought Du Nuo's statement was based on solid evidence.

"No, I just imagined it after hearing what he said later. But I think it's very credible. According to him, that person was dressed in all black and wore a mask. He could kill more than a dozen zombies in the blink of an eye. How could a half-baked superhuman like him?"

Unexpectedly, Du Nuo was worried about Li Jie and trying to comfort him. Jiang Ruan frowned deeply because she felt that Li Jie seemed to be hiding something, and Du Nuo seemed to be helping him hide it.

The unusual behavior of these two people first startled Du Chong.

"Alright, alright, what black-clad men and white-clad men, none of that matters. What matters is that Miss Jiang Ruan has returned after a long journey, and we are here to treat her to this meal. Tell the kitchen to quickly bring out our treasured wines and dishes so that everyone can enjoy fine wine under the moonlight to welcome the three of us back."

Du Chong shouted and got up to pull Jiang Ruan along.

Jiang Ruan raised her hand to stop him, saying, "No need to be polite. Tell me everything you know so I can know the details. As for the rest, it's not too late to make plans after I understand the situation."

Du Chong then stopped what he was doing and began to recount what had happened.

It turns out that they have been closely monitoring the outside world these past few days, especially the movements of some important figures and events.

Just a few days ago, they received astonishing news—a mysterious woman had appeared in a nearby village. This woman was said to possess immense power, capable of easily altering the energy flow of her surroundings.

This news alerted Du Chong and his men, who decided to send someone to investigate. However, the men they sent never returned.

Hearing this, Jiang Ruan frowned and asked, "Is there any more information about that mysterious woman? For example, her physical characteristics, behavior, and so on?"

Du Chong shook his head, indicating that he didn't know. He had only heard that the woman's appearance had caused panic among the local residents because she seemed hostile to humans. Moreover, wherever she went, she brought catastrophic destruction.

Jiang Ruan pondered for a moment, a sense of foreboding rising in her heart.

If this mysterious woman is truly so dangerous, then she must be found as soon as possible and stopped from continuing her evil deeds.

But the most important thing right now is to figure out her purpose and motives.

So she asked Du Chong if he had any other clues or information that he could provide for her reference.

Du Chong thought for a moment, then suddenly remembered something: "Oh! Right, we also received information that this mysterious woman seems to be looking for something called a 'soul stone'."

"Soul Stone?" Jiang Ruan repeated in confusion.

Du Chong nodded and explained, "Yes, it is said to be a very precious and rare stone that can be used to enhance a person's soul power. However, its specific uses are unclear."

Jiang Ruan's eyes sharpened. If this mysterious woman was indeed searching for such a thing, then her purpose might not be merely destruction. Perhaps a much larger conspiracy was hidden behind it all…

Rumors? It's probably just bait to lure me here. This woman has planned everything step by step and made such thorough preparations. It can't be that she just tricked me into coming here.