When I saw Wei Shengnan comparing me to Duan Jinyan, I immediately snorted coldly: "My grudge with Duan Jinyan has not been resolved yet, and this jade seal cannot be taken away by you. Even if you really want to accuse me of fighting among my fellow disciples, I have nothing to say."

Seeing my firm attitude, Qu Ruilin's eyes narrowed as he was about to speak when a fast horse suddenly appeared on the road behind him.

An elderly Russian man, seeing the situation, immediately roared and shouted a sentence in Russian. Qu Ruilin's security guards also turned around and began exchanging words with unfriendly expressions.

I saw two people arriving, dressed similarly to the guide, and asked him, "Are you one of your people?"

"The speaker is old Sergei. He is the oldest forest ranger here and also our leader. With him here, we are safe."

The guide listened to their conversation and translated for us: "The people on the other end say they belong to the Wagner Group, and are a security company under Wagner. They demand that we hand you over and not get involved in the conflict here."

"Hey, we can't go back on our word!" Lin Que was startled when she heard the guide say that, and said urgently, "We've paid you all the money we promised, so you have to have some sense of contractual obligation, right?"

"Don't worry, if we broke our promise, Uncle Sergei wouldn't be here."

The guide gave a reassuring smile: "Uncle Sergei said that this mountain forest is our territory, and all the hunters will obey our orders. He demanded that these mercenaries leave this mountain range immediately, otherwise a war will definitely break out here today!"

"Is this old man really that short-tempered?" The monkey glanced at Sergei, who was dressed in fur and riding on horseback. "His threats are unlikely to deter these professional mercenaries. If a fight breaks out, do you think you can stand a chance against them?"

“These mercenaries don’t dare to cause trouble here. This is a political issue, and it’s hard to explain to you foreigners.”

As the guide was speaking, Sergei, who was in the distance, showed signs of impatience. He immediately curled his fingers and whistled.

"Woof woof woof!"

Suddenly, the sound of hunting dogs barking came from the woods behind the road, followed by dozens of tall and strong hunters who surged toward them in a large group.

Seeing that the people of the settlement had gathered so many hunters to meet us, I asked the monkey in surprise, "How much money did you pay the people of the settlement for their help?"

"One million RMB!"

The monkey whispered, "Old Song once said that money can move mountains! We have no connections here, so if I want to get things done, the only way is to use money!"

The Russian next to Wei Shengnan whispered something to her. She took a deep breath and turned her gaze to me: "Duan Shenxing, our purpose in coming here today is not to escalate the conflict between us, but to seek a reasonable solution. Our demands were different before, but now that you know Duan Jinyan's attitude, are you really still going to be so stubborn?"

Song Laosan's betrayal had me burning with an inexplicable anger, so I lay on my horse in silence.

My silence had already made my stance clear. Faced with the pressure from Sergei and the others, Wei Shengnan turned around first and said, "Brother Lin, let's go."

"Duan Shenxing, you will regret this!"

Qu Ruilin uttered a sentence and then left under the protection of other security personnel. Sergei also waved lightly, signaling the hunters behind him to make way for them.

...

With Sergei's help, we escaped safely. The convoy that the monkey had hired in advance also took us out of the mountains and to the hospital in the nearest town for treatment.

Sergei had lived here his whole life and was highly respected in the nearby towns. In addition, the monkey had given him a lot of money, so our undocumented status was kept secret.

I spent three days in the hospital before my mercury poisoning improved somewhat, but the doctor said that symptoms such as oral mucosal shedding, gingivitis, and insomnia might last for two or three months.

The aftereffects of mercury poisoning tormented me to the point of despair. Even when I drank water, my teeth would feel a pain that went straight to my brain. Seeing how serious my condition was, the doctor could only maintain my vital signs with glucose and nutrient solution and told me to wait half a month before eating again.

After recovering from exhaustion, the first person I thought of was Jiang Man. I asked Monkey, "How is Jiang Man? Has she recovered?"

The monkey nodded: "Don't worry, her symptoms are much milder than yours. She woke up on the day she was admitted to the hospital. The doctor said there's nothing seriously wrong with her. She just needs to rest for a few days to let the wound on her leg heal."

Jiang Man and I had been through thick and thin together, and when I heard that she had woken up, I asked Monkey to accompany me to her hospital room.

When I arrived at her hospital room, I found it empty, and even the bedding had been changed.

I looked at the empty hospital room and frowned at the monkey beside me: "Where is Jiang Manren?"

"I don't know either. During the past few days in the hospital, Lin Que, Man Jing, and I have been taking turns taking care of you. It's not very convenient for us to take care of Jiang Man, who is a young woman, so I hired a caregiver for her. The caregiver was still there when I settled her wages yesterday!"

The monkey looked at the empty hospital bed, a little bewildered, and quickly took out his phone: "I'll have the translator ask right away."

"Wait a moment!"

I glanced around and noticed a folded piece of paper under the water glass on the bedside table. I walked over and picked it up.

When unfolded, the paper indeed contained a line of Chinese characters:

Duan Tao, the situation is urgent, please forgive me for leaving without saying goodbye!

Thank you for taking care of me these past few days. I will never forget your life-saving kindness. You were betrayed by the security team, so the planned route is probably no longer usable. I have prepared a new evacuation route for you. Call the number below, and a travel agency will arrange your departure. If you encounter any problems during the process, please call me.

Below the note were two phone numbers, one for the travel agency and the other for Jiang Man's satellite phone.

Unfortunately, the spot where Jiang Man's number was written was soaked by the water at the bottom of the cup, and the pen marks had turned into a deep blue, making the writing completely illegible.

The monkey stood beside me, glanced at the handwriting on the paper, and clicked his tongue in amazement, saying, "Young Master Duan, this Jiang Man almost killed us all in the Ze King's Tomb before. Can the evacuation route she prepared for us be safe?"

"Don't worry, she doesn't know my identity. Since I was able to bring her out, I will naturally trust her."

I looked at the water-soaked areas on the paper and sighed in frustration: "Tell Lin Que and Man Jing to prepare for our return to China as soon as possible."

"Young Master Duan, your body is already in such a state, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"

The monkey advised, "Duan Jinyan has disappeared without a trace. Even if you want to continue looking for him, we have no leads. Let's focus on getting better first."

"The people from the other two sects are always keeping an eye on my imperial seal. I'm really worried about leaving it in this unfamiliar country where I don't know anyone. I should go back to China as soon as possible."

I handed the note Lin Man left to Monkey: "Also, I have a few important things to do after I get back to China."