Although I am the core member of the team, I am actually representing Tianxia Group in this competition in Fengmen Village.

In order to obtain this ticket, Jiang Tianyi spared no expense, spending a huge sum of 200 million yuan to buy my Zewang Jade Seal, just to get a ticket to participate in the Fengmen Village competition.

My decision to withdraw from the competition at this point, even though I said I would return 200 million yuan to Tianxia Group, not only means that all our efforts have been in vain, but also that the clues that Tianxia Group has spent a lot of manpower and resources to find will be lost.

After hearing the conditions I proposed, Jiang Man stared at me for about three seconds before asking, "Duan Shenxing, are you sure you want to give up your place in the competition just because of the bonds between the four sects?"

I was taken aback by Jiang Man's question: "Why would you ask that?"

"I can agree to your conditions, but you have to promise me one thing in return."

Jiang Man did not answer my question directly: "After we withdraw from the competition, if we are lucky enough to save her, you must promise me that you will never meet with Wei Shengnan alone again from now on."

Jiang Man's conditions surprised me slightly: "What do you mean by that?"

Jiang Man responded naturally, "Tianxia Group is cooperating with you to find Duan Jinyan, and the other three sects have the same goal as us. I must ensure that our investment in you will not be affected, so as not to change your mind at the last minute and affect our plans."

According to Wang Qing, he saw Wei Shengnan and the others trapped two days ago. I was eager to save them, so I immediately agreed: "Okay, I agree to your conditions!"

Seeing that I agreed, Jiang Man looked up at me, got up and walked towards the door: "Let's not delay, let's set off as soon as possible."

Seeing this, the monkey quickly followed me and whispered, "Young Master Duan, Jiang Man is definitely in love with you!"

I glanced at the monkey and said, "Don't spread rumors. Jiang Man said she just didn't want to affect the cooperation between the two parties!"

"Come on, anyone with eyes can see what's going on here! If Jiang Man really wanted to stop your cooperation, why did she only ask you not to meet with Wei Shengnan, instead of making you cut off all ties with the other three sects?"

The monkey muttered something to himself, then continued, "Young Master Duan, there are quite a few people watching you lately. I think you could give it a try with Jiang Man. Isn't it said that her family has a very powerful background? If you become the son-in-law of the Jiang family, things will be much easier for us, and no one will look down on you!"

Thinking of Jiang Tianyi's connection with the Duan family, I immediately interrupted Monkey and quickened my pace toward the door: "Let's take care of business first!"

As soon as we approached the gate after going downstairs, the people from Fengmen Village came out of the guardhouse: "Gentlemen, according to the competition rules, you are not allowed to leave this courtyard. Once you step out of this gate, you will be considered to have forfeited the competition!"

I pointed outside the courtyard and asked the man in charge, "If we choose to withdraw from the competition, can we still go into the jungle outside?"

"Of course you can, that's your freedom."

When the man heard that I was withdrawing from the competition, he didn't stop me anymore, but added, "Without the token, you will not be able to return to this courtyard, and Fengmen Village will no longer be responsible for you. This means you will need to find a way to leave this rainforest on your own. Your personal belongings will be mailed to the address you registered with! But I must remind you, this is deep in the no-man's land, and the risk of you leaving on your own is very high!"

I took a deep breath: "I've made up my mind. What procedures are needed to withdraw from the competition?"

The man pointed to the doorway: "Crossing the threshold means you've withdrawn from the competition. I'll remind you again, there's no turning back in this competition. If you try to force your way back next time, we'll be enemies."

I didn't answer the man's question, but walked straight to the front door and made as if to take a step.

"Young Master Duan, wait a moment!"

Just as I was about to walk out, the monkey grabbed my arm and pointed outside, saying, "There are people in the woods over there!"

I looked in the direction the monkey was pointing and sure enough, I saw several people walking towards us from the woods. The person walking in front was none other than Song Laosan.

This sudden scene made my heart pound.

Song Laosan was followed by Wei Shengnan and two ragged men carrying a stretcher made of tree branches.

When those people saw our courtyard, they all quickened their pace and rushed over.

As they approached, I realized that the person lying on the stretcher was Qu Ruilin. His clothes were stained red with blood, and his left hand was hanging down below the stretcher, with two fingers clearly missing.

Wei Shengnan stumbled to the door and shouted at the people of Fengmen Village, "Our people are seriously injured! Help save them!"

"Don't move!"

Upon seeing Wei Shengnan's appearance, the two men suddenly drew their pistols. The man leading the group also spoke up, saying, "According to the rules, contestants who lose the competition are not qualified to enter Fengmen Village and must leave this area on their own. We are only responsible for our own people!"

Looking at the cold and unapproachable group, Wei Shengnan turned her head and called out, "Third Master, give them the token!"

Song Laosan stepped forward, took out the Vermilion Bird Jade Token, and tossed it to the other party: "Our people are seriously injured and need emergency treatment."

"Don't worry, we have the best surgeons here."

The man confirmed the jade pendant was genuine and waved slightly to his subordinates: "Let them pass!"

I saw that the stretcher bearers on Wei Shengnan's side were also exhausted, so I waved to Lin Que and Man Jing: "Go help!"

Seeing my actions, the man leading the team asked, "Now that all four participating teams are ready, are you still going to withdraw from the competition?"

Upon hearing the man leading the team's words, Wei Shengnan finally looked at me and asked, "You're withdrawing from the competition? Why?"

"It was all to save you!"

The monkey glared at Song Laosan and said in a deep voice, "We're not as heartless as you! We wouldn't just stand by and watch someone die!"

When Wei Shengnan saw Qu Ruilin being taken to the hospital, she asked me, "Are you giving up the competition so you can go out and rescue us?"

I looked at Wei Shengnan, whose arm was scarred, and nodded, saying, "I heard you had an accident and wanted to go and help. The four sects are from the same lineage, and since I know you are in danger, I can't just turn a blind eye."

"We underestimated the danger here. Although Qu Ruilin found the location of the token, one item was stolen. On our way back, we were attacked. If we hadn't disturbed two wild elephants during the fight and disrupted the situation, we probably wouldn't have made it back. Even so, one person died, and Brother Lin was seriously injured!"

Wei Shengnan gave a brief introduction to their situation and then asked me, "You all seem to be doing well. Was the trip smooth?"