Seeing Lu Ban's appearance, the people from Jiuliu looked at each other in bewilderment.

"???"

Qi Ye had a lot of question marks on his head.

He originally thought that Dai Yuanyang would be the first to arrive.

Relying on his own knowledge of gold division and location of the burial site, as well as his familiarity with mountain roads and feng shui, he found the correct way up the mountain and avoided the danger. He originally thought that he should be the first to arrive, but he found that Dai Yuanyang was already standing in the yard.

You know, when it comes to finding the way, moving mountains and searching for dragons, the Jiuliu should be the strongest. They can find the right way out when facing those strange things, and they can be regarded as the eyes of the team.

But Dai Yuanyang is actually faster than himself!

Could it be that foreigners’ technology is really capable of systematically improving and strengthening all nine types of supernatural powers?

Just as the rest of the group arrived and everyone was discussing who would be first, Lu Ban's voice suddenly rang out.

"Stop arguing and come eat."

Hearing the familiar young man's voice, even Blind Zhang couldn't help but tilt his head slightly.

"Brother Lu, we thought you were missing, why are you here... Hey, this is not right."

Just as Qi Ye was about to ask a question, he realized something was wrong.

"Brother Lu, when did you arrive?"

He Chong asked immediately.

"I'm not sure. I arrived here and saw no one. I was hungry, so I went into the kitchen to see what was available. Since there were ingredients, I just cooked it myself."

Lu Ban spoke the truth.

"?"

Dai Yuanyang couldn't help but wonder after hearing this.

With the help of the professor, he mastered some strange rules of Jiangcheng Mountain through various scientific and supernatural means in advance, which allowed him to climb the mountain at the fastest speed. Even so, it took more than half an hour and encountered certain dangers. But this young man arrived two quarters of an hour earlier than himself and even cooked a meal?

Is this possible?

Is this something humans can do?

Dai Yuanyang once suspected that Lu Ban was lying, and perhaps he used other means to go up the mountain early.

"Mr. Lu came with us and went up the mountain before us. He must have some unique skills to be able to arrive so early."

Du Ming then stepped forward to explain to Lu Ban.

"Mr. Lu, can you tell me about your experiences along the way?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Ban recounted everything that had happened to him in detail. Except for being a little vague about the method of getting rid of the zombies in the end, he concealed nothing else.

"...Indeed, this mountain trail is the path to confront your inner demons and defeat yourself. If you cannot maintain your original intention, then the illusions you encounter on the road will become obstacles for you."

Du Ming sighed.

How is it possible to live in this world without some obsessions and pursuits?

This hiking trail can see into people's hearts, reveal the weaknesses of human nature, and create illusions to seduce people. If one's will is a little weak, one will be turned away. Struggling and tangling takes time. Finally, even if one breaks through the inner demons, one may still be attacked by illusory monsters. If one does not have some skills, one may not be able to complete the trail successfully.

But Lu Ban's speed was like cheating.

He was not affected by the hallucinations at all, and even quickly dealt with the last illusory monster?

If Lu Ban was a few steps faster than them, it would still be normal, but Lu Ban even cooked the meal, which definitely meant more than just one or two steps.

"Maybe I'm just lucky. I haven't encountered too many sinister things."

Lu Ban made a casual guess.

“Perhaps, returning to the basics is the path to becoming a Xuanjun.”

Seventh Master murmured.

"Let's not talk about that. Eating is the most important thing. These ingredients should be fine, right? I tasted some and they're pretty good."

Lu Ban invited everyone to eat.

Looking at the table full of dishes that were prepared in a slightly odd way, everyone was even more speechless.

Is Lu Ban really treating this as a spring outing?

No one picked up their chopsticks. Dai Yuanyang sat aside and watched indifferently. Only Blind Zhang was the first to stretch out his chopsticks and pick up a piece of meat.

“It tastes okay.”

He chewed and swallowed before speaking.

Others also started to pick up their chopsticks.

After eating and drinking, Master Qi cleared his throat.

"In this first round, the fastest one should be Brother Lu Ban, the second place is the Dai family, I am third, the fourth should be Mr. Zhang, and the fifth is Mr. Shi Buwen. We will accumulate points now."

What surprised Lu Ban was that, apart from Qi Ye who was good at finding the way, Blind Zhang actually arrived earlier than Shi Bu Wen who ran fast.

Thinking of the paper man Lu Ban used to escape and the blind Zhang lying on the side of the road, this old senior who was able to participate in four Xuanjun competitions might not be as old and weak as he looked.

"The second challenge is to spend a night here and look for something hidden here. It is a jade pendant passed down by our ancestors. The jade pendant is divided into nine pieces. When everyone has found all the pieces, the score will be recorded according to the number of pieces of the jade pendant in their hands."

Qi Ye explained briefly.

"Finding things, I'm good at it."

Lu Ban said something.

The others looked at him.

Young and strong people are the best in fighting. As the youngest among these people, it is hard for Lu Ban to guarantee that he does not have any special skills.

The first stage of the mountain trail was already daunting, and now it seemed that Lu Ban was a strong opponent on the road to becoming Xuan Jun.

"Speaking of which, Master Qi, why do we have to wait till the night to look for it? Can't we look for those jade pendant fragments now?"

Curious Lu Ban asked again.

“It’s tradition.”

On the side, Shi Buwen said simply.

"oh."

Lu Ban responded and then scanned the room with [True Vision].

In an instant, he saw thick black fog seeping out from the corner of the room. The fog was like the pollution on the hiking trail, but it was stronger and richer than the pollution. The pollution slowly flowed out and flowed outside. It seemed that the pollution on the hiking trail overflowed from this gym.

These pollutants are concentrated in a certain location, and Lu Ban guessed that this might be where the jade pendant fragments are located.

However, it was not convenient for him to act now in broad daylight, so Lu Ban only remembered a few locations he saw.

In the afternoon, everyone started looking for clues.

Only Blind Zhang was left sitting there.

"Mr. Zhang, don't you want to go and see this courtyard?"

Lu Ban asked.

"I'm just a blind man. I can't see what the courtyard looks like. I'd better leave it to you young people."

Blind Zhang seemed to be about to give up, but his movements did not seem aimless, as if he had already seen through where things were.

The old man picked up the tea bowl and took a sip.

"If you are interested in this place, I suggest you go and see the worship hall. You may gain something there."

Blind Zhang pointed at the building that seemed out of place in the courtyard.

Lu Ban thanked the other party, walked through the yard full of rotten leaves, took a look at the building, and then walked in.

Inside, Lu Ban saw a statue of a god.

"This is definitely not some serious god."

Lu Ban muttered to himself when he saw the appearance of the statue.