The mountain we are on has a terrain where dragon veins intertwine, which means that there are countless dragon veins in this area. Besides the second token we found, there are likely other tokens around us.
I had made a promise with Wei Shengnan that we would each find two tokens. Now that I have achieved my goal, even though Wang Qing has taken one of them, there is no need to continue searching.
Previously, when I went into the mountains, I always followed the dragon vein so that I could find the token at any time.
On the return trip, in order to avoid those potential threats, I led the team on a very long detour. Although it was more tiring, it also helped to avoid a large part of the risks.
After traveling day and night for seven days, we finally emerged from these mountains and saw the courtyard where we had started.
"Damn it! We finally made it out!"
When the monkey saw people from Fengmen Village standing guard outside the gate, it plopped down on the ground and couldn't get up at all.
The more than twenty days of wilderness survival put our bodies and minds to a tremendous test.
We were able to persevere through several kilometers of mountain trails during our previous hikes, but we had to help each other through the last few hundred meters.
The people of Fengmen Village checked the tokens we brought back and pointed to the location of the building: "Food and water have been prepared for you in the canteen. After you have eaten, you can go and rest!"
Hearing what the other person said, I forced myself to stay awake and asked, "We've finished the competition, when can we enter Fengmen Village?"
After we won, the guide became much more amiable and no longer had the same unapproachable attitude as before: "From now on, you are qualified to enter Fengmen Village, but you still need to wait. Only when four teams are gathered will you be sent away."
"Isn't your rule a bit unreasonable?" the monkey asked, sticking out its neck. "We've gone through so much hardship on this journey, with one obstacle after another! If someone gets the token but has an accident halfway through, gets eaten by wild animals, or falls off a cliff and can't come back, are we supposed to wait a lifetime?"
"Our competition period is three months, and twenty-three days have passed. If the remaining teams have not returned by the end of the three months, you can be sent away."
The man paused for a moment: "During this period, we will take care of your food and accommodation. According to the rules, you are still not allowed to contact the outside world. If you can't wait, you have the right to withdraw from the competition."
Having gone through so much hard work, I naturally couldn't withdraw from the competition, so I asked the man, "Could I know how many teams have won so far?"
The man smiled and said, "Three!"
I pressed further, "Three teams, or did they hand over three tokens?"
The man kept everyone in suspense: "We can't expose the contestants' privacy. The winners are all inside the building; you can find out for yourself."
Hearing him say that, I didn't continue the conversation and quickly walked into the yard.
In this second match, a total of four tokens appeared, and I got half of them. Apart from the one I have, the remaining one was taken by Wang Qing.
If Wang Qing has already returned, then the remaining team definitely won't be Wei Shengnan and her group. Otherwise, if they had obtained both tokens, we should all be together by now.
Could it be that Wei Shengnan and her group have returned with the two tokens, and now only Wang Qing's team is missing?
With that thought in mind, I quickly walked into the cafeteria.
Upon entering, the cabinets inside are filled with all sorts of food, as well as drinks and alcoholic beverages.
Everyone had been starving for so long, and their eyes turned red at the sight of food. Even Jiang Man abandoned all ladylike manners and stuffed an egg tart into her mouth.
Seeing that there was no one else in the restaurant, I took out a roast chicken and started gnawing on it. Although I was eager to find out who the returning teams were, the winners were all staying here and couldn't run away.
While I was eating, the restaurant curtain was suddenly lifted, and a middle-aged man with a small braid walked into the restaurant. He glanced at us, who looked like starving ghosts, said nothing, walked over, picked up two dozen beers, and turned to leave.
When I saw this middle-aged man, the movement in my hands instantly froze in mid-air.
I know this man; he's also one of the contestants, and he doesn't have a team with him—he's all alone.
The fact that this man is here must mean that he has already obtained the token.
In this way, we, Wang Qing, and this guy with the pigtail, the three groups have already obtained three tokens, while Wei Shengnan and her group can only obtain one token at most.
But we clearly agreed beforehand that everyone would receive two tokens.
With that thought in mind, I quickly left the cafeteria and hurried upstairs to my guest room.
I need to confirm whether the other group is Wei Shengnan. If it is, it means that Wei Shengnan never intended to cooperate with me before, but instead made up a reason to deceive me.
But what was her purpose in doing this?
To get me more tokens, they're putting themselves in danger, or they don't want to go in the same direction as me, thus creating competition?
While I was on my way, I kept thinking about this question, but after thinking about it for a long time, I still didn't think there was any point in Wei Shengnan lying to me.
As I was walking with my head down, Wang Qing suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs ahead. After seeing me, he smiled and said, "Oh, I didn't expect you guys to be so lucky. You actually made it out alive."
My expression changed immediately when I saw Wang Qing.
The people who returned early were not Wei Shengnan and her group.
This means that Wei Shengnan did not lie to me. The reason they have not returned for so long is because they are also searching for the two tokens as agreed, but one of them has already been taken by Xiao Bianzi, so no matter how they search, they cannot find the next token.
After figuring out the situation, I turned my gaze to Wang Qing: "The fact that you're here proves that I didn't deceive you and that the token I gave you is genuine! So, was the poison Wang Hong gave us real or fake?"
"To be honest, I didn't trust you people at first. I even thought that if you cheated me with counterfeit goods, I would find you and get rid of you no matter where you are."
Wang Qing smiled and handed me a small porcelain bottle: "The antidote inside isn't for eating. Pour it into water, boil the water, and inhale the steam to detoxify yourself."
After speaking, Wang Qing walked outside, seemingly preparing to go to the cafeteria for a meal.
"Wang Qing, wait a minute!"
I suddenly stopped Wang Qing and asked him, "Did you see any other groups with women on your way back?"
Of the fourteen teams participating this time, including Wang Qing's team, there are four teams with women. Wei Shengnan's team is one of them. I also remember the girl from another team; I recall that she had dyed yellow hair.
Why are you asking this?
Wang Qing glanced at me, then nodded: "I did encounter a group with women. If nothing unexpected happens, that group should be dead."
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