August was the hottest month on the Pfister Star; it was also the dry season that hardly rained.
During the day, the average temperature was above 40 degrees Celcius, but it would drop to approximately 20 degrees Celcius at night. Even for ordinary folks, it was more comfortable at night, let alone cultivators.
Moreover, all one had to do was look up, and they would see a starry sky; it was rare that there were no stars.
The main reason why Lin Huang and his subordinates had chosen to station the Sword Alliance here was that this planet was closest to the teleportation point connecting the gravel world to the great world.
Lin Huang lay on the rooftop, silently watching the unfamiliar starry sky overhead.
It did not taking him very long to identify the other planets around the Devil Hunter Star Zone, as well as the planet where he suspected the teleportation point was.
That particular planet was in the same galaxy as the Pfister Star. Although it was just a dwarf planet that was slightly further from the other stars and reflected a much weaker light, it was very close to the Pfister Star. One could still see it with the naked eye.
Right as Lin Huang was about to use Divine Telekinesis to confirm that the teleportation point was located on the planet he had spotted, his communicator device suddenly began vibrating.
He tapped on the communication page. It was a message sent from an unfamiliar number.
“Are you in the Devil Hunter Star Zone now?”
Lin Huang was stunned when he read this. The image of a particular skinny figure immediately came to mind.
“Yang Ling?!”
The only person he could think of who liked using unfamiliar numbers to contact him and who was also able to locate his coordinates was Yang Ling—a traveler just like himself.
Just when he was about to reply to the message and ask if this was Yang Ling, another message came.
It was from another unfamiliar number.
“Don’t reply. The previous message was just to confirm your current location.”
Almost at the same time, a message came in from yet another unfamiliar number.
“See you tomorrow morning. We’ll talk when we meet. (Don’t reply)”
Lin Huang frowned slightly after closing the communication page.
From the looks of things, Yang Ling had run into some serious trouble, or he would not be this cautious.
He still distinctly remembered the last time Yang Ling had sent him a message—that had been four months ago or so. Lin Huang had been in closed-door cultivation back then and had only seen the message around two months later. When he had called back, the number was already out of service.
What caught his attention back then was that Yang Ling had only sent a short message—”Take care of Hong Zhuang for me…”
At the time, he already suspected that something might have happened to Yang Ling.
Fortunately, he had finally received a message from Yang Ling after four months or more.
Lin Huang was slightly relieved that at least he had received some form of communication. It proved that Yang Ling was at least safe for the time being.
“I’ll find out what exactly happened tomorrow when we meet,” Lin Huang mumbled to himself.
When he checked the time, it was already past one o’clock in the wee hours of the morning.
He swiftly slipped into his bedroom, took a quick shower, and went to bed.
In reality, at his current level of ability, his physical body would not get dirty, nor did he need sleep.
It was just that he was used to doing these things. When he was not cultivating, he still retained his normal habits of eating, sleeping, and showering.
The next morning, Lin Huang woke up early.
By the time he finished his morning ablutions, it was not even 6 a.m. yet.
One of the reasons he woke up so early was that in the early hours of the morning previously, he had agreed to meet Yang Ling. For another, he wanted to try breakfast at one of the small shops.
This little breakfast place was extremely busy, even in the morning. Lin Huang was unwilling to queue for a place, so he decided to just wake up early instead.
Once he had finished getting himself ready, he made an area sweep with Divine Telekinesis and discovered that the breakfast place had just opened its doors. In a flash, he immediately appeared at the entrance.
He ordered two trays of the shop’s signature buns and a bowl of plain congee. He then sat down and waited patiently for the buns to be served.
A figure appeared out of nowhere less than two seconds after he had taken his seat.
Lin Huang was utterly stunned when he saw who it was. It took him a moment to regain his composure.
“How come you’re here? Where’s Yan Ling?”
The person who had come to meet him was Hong Zhuang!
Lin Huang scrutinized her from head to toe. She was different from before; her personality had undergone a drastic change.
Not only was her previous alluring air conspicuously absent, but she was also no longer wearing red. Instead, she wore a plain green blouse, and a faint trace of worry creased her brow.
“Yang Ling… he’s dead…” Hong Zhuang hesitated for a moment but decided to say it anyway.
“Yang Ling is dead?!” Lin Huang found this rather hard to believe. He squinted at Hong Zhuang. “Then who sent me those messages after midnight?”
“I did.” As Hong Zhuang spoke, screenshots of the three messages popped up.
The screenshots confirmed that she had indeed sent those messages.
“How did you find my coordinates then?! My communicator device’s location has been turned off,” Lin Huang voiced his suspicions again. From what he remembered, Yang Ling was the only one who could do that. It was no use even if his communicator’s location had been turned off; Yang Ling could still locate him.
“He transferred his Goldfinger to me before he died.” While Hong Zhuang was explaining, Lin Huang kept staring at her. However, she did not look as if she was lying.
Lin Huang knew about Yang Ling and Hong Zhuang’s relationship. However, he did not think that Yang Ling would reveal his identity as a traveler and the matter of his Goldfinger to Hong Zhuang. After all, Yang Ling had been betrayed before, so it was very hard for him to fully trust anybody.
However, what Hong Zhuang said convinced Lin Huang a little further.
This was because Yang Ling might have planned for the future once he realized he was marked for death. To prevent the Raiders from obtaining his Goldfinger, it sounded like it was something that Yang Ling would do— transfer his Goldfinger to someone else in advance. Furthermore, the recipient of the Goldfinger was Hong Zhuang, which was completely logical as the two of them were already in an intimate relationship.
Theoretically speaking, only travelers could use Goldfingers. However, Yang Ling’s Goldfinger was not whole. Moreover, with his intelligence and capability, it was entirely possible that he had found a method of transferring his Goldfinger to Hong Zhuang.
“He asked me to look for you.” Hong Zhuang made no move to avoid Lin Huang’s scrutiny. “He also said that in this world, you’re the only traveler he trusts.”
Lin Huang became very thoughtful after he heard this.
What Hong Zhuang said sounded rather cheesy, but it certainly seemed to be something that Yang Ling would say before he died. Hong Zhuang probably did not make this up.
“How did he die?” Lin Huang asked again after sorting out his thoughts and feelings.
“We were actually targeted by Raiders as soon as we arrived in the great world. Yang Ling’s Goldfinger was just a remnant, but the individual capable of plundering his Goldfinger could sense its rough location. We’ve been on the run these past few years in the great world because of that.
“About four and a half months ago, the person who plundered Yang Ling’s Goldfinger personally made a move. It was a Lord who easily located our hiding place… Yang Ling sensed that all the layers of security measures he put in place had been breached. He knew our enemy was coming, so he transferred both his Goldfinger and the secret information in his mind to me before sending me away.”
“So you didn’t actually see Yang Ling’s death with your own eyes?” Lin Huang persisted.
“I didn’t see him die, but I’m sure of it,” Hong Zhuang explained patiently, “I can sense that his aura remnant has been completely obliterated from his Goldfinger.
“You don’t need to worry that the Goldfinger within me might attract that particular Lord. Yang Ling reset the Goldfinger entirely when he transferred it to me. Although the reset made the Goldfinger lose most of its functions, it has cut off any connection with the original Goldfinger. Otherwise, I would have been captured over four months ago.”
“Let’s talk somewhere else,” Lin Huang shot a glance at the buns that were now ready and got the lady proprietress to pack them for takeaway.
With breakfast in hand, Lin Huang led Hong Zhuang to the Sword Alliance’s headquarters.
