Since it was his first time here, Lin Jin was fascinated by the sight of the giant spirit and his bear. And so, after concealing his presence, he began tailing them. As the targets were so huge, it would take considerable effort to lose track of them. Lin Jin was able to maintain a large enough distance to avoid detection.
As he followed them, Lin Jin could no longer differentiate left from right. On the other hand, the giant spirit navigated the forest with relative ease.
“That’s odd. Why do I feel like someone’s following us?”
The giant spirit stabbed his long spear into the soft ground before plopping down to rest. The bear followed its master in an adorably by clumsily planting its heavy butt on the forest floor.
After sitting down, the bear truly resembled a tiny hill.
The bear didn’t understand what the giant spirit said. It merely looked around before scraping its paws against the bark of a nearby tree. After removing the bark, the big fat worms that lay beneath started squirming around in a frenzy. Anyone would have reacted that way if the roof of their house was suddenly blown away.
Before the juicy worms could escape, they were seized by the bear and stuffed inside its mouth. The crunchy sounds it made as it chewed proved just how delicious the worms were.
These worms were the size of a human thigh, but to the bear, it was only a snack.
“Eat, eat, eat… all you know is stuffing your face with food. Besides being big, you’re useless,” complained the giant spirit. Although his words sounded harsh, his tone was affectionate.
The bear paid him no mind and continued its hunt for food. Perhaps it was trying to say that its master could say all he want, but it would never affect its snack time.
Suddenly, a glowing spark came flying at the giant spirit. Upon sensing it, the clumsy bear sent wind slashes that crackled explosively in the air against the incoming threat.
This blocked off the spark.
The light glowed brighter before morphing into a laughing humanoid.
“Zuo Men, although this bear doesn’t look too bright, it’s surprisingly strong when it counts. Even after learning this new spell, it would be a pain for me to fight it.”
The person who spoke was dressed slovenly like a loose immortal. His clothes were tattered, and covered in patches. Still, his aura was rich and overflowed with immortal energy.
Even someone with terrible eyesight could tell he was an immortal.
The man also had a sword hanging on his back.
It had no sheathe, and it produced an array of colors like a kaleidoscope. The sword seemed to be forged from yellow crystal, which was a unique material.
Realizing the man was an acquaintance, the dopey bear sat back down and resumed having its simple-minded demeanor. The change happened so abruptly it was almost as if the bear from earlier was a completely different creature.
“Huang Shi Sanren, you’re a good guy but you fool around too much. If Dopey Bear can’t control its strength ends up hurting you, I will not take responsibility for that,” said the giant spirit, Zuo Men.
Huang Shi Sanren chuckled carefreely. Then, he wrinkled his nose and looked around. “Zuo Men, did you bring someone else?”
As he spoke, he stared at a spot roughly a thousand feet away. It was exactly where Lin Jin was hiding.
It was at that moment Lin Jin knew, he had been exposed.
He was following an immortal expert after all. Lin Jin didn’t think he would go unnoticed by them forever. Instead of approaching them with a hostile intention, he planned to befriend them, so that he could learn more about the extraterritorial area.
The next instant, the crystal sword on Huang Shi Sanren’s back flashed and Huang Shi Sanren immediately appeared before Lin Jin.
As Lin Jin had witnessed this phenomenal ability earlier, he wasn’t fazed when it happened the second time. He tidied up his attire and saluted the immortal.
The ground beneath their feet rumbled, and before long, Zuo Men and Dopey Bear arrived.
Zuo Men scratched his head as he studied Lin Jin. “As I said, it feels like someone has been following me this whole time. Who are you?”
“Lin Jin of United Continent!”
Lin Jin was well-mannered. Whenever a person was required to introduce oneself, they would normally state their origin, especially their hometown. At the very least, this was Lin Jin’s usual answer.
Sure enough, Zuo Men and Huang Shi Sanren were stunned after hearing his response.
“What is this United Continent you speak of?” asked Zuo Men. Huang Shi Sanren shook his head. “It must be some unnamed place, but that’s now the point. My good fellow, why have you been following Zuo Men?”
Considering how tolerant these immortals were, Lin Jin didn’t try to hide anything.
“It is my first time being here, and encountering a giant spirit. I got curious so I followed you, but there is no ulterior motive behind it. I bear no ill-will whatsoever.”
In most cases, most people would cease questioning him upon receiving such an answer. Though there might be a few who would use it as an excuse to spark conflict.
There was a reason why Lin Jin was confident enough to tail them. Although he couldn’t match up to the giant spirit, he had faith in his ability to outrun them.
Huang Shi Sanren looked at Zuo Men and the latter nodded. “That’s true. If he harbors ill intentions or carried murderous intent, I would have been able to sense it. The same thing goes for Dopey Bear. Though, we giant spirits aren’t rare, despite our small population. My good fellow, have you perhaps been cultivating in a sect all this while and it’s your first time coming outside?”
Huang Shi Sanren nodded. “That must be it. He has that vibe.”
The two just made up an excuse for him and Lin Jin could only flash them a bitter smile. That was okay. They could think what they wanted if it meant no hassle for him. Moreover, Lin Jin was now sure that both immortals had no idea where United Continent was, or they would have realized by now.
They struck up a conversation soon afterward.
Lin Jin displayed commendable manners because both Zuo Men and Huang Shi Sanren were immortals. Their age and cultivation level were above his, so being a junior, he was obliged to show them due respect.
Meanwhile, Zuo Men and Huang Shi Sanren assumed Lin Jin was a disciple from one of the immortal sects. It was common for such individuals to be conceited, and they rarely treated loose immortals with courtesy. That was a major reason why both immortals had a good impression of Lin Jin. They got along surprisingly well.
“Taoist Lin, since you’re out here to train, then your journey has to be carefree and unrestrained. It just so happens that Zuo Men and I will be visiting the legendary Immortal Spirit Pond to take a look. Why don’t you join us?” offered Huang Shi Sanren generously.
Zuo Men nodded. “If you don’t have anything to do at the moment, we can travel together and watch each other’s backs. After all, there are risks involved with training alone.”
Lin Jin couldn’t be any more willing to join them.
Even if they hadn’t asked, he was planning to find a way to follow them. Now that they were extending an invitation, why should he refuse?
And so, he happily agreed.
They were also getting to know each other better. The giant spirit was named Zuo Men, and that was his given name. He had no surname.
It was normal for giant spirits not to have surnames so that was nothing unusual.
Even among the giant spirits, Zuo Men was considered strange. Since ancient times, giant spirits have been followers and servants of immortals. Zuo Men hated that idea.
He preferred being alone and he was fond of taming beasts, and Dopey Bear was a companion he had cared for since it was a cub.
