In the middle of the dark forest, among the trees, a group of eight moved silently—four men and four women—riding sturdy goats.
At the front, a powerful black goat with large, curved horns led the way, resembling a motorcycle from hell. Riding it was their leader, Liu Jian, with the unconscious Hinako in front of him.
"We lost three members this time, but we only managed to get a single girl," one of the members spoke.
"If we want to grow stronger, we must take risks. Nothing comes easily," Liu Jian spoke, his voice as calm as ever.
"They're just the natives of this place. So what if they die?" Bai Lin said coldly—the same girl who had killed Shan Yu.
"Bai Lin," Liu Jian called her name with a sharp tone.
"Tsk." She rolled her eyes toward the sky and fell silent.
"It doesn't matter whether you're from this world or another. In the end, we are all human. We share the same goal, and we will work together until we achieve it," Liu Jian spoke formally. At the same time, he sent a private message to Bai Lin: "Stop spreading hatred."
The rest of the members—four of whom were from this world—were impressed by Liu Jian's words. But it wasn't just his speech that earned their respect; it was his actions.
Despite being a Transmigrator, he never discriminated against anyone. He treated everyone equally and ensured that each person received what they deserved.
Bai Lin despised the natives of this world; she didn't even see them as human, even if they were part of her team.
If it were up to her, she would have killed them long ago—or better yet, never allowed them to join in the first place.
But that decision belonged to Liu Jian. Even though she sometimes provoked him by spreading hatred within the team, hoping to drive them away, she never crossed the line.
After all, she was Liu Jian's partner—the one who had arrived in this world alongside him—and the second-in-command of the team.
"Hmm…" Hinako opened her eyes and looked around.
"Welcome back," Liu Jian said with a smile.
She was seated sideways on the goat's back, with Liu Jian to her left, holding her to keep her from falling.
"You…!" Hinako's eyes widened when she saw him. She immediately tried to jump off the goat, but he caught her at the last moment.
Her attempt to escape was an instinctive reaction—the last thing she remembered was being attacked by this young man.
In her subconscious mind, Liu Jian was a dangerous threat she needed to get away from.
"You're safe. No need to overreact," Liu Jian said.
"Where's Kogan?" Hinako quickly looked around, but he was nowhere to be seen.
"Kogan… The captain chased us and took him back. I couldn't save him, unfortunately," Liu Jian said with a regretful tone.
"What?!" Hinako's heart sank.
Being beside Kogan always gave her a sense of safety and comfort.
With the previous group, she never felt much danger—and the reason was Kogan.
But now, with this new group, unease began to creep into her heart.
Liu Jian framed it as a rescue, but to Hinako, she would rather be in danger with Kogan than be safe alone.
"If I'm staying here, then Kogan has to be here too," she said sharply, her tone laced with worry.
"We'll definitely rescue him in the future," Liu Jian replied.
"The future? No way! We have to get him now before they reach the city," Hinako insisted.
"Who do you think you are to give orders? And why are you still holding her? Let her walk," Bai Lin spoke in a cold, angry tone.
Rage surged inside her—the only one allowed to speak to Liu Jian like that was her. Seeing another girl do the same didn't sit well with her at all.
And on top of that, watching Hinako so close to Liu Jian filled her with jealousy.
"We'll arrive soon," Liu Jian said, then glanced at Hinako. "If we go back now, reinforcements might have already reached them. The wise choice is to plan for later."
Aftertravelingforsometime…
Deep in the forest, between the trees, five people sat around a yellow fire, with five goats resting beside them.
"Leader."
Upon seeing Liu Jian, they stood to greet him.
Liu Jian dismounted his goat and helped Hinako down.
A man stepped forward, took the goat's reins, and led it to a corner. Around each of the four nearby trees, thick ropes were wrapped, and he secured the goat's bridle to them.
"Where are Ring Tai, Ting Zhao, and Zong Yi?" one of the group members asked.
"They were killed by the captain... It's truly a loss," Liu Jian said regretfully.
As a leader, the deaths of his followers were his responsibility—a burden he would have to carry for life.
"Tsk." A bitter feeling burned in the hearts of all the members.
"If all of you had come, your friends wouldn't have died, and you would have recovered Kogan easily as well."
Hinako didn't care about their slain friends—reuniting with Kogan was all that mattered to her.
Everyone present looked at her with strange expressions. The others' deaths had been inevitable, and it wouldn't have made a difference whether they had joined or not.
As long as they hadn't reached the first rank, they couldn't have had much of an impact.
During the attack, they had gambled with their lives. Whoever encountered the squad captain would be the unlucky one.
If the squad captain hadn't followed Liu Jian, he would have killed them all.
So why didn't Liu Jian face the squad caprain directly while the others went to retrieve Kogan and Hinako?
First, the enemies outnumbered them by almost five to one. The only one who could get past them easily was Liu Jian.
Second, their primary goal was obtaining the essence—retrieving Kogan and Hinako wouldn't bring them any personal benefits.
Third, it would take too much time, allowing the enemies to adapt, which would eventually lead to a dead end.
"You're really an idiot. It would've been better if he left you behind and brought your partner instead. Tsk." Bai Lin shook her head.
"Why did you even come to us in the first place? No one asked you to save us," Hinako spoke angrily, feeling hostility from Bai Lin.
Liu Jian sighed, "Then let me put it another way—we kidnapped you, and you have no right to complain."
Hinako knew that was the reality of the situation. She had nothing left to say.
"Is that what you were thinking? If we had kidnapped you, then why aren't you restrained? If you want to save Kogan, you need to reach the first rank."
Liu Jian looked at her, his eyes as black as the darkness surrounding them.
The rest of the squad chuckled silently.
Hinako heard them and felt like she was being tricked, but she asked anyway, "And how do I reach the first rank?"
"Gather 10,000 essence, and that's it."
Liu Jian paused for a moment before continuing, "Do you know why I called it a rescue?"
"I was just like you once. I came from another world. When I arrived here, I felt like I was reborn. Bai Lin and I were taken by a group to their city, where they started teaching us about life—how to live and survive."
Liu Jian sat on the ground, leaning his back against a tree, resting his hand on his knee.
"They enslaved us while giving us a miserable salary… and they even changed its name to a 'job'—hahaha!"
Everyone burst into hysterical laughter, tears streaming down their faces.
Liu Jian continued, "To be able to survive on your own, you need to at least reach the first rank. Do you know how long that would take if you kept working for them? It would never happen."
"I won't deny that the place is relatively safe, but I'd rather die for myself than live for someone else."
"If your lover is smart, he'll figure it out and leave on his own," said Mo Xin, one of the native members.
'Lover?!' Hinako was shocked internally, but she didn't deny it. "From what I know, he'll leave before even realizing anything."
"It's not that simple. They will brainwash him, make him believe that if he wants to survive, he must work for them, and that leaving them means being lost."
Liu Jian sighed.
"That's why, if you want to save him, you need to become strong for both of you. Or… you could simply forget about him and focus on yourself instead," one of the members said.
"Forget him? Hahaha!"
Hinako burst into laughter—a cold, emotionless laugh.
Scenes from the past flashed through her mind: the moment he saved her from the feral monkeys, how he never abandoned her while they crossed the river.
He never left her when she was at her weakest—so how could she abandon him now, when he was the one at his weakest?
Everyone looked at her with surprised expressions.
"Don't worry, everything will be fine," Liu Jian reassured her.