Wasn't he the newcomer who separated from them after tagging along with their team in the morning? Was it possible that they just looked alike?
"It's indeed me. Why did you guys come here?" asked Wang Zhong as he smiled, as though implying that it was dangerous and that they should not have come.
Everyone was dumbfounded. It was Wang Zhong. It really was him!
Was this the newcomer who had been ridiculed by countless people in the Holy City and the person who was believed to be a wastrel? For someone that no one was even willing to bring out of the city, how was it possible that he had appeared here?
After surviving the crisis, the atmosphere was inexplicably awkward. It seemed that Wang Zhong was the one who should not be here, wasn't it?
Everyone still could not believe their eyes as they felt that what they were witnessing was simply unbelievable. No one realized that they should respond to Wang Zhong's greeting as the whole team stared at him, dumbfounded.
Wang Zhong smiled as he gestured toward the team. "They are my friends from the Holy Land. How do I say this? The system in the Holy Land is a little troublesome. It was thanks to them that I was able to come out this time," explained Wang Zhong.
Aiolos smiled. He did not feel much about these people from the Federation. Frankly, he didn't like the Federation; one could even say that he disliked them to some extent. Other than people from Tutankhamun, most people from the Empire disliked people from the Federation. That was because the Federation had been too domineering in the Fifth Dimension, taking hold of too many resources; and they often also targeted people from the Empire. Naturally, Aiolos, who believed in survival of the fittest, was not really bothered by it. However, the fact that he lent a helping hand was solely due to Wang Zhong.
On the other hand, Mu Zi smiled at them, revealing his pearly whites. "Hello."
"Hi… Hello…" Feng finally recovered from the shock, but soon after, she was stunned once again. As an expert at the peak of the Heavenly Soul Stage — especially one who had been in the Holy Land for many years — she could clearly feel the strong vitality and endless soul power exuding from this blond-haired warrior. He was definitely an expert even among Heavenly Soul Stage Soldiers, which was absolutely terrifying.
As for that bald and dark-skinned young man with the strange coffin, she seemed to have heard of him somewhere before, but she could not recall who he was at this particular moment.
It was common knowledge that due to the various policies of the Federation in the Fifth Dimension, the Empire had suffered many losses at dimensional base stations; thus, top-notch experts of the Empire disliked people of the Federation. There was only one kind of person that could be approved of by the Empire. That was people with actual strength!
What kind of strength did he have for him to be worthy of the friendship of two experts for the Empire? He was merely a newcomer in the Holy City and an Initial Phase Heroic Soul!
Feng felt kind of stupid standing with these unresponsive guys…
Obviously, Aiolos was unwilling to waste his time with them. He needed to comprehend and internalize the battle just now; furthermore, there was no further danger in the secret realm for the time being.
"I'll take my leave first then," said Aiolos with a smile. "Maybe I'll need you two's help again next time."
On the other hand, everyone gulped in disbelief. The atmosphere was totally silent. Even Lance, who was the most talkative, was speechless. They had assumed that Wang Zhong was a burden that the other two needed to carry, but in the end…
It was already hard to believe that Wang Zhong could befriend an expert at the Heavenly Soul Stage: though, it just might have been due to Wang Zhong being to the other party's liking or that they had already developed a friendship formerly. However, how was it possible that an expert at the Heavenly Soul Stage needed Wang Zhong's help to venture into a secret realm? What the hell…? What was going on?!
With Aiolos's departure, the feeling of suppression in the Wanderlust Team subsided slightly. It was not just the element of surprise that caught them off guard earlier; it was also having to face an expert at the Heavenly Soul Stage whom they had no knowledge of. Even if the other party did nothing, anyone would feel pressured.
The entire team heaved a sigh of relief. The way they looked at Wang Zhong was completely different from before. If anyone else still regarded Wang Zhong as an ordinary newcomer at this moment, he would truly be a fool.
Furthermore, thinking back to the sudden standstill of the tree demons and then their subsequent weakening, it seemed as though the core of the secret realm was stolen. Was it possible that Wang Zhong and his two friends KOed the Big Boss of this secret realm? The trees' sudden pause had allowed them to take a breather at that time, which permitted them to fight until now. This was tantamount to saving the entire Wanderlust Team twice.
No one expected that it would be this newcomer who saved everyone in the end…
"Our captain…" Asher's eyes turned red.
It was truly a pity. If Oscar had persisted for another minute or two without using 'Trisson's Catastrophe Vest,' he would be rescued like everyone else.
At times, the fates of people were really unknown.
It seemed to be the end of the line for Oscar, who was lying on the ground. His Soul Sea was in serious deficit. Generally, the Soul Sea could actually be restored by rest and recuperation after overexertion. That was the case for Small Eyes; even though she was currently unconscious, she would recover after a couple of weeks of rest in the Holy City. But Oscar's situation was different. Trisson's Catastrophe Vest was far beyond his level. Even if it only drew from his Soul Sea briefly, it had already exceeded his limit. His Soul Sea was not just simply emptied; his life force was also sucked dry. This kind of injury was extremely difficult to treat. That is, unless one was willing to pay a huge price to ask a top-notch Heavenly Soul Soldier who specialized in soul treatment for help. However, that cost was simply too high; it was impossible for the Wanderlust Team to afford it. Therefore, he would have been dead even if they had managed to return to the Holy City.
Although the joy of 'rebirth' made everyone excited for a moment, as they thought of Oscar, they grew silent again. Everyone's eyes turned red as well. They had already experienced the pain of losing a comrade once, and now they were about to lose their captain.
Maybe this was the fate of all Dimensional Exploration teams. Since they chose to set foot in danger, they had to be prepared to lose their lives at any moment.
Feng waved her hands and was about to give a speech.
"Let me have a look." The bald young man who appeared very friendly stepped forward.
People of the team immediately stepped in front of Oscar. Although Wang Zhong had rescued them, they clearly did not trust this man who was carrying a coffin. He had a peculiar aura radiating from him. Who knew what he wanted to do?
"Let Mu Zi have a look. He is very good in this aspect, especially in terms of spirit overexertion," said Wang Zhong. He was absolutely confident in Mu Zi's skills; after all, Sister Hong's situation was definitely more serious than Oscar's.
Everyone exchanged glances with each other then finally stepped aside. Mu Zi did not mind their reactions. There were too many people who did not believe him. After a cursory examination, he spoke, "His condition isn't serious."
Oscar's situation was almost exactly the same as that of Sister Hong, but it was less serious. Excessive overexertion of the Soul Sea had led to loss of vitality, but he did not have serious external injuries like Sister Hong, and there was no delay in treatment. Even his Soul Sea had yet to collapse.
Strictly speaking, Mu Zi was not a healer; his ability was only to prevent the arrival of death.
He patted the coffin behind him, and the coffin cover opened slightly. A faint blue light shot out from the coffin and was directed by Mu Zi to manage Oscar's soul. The people of the Wanderlust Team were not ignorant. This kind of soul tool that directly controlled the soul was unheard of. What's more, was that it could be manipulated to such a degree. It was truly… a treasure.
The soul was the source of strength for human beings and also their most vulnerable place. Even in the Holy Land, those who dared to handle the soul could be counted on one's fingers. If they wanted to ask one for help, they might not have enough money even if they mortgaged their entire team. Furthermore, the process might not be as easy as what Mu Zi did.
Slivers of black aura were drawn from Oscar's body, and through the blue light, they were absorbed by the coffin. After that, Mu Zi also gently heaved a sigh of relief.