At this moment, Diao Cheng walked over and said respectfully, "Master, we have found Song Hao's grandfather. His name is Song Zihe, and he works at a hospital in Qingdao."
Gu Xiaofeng nodded and said, "Very good! Song Hao will go to find this Song Zihe in the future. In order to prevent anyone from kidnapping Song Zihe to threaten Song Hao, you should go to Qingdao immediately to protect him secretly."
Upon hearing this, Diao Cheng replied, "Disciple obeys!" After saying this, he turned and left.
At this moment, two young men appeared silently behind Gu Xiaofeng and whispered, "Master, we've arrived." Their attitude was very respectful.
Gu Xiaofeng said "Oh," and then asked, "The Ghost Doctor Sect has been operating in this area for many years, in order to collect some kind of medicinal seedling. Where is it now?"
Chapter Forty-Eight: Reunion
A young man stepped forward and replied, "Ghost Wind just said that Song Hao wasn't brought up, or..." He hesitated for a moment, then continued, "or he's still with Song Hao. With our Life and Death Sect involved, Ghost Wind doesn't dare to inquire further, so he didn't ask any questions. Should we...?"
"No!" Gu Xiaofeng raised his hand to stop the young man, saying, "Our goal is to ensure his safety."
“Of course!” Gu Xiaofeng paused for a moment, then said, “You continue to investigate this matter with the Ghost Doctor Sect and find out what the purpose of this so-called medicinal seedling is. Also, without alerting Song Hao, you can secretly investigate whether he brought the seedling out.”
"Sect Master, there is one more thing. We have found out that the man named Ji Dongyang that the Ghost Doctor Sect captured is a member of the Ji family, one of the Nine Gates and Eighteen Medical Sects. He is currently living with his grandfather, Ji Xuan, in a town not far from here."
"Ji Xuan!" Gu Xiaofeng frowned upon hearing this.
Song Hao and Wang Li returned to the village. Seeing that they were both safe and sound, the worried villagers were finally relieved. They also told them that news came from Yuehe Village that the Ghost Doctor Sect had withdrawn and returned everything that originally belonged to them to the villagers.
Song Hao was overjoyed for the villagers. Wang Li told them that it was Song Hao who had fought for them to get it back, and the villagers were very grateful. They invited Song Hao to Yuehe New Village and held a banquet to celebrate. In Yuehe Village, every family indeed had a large courtyard that had been occupied by the Ghost Doctor Sect for several years. Now that it was back in their hands, the villagers were naturally overjoyed.
During the banquet, someone informed Wang Li that a phone call was for him, so Wang Li went out. Half an hour later, when Wang Li returned, he glanced at Song Hao a few times, and a strange look appeared in his eyes.
After dinner, Wang Li took Song Hao to his home, arranged for Song Hao to take a bath, and found him a new set of clothes.
When Song Hao came out of the shower, he saw Wang Li staring blankly at his old clothes.
"You've finished showering, change into these new clothes," Wang Li said, casually tossing the old clothes aside.
“Brother Wang, I never imagined we’d be underground for seven days and seven nights. It’s truly fate that we’ve gone through all this together,” Song Hao said as he dressed.
"Yes! What a coincidence!" Wang Li replied casually, then asked, seemingly unintentionally, "Brother Song Hao, where's that stalagmite? I haven't seen you with it."
Upon hearing this, Song Hao laughed and said, "It's gone, it's gone."
"Oh! It probably fell into that underground river. That's good!" Wang Li said, looking somewhat relieved.
Song Hao listened without comment. Knowing that his act of dissolving the medicinal seedling and stalagmite in his mouth was too bizarre, he didn't want to offer any further explanation.
“Brother Song Hao!” Wang Li said solemnly, “You are a good person. I wanted you to stay a few more days, but I’m afraid the Ghost Doctor’s Sect will come back to cause you trouble. So you’d better leave first thing tomorrow morning. Although the Life and Death Sect may be able to control them, things can change in ways that are beyond human imagination. It would be safer to avoid them.”
Upon hearing this, Song Hao said gratefully, "Brother Wang is absolutely right. We must be on guard. I'll be leaving tomorrow. It was a pleasure to meet you as a friend. I'll come to visit you again when I have the chance."
Wang Li scratched his head awkwardly, smiled, and said, "I'm also very happy to meet you."
After settling Song Hao down to sleep, Wang Li closed the door and left.
Lying in bed, Song Hao recalled his underground adventure at the Yuehe Copper Mine, as if he had just had a bizarre dream. Overwhelmed with emotion, he gradually fell asleep.
A series of urgent knocks startled Song Hao awake, and then Wang Li pushed the door open and came in.
"Brother Wang, what happened?" Song Hao sat up, surprised.
"Well...it's nothing much, I just want Brother Song Hao to leave now," Wang Li said anxiously.
"Why is that?" Song Hao asked, puzzled.
"Brother Song Hao, let me tell you the truth." Wang Li seemed to have made a decision, and appeared as if he were a different person as he said, "I am a member of the Demon Needle Sect!"
"What! You're from the Demon Needle Sect! How is that possible?" Song Hao exclaimed in astonishment.
"So you now know who I am, and the people from the Demon Needle Sect are on their way here," Song Hao said.
“Yes, so I would like to ask you to leave now,” Wang Li said indifferently.
Song Hao stared at Wang Li for a while, then nodded and said, "Thank you for telling me the truth and for not wanting to harm me by letting me leave early. What I want to know is, what a coincidence that you are a member of the Demon Needle Sect and even wanted to save me?"
Wang Li said, “It’s alright to tell you. Back then, the Ghost Doctor Sect plotted to seize the Yuehe Copper Mine, which attracted the attention of the Demon Needle Sect. On one of my trips, the Demon Needle Sect met and recruited me, and asked me to keep an eye on the Ghost Doctor Sect’s movements here and find out what their purpose was in settling here. You know these things, but I knew too little before. I only knew that the Ghost Doctor Sect was here to wait for a certain medicinal seed to be born in the copper mine.”
"However, to my disappointment, after my family was poisoned by the Ghost Doctor Sect, I sought help from the Demon Needle Sect. But the Demon Needle Sect refused to help me so as not to expose me and attract the attention of the Ghost Doctor Sect. From then on, I lost interest in the mission I had secretly taken on. You came a few days ago, and I didn't know at the time that you were the person the Demon Needle Sect was looking for."
"Later, the two of us went underground and found that medicinal seedling. You gave me the seedling, but I didn't accept it because I didn't want to work for the Demon Needle Sect anymore. Also, I haven't been in contact with the Demon Needle Sect for several years, so they should have forgotten about me. Just last night, someone from the Demon Needle Sect contacted me by phone to ask about the Ghost Doctor Sect's recent situation, and I briefly told them about it."
"When they heard that a man named Song Hao was also here, they became very interested and quickly asked about your appearance and age. So they ordered me to keep you here and take the medicinal seedlings back from you. I knew that the people from the Demon Needle Sect wanted to cause you trouble, but I couldn't bear to harm you, so I told you to leave before they arrived."
Upon hearing this, Song Hao said gratefully, "Thank you, Brother Wang. But aren't you afraid of being punished by the Demon Needle Sect after you let me go?"
Wang Li said, "Back then, I joined the Demon Needle Sect out of a moment of confusion, thinking that having a martial arts sect to protect me would make life easier. I didn't expect that they were just like the Ghost Doctor Sect, the kind of shady sects that use their skills to make money. I joined the Demon Needle Sect's information department, so I don't know any medical skills. To them, I'm neither here nor there, nobody cares. It was only yesterday that I accidentally mentioned your name, and that's when they started paying attention to me. I don't think they'll do anything to me. Although there are some rules, they won't apply to someone like me who was only temporarily recruited."
Song Hao said, "Brother Wang, it's best to be careful. Here's what we'll do: to avoid arousing their suspicion, just say that I was kidnapped by the Ghost Doctor Sect, and let them go find the Ghost Doctor Sect. Right now, you only know that the Demon Needle Sect is looking for me, but you don't know why they're looking for me. I think they shouldn't do anything to you."
After saying that, Song Hao tidied himself up, then bid farewell to Wang Li and quietly left Yuehe Village alone, heading towards the highway.
"It seems the Ghost Doctor Sect's movements here have caught the attention of some other martial arts sects. I didn't expect the Demon Needle Sect to find out I was here unintentionally. Back in Tang Family Village, I heard that the Demon Needle Sect had already launched an operation against me. Sigh! What a nuisance. So many martial arts sects have been drawn out because of that Heavenly Saint Acupuncture Bronze Man." Song Hao thought to himself as he walked.
It was past midnight, and there were no passing vehicles on the highway.
"Damn it! This feeling of being chased and homeless is really awful! In the martial world, it's all about the big fish eating the small fish. That so-called Gate of Life and Death subdued the Ghost Doctor's Gate, saving us a troublesome situation, but then they attracted the Demon Needle Gate. By the way, this Demon Needle Gate had their eye on Song Tiansheng's acupuncture bronze figure from the very beginning, determined to get it. Anyway, Aunt Dou trusted me and entrusted me with this matter, so I can't let someone else get it." Song Hao muttered.
"Oh! Aunt Dou, where are you? I really don't know what to do now. Is this all I can do but keep running away?" Song Hao shook his head, feeling helpless.
At this moment, Song Hao noticed a car parked on the roadside not far ahead, with its headlights flashing in his direction.
Upon seeing this, Song Hao thought to himself, "Perhaps the car broke down halfway and needs to be repaired."