Wandering Swordsman |

After saying that, Shen Mo changed into the disciple's clothes, pretended to have suffered a hidden injury, and slowly walked towards the place where the signal was sent.

Yue Linglong and Xie Xin quickly found a secluded corner to hide in, their eyes fixed on Shen Mo's figure until he disappeared into the shadows in the distance.

Not long after, Shen Mo arrived at the place where the signal was sent—the totem that Lü Yan had discovered.

At this moment, a number of people gradually arrived and gathered together. Shen Mo naturally and quietly blended into the crowd.

At this moment, his face was no different from that of Bo Tao, the disciple whose power he had drained. Even his voice had been adjusted with internal energy, making the imitation lifelike.

Lu Yan and Tu Yuliang stood before the totem, awaiting the arrival of the last few. As no one else appeared, Lu Yan began to count the number of people. Once the count was complete, his gaze grew heavy, and he whispered to Tu Yuliang, "Brother Tu, only about four hundred and eighty people have arrived! That demon-refining beast has cost us a third of our men."

Tu Yuliang nodded, his face equally serious. He then amplified his voice with his inner power and addressed the crowd: "Everyone, this totem is our only hope. It emits a special energy fluctuation that can temporarily prevent the Demon-Refining Beast from getting close."

After catching his breath, Tu Yuliang continued, "Next, we need to use this totem as a base to search for other possible totems, increasing our chances of survival in the Demon Refining Mountain over the next five years."

After Tu Yuliang finished speaking, he gave Lü Yan a look. Lü Yan understood and continued, "That's right. According to the records, these totems do not exist in isolation. There are a total of 108 totems in the Demon Refining Mountain. If we can find more totems, we might be able to piece together more clues, and even find a way to defeat the Demon Refining Beast."

In the crowd, Shen Mo, disguised, listened quietly to everything, secretly calculating in his heart: If this demon-refining beast is really that powerful, then he must take this news out to the people of the Moon Demon Pavilion so that they can prepare in advance and find other totems!

As Shen Mo was thinking, a hand suddenly patted his shoulder: "Bo Tao, where's Zhang Yun, who was running for his life with you?"

Shen Mo's heart suddenly raced, but he quickly calmed down, his mind racing. The person he was disguised as should be named Bo Tao, and the Zhang Yun he mentioned seemed to be someone who had escaped the pursuit of the demon beasts with Bo Tao.

However, when Shen Mo met Bo Tao, he was all alone, which meant that Zhang Yun had either gotten separated from him or had met with misfortune.

"Zhang Yun and I got separated when we were running away together," Shen Mo answered, mimicking Cheng Botao's voice, as he slowly turned around. He saw a young man of similar age to Botao asking the question, his eyes filled with an inexplicable sense of disgust.

The young man frowned slightly, clearly not entirely satisfied with the answer, but he didn't press further. Instead, he scoffed, "Haha, you're really a coward. Weren't you two always inseparable? Yet when danger struck, you only thought of yourself." With that, he turned and left to continue talking with his companions.

As the young man approached his companions, they immediately asked, "Wu Xie, how's it going? Any results?"

"Of course there's a result! I won. Pay up!" the young man named Wu Xie laughed loudly. However, at this moment, the others immediately reminded Wu Xie that 'Bo Tao' was watching them, and then Wu Xie and the others lowered their voices.

Shen Mo watched as the voices of those people murmured, and they would occasionally turn their heads to look at him with disdain during their discussion. He didn't care at all, because Shen Mo knew he wasn't really 'Bo Tao,' so it didn't matter how they targeted him.

......

Following Lü Yan and Tu Yuliang's instructions, all the survivors were divided into teams of ten, each tasked with finding other totems. Shen Mo was assigned to the same team that had just chatted up the young man Wu Xie. Wu Xie's eyes flashed with impatience and contempt, as if he was annoyed by Bo Tao's presence.

After leaving the crowd, Wu Xie was the first to attack: "Hey, Bo Tao, you coward, remember to walk in front and scout ahead, don't hold us back." His tone was full of disdain, and his companions around him joined in the laughter. Shen Mo nodded silently and walked to the front. But Shen Mo recalled his days as a beggar in the small town, when he was often bullied by Zhu Pang and his gang. This familiar sense of oppression made him feel sorry for the real Bo Tao.

"Look at Bo Tao, he looks like he's about to faint at any moment. He's such a burden," a burly man next to Wu Xie mocked. The others echoed his laughter, which reverberated through the valley with an unsettling malice. They shoved Shen Mo, who was disguised as 'Bo Tao,' to the front of the group, as if they were treating him as someone they could bully at will.

Shen Mo suppressed his anger. He knew it wasn't the time to reveal his identity yet, since they hadn't gone too far. If he made a move, they would still have a chance to escape back to the totem where Lü Yan was.

As the group moved forward, Wu Xie and the others continued to verbally attack him, sometimes even deliberately tripping him up, watching him fall to the ground, and then laughing at him. Each fall reminded Shen Mo of that unbearable past, but he told himself he had to endure it until he found the best opportunity.

After walking about two miles, Shen Mo suddenly stopped. The surrounding area was now open, surrounded by dense forests, with the outlines of mountains faintly visible in the distance. It was the perfect time to make his move.

Upon seeing this, Wu Xie flew into a rage: "Bo Tao! Why did you stop! Get out of here! You piece of trash, are you trying to kill us all?!" His voice was full of threat, and the other eight people surrounded him, their eyes revealing a fierce look.

"That's right, stop blocking the way!"

"If you're scared, then get the hell out of here!"

......

The group hurled insults at each other, seemingly forgetting that they were a team of ten.

Amidst the insults from the crowd, Shen Mo slowly turned around, his eyes as cold as knives, staring at the group of people who took pleasure in bullying 'Bo Tao'.

Wu Xie and the other eight were unaware of the impending danger and continued to speak in a provocative tone: "What's wrong, are you mute? Or are you scared out of your wits?" As he spoke, Wu Xie took a few steps forward, trying to teach "Bo Tao" a lesson with his fists.

However, just as he approached and was about to make his move, Shen Mo suddenly moved.

Shen Mo's figure flashed, his speed almost impossible to catch, and his fist appeared in front of Wu Xie in an instant. With lightning speed, he struck Wu Xie's head with a palm strike, the powerful internal force sending the latter flying several meters away, crashing heavily to the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood. "Ah!" Wu Xie groaned in pain, his eyes filled with terror.