A Time-Traveling Mishap: I Became an Ancient Nobleman

Chapter 140 Let's Not Wander Around

Although Zhou Hanzhang was trying to comfort Xiangxiang, she was still very worried.

Despite her worries, she still valued Liu Niang more. If Liu Niang were gone, what would be the point of them guarding all this?

In the end, she didn't say much. She helped Zhou Hanzhang pack up and told her a lot of things to pay attention to when going to Shishan. When they arrived, she would personally escort them to the foot of Shishan.

General Gu originally wanted to see them off, but Zhou Hanzhang insisted that he stay at the inn. "Xiangxiang can take us there. You can stay at the inn so you can respond promptly if anything happens."

General Gu thought it made sense, so he let them be. However, he didn't move his feet but kept talking, constantly reminding Gu Qingfeng to be careful and not to do anything that would hinder them.

After hearing this, Gu Qingfeng became impatient and simply pulled Zhou Hanzhang away.

At the foot of the mountain, Xiangxiang pointed to a patch of strange rocks in front of her and said to Zhou Hanzhang, "Go into this stone forest and walk all the way to the end, and you will reach the stone mountain."

"Why didn't we see that mountain?"

"We can't see it from here. There's fog on the rocky mountain all year round, so even if we look closely, we can't see it clearly," Xiangxiang explained.

"I can only take you this far. I've said everything I need to say. Just be careful in everything you do, and take care of yourself. If you can find it, great; if not, don't force it."

Xiangxiang was genuinely moved at this moment. After all, Zhou Hanzhang, her newly accepted disciple, did not know whether her father and the emperor were in the Stone Mountain. She admired him greatly for coming without hesitation simply because his master was in the Stone Mountain.

Zhou Hanzhang naturally knew this, and said seriously, "If I hadn't come out, I would have troubled you to tell my family that General Gu doesn't need to come in looking for me. Tell him to look for my father and uncle elsewhere."

"I know."

Just after Xiangxiang finished speaking, a flying eagle swooped straight towards them, startling Gu Qingfeng and He Shi, who simultaneously pulled Zhou Hanzhang aside.

When they realized what was happening and tried to pull Xiangxiang away, they saw her tilt her head, and the eagle landed steadily on her shoulder.

She took a scroll of eagle book from the eagle's feet and opened it in front of them.

When she saw the contents of the letter, she seemed much happier. "The eldest son has written. He says he will set off now and should arrive in about three to five days at the fastest speed."

She then looked at Zhou Hanzhang, "Young Master, why don't we wait a little longer? It'll only be three to five days. We can make arrangements after the eldest young master arrives?"

Zhou Hanzhang shook his head. "Not to mention when my senior brother will arrive, even if he can get here from the capital in three days at the earliest, it will still take up a lot of time."

We still don't know what Master encountered in the rocky mountain. Every moment we delay will increase the danger to Master. Since we're already here, I won't wait for him.

If it were him, he would probably do the same thing as me, so I won't say anything more. You should go back and wait for news.

Since things had come to this point, Xiangxiang couldn't continue to stop them. "Then you all be careful."

The group parted ways with Xiangxiang, and Zhou Hanzhang took out a map, leading He Shi and Zhou Hanzhang into the Stone Forest.

As soon as they entered the Stone Forest, they noticed something different.

Just one step apart, the inside and outside of the Stone Forest are like two different worlds, the inside being eerily quiet.

The various bird sounds that had been lingering in their ears vanished the moment they stepped into the stone forest.

"Young master, something's not right." He Shi looked around warily.

Zhou Hanzhang naturally knew this, but didn't say much. "Be careful in everything. We won't go anywhere else; we'll just follow the route on the map."

She took out a compass and handed it to He Shi, saying, "Take this compass. With this compass and map, we won't get lost here."

Seeing that the compass in his hand was still functioning normally, he stepped forward and walked in front of Zhou Hanzhang, saying, "Young Master, please follow me."

Zhou Hanzhang naturally wouldn't argue with him about this. He had the compass, so he could detect any unusual activity in time. Besides, his skill level was no less than Zhou Hanzhang's.

Although Gu Qingfeng usually seemed unreliable, he didn't cause any trouble at the moment. He actually seemed more nervous than the two of them. "Then I'll follow behind you, and have Hanzhang stay in the middle for safety."

Zhou Hanzhang originally intended to cover the rear, but now that Gu Qingfeng had volunteered, she found it difficult to speak up.

"Then be careful."

"Don't worry, although I can't beat you, my dad threw me into the forest to fend for myself when I was still wearing open-crotch pants, so I'm better at handling these kinds of environments than you are."

Zhou Hanzhang knew that his words were somewhat exaggerated, but he couldn't refute him because of his good intentions. He just needed to be careful when moving forward. With the three of them together, they would be able to cope with any danger.

The further Zhou Hanzhang went into this stone forest, the stranger it seemed to him.

This stone forest looks somewhat similar to the one she saw in Yunnan during her modern trip; both are karst landforms, but this one looks much more breathtaking than the stone forest in Yunnan.

Along this short stretch of road, they had already seen sinkholes, sinkholes, solution channels, stone pillars, stalagmites, stone buds, solitary peaks, peak forests, and peak clusters, among other things. The karst peak forests were covered with strangely shaped rocks rising from the ground, each with its own unique form and exquisite craftsmanship.

Just as Zhou Hanzhang was feeling puzzled, Gu Qingfeng, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, "Everyone be careful, the wind is coming."

Zhou Hanzhang and He Shi were startled, each seeing the other's hair flying in the air.

When they first entered, the entire stone forest felt like a furnace, let alone the wind. Now, a gust of wind carrying cool, moist air blew over, but instead of feeling comfortable, they felt a chill run down their spines.

The strange thing is that this gust of wind was blowing in a chaotic manner, and its origin was completely unknown.

Looking around, they couldn't find where the strange wind was coming from. Just as they were about to speak, they spotted a cloud of dust being blown by the wind from a stone forest.

When she wanted to go over and take a look, Zhou Hanzhang stopped her, saying, "Let's not wander off. If we don't hear a definite sound, don't let this gust of wind throw us off balance."

In this situation, we must not separate. If we do, I won't know where to look for you. Remember our purpose in coming here: first, to find our master; second, to see if there is any trace of my father and uncle. Nothing else matters.

He listened and then stopped, looking at the compass as he tried to continue walking forward.

But when his eyes fell on the compass, he suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Hanzhang asked, looking at He Shi, who was stopped in front of him.