The Pastoral Life of a Cultivation Master

Chapter 3085 Return to Report Status
Before the warrior holding the unicorn horn could even fully land, Qian Ying stepped forward, grabbed the horn, and quickly went to the back wall of the building, inserting the horn into the recessed hole.

Click, click...

The sounds continued, and the mechanisms of the entire suspension bridge began to operate.

Although it was the second time they had seen the iron chain bridge mechanism in operation, it was still a very impressive sight for all the martial artists standing on the shore.

There's no way around it; the sheer awe-inspiring sight of a suspension bridge spanning over 500 meters, with its main body submerged in the lake, gradually emerging from the water as the mechanism is activated, is something you really don't see every day.

Even in the outside world, it's practically impossible to find a suspension bridge spanning over 500 meters. If there were, there would definitely be supporting pillars in the middle. But this suspension bridge only has supports on both sides of the lake. The entire 500-meter-long bridge structure has no supports at all, relying entirely on the iron cables to hold it together. It's truly an architectural marvel.

But it has existed in this valley for thousands of years, submerged in the lake water for thousands of years, which is incredible.

After the bridge pillars were erected, the mechanism stopped working. Just like last time, it had only started to operate a little bit before running out of energy, which is why the entire mechanism stopped.

"Elder Zhou, we're going to have to work harder again." Qian Ying looked at the iron chain bridge stuck at this point with a headache, feeling truly helpless. If only the mechanism could continue operating like this after the unicorn was inserted.

Unfortunately, the mechanism requires a constant infusion of innate energy to operate. Once the entire mechanism is fully operational, the innate energy is almost completely depleted. Therefore, it is essential to consume a restorative pill while operating the mechanism.

Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing, however, were unwilling to use up their pills here. After all, the number of pills they carried was limited, and once used, they would have one less, with no way to replenish them. Moreover, no one knew how long they would have to stay in this valley, so they naturally had to use their pills sparingly.

Both of them had replenishing pills in their mouths, which they would consume once more than half of their true energy in their dantian was depleted. After all, they couldn't afford to completely deplete their innate power; otherwise, they would be unable to intervene in any emergencies.

Despite looking constipated, he had no choice but to step forward and etch patterns into the small indentation, consuming his innate power to power the iron chain bridge mechanism. The other martial artists didn't watch from 300 meters away this time; instead, they were busy packing their belongings and setting up the defensive structures to the side. If there were any problems with the iron chain bridge, the wood from these structures could be dismantled and used to make rafts.

Everyone was busy, but not a single martial artist who had acquired martial arts skills was able to step forward to help the two old men, Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing.

The two old men also had dark faces, taking turns persisting in channeling their innate power.

Finally, after more than an hour of operation, the entire suspension bridge was in place and spanned the lake.

"Phew! It's finally finished. It was incredibly taxing." Qian Ying breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Yes, it really wasn't easy."

"We must cross this suspension bridge today, no matter what. The longer we delay, the greater the difficulties we will face."

The two stood at the bridgehead, looking towards the suspension bridge. However, they couldn't see anything clearly, as the thick fog on the other side obscured their vision, making it impossible to discern the situation on the opposite bank.

Five hundred meters isn't far, but it's not close either. Although I had binoculars, they were useless due to the fog.

While the two old men were working hard to operate the iron chain bridge mechanism, Chen Mo and the others on the other side also noticed that the entire bridgehead structure had started to operate.

After a night's rest, Qian Zhenghao had fully recovered. Honey has detoxifying properties, and the toxins had already been cleared away. So, earlier, he drank a bottle of honey in his tent and then practiced his internal energy.

Naturally, not only did the bite wound heal, but the body also returned to a good condition.

“Alright, let’s go to the lakeside and wait. Once the iron chain bridge is in place, we’ll go over and report the situation here to the two elders on the other side,” Ouyang Nan said to Chen Mo and the others.

However, after observing for a while, Chen Mo said to Ouyang Nan, "Captain, if we go back, we can only report the situation here to the other side so that the whole team can keep track of the situation here. But if something happens here after we leave, it may affect the whole team's crossing of the lake. If we don't give a timely warning, it may affect the crossing operation."

"Then what do you mean?"

“My idea is to have one person go back to the other side while the others stay here to keep watch. After all, it’s just about reporting the situation, so one person can go back. Besides, there’s no danger crossing the suspension bridge; just be careful not to fall. This way, if anything happens on this side, we can warn the teams crossing the lake in time.”

Hearing Chen Mo say this, Ouyang Nan also felt it was a very good suggestion. So she turned to the others and said, "Do you have any good suggestions? If not, then we'll do as Chen Mo suggested."

Ouyang Ruoxi and Ouyang Nana naturally had no objections, and Qian Zhenghao, even if he had some objections, couldn't voice them. He could only glance at the other four people and shake his head to indicate that he had no objections. "Alright, since no one has any objections, then I will adopt Amo's suggestion. We will arrange for one person to cross the lake and report the situation here to the two elders. The other four will stay at the bridgehead so that we can respond to any danger."

"Okay!" All four of them agreed at the same time.

"So, who should we arrange to cross the iron chain bridge and go back to report on the situation here?" Ouyang Nan asked the four people.

However, as she said this, her gaze unconsciously drifted towards Qian Zhenghao. The other three also turned their attention to Qian Zhenghao.

Seeing this, Qian Zhenghao felt a pang of bitterness in his heart. What did this mean? Were they all staring at him? Didn't they just want him to go back? Couldn't they just say so? What did it mean to be stared at like that?
For a moment, Qian Zhenghao really felt like crying. He was poisoned last night, and it would have been better if the poison hadn't been cleared. If he had remained in a state of poisoning, he wouldn't have had to go back.

He now has a lot of grievances against Qian Ying and Manager Qian, and really doesn't want to lower himself to get close to these two guys.

However, he also knew in his heart that the task of returning to the other side and reporting the situation was none other than his. After all, he was a member of the Qian family, while the others were members of the Ouyang family. Only if he returned to report the situation would Qian Ying and the others not suspect anything.

Seeing that the four people were all silent but staring at him, Qian Zhenghao could only grit his teeth and say, "Captain, then I'll go back. After all, there's no danger crossing over, but there might be some danger here. I was poisoned last night and my body hasn't fully recovered yet, so it's better for me to go back and report on things rather than stay here."

Upon hearing Qian Zhenghao's words, Ouyang Nan smiled and said, "Alright, I was originally thinking of having Amo go back to report, but since you put it that way, it's appropriate. Firstly, you're right, his body hasn't fully recovered yet, and if something happens, he won't be able to exert much strength. Secondly, you're quite familiar with Elder Qian, after all, he's an elder of your family, so it's very suitable for you to report the situation. Then let's go back immediately after the iron chain bridge is completed."

"Okay!" Qian Zhenghao nodded in agreement, but inwardly he was thinking, "He even wants Amo to go back, haha! He calls me that so affectionately, but if he really doesn't say anything, then Ouyang Nan will definitely make arrangements."

Sigh, it turns out I'm just an outsider. As for the Qian family, Qian Zhenghao felt utterly cold inside. After all these days, he was extremely disappointed in Qian Ying and the others. He was nothing more than a pawn in their hands, and the kind of pawn that could be easily discarded.

This is absolutely infuriating! I really want to go back to my clan and never go out on adventure missions again; I'll just stay put.

With a series of clattering sounds, the suspension bridge was finally completed after the final thud.

"Qian Zhenghao, go ahead, watch your step," Ouyang Nan said to Qian Zhenghao as soon as the suspension bridge was completed.

Qian Ying and the others on the other side must be getting anxious too. If the iron chain bridge hadn't been restored last night, Qian Ying might have even sent people over to investigate what had happened and why there were warning flares.

However, the suspension bridge was restored last night, severing the connection between the two sides. Without knowing anything, even if someone crosses over, they will naturally try to contact them. It would be better to send someone over in person to explain the situation clearly.

Qian Zhenghao didn't carry his backpack. After all, he was only going back to report the situation and might have to come back again later, so it was better to cross the suspension bridge empty-handed for easier movement. Although there were still some good things like honey in his backpack, he trusted that Ouyang Nan and the other three wouldn't covet his valuables.

Sometimes, he really felt that following Ouyang Nan and the others was much better than following the Qian family's group. Otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed near Ouyang Nan for the past few days instead of returning to the Qian family's temporary camp.

On the opposite bank, Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing were looking at the iron chain bridge, while the other martial artists also stopped what they were doing and gradually gathered around, all looking at the opposite bank.

"Elder Qian, aren't we going to take any action?" Qian Wantong walked up to Qian Ying and asked.

"Has everyone else finished getting ready?"

"Yes, everything is ready, and we can set off at any time."

"That's good. Let's wait and see. After all, we don't know the situation on the other side, and it's foggy there right now. Let's wait for Ouyang Nan and the others to return and report on the situation so we can take appropriate action," Qian Ying said.

"Oh, will Ouyang Nan and the others come back?"

"Yes, she will definitely come back as soon as the suspension bridge is completed. Although Ouyang Na is a woman, she is very organized and punctual in doing things." Qian Ying praised her.

Just as Qian Wantong was about to say something, a Qian family martial artist who was observing with binoculars suddenly shouted, "Someone is coming from the bridge!"

Looking over, everyone saw a figure rapidly approaching them through the thick fog.