Naming Technique of the Night

"Master, drive faster, they're about to catch up," Li Ke sat in the back seat, one hand gripping the back of the chair, the other holding onto the old man's sleeping bag.

As Qing Chen raced the off-road vehicle, the people inside felt as if they were about to be thrown out.

Hu Xiaoniu, Li Ke, and the old man couldn't understand why Qing Chen had fired that shot, given that the Federal Group soldiers had shown no intention of pursuing them.

Was it because he found their lives too peaceful?

Fortunately, Qing Chen timed it well, and before the Federal Group could catch up, the off-road vehicle had already entered the Taboo Land.

"Hurry, hurry, get out," Qing Chen said as he retrieved two backpacks from the trunk, strapping them onto Hu Xiaoniu and Li Ke.

As for himself, he hoisted the old man onto his back and ran for their lives towards the depths of the Taboo Land.

The old man on Qing Chen's back was stupefied; the once tranquil farewell trip had turned thrilling due to Qing Chen's actions.

It was as if a stable journey to Qing Shan cliff wouldn't have been grand enough for this farewell trip.

The old man asked, "Is it really necessary to add this kind of event? Is it worth it?"

Qing Chen whispered, "You don't understand, this is a Knight's tradition. The Qing Shan cliff is 600 meters high; without motivation, it's impossible to climb. We need to cut off their route first."

"No," the old man lamented, "I feel like you're trying to cut off my path first."

Qing Chen realized, "You weren't anxious before, were you? So your backup plan isn't following us now, right?"

The old man said, "...you sure catch on quickly."

At that moment, Qing Chen suddenly noticed that the pursuing Federal Group soldiers were hesitating outside the Taboo Land and showed no signs of entering.

After all, the Federal Group were not fools; such a provocative act was clearly meant to lure them into Zone 002 of the Taboo Land.

If they fell for it, that would be too foolish.

Qing Chen stood still and looked back, realizing that the work of his master had not been easy.

This wasn't working.

Thinking this, Qing Chen drew 'Persuader' and fired shot after shot at the Federal Group's vehicles.

These shots, like poking a hornet's nest, completely enraged the Federal Group soldiers, who rushed in.

The old man, who was familiar with military affairs, thought to himself that they were done for, "Kid, with those few shots of yours, it's unrealistic to provoke regular soldiers. They are rushing in not just because of your random shots, but because their other troops must be nearby..."

As if to confirm the old man's words, two signal flares suddenly rose slowly into the sky behind them.

The old man said, "Two signal flares, that means a second-level readiness. They're telling their companions they've found a big target."

Qing Chen thought for a moment, "The woods in the Taboo Land are so dense that even if they fire signal flares, their companions might not see them."

However, the next moment, the signal flares made sharp and strange noises.

The old man explained, "Their companions in the Taboo Land must be equipped with sonar devices. Those are dual-purpose signal flares; even if they can't see, the sonar devices can pick up the signal. Without the ability to use satellite positioning in the Taboo Land, once those flares are fired, their companions will begin to converge here."

Qing Chen was stunned for a moment, "Why didn't you warn me about this earlier?"

The old man said with heartfelt pain, "Did you ask me? Besides, I also had to wait for their reaction to know what they were planning. Qing Shan Falcon is foolish, how could they welcome people like you back home!"

"That's a bit too harsh," Qing Chen said with a chuckle, waving at Li Ke and Hu Xiaoniu, then turned and took another path.

"You really aren't afraid at all," the old man sighed.

"Don't worry, old sir. Once a Knight reaches this place, it's like coming home. Even if an entire regiment of the Federal Group comes in, it's a fight to the death," Qing Chen surveyed the surrounding terrain, as familiar scenes came flooding back to his mind.

At that moment, the old man on Qing Chen's back saw the youth gently squat down and tenderly stroke the leaf vein of a Mimosa Plant with the back of his index finger.

The Mimosa Plant seemed to curl shyly at the touch.

Yes, the Knight was home.

...

...

As night fell, students from Freemasonry stumbled deeper into the Taboo Land.

Spade was better prepared than the previous Autumn Hunting Team, as Taboo Land itself was one of the wild men's retreat paths after encountering the Federal Group's soldiers. Therefore, the wild men always kept a backup plan to enter the Taboo Land for any situation.

As they fled in, Guo Huchan told the students to carry containers and headed southwest along the edge of Zone 002 of the Taboo Land.

According to the plan, they would cross out following the edge of the Taboo Land.

Suddenly, Xiao Niu said, "The Federal Group soldiers who had been trailing us seem to have sent some men to retreat."

"What does that mean?" Guo Huchan asked curiously, "They have chased us for nearly two hundred miles, and now they're retreating just like that?"

"No, it's not a retreat," Xiao Niu laughed, "It's because someone else entered the Taboo Land and deliberately drew their firepower away from us."

Guo Huchan looked at Xiao Niu, "Seeing how happy you look, could it be that the young man who was with the old man has come?"

Xiao Niu thought for a moment, "Apart from him, who else would come to Zone 002 of the Taboo Land for no reason?"

"Right, you left us for a moment earlier, did you go to find him?" Guo Huchan asked.

Xiao Niu didn't tell the truth, for the old man setting a trap to kill the Jindai master was supposed to be a secret.

She said, "No, I just felt stuffy staying in the car and went out to enjoy the scenery."

"Fine," Guo Huchan muttered, thinking that such words could only deceive a fool.

On the other side, two Federal Group armies had already converged at one place.

From the moment they received the signal, the front troops immediately returned and started a reverse fan-shaped search because they were well aware that their comrades behind them were pursuing the target.

However, when they met at that location, they discovered that the four individuals who should have been trapped between the two forces had vanished without a trace!

Disappeared into thin air.

The Major in charge of the pursuit against Spade frowned and asked, "How long ago was it since we last picked up their trail?"

The officer who was in charge of the external alert responded, "10 minutes, just 10 minutes ago."

The Major sensed something was amiss, "If the trail was lost within only 10 minutes, then the Mechanical Hunting Dogs should have been able to track their scent. So why is there no scent at all?"

He looked towards several soldiers who were controlling the hunting dogs with neural links, but they shook their heads, "Commander, there are no clues."

Strange, there isn't a river here, nor is there strong wind. How did they conceal their scent?

Right at that moment, a soldier suddenly said, "Commander, there are words carved on this tree!"

After he spoke, everyone looked and saw the words carved on the tree were hurried yet large, as if fearful they wouldn't be seen, "We went west."

The soldiers were stunned. Was this the attitude of someone being pursued, to actively leave traces when the Federal Group soldiers had lost their trail?

An Operations Staff thought for a moment then said, "Could it be a ruse to confuse us, and they actually went east?"

If Qing Chen were there, he would probably be angered to death by this Operations Staff.

The latter's reasoning was not wrong, but this was based on the assumption that 'the group armies are formidable' and the 'pursued' targets are fleeing desperately, thus they would intentionally mislead.

But now, Qing Chen did not consider himself in a weaker position at all.

After thinking it through, the Major said, "This isn't a ruse, but rather a bait to lure the enemy deeper. The enemy has set a trap within Taboo Land and is waiting for us to take the bait. This probably isn't the same organization as Spade's. If they were, Spade wouldn't need to run around with people so tirelessly."

"So, what do we do?" the officer asked.

The Major pondered seriously, "We stop pursuing these four and continue chasing Spade according to the original plan!"

"Roger that."

The Federal Group continued south in pursuit of Spade, seeing many directional carvings along the way, but they paid them no heed...

...

...

On Qing Chen's side, he leaned against a tree for quite a while but did not see the group army following them. The old man was already very weak but couldn't help mocking, "Played yourself, didn't you? You must have scared them off; they don't dare to chase anymore."

Qing Chen sighed, all he wanted was an opportunity, was that so hard?

No, that's not right.

He had a new plan.

Qing Chen, together with Hu Xiaoniu and Li Ke, made their way deep into Taboo Land.

It was deep into the night when he finally found that large willow tree on the boundary between the center and the edge of the land.

Qing Chen looked up at the great willow and said, "I've brought new Knights to challenge the life and death passage."

The willow tree did not react.

Qing Chen said again, "I said I brought new Knights to challenge the life and death passage, don't be so stingy."

Hu Xiaoniu and Li Ke gave each other a look, wondering what their master was talking to a big tree for.

However, the next moment, as if reluctantly, the willow tree used its branches to pluck two white fruits from its canopy and handed them to Hu Xiaoniu and Li Ke.

Qing Chen pointed to the west for the two and said, "Go straight west and you'll see the Qing Shan cliffs. There lies a path to ascend to heaven. Go on, take it."

"Master, aren't you coming with us?" Li Ke asked.

Qing Chen thought for a moment and said, "I accompany you only for part of the thousand-mile journey; for the remaining trials of wind, snow, and the scorching sun, I ask no questions."

Hu Xiaoniu and Li Ke walked away, somewhat bewildered.

But before they got far, they heard thumping footsteps from behind, too heavy to be human—a giant was approaching.

With a look of shock, they turned around to see a giant, several meters tall, charging towards them with a threatening presence.

Upon closer inspection, Li Ke feared that the giant's footprints could be larger than the tires of an off-road vehicle, and its hands were like two gates, strong enough to slap someone to death.

"Run!" Li Ke's soul nearly left his body, having never encountered such a thing before.

His master Qing Chen had assured them on the way to Taboo Land that all would be well, that as their master, he would not let anything happen to them. But he had never mentioned that Taboo Land was such a terrifying place!

What Li Ke and Hu Xiaoniu didn't see was that Giant DongDong gradually slowed down, revealing a simple and honest smile.

Qing Chen stood beside him, looking up at the endearing giant, smiling and saying, "Long time no see, DongDong."

...

Thank you to 'Pressured To Be Strong 010' for becoming a new ally of this book. The boss is generous, wishing the boss avoids pitfalls in online shopping!

I've been a salted fish for six days now; let me rest a bit more, and then I'll make a burst of progress...