"Deng Jun, I found someone badly injured over here!" Shi Ming called out, looking up toward his companion.
Deng Jun bounded over the tall grass, crouched beside Shi Ming, and inspected the wounded man.
"He's hurt bad. Should we save him?"
Shi Ming pursed his lips. "Let's save him. He's human, after all."
As a former assassin, Deng Jun cared little about the lives of strangers.
But since Shi Ming wanted to help, he would oblige. Saving an ordinary person wouldn't cost much in the way of resources anyway.
Putting their bug hunt on hold, they carried the man over to the carriage.
Deng Jun possessed no healing element, but he did have a Plain Ring inscribed with a healing spell.
The Unreturning Place had plenty of Priests anyway, and given his good relationship with Li Ban, he could spend a little money and ask a favor to replenish the spell at any time.
A Priest's spells were incredibly potent. When used on an ordinary person, a single healing spell could close even the most grievous wounds.
The man soon looked completely unharmed.
The injured man slowly opened his eyes, staring blankly as if he couldn't believe he was still alive.
"Did you save me, sirs?" The man's voice was a little hoarse, but surprisingly pleasant.
"Yeah," Deng Jun said nonchalantly. "But there's no need to pledge your life in gratitude. Just tell us what you ran into."
The man sat up, looking at his body in disbelief.
His clothes were in tatters, but the skin beneath was completely unscathed—and even several shades paler than before.
"Spit it out, hurry up," Deng Jun urged impatiently. "We're in a rush."
Shi Ming crouched down and asked gently, "We're trying to find whatever hurt you. Did you get a look at it? Was it some kind of bug?"
The man finally looked up, a trace of panic on his face.
"I... I don't even know if it was a bug. I've never seen a bug like that."
Once he started talking, he couldn't stop.
"The thing was the size of a human head, with dozens of arm-length legs. Its mouth was right in the middle of its belly, and it shot a stinger out from inside. That's what killed my companion."
"I ran into the woods, but it still caught up. It slashed at me with those legs, and it hurt like knives. But right as it was about to crawl onto my head, it suddenly ran off. I was in agonizing pain. I have no idea what happened."
Hearing this description, the two exchanged a glance, thinking the same thing: it was definitely the bug.
Normal bugs in the Wizard World didn't possess such vicious combat power.
"From his description, it sounds like a thousand-hand spider. But the sharp stinger in its mouth doesn't match the records. It must be a newly mutated breed," Shi Ming said.
Deng Jun nodded and asked the man, "Did you see where the bug went?"
"I kept my hands over my face and didn't dare open my eyes, but from the sound, it headed deeper into the woods."
Shi Ming stood up. "I'll go take a look. If I find its trail, I'll come back for you."
"I'd better go with you," Deng Jun said.
"No, if you make too much noise and startle the bug, we'll have an even harder time finding it."
"Alright," Deng Jun joked. "I'm just a knife in your hand right now. Point me wherever you want me to cut."
Shi Ming chuckled, turned around, and slipped into the woods.
Deng Jun looked back and noticed a faint smile on the rescued man's lips. It struck him as odd.
"What are you smiling at?"
The man hastily adopted a respectful expression. "I was just rejoicing that I managed to survive. Thank you both for saving my life, my lords."
Deng Jun quickly brushed off the strange feeling and asked about the man's background.
"What's your name? Where do you live?"
"I'm Su Asi. I live... sigh. I'm actually a refugee. I originally came here looking for work, but I unexpectedly ran into that terrifying bug out in the wilderness, and my companion died. I don't even know where I'll sleep tomorrow."
Figuring the man had pretty good luck to have survived a mutated bug and then be saved by his Plain Ring, Deng Jun decided to keep him around.
"If you have nowhere to go, you can follow me. My place isn't anything special, but I can give you a job and a thatched hut to sleep in."
Su Asi quickly stood up and bowed repeatedly.
"Thank you, my lord! Thank you!"
The two waited by the carriage for a while before Shi Ming jogged back out of the woods. Panting heavily, he told Deng Jun, "I found the bug. It's sleeping in a tree right now."
Deng Jun rolled up his sleeves. "You marked the spot? I'll go."
Although they hadn't brought a Priest on this trip, Deng Jun had plenty of good items on him and wasn't worried about his safety.
If he found the bug too difficult to handle, he would immediately send a signal to summon the nearby Priests.
There were far fewer Priests than spirit practitioners.
To track down an escaped bug across the massive expanse of Yanzhou, they still had to rely on a large number of spirit practitioners to conduct the search.
Su Asi stepped forward and asked cautiously, "My lords, is there anything this lowly one can do to help?"
Deng Jun chuckled, turning to him. "You were just clawed half to death by that bug, and you still want to help?"
Gritting his teeth, Su Asi spoke with grief and indignation. "That giant bug killed my brother. You two lords are incredibly strong. If... if I won't hold you back, please take me with you! Even if I only get to stomp on its corpse, I'll feel satisfied!"
Deng Jun waved him off. "No need for you to go. Wait until I bring the bug back, and you can stomp on it all you want."
Shi Ming wanted to follow as well, but Deng Jun pushed him back.
"You stay in the carriage, too. If I bring you, I'll be three times slower." Deng Jun shot him a meaningful look.
Su Asi looked honest, but it was only on the surface.
Even if he was a victim of the giant bug, who knew what his true nature was?
There were quite a few valuables in the carriage, and they couldn't just leave a stranger alone with them.
Although Shi Ming didn't know martial arts, he possessed a halo.
If this Su Asi dared to try anything funny around Shi Ming, the backlash alone would kill him.
Completely at ease, Deng Jun patted Shi Ming's shoulder, turned around, and plunged into the woods.
Shi Ming returned to the carriage to sit and wait.
Seeing this, Su Asi shuffled over and stood beside him.
He kept glancing around timidly, as if afraid the bug might burst out from somewhere else.
"Don't be afraid," Shi Ming comforted him with a smile. "These bugs don't usually travel in packs. If there's one in the woods, there shouldn't be any out here. And even if there are, it's fine."
He patted his own scrawny chest. "I can protect you, too."
Su Asi just offered an honest, simple smile and didn't say a word.
A short while later, Deng Jun emerged from the woods, holding up a bug the size of a human head.
In his other hand, he gripped a serrated stinger.
He tossed the bug into a crate on the carriage and held up the stinger for Shi Ming to see.
"Doesn't this thing look like a rapier?"
"I've never seen a rapier."
Deng Jun curled his lips, then joked, "When this bug attacked me, it actually moved like it was using a sword technique! Haha, for a second there, I thought I was facing off against a swordsman."