Chen Hai was surrounded by Li Kuishan, Sun Tu, and an Earth Immortal nad Fang Ji.
These familiar faces were stunned when they saw that the intruder into this separate courtyard was Chen Hai, and they were dazed for quite a while.
"So it was Taoist Friend Chen. We hadn’t heard from you for so many days; we thought sothing had happened to you,"
The ones who recovered their composure breathed a sigh of relief.
With complex expressions, they scrutinized Chen Hai for a good while before Li Kuishan spoke, asking,
Of course, whether it was Li Kuishan or the other two, they all clearly harbored doubts about Chen Hai’s return.
After all, it had been many days since Man Li had led the Demon Palace in a surprise attack on their Enemy-breaking Camp.
Although the camp had suffered heavy casualties and was in disarray, it had largely recovered by now.
If Chen Hai had been safe and sound, he should have returned to the camp long ago.
Having been without news for so long, Chen Hai’s sudden return to the base, appearing before them, it was certainly impossible for them to be without doubt.
"On the day of the camp’s turmoil, during the fierce battle with those Demon Palace devils, I indeed encountered so complications."
"A relentless Heavenly Immortal sword cultivator pursued , and having no other choice, I hid in an abandoned mine."
"The mine was a labyrinth of passages, and after hiding there for several days, I got lost and couldn’t find my way out!"
"Wandering around inside, it wasn’t until not long ago that I finally found an exit and reerged on the surface."
Chen Hai had already prepared an excuse for his prolonged absence.
Facing Li Kuishan’s inquiry, he explained openly and sincerely.
While speaking, he deliberately relaxed his Concealing Breath Technique a bit, allowing his displayed realm of strength to change from the early stage to the mid-period of Earth Immortal.
"Taoist Friend Chen, your realm of strength..."
Chen Hai’s move was indeed sowhat effective; Li Kuishan and the others were imdiately drawn to his performance.
Completely astonished, Wu ng took another few looks at Chen Hai.
His gaze was clearly aningful.
Perhaps he thought that Chen Hai’s tale of being pursued by a Heavenly Immortal sword cultivator was rely an excuse.
The man before them had most likely disappeared for such a long stretch of ti due to his fear of death, hiding to improve his strength.
After all, in the chaotic central area of the camp that day, there had been no sign of any abandoned mines.
At least ten miles away, at the periphery of the Enemy-breaking Camp, could one find so abandoned mines.
Before his breakthrough, Chen Hai had only been at the early stage of Earth Immortal, ranking the lowest in strength within his team. How could he have fled such a great distance from a Heavenly Immortal sword cultivator’s pursuit and hidden in an abandoned mine?
It wasn’t just Wu ng; the other two, Li Kuishan and Fang Ji, likely harbored similar thoughts.
Sharing a team with Chen Hai, although they did not interact with him frequently, they did have so understanding of his character.
In their eyes, Chen Hai had always been the type who never sought out tasks, preferring to stay behind closed doors, acting only when there was a clear benefit.
It was hard for them to believe that such a person would shed blood and sacrifice his life for the Heavenly Mansion against enemies from the Demon Palace.
But to say he avoided battle by finding an opportunity to hide in a mine and improve his strength?
To Li Kuishan, Wu ng, and the others, that seed like the normal course of action.
Having pieced together the ’true story’ in their minds, they looked at each other and nodded.
However, they were too lazy to puncture this web of lies Chen Hai had spun; after all, their relationship with Chen Hai was rely that of colleagues, not superiors.
Previously, they had just habitually asked Chen Hai where he had been hiding all these days he had been missing. As long as it didn’t significantly affect them, it was of little concern to them.
"To escape from a Heavenly Immortal-level Sword Cultivator and hide in an abandoned mine to save your life, Taoist Friend Chen, I have to say, you really are a lucky man!" Among them, only Fang Ji, with his yin and yang manner, mockingly teased Chen Hai a few sentences.
After all, the last bout of chaos had led to several more losses in their squad.
In the midst of battling the elites of the Demon Palace, Fang Ji had personally witnessed several people he was on good terms with die at the hands of those from the Demon Palace right before his eyes.
Looking at Chen Hai in front of him who had avoided battle and hid in the mine, and whose realm had even improved, then thinking of those deceased friends...
He felt it was such a waste for those few and naturally didn’t have much of a good impression of Chen Hai in front of him.
"Being chased by that Sword Cultivator from the Demon Palace, I really thought I was done for!"
"To have lucked out and escaped with my life, that’s purely a matter of luck."
"As they say, there is great fear between life and death; perhaps it’s precisely because of this that I was able to advance further and step into the mid-period of the Earth Immortal realm."
Chen Hai chuckled dryly twice and explained.
Although he had picked up on the sarcastic tone in Fang Ji’s words, he simply couldn’t be bothered to bicker with him.
After all, even without using his trump card, he could crush a minor Earth Immortal like him with just a slap.
Chen Hai believed that it was beneath him to take such a petty person seriously.
"It’s good that Taoist Friend Chen’s strength has improved, as it ans that our squad’s overall strength has gained so enhancent," said Li Kuishan with a laugh that didn’t reach his eyes, adding, "Now, it’s just the few of us left in our squad."
"The chaos caused by the recent Demon Palace surprise attack resulted in heavy losses for our Enemy-breaking Camp. Who knows how long it will be before the higher-ups fill the gaps in our squad!"
"A few days ago, Captain Wu ng specifically ca over here to take a headcount."
"Because there had been no news from you, Taoist Friend Chen, we thought sothing had happened to you and reported you as missing to the superiors."
"Now that you’ve returned safely and even improved in realm, you definitely need to make a trip to Captain Wu and explain the situation to him," continued the speaker.
"Otherwise, you’ll be undocunted within the camp, which will make things very inconvenient for you!"
Having co up with a plausible excuse for Chen Hai’s disappearance of more than ten days, they didn’t dwell on the matter any further.
As they walked towards the direction of the rooms in the courtyard, Li Kuishan smiled and suggested to Chen Hai.
"Hmm! Thank you for the reminder, Taoist Friend Li; I’m well aware of what you’re referring to!"
Chen Hai smiled and nodded: "It’s very late in the middle of the night, and I’ve already disturbed you all by suddenly returning to our squad’s quarters. I already feel quite apologetic."
"At this ti, going to Captain Wu ng would certainly be inappropriate."
"I will wait until dawn before I go over and explain the situation properly to him."
Seeing that Chen Hai had co up with a response, Li Kuishan didn’t press the issue any further.
Whether it was Li Kuishan himself, Wu ng, or Fang Ji, they all went back to their own rooms.
Now, in the Ninth Squadron’s Team 7, only a few remained, and among the newly built annex rooms, many were unoccupied.
Chen Hai casually picked a room, stepped inside, and shut the door.
He rested only briefly on the large wooden bed before the early morning sun rose, signaling the arrival of a new day.
Once the sun had completely risen, Chen Hai left his room and headed straight for the residence of Captain Wu ng.
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