Chapter 853: Chapter 853

Under the bright moonlight, dozens of figures dashed through the air like electricity, swiftly converging from all directions of Anxi City towards where Long Da and the others were located.

These dozens of people were members of the "Dragon Guard," who had been concealed in every corner of Anxi City following Fang Bai’s orders. Upon receiving the signal from Long Da’s team, they rushed to the location without delay.

Meanwhile, at the same time, Fang Bai, who was strolling hand in hand and shoulder to shoulder with Tang Wenrou down a street in Anxi City, also sensed something, his eyes gleaming. He grabbed Tang Wenrou’s hand and with all his might, displayed his movement technique to rush toward the location of Long Da and the others.

Fang Bai was aware of the ferocity of the Green Zombie and was worried that Long Da and the others would be unable to withstand it; therefore, he also gave his all, striving to arrive at the scene as quickly as possible to exterminate the Green Zombie.

Although his cultivation level was only that of a high-rank Heaven Level, his actual combat strength had already surpassed that of a Heaven Level expert. With his full effort in running, every step he took could propel him more than ten meters forward. He was practically flying, so fast that not even a shadow could be seen in the dark night.

And Tang Wenrou, whose hand was being held by Fang Bai and who was being pulled along with him, could only feel her clothes fluttering noisily and her hair flying wildly in the wind. The whistle in her ears was so loud that, not to mention distinguishing the surrounding scenery was impossible, she could barely even open her eyes.

This was the first time Tang Wenrou had witnessed Fang Bai’s true strength. She realized that he was unbelievably powerful, which awed her immensely in that moment.

Of all the groups, their location had been the farthest from where Long Da and the others were, but they were the first to arrive on the scene.

"That little girl... Isn’t she Alian from Shigong Village? How could she be here?"

Upon arriving at the scene, Fang Bai’s gaze immediately fell on Alian, who seemed petrified by the Green Zombie. He was taken aback and then showed a look of surprise, thinking to himself, "Strange, when I met Alian, she wasn’t an Innate Spiritual Root. How has she become an Innate Golden Spirit Root now? Could it be that she has a Hidden Spirit Root by nature and has had some adventure that activated it?"

The so-called "Hidden Spirit Root" refers to someone who, although born with an Innate Spiritual Root, has it in a dormant state, effectively rendering it useless for cultivation. This is as frustrating as owning immense wealth that one cannot access.

Of course, if a person with a Hidden Spirit Root could find some miraculous pill or receive help from an expert willing to assist, there was still hope that the Hidden Spirit Root could be activated, allowing them to shine on the path of Martial Dao.

On the contrary, if the Hidden Spirit Root remained dormant, then it was unlikely for that person to achieve any significant success in their lifetime.

When Fang Bai first encountered Alian in Shigong Village, he had not closely examined her potential, so he was unaware of her Hidden Spirit Root, otherwise he might have found a way to activate it for her.

However, Fang Bai saw that Alian’s talents were much better than those of ordinary people, so when he left Shigong Village, he taught her a set of Martial Arts Techniques, leaving her to comprehend them on her own to see if she had the fate to embark on the Martial Dao.

To Fang Bai’s great surprise, the Alian he saw now emanated faint ripples of Essence Energy and had become a Yellow Level Martial Artist, with her Hidden Spirit Root also activated.

Clearly, something fortunate must have happened to Alian after Fang Bai had left Shigong Village.

If the convenience store owner, Zheng Meng, who had been killed by the Green Zombie, knew that Alian was a Martial Artist, he definitely would not have conceived the idea to take the more than one hundred thousand yuan from her.

At this moment, Long Da and the others, wielding Peach Wood Swords, were confronting the Green Zombie.

The Green Zombie was somewhat wary of the Peach Wood Swords in the hands of Long Da and his group and dared not launch an attack; whereas Long Da and the others were also cautious of the Green Zombie’s ferocity and did not take the offensive, simply surrounding it tightly.

When Fang Bai arrived at the scene with Tang Wenrou, Alian, who had practiced the Martial Arts Techniques taught by Fang Bai, immediately sensed his presence. She turned her head and saw the Big Brother she had been longing to find in Yanjing. Overwhelmed with joy, she burst into tears and ran toward Fang Bai.

Alian’s only family in this world was her grandfather. After he had met with a tragic accident and passed away, Alian, orphaned and alone, remembered the kindness Fang Bai had once shown her. The thought to seek him out surfaced in her mind.

Alian recalled that before Fang Bai left Shigong Village, he had mentioned working at Yanjing Hospital. So, after the villagers of Shigong Village helped her bury her grandfather, Alian, carrying the money Fang Bai had left for her and her grandfather, set out on her journey to find him, alone.

Having just arrived at Anxi Bus Station, Alian wanted to buy some food and drink and rest for the night before taking the bus to Yanjing the next day. Little did she expect to encounter Zheng Meng, the convenience store owner who was after her money, nor did she anticipate an attack by a Green Zombie.

If Long Da and the others hadn’t arrived in time, Alian might have ended up like the convenience store owner Zheng Meng, another lost soul under the Green Zombie’s claws.

Seeing that the Green Zombie was trapped and unable to escape, Fang Bai was in no rush to deal with it. Instead, he welcomed Alian, who was rushing into his arms.

Although Fang Bai had spent only a short time in Shigong Village, he had carefully taught Alian Martial Arts Techniques and left her and her grandfather a substantial sum of money, which touched them deeply.

Alian’s grandfather had always told her to be grateful and to repay Fang Bai’s kindness when she made something of herself. At that time, aside from her grandfather, Fang Bai had become another kin in Alian’s heart.

So, upon seeing Fang Bai, Alian felt as though she had seen a family member. She threw herself into Fang Bai’s arms, tightly wrapping her arms around his waist, and began to sob softly, as though she had infinite grievances in her heart.

"Alian, how did you get here? Where’s your grandfather?"

Fang Bai gently stroked Alian’s hair, seeing her cry so sadly and knowing she had come here all by herself, he guessed something might have happened to her grandfather.

"Grandfather is dead... Wuuwuu..."

Alian’s crying grew louder when Fang Bai mentioned her grandfather.

Fang Bai frowned and said, "Wasn’t your grandfather in good health? How could he have died?"

When Fang Bai had arrived at Shigong Village, out of a belief in fate from a chance encounter, he had helped adjust Shi Dashan’s health. Barring any accidents, Shi Dashan should have lived for decades more without any issues. Yet, to Fang Bai’s surprise, Shi Dashan had died in less than half a year.

Alian, sniffling, said, "When grandfather and Alian were herding sheep, we found a golden flower with seven leaves on the hillside. Grandfather saw that Alian liked it, so he climbed up to pick it. But then... then he was attacked by a snake while picking the golden flower and rolled down the hillside with it. He hit his head on a rock, bled a lot, and died on the spot... Wuuwuu..."

By this point, Alian was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Seven leaves... golden flower... I see, it must be the Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus..."

Listening to Alian, Fang Bai had a thought. The plant that Alian’s grandfather was trying to pick must have been the main ingredient for refining Golden Essence Pills, the Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus, and it must have also been the Lotus that triggered the awakening of the Hidden Spirit Root within Alian.