Chapter Thirty-Two: Snakes on the Wild Path

"Sure!" Yuan Xiao'e was the first to chime in, her voice brimming with excitement. "You two are so experienced in hiking; following you is bound to be the right choice!"

"We have a perfectly good hiking trail, so why take some wild, unofficial path? Are you crazy?" Zhao Yuanqing retorted. He didn't care for those two men, and he was determined to oppose anything they proposed.

Zhang Xun ignored him, smiling instead at Han Ying and Zhuang Qing. "It's only twelve-thirty. If we take the official scenic route, we'll reach the summit by two-thirty."

"The wild trail we've chosen is a bit more challenging and takes a slightly longer route, but I guarantee the scenery is much better!"

"The wild trail will add about an hour and a half to our time, meaning we should reach the top around four. We can take in the view and then take the cable car down. It won't stop us from grabbing dinner after we leave the scenic area."

"What do you two think?"

Zhang Xun’s posture made it clear he would have preferred to ditch Zhao Yuanqing and Wei Lin and lead the three women on the wild path alone.

"I’ve never hiked a wild trail before, I’d really love to try it." Han Ying was eager, her cute, round face glowing with anticipation. She goaded, "Zhao Yuanqing, if you can’t handle it, just take the official route and wait for us at the top."

"Who said I couldn't handle it? Weilin is carrying the backpack now, and I’ve rested enough to recover!" Zhao Yuanqing, refusing to be looked down upon, shouted, "Fine, the wild trail it is! Who's afraid of who?"

Zhuang Qing, who hadn't even broken a sweat yet, saw how interested Han Ying was and said loyally, "Han Ying, I’ll go with you."

"Mmhmm, you're the best," Han Ying beamed.

Seeing that Yuan Xiao'e, Han Ying, and Zhuang Qing were all in, Zhang Xun and Qi Muyang didn't waste another word, leading the way toward the path marked with a "No Entry" sign. They didn't even bother to ask Wei Lin or Zhao Yuanqing.

"Son of a bitch, they just wanted us to take the regular path so they could have a good time with the three girls."

Once Han Ying and Zhuang Qing started moving, Zhao Yuanqing followed eagerly. Having shed his heavy backpack, his pace was noticeably lighter.

Wei Lin didn't move right away. Ever since Zhang Xun suggested the wild trail, he had been on guard and pulled out his phone to check. After quickly scanning a few guides for the Nanshan Scenic Area, he realized that what Zhang Xun had said wasn't entirely wrong.

There was indeed a wild trail on Nanshan—no stone steps, plenty of branches along the way, and... snakes. The scenery on the wild trail had its own unique charm compared to the regular path, but it wasn't necessarily much better.

Taking the regular trail from the entrance of the wild path would take two to three hours, depending on the hiker's stamina. For the wild trail, even fit hikers needed to add about another hour and a half.

"With Yuan Xiao'e, Han Ying, and a weakling like Zhao Yuanqing in the mix, that time will probably double. Plus, Yuan Xiao'e loves to stop to take photos."

"The three-and-a-half hours they mentioned for reaching the top via the wild trail only applies to them. With three novices, it will take at least five hours."

"By the time we reach the summit, it'll be around six, and..."

Wei Lin checked his phone and found that the cable car down from Nanshan stopped running at five-thirty. If they reached the top after six, it would likely be dark, and the cable car would be shut down. Would they have to spend hours stumbling down in the pitch black?

"Zhongjiang City, Nanshan, Summit."

Opening a hotel booking app, Wei Lin entered the keywords and saw several mountain-top guesthouses appear.

"Heh, so they never intended for the three women to make it back to Linjiang City tonight."

Wei Lin sneered, then checked his phone signal and the overnight temperature.

"There's no real danger. If those two jerks try to pull anything on the wild trail, they shouldn't be a match for me and Yuanqing."

Having sorted this out, he was the last to enter the wild path, following the group at a leisurely pace. The two "hiking experts" led the way, with Yuan Xiao'e staying right by their side. Wei Lin and the other three lagged behind.

The two women, who had been fed too much water by Zhao Yuanqing earlier, frequently stopped to relieve themselves in secluded spots, occasionally cursing at him.

"Not bad, they aren't pretentious."

Watching Zhuang Qing from the shadows, Wei Lin gave a silent nod. Unlike the rich girls he was used to, Zhuang Qing didn't complain about being tired once. She even offered to carry Han Ying's small bag to lighten her load. Seeing Zhuang Qing's relaxed demeanor, Wei Lin suspected that, like Zhang Xun, she had long-term experience with outdoor hiking.

If it weren't for his two rounds of biological enhancement and his recent high-frequency gym sessions, Wei Lin might have been drenched in sweat just like Zhao Yuanqing.

"Wei Lin, your stamina is impressive. Before we came, I thought you and Zhao Yuanqing would both be dragging everyone down." Zhuang Qing stopped, leaning on her trekking pole, and complimented him.

"My stamina isn't the only thing that's impressive," Wei Lin replied with a wicked grin.

"Come on, keep me company." Before Zhuang Qing could respond, Han Ying pulled her away to find a spot.

"Zhuang Qing is pretty damn tough. I don't even see her sweating much; she's miles ahead of Han Ying," Zhao Yuanqing whispered. "Compared to that idiot son of Great Sage Zhuang, she’s superior in every way."

"No wonder I heard that idiot is terrified of his sister. I’m starting to see why."

In the circle of top-tier second-generation wealthy kids in Linjiang City, Zhao Yuanqing was heavily suppressed by his father. He had wanted to buy a sports car for years, only to be shut down by his father time and again. While he mocked Zhuang Daoyuan’s playboy lifestyle, he was secretly envious. With his father's wealth, if he would just give the nod, he could have a sports car immediately, rather than just the Porsche Cayenne he had now.

"In terms of stamina, Han Ying is to Zhuang Qing as you are to me," Wei Lin said with the air of a master.

"Did you take some kind of drug? I remember you being about the same as me! Wei Lin, some of those drugs are really bad for your body, the side effects are terrifying. You shouldn't take that stuff!" Zhao Yuanqing, refusing to admit defeat, started spouting nonsense.

"Ah! A snake!"

A sudden scream from Han Ying erupted from the nearby bushes. The cute, round-faced girl, usually so gentle, ran out with a face as pale as a sheet, her expression one of utter terror as she pulled up her sweatpants. In her panic, she hadn't pulled them up fully, revealing a sliver of pink underwear.

Wei Lin and Zhao Yuanqing bolted toward her.

"Han Ying, are you okay?" Zhao Yuanqing grabbed the panicked girl, while his other hand swept his trekking pole through the bushes behind her.

Wei Lin didn't hesitate, rushing past them toward the depths of the thicket.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Xun and Qi Muyang shouted as they hurried down.

Zhao Yuanqing thrashed at the bushes, not forgetting to help Han Ying adjust her pants in his haste, cursing, "Damn it! Don't come down here!"

"Ah! Han Ying, is there a snake? How could there be a snake?!" Yuan Xiao'e screamed from above, her voice sounding even more horrified than Han Ying's.

...

Deep in the thicket, on the hard, leaf-strewn ground.

A tall figure stood composed, looking ahead with calm indifference.

*Swish!*

Another tall, lean figure burst through the thorns and branches, jumping into her view. The man stopped abruptly.

Gone was his usual devil-may-care attitude; at this moment, Wei Lin was brimming with a sharp, lethal aura, his chiseled face filled with the predatory focus of a hunter.

Seeing him like this, Zhuang Qing was momentarily stunned. The current Wei Lin reminded her of a agile leopard or a lone wolf prowling the wilderness.

"Is this really Wei Lin? How can he project such sharp intensity in the urban jungle?" Zhuang Qing’s eyes glimmered with curiosity at the man whose presence was so drastically different from before. She had met many men of all ages, but she had only seen such cold, piercing intensity in her own father when he was in a towering rage.

...

In Wei Lin's eyes, Zhuang Qing was perfectly composed, her clothes neat, her face showing no trace of panic as she looked at him with curiosity.

On the ground in front of her, amidst the dead leaves, lay an earth snake that had been beaten to death with a trekking pole. Wei Lin noticed the snake's head had been crushed.

"How could that short-stature Great Sage Zhuang produce such a tall, fierce daughter?"

"No wonder that loser Zhuang Daoyuan is so afraid of her," Wei Lin thought to himself.