The advance team was frantic and furious when they heard Zhang Yang had left alone, rushing after him immediately.

He had just reported finding the target to his superiors, and now the person was gone again. He had no idea what kind of reprimand awaited him upon his return.

Zhang Yang had indeed departed, and so had Zhang Pinglu. Zhang Pinglu’s departure was to return to Changjing sooner; now, only Zhang Daofeng remained to guard the city. The treasures brought from the Huyan family were still there, not yet properly stored, and could not afford any mishap.

Zhang Yang left because their pace was truly slow, and he didn't want to keep those outside waiting any longer.

At their current speed, it would likely be past midnight before they returned. Traveling through the primordial forest was nowhere near as swift as moving across open ground; the progress was excruciatingly slow.

Although Zhang Yang was gone, Zhang Yunan remained. This was also for the sake of the armed police soldiers; having Zhang Yunan, a fourth-level expert from the Medical Saint lineage, nearby meant any issue that arose could be resolved, even if a spirit beast appeared, alleviating all worry. Zhang Yang had no need to keep pace with their sluggish progress.

"Comms man, contact headquarters immediately. Tell them the target left on his own; alert nearby brothers to be cautious!"

Realizing he couldn't catch Zhang Yang, the leader could only issue orders to the communications soldier beside him.

This was all he could do now, hoping the people ahead could intercept Zhang Yang and prevent him from encountering danger alone.

He was genuinely angry at Zhang Yang's 'reckless' behavior. This was a primordial forest. Even with so many armed men accompanying them, some were still injured from time to time. Yet Zhang Yang dared to venture out alone.

No, he still had that beautiful white horse. But this was a primordial forest, not a grassland. Riding a horse through the forest—thinking of this, the leader shook his head again.

However, he failed to consider that if Zhang Yang could survive alone here for over ten days, he could certainly leave alone. The fact that the white horse remained spotless after so many days in the forest was itself a suspicious point, one they had overlooked because of Zhang Yang’s presence.

"Captain, our sniffer dogs are all well again!"

As he wrestled with frustration, someone suddenly reported again: as soon as Zhang Yang and his party left, the sniffer dogs here instantly recovered.

If not fully recovered, they at least seemed spirited and began obeying the handlers' commands, unlike before when they were listless, unable to walk and needing to be carried.

"Recovered?"

The leader’s eyes widened again, and he looked involuntarily toward the distance.

The dogs had collectively fallen ill the moment Zhang Yang arrived, and now they were instantly fine the moment he left. Could the strange phenomenon with the dogs be related to them?

At this moment, something flashed into the leader’s mind.

It was a secret his instructor had shared when he was young. The instructor had told him that true powerhouses in this world were far more formidable than ordinary people imagined—infinitely more so.

They could freely enter dangerous places inaccessible to common folk and possessed abilities beyond human comprehension.

But such people were exceedingly rare. He wouldn't have learned this secret if the instructor hadn't been drunk.

As for how the instructor knew, it was because he had witnessed such individuals firsthand, cementing his absolute belief in their existence.

Now, he finally recalled all the inconsistencies surrounding Zhang Yang. According to the intelligence, Zhang Yang had been in the mountains for over ten days without emerging. After more than ten days in the wilderness, one would expect to look like a wild man, or at least somewhat disheveled.

This area was teeming with all kinds of venomous creatures and countless maddening small pests like mosquitoes and ants. A bite from a mosquito here usually resulted in a massive welt.

In this environment, even their elite team looked somewhat battered, yet Zhang Yang showed no signs of distress.

At this point, he finally understood why he felt something was slightly off when he first met Zhang Yang and his group.

Whether it was the target Zhang Yang, his uncle Zhang Yunan, the mysterious old man, the beautiful white horse, or the pet sable sleeping in Zhang Yang’s arms—they all shared one common characteristic.

They were all spotlessly clean, without a single trace of mud.

To live in the primordial forest for over ten days and remain this clean—this was simply not achievable by ordinary people.

Could it be that Zhang Yang and his companions were the extraordinary individuals his instructor had spoken of?

Thinking this way, it seemed quite plausible. Even he, a captain trained for over a decade in the military, wouldn't dare claim he could survive alone in a harsh environment like the Savage Mountain for more than ten days without supplies, let alone emerge completely unscathed.

This realization startled him, and he couldn't help but turn back, momentarily stunned.

"Captain?"

The soldier who had delivered the report waited for a long time without a reply, finally calling out softly. The captain snapped back to attention and quickly shook his head.

This time, he issued only one simple command: accelerate the advance. Whether Zhang Yang was the type he suspected or not, they needed to get out sooner. The Savage Mountain was no place for them to linger; spending a night here was even more troublesome.

As the entire contingent sped up, Zhang Yang was accelerating too.

On the path, Zhang Yang encountered many search parties heading into the mountains. He avoided them whenever possible, and when evasion was impossible, he instructed Zhuifeng (Chasing Wind) to flash past quickly.

In the mountains, even if someone glimpsed Zhuifeng, they would only see a white blur, and after rubbing their eyes, it would vanish, leading them to assume they were mistaken.

As Zhang Yang sped along, those searching naturally couldn't catch sight of him.

After galloping for a while, Zhuifeng suddenly halted. A smile spread across Zhang Yang’s face; not far ahead, he sensed two familiar presences.

Wu Zhiguo and Chang Feng were leading over a hundred people forward slowly. Those at the front carried various tools to clear obstacles or snakes from the path, checking for methane pockets or toxic gases, and mapping out any hidden swamps unique to the forest.

These hundred-plus people were mostly employees of Wu Zhiguo’s company; Wu Zhiguo had contributed significantly this time.

Zhang Yang gently patted Zhuifeng's flank, and the horse immediately understood, moving forward directly until they appeared before the group.

The scouts ahead were startled by the sudden appearance of Zhuifeng and Zhang Yang. Some instinctively raised their rifles.

Carrying firearms was necessary in the primordial forest due to the presence of wild beasts.

"Zhiguo! Chang Feng!"

Zhang Yang called out. Wu Zhiguo and Chang Feng froze momentarily, then quickly strode forward, staring blankly at Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang, however, was beaming. He dismounted from Zhuifeng and slowly walked toward them.

The others remained silent. The sudden appearance of the beautiful white horse and Zhang Yang shocked them, but they understood that this unexpected arrival must know their boss.

"Zhang Yang, where did you go? Why haven't you been back for so long?"

Chang Feng was the first to react. He took two large strides, planting himself in front of Zhang Yang and delivering a heavy punch to his shoulder.

He struck with considerable force, and his face showed clear agitation; obviously, his emotions were running high.

Of course, no matter how strong his punch, it posed no threat to Zhang Yang. Zhang Yang hadn't exerted his internal energy on his surface, or Chang Feng would have hurt his own hand from the shock.

"Zhang Yang, we finally found you! Where on earth were you? Why have we had no news?"

Wu Zhiguo also recovered and rushed toward them, excitement etched on their faces. For days, they had been unable to eat or sleep properly while mobilizing such great energy and resources, all to find this person. Now that he was found, their hearts finally settled.

"I apologize. I wandered quite far into the forest and was delayed by other matters before coming out!"

Seeing their reactions, Zhang Yang felt deeply apologetic; this was indeed his oversight.

He wasn't alone this time. If it were just him, the duration wouldn't matter, but disappearing for so long while traveling with others was unforgivable, which explained their intense worry.

But Zhang Yang genuinely hadn't anticipated that his foray inside would take such a long time.

Eighteen full days, more than half a month.

However, his harvest over those eighteen days was considerable. Had he settled everything beforehand, this would have been a perfect trial for him.

"It's alright as long as you're safe, alright as long as you're safe!"

Wu Zhiguo scrutinized Zhang Yang from head to toe, then pulled him into a tight embrace, murmuring these words softly.

Zhang Yang remained still, allowing Wu Zhiguo to hold him. He could even feel the rapid pace of Wu Zhiguo’s heartbeat.

These friends were genuinely worried about him, worrying every single day, and this anxiety was entirely a result of his carelessness.

"We found Zhang Yang. Let's head back!"

Chang Feng spoke, then signaled someone to retrieve a communication device to send a message to those behind them.

There was no cell signal here, and standard walkie-talkies couldn't transmit this far. Each team carried radio communicators.

Every team could report their latest status via radio, keeping everyone informed of the current situation and allowing for advance preparations if anything arose.

"Right, back we go!"

Wu Zhiguo nodded heavily. He wasn't the only one worried about Zhang Yang; they needed to bring him back quickly, or those waiting outside would only grow more frantic.

Feeling their sincere concern and care, Zhang Yang's guilt deepened. He even noticed a moisture welling in Wu Zhiguo’s eyes.

Evidently, Wu Zhiguo was so overwhelmed by finding Zhang Yang that he couldn't control his emotions.

The group started moving out. This time, Zhang Yang did not leave on his own again.

The armed police unit had no inherent connection to him; he appreciated their search efforts, but it lacked the emotional resonance he felt seeing Wu Zhiguo and Chang Feng.

With Wu Zhiguo and Chang Feng present, there was no way he could abandon them and leave again; he had to return with them.

Fortunately, they were not too far from the edge of the wilderness. With Zhang Yang and Shandian (Lightning) present, no ill-intentioned beasts dared to harass them, significantly increasing their speed. As evening approached, they were nearing the outer perimeter of the mountain.

Once they reached the periphery, the town wouldn't be far.

Before they even fully exited, another team surged forward into the area. Leading them were familiar faces: Long Feng, Long Cheng, Su Zhantao, Wang Chen, Li Ya, Yan Yefei—they were all there.

Among them was a delicate, pitiful girl in white, tears streaming down her face, making one’s heart ache to look at her.