Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Chen Zhen’s group, aside from Sister Bai, included two other male celebrities. One was Wang Qiang, a comedian in his thirties who had starred in many comedy films, and the other was Zhou Zhou, an idol singer who had debuted through a survival show.

Wang Qiang was highly competitive. As soon as the director team gave the order, he hoisted his pack and practically dragged Sister Bai along, sprinting ahead.

Zhou Zhou also grabbed Chen Zhen and took off. The young man certainly lived up to his reputation as a singer; his lung capacity was incredible. Chen Zhen was pulled along so fast he felt like he was about to take flight-anyone watching would have thought Zhou Zhou was flying a kite.

In no time, the group vanished into the mountain forest, their speed putting them far ahead of the others.

As soon as they entered the woods, they immediately felt the eerie atmosphere of the Ailao Mountains.

A layer of white mist drifted around the base of the mountain. Though the camp outside was clearly still within their line of sight, it appeared hazy and indistinct, as if viewed through a veil.

Everyone instinctively stopped and turned to look at Chen Zhen.

“Master Chen, which way should we go?”

Chen Zhen leaned against a tree trunk, gasping for air. At the question, he pulled a Luopan from his bag and held it close to his eyes, staring at it.

His lungs burned and his vision swam with dark spots. Damn, this little brat could really run!

Chen Zhen rolled his eyes. He didn’t have the patience to actually read the Luopan, so he used a showy technique he’d learned from me and pointed randomly.

“Mushrooms belong to the Yi Wood element in the Five Elements. Yi Wood is located in the Xun Palace, the second position of the East. Head that way.”

He pointed toward a dense patch of shrubs where there wasn’t even a visible path.

Everyone exchanged awkward glances. To save Chen Zhen’s face, Sister Bai adjusted her pack and took a few steps in that direction.

“I believe in Master Chen.”

Using her trekking pole to push aside the brush, Sister Bai suddenly widened her eyes and cried out, “Oh my god! Everyone, come look!”

The camera crew rushed to her side, the lens following her gaze. On the screen, a small path had abruptly appeared. Along both sides of the path, Nine Demon Mushrooms grew in thick, dense clusters.

“Holy crap, Master Chen is amazing! You can find mushrooms with a Luopan? If he starts a livestream for mushroom foraging, I’ll be the first to watch.”

“Damn! Is that even possible? The production team must have arranged this in advance!”

“This is ridiculous. If a Luopan is that powerful, why doesn’t he go help the police find missing children?”

“The person above has a great point. I feel like the police should contact Master Chen for help.”

“Help with what? Let’s use some logic here. This was clearly staged by the production team. These people are actually pretty good actors.”

The Bullet Comments exploded, and the director beamed with joy in front of the monitors.

The assistant director, however, looked utterly bewildered. The task to find Nine Demon Mushrooms had indeed been carefully planned. Nine Demon Mushrooms were not common in the Ailao Mountains; they generally only appeared at altitudes above two hundred meters. If they could be picked right by the side of the road, the group would finish the task the moment they set out. Where was the entertainment value in that?

The assistant director waved over the local guide and pointed at the screen.

“Didn’t we search the base of the mountain at the start and say there were no Nine Demon Mushrooms? Why are they all over the side of the road now?”

The guide scratched his head. “That’s strange… Why would there be Nine Demon Mushrooms here?”

The assistant director shot him an annoyed look, but there was nothing he could do. The show had just started; he couldn’t let it end now. He picked up his walkie-talkie and began assigning new tasks to both groups, claiming there had been a misunderstanding. The task was now upgraded: the Nine Demon Mushrooms they found had to be over 20 centimeters in height.