Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time

A massive tree, easily one and a half meters in diameter, lay slanted against a mound of soft earth. It had clearly fallen decades ago. Its roots had been half-swallowed by the soil, and thick moss now coated its bark. But what caught his attention wasn't its size, it was the sound.

He tapped it. Tok.

Hollow.

He tapped again, crouching low this time. Tok-tok-tok.

'Definitely hollow.'

And not just that... it seemed deep. From the way the sound echoed, Han Yu estimated there was a large cavity inside, sealed shut by the compressed earth around the roots. There was no visible opening from below or the sides. A perfect natural vault.

His heart skipped.

'This… this could be it.'

If he could make an opening from the top or one of the upper roots, he could slip inside and hide the Undying Life Charm. It was secluded. Hidden. And, most importantly, unlikely to be disturbed by beasts or humans alike. In the marshes, the ground shifted too much. But here, this tree was practically fossilized in place.

He marked the location in his jade slip. Then, casually, he looked over his shoulder.

Zhang Rulan was watching him, silently.

Han Yu smiled faintly and tapped the trunk again.

"Hollow," he said lightly. "Could be a den. Better mark it."

Zhang Rulan gave a single nod. "Already did."

That was it. No suspicion. No follow-up. Just quiet efficiency. Han Yu exhaled through his nose and moved on with them.

Still, he made a mental note. 'I'll come back here alone.'

They kept walking, gradually looping back in a wide semicircle. The hours slipped by. The sun, though invisible under the thick canopy, was now angling lower, painting the forest in cooler tones. Elder Yue had ordered them to return before dusk unless absolutely necessary, so they began to slowly arc toward the rendezvous point.

They had just reached a small ridge, overlooking a shallow basin of murky water and ferns, when the talismans at their waists began to hum.

He Xing immediately pulled his out. The small jade tile pulsed with faint light. It wasn't an alarm, but it was a summons—a silent call to regroup.

"Elder Yue," he said, squinting at the flickering runes. "She's calling us in. Something's changed."

Han Yu and Zhang Rulan pulled theirs as well. Same signal.

"Back to the meeting point," Zhang Rulan said, already turning.

They moved fast, retracing their steps through their own marks and notches. It took them less than an hour to get back to the original junction where the three groups had split.

The other two groups were already there, looking tense. Even Elder Yue had returned. She stood in the center, her expression sharp, her robes faintly damp with dew and dust.

As soon as Han Yu's group arrived, she gestured them closer.

"We've confirmed it," Elder Yue said without preamble. "There are more ambushes waiting. We found more tracks... too many for ordinary beasts. Multiple species, moving in coordination. And…" She paused, her voice lowering. "There are traces of formations."

That made several disciples stiffen.

"Formations?" He Xing echoed.

"Yes," Elder Yue said grimly. "Crude. Brutal. But effective. Whoever is doing this knows how to command beasts and they're using array nodes to direct them."

A cold silence fell.

Han Yu's thoughts immediately jumped back to the masked figure they had glimpsed days ago. That single glance. That unnatural retreat.

'So it wasn't just a coincidence.'

Elder Yue let the silence linger for a moment before continuing. "We return to the main camp now. No more scouting until we re-evaluate. We've already lost enough. This is no longer a beast tide. This is warfare."

Her words rang with finality.

They turned and began the long march back to the expedition's main camp. The sky was turning orange through the canopy above, and the forest shadows stretched long and thin.

As Han Yu walked, his hand brushed the edge of his storage pouch, where the Undying Life Charm's materials laid rested.

'If I'm going to do this, he thought, I need to act soon. Before the window closes.'

But first...they had to survive what was coming.

After returning to the camp, Elder Yue gave the report to the other elders, and a new plan was made. They were to investigate further tomorrow, and look into more areas that were not yet explored.

With a good nights rest, the scouting party headed out again. Han Yu was teamed up with He Xing and Zhang Rulan again, and assigned a sector that was next to the area they had explored yesterday.

'I wonder if I'll get a chance today.' Han Yu thought, since their assigned section crossed over from yesterday's area.

The trio moved deeper into their assigned sector, carefully weaving between massive roots and thick underbrush that clawed at their robes.

Every few steps, He Xing would pause, scanning the treetops with a wary gaze, while Zhang Rulan silently scribbled on a jade slip, recording their observations with meticulous neatness. Han Yu, though quieter than usual, kept his eyes sharp, marking landmarks in his mind.

The hollow tree weighed heavily on his thoughts. Its gnarled trunk and sunken roots had almost called out to him, a natural fortress waiting to be claimed. If he could just return alone, it would be the perfect site to conceal his Undying Life Charm. But with He Xing and Zhang Rulan present, even glancing back at it too many times risked suspicion.

Hours crawled by.

The forest was alive with sound, low growls in the distance, occasional screeches of birds overhead, the rustling of scaled bodies slithering through the canopy. The deeper they went, the heavier the air felt, thick with moisture and a faint metallic tang that clung to the tongue.

Even beasts of the Core Condensation realm could be heard prowling, though most kept their distance, perhaps cautious of the Twin Leaf Peak Sect's intruders, or the Peak Heads that were patrolling in the distance.