Three days left until the family hunting event.

After breaking through to Rank 3, Zhou Ming still needed to replace all the Gu worms on his body in order to truly unleash the formidable combat strength of a Rank 3 Gu Master.

On his way to the Warm Pool Valley, Zhou Ming passed by Zhou Hao's residence and paused for a moment, remaining silent.

In these past few days, no one had approached him, and he hadn't reached out to anyone either.

A thick, sorrowful barrier had formed between them.

"Well, this way, when I leave, there won't be so much sadness and attachment," Zhou Ming thought to himself, turning to leave.

Just then, the door behind him suddenly opened.

"Zhou Ming?" Zhou Hao's slightly surprised voice came through.

Zhou Ming turned around and looked at him.

Zhou Hao approached with a hint of joy, smiling and saying, "I was about to look for you, but I didn't expect you to come find me first. You do have me in your heart, after all."

Zhou Ming: "..."

For some reason, he suddenly felt the urge to draw his blade.

"Let's go!" Zhou Hao grabbed Zhou Ming's arm and tried to pull him along.

"...Where are we going?" Zhou Ming asked.

"We're going to find Zhou Yu and Zhou Ke!" Zhou Hao explained as they walked. "I've already reprimanded the two of them these past few days, and they've acknowledged their mistakes."

"I was planning to bring them to see you today, and since you came to find me first, it's perfect. Let's go meet them together!"

"I..." Zhou Ming was about to refuse instinctively, but after giving it some thought, he smiled instead.

"Great, I was just thinking of giving those two a beating. They actually tried to push me away last time, hmph!"

"Haha, you're Rank 2 now, while Zhou Yu is still at the peak of Rank 1. You two should have a direct brawl. I must witness this spectacle."

Between their laughter and banter, it seemed like their relationship had returned to its previous harmony.

Soon, the two arrived at Zhou Ke's residence. Zhou Hao approached and knocked on the door.

The door opened from the inside, revealing a drowsy face.

"Captain, Zhou Ming, why are you here so early? Is there something going on?"

Zhou Ke still seemed half-asleep, rubbing his eyes and mumbling.

Suddenly, he realized what was happening and his consciousness instantly awakened. He froze in place, his eyes filled with complex emotions. He opened his mouth to say something but ended up speechless, unable to utter a word.

At that moment, Zhou Hao stepped forward, wrapped his arm around Zhou Ke's neck, and pulled him close, playfully ruffling his hair and laughing loudly.

"You, what time did you go to bed last night?"

"I heard there was a new batch of art books from Zhou Lu. Don't tell me, my boy, you were... busy with your artistic activities last night?"

After all, Zhou Ke was just a sixteen-year-old boy. Teased by Zhou Hao, his face turned red, and he struggled to say, "Captain, what are you saying? I didn't..."

"He's flustered, he's flustered!" Zhou Hao let go of his arm, pointed at Zhou Ke, and laughed heartily with Zhou Ming.

Zhou Ming couldn't help but laugh and came to Zhou Ke's rescue. "Captain, with our Keke's appearance, I can't even count how many aunties out there would love to devour him. Does he still need to grow in secret?"

"You, Zhou Ming..." Zhou Ke's face turned crimson, as if blood was about to trickle down.

Zhou Ke had a baby-faced appearance with fair and smooth skin, resembling a cute little boy. Because of his looks, his teammates often teased him.

Amidst the commotion, the three of them looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Alright," Zhou Hao clapped his hands and said with a smile, "In the past few days, we were all too hot-headed. It's time to let go of any unpleasantness."

"Zhou Ming came to me early this morning, begging me to bring him here to apologize with you guys. See, he's sincere, isn't he?"

As he spoke, Zhou Hao subtly winked at Zhou Ming.

Understanding the signal, Zhou Ming sincerely addressed Zhou Ke, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been absent during our last mission."

"No, no, no." Zhou Ke waved his hands repeatedly. "You can't be blamed for that. We, Rank 1 and Rank 2 Gu Masters, can't do much in a minor beast tide. We can only focus on saving ourselves! That day, it was just because..."

"Stop talking." Zhou Ming placed both hands on Zhou Ke's shoulders, looking at him earnestly. "I understand."

"Mhm." Zhou Ke nodded, his face turning red once again. He lowered his head and said, "Zhou Ming, please, don't look at me like that."

Zhou Ming: "..."

Why did I suddenly feel the urge to draw my sword?

"Ahem, save the intimate moments for later. Let's focus on the task at hand."

Zhou Hao, who couldn't bear it any longer, quickly intervened to defuse the situation.

"Let's go, we'll find Zhou Yu!"

"Captain..." Zhou Ke whispered softly, "Zhou Yu, he..."

"Don't worry." Zhou Hao didn't say much, but he spoke in a calm manner.

And so, Zhou Ke remained silent.

Zhou Ming fell into contemplation.

Among the five-member squad, there was a Gu Master named Zhou Hang who died in the minor beast tide. He was the cousin of Zhou Yu, but they had grown up together since childhood, as close as real brothers. Zhou Hang's death had a profound impact on Zhou Yu.

The lively atmosphere from earlier had cooled down considerably. The three of them arrived at Zhou Yu's residence in a somewhat somber mood.

Standing at the door, Zhou Hao said to Zhou Ming, "Wait here for a moment. Zhou Ke and I will go in and see if that kid is sleeping naked."

Zhou Ming nodded without saying a word.

Zhou Hao took out a bunch of keys from his waist and directly opened the door, leading Zhou Ke inside.

Zhou Ming stood at the door, listening to the faint voices of conversation, followed by arguments, and then Zhou Hao's incessant rambling, which gradually faded away.

Then, the door opened again, and Zhou Hao and Zhou Ke dragged Zhou Yu out.

At this moment, Zhou Yu appeared extremely dejected, unkempt, and with a gaunt face.

He was forcefully brought in front of Zhou Ming by the two of them. After hesitating for a while and bowing his head, he reluctantly said, "I'm sorry."

Zhou Ming remained silent, simply looking at Zhou Yu calmly.

Zhou Yu didn't raise his head. Upon hearing Zhou Ming's lack of response, he repeated again, "I'm sorry."

Zhou Ming still didn't say anything, ignoring Zhou Hao's anxious eye signals. He continued to gaze at Zhou Yu with a calm expression.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Zhou Yu kept repeating, his speech becoming faster and his tone increasingly agitated.

Finally, it escalated into an outburst of anger mixed with a tone of grievance and crying, "I've already apologized. What else do you want from me? If you're not satisfied, just kill me!"

Zhou Ming reached out and grabbed his collar, lifting him off the ground, his feet dangling.

"Do I need to hear your meaningless apologies?"

Zhou Ming spoke in a deep voice, demanding, "I'm asking you, how did Zhou Hang die?"

Gritting his teeth, Zhou Yu's face displayed a mixture of anger, sadness, stubbornness, and grievance.

"Zhou, Zhou Ming..." Zhou Ke attempted to intervene and reached out to pull Zhou Ming's arm, but he found that his arm was as immovable as cast iron.

"I'm asking you, how did Zhou Hang die!"

Zhou Yu's lips trembled, tears rapidly welling up in his eyes.

"Zhou Hang, he, he died in the beast tide! He was bitten to death by those damn beasts, torn apart and devoured!"

"What good does it do for you to say sorry? How many people die in the Northern Plains? When your brother died, you should have worked hard to become stronger, to kill the beasts that ate him, and to wipe out the beast tide. Instead, you're crying and throwing a tantrum here like a woman!"

Zhou Ming loosened his grip, and Zhou Yu fell to the ground, stumbling backward, supported by Zhou Hao and Zhou Ke.

Zhou Ming glanced at him and turned to leave.

But his voice remained, lingering in Zhou Yu's heart, unable to dissipate for a long time.

"I hope we can still fight side by side, brother!"