"My dear young lady, dear ancestor!"
The old butler rubbed his forehead and said:
"Master recently offended Wang Tianlong. Thereâs a chance theyâll retaliate. This place outside the waiting area is lawless. Shall we return to the waiting area, back to Chongyang City?"
Liu Cuihua gritted her teeth:
"No! As long as my dad doesnât agree to my name change, I wonât go back!"
She crossed her arms and huffed:
"Iâve been mocked because of this name for eighteen years. Now that Iâm finally an adult, I want to change my name. I must change it!"
The old butler had a bit of a toothache:
"The master specifically consulted a master to calculate this name, to suppress the evil transformation within you..."
"Ha ha! Ha ha ha!"
Liu Cuihua laughed coldly, kicking small stones on the ground as she walked.
The old butler eagerly followed, scratching his head:
"Miss, canât we just return to the waiting area? Itâs really unsafe out here, with unknown outlaws and possibly even smuggled cultists!"
He pointed to some vendors nearby and said helplessly:
"These people are here because thereâs something questionable about them and their goods, otherwise they wouldnât set up stalls away from the waiting area and supervision."
The vendorsâ expressions were unfriendly, but they didnât say anythingâthe old guyâs aura was unusual, clearly a martial artist of Six Refinements or above.
Such people couldnât be provoked.
Liu Cuihua squinted:
"Oh come on, how about Uncle Wang, you tell me how to smuggle? I want to visit a subordinate city."
The old butler rolled his eyes:
"Canât we just buy a ticket and go? Why insist on smuggling?"
He sighed with toothache:
"Young lady, Iâm not trying to scare you, but the master has made many enemies lately, someone might take a crooked idea and target you."
"I know, I know!"
Liu Cuihua murmured:
"Uncle Wang, youâre a martial artist of Eleven Refinements, not saying you dominate everywhere, but surely not just anyone can capture me, right?"
In the distance, a sharp-eared black market vendor gasped, Eleven Refinements??
This is a remarkable figure!
They quickly retracted their gazes, afraid to anger the other party.
At this moment, Liu Cuihua was angrily walking out of the black market, kicking stones even harder. A small pebble was kicked far away, fell to the ground, rolled, then started trembling and bouncing on the spot.
"Huh?"
Liu Cuihua curiously watched the pebble trembling in place.
âBoom!â
The ground shook violently, causing Miss Liu to stumble and almost fall, fortunately, the quick-eyed and agile old butler supported her.
"Uncle Wang... was that an earthquake?"
The old butler furrowed his brows, just about to speak, when another muffled sound accompanied by a violent tremor caused a crack to appear on the ground.
"Whatâs happening?" Liu Cuihua was startled.
The earth shook more and more violently, again and again!
As if some ancient beast beneath the surface was about to burst out!
"Somethingâs not right!"
The ninth violent tremor tore a fissure underfoot, and the old butlerâs expression changed: "Miss, we have to go!"
He held onto Liu Cuihua, ready to flee.
âBoom!!!â
The tenth violent tremor.
The ground full of cracks suddenly caved in, black market vendors fled, the old butler grabbed Liu Cuihua, dodging left and right, barely escaping the collapse zone,
They both looked back in shock, seeing huge clouds of dust rise as the ground broke apart.
"There... is a person?"
The sharp-eyed Liu Cuihua pointed at the boy in the huge pit, speaking in surprise and doubt:
"Was he swallowed by the earthquake?"
The old butler looked over; the boy was covered in blood, in a bad state, sitting in the pit struggling to shake his head,
Clearly, he had suffered serious injuries during the earthquake-induced collapse.
"Uncle Wang, quickly help him up!"
"Uh, young lady," the old butler smiled wryly: "Having a kind heart is good, but this is a black market, who knows who he is?"
Though he said this, he still jumped into the pit,
Picked up the injured boy, and swiftly leapt back up in just a few breaths.
"Young man, are you okay?" The old butler gently asked as he placed the boy on the ground, not too worried about any real trouble.
Just a young boy, after all.
Zhang Fusheng coughed violently:
"Iâm fine..."
He sat up, looked back at the pit, only seeing fragments of stone. It seemed he had broken through the top membrane, or rather, the âbubble boundaryâ,
And directly âcrossedâ the space... So, the sky above each subordinate city leads here?
This is the waiting area?
No wonder to reach a higher-level city, you must first go to the waiting area... It seems the waiting area is like a âhubâ.
"Uncle Wang," Liu Cuihua said: "He looks seriously injured, should we take him to the waiting areaâs hospital?"
"Miss, you..." The old butler put his hand on his forehead: "Fine, letâs head back to the waiting area, itâs really unsafe out here."
Saying this, he looked at the ragged boy:
"Young man, can you walk?"
Zhang Fusheng got up, shook his head, some dust falling from his face:
"I can walk."
He curiously looked at the old and young pair, then at the chaotic vendors not far away. This was evidently a wilderness area.
Why are there so many vendors?
"As long as you can walk." The old butler nodded slightly: "Itâs also because our young lady is kind... Youâre quite lucky."
Liu Cuihua curiously examined this delicate-looking boy:
"Are you also a black market vendor? You donât look that old... Iâm Liu Cuihua, whatâs your name?"
"Zhang Fusheng."
Zhang Fusheng rubbed his forehead, thinking of the God of Plagueâs last cold hiss, a heaviness in his heart.
"Letâs go."
The old butler looked at the sky:
"The waiting area is far, itâll take one or two hours to walk back..."
Zhang Fusheng nodded, thanking them. This place was unfamiliar, and he was penniless. It was quite rare to meet two kind people.
The old butler shook his head, not saying much, pulling the young lady aside, and leading the boy back to the waiting area.
Along the way.
"Where are you from?" Liu Cuihua asked curiously.
"Uh, a subordinate city."
Zhang Fusheng replied:
"I was planning to go to Chongyang City."
"Chongyang City?"
Liu Cuihua exclaimed in surprise:
"What a coincidence, weâre from Chongyang City too."
Zhang Fushengâs eyes lit up.
The girl seemed to be quite talkative, chattering away:
"Iâve never been to a subordinate city. I originally wanted to go this time, but my dad wouldnât let me. He said something big happened in a place called Jiangzhou."
"Do you know Jiangzhou?"
Zhang Fushengâs expression darkened:
"Yes, I just came from there."
The old butler and Liu Cuihua both paused in their steps.
"You came from Jiangzhou?"
The butler asked in surprise:
"Wasnât it taken over by the evil cult?"
"I escaped."
"Really?" The old butler looked up and down at the young man, suddenly frowning, "Young lad, do you have a Level 2 pass? You didnât sneak in, did you?"
"Sneak in?" Liu Cuihua became excited, "Really? Do you know how to sneak in? Can you teach me?"
The butlerâs old face fell, feeling a bit of a toothache,
and Zhang Fusheng was about to answer but suddenly frowned.
He did seem to have snuck in, with no information record in the waiting area.
It was a bit troublesome.
......
Chongyang City, Seventh District.
"Still canât get through."
Zhou Guifang put down the phone, looked at this new home, but felt no joy at all.
"Did something really happen to our son?"
She asked softly.
Zhang Wentao opened his mouth but couldnât say anything.
Zhou Guifang suddenly reached out to hit Zhang Wentao:
"Didnât you say you were from the Investigation Bureau? Now that our son is missing, why canât you do anything?"
"I told you not to go to Dongling Snow Mountain, I told you!"
She started crying.
"Teacher Zhou..." Old Zhangâs voice was hoarse, his fists clenched and unclenched.
He hugged his crying wife and whispered:
"Itâll be okay, Fusheng will be fine."
Zhou Guifang wiped her tears, choking, wanting to say something else when the doorbell rang.
Both of them rushed to the door, but suddenly realizedâthis was Chongyang City, their new home.
Their son couldnât have found the new home.
They both sighed and their spirits dampened again.
Zhang Wentao sighed softly, opened the door, and outside stood a fat old man.
The fat old man wore simple clothes, a bandage wrapped around his hand, and looked quite dispirited.
"Who are you?" Zhang Wentao asked dejectedly.
"My surname is Hong, Iâm Fushengâs mentor." The old man spoke softly, and Zhou Guifang rushed over, lips trembling:
"Do you, do you have any news about Fusheng?"
She had heard from Old Zhang that their son seemed to be at a Martial Arts Dojo, taken as a disciple by the master
At this moment, the dojo master who should have been in Jiangzhou suddenly appeared, which might mean...
Zhang Wentaoâs eyes also suddenly lit up.
The fat old man shook his head sadly and said softly:
"No news as of now..."
He handed over a business card with the name "Hong Tianbao" and a string of phone numbers:
"If Fusheng returns, please be sure to contact me. If you encounter any trouble, you can also call this number."
After thinking for a moment, Hong Tianbao handed over another card for Lin Dongxi:
"If the first call doesnât go through, try this one."
Zhang Wentao silently accepted it, without asking how the old man found the place.
The name Hong Tianbao seemed familiar,
but he no longer had the heart to ponder.
He watched the old man leave.
The couple returned to the living room, sat on the sofa, neither speaking, doing nothing,
just dialing their sonâs phone number, over and over again.
At the residential building downstairs.
"Master."
Lin Dongxi, who had just arrived in Chongyang City, lightly took his masterâs hand:
"The death certificate for Little Junior Brother has already been issued. Why did you intercept it instead of giving it to them?"
Hong Tianbao sighed softly, closed his eyes:
"Let them have a glimmer of hope."
He opened his eyes, speaking in a low voice:
"Although the fate was brief, it was still a mentor-disciple bond. Your senior brother and senior sister have no family, but your little junior brother does."
Hong Tianbao looked at Lin Dongxi:
"If you can, take care of them a little."
The real purpose of his visit was to give them two business cards. As for Fushengâs return?
He held no hope.
Jiangzhou was completely gone, and on the Federationâs identity system, Little Fusheng was already marked âdeceasedâ.
Hong Tianbaoâs steps were shaky, as if the calamity had taken away his bones, leaving him without that vital energy in his heart.
"After you leave Chongyang City, head to the waiting area, and then go to another city. If Master dies, donât come back to pay respects."
The old man held Little Childâs hand, talking as they walked:
"Itâs not safe here."
"Master, is it because of Uncle Wang?" Little Child asked.
The old man did not answer.
Little Child sighed softly:
"Master, when I become stronger, Iâll avenge you."
She raised her small fist, speaking earnestly:
"Iâll repay every grievance Master suffered."
"Yes, Dongxi, good child." The old man patted Lin Dongxiâs head, looking wistful: "Letâs go, letâs go."
He led Little Child to the airport, sending his last disciple on the plane to the waiting area, watching her leave.
"Now, I truly am all alone."
Hong Tianbao stooped, closed his eyes, looking as if he might fall at any moment.
He reached out and tapped his body several times.
The malice sealed by the Secret Technique for years surged out, and he suddenly stood straight, eyes wide open.
"No ties, no attachments." The fat old man, like a lone wolf, murmured to himself.
(Seeking votes)