A Zhang Fusheng Emerged from Underground

"My dear lady, my great-aunt!"

The old steward rubbed his forehead and said:

"Master has recently offended Wang Tianlong, and the other party might retaliate. This area outside the Waiting Area is a lawless place. Shall we go back to the Waiting Area, back to Chongyang City?"

Liu Cuihua gritted her teeth:

"Oh no! I won't go back until my dad agrees to let me change my name!"

She crossed her arms and said Jiujiu:

"I've been laughed at for this name for eighteen years. I've finally come of age, and I'm going to change my name. I absolutely have to change my name!"

The old housekeeper had a toothache.

"The master specially invited a master to calculate this name, which is said to be able to suppress the malignant changes in your body, Miss."

"Hehe! Hehehe!"

Liu Cuihua sneered, kicking small stones on the ground as she walked.

The old butler followed along eagerly, scratching his head and saying:

"Miss, how about we go back to the Waiting Area instead of Chongyang City? It's really not safe out there. There are countless outlaws and even cult members trying to smuggle themselves in!"

He pointed to some street vendors nearby and said helplessly:

"These people have some issues; they're selling illicit goods, otherwise they wouldn't be setting up stalls far from the Waiting Area and away from supervision."

The vendors looked unfriendly, but said nothing—the old man exuded an extraordinary aura, clearly a martial artist at least at the Sixth Refinement of cultivation.

This kind of person is not to be trifled with.

Liu Cuihua squinted:

"Forget it, Uncle Wang, how about you tell me how to smuggle myself across the border? I want to go to a lower-level city for some fun."

The old butler rolled his eyes:

"Can't we just buy tickets directly? Why do we have to smuggle ourselves in?"

He said, his toothache was evident.

"Young Miss, I'm not trying to scare you, but Master has made many enemies lately, and someone might have ulterior motives and try to harm you."

"Okay, okay!"

Liu Cuihua muttered:

"Uncle Wang, you're Eleventh Refinement martial artist. Even if you can't roam freely, you shouldn't be able to just let any random person come and capture you, right?"

In the distance, Black Market vendor with sharp ears gasped in shock. Eleventh Refinement??

This is an incredibly important person!

They quickly looked away, afraid of angering the other party.

Liu Cuihua stormed out of the Black Market, kicking the stones even harder. A small pebble was kicked far away, landed on the ground, rolled, and then trembled and bounced in place.

"Why?"

Liu Cuihua looked curiously at the pebble that was trembling in place.

'Thump!'

The ground shook violently, and the eldest daughter of the Liu family stumbled and almost fell to the ground, but fortunately, the quick-thinking old butler caught her.

"Uncle Wang, was there an earthquake?"

The old butler frowned, about to speak, when another muffled thud followed, accompanied by a violent tremor, and a crack appeared in the ground.

"What happened?" Liu Cuihua asked in surprise.

The earthquake tremors grew more and more intense, one after another!

It was as if some Savage Wilderness monster was about to burst forth from the depths of the earth!

"Wrong!"

The ground trembled for the ninth time. Seeing the cracks tearing open beneath their feet, the old butler's face paled. "Miss, let's go!"

He helped Liu Cuihua up and was about to leave.

'Thump!!!'

The tenth major earthquake.

The cracked earth collapsed with a deafening roar. Black Market merchants fled, and the old butler, grabbing Liu Cuihua, dodged and weaved, barely managing to escape the sinkhole.

The two turned around in shock to see a huge plume of smoke rising and the ground tearing apart.

"There... is someone there?"

The sharp-eyed Liu Cuihua pointed at the boy in the giant pit and asked in surprise:

"Were they swept away by the earthquake?"

The old steward looked over and saw that the boy was covered in blood and in very bad condition, sitting in the pit and struggling to shake his head.

He clearly sustained serious injuries in the landslide caused by the earthquake.

"Uncle Wang, hurry and pull him out!"

"Well, Miss," the old butler said with a wry smile, "It's good to have a kind heart, but this is the Black Market. Who knows who the other party is?"

Despite saying this, he still jumped into the giant pit.

He carried the injured boy on his back and jumped up nimbly in just a few breaths.

"Young man, are you alright?" The old butler put the boy down and asked calmly, not worried that there was anything wrong with him.

He's just a young boy.

Zhang Fusheng coughed violently:

I'm fine.

He sat up and looked back at the pit, where there was only a pile of rubble. It seemed as if he had broken through the membrane above, or perhaps broken through the 'bubble boundary'.

So, it directly 'crossed' space? Does that mean the skies above every lower-level city lead to here?

Is this the Waiting Area?

No wonder you have to go to the Waiting Area before you can reach a higher-level city. It seems that the Waiting Area is some kind of 'hub'.

"Uncle Wang," Liu Cuihua said, "I think he's badly injured. Why don't we take him back to the hospital in the Waiting Area?"

"Miss, you..." The old butler sighed, "Alright, it's good to go back to the Waiting Area. It's really not safe outside."

As he spoke, he looked at the ragged boy:

"Young man, can you still walk?"

Zhang Fusheng got up, shook his head, and some of the dust on his face fell off.

"You can go."

He looked curiously at the old man and the young man, then glanced at the chaotic scene of vendors not far away; this was clearly the middle of nowhere.

Why are there so many vendors?

"As long as you can walk, that's fine." The old butler nodded slightly. "It's also because our young lady is kind-hearted; you're quite lucky."

Liu Cuihua curiously sized up the handsome young man:

"Are you Black Market dealer too? You don't look very old. My name is Liu Cuihua, what's yours?"

"Zhang Fusheng."

Zhang Fusheng rubbed his temples, his heart sinking as he thought of the God of Plague's final, chilling hiss.

Let's go.

The old butler glanced at the sky:

"The Waiting Area is quite far; it would take one or two hours to walk back."

Zhang Fusheng nodded his thanks. He was unfamiliar with the area and had no money, so it was truly rare to meet two kind people.

The old butler shook his head, said nothing more, pulled the young lady aside, and led the boy back to the Waiting Area.

Along the way.

"Where are you from?" Liu Cuihua asked curiously.

"Uh, a lower-level city."

Zhang Fusheng replied:

"I was planning to go to Chongyang City."

Chongyang City?

Liu Cuihua exclaimed in surprise:

"What a coincidence, we're from Chongyang City."

Zhang Fusheng's eyes lit up.

The girl seemed to be a chatterbox, rambling on and on:

"I've never been to a lower-level city before. I was planning to go this time, but my dad wouldn't let me. He said something terrible happened in a place called Jiangzhou."

Do you know Jiangzhou?

Zhang Fusheng's expression darkened:

"I know, that's where I came from."

The old housekeeper and Liu Cuihua both stopped in their tracks at the same time.

"You're from Jiangzhou?"

The butler asked in surprise:

"Wasn't that place taken over by a cult?"

They escaped.

"Really?" The old butler looked the boy up and down, then suddenly frowned. "Young man, do you have Level 2 Pass? You didn't come here illegally, did you?"

"Smuggling?" Liu Cuihua exclaimed excitedly, "Really? Do you know how to smuggle yourself in? Can you teach me?"

The butler's face fell, and he suddenly felt a toothache.

Just as Zhang Fusheng was about to answer, he suddenly frowned.

It seems I did indeed enter the country illegally, as there was no record of my presence in the Waiting Area.

This is getting a bit troublesome.

Chongyang City, Seventh District.

"Still can't get through."

Zhou Guifang put down her phone and looked at her new home, but felt no joy whatsoever.

"Son, has something really happened?"

She asked softly.

Zhang Wentao opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Zhou Guifang suddenly reached out and slapped Zhang Wentao:

"Didn't you say you were from the Investigation Bureau? Now that your son is missing, why can't you do anything?"

"I told you we shouldn't have gone to East Ridge Snow Mountain, I told you!"

She started crying.

Old Zhang's voice was hoarse as he said "Teacher Zhou," his fists clenching and unclenching repeatedly.

He embraced his weeping wife and whispered:

"It'll be alright, Fusheng will be alright."

Zhou Guifang wiped away her tears, choked back sobs, and wanted to say something more, but the doorbell rang.

The couple rushed towards the door, but suddenly realized—this was Chongyang City, their new home.

The son can't find a new home.

The two of them breathed a sigh of relief and became dejected again.

Zhang Wentao sighed softly, opened the door, and stood a fat old man outside.

The fat old man was dressed simply, with a bandage wrapped around his hand, and Essence, Qi, and Spirit looked very depressed.

"Who are you?" Zhang Wentao asked dejectedly.

"My surname is Hong, and I am Fusheng's master," the old man said softly. Zhou Guifang rushed over immediately, her lips trembling.

"You... you know where Fusheng is?"

She had heard Old Zhang mention that his son was studying at the Martial Arts Academy and had been taken in as a disciple by the School Master.

At this moment, the Martial Arts Academy owner, who should have been in Jiangzhou, suddenly appeared. Does this mean...?

Zhang Wentao's eyes lit up immediately.

The fat old man shook his head sadly and said softly:

There is no news yet.

He handed over a business card with the words "Hong Tianbao" written on it, along with a phone number:

"If Fusheng returns, please be sure to contact me. You can also call this number if you encounter any trouble."

After thinking for a moment, Hong Tianbao handed over another business card from Lin Dongxi:

"If the first call doesn't go through, try this one."

Zhang Wentao silently accepted the gift without asking the old man how he found the place.

The name Hong Tianbao seems somewhat familiar.

But he no longer had the mind to think about it.

Watching the elderly person leave.

The couple returned to the living room, sat on the sofa, and did nothing or speak.

She just kept dialing her son's phone number over and over again.

Downstairs in a residential building.

"Master."

Lin Dongxi, who had just arrived in Chongyang City, gently took his master's hand:

"The Junior Disciple Brother's death certificate has already been issued, why did you stop it and not give it to them?"

Hong Tianbao sighed softly and closed his eyes:

Let's leave them with something to remember us by.

He opened his eyes and said in a low voice:

"Although our relationship was short-lived, we were still master and disciple. Your Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister have no family, but your Junior Disciple Brother does."

Hong Tianbao looked at Lin Dongxi:

"If you can keep an eye on it, then do so."

His real intention in coming here was to hand out a couple of business cards. As for Fusheng's return?

He had no hope.

Jiangzhou is completely gone. On the Federation's identity system, Little Fusheng has already been marked as 'dead'.

Hong Tianbao walked unsteadily. After this incident, it seemed as if his bones had been removed, and he had completely lost his will to live.

"Leave Chongyang City later, go to the Waiting Area, and then go to another city. If your master dies, do not come back to pay your respects."

The old man led the Little Bean, talking as they walked:

"It's not safe here."

"Master, is it because of our eldest grand-uncle?" the Little Bean asked.

The old man did not answer.

The Little Bean sighed softly:

"Master, when I become powerful, I will avenge you."

She raised her little fist and said sincerely:

"Repay all the grievances my master suffered."

"Hmm, good boy." The old man patted Lin Dongxi's head, his expression wistful. "Let's go, let's go."

He led the Little Bean to the airport, saw his last apprentice off onto the plane bound for the Waiting Area, and watched her leave.

"Now, I am truly all alone."

Hong Tianbao was hunched over, his eyes closed, and he looked like he was about to collapse.

He reached out and gently tapped his body several times.

The Malevolent Energy that had been sealed away by Secret Method for many years burst forth, and he abruptly straightened up and opened his eyes wide.

"No ties, no worries," the fat old man murmured to himself, like a lone wolf.

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