A Long Journey and Some Blood Debts

When Li Shutong handed the Forbidden Item ACE-005 to Qing Chen, he had already explained its functions in great detail.

How to contain it, how to change its appearance, how to silently call upon Dafu to transform into Big Cat.

However, the other party did not tell Qing Chen that the Forbidden Item ACE-005 also had a facial defense function.

Qing Chen recalled that when his master said that the other party had already reached the A-level when they obtained this Forbidden Item, and soon after, they were promoted to demigod.

So it wasn't that Li Shutong deliberately didn't tell him, but rather that Li Shutong was too capable at that time and had no chance to discover the function of ACE-005 in this aspect.

After all, who could possibly hit a demigod in the face...?

"Wait, Master said that ACE-005 is an A-level Forbidden Item, but he has never been able to figure out its advanced form," Qing Chen pondered. "Could this also be related to Master being too strong? To the point that he is in the dark about something under the lamp?"

Yi said in the car, "Don't think about that for now. I have good news: tonight's boxing match payout is higher than any you've ever had before, a whopping 21 million, and I've already taken care of it for you."

"How was it treated?" Qing Chen's eyes lit up; he felt that his injuries no longer hurt.

Prior to this, he specifically searched for federal laws and regulations, and then looked up information about the Federal Tax Administration.

One thing was true: it was virtually impossible to fool the IRS, and these underground boxing rings were indeed under close surveillance.

Therefore, Qing Chen was pleasantly surprised when Yi said she had handled it for him.

"Don't worry about how it's handled," Yi said. "Just focus on recovering from your injuries. You don't need to meet with Li Changqing for now."

Qing Chen suddenly shook his head and calmly analyzed, "No, judging from her tone, Li Changqing would probably intervene in the gang's siege of Heng Society. I have almost no information about this matter, so to get enough information, I have to get it from Li Changqing so that I don't miss anything."

Yi seemed somewhat surprised. This time Qing Chen, she took the initiative to help Qing Chen cancel all the miscellaneous matters so that he could focus on recovering from his injuries, but Qing Chen refused instead.

She hesitated for a moment before asking, "Your injuries are quite serious; shouldn't you be resting?"

Qing Chen shifted his body with difficulty in the car. "It's nothing serious. Apart from two broken ribs, it's all superficial injuries. If a real fight breaks out, I can use Puppet Master to control others in battle. But if we miss this opportunity, Liu Dezhu might really have to spend the rest of his life alone in Prison No. 10."

"Growing old in old age is possible, but loneliness is unlikely," Yi said. "I just learned something yesterday. The Security Committee has just filed charges against a group of young people. Before the charges were filed, the young people didn't hire lawyers to defend themselves. Instead, they tried to bribe a detective from the Security Committee to go to Prison No. 10 as a group. Based on my preliminary judgment, they should also be Time Walker and know Liu Dezhu. If Liu Dezhu fails to clear his name, these young people can go in and pay him for more than ten years."

Qing Chen was shocked. Could these be those spoiled brats from Class 4, Grade 2?!

He had heard before that the spoiled brats were going to go to the prison to find Liu Dezhu. Could they have actually done it?!

But Liu Dezhu is about to be released from prison!

Qing Chen imagined the despair on the faces of the spoiled rich kids when they entered prison, and he even felt a little anticipation...

Countless facts have proven that in this unprecedented spectacle of tens of thousands of people traversing the landscape, if you lack the ability and try to take shortcuts, you will inevitably fall into utter ruin.

Qing Chen felt the pain in his body, stimulating the Endorphin in his body with Breathing Technique while looking out the calm window.

He thought that after watching tonight's boxing match, his master would probably prepare to travel far away.

Qing Chen suddenly said, "Don't cause any more trouble this time when you're gathering intelligence."

Yi quickly replied, "Don't worry, don't worry!"

Return countdown: 121:00:00.

It's 11 p. m.

In City No. 18, District 1, there aren't many tall buildings. Apart from a dozen or so high-end high-rise residential buildings, there are mostly courtyard houses, and the buildings within those courtyard houses aren't very tall either.

In fact, the reason why there are so many high-rise buildings in other districts is simply because the population density is too high, while there has never been a population density problem here.

Outside the Banshan Manor.

The Federation First Group Army 127th Regiment is carrying out a troop rotation. The soldiers' footsteps sound like drums, orderly and solemn.

Just a few months ago, the security at the Banshan Manor was not so tight. It was only after the Head of the Li Clan suddenly fell ill that the Li family's First Branch immediately mobilized troops to protect the manor.

To prevent anyone from taking advantage of the chaos to commit malicious acts.

It was because of the unusual movements of this 127th Regiment that the outside world discovered the signs that Li's power was about to change.

Compared to the power transition at the top of the conglomerate, even the Shadow Struggle has been overshadowed, and now the media is flooded with news related to the Lee family.

The Banshan Manor is very quiet. The manor is heavily fortified with countless visible and hidden stakes, making it seem as if a war is about to break out here.

The Head of the Li Clan was currently recuperating quietly in the "Baopu Tower" within the manor. His room was filled with medical instruments, which were remotely monitoring his vital signs.

However, unlike the Outer World, he did not have various tubes and wires inserted into his body; those instruments only needed to be within five meters of him to automatically monitor him.

The next moment, the old man slowly opened his eyes in the darkness. He looked towards a dark spot near the window and whispered, "You've arrived?"

"Hmm," Li Shutong emerged from the darkness, "Did I disturb your sleep?"

"No," the old man smiled weakly, "I'm just getting old, and I'm a light sleeper. But I find it a bit strange. With such tight security at the Banshan Manor, how dare you come in alone? Aren't you afraid your older brother will arrest you and send you back to prison?"

"There's a gap in this defense that's left for a few minutes, isn't that what you left for me?" Li Shutong smiled, sat down next to the old man, gently placed two fingers on the old man's wrist pulse, and then quietly withdrew them.

By the moonlight streaming through the window, the old man carefully examined his son. "Eight years have passed, and you haven't changed a bit. I used to always hear your master say something about 'Forever Young' to annoy me, saying he would definitely outlive me. That was clearly a saying left by your founder, but I never imagined that you really would be Forever Young..."

Li Shutong smiled and said, "My master probably never expected that he would die before you."

"He is tormented by love, while I am utterly ruthless," the old man chuckled. "Ruthless old men always live longer."

"You weren't really ruthless either," Li Shutong shook his head. "If I were truly ruthless, I would have died eight years ago from the electromagnetic cannon of the Scepter."

Li Shutong wasn't referring to the kinetic weapon from space, but rather the main firepower of that aerial fortress.

The old man thought for a moment and said slyly, "I can't just watch you get killed. Even though you're a knight, the whole world knows you're my son. If I just watch you get killed by the Qing family, I'll lose face."

"That makes sense," Li Shutong nodded.

"You've come to say goodbye, haven't you?" the old man asked with a sigh. "It's been quite some time since Prison No. 18 was destroyed. I've been waiting for you to come, but I don't know where you've been gallivanting off to. I haven't been able to find you."

Li Shutong smiled bitterly. It seemed that in the eyes of parents, if their child was not by their side, they must be out fooling around, even if their child was a demigod revered by the entire Federation.

However, there are some historical factors at play. The main reason is that when Li Shutong was young, he followed his uncle around, swindling, cheating, fighting, and killing people. He did do a lot of dirty work.

At first, when the Fourth District was turned upside down, no one knew that he was the Seventh Brother of the Li family. When everyone found out, they were all stunned.

"Yes, I'm here to say goodbye. I probably won't be returning to City No. 18 anytime soon. I need to go to the North first to settle some blood debts," Li Shutong said calmly.

He looked up at the old man, only to find that the old man's gaze was fixed on the window, his eyes filled with the longing for the rising sun in his twilight years. "Back then, your master always tried to persuade me to climb the Green Mountain Cliff with him, but at that time, none of your uncles and elders were capable enough, and no one wanted to take their place. Your grandfather said that if I dared to leave the Li family, he would remove me from the family genealogy."

Li Shutong clearly knew about this past event, and he said softly, "Actually, becoming a knight isn't that happy, only a tiny bit happier than you."

"Don't think I don't know which 'hundred million' you're talking about," the old man sighed. "I'm almost dead, and you're still trying to annoy me. You're just like your master."

Li Shutong laughed and said, "I think you're still very healthy, you'll be fine."

The old man looked out the window and suddenly said, "Lately, I've been having a lot of dreams. I dream that I didn't take over the enormous power of the Li family, but instead, I was with your master, following your grandmaster, exploring mountains and all Forbidden Zone, seeing those magical worlds. Once, I heard your master say that he saw a phoenix with five-colored wings in Forbidden Zone No. 002. I didn't believe it at the time, but later he sent me a five-colored feather..."

The old man continued to lament, "Life is too short. In the blink of an eye, we grow old. It's truly regrettable."

"There's nothing to regret," Li Shutong said, grasping the other's hand. "You've slept with so many women, eaten so many delicacies, received the admiration of thousands, and turned the Federation upside down with a wave of your hand. What is there to regret?"

The old man thought for a moment and said, "That's true."

"I should go now," Li Shutong said. "I've come to see you for a moment, then I have to go about my business."

As he spoke, Li Shutong released the old man's hand.

However, the old man suddenly grasped Li Shutong's hand again, looking at him with sharp eyes. "Leave me a grandson or granddaughter before you leave. If you're willing, I can arrange it for you tonight."

Li Shutong was both amused and exasperated. "You already have so many grandsons and granddaughters, what difference does it make if there are more from my seventh branch?"

"It's different," the old man shook his head, "You might die on this trip, so you need to leave some bloodline behind."

Li Shutong paused for a moment, then chuckled softly in the moonlight, "I have no attachment to bloodlines, but the lineage has already been passed on."

"Oh?" The old man's interest was piqued. "Is there a successor to the knighthood? A boy or a girl?"

"A boy?" Li Shutong asked.

"Oh..." The old man said with some disappointment, "Then I'm probably just as infuriating as you. Why don't you take in a girl?"

Li Shutong looked speechless. "Are you really that biased towards women? Changqing has been spoiled rotten by you."

"Never mind, a boy is fine too," the old man said, then asked, "How's the boy?"

"Very good," Li Shutong said earnestly, "Very good. He is undoubtedly the next leader of the Knights. Perhaps he can bring about new changes to the Knights lineage."

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