From Igniting Talent to Becoming a Demon God Section 34

Hearing this, Zheng Wu, who stood off to one side, fell somewhat silent. He knew the other man was refuting what he himself had once said.

He gave no answer.

A complicated look flashed through his eyes as he likewise stared at that figure.

"Could it be... I really misjudged him?"

Two days later.

Iron Ring District, North Street.

Smoke from cooking fires curled around the rooftop of a concrete high-rise, and the fragrant smell of charred, tender roast meat drifted through the dry breeze.

Several grayish-yellow awnings had been set up across the rooftop, each enclosing an independent space of three to five square meters, forming one shaded barbecue area after another.

Beneath the tarps sat broad iron barbecue grills, filled with charcoal, covered with iron mesh. Quite a few meat skewers could be seen atop them, dripping oil as they continuously gave off sizzling sounds.

"Did you hear?"

Six folding chairs surrounded the two sides of the barbecue grill, all of them occupied.

On the far left, Xiao Yang hunched over and carefully turned the skewers. When droplets of oil splattered up, he instinctively pulled his hand back.

"A lot more people have gone missing recently, especially in the northeast part of Iron Ring District." He said worriedly, "No one knows what's going on. All told, seven or eight people might have disappeared by now."

"Who knows."

Li Heng, who had clearly grown a size fatter, grabbed a skewer, his cheeks working as he answered indistinctly, "Maybe some gang is making trouble?"

Once those words were said, Lin Ze, Zhao Yuanqing, and the others joined the discussion one after another.

Lu Chao sat at the very edge and did not really join in. He only focused on dealing with the skewer in his hand, bite after bite.

From time to time, he poured himself a cup of soda and tilted his head back to drink it down.

"It's a little spicy."

Swallowing the spicy beef in his mouth, he thought to himself.

Today was a gathering for the orphanage's little group of six. He had not wanted to come at first.

But he could not resist when the organizer, Lin Ze, said he would treat them and that there would be all the meat they could eat. Naturally, Lu Chao would not pass up this chance to get free nutrition.

"It might not be a gang."

Within the circle of discussion, Xiao Yang suddenly shook his head, rejecting Li Heng and the others' guesses.

Then he looked around, and his voice clearly lowered as he said, "I heard at the bar that people from Hongyi Society have gone missing too."

"Oh?"

As soon as this was said, Li Heng, Zhao Yuanqing, and the others' expressions all changed slightly.

Hongyi Society was powerful. In Iron Ring District, few gangs dared to tug at its tiger whiskers.

Then who exactly was making trouble behind the scenes?

The atmosphere froze. None of them could guess the answer, and the earlier topic was immediately cut off.

"Forget it. Let the Patrol Bureau get headaches over this kind of thing."

Seeing that the atmosphere was off, Lin Ze gently shook his head, picked up his soda, and took a sip. He used the moment to change the subject.

"As long as we live our own lives well, that's what matters."

"Right, how have you all been lately?"

Today, he was wearing a crisp black short-sleeved shirt and slacks, with polished leather shoes. Compared with more than two months ago, his bearing was even more confident, making him look like a true social elite.

A smile of barely concealed pride hung at the corner of his mouth from time to time. According to his own explanation, he seemed to have already gained a firm foothold at Lianwei Heavy Industries, been promoted to a C6-level employee, and had hopes of becoming permanent in the second half of the year, rising to a formal B1-level officer.

"Li Heng, you go first."

"Me?"

Li Heng stopped eating his skewer, straightened his chest, and a smile appeared on his freckled face. "I just got my truck driver's license recently and already transferred positions."

"Right now, I'm following my master on routes through the nearby wilderness to transport some materials. If I can pass the assessment later, I should be able to make eight or nine thousand yuan a month."

He smiled as he spoke of his plans.

He had been holding all this in before, not telling anyone. Only now did he finally feel he had managed to hold his head up a little.

"Well, damn, not bad, Li Heng. Didn't realize you were holding back something big."

Lin Ze was a little surprised. Xiao Yang, off to the side, looked envious and chimed in as well.

Across from them, Zhao Yuanqing came back to himself and nodded thoughtfully. "Routes through the nearby wilderness should be all right. They're not far from the city ring, so they're not too dangerous."

"But you still have to be careful. The wilderness isn't the same as inside the city, after all..."

As they spoke, the others all recovered from their surprise, most of them nodding in agreement.

No matter what, though truck driving was quite exhausting, and leaving the city ring to enter the wilderness carried some risk, at the very least, it was a reliable way out, especially for people like them.

"What about you, Yuanqing? Work at the repair shop can't be easy, right?"

Lin Ze turned his head to look over and asked with reserved politeness.

Under all those watching gazes, Zhao Yuanqing gave a cold snort and went along with it, talking about his own recent situation.

He had been spurred on by Lu Chao lately and wanted to work hard himself. Every day, when he was resting at the repair shop, he would study prosthetic modification and use some substandard parts to practice.

"Not bad, Brother Yuanqing."

"Maybe one day you'll be a famous mechanical repairman. When the time comes, if I want to get a prosthetic implanted, you'll have to give me a discount."

Song Yuhan teased him with a smile, her almond-shaped eyes bright, her features radiant and captivating.

Everyone's gazes paused, then unconsciously shifted toward her.

If one really had to say who had changed the most over these two months, it was undoubtedly her.

She wore a pale Bolai long dress, the pattern on the left side of her chest like a diamond, glittering as it reflected the sunlight. It was a famous luxury brand.

The simple cloth bag she used to carry all the time had vanished, replaced by a brown Tianyue leather bag.

"Heh, Yuhan, you're teasing me again."

Zhao Yuanqing scratched his head, a little embarrassed.

Across from him, an odd emotion surfaced in Lin Ze's eyes. Only after thinking it over for a moment did he speak and join the topic.

"Yuhan, it looks like jewelry work really does suit you."

"I feel like after not seeing you for two months, you've gotten prettier again."

They all knew she had closed several big deals. If they really talked about income, hers was probably higher than everyone present.

As for that.

"Is that so, Brother Lin Ze?"

"Actually, I just got lucky..."

Song Yuhan smiled and naturally talked a little about what she had seen and heard at the jewelry store.

There were limited-edition designer pieces, and there were picky wealthy madams.

The atmosphere grew lively, and the aroma of grilled meat lingered in the air.

Sitting at the very edge, Xiao Yang's eyes flickered at the sight. He looked a little downcast, his words filled with envy. "That's so nice... you're all doing better and better."

"If only I could earn a little more money too."

He had always worked as a waiter at the bar, going to sleep at three or four in the morning every day and waking up the next afternoon. He simply had no energy left to mess around with anything else.

As for his wages, they were basically all spent on food and drink.

Thinking of this, he subconsciously glanced at Lu Chao, who was still silently eating skewers.

The two of them often met at the bar, so he naturally knew Lu Chao's situation.

He had been stuck at the Martial Arts Hall for ages without breaking through to Combat Grade and was about to be kicked out. Those tens of thousands he had spent were probably all going down the drain.

"At least I'm not the most miserable one."

"At least I'm better off than Chao. I don't owe any money."

Nodding to himself, Xiao Yang felt inexplicably a little more balanced inside.

The group soon finished talking about their own affairs. Lin Ze took the opportunity to look over at Lu Chao, quietly raising his voice a little. "Chao, don't just focus on eating. You're the only one who hasn't said anything yet."

"You're not still training at the Martial Arts Hall, are you?"

At the question, Song Yuhan and Li Heng both looked over as well.

The air beneath the canopy seemed to freeze for an instant, and the sizzling of the grilled meat sounded especially clear.

"Yeah, same as before."

Lu Chao swallowed a piece of crispy cartilage in his mouth and nodded lightly.