Familiar Faces Meet
The Human Race was fragile. Once upon a time, it had been the master of the world.
Twenty billion humans had ruled the world, but ever since the Mutant Beasts evolved...
The governments of the various nations had retreated step by step in the face of the Mutant Beasts' invasion.
The Evil Flood Dragon King in the East Sea, the Roc in the West...
Beneath the glaciers at the extreme north and south, within the vast oceans, countless ruins had emerged...
Countless nations had perished in this catastrophe...
Now, only the Great Xia Federation remained—the last country in the world.
That was because Great Xia had produced a god... who had protected the Human Race's peace for hundreds of years.
Of the twenty billion humans, only a little over a billion remained.
Countless races had been wiped out. In the current world, the yellow race was the most numerous surviving race.
Everyone thought that the Human Race's nightmare had already passed.
But only a small number of people knew...
The battle on the front lines was at a stalemate, while Mutant Beasts ran rampant within the borders.
There were Mutant Beasts outside, and human traitors of the Beast God Cult within.
"It's time for today's draw. Advanced Sage Body—I'll give it to you."
The system's voice drifted over leisurely, and Ye Chen froze.
How long had he dreamed of obtaining this?
Nearly two-thirds of Hashirama Senju's chakra came from his Sage Body. Otherwise, he would not have needed to activate Sage Mode before he could use True Thousand Hands.
In other words, although Ye Chen's Spiritual Power at this moment could not compare to Hashirama's, using a major technique... and maintaining it for several dozen seconds should not be a problem.
Yet Ye Chen was not happy because of that. The various matters in the city before him were what troubled him most.
He silently crushed the golden ball and muttered,
"Whenever I want to become stronger, you give me good stuff. That's how this works, right?" Ye Chen gave a helpless, bitter smile.
The system could not be bothered to respond to Ye Chen.
Zhang Daosheng was helpless as well. These were the only things he could teach Ye Chen.
Besides, how strong could a support-type ability become?
Zhang Daosheng silently turned and left, his heart unbearably heavy.
After all, for an eighteen-year-old child, the cruelty of war far exceeded his imagination.
This is only the beginning. All he did was get roared at by a Mutant Beast.
"Enter the Mountain-Moving Realm as soon as possible. Only then will you possess the true authority of this system..."
"For now, you're merely in the assessment period."
Ye Chen remained silent, no one knowing what he was calculating.
Zhang Daosheng headed to the City Lord of Zanghai City, intending to ask whether there was anything he could help with.
He had not expected to run into Bai Zhan on the way.
"Teacher, I want to... ask you for a favor."
Zhang Daosheng closed his eyes. "I'll go with you."
Bai Zhan froze. He had not even said what he wanted to do...
"However, that Lion King has probably grown much stronger... It will be dangerous..."
Zhang Daosheng shook his head slightly. "It doesn't matter."
Right now, he only wanted to seek an explanation from that Lion King.
Bai Zhan nodded and said nothing more. He was just about to leave.
"Go take a look at Ye Chen. That kid is worried about what happened in the city."
Bai Zhan was utterly baffled. What did his teacher mean by that...?
He did not ask any further, though. His teacher must have had a reason for sending him.
Meanwhile, Dong Shizhang was flying into a towering rage.
Xu Shen below was so frightened that he was nearly losing his mind, and Zhou Zixuan was no exception.
Zanghai City had been managed perfectly well by a single Black-Robed Envoy, yet a Red-Robed Envoy had suddenly arrived...
After venting for a while, Dong Shizhang glared coldly at Xu Shen.
"Where is that brat called Ye Chen?!"
Xu Shen hurriedly kowtowed and replied, "At Zanghai No. 1 High School..."
"Let's go. Come with me! Capture Ye Chen!"
Zhou Zixuan stood to the side, utterly confused. Why capture Ye Chen? Wasn't he merely a new student at Firmament Academy?
Before either of them could react, Dong Shizhang seized Xu Shen by the collar.
He flew toward Zanghai No. 1 High School, leaving Zhou Zixuan behind to suffer through an existential crisis in lonely misery.
The city was thoroughly paralyzed. At this moment, Dong Shizhang flew through the sky without anyone noticing.
As for Ye Chen, after obtaining the Advanced Sage Body, his Spiritual Power's healing ability became even stronger.
Through Ye Chen's efforts, most of the people had basically regained consciousness.
The entire Zanghai No. 1 High School erupted in commotion. No one had expected this so-called "arrogant new student" to expend his Spiritual Power healing so many people.
"Ye Chen... doesn't seem so bad. Why were there those rumors about him before?"
"Who knows? People fear fame as pigs fear fattening. Maybe someone was unhappy with him because he awakened an SSS-rank talent..."
"That's not impossible."
Bai Zhan watched Ye Chen nearby, diligently channeling Spiritual Power into the students, and could not help feeling delighted.
It seemed that his junior schoolmate was a kind person...
If Ye Chen heard that, he definitely would not have been able to hold back his laughter.
He was no philanthropist. It was merely a matter of lifting a finger. If anyone provoked him, they would already be on his kill list...
Kind? Give him a break.
"Little Chen, take a rest for a while." Bai Zhan walked over and spoke to Ye Chen.
Ye Chen suddenly turned around. "Senior Brother, what brings you here?"
"I came to see Teacher, but he told me to come take a look at you."
Bai Zhan shrugged, indicating that Zhang Daosheng had sent him.
"Old Zhang..." Ye Chen murmured.
Bai Zhan patted Ye Chen on the shoulder. "Don't call me Senior Brother anymore. Call me Big Brother Bai. Calling me Senior Brother always feels too formal."
"Okay, Big Brother Bai." Ye Chen smiled faintly without refusing.
After all, judging from the current situation, Bai Zhan's attitude toward him was indeed very friendly.
"Come on, let's rest for a bit first. We brothers can have a chat." Bai Zhan hooked an arm around Ye Chen's shoulder and led him outside.
They looked just like good brothers who had known each other for many years.
Everyone around them stared with mouths agape, not daring to make a sound.
Only after the two had left did someone speak.
"That... couldn't that be Senior Bai Zhan?!"
"It should... be him, right?"
"I actually got to see Senior Bai Zhan! I heard he's already a Major General, and he manages Zanghai City's Border Defense Force!"
"That Ye Chen guy... is way too lucky, isn't he? Senior Bai Zhan is actually so good to him..."
The noisy voices rose, then gradually fell silent.
Bai Zhan and Ye Chen also stopped walking.
Many students looked at Bai Zhan in confusion as he suddenly came to a halt.
Why had he suddenly stopped?
Bai Zhan merely lifted his head and looked at the sky, cold sweat streaming down his forehead.
Ye Chen froze. He glanced at Bai Zhan, then followed Bai Zhan's gaze upward.
In an instant, Ye Chen's back shuddered.
Flying?!
Was this... the Myriad Stars Realm!?
"Oh, isn't this Bai Zhan? We haven't seen each other for several years, and you've already almost entered the Myriad Stars Realm. I knew I hadn't misjudged you back then. You're truly gifted~"
The newcomer was none other than Dong Shizhang. Standing in the sky, he wore a teasing expression as he mocked Bai Zhan.
"What are you doing here?!" Bai Zhan's tone turned several degrees colder.
He was far too familiar with the man before him!
If Zhang Daosheng was his teacher, then Dong Shizhang was his senior!
That... senior who had protected Zanghai City for several decades!
But...
He had betrayed Great Xia and joined the Beast God Cult!