"Heh heh heh..."
A lecherous chuckle rang out.
It sounded a little familiar...
Like that security guard at the school gate who was missing a few teeth.
Duan Ming looked toward the sound.
Sure enough, it was Uncle Huang.
Du Qinggang looked over, and Duan Ming saw a rare look of awe in his eyes.
"Senior."
Not just his eyes-even his tone was full of awe.
Huang Shanya, dressed in a security guard's uniform, walked over with his hands behind his back and said with a smile, "An interesting way to train."
Du Qinggang asked, "Senior, what brings you here?"
Huang Shanya said, "I was just passing by on my way to the toilet. I heard noises coming from here, so I came over to take a look."
Despite the old man's missing front teeth, he didn't whistle through them when he spoke.
Du Qinggang asked, "I saw a few people come to the school gate just now. They looked a little familiar."
Huang Shanya nodded. "Mm, they were from the Divine Mark Association headquarters. They seemed to be here about Elder Zhao's grandson getting beaten up."
Du Qinggang smiled and shook his head. "Elder Zhao is a good man, but he dotes on that grandson of his a little too much. It's been almost a month, and he still won't let it go."
"I almost couldn't stop those fellows just now. I told them they couldn't come in, and they actually tried to hit me."
"What? They actually tried to hit you?"
"Mm."
"What about them now?"
"They should be at the hospital by now."
Du Qinggang: "..."
"If they knew you were Huang Shanya, the Human Weapon from twenty years ago, I doubt they'd have come to Jiang City even if you beat them to death."
Buzz!
Hearing the words "Human Weapon," Duan Ming's head jolted!
Huang Shanya, the Human Weapon from twenty years ago!
A real man who had once held off a monster tide all by himself!
Although that had happened several decades ago,
there was practically no one in the Dragon Nation who didn't know his name.
Who would have thought that this old man, missing a few front teeth and slightly hunched, who had worked as a security guard at Divine Power School for several years, was actually the Human Weapon of those days!
Duan Ming had heard he'd suddenly disappeared twenty years ago. It turned out he wasn't dead.
When he thought about how the Power of God of this man who had once been a god of slaughter among men was actually a pet resembling a puppy,
Duan Ming suddenly felt there was nothing out of place about it.
"The past is all clouds and smoke now. I don't concern myself with anything else, but since I'm a security guard here, I'll protect every blade of grass and every tree."
"I have to say, Senior, you're still as domineering as ever. You beat up Elder Zhao's people without a second thought."
"Domineering, my foot. I take the wages, so I should do the job. I actually hope Elder Zhao gets so angry when he hears about this that he comes over from the Divine Mark Association headquarters to hit me. I'm short on spending money lately, so I could extort a little..."
Duan Ming only knew that the Elder Zhao Du Qinggang mentioned was Zhao Qinghai's grandfather.
He wasn't quite sure how high a position Elder Zhao held in the Divine Mark Association.
It was probably a high one.
Huang Shanya's gaze fell on Duan Ming, and he smiled. "Young man, keep it up!"
The two watched the hunched figure of the security guard as he left.
"He's Huang Shanya, the Human Weapon from twenty years ago?"
Duan Ming looked at Du Qinggang.
Du Qinggang nodded solemnly. "That's right. He's a powerhouse among powerhouses. Back in his prime, even Divine Power Masters with six Divine Marks fell to him! Even now, though he's old, he's still the Human Weapon. I can sense... the killing deep in his heart..."
"With your strength, could you beat him?"
"It's hard to say now, but if his strength hasn't declined, then even if two more people like me joined in, we probably still wouldn't be enough for him to fight."
"He's so powerful, so why would he hide his identity and come here to be a security guard?"
"He never hid his identity. Most likely, he's seen too much life and death, so he wanted to live a peaceful life for a while. I heard that back in the day, he even went to the Divine Mark Association headquarters and raised hell over a woman."
"Over a woman?"
"You have to remember, he was young once too."
"All right, kid, enough bullshit. I'll give you a chance now. I won't use my Divine Marks. If you can take this apple in my hand and-"
Crack...
The apple was cut in half...
"I cut it."
"You little fucker, I hadn't even finished talking! I swear, you sneaky bastard!"
"Catch the enemy off guard and strike where he least expects it."
"Who taught you that?"
"Learned it from TV."
"Fuck, looks like I'll have to watch out for you from now on, kid. Who knows when you might stab me in the back!"
Du Qinggang cursed as he waved a hand and walked away.
"Does the time off still count?"
Duan Ming called after him.
"Like hell it does, you sneaky bastard."
"It's almost dark. You said you'd buy me dinner if I cut the apple."
"I might not have time tonight." Du Qinggang turned around and said with a perfectly serious expression, "I may seem lazy most of the time, but I'm actually very busy. Every day, there are lots of people in this world who need help. A righteous man like me usually takes a few days every month to go out and help them. Go grab something at the cafeteria yourself."
In the pitch-black night.
"How much for the whole night?"
"Eight hundred."
Over the weekend, Du Qinggang kept his promise.
The first-years got time off.
"Duan Ming, it's my birthday tonight. I'm treating the whole class to dinner, so make sure you come."
Duan Ming nodded and accepted Zhou Yao's invitation.
After school that afternoon, the students headed home one after another.
"Hey, kid, your third uncle isn't home anyway, so how about I give you a few extra lessons this weekend?" Du Qinggang stood at the dormitory entrance with his arms folded.
"How do you know my third uncle isn't home? Were you investigating me?"
"I was right next to you yesterday when you were on the phone with your third uncle..."
This dumbass...
"No thanks. It's a classmate's birthday tonight."
Duan Ming wanted to get stronger too.
But he wasn't a masochist.
He hadn't had a break in quite a while.
If he kept this up, he was afraid he'd work himself to death.
"The birthday's not until tonight. How about I use the power of my second Divine Mark before then and see if you can cut the apple?"
Duan Ming hesitated for a moment.
He decided to give it a try.
He also wanted to see just how much he had improved over this period.
Whether he could cut the apple while Du Qinggang used two Divine Marks.
If it was just cutting an apple, he thought he should be able to do it now.
Inside the gymnasium, Duan Ming swung his blade.
Five minutes later, he cut the apple in Du Qinggang's hand.
"Tsk... you're getting faster and faster."
Even Du Qinggang hadn't expected Duan Ming to grow so quickly.
During this time, the kid had not only gotten faster, but the Qi in his body had also increased by a considerable amount.
If he continued at this pace and didn't become a good-for-nothing halfway through,
then four years from now, the kid might be able to cut the apple even if he used all five of his Divine Marks.
No... perhaps it wouldn't take four years...
It was even possible that, with the kid's blade technique alone, he couldn't beat him now if neither of them used Divine Marks.
"Go back and take a shower. I'll wait for you on the field. I have something to take care of later, so I'll drop you off at your classmate's birthday party on the way."
"What is it?"
"Someone needs my help."
Du Qinggang let out a long breath.
Seven in the evening.
Night fell.
A black jeep drove down a street in Jiang City.
Du Qinggang drove with one hand and held a phone to his ear with the other, his expression grave.
After hanging up, he looked at Duan Ming and said, "I might not be able to take you there just yet. I have to stop by the City Protection Bureau first."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stepped on the gas.
It caught Duan Ming off guard.
The jeep was moving fast.
Duan Ming silently grabbed the overhead handhold.