"President Li, you have a call. It's President Zeng from Quantong Company."
Xiaoyu, the secretary, had never understood why her company's general manager, Li Qiang, such a shrewd man, liked spending time with President Zeng. Quantong Company was a textbook shell company, and its president, Zeng Weiguang, was an absolute demon of chaos.
She sighed inwardly and thought, The boss's affairs aren't something lowly employees like us can question. Shaking her head, she went back to her work.
Everyone in the company admired the general manager's character. With sheer drive and very little capital, he had founded this trading company single-handedly. In just six short years, he had gone from having nothing to owning a company with assets worth over ten million. Although many in business envied him, they had to admire his boldness, distinctive judgment, and willingness to dream and act.
Li Qiang was twenty-nine, short and dark-skinned. His family had been poor since his childhood, and with his exceptional intelligence and financial help from friends, he had stumbled his way through four years of university. Naturally fond of making friends, loyal and generous, he had formed many friendships.
"Hello, Weiguang. What is it? I have a meeting shortly... What? You need to discuss something in person... Give me a break. Can't it wait? I'll buy you dinner tomorrow, and we can talk then. Today... No, I can't. What... the guarantee? Shit... All right, I'll come right away!"
Li Qiang put down the telephone, his face ashen with anger. After a moment's daze, he said, "Xiaoyu, cancel this afternoon's meeting. Tell Peng Zidong and Jianzai to go to room 403 at the Hilton Hotel. Hurry!"
His heart burning with urgency, Li Qiang drove to the Hilton Hotel. After getting out, he rushed upstairs. Zeng Weiguang was already waiting at the door. Seeing Li Qiang, he said, "Brother Qiang, don't panic. We need to consider this carefully..."
"What happened with Ansheng Company?"
"Ah, their president is suspected of fraud. He ran off with a large sum of money. The companies that guaranteed him are all running in circles, and the companies he swindled have already filed suit. I wanted to warn you so you wouldn't be caught off guard." He added, "I misjudged him back then too. Ah! Brother Qiang, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have persuaded you to guarantee their company."
"This isn't the time for apologies. We haven't gotten to the bottom of it yet." Li Qiang had already calmed down, a shrewd light gleaming in his small eyes. "When did it happen?"
Zeng Weiguang was startled by Li Qiang's composure. "About three days ago, I think. I called you as soon as I heard."
"Brother Qiang!" "Brother Qiang!" Two young men called out from a distance.
"All right, Weiguang, I'm leaving. Call me if anything comes up." Li Qiang hurried downstairs with the two men. In the lobby, he immediately instructed Jianzai to find people, eager to understand the whole situation, and told Peng Zidong to return to the company and gather the department managers for a meeting when he got back.
Li Qiang got into his car and told the driver to drive. He knew he was in serious trouble this time. After thinking it over and over without finding any way forward, he took out his mobile phone and called his girlfriend. The recorded message said her phone was switched off.
An inexplicable wave of agitation swept through Li Qiang.
"President Li, we're at the company," the driver said. Just as Li Qiang opened the door, his phone suddenly rang.
After listening to the call, Li Qiang turned deathly pale. "Go back. Back to the Hilton Hotel, immediately."
Li Qiang returned once more to room 403 at the Hilton Hotel. Standing outside the door, he clearly heard a familiar sound from inside: his girlfriend's laughter.
"Brother Guang, now that you've gotten such a huge sum, take me far away with you. If Qiang finds out, we'll be in trouble... Heehee, you're so naughty."
"Hey, be careful what you say. Come here, my little darling..."
Standing numb outside the door, Li Qiang felt everything around him turn unfamiliar. Wave after wave of hot blood surged to his head.
He staggered over to find the floor attendant and asked her to open the door. He kept this room booked long-term specifically for friends to stay in, so the floor attendants all knew him well.
Entering the room, Li Qiang stared coldly at the naked man and woman on the bed, silently watching them scramble into their clothes. Zeng Weiguang stammered, "B-Brother Qiang, listen... let me explain..."
Li Qiang looked at him as though looking at a dog and said very calmly, "Long ago, when I was still poor and little, there was a guy who always humiliated and bullied me. Guess what happened?"
Zeng Weiguang wished Li Qiang would shout and scream; then he would not have been afraid. Hearing him speak so coldly, he could not help trembling inside. "Brother Qiang... I... I..."
"I'll tell you. I put up with all of it. Didn't expect that, did you? But one day, he bullied a good friend in my class who cared a lot about me. Guess what I did?" Li Qiang's face suddenly twisted. The hand behind his back thrust forward, driving a fruit knife viciously into Zeng Weiguang's belly.
"You're just like him. I stabbed you both!" Li Qiang whispered into Zeng Weiguang's ear.
Li Qiang's girlfriend screamed.
Zeng Weiguang stared incredulously at the knife in his belly. Exploiting Li Qiang's weaknesses-his fondness for making friends and his generous nature-he had laid this trap a year earlier, registering Ansheng Company and using Li Qiang's company as its guarantor to commit fraud on a wild scale. Relying on his dashing good looks and glib tongue, he had also seduced Li Qiang's girlfriend, and the two had joined forces to deceive him. He had never imagined Li Qiang would discover it so quickly, let alone use a knife on him.
Li Qiang released his grip and said bleakly, "I, Li Qiang, have countless friends. I must have been blind to have known you."
Without so much as glancing at his girlfriend, Li Qiang turned and left the room. It felt as though thousands upon thousands of sharp blades were piercing his heart. The pain reached into his soul, making him feel that living was worse than death.
Li Qiang sent his driver away and drove himself, speeding aimlessly along the road.
When he stopped, Li Qiang discovered he had reached Se Lake on the outskirts. He could not help letting out a long sigh. This was a place he had often visited with his girlfriend. His phone suddenly rang. He picked it up and heard, "Hello, do you remember me? I'm Fu Shan."
Li Qiang immediately recalled the friend he had met five years earlier. He was an extremely mysterious man who had actually asked Li Qiang to leave with him when they met. At the time, Li Qiang had been brimming with ambition and had refused on the spot. Before leaving, the man had told him, "I'll come find you in five years. You'll need my help then." For some reason, he had left an extraordinarily powerful impression on Li Qiang. Even after several years, the memory remained vivid.
A shiver passed through his heart. "I remember," Li Qiang said.
"Would you like my help?"
"How? Where are you?"
"Behind you."
Startled, Li Qiang spun around. A tall figure appeared before him.
Steadying himself, he examined Fu Shan closely. A well-fitted black suit and a blue tie with a subtle floral pattern set off his powerful physique. His long black hair flowed gracefully behind his head. Beneath thick brows, his large, deep-set eyes shone with a profound, forceful gaze that seemed to pierce into a person's innermost being. He appeared only thirty-something, but the sense of countless vicissitudes in his eyes made his true age impossible to determine.
Li Qiang had never known what he did for a living, only that he was an extremely mysterious man. He had not seen him for five years, yet he looked just as he had at their first meeting, without having aged at all.
"Brother Fu, how did you know I was here?"
Police sirens wailed in the distance. Fu Shan glanced back and smiled. "It seems the police are looking for you."
His phone rang again. Li Qiang answered, then suddenly burst into laughter as though he had heard something tremendously amusing. He flung the phone far out into the lake, turned to Fu Shan, and asked, "How are you going to help me? You should leave. I don't want to drag you into this. This place is already surrounded."
Fu Shan looked at Li Qiang with a grin. "My question is still the same. Are you willing to come with me?"
Feeling that Fu Shan was being unreasonable, Li Qiang roared, "I am! But what fucking good does that do?"
Footsteps sounded all around them, and a loudspeaker blared, "You there, stop where you are! Put your hands on the roof of the car! Don't put up pointless resistance!"
Fu Shan laughed heartily. "Good! You've finally agreed! Hahahaha, hahahaha..."
Many police officers closed in with their guns drawn.
Watching Fu Shan laugh, Li Qiang thought with some sadness that he hoped he would not drag him into this. Fu Shan seemed to grin at him appreciatively. Li Qiang saw only his snow-white teeth, and then white light flashed. The approaching officers were forced to close their eyes against its glare. When they opened them again, the two men before them had vanished without a trace. Only Li Qiang's car remained parked forlornly by the lake.
"Hehe, we're here," Fu Shan said with a grin, looking over the deserted ancient battlefield.
Li Qiang stared at Fu Shan as though he were a monster, too astonished to believe it. This was simply impossible. In what felt like less than a second, their surroundings had changed completely. Everything from a moment ago, including the rushing police officers, had vanished in an instant. The landscape here resembled the Gobi Desert.
"Brother, I know you have many questions, but let me transform your body first, and then I'll explain. That should make it easier for you to accept," Fu Shan said gently.
Li Qiang watched Fu Shan in astonishment. Golden light slowly emerged from his body, and he held a ball of purple light in both hands as he gradually floated off the ground, looking utterly sacred. Li Qiang had only one thought: I don't know whether he's God or some great immortal, but he certainly isn't human. I've made countless friends, and to think one of them is like this. How strange.
Gradually, the ball of purple light grew dazzling. It left Fu Shan's palms and hovered above Li Qiang's head. Some unknown force pulled Li Qiang off the ground and into the purple light. With a sigh of comfort, he closed his eyes, clearly feeling a powerful warm current flow from the crown of his head down to his feet.
The gentle warm current grew faster and hotter. Finally, when Li Qiang could no longer bear it and wanted to scream, he discovered to his horror that he could do nothing. Not only could he not cry out, he could not even open his eyes, yet the sensations in his body grew ever clearer. It hurt, as though someone had lit a fire inside his heart and was roasting all his internal organs.
Whenever Li Qiang reached the point of collapse, a cool force would always protect him just in time. After an unknown length of time, the pain slowly faded, and the initial feeling of comfort returned.
"All done. It's finally complete. Hehe, truly perfect," Fu Shan said happily. "Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. The Purple Flame Heart's power has altered your appearance. Take a look in a mirror later."
"Purple Flame Heart? What is that?"
An indescribable feeling of comfort spread outward from his bones. Standing on the ground, Li Qiang stretched luxuriously, and a series of cracks rang out from his bones like beans popping in a pan. That single stretch made him feel powerful from head to toe.
Startled, Li Qiang first noticed the change in his vision. Distant mountains were clearly visible, and he could even make out every feather on the eagles soaring overhead. The soft whistling of wind across the earth, distant birdsong, and the neighing of horses were astonishingly clear. Somewhat dazed, he lowered his head and received another shock. His formerly well-fitting clothes were now comically shrunken on his body, his trouser cuffs reaching just below his knees. Suddenly, he understood: he must have grown taller.
"Hehe, the Purple Flame Heart is a Law Treasure I refined for cultivation, specifically for Foundation Establishment. Your constitution and character happen to suit it perfectly," Fu Shan explained with a smile.
Li Qiang opened his mouth but could not get out a single word. All of this was simply too incredible for him.
"This is the beginning of your cultivation journey. I've only laid your foundation. To fully absorb and use the Purple Flame Heart's power, cultivate power of your own, and reach the realm of a cultivation expert-hehe, kid, you have a long road ahead." Fu Shan was surprised that Li Qiang had fused with the Purple Flame Heart so quickly. Although he had absorbed less than one percent of its power, that affinity alone astonished Fu Shan. He truly was worthy of the promise Fu Shan had seen in him five years earlier.
After finally managing to calm himself, Li Qiang still had far too many questions. "Brother Fu, are you an immortal?" His knowledge and experience were utterly insufficient to comprehend anything Fu Shan had done.
"What is an immortal? What are immortals?" Fu Shan asked with a smile.
"Well... um... I think immortals can do anything. Immortals live forever without aging. Immortals... Anyway, nobody's ever seen one. They should... ah... If there are immortals, there ought to be a King of Hell. Then there are bodhisattvas too. God, hmm?! What does God do?" The more Li Qiang spoke, the more muddled he became, until he had confused himself.
Watching Li Qiang spout nonsense, Fu Shan could not help bursting into laughter. "Little brother, I'm not an immortal as you imagine one. I'm a cultivator. As for my abilities, though, they do come close to those immortals you described." Looking at the bewildered Li Qiang, Fu Shan continued, "I'm from Earth too, a Han Chinese from China. But my 'guide' took me away from Earth during the Western Han dynasty. With my current abilities, I can already serve as your 'guide.' I came to Earth from Sealed Fate Planet this time to find someone capable of fusing with the Purple Flame Heart's energy. I spent nine whole years searching Earth, and found you in the fourth year. Hehe, unfortunately, you refused to come with me. Heaven doesn't fail those who persevere. At last, I've waited long enough for you to agree."
Li Qiang felt like an idiot. He was, after all, a university graduate with a bachelor's degree. How could he fail to understand Fu Shan's words? Still, he had understood a few points. Fu Shan was from Earth, had left during the Western Han dynasty, and was something called a cultivator. In other words, whether he believed it or not, the man was over a thousand years old. Also, he himself was someone capable of fusing with this Purple Flame Heart.
Then Li Qiang grew excited again. Fu Shan came from another planet. He must be taking me away from Earth. Li Qiang was utterly disheartened now. He only wanted to go as far away as possible, leaving this place that filled him with sorrow and anger. Grief and joy suddenly mingled in his heart, and he actually laughed wildly aloud. "Wah... hahaha... hahaha... squeak..." Tears streamed down his face as he laughed.
His wild laughter, with its hooked catch at the end, startled Fu Shan. "Hey, little brother... Was what I said that funny?"
"No, no. Brother Fu, what do we do next?" Li Qiang quietly wiped away his tears and hurriedly changed the subject. Once he had resolved to leave, his whole being relaxed.
"Hmm, we have about twenty days before we leave Earth. Time is a little tight, but it's enough. Little brother, let's go to a big city first." A new set of clothes appeared out of thin air in Fu Shan's hands, complete with socks and leather shoes. "Little brother, change first. You can't be seen in public like that."
Li Qiang took the clothes and quickly changed. Only then did he discover that everything he wore was designer-made. Even the socks were the finest brand in the world.
"Hehe, clothes truly make the man, just as gold adorns the Buddha. Who would have thought my little brother was so handsome and dashing?" Fu Shan showered him with lavish praise.
Li Qiang felt his face redden. In all his life, nobody had ever called him handsome and dashing. With a pained expression, he said, "Big brother, I've had a nickname since I was little. People call me 'Ground Rat.' Handsome and dashing?! I don't even come close. Please, venerable sir, spare me the embarrassment."
Fu Shan smiled and shook his head, thinking, Nobody believes in the Purple Flame Heart's tremendous power. It can bring about unbelievable changes. It's the hardest Law Treasure for our Chongxuan Sect to refine. It's already transformed the plain-looking Li Qiang so astonishingly. Who knows what he'll become? It truly gives me something to look forward to.
Looking at his designer clothes, Li Qiang suddenly thought of a question. "Big brother, I haven't seen you carrying any luggage. Your hands have been empty all along. Where did you keep these clothes and shoes?"
Fu Shan extended his left hand and drew back his sleeve. A bracelet three fingers wide slowly appeared around his wrist. Its color was peculiar, a dark brown verging on black. Faint patterns shone with a mysterious silver radiance, slowly revolving within the bracelet.
"Heavens, it's beautiful! What kind of bracelet is that?" Li Qiang asked in amazement.
"This is called a Mustard Seed Bracelet. It's used exclusively by expert cultivators, specifically for storing things. This Mustard Seed Bracelet is the best kind. I've only found this one in all these years. Oh, I have another bracelet, the one I replaced after getting this Mustard Seed Bracelet. You can have it." Another bracelet appeared in Fu Shan's hand as though by magic.
Li Qiang turned the newly acquired bracelet over in his hands. It was cobalt blue, neither metal nor wood nor stone, and he had no idea what it was made of. Twice as wide as the Mustard Seed Bracelet, it had strange, irregular patterns along its edges. Looking closely, he saw that its surface seemed to have been extruded strand by strand from cobalt blue material, with silver stars apparently flickering beneath the blue threads.
"This kind is called a Tanbo Bracelet. It's the best among storage bracelets of its type. Put it on and try it." Fu Shan smiled. "There are many things inside that I have no use for. Consider them my first-meeting gift to you."
Li Qiang put on the bracelet and immediately understood its secrets. Although he did not understand the principles behind its construction, using it presented no difficulty at all. A stack of banknotes appeared in his hand, vanished, and was replaced by a diamond as large as an egg. Li Qiang cried out in wonder, "There's so much in the bracelet! Ah, this is a diamond! This, this is... holy shit... a long saber!" The objects in his hands kept appearing and disappearing.
Watching Li Qiang, Fu Shan smiled. "Time to set off! Everything in the bracelet is yours. You can look through it slowly later." Then he called out softly, "Let's go!"
White light flashed, and not a soul remained on the ground.