22. Golden Prefecture

Duanmu Deyu, Duanmu Dehui, and Duanmu Deshu stood by the bedside, watching their father’s condition, at a loss for how to offer comfort.

Xu Zhihu looked past her vibrant presence toward the outside. The hazy, dancing scenery was infinitely enchanting, and he could not help but smile bitterly; in just this short span of time, the place where he usually sipped tea and watched the mountains had transformed into a den of indulgence.

Was it because of what happened that night that she was so heartbroken? Or... was she truly that unwilling to be with him?

Qianli ignored the firearms and focused solely on her blade. The wind whistled as she swung, the sound of metal clashing against the monster’s claws ringing out like steel scraping against an eagle’s talons.

Aunt Yun was terrified and deeply regretted letting them into the house, but she could do nothing but wait for Chang Geng and the others to return.

The Dragon Queen was accompanied by the brothers Long Yan and Long Cheng. Seeing Mo Fu, Long Yan tried to lunge forward, only to be yanked back by Long Cheng.

Li Fan knew that with Shao Shuai’s skills, if he had intervened, neither he nor Boss Lin would have ended up in such a sorry state.

The spicy braised pig trotters smelled so fragrant and looked so appetizing that it was only natural for him to crave them.

Yet, with two light clinks, both the evil-suppressing short staff and the Yu Sword felt as if they had struck bulletproof ceramic, inflicting absolutely no damage at all.

These three long stripes seemed to be either tattoos or birthmarks, though they were half-hidden behind his hair, with only a tiny trace visible near his ear.

If she really wanted to destroy her, even if she had bought off all the videos and photos, Su Nuannuan would still present them to Mother Fang. How could she possibly miss such a perfect opportunity to expose her?

When they met again, Su Li and Han Shi merely looked at each other from a distance, each sitting in their cars, lost in their own thoughts.

"Just do as I say, and do not ask why. This matter involves far too much, and when the time is right, I will tell you!" Zhou An said gravely.

***

Boom! It was as if something had burst open, and a series of images flashed into the minds of the three. In a void of space, golden light suddenly flooded the sky, and amidst the radiance, a massive nebula descended above their heads, emanating a majestic aura of life.

"You've talked to me for so long, so you're not a stranger anymore. Oh, fine, I believe you!" Ruoruo said, slightly impatient.

They only needed to watch this group tear each other apart in the primeval forest and then reap the rewards as the fisherman.

Jiang Qingyue had indeed never heard of the Xiang family. She had arrived in Daze only two or three years ago, back when Yunze City had not yet been breached by the Huangtan, and the Luo family still served as the vice-mayoral family in charge of Yunze. The Holy City of the human race held a unique status in the Divine Realm; it was already impressive enough that they paid attention to the three great families of Yunze.

Although the battle in the arena was fierce, Hua Tian knew that such a situation could not last long. The three of them were already exerting every ounce of their strength, while the three tyrants of the opposing side were still at their leisure. If Murong Yuhan did not wake up soon, the three of them would be in grave danger.

Yet they could not withstand such an onslaught; it was as if they were being denied any path to survival, destined to be utterly crushed and beaten to death.

"Don't talk, let me sleep for a while. I haven't slept for three days and three nights!" Fang Chengzhe seemed exhausted to the limit, collapsing onto the bed and falling asleep instantly.

Seeing that many of the fellows below were already snickering with strange expressions, Zhao Bei had to cough twice to bring them back to their senses.

Take signal lights, for instance: they could be acquired on the market for thirty yuan, but within the railway system, they cost one hundred or even more.

For engineering units, another area currently involved was machinery. This sector had always been monopolized by the state; how to take a leading role in construction machinery and lay the groundwork early had always been something Chu Jianghe wanted to achieve.

Although Kerr had mercifully put Sun Dahei into the game, he still rested two of the remaining four superstars, with the Splash Brothers sat out directly under the pretext of a cold.

Although Chu Yin could not claim to truly understand Yun Yang—who possessed too many secrets, such as his miraculous potions—he seemed to realize just how important the items being moved by the Ghost Clan were.

Drink after drink was consumed, but the atmosphere gradually grew heavy. A banquet meant to boost morale ended up filled with doubts and complaints.

***

Therefore, without absolute power, no one wanted to start a war. Nuclear winter, radiation-induced deformities, species degeneration... even if all the world's nuclear weapons were detonated ten times over, the Earth would not explode, but humanity would certainly be driven to extinction because of it.

Thus, even if Ji Yan did not appear or claim credit, China would not dare fail to attribute the achievement to her.

All three teams were weaklings from the Eastern Conference. The best of them, the Bucks, only held the tenth seed in the East, while the Philadelphia 76ers and the Orlando Magic occupied the second and third to last spots, respectively, only slightly better than the disastrous Brooklyn Nets.

In theory, one hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones could power the Crescent Flying Boat for one million kilometers—the distance from the Earth to the Moon two and a half times over.

Before this, he had always thought Yuan Xi was an ignorant playboy, which was why Yuan Shao had not assigned him an official post.

The young man did not move to attack; instead, he asked Ning Feng with great curiosity. A boy of sixteen or seventeen, held at gunpoint and facing imminent death—how could he not be afraid? This struck him as novel. He could be certain that Ning Feng was definitely not some legendary "foolhardy idiot."

"But what should I give her?" Gong Shaoxie had no clue. He just felt that he should bring a gift for Xia Fangyuan when he returned from his trip, but he couldn't think of what to get, which was why he was calling her.

In a flash, the two arrived at an amusement park. It was the largest one in the city, even dubbed the "Disney of the city."

Ning Feng covered his face with both hands; he really didn't want to deal with this exasperating Korean jerk anymore...