Chapter 80: Departure

“Heaven’s will!” Zhao Junhong couldn’t help but laugh and said, “By the way, does that include the little beauty?”

Principal Sun’s smile faded, and he spoke seriously, “You’re probably referring to Murong, the woman who lost to Qingyun. Junhong, remember, don’t provoke that woman, understand?”

“Why?” Zhao Junhong asked, intrigued. “Is she the protagonist template?”

“Something like that.” Principal Sun nodded earnestly. “She’s a descendant of the great nobility. In terms of power alone, the strongest old noble family in the Greenwood District. You’re a noble yourself, so you should know how troublesome such people can be.”

Zhao Junhong cast a sympathetic glance at Fang Qingyun. “You really are unlucky.”

Fang Qingyun looked utterly baffled. “What does that have to do with me?”

“Isn’t she your girl?”

“You’re overthinking it!” Fang Qingyun replied irritably. “I noticed her background was impressive, so after defeating her, I didn’t eliminate her. Instead, I had her agree to three conditions.”

“What three conditions?” Old Li and Principal Sun became interested.

Faced with such a beautiful woman, it was hard not to let one’s mind wander.

Fang Qingyun recited the three conditions, leaving the trio stunned.

“You’re ruthless!” Zhao Junhong sighed. “My family has a lineage of hundreds of years, and hearing your conditions makes me want to spit blood.”

Fang Qingyun replied coolly, “She attacked me first. As the loser, she has no right to negotiate. Otherwise, she’d have to leave the secret realm altogether.”

Old Li shook his head. “She’s from the biggest noble house in Greenwood, and you put forth such conditions. Sigh, be careful.”

Fang Qingyun asked with interest, “The strongest noble? How big? Duke?”

“You’re thinking too much!” Old Li laughed. “There are only so many dukes among the humans. Greenwood is a relatively backward region; how could it possibly have a duke?”

“Then...?”

“Count! A very powerful count, not inferior to a marquis.”

“So, still a count. Greenwood’s greatest is a count? That’s embarrassing!”

“What nonsense!” Principal Sun scolded. “You think a count is insignificant? Damn, a count can enter the Upper Chamber and cast votes. In Flower City, there’s only Zhao Junhong as a noble, and he’s an outsider. Besides, Murong isn’t simply the legitimate daughter of a count. Her maternal grandfather is a marquis.”

“Oh, I see,” Fang Qingyun realized.

“That’s enough. Now you know. Young people, who knows how things will develop!” Old Li smiled. “You’ll be leaving in a few days. Today’s my treat—let’s have a drink.”

“Alright!”

They casually picked a hotel, ordered some dishes, and had a few drinks.

There was no distinction between teacher and student.

Fang Qingyun and Zhao Junhong were both notable talents, now martial artists, even recognized by the Snake King. Everyone respected them.

Returning to Flower City didn’t equate to safety.

None dared drink much; they finished quickly and went their separate ways.

Before bed, Fang Qingyun summoned Little Black as usual.

“Same rule as always. If anyone approaches me, take them out!”

Fang Qingyun issued the order.

Eliminating those trespassing in his home—surely not unreasonable?

In the Poison Gas Swamp, it was like this; whoever came near, Little Black dealt with them.

Whether human or demon, all received equal treatment.

In the night, while Fang Qingyun slept soundly, a shrill, agonized scream suddenly rang out.

He sat up abruptly, a blood-stained long knife appearing in his hand.

He looked intently.

A middle-aged man dressed in black lay on the ground, severed into three pieces, his body twitching with unwillingness.

His eyes were wide open, dying with unresolved hatred!

“A research institute man?”

A cold gleam flashed in Fang Qingyun’s eyes.

Chased all the way home?

And—

With his current strength, someone could sneak into his house undetected.

A martial artist of the general rank?

No, impossible. If he were of that rank, Little Black couldn’t have cut him into three pieces with a single blow!

After a thorough check, Fang Qingyun was surprised to find the intruder was only a sixth-tier martial artist.

“Tsk, a sixth-tier martial artist, yet able to evade my senses. If not for Little Black, you might have succeeded!”

“Incredible! This world truly breeds talent.”

After a few sighs, he called Old Li, Principal Sun, and Zhao Junhong.

If he couldn’t sleep tonight, neither could they—let’s all keep each other company.

The three rushed over and frowned at the corpse.

After careful examination, Principal Sun and Old Li’s expressions turned grave.

After a brief discussion, Principal Sun said, “The City Guard will arrive soon. Just say I killed him. I’m skilled with a heavy sword and can replicate these wounds. The credit may be lost, but you can keep Little Black, and we’ll mislead them.”

Zhao Junhong couldn’t help but ask, “Who is this man?”

Old Li pointed to a balance emblem on the corpse’s chest. “Recognize this?”

Both shook their heads.

Zhao Junhong suddenly spoke, “Could it be... a cultist?”

“Yes!” Old Li sneered. “Remember, with these people, kill every one you meet. No mercy—slaughter them all.”

Both nodded, faces cold.

What is a cult?

They are traitors to humanity, calling themselves the Church of Light.

They worship demons, seeing them as gods.

They believe humans shouldn’t resist demons but surrender to them.

If humans are obedient, demons won’t harm them.

If demons attack humans, it’s because humans were disrespectful or angered them—humans should reflect on their own faults.

Such human trash is executed on sight by the Human Empire.

Who would have thought these sewer rats would appear here?

Fang Qingyun asked, puzzled, “Were they after me?”

“Yes,” Old Li replied coolly. “Perhaps to kill you, perhaps to recruit you, at the very least to capture you.”

After a while, the City Guard arrived.

When the soldiers learned the dead man was a cultist, they were furious.

A cultist in Flower City?!

Within an hour, the whole city was in uproar, searching for cultists everywhere.

Watching Flower City descend into chaos, Fang Qingyun sighed softly.

For the first time, he began to worry about the vast human race.

Sheltering under a great tree brings comfort!

As a human, Fang Qingyun naturally wished his people well.

But—

Humanity faced demon armies head-on, cults lurked in the shadows, and reportedly there were rebel forces in many places.

The research institute had fallen to corruption.

The City Lord’s office seemed spineless.

“Where is the problem, really?”

Fang Qingyun looked toward the City Lord’s mansion.

Is the issue with the administrators?

What are those in power among the humans thinking?

Corruption?

Incompetence?

He didn’t know, nor was he qualified to know.

Maybe when he reached general rank and above, he might barely be eligible to learn these things.

Two days later, a huge off-road vehicle roared to life.

Old Li took Zhao Junhong and Fang Qingyun, setting out for Northwest Military Academy.

As Flower City receded into the distance, Fang Qingyun let out a long sigh of relief.

“Haha, did you enjoy your last few days?” Zhao Junhong teased beside him.

Fang Qingyun shot him an annoyed look. “I’m starting to understand why you don’t live on your family’s estate.”

The day after the cultist incident, the City Lord sent someone to invite Fang Qingyun to a banquet.

A banquet held especially for him.

Celebrating the top scorer of Greenwood District becoming a martial artist!

The future of young martial artists is always bright, so cities have the custom of hosting banquets for those who qualify as martial artists in the college entrance exam.

Unfortunately, Fang Qingyun had no interest and declined outright.

“If they want to connect with the Snake King, just go straight to him. I won’t be a pawn.”

Fang Qingyun’s expression was indifferent.

Not long ago, the City Lord’s office held a collective banquet to celebrate this year’s examinees, but he missed it. Now, they arranged a special banquet just for him.

A solitary event!

Such honor was too much; Fang Qingyun didn’t think he could accept it.

Besides, he had little affection for the City Lord.

Who knew, one wave hadn’t settled before another crashed in!

A group of strangers came to his house with gifts, even offering money and secret treasures.

At the sight of Fang Qingyun, they immediately called themselves his uncles.

Fang Qingyun stared at this crowd of “uncles and aunties,” utterly bewildered.

Parentless as he was, did he really have so many relatives?

After a while, he realized these were major shareholders of his father’s companies.

Years ago, Fang Zhiheng died in battle and left Fang Qingyun shares in several companies.

These people, upon learning Fang Qingyun had become a martial artist, came to claim kinship.

In their words, the marketplace is a battlefield; they and Fang Zhiheng were sworn brothers!

“This is the power of martial artists!” Old Li remarked. “You’ve just become martial artists and know little about it. Among humanity, martial artists are natural-born nobles.”

He looked at Fang Qingyun. “Especially you, kid. Don’t think martial artists are nothing just because you killed a few from the research institute. Here’s a simple fact: how many ordinary people can a single martial artist defeat?”

“Especially now, with demons popping up in cities, martial artists are even more precious.”

Fang Qingyun replied dryly, “Think martial artists are nothing? You’re overthinking it—I’m a martial artist myself.”

Zhao Junhong asked, amused, “How are you dealing with these people?”

“How else?” Fang Qingyun said coolly. “My father was the largest shareholder in these companies, but do you know what my life was like before?”

“Dividends depended entirely on their mood.”

“If they felt generous, they gave more. If not, I might get nothing.”

“The reason I never lacked money was because my father left so many companies. If each gave a little, it was enough for my expenses.”

Fang Qingyun sneered, “I never interfered in company management, but why cut off my dividends?”

“Now, they’re all making it up to me!”

“Double compensation!”

“If they don’t, I’ll cut off their fingers!”

“Just as I became a martial artist, I needed funds to buy cultivation resources. These people came to deliver them. Honestly, if they hadn’t shown up, I’d have forgotten about this.”

“Well!” Zhao Junhong smiled. “They’re your uncles and aunties in vain. You won’t let them off cheap.”

Fang Qingyun scoffed, “Confiscating what they tried to cheat me out of is already generous.”

“All right, time to change our mode of transport!”

At that moment, Old Li suddenly stopped the car.

The two looked up to see a massive business jet before them.

“We’re taking this?”

“Of course! If we drove, five days wouldn’t be enough!”

The mainland is vast, with over fifty districts. Crossing just two is a journey of thousands of miles. The Northwest Military Academy is in the Tree Dragon District.

That’s ten thousand miles from Greenwood District. Even by business jet, it takes two days.

But in two days, Fang Qingyun would finally arrive at university.

Boarding the jet, Fang Qingyun felt a mix of anxiety and excitement.

He was finally going to face the demons head-on.

He could finally fight freely.

There was a saying from Principal Sun he deeply agreed with: “A martial artist who kills demons is a true martial artist!”

Now, he would become a true martial artist.

...

“Roar…”

“Bang!”

On the dim battlefield, the earth was stained crimson with blood.

A huge demon, having just let out a thunderous roar, caught a bullet in its mouth. Immediately, a martial artist wielding a long knife arrived, swung, and severed the demon’s head.

The martial artist spat fiercely, holding the knife in one hand, a gun in the other, and charged at another demon.

Soon, the battle ended.

The Snake King looked coldly at the devastated battlefield, not turning his head as he asked, “Is there something?”

The waiting secretary immediately replied, “Indeed, there are a few matters.”

“Three minutes!”

“Yes!”

The secretary quickly reported the selected matters to the Snake King.

“Wait!” Suddenly, the Snake King interrupted. “That kid Fang Qingyun arrived?”

“Yes,” the secretary replied, eyes complicated. “They say he used your reputation to stir trouble at the research institute, killing several high-level martial artists.”

“Hmph, kill them all. Those people don’t deserve to live!” The Snake King cared nothing for his reputation being borrowed.

He had considered this when he personally visited Fang Qingyun.

“Make arrangements.” The Snake King said calmly. “That child has good talent. Just a few days as a martial artist and already able to kill high-level martial artists. He’s worth cultivating—could become a weapon on the battlefield!”

“Yes!” The secretary responded. “I’ll personally arrange it. Pressure has been mounting here lately.”

The Snake King caught the implication in the secretary’s words and frowned at the recently slain demon.

Lately, on his front, demon attacks had become increasingly frequent.

Rare demons were appearing, catching him off guard.

If not for his overwhelming strength, he’d have suffered greatly.

Why?

Were they targeting him?

Or was there some upheaval among the demons?

“Has the intelligence department vanished?”

“No,” the secretary replied, helpless. “They’re doing their best—suffering heavy losses.”

“Then increase the mission load at the academy!” The Snake King thought for a moment. “Raise all mission rewards by thirty percent.”

Thirty percent?

The secretary was stunned.

The Snake King sneered, “Those kids always complain about lacking resources. I’ll give them a chance—let’s see if they can seize this opportunity!”

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