Chapter 40

Along the way, I happened to see Sawada Tsunayoshi. While I was still smiling, my expression suddenly shifted the moment I caught sight of the person standing behind him. I rushed forward a few steps, grabbed the hand of the boy who had raised his arm to greet me, turned around, and dragged him away at a run.

"In that case, help me up first." He felt as though every ounce of strength had drained from his body, making even the simplest effort to rise exceedingly difficult.

"Not us, just me. There is no possibility for you," Huang Ming said, dropping his confident smile. He had no idea to what extent the situation would eventually develop.

However, having survived the test of life and death twice, he would have been truly foolish not to learn how to adapt. Thus, this time, he showed not a shred of resistance.

He actually lowered his head and fell into deep thought. Amidst his son's curses, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him, and the eyes he raised shone with a bright light.

Therefore, the most crucial task right now was to steady Xu Shu and stabilize the situation in Chengdu, while simultaneously keeping the aristocratic families in check.

Yet the onslaught of Ivan the Terrible showed no signs of stopping. His frenzied attacks effortlessly tore through Xing Lai's negligible defenses; despite the swirling black mist, the lightning-entwined claws cut through everything like a bamboo split by a cleaver amid the rolling thunder. Xing Lai had tried his absolute best, but this was no talent show—merely trying one's best was not enough.

With a brief moment of distraction, class monitor Xiao began to read her boyfriend's second literary work with a mixture of seven parts anticipation and three parts pickiness.

It had been a very long time since the Grand Princess had heard that name. After all these years, she had long since abandoned hope of ever finding them, only for someone to run up to her today claiming they had been found.

Once that eye moved away from the door and she beheld the newcomer from a panoramic perspective, Fang Bai was struck dumb by the sheer beauty of that colossal living creature.

The shopkeeper laughed inwardly. Truly, this was someone who didn't know how to recognize quality. An imitation piece like this from Jingdezhen was worth five hundred at most, yet she blurted out five thousand. If she didn't fleece someone like this, who should she fleece?

My purpose in coming this time was precisely because of this grand ancient tomb, so without much hesitation, I walked straight inside.

He looked forward to returning to Zong Ming's side to tell him that he had accomplished his mission perfectly, displaying both wit and bravery, far surpassing everyone's expectations.

At this moment, the room was chillingly eerie and swept by howling gales. Just as Yin Junfeng was about to land, he suddenly noticed a strange, mocking smile in the ghoul's eyes. Seized by a sudden shock, he forced leverage out of thin air, swept the Xuanyyu Sword horizontally in a downward arc, and summoned a flashing emerald-green light shield as he plunged toward the floor.

Ouyang Baixue gazed slightly at her surroundings. This time, her consciousness was much clearer. Perhaps having grown accustomed to the darkness, her field of vision extended much further than before. On this occasion, she intended to clearly examine what kind of place this actually was, but aside from astonishment and bewilderment, she could see and know nothing else.

"They really are still here?" I blurted out in sudden astonishment. At that moment, I felt as though something within my body was about to burst forth—a sensation of a bond tied deep within our bloodlines.

Hearing those words, I felt a secret sense of disappointment. In truth, I had never pinned much hope on Duanmu Xue anyway; I simply remained unable to forget her beauty, nothing more. Yet the last time I saw her, I discovered that I was utterly unable to control myself, and that former passion erupted within me once again.

Meng Jingyi spoke as she clasped Xiao Heng's hand, only to realize then that Xiao Heng's hand was so cold it lacked even a shred of warmth.

With that thought, a blaze of fury ignited within me. Breaking free from Su Meng, I glided toward them. Perhaps because I had been skating for quite a while and had gotten a good feel for it, my movement was exceptionally smooth, leading many bystanders to mistake me for an experienced veteran.

Gu Hui made his living by gathering firewood in the mountains, frequently drinking wine to dispel the loneliness in his heart. He would head into the mountains to chop wood, carry it back to the market to sell, and exchange all his earnings for wine to drink. Over time, he became a hopeless drunkard, so obsessed with alcohol that spending a single day without it caused him unbearable agony.

Originally, Fox wanted to sit next to Lei Jun, and Lei Jun equally loathed sitting beside the doctor, fearing the doctor would try to introduce his younger sister once more. Yet forced to choose between the doctor and Fox, Lei Jun would still choose the doctor.

Liu Bian had gone bankrupt, reduced to wearing tattered rags and suffering from gnawing hunger. He had bitterly waited for Prefect Tan to receive a promotion so he could be compensated for his losses, only to learn instead that Tan had been thrown into prison. Having lost everything, utterly destitute and helpless, he was forced to survive by begging on the streets—a tragic retribution for his past deeds.

Shaking his head to banish thoughts of the ape spirit, he focused on his current objective: protecting Bernie from harm, which was his sole mission this time around.

Though Ye Guoyu had felt a hint of regret moments earlier, he quickly adjusted his mindset; gains and losses were both matters of fate.

Nether Wind scratched his head in confusion, failing to understand what Long Yun's parents were discussing or why they forbade fighting. He had originally planned to find some opponents to spar with and hone his skills once Long Yun regained consciousness, having recently achieved a breakthrough in his strength.

A sense of relief washed over Chiba's chest, and he burst into laughter. "What a brilliant 'The monarch remains unaware'." Exchanging glances, the two of them broke out into hearty laughter once again.

Upon hearing Zhu Jie's remarks, Yu Xiaoyu's face flushed another shade redder, transforming her naturally slightly dark complexion into a uniform crimson.

"I wonder how many days the Prince Consort plans to stay in Yangzhou, so that Yu'er may properly play the host and entertain you." Song Xiaoyu interrupted his thoughts with a shy smile, looking with utmost docility and gentleness at this nominal elder of hers while secretly letting out a sigh of relief in her heart.

Once the truth came to light, it was clear that Chen Shi and Chen Xiang had broken up long ago. As for who he chose to rent a hotel room with, it was truly none of our business and not our place to interfere, which meant we should have simply left. Yet I had no desire to return; my mind was in utter turmoil. If Chen Xiang found out about this incident upon our return, she would undoubtedly be devastated.

Zhou Kang had tried to stab him in the back twice, and Gu Sang could be considered an indirect accomplice. Chu Feng was certainly no saint who repaid evil with virtue.

"Mountain Demon, if you've got the guts, come over and save him, ha ha!" Arrogant and rampant laughter burst from the lips of Blood Fiend, making Mountain Demon so furious his nose was practically twisted out of shape.

Xunian stood watching the two of us from behind, but the surrounding area was densely packed with people. With so many delayed flights, a multitude of people welcoming arriving passengers had all crowded into this space.

In his eyes, this piece of jadeite was no mere emerald; it was tangible proof of his gambling stone expertise. Of course, a tiny fraction of that success was due to sharing a bit of Moke's good fortune. The fellow completely forgot that even though he had chosen the rough stone himself, he had done so with Moke's counsel—otherwise, he would never have had the confidence to make the decision on his own.

It was said that Mobai had secured a single room in the dormitory, with a map displayed on the interface. Following the directions, Mobai made his way to the dormitory area.

As soon as Stone's words fell, the surrounding area instantly plunged into silence, and the emperor's overwhelming pressure abruptly ceased.