Chapter 99: A Game for Three

KTV.

Lin Ran entered the private room with three stunning women. The waiter brought in the drinks and fruit, politely saying, “Please enjoy, ladies and gentlemen,” before turning to close the door. As the door clicked shut, he muttered enviously under his breath, “Damn, how does this bastard get so lucky, showing up with three absolute beauties?”

The harsher the words, the deeper the envy.

“I’ll sing something to get us started,” Jiang Shuyao announced, stepping onto the stage. Beneath the neon lights, she took up the microphone, her voice changing from its usual coquettish sweetness in an instant.

So many sharp kitchen knives were poised to come crashing down, and there was no way of knowing how many more might follow.

He understood at once. Yet he shook his head—after all, it didn’t really prove anything. It couldn’t explain why only weeds grew there and nothing of real worth, and nothing had yet broken through the soil to blossom. It was still too early to draw any conclusions.

There were five varieties of condiments, and two extra portions specially packed and handed to Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng nodded with a smile, accepted them, and walked off in the opposite direction from Master Liu.

Since the founding of the Great Zheng, there had been a hundred years of peace. Four emperors had ruled, each contending with the myriad problems inherited from previous dynasties.

Zhang Ziyu simply checked out of his room at the restaurant and, to the utter bewilderment of Zuo Qianhu, moved straight into Zuo Qianhu’s home.

In the city’s garrison command center, Lieutenant General Owuz, commander of the Ninth Ottoman Army and acting city defense chief, glared furiously at the garrison officer who had just come rushing back from Kalikraty.

Zhang Ziyu left the grand hall with Biyao, waving his hand to summon the Fiercebone Black Serpent. Its massive form loomed overhead, radiating an awe-inspiring menace.

A strange transformation had occurred to the demonic twin-headed lion: what was once just a ghostly head now extended into half a torso.

The deputy director’s face clouded over. He thought, Oh, dear lady, could you be any less concerned about saving face for me?

Tang Meimei still felt a lingering sense of dread. That day, she had nearly charged onto the stage to confess to everyone that it was all her fault, that she alone should bear the consequences.

It was common knowledge that the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams diagram should never produce anything like this. But now that it had appeared, there could only be one explanation: the design must serve a specific purpose.

Dian Wei had even withdrawn half of the heavy-armored troops. These thousand elite soldiers, handpicked by Zhao Yi and subjected to rigorous training, were a formidable force indeed.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the red-haired boy’s body gave a slight tremor and vanished, only to reappear an instant later right in front of Xiao Yan. With a casual motion, the red-haired boy raised his fist and sent it hurtling toward Xiao Yan.

Fu Yue reached out, pressing down hard on the largest shard, but beneath her palm, the ancient character “Kui” crumbled instantly into dust.

Zhang Yan knew the Yellow Turban Army was still waiting and watching. They would only make their move after Zhao Yi and he had settled their scores. If the official army won, they would remain dormant. But if Zhang Yan prevailed, they would seize the opportunity to take over Qing and Xu.

Yet in the end, he was disappointed; he found nothing. This only deepened Liu Qing’s sense that Shiyao was mysterious and not to be underestimated.

“Stop, stop, stop! What did you say? You’re tutoring Song Ning?” Xiao Anan quickly interrupted Du Haiqiu.

“Boss, do you really think there’s treasure in that tomb? If you ask me, we’d be better off digging up some imperial mausoleum—those are filled with real gold and silver. I’ve never even heard of the Grand Supreme Elder having a tomb. Is this really reliable?” a bandit beside him asked skeptically.

Seize the opportunity? Wasn’t that just a chance to die? Zhao Yi rolled his eyes. Unlike last time, this time the governor himself had given the order. As the saying goes, an official’s rank is crushing. At the moment, Zhao Yi had no choice but to obey Liu Yan’s command.

Liang Fusheng watched Ye Han’s retreating figure. Perhaps Ye Han was right… but it was something she needed to discover for herself.

The night passed without incident. The next morning, everyone at the Academy of Life Sciences was up early, but Dean Mu Qianqiu remained in his room. All the students gathered together to visit Tie Wushuang.