"No, but he's also very talented. He's just younger, so he hasn't reached your current strength. If I'm not mistaken, he should have reached the Out-of-Body stage by now."
"Heh, Lu Qianqian, you should know that if we are a team, you would have died countless times if I hadn't intervened every time we encountered danger."
"I don't deny that, and I'm very grateful to you."
"So, I want you to alleviate my loneliness now. That's not too much to ask, is it?"
Lu Qianqian angrily said, "Long Peng, you're no longer the same classmate Long Peng I knew back then. You were so proud back then, how did you become like this now?"
"Enough, Lu Qianqian, you don't need to lecture me. That was then, and this is now. I'm not afraid to tell you, even I don't know how long I can survive on this Deep Space Continent. Patrolling every day is full of danger, and I could die any day. And with a beautiful woman by my side, I'd rather enjoy myself. I hope you have the same idea as me, after all, it's a fair deal for both of us."
"I'm sorry, but even if I die, I want to die with my integrity intact."
The young man seemed a little angry. Perhaps living in such a oppressive environment for a long time had twisted his personality.
"I'm afraid that's not up to you." The young man lunged towards Lu Qianqian.
However, before he could reach Lu Qianqian, he suddenly found himself unable to move.
"Not good, the Giants are here." The young man's face turned pale with fear, and Lu Qianqian quickly picked up her weapon.
But in the next second, no Giants appeared. Instead, another handsome young man walked out of the woods.
This handsome young man was none other than Zhou Hong.
"Zhou Hong? It's you?" Lu Qianqian was greatly surprised.
"Instructor Lu, I've finally found you." Zhou Hong chuckled.
The young man, who was unable to move, also looked at Zhou Hong in disbelief and said, "Lu Qianqian, who is this? Do you know him?"
Lu Qianqian snorted, "Of course I know him. He's the one I told you about. He used to be my student."
"Impossible, this is absolutely impossible."
Lu Qianqian ignored the young man and quickly walked up to Zhou Hong, saying, "When did you come up? Was it a few months ago? Then why haven't I seen you at Base Camp One all these months?"
A few months ago, seniors from the Primordial Academy had gone down to pick up a group of people. Lu Qianqian thought Zhou Hong had come up then. But if he had come up then, why hadn't she seen him at Base Camp in all these months?
"Heh, no, I've been up here for three and a half years."
"Ah, then how did you get up here? There were no seniors going down to pick anyone up three and a half years ago?"
"I flew up myself."
"Impossible, one cannot fly up without reaching the Tribulation Transcension stage." Lu Qianqian shook her head quickly.
"Heh, although I hadn't reached Tribulation Transcension when I came up, I found a mountain peak to cultivate for a few years after I arrived. I'm now in the waiting period for Tribulation Transcension."
"My heavens." Lu Qianqian couldn't believe it was true. The young man next to her also found it unbelievable. How could he have broken through so quickly?
Zhou Hong walked towards the young man and said with a cold snort, "I've heard Lu Qianqian mention you before, saying you were a monstrous genius. I didn't expect you to do something like this. It's truly disappointing."
"Hmph, kill me if you want. I'm not sure how long I can live here anyway, and you might not live longer than me," the young man seemed to have lost all hope in life.
"Considering we both came from below, and cultivation is not easy, I won't kill you this time. Scram." Zhou Hong kicked him away.
Zhou Hong turned to Lu Qianqian and glared at her, saying, "If I hadn't shown up just now, this man would have forced himself on you."
"I... I didn't expect him to be like this either." Lu Qianqian lowered her head, feeling a chill of fear.
"Back then, you were angry because I didn't like you and applied to be a guardian here. Is this what you wanted?"
Lu Qianqian pouted, "What does it have to do with you? Anyway, if I die, I die. What's the big deal? Shouldn't you be cozying up with that Long Xuan at the Primordial Academy? Why did you come up here?"
"Of course, I came up to find you."
"What about that Long Xuan? She's talented and beautiful. Can you bear to give her up?"
"Heh, she doesn't like me. I've come to terms with it now. You are the woman worth cherishing more." Zhou Hong chuckled and took Lu Qianqian's hand.
Lu Qianqian struggled a little symbolically, but finally let Zhou Hong hold her hand, feeling incredibly sweet in her heart. She thought she might never return to the lower world alive, but unexpectedly, Zhou Hong had come up to find her.
"If I asked you to take off your clothes now and lie on that rock with me, would you?" Zhou Hong asked jokingly.
"Get lost." Lu Qianqian couldn't help but glare at Zhou Hong.
"Hahahaha." Zhou Hong didn't take it seriously and just burst into laughter.
However, at this moment, "Ah!" a scream suddenly came from ahead.
"Not good, it's the Giants." Lu Qianqian immediately pulled Zhou Hong down to hide behind the rocks.
Zhou Hong also felt a powerful aura ahead.
"Was that scream just now from that person named Long Peng?" Zhou Hong asked in a low voice.
"Yes, I didn't expect him to die just like that." Lu Qianqian's face turned pale. Although her impression of Long Peng had plummeted, he was, after all, a former classmate, and a monstrously talented one at that. To see him perish here made her feel a sense of grief and lament.
"Alas, I spared his life just now, and I didn't expect him to be killed by the Giants in the blink of an eye," Zhou Hong couldn't help but sigh. Sudanan novel network
Zhou Hong pressed his ear to the ground, listening to the movements ahead, and said in a low voice, "There's more than one Giant. Judging by the sounds, there are at least two or three, and they are not weak. At least at the Out-of-Body stage, or even the Soul Transformation stage. I'm no match for Giants of this caliber."
Zhou Hong was also helpless. Giants like these, for the humans below, had a natural bloodline suppression. Without being three major realms stronger, it was difficult to defeat them.
"Yes, we can only hide here and hope we are not discovered," Lu Qianqian prayed. She felt lucky to have survived this long.
Zhou Hong quietly peeked through the gaps in the rocks and saw three Giants by a small stream. One of them had disemboweled the man named Long Peng and was washing him in the stream. After washing, he built a fire. Long Peng was impaled on a stick through his backside and then roasted over the fire. This scene sent chills down Zhou Hong's spine, reminding him of the time he and Liu Hua were grilling at a barbecue stall back on Earth.