As dusk settled, Zhou Hong returned home to find that the day's events had propelled him to celebrity status throughout Jiangnan Province.
"Zhou Hong, Xiaoyu, where have you two been all day? You didn't answer your phones," Qiao Wanli asked anxiously as they walked into the house.
"We went to the park to practice martial arts. I knew that after what happened this morning, many people would be looking for me, so we turned off our phones," Zhou Hong chuckled.
"Grandpa, why were you looking for us? Is there trouble?" Qiao Xiaoyu also quickly asked.
"No trouble, but this afternoon, many reporters from Jiangnan Province's television stations came, saying they wanted to interview you, but your phones were all off."
"Interview me for what?" Zhou Hong felt a surge of annoyance.
"What do you think? You've replaced Yan Fengcheng and become the sixth-ranked provincial youth genius in Jiangnan Province. It's caused a sensation throughout the entire province."
"Heh." Zhou Hong smiled and shook his head.
Just then, on the living room television, news about Zhou Hong was being broadcast. The report stated that Zhou Hong had been officially named the sixth youth genius of Jiangnan Province...!
"Pa!" Zhou Hong picked up the remote and turned off the TV directly.
"Zhou Hong, why aren't you the least bit excited? And you even turned off the TV," Qiao Wanli asked, confused.
"Just the sixth provincial genius, nothing to get excited about," Zhou Hong said with a helpless smile.
At that moment, Zhou Hong's brow suddenly furrowed. He felt a powerful aura from outside the villa.
Zhou Hong immediately walked out.
Indeed, in the darkness outside, he saw an old man standing there. Zhou Hong instantly sensed killing intent from him.
"Who are you?" Zhou Hong walked up and asked indifferently.
"Zhou Hong, you've finally returned." The old man exuded a chilling aura, but unfortunately, Zhou Hong didn't take him seriously at all.
"Who are you, really? What are you hiding for?"
"How dare you ask? Yan Fengcheng is my grandson."
"Oh." Zhou Hong chuckled. He had actually guessed as much. After all, he had broken Yan Fengcheng's legs, and those behind Yan Fengcheng wouldn't just ignore it.
"Zhou Hong, you had a fight with my grandson, that's fine, but you shouldn't have crippled him," the old man said, filled with anger.
"Old man, I suggest you watch the recording from that day. I'm sure many people there filmed it. It was your grandson who wanted to cripple me, to make me worse than an ordinary person," Zhou Hong said, slightly irked.
The old man's mouth twitched, and he clenched his fists tightly.
"In any case, my grandson is now legless. I will make you pay. Don't blame me for being ruthless. You've destroyed my family's hope. Today, you must die, and so must this entire Qiao family. Not one of them will be spared," the old man gritted his teeth.
"Hahaha, old man, don't let hatred blind your eyes."
"What? Do you have some powerful backing behind you? If you have the ability, just say it, don't hide it." The old man seemed a little worried. If not, he would have already wiped out the Qiao family during the day.
"Sorry, I have no backing."
"Then don't blame me!" With that, the old man suddenly attacked Zhou Hong. Hearing that Zhou Hong had no backing, he felt relieved.
It was a shame, because in the next second, Zhou Hong effortlessly lifted the old man by the neck.
"This...!" The old man was completely stunned after being lifted by Zhou Hong.
"Surprised?" Zhou Hong asked with a smile.
"How is this possible? I've already reached the Wushi realm, and I'm ranked 13th on the Jiangnan Province expert rankings," the old man's eyes showed fear. He was a top-ranked expert in Jiangnan Province, yet he was instantly subdued by Zhou Hong. For a moment, he wondered if he was dreaming.
"A provincial 13th-ranked expert dares to be arrogant in front of me? Do you know that a few days ago, the president of the Provincial Martial Arts Association came to Jizhou University to find me, wanting to take me as a disciple, but I beat him like a dog and he had to flee in disgrace. I remember that guy was ranked sixth in the province."
"Ah!" The old man was stunned. He certainly knew of this person, and he also knew that this president had indeed come to Jinshi City a while ago.
"Not only that, but when I participated in the martial arts competition before, someone named Tang Chaomeng, seeing I had some talent, wanted me to be the fiancé of his idiotic granddaughter. He threatened me, saying I would die if I refused, but I killed him with a single palm strike. And you, ranked 13th, dare to come kill me? I feel embarrassed for you."
"Senior, spare me, senior, spare me." The old man hurriedly begged for mercy.
Zhou Hong threw the old man aside.
"This time, I'll let you go. After all, I did cripple your grandson. But if there's a next time, and you dare to disturb my family again, don't blame me for being ruthless," Zhou Hong said sternly.
"Thank you, senior, for sparing my life, thank you, senior...!"
"Scram!" Zhou Hong couldn't be bothered to listen to his pleas anymore and simply told him to get lost.
The old man "didn't dare to argue and hurriedly left in a sorry state. Cold sweat covered his forehead and back. He never imagined that Zhou Hong was actually playing the wolf in sheep's clothing.
Zhou Hong turned and went back inside.
"What's wrong? I heard you talking to someone outside just now. Who was it?" Qiao Xiaoyu asked after he entered.
"A fan who insisted on getting some guidance. I just gave him some pointers," Zhou Hong didn't tell the truth, offering a casual explanation to avoid worrying them.
"Oh, okay. Then go wash your hands quickly, it's almost time for dinner."
"Okay."
After dinner, Zhou Hong watched television for a while and then returned to Tianhe Residential Area with Qiao Xiaoyu.
Meanwhile, that old man had already arrived at a five-star hotel in Jinshi City.
"Grandpa, how was it? Did you kill Zhou Hong and his whole family?" as the old man walked into a room, a young man's voice, gnashing his teeth, came from inside. This young man was precisely Yan Fengcheng.
"No!"
"Why? Grandpa, my legs are crippled by him now, and my great future is ruined. Why didn't you kill him? You're a 13th-ranked expert in the province!" Yan Fengcheng looked incomprehensible.
"I almost died," the old man roared irritably.
"How is that possible?"
"Do you know who killed Tang Chaomeng, the seventh-ranked expert in Jiangnan Province? Zhou Hong did it. Zhou Hong was playing the wolf in sheep's clothing. His true strength is such that even the president of the Martial Arts Association is no match for him. I almost died."
Yan Fengcheng was stunned, wondering if his grandfather was lying to him.
"Let's go back to the provincial capital. We'll just have to swallow this humiliation."
"No, I'm not reconciled!" Yan Fengcheng wailed.
At this moment, Zhou Hong and Qiao Xiaoyu returned to Tianhe Residential Area.
However, before they could even step out of the elevator, they heard Qin Mengxue's crying coming from the hallway outside their apartment.