In an ancient wooden house somewhere in Lijiang, Yunnan, Zhang Xiaoqiang slumped on the sofa, a cigarette butt in his mouth, idly browsing the dark web for any sensational news from the martial world.
The Dark Web: A website dedicated to providing news and information about the martial world for those in this line of work.
[Shocking! The peerless prodigy Yu Ye from Jiangdu successfully challenged Ning Lin, the forty-seventh on the Heaven Rank, and has been promoted to the Heaven Rank!]
Is it true? Zhang Xiaoqiang clicked on it, not quite believing it.
Inside, apart from a photo of Yu Daochen wearing a white Taoist robe and a short text, there was nothing else.
Zhang Xiaoqiang remembered this photo; it must have been taken by some paparazzi at the Changle Gate last time.
Zhang Xiaoqiang checked who the publisher was.
Publisher: Ling Yi Ju.
Holy cow! Zhang Xiaoqiang suddenly shouted.
Su Qing, who was embroidering nearby, was startled by Zhang Xiaoqiang's roar and almost pricked her hand.
Su Qing glared at Zhang Xiaoqiang and cursed, "Are you out of your mind, startling people like that?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang rubbed the back of his head, a bit embarrassed. "Wife, look at this."
Zhang Xiaoqiang handed his phone to Su Qing.
Su Qing rolled her eyes, wondering what he had seen to be so agitated.
Su Qing took the phone with a huff and glanced at the content.
After reading the content, Su Qing was somewhat disbelieving, "Is it true? Did Yu Ye really get promoted to the Heaven Rank?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang was also somewhat incredulous, but since Ling Yi Ju had posted it, it was likely true. "If it were posted by someone else, it might be fake, but if Ling Yi Ju posted it, it's most likely true."
Su Qing, being in the same profession, understood the concept of the Heaven Rank. "I remember Yu Ye is only eighteen, right? To be promoted to the Heaven Rank at such a young age is unprecedented."
Qiangzi sighed with emotion, "I didn't expect Yu Ye to be promoted to the Heaven Rank in just two months."
The Heaven Rank and the Earth Rank are two different concepts, like a motorcycle with two wheels and a car with four wheels. No matter how luxurious or powerful your motorcycle is, it still only has two wheels, while a car, even a bad one, has four. The nature is fundamentally different.
Zhang Xiaoqiang picked up the cigarette pack on the table and took out a cigarette.
Seeing Zhang Xiaoqiang's action, Su Qing's expression instantly turned grim. "What are you doing?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang gave an awkward dry laugh. "It's just that Yu Ye has been promoted to the Heaven Rank, so I'm having a cigarette to celebrate."
Su Qing was a bit speechless. He had only quit smoking three hours ago, and he couldn't resist already? "What's the connection between Yu Ye's promotion to the Heaven Rank and you celebrating with a cigarette?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang put away his smile, put the cigarette in his mouth, and said with a bitter expression, "Everyone around me is moving forward, and I'm just standing still."
Zhang Xiaoqiang lit the cigarette in his mouth, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled. "I don't want your man to be a good-for-nothing!"
Su Qing looked at the man in front of her. Instead of being moved, her face was covered in dark lines. "If you want to smoke, just say so. Why be so dramatic?"
Zhang Xiaoqiang instantly became playful. "My wife understands me best."
"Extinguish it!" Su Qing said without mercy.
Zhang Xiaoqiang took the opportunity to take a deep drag. "I'll quit immediately after this one."
"Extinguish it!!" Su Qing glared at Zhang Xiaoqiang, showing no leniency.
Zhang Xiaoqiang was also a bit annoyed. As a dignified man, couldn't he even have a cigarette?
It seems that if I don't put my foot down today, I'll have no standing at home.
"Why are you glaring at me? Do you want to hit me? Extinguish it!" Su Qing cursed when she saw Zhang Xiaoqiang's angry expression.
Zhang Xiaoqiang quickly suppressed his anger. "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. I'll extinguish it now."
Zhang Xiaoqiang stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray and said with a fawning smile, "Wife, don't be angry. It's just a cigarette, it's fine not to smoke it."
The man who had just been standing tall and unyielding immediately turned into an obedient lapdog.
The face-slap came too quickly.
Su Qing sighed, her eyes welling up with tears. "You are my everything. For our future life, you must quit smoking."
Looking at his wife's appearance, Zhang Xiaoqiang made up his mind to quit smoking from now on (though he was just saying it).
Three days later~
At the entrance of Yangzhou Railway Station, three men emerged from the station.
Yu Daochen stretched his back and sighed with relief. "Finally, I'm back. This train ride has made my back sore."
Liu Feng was also a bit tired. "I'll head back to Ghost Street first."
"Aren't you going to the shop for a bit?" Yu Daochen asked.
Liu Feng shook his head. "No, if anything happens, just find me at Ghost Street."
Qin Muyu, standing beside them, said disdainfully, "If anything happens, she'll find me. You don't need to bother."
Liu Feng snorted and stared at Qin Muyu again.
Yu Daochen was speechless. Why did these two start arguing as soon as they spoke three sentences?
Yu Daochen said, "Alright, I'll find you if anything comes up."
Just as Liu Feng was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something. He took out the Qiankun Mirror from his backpack and handed it to Yu Daochen. "This thing is useless to me. If you want it, keep it. If not, just throw it away."
Yu Daochen took the Qiankun Mirror and quickly stuffed it into his pocket.
This is the Qiankun Mirror, the Qiankun Mirror, my lord! It's not some trash from a street stall that you can just throw away. Even the Heavenly Master's Mansion wouldn't be so extravagant.
Liu Feng casually hailed a taxi and headed back to Ghost Street.