Volume One, Chapter 49: Coach, I Want to Train With You!

Xu Congcong and Black Dragon realized that Jiang Chen was definitely more than just a youth. If that were all, they would not have taken him so seriously. But Jiang Chen’s actions were ruthless to the extreme—he left them no dignity at all.

In truth, Jiang Chen had already shown them considerable mercy. If not for his acquaintances with friends from Institute 509, Fang Longcheng would have been gravely injured, and Xue Qi might have died.

Xu Congcong departed, leading a team that, save for herself, was almost entirely composed of wounded men. Li Jing Beast wanted to see them off, but Jiang Chen and Su Yike stopped him.

“Chongli, you went against your master’s orders and acted on your own. I’ve received permission from your master, Daoist Qingfeng, to discipline you on his behalf,” Jiang Chen said softly.

Li Jing Beast dropped to his knees with a thud. Jiang Chen rolled his eyes. “Why are you kneeling in the marketplace? I’m not punishing you.”

“You said you were going to discipline Chongli, so I have to plead for mercy,” Li Jing Beast replied.

Jiang Chen sighed. “We’re family. This is just procedure. Take Chongli home, keep him indoors for seven days.”

He was harsh with outsiders because they’d schemed against him. With his own people, Jiang Chen would never act that way, especially since Chongli was young and easily deceived. This time, they had exploited Chongli’s sense of justice to trick him; the blame did not lie with Chongli.

Su Yike worriedly wiped Jiang Chen’s sweat. “Don’t say anything more. Hurry back and lie down. Just look at yourself.”

Without another word, Jiang Chen collapsed into Su Yike’s arms, breathing in the fragrance of her hair as he drifted into a deep sleep.

...

Though Granny Mei’s entire body was charred from the same lightning that struck the zombie, she could barely walk, yet her body still carried the zombie’s corpse.

Granny Mei made her way onto the road, where two men appeared ahead. They looked elated.

“To think that the celestial phenomenon turned out to be the fall of a zombie,” the Gu Master exclaimed, stroking his beard with delight.

His companion was Ye Qingfeng, who eyed the scorched corpse in confusion. “Can this body, already blackened by lightning, be used?”

“Absolutely—it’ll be extremely useful. This body is already at the Vajra stage. There are plenty of ways to use it. We’ll take it back, refine it anew, and it’ll be as good as ever. Ha! Fortune truly favors us,” the Gu Master said, rubbing his hands, his eyes burning with greed.

Granny Mei lifted her withered arm. “Are you here to save me and my old man?”

Ye Qingfeng crouched down. “This is your old man?”

Granny Mei nodded vigorously. Ye Qingming, holding his nose as he examined the charred corpse, remarked, “He doesn’t look much like himself anymore, too blackened by the lightning. But still usable.”

Granny Mei pleaded, “Take us back and heal my old man. Once he’s cured, we’ll serve you loyally. How about that?”

Ye Qingfeng hesitated, shaking his head. “That’s not quite right. Why don’t you beg me? Maybe I’ll agree.”

Unexpectedly, Granny Mei shifted from lying prone to kneeling, “Please, please, save my old man. I beg you.”

The Gu Master, observing Ye Qingfeng’s expression, immediately understood. “We can save him. Life for life—if you die, your old man can live.”

Granny Mei glanced at her old man, now barely alive and unrecognizable, and steeled herself. “Fine!”

She said no more, only gave her old man a few lingering looks, then stabbed her cane into her own chest.

Blood gushed out, her remaining life rapidly fading.

Ye Qingfeng sighed. “She really took it seriously—so naïve.”

Granny Mei realized she had been deceived, but it was too late. Her vision grew dim, and at last she collapsed onto the ground.

Ye Qingfeng directed the zombie to be loaded into the car. The vehicle sped off, leaving Granny Mei lying on the roadside.

Three years ago, Granny Mei had not yet become a madwoman. She was renowned throughout the village; under her care, minor or major ailments would be cured, and she was beloved by all.

She had an old man, too. Though they had no children, they supported each other, working a few acres of land, rising at dawn and resting at dusk, living a simple, peaceful life.

But fate is unpredictable. A sudden illness turned the robust old man into a shadow of himself almost overnight.

Soon, he passed away, though no one knew of it. Granny Mei did not wish to be left alone in the world, so she used a recipe learned from her master to turn her old man into a zombie.

She succeeded, and spectacularly so. The old man, as a zombie, retained some intelligence. Over time, she noticed he grew weak. At first, he ate a few chickens, then gradually turned to humans.

In the end, the entire village became her old man’s food.

A tragedy was thus born.

...

Driving down the highway, Chongli saw Granny Mei’s corpse lying at the roadside. His feelings were conflicted.

In the end, Chongli used a Fire Talisman to cremate Granny Mei’s body, preserving some evidence.

In the car, Su Yike and Jiang Chen slept, leaning against each other. Chongli sat in the passenger seat, Li Jing Beast drove along the highway.

Chongli dared not look Li Jing Beast in the eye, only murmured, “Sorry for worrying you.”

Li Jing Beast looked ahead, smiled faintly. “I know we’re just friends. Everything you do, I support as a friend. But as your friend, I hope you act within your limits. After all, I can’t always wake up in time.”

He had come to terms with it. Forced affection neither satisfies nor quenches thirst, only adds sorrow. As long as Li Jing Beast does not enter the world of cultivators, the two of them will remain parallel lines, never intersecting in life.

“I asked our big brother before. There is a thread of fate between us, but I had him sever it.”

Li Jing Beast spoke calmly, so calm that Chongli wondered if the person before him was the same Li Jing Beast, sometimes mad, sometimes angry.

Chongli lowered his head, only asking in his heart, “Why?”

Jiang Chen was now so weak that all he could do was sleep, so Li Jing Beast stayed by his side. In the hospital, Su Yike also wanted to stay, but Li Jing Beast persuaded her to leave.

Su Chenglong played a part in this as well. After sending Chongli back to school, Li Jing Beast rushed to the hospital.

On the way, Li Jing Beast steeled himself and blocked, then deleted, Chongli’s contact on WeChat.

By the time he returned, Jiang Chen was awake. Though his face was pale, his condition was decent.

Gao Han helped Jiang Chen sit up, then, seeing Li Jing Beast’s desolate appearance, teased him, “Kid, it’s just heartbreak. There’s plenty of fish in the sea.”

Li Jing Beast replied, “Brother, I want to follow you and learn cultivation.”