"Finally, I've made it," Zhang Fan murmured softly. He had initially thought it would take at least a week to master the 'Thunderfire Divine Eye,' but he had accomplished it in just four days, exceeding his expectations.
Once the 'Thunderfire Divine Eye' was cultivated to the introductory level, Zhang Fan's pupils would be refined into two small sources of thunder and fire, their power comparable to two spiritual treasures. This would be a potent trump card for Zhang Fan.
"I'll take a good rest tomorrow, and school starts the day after. I'm really looking forward to school life, after all, I have good friends there, many familiar faces."
As he spoke, Zhang Fan rose and walked out of the dense forest.
...
Si Youyou felt that her luck had been particularly bad lately. A mission that she thought was a sure thing had turned into a situation where the mantis was stalking the cicada, and the oriole was behind. This time, she had been the mantis, and had been ambushed.
Not only was she forced to flee for her life, but half of the mission item had also been taken by the other party. Whether she could even bring back the remaining half was still unknown.
Si Youyou ran desperately, wanting to head towards the bustling city. Once she reached a place with many people, she would have a way to protect herself. But in this desolate wilderness, not a single soul could be seen. The group of figures in black chasing her were getting closer and closer.
Suddenly, Si Youyou saw a figure emerge from the dense forest not far ahead. Her heart raced, as she was running at full speed and couldn't stop. Moreover, she was injured and dared not force herself to change direction at this moment, or her wounds would instantly tear open.
An ordinary person would not be able to evade in such a short time. Seeing that she was about to collide, Si Youyou's heart filled with anxiety. If this figure delayed her, she would surely not escape today.
The distance between them was less than three meters. Si Youyou could only see, by the dim moonlight, that the figure was a young man who looked about sixteen or seventeen years old.
"You've ruined me," Si Youyou lamented in her heart with indignation.
...
As soon as Zhang Fan stepped out of the dense forest, he prepared to use his full strength to sprint back to his room quickly. To his surprise, the moment he emerged, he saw a woman in a night suit rushing towards him as if her life depended on it. Seeing that they were about to collide, the woman showed no intention of stopping.
"People still wear night suits these days?" Zhang Fan sidestepped the woman slightly, feeling a touch of surprise.
Seeing several men in black with daggers chasing closely behind the woman, Zhang Fan could roughly guess the situation. The woman had likely stolen something, hence the pursuit.
Zhang Fan did not want to get involved in this mess. In his current life, he was no longer alone as he had been in his previous one. He had family, and therefore, concerns.
"A master!" The moment Zhang Fan took a slight step back, narrowly avoiding Si Youyou, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Then she realized that this young man was likely a master whose strength was not inferior to her own.
At such close proximity, an ordinary person would not have been able to react. Yet, this young man not only reacted but also evaded her with ease. She knew that even if she were uninjured, she couldn't have done it so gracefully.
Moreover, the young man's clear and handsome face remained placid throughout. Coupled with the location where he appeared, Si Youyou was certain that this young man was definitely a master.
How could an ordinary person be out in the desolate suburbs in the middle of the night?
An idea flashed through her mind, and a plan for escape and self-preservation formed instantly.
"Little brother, I'm entrusting this to you. You must take it back, and we'll meet at our usual spot." After passing Zhang Fan, Si Youyou ran back. With a flick of her jade-like hand, she stuffed a crescent-shaped ancient jade into Zhang Fan's palm, to his astonished gaze, and then ran off without looking back.
"Little brother? What nonsense are you talking about? I don't even know you..." Zhang Fan, being quite intelligent, immediately understood that he had been set up. So, he decided to employ a "counter-scheme," preparing to hand over the crescent-shaped ancient jade directly to the group of black-clad men pursuing her.
"Kid, hand over the Moon Phoenix Jade, and I'll give you a quick death." Seeing that Si Youyou had disappeared into the woods, the group of black-clad men did not pursue her. Instead, they surrounded Zhang Fan. After all, their target was just this jade pendant.
"My dear sirs, I was just about to hand it over to you. No need to be so fierce..." Zhang Fan's words were cut short as a bullet struck his forehead.
A tall, thin man in black smoothly holstered his pistol and said coldly, "Why waste words with this kid? Just shoot him and be done with it?"
He then glanced at his dumbfounded companions, believing they were shocked by his decisive action. He blew on the barrel of his gun in a very cool pose.
After a second, he realized something was amiss. He suddenly remembered that the sound of the bullet he had just fired did not sound like it had hit flesh, but rather a steel plate...
Zhang Fan let out a wry smile at the scene. That woman wanted to use him to eliminate these black-clad men. He hadn't wanted to comply, but given the "friendliness" of these men, it seemed unlikely.
"Uh... Senior, I... I had a mishap just now... My apologies." The tall, thin man in black felt his throat dry and couldn't help but swallow, speaking with difficulty.
He knew that some martial artists, upon reaching the Innate Grandmaster realm, could use their Innate True Qi to protect their bodies, rendering them immune to pistol attacks. But Innate masters were incredibly rare; he wasn't even sure if any existed in Donghai City. And he had just encountered one?
He was confident in his marksmanship. The bullet had clearly hit the opponent's forehead, yet the opponent was completely unharmed. This made his heart clench. This less-than-one-in-ten-thousand chance had befallen him.
"Senior, we are from the Heavenly Fiend Sect. Please grant us passage." The leader of the black-clad men, seeing this, knew they had run into trouble and quickly apologized.
"It's fine. I was also about to have a mishap." The moment Zhang Fan's words fell, his body moved. Since these black-clad men were so decisive, Zhang Fan decided not to be indecisive either.
There were eight black-clad men surrounding him. The weakest among them had reached the Great Accomplishment of Inner Strength, and the strongest had cultivated True Qi, making him a True Qi Master. However, in Zhang Fan's eyes, they were all the same.
The instant Zhang Fan's body flashed, the strongest True Qi Master sensed it. His face changed dramatically, and he let out a roar, "Fire!"
The sounds of clanging metal echoed continuously. Zhang Fan didn't even dodge. He wanted to feel more what it was like for bullets to hit his body.
It was a little itchy, and quite peculiar.
As Zhang Fan moved, he dealt with them one by one. Not a single black-clad man could withstand even one move, including the strongest True Qi Master.
Less than ten seconds later, all the black-clad men lay on the ground, none able to stand.
"What is this Heavenly Fiend Sect? I've never even heard of it," Zhang Fan murmured, looking at the fallen figures.
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