Chapter 73

"Zhou Longjun! Why are you here in Flame Valley too?" Zhou Ying, recognizing the newcomer, immediately turned his anger into enthusiasm and stepped forward to speak.

This Zhou Longjun was not like Zhou Longqi, a loser. Despite his young age, he was a genius in the Zhou family, destined for a high position. Zhou Ying was just a distant relative, and there was no comparison between the two. Being able to mock Zhou Longqi did not mean he dared to provoke Zhou Longjun.

However, Zhou Longjun merely glanced at Zhou Ying indifferently and then turned his gaze to Zhou Longqi, saying coolly, "You shouldn't be in a place like this. Many people here want your life."

"I don't want to stay at home like that. Coming out here gives me a chance, just like my father. As for those who want to kill me, they are already the second batch. Will you help me?" Zhou Longqi seemed quite familiar with the young genius and spoke directly.

Zhou Longjun pondered for a moment, then his icy gaze turned to Zhou Ying and the others, making them shudder. Zhou Ying shouted, "No, Zhou Longjun, you can't kill me. That would violate the clan rules and result in punishment from the family."

"It seems you know that. I thought you had forgotten!" A flash of killing intent crossed Zhou Longjun's eyes.

Zhou Ying's heart skipped a beat, almost turning to run.

Zhou Longjun ultimately shook his head and said, "No, you need to handle this yourself. Good luck."

After saying this, he didn't care about the others' reactions and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Zhou Longqi suddenly called out to Zhou Longjun.

"What is it?" Zhou Longjun turned back, his brows slightly furrowed.

"There's something I need you to witness," Zhou Longqi said, clenching his fists. "I've found my direction."

"Oh? What direction?" The sword-wielding genius showed some interest.

"Physical cultivation!" Zhou Longqi answered firmly. "I need you to witness me punching Zhou Ying!"

Zhou Longjun was taken aback by Zhou Longqi's change, then nodded and said, "Very well!"

"What?" Zhou Ying was surprised. "You want to punch me?"

With Zhou Longjun present, Zhou Ying didn't dare to be too bold.

"A duel?" Zhou Longjun ignored Zhou Ying.

"Yes!"

"Alright, I'll watch you punch him!"

"You..." Zhou Ying, seeing Zhou Longqi approaching, felt cornered and said, "Alright, alright! You asked for it!"

A blue light began to glow around Zhou Longqi. He couldn't use his essence energy for techniques, but he could still circulate and cultivate it. As he approached Zhou Ying, the blue light gradually faded, and he quietly told himself, "Let go, let go. Let go!"

By the time he reached Zhou Ying, the blue light had completely disappeared, and he had stopped circulating his essence energy.

"Hmph!" Zhou Ying, no longer saying anything, hardened his resolve, circulated his essence energy, and punched Zhou Longqi in the face. He wasn't the type to stand and take a hit!

"Right now!" Zhou Longqi shouted. His essence energy burst forth, along with a powerful aura. The roar, filled with a regal presence, pressed down on Zhou Ying.

Even though Zhou Ying was mentally prepared for Zhou Longqi's aura, it came too suddenly and too fiercely, leaving him in shock. His mind went blank, with only one thought: What is he going to do?

A fist exploded from the blue light, striking Zhou Ying's face. With a series of bone-cracking sounds, Zhou Ying let out a惨叫 and flew backward.

Seeing Zhou Ying, whose face was covered in blood and pain, Zhou Longjun gritted his teeth and repeated what Hu Gao had said earlier: "Live as a hero, barefoot is not afraid of shoes! I did it!"

After saying this, Zhou Longqi, whose face had turned pale, looked at Hu Gao, who was smirking, and the two old men in gray, who were in tears. Finally, he turned to Zhou Longjun. The bone-cracking sounds had come not only from Zhou Ying's face but also from Zhou Longqi's fist, which was now shattered.

Zhou Longjun, looking at the silent Zhou Longqi, showed surprise and satisfaction on his face. He nodded and said, "Not bad! It seems you've found a good friend. This healing ointment will be useful for you. I'm leaving!"

He threw a bottle of ointment from his spatial ring and was about to leave, then paused and added, "What you had me witness, I'll tell the family head. Good luck!"

Watching Zhou Longjun's departing back, Zhou Longqi smirked, but a warm feeling welled up inside him.

Interesting! Hu Gao, seeing Zhou Longjun walk away, shook his head and smiled. Not all of the Zhou family were "second-rate" relatives.

"Zhou Longqi! I'll be waiting for you to come to me in three months!" Zhou Ying glared at the young master and then snorted at Hu Gao, leaving with the guards' support.

Seeing Zhou Ying leave, Hu Gao finally breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what, the immediate trouble was over. As for Zhou Longjun, Hu Gao had no interest in learning more about him; as long as he wasn't an enemy, it was fine.

Zhou Longqi didn't want to let Zhou Ying off, but he thought about his father's situation, which wasn't urgent, and his own issues didn't need to drag Hu Gao into it. He looked at Hu Gao, who seemed relieved, and smiled, "Today was quite a challenge."

"Yeah, your issues are settled for now. I have some things to do. Be careful in the future, and don't forget the eight out, fourteen return!" Hu Gao patted Zhou Longqi's shoulder. This guy was definitely a jinx, and he couldn't follow him anymore.

"Aren't you going to act with us in Flame Valley?"

"Yeah, but I believe we'll meet again."

"Alright..."

Seeing Hu Gao's determination to leave, Zhou Longqi had no choice but to nod. He hesitated for a moment, then suddenly took off a silver ring from his finger, "Hu Gao, this is a spatial ring. I'm sure you've heard of the wonders of spatial rings. I'm giving it to you now, as a way to repay some of the debt."

Zhou Longqi rarely met people he trusted. The few he did were only because of their status. Although he hadn't known Hu Gao for long, he felt that Hu Gao was genuine, unlike the hypocritical clan members, making him feel at ease. Hu Gao was his first true friend.

"Master, this..." The two guards looked anxious.

"Spatial ring..."

Hu Gao, looking at the spatial ring Zhou Longqi offered, instinctively wanted to take it and put it on his finger, but he shook his head and pushed Zhou Longqi's hand away, "No, keep the debt. Remember, the debt of gratitude is the hardest to repay!"

After saying this, Hu Gao didn't give Zhou Longqi a chance to continue and quickly left.

After parting ways with Zhou Longqi, Hu Gao, thinking about the spatial ring, came to an open area. The ground was covered in sand and rocks, with no trees. The temperature was noticeably higher than elsewhere, at least sixty degrees Celsius, making it difficult for even a typical Seventh Rank Condensation Shadow Realm martial artist to stay here.

A gentle breeze blew across the open area. Upon closer inspection, the wind had a faint red hue. Hu Gao quickly dodged it.

The reason was simple: the wind contained fire poison, which would immediately harm him if it touched his body.

Little Wu happily flew out of Hu Gao's body, landed on the ground, and sniffed the air with his wet nose, causing his long whiskers to flutter. A yellow glow surrounded him, and Hu Gao felt energy being absorbed into his body, even the red energy in the air, which was fire poison, was being absorbed.

"Stay here and cultivate slowly. I'm leaving."

Hu Gao dodged another gust of wind containing fire poison and was about to leave, as staying here was a torment. He couldn't absorb energy from the air and had to prevent the fire poison from eroding his body.

"Boss, don't go yet." Little Wu quickly stopped Hu Gao, "I have an idea. Do you want to hear it?"

Hu Gao glared at him, annoyed. Didn't he see how hard he was dodging? How could he still have the mood to talk nonsense!

Little Wu hurriedly said, "Boss, you control energy quite well, right? I'll filter the fire poison in my body to make it as mild as possible, and then you can try to condense it, um... into a fire poison bomb. In the future, when we fight, we'll have an extra trump card."

"Fire poison bomb?"

Hu Gao's eyes lit up, thinking it might work, but then his brows furrowed, "Can't the fire poison be absorbed into the body?"

Little Wu had already told him that the fire poison was extremely violent, comparable to the demonic aura in a late-stage First Rank demon core. Even a Body Transformation Realm or Essence Burst Realm martial artist would face unexpected consequences if they absorbed it into their body.

"Don't worry, Boss. I can't completely purify the fire poison, but I can make it close. I'll also mix in a bit of dragon qi. As long as you're careful, it won't harm your body. However, this energy is extremely violent, even more so than the combination of your essence energy and physical strength. You need to control it carefully. Once you perfectly condense this energy, I'll complete the final step and refine it into a fire poison bomb."

Little Wu chuckled, "I estimate that a fire poison bomb refined from the fire poison here should be comparable to a full-strength attack from a peak Ninth Rank Condensation Shadow Realm martial artist. If we succeed, we can use the fire poison bomb to deal with anyone who tries to overwhelm us with numbers."

"Don't get ahead of yourself. Let me try first. Also, keep an eye on the fire poison around me, and don't let it touch me."

Hu Gao rolled his eyes and sat down cross-legged. Although he wasn't sure if Little Wu was reliable, he had to admit that the idea was appealing. If he had some fire poison bombs, he wouldn't have to fear anyone except Body Transformation Realm martial artists.