Chapter 17

Yuan Yang Burst is a low-level third-stage spirit technique. Even though it is the lowest among third-stage spirit techniques, it is still a third-stage spirit technique! Even if Yang Chen had simplified and weakened it as much as possible, it still could not hide its essence as a third-stage spirit technique.

The moment Yuan Yang Burst successfully formed, the mental energy forcibly extracted almost burst Yang Chen's head!

As the explosive light dissipated, Yang Chen staggered, nearly falling to the ground.

His head felt empty, and a buzzing sound in his ears almost made him want to bang his head against the ground to alleviate the pain!

His face was as pale as paper, and his originally straight back bent.

"From now on, if I can avoid using a higher-stage spirit technique, I must never use it lightly..." Thinking about the danger he faced when his mental energy was forcibly extracted, Yang Chen was now breaking out in a cold sweat just thinking about it.

His current physical condition could not withstand such a massive output of mental energy. Even a brief impact could leave a huge隐患, which might even accompany him for life!

He repeatedly warned himself not to act so impulsively in the future. If he really left some aftereffects, it would be too late to regret it.

"Granduncle..." Yu Qing, with stars in his eyes, stumbled over to Yang Chen.

"The ghosts have dispersed," Yang Chen looked at him and said, "But if the same situation happens again, I can't guarantee I'll be able to arrive in time... You're already an old man, how can you still act so recklessly!"

Yu Qing's face was equally pale, almost devoid of any color, but in the face of Yang Chen's reprimand, he obediently replied, "Granduncle's lesson is well taken... I will never be so greedy and reckless again..."

"Hmm." Yang Chen weakly nodded, then turned to bow to the unkempt old Taoist, "Thank you, Fellow Daoist, for your assistance. If you hadn't been here tonight, Yu Qing might have met with disaster..."

As he spoke, Yang Chen carefully examined the unkempt old Taoist. When his gaze fell on the earth-colored wine gourd hanging from the old Taoist's waist, his heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly asked, "I wonder if Fellow Daoist's dharma name is Dian Dao Ren?"

"Hey..." Hearing Yang Chen call out his dharma name, Dian Dao Ren was greatly surprised. He also boldly examined Yang Chen, saying, "You, young man... I've definitely never seen you before. How do you know my dharma name is Dian Dao Ren?"

Indeed, it is him...

Upon receiving Dian Dao Ren's personal confirmation, Yang Chen felt as if he had found a treasure.

Even though he was almost about to collapse from exhaustion, he still forced a smile, "Fellow Daoist is indeed the chief disciple of Zhongnan Mountain, Dian Dao Ren... I once heard several elders mention some characteristics of Daoist Master, and combined with the 'earth gourd' on Daoist Master's waist, it wasn't hard to guess Daoist Master's identity..."

"Huh, interesting." Dian Dao Ren stroked his chin and said, "You even know I'm a discarded disciple of Zhongnan Mountain... Not many people know this. In my memory, no one has ever been able to cultivate a demon like you..."

"I am the grand-disciple of Wu Feng Daoist Master Wu Feng, and the predestined sole successor of the Eighth Cottage of Zhongnan Mountain." Yang Chen smiled, his tone confident and proud. He didn't believe that saying this wouldn't pique Dian Dao Ren's interest!

Sure enough, when Dian Dao Ren heard Yang Chen mention the Eighth Cottage of Zhongnan Mountain, he visibly trembled, and his eyes flashed with intense light!

"Even the Eighth Cottage... I'm becoming more and more curious about your background." Dian Dao Ren narrowed his eyes and said, "But as far as I know, the Eighth Cottage is still vacant. Even the old Taoists of Chongyang Palace have been unable to enter it. What gives you the confidence, a mere twenty-something-year-old, to claim it?"

"Confidence..." Yang Chen smiled, "I'm truly exhausted today. Why don't you come with me to Jinzhou for a couple of days? Once I recover, I'll prove it to you in detail."

"Ha ha ha... I wander the world, using the sky as my blanket and the earth as my bed. Where can't I go?" Dian Dao Ren laughed heartily, agreeing very readily, "I just hope you don't find it easy to invite me but hard to send me away..."

"I'm not afraid of that." Yang Chen confidently shook his head and turned to Yu Qing, saying, "I'll leave the aftermath here to you. Once you're done, come find me in the city when you return to Jinzhou."

"Granduncle's meaning is..."

"Wait until you get back to talk about it." Yang Chen didn't elaborate, and as he staggered to leave, he suddenly remembered something, pointing to the heavily damaged Geely Panda, "By the way, remember to get the Zhu family to compensate for the damage to this car."

"Complying with Granduncle's command... Granduncle, please walk slowly... Uh, Granduncle, who is this lady?"

"Just call her Miss Tang."

"Uh... Miss Tang, please walk slowly... Drive carefully... Have a safe journey..."

...

Yu Qing, like a hero, was carried to the First People's Hospital of Zhenglong County by a large group of people led by Zhu Hongyi.

But what made this hero, Yu Qing, feel somewhat awkward was that from the moment they got in the car, Zhu Hongyi and the others' conversation revolved around the young man who had driven into the factory...

"Daoist Master, you've really worked hard... By the way, what is your relationship with the young man driving the Geely Panda?"

"Don't move, Daoist Master! The doctor said your injuries are severe, and you need to rest in bed... But with Daoist Master's abilities, it shouldn't take as long as the doctor said, right? Ha ha, Daoist Master is being modest... But now that you mention it, I remember the young man in white is one of Daoist Master's junior disciples, right?"

"Daoist Master..."

Zhu Hongyi, Ma Mingjun, Ma Youfeng, and several other high-level executives of Yuanbang Chemicals, who had witnessed Yang Chen's outburst at the factory gate, spoke one after another. They seemed to be praising Yu Qing's abilities, but every three sentences, they would mention Yang Chen, who had come and gone in a hurry. After all, the massive explosion in the factory sky was seen by many people!

While Yu Qing's abilities were not bad, compared to the mysterious young man, his investment value was far behind.

All the events that occurred here had been written into a detailed report by Zhu Hongyi and sent to Beijing overnight.

Before that, he had already informed a direct senior in his family and briefly introduced the events that had taken place.

After listening to Zhu Hongyi's description, the senior remained silent for a long time before asking, "According to what you said, the young man who appeared later actually resolved the situation, and it had little to do with Yu Qing?"

Zhu Hongyi thought for a moment and then answered honestly, "Yu Qing did his best, but his abilities were not up to par. Without the young man who appeared later, not only would the ghosts not have been eliminated, but Yu Qing and the unnamed old Taoist who came to help would have died on the spot..."

"Recall everything you saw in detail and tell me again."

"At that time, the situation was like this..." Zhu Hongyi did not hide anything and recounted the entire process to the old man on the phone, finally saying, "Unfortunately, by the time I wanted to talk to him, he had already left in his car..."

His words were filled with regret.

After listening to Zhu Hongyi's words, the old man put down the phone, and it seemed that several people were listening nearby.

After a brief discussion, they came up with a preliminary plan. The old man picked up the phone again and said to Zhu Hongyi, "This young man's stage is likely even higher than Yu Qing. This is an opportunity for our Zhu family..."

He paused and continued, "Since he was willing to help, it means he has no ill feelings toward our Zhu family! Try to find out his identity and background, and meet him again soon. While this matter is still fresh, try to win him over. At the very least, maintain a good impression!"

"Okay, I'll do my best." Zhu Hongyi hesitated and asked, "What about Yu Qing?"

"Handle it as you see fit."

"Yes."

The elders of the Zhu family were experienced.

From Zhu Hongyi's introduction, they could easily judge the level of the third-stage spirit technique Yuan Yang Burst that Yang Chen had used.

While the Zhu family might be considered a typical wealthy family by ordinary people, in the national context, their strength could only barely rank behind the top tier, not truly making them a top-tier wealthy family.

Those high-level Daoist cultivators looked down on the Zhu family, who were seen as nouveau riche with a stench of money.

High-stage masters were always the guests of the top-tier wealthy families and a unique and powerful resource.

Otherwise, why would the Zhu family have sent Zhu Shishou to Jinzhou from a thousand miles away to specifically invite the long-vanished Yu Qing to resolve the issue at Yuanbang Chemicals?

If, as expected, Yang Chen was a Daoist cultivator of at least the fourth stage, then his astonishing strength at such a young age suggested that he might have a long-standing sect behind him!

This was one of the important resources the Zhu family had been seeking for years to rise to the top tier.

Whether true or not, it was a rare opportunity, wasn't it?

With these speculations, winning over Yang Chen, or at least maintaining a good relationship with him, became the primary task given to Zhu Hongyi by the elders of the Zhu family. If they could establish a good communication line with the sect behind Yang Chen through him, it would be a real turning point for the Zhu family!

However, Yang Chen came and went in a hurry, leaving no chance for them to speak to him.

This left Yu Qing as the only clue. Zhu Hongyi naturally accompanied him throughout, subtly probing and even directly expressing his desire to meet Yang Chen and thank him in person several times.

But Yu Qing was vague and unwilling to speak clearly.

First, because Yang Chen had left in a hurry and hadn't told him whether he could reveal his identity to outsiders.

Second, Zhu Hongyi's enthusiastic attitude toward Yang Chen had chilled Yu Qing's originally warm heart! He also felt a faint jealousy toward his granduncle Yang Chen.

Why should I be the one who works hard and gets severely injured, yet after the matter is resolved, I, who struggled for hours and nearly lost my life, am not as important as Yang Chen, who only appeared for less than ten minutes?

Although the promised ten million yuan had already been transferred to his bank account, Yu Qing's mixed feelings were something only he could understand...