Chapter Eighty-Eight: How Much Trouble Did He Cause!

At the first hour before dawn on May 5, Xiajing time, the entrances to the secret realms all over the world opened on schedule.

Each entrance took the form of a circular halo several dozen meters across, in varying colors, like a series of semi-transparent, colored mirrors standing upright upon the earth.

These entrances and exits appeared at random and in unpredictable numbers. They might emerge over vast stretches of sea, in prosperous cities on land, or in desolate, uninhabited places.

The gateways to the secret realms opened once every three years, and each opening lasted for thirty days.

During those thirty days, cultivators on Earth could enter and leave the secret realms at will through these gateways.

When the time was up, the entrances would close.

Then, those outside would be unable to enter, and would not know how to do so; those inside would be unable to come out.

Still, cultivators confident in their own strength could remain within the secret realms for long periods to train.

The secret realms not only offered the chance to hunt large numbers of rare exotic beasts, but the stellar energy within them was also far richer and purer than that on the surface of Earth, making them ideal for cultivation.

There was more than one secret realm, but they could be distinguished by the color of their entrances.

No matter where an entrance appeared on Earth, entering gateways of the same color would always lead to the same secret realm.

The entrances that had appeared this time came in nine colors: gray, silver-white, yellow, pale yellow, blue, pale blue, red, pale red, and black.

Over the past century, cultivators had already discovered a pattern: the deeper the color of the entrance, the more dangerous the secret realm beyond it.

Of course, the rewards were greater as well.

...

Before night had fully fallen, the Sky Patrol had already returned to Tianjin Port in China.

At six in the evening, before the sky had gone dark, Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing had returned to their residence in Xiajing.

By the small hours of the morning, Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing were still awake.

“Husband, Xiaoqing has sensed it. Three super-star experts have appeared in Xiajing.”

Fresh from her bath and dressed in a pink nightgown, Long Xiaoqing sat beside Yang Ye, frowning as she spoke.

While speaking, she was anything but obedient; she slipped her hand into Yang Ye’s white robe and traced circles over his chest with her finger.

Yang Ye caught the mischievous little hand and smiled. “So they really did come out. I wonder whether they’ll come knocking tonight.”

Ever since the star at the heart of the sea of stars had turned into a black hole, Yang Ye’s temperament had changed as well, giving off an air of deep darkness. Even his smile looked eerily sinister.

“Husband, if they do come knocking, that’s just fine. For now, we’ll ignore them.”

With that, Long Xiaoqing wrapped her arms around Yang Ye’s neck and pressed her lips to his.

After a long while, the two finally parted.

Looking at Long Xiaoqing’s exquisite face and her pure, flawless eyes, Yang Ye leaned down and kissed her cheek hard.

“Husband~”

Long Xiaoqing called out shyly.

This was something Yang Ye never quite understood.

Kissing her mouth never made Long Xiaoqing shy, but kissing her cheek did, every single time.

“Sleep.”

Saying this, Yang Ye lifted the bashful Long Xiaoqing into his arms and carried her toward the bedroom.

...

Early the next morning.

The office of the Xiajing National Assembly.

“Speaker, someone wishes to see you!”

Just after Tian Zhong had signed a document aimed at improving the people’s livelihoods, his secretary hurried in, looking tense.

Tian Zhong frowned. He had already sensed three powerful, sharp auras outside, and he could not help glancing back over his shoulder.

Behind him stood two men and two women in the uniform of the Patrol Office.

All four wore their caps pulled low, heads slightly bowed, their faces obscured.

At the sight of them, the knot in Tian Zhong’s chest eased at once.

He was just about to tell the secretary to let the three men outside in when, before the words had even left his mouth, three middle-aged men entered the room.

Seeing them, Tian Zhong waved the secretary away and smiled. “Mr. Jiang, Mr. Li, Mr. He, I never expected you to be out already! Congratulations, congratulations!”

The three arrivals were Jiang Zhenghong, Li Feihu, and He Wei.

Tian Zhong knew all three.

Over the past three years, Tian Zhong had grown much older, while the three of them had become somewhat younger.

Among them, Jiang Zhenghong and Li Feihu were both at the mid super-star level, while He Wei was at the late super-star level.

Tian Zhong was only at the stellar level and could not clearly distinguish their realms, but he knew that with a mere flick of a finger, any one of them could kill him.

Compared with the forty-eight super-stars nurtured by Yang Ye, the three of them were in fact even stronger. Years of cultivation, advancing step by step, combined with the life-and-death struggles within the secret realms, had given them an exceptionally solid foundation.

Feeling the oppressive force released by the three men, Tian Zhong remained somewhat uneasy.

As soon as Tian Zhong finished speaking, He Wei sneered. “Tian Zhong, it’s only been three years, and look at what you’ve made of China. How many cultivators has this country lost?”

As he spoke, he tapped the desk hard with his finger, thudding again and again.

Suppressing his anger, Tian Zhong said coolly, “Everyone is living and working in peace. Those who should live are living, those who should cultivate are cultivating. In this Speaker’s view, that is very good.”

“Hmph!”

He Wei snorted. “Good? Good my ass! Building those damn martial halls—do you think those poor people can afford to cultivate? Isn’t the money still being squeezed out of the pockets of all the major families? What you’re doing is cutting off the roots of China’s cultivators! Only cultivation aristocratic clans can keep producing outstanding talent.”

At this, Jiang Zhenghong sneered. “When the tiger is away, the monkey calls itself king. A mere nobody at the stellar level has managed to turn China into this—a land of misery and resentment, where the people can barely make a living. As a national leader, you must pay the price for your mistakes!”

What He Wei and Jiang Zhenghong said was utterly unreasonable. Tian Zhong knew they had come precisely to pick a fight, and he had no desire to argue with people like them. He set down the pen in his hand and said calmly, “Very well. Then why don’t you go kill Yang Ye first? You’re all top-tier cultivators of this world, with the power to influence national politics. As long as you get rid of Yang Ye, I’ll do whatever you say.”

Tian Zhong had no concern at all for Yang Ye’s side.

Because Yang Ye had called him the previous night.

When he learned that Yang Ye had already advanced to the super-star level and now had forty-eight super-star subordinates, Tian Zhong had been so stunned that he could not sleep all night.

Let alone the three men before him—if all two dozen-odd super-stars in the world were gathered together, the result would probably be the same as the hundred-man force from Fusang Country: Yang Ye would wipe them out in one sweep.

After Tian Zhong finished speaking, Jiang Zhenghong broke into a cold smile and raised his hand, pointing his index finger at Tian Zhong’s forehead. “Before we deal with Yang Ye, you, his accomplice, must also pay the price.”

As he spoke, stellar power began to gather at Jiang Zhenghong’s fingertip.

In that instant, Tian Zhong tensed to the extreme. The four people behind him suddenly lifted their heads.

Only then could their faces be seen clearly: they were Zhou Hun and three members of Zhou Hun’s team.

The four of them had all cultivated the technique taught by Butler Mu, allowing them to conceal their auras completely. As a result, Jiang Zhenghong, He Wei, and Li Feihu had simply ignored them.

Ring, ring, ring...

Seeing that Tian Zhong was in danger, Zhou Hun was just about to act when the landline on the desk suddenly rang.

At the sight of the caller ID, Jiang Zhenghong lowered his hand and sneered. “Speaker Tian, answer the phone. See what kind of trouble Yang Ye has brought to China.”