Chapter 41: A Changed Fate

After an unknown amount of time passed—perhaps a week, or perhaps a month?

It was the middle of the night.

The screen froze on a surveillance image.

A car that had stalled in the outskirts caught the attention of three drunken thugs.

No, to be more precise, it was the radiant woman in the passenger seat with bright teeth and a beautiful countenance that attracted them.

Every smile and every frown of the woman acted like a fuse, tempting them to plunge into the abyss.

Thus, everything that followed was a natural progression.

As the woman was pinned beneath the three men under the dim yellow glow of a streetlamp, a disheveled figure could be seen running into the distance in the periphery of the vision.

Ming Yanwei stopped her screaming and wailing; the tears in her eyes radiated a sense of utter despair.

In her despair, she gave up resisting, allowing herself to be handled numbly.

Just as her top was torn away and her life seemed to be reaching its end, an inconspicuous sound of wind suddenly rang out.

The miserable scream of a man on her body jolted her from her descent into darkness.

Then, she felt a drop of hot blood slide down her cheek.

She saw a black arrow pierce through the man's heart by more than half an inch!

And that drop of blood, that scalding liquid, was the legendary "heart's blood."

So, even the hearts of such sinful people were still crimson, and the blood was still warm!

The woman watched helplessly as the man pressing down on her slumped backward without strength.

The two thugs on either side stood up in a panic, turning to run.

But the Reaper in the darkness vetoed their next move.

And threw out a wooden plaque inscribed with the words "Execution Immediate."

*Whoosh!*

An arrow struck true, this time hitting a neck.

No, not one arrow.

Two.

Two figures on the left and right were simultaneously pierced through the carotid arteries by arrows carrying immense kinetic energy.

Their bulging eyes were filled with disbelief.

Due to inertia, the two bodies lunged forward uncontrollably.

Regaining her senses, the woman, without even bothering to fix her clothes, stumbled toward the darkness from which the arrows had flown.

And in this desolate outskirts, where human presence was rare, a man who had been meditating in the mountains was drawn by the sound and happened to witness this scene.

"Twin Star Arrows? Interesting..."

——

In another state of half-sleep and half-wakefulness, when Li Xiao opened his eyes, he looked directly at Zheng Zha.

Seeing each other, both men breathed a sigh of relief simultaneously.

On the other side, several "long time no see" old friends all wore expressions of astonishment.

Zhang Jie, Zhan Lan, Zero, and the expressionless Chu Xuan!

It seemed as if something unbelievable had occurred.

Zhang Jie was the first to speak, his face full of incredulity

"Wait, you guys have already spent thirty days in the real world?"

Zhan Lan clearly thought of something and said with equal shock

"I know, is it... a difference in the flow of time?"

Zheng Zha looked at the positioning of the group.

He realized they were standing in the exact same arrangement as when he had sent them away thirty days ago.

Combined with Zhan Lan's words, Zheng Zha said in disbelief

"Could it be that in your eyes, it was only an instant?"

"No, not an instant. From the moment you disappeared to the moment you reappeared, an interval of about two seconds passed," Chu Xuan said calmly from the side.

Upon seeing this man, Zheng Zha's emotions rapidly cooled.

He spoke softly to the little girl beside him

"Li'er, stand behind me."

Once the well-behaved girl was in place, everyone heard a dull thud as a grim-faced Zheng Zha instantly lunged forward.

His speed was so great that it caught everyone off guard.

A punch landed solidly against Chu Xuan's stomach.

Through a month of training and strengthening, Zheng Zha's overall strength had improved significantly.

This fleeting change exceeded everyone's expectations; even Zero, who was beside Chu Xuan, reacted half a beat too late.

By the time he lunged toward Chu Xuan, Chu Xuan had already been sent flying with his body hunched over.

With the sound of physical impact, the immense force sent the expressionless, bespectacled man flying an exaggerated distance of nearly ten meters.

Mid-air, Chu Xuan let out a gasp and spat out a large mouthful of blood.

Zheng Zha's figure accelerated again to chase after the flying Chu Xuan, but another figure flashed into the middle and barely managed to intercept him.

Realizing what had happened, Zhang Jie rushed forward a few steps, grabbed Zheng Zha, and shouted urgently

"Zheng Zha, are you crazy? Why did you suddenly attack?"

But Zheng Zha acted out of character; instead of being angry, he calmly patted Zhang Jie's hands that were holding him.

"Relax, I'm not crazy, and I'm not angry."

"It's just that some people need to pay the price for their actions."

On the other side, the figure being helped up by Li Xiao coughed twice.

After spitting out a few mouthfuls of blood, Chu Xuan wiped his mouth with Li Xiao's help.

He then patted his clothes and said

"It seems my hypothesis was correct!"

"Furthermore, your reaction exceeded my expectations. Congratulations, you are already acting like a qualified Captain."

Meanwhile, the bewildered Zhan Lan and Zhang Jie began a barrage of questions.

Li Xiao looked at the two men who were unwilling to say much and gave a helpless, bitter smile, realizing he would have to explain it himself.

After the cause and effect were explained, none of the people present tried to defend Chu Xuan.

Even Zero thought that if he had been schemed against and it had endangered his family, he might have become even more crazed.

Zhang Jie, however, was angry on Zheng Zha's behalf and began to berate Chu Xuan

"Damn it!..."

This impromptu denunciation meeting started suddenly and ended just as quickly.

Because, as Li Xiao began to open the capsules one by one...

The entire space suddenly fell silent.

Setting aside the long and short firearms for a moment.

The attack helicopters, Gatling guns, and specialized off-road vehicles—these exaggerated weapons and vehicles shocked everyone present except for Chu Xuan.

Zhang Jie stared up blankly, unsure if he was excited or stuttering

"This... this... is that... a Dongfeng-26 ballistic missile?"

"Holy crap?"

"This thing actually brought it into the Main God Space?"

Li Xiao shook his head with a smile

"Incorrect. This is the Dongfeng-41, the latest product from the Academy of Military Sciences. Get to know it."

Zero also dropped his cold facade at this moment.

He looked ahead with a face full of shock.

The "killing weapons" varied in size and length, but without exception, they all gleamed with the luster of steel.

In particular, there were ten sniper rifles, and if Zero wasn't mistaken, these ten were the top ten existing in the real world.

Compared to the man who was fond of firearms, Zhan Lan was undoubtedly the calmest person here.

She rubbed her temples, her mouth twitching uncontrollably

"The weapons and ammunition here are enough to arm a whole company. And this ammunition... it's likely equipped according to the standards for siege warfare, isn't it?"

As a veteran, Zhang Jie asked curiously

"How do you know so clearly? Aren't you a writer?"

Zhan Lan rolled her eyes at the rough man, Zhang Jie, and said proudly

"Please, do not underestimate a writer's knowledge reserves, okay?"

Chu Xuan walked to the front at this time, completely unbothered by the blood on his chest

"There is one more thing. I have left a special message for the State."