Ch. 311 - Want Breakfast? The Kind That Bankrupts You

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"Let's see what kind of fierce beasts dare to hunt us human geniuses?"

Wang Zhenlong looked perfectly calm as he waited for the beast horde to arrive.

Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

Violent tearing sounds ripped through the air as countless black branches shot toward him, their momentum terrifying beyond measure.

"Hm? ...Hm!"

Wang Zhenlong's calm expression instantly morphed into sheer shock.

"What the hell!! A Silver King?!"

His pupils contracted as he instantly summoned his other three contract spirits!

A massive cyan tortoise appeared, its shell glowing with brilliant cyan light. Relying on its formidable defense, it forcibly withstood the attack. But the shell was covered in marks, and fine cracks had even begun to spread across it.

Four Gold-rank contract spirits now stood, their auras fearsome, facing off against the black tree ahead!

Roar roar roar!

Dust billowed across the distant horizon as countless trees were smashed aside. Venom Scorpions, Giant Trees, Poison-Eating Bugs — fierce beasts of every kind came charging, their terrifying auras sweeping across the sky.

"Uh... this..."

Wang Zhenlong swallowed hard, his expression completely frozen.

Wasn't this number of beasts a bit too insane? He'd thought Chen Shu and the others were just inexperienced, hence their panic. Now it seemed... the clown was actually him?!

"Don't tell me all the beasts from Living Wood Swamp have gathered here..."

Wang Zhenlong was completely dumbfounded.

He'd guessed earlier that a spatial war was about to break out, with the beasts of both alternate dimensions gathering. However, the one facing the Living Wood Swamp beast horde wasn't the other dimension.

It was him, Wang Zhenlong?!

He'd guessed the beginning right, but not the ending![2]

"So we're comparing numbers, huh?"

Wang Zhenlong pointed at the black tree, silently pulled out a signal flare, and fired it straight into the sky.

"One arrow piercing the clouds, a thousand men come to meet!"[1]

With the beast horde rampaging, he alone as a Gold-rank couldn't possibly fight this off.

Roar!

The massive golden tiger beneath him let out a roar, a terrifying golden sound wave rippling outward. Countless beasts were disoriented, and some of the weaker ones dropped dead on the spot. The Black Tree King was unaffected, however, and continued unleashing its skills, trying to tear its opponent apart.

Wang Zhenlong fought while retreating, trying to buy time for the Spirit Suppression Army outpost.

...

"Hope the big boss is okay..."

Chen Shu silently prayed, his eyes already taking on a look of mourning.

"With a Silver King showing up, Blue Star will definitely send reinforcements. They might even deploy a King-rank Beast Tamer."

"Sis Fang Si, haven't we stirred things up a bit too much?"

Qiao Yue and the others had a touch of worry in their eyes. They'd often ventured into alternate dimensions alongside Fang Si, but when had they ever caused this kind of commotion?

"Seniors, don't worry!"

Chen Shu said with a laugh. "If anything goes wrong, I, Xia Yan, will shoulder it all alone!"

"?!"

Fang Si and the others' mouths fell open as they all stared at him. Xia Yan? What the hell?

Nobody was even interrogating them yet, and this guy was already passing the blame?!

No wonder he'd put on that gas mask the moment he saw anyone — it was all for this move!

While they were fleeing, the Spirit Suppression Army outpost had already mobilized, clearly having received the signal flare. The Spirit Suppression legion had begun sealing off Living Wood Swamp, forbidding any new Beast Tamers from entering. At the same time, someone had been dispatched to Blue Star to notify the local Dragon Guard, preparing for the impending upheaval.

...

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

The beast taming corps adventuring in Living Wood Swamp all returned to the outpost one after another. Their faces were panicked as they left Living Wood Swamp without hesitation. With the beasts rampaging now, the only function of an ordinary beast taming corps was to serve as an appetizer.

"Whew!"

Chen Shu and the others breathed a sigh of relief as they finally spotted the Spirit Suppression Army outpost.

They returned to the first level of the great tree and, likewise, passed through the space corridor to return to Blue Star. The soldiers around them all wore strange expressions. Well, who wouldn't when Chen Shu was wearing a gas mask? But they didn't pay it much mind — after all, these days you saw all kinds of people.

"We're finally back!"

Fang Si and the others breathed in Blue Star's air, instantly relaxing.

Qiao Yue and the others nearly collapsed on the spot. When had she ever been this insane? They'd provoked the beasts of an entire dimension!

Chen Shu said, "That was truly... so thrilling!"

All four of them shot him resentful looks. You're sure "thrilling" is the word?!

"Please leave as soon as possible. Living Wood Swamp is about to experience upheaval!"

In Hemu Town, a small patrol squad of soldiers approached and warned the five of them.

Chen Shu and the others nodded and, without lingering, drove straight out of Hemu Town.

It was the day after they'd returned to the outpost.

Wang Zhenlong also returned to the outpost. Though somewhat worse for wear, he had at least managed to stall for time. The Black Tree King gazed at the Spirit Suppression Army outpost from afar, appearing hesitant.

Every tree hollow of the great tree that served as the outpost was manned by powerful Spirit Suppression Army soldiers, all staring back. Wang Zhenlong, meanwhile, stood with his back to the outpost, his eyes blazing with battle spirit! If both sides clashed, the Spirit Suppression Army only needed to stall and wait for Blue Star's powerhouses to arrive.

In the end, the Black Tree King let out a roar and led the beast horde away.

"Commander, what's going on?"

A Spirit Suppression Army soldier immediately stepped forward, not understanding why the alternate dimension had suddenly erupted.

Wang Zhenlong said, "We'll need to investigate further! Wait for reinforcements!"

In his mind, the image of Fang Si and her team surfaced of its own accord. Especially that person wearing a gas mask — definitely no ordinary individual!

He sighed. "Are all young people these days so suicidally reckless?"

...

Chen Shu and the others headed north, arriving in downtown Qing City, planning to rest for a night before returning to the Capital.

They ate a satisfying meal and slept at a hotel in the downtown area. The physical fatigue was secondary. The key issue was the mental strain — it was simply too much!

Early the next morning.

Chen Shu and the others arrived at a fast-food restaurant to enjoy breakfast.

"Seniors, breakfast time!"

Chen Shu's face was all smiles as he carried fried eggs, youtiao, egg tarts, and various other foods.

"Oh right, where's Senior Qiao Yue?"

He looked at Fang Si and asked.

Lu Zhining said, "Probably too much mental strain. She's still asleep."

Chen Shu shook his head. "She needs more training. Her ability to handle pressure clearly isn't up to par!"

Fang Si said, "Honestly, if someone hasn't gone insane after hanging around you, I'd call that a success!"

Ning Qingyi and the other girl nodded in vigorous agreement.

Only by truly associating with Chen Shu could one come to appreciate the preciousness of life!

"So this is how you see me..."

Chen Shu heaved a sigh toward the heavens, then added, "Oh, by the way, one fried egg is a hundred sixty thousand..."

"?!"

Ning Qingyi and Lu Zhining, who were right in the middle of eating fried eggs, froze on the spot.

"You're screwing us over!"

They both cried out, unable to believe Chen Shu would be this outrageous.

"Not eating! Not eating!"

Both of them put down their food in unison. Who knew how much one breakfast would end up costing? It might wipe out every last bit of profit from this operation. Wait — knowing Chen Shu's ways, they might end up owing him several million...

"Relax, he's joking."

Fang Si shook her head and continued eating her breakfast, unconcerned.

Just as they were joking around, Qiao Yue shuffled over, still bleary-eyed. She let out a yawn and said, "Why'd you order so much?"

Lu Zhining said, "Xiao Qiao, come enjoy a bandit's breakfast! The kind that bankrupts you!"

"I'm on a diet!"

Qiao Yue stared at the hamburger on the table, swallowed, and said, "Tell me this: chicken breast and vegetables are healthy foods, so how come the moment you stick them between two pieces of bread they become junk food?"

Fang Si and the others were speechless. Your way of thinking is so unique!

"Isn't that perfectly normal?"

Chen Shu said with a calm expression. "The heart, liver, spleen, and lungs are all masterpieces of the Creator. But once they're assembled into us, don't they become completely worthless too..."

[1] 一支穿云箭，千军万马来相见 (One arrow piercing the clouds, a thousand men come to meet): Iconic line from Stephen Chow's 2004 kung fu comedy Kung Fu Hustle. In the film, the Axe Gang leader fires a signal firework into the sky and delivers this line to summon reinforcements. The line originated from 1970s-80s wuxia films and has since become a ubiquitous Chinese internet meme for calling for backup — often used with comic irony, especially when the backup turns out to be underwhelming or, as here, when a single person is facing an absurdly overwhelming force.

[2] Guessed the beginning, not the ending (猜对了前头，却没有猜中结局): An homage to the iconic closing line from Stephen Chow's 1995 film A Chinese Odyssey Part 2: Cinderella (大话西游之大圣娶亲): "I guessed the beginning right, but I couldn't guess the ending" — one of the most-quoted movie lines in Chinese internet history, expressing ironic fate exceeding all expectations.