Chapter 288 - 279: Name, Departure

Chapter 288: Chapter 279: Name, Departure

For many in Shenghai, this was a day longer than any year.

It was also a day of darkness and despair.

The embassies and consulates of the Six Major Concessions, along with the Municipal Council of the Public Concession, were all blown up. The only survivors were the ambassador from Ronnia and a few other ambassadors and consuls who, by a stroke of luck, were away on vacation and escaped the carnage.

The small clique of Western overlords at the apex of Shenghai’s power pyramid was all but annihilated in the blasts.

Shenghai’s order collapsed in less than half a day. On the day of the explosions alone, more than a thousand violent crimes—arson, assault, and looting—were reported.

The culprit responsible for it all was soon identified.

The nephew of the late Madam Ding, leader of the Qinglian Gang, and one of the newly minted Four Young Masters of Shenghai, Young Master Zhang—Fu Lingjun!

Even before this, his was a name spoken only in hushed, fearful tones.

He killed Zhao Tianpeng and Martial Arts experts, leading to the massacre of Shenghai Martial Dao Association President Zhao Jigang’s entire family; he killed Nan Xiangcheng, Director of the Southern Country Special Operations Bureau; he killed the great comprador of the New Realm; he burned down a newspaper office, murdered the young press heir Chen Qingyuan, killed Luo Chengying, and slaughtered the Woodcutter Gang...

He had been in Shenghai for barely six months, yet three of the city’s Four Young Masters—representing its power, wealth, culture, and martial prowess—had already fallen by his hand!

He had subjected Shenghai’s entire circle of elites to a thorough "great purge"!

When Mayor Wen Zhiqiu fell from power and Madam Ding of the Qinglian Gang died, everyone watched coldly from the sidelines as he lashed out everywhere like a "mad dog."

They sneered to themselves, watching from a safe distance, waiting for the Westerners or Commander Luo of the Jianghai Command to make a move. They couldn’t wait to see him utterly crushed.

But in the end, the elites didn’t get the intervention they expected from the Westerners; what they got were embassies and consulates blown to bits. They didn’t get Commander Luo’s intervention either; what they got was the news: "The Jianghai Defense Command has been attacked. Commander-in-Chief Luo Zhengxiong has tragically perished."

This young man—lawless, unreasonable, and merciless; utterly unscrupulous, arrogant, and domineering to the extreme—had flipped the entire card table. Then, with his expensive, imported leather shoes, he ground his footprint into every single one of their faces...

Finally, amid the Xin Republic’s impotent fury, its empty condemnations, and the announcement of a major warrant by Xin Republic Central—all of which amounted to nothing but bullshit—he simply yawned, swaggered away, and was gone.

For a long time to come, his name would be seared into the memory of Shenghai, from the common folk in the streets to the upper echelons of society.

—Fu Lingjun!

......

「Purple Cloud Mountain.」

A small temple stood on the cloud-wreathed summit.

Big Cat and Kitty knelt on cushions in the prayer hall before a monk in a clean but worn robe.

RASP... RASP... RASP—

A razor glided across their scalps, and locks of hair fell away with a soft rustle.

Once the shaving was complete, a little novice monk standing nearby hurried forward to offer them a lit stick of long incense.

But the old monk who had performed the tonsure waved a hand and spoke softly, "Their worldly affairs are not yet concluded. For this period of secluded training, it is enough that they have shaved their heads. They need not take the vows."

The Little Novice Monk nodded, only half-understanding, and retreated.

Half an incense stick later, Big Cat and Kitty, now in monk’s robes, stood talking quietly under the Bodhi Tree by the temple gate.

"Big Bro, how long are we staying here?"

"Until you break through to the Gratitude realm."

"Big Bro, can we still eat meat?"

"Master Huai Kong said we can. Since we didn’t take the vows."

"Big Bro, will you help me with my sutra-copying homework?"

"No."

As they were talking back and forth, a small figure came running up to them, panting.

"What about that young master who always came up with you before?"

The Little Novice Monk craned his neck, peering down the mountain. "How come he didn’t come up this time?"

The conversation under the tree stopped abruptly. Big Cat turned to the Little Novice Monk and said slowly, "You miss him?"

"’Miss’ isn’t quite the word..."

The Little Novice Monk scratched his head and mumbled sheepishly, "He... he said last time that he’d bring me some yummy food from down the mountain when he saw me again..."

Big Cat gave a silent smile.

The three of them—two large, one small—stood under the Bodhi Tree, gazing in silence at the churning sea of clouds in the distance.

Suddenly, the Little Novice Monk spoke again. "Will we get to play in the snow with him this winter?"

After a long pause, Big Cat’s deep, confident voice rang out.

"We will."

"He’ll be back."

....

WHOOOO—

The green-painted train let out a long whistle, belching white smoke as it slowly began to pull away from the station, CLANG-CLACK, CLANG-CLACK.

The train was as crowded and noisy as a marketplace.

Past the third-class cars, past the second-class cars, and into the first-class car, things were finally much quieter.

A slender, stern-faced young man in a simple grey tunic entered the first-class car at a brisk pace, a thermos in one hand.

He stopped at a compartment door and knocked gently.

A clear, calm voice soon answered from within. "Who is it?"

"Young Master, it’s me," the stern-faced young man replied, keeping his voice low.

The person inside grunted in affirmation. The young man pushed the door open and stepped inside. In the luxuriously appointed and relatively spacious compartment, a young man in a blue long-robe sat by the window, quietly reading a newspaper.

Warm sunlight streamed through the window, bathing the young man in a glow that gave him an air of quiet elegance.

"I’ve scouted the area. No one’s tailing us."

Cao Tian set down the thermos—his prop—and reported, "There are two suspicious-looking groups, but I don’t think they’re here for us."

"Alright, I understand."

Fu Juemin looked up from his newspaper. He glanced at Cao Tian’s solemn expression and couldn’t help but smile. "Relax. It’s not like we did anything wrong. No need to be so tense..."

The corner of Cao Tian’s mouth twitched at that, but he quickly nodded. "I’ll be right outside. Call me if you need anything, Young Master."

With that, he opened the door and stepped out.

Once Cao Tian was gone, Fu Juemin set down his newspaper and gazed out the window at the scenery slowly rolling by.

’This time, I’d well and truly turned Shenghai on its head. I have no foothold there for the time being, so I took advantage of the last few days of chaos and collapsed order—when no one was paying me any mind—to head straight for Yingjing.

This train isn’t a direct route; it will require several transfers and detours.

But since I was already planning to make a detour to my hometown to deliver Aunt Ding’s ashes, the circuitous route doesn’t matter.

On this journey, only Cao Tian is with me.

As planned, Zhang Yi, Xu Hengjiang, and the other remnants of the Ghost Camp left Shenghai by sea right after bombing the consulates in the Concessions.

We arranged to rendezvous near Yingjing.’

Fu Juemin’s eyes flickered.

’Neither Zhang Yi nor Xu Hengjiang’s group is particularly loyal—not when compared to Cao Tian.

Now that I’ve lost my status as an elite Young Master of Shenghai, it’s hard to say if they’ll still be willing to follow me.

Traveling separately isn’t just a safety precaution; it’s also my way of testing them, of weeding them out.

If any of them no longer wish to follow me, they can leave along the way. After all we’ve been through, it would be an amicable parting.

As for the two brothers, Big Cat and Kitty...

They asked to stay behind on their own initiative.

They said they wanted to train in seclusion for a while under Master Huai Kong of Purple Cloud Temple.

With Aunt Ding dead, they had nowhere else to go and were still willing to follow me.

But as my own power grew and my enemies became more formidable, their usefulness as top-tier bodyguards diminished.

Big Cat has always been the more decisive of the two. He must have realized this and felt a sense of urgency, which is why he chose to stay in Shenghai with Kitty for intensive training.

And I respect that decision.

Last year when we left the Luan River, we were a big, bustling family...

But now... Dad, Fu Guosheng, is far away in the Southern Ocean with my stepmother and two little sisters. I haven’t heard from Second Uncle Fu Guoping...

Leaving Shenghai, the only one of the old crew left by my side is Cao Tian.

Looking back on the past six months in Shenghai, it all feels like a dream.’

Even Fu Juemin felt a pang of melancholy at how much had changed.

Pushing down the wistful feeling, Fu Juemin paused in thought. He rolled up the right sleeve of his long-robe and gently peeled a scab from his inner forearm, revealing the pinkish new skin beneath.

It was an injury from when he had drawn down lightning to slay the Flood Dragon Level Centipede Spirit. It was healing nicely.

’The benefits I reaped from the battle at the Jianghai Defense Command... were immense.’

...

*Tomorrow, I’ll post a summary for the Shenghai Volume and give a preview of my plans for the Demon Capital Volume.*