Chapter 174: Tonight Won’t Be Lonely

The two of them stared fixedly at the television screen. First came a laundry detergent commercial, followed by a car commercial, and then, with the third one, the scene changed.

A group of young boys and girls were running across a grassy field, their faces radiating the vibrant energy of youth. The young men wore canvas shoes, light-colored distressed jeans, and black-and-white plaid shirts, while the young women wore knitted cardigans paired with beige casual trousers.

......

As soon as he stepped out of the cave entrance, he looked around in all directions, the image of Linger flashing in his mind as he wondered how she had fared over the past ten days.

However, a word of explanation is in order here: the stage succeeding the Tribute Scholar realm is the Presented Scholar. Beyond the Presented Scholar realm, there is no further division into early or late stages—a top scorer is simply a top scorer, and a grand academician is simply a grand academician! In other words, such rapid soaring is only possible in the early stages; what about the later ones? Completely out of the question. If you wish to break through, you must first accomplish whatever is required for a major realm breakthrough.

Had He Liancheng not mentioned it, I truly would not have paid attention. Hearing him bring it up now, I suddenly realized that the clothes Peng Jiade wore were indeed strikingly vibrant in color, making them exceptionally well-suited for the camera.

Seeing Black Luo's protective stance toward his own, Ling Xiao was genuinely depressed. Not long ago, they had been fighting fiercely for the divine seat of the Sea God, but now, their relationship had grown so intimate once again.

Returning to his room, Ling Xiao took out the note Hannah had given him, chewing over its contents repeatedly.

Seeing that Tang Yicheng was unharmed, the others also relaxed. After a brief period of casual chatting, Li Xiaoyi's figure finally appeared.

He gave a self-deprecating smile, but did not dwell on these thoughts any longer. Having slept straight through from yesterday after drinking with Hu Bayi until now, he checked the time and found it was already noon. He hurriedly washed up, got dressed, and headed to the square, only to discover that the others had already arrived.

Above them were two elder brothers: the eldest son Yunfei, who inherited the bloodline of the Bird King, and the second son Yunqi, who possessed the bloodline of the swan.

The rumbling sound of war drums had ceased, yet the fallen warriors remained standing, forming a desolate and tragic landscape.

Duan Zhixiang loved this place. Sitting here, holding a jade cup filled with fine nectar, enjoying the scenery was like tasting fine wine—the wine did not intoxicate, but the scenery did, allowing him to recapture a fleeting sense of being the ruler of the Kingdom of Dali.

At the same time, deep resentment brewed in his heart toward his own good-for-nothing son, wondering how he could have ever provoked such a person.

"Hold on! Though Jin Rucheng is foolish, he is, after all, a local tyrant. Without him, if we were to prop up someone else, we wouldn't have such deep-rooted local connections. For the sake of the bigger picture, it is better not to move against him lightly. Our immediate priority should be figuring out how to deal with Li Jie," Gui Ruoyuan said slowly, his face gloomy and his eyes narrowed.

Now that she was a mother herself, she could suddenly empathize with many things that she might have understood before in theory, yet never truly comprehended. The love of parents is always profoundly deep.

This place felt like an independent realm, sealed within the valley by some mysterious force. While the weather outside was bright and sunny, the valley was shrouded in gloom, with a persistent, fine drizzle falling from a sky where rising vapor from the valley floor had likely triggered the formation of rain clouds.

Luo Zichen spoke in a rather loud voice, and upon hearing the name Gu Yue, many people around them reacted with astonishment. The Body of the Great Earth, the Nine Suns Starry Endgame, and his rejection of Pagoda Master Tang—every single incident could be considered a sensation throughout the royal city.

"Don't make that face. Yuran and I have already discussed it, and she has agreed," Li Xiangyun said with a faint smile to Chen Yang.

"Stop right there! Let her go!" Chen Wu shouted. "Otherwise, I'll open fire." Catching sight of Xiao Ya, Chen Wu felt a wave of relief wash over him, but immediately grew tense again. He was relieved because she had finally been found, yet tense because Xiao Ya was still far from safe.

Even Suh Nam-pyo, the president of KAIST, was eager to strengthen his ties with Jin Sung-jin. This showed that Jin Sung-jin's status as the third-largest shareholder of the SK Group had indeed elevated his reputation and standing to an even higher level.