Returning after 10000 Years Cultivation - Chapter 158

Within the Jiang family, aside from his parents and grandfather, no one genuinely cared for Jiang Tian.

When his family faced hardship, these relatives instead took the opportunity to squeeze them out and suppress them, showing utter ruthlessness.

Therefore, Jiang Tian held little affection for these so-called relatives.

However, there was no need to discuss this with his parents. They might not even believe him, and it was better to simply give them a pleasant surprise when the time came.

“Alright, then Mom will wait for you to help me regain control…” Seeing Jiang Tian so confident, Zhang Wanqing, although she didn’t know what her son’s trump card was and felt it was likely impossible, was still immensely comforted, satisfied, and happy.

At the very least, her son had matured. This was his filial devotion.

For the next few days, Jiang Tian stayed by his parents’ side with Qing’er, enjoying a few days of leisure in Qixia County, basking in family happiness.

Ye Ziwei also came from Jinling to meet Jiang Tian. The two had a small gathering at a café.

Those two billion came thanks to Jiang Tian’s borrowing. Although Ye Ziwei couldn’t explain it clearly, everyone should at least understand that she was the one who secured the financing.

But many in the Jiang family strongly advocated using the funds for the parent company’s renovation and upgrade. As for the Qixia Pharmaceutical Factory, it didn’t receive a single cent.

Even when the factory was recently in danger of being seized by Sun Hao, they stood by and watched, completely disregarding the overall interests.

Ye Ziwei also had some complaints about this.

“Ah, they’re afraid that Mom might make a comeback from Qixia County and retake the position of Group Chairman!” Jiang Tian, however, wasn’t bothered by this.

Let them do as they pleased. In the end, the Medicine King Group would undoubtedly belong to his mother.

After a few days of relaxation, Jiang Tian planned to bid farewell to his parents. But on this day, an uninvited guest arrived.

“Your junior, Tang Shaoze, pays his respects to Grandmaster Jiang!” Tang Shaoze knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Jiang Tian. It was a good thing his parents had gone to work, or they would have been shocked to see this.

“You handled the Sun family matter quite well. Take a seat!” Jiang Tian ate a kumquat, smacking his lips contentedly.

Phew—! Grandmaster Jiang isn’t making me kneel, he’s even letting me sit. Is this progress? Tang Shaoze was ecstatic. It seemed praying to Buddha more often was useful!

From now on, he would be a Buddha-like, handsome man!

“Thank you, Grandmaster Jiang, for the seat!” Tang Shaoze sat with his legs together, hands on his knees, most of his buttocks hovering off the seat. His eyes were timid, not daring to sit fully, as cautious as a little rabbit encountering a T-Rex.

“Why have you come?” Jiang Tian got straight to the point without any pleasantries.

“Grandmaster Jiang, your junior has come to pledge my loyalty. I wish to be your… your hound!” Tang Shaoze suddenly stood up, speaking excitedly. After finishing, he looked at Jiang Tian pleadingly, almost wanting to kneel and beg.

“Oh? What can a mere mortal like you do for me?” Jiang Tian yawned, looking uninterested.

In Lingnan, he primarily controlled magic experts like Master Hongye, using them as effortlessly as his own arms. But when it came wealthy young masters like Tang Shaoze, he couldn’t be bothered.

These people were different from Ye Gufeng, Long Wu, and Zhou Zhenghao from Jiangbei. Jiang Tian had helped the Jiangbei magnates resolve crises, and they were fiercely loyal. These people, however, were merely afraid of him; their loyalty was insufficient.

Hearing this, Tang Shaoze’s face fell, deeply disheartened.

He had guessed the beginning but not the end. He never thought he wouldn’t even qualify to be Grandmaster Jiang’s hound!

In his desperation, an idea struck him. “Grandmaster Jiang, our Tang family has successfully entered the Jinling market. I’ve heard the Jiang family’s roots are also in Jinling. Here, I can help you gather intelligence, even act as a mole, or do some… some dirty work like killing and plundering!”

“Haha, so you want to star in an ‘Infernal Affairs’ sequel? Alright, alright, I appreciate your dedication. By the way, you can help me investigate the Medicine King Group. You may go!” Jiang Tian found it amusing and laughed, then waved his hand to dismiss him.

“I’ve become Grandmaster Jiang’s hound! Excellent! This is a blessing I’ve earned over eight lifetimes!” Tang Shaoze was overjoyed.

He never expected his status to rise so quickly, becoming Grandmaster Jiang’s hound—it was like soaring to the heavens in a single step! A genuine leap to the top!

He immediately reported to his father: move all Lingnan assets to Jinling to serve as the vanguard for Grandmaster Jiang! What an honor!

Also, continue praying to Buddha!

The next day, Jiang Tian bid farewell to his parents, leaving each of them with two Eight Blessings bracelets, and returned to Linzhou with Qing’er and Shen Mange.

As the car passed Jinling on the ring expressway, Jiang Tian glanced at the sprawling city.

“Jinling! In my previous life, this place left me with countless heartbreaks and regrets…” A cold glint flashed in Jiang Tian’s eyes. “In three months, I will return with overwhelming force. By then, I will sweep across the vast expanse of Jinling, wash away the humiliation of my past life, and establish my name as a conqueror!”

“However, now that I’ve eliminated key figures from both the Chen and Sun families—Chen Bo and Sun Hao—the three great families will likely need to recuperate for a while and won’t dare act rashly…” Thinking this, a faint smile touched Jiang Tian’s lips as he slowly closed his eyes.

…

While Jiang Tian was heading to Linzhou.

Demon Island, Western Hawaiian Islands, Pacific Ocean.

This island is located 2,100 nautical miles from the West Coast of the United States and covers an area of over ten square kilometers.

On a map, it’s insignificantly small, but only those who have set foot on the island know how perilous it is.

Here, there is an active volcano that erupts frequently. The land is barren and scorching, devoid of any vegetation, with no trace of birds or beasts.

Anyone familiar with the underworld would be greatly alarmed upon hearing this name.

Because Demon Island is the private property of the infamous Great Circle Gang, the largest Chinese syndicate.

At this moment, deep within the volcanic crater, churning magma made the air crackle and pop, like firecrackers exploding.

The temperature here reached thousands of degrees, enough to melt even refined iron.

Yet, an old man sat cross-legged in meditation, suspended in mid-air above the rolling magma.

He had white hair and a youthful face, his eyes lowered as if in deep meditation, his expression serene.

When he exhaled, a white beam shot out three meters long. When he inhaled, he drew the scorching, burning air directly into his abdomen. With each breath, he seemed to be swallowing the sun and moon, refining all of creation.

The intense heat couldn’t even singe his clothes, let alone harm him.

He sat there like a demon god guarding hell, using the volcano as a furnace and the magma as fire to refine himself and forge his cultivation, striving for the supreme realm of martial arts!

…

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A helicopter approached from the distance, churning up clouds of volcanic ash, and slowly descended. When it was still over ten meters from the ground, a tall, robust figure leaped out.

While still in mid-air, he shook his arms violently, and surging true energy erupted from his back, forming two black wings about ten meters long.

With a flap of the wings, sending sand and dust flying, he landed steadily and safely.

The figure walked towards the volcanic crater. Now visible, he had blond hair and blue eyes, his shoulder-length hair gleaming with a golden sheen, a straight nose, and deep gaze—a strikingly handsome mixed-race man.

If any powerful figures from the US West Coast were present, they would surely gasp in astonishment and retreat respectfully.

This man was a renowned figure in the American Chinese community. On the surface, he held titles like state senator and major philanthropist, but behind the scenes, he controlled drug trafficking and arms trade in California and Oregon, handling billions of dollars in annual flow.

Some even whispered that he possessed superhuman abilities, like Spider-Man or Superman, capable of moving objects with his mind and injuring people from a distance.

Notorious gangs like the Vietnamese gangs and the Italian Mafia’s Gambino family, once dominant on the West Coast, had fallen victim to him and never recovered.

“Master!” The handsome mixed-race man approached the crater, looking at the elder above the magma with utmost reverence. He performed a standard cupped fist salute according to Hua Xia martial traditions, speaking with utmost respect.

His Chinese was also perfectly enunciated.

“Hmm?” The old man opened his eyes and flicked his finger.

Shoo! A stream of true energy wrapped around a mass of magma, forming a fiery phoenix about ten meters long that soared and danced at his feet.

Controlling magma at tens of thousands of degrees with true energy was unimaginable to others, but for this old man, it was as effortless as a game.

“Master’s cultivation has deepened yet again, drawing ever closer to the Divine Realm!” Seeing this, the mixed-race man’s respect deepened, his waist bending almost to the ground.

“The Divine Realm is still far away!” The old man finally spoke, his voice hoarse and dry, as if he hadn’t spoken in many years.

“The Iron Body stage forges the physique, Internal Force refines the inner energy, the Transcendent Realm cultivates Qi, and the Divine Realm tempers the spirit.”

“The Divine Realm is an elusive existence, appearing only once every hundred or even several hundred years. They are like gods descending to earth, capable of forming arrays with a wave of their hand, casting spells with a thought, speaking truths that become law!”

As the old man spoke, the mixed-race man listened with solemn attention, not daring to miss a single word.

He knew the old man had reached the pinnacle of martial arts; every word was more precious than gold.

“I can only condense Qi into weapons or shapes—this is merely the peak of the Transcendent Realm. I am still far from the true Divine Realm!” At this point, the old man let out a long sigh, his gaze becoming distant, lost in thought.

If high-ranking military officials like Cao Shixiong or veteran martial arts masters were present, they would surely recognize this old man—

The number one expert of the Great Circle Gang, Lin Zhenyu!

Twenty years ago, he led his disciples to sweep through major martial families in Hua Xia, intending to demonstrate the Great Circle’s power and secure legal status on the mainland.

But in the end, he was narrowly defeated by Ye Zhan Tian, the number one War God of the military, and withdrew from Hua Xia in disgrace.

“Master, we have received intelligence. Ye Zhan Tian has left seclusion and resumed leadership of the Hua Xia Dragon Group!” the mixed-race man, Hankes, reported solemnly.

“Excellent!” Lin Zhenyu’s eyes opened fully for the first time. Deep within his pupils, it seemed as if fierce flames leaped and danced.

The corners of his mouth curled into a ruthless smile as he sighed leisurely, “I have cultivated arduously here for twenty years, precisely to determine once and for all who is superior between me and Ye Zhan Tian. I never expected he would emerge from seclusion before me.”

In the next moment, he walked through the air as if on solid ground, stepping towards the crater entrance.

Like the Fire God or an immortal, with each step he took, a lotus bloomed beneath his feet—a trail of fiery lotuses with every step!