Chapter 200: Chapter 183: Birthday Surprise, Grandpa’s Arrival! The Opportunity to Become a Powerful Divine Being! Snatching the Opportunity?
"It is said that Powerful Divine Beings are the ones who set the rules alongside the Blue Star Will. They aren’t subject to any of the Blue Star Will’s restrictions!"
"What?" Wei Xuan, hearing this rumor for the first time, was stunned!
...
Meanwhile, Zhang Zengyuan, who was already in the car, saw his father.
"Dad!"
"Mm."
"Did you tell Zhang Yi that I’d be back early?" Zhang Shumo asked.
"Not yet, Dad," his daughter-in-law, Hu Miaozhen, replied. "Zhang Yi went out with his classmates today. He won’t be back until this evening. As you requested, ever since we got the news to pick you up at the port, we haven’t told Zhang Yi a thing about your return."
Hearing her words, Zhang Shumo couldn’t help but smile. "Good. Zhang Yi’s exam results were quite impressive this time. He hasn’t shamed his grandfather! Now that I’m back, we should celebrate properly for him! My early return is a surprise, so of course we can’t tell him beforehand!"
Zhang Shumo couldn’t stop smiling whenever his grandson was mentioned. He doted on his eldest grandson more than anyone, even more than his own son.
"By the way, are the gifts I asked you to prepare ready?"
"Everything is ready, Marshal," Qin Rui replied. "One is a Divine Domain Card you personally selected from your treasury, and the other is the Divine Domain Card your wife prepared for your grandson!"
"Hmph. I told her the Divine Domain Card I carefully prepared would be enough, but she still couldn’t resist giving our grandson a reward!" Zhang Shumo snorted, but his eyes held a hint of a smile.
"Dad, what kind of surprise did you bring back for your grandson this time?"
"Hmph, the surprise I’ve prepared this time is a big one! Even if I gave it to you, you might not be able to handle it."
"Huh?" Hearing Zhang Yi’s grandfather’s words, Zhang Zengyuan felt a little embarrassed. His wife was right next to him, yet his own father was talking to him like this.
What does he mean, even if he gave this opportunity to me, I might not be able to handle it! I’m a Middle-Level Divine Being! What opportunity in the entire Blue Star Federation could I possibly not be able to handle! Unless... unless it’s...
Something occurred to Zhang Zengyuan, and his eyes went wide!
"Dad, don’t tell me it’s an opportunity related to a Powerful Divine Being?" Zhang Zengyuan couldn’t help but ask.
"Would I lie about something like that?" Seeing the look of disbelief on his son’s face, Zhang Shumo felt a secret flicker of delight. It had been many years, not since his son had grown up, that he’d seen such a shocked expression on his face!
"Dad, if this opportunity is for Zhang Yi, don’t you think it’s too dangerous?" Hearing his father’s confirmation, Zhang Zengyuan couldn’t help but worry. "Zhang Yi is only a Middle Transformation Demigod right now. If you suddenly expose him to an opportunity for a Powerful Divine Being, I’m afraid he’ll be completely overwhelmed!"
"I never said this opportunity was definitely for Zhang Yi," Zhang Shumo said, shaking his head. "I don’t have enough clout to decide who gets an opportunity to become a Powerful Divine Being. I can only give my grandson a chance, that’s all. I don’t even know if he’ll be able to seize it!"
"Well, in that case, why not give the opportunity to me? What do you say, Dad?"
Hearing the words come out of his son’s mouth, a half-smile appeared on Zhang Shumo’s face. "To you? Zengyuan, how old are you now?"
Zhang Zengyuan was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "Dad, what’s wrong? Why are you asking something you already know? This year I’m..."
Before Zhang Zengyuan could finish, Zhang Shumo cut him off. "That’s right. You’re already over fifty, almost sixty. Why are you still so impulsive? To think you’d even try to snatch an opportunity from your own son!"
"PFFT!" Hearing this exchange between the father and son, Hu Miaozhen, who had been sitting quietly in the back, couldn’t help but laugh.
Hearing his wife’s laughter, Zhang Zengyuan’s face instantly turned bright red. "Dad, that’s not what I meant! I’m just saying Zhang Yi is too young! He’s getting in over his head with some things, he can’t handle it! It would be better to let me do it. I have more experience!"
"Hmph! I’ve already said this much, and you still don’t get it?" Zhang Shumo’s tone was tinged with mockery. "I mentioned age! Age! Do you really think that whoever left behind this opportunity to become a Powerful Divine Being wouldn’t have some requirements for the successor? You lose your head the moment something big happens!
"I used the excuse of my grandson starting school to transfer you to the rear. So many years have passed, how has your temperament not changed one bit?"
As he spoke, a trace of regret appeared on Zhang Shumo’s face. He paused, then continued, "To inherit this legacy, the first condition is that you must become a Middle-Level Divine Being before the age of thirty! Can you meet that first condition?"
"Well..." Zhang Zengyuan was rendered speechless by his father’s rebuttal.
"And you still want to fight your grandson for this opportunity? As a father, have you no shame!"
Having been thoroughly shut down by his father, Zhang Zengyuan could only rub his nose. Then he said sheepishly, "It’s my fault!"
"Alright, alright! Recognizing your own faults is a good start. The worst thing would be not recognizing them at all! What’s meant to be yours will be yours. What isn’t, you can’t force, no matter how hard you try! Zhang Yi... that kid is more promising than you were at his age!
"Whether he can actually obtain this opportunity is another matter entirely. In the end, it’s all up to him. All I can do is pave the way and make the road ahead a little smoother for him," Zhang Shumo said gradually, gazing at the rapidly passing scenery outside the window.
Silence fell inside the car. After a while, as they were almost home, Zhang Shumo finally spoke again. "Listen up. Today is our grandson’s birthday. Let’s all be cheerful at home!"
Hearing his father’s words, Zhang Zengyuan, who had been thinking things over during the ride, seemed to have come to an understanding. "Alright! But tomorrow, I want to talk to you alone!"
Zhang Shumo glanced at his son, then nodded.
「That evening.」
After the driver of Hong Tianyi’s Flying Phantom dropped Zhang Yi off at his front door, Zhang Yi went inside. At the same time, the Lin Family’s ancestor, Lin Haifeng, also reached the Lin Family estate. The ancestor, who hadn’t been home in over a decade since his promotion to a Weak Divine Being, had finally returned! But what would happen after his return, no one knew!
...
When Zhang Yi entered his home, he noticed that something seemed different than usual. The atmosphere was still warm and cozy, but there was a subtle change.
"Mom, Dad, I’m home," Zhang Yi called out, but he didn’t hear a reply.
He found this strange. Hearing a noise from the kitchen, Zhang Yi went to investigate. There, he saw his mom and dad bustling about, and the ingredients they were using were all specialties from the Gourmet World.
Just as Zhang Yi was feeling puzzled, a voice suddenly came from behind him. It was familiar yet held a hint of unfamiliarity, and it was filled with authority.
"HA! My grandson’s home!"
That voice... Zhang Yi whipped his head around. There, behind him, he saw a middle-aged man wearing a greatcoat, his posture ramrod straight, exuding an effortless authority. But right now, he was smiling at Zhang Yi.
Who else could it be but his grandfather!
"Grandpa!" Zhang Yi exclaimed in surprise. "Didn’t Dad say you were coming back tomorrow? How are you back today?"
He never expected to suddenly see his grandfather, so much so that his words became a little jumbled.
"What, not happy to see your grandpa?" Zhang Shumo couldn’t help but retort upon seeing his grandson’s shocked and delighted expression.
"I am, I am! Of course I’m happy to see you!" Zhang Yi said quickly, his excitement plain to see. "I’m just so surprised! Dad, Mom, how are you two so good at keeping secrets from me? You didn’t let a single word slip!"
Just then, Zhang Zengyuan and Hu Miaozhen came out, having finished preparing dinner.
"It’s not that we intentionally hid it from you. It was your grandpa’s request!" his father explained with a smile. "Besides, your grandpa also said he was bringing you a big surprise this time! So? Are you surprised?"
