Chapter 1270: Bestiality
Dong Mingxing hugged Zhou Ying tightly. "I've missed you all so!"
Yang Ze glanced at Li Qianlin and Dong Mingxing, then smiled.
"It looks like our captain has been enjoying himself without the rest of us, strolling through the streets with two beautiful women..."
Li Qianlin and Dong Mingxing suddenly glared at him simultaneously, causing Yang Ze to sweat. "What's the matter?"
Dong Mingxing growled, "Don't speak nonsense if you don't know what's going on! You don't know how bad I suffered just now."
Sun Mengmeng asked, "What's the matter?"
Zhang Hanxiang suddenly jumped in. "A call from the united world federation, Brother!"
Zhang Lie frowned. "Hong Tianqi should have been informed of what's going on with the unified world. Has something happened to the Milky Way?"
Zhang Hanxiang flushed. "The Milky Way is perfectly fine, but the highest authority believes you're about to ascend. Once you do so, you might lose contact with us like before, so the highest authority would like you to speak with him before you ascend."
Zhang Lie rolled his eyes. "What do you mean, lose contact for some time? When I ascended to the third realm, what happened was an accident. Is he so certain that an accident will befall me?"
Zhang Hanxiang replied, "Who knows what the ascension to the fourth realm will entail? Even if we don't lose contact with you, you'll likely be very busy for quite some time."
Zhang Lie noticed a faint odor of alcohol around Zhang Hanxiang.
"Have you been drinking?"
Zhang Hanxiang pursed her lips. "Brother, I'm not a kid anymore."
Zhang Lie turned to the members of Team Zenith.
"I thought all of you were going to look after my sister for me!"
Sun Xiaowu laughed. "No need for such a big fuss, Captain. Hanxiang's of age, and today's a special occasion. All she's had is a little rice wine."
Sun Mengmeng sighed. "After all, she's never drunk before, has she? Let me prepare some ginger tea."
Zhang Hanxiang hugged Zhang Lie.
"Brother, listen to me! Who knows what the ascension to the fourth realm will entail? Even if we don't lose contact with you, you'll likely be very busy for quite some time. The highest authority wants to meet you for the final time before you depart."
Zhang Lie frowned. "Sister, are you cursing me to die? Do you really want to inherit my possessions and capacity to drink so badly?"
Zhang Hanxiang patted Zhang Lie firmly on the shoulder.
"I think you'll be fine, Brother, and the highest authority thinks so too. However... ah, where was I? However... no one knows what might happen in the fourth realm, and the highest authority wants to impart you with some of his experiences and knowledge."
Zhang Lie rolled his eyes. "Do you think I need his advice?" Your brother's someone who went to the fourth realm in the past and survived! What sort of experience do I need? I have my own experience!
Li Qianlin frowned. "You mentioned that there might be incidents when you ascend to the fourth realm. What do you mean?"
Zhang Hanxiang replied, "Exactly what I stated. No matter how well off you are in a lower realm, no matter your fame, strength, and reputation, hunters who ascend have a chance of refusing to show themselves in public any longer or vanishing off the realm completely. This is a frequent problem, and the hunters who do survive to the end are all unusually lucky, unusually skilled, or both."
Li Qianlin glared at Zhang Lie. "Why haven't you mentioned this before?"
Zhang Lie shrugged. "It makes no difference whether or not I do."
Yang Ze hurriedly added, "For us genetic hunters, ascension is dangerous. It's a known fact, and we're all willing to take this risk to advance."
Li Qianlin glared. "But I didn't know, because I'm not a hunter!"
Dong Mingxing clutched her face. "Ah, you've all ruined it!"
Zhou Ying crept up to Dong Mingxing and whispered, "What's the matter with Qianlin?"
Dong Mingxing replied, "She was upset that Zhang Lie wasn't willing to marry her, and now she's even more hurt by this revelation, I suspect."
Zhang Hanxiang explained, "Strong though hunters might be in a lower realm, once they ascend, things can very well change. Their new environment will be different, and they're subject to different rules. Some hunters can't get used to such a change immediately, and they'll be quite a bit weaker relative to the average force in the new realm. As a result, before they adapt to their newfound circumstances and grow into their strength, they might perish. This is a natural phenomenon."
Zhou Ying hurriedly stepped forward to stop Zhang Hanxiang from continuing.
"That might be true, but Zhang Lie, our captain, is different!"
"Everyone knows this? Everyone except me? Why didn't anyone tell me!" Li Qianlin shouted. "I haven't blamed you for diving headfirst into danger, or for refusing to deepen our relationship, or even for being about to depart from the third realm! Even so, you refuse to give me a concrete answer and simply watch me struggle. What reason do you have for doing this? Answer me!"
Li Qianlin wasn't truly angry that Zhang Lie hadn't informed her of such a detail, but rather that he refused to give her a concrete answer about their relationship despite his imminent departure.
His lack of response, and lack of reason for the lack of response, made her feel incredibly upset.
Zhang Hanxiang frowned. She was clearly drunk. "Why are you shouting and yelling, and staring at my brother! Who are you to him? I've never seen you!"
Li Qianlin flinched, as though Zhang Hanxiang's words had struck a nerve. "That's true, isn't it? I'm no one to you. I was just a fool all along."
With tears in her eyes, Li Qianlin fled from the scene.
"Qianlin!" Dong Mingxing glared at Zhang Lie before chasing after her.
Sun Mengmeng returned to the table with steaming ginger tea. "What happened? Where have Qianlin and Mingxing gone?"
Zhou Ying frowned. "I'm a little worried. I'll go after them."
The draconian kingdom was crowded with people. Li Qianlin and Dong Mingxing were strong fighters in their own right, and Dong Mingxing had developed strength on par with that of a king of a large world, but they were in unfamiliar territory in the draconian kingdom. Zhou Ying followed them to ensure their safety.
Yang Ze glanced at the women's backs. "Shouldn't you chase after them?"
Zhang Lie shook his head.
Sun Xiaowu seemed confused. "Li Qianlin has always been willing to go along with you, Captain, and your relationship seemed particularly deep, so why now..."
Zhang Lie sighed. "This was something that would have happened eventually. We're fated to be star-crossed lovers, and this fate can't be changed."
Li Feng patted Zhang Lie on the shoulder. Only he could understand what Zhang Lie was feeling now, because among the members of Team Zenith, Li Feng wasn't a bachelor.
Zhang Lie sighed again. "I'm a little tired, and I'll be heading back to rest."
Glancing at Zhang Lie's lonesome figure, Sun Xiaowu sighed. "What is love? That we be willing to live and die together."
Li Feng seemed very surprised. "What philosophy—and from a bachelor, no less! I suppose it just goes to show that you can be cultured just by reading a lot."
Sun Xiaowu glared at Li Feng. "Are you looking down on bachelors?"
Fang Yi scowled. "Li Feng, your bestiality knows no bounds! Don't think you can start haranguing us just because you have a girlfriend."
"What bestiality are you talking about?!"
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