Chapter 10: The Origin of Discord
Where did Erlong get so much money to help these young people? Zhang Ze couldn’t figure it out for the moment.
As they were about to leave, a flustered middle-aged man hurried toward them. He ran to Erlong’s side, his voice tinged with excitement.
“There’s news—around three in the afternoon, the Lin family will pass through here.”
The man’s obvious excitement caught Zhang Ze and the others’ attention. Among them, the young man Li Tian was the first to react.
“Uncle Erlong, are they from the pill company?”
Hearing Li Tian’s question, Baldy frowned deeply.
“Brother Long, I shouldn’t meddle, but if it’s about the pill company…”
He had barely finished speaking when Erlong raised his hand to cut him off.
…
Zhang Ze had been in this world for nearly two hundred days, yet he still understood little about its intricacies. For instance, he couldn’t grasp why these people bore such deep resentment toward the pill company.
He decided to remain silent, choosing to observe Erlong and the others to see what they intended to do.
Within minutes, more than a dozen strong men from the village had assembled before them. From start to finish, Baldy looked troubled, which only fueled Zhang Ze’s curiosity.
“Brother Long, the kids are settled. No matter what, we have to deal with them today!”
The burly men, muscles bulging and bare-chested, looked vicious and intimidating. Only then did Zhang Ze realize that all these men were martial artists.
Erlong surveyed the group, his voice low.
“Since the Lin family took over the pill company, prices in Anqing Province have risen by thirty percent.”
“Today, we’ll teach those bloodsucking bastards a lesson!”
Hearing this, Zhang Ze began to understand the cause. With his system, he had never worried about strengthening his body since traversing here two hundred days ago.
But for these people, it was far from simple.
Sixty thousand yuan for a single grade-one strengthening pill. Even in his previous life, sixty thousand was not a sum an ordinary family could easily afford.
As for Zhang Ze himself, he’d struggled to even feed himself in his former life.
Moreover, for martial artists, a single pill was barely a drop in the ocean.
…
Fueled by anger, the group quickly concealed themselves near the highway leading to town.
“In this damn world, everything is decided by strength,” Baldy, who was hiding with Zhang Ze, surveyed the dozen hidden men and sighed.
“Non-martial artists aren’t allowed to do business. Anyone below grade three can’t run cross-provincial enterprises.”
“Even ordinary people’s consumption is restricted. Isn’t that just cutting off everyone’s hope?”
To Zhang Ze, Baldy’s words were a shock.
Here, everything looked just like his original world, except for the existence of martial artists.
But after hearing Baldy, Zhang Ze frowned. “Why does everyone have to become a martial artist?”
“Isn’t it enough to live as ordinary people, with wives, children, and a warm home?”
“And with Erlong supporting them, the village’s youth can still train and become martial artists, right?”
He glanced at Baldy, confusion written all over his face.
Baldy only responded with a mocking chuckle.
“You still don’t get it,” Li Tian growled.
Zhang Ze was taken aback.
After soothing Li Tian, Baldy finally explained, “Do you think Brother Long alone can support all the expenses for these kids?”
He shook his head, his voice growing more somber.
“Take Li Tian—his mother sold her cornea and a kidney just to help him become a martial artist and escape the life of the previous generation.”
Unbelievable!
Zhang Ze could hardly imagine why these people were so devoted to martial cultivation.
Though ordinary people faced many restrictions, society was stable enough to keep them alive.
These confusions, he thought, would only be resolved as he learned more about this world.
“Could it be… I crossed into this world to save these people?”
Influenced by the novels of his previous life, the traverser Zhang Ze began to fantasize.
“Everyone, stay alert, those people will be here soon.” Erlong, eyes fixed on the time on his phone, reminded the group in a low voice.
…
Meanwhile.
Mengyang County Investigation Division.
“Any news on Zhang Ze and Liu Neng?” Li Sanqing glanced at Wang Ting and asked.
As the captain of the first squad, Wang Ting was responsible for the case involving Wang Chao and others illegally selling pills.
Wang Chao’s accomplices had been caught, which seemed positive, but it had cut off their leads.
To help Li Sanqing find Wang Chao’s whereabouts, they needed to locate Zhang Ze first.
“That kid’s an orphan, and now even the fat one has disappeared.”
“Finding those two won’t be easy.”
Thinking of Zhang Ze, Wang Ting felt a headache coming. After all, the kid was known as a troublemaker who’d tangled with the provincial investigation headquarters.
Li Sanqing didn’t blame him for the lack of progress.
“The Lin family’s people should arrive soon. They’ll definitely dig into the source of the pills in Wang Chao’s hands.”
He glanced at the worried Wang Ting and offered a reminder.
“I’ll wait one more day at most. If there’s still no news, I’ll return to the Martial Bureau.”
Li Sanqing had never placed much hope in the abilities of Wang Ting or the local martial artists in these agencies.
Wang Ting knew he had little status; his cultivation was always looked down upon by the Martial Bureau trainees, making him all the more anxious.
“That kid just broke through to grade one, yet he drugged a grade two martial artist…”
Ignoring Wang Ting’s frustration, Li Sanqing couldn’t help but pay attention to Zhang Ze’s actions.
He pondered, then took out his phone and dialed a number with practiced ease.
“Mentor, I have a little guy here…”
…
“Damn, did those people change their route?”
An hour had passed during their wait, but the pill company people still hadn’t appeared.
Just as they were muttering, a lanky young man ran up to Erlong.
“Uncle Long, there’s news.”
“The pill company people were ambushed halfway by Chen Family Village and beaten up, so they changed their route.”
“What?”
Hearing this, Erlong was extremely frustrated.
“Damn it, Blind and his group beat us to it.”
“Forget it, tell everyone to head back.”
…
“Heh… those pill company folks…”
Baldy, hearing Erlong’s conversation, smiled as he watched everyone leave.
“Erlong must have his own source for pills, right?”
“How much cheaper can it be compared to the pill company’s prices?”
Having cast himself in the role of ‘savior,’ Zhang Ze now had an idea.
“Hm?”
Baldy was puzzled by Zhang Ze’s muttering.
Before he could ask, Zhang Ze’s phone rang.
“Ze, whose hornet’s nest did you stir up?”
“Fatty’s in trouble!”
The moment he answered, Zhang Ze heard the anxious voice of the old dean on the other end.