Chapter 142 One phone call, and blood stains three thousand miles!
Bai Xuan was spouting nonsense, showing off its meager knowledge of the "soul suppressing nails," with one fat mushroom foot perched on the edge of a plate, gesturing wildly.
"...Boss, your Demonic Technique Legacy probably has a significant origin; it's at least a bit..."
It was trying to indirectly probe Zhou Ran's background.
Buzz—
The phone at the corner of the table vibrated.
The light from the screen was exceptionally piercing in the luxurious private booth.
That continuous vibration sounded like a series of hurried and ominous heartbeats.
Zhou Ran glanced at the caller ID—Wu De.
His brows knitted together.
This shifty-eyed "uncle-in-law" would never dare contact him at a time like this unless the sky was falling.
Zhou Ran pressed the answer button.
"Master Zhou!
You finally picked up!
Something's happened!
The sky has collapsed!"
From the other end of the phone came Wu De's hoarse and terrified roar.
"Our territory in Jiang City... is gone!"
Zhou Ran's fingers holding the teacup froze in mid-air.
With a "crack," the exquisite blue and white porcelain cup became covered in spiderweb-like fractures, yet it did not shatter.
The tea inside was held firmly in place by a force, not moving a single drop.
"Speak slowly."
His voice was flat, but the temperature in the booth dropped abruptly.
Sitting opposite him, the Su Sisters felt a chill rise up their spines and instinctively put down their utensils.
Wu De broke into sobs on the other end:
"Half an hour ago!
A madman in Japanese samurai attire dropped onto the top floor of the Xiao Group!
He knows ninjutsu; even his shadow can kill!"
"Fatty's newly mastered Golden Body Art couldn't even withstand a single move against that man!
He didn't even draw his blade, just used the scabbard to smash him from the top floor into the underground garage!
His life or death is currently unknown!"
"Third Master Qin's informants in Jiang City were wiped out within ten minutes!
Feifan Gym has been demolished!
Even the load-bearing walls were sliced through the middle!"
Zhou Ran's eyelids lowered, his tone remaining indifferent.
"And the people?"
"That's the worst part!"
Wu De's voice went completely out of tune,
"Miss Chen, Hong Li, and Miss Lin... have all been captured!"
"That mad dog Song Ren from the Sakurajima Song Family took them, and I don't know where!"
Zhou Ran rarely lit a cigarette, exhaling a smoke ring.
"Chen Guodong didn't look for Liu..."
Before he could finish, he was interrupted by Wu De.
"Governor Liu... was held up by an inspection team from the capital.
Now the entire business sector of Jiang Province is a mess!
Our industries are currently only being held up by the Wu Family. As soon as the market opens tomorrow, the stock prices of the Xiao and Chen families will collapse.
The Song Family intends to uproot us entirely this time!"
"Master Zhou, if you don't come back soon, we'll really be wiped out!"
Beep—
Zhou Ran hung up the phone.
Inside the booth, one could hear a pin drop.
Bai Xuan was so scared it zipped into the spout of the teapot, leaving only its bead-like eyes showing, trembling incessantly.
It knew that now was not the time to speak.
"Qin San."
Zhou Ran stood up.
He closed his fingers, and the cracked teacup silently turned into a handful of fine powder in his palm, trickling down through his fingers.
"Present!"
Third Master Qin's back was sweating, but he stood ramrod straight.
"I'll leave things here to you. Bring everyone back to Jiang City as soon as possible."
Zhou Ran turned his head and looked at Su Qingwu, his gaze devoid of emotion.
"If anyone stands in your way..."
"Then kill them."
Su Qingwu's heart pounded. She gripped the hilt of her sword and nodded vigorously.
"Mr... Mr. Zhou, what about you?"
Feng Lili asked, summoning her courage,
"This place is over three thousand kilometers from Jiang City. The earliest flight isn't until tomorrow morning..."
"Flight?"
Zhou Ran's lips curled into a smile that lacked any warmth.
"Too slow."
As the words fell, he took a step forward.
His figure vanished.
Where he had originally stood, the air collapsed inward with a dull thud!
Bang—!
The entire floor-to-ceiling window of the booth shattered outward!
The backflow of air sent the table full of delicacies flying into pieces.
Third Master Qin and the Su Sisters rushed to the window, faces filled with shock.
In the night sky, a streak of purple-black light tore through the darkness at a sharp angle, soaring into the heavens!
Ten thousand meters high.
The sound of the wind was left far behind; all around was absolute darkness and void.
Zhou Ran held the nearly frightened-to-death Bai Xuan in one hand. Beneath his feet was the zanpakuto burning with Demonic Fire.
The Purple-Gold Dao Platform within him rotated at an unprecedented speed, converting massive amounts of spiritual energy into kinetic energy to support this migration across half a continent.
This was no longer flying; it was burning his life force.
"Hold on tight."
Zhou Ran's voice was transmitted directly into Bai Xuan's consciousness in the vacuum, without a hint of warmth.
Boom!!!
Above the Southern Border, a massive white ring exploded and lingered for a long time.
A sonic boom cloud!
His entire being turned into a bolt of black lightning piercing the sky, breaking the sound barrier.
The speed was still soaring!
Mach one...
Mach two...
Mach three!
Bai Xuan's Divine Soul was nearly torn apart by this speed. It screamed in Zhou Ran's consciousness.
"Boss, you're crazy!
You're burning your cultivation!
By the time you reach Jiang City, how much strength will you have left?!"
Zhou Ran turned a deaf ear.
His Purple-Gold Demonic Eyes swept across, two clusters of dark Demonic Fire burning deep within his pupils.
Beneath him, the earth was a rapidly receding scroll.
The brilliant lights of cities merged into a blurred river of light in his eyes.
...
[A certain war zone in the Southwest, Air Defense Command Center.]
Piercing alarms echoed through the hall.
"Report!
Radar has captured an unknown hypersonic target!
Took off from the Southern Border, speed... Mach 20! It's climbing toward Mach 40!"
"Trajectory... the trajectory is crossing our national airspace!
Target: Jiang City direction!"
An elderly man with general stars on his shoulders stared intently at the impossibly fast red trajectory line on the screen, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Intercept it!
With what?!"
"What the hell... could it be an ICBM?!"
...
Jiang City, Xiao Group Headquarters Building.
The city's financial landmark was now so quiet that the sound of blood dripping could be heard.
In the top-floor conference hall, several cold security guard corpses were scattered across the expensive carpet.
A man wearing loose black samurai attire sat kneeling before a low table.
He had meticulously arranged a tea set and was focused on brewing a pot of top-grade sencha.
The tea aroma curled up, mixing with the faint smell of blood in the air, making one want to vomit.
Song Ren.
He pushed a cup of clear tea toward the space opposite him, as if hosting an invisible guest.
"In our Japanese tea ceremony, we treat every gathering as if it were the last of one's life."
He looked up at the three women tied on the floor, his gaze indifferent, as if admiring three objects.
"Zhou Ran-kun's return journey is the final tea ceremony I have prepared for him."
"Sect Leader Li will tear his Divine Soul to shreds and feed it bit by bit to those hungry ghosts that have starved for a thousand years."
"And you,"
He picked up the teacup and gently blew on the steam,
"will become the sacrifices to ignite the next hundred years of the Song Family's glory.
Especially you..."
His gaze fell upon Lin Qingxue, his eyes holding a scrutiny akin to a dissection.