Outside the bakery beneath the afterglow of the dusk, Tang Hong stood rooted for a while.
The sky behind him was painted golden with the light of the dusk. The air itself had become cooler with the inevitable hiding of the sun. A kaleidoscope of colors was painted on the surface of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the bakery.
Of course, it provided an unparalleled view.
Apart from the floor-to-ceiling windows, there were tables and chairs inside the bakery.
There sat a lady in a beret with delicate features.
She rested her chin on her hand. Her face looked small and gentle.
The scene was akin to that of a painting.
It was too beautiful. Perhaps, maybe even a little surreal.
"It's her again."
These words appeared in Tang Hong's mind.
Then, he thought. 'Isn't she a natural beauty that doesn't need any Photoshop?'
Tang Hong took a deep breath with ease.
He took out his phone and logged into the Fish app.
There, he asked the third buyer where he was.
'I'm inside the bakery, close to the window. I'm wearing a light green hat.'
"…"
Seeing those words, the corners of Tang Hong's eyes began to twitch.
He looked at the chat log and read it again carefully.
Suddenly, he looked up. 'Fate brings people together no matter how far apart they might be.'
Surprised and delighted…
The description matched.
The third buyer was the young lady wearing a beret.
'Wait!'
'She must have seen the words I wrote in the description saying that these items were given to me by a lapdog… what would she think of me then?'
Tang Hong felt a little uneasy.
How strange… What was going on with him?
He couldn't help but chuckle as he said to himself. 'It's good to be alone. It's not as if I am thinking of getting into a relationship or having anything to do with her.'
Yet…
'Why was he feeling conflicted?'
Moreover, the things he was selling were for men.
She couldn't be buying them for herself, right?
Therefore, she must have a boyfriend.
"I'll sell these items first."
From surprise to unease…
From amused to peace.
All his complicated thoughts disappeared.
In just a few seconds, Tang Hong consciously felt the benefits of how Willpower truly affected one's mind.
Willpower might not shine nor would it attract anyone's attention.
But it affected everyone on a spiritual level.
He pushed open the door and walked to the side of the young lady.
She lifted her head.
She looked straight at Tang Hong with her crystal clear eyes without blinking.
The noise in the bakery seemed to have faded.
He could not see any change of emotions from her eyes.
"Fish?"
Tang Hong dangled two bags containing two pure cotton scarves.
"Yes."
The young lady in a beret responded lightly.
She tilted her head and smiled. "You put up the things for sale on the internet. Wouldn't your girlfriend be angry?"
"Nope. Because I don't have one." Tang Hong shrugged.
"In this day and age with so many competitors, no one will buy a product if it does not have an attractive description. I purposely wrote those… Actually, I bought these clothes with my application points, they were about to expire, so I had no other choice but to use them."
The young lady in beret beamed as she listened.
"Lying is bad, you know?"
"I know."
Tang Hong was indeed lying.
Although he didn't understand why he had to say so much.
"Take a look." Tang Hong passed the bags to her.
"En… There is no problem." The young lady in beret looked at the color of the scarves.
She tucked her hair behind her ear and nodded after confirming the goods.
"OK."
Tang Hong nodded and stood up to leave.
"Aye, wait for me. I'm leaving too." The young lady in beret carried a small cake and exited the bakery.
She pursed her lips and said with a smile. "How strange. I think I've seen you somewhere."
Tang Hong looked at the young lady.
"Mm."
He thought for a while and said, "I don't think so. I can't remember."
The young lady asked again. "How are you going back?"
"By bicycle."
Tang Hong hid the car keys and went to the side to unlock a small yellow bicycle.
He rode along the road back to school.
'No.'
'My car is in the other direction.'
Tang Hong was on the brink of tears.
'Why couldn't he get in his head that a beautiful woman wasn't something that he had to think about?'
He had wasted his Willpower for nothing.
After riding for more than ten minutes, Tang Hong turned around.
His car was parked close to the sidewalk of Yunhai University of Arts.
When he parked his car there earlier on, it was between two cars.
Now, those cars were gone.
There were two empty lots in front of his car and one empty lot behind.
'Phew…'
Tang Hong let out his breath.
He parked the little yellow bicycle on the sidewalk and got ready to enter his big yellow car.
Swoosh~ Swoosh~
The sound of rustling leaves seemed to echo nearby.
But it was actually the sound of someone's shoes hitting the gravel by the roadside.
Tang Hong casually glanced and was immediately stunned.
He felt a sense of crisis rise in his heart.
His muscles tensed as he looked at Zhang Jing cautiously.
'Oh no…'
'Why is he here? Is he trying to ambush me? A ranker in the Preliminary Transcendent List, the Tiansheng Organization's Zhang Jing!'
Obviously, the short young man was Tiansheng Organization's, Zhang Jing.
He was standing behind a tree, therefore Tang Hong didn't notice him until it was too late.
"Tang Hong."
Zhang Jing narrowed his eyes. "It looks like you know me."
It was not a question but a confirmation.
"How did you know who I am?" Zhang Jing's expression was like a ferocious ghost.
He wore a twisted smile on his face. "Was it that sentence from that day? How becoming a true Transcendent wasn't a problem for me?"
Tang Hong nodded without saying anything.
In such an unexpected situation and encounter, the more one said and did, the faster one could die. No one knew if it was because of that sentence or was it because he said anything that fell into Zhang Jing's ears. But one thing was for sure, that sentence or word had enraged him.
He remembered how Fan Yu's expression changed in the teahouse back in that alley. 'There were those who were only a step away from being a Transcendent being. But the longer they dwelled in that step, the more unstable their mentality would become.'
"Are you nervous?"
"Are you being cautious in front of me?
Zhang Jing bared his yellow teeth and smiled strangely. It was as if he had seen something humiliating. "Why are you so wary? Don't you know? I'm a Transcendent being!"
"A Transcendent being!"
"Do you know what it means to be a Transcendent?!"
Tang Hong's pupils contracted.
What did it mean to be a Transcendent?
Why would he not be afraid of a Transcendent?
Smack!
A slap came his way without warning. Tang Hong subconsciously chopped it with his palm.
His perfectly coordinated left hand blocked Zhang Jing's attack
However, a terrifying force surged from behind Zhang Jing's slap.
Tang Hong was forced to take five steps backwards.
"Mm?!"
Zhang Jing was stunned.
Robins chirped in the summer breeze.
The twisted smile on his face gradually turned complicated.
"Fist Technique… it's the Fist Technique… a Transcendent Technique." Zhang Jing's gaze became clear all of a sudden as he panted.
"I'm sorry."
Zhang Jing stood up and bowed deeply.
Then, he retreated with his back bent into a nearby alleyway with dimmed lights.
Until Tang Hong could no longer see him.
'That guy…'
Tang Hong shook his left hand and massaged his left arm.
'He truly is crazy.'
He deliberately waited for him here and immediately raised his hand against him after only saying a few words. Even when Zhang Jing had already left, Tang Hong still couldn't understand what he was trying to do.
Was he testing him?
A test?
That's not right…
He was a member of the special training camp of the Yellow River Organization.
Also, Zhang Jing was a full member of the Tiansheng Organization.
It didn't match up at all.
Moreover…
Tang Hong frowned. A crucial detail seemed to have come up in his mind at this moment. 'If I recall correctly, did he go berserk because he felt that I was cautious to him?'
"My wariness provoked him?!"
Tang Hong simply couldn't understand this logic. In the end, he could only send a message to Fang Nanxun and asked if he had time to continue their practice tomorrow.
Fang Nanxun did not reply.
Tang Hong went to the Yunhai branch office but he couldn't find him either.
Fan Yu simply informed Tang Hong that Consultant Fang was gone on a business trip.
Left without a choice, Tang Hong could only retreat and go to sleep.
Countdown to the special training camp: 3 days.