Ryker and Hu Long began the short trek back to the canyon clearing, but with the oppressive silence between them, it was making the whole trip seem much longer than it was.
"So, uh… looks like you got a lot stronger, if you're able to take on someone in the Golden Core realm, huh?"
"... Yeah."
Stilted dialogues such as this interspersed the silence, Ryker pursing his lips awkwardly while Hu Long kept his head down in pensive thought. Wang Mang's unconscious body was slung over Ryker's shoulder, still bloody from the beatdown Hu Long gave him.
'Okay, how are we gonna get Hu Long to cheer up, here?' Ryker thought, consulting Mini C and Bestie in his head.
He was shocked when he'd stumbled upon Hu Long beating the ever-loving stuffing out of Wang Mang, and even more so when he saw the look on his face as it happened.
