After Qin Xuan was taken away by the police, he seemingly vanished into thin air.
He Yu had personally gone to the police station to make inquiries, only to be informed that Qin Xuan had already been acquitted and set free.
This piece of news stirred up quite a commotion at school.
Nevertheless, Qin Xuan never showed up for classes, and nobody had the faintest idea where he actually was.
At school, Lu Yunfan knitted his brows. His sidekick, Wang Xiao, was always loyally tagging along.
"You mean Zhao Wei was sacked?" Lu Yunfan took a deep gulp of air, looking utterly astonished.
The news that Qin Xuan had wiped out the Han Feng Dojo had already left him gaping.
Now, even Zhao Wei had been given the boot.
"Master Lu, there's no need to fret. I reckon that Qin Xuan must be spooked. Otherwise, why hasn't he turned up at school yet?" Wang Xiao said with a fawning smile. "Besides, even the mayor probably doesn't amount to much in Master Lu's eyes, right?"
He was the young master of the Lu family. The Lu family was an established and prominent clan in Jing Shui City. Even the mentor of the current mayor was a bosom buddy of Lu Yunfan's grandfather.
Lu Yunfan nodded and flashed a faint smile. "Naturally, I wouldn't give a second thought to a Qin Xuan. But now it seems that he's got some sense! If he dares to surface again, I'll have to take matters into my own hands and deal with him."
"That's right. Master Lu had been holding back before to save face in front of Xiao Wu. Otherwise, that Qin kid would have been squashed by Master Lu as easily as a bug long ago!" Wang Xiao hastened to add.
Hearing this, Lu Yunfan couldn't help but crack a smile. However, he still harbored some doubts in his heart. Was Zhao Wei's dismissal truly just a fluke?
In the following stretch of time, Qin Xuan remained absent from school.
Many people's focus on Qin Xuan gradually waned, and the after-class chatter shifted to other tittle-tattle.
He Yu, on the other hand, made it a point to drop by Qin Xuan's class each day.
Sometimes she pretended to be passing by and stole a peek. From start to finish, Qin Xuan's seat stayed vacant.
"This Qin Xuan has picked up the habit of skipping classes now!"
He Yu clenched her tiny fists, gnashing her teeth.
Beside her, Xiao Wu was quietly leafing through the notebook, perusing the Buddhist scriptures inscribed within. Hearing He Yu's words, she couldn't help but lift her head and offer a smile. "You seem to care an awful lot about your brother."
"Humph! I don't have such a brother!" He Yu puckered her lips and muttered sotto voce. "The exams are just a few days or half a month away. Could it be that this guy won't even show up for the exams?"
Xiao Wu smiled and shook her head ever so slightly. "All bark and no bite."
Come to think of it, Qin Xuan hadn't set foot in school for quite a while. Given Qin Xuan's academic performance, he'd probably only be able to land a spot in a third-rate university down the line.
Although Xiao Wu often delved into Buddhist scriptures, her studies hadn't slipped one bit. With her grades, getting into a top-notch university would be a walk in the park. What's more, she'd already set her sights on a particular institution way back in her freshman year of high school.
At this moment, two figures ambled over from a distance.
"Xiao Wu!"
Lu Yunfan sported a grin as he sauntered up slowly, trailed by his henchman Wang Xiao.
The smile on Xiao Wu's face gradually faded away. Her expression was as placid as a still lake, and her eyes were like deep, unruffled wells. She looked up and said, "What's the matter?"
He Yu also couldn't help but let out a disdainful snort and shot Lu Yunfan an icy glare.
They weren't dimwits either. Lu Yunfan was the root cause of all the trouble Qin Xuan had run into before.
"There's a cruise ship excursion tomorrow. I twisted my dad's arm to snag a few tickets. Are you game?" Lu Yunfan had a genial smile plastered on his handsome face and didn't bat an eyelid at Xiao Wu and He Yu's frosty attitudes.
Wang Xiao chimed in with a chuckle beside him, "This is the Jing Hao cruise ship. Word has it that the folks on board are either filthy rich or of noble birth. Even I can only hitch a ride on Master Lu's coattails to get on."
The Jing Hao cruise ship wasn't confined to Jing Shui City. Among the numerous provinces in Linhai, the Jing Hao cruise ship embarked on a cruise every three months. It was teeming with the powerful and the wealthy. The least affluent among them were billionaires, and there were also scores of influential noble families reigning over their respective domains.
Ordinary folks would probably never get the chance to set foot on it even once in their lifetime. Boarding the Jing Hao cruise ship was a feather in the cap for many.
"I'll pass. The exams are just around the corner, and I need to hit the books." He Yu's face was as cold as ice as she flatly declined.
Lu Yunfan's expression hardened a tad, but he didn't let it get to him.
The prime target of his invitation was Xiao Wu. As for He Yu... Lu Yunfan sneered inwardly. Such an unremarkable girl didn't tickle his fancy. Others might not be privy to Xiao Wu's identity, but he was. Xiao Wu hailed from the Xiao family.
The Xiao family!
Just those two words were more than enough.
When it came to beauties, Lu Yunfan had seen his fair share. But how could the woman by his side be on a par with run-of-the-mill ones?
Xiao Wu tilted her head up slightly. The name Jing Hao was all too familiar to her.
After mulling it over for a bit, she nodded her head gently and said, "Okay."
A beaming smile instantly lit up Lu Yunfan's face, and he said, "Then I'll come to pick you up bright and early tomorrow."
He strode off with a self-satisfied smirk, accompanied by Wang Xiao. Beside them, He Yu wrinkled her adorable little nose and said, "Xiao Wu, why on earth did you agree to him?"
Xiao Wu smiled and shook her head without uttering a word.
The Jing Hao cruise ship was a must-attend for all the bigwigs in Linhai.
"Will he go?"
Xiao Wu murmured to herself. In her memory, that face had already grown a bit hazy.
In fact, she only knew that man's name.
He had deserted her and her mother, stoking a fire of resentment in her heart, yet she couldn't bring herself to truly despise him.
Seeing Xiao Wu's complex expression, He Yu let out a soft sigh. She and Xiao Wu were bosom buddies, but she didn't know Xiao Wu's specific identity either. She just had some inklings. After all, she was from the He family. Although she had been away from home for three years, she still had some savoir-faire.
It was said that there was an outstanding figure in the Xiao family. Although he was already married, it had been divulged long ago that before he got married, he had an ill-fated liaison with a woman. Under the decision of Old Master Xiao, this outstanding figure had to tie the knot as commanded.
Later, that woman retreated to an ancient temple. Rumor had it that she bore a daughter for that outstanding figure of the Xiao family.
This episode had caused quite a stir back then.
And now, that outstanding figure of the Xiao family was also a titan in multiple provinces in Linhai. Even the Mo family might not dare to offend him.
Inside the Jing Shui Pearl Villa, the entire hall was as silent as the grave.
In the center, a figure was seated cross-legged. Wisps of white vapor were billowing from his nostrils.
It seemed as if layers of ethereal mist were enfolding his body. With each inhalation and exhalation, the surrounding spiritual mist dissipated without a trace.
Qin Xuan had holed up in the Jing Shui Pearl Villa for a solid ten days.
He had cast aside all worldly concerns and was wholly immersed in a sublime state of cultivation.
The Everlasting Green Technique was ceaselessly churning, gobbling up the spiritual energy surrounding the Jing Shui Pearl Villa.
During these ten days, the spiritual sea within Qin Xuan's body had condensed to a length of three zhang. Once it amassed another zhang, he would be able to ascend to the middle stage of Qi Refining.
Once he entered the middle stage of Qi Refining, he could coalesce the sea of blood and forge a golden body.
Once the golden body was formed, his body would be tantamount to a magical artifact. Even if bullets pelted his body, they wouldn't inflict the slightest harm. Even a lethally accurate sniper rifle wouldn't be able to breach his defenses.
After forging the golden body, he would possess a certain capacity to safeguard himself in this present world. Even internal force martial artists would pale in comparison.
It wasn't until evening that Qin Xuan's meditation was disrupted by a phone call.
Mo Qinglian's voice filtered through the phone. Outside the door, Mo Yunyi had been lingering for ages.
Qin Xuan changed his attire and then clambered into Mo Yunyi's car.
In just half an hour, Mo Yunyi parked the car at a port and deferentially swung open the car door for Qin Xuan.
"Mr. Qin, the Jing Hao cruise ship has docked!"
A behemoth loomed into Qin Xuan's view. This cruise ship was ablaze with lights and resembled a colossal steel leviathan prowling the vast ocean.
Jing Shui City was the third stop of the cruise ship. In the middle of the night, it would steam straight into the open sea.
That was when the real revelry on this luxurious cruise ship would commence, with the rich and powerful converging en masse.
Under the guidance of Mo Yunyi, Qin Xuan gingerly stepped onto the cruise ship.
"Mr. Qin, after Old Master Mo obtained the complete Lingshui Technique, he has retreated into seclusion. If you have any requisites, you can confide in me." Mo Yunyi said with deference. After a slight hesitation, he continued, "Today, Second Master is also here. Would you like to rendezvous with him?"
The Second Master he referred to was the second son of Mo Zhengfeng and also Mo Qinglian's father, Mo Jingfeng. He was a business magnate in multiple provinces in Linhai and wielded immense power.
Qin Xuan's expression remained impassive. He surveyed the cruise ship and nodded slightly. "Sure."