Under One Person: Dressed as Lü Liang, with vests all over

Unfortunately, before Zhang Chulan could hear a single word, Lü Liang and Qu Tong both looked at him at the same time.

Zhang Chulan immediately chuckled and raised his hand to greet them warmly: "Hey, good morning, you two."

Upon hearing this, Qu Tong quickly turned her head and glanced at Zhang Chulan, her expression a half-smile.

But soon, she looked away and turned her gaze back to Lü Liang:

"Those two sacred artifacts are my token of sincerity. As for the position of guarding the Eight Gates, if you don't trust me, I can step down without your consent. I have no objection."

After saying that, she turned around gracefully and walked out of the cave, seemingly to find Gao Gen.

Lu Liang turned his gaze away from Qu Tong and looked at Zhang Chulan beside him.

Zhang Chulan immediately took a few steps forward and asked in a low, curious voice:

"Brother Lü, what were you guys talking about just now?"

"What, didn't you overhear?"

"Eavesdropping? Absolutely not."

Zhang Chulan retorted without hesitation, but after a moment of eye contact with Lü Liang, he raised his hands in surrender.

"Okay, I did try to eavesdrop."

He put his arm around Lü Liang's shoulder and tried to get closer to him:
"Brother Lü, I'm just concerned about you. Qu Tong is such a cunning person. If she tries anything funny, I can help you guard against her! Hehe."

"So you're this considerate." Lü Liang smiled and pushed Zhang Chulan's hand away.

Zhang Chulan wasn't embarrassed at all. He withdrew his hand and patted his chest loudly, saying, "Of course! We're like brothers!"

"Brother Lü, just tell me, what's Qu Tong doing here?"

"Qu Tong brought Ma Xianhong over," Lü Liang said. "Not only that, she also brought two sacred objects."

"She's changed her personality?!" Zhang Chulan's eyes widened upon hearing this, and he guessed, "Could it be at Gao Gen's behest?"

"But wait, if she listens to Gao Gen so much, why did she send someone to attack Senior Ruan Feng on Nathan Island?"

Upon hearing this question, Lü Liang looked up at Zhang Chulan and slowly said:

"Regarding the matter of Nathan Island, Qu Tong explained that... she did not receive any instructions from Gao Gen at the time, so she proceeded according to the original plan."

"Gao Gen didn't say?" Zhang Chulan raised his hand to touch his chin, looking thoughtful.

“Yes.” Lü Liang nodded. “I have already verified this with Gao Gen.”

"Huh? Why would Gao Gen—"

Zhang Chulan's eyes lit up with realization halfway through his sentence.

"I understand! Gao Gen doesn't trust us!"

"Although he agreed to cooperate, he did not intend to act entirely according to our plan."

"Regarding Nathan Island, whether Qu Tong's people succeed or you, Brother Lü, succeed, he will eventually meet Senior Ruan. In that case, he might as well prepare for both possibilities at the same time..."

Zhang Chulan shook his head and sighed, "They're all incredibly shrewd!"

"Good analysis," Lü Liang casually praised, then asked, "Anything else?"

"And..." Zhang Chulan glanced in the direction Qu Tong had left, then lowered his voice, "I think Qu Tong is definitely hiding something from me."

"When the Luo Tian Grand Ceremony was held, Gao Gen hadn't even appeared yet, but Qu Tong's Yao Xing Society had already set its sights on Sister Bao'er. She must know something!"

"Ah."

Lü Liang nodded, his gaze also turning towards the cave entrance.

According to Qu Tong herself, she had stayed in the Lü family for a period of time and by chance learned the Dual-Handed Technique from Duanmu Ying. In exchange, she promised Duanmu Ying that she would find Feng Baobao.

"Afterwards, she discovered the flaw in her double-handedness and became even more eager to uncover the secrets of the Jia Shen Rebellion."

"After her trip to the Qinling Mountains, she learned of the existence of the ritual from Gao Gen and began to prepare for its reenactment with all her might... And now, she feels that since everyone shares the same goal, it's better to cooperate than to fight..."

"That sounds reasonable," Zhang Chulan said, pursing his lips. "But I think we still need to be on guard."

"Although everyone here wants to recreate the ceremony, they all have their own motives, including myself, hahaha."

Upon hearing this, Lü Liang did not respond, but instead appeared thoughtful.

It's unknown how many people will get what they want after the ceremony.

If what he suspected was true, then all of this, including the purpose of the ritual, was likely nothing more than a baseless lie.

However, the truth will soon be revealed.

……

after an hour.

"The time is almost up, let's go check out the venue."

At Lü Liang's call, the people in the cave walked together toward the back of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms Valley.

"Hey, isn't that a cliff over there?" Zhang Chulan asked, puzzled.

But soon, he showed a look of surprise.

Because, just ten meters down from the cliff, there is a platform hidden.

Walking along the platform, a cave entrance was revealed under the cover of vines, and inside was a completely different world.

Inside, Ruan Feng was squatting down, drawing something on the ground with his Qi as a brush. Beside him, Zhou Sheng stood with his hands behind his back, his expression unreadable.

A short while later, Ruan Feng stood up and looked at Lü Liang:
"The orientation map is finished."

……

Meanwhile, on the other side, in the chairman's office at the headquarters of Nadutong in Beijing.

Zhao Fangxu's expression was very serious.

Erzhuang's voice came through the communicator on the table.

"Mr. Zhao, Zhang Chulan and Feng Baobao's phones are both switched off. We can't reach them."

"According to road surveillance footage, the last place he and Feng Baobao were in was Shaanxi Province, and we don't know where they went after that."

"Hehe, should I check the satellite images?"

“No need,” Zhao Fangxu said in a low voice. “I know where he went.”

"Where did they go?" Erzhuang asked curiously.

Zhao Fangxu did not answer the question directly, but said, "I will handle this matter from now on. Erzhuang, you continue to help Hei Guan and the others."

"Alright..." Erzhuang's mechanical voice carried a hint of regret at not being able to watch the show.

The communicator on the table fell silent.

Zhao Fangxu pushed the communicator aside, then bent down and opened the drawer under the table, taking out a magical artifact that looked like an earphone.

He held the ritual implement in his right palm and channeled the Qi within his body.

A stream of transparent Qi flowed from the palm of his hand.

The flow of Qi was somewhat weak, but it successfully activated the magical artifact. The "earphones" vibrated slightly and a green light appeared.

At the same time, thousands of miles away in the Qinling Mountains, Feng Baobao looked down at her pocket with a puzzled expression and pulled out an identical "earphone" magical artifact. Zhang Chulan, standing nearby, immediately noticed this. Examining the unfamiliar artifact, he asked:
"Sister Bao'er, what is this?"

Feng Baobao shook her head. "I don't know. Fatty Zhao gave it to me."

"Given by President Zhao?" Zhang Chulan exclaimed in shock. "Sister Bao'er, why didn't you tell me about something so important sooner!"

“Fatty Zhao said it’s a small matter and he doesn’t need to tell you.” Feng Baobao’s eyes were clear. “Don’t worry, I remember everything you told me. I didn’t tell Fatty Zhao that we were coming here.”

"Don't worry about me!" Zhang Chulan said irritably.

Feng Baobao blinked in confusion, then looked down at the magical artifact in her hand that was still flashing green light.

Seeing this, Zhang Chulan waved his hand helplessly, "Forget it, leave it to me."

He reached out and took the earphone-like magical artifact, walked to the side, rubbed his face, and said:

"Mr. Zhao, what's up... Hello... I'm having some trouble hearing you... Hello, what did you say... Or should I call you back later..."

"Zhang Chulan, stop acting."

Zhao Fangxu's voice came from the other end of the magical artifact, interrupting Zhang Chulan's vivid performance.

“I know you’re in the Qinling Mountains, and I also know you’re with Lü Liang.”

Zhang Chulan was taken aback, paused for a moment, but immediately reacted and said righteously:

"Mr. Zhao, what are you saying? How could I—"

"No need to pretend anymore." Zhao Fangxu's voice rang out again from the other end. "I'm not looking for you, I'm looking for Lü Liang."

"Give him the communication device, I'll say a few words to him."

"Chu Lan, don't waste time," Zhao Fangxu urged.

Zhang Chulan immediately turned his gaze to Lü Liang not far away, pointed to the "earphone" in his hand, and mouthed silently, "It's President Zhao."

Lü Liang nodded and accepted the communication device.

"Mr. Zhao, how have you been?"

"Lü Liang, are you really sure about this?"

"Have you decided what you want to do?"

"To repeat Wu Gensheng's actions from back then and stir up another Jia Shen Rebellion," Zhao Fangxu said.

"So what if it is?" Lü Liang replied indifferently.

The reenactment ceremony was already imminent, and even if the company reacted, it would be too late to stop it.

Zhao Fangxu seemed to realize this as well, and his voice softened.

"Lü Liang, I hope you can give up this plan."

After a pause, Zhao Fangxu continued:

“You may not care about the Lü family, but the Lü family cares about you. Back at the Ten Elders meeting, Old Master Lü Ci spoke up for you quite a bit, and even got into a heated argument with the other elders over it.”

“If you really cause such chaos this time, the Lü family won’t be able to protect you.”

"Losing you, the genius of the Lü family, would be heartbreaking for Old Master Lü Ci. Therefore, I hope you will reconsider. If you stop now, I guarantee that the company will not hold this against you."

“Lü Liang, this matter is different from the past. The conflict and chaos it brings are beyond your capacity to bear. You must not cause any trouble—”

“President Zhao,” Lü Liang interrupted Zhao Fangxu directly, “I am not the one who caused the conflict and chaos.”

"Whether in the world of supernatural beings or the secular world, the most powerful forces want to maintain their dominance, the weak forces want to rise, and the declining forces want to make a comeback. As long as desires remain, the conflicts will never completely cease."

"Or rather, struggle and chaos are the norm, and harmony is just a gap between struggles."

Lü Liang chuckled lightly, "President Zhao, don't you understand these principles best?"

"As for me, I'm just following my heart and going with the flow." Lü Liang shrugged, his tone still calm. "As for what this will bring to the world, I don't care."

Zhao Fangxu was silent for a moment, then spoke again, his voice becoming serious:
“Lu Liang, you’re right. There are always plenty of people who want to stir up trouble.”

"However, there are not many people who have the ability to cause great chaos."

"Someone like Wugensheng, who turned the world of supernatural beings upside down, is one in a hundred years."

"I'll ask you one more time, are you really unwilling to stop?"

"Mr. Zhao," Lü Liang chuckled, "what do you think?"

"Fine." Zhao Fangxu's voice carried a rare hint of anger. "I've always preferred peace, but I have to admit that sometimes, fists are the best tool for communication."

"Since you're unwilling to listen to advice, I'll have to try a different approach to communication."

As Zhao Fangxu finished speaking, the green light on the "earphone" dimmed.

With a slight exertion of force, Lü Liang's magical artifact turned into dust.

A thoughtful look flashed in his eyes. Judging from Zhao Fangxu's words, it seemed that getting out of the Qinling Mountains wouldn't be so easy.

However, if his guess about the ritual is true, then whether or not he leaves the Qinling Mountains is not so important.

……

Lu Liang looked up to meet the concerned gazes around him, a slight smile playing on his lips, and spoke with a firm tone:

"let's start!"

The crowd dispersed and stood in the areas marked out by Ruan Feng on the ground.

Rest, Life, Injury, Block, Scenery, Death, Shock, Open... Qian, Kun, Kan, Li, Zhen, Xun, Gen, Dui...

After Wang Ye and the other eight people stood still, Lü Liang nodded to the five people standing on the outer edge.

The next instant... all five people simultaneously turned their palms outward, and Qi surged out.

Gold shines on wood, wood wraps around water, water surrounds fire, fire scorches earth, and earth supports gold...

Five different colored streams of Qi gradually converged, flowing like a dragon holding its tail, and entered the patterns of the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) on the ground.

Immediately afterwards, the patterns seemed to come alive, emitting a faint light that enveloped the people guarding the eight gates.

The next moment, all eight people simultaneously channeled their Qi, using the flow of Qi in their palms to impact the faint light.

The cave shook.

Soon, a beam of golden light shot into the sky, and the space above the cave seemed to have been torn open, revealing something inside.

Hong Bin and Zhang Xuan immediately showed expressions of surprise and delight.

Because among the exposed objects are the Red Sun Furnace, the Juzi Token, the Five Emperors Coins... a total of seven items, which are the sacred objects that were lost in other dimensions during the ritual.

The next instant, the sacred objects fell out of the crack and landed on the ground.

Zhang Xuan wanted to bend down to pick up the token, but his body suddenly stopped. He subconsciously raised his hand to cover his head, which was suddenly throbbing with pain, and his brows furrowed.

Everyone else present wore the same expression.

Once the pain subsided, the expressions on everyone's faces changed from doubt to surprise.

Lü Liang was the first to come to his senses, and his eyes lit up.

Just now, something new entered his mind. (End of Chapter)