Chapter 76

"I announce that Especially Ai Xi has been awarded the International Star Guardian rank, first star, with a reward of one Qi Stone and 100,000 Alliance Coins. Fang Chong has been awarded the International Star Guardian rank, first star, with a reward of one Qi Stone and 100,000 Alliance Coins…"

As Zheng Fang's voice fell, Fang Chong eagerly quickened his pace toward the stage to collect his reward.

Before coming, he had never imagined he would receive the Star Guardian rank.

Never mind the benefits of the Star Guardian rank—just this first-star title alone means he would be respected everywhere he went.

"Do you have anything to say?" Zheng Fang asked after presenting the rewards to Especially Ai Xi and Fang Chong.

This differed from Seeing Qu Yi's treatment—Seeing Qu Yi, as representative of the support team, was required to speak.

But Fang Chong and Especially Ai Xi were not obligated to speak.

"I have only one thing to say: my mentor is Ding Huan. The Gene Alliance has issued a warrant for my mentor, and I've long been disgusted by it."

"They twist right and wrong, inventing baseless excuses—all just to seize the gene serum from my mentor. If Sister Seeing Qu Yi goes to the Gene Alliance, I, Fang Chong, will go with her."

Fang Chong spoke without Seeing Qu Yi's tact—he bluntly exposed the Gene Alliance's shameless actions.

Guo Qingrong pressed his forehead, thinking: You fool, can't you learn from Seeing Qu Yi and speak more delicately?

Before Zheng Fang could respond, Especially Ai Xi added, "I share the same view as Sister Seeing Qu Yi and Brother Fang Chong—Ding Huan's matter is our matter."

"Your mentor is also Ding Huan?" Hu Jiatian couldn't help asking.

Especially Ai Xi smiled. "Yes."

She had actually been taught by Fang Chong on Ding Huan's behalf—in her eyes, Ding Huan was her mentor.

Today, among those seated was Zang Yijun, the Gene Alliance's Frontier Affairs Officer.

He was a typical Western European; if before hearing Seeing Qu Yi's words he had been dismissive, now hearing Especially Ai Xi and Fang Chong, he felt a pang of unease.

He had clearly observed the performances of Seeing Qu Yi, Especially Ai Xi, Fang Chong, and even Lv Zi on the Beast Frontline today.

If they grow further… no, they've already grown. This force, plus Fang Chong's yet-unarrived students…

Zang Yijun dared not continue the thought—this could very well uproot the Gene Alliance entirely. Even if not now, given time, it would surely happen.

Seeing Qu Yi's words today already tilted the Human Corridor Frontier toward Ding Huan. Add to that Ding Huan's extraordinary disciples—the Gene Alliance may truly be finished.

Desperate, Zang Yijun longed to immediately pull out his phone and report this situation to Alliance Chief Shi Changyi.

But the Merit Ceremony still had several hours left.

Although Zheng Fang was only awarding the top ten, the rest were merely called by name, with rewards distributed by team—this would take time.

…

Ding Huan stepped out of Luo Huan Tower, feeling refreshed.

He had killed 311 members of the Washing Knife Society with gene toxin—entirely wiping out every member of the society in Luohe City, regardless of gender.

Ding Huan felt no pity; each of them had blood on their hands—killing them a hundred times would still be too few.

Had Luo Huan Tower not been in a bustling district with so many surrounding buildings, he would have set the tower ablaze.

After leaving Luo Huan Tower, Ding Huan decided to head first to the high-speed rail station to catch a train to Kun Xincheng.

Kun Xincheng was built less than ten years ago, originally to combat the Kunlun Mountains' beasts; now, with beasts so terrifying, he wasn't sure if trains still ran there.

But along a side alley, Ding Huan halted.

He saw an old scavenger—far enough away that, even with Ding Huan's cultivation, he could see him clearly.

Unlike other scavengers who at least used an iron hook to rummage through trash, this old man used only his bare hands to search through garbage for anything usable.

In his past life, his legs had been broken, his eyes gouged out—and it was this very scavenger who picked him up and sold him to the Gene Alliance.

Was this the old man?

Whether it was him or not—he could tell just by hearing his voice.

Just as Ding Huan was about to approach and ask, a woman emerged carrying a plastic bag.

"Here's some food—would you like it?" The woman, clearly kind-hearted, walked up to the old man and handed him the bag.

In this era, giving food to a scavenger was an act of great virtue.

"Thank you…" The old man quickly wiped his hands on his body, smearing the dirt and grime all over himself.

After wiping off the dirt, he accepted the bag with both hands.

Ding Huan took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

This was the old man—no matter how much he was reduced to ash, Ding Huan would recognize that voice—even if he'd spoken only three words.

Back then, the old man had said: "One thousand Alliance Coins? Fine. This is a Gene Affinity Body—I'm giving you a bargain."

At this moment, Ding Huan longed to rush over and take the old man away immediately.

He hesitated, then held back.

He weighed the costs and benefits.

If he wanted to reconstruct what had happened, he might have to be picked up by this old man once again.

If he forcibly made the old man lead him to a Gene Alliance branch, would history change?

Even if the fleet departed on schedule, could he still survive after being swallowed by the wormhole-like void vortex as before?

Ding Huan quickly discarded these thoughts—perhaps history had already changed when he exterminated the Gene Alliance's leaders in Puhai.

Why overthink it? If the Gene Alliance refuses to organize a fleet, he would crush Shi Changyi's skull beneath his foot and force him to do it.

He didn't need to wait for the same opportunity—opportunities were made. Now that he'd met this old man, ignoring him would betray his own past suffering.

Ding Huan took from his bag the remaining Great Wilderness Jin Yuan blood—he'd poured far too much originally, a full bottle.

He hadn't even used one-tenth of it for gene experiments.

Now, Ding Huan took out the bottle, spilled some onto his face, neck, hands, and even his clothes.

Then he picked up a piece of wood and limped toward the trash pile, feigning severe injury.

When he reached the old scavenger, Ding Huan pretended to collapse from exhaustion, falling to the ground.

At this moment, Ding Huan's spiritual sense had already settled upon the old man—the old man could identify him as a Gene Affinity Body; Ding Huan believed this fellow was no ordinary person.

What Ding Huan hadn't expected was that no matter how he probed with his divine sense, this old man showed not the slightest fluctuation of vital energy—he was just an utterly ordinary junk collector.

Seeing Ding Huan collapsed on the ground, the junk collector merely glanced at him once, then gripped his vest bag tighter and slowly turned to leave.

That didn't match what he'd guessed. Ding Huan frowned—was he supposed to forcibly grab this old man and interrogate him?

Just as Ding Huan was wondering how to deal with this old man, the junk collector suddenly seemed to remember something. He pulled a hide scroll from his pocket, studied it carefully again and again, then turned his head to look at Ding Huan.

It was as if a thunderbolt had struck Ding Huan's mind—the hide scroll, that very hide scroll.

He had a feeling this hide scroll was the same kind as the one he'd swallowed earlier, and from the same period.

How could there be such an absurd thing? One had to remember, the hide scroll he'd obtained back then was found on an abandoned planet outside the Changyi Continent.

And how far was Earth from the Changyi Continent? They weren't even in the same star system.

Ding Huan was about to rush over and snatch the old man's hide scroll, but the old man actually walked toward him.

The old man came up to him, sized Ding Huan up and down carefully, then compared him once more with the hide scroll in his hand before saying, "Your name is Ding Xiaotu?"

Before Ding Huan could answer, the old man shook his head and said in an extremely faint voice, "That's not right. Wasn't it said that Ding Xiaotu would have both his legs broken and both his eyes gouged out?"

This Ding Xiaotu seemed to only be injured…

No matter how softly the old man spoke, he couldn't escape Ding Huan's ears. At this moment, Ding Huan was far past disbelief—his heart was filled with shock. What on earth was going on?

Ding Huan forced himself to calm down, and his divine sense settled on the hide scroll in the old man's hand.

"Based on my divination, the appearance of this hide scroll means Ding Xiaotu is about to appear. He will have his legs broken and his eyes gouged out, then be dumped by the garbage heap at the east gate of Luohe City.

He is a gene-affinity body. Gene-affinity bodies are very valuable nowadays. As long as you take him away and sell him, it will be a considerable sum.

Afterwards, you may go to the place where the hide scroll appeared; a new gene cultivation technique will also appear there. This is your opportunity, and your future."

Seeing this, Ding Huan felt his scalp go numb.

After swallowing the hide scroll, he already knew the one who left it was extremely powerful. This kind of divination ability—how could it be described as merely terrifying?

But he was just an obscure nobody born in the post-Earth era—what right did he have to be known by a great power from the age of immortals and gods?

In fact, not only did he become known to that ancient great power, he even obtained the inheritance hide scroll left behind by that great power.

That wasn't all—even this great power had divined that he, Ding Xiaotu, would suffer this calamity?

These thoughts made Ding Huan feel a chill all over. He, Ding Xiaotu—what virtue or ability did he possess? That an ancient powerhouse of such caliber would keep him in mind? And expend great effort to divine his fate?

Even though he was only a Tier-4 gene cultivator, Ding Huan could foresee that divining events so far in the future was absolutely not that simple—it very likely required a price.

"Ding Xiaotu, I'll take you somewhere. I guarantee you won't have to struggle so much—at the very least, food and clothing won't be a problem. Are you willing to go?"

The junk collector's voice cut off Ding Huan's thoughts.

Ding Huan struggled to his feet. "Is there food to eat? If there's food to eat, I'm willing to go."

He wanted to know whether this old man was going to take him to a branch of the Gene Alliance and sell him for a thousand Alliance credits.

In his memory, the old man didn't seem to have sold him directly to the Gene Alliance branch.

(Today's update ends here. Fellow Daoists, good night! Please support with monthly votes!)