Chapter 4183 — The Return of Xu Lingchong

"Brother Wei Zhao really is amazing—he's already at the early Golden Core stage. We have to hurry and work hard too, or we won't be able to keep up with him," Han Jingyi said with an expression of admiring determination.

"Mm-hm, falling too far behind won't do at all!" Ning Xuefei nodded in agreement again and again. "Jingjing, haven't you still not used your foundation-building golden core? Hurry up and take it to advance."

"Mm, that's just what I was thinking. Our research on the automatic artifact-forging mechanism has also just recently hit a bottleneck, and I believe once our strength improves we'll be able to solve it. If we can successfully develop it then, we'll be able to help Brother Wei Zhao with his troubles!" Han Jingyi said gravely.

"Exactly, exactly. This automatic artifact-forging mechanism of ours can perfectly solve the problem of controlling the heat—it'll be just the thing to help him. We'd better give it our all!" Ning Xuefei said encouragingly.

"Mm, let's work hard together!" Without another word, Han Jingyi immediately took a top-grade foundation-building golden core at the side and began meditating to break through. Though she herself had no great pursuit of power, she was willing to try anything if it meant she could help Wei Zhao.

Peaceful days always slip by in a flash. Wei Zhao had lately been living a life of unruffled calm—during this time, the forces that had targeted him and all his rivals had, as if by prior agreement, lowered their banners and muffled their drums.

Wei Zhao was quite content with the leisure. Though he still had not solved the problem of being unable to form artifacts in his forging, he did not let it affect his regular cultivation, and he was drawing ever closer to the peak of the early Golden Core stage.

Day after day passed, and just as the one-year term for the newcomers of the Welcome Pavilion was about to arrive, a great event occurred at the Sandie Pavilion on North Island.

Xu Lingchong, the young master of the Chongsheng Pavilion who had gone missing several months ago, had actually returned!

The moment the news spread, everyone in the Sandie Pavilion was shaken. Many were both astonished and doubtful—Xu Lingchong's disappearance had been confirmed by the Law Enforcement Hall at the time. Fleeing in fear of punishment under the charge of attempted rape of Shangguan Lan'er, he had been wanted throughout the whole of North Island for a long time, yet no trace of him had ever been found.

It was only recently that the Law Enforcement Hall had suddenly withdrawn the wanted notice. Everyone assumed they simply could not find him and had no choice but to let the matter drop, and that behind it all Xu Yuanzheng, the third elder of the Chongsheng Pavilion, had been pulling strings—canceling the warrant so as to avoid being made a laughingstock by outsiders.

Little did they know that even Xu Yuanzheng himself was baffled by the matter. He had assumed Shangguan Tianxia had stepped in to say a word on his behalf—after all, the affair concerned Shangguan Lan'er, and it was hardly convenient for anyone else to speak up. Besides, in the whole Sandie Pavilion, apart from Shangguan Tianxia, Gongyang Jun had never given face to anyone.

What no one could ever have expected was that now, just after the warrant had been withdrawn, this Young Master Xu who had vanished for months should suddenly pop up again? Could it be a smokescreen deliberately released by certain people with ulterior motives?

The rumor was not finally confirmed beyond all doubt until Xu Lingchong appeared in person. This Young Master Xu, once so prominent, had indeed returned!

What was even more shocking was that the Xu Lingchong who now showed himself was utterly different from his former young-master image. Not only did he wear his long hair flowing loose, but his speech and bearing carried a certain inexplicably effeminate, sinister air that made people unconsciously feel something strange.

And the most appalling point of all: Xu Lingchong, who previously possessed only the strength of great perfection at Foundation Establishment, now—after a mere few months—actually possessed the formidable strength of the mid Golden Core stage!

The shock this news brought was scarcely less than the discovery that Wei Zhao was an early Golden Core expert. To successfully form a core in just a few short months, and moreover to rise three levels in succession—this was simply a tale of fantasy.

The same question circled in the minds of countless people: how on earth was it done? Truly, eccentrics appear every year, but this year there are especially many!

If Xu Lingchong's sudden return brought shock to everyone in the Sandie Pavilion, then the person happiest about it was none other than his grandfather, Xu Yuanzheng.

As a magnate of the Elder Council, Xu Yuanzheng had been utterly exhausted in recent days. For so many years, his legitimate grandson Xu Lingchong had been his one and only heir. Apart from Xu Lingchong, the vast Xu family could not produce a second junior of the younger generation capable of taking his place.

Unlike ordinary clans, the Xu family had been a great native house of North Island for generations, deeply rooted and immensely powerful. An heir required not only bloodline but formidable strength as well—otherwise he could never hold the field, let alone serve as head of the family. And looking over all the Xu family's younger generation, only one person met the condition: Xu Lingchong.

Thus, after Xu Lingchong's sudden disappearance, the magnate Xu Yuanzheng had been truly frantic with worry. The greater the clan, the more weight it placed on succession—once the heir met with misfortune, the consequences were unimaginable.

Even with a magnate like Xu Yuanzheng pressing down from above, he still could not hold back the undercurrents surging below. During this period, everyone in the Xu family, including many collateral branches dependent on the Xu family, had clearly begun to grow restless.

But now, with Xu Lingchong's sudden return—and especially his forceful return bearing the astonishing strength of the mid Golden Core stage—all these problems were resolved at once!

How could his strength have risen to such an astonishing level in just a few short months? Xu Yuanzheng naturally asked, and Xu Lingchong's reply was that he had received the guidance of a mysterious master of high attainment, and that was why he had made such progress.

Though Xu Yuanzheng remained doubtful at heart, his own legitimate grandson's strength could only be better the greater it was. Since Xu Lingchong himself was unwilling to say more, he would not press him to the bottom of it—he was simply sincerely glad.

However, if Xu Yuanzheng were to learn that Xu Lingchong had castrated himself, it was hard to say whether this third elder of the Chongsheng Pavilion would still be able to smile.

And apart from Xu Yuanzheng, the one happiest about Xu Lingchong's return was Kang Jingming, his former underling.

This was, after all, his greatest backer from before! Now he had returned in force bearing the domineering strength of the mid Golden Core stage, and because the warrant had simply been dropped, neither Shangguan Tianxia nor Gongyang Jun had made any statement—the suspicion previously pinned on Xu Lingchong had vanished into thin air. Thus, the moment he returned, he reclaimed the position of managing senior brother of the Chongsheng Pavilion. This was an absolutely massive thigh to cling to.

Even Wei Zhao, who had been so sought-after recently, could not compare with the present Xu Lingchong—so how could he not cling to him?