Chapter 4622 — A Flood of Emotions

One glance was all it took, and Wei Zhao's hard-won composure shattered once more; tears came dangerously close to spilling from his eyes beyond all restraint.

He had been on Cloud Terrace Island less than three years. In the secular world, a span like that amounted to no more than studying abroad—plenty of people went two or three years without returning home. But Wei Zhao was not in that position. Strictly speaking, Cloud Terrace Island and the secular world were two different planes of existence. Those parted by distance, however far, could always hope to meet again one day; those sundered by the gulf between planes—that was another matter entirely. A farewell might well be forever.

If not for the sudden appearance of the Central Chamber of Commerce, and for the things that damned fellow had said in the Five Venoms Swamp, which had shown Wei Zhao a glimmer of hope for traveling back and forth to the secular world and set his heart somewhat at ease, he might well have been going around asking questions everywhere, just as he had when he first arrived.

He drew another deep breath and steadied his hands, which had begun to tremble unbidden with excitement, then began to read carefully. There were ten sheets of paper in all, divided into two sealed letters of five sheets each—one reserved for his intimate confidantes, the other a joint letter from all his sworn followers.

He burst out laughing at the very first line. So that was how it had been: the whole lot of them had originally intended to write a letter apiece and bundle them together, only to discover when they gathered the pages that they had produced a hundred thousand words, a thick stack that three or five envelopes could never hold, let alone a single one.

When the courier from Central Express had come to collect it, the man had been utterly dumbstruck. He had argued and pleaded with them at great length before those rascals finally, and most reluctantly, changed their minds. After much back and forth, they had settled on the present arrangement: each person would say a few words to Wei Zhao, and the whole would be compiled into two letters and sent together.

Even so, the letter had been bounced back and forth several times for being overweight. There had been no choice but to cut and cut again until it barely met Central Express's requirements.

And the two letters in Wei Zhao's hands were already the seventh revised version, the product of everyone's painstaking labor. Something as simple as writing a letter had somehow become more agonizing than drafting a thesis…

The two letters were a jumble of countless different hands—each person writing a few lines, and even if it was only one or two lines, they had insisted on writing it themselves and would not hear of anyone doing it for them. The letter also said that everyone had held a two-day meeting over the matter, specifically to discuss the format and grammar of the letter, which left Wei Zhao not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

These fellows truly had energy to spare, with nowhere to spend it! Wei Zhao shook his head, speechless. But on reflection, nearly all the top experts of the secular world had come to Cloud Terrace Island by now. The strength of those left behind could well be called peerless under heaven. Apart from the time He Dantou had come looking for trouble, no one had dared provoke them at all. An excess of energy was, then, only natural.

In the letters, everyone gave a careful account of the earlier conflict, including how Lin Dongfang had stepped in to save the day, along with a great many trivial odds and ends. Even so, Wei Zhao read them over and over, and each time the corners of his mouth curled up of their own accord. He sat there grinning to himself like a fool for the longest time.

Hong Zhong had deliberately left the room to Wei Zhao to avoid any appearance of impropriety, but from next door he could hear laughter from time to time. Once or twice would have been nothing; the trouble was that the man kept it up for a full half-hour without letup. Even a man of Hong Zhong's vast experience was frightened out of his wits by Wei Zhao, and he could not help frowning and wondering: could someone have laced that letter paper with poison?

Otherwise, how could Wei Zhao—a top-tier prodigy, calm and composed as they came—be giggling to himself without rhyme or reason? Something was definitely wrong!

Wei Zhao grinned like a fool for half an hour, and Hong Zhong sat on pins and needles next door for half an hour, until at last he could bear it no longer and came to knock on the door: "Young Hero Lin! Young Hero Lin!"

"Elder Hong. Is something the matter?" Wei Zhao finally came to open the door after a moment.

"Oh, nothing's the matter with me. I just wanted to ask whether anything was the matter with you." Hong Zhong studied Wei Zhao from head to toe with a strange expression, only to find none of the abnormalities he had imagined. On the contrary, the man looked utterly relaxed, as though a weight that had pressed on his heart for years had been lifted, and he seemed to glow all over.

Hong Zhong was not mistaken. The letter truly had lifted a great burden from Wei Zhao's heart. That everyone in the secular world was safe and sound was, to him, the most important thing of all. And with Lin Dongfang there to save the day, and with everyone being among the rarest experts the secular world had to offer, they could sleep soundly with no worries at all. Even He Dantou had come away with a bloody nose. Naturally, Wei Zhao had nothing to fret about.

"I'm fine." Wei Zhao scratched his head, a little embarrassed, then suddenly asked, "By the way, Elder Hong, how much do you know about this Central Chamber of Commerce? Do you know anything about the letter-delivery service to the secular world that they've launched?"

"Letter delivery to the secular world?" Hong Zhong was taken aback, then said thoughtfully, "I have heard something of it, though I never looked into it closely. Don't tell me this letter of yours came from the secular world?"

"That's right. I bid for it at the auction on Central Island back then—the right to write a letter to friends and family in the secular world. And what I'm holding now is the reply letter sent back from the secular world." Wei Zhao nodded.

"Mm. I wasn't present at that auction myself, but the affair caused quite a stir. They say writing a single letter costs a staggering sum—an outrageously high price." Hong Zhong said.

"The fixed price at the time was a hundred thousand spirit jade." Wei Zhao smiled.

"Oh? That really is a staggering sum. Young Hero Lin, you are indeed a big spender." Hong Zhong could not help exclaiming. A hundred thousand spirit jade was enough to buy the vast majority of the world's rare treasures and heavenly materials; many powerful cultivators would risk their lives and fight to the death for a hundred thousand spirit jade, yet Wei Zhao had spent it merely to write a letter. Such boldness was truly not something ordinary people possessed.

"For someone like me, this one letter is far more precious than any rare treasure. Never mind a hundred thousand spirit jade—even two or three hundred thousand, I would find a way to buy it." Wei Zhao paused, then asked, "This letter-delivery service to the secular world offered by the Central Chamber of Commerce—I haven't heard a word about it since that auction on Central Island. Elder Hong, you have wide connections. Could you ask around on my behalf and find out whether the service is still running, and whether I can still send a reply to the secular world?"

"Certainly. Wait here a moment; I'll go and ask someone right now." Hong Zhong agreed without a second thought and turned to leave at once. The place he went was not far from the Hong Clan Merchant Guild—the Central Chamber of Commerce, which stood on the same inner street of the market district.