Chapter Forty-Six: The Sudden Awakener Incident

After crossing back to the other side of the river, the two of them went together to bid farewell to Li Si.

They politely declined his invitation to stay for a meal, but each scooped up a piece of crispy rice from the pot; such a treat was hard to come by in the city.

Crunching on the crispy rice as they walked, by the time they reached the hydroelectric station, they had nearly finished eating. Then, each got into their own car and headed back to the city.

It was already after six o’clock when they returned. On the way, both Zhang Ziying and Li Yunfei received calls from friends, inviting them to a farewell gathering.

Among their circle, both Zhang Ziying and Huang Xiaohu possessed the qualities to embark on cultivation, and soon, they would be leaving for the Academy of Cultivation.

This gathering was their send-off; who knew when they might meet again. By then, their backgrounds and social standing would be worlds apart.

It was hard to say whether, in the future, they could still sit around the same table, drinking, eating, and bantering as they did now.

Li Yunfei made a stop at home first, saying he needed to return his little fox—after all, it wouldn’t be convenient to bring a pet to a restaurant gathering.

Since Zhang Ziying was waiting outside, Li Yunfei actually stored the little fox in his pet space.

Nowadays, the little fox’s intelligence was remarkable; aside from being unable to speak, she was no different from a human.

Li Yunfei could no longer treat her as a mere pet; he felt compelled to take her everywhere, lest she feel lonely.

…

On the third floor of Showyuan Tower beside the central square of the county, Li Yunfei’s group of friends had already booked a banquet table.

Gathered together, they talked endlessly about cultivators. With Zhang Ziying absent, the focus naturally shifted to Huang Xiaohu.

Huang Xiaohu was a high-IQ talent, an IT elite specializing in AI research and development.

Unlike the typical introverted, socially awkward programmer, he was lively, humorous—a true clown, popular among his peers.

His hefty build and cheerful appearance earned him the affectionate nickname “Fat Tiger.”

Fat Tiger possessed a mid-grade Class B cultivation aptitude, the sort that would receive special attention.

Cultivation aptitude was divided into four grades—A, B, C, D—each with three levels: upper, middle, and lower, making twelve tiers in total. Mid-grade B was the fifth tier, already considered excellent.

Zhang Ziying, however, was the only Class A cultivator in all of Yudong County—and not just Class A, but upper-grade A. Even nationwide, such individuals were extremely rare.

According to the two Zixiao Organization members stationed in Yudong, there were fewer than twenty people with upper-grade Class A aptitude in all of Daxia.

One of them was the leader of Zixiao, Qin Chuan, known as “Ziwei.”

Upper-grade Class A cultivators were almost certain to become one of the “Celestial Stems and Earthly Branches,” the absolute upper echelon of Zixiao.

Li Yunfei pushed open the private room door and entered with Zhang Ziying. Their friends rose to greet them.

“You finally made it, hurry and take your seats. Waiter, bring the dishes!”

“Sorry to keep everyone waiting.”

There were eight friends present, and with Li Yunfei and Zhang Ziying, they made a full table.

Aside from Zhang Ziying, all were men—some were old classmates, others met at the live-action CS base, friendships forged through shared experiences.

Of course, it was their compatible personalities that made them such a close-knit group.

The food and drinks quickly arrived. Someone raised his glass and said, “For our first toast, let us honor the two future Zixiao powerhouses.”

“Heh, Yingzi, Fat Tiger, when you soar as cultivators, don’t pretend you don’t know us old friends!”

Fat Tiger grinned, “How could I? We’re going to cultivate, not become monks and renounce the world!”

Everyone laughed. Zhang Ziying smiled, “Exactly, cultivators are still people—are we supposed to sever all ties? Enough talk, let’s drink!”

They gladly drank together. After several rounds, the mood grew lively.

Given the current climate, their conversations always circled back to cultivators and awakened ones.

Zhang Ziying and Fat Tiger were headed to different places. The Academy of Cultivation for adults in the Southwest was in Yuzhou City; the police academy was in Xiangzhou Baling.

The military academy was in Dianzhou Guchang; civil servant and state enterprise employees would go to Ezhou Wuling, and students to Shuzhou Furong City.

All these places were not far from Yudong County, making home visits convenient.

Just as everyone was enjoying themselves, a commotion erupted outside, the noise growing louder.

They fell silent, listening intently.

Moments passed, but the disturbance only escalated.

Zhang Ziying frowned and stood. “I’ll go take a look. Wait here.”

Her duty as a police officer wouldn’t allow her to sit idly by. She immediately opened the private room door and stepped out.

Li Yunfei followed without hesitation. The others, unwilling to do nothing, waited inside.

Guests from other rooms were also coming out to see what was happening, and the restaurant was thrown into chaos.

A “crash” sounded.

A scream.

A loud thud.

Just as they reached the lobby, the sound of shattering glass came from upstairs, followed by a figure plummeting outside the window, landing hard on the ground, lifeless.

Zhang Ziying’s face changed dramatically. Everyone rushed to the window to look down.

There, on the ground, lay a person in a pool of blood rapidly spreading.

A murder.

That thought flashed through everyone’s mind.

Zhang Ziying’s expression grew grave. She spoke in a low, steady voice, “Everyone, help secure the scene. Block the escalator and elevator, don’t let anyone upstairs. I’m going to check it out.”

“Be careful. This doesn’t look like an ordinary murder.”

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

The group quickly left the restaurant, rushing to the escalator and elevator.

Li Yunfei stayed close behind Zhang Ziying, determined not to simply stand guard below.

Showyuan Tower had thirty-four floors. The first floor housed shops selling jewelry, designer bags, and other luxury goods.

The second and third floors were the restaurant’s private rooms; the fourth and fifth, banquet halls.

Above that were karaoke bars, electronics stores, clothing shops, amusement arcades, western restaurants, cafes, hotel rooms, and more.

As Zhang Ziying’s group reached the escalator, a crowd hurriedly descended, panic-stricken, among them two security guards.

Zhang Ziying produced her badge, stopped the guards, and held out her credentials. “I’m with the county criminal investigation team. What happened upstairs? Which floor?”

Seeing her badge, the older guard replied without hesitation, “It happened on the eighth floor, at the fashion store. From what we overheard, a man was cheated on.”

“His girlfriend was seeing a rich young man. He confronted them, but was humiliated by the woman and the other man. The two men started fighting.”

“At first, the man was no match for the rich kid—he was knocked to the ground, even had his face stomped.”

“When our colleagues arrived, suddenly the man let out a roar, and his strength seemed to surge. He crushed the rich kid’s leg.”

“The rich kid was beaten severely. We tried to intervene, but were thrown aside.”

“In the end, the man grabbed the rich kid and tossed him toward the window. He crashed through the glass and fell.”

Fat Tiger exclaimed, “Awakened?!”

Zhang Ziying nodded gravely, “It seems so. Awakened ones aren’t something you can handle. Stay here.”

“Security, please help my friends secure the scene—don’t let bystanders upstairs. The police will be here soon.”

“No problem, officer. Be careful.”

Li Yunfei grabbed Zhang Ziying’s arm, frowning, “Though you have upper-grade Class A aptitude, you haven’t started cultivating yet—you can’t deal with an awakened one. Wait for the Zixiao members to handle it.”

The others chimed in, urging Zhang Ziying not to go up.

Zhang Ziying said, “Don’t worry. I won’t confront him head-on, just try to stabilize his emotions and buy time.”