Martial Ascent to Divinity-Chapter 569 - 552: President Gao

The two had always known about Zhou Leng and Ma Xingkong’s situation.

Hu Yi asked, "Is it just related to his uncle?"

Feng Wenhao replied, "It can only be that way; otherwise, it wouldn’t have escalated so much."

Hu Yi said, "Do you think there’s another possibility, besides being related to his uncle Ma Xingkong, that there’s a war initiated by some people against others?"

Feng Wenhao was suddenly startled and said, "It’s very possible! Zhou Leng has faced off against Demons many times and damaged his reputation, which can affect the morale of the Human Race. Such things have been happening frequently in recent years. The Demon Worship Sect has always used similar means to incite divisions among the Human Race, attack its morale, and exhaust its energy and resources."

Hu Yi looked at Feng Wenhao, said nothing, and just chatted about other things.

As they chatted, Hu Yi started talking about family issues, complaining, "My dad hasn’t been home for several days. I don’t know where he’s gone drinking this time, and he doesn’t answer the phone. It’s happened several times over the past few months."

Feng Wenhao knew that since Hu Yi’s mother disappeared, his father had been drinking to drown his sorrows and had fallen apart, so he advised, "There must be something that delayed him, it will be fine in a few days."

Li Linhan’s house.

"Old Three, what’s really going on with Zhou Leng?" Li Linhan asked.

"Huh? I don’t know." Li Yuanhe looked bewildered.

Li Linhan grabbed an ashtray, and Li Yuanhe hurriedly dodged.

Li Linhan slowly put it down, snorted, and said, "With such a big commotion, you think I’m a fool? This matter obviously has someone behind it targeting Zhou Leng, just like the same group that went after Ma Xingkong back then?"

"I really don’t know, I’m still investigating," Li Yuanhe said.

"Where is he now?"

Li Yuanhe said, "I can’t say."

"How is his current situation?"

"I can’t say."

Li Linhan’s face turned grim.

"Are his injuries serious?"

"I don’t know," Li Yuanhe said.

Li Linhan gritted his teeth, and after a long while, cursed, "Get out of here, you coward! Our good friend is being bullied on his doorstep, and you’re acting like a turtle hiding in its shell. Uncle Zhou and Aunt Zhou cared for you back then! All the blood spilled on the battlefield is wasted! Completely wasted!"

"Dad..."

"Now that you’re an official, do you even have me, your dad, in your eyes? Get out! None of you are any good! All these years, when you needed me, you called me your son. When you didn’t, you never treated us like people! Out!"

Li Linhan was furious and pushed Li Yuanhe out of the house, slamming the door shut.

"If Zhou Leng can’t come back, you don’t come back either. This family is breaking up! A bunch of ungrateful bastards..."

Li Yuanhe stood outside the door until midnight, sighed, slowly went downstairs, and got into a special car, heading back to the Ancient River Sect’s base.

The Ancient River Sect’s base hadn’t changed much.

Except for a few people, the majority didn’t know that Zhou Leng was the senior brother of the Ancient River Sect.

At night, Xu Qingjin’s dormitory.

The lights were out, but the glow from the phone screens illuminated the faces of her roommates.

They didn’t speak, communicating by typing.

"Xu Qingjin is really pitiful, I saw her secretly wiping tears again yesterday."

"She pretends like nothing’s wrong in front of us, but behind the scenes, who knows how many times she’s cried."

"The Ruda school is so shrewd, and they haven’t issued a statement yet. Zhou Leng is surely being wronged. If there were any evidence, those people would immediately jump out to clear their name. I know them too well."

"It’s such a pity for Xu Qingjin, bearing so much pressure alone."

"The key now is what’s going on with Zhou Leng, where is he? It’s already been so long without any news."

"What if..."

"No what-ifs! We’ll keep protecting her! Zhou Leng saved our lives by slaughtering the Demons in the Celestial Tier Examination Hall. My mom says we can curse anyone, but we can’t curse a lifesaver. Only animals curse warriors who defend the country. If you have the guts, curse the ones at the top. Bullying at home proves nothing! Those trash make me so angry."

True Words Media Company.

In the conference room, in front of the grand conference table, Manager Huang held a tablet, smiling.

"Excellent!"

"This time, with our self-media matrix, we created a miracle. In just a few days, we generated multiple viral hits."

"We have seven videos with over a million likes, and over 23 articles with more than one hundred thousand reads, with countless other achievements..."

"General Manager Gao said this is just the first step."

"For the second step, once we arrest and prosecute, we’ll invest ten times the resources for publicity!"

"We want to show them what justice is!"

"We’ve executed justice many times, nailing one despicable Dragon Country Martial Artist after another to the pillar of shame."

"After succeeding in this matter, General Manager Gao will come to the company to celebrate with us!"

The meeting ended, and everyone left one after another.

After leaving the office, they whispered among themselves.

"Will General Manager Gao really come?"

"It sounds possible according to Manager Huang."

"That’s great, she’s my idol. It’s said she’s from the Zhao family, and True Words Media is just one of her many insignificant businesses."

"Then this matter is stable, this Zhou Leng can’t cause any trouble."

"Ha, we have tarnished countless others over the years, and looking back, who cares about them now? Zhou Leng is no different."

In the conference room.

Manager Huang glanced at the projection screen showing Zhou Leng’s photo.

She didn’t know who this person had offended, but it was enough to make General Manager Gao personally speak out, even mobilizing over 400 major media outlets to cooperate.

However, she knew that this person named Zhou Leng could only live his life with his tail between his legs, and would likely choose a quiet moment to either jump into the river or off a building.

A flash of dark light crossed her eyes, and the shadow of the Star Blood Tree from the Fishman Sect flashed by.

First Hospital of the Demon City Army.

On the hospital bed, Zhou Leng lay with his eyes closed, his skin rosy and his breathing steady.

A large white cloth covered his chest and abdomen.

Through the white cloth, one could vaguely see a large hole in his chest and abdomen.

Chen Shouhu and Wang Boxiong stood in front of the bed.

"How are his injuries?" Wang Boxiong asked.

Chen Shouhu thought for a moment, then said, "If it were anyone else, they’d be dead. According to the assessments by the Demon Spirit Master and the doctors, the uninjured parts of his body are incredibly active and unimaginably strong, even exceeding a regular Grandmaster’s. The injured parts were suppressed by a terrifying force that even Demigods can’t deal with, recovering extremely..."

Chen Shouhu paused and said, "Recovering extremely quickly."

"Did a dog eat your brain? Is this human language?" Wang Boxiong retorted bluntly. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Chen Shouhu cursed, "You think you’re the only smart one? You saw the photos back then. Compare them to now. I ask you, by a normal Martial Artist’s standards, could he have recovered to this extent?"

"No."

"So, there’s a terrifying force suppressing him, yet he recovers extremely quickly. If there weren’t such a force, he’d have already recovered. Is that wrong?"

"So you’re saying that his recovery to normal is just a matter of time."

"Theoretically, yes. Whether it’s the Red Eyes or the Sacred Sea, they both say this kid’s body is too strange, but he’ll be fine."

"And his Martial Arts?"

Chen Shouhu was silent for a long time, then said, "His Dantian is destroyed, meridians severed, it’s impossible. The Sacred Sea said that even a Void God couldn’t help."

Wang Boxiong asked, "The sixteen families... are they not planning to let Zhou Leng go?"

Chen Shouhu’s eyes turned cold, "I went to talk to them personally, and they just laughed it off."

Wang Boxiong said, "Song Juesi came to see me. He means to stick up for Zhou Leng and initiate a Grandmaster life-and-death battle."

"Huh? Why is Elder Song more radical than I am? Seems like his relationship with Zhou Leng is closer than I thought. What did you say?"

"I said I’d help arrange the battle when the time comes."

Chen Shouhu said, "Back then, I was just Innate, couldn’t even have a seat at the table. So many years have passed, and since their blades are already drawn, there’s no need for me to hold back. Once Zhou Leng is settled, I’ll personally challenge the sixteen families to a Grandmaster life-and-death battle. If I don’t beat a few of those old bastards to death, I’m not Chen Shouhu."

Wang Boxiong looked at Zhou Leng and said, "In the future, Zhou Leng is most likely unable to pursue Martial Arts any further. In the eyes of the Demon Worship Sect and Demon Alliance, he lost his assassination value. Since that’s the case, some identities can be appropriately revealed."

"Use his identity and war merits to launch a counterattack? Isn’t it a bit early? I’m waiting for the Great Dragon Medal and National Hero Decoration. At that time, with the Supreme Court and the top of the Demon City Army presenting the award personally, I’ll make sure he’s the focus of major news." Chen Shouhu said.

Wang Boxiong said, "His battlefield identity and other merits should naturally be revealed when the awards are given, but other identities can be showcased earlier. For example, his identity as a Divine Literature Scholar can be announced when the sixteen families take action again. I don’t believe those old guys who dare to bang the table with the Martial Saints will do nothing."

"You’re really something... but I like it... huh?"

Both of them turned their heads to look at Zhou Leng.

The moment the Celestial Calamity Envoy pointed at him, Zhou Leng knew death was imminent.

Even though he knew he had various protections, he realized that maybe he could escape once, twice, but the Celestial Calamity Envoy would eventually see through it.

At the last moment when he felt his head explode, his heart was filled with tranquility.

Everyone dies eventually.

Although there were some regrets, life is like this, full of chance.

He didn’t know how long had passed when Zhou Leng was surprised to find himself in a void.

His body was gone, but his consciousness seemed intact.

Then, a beam of white light descended.

It enveloped his consciousness, continuously ascending, finally soaring high above the Great Battlefield.

A peculiar stone tablet stood before him.

A giant turtle bore the stele, with a Divine Text carved upon it.

Nations shiver in the winter, Circulation of Extreme Cold.

"It seems... it’s my name?" Zhou Leng, possessing kindergarten-level intelligence, felt a bit unsure.

After that, the scene of the Great Battlefield vanished, and his consciousness plunged into endless darkness.

For an unknown duration, a familiar resonance appeared.

The power of the Celestial Ladder.

Back when he participated in the Eighteen School Joint Examination at Shuizhou Demon City, he obtained one level of the Celestial Ladder, which had been incubating for a year, now finally matured.

The Celestial Ladder transformed into a Celestial Tier Trial Ground.

In an instant, Zhou Leng’s consciousness was drawn into the Celestial Tier Trial Ground.

A flash of light appeared before him.

Zhou Leng found himself seated upon a pitch-black throne.

In front of the throne was a corridor, lined with a red carpet, illuminated by lights.

The corridor was divided into ten rooms, with Zhou Leng situated at the far end, within the tenth room.

The first nine rooms offered nine different Martial Arts trials.

Information streamed into his mind.

So, it turns out that different levels of the Celestial Ladder contain different powers.

This Celestial Ladder sought to create a trial ground suited for Blue Star’s current situation, which is why it took a long time.

Finally, it was complete.

Zhou Leng is the master of this trial ground, and with a single command, the trial ground can be anchored anywhere on Blue Star.