Gao Wu insists on cultivating immortality.

Chapter 82 No Jokes
Gao Wu won the Xuetao Cup, breaking the tournament record and becoming the first junior champion in fifty years.

This made Gao Wu a source of pride for the youth of Dongjiang. It also earned him the respect of many people.

Shang Zhenglin was different from others. He valued Gao Wu not because of the Xuetao Cup championship, but because of Gao Wu's bravery, decisiveness and toughness in the championship battle.

Many factors determine a person's success. Apart from those uncontrollable factors such as family background, luck, and talent, the most important factors are character and wisdom.

Character can be cultivated, and wisdom can be enhanced through learning. These are the most important fundamental conditions that people can change after birth.

Gao Wu has a ruthless streak, is intelligent, and has a good talent for martial arts. Shang Zhenglin believes that Gao Wu will achieve great things in the future.

Because of this judgment, Shang Zhenglin took extra care of Gao Wu this time.

Upon hearing Gao Wu say that he had killed Wan Cangsong, Shang Zhenglin's blood pressure spiked, and the veins on his temples bulged.

As a supervisor of the Hunter Association, Shang Zhenglin had met Wan Cangsong twice and knew that he was a junior warrior with a gloomy personality. It was said that he was ruthless in private and had a bad reputation.

But regardless of Wan Cangsong's character, he was a warrior! A true warrior!
How could Gao Wu, a mere martial artist, possibly kill Wan Cangsong?! He felt his intelligence had been insulted!
Gao Wu noticed Shang Zhenglin's suspicion and took out two Golden Thunder Eagle pistols from his backpack and placed them on the table.

Shang Zhenglin's gaze sharpened; he recognized those two guns. Wan Cangsong had been carrying two Golden Thunder Eagles on his tactical belt during this mission.

This custom-made Thunderhawk pistol is actually forged using nanofiber shape memory alloy and diamond crystal powder.

Diamond crystal is a high-grade mineral from another world, possessing exceptional physical properties that give the pistol its pure gold color. More importantly, it can channel source energy.

Nanofiber shape memory alloys are cutting-edge technological materials that can automatically repair themselves from minor damage. Both materials are extremely valuable, and the firearms made from them are incredibly expensive.

The two Golden Thunder Eagle pistols are worth at least tens of millions!
Even among samurai, few would use such expensive firearms. Of course, such a high price also has practical value.

Weighing 5.5 kilograms, the Golden Thunder Eagle is tough enough to be used not only as a ranged weapon but also as a melee weapon in close combat, where it can be powered by source energy, making it quite powerful.

Shang Zhenglin was deeply impressed by the two guns. He reached out and picked up a Golden Thunder Eagle. It felt heavy and hard, with a restrained and substantial pure gold luster.

The gun has a very high-quality feel, and holding it in your hand naturally gives you a strong sense of security.

With a slight exertion of his source energy, he can establish a connection with the pistol, sensing its internal structure and the weapon's status.

The bullet's velocity is too high; the source energy cannot be applied to it. The flowing source energy can only enhance the pistol's power as a melee weapon.

From this perspective, while the Golden Thunder Eagle has practical value, it is more of a luxury item.

An ordinary warrior's annual income is only a few million, and with huge expenses, they really can't afford a Golden Thunder Eagle. Only someone like Wan Cangsong, who has illicit income, can afford such luxury.

After examining the Golden Thunder Eagle for a while and confirming that it was undoubtedly genuine, Shang Zhenglin couldn't help but sigh.

He now hopes that Gao Wu was just playing a bad joke!

Wan Cangsong is a supervisor of the Hunter Association, and the Wan family is very powerful in Yunling City. No matter what Gao Wu's reason was for killing Wan Cangsong, it would be a big problem!
Shang Zhenglin managed to calm down. After all, Gao Wu was family, and he had come to him for help. He couldn't ignore him, both out of courtesy and reason.

He composed himself before asking, "What exactly happened?"

Gao Wu shook his head: "I was setting up camp and preparing to rest when Wan Cangsong came over with his men. They immediately attacked me, but I fought back and killed them."

"Them?" Shang Zhenglin looked surprised and doubtful. "There are others?"

"Yes, there are also two martial artists from the Wan family." Gao Wu nodded in confirmation.

Gao Wu could tell that Shang Zhenglin was a bit flustered, so he quickly took out his phone: "I have video evidence."

He did contact Song Mingyue, but given the magnitude of the incident, he had to communicate with Shang Zhenglin.

If he hadn't said anything beforehand, Shang Zhenglin would have severed ties with him after this incident, and they might even have become enemies.

As for why we believe Shang Zhenglin, it's not because the two are related, but mainly because Shang Zhenglin is from Dongjiang and it's unlikely that he would be associated with Wan Cangsong.

Another very important point is that Shang Zhenglin was rather poor. This can be seen from details such as his clothing and equipment.

Of course, this poverty is relative to other samurai.

If Shang Zhenglin and Wan Cangsong were colluding, they shouldn't be so poor. What's the point of a samurai doing bad things if they can't even get rich?
Aside from a few inherently antisocial bad people, other bad people do bad things simply to gain profit, without any other complicated reasons.

Song Mingyue also said that Shang Zhenglin should be fine.

Last time, Song Chunqiu purged the followers of the Dongjiang Demon God, wiping out all the high-ranking followers. If Shang Zhenglin had any problems, he wouldn't have gotten away unscathed.

Shang Zhenglin didn't think much of it. He watched the video on his phone once, then froze. He watched it again, still a little confused, and watched it again…

The video is actually very short; from Gao Wu's questioning to the killing of Wan Cangsong and the other two, the whole process takes less than twenty seconds.

The video clearly shows that Wan Cangsong ignored the warnings and pounced fiercely, and Gao Wu fired without hesitation.

Then, Wan Cangsong struck Gao Wu with a palm strike, which caused the camera to vibrate violently, and the flying debris also obscured the lens. At that moment, Gao Wu drew his gun to retaliate.

He killed Wan Cangsong with just four shots. As for the other two, they were insignificant.

The crucial point is that Wan Cangsong seemed to have suddenly gone mad, and he didn't even use his source energy field for protection. He was simply beaten to death by Gao Wu.

Shang Zhenglin watched the video dozens of times, but still couldn't figure out where the problem was.

He cast a questioning glance at Gao Wu, who responded with a simple, honest chuckle.

Shang Zhenglin immediately understood that Gao Wu couldn't possibly have explained the details to him. It was obvious that this must be one of Gao Wu's secret techniques!

The fact that a mere martial artist could so easily kill a warrior still overturned Shang Zhenglin's understanding of martial arts. After a long silence, Shang Zhenglin finally said, "You have a point, but this is Yunling, the territory of the Wan family. I must inform the guild master."

"Only the chairman can keep Wan Canglong in check and prevent the situation from escalating."

Gao Wu nodded repeatedly. It was Shang Zhenglin's duty to give a report, while Song Mingyue was not related to the Hunter Association system, so he didn't need to tell Shang Zhenglin about Song Mingyue.

He trusted Song Mingyue's intelligence and believed she wouldn't recklessly involve outsiders in the Hunter Association's affairs.

Shang Zhenglin then comforted Gao Wu: "Wan Cangsong attacked you without cause, and his death was his own fault. Don't worry, we will never let you suffer any loss. Go and rest well."

"By the way, Uncle San, they also brought a set of equipment. I wonder what it's for?" Gao Wu took out a photo taken with his phone and asked Shang Zhenglin to identify it.

"This is... a cryogenic transport box?" Shang Zhenglin wasn't quite sure. He then thought of the rumors about the Wan family, that they trafficked in organs and human genes, and this made sense.

So, they targeted Gao Wu because they were after his genes?!
Shang Zhenglin frowned. The Wan family's actions were so vicious; it was truly disgusting.

He said to Gao Wu in a serious tone, "The Wan family may be a powerful force in Yunling, but they are nothing compared to the Hunter Association."

Wan Cangsong plotted against Gao Wu because Gao Wu abused his position as a supervisor of the Hunter Association to act recklessly in private.

The main point is that Gao Wu has video evidence to prove his innocence, so Wan Cangsong's death was in vain!
Shang Zhenglin was quite confident about this. If he were a lone individual, he might go crazy, but how could such a large family as the Wan family not know the importance of things?

They can do whatever they want in private, but once things are made public, the Wan family must abide by the rules.

Gao Wu was relieved. He consciously put away the Golden Thunder Eagle. He had risked his life to get this gun, and he couldn't bear to give it away.

The Hunter Association conducts hunter assessments in this virtual realm year-round. The camp consists of semi-permanent wooden prefabricated houses, which are connected together to form a large square courtyard.

This row of prefabricated houses faces south and also has its back to the entrance. These houses are larger and have bright windows; they are for the staff of the Hunter Association.

The remaining three rows of prefab houses were for apprentice hunters. Gao Wu found his room according to the number plate; some of his personal belongings were still inside.

Back in his room, Gao Wu took out a bunch of energy bars and started eating them with the hot water he had just poured.

After eating dozens of energy bars in one go, Gao Wu felt his stomach was a little bloated, so he stopped.

Wan Cangsong's palm strike must have injured his stomach as well; he felt unwell even after eating some energy bars.

After quickly wiping the bloodstains from his face and neck with a towel, Gao Wu fiddled with the Golden Thunder Eagle for a while, then inserted his twin pistols into their arm holsters and placed his sword beside his pillow before entering a deep sleep in the Hidden Dragon position.

The ding-dong sound of Fetion startled Gao Wu awake. As soon as he became aware of it, the tranquility and serenity that had enveloped him vanished.

When Gao Wu opened his eyes, he was fully conscious. He didn't rush to check his phone, but instead focused on feeling the changes in his body.

My chest still aches slightly, but otherwise I've almost fully recovered and I'm in great spirits.

After confirming that there were no major problems with his health, Gao Wu picked up his phone. It was a message from Song Mingyue, telling him that she had arrived.

It's five in the morning, and it's still pitch black outside. There's no heating in the room, and the temperature is probably around minus ten degrees Celsius.

After crawling out of his sleeping bag, Gao Wu felt a surge of energy.

He haphazardly wiped his face with the snow outside, straightened his collar and buttons, and then strode toward the lit barracks, sword in hand.

Before Gao Wu could knock, Song Mingyue opened the door from the inside and whispered to Gao Wu, "Inside is Chairman Shen Ning, my second aunt."

Gao Wu was both surprised and delighted. "Xiao Song is really something! His connections are really strong!" But there was one problem: why didn't Xiao Song mention it when they went to the Hunter Association to handle some business earlier?

He spent a lot of money on things without getting any discounts...

Upon entering the room, Gao Wu immediately spotted Shen Ning, who was seated in the main seat. Shen Ning had narrow eyes, a cold and stern expression, and appeared to be around forty years old, wearing a black women's wide-sleeved coat.

He looks serious, capable, and assertive, giving off a strong sense of pressure.

Before Gao Wu could speak, Shang Zhenglin introduced, "Gao Wu, this is Ms. Shen Ning, the president of our Dongjiang Hunter Association."

"President Shen," Gao Wu greeted politely with a nod. As an eighteen-year-old student, it would seem slick to be too respectful, which was unnecessary.

Shen Ning didn't say anything, but carefully examined Gao Wu.

She had seen Gao Wu's victory video and knew about this internet celebrity. Mainly, it was because Gao Wu and Mingyue were very close, a relationship that even made her, his second aunt, a little jealous.

Ever since Mingyue turned ten, she has maintained a certain distance, even from Du Ruolan. She has never been so close to anyone before.

It must be said that Gao Wu is indeed handsome, with a tall and slender figure of over 1.9 meters and well-proportioned and powerful muscles.

Most importantly, Gao Wu possesses the vibrant energy unique to young people, like the rising sun, and the energy radiating outward is very infectious.

No wonder Mingyue liked him; he truly is a remarkable young man. His ability to defeat a warrior with the power of a martial artist further proves the power of advanced martial arts!

Shen Ning watched the video repeatedly, but still couldn't figure out what method Gao Wu used to break through Wan Cangsong's source force field.

While eighteen-year-old warriors are rare, there are some in the Northern Continent. An eighteen-year-old warrior killing another warrior—this was the first time she had ever heard of such a thing in her life!
Even with video evidence, it still felt unreal to her. All she could say was that Gao Wu's talent was exceptional!

The ability to break through the source force field means that Gao Wu poses a threat to all warriors, which is extremely impressive. It also means that Gao Wu has a bright future!
Another point is that this kid is not as sunny and cheerful as he seems. He not only has a ruthless streak in his bones, but also an unfathomable depth.

Shen Ning hesitated. Despite Ming Yue's aloof and cold demeanor, meticulous actions, and seemingly profound nature, she was actually quite simple-minded. The complete opposite of the young man before him!

If Mingyue were to stay with Gao Wu, it might not be a good thing for her...

(End of this chapter)