Chapter 203: 30·1

In addition to the Xiang family, the Sun family from Lingnan and the Jiang family from Tianhai also called Old Master Liu to express their concern about the impending earthquake in Tianfu. Old Master Liu first thanked them and then stated that the information about the Tianfu earthquake was definite and that the truth would be revealed in a few days.

Although other families did not have good relations with the Liu family, they also expressed their concerns on the surface. Particularly, the Long family, as the royal family of Huaxia, with Long Qingyun speaking on Huaxia TV, conveyed to the people of the nation that if an earthquake occurred in Tianfu, he hoped everyone would unite to deal with the loss of life and property caused by the earthquake.

As for if no earthquake occurred… well, the Liu family would lose face on their own, and there would be nothing more to say.

Among these, what surprised and angered Old Master Liu the most was that Old Master Duan from the Duan family in Dali actually called to mock him.

"Liu Tianming, have you finally lost your mind? Hahahahaha..."

Hearing this arrogant voice on the phone, Liu Tianming's face turned dark. "Duan Tianming, you're still alive?"

"Alive? I'll still be alive for another fifty years after you die!" Duan Tianming laughed heartily. "I heard a few months ago that you were about to kick the bucket. I had even prepared fireworks to celebrate, but you survived. You got lucky, but your brain must have fried, haha! Now your Liu family is finished."

"The Liu family won't be finished." Liu Tianming calmed down and said faintly, "I forgot to tell you, my life was saved by an elixir crafted by my grandson. After taking it, my body not only completely recovered but also reached its peak state. Your title as the King of Medicine is probably coming to an end."

"Nonsense!" Duan Tianming cursed, "The Duan family has passed down the knowledge of medicine for generations. Don't think that making a few elixirs will snatch away the title of King of Medicine. Your grandson is far from it!"

"Heh, Duan Tianming, you were inferior to me in every way when we were young. Xiaoxian ultimately chose me. Now that we are old, your descendants are still no match for mine. My Liu family has produced a rare genius like Menglong. What outstanding juniors does your Duan family have?"

"Shut up!" Duan Tianming was furious. "Xiaoxian was truly blind to choose you back then! If she had chosen me, she wouldn't have perished so young. You killed Xiaoxian! How dare you mention her to me!"

Liu Tianming's hand gripped the phone tightly, veins bulging, and he said in a deep voice, "Xiaoxian's death was an accident. No one could have predicted the plane crash. Besides, Xiaoxian was my wife. What right do you, an outsider, have to blame me?"

"An outsider? Fine, Liu Tianming, you are ruthless!" Duan Tianming sneered, "You won't end well!"

With that, Duan Tianming hung up. Liu Tianming slowly put down the phone and fell into silence.

Jiang Xiaoxian, Old Master Liu's wife, would have been 75 this year if she were still alive. Her background was somewhat noble, being the cousin of the head of the Jiang family in Tianhai. In her youth, she was as her name suggested, ethereal and otherworldly like a fairy. Because of her beauty, the young Liu Tianming and Duan Tianming were both infatuated with her, engaging in fierce competition and courtship.

Liu Tianming, being a cunning and charismatic figure who understood human nature well, quickly won Jiang Xiaoxian's favor. Although Duan Tianming had excellent medical skills and good looks, his upright and straightforward personality did not win women's hearts. As expected, Jiang Xiaoxian chose Liu Tianming, and Duan Tianming left in bitterness, never interacting with Liu Tianming again.

But thirty years ago, Jiang Xiaoxian died in a plane crash while returning to her family, at the age of 45. When Duan Tianming heard this news, he came to the Liu family for the first time in decades, weeping bitterly at Jiang Xiaoxian's funeral and cursing Liu Tianming for failing to protect her, calling him a useless scoundrel and cursing him to death, causing a scene at the funeral.

This incident became a topic of conversation among many families. Some praised Duan Tianming for his unwavering devotion, calling him a man of true love. Others criticized him, saying that he already had a wife but still harbored feelings for another man's wife, calling him a scoundrel.

However, the one who suffered the most was Duan Tianming's wife. Three years after the incident, she passed away in grief. Although no one openly criticized Duan Tianming due to his status as the family head, there were whispers behind his back. Disheartened, Duan Tianming, still in his prime, passed the family head position to his son and spent his days with herbs in the mountains.

As a result, Duan Tianming's medical skills became even more refined, and his title as the King of Medicine was known worldwide. However, who could understand the pain in Duan Tianming's heart? Perhaps only his 'enemy' Liu Tianming.

Enemies always know each other best, and this was true for both Liu Tianming and Duan Tianming.

That day, Old Master Liu did not handle any official matters but went into the Liu family ancestral hall and stayed there all day. No one knew what he did, but some servants occasionally heard words like "Xiaoxian" and "I'm sorry."

Li Nianlong did not pay attention to these events. Even though the Spring Festival had just passed and there were five days left until the earthquake, Li Nianlong was standing in the system training ground, energetically saying to Dragonfly, "I want to enter the 30·1 scenario."

"Alright." Dragonfly smiled slightly and opened the door to the 30·1 scenario. Li Nianlong stepped inside and saw an old monk with a fierce look, holding a demon-subduing staff in his right hand and a bowl in his left hand. The monk looked at him menacingly and said, "What demon dares to trespass Golden Mountain Temple!?"

Golden Mountain Temple?

Li Nianlong was momentarily stunned, then looked around. This place indeed looked like a temple's tower. The name Golden Mountain Temple sounded very familiar, and this old monk seemed quite familiar too. After thinking for a while, Li Nianlong realized, "Are you the evil bald monk Fa Hai?"

"Pass condition: Defeat Fa Hai, rescue Xu Xian, and prevent Bai Suzhen from flooding Golden Mountain Temple. Successful completion rewards 20,000 experience points. Failure deducts 20,000 experience points." Dragonfly's voice came timely, making Li Nianlong realize: So it is.

"Audacious demon! How dare you insult this monk! You cannot be allowed to live!" Hearing this young man dare to call him a bald monk, Fa Hai was furious. He struck the bowl with his demon-subduing staff, and the mouth of the bowl faced Li Nianlong. Li Nianlong immediately felt a strong suction force, stronger than a vacuum cleaner.

"Not enough to faze me." Li Nianlong sneered. Although the bowl's suction was strong, it was too weak to deal with him. After all, this was the lowest difficulty of the 30th level, far too weak for Li Nianlong, who was over level 50.

Holding the Golden Sword, Li Nianlong sneered as he walked towards Fa Hai.

Seeing the bowl's suction was ineffective against this young demon, Fa Hai was in a panic but refused to admit defeat. "Audacious demon, taste my demon-subduing staff!"

The demon-subduing staff, imbued with righteous energy and the sound of wind and thunder, struck down at Li Nianlong's head. Li Nianlong casually slashed with his Golden Sword, and the wooden handle of the staff was cut in half. The staff clattered to the ground, leaving Fa Hai dumbfounded.

Without hesitation, Li Nianlong punched Fa Hai's high nose, smashing it into a flat nose.

"Ow..."

Fa Hai screamed in pain, dropping the bowl and clutching his bleeding nose.

Li Nianlong put away his Golden Sword and began punching and kicking Fa Hai relentlessly.

"I'll beat you to death for breaking up a happy couple, you bald donkey!"

"Ow..."

"I'll beat you to death for illegally imprisoning someone else's husband, you bastard!"

"Ah..."

"I'll beat you to death for being jealous and hateful, you bald monk!"

"I am dead..."

After a flurry of punches and kicks, Fa Hai was left barely breathing, lying on the ground like a dead dog.

Li Nianlong wiped the blood off his fists with Fa Hai's robe, picked up the Golden Sword, and split the bowl in half, destroying Fa Hai's two magical weapons. Then he shouted towards the tower, "Who is Xu Xian? Come out now!"

Thinking about Xu Xian made Li Nianlong angry. Bai Suzhen was such a wonderful woman, yet Xu Xian was easily swayed by Fa Hai's words and ran to Golden Mountain Temple to 'take refuge.' Did he have any manly courage at all?

Li Nianlong's shout didn't summon Xu Xian, but instead brought Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing. The two women, one in white and one in green, flew in from outside Jinshan Temple. With no Fahai to stop them, they came straight to Li Nianlong without any obstacles. Perhaps it was because they had heard Li Nianlong's unfriendly tone towards her husband, but Bai Suzhen, dressed in white, stared coldly at him. "Why are you looking for my husband?"

Seeing Bai Suzhen, Li Nianlong's eyes lit up. "Zhao Zhizhi, it's really you!"

The woman in front of him looked exactly like Zhao Zhizhi, the actress who played Bai Suzhen in the TV drama. Perhaps due to the system's influence, this Zhao Zhizhi appeared even younger, with skin as white as snow, smooth and tender, like a legendary goddess.

Similarly, Xiao Qing also looked exactly like her TV drama counterpart.

Bai Suzhen frowned slightly. "Who's Zhao Zhizhi? I am Bai Suzhen of Emei. Don't try to take advantage with your words. I ask you again, why are you looking for my husband?"

"Misunderstanding, misunderstanding." Seeing Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing, Li Nianlong smiled brightly. "I'm here to save your husband Xu Xian. Look, I've already killed Fahai. I was planning to find you after saving him, but I didn't expect you to come first."

"Oh?" Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing turned to see the old monk who was already dead, and were immediately shocked. "Fahai!?"

Looking at Li Nianlong again, their gazes changed completely. Although Fahai's strength wasn't great, his demon-subduing staff and bowl were their nemesis. Yet Li Nianlong had easily killed Fahai, who was holding these powerful items. Such strength...

"Thank you, young hero, for your help," Bai Suzhen said, knowing how to adapt to the situation. She immediately put on a grateful expression. Li Nianlong, however, found it quite dull. It was clear that Bai Suzhen bullied the weak and feared the strong. She would plead with those stronger than her and use magic to deal with those weaker. It was quite similar to the law of the jungle.

But after all, Bai Suzhen was a snake spirit. Obeying the strong and oppressing the weak was an animal instinct. Li Nianlong couldn't ask for too much. Anyway, with the troublesome Fahai dead, he hoped Bai Suzhen and Xu Xian would be happy!