Chapter 804: Chapter 806: Continuing the Narrative
On the other side, after Huo Tianqian tidied up his things, he followed Lin Dong and Lin Zhao to the Gambling Stone Field.
Originally, Huo Tianqian thought the Gambling Stone Field was located in a bustling area, but upon arrival, he realized it was in an old district.
Because it was morning, there weren’t many people around, making the Gambling Stone Field seem particularly desolate.
Meanwhile, Lin Dong and Lin Zhao were chatting on and off.
"Eh? Why hasn’t Gu Tong come today?"
Lin Dong glanced at the time. It was already work time, yet Gu Tong was surprisingly late.
Although he often didn’t mingle with them, he was always punctual for work.
Lin Zhao was also somewhat surprised because Gu Tong hadn’t mentioned needing a day off yesterday.
Lin Dong called Gu Tong, and the phone rang for a while before it was answered. It was very noisy on Gu Tong’s end, and Lin Dong couldn’t hear what was going on.
After picking up the phone, Gu Tong simply told Lin Dong he was taking the day off, then hung up.
Lin Dong looked at his phone’s black screen speechlessly and let out a wry laugh.
That brat!
He took a day off without even telling us! That’s not very brotherly!
Lin Dong put away his phone angrily and said to Lin Zhao, "Gu Tong took the day off, so it’ll just be the two of us today."
Because of the summit, the inside of the Gambling Stone Field was eerily quiet. Even with just Lin Dong and Lin Zhao, there were more than enough.
This gave Lin Zhao plenty of leisure to daydream; he started to reconsider the proposal Chu Ge had mentioned to him last night.
Just as Huo Tianqian had said, was he really content to serve as a safety officer at the Gambling Stone Field for a lifetime?
Even if he truly spent his life as a security head there, what would he do if someone with malicious intent came along, and that person happened to be an Ancient Martial Artist?
But then Lin Zhao thought that once he entered the world of Ancient Martial Arts, life would become even more fragile and dangerous.
His life was saved in exchange for his father’s life, and he had already experienced the preciousness of life. He didn’t want to joke around with his life anymore.
Lin Zhao sat there, sighing repeatedly, almost to the point where Lin Dong couldn’t bear it anymore.
"Lin Zhao, why do you keep sighing?" Lin Dong asked as he approached.
Lin Zhao shook his head and sighed again.
"If you have something on your mind, just say it. All this sighing is getting on my nerves."
Lin Dong was always an optimistic person, and hearing Lin Zhao sigh non-stop was honestly irritating him.
Lin Zhao sighed once more, unable to help himself, but what could he do?
With a look of grievance, he gazed at Lin Dong, pondered for a moment, and finally couldn’t help but ask, "Why did you choose to enter the Ancient Martial Arts world in the first place?"
The question left Lin Dong stunned. He looked at Lin Zhao in confusion and asked curiously, "Do you want to enter the Ancient Martial Arts world?"
Lin Zhao shook his head, "I’m a bit hesitant now, not sure if I should step in."
Lin Dong sighed, thinking Lin Zhao was troubled by something else. "You think too much. Learning Martial Arts has no downsides; it can strengthen your body and introduce you to a broader, higher world. What’s there to be conflicted about?"
Lin Dong shared his genuine feelings, "Honestly, I used to be as puzzled and confused as you, unsure if I should enter. But I’m different from you; I came from an orphanage. Striving upward and being self-reliant have been my life goals. I don’t want my life to be meaningless. Think about it: would you rather live every day the same way for a lifetime, or live each day with new and exciting occurrences?"
Lin Zhao remained silent because that’s exactly the kind of monotonous life he’s living now. He doesn’t know how to handle it himself, and this kind of life feels unbearably dull to him; he doesn’t want to live meaninglessly.
When Huo Tianqian returned from making his rounds at the Gambling Stone Field, he saw Lin Dong and Lin Zhao sitting there dejectedly, without a hint of liveliness.
Curious, he approached and asked, "What’s going on? Don’t tell me you feel you have nothing to do because there’s no business?"
Lin Dong shook his head, "Mr. Huo, I’m just enlightening Lin Zhao."
Enlightening Lin Zhao?
Huo Tianqian was a bit taken aback. He seemed to recall Lin Zhao was conflicted about this last night. Smiling, he came over and patted Lin Zhao’s shoulder, "Still wrestling over whether to enter the Ancient Martial Arts world?"
Lin Zhao nodded, looking up at Huo Tianqian and asked, "Mr. Huo, why don’t you tell us about your experience after entering the Ancient Martial Arts world?"
Huo Tianqian chuckled and waved his hand, "I’m not going to tell you. If I did, you’d be even more conflicted about whether to enter or not."
"Why?"
Lin Zhao asked in confusion, and Lin Dong also looked curiously at Huo Tianqian.
"Why?" Huo Tianqian countered, a bitter smile forming at the corners of his lips. He rolled up his sleeves, revealing his arms, and gestured to Lin Zhao, "Come feel."
"What?" Lin Zhao looked at Huo Tianqian in confusion, unclear about what he meant.
Huo Tianqian repeated, "Come feel."
Following his cue, Lin Zhao reached out and touched his arms, finding them firm, a result of long-term training.
"These arms were regenerated by Mr. Chu for me. My original arms were broken, and I nearly lost my life because of it."
Lin Dong and Lin Zhao were shocked simultaneously, gazing seriously at Huo Tianqian, seemingly waiting for him to continue.
Seeing their curious expressions, Huo Tianqian sighed and asked, "Do you really want to know? Though it’s thrilling, it can also be quite dull."
Lin Zhao nodded, "I really want to know."
"I also really want to know."
Lin Dong leaned in with a curious expression at Huo Tianqian. Being naturally drawn to gossip, there was no way he’d be unwilling to listen to such intriguing tales.
Seeing their keen curiosity, Huo Tianqian stopped hesitating, rubbed his hands, and said, "Okay then, I’ll tell you about my experiences."
"Mr. Chu and I, let’s say we met through clashes rather than peacefully."
Starting from how he met Chu Ge, Huo Tianqian recounted how he formally entered the Ancient Martial Arts world because of Chu Ge and how he almost lost his life searching for medicine for Chu Ge in Su City. While he was in Su City, worried sick, there were also internal issues where his power was almost seized by someone.
At the time, thank goodness Chu Ge was there, or his headquarters might not have been preserved. He spent two hours telling just half the story.
Noticing it was almost noon, Huo Tianqian patted his stomach and waved, "Alright, let’s go eat. I’ll continue the story while we eat."