Watching Sun Miaomiao dissolve into specks of light, Zhang Yuanqing heard the spiritual realm notification chime in his ear:

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the multiplayer spiritual realm mission—The Era of Massive Reporting, difficulty level S, processing rewards.......]

[Calculating rewards......Item/Inventory acquired: Indomitable Battle Armor (Damaged) (Unclaimed)]

[Reward Experience Points: 0]

[Calculation complete! Exiting the spiritual realm in 30 seconds......]

Exiting the spiritual realm, huh, the ultimate battle of the third round is tomorrow?

That's fine, I'm too exhausted from today's fight, not in the best shape, a day of rest makes sense...... Zhang Yuanqing immediately shifted his focus to the item he had acquired.

The helmet given to him by the Earth Deity was called "The Indomitable Helmet."

Which means, the reward for the highest scorer is this set of battle armor.

Zhang Yuanqing felt a surge of joy; this battle armor was of saintly quality, the reward was nothing short of generous.

He then noticed that the armor was marked as damaged, whereas when he had received the helmet from the Earth Deity, there was no "damaged" sign in the item description.

Hmm, is it because a battle armor of perfect quality would be too unbalancing, so it's damaged? Alright, even if it's damaged, collecting a full set would still be immensely effective, and the gap between Zhao Chenghuang and me has narrowed again.

He opened his inventory to check, but didn't see the battle armor.

Indeed, I have to wait until tomorrow's final battle to receive it...... Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself.

At that moment, he heard Zhao Chenghuang let out a light sigh, saying indifferently:

"Today, I'm a bit upset, so, Yuan Shi Tian Zun, I look forward to tomorrow's final battle,"

"Looking forward to beating me up tomorrow?" Zhang Yuanqing retorted.

Zhao Chenghuang didn't reply, dissolving into light specks.

........

Inside the arena, silence reigned.

The audience looked up, staring at the images in the air, and despite the sea of heads, not a mouth opened to speak.

This included the high-ranking elders, the elders of Taiyi Sect with slightly stiff expressions, and the elders of the Five Elements Alliance with surprise written all over their faces, staring at the images in astonishment.

Yuan Shi Tian Zun's comeback had surprised these Dominators.

As top fighters in the Dominator realm, battles at the Transcendent stage, no matter how intense or earth-shattering, wouldn't cause too strong an emotional response in the Dominators.

It's like adults watching children fight, finding it amusing rather than thrilling.

However, what Yuan Shi Tian Zun achieved wasn't due to "overwhelming combat power," but rather meticulous thought and proactive strategizing.

Even the elders hadn't anticipated that he had been scheming against Sun Miaomiao from the start, adding a layer of insurance just in case.

The most crucial part was, no one saw it coming.

Yes, no one.

It was Sun Miaomiao who volunteered to hold the spirit servant, Sun Miaomiao who joyfully kneaded and played with the baby, Sun Miaomiao who asked about how to report.

There were no traces of setup throughout, yet Sun Miaomiao was completely outmaneuvered, an operation so dazzling that even the elders found it astonishing.

"This kid, so young yet so vicious at heart," Elder Sun's mouth twitched, his face filled with gloom.

Elder Zhao, clad in a black robe, furrowed his brows, his old face struggling to maintain composure, having just boasted about his great-grandson's cunning, the words barely out before being slapped in the face by Yuan Shi Tian Zun.

Now his great-grandson had become a stepping stone for Yuan Shi Tian Zun's fame, a mere foil.

"Elder Zhao, this young man under my command, his cunning is quite acceptable, isn't it?" the Earth Deity raised a paw, stroking his whiskers by the cheek.

The elders of the Five Elements Alliance had smiles on their faces, their lips curling up.

In stark contrast to the previous silence and dissatisfaction.

This way, even if Yuan Shi Tian Zun doesn't win the championship, he can firmly hold the second place, preserving the face of the Five Elements Alliance.

The elder with white hair from the Red Fire Gang chuckled: "Elder Sun, you're still so naive."

Laughter filled the air, and the elder's seats were brimming with joyous atmosphere.

At that moment, the two figures in the image dissolved into light specks, and the silent silence was finally broken.

Like igniting a powder keg, there was a "boom," and the sound waves exploded.

It was like reaching the climax of a concert, like a player scoring the decisive goal.

"Holy shit, that reversal was epic, absolutely epic!"

"So he had another trick up his sleeve, I was wrong, when I saw Yuan Shi Tian Zun taking advantage of Sun Miaomiao, I criticized him.....truly, the thoughts of a genius are different from ours."

"Is this watching a match? It's like riding a roller coaster, so thrilling, when Yuan Ting reported Zhao Chenghuang, I thought Yuan Shi Tian Zun had won, when Tone Deaf was eliminated, I thought Zhao Chenghuang had won......but then Yuan Shi Tian Zun turned the tables again, my brain can't keep up."

"Truly worthy of being a genius who has cleared two S-level instances in a row......Yuan Shi Tian Zun's operation has shown me the diversity of the world, thankfully we have Yuan Shi Tian Zun, otherwise the top two spots would have nothing to do with our Five Elements Alliance."

"Yeah, yeah, the elders' faces were all dark just now."

"Yuan Shi Tian Zun! Yuan Shi Tian Zun!!" The queen jumped up excitedly, waving her hands as if cheering for her idol.

Clap clap clap..... Guan Ya also stood up excitedly, clapping vigorously, her bright face blooming with excitement and joy.

Both had thought Yuan Shi Tian Zun was doomed, the queen biting her lip, Guan Ya frowning, filled with helplessness and frustration.

Who would have expected such a turnaround, Yuan Shi Tian Zun gave them such a big surprise.

"Stealing the limelight, truly enviable," Ling Jun, sitting behind Fu Qingyang, remarked.

Guan Ya and the queen were just a part of the screaming women in the crowd, Yuan Shi Tian Zun's move had won over countless female fans.

Young master Hua, who prided himself on being suave, envied such opportunities to stand out.

At this moment, he heard the queen exclaim:

"I really admire Yuan Shi Tian Zun, I thought when he controlled the spirit servant to touch Sun Miaomiao's chest it was his old habit acting up."

As a scout, Guan Ya's smile faded slightly, looking at her bestie:

"Old habit acting up?"

The queen explained: "Last time in Yin Yang Town, when we were diving underwater, he slapped my butt."

"Oh!" Guan Ya nodded with an unchanged smile, as if it was nothing, but the moment she turned her head, her smile became forced.

Some didn't understand Yuan Shi Tian Zun's operation, thinking the audience's reaction was too exaggerated, like Jiang Jingwei, a Fire Master.

"What's there to be excited about? Babbling nonsense without fighting," Jiang Jingwei looked at Guan Ya not far away, puzzled.

Guan Ya was a very dignified and face-conscious sister, never engaging in frivolous actions, jumping and shouting was almost never seen from her.

"Not bad for an employee I trained, oh my God; oh my God~"

Not far away, a man in elegant formal wear waved his cane like a wild fan waving a flag.

Where was his elegance? Jiang Jingwei wondered, suddenly understanding Guan Ya a bit better.

In the higher seats, Bill Tarantino exclaimed excitedly:

"Brilliant!

"Such a brilliant match, just for this one match, the trip to China was worth it. It's my first time knowing that the Five Elements Alliance's arena matches can be so thrilling.

"Hehe, those guys always look down on the Five Elements Alliance's arena matches, thinking it's just the Five Elements Alliance playing house."

Overseas, there are many famous spiritual realm walker events, with participants from spiritual realm walkers from all over the world, including the seven major orderly professions from China.

Truly a gathering of heroes.

In the face of these global events, the internal arena matches of the Five Elements Alliance would naturally be looked down upon, saying it's just playing house is not an exaggeration.

It's worth mentioning that China and nearby countries belong to the same region, those small countries also produce spiritual realm walkers like Water Ghosts, Wood Sprites, and Night Touring Ghosts, but in such small numbers that it's hard to form a powerful force, mostly consisting of individual practitioners.

Annie's cheeks were flushed, her eyes filled with infatuation: "Mr. Bill, he's smarter and more outstanding than I imagined, I like men like that."

Her satisfaction with Yuan Shi Tian Zun grew, even beginning to fantasize, perhaps, he could be a Night Touring Ghost on par with the Demon Lord.

Also very satisfied with Yuan Shi Tian Zun were the mother and daughter of the Xie family.

Xie's mother said cheerfully:

"Isn't it more interesting than watching TV dramas? We'll watch it every year from now on, I have a topic to talk about with the ladies this month, this Yuan Shi Tian Zun is really good, I'll talk to your dad."

Xie Lingxi said proudly: "It's not every year that we have a master like Brother Yuan Shi participating."

She quickly reacted, excitedly saying:

"Mom, you also think our Xie family should win him over, right?"

Xie's mother blinked her innocent eyes: "What win over, I don't know what you're talking about."

"......"

Xie Lingxi felt that her cultivation was still insufficient, her mother was the world's unique white lotus.

Zhu Rong stared blankly at the empty image, the noise around her gradually fading away, hearing that man's cold sneer:

"The evil dragon never cares about the hatred of ants, you, in this lifetime, are only fit to be my toy."

"Tsk tsk, Miss Zhu, you're becoming more and more wanton, you can never go back to the past."

Zhu Rong's eyes reddened slightly, dazed, after a long while, she took a deep breath, pushing the past images out of her mind, laughing neurotically:

"I will destroy you, I will destroy you!!"

.........

The scene before him rippled like water, and once the "water surface" calmed, Zhang Yuanqing saw the familiar bedroom.

His first reaction was to look at the bedside clock, which showed it was half past twelve in the afternoon.

Past lunchtime...... Zhang Yuanqing muttered to himself, then his stomach began to respond, making "gurgling" noises.

He hadn't had time for breakfast, after fighting in the instance all morning, he was famished.

Zhang Yuanqing listened quietly, the living room was silent, at this time, his grandparents should be napping.

The two old people always had the habit of taking a nap.

Zhang Yuanqing tiptoed to the living room, indeed his grandparents were napping in the bedroom, and as expected, there was no leftover food on the dining table.

There was no habit of eating leftovers at home, even if there were leftovers, grandma would throw them away.

After leaving the house, he ate two big bowls of braised chicken at a restaurant outside the community, contentedly heading home with a full belly.

On the way, he bought a cup of tea with milk from a street-side tea shop.

"Ah, so refreshing~"

Zhang Yuanqing lay half-reclined on the bed, sipping the cold tea with milk, enjoying the air conditioning, full from food and drink, and in the daytime, laziness slowly crept over his eyelids.

"Let's take a nap, I'll be refreshed when I wake up."

Zhang Yuanqing texted Aunt Xiao Yuan that he had cleared an S-level instance, becoming one of the only two contestants, and would face Zhao Chenghuang in a final battle tomorrow.

Then he fell asleep.

........

Fu Family Bay.

At the dining table, Fu Qingyang and Ling Jun were enjoying a sumptuous lunch.

As noble young masters, they had just exited the instance, and the tall and beautiful bunny girl said with a gentle voice:

"Two young masters, lunch is ready, would you like to dine now?"

Unlike a certain grassroots, who had to go out to order a serving of braised chicken for a meal.

Ling Jun forked a slice of crystal-clear ham, eating and saying:

"Exciting, exciting, I can savor this battle for a long time, your eye for talent is not bad, Yuan Shi does have a gift. However, what do you think are his chances in tomorrow's ultimate battle?"

Fu Qingyang's stern face showed a thoughtful expression, saying:

"Based solely on raw strength, twenty percent, with powerful items, thirty percent, but he has the heart of a strong man, add another ten percent, forty percent chance of winning."

"Still not fifty percent, eh, more likely to lose." Ling Jun sighed, then suddenly surprised:

"You just mentioned the heart of a strong man? You rarely use 'strong' to describe trash."

Fu Qingyang chewed on his roast meat, saying indifferently: "He's not like you guys, he's not trash."

Ling Jun was taken aback.

Fu Qingyang explained calmly:

"I've always believed that talent and strength are not directly related, as long as one has the heart of a strong man, even if it's an ant, it's worthy of respect. The heart of a strong man lies in never giving up, in striving for improvement, in facing difficulties in adversity.

"I've been observing since the She Ling Tunnel, up to now, without a doubt, Yuan Shi and I, we both have the heart of a strong man."

At this moment, a bunny girl holding a phone, in high heels, hurried to the table, saying respectfully:

"Young master, a call from the clan elder."

The caller ID on the phone—Elder No. 2 Immortal!

Fu Qingyang frowned slightly, put down his utensils, leisurely wiped his hands with a napkin, took the phone, and answered the call.

After listening for a moment, Fu Qingyang's face darkened, the corners of his eyes twitching slightly.

Ling Jun vaguely heard snippets from the speaker:

"What did you say to Yuan Shi Tian Zun.......the high-levels of the White Tiger Soldiers have held the family accountable, they hope you'll confess truthfully, otherwise, the investigation team will be stationed in the Fu family.......are you out of your mind, how could you leave such a big handle......what exactly did you say to Yuan Shi Tian Zun......"

The Fu family was anxious, they speculated that Fu Qingyang might have unintentionally revealed some shady matters to Yuan Shi Tian Zun.

Like harassing female subordinates, or messing up male-female relationships, or even more serious violations of law and discipline.

Otherwise, how could Yuan Shi Tian Zun say such shocking words like "disgraced" and "expelled from the White Tiger Soldiers."

The clan elders would hope Fu Qingyang could confess his mistakes, so they could quickly work on minimizing the issue.

Fu Qingyang silently hung up the phone, his face cold and merciless, saying sternly:

"I take back what I just said, Yuan Shi Tian Zun is also trash!"

........

In his sleep, Zhang Yuanqing's breath hitched, feeling something soft and bouncy slamming hard against his chest and abdomen.

"Jiang Yu'er, can you not be annoying, sitting on my stomach again......"

Zhang Yuanqing's eyes weren't open, but he knew it was his aunt teasing him.

The faint and lingering fragrance in the air was unique to his aunt.

"Time to eat~"

As she spoke, Jiang Yu'er lifted her hips and sat down hard.

If it had been before, he would have been suffocated by such a sit.

Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes, yawning while scrutinizing his aunt, who was dressed beautifully, wearing an off-shoulder women's T-shirt paired with high-waisted casual floor-length pants.

This outfit accentuated her full chest and slender waist.

Additionally, she had applied eyeliner, mascara, and a thin layer of foundation.

"Are you having a fit today?"

Zhang Yuanqing shifted his gaze away.

A woman with and without makeup is completely different, his aunt without makeup was already stunningly beautiful, with makeup, she was simply a goddess among humans.

Jiang Yu'er leaned to the side, collapsing next to Zhang Yuanqing, sighing:

"I have a day off today, and the wicked witch at home sent me on a blind date."

Zhang Yuanqing raised an eyebrow, his aunt usually went on blind dates without makeup, not caring about her attire.

It seemed that today's date had pleased her enough to make an effort to dress up?

His aunt sighed again:

"The guy is your aunt's distant nephew, should be a distant nephew, anyway, somewhat related, your aunt personally escorted me there, even forced me to wear makeup."

Rarely do grandma and aunt unite on the front of forcing you to go on blind dates...... Zhang Yuanqing asked:

"How was it, satisfied?"

"Satisfied, I'm very satisfied with the coffee at that shop." His aunt nodded.

Zhang Yuanqing looked disappointed:

"Sigh, couldn't marry you off again, what a pity, you'll just wither away at home into an old maid."

Hearing this, his aunt straightened her waist, climbed back on top, one hand pressing on her nephew's chest, the other fist clenched, ready to strike, shouting:

"Little beast, I'm going to beat you to death today."

After a playful dinner, Zhang Yuanqing retreated to his bedroom and picked up his phone to check messages.

The chat app showed dozens of unread messages.

Most were "congratulations" texts, from Xie Lingxi, from the captains of Kangyang District, from known wild practitioners.

Aunt Xiao Yuan also replied with a message:

"I don't believe it, liar!"

Don't believe? Zhang Yuanqing saw this message and instinctively got angry, feeling his character was being questioned.

"Believe it or not......" He typed this message, then suddenly his fingers stiffened, realizing that Aunt Xiao Yuan's reply was an "let's chat" or "Ah, really? Tell me about it" attitude.

When you're just trying to make great content at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

Not the point-and-stop conversation between ordinary friends.

Zhang Yuanqing silently deleted the unfinished content, reminding himself to remember the life coach's teachings, to analyze a woman's reply, think twice, and analyze thrice.

If he really couldn't come up with a reply, then just send a heart.

Zhang Yuanqing sent a heart first, then opened his notebook phone and logged into the official forum.

The forum would definitely have official walkers' evaluations of today's battle and predictions for tomorrow's ultimate battle.

He could screenshot and send it to Xiao Yuan.

At the At the same time, he definitely didn't know as much about Zhao Chenghuang as other official walkers, so their evaluations and predictions were very valuable.

He had expected the top post on the forum to be something like: #Shocking, Yuan Shi Tian Zun's comeback, a battle that made his name, truly a man who turns the world upside down#

But to his surprise, the top post on the forum was actually:

#After the headquarters' decision, a notice of criticism is issued to the top eight contestants of the Transcendent stage#

"In the instance battle, Yuan Shi Tian Zun took the lead in making indecent gestures, followed by Zhao Chenghuang, Earth Deity, Sun Miaomiao, Yuan Ting, Tian Xia Gui Huo, Qing Songzi, and Tone Deaf.

"After the incident, the eight individuals showed no shame but pride, repeatedly making indecent gestures, violating public order and morals, and severely damaging the official image."

"After the headquarters' decision, Yuan Shi Tian Zun is given a notice of criticism, with the deduction of mid-year awards, year-end bonuses, and this quarter's bonus, and three months' salary.

"The other seven individuals are given a notice of criticism, with the deduction of year-end bonuses and two months' salary.

"We hope that all colleagues will take this as a warning and maintain the official image, which is our common responsibility."

Thousands of comments were posted below.

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PS: I'll correct any typos later...