Li Yundong finished his meal and spent the afternoon in class reading a newly borrowed book. At dusk, he went to the library after school hours and borrowed two more books. The speed at which he devoured literature left the elderly librarian astonished. When the old man couldn't help but quiz him with several questions, Li answered fluently. Finally convinced, the librarian muttered curses under his breath as he shook his head and fetched more books for Li.

The next day, Li Yundong still found no sign of Zhou Qin in class. He asked both Sun Li and their homeroom teacher, only to receive identical answers: "We don't know!"

Li Yundong grew increasingly puzzled, "Zhou Qin has never skipped class without reason before!"

After school that afternoon, he took a shot at checking his bank account with his card. To his surprise, all the overdrafts had been replenished - and there was now over ten thousand more yuan in it.

Shocked by this revelation, Li immediately held up the card and rushed to ask Zi Yuan: "Did you pay back my money?"

Zi Yuan sat cross-legged on the living room floor meditating. Her fingers formed a mudra while her palms rested against her thighs, projecting an aura of tranquil elegance. Without opening her eyes, she simply replied, "Yes."

Li asked, "Why did you help me repay it?"

She responded, "You need money for cultivation. Someone constantly burdened by daily survival can't possibly focus on spiritual growth!"

Though Li found her reasoning sound, he felt uneasy inside. A grown man being financially supported by a woman was an awkward situation indeed.

This further strengthened his resolve to become self-sufficient in the future - not just excel in cultivation but establish his own career and never rely on charity again!

Yet Li Yundong knew now wasn't the time for pride or stubbornness, lest he end up destitute. As Zi Yuan said, if a cultivator couldn't even afford three meals a day, what good were their spiritual practices?

"Among the Five Essentials of Cultivation - Method, Wealth, Companionship, Location and Tools - even the 'Location' requirement demands substantial funds. And don't get me started on cultivation artifacts!" His Seven Precious Artifact Fan had fetched two million from Wu Hao alone.

It was clear that cultivating tools demanded real money to maintain.

Without pretense, Li nodded and told Zi Yuan, "Consider it a loan then. I'll repay you someday."

Zi Yuan smiled without opening her eyes, saying nothing further.

Not wanting to disturb her meditation, Li quietly left after closing the door behind him.

Only when he had gone did Zi Yuan slowly open her eyes, gazing thoughtfully with a knowing smile before once again shutting them closed.

Li Yundong immediately rushed to the bank and withdrew two thousand yuan. Filling his wallet to bursting point, he patted it appreciatively - finally feeling grounded. He mused aloud, "Indeed money is the backbone of heroes! While it can't directly buy or power, without it even basic cultivation becomes impossible. Just trying to treat someone to a meal requires agonizing calculations!"

"Now that I have funds, conversations feel more confident. There's truth in 'wealth brings boldness'!" He sarcastically concluded before heading straight for the electronics store.

Though he'd sold his phone along the spiritual path, he had kept the SIM card. After selecting a new phone at random from the mall, Li inserted his old SIM and immediately called Su Chan. The automated message that followed said: "The number you've dialed is out of coverage area. Please try again later."

"Come on? Seriously?" Glancing at his phone, Li muttered under his breath, "Has this little witch run into some remote mountains?"

With no choice but to text her instead: "Dear girl, I read your note and miss you dearly. My foundation cultivation is complete - once I pass the heavenly tribulation, I'll come get you back. Where are you now?"

After sending the message, Li pulled up Zhou Qin's number from his contact list and dialed.

The same automated response played: "We're sorry, the number you've called has been turned off..."

Before the recording finished, Li stared at his phone in disbelief, muttering, "Unbelievable! How could both of them disappear like this? This is truly bizarre!"

While Li Yundong puzzled over these events, somewhere within a military compound in Tiannan City, Zhou Qin was enduring intense interrogation.

"Comrade Zhou Qin," boomed an official voice, "I must remind you that as the sole eyewitness to this case and daughter of high-ranking officials, protecting offenders and resisting investigation goes directly against our Party's principles!"

In a stark room containing only a table, chairs and a glaring overhead lamp, a man in grey Zhongshan suit slammed his hand on the surface, berating Zhou Qin with fierce intensity.

Beside him sat a woman in black business attire taking meticulous notes as official statements were recorded.

The only window behind Zhou Qin was covered by thick curtains, plunging the room into oppressive darkness. The sole illumination fell harshly upon Zhou, making her pale face look even more ghostly under the bright light.

What happened to He Shao's disappearance had triggered a political earthquake in Tiannan City. As son of an influential provincial leader, his vanishing act was no small matter!

Both Li Yundong and Zhou Qin were key witnesses captured on camera interacting with He Shao before he disappeared. Su Chan, Zi Yuan, and Ruan Hongling remained untraceable due to their spiritual abilities evading surveillance.

Initially investigators focused on Li through traffic footage, but upon examining the crime scene, they found only footprints belonging to He Shao and an ominous crater scorched by lightning - no other clues whatsoever!

It was as if He Shao had vanished into thin air after being struck by a bolt from the blue.

He's family refused to accept this conclusion. After over a month of fruitless searching, authorities were forced to declare he likely dead with Li Yundong labeled the primary suspect despite lacking concrete evidence connecting him directly to murder - unless one assumed Li could summon heavenly lightning...

Yet the investigation had hit an impasse. More troubling was the sense that some higher force was actively hindering progress.

Those who knew how things worked in the system recognized resistance from another high-ranking family when challenging a provincial power player.

Now caught between two pressures, the task force felt tempted to abandon further pursuit.

But He's family wanted nothing more than truth: their only son gone missing after a lifetime of misconduct! Whether dead or alive remained unknown!

Determined, they demanded exhaustive investigation. Yet chasing Li Yundong proved impossible as he too had seemingly vanished - so naturally suspicion shifted toward Zhou Qin.

This wealthy daughter from the witness stand must know everything! Breaking her would solve the case.

Indeed they did grasp the core issue by targeting Zhou, but underestimated how formidable she was.

From beginning to end, Zhou's testimony contained almost no falsehoods. She detailed He Shao's attempted assault on Ding Nan and subsequent attacks on Deng Yu and Deng Jiao that led to their deaths from falling. Then she described his fearful escape as Li Yundong chased him down through streets where another elderly woman died in the collision, followed by a youth being shot dead during He's frantic flight.

Initially investigators had no objections given corroborating evidence - but when Zhou reached critical testimony, she conveniently omitted how lightning had been summoned by Li. Instead she claimed old heaven itself punished He Shao for his sins with thunderbolts!

The detectives paled at this statement, clutching the transcript like a hot potato.

According to her account, He Shao was an irrevocably evil soul that even the heavens condemned through divine punishment - if the He family learned this narrative...

They interrogated Zhou rigorously about these claims. She refused to recant despite knowing how dangerous her statements were. When asked directly if she wanted him dead, Zhou coldly replied: "Certainly! Any creature like this deserves extermination!"

Pressed further on motives, Zhou snapped, "Check his record yourself before asking me why I hate him! If you witnessed your classmates die from humiliation he inflicted, what would be your reaction?"

When accused of murdering He Shao directly, she retorted with biting sarcasm: "I also despise Japanese people. Does that mean the thousands who die there daily are my doing?"

Her defiant attitude turned investigators into exasperated fools. This girl was as impervious as a tempered copper bean!

Moreover, her own high-ranking background prevented using harsh interrogation tactics. The case quickly hit another dead end.

Human ingenuity however proved limitless. One detective suggested passing the report to He's family for their decision.

This strategy worked - upon receiving the document, the He clan exploded into action.

After reading Zhou's testimony, old man He flew into a rage at his son's condemnation. He immediately directed fury toward both Zhou and her family, vowing, "If you want my family to perish without heirs, we'll see how well your family fares!"

A political tempest soon erupted. The He clan mobilized allies to attack the once-friendly Zhou family with lightning speed.

In bureaucratic circles, who didn't have some dirt under their collar?

Soon Zhou Keqiang's younger brother was arrested for corruption charges. Zhou himself faced disciplinary investigation while two special envoys from his family took over monitoring at Tiannan Military District.

Just two months prior, Zhou Qin had been an elite with all privileges - now she suddenly found herself stripped of everything, becoming a 20-year-old girl engulfed in terrifying storm clouds!

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