Calming down, Zhang Guodong put this extremely precious gem into his heart. Even if he could exchange it for a top-tier magic weapon or a high-grade storage bag, he wouldn't trade it.
After putting it away, Zhang Guodong glanced at the mountain peak with its newly added ninety-nine steps, and resolutely walked towards the mist where Da Jinjiao and the others had disappeared.
Although the steps appeared within Peach Blossom Spring, Zhang Guodong didn't want to act rashly at the moment; he decided to explore further upon returning. As for the question that might arise—why did Zhang Guodong dare to enter through the mist?—that's a different story.
Monsters have an extremely high sense of danger. Zhang Guodong was certain that the roars of the Great Golden Horned Beasts were tinged with joy. That's it. There shouldn't be any danger in the River Peak.
That is indeed the case.
Without pausing, Zhang Guodong stepped into the mist. In a fleeting moment, he found himself in a vast, unfamiliar world. Looking down, he saw mountains and rivers, and the roars of giant golden horns echoed from the rivers and forests, followed by the calls of Big Black and other animals. However, no other animals lived in these continuous mountain forests.
When Zhang Guodong looked at the spot where he was, his mouth dropped open. It was like a staircase leading to heaven, overlooking all living beings and offering a panoramic view of the world.
"It truly is a world of mountains and rivers. However, these realms are not the real Great Thousand Worlds, but rather Lesser Thousand Worlds. One of them is a world that only has mountains, forests, and rivers, with abundant spiritual energy a thousand times that of the outside world. It is much larger, covering an area of a hundred square kilometers, but it was built for the demon beasts!"
Beside it, there is an inscription that records this world, but this stone tablet is not ordinary. It is just a piece of top-grade material, Crimson Dragon Stone, on which the inscription is engraved.
What a grand gesture!
This red dragon stone, which is three meters high and two meters wide, is priceless. It is so huge that it was used to record some words. It is very extravagant!
However, Zhang Guodong also understood. The environment of this world was created for demonic beasts, suitable for their survival, but not for humans. Enriching these realms was something he had to do himself.
That river was crystal clear, its surface shimmering like a ribbon of white jade across the earth. It was incredibly beautiful.
Zhang Guodong didn't know where its source was or where its end was, but he sensed that there were a large number of small creatures in the river, which could be called fish. Apart from that, there were no powerful monsters.
For creatures like the Great Golden Horn, they can feed on fish in the river and grow and evolve. This is definitely an excellent habitat for monsters. Zhang Guodong thought to himself.
With the Golden Horned Beast and its companions finally finding an excellent place to evolve and grow, Zhang Guodong was naturally relieved. He changed his clothes and left Peach Blossom Spring.
"I wonder how much time has passed outside. Fatty and the others should have successfully caught those thieves by now, right? These days, thieves are really crazy when they encounter big profits. They even dare to go up against armed police officers like Jin Xiangyang."
When he reappeared in the woods, it was already broad daylight outside. Checking the time, Zhang Guodong felt relieved; it had only taken him nearly four hours to recover from his injury the following morning.
Zhang Guodong held his breath, listened quietly in the woods for a while, sensed his surroundings, and made sure it was safe before emerging and heading down the mountain.
Little did they know, the fat man had actually captured twenty thieves. On his own side, two were lightly wounded and one seriously wounded. The seriously wounded man's arm was nearly severed with a single blow, but at the critical moment, the fat man ordered Jin Xiangyang to fire decisively. One shot nearly killed one of the thieves, and four others were shot but didn't die; their screams, however, shocked many. Having captured the thieves, they immediately requested backup from the district police station. The fat man then looked back and saw that Zhang Guodong was missing, and he became somewhat anxious.
Zhang Guodong left in a hurry. Fatty only heard Zhang Guodong say "I'm leaving for a while." When he asked Jin Xiangyang and the others, no one saw where Zhang Guodong went or which direction he went.
But they needed manpower at the scene, and they couldn't tell anyone about the search for Zhang Guodong, so Fatty could only wait until the district public security bureau took over.
Jiang Lihan naturally had to take care of the fat man, so he sent twenty policemen over that very night. He also organized a surprise interrogation and the arrest of the other escaped thieves.
This early takeover greatly reduced the pressure on the township government. Furthermore, the commotion had already brought the daylight to a close. Luo Jianhui received a phone call from Fatty reporting this, and quickly dispatched a large contingent of leaders from the Discipline Inspection Commission, Public Security Bureau, and Cultural Relics Bureau to Lishi Village ahead of schedule to take over the final tasks. This included the two Cultural Relics Bureau officials who had violated regulations.
It's worth mentioning that the director of the Cultural Relics Bureau was furious, his face turning ashen, and he lost face in front of his colleagues of the same rank. The director berated the two men for forgetting organizational discipline and party principles. But no matter how much he scolded them, Ji Mai's people were going to take over. This matter could no longer be handled internally; the family scandal was about to be aired publicly.
At 10 a.m., everyone could finally relax a bit.
At this moment, Fatty was in the township government office, having just sat down. Just now, after communicating with Secretary Chang, they jointly proposed convening a township party committee meeting. Fatty gave a brief report on the ancient tomb incident, and then, at the meeting, the so-called party committee members discussed the aftermath, made preliminary arrangements, and formed a so-called resolution, which was passed. The township party committee and government will organize some people to fully cooperate with the work of the comrades above. However, since the ancient tomb is located in Zhangba Township, some people still have some reservations about it.
However, there was a significant disagreement on this matter. The fat man said, "This matter is currently being handled by the district, and things are in a mess right now. I think we should wait until the comrades in the district have sorted things out before discussing it further." Everyone thought that the comrades from the district, after all, were from a higher-level unit, and if they went to cause trouble, they would probably be hated. Therefore, the suggestion to get involved naturally fell through.
After the meeting, the fat man immediately returned to his office. A short while later, a tired-looking Jin Xiangyang arrived.
"Old Jin, sit down. Haven't you noticed yet?" Fatty acknowledged Jin Xiangyang's newfound respect. Their relationship had improved significantly after this collaboration, with "Comrade Xiangyang" becoming "Old Jin." Jin Xiangyang was now essentially one of Fatty's men.
This time, Zheng Chun tried to evade responsibility by handing over the entire protection of the ancient tomb to Jin Xiangyang. Unexpectedly, Jin Xiangyang, at the most crucial moment, boldly brought weapons. It should be noted that Jin Xiangyang was always in charge of managing the logistical equipment. However, the use of firearms required permission from Zheng Chun; without the director's order, weapons could not be used arbitrarily.
But Zheng Chun suffered a major setback this time. He appointed Jin Xiangyang with full authority, saying he could act as he saw fit. This could be interpreted in many ways, but the fat man instructed Jin Xiangyang to discreetly carry weapons. And sure enough, Jin Xiangyang and his men carried guns.
These crazed thieves had knives and steel bars as weapons, but no guns. The sound of gunfire was far too conspicuous in the night. And it was precisely this lack of firearms that cost them dearly.
The duel between guns and knives was almost entirely one-sided.
"Mayor, I've quietly searched the area, but I haven't found Mr. Zhang," Jin Xiangyang said in a low voice, half his backside resting on the sofa. "Should we ask your friend?"
This matter is a secret. If Fatty hadn't mentioned that Zhang Guodong had reminded him of what happened that night, Jin Xiangyang might have suspected that Zhang Guodong's sudden disappearance was related to this.
"No, it's only been four hours. If they find out, things will get chaotic. Let's wait a bit longer," the fat man said, shaking his head.
He was puzzled. Where had Zhang Guodong gone? He thought that if Zhang Guodong's women found out, he'd be in serious trouble. "Boss, I'll call you 'Boss,' okay? You left without even saying where you were going?"
Just then, Xiao Chu, a clerk from the Party and Government Office, knocked on the door and came in.
"Mayor, Mr. Zhang wants to see you this evening!" Chu said. This clerk, Xiao Chu, was essentially Fatty's secretary, and he had naturally met Zhang Guodong before.
"Mr. Zhang?" Fatty and Jin Xiangyang didn't react for a moment.
"Your classmate, Mr. Zhang Guodong!" Xiao Chu prompted.
"Ah, let him in!" The fat man was overjoyed. Damn, he's back alive! The fat man was momentarily flustered, but he didn't go out to greet him personally. There were many eyes watching him in the township government compound; it was best to keep a low profile. "Jin Xiangyang then stood up and said," the fat man waved and laughed. Jin Xiangyang was even more excited now; Township Head Wang was treating him like one of his own.
"Wang Kang, this office isn't very nice, is it?" Zhang Guodong was visiting Fatty's office for the first time, so he didn't need Xiao Chu to announce him. He simply pushed open the door, glanced around, and smiled. Xiao Chu had already brought tea, poured tea for the three of them, and then left, closing the door behind her.
The fat man stepped out from behind his desk. The three of them sat down, and Zhang Guodong nodded to Jin Xiangyang.
"Damn, you're rich, I'm just a salaried worker, how can I compare to you? Guodong, this is Deputy Chief Jin Xiangyang from the police station. We really owe him a lot this time!" the fat man cursed, revealing their close relationship. "He's my college classmate and best friend, Zhang Guodong!"
"Hello, Mr. Zhang!" Jin Xiangyang stood up respectfully, extending both hands. Zhang Guodong, naturally, couldn't refuse the fat man's request, so he stood up, shook hands with him, and said with a smile, "Director Jin, you're too kind. Wang Kang's work will need your support in the future! Come, let's toast you with tea instead of wine! When we have time, let's all have a drink together!"
Jin Xiangyang immediately felt Zhang Guodong's respect, and being valued felt wonderful. He repeatedly said he didn't deserve it. He promised to treat everyone another day.
The three chatted for a while. Jin Xiangyang then took his leave, but this time the fat man didn't try to stop him. As a leader, it's best to leave things unsaid; too much of a good thing can be bad. Maintaining a certain distance from subordinates is more appropriate.
As soon as the outsiders left, the fat man sprawled out on the sofa, completely disregarding his image, and said bluntly, "Tell me, where have you been? Jin Xiangyang secretly searched everywhere but couldn't find you! Luckily it's only been four hours. If it had been any longer, how would I explain it to my brothers and sisters-in-law?"
It was as if they were about to interrogate him. The fat man's suspicions were certainly not unfounded.
But who is Zhang Guodong? How could he be fooled? He smiled slightly.
"Tch, your business isn't over yet. Let's worry about your own affairs first. Why were so many people stealing this time? What would you have done if Jin Xiangyang and his men hadn't brought guns? I think there's a traitor in your police station!" Zhang Guodong sneered. "Besides, I heard there used to be a stone tablet on that field, used as a boundary marker, but it's gone now."
The fat man was indeed very unwilling to let Zhang Guodong dodge the topic, but what Zhang Guodong said made him have to take it seriously.
"You mean Zheng Chun?" the fat man asked, frowning.
Defense: Development is the mainstream. Since this will also come up with novel "agriculture, materials." This is the consequence of not having an outline, but for this volume, Heaven now has a plan. So everyone be patient. Interesting content will unfold soon.
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