Chapter 678 - 29: Parting Gifts

At three in the afternoon, Tarlu returned from Luo Wang Island.

Elder Gan was greatly relieved to see her return safely, with no one following her, and looking as though she hadn’t been treated harshly.

Chen Chuan, however, felt this was perfectly normal.

The Single Stream Hall was normally secluded and had never posed a threat. Neither Canglong nor the Overseas Development Group would take any drastic measures against it right off the bat; there was simply no need.

A Third Limit Fighter, if won over, could become an asset. Choosing to antagonize one would only increase their own costs. Besides, if word got out, all the other Fighting Halls would grow wary, making the situation even harder to manage.

After Tarlu returned to the hut and drank the water a disciple handed her, Elder Gan asked with concern about what had happened.

Tarlu wiped her mouth and replied, "They just wanted me to re-register the Fighting Hall. They also stipulated that we must strictly monitor our numbers and immediately report the emergence of any new Third Limit Fighter. Additionally, they require us to train a batch of students for them every year. In exchange, they’ll pay us subsidies and offer support on top of the necessary tuition fees."

Elder Gan thought it over. Training students for outsiders wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; in fact, it could be a way to earn some money.

The Single Stream Hall wasn’t possessive of its Secret Transmissions, but he worried that over time, the corporations would exert more and more influence over the Fighting Hall, until they could no longer make their own decisions.

Tarlu added, "They said it won’t just be our Single Stream Hall. They’re going to do the same for all the other Fighting Halls, including the three great halls."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Elder Gan felt it was actually good news.

If everyone was subject to the same rules, then the three great halls would surely face far stricter regulations than they would. This was especially true for Anyao Hall, which would make it difficult for them to cause any more trouble for the Single Stream Hall in the future.

’If this rule is implemented across the board, the three great halls will undoubtedly be hit hard,’ a thought crossed Chen Chuan’s mind.

And it was inevitable, as the three great halls all had ties, to varying degrees, with the Ferris Wheel Company.

This was particularly true for Wind Forest Hall. Having grown closest to the Ferris Wheel Company over the years, it had received the most resources and had the largest number of disciples among the three great halls.

But now that Ferris Wheel was gone, the three great halls were certain to face continuous pressure and suppression from the other two corporations.

Tarlu said, "They also mentioned they’re planning to build a power station on the island and will provide us with technicians and experts. They also said they’d help us build roads, open schools, construct windbreak facilities, and provide agricultural technology and so on."

"Anyway, it’s a lot of stuff. But it’s not all free. They said they could offer low-interest and interest-free loans. I couldn’t make heads or tails of it, so I brought all the documents back."

She gestured, and a disciple who had accompanied her immediately pulled a thick stack of documents from a satchel.

Elder Gan took them with a serious expression. He flipped through them briefly and sighed, "We don’t need these things, but the villagers below desperately do."

He thought for a moment, then put the documents away, planning to read them slowly later. He asked with concern, "Tarlu, did they... try to ask about the Rift?"

He worried that all of this was just a pretext, that their real goal was the Rift. The anomaly in the nearby sea was obvious, and now that the Overseas Development Group had arrived, they only needed to do a little investigating to find out the specifics of the situation.

This was a Rift, after all. There was no way these major corporations would just let it be.

Tarlu shook her head. "No."

Elder Gan let out a small sigh of relief. "Still," he said, "Tarlu has already obtained the Secret Transmission from within the Rift. After Mr. Chen is finished with it this time, we should avoid activating it as much as possible unless there are special circumstances. That way, they won’t be able to find it."

Chen Chuan didn’t comment on this. Strictly speaking, the Rift now belonged to the Pure Sect. He figured the sect would surely have its own arrangements for how to handle it.

Seeing that Tarlu had returned unharmed, he bid the two of them farewell and went to the Lotus Seat to begin his meditation.

The following period was calm and uneventful. No one came to disturb him, and before he knew it, it was August twentieth.

Chen Chuan emerged from his cultivation and glanced at his watch. He then stood up. The branches before him slowly retracted, and the light faded and closed.

Today was the final day of his planned cultivation. He intended to set off on his return journey today.

He sensed his own Spiritual Power. After such a long period of cultivation, it had improved dramatically, a truly significant advancement.

However, it had yet to reach its absolute peak. Because his physical foundation was so strong, it meant his spirit had a much higher ceiling.

This was a good thing, but it also meant he would need to invest even more resources and time into his cultivation.

So, after he returned, he would need to find other ways to improve it further.

’The Rift...’

He mulled it over. A few ideas had already begun to form in his mind.

But that was a matter for later. For now, it was about time to leave.

He picked up the Snow Monarch Blade, grabbed his waterproof bag, and walked out of the Rift, swimming up toward the brightly glowing seawater above.

Once he was back on the cliff ledge, he made a hand gesture. Chaoming let out a sharp cry from the sky and landed beside him.

After tidying up a bit, he found Tarlu and Elder Gan and said, "It’s time for me to leave."

He had mentioned this two days prior, so they were already prepared.

Elder Gan smiled and said, "Mr. Chen, you’ve helped the Single Stream Hall greatly this time. Tarlu and I discussed it, and we’d like to give you something to show our gratitude. We don’t have many fine things on this island, but we do have some local specialties."

He took out a jar, patted it, and said, "Back when Master Hongfa traveled east to this island, he carried nothing but a roll of Scripture and a single bamboo staff."

"He later planted that staff on the island, and a bamboo grove grew from it. Every year, it produces some fruit, which we call ’Enlightenment Fruit’."

"This fruit has a chance of increasing a person’s potential and can be consumed by people of any age. However, it works for some and not for others. If you feel no effect after the first time, taking it again will be useless. This is all we harvested this year, so we’d like to give this jar to you, Mr. Chen."

Chen Chuan heard this and knew it was truly something valuable. He nodded and said, "Alright, I’ll accept it then."

Elder Gan smiled again and took a set of clothes from a disciple beside him.

"This is a set of training clothes woven using traditional methods from the silk of ’sea cotton worms’ we gather from the ocean. The masters and elders of our hall have worn garments like these for generations. They offer good protection and are very breathable. While they can’t compare to modern clothes made from biomaterials, they are far more comfortable to wear. Please, Mr. Chen, keep them as a memento."

Chen Chuan nodded. "Thank you."

"And this..."

Elder Gan brought over a long, cloth-wrapped object. He unwrapped it in front of Chen Chuan, revealing a long bone with a series of sharp ridges along its edge. It looked somewhat like the spine of some creature.

"An ancestor of our hall once killed a giant sea monster that came out of the Rift. After cutting it open, he discovered this inside."

"We’ve always tried to figure out its use. We later discovered that anyone who cultivates Spiritual Power can use this to fight the sea monster in their dreams and gain experience from it."

"I hear that the corporations call things like this... ’Lost Objects’..."

"A Lost Object..."

Chen Chuan’s heart stirred slightly. He knew about these. Both the corporations and the government were trying to collect them, and it was said that much of the corporations’ technological development was related to them. He never expected the Single Stream Hall would be willing to give one to him.

If sold to the government or a corporation, this item would be worth a considerable amount.

He said, "Elder Gan, Tarlu, this gift is too valuable."

Elder Gan said earnestly, "Mr. Chen, we know its value, but we’ve never had any intention of selling it. To us, it’s just a memento and a training aid."

"And since you helped us obtain those Secret Transmissions, this item is no longer of much use to us."

Tarlu said, "That’s right. My teacher and I have both used it a few times, but we didn’t gain much from it. It’s not very useful to us here. Mr. Chen, we really have nothing else to express our gratitude with. Please accept it."

Chen Chuan considered it for a moment, then nodded. "Thank you. In that case, if the island encounters any trouble or difficulties in the future, please be sure to let me know."

Tarlu smiled and said, "Of course, comrade!"

Chen Chuan nodded.

After bidding them farewell, he descended the mountain. As he walked down, students he had taught kept giving him things from their homes.

He had arrived with only a simple suitcase, but now he was leaving with a bundle full of gifts.

When he reached the dock, he took a group photo with everyone, and they saw him off onto the ferry.

He had arrived on a sailboat, but now he was on a small ferry. They said it was a gift from the Overseas Development Group to make travel between the islands more convenient.

The boat itself was free, but they had to buy the algae oil it required. However, the Single Stream Hall had its own land and plantations, so they could afford it.

As the ferry pulled away from the shore, Chen Chuan stood in the open-air cabin, watching Tarlu, Elder Gan, and all the disciples on the dock. They waved goodbye continuously. Some of the shorter ones, afraid he wouldn’t see them, were even jumping up and down.

He couldn’t help but smile and raised his hand to wave back.

Chaoming circled a few times in the sky, making a few extra passes over the teenagers and children before finally following the boat.

He only sat down after Feiguang Island had shrunk to a small dot in the distance.

The boat sped back quickly. His journey here had taken a full morning, but the return trip took less than two hours before Luo Wang Island came into view.

As they passed the sea area where a fifty-thousand reward had been offered to retrieve a ring, he noticed there were no longer any boats there.

He asked one of the crew members about it and was told that the Overseas Development Group had dispersed those people a few days ago. They claimed the couple who dropped the ring were con artists, the ring was worthless, and the supposed reward was fake. As a result, no one came back.

’The ring might be fake,’ he thought, ’but their purpose in searching for something was real.’ In the next moment, the docks of Luo Wang Island appeared ahead.

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