Chapter 565 — None of Them Came to School

Although Wei Zhao privately admitted that, having just advanced to the Profound Stage, he too could reach this speed, the old man gave off no impression of possessing any power at all.

Wei Zhao drove the beat-up van as if it were a sports car, and in the blink of an eye, Mo Kongwu finally vanished. Wei Zhao immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

But the peace did not last. Wei Zhao was still waiting at a red light when a head hung down upside down from the top of the windshield, accompanied by a hand that began tapping on the glass.

"My God!" Wei Zhao thought to himself, glad that his nerves were relatively strong. Anyone else would have been scared to death by this old freak. How had the thing gotten onto the roof of his car? Could it be that he had clambered on the very instant Wei Zhao accelerated?

Seeing there was no way to shake him off, Wei Zhao had no choice but to pull over and get out of the car. Sure enough, there sat the penniless monk Mo Kongwu on the roof, looking perfectly at ease, half a chicken foot in his hand.

"Old man, what exactly do you want? Do I even know you?" Wei Zhao thought himself incredibly unlucky — how on earth had he run into someone like this?

"No, you don't," Mo Kongwu said, hopping down from the roof. "But my master sent me to check on you. There is far too much hostile energy in your body, and it has begun to undermine the foundation of your true qi. If it is not purged in time, a bloody calamity awaits you."

Wei Zhao frowned. Ordinarily, upon hearing an old man spout such nonsense, he would have simply turned and walked away. But having witnessed the man's terrifying speed and now hearing him speak of "true qi," Wei Zhao felt something was off about him. "You know about true qi?"

"Naturally. I also know that you possess the peak strength of the late Yellow Stage and are on the verge of a breakthrough. However, the hostile energy in your body will obstruct the intake of true qi. If you attempt to force a breakthrough, at best you will be gravely injured; at worst, you will die." Mo Kongwu spoke in an unhurried, measured tone.

Wei Zhao frowned again. The old man knew about the Yellow Stage too? But hearing him call Wei Zhao a peak late Yellow Stage practitioner, Wei Zhao sneered inwardly. He had thought the old man might actually have some ability, but it seemed the fellow had merely picked up some rumor somewhere and was now using it to bluff him.

Had this been any day before today, Wei Zhao might well have believed him. But Wei Zhao had just reached the Profound Stage, so naturally he would not be swayed by the old man's words.

"Oh, is that so?" Wei Zhao asked mildly, even as his hand suddenly struck out, delivering a palm blow straight at the old man.

Of course, Wei Zhao had no intention of actually hurting the old man. He simply wanted to test his depth — to see whether he truly had some ability or was nothing but a charlatan.

Seeing Wei Zhao strike, Mo Kongwu was unfazed and blocked it casually. But then he let out a surprised "Hm?" and stared at Wei Zhao in astonishment. "You broke through? You're at the early Profound Stage?"

Wei Zhao's heart jolted! That the old man could so effortlessly neutralize his attack was remarkable enough, but to also name his current level — that proved the old man was anything but ordinary! Wei Zhao had not used his full strength, but to easily deflect a strike from a Profound Stage practitioner, one would have to possess at least Profound Stage power of one's own. Anything less was simply impossible.

But what on earth was this old man's level? Wei Zhao was genuinely stunned. Back when he was in the Yellow Stage, he had been able to see through Wu Gonggao's Profound Stage power from a rank below. Yet now, despite having become a Profound Stage practitioner himself, he still could not gauge the old man's strength.

"Who exactly are you?" Wei Zhao eyed the old man with newfound wariness.

"How strange — you've already broken through, and you're perfectly fine..." Mo Kongwu looked thoroughly perplexed, shaking his head. "My master said you were in danger. Master wouldn't lie to me, would he?"

"Old man, what are you talking about? Who is your master?" Wei Zhao asked.

"You're fine now. Goodbye." Mo Kongwu simply waved a hand, turned, and ran. In an instant he became a blur and vanished from Wei Zhao's sight.

Wei Zhao envied that kind of speed. He wanted to give chase but knew he could never catch up.

Although he was bewildered by Mo Kongwu's identity, Wei Zhao could do nothing about it. Still, at the very least, the old man seemed to bear no ill will toward him — he genuinely appeared to have come to help.

After all, only yesterday Wei Zhao had still been at the late Yellow Stage, and his breakthrough had taken mere hours overnight! Yet this "master" Mo Kongwu spoke of knew him so intimately. It made Wei Zhao wonder — just who in the world was this master?

But these questions would have to wait for answers, since Mo Kongwu had already disappeared. There was no point in dwelling on it, so Wei Zhao could only push these bizarre events to the back of his mind, get back in his car, and drive toward the school.

When the first period of the morning ended, Wei Zhao went to Class Nine, Senior Three to find Tang Zhi. To his surprise, she had not come to school today! He tried her phone again — still powered off.

He had meant to look for Liu Xinlan and ask her about it, but Liu Xinlan had not come to school either.

This time Wei Zhao was rather puzzled. Had the two of them arranged it beforehand? Why had neither of them shown up?

But no matter how it was, with neither of them to be found, Wei Zhao had no choice but to return to the classroom.

Kang Xiaofeng was eager to tell Wei Zhao about what had happened the day before, but Wei Zhao had gone out the moment class ended. Seeing Wei Zhao come back now, Kang Xiaofeng was just about to speak when the homeroom teacher, Mr. Liu, walked in and stepped up to the podium. "Quiet down, everyone. There's something important I need to tell you all."

The class fell silent at once. Even though it was break time, no one dared to ignore the homeroom teacher.

"I have some unfortunate news to share. Our classmate Zhong Yongliang was abducted outside the school yesterday morning by persons unknown. They removed one of his kidneys and then left him at the entrance of the First People's Hospital!" Mr. Liu had just received a call from Zhong Fabai, asking to excuse Zhong Yongliang from school.

"What—" The whole class erupted in an uproar! The news was far too shocking. Such a terrible thing had actually befallen Zhong Yongliang, and while his classmates pitied him, they were also secretly worrying whether the same fate might one day fall on them!

Though senior students in their third year of high school hardly paid attention to the news anymore, everyone had heard about the recent string of vicious cases in Songshan City in which vagrants and beggars had been seized and had their kidneys cut out. After all, word spread from person to person, and it spread in a most terrifying way!

Still, everyone had assumed that the gang was targeting vagrants and beggars, that they would not go after ordinary people. So although they found it horrifying, they had not connected it to themselves! And now, today, the dreadful news about Zhong Yongliang showed that the kidney-harvesting ring had begun to prey on ordinary people!