Demonic King of the Metropolis - Chapter 92 - A Subtle Exchange of Affection

“I need to go to the toilet. You go find him first,” Wang Qianya said, her tone casual. Chen Shuran didn’t think much of it. Seeing that Tang Jie seemed to be heading upstairs, she nodded at Wang Qianya and walked toward Tang Jie.

Wang Qianya watched Chen Shuran head toward Tang Jie. A trace of guilt flashed across her face as she turned and ascended the stairs, heading toward the other exit on the second floor.

“Tang Jie!” Tang Jie, who was searching for someone in the dance floor crowd, immediately looked up at hearing the familiar voice. When he saw Chen Shuran descending the stairs, he quickly pushed through the crowd and rushed to her side.

“Are you okay? What happened just now?” Tang Jie scanned her from head to toe with a look of concern and nervousness. Hearing his question, Chen Shuran couldn’t hold back her tears. She leaned into Tang Jie, her emotions spilling over.

“Tell me, are you okay or not?” Tang Jie asked anxiously, his worry intensifying at the sight of her tears.

“I’m fine,” Chen Shuran said after a long pause, shaking her head. Upon hearing her words, Tang Jie heaved an audible sigh of relief, feeling as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

“Where did you go earlier? And where’s Qianya?” Now reassured that Chen Shuran was safe, Tang Jie noticed that Wang Qianya was nowhere to be seen. Only then did he think to ask about her.

“She said she needed to go to the toilet and told me to come and find you,” Chen Shuran explained briefly, recounting what had happened. As Tang Jie listened, his fists unconsciously clenched with tension.

“Where is he? Take me to him!” Tang Jie asked through gritted teeth, anger flashing in his eyes. It was clear he was ready to tear someone apart.

Seeing Tang Jie’s reaction, Chen Shuran suddenly thought of Jiang Dong, who had been dealt with by Wang Qianya. She couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. Her face reddened with embarrassment at the thought of Tang Jie confronting the scene. She decided it was better not to bring him there.

“Forget it. Let’s just go home. I don’t want to stay here any longer,” Chen Shuran suggested. Seeing her reluctance, Tang Jie nodded, though inwardly he vowed to make things right and get payback for Chen Shuran another day.

However, after waiting for some time, Wang Qianya still hadn’t returned. Finding it odd, Chen Shuran suggested they go upstairs to look for her. Just as they were about to head up, Tang Jie received a call from Wang Qianya. She told him she had already left and apologized for her mistake that had almost caused harm to Chen Shuran. She asked Tang Jie to relay her sincere apologies to Chen Shuran.

Tang Jie tried to ask where she was, but Wang Qianya abruptly hung up after finishing her message. Tang Jie stood frozen for a moment, a strange and indescribable feeling welling up inside him. It was a discomfort that he couldn’t quite put into words.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Shuran asked with concern, noticing Tang Jie standing there in a daze.

“Nothing. Let’s go back. No need to wait for her,” Tang Jie replied. With that, he led Chen Shuran toward the bar’s exit.

“Where did she go? Why aren’t we waiting for her?” Chen Shuran asked again once they stepped outside. Tang Jie could only explain that Wang Qianya had already left on her own and relayed the message she had asked him to pass along.

“It’s not really your fault. I was too careless and fell into that despicable man’s trap. I’m fine now-why would she blame herself?” Chen Shuran sighed, her tone tinged with regret. Tang Jie said nothing. He understood that Wang Qianya wasn’t only apologizing for what had happened earlier; she was blaming herself for not following through on her promise to take proper care of Chen Shuran.

Ah… forget it, Tang Jie thought. As long as nothing happened to Chen Shuran, Wang Qianya could leave if that’s what she wanted. After all, she could at least temporarily protect herself.

With those thoughts, Tang Jie and Chen Shuran returned to the villa. After freshening up, Chen Shuran went to bed. Tang Jie, however, couldn’t sleep. Thinking about the events of the past few days, he felt that the hidden hand behind everything was closing in on him. Suddenly remembering the true qi within his body, he decided to sit in seated meditation and focus his mind. He sensed the true qi moving up and down through his body, yet it didn’t seem to have grown stronger than before. He felt a twinge of dissatisfaction.

Tang Jie took out the black iron piece given to him by the fortune-telling old man. Once again, he quieted his mind and focused his energy, trying to sense the true qi within the iron piece while simultaneously absorbing heaven and earth spiritual energy. He hoped to push himself to a higher realm.

But after an hour had passed, Tang Jie still didn’t feel the slightest change. A bit puzzled, he opened his eyes, frowning at the iron piece. It continued to display the same content as before. While the text on it had changed a few times in the past, all of it was information he had already seen. Could it be that the methods described on the iron piece were limited to just this?

Tang Jie fiddled with the iron piece in his hands, trying to uncover something new. However, after playing with it for a long time and concentrating his true qi in various ways, no new effects appeared.

Putting the iron piece away, Tang Jie’s mind drifted to what Uncle Zhao had mentioned previously about the Lifedeath Cliff treasure hunt. What exactly was there? Since it had drawn the attention of so many ancient martial artists, it was undoubtedly something related to their practices.

At that thought, Tang Jie resolved to ask Uncle Zhao about it when an opportunity presented itself. He wanted to enhance the true qi in his body. That way, if he encountered someone like Chen Nan again, he wouldn’t find himself in the same dire situation. Strengthening himself would also allow him to better protect Chen Shuran and fulfill his mission. If he had the chance, he would make it a point to visit Lifedeath Cliff himself.

With those thoughts in mind, Tang Jie followed his usual routine. He sat in seated meditation for a while, allowing the true qi in his body to flow through all his meridians before finally going to sleep.

The next day was Monday, and it was time to head back to school as usual. Tang Jie accompanied Chen Shuran to No. 2 High School early in the morning. But before they even entered the gate, they spotted someone waiting there.

“I’ve been waiting for you all morning,” Li Feifei said with a smile as she looked at Tang Jie. She completely ignored Chen Shuran by his side, as if she didn’t even exist, and walked straight toward Tang Jie.

“Why are you waiting for me? I didn’t make any plans with you,” Tang Jie replied in an indifferent tone as he looked at Li Feifei. Suddenly, he recalled the night he had taken Chen Shuran out of the dessert shop-Li Feifei had mysteriously disappeared that evening. There was something unsettling about the whole situation, though he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Li Feifei blinked at Tang Jie, seemingly caught off guard by his cold response. A flicker of hurt flashed across her eyes, but she still showed no intention of leaving.

“Let’s go. We’re going to be late,” Chen Shuran said expressionlessly to Tang Jie. She ignored Li Feifei standing nearby and pulled Tang Jie toward the teaching building.

Today, Chen Shuran seemed a little more assertive than usual, and her signature ice princess demeanor had fully resurfaced.

Tang Jie glanced back and saw Li Feifei still standing there, staring at him. He furrowed his brows. Seeing her hurt expression just now left an inexplicable discomfort in his heart.

Why was it that the more he tried to avoid seeing these girls upset, the more they insisted on showing their sadness right in front of him? It was truly bothersome.

For the entire day, Li Feifei sat silently behind Tang Jie, her eyes never once leaving him. Tang Jie could practically feel her gaze drilling holes into the back of his shirt. But because of Chen Shuran’s presence, he stubbornly refrained from turning around to look at Li Feifei even once.

By the time evening self-study was about to end, the class had become much more relaxed, since no teacher was around.

“Hey, Zhang Qiang! After school, I’ll take you to this awesome spot. I guarantee you’ll see some big-breasted girls!”

“Get lost! Like I’d go to some shady place like that. Watch out-you might get smothered to death by those big-breasted girls!”

The boys in the back seats were starting to get rowdy, joking and making noise as usual. Tang Jie lay slumped over his desk, eyes half-closed, looking like he was about to fall asleep. But in truth, he wasn’t tired at all.

His mind was preoccupied with figuring out how to improve his strength. Ever since his battle with Chen Nan, his level had dropped from the Heaven-Man Realm to the Innate Great Perfection stage. Recovering his former power had been on his mind constantly, but he had yet to find a solution.

After school, Tang Jie planned to call Uncle Zhao to inquire more about the matter. As he was thinking about it, the bell rang, signaling the end of class.

Tang Jie watched Chen Shuran pack up, ready to leave with her, when suddenly he heard a crisp ringtone from a phone behind him. It was Li Feifei’s phone. After answering, she spoke briefly and then hurried out of the classroom. As she left, Tang Jie caught a glimpse of her face, stern and cold, as if something serious had happened. There was also a hint of fear in her expression, as though the caller had been someone quite frightening.

“Hey, haven’t you had enough of staring? You’ve been ogling beauties all day, aren’t you afraid your eyes will go bad?” Xiao Ran’s voice came through, pulling Tang Jie from his gaze. Needless to say, Chen Shuran’s face showed an unhappy expression.

Tang Jie was used to Chen Shuran being like this; he gradually realized that she was jealous, and he felt delighted inside every time this happened, letting her vent her frustration on him.

As they left the school gate, Tang Jie was about to call Uncle Zhao when he saw him unexpectedly arrive at the gate, sitting in a BMW.

Seeing Tang Jie and Chen Shuran come out, Uncle Zhao waved at them. Tang Jie quickly approached with Chen Shuran and they got into the car.

“Little Tang, how have you been lately? Everything going smoothly?” Uncle Zhao chuckled as he asked Tang Jie after they were in the car.

“Yeah, it’s been okay. How about you, Uncle Zhao? Is there something going on?” Tang Jie responded politely, inquiring with respect.

“Nothing much. Mr. Chen asked me to come check on you, see if you need anything. I happened to be free, so I thought I’d come pick you up and we could go back together.”

Hearing this, Tang Jie thought it was perfect timing to let Uncle Zhao drive them back to the villa.

“Uncle Zhao, you don’t look well. What’s wrong?” Tang Jie noticed during the drive to the villa that Uncle Zhao looked pale and unusually tired.

Hearing his concern, Uncle Zhao gave him a mysterious smile and simply said it was nothing.

Tang Jie understood Uncle Zhao’s hint and didn’t press further. After they got back, Chen Shuran went to take a shower as usual, while Uncle Zhao shared with Tang Jie an encounter he had recently had, surprisingly involving an ancient martial artist.