In recent days, the Wu family estate had been thoroughly searched inside and out by various factions.
Though many valuable cultivation trinkets had been found, no useful clues about the Jishi Powder incident had surfaced.
By now, even the small valuable items had been picked clean, leaving nothing behind.
Despite this, Tong Hua, Yu Guang, and Liang Zhonghuai from Wanwanton continued diligently combing through insignificant odds and ends.
"Boss is too soft," Yu Guang grumbled while searching. "He just handed everything over to that higher-up group and even made us run errands for them."
As he spoke, Tong Hua retrieved a small blob of clay that looked different from the surrounding mud and stowed it away. Shaking his head, he replied:
"Don't listen to Pang Kun and his nonsense. Think for yourself. You think this is some golden opportunity? That Jishi..." He paused and added, "Do yourself a favor, look up ancient records on it when you get the chance. Boss probably doesn't want to get involved, which is why he let them take over. Otherwise, do you really think he'd be scared of them?"
Liang Zhonghuai remained silent, focused entirely on the task at hand. He just wanted to finish up and submit his vacation request, avoiding any further entanglement in this troublesome matter.
Yu Guang, not offended by Tong Hua's scolding, muttered a couple of words under his breath as he examined the ordinary items in his hand, changing the subject:
"All the valuable stuff from the Wu family estate that could have been clues has already been snatched up. Why are we still wasting time collecting these useless things?"
Tong Hua replied:
"Did you forget the skills of our First Spirit Lord? He's probably going to handle this personally."
Though Tong Hua didn't know the specifics of the First Spirit Lord's abilities, everyone at Wanwanton knew that the First Spirit Lord was the most powerful among all Spirit Lords. Wanwanton's growth to its current scale had been largely thanks to him.
Yu Guang moved closer and asked:
"Is it true? Is the First Spirit Lord really going to take action?"
Tong Hua, though confident in tone, didn't give a straight answer, only saying:
"Who knows? The First Spirit Lord hasn't made a move in a long time. It's just a rumor for now. Take it as you will."
However, in his mind, he thought that if the situation had truly reached the point where the First Spirit Lord was involved, then things were undoubtedly very serious.
After thoroughly searching the Wu family estate, the trio returned to Wanwanton with their findings.
Their superior received the collected items and asked them:
"Do any of you want to take time off? If you do, you'd better request it soon. After today, it may no longer be possible to approve."
Liang Zhonghuai immediately spoke up:
"Boss, I'd like to take the longest option, the three-year closed cultivation leave."
Yu Guang glanced at him in shock and exclaimed:
"Zhonghuai, are you crazy? Three years? You'll come back to nothing!"
The employees at Wanwanton were allowed various kinds of leave, the longest being a three-year closed cultivation leave. However, this leave was rarely taken unless one had a solid backing, because for those dependent on their contributions and promotions, three years was too long. By the time they returned, they could easily find themselves back at the bottom, starting over again.
After hearing the boss's suggestion, Tong Hua raised his eyebrows and quickly chimed in:
"Boss, I'd like to take time off as well... the same three years."
Yu Guang turned to him in disbelief.
"What's gotten into you two? Both of you are taking leave? What am I supposed to do?" Tong Hua gave him a look and asked:
"Want to join us?"
Yu Guang shook his head vigorously:
"No way, I'm so close to getting a pay raise. Taking time off now would make all my previous efforts go to waste."
Both Liang Zhonghuai and Tong Hua sighed, but didn't press him further.
After all, no one could predict the future.
They were choosing to step away based on their own concerns and suspicions. If nothing happened after all, then urging Yu Guang to take leave with them would have been unnecessary.
Yu Guang's situation was different from theirs. He had a lot more pressure, with two cultivator parents relying on him to earn spirit stones for their upkeep.
On the other hand, Liang Zhonghuai and Tong Hua both had some wealth of their own and didn't have the same financial burdens.
Their boss, observing the different decisions, quietly sighed to himself but remained expressionless as he nodded and said:
"Alright, I'll process it for you both."
And so, the team of three, which had worked together for years, was disbanded from that day onward.
Even if Liang Zhonghuai and Tong Hua returned, it would be impossible for them to be assigned to the same group as Yu Guang.
After completing their paperwork and handing over their tools, Liang Zhonghuai and Tong Hua officially started their leave.
Yu Guang, meanwhile, was reassigned to another team at the Yuanling City branch of Wanwanton.
Once their leave began, the two naturally had to leave Yuanling City.
Neither of them was from Yuanling City originally, having only come here with the store to help expand operations.
Before they departed, Yu Guang came to see them off.
He looked at his two former companions, feeling sorrowful as he said:
"Although you didn't explain why you suddenly took leave, I've thought over what you've said in recent days, and I think I understand your reasons, but still..."
Liang Zhonghuai interrupted him:
"There's no need to say more, Yu Guang. Everyone has their own choices. Until the very end, none of us will know which path was the right one."
Tong Hua nodded in agreement and added:
"Exactly, Yu Guang. We're just avoiding possible trouble. We understand your situation, so don't worry about us. Just keep at it! If we return and find ourselves without a place, we'll be counting on you to help us out."
With that, the three bid each other farewell at the gates of Yuanling City and went their separate ways.
Tong Hua returned to his hometown, while Liang Zhonghuai made his way back to his small courtyard in Lixu City.
Lixu City, though slightly more prosperous than Yuanling City, was still a peripheral city in the Southern Spirit Region, not particularly noteworthy.
Early the next morning, Liang Zhonghuai opened the gate to his home.
An elderly woman, her temples streaked with gray, was in the courtyard pouring freshly drawn water into a tank. Upon seeing him, her eyes lit up with joy:
"Zhonghuai, you're back."
Seeing her, Liang Zhonghuai hurried forward to help:
"Aunt Yang, please rest. Let me do that."