This Vine Core was clearly valuable at first glance.
The emerald fluorescence, the mysterious power contained within—it was definitely not as simple as described in Florence's data.
Before figuring out its true worth, Qin Siyang had no intention of handing it over to anyone.
He sprinted at full speed, alternating between [Banquet Domain] and [Violence], teleporting in deserted areas and dashing at breakneck speed in populated ones, leaving no room for hesitation.
He had to return to the city before that deranged young man, or else he'd get blocked off and draw even more unwanted attention.
As Qin Siyang neared the safe zone's exit, he finally slowed down.
After stepping into the exit, he called Laudenor.
Seeing the long line at the Verification checkpoint, he immediately abandoned the idea of queuing.
Time was money.
Even though he didn't yet understand the Vine Core's value, he wasn't an idiot.
A few dozen points for a Disc Armor? That was nothing compared to the Vine Core.
Laudenor hadn't expected Qin Siyang to return so quickly. When he saw him outside the platform, he was genuinely surprised.
"Mr. Qin, how come you're back so soon today?"
Qin Siyang had been running for his life the whole way, and his body was nearly at its limit. But he forced himself to endure it, sighing helplessly, "Don't even bring it up. Someone stole the Vine Core from the Sacrificial Giant Vine. A lot of sequence ability users died over there. No one's gonna be able to harvest anything for a while."
"Huh? Seriously?", Laudenor was shocked. Then, he asked, "Then do you know who stole the Vine Core, Mr. Qin?"
Qin Siyang shook his head, "No idea. Anyway, this place is probably useless for hunting gods now. I don't want to waste any more time staying here. Can you arrange for someone to send me back to the city immediately?"
"Right now? Mr. Qin, don't you want to rest a bit? We still have other safe zone exits in District 7."
"The other exits are probably affected too. Besides, I can't deal with large gods. Staying here is a waste of time."
Qin Siyang's first instinct was to take the Vine Core and run, to return to Safe Zone 14121 and consult Li Tianming before making any further decisions.
That was why he urgently requested Laudenor to get him out of here.
"Ah… alright then…"
Qin Siyang carefully took out the remains from his backpack, making sure no one saw the glowing Vine Core.
He handed the remains to Laudenor, "Give these to Professor Florence. As for the reward, let him decide."
"In just half a day, you collected this many divine remains?", Laudenor's eyes lit up, "Alright, I'll notify Professor Florence right away and arrange your return."
"Mm, thanks."
Qin Siyang glanced back at the safe zone's main gate. A large crowd had gathered, seemingly causing a commotion.
After thinking for a moment, he figured it was likely due to the Sacrificial Giant Vine's rampage.
Just then, he heard a shout: "Someone stole the Vine Core!! I know what he looks like!! He's either still outside the safe zone or just escaped!!"
He turned to look—it was that deranged young man.
The young man's eyes were wide, his bangs disheveled by the wind, and he was screaming furiously.
As soon as the crowd realized he knew who had taken the Vine Core, they immediately swarmed around him, bombarding him with questions.
Within seconds, the young man was completely surrounded—layer upon layer of people blocking him in.
Every single face was filled with fanaticism and excitement.
Like starving wolves smelling blood.
Seeing this scene, Qin Siyang instantly realized—the Vine Core was far more valuable than he had imagined.
His brows furrowed, and he clenched his teeth, 'Looks like… I can't go back.'
He had assumed that deranged young man would quietly investigate him.
He never expected him to shout it out to the world.
That guy remembered his face and had seen his Cyan Striped Armor—pinpointing his identity wouldn't take long at all.
Returning to the city would take three days.
'Three days… is way too long.'
His escape plan was completely ruined.
Just as Laudenor, too, was distracted by the young man's words, Qin Siyang quietly stepped aside and called Li Tianming.
["Hello? What's up?"]
"Old Li, it's urgent. Tell me—is there a way to keep the Vine Core safe?"
Li Tianming gasped in shock.
["What? How do you know about the Vine Core? Did you get it?"]
"No time for questions! Didn't you hear me? I said it's urgent!!"
Li Tianming paused, then said, ["If someone picks up the Vine Core and it has been away from the Sacrificial Giant Vine for over ten minutes, they just need to drip their blood on it to form a contract. After that, the Vine Core will belong to them."]
"Got it."
Qin Siyang hung up.
'Ten minutes away from the Sacrificial Giant Vine before it can be bound by blood?'
'No wonder that crazed young man hadn't contracted it yet.'
'Right now, the Vine Core has definitely been away for more than ten minutes.'
'Lucky me.'
Qin Siyang sighed, 'Li Tianming really is a cunning old fox.'
Fearing that his call might be monitored and used as evidence, even the way he gave information was deliberately vague, leaving no loopholes.
———
Meanwhile, Li Tianming looked at his phone, his expression frozen.
"Old Li, does this outfit look good?"
Chen Fenghe had just stepped out of the fitting room, twirling in a purple long dress in front of Li Tianming.
But Li Tianming didn't hear a word.
He absentmindedly pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, took one, and bit down on it—trying to calm himself.
Chen Fenghe snatched the cigarette from his mouth.
"Old Li! This is a shopping mall—you can't smoke here. If you want to smoke, wait until we get back to our district or at least step outside."
Only then did Li Tianming snap out of it, realizing he was in a mall near City Hall shopping with Chen Fenghe.
But he had completely lost interest.
His expression remained incredibly complex.
Chen Fenghe frowned, crouching beside him.
"Old Li, what's wrong? Still upset about Ye Hongqing?"
Li Tianming shook his head.
"Qin Siyang just called me."
"Qin Siyang? Wasn't he sent to District 7?"
"Yeah. He asked me… what to do if he got the Vine Core."
"The Vine Core? He got it?"
Chen Fenghe's eyes widened in disbelief.
Li Tianming shook his head, "I don't know. But that kid has deep connections. Who knows? Maybe he really did stir up trouble in District 7. From his tone, things seemed really urgent."
"So what did you tell him?"
"Of course, I just straight-up told him—drip blood to bind it."
Chen Fenghe nodded.
"That's the fastest and safest way to secure ownership."
Li Tianming ran a hand over his face, his thin, sparse hair slightly disheveled.
"I really didn't expect that brat to cause such a big mess in just a few days."
Chen Fenghe gently smoothed his hair.
"Maybe he was just asking."
"Not possible. I know that kid too well. He never asks pointless questions."
"Then… he's just a lucky bastard."
"But way too lucky, don't you think?"
Li Tianming suddenly groaned in frustration, slapping his thigh.
"If I had gotten one of those damn things when I was young, would I have ended up like this?"
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