Chapter 330: Cultivating Civility, Establishing New Trends

Chapter 330: Promote Civility, Foster New Trends

Di... Director?

Huang Weiming was taken aback.

He looked toward the young man and woman not far away, a flicker of astonishment in his eyes.

He considered himself a man of some standing, having attended many gatherings and seen his share of handsome men and beautiful women.

Yet none could compare to the pair before him.

Not just in looks, but in bearing as well.

What stunned Huang Weiming most was that the brick that had struck his head moments ago now appeared in the young man’s hand.

He felt as if he had just woken from a dream.

Everything that had happened was but an illusion.

“I... I’m not a director,” he replied instinctively.

Qi Yuan held the brick, a look of disappointment on his face.

“So it’s all a lie—how could a brick thrown at random in the capital ever hit a director?”

The canary’s lively eyes glimmered with a smile: “If you wish, he could be a director.”

“Cheating takes the fun out of it.”

The strange exchange between the pair left Huang Weiming bewildered.

Brick?

Hitting someone?

Director?

Was it not an illusion?

He wanted to say more, but suddenly realized the young man and woman had vanished from his sight.

He quickly looked around, but found no trace of them.

He searched frantically, yet there was no sign of the pair.

If they were human... they couldn’t have left his sight so fast.

Could they... be ghosts?

Huang Weiming then let out a bitter laugh.

The mental strain was too great, his nerves growing weak—he was even having hallucinations.

A large brick falling, followed by a man asking about a director.

The very thought was baffling.

He pushed it aside, his face grim, and dragged his weary body home.

“Sigh... life is so hard... might as well let it all burn.”

Huang Weiming felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

He had even thought of a common man’s rage, blood spilling five steps.

But that was impossible.

First, he had a family, ties and bonds.

Second, the Mu family was a Seven Martial Star clan; their descendants were protected by nanobots, so he couldn’t even spill blood five steps.

“Must I... just accept my fate?”

His heart burned with resentment.

Just then, his phone screen lit up.

A message caught his eye.

The dense layout made him think it was spam, and he was about to delete it.

But suddenly, he froze.

“Vote?

What’s this?”

He was stunned.

“Dear Mr. Huang Weiming, you are an adult and a legal citizen of the Qinyuan Kingdom.

You are specially invited to vote on the following matters...”

“The Mu family? The Seven Martial Star clan? Treason?

List of evidence, and a vote?”

These words flooded Huang Weiming’s mind, leaving him dazed and confused.

Was someone playing a joke on him?

Judging the Seven Martial Star clan?

Ridiculous!

Everyone knew the Seven Martial Star clan were the true emperors of the Qinyuan Kingdom.

A millennial family, unshakable—who could judge them?

Still, he quickly clicked the link in the message.

When he saw the information, he was stunned for a moment.

“If this is a joke... it’s an enormous amount of work.”

Clicking on any person revealed their life story.

The data was extremely detailed, recording everything that person had done in their life.

Both good and bad deeds.

Even each person’s profile came with a robot lawyer explaining, according to Qinyuan law, what punishment they deserved.

Such vast information, professional explanations, and detailed records—it couldn’t be a joke.

“This is... Mu Kong?”

When he saw the familiar name, he was utterly shocked.

The one who had seized his property was none other than this Mu Kong.

He was actually on this list for judgment.

Huang Weiming felt a sense of absurdity.

He continued reading.

“Murder... rape... currently suspected of plotting to seize the assets of a merchant surnamed Huang...”

Huang Weiming saw this and was deeply shocked.

Wasn't this targeting him?

At that moment, he was immensely agitated, feeling both absurd and ridiculous, and quickly clicked into the social platform to see what was going on.

Sure enough, on every major platform, news about "voting" had become a hot topic.

"Voting? What's going on?"

"What is this Mu family?"

"An open vote?"

"Who initiated it?"

"Hiss... Could it be that the Mu family has offended the other Seven Martial Star families at the same time?"

"Impossible, even if the Mu family falls, the Seven Martial Star families wouldn't allow a vote—the undercurrents behind this..."

"Could it be... a divine manifestation?"

...

The moonlight was hazy.

Qi Yuan, with his arm around the golden canary, gazed at the Seventh Prince not far away.

He waved his hand: "I'm busy, too lazy to see these idle people. Send them back.

Don't disturb me or affect my mood, otherwise... I'll have to call a vote."

Hearing this, the Seventh Prince's heart tightened.

The word "vote" made his tense mind skip a beat.

Although not all of the Seven Martial Star families had extremely corrupt traditions,

they truly couldn't withstand a vote.

"As you command, Mr. Qi!" the Seventh Prince quickly replied.

"As for what comes after, I'm too lazy to get involved. Leave it to your officials. After all... I'm just an ordinary person who can only offer suggestions... Now go—I need to sleep. Tomorrow I have to return to Longtai City, and in a few days... I have to attend the Martial Arts Tournament!"

Mentioning the Martial Arts Tournament, Qi Yuan's expression turned serious.

This was the most important event.

Compared to the Martial Arts Tournament, the Seven Martial Star families weren't even worth a fart.

Hearing this, the Seventh Prince broke out in a cold sweat.

Your so-called suggestions are more effective than imperial edicts!

In the Qinyuan Kingdom today, who would dare to offend Qi Yuan?

Even the other Seven Martial Star families treated Qi Yuan like an ancestor to be worshipped.

After bowing, the Seventh Prince left the hotel.

In the lobby outside the hotel, a group of elderly men stood respectfully.

The youngest among them was at least sixty.

Yet at this moment, they stood respectfully outside the hotel, not even daring to sit.

Because they were to meet Qi Yuan, they didn't dare to exercise their usual privileges—no road closures, no banning others from entering.

Thus, people occasionally passed by, seeing a group of old men standing there, and looked on with curiosity.

Some even took photos.

No matter how they thought, they couldn't imagine that these old men were the most powerful people in the Qinyuan Kingdom—

the heads of the Seven Martial Star families and the king of the Qinyuan royal family.

Seeing the Seventh Prince emerge, the old men hurried forward.

Patriarch Fang asked, "What did Mr. Qi say?"

There was even a tremor in Patriarch Fang's voice.

In all his long life, he had never been so cautious.

"Mr. Qi is unwilling to see you all," the Seventh Prince replied truthfully.

"What?" "Mr. Qi won't see us..."

"Could it be..."

These old men looked as if they had lost their parents,

fearing that Qi Yuan was angry and would do away with them too.

"Mr. Qi said he's busy and too lazy to see you..." The Seventh Prince had a good memory and repeated Qi Yuan's exact words to them.

Hearing this, the old men all breathed a sigh of relief.

"We take Mr. Qi's words to heart and dare not disobey!" Patriarch Fang declared.

The other patriarchs chimed in agreement.

Whether not meeting Qi Yuan was good or bad for them, they couldn't tell.

In truth, some were still anxious.

What if... Mr. Qi, in a bad mood, killed them all? What would they do then?

Not meeting Mr. Qi... was, in a way, a good thing.

"From now on, we shall abide by the law and be good people. We will also strictly discipline our family members and never disturb Mr. Qi!" Patriarch Fang added.

The other old men echoed him, like Young Pioneers taking an oath, almost as if they had red scarves around their necks.

Nearby, young men and women stopped, saw this scene, and couldn't help taking photos.

"How amusing—are they filming a video?"

"So creative! Hiring a bunch of old men to film a promotional video about respect and lawfulness—it's bound to go viral."

"This Mr. Qi must be a big influencer. This is the capital, not the countryside. Hiring these old men to film a video—one egg probably isn't enough."

"At least ten eggs."

...

Two days later.

Longtai City.

Qi Yuan breathed in the fresh air, looked at the azure sky, and couldn't help saying,

"Although the rumor that throwing a brick randomly will hit a bureau chief is false,

the bad air in the capital... is true."

The golden canary also took a deep sniff and nodded in agreement.

"The only regret of this trip to the capital is that these old fogies are too poor. Although they meet my 'white moonlight' requirement in age, their other hardware and software are too lacking—they can't even compare to a substitute meal."

At that time, Qi Yuan did not see those old men.

But he had always been an old-man killer.

His favorite people were old men.

After all, among old men, the chance of finding a white moonlight was highest.

At that time, he couldn't help climbing high to gaze into the distance, searching for a white moonlight that pleased his heart.

Unfortunately, reality was too stark.

That group of old men was far too inferior.

They couldn't even serve as substitutes.

"I've done a simple investigation these past few days... there are probably very few here who could be your white moonlight," the Canary said considerately.

Having been with Qi Yuan for so long, she had also adapted to his way of speaking.

"It seems I can only rely on fate," Qi Yuan sighed.

As they spoke, the two once again arrived at the building of the former Martial Arts Alliance branch.

Tomorrow, the competition would begin.

Today, all contestants were to undergo a physical examination, then be arranged into accommodations.

The competition would start tomorrow.

At that moment, a bus stopped, and a group of young men and women got off.

Xing Yu's eyes brimmed with a smile: "So this is Longtai? It really looks much more prosperous than our Tianyue."

"So many martial artists—are they all here for the Martial Arts Tournament?" Wang Shiqiao's eyes sparkled.

This time, Xu Tiehua had performed astonishingly well in the city-level competition and shone in the provincial competition, earning a spot in the national tournament.

For their martial arts school, this was a major event.

Thus, five or six people from their school followed Xu Tiehua to Longtai City.

Wang Shiqiao and Xing Yu, as the most attractive girls in the school, naturally came to cheer him on.

After all, all expenses were covered by the school's master.

"Brother Xu, in this competition, you must make it into the top hundred!" Xing Yu encouraged Xu Tiehua.

Xu Tiehua shook his head: "It's too hard. This time, I'm just here to see the world.

Next time... I don't know if there will be a next time. Lately... too many things have happened."

As he spoke, Xing Yu and Wang Shiqiao felt the same.

Especially the voting two days ago, which targeted the legendary Seven Martial Star families.

Even someone of Xu Tiehua's status, with some local influence, had no right to contact members of the Seven Martial Star families.

But now, everyone could vote to decide their life or death.

This caused a huge uproar within the Qinyuan Kingdom, sparking much discussion.

Opinions varied, but no conclusion was reached.

However, people reached a consensus.

The world was likely about to change, ushering in an unprecedented upheaval.

"Some say that cultivators have already appeared in this world, and martial arts will be eliminated in the future... sigh," Xu Tiehua let out a long sigh.

After all, he had practiced martial arts for so many years; if martial arts were to be eliminated, he wouldn't know where to go.

"Shiqiao, do you think there really are cultivators in this world?" Xing Yu asked Wang Shiqiao.

Wang Shiqiao was momentarily stunned.

Her memory returned to that time, to that severed head.

When she received that head as a gift, she was on edge for several days.

Later, after learning about the Guiran military camp incident and watching the leaked videos,

a terrifying thought arose in her mind.

Could it be...

that there really are cultivators?

Is Qi Yuan... a cultivator?

But why would a cultivator practice martial arts, send her a severed head, and swindle her out of a million?

A cultivator surely wouldn't lack that million.

Could it be... he has a secret crush on her?

As she was lost in these wild thoughts, a voice suddenly came.

"What a coincidence—you're all here for the National Martial Arts Tournament too."

Xu Tiehua and the others heard the familiar voice and quickly looked over.

When they saw who it was, their eyes first showed surprise, then admiration.

"Qi Yuan, why are you here?" Xu Tiehua couldn't help asking.

Xing Yu, meanwhile, was pondering.

She felt that Qi Yuan was a very strange person.

Back at the martial arts school, the female star Anqi picked him up every day.

Now in Longtai, an indescribably beautiful woman was by his side.

"I'm here for the National Martial Arts Tournament. This is my fiancée, her name is Ning Tao, also called Canary. Isn't she beautiful? Could she be considered the number one beauty of Gongxing?" Qi Yuan held Canary's small hand, his gaze toward her quite warm.

That once so vain Canary, cursed by the Ten Thousand Demons Gate, had endured so much.

Toward Canary, Qi Yuan still felt considerable guilt.

She was not only the number one beauty of Jiupan Mountain but had always been beautiful.

"Fiancée? Where did you meet her?" Xing Yu's eyes flashed with admiration. "If someone had once claimed there was a beauty under heaven, or the most beautiful woman in five thousand years, I wouldn't have believed it.

But now, I believe her!"

Indeed, the beauty of Ning Tao before her was something Xing Yu couldn't describe.

"See, Canary? You're not just the number one beauty of Jiupan Mountain, but also the star flower of Gongxing," Qi Yuan occasionally teased.

"Tch, back when I asked you to say I was the number one beauty of Jiupan Mountain, you were quite reluctant," Canary said with a proud 'tch,' looking rather adorable.

Qi Yuan's memory seemed to drift back to Jiupan Mountain, a trace of reminiscence in his eyes as he gripped Canary's hand tighter.

"The past is the past; now is now."

"Hey, you two, stop flirting—it's too cheesy. Tell me quickly, how are you qualified to participate in the Martial Arts Tournament? I don't recall you even joining the city-level competition," Xing Yu said.

Wang Shiqiao, usually talkative, now fell silent, seeming somewhat afraid of Qi Yuan.

"I took the special passage," Qi Yuan replied earnestly.

"Special passage?" Xu Tiehua was astonished, her gaze toward Qi Yuan shifting slightly.

Just then, a broadcast suddenly rang out from within the building.

"Attention all contestants: to 'promote civility and foster new customs,' during this martial arts tournament, contestants are forbidden from using profanity, threatening, or provoking opponents in any form.

Violators will be immediately disqualified from the competition, and—"

The broadcast's voice reached the ears of everyone present.

The martial artists looked utterly bewildered.

"What's going on? 'Promote civility and foster new customs'—what does that mean? We never had this before?"

"Not allowed to provoke opponents? That takes all the fun out of it!"

"Can we flip the bird?"

(End of chapter)