The conman genuinely cared about Qingchen. He didn't know what had happened, but he felt that Qingchen, like the others who came to Forbidden Land No. 001, was taking things from here in exchange for worldly desires.
Qing Chen smiled and shook his head: "I don't care about those things."
"Hmm?" the conman asked in confusion. "There's a contradiction between what you say and what you do."
Seeing that the species had been collected, Qing Chen stood up to take his leave: "Seniors, I do have great respect for you all, but I had no choice but to be so disrespectful. I don't have time to slowly build a relationship with you and let you get to know me. You did what you were supposed to do for the survival of humanity back then, and now it's our turn to do what we are supposed to do."
Qing Chen: "We part ways today, and we will meet again."
After saying that, he led the giants through the Key Gate and back to City 10.
The conman stood there, stunned: "Now it's your turn...?"
He seemed to have a general understanding of the Federation's current predicament.
This young man comes to the amusement park and works himself to the bone to complete the challenges, taking away rewards and species, all for a war called "Guardianship".
Back then, it was for this very reason that they risked their lives on the battlefield.
Behind them, Da Huyou, Zhang Xiaoman, and others were still sitting around the campfire. Someone suddenly said, "I actually quite like him. I don't know why, but meeting him is like meeting the young marshal back then. I just have this feeling for no reason."
"Could he be the reincarnation of Ren Xiaosu...?"
"Hilarious, Ren Xiaosu is not going to die at all..."
The conman pondered for a moment, then turned around and shouted, "Go, go find the person in charge of the amusement park first. I need to ask them what happened inside. Zhang Xiaoman, go and get a few herb gatherers. Tell them that as long as they give us the information we want, we have plenty of herbs."
The heroic spirits sprang into action, some heading to the border of Forbidden Land No. 001 to search for the herb gatherer.
Someone came to the Temple of the Heroes and rang the large bell inside.
Hearing the bell, a large number of heroic spirits scattered within a hundred miles rushed back.
Other heroic spirits mounted tall steeds and galloped deeper into the forbidden land, shouting all the way: "Assembly order! All soldiers of the Northwest Army, assemble inland!"
130 riders, like fireworks, scattered throughout the forbidden land, carrying the rallying order to the ends of the earth.
Inside the palace, the conman listened to the spirit in charge of the amusement park say, "This kid is really weird. We were secretly watching him, and he actually carried the kayak from beginning to end..."
"And a paddle, holy crap, beating someone up with a paddle in the bumper car area is really brutal."
"He's just like Ren Xiaosu..."
Everyone chimed in, recounting everything Qingchen had done, including the battle against the demigods.
Even so, they still knew very little about Qingchen.
It wasn't until dawn that Zhang Xiaoman led a few blindfolded herb gatherers in.
The conman asked first, "I only have a few questions. After it's done, you can take any medicinal herbs you want."
The herb gatherer quickly nodded: "Please ask, please ask."
The conman asked, "Who is the demigod of the Qing clan?"
“Qing Zhun,” the herb gatherer replied. At this time, not many people in the Federation knew that Qing Chen was already a demigod.
The conman said, "So his name is Qing Zhun... What is his status in the Qing family now?"
"Huh?" The herb gatherer was dumbfounded: "He has no identity. He was a god for a quarter of an hour outside Forbidden Land No. 002. He killed two demigods and then died."
Chen Yu was not actually dead at the time, but the Federation people still insisted that Qing Zhun killed two demigods in the battle.
"Dead?" The conman raised his voice: "I just saw him a few hours ago."
"Brother, don't scare us!" the herb gatherer exclaimed in fright. "You can still see dead people?"
"No, no," the conman shook his head, "It's definitely not about one person! I ask you, does the Qing clan have anyone else who leads a bunch of giants in gang fights every day?"
"You mean... Qing Chen! If you had said you were leading a bunch of giants into a brawl, we would have known. Kashima was almost completely destroyed by them..."
Herb gatherer: "He's Qingzhun's younger brother? Is he a demigod too?!"
The conman and his group exchanged bewildered glances. Kashima and the others knew about it and found it quite annoying, as Kashima always dragged civilians along to explore Forbidden Land No. 001.
"Tell me, what has Qingchen done in the past?" the conman asked.
A herb gatherer laughed: "You've come to the right person! I'm a fan of his, and I've never missed any news about him over the years!"
A group of golden, gleaming spirits sat in the temple, just as the giants had listened attentively to the herb gatherer's story.
However, the herb gatherer went into more detail, recounting everything from Prison No. 18 to the current battle with the Roosevelt Kingdom... Parents' associations pay great attention to propaganda, so the sensational events Qing Chen has accomplished in the Western Continent will be widely publicized to establish their legitimate position in the resistance.
The conman and his companions listened from morning till night, until the herb gatherer finally ran out of things to say and they gave up.
Only at this moment did they understand why Qingchen had said, "Now it's our turn."
Zhang Xiaoman exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, if I had known it was going to be a war with the Western Continent, I would have gone with him!"
Someone whispered, "But Ren Xiaosu doesn't allow us to freely enter or leave the forbidden area No. 001, worried that we'll cause chaos in society."
At this moment, someone said, "Qingchen's cancer is probably incurable now, but he came here with injuries just to find an A-grade gene drug for City 10."
The other heroic spirits remained silent.
In fact, those of them who had participated in the final battle felt as if they were witnessing the rise of a new god after hearing Qing Chen's legendary experiences.
Even though they have seen a lot, they would genuinely believe that what Qingchen has done and is doing is something they could never do.
It's meaningless to compare them with Qing Chen; you should compare Ren Xiaosu with Qing Chen.
“Ren Xiaosu is braver than him, but he is more cunning than Ren Xiaosu,” the conman said. “There is no superiority or inferiority. Although both of them are despicable, their personalities are actually completely different styles.”
"really."
The conman turned to the herb gatherers: "You weren't placed on the edge of this forbidden land by members of the parents' association, were you?"
Given Qing Chen's style of doing things, it's very likely he'll arrange for a few persuaders to wait in advance and tell them stories.
The herb gatherer explained with a smile, "We are all prospective family members. In the black market these days, if you want to sell something, you absolutely cannot do so without the identity of a prospective family member. But we were not arranged by them. We have been dealing with each other for more than ten years, and we did not just meet today."
“Yes, that’s right,” the conman nodded. “Xiaoman, send them out. Prepare a basket of medicinal herbs for each of them to take with them. Thank you all for your hard work.”
"It's not hard at all!"
"So what do we do now?" Zhang Xiaoman asked.
"What else can we do?" The conman thought for a long time: "He will probably come back again."
The palace was quiet for a moment, then the clamor resumed: "Place your bets now, big or small!"
...
...
Qing Chen led the giant and the parents' association members back to the town, which looked like a living hell.
"Go and disperse these people," Qingchen said to the PTA assistant. "Also, check if there are any criminals wanted by the PTA among them."
“It’s already been screened,” the waiter replied. “A lot of people who were kicked out of the lower districts have come here recently, thinking that the emperor is far away and we can’t control them. You don’t need to worry about such trivial matters. I will catch them all and take them back to work on sewing machines.”
Qing Chen nodded: "Remember to tell them that the get-rich-quick myth in Forbidden Land No. 001 is a scam. Don't go in and die for nothing. Go back and find a job."
The town became deserted.
But to his surprise, even though Qing Chen told the gold prospectors the truth about the town, they only left in a submissive manner. As soon as they arrived in the wilderness, they changed direction and prepared to set up camp in other places, intending to enter the Forbidden Land No. 001 again to pan for gold.
Upon hearing the waiter's report, Qing Chen simply sighed and said no more, "You can't reason with a damned devil. Let's go home."
The key door opened, and he was the first to step inside.
The saying goes, "All the world's hustle and bustle is for profit." Throughout history, countless events can be summed up in a single word: profit.
...
...
"How's the battle going on at Kashima?" Qingchen asked in the conference room of the No. 10 City Garrison.
Xiao Qi changed into a military uniform and reported earnestly: "They have now lost all three cities, and many wealthy and powerful people have rushed to the Kamishiro and Li families to apply for political asylum. However, both Kamishiro and Li families refused. Kamishiro Yunluo went even further, sending a special force to the wilderness to persuade the Kashima bigwigs who had fled back."
"Persuade them to return?" Qing Chen asked, puzzled.
"It's like... catching them on the road and then helping them return to Kashima," Xiaoqi said, suppressing a laugh. "Some people don't want to come back, so we help them come back. But if you ask me, it's not that complicated, just kill them."
Qing Chen shook his head: "We can't kill them yet. Bring all these people to City 10."
These people cannot die yet; Qing Chen is still useful.
The parent-teacher association has now begun publicly collecting evidence of these people's crimes, and in the future, they will all be listed as war criminals: Kashima and Kamishiro did indeed help the Roosevelt Kingdom invade the Union and open its doors.
"Where are Kashima's troops?" Qingchen asked.
"Kashima's troops were also decimated by Qingye and his men," Luo Wanya said. "The old man on Ginkgo Mountain was very well prepared. While we were making our move in the city, Qingji, Qingye, and the others went directly to Kashima's military base."
"Hmm," Qing Chen nodded, "Any moves from the Li family?"
“They are actively setting up defenses, but the direction of their defenses… is actually us,” Luo Wanya sighed. “Perhaps the parents’ meeting was too big of a move, which made them feel a sense of crisis.”
At this point, Qingchen finally got to the point: "How long have Da Yu and Zard been out of contact?"
“They sent a message saying they had discovered 12 puppets and were going to have the Chen family head handle the matter, and then we couldn’t contact them anymore,” Luo Wanya said with a grave expression. “They must have run into trouble. The parents’ association members in City 7 have been keeping an eye on the Chen family head’s manor, and they haven’t come out of there.”
Qing Chen remained silent. Judging from the current clues, it seemed that the entire Chen family had fallen.
The puppeteer knew very well that controlling the Qing family was far less useful than controlling the Chen family. In the Chen family, a painter could be used as a master!
Luo Wanya then said, "Currently, the Chen family is claiming that Chen Yu has been killed by you, and there are signs that Chen Yu's faction is starting to fall apart..."
As he said this, his eyes kept glancing towards Qingchen.
The conference room suddenly fell silent, because the demigod Chen was sitting upright next to Qing Chen, his posture as proper as that of a primary school student going to school.
When everyone saw Qing Chen with Chen Yu, they all gasped in shock.
They had considered that Qing Chen would be able to defeat Chen Yu without much trouble once he advanced in his advancement, but they never expected that Qing Chen could turn Chen Yu into a puppet on strings...
That's too ruthless.
Chen Yu kept his eyes straight ahead, but in his heart he was cursing Qing Chen to the heavens. He was being observed like a pet, while Chen Chuanzhi and the others beside him kept cursing him.
This is worse than death.
With Chen Yu around, there was still a chance to salvage the Chen family's situation.
Since the parents' association cannot control the Chen family through the head of the Chen family, then they will control it through Chen Yu...
Qing Chen said, "From now on, block the news that I am still alive. In another day, start spreading the news that I have been killed by Chen Yu. Many people in the Chen family know that I have puppets. Only when I am dead will they believe that Chen Yu is still Chen Yu... It doesn't matter if you hold a funeral for me."