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nChen Yiming left the area that had been scorched black by the light and heat. He only stopped when the smell of burning disappeared from the air.

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nHe chose an empty spot at random. After tempering his spiritual power, he still had to continue his daily swordsmanship cultivation.

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nHe waved the cheap peach wood sword around. The sword was ordinary, but its user was not. Lines seemed to have been drawn into the space, and the sound of air exploding rang out continuously.

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nThe aftershock and the strong sunlight made his vision blur.

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nAfter practicing for a while, not far away, an exploration team was cautiously approaching. He had no choice but to stop practicing his swordsmanship.

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nA woman with a hot figure asked Chen Yiming with a smile, “What happened here?”

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nChen Lu had a beautiful face and snow-white skin. Her long legs and perky butt were wrapped tightly in a pair of long pants, perfectly accentuating her sexy curves.

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nOn her front, the top button was open. Her chest, which was also wrapped tightly, was bulging out of her top, and her long black hair was tied into a bun behind her head.

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nChen Yiming didn’t want them to pay too much attention to him, so he could only make up some nonsense.

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n“I also came over after seeing the phenomenon that appeared in the sky. The scorched earth is still hot, so I didn’t dare to step in easily.”

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nChen Lu was a little disappointed when she heard this. Her team was already close to the scene, and they had encountered someone who had arrived at the scene earlier than them, but he did not know anything.

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n“You don’t even dare to go in. You’re too weak. You really wasted such a good opportunity,”

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na heavily armed man said in a mocking tone. Chen Lu was not the only one who was disappointed. The others in the exploration team felt the same way.

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nChen Yiming had a strange expression on his face. He couldn’t understand why these people cared so much about it.

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nHowever, as the strongest person in the stronghold, he did not want to make a fuss about it.

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nThe members of the exploration team ignored Chen Yiming. The man who had mocked them earlier approached Chen Lu and said, “Sister Lu, I don’t think we can hesitate any longer. We have to hurry up and start the excavation.”

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nChen Lu turned to look at the scorched earth. The smile on her beautiful face had disappeared, and was replaced by a serious and cautious expression.

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nAnother man from the exploration team stood up and said, “Sister Lu, we really don’t have much time. It’ll be troublesome when a stronger team comes.”

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nChen Lu frowned. She was worried that something would go wrong if they were the only team doing the excavation. However, when more people arrived, there would be a fight over the treasures.

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nShe hesitated for a moment before asking Chen Yiming, “Other than the burning clouds, did you really not see anything else?”

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nAnything else?

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nThe characteristic of this damp wasteland was its desolation. Did these people think that a treasure had been unearthed?

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nChen Yiming was speechless. “How is that possible? The terrain here is so flat. I think you’re thinking too much. The heavenly fire just happened to land here.”

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nUsing the heavenly fire to explain the phenomenon he had created made sense to him.

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nHowever, even though Chen Yiming had told them the truth, the suspicion on the faces of the members of the exploration team intensified.

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nChen Lu stopped pretending to be an enthusiastic big sister. Her expression became like the man who mocked him earlier, and she seemed to treat Chen Yiming as a liar.

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nChen Yiming didn’t want to trick them for no reason, so he reminded them, “Although the surface of the damp wasteland is desolate, there are many creatures underground. There might be a problem if you dig around randomly.”

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nAs soon as he finished speaking, the team turned around and headed towards the scorched earth. The more Chen Yiming explained, the more others didn’t believe him.

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nSoon, these people started to dig with shovels. Due to the rules of the otherworld, mechanical equipment like the excavators were useless in the otherworld.

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nHowever, martial arts practitioners could just rely on their own strength to make up for it. This was especially true for those in the warrior realm who had extraordinary strength from their internal force. Their efficiency in digging was not inferior to machines.

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n“Do I look like someone who will trick others?”

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nChen Yiming looked at the dusty excavation site and said helplessly.

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nThe truth was treated as a lie, and the lie was treated as the truth. He could not persuade them or change their mind at all.

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nBefore long, two more teams rushed over. When they saw that someone had started to dig, they joined in without hesitation and chose different areas to dig.

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nThe scorched earth had a diameter of several kilometers. Even with three teams digging at the same time, it still looked rather unoccupied.

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nHowever, the people were getting to the site faster and faster. Almost as soon as the second batch of two teams started to dig, five more teams arrived.

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nChen Yiming knew that they were operating on the wrong assumptions. In less than half an hour, the scorched earth had become a construction site. Nearly 1,000 martial arts practitioners had turned into excavators and dug through all the scorched earth.

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n…

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n“Clang!”

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nThe tremors caused by the continuous digging attracted the attention of the underground creatures.

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nChen Yiming, who was standing in the distance, keenly sensed that creatures were moving towards the surface from deep underground. As for the people on the scorched earth, they were still digging through the ground, drenched in sweat. They had no idea that a crisis was approaching.

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nChen Yiming sighed and said, “Do you still think this is the blue planet? If you don’t learn your lesson, you won’t know how to be cautious.”

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nAs expected, less than 10 seconds after he finished speaking,

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n“Bang!” A loud sound rang out.

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nA long black creature broke out of the ground. Its long tongue protruded and retracted as it stared at the crowd with a murderous expression.

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nIts face was round, and it looked a little like the snakes on the blue planet. Because it had some cute characteristics, it gave one an inexplicably good feeling. However, the stench it emitted when it breathed indicated that it was not a gentle creature.

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nFaced with the snake creature, the people who were digging the ground retreated step by step to prevent themselves from not being able to dodge in time.

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nHowever, this action eliminated the other party’s hesitation. In an instant, he pounced at the people closest to him and shot out his tongue.

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n“Damn it.”

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nThe people who were attacked drew their weapons.

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nThese people were all at the warrior realm, so they still had the courage to put up a resistance. Their internal force covered their weapons as they fought the snake creature.

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n“Clang! Clang! Clang!”

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nWeapons covered in internal force slashed at the scales on its body, but most of the force was negated and did not cause any damage.

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nThe surrounding people stopped in their tracks again. Some of them were even eager to participate in the attack.

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nChen Yiming sensed the commotion coming from underground and was speechless. “Does the burning clouds mean that a treasure has been unearthed? Why are these people still not giving up?”

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nOn the scorched earth, the attacks from the snake creature were also ineffective. This gave everyone confidence that this creature from the otherworld was not strong.

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nAt this moment, Chen Yiming saw the man who had mocked him earlier. He raised his arm and shouted, “Everyone, attack together. Kill the snake and drink its blood.”

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nWith that, the person was the first to rush over and participate in the encirclement.

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nWith their numbers, they were emboldened. Many people who were confident in their own strength rushed forward.

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nAs more and more people surrounded the snake creature, the ground shook and dozens of snake creatures broke out of the ground.

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nAlthough the humans still had the advantage in numbers, most of them were at the disciple realm. The difference in numbers between the true warriors had greatly decreased.

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nThe crowd was in an uproar and scattered in panic.

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nMost of the exploration teams did not know each other. They could still cooperate easily in a situation where they had the advantage, but it would be difficult for them in other situations.

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nFortunately, the snake creatures did not chase after them. Perhaps they were afraid because of the large piece of scorched earth, or perhaps they did not like to move around on the surface during the day and only had a short conflict with the humans, so they hid underground again.

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nA few unlucky people were bitten and forced to have their limbs amputated to get rid of the unknown poison.

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nOutside the area of scorched earth,

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nChen Lu’s team bumped into Chen Yiming again while they were retreating.

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nThe right arm of the man who had mocked Chen Yiming was missing and tightly bandaged.

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n“You…”

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nSeeing Chen Yiming’s face, the man was furious, but he had no reason to flare up at him.

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nThe exploration team’s companions quickly stopped the man. No matter what, they were in the wrong and had been blinded by greed.

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n…

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nChen Yiming watched the fleeing crowd and changed to another place to continue his cultivation. He only returned to the stronghold when it was getting dark.

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nThe temperature around him began to drop. The light from the three glowing balls in the sky gradually weakened.

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nThe source of light provided by the otherworld was the same all the time. There was no sunset or sunrise, only a certain pattern to the strengthening and weakening of the light.

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nAlong the way, he saw people returning with a full load.

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nThe creatures from the otherworld that had been killed were dismembered and were dragged along by a rope.

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nLaughter rang out continuously, and the teams that had brought back some loot were all smiles. If not for the establishment of the stronghold, very few people would dare to enter the otherworld on the other side of the space-travel passage.

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nThere were those who were smiling and those who were disappointed.

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nIn the damp wasteland around the stronghold, there were fewer creatures from the otherworld living on the surface during the day. Those who were unlucky or slow could only watch enviously as the others gathered their loot.

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n…

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nThe sky in the otherworld was a little different from the blue planet. It changed very quickly.

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nChen Yiming had just returned to the stronghold when the sky turned completely dark. Torches were lit along the street, chasing away the darkness and the fear it brought.

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nHe followed the crowd to an empty area on the east side. This place had been temporarily turned into a trading market. The management staff of the stronghold were selling various supplies.

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nHowever, due to the shortage of resources related to the otherworld, there was a limit to the amount that each person could use their contribution points to buy, while there was no limit on trading their loot for supplies.

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nIn the early stages of the exploration of the otherworld, which was still in the areas that the stronghold’s military had swept through, the gains were undoubtedly much more for those who were there earlier.

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nBut if they returned to the blue planet to replenish their supplies, they would not be allowed to enter the stronghold through the base city for a week.

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nTherefore, the teams that had obtained some loot quickly exchanged a portion of it for supplies.

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nChen Yiming walked around the market. Every stall was filled with people, and many people had come to join in the fun. As he walked around, he bumped into his former roommate, Dai Yuanhang.

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n“Sect Master,” Dai Yuanhang greeted him respectfully.

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nThe two of them had joined the sect at different times. The one who had joined later had become the sect master, while the one who joined earlier was still a disciple, so their relationship had become much more distant.

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nChen Yiming chatted with Dai Yuanhang for a while.

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nDai Yuanhang informed him that the leader of his team was the head of the Mantis Snake Court, Zhou Xuesheng. They had hunted 10 creatures from the otherworld in one day, and most of the parts were stored in a rented warehouse.

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nIn addition, Jiangnan province had sent someone to the sect to discuss something. Everyone was waiting for the sect master to go back and make a decision. Dai Yuanhang did not know the details, but he knew that the previous sect master, Ye Jianyuan, had received them personally.

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nFrom this, one could roughly tell how important the matter was. Chen Yiming quickly parted ways with Dai Yuanhang. He didn’t return to the blue planet immediately, but left the stronghold.

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nChen Yiming sneaked along the path he had taken the previous night alone, observing the movements of the creatures from the otherworld.

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nIn the caves that were connected to the underground passages, creatures from the otherworld had appeared just like before and were staring at the prey that occasionally passed by on the wasteland.

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nChen Yiming would occasionally see human experts still hunting the creatures. Those who dared to move in the dark seemed to have mastered the transformation of their internal force.

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nIn the regions with the ancient trees,

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nChen Yiming sneaked in alone and realized that some barbarians had used tools to cut open the bark and drink the sap that was flowing out.

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nThe sap was like blood. Not only did it smell like blood, but it was also bright red. This was shocking.

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nIn addition, the barbarians didn’t seem to be getting along well with chimpanzee-like creatures. There were conflicts between them from time to time. Chen Yiming observed them carefully and realized that both sides were fighting over the ancient trees.

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nMoreover, there were very few weak people on both sides. Most of them were at the level of the court heads of large sects, which also caused there to be very few traces of humans in this area. Perhaps they had consciously avoided them from afar.

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nAfter that, he went to the graveyard to observe the situation. After confirming that there were no creatures from the otherworld launching a counterattack because of the human’s actions during the day, he returned to the base city through the space-travel passage.

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n…

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nNot wanting to be the center of attention, Chen Yiming hid his identity and took the train back to Jiangdu City.

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nOnly a day had passed, and the city that was the only way to reach the base city was still full of people.

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nA large number of people from outside the city had gathered on the streets. After urgently importing goods from other places, the shops could finally operate normally.

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nHe passed by a street that was full of people. A large crowd was surrounding a shop.

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nA middle-aged woman with a fierce expression locked the door of the shop and shouted at the young man in front of her,

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n“From today onwards, the rent will increase by three times. You have to pay three years’ rent in advance. You can reopen the shop when you pay up.”

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nWhen the young man heard this, he had a furious expression on his face. They had clearly signed a contract in black and white previously, but the original contract had been mercilessly torn apart and his goods had even been seized.

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nHowever, the middle-aged woman in front of him had a strong backing and was not someone he could afford to offend. He could either admit that he was unlucky or find the money to renew the lease.

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nHowever, Jiangdu City only had a special status for the time being. No one knew when the railways from the major cities to the base city would be opened.

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nOnce they opened up, no one could predict whether Jiandu City would return to its original state or whether it would be able to maintain its special status.

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nMany people in the crowd felt indignant for the young man. “How can this be? Three times the rent, and you have to pay three years’ rent in advance? Are you trying to force him to leave?”

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nFaced with the increasing criticism from the crowd, the middle-aged woman was unfazed. Her figure was seriously out of shape, and she had abandoned her martial arts for many years, but no one dared to really attack her.

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nAt the very least, the young man in front of her and the crowd did not dare to make a move.

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nThe young man tried to negotiate. “How about increasing the rent by four times, and paying for one year’s rent in advance?”

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nThe middle-aged woman snorted. “One year’s rent? Dream on. Now, the rent is increased by four times. Pay for three years’ rent in advance.”

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nThe young man’s expression froze. He took a step back and almost fell. He knew that the other party had no intention of renewing his lease, so he took a deep breath and turned to leave.

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nAfter he left, the onlookers had no reason to stay and quickly dispersed.

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nChen Yiming happened to pass by and saw this happen. He sighed.

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n“In my previous world, there were many cases of contracts being broken in times of peace, let alone in this era where martial arts power determines everything.

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nJiangdu City is an important city for the development of the otherworld. It’s difficult for it not to be chaotic. It can even be said that the young man is lucky to not lose his life.”

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nIn the end, he did not stand up for justice and teach the middle-aged woman a lesson. That would only bring about a disaster for the young man,

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nunless he exposed his identity and suppressed the faction behind the middle-aged woman. But there was no need for that. The situation of going back on the previous contract was probably happening everywhere in Jiangdu City at this moment, and there was no way to deal with all of it.

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nStrength was the foundation of one’s standing.

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