Who would have thought that she would simply fall asleep, only to wake up and discover that an entire week had passed?
Seeing the obvious shock on Xie Zhiyu’s face, her father immediately understood.
“Anyway, it’s a long story, and now isn’t the time to talk about it.” He glanced at the time on his phone.
“Sweetie, go get yourself ready. We’re about to head out for your grandfather’s birthday banquet.”
That’s right. Today was also her grandfather’s birthday.
In her memory, she had only spoken to Xie Wenning on the phone an hour ago, yet now she was already about to leave for her grandfather’s birthday celebration.
Everything was happening so quickly that she found it a little difficult to process.
She casually changed into another outfit. When she came back out, she saw Wang Yuerong looking radiant.
“Baby, you’re awake.” Wang Yuerong’s voice was affectionate, and she looked to be in an excellent mood.
Her complexion was fair with a rosy glow, her eyes bright and lively, and her simple brown long dress accentuated her graceful figure. She looked several years younger than before.
“Mom, you’ve gotten younger again.” Xie Zhiyu couldn’t help marveling.
If she and Mrs. Wang walked down the street together, outsiders would probably think they were sisters.
“You little brat, don’t make fun of your mother.” Wang Yuerong covered her lips and giggled. As her beautiful eyes moved, the way she looked at Xie Zhiyu also changed.
“And don’t talk about me. You’ve changed quite a bit too.”
Xie Zhiyu smiled faintly but didn’t deny it.
She had already seen her current appearance while washing up.
The marrow cleansing and bone purification described in cultivation novels really was extraordinary. It was essentially as though all the impurities in her body had been expelled, making her somehow even more beautiful.
It seemed that the saying cultivation can improve one’s appearance really wasn’t an exaggeration.
Xie’s father silently listened to the conversation between the two women, looking at one and then the other with a resentful expression.
“So basically, I’m the biggest useless loser in this family.”
As he spoke, Xie’s father subtly sucked in his slightly protruding belly, doing his best to look refined and elegant.
What a joke. Even though he couldn’t cultivate right now, he was still a handsome middle-aged man.
Not to mention that he had deliberately applied hair pomade today and carefully dressed himself from head to toe.
He was definitely much more handsome than usual!
Xie Zhiyu and Wang Yuerong exchanged a glance before each taking one of his arms.
Wang Yuerong chimed in, “Yes, yes, you’re the most handsome one in the whole family.”
There was nothing wrong with that statement. He was the only man in the family.
“Meow~”
Little Black’s voice came from the sofa.
Oh, she had forgotten. Apart from her father, there was also a male cat who was scheduled to be neutered next month.
Little Black clearly hadn’t gotten enough sleep. It only meowed once and didn’t even bother coming over.
Xie Zhiyu had already left some cat food out for him, though she suspected it probably wouldn’t be needed. At the rate he was sleeping, he probably wouldn’t even wake up before they returned home.
The three of them estimated the time and then left the house.
However, this time, none of them took the elevator. They used the stairs instead.
“Sweetie, you have no idea. While you were asleep, this whole residential community basically became the plants’ territory,” Wang Yuerong said with a sigh.
There was a small window in the stairwell. It was only noon, so normally plenty of sunlight should have filtered through.
But what Xie Zhiyu saw was complete darkness.
Her father turned on his flashlight to illuminate the way, though only he needed it. Having already crossed the threshold into cultivation, Xie Zhiyu didn’t need a flashlight at all.
As for Wang Yuerong, although she had yet to draw Qi into her body, she had just awakened her Fire Spiritual Root. With a simple wave of her hand, she summoned a tiny flame to illuminate the way, making the flashlight unnecessary for her as well.
The three members of the family each had their own way of making their way downstairs.
After drawing Qi into her body, Xie Zhiyu could still use spiritual energy to sense her surroundings even in complete darkness.
She calmly focused her gaze on the completely obstructed window.
At some point, the vines of the rapidly growing plants outside had densely covered the glass.
Their family lived on the fifth floor. The windows on the fourth and third floors were still relatively fine, merely a little darker than usual.
But when they reached the second floor, the window there had already been shattered.
Thick branches twisted their way inside from outside, completely blocking the staircase leading to the first floor.
“Has the outside really become like this?”
Xie Zhiyu was secretly pondering this when a commotion suddenly came from below, accompanied by the harsh grinding sound of machinery chopping through something.
Crack—
The branches blocking the stairwell were split in two and fell to the ground. Dust billowed into the air, revealing a passage large enough for one person to pass through.
A beam of powerful light shone toward them from the other side.
“Boss, are you guys all right?”
A familiar voice came through.
Xie Zhiyu immediately recognized who it belonged to.
“Uncle Hu.”
A relaxed smile appeared on her face as she waved at him.
“It’s me. I brought the brothers here to cut down the plants. Otherwise, I’m afraid no one in this building would have been able to get out today.”
A-Hu on the other side also spotted Xie Zhiyu leading the way.
The two groups quickly reunited.
Standing before the three of them was a group of middle-aged men dressed in security uniforms. The man at the front was tall and powerfully built. Even though he was dressed normally, his broad face and naturally fierce appearance gave off an unmistakable gangster-like aura.
The others behind him had much the same temperament.
They had helped Xie Zhiyu’s family get out. When Wang Yuerong saw them, she wore the familiar expression of someone seeing members of her own family.
She extinguished the flame in her hand and stepped forward to pat the leading man on the shoulder.
“A-Hu, we really have you to thank for helping us get out this time.”
The burly man before her was none other than one of the younger men who had voluntarily followed her back when she had been involved with the underworld in her youth.
Although she had long since retired from that life, many of the people she had once helped had found another way to protect her family.
For example, these men were now specifically responsible for security at Lanyuan Residential Community.
The man called A-Hu, Hu Song, scratched his head and gave her a simple, honest smile.
“Boss, it’s what we should do.”
After the world’s spiritual energy had revived, they had received orders from the higher-ups and had been clearing the rapidly growing plants throughout the residential community every day.
However, their clearing speed couldn’t keep up with how quickly the plants were mutating and growing. Even after a week had passed, many residents still couldn’t make it downstairs. They could only rely on the intervals between clearing operations to deliver food to those who were trapped inside.
This time, after receiving word from Wang Yuerong, they had specifically come to this building to clear the plants.
That was why Wang Yuerong was thanking them.
Hu Song knew that they were going out today to attend a birthday banquet. He glanced over the three of them and had originally intended to advise them against leaving.
But then he suddenly noticed that Wang Yuerong and Xie Zhiyu looked completely different from before.
“Boss, Xiaoyu, how… how did you two change so much?”
The words slipped out before he could stop himself.
But before either of them could answer, he suddenly realized something.
“Wait, you two can cultivate now?”
Excitement filled his eyes.
Wang Yuerong nodded with a smile.
“Yes. We’re both cultivating.”
As she spoke, she raised a finger, revealing a tiny flame at its tip.
Compared with the flame she had first awakened a week ago, this little flame was now slightly more vigorous.
Though only slightly.
Wang Yuerong’s display completely stunned everyone present.
“That’s a Fire Spiritual Root, right?”
Hu Song sucked in a breath.
“This is the first time I’ve ever seen someone with a spiritual root. No wonder you’re our boss.”
He gave her a thumbs-up.
When Xie Zhiyu heard this, she raised an eyebrow. Looking at the more than ten people in front of her, she hesitated before asking, “Uncle Hu, none of you awakened a spiritual root?”
“We’re just ordinary people. How could we possibly awaken a spiritual root?”
Hu Song shook his head. “Although it’s already been a week since spiritual energy was revived, according to what I know, only a few tens of millions of people have been able to awaken spiritual roots. With China’s population of over a billion, ordinary people who haven’t awakened one are actually the norm.”
Xie Zhiyu frowned. “The number is really that low?”
Wang Yuerong, who had been quietly listening nearby, nodded as well.
“That’s right. Your father has been following the incantations from those reclusive sects in the videos every day, trying to awaken one himself. And yet, it hasn’t had any effect.”
During this period, she and Xie’s father had been taking care of Xie Zhiyu while also keeping a close eye on the news online.
She sighed. “The internet is already in complete chaos. Some people have joined reclusive sects or hidden families and awakened spiritual roots. Some people, after awakening their spiritual roots, have secretly started stealing or even killing others. On top of that, the plants outside have mutated, and most people are trapped inside their homes. Although the government has been doing its best to deal with everything, there are simply too many incidents. They can’t possibly handle them all.”
It had left her quite worried during this period.
Hu Song clearly agreed with what she had said.
He said indignantly, “You don’t know this, but we haven’t been idle at all lately. We’ve been dealing with problems involving the residents nonstop. There’s one resident who only awakened his spiritual root a few days ago, yet he already thinks he’s superior to everyone else. He even tried to recruit us and demanded that we give him information about the other residents.”
“We refused, so now he files more than a dozen complaints against us every day. He’s even threatened to find an opportunity to kill us.”
“It’s gotten to the point where none of us even want to work as security guards anymore.”
“The world really has descended into chaos.” Xie’s father frowned deeply upon hearing this.
“With spiritual energy having revived, being a security guard isn’t an easy job anymore. If things really don’t work out, just quit. Your lives are more important than your jobs. We can help support you on our side as well.”
He spoke very directly, and neither Xie Zhiyu nor Wang Yuerong objected, because they felt the same way.
A warm feeling swept through Hu Song’s heart.
He scratched his head and said with a simple grin, “Don’t worry, Brother Xie. We’re just talking. We probably won’t quit for the time being. After all, although the outside world is dangerous now, there are also quite a few good things out there.”
The mutated plants were indeed vicious, but if they could kill them, they could also make some money.
Since the matter had reached this point, Xie’s father didn’t say anything more.
He politely declined Hu Song’s offer to send people to protect them. The three of them then drove out of the residential complex along the route they had cleared.
Xie Zhiyu sat in the passenger seat, looking at the map.
The area outside the residential complex was rather chaotic. The three of them deliberately avoided roads with large numbers of plants, taking detours for more than an hour before finally reaching the location of the old master’s birthday banquet.
Old Master Xie Zhendong’s eightieth birthday banquet was being held at the best hotel in A City. Even though the outside world was in complete turmoil, the hotel had continued operating as usual.
This wasn’t a formal birthday banquet, but simply a gathering that was more or less like a family dinner.
When the three of them entered the private room, it was filled with laughter and lively conversation.
The moment Xie’s father, who was walking in front, opened the door, the room suddenly fell silent.
The atmosphere became deathly still.
Xie’s father wore an expression that seemed to say, Just as I expected.
He calmly swept his gaze around the private room before giving a faint, mocking smile.
“What? You don’t welcome us?”