Chapter 159: The Overly Familiar Man

Zhang Ning had long felt that his Master was becoming increasingly idle. Ever since Master calculated that the time dilation between this world and the Azure Realm was one thousand to one, he had completely relaxed. After all, even if they spent ten years here, only three days would have passed in the Azure Realm, so there was truly no rush to return.

At first, however, Chu Hanyu was an absolute shut-in. It was only after Zhang Ning dragged him out for some basic activities that he showed any signs of life. Zhang Ning found this deeply distressing. While ordinary people needed manga or Wi-Fi to stay cooped up indoors, his Master—give him a place to meditate, and Zhang Ning suspected he could be left alone for years without a single worry.

Of course, Zhang Ning wasn't an unreasonable child, but Chu Hanyu was clearly not contemplating the Great Dao; he was simply being a couch potato. On several occasions, Zhang Ning strongly suspected that the sound of his Master’s breathing... meant he had simply fallen asleep.

Thus, racking his brains and pondering deeply, Zhang Ning finally hammered out a decision: aside from the regular cleaning crew, certain household chores had to be left unassigned so the two of them could participate personally. To convince his Master, Zhang Ning even fabricated a mountain of high-sounding justifications.

In the end, they agreed that at least the household trash would be taken out by the two of them. Furthermore, washing the dishes after meals was mandatory. Whenever Chu Hanyu called him for dinner, it implied: "Don't forget to wash the dishes later."

Zhang Ning had no objections to this arrangement; instead, he would chuckle secretly, imagining what it would look like if his Master had to take out the garbage at home.

Speaking of strength, what kind of status did Master hold? He was a figure whose mere stomp could make the Azure Realm tremble three times!

Even putting aside his strength, what kind of peerless beauty was his Master? If he were an idol on Water Blue Star, holding two extra books or wearing an oversized coat would undoubtedly make his fans' hearts ache with adoration, let alone making such a beauty take out the trash—that would practically be a sin against heaven!

And who was the person capable of making such a figure throw away the trash?

It was him! It was Zhang Ning! Thinking of this, Zhang Ning laughed out loud.

Meanwhile, just as Chu Hanyu opened the door to take out the trash, he noticed someone standing outside.

The man's eyes lit up the moment he saw someone emerge. He waved a hand and gave a very friendly "Hello," but Chu Hanyu simply presented him with his back.

Once Chu Hanyu finished throwing away the garbage, the man very familiarly followed him right into the apartment.

Seeing how brazen the fellow was, Chu Hanyu finally deigned to glance at him, only to find him dressed in exceptionally heavy winter attire, complete with a hat, gloves, and the whole nine yards. Atop his hat was a layer of snowflakes that had yet to melt, prompting one to wonder: surely the season wasn't cold enough for snow yet?

However, Chu Hanyu felt not an ounce of curiosity about this.

He still had two bags of trash left to dispose of. Figuring this intruder was merely another eccentric character like Taoran Pavilion, Chu Hanyu left him standing in the foyer, making no move to offer him a seat or pour him a glass of water, and went straight to grab his garbage bags.

The man showed not the slightest bit of awkwardness. He merely muttered, "So cold," before naturally taking off his hat, scarf, and other winter gear, placing them on the coat rack, and plop—dropping straight onto the sofa.

Yet, had an ordinary person witnessed this seemingly normal scene, their jaw likely would have dropped to the floor. For the man had clearly finished undressing in the entryway, and without ever making a motion to walk toward the living room, he had appeared on the sofa in the very next second—this was obviously no ordinary individual!

And if the person standing here were not Chu Hanyu, but someone well-versed in supernatural beings and perpetually terrified of them, they would instantly recognize this man: he was the infamous leader of the superpower organization Web, arguably the supreme leader of all superpowered beings across the globe—Yu Ming!

Yu Ming took a sip of hot water and sighed, "Ah, my god, I'm alive! I'm truly alive!" With that, he casually crossed his slender legs atop the coffee table. "Leaping straight here from the North Pole, even for me, is quite exhausting," he muttered to himself as if no one else were around. Chu Hanyu, however, didn't spare him a single glance, turning straight around to head out with another batch of trash.

This slight irritated Yu Ming somewhat. Shouldn't a normal person first look astonished and ask how the snow on his hat came to be? Even the dullest person would realize he was extraordinary, and since Chu Hanyu was supposedly favored by supernatural forces, how could he possibly not know who Yu Ming was? Impossible. If anyone in this world didn't know him, it certainly wouldn't be this person.

Therefore, Yu Ming arched his eyebrows and let out a cold laugh, assuming Chu Hanyu was merely putting on an act. His face was filled with haughtiness and disdain for mortals, yet rather than feeling repulsive, it radiated a peculiar, compelling charm.

"Hey, how can you ignore me? I came here specifically for you two! ...To think, I merely went into secluded cultivation for two years, and already someone doesn't know who I am?" Yu Ming's brow was suffused with intense self-assurance, his presence overwhelmingly imposing.

Chu Hanyu still ignored him. Although he had finished taking out the trash, he still needed to wash his hands.

This caused Yu Ming's expression to darken instantly. In a flash, he "teleported" directly behind Chu Hanyu.

As the leader of Web, he had whipped that rebellious, self-important group of superpowered individuals into absolute submission. Even with his genius—being the most talented spatial-type supernatural user in millennia—it had taken him a tremendous amount of effort.

A group like that required careful management, yet Zhujie, the lackey Yu Ming had handpicked as his primary follower, had been murdered while Yu Ming was in "secluded cultivation" for a mere two years. How could Yu Ming—who had been entirely cut off from the world until just receiving the news—not feel an inexpressible fury?

Now, by coming over and speaking these words to give Zhang Ning and the others time to react, he was doing more than just jogging their memories; he was bestowing upon them the grace to bow their heads in submission and kowtow in surrender. Yet now, they actually dared to turn a blind eye to him?!

This drove Yu Ming to murderous intent. Since these two were mere ants incapable of perceiving the current state of affairs, he didn't mind crushing them to death as easily as swatting a fly.

Yet Yu Ming had been in seclusion for two years and had no idea that the one who failed to understand the situation was actually himself!

During those short two years, the period he grandly called seclusion was actually him indulging in the bustling luxuries of the mortal world before temporarily settling in the North Pole. The continuous supplies of provisions and resources he enjoyed were unattainable even in normal regions; people had literally frozen to death transporting some of those supplies, and the financial costs incurred were incalculable. Yet, the human elites—who had already acquired the capacity to fight back, mastered the art of weapon forging, and were currently researching combat through integration with artifacts—had silently endured all of this, waiting for the day they held absolute certainty of victory.

Of all this, Yu Ming knew nothing.

Even if he had known, given his personality, he likely wouldn't have cared.

In his eyes, he was the Son of Destiny chosen by the heavens, the most brilliant spatial-type superpower user in millennia, and the uncrowned underground king of humanity. How could he possibly be overthrown by the meager efforts of mere mortals? That would undoubtedly be a joke to him!

Ever since he awakened his abilities, everyone's attitude toward him had either shifted from arrogance to obsequiousness or had been intensely deferential from the very start. No one had ever dared to stand tall in his presence, let alone repeatedly ignore him the way Chu Hanyu did. Even with his generous temperament, this was something he simply could not tolerate!

Thus, he took a step forward, arriving directly behind Chu Hanyu, intending to end the life of the person who dared to ignore him. At that moment, however, he saw Chu Hanyu turn his head, and his pupils instantly constricted.

As it turned out, his hat and sunglasses had previously blocked Yu Ming's vision, preventing him from seeing Chu Hanyu's face clearly. Now, seeing it so suddenly, how could a man who had always adored beauty fail to be utterly shaken and astounded?