Chapter 53 Rank Placement

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Rank Placement

By the time Xie Jingyuan and Xiao Yu received the notice and rushed to the medical room, Xie Yanran’s wounds had already been treated.

Xie Jingyuan glanced at the illuminated sign above the operating room, then frowned at Xie Yanran. "What happened?"

Xie Yanran sighed. "Hong Yuan and I went back to the Tongzi Building to arrange the future livelihoods of his brothers.

"Unexpectedly, an expert wearing armor barged in. Hong Yuan rushed forward and was almost killed instantly.

"Under the cover of the others, I took him upstairs to retreat. However, that expert killed dozens of people in mere moments. If someone hadn’t saved us, Master Xie, you wouldn’t be seeing me right now."

Suppressing his anger, Xie Jingyuan asked, "To suppress both of you single-handedly, this person must be at least an Instant Level expert. Did you see what they looked like?"

Xie Yanran opened her mouth, glanced at Xiao Yu, and whispered, "Not just one Instant Level—I’m afraid there were two. We were saved by the other expert.

"As for their appearance, the attacker wore armor and a full helmet. Their voice also seemed intentionally disguised."

She originally wanted to say she suspected Ya Lie, but considering that the Zero Point Group and Xuan Guang Group were preparing to collaborate, she couldn’t voice her suspicions without evidence. After all, she couldn’t even explain Ya Lie’s motive for wanting them dead. Moreover, Xiao Yu had gone to great lengths to get them out. They couldn’t just ask the Zero Point Group to hand over an Instant Level expert for investigation based on a mere suspicion.

Feng Yin knew the reason behind Ya Lie’s attack, but he couldn’t say it. Instead, he simply asked softly from the side, "Yanran, when I arrived, I only saw corpses all over the ground. Who saved you?"

A flash of relief crossed Xie Yanran’s eyes. "It was the Black Armor Swordsman, that mysterious expert."

"The Black Armor Swordsman again..." Feng Yin put on a thoughtful expression.

"Who is this Black Armor Swordsman?" Xie Jingyuan frowned.

"Another expert, at least at the Instant Level..." Xie Yanran briefly explained the annihilation of the Ren Sheng Group to Xie Jingyuan.

"To think that two unknown Instant Level experts would appear on a small, isolated island," Xie Jingyuan pondered slightly. "There are too many unstable factors on Border Prison Island." He looked at Xiao Yu with a stern expression. "Since you’ve already watched the Death Frenzy match and formally met with their executive in charge, you’ll stay on the ship for the next two days. We’ll discuss everything else once we return to Celestial Essence."

On such a serious matter, Xiao Yu tactfully refrained from throwing a tantrum and nodded earnestly.

Xie Jingyuan then turned back to Xie Yanran. "How is Hong Yuan?"

Xie Yanran took a deep breath. "His arm was severed in a single strike by that expert. Fortunately, the two of them clashed and took their fight elsewhere, allowing me to sneak back and retrieve his severed arm.

"Right now, Hong Yuan is inside undergoing debridement and reattachment surgery. The medical department of the Zero Point Consortium is highly skilled. The doctor said the cut on the severed arm was clean and it was brought in quickly. With proper rehabilitation, he should be able to recover at least eighty percent of its function."

Xie Jingyuan nodded. "Consider yourselves lucky this time. Don’t cause any more trouble. Just return to the ship and focus on your recovery."

Beside them, Xiao Yu revealed an obedient smile, holding Xie Yanran’s hand to comfort her. "Yanran, surviving a great disaster means good fortune is sure to follow. Once we’re back, I’ll arrange a welcome banquet for you."

Xie Yanran smiled and rubbed Xiao Yu’s little head.

Xiao Yu glanced at Xie Yanran’s face and said seriously, "The Xuan Guang Group also owns a cosmetic medical business. I don’t think there will be any problem clearing up the scar on your face. I’ll arrange that as well."

Xie Yanran looked a little embarrassed. "Actually, over the past few years, Old Hong and I have gotten used to it. The scar doesn’t affect my daily life."

Despite her words, a look of longing flashed in her eyes. It seemed that no one could truly disregard their own appearance—especially someone who was originally beautiful but had been accidentally disfigured.

***

Late at night, Feng Yin followed Master Xie and the others as they smoothly returned to the ship under the tense escort of a guard team dispatched by the Zero Point Group.

Hong Yuan’s arm had been reattached, and his entire right arm was now encased in what looked like a highly advanced sleeve. It looked rather comical. However, his complexion was excellent, and he wore a hearty smile.

Xie Yanran said coldly, "How can you still smile? They say your right arm can recover eighty percent of its function, but with the nerve damage, who knows how many years it’ll take you to regain your martial arts skills."

"Hey, hey," Hong Yuan said cheerfully. "To escape with my life from the blade of an Instant Level expert, what more could I ask for? Besides, we get to return to Celestial Essence now. I wouldn’t have even dared to dream of this before."

Saying that, he turned to Xiao Yu. "Chen Yu, we’ve really troubled you this time."

Xiao Yu was in the middle of a wide-mouthed yawn, looking thoroughly sleep-deprived. Suddenly called out by Hong Yuan, she jolted awake. "No, no, it was no trouble at all!"

Xie Jingyuan said in a deep voice, "You really should thank Xiao Yu. If the Xuan Guang Group didn’t have close ties with the higher-ups, anyone else—even if they had the ability to take you away from Border Prison Island—would find it incredibly difficult to get you legal identities in Celestial Essence." He lightly pointed at the three of them. "Yanran has already been officially declared dead by Genroku. Hong Yuan is a convicted Genroku underworld felon. Feng Yin is a suspicious amnesiac with a blank identity. If the profile of any single one of you were sent to the Immigration Department of Celestial Essence, it would be thrown straight into the trash."

Hong Yuan embarrassedly rubbed his bald head. "I feel like I’m the biggest problem. Xiao Yu, will I have to completely change my appearance?"

Xiao Yu tilted her head in thought. "It depends on what you want to do. If you don’t get plastic surgery to assume a new identity, you won’t be able to use any public facilities, work normally, or buy a pension plan..."

"A pension plan... I never thought I’d have anything to do with that in this lifetime."

Hong Yuan laughed heartily and looked at Xie Yanran. "Alright! Yanran will go heal her scars, and I’ll go get some cosmetic touch-ups. We’ll start entirely from scratch!"

Xiao Yu looked at Feng Yin with a mischievous grin. "What about you, Feng Yin? Do you want to get plastic surgery?"

Feng Yin shook his head gently and smiled. "No, I think my face is perfectly fine..."

Xiao Yu snickered. "Perfectly fine? It’s downright gorgeous! You’re even more handsome than Ren Bai! Even if you wanted to get plastic surgery, I wouldn’t allow it."

"Ren Bai?" Feng Yin was a bit curious upon hearing the unfamiliar name. "Who is that?"

Xiao Yu’s eyes sparkled. "Ren Bai is currently the most sought-after genius swordsman in Celestial Essence. He just debuted last year and already won the championship in the Rookie Ranking Tournament. He was ranked at the ’Fierce Upper’ level. Combine that with his handsome looks and great charisma, and he’s now a national idol..."

As she spoke, her eyes grew brighter and brighter as she stared at Feng Yin. "Wait a minute! Feng Yin, you’re also a complete rookie! You could participate in this year’s Rookie Ranking Tournament too!"

Feng Yin paused, then asked softly, "Compared to this ’Rookie Ranking Tournament’, I’m much more curious about what ’Fierce Upper’ means..."

***