Martial arts have become extinct worldwide, yet I am forced to have a large family.

Inside a makeshift tent in the secret realm.

"puff!"

Gao Nianwen suddenly opened his eyes, spitting out a mouthful of blood that stained the ground in front of him.

"Damn it! The aftereffects of forcibly breaking through are this severe..."

He could clearly feel the surging martial arts essence within his body like a wild horse, rampaging through his meridians, each impact bringing excruciating, tearing pain.

Since returning from the volcano, Gao Nianwen has remained in this secluded place to recuperate.

His forced breakthrough to the fourth realm made it impossible for him to even return to Earth via the spatial passage.

Unless one cripples their cultivation and falls back below the fourth realm, they can not safely return to Blue Star.

Or wait until the passageway is stable enough to accommodate powerful individuals from all four realms.

But that would take too long.

He had to endure the pain of his meridians breaking at all times, and his martial arts foundation was on the verge of collapse.

Either way, it means the end of a martial arts career.

Just then, Mo Chou's voice came from outside the tent.

"Captain Gao! May I come in?"

Gao Nianwen quickly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and the ground before replying in a deep voice, "Come in."

The tent flap was lifted, and Mo Chou's tall figure walked in.

When he saw Gao Nianwen's bloodless face, his expression changed.

"Captain Gao, are you alright?"

"It's nothing." Gao Nianwen waved his hand. "Captain Mo, why aren't you out organizing people to search for Brother Yang? What are you doing here?"

"Captain Gao, I just wanted to talk to you about Brother Yang." Mo Chou sighed and pulled over a folding bench to sit down.

"He's back safely."

"Really?" Gao Nianwen's previously dim eyes lit up instantly.

These days, he has been unable to participate in the search and rescue due to his injuries, and he is suffering greatly.

Yang Xian not only saved his life, but also saved everyone's life.

Gao Nianwen kept this immense kindness in his heart at all times, fearing that something might happen to the other party.

He would never have peace of mind if the person died like that.

"Yes," Mo Chou nodded:

"Not only that, he also found indigenous tribes that were willing to cooperate with our country."

"With him acting as a go-between, the two sides will soon be able to reach a long-term cooperation agreement. The higher-ups should contact him in the next few days."

"A blessing in disguise, I knew it... cough cough cough!" Gao Nianwen was so excited that he accidentally aggravated his injury and coughed violently, with a trace of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

"Captain Gao!" Mo Chou rushed forward.

"I'm fine." Gao Nianwen waved her hand, having finally recovered.

Seeing his expression, Mo Chou hesitated to speak, but finally took out an exquisite wooden box from his pocket.

"Oh, by the way, Brother Yang asked me to give you a gift before he left."

Gao Nianwen was taken aback: "A gift? For me?"

He took the box; it felt slightly heavy in his hand and had a peculiar woody scent.

"What is this?"

The box was slowly opened.

The next second, a refreshing medicinal fragrance wafted over, and inside the box lay a spiritual herb, its entire body exquisitely carved.

Gao Nianwen and Mo Chou's breaths both paused for a moment.

"Nine...Nine-Orifice Exquisite Grass!?"

They then remembered that Yang Xian had won first place in the Jiang family's performance competition.

The champion's reward is this "Nine-Aperture Exquisite Grass".

Mo Chou's voice trembled slightly: "Brother Yang... he actually gave away such a treasure! Captain Gao, your martial arts foundation is saved!"

Is this the "little gift" that Brother Yang mentioned?

Although the Nine-Aperture Exquisite Grass cannot compare to the legendary "Nine-Turn Life-Extending Lotus," it is still a peerless treasure for enhancing martial arts aptitude and a coveted item for countless martial artists.

Many people would spend their entire fortune to obtain even one of these plants, yet he gave it away without batting an eye?

"No, this is far too expensive..."

Gao Nianwen instinctively tried to close the box.

It would be a lie to say I wasn't tempted.

For someone whose martial arts foundation has been completely destroyed, this Nine-Aperture Exquisite Grass is the hope for rebirth.

Yang Xian had already saved his life, and now he was being presented with such a precious treasure; he felt truly unworthy of it.

Just then, he caught a glimpse of a small note pressed against the bottom of the box.

Gao Nianwen picked up the note; a line of small print was written on it—

"Captain Gao, I told you I have a way to restore your martial arts foundation."

"You can use this for now. Just remember to return it to me if you find something better in the future."

"With your sickly body, you can't repay my favor!"

Seeing the slightly teasing tone, Gao Nianwen's eyes welled up with tears.

Mo Chou also came over to take a look, then patted Gao Nianwen on the shoulder: "Captain Gao, you saw that, right? Brother Yang isn't just giving it to you for free; you'll have to pay him back later."

Although they said they would pay it back, everyone understood what they meant.

This was clearly done to give him a way out, so that he wouldn't feel guilty and wouldn't accept it.

Gao Nianwen carefully put the note away, and after a long while, he let out a long sigh.

"Brother Yang's kindness... can never be repaid!"

------

Meanwhile, at the Jiang Family Manor.

"You want me to go and discuss cooperation with the Boundary Wolf Tribe?"

"But I still have tasks to do in the next two weeks."

Yang Xian spoke with a helpless expression.

The call was from Chinese officials, mainly to confirm his intention to cooperate with the Jielang tribe and to invite him to act as an intermediary to facilitate formal talks between the two parties.

The operator on the other end of the phone was clearly taken aback, seemingly not expecting him to refuse for this reason.

"Comrade Yang Xian, we have checked your task records and found that you have not accepted any tasks in the system."

"It's like this, operator," Yang Xian explained patiently:

"Chengwu University will start the new semester in just over twenty days. The school stipulates that freshmen must complete three tasks in order to successfully register."

"I've only finished one so far, I need to hurry and finish the remaining two."

The operator paused for a moment: "We understand your request. Please wait a moment while I check with my superiors to verify some information."

Sitting beside him, Jiang Mengyun gracefully stroked the white cat in her arms, glancing at Yang Xian.

"Finished talking?"

"Shh! Not yet!" Yang Xian gestured for her to be quiet.

After a brief wait, the operator's voice came through again.

"Comrade Yang Xian, according to the reported information, your performance in this secret realm was extremely outstanding."

"Firstly, you disregarded your personal safety and successfully rescued more than ten martial artists, including Captain Gao Nianwen. This act has been recorded as a successful rescue mission for you."

"Secondly, in the subsequent operations, you actively assisted military personnel in seizing the 'Nine-Turn Life-Extending Lotus' from the alien race, and made a key contribution to this. This action has been automatically recorded as a completed assistance mission for you."

"So, you have completed the remaining two tasks for the start of the school year."

Yang Xian: "???"

what?

Is the mission over just like that?

That's way too fast!