Chapter 24: Brother Qian’s Wager

The crowd turned their heads to look back. “Brother Qian!” “This guy is really a tough nut to crack.”
At this moment, the man who had been staying at the rear directing his men to charge forward walked out with a cold sneer, a blood-stained long machete he had picked up from the car now in his hand.
The man called “Brother Qian” held the machete and glanced at the fat man writhing on the ground with legs mangled and bent.
“I’ll avenge you. Come on, everyone, invest your lifespan in me. If I don’t carve this bastard into a human stump today, my surname isn’t Yang.”
Yang Zicang’s expression was strange. He paused to think, then said:
“Okay, then how about we make a bet. If I lose, I’ll take your surname. You win? Then trade me a century of your temporal energy. Deal?”
“Fine with me. Let’s bet! Ha, I, Yang Qian, would like to see just how much temporal energy you actually have.”
Yang Qian wrapped the blood-stained cloth from the blade tightly around his hand and tied a firm knot. As his triangular model unfolded, feedback from more than a dozen incoming investments surged towards him.
Yang Zicang said, “A real man stands by his word—our bet is final. If you go back on it, you’ll be nothing but a spineless coward everyone mocks. It’s not too late for you to back out now.”
“Less of your damn nonsense. Think I’m scared of some greenhorn like you today?”
“So that means you agree.”
“Just get ready to change your surname.”
[Yang Zicang has invested 0.1R in you.]
This ridiculously low investment feedback of temporal order made the knife-wielding Yang Qian freeze for a moment.
“You can use this investment to repay me with excessive temporal order later.”
Realizing he was being toyed with, Yang Qian was infuriated into a grim laugh.
“Fine, fine, you animal! You won’t take the toast, so you’ll drink the penalty! Come on!”
“Have a taste of my spear!”
Yang Zicang turned into a blur, charging out with his spear at high speed, his momentum as stunning as a startled swan.
Clang! At the critical moment, Yang Qian clapped his hands together, starlight shimmering as he deployed a force field. It blocked the spear strike, standing as firm as bulletproof glass in its place.
“Playing tricks on me?”
Yang scoffed with a contemptuous smile, holding the force field with one hand while calmly raising his long cleaver with the other.
Yang Zicang lightly tapped his toes to shift his stance, his spear held with both hands instantly conjuring half a dozen spinning tip-kisses. After it struck the force field four times over just over two seconds, the force field shattered into fragments of light with a crack and vanished.
Five strikes in total including the previous—the force field’s defense was indeed five hundred years’ worth!
Under Yang Qian’s astonished gaze, another spear thrust struck his right palm straight on. Bang! The force sent his arm swinging, but the spear tip that touched his skin did not pierce it.
“Why do you only use a hundred years with each strike, are you afraid you have too much time?”
As Yang Qian spat these words, his expression abruptly shifted; he realized why.
“No. We can hear the model feedback, which means you haven’t yet mastered this Chrono Weapon. You shouldn’t be its owner yet. This, this is…”
The crowd, previously filled with doubt, suddenly snapped to attention!
“A Century Weapon!”
If a Chrono Weapon is not mastered, no additional timelines can be infused, and it can only rely on its inherent abilities in battle.
“This is a Century-grade Chrono Weapon!”
As realization dawned, the crowd burst into an uproar—this was a rare and invaluable Century Weapon!
“Ah!” Yang Qian suddenly went wild. “Leave it behind!”
The blade in his hand, wreathed in golden phantom images, came slashing down recklessly.
[Dispatch!]
Yang Zicang thrust his spear straight forward. With a cling-clang, the long sword was knocked aside, and three speckles of spear flashes landed on the opponent’s head. Despite possessing timelines for defense, this Red Iron Gang Second-in-Command instinctively ducked to evade in fear.
In that one motion, Yang Zicang used his high speed to stab him three more times, while simultaneously taking advantage of the moment to fish a pebble from his pocket, concealing it in his palm.
[Chu Qiang wants to make an active investment in me.]
[Anjixiu wants to make an active investment in me.]
Chu Qiang? He didn’t utilize the team’s Chrono investment, did he. Yang Zicang completely ignored Anjixiu, but he didn’t confirm Chu Qiang’s investment intention either.
A myriad of broken lines came shooting in.
{It’s actually a Century Weapon.}
Luo Bin’s slightly crazed voice came over.
[Luo Bin wants to add an investment for me.]
[Luo Bin added 300N for me.]
Basically, for every three or four strikes Yang Zicang made, Yang Qian only managed to get off one swing. He either had to close his eyes to dodge the spear shadows or have his hands and feet pinned down by the spear, limiting his swing trajectory.
Soon, this man, possessing nearly six thousand years of Amplified Chrono, showed a face full of terror.
In this short while, he had already lost nearly a thousand years, yet his long saber remained consistently off-target.
“Ahhh!” Missing every single time, Yang Qian was frantic with rage—he clearly had an overwhelming advantage.
“Beg for mercy now, and I’ll let you go.” Yang Zicang said, twirling the spear like a staff.
“Damn it! Just you wait.”
Yang Qian turned and ran toward the car, fuming at the thought: What in the world was wrong with his hand!
“Run him over!” Yang Qian shouted at the car.
Yang Zicang chased after him for a few steps, as relentlessly as a vengeful ghost.
On the asphalt road, the car roared as it charged at high speed. Yang Qian, who was stumbling and scrambling away, looked back as he ran.
“Run him over even if you can’t kill him! I still have over four thousand years of Amplified Chrono left; wait till I give him a huge pounding.”
If truly hit at high speed, unless the struck person could use temporal sequence to protect every inch of their skin and every organ, their internal organs would still incur significant damage.
{Buddy, need an investment? Just say the word, and your bro will transfer it to you immediately.}
Luo Bin transmitted his thoughts.
[Give me a full millennium of self-governing temporal sequence, and I guarantee I’ll take care of that matter for you.]
Yang Zicang looked at the rushing modified car, his expression solemn.
The impact injuries from a fall of over ten meters require an equivalent amount of rest time to recover. As for the damage from being killed by a car in the first place, how much temporal sequence would be needed to offset it?
Is it the remaining lifetime duration?
A crowd of people on the neighboring street had already come swarming over.
{You actually dare to ask for that much.}
“Then goodbye. Don’t bother me anymore.”
[I, the Great Quadrilateral, have refunded the full century of self-governing temporal sequence from the investor Luo Bin.]
A silver gleam of refracted light shone across.
[Luo Bin intends to make additional investment for me: a full millennium of self-governing temporal sequence.]
[I have received a full millennium of self-governing temporal sequence.]
Yang Zicang was astonished that the other party was truly willing to invest a thousand years of self-governing temporal sequence.
In reality, this was not good news; it signaled that the other party was in serious trouble. And who was he to undertake that?
Yet, he still accepted it.
“Rest assured. On my honor, I guarantee I’ll handle that matter well for you.”
Since this millennium was now available, there was no need to perform those high-difficulty stunts later—even he wasn’t entirely confident about those moves.
The car roared as Yang Zicang stood still, watching it draw closer. The crowd jeered and shouted, urging the driver to step on the gas. These people had gone mad, no longer belonging to civilized society.
Some moral barriers within Yang Zicang shattered amidst the cacophony of abuse.
Thirty meters, twenty-five meters, twenty-one meters…
Yang Zicang’s foot moved. He raised his gun and stepped forward, making a throwing motion.
{Even if it doesn’t kill you, it’ll leave you unable to get up for a while. What are you waiting for?}
“Haha, he’s not running. Does he really think he can take on a car with that gun? Hahahaha.”
If this gun were a fully mastered Century Weapon, they would have been worried, but at this moment, it seemed utterly ridiculous.
It was like a mighty warrior from a primitive tribe trying to defeat a nearby Hummer H1 with a thrown spear.
A light glowed from his chest, and a flashing quadrilateral emerged from within the ring.
Yang Zicang’s expression became mature and steady, like a battle-hardened warrior!
[4100N!]
The spear slipped from his hand and fell behind him.
A pebble shimmering with a golden phantom was thrown from his hand. It soared high and then fell, tracing countless wavelike arcs in the air before darting under the car’s chassis more than ten meters away.
“Boom!”
The air burst outward like an explosive tornado.
[I’ve gained 150N.]
Suddenly, a sharp cutting aura emerged amidst the gust.
Yang Zicang’s eyes narrowed, his body spun rapidly, and his hands clutched the silver spear that was being coiled and dragged away by an unknown force.
“Who!”
Faint traces of gravitational energy appeared at the tip of the lance—not activated by himself. The assailant seemed to be fumbling as they tested this ability.
Yang Zicang was shocked!
The opponent had already detected the power within the spear and was attempting to control it.
A few strands of kite string came shooting over.
[Opening the “Gravitational Space” for the first time requires a temporal sequence of 1000N.]
[I have invested 1000N.]
The sneaky attacker hadn’t fully grasped the spear’s situation. Seizing the moment, Yang Zicang wasted no further time. The instant he began to control the Gravitational Space, the intruding force channeled through the strings wrapped around the spear shaft was repelled.
[Gravitational Space Resonance: 10%]
That was close!
Either this ambusher’s temporal sequence was less than a thousand years, or they were momentarily stunned by the feedback from the spear. The opponent hadn’t anticipated that mastering it wasn’t about controlling the spear itself, but resonating with the Gravitational Space—and thus, their reaction fell one step behind.
[Gravitational Space now has an additional millennium of temporal infusion from another. I, the Great Quadrilateral, will naturally not lag behind in speed. Current Resonance: 15%]
Good going! The Quadrilateral really does bulk up a bit more than the triangle!
Amid the dust and smoke, Yang Zicang held onto the spear with a death grip.
We’re both yokels stepping into a grand garden for the first time—playing with such a fine article. A slip in understanding is only natural.
It was only a delay of one or two seconds, yet the opponent lost the chance to claim the long spear. Under the swift control of Quadrangle, their despair deepened.
Amidst the swirling dust, threads flickered, slicing through the air.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
[Gravitational Arc Light activated.]
Countless onlookers tried to see what YangZicang was doing, but were engulfed by the surging waves of heat from the rolling and exploding cars. YangZicang’s long legs slid across the ground, causing the silver spear to jolt.
A black vortex the size of a teacup emerged spinning at the junction of the spear blade!
The vibrating threads wrapped around and snapped inward, absorbing into the vortex, with every vibration dealing an attack.