Chapter 30: Hong! God of Thunder! (Please keep reading!)
Hong cast a glance at the God of Thunder but said nothing.
He turned and walked away.
After a few steps, he finally spoke, "Thor, Jiang Lie, Jiang Chengbo — you three, come with me."
The other council members, who had intended to follow, were forced to stop in their tracks.
Only the old man looked regretfully toward the arena. The girl from the Farr family had just stepped onto the stage. A good show was about to begin.
With a helpless shake of his head, he motioned for his eldest son to follow and went after Hong.
Thor leaned in, grinning mischievously. "Old Jiang, what's with that sly look in your eyes? Got your eye on that little lady?"
Despite being the second-strongest on Earth, Thor was something of a goofball in private. Cheerful and straightforward, he often became the comic relief in any gathering.
"Get outta here. What do you know?" the old man scoffed. "I'm scoping out a potential match for my grandson."
Jiang Chengbo nodded seriously, backing him up in his usual reserved tone. "Indeed. The Jiang family's bloodline is thin. With Xiao Zhe's potential, we must encourage him to carry it forward."
The bold declaration from the Jiang family's father and son made Thor's eyes go wide. But soon, his surprise faded, replaced by an increasingly twisted grin.
"A marriage alliance, huh? I like that. Say, Old Jiang, what do you think of my daughter?"
"Oh, now you've got my attention," the old man replied, suddenly scrutinizing Thor's features.
A handsome monk with rosy lips and pearly teeth — surely his daughter would be just as impressive.
Not to mention, being the second-strongest on Earth, she'd have inherited some powerful genes. Her martial talent should be solid.
"Could be worth—" he began, then suddenly frowned as a thought struck him. "Wait! How old is your daughter? Fifteen? Sixteen? Eighteen? I think I remember her. The age might be off."
Thor quickly waved it off. "No way it's off! She's fourteen! Just two years younger than your grandson — they're practically the same age. Come on, isn't she way more suitable than that brat from the Farr family?"
On the nearby terrace, the golden-robed Farr family head's face was growing darker by the second.
These three shameless dogs were conspiring right in front of the one being ditched. If he weren't outmatched by the three of them combined...
"My grandson would have to take care of your daughter for, what, six years?" the old man protested, shaking his head. "No way! Absolutely not!"
"Thor, I'm telling you, my grandson's got a wild streak. Six years is too long. Too many sleepless nights, too many dreams — I'm afraid I won't be able to control him by then."
"You understand what I mean, right?"
"The stronger one's power, the longer their lifespan — and the more detached from worldly desires they become."
"If he ends up devoting himself fully to the martial path, cuts off all emotional ties, and insists on becoming a celibate ascetic, I'll have nowhere to cry!"
Thor scratched his head.
So Old Jiang wanted to lock things down while he could still keep Jiang Zhe in line, aiming to become a great-grandfather early — then let the kid go wild later. That… made sense.
Fine, he thought. I'll stay out of it. My precious daughter will find someone better eventually.
Watching the bickering duo, Hong couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.
As the strongest man on Earth, his only real friend was Thor. In that way, he wasn't any better off than the solitary emperors of old.
The three of them bickered their way into the elevator. Once the doors closed, they finally fell silent.
In the quiet, Hong spoke softly. "65.2 tons."
"What? Hong—" Thor blinked, confused. Then his eyes widened in shock.
"6.5 times force output?!"
He turned to the old man. "Old Jiang, you actually followed that ridiculous family rule and didn't let him train before he was sixteen?!"
The old man replied calmly, "A child should do what's appropriate for their age."
Hong added, "He can casually exert 6.5 times force. I can't even imagine his upper limit."
As he spoke, his gaze turned to Jiang Lie, hoping for an answer.
But the old man didn't answer directly. Instead, he said, "Thor, I can already generate more force than you now — and that's just from a small trick I picked up from my grandson."
---
On the War God Palace Arena
Jiang Zhe looked at the girl who had leaped onto the stage and teased,
"After seeing my martial prowess, you still dared to come up here? Shouldn't you be worshiping me like a god by now?"
"Of course," the girl replied. "I must admit — your power output is monstrous, your speed and martial intent extraordinary!"
"But that just makes me even more eager… to feel the wrath of a god!" Qiaolin grinned, bold and untamed.
"I'm not afraid of failure — I'm only afraid of having no path forward!"
The wild, blazing battle intent in her eyes made Jiang Zhe pause slightly.
But holding back? Not a chance.
After several exchanges, Qiaolin, relying on her explosive bursts of speed to dodge, was eventually caught.
With a crushing grip using his Eagle Claw technique, Jiang Zhe shattered both her shoulders — ruining her prized fist techniques.
The duel was over.
"You're good at 'explosiveness,' but it shouldn't just be about 'explosive speed.'"
"In fact, this technique of yours is more suited to attacking than escaping."
"You've seen my martial intent — you should've realized you'd never outrun me."
"As for your 'explosive' technique… think more about fire erupting in all directions — a total burst of power."
Old Jiang had a kind heart. For once, he offered a bit of guidance.
This "she-leopard" was already on the verge of touching the realm of Fire Intent. She was just one step away from opening the door.
Qiaolin rolled her eyes.
"Got it, got it. Little brother, you're the fastest, okay?"
"Bye!"
With one final pouty glare, she quickly logged off.
Leaving Jiang Zhe alone in the arena.
He shrugged and spread his arms.
Nothing interesting anymore — time to log out too.
Just then, a notification rang in his ears…
---
In the Study of a Secluded Courtyard
Jiang Zhe suddenly awoke in the recliner, body still curled up.
He ripped off the consciousness-sensing helmet, taking deep breaths to calm his nerves and relax from the intense focus.
Just moments ago, the War God Palace's AI had summoned him into a private training room — where he sparred, one by one, with both Thor and Hong.
It was a "fair" fight — their physical stats fixed at the level of a junior warlord.
In the virtual space, Thor's strengths were clear: power output, quick blade strikes, and combat experience.
12x force crushed 7x force!
Fast spear against fast blade!
Genius comprehension versus veteran cunning!
He had the upper hand — and it showed. The match with Thor ended quickly in his favor.
But the battle with Hong… was a whole different story.
Other than his signature spear thrust, all his techniques were countered.
As a former assassin, Hong employed lethal strikes, dirty tricks, and vicious tactics — all aimed at one thing: the kill. The more efficient, the better.
Jiang Zhe had only two advantages — 12x force and the defensive amplification from Thunderous Resonance.
He protected his vital points while letting Hong strike elsewhere, then used brute force to crush his opponent's bones piece by piece.
In the end… it was a draw.
His throat had been pierced by a spear.
Hong lay collapsed like a puddle of mud.
---
Since then, Jiang Zhe hadn't logged back into the War God Palace.
The matter of "force output" was left to his grandfather, Hong, and Thor to handle.
The three agreed that his top priority now was cultivation.
Only after reaching the planetary level would he begin compiling the secret art of explosive force.
"First, get to 3x at the genetic level… then use dragon blood to ascend to War God… and finally, use the Spirit of Flora to push myself to peak high-level War God…"
With his path clear, Jiang Zhe carried the Eight-Treasure Turtle-Dragon Spear across the land of Hanxia, hunting down lord-level beasts one by one.