Chapter 4: Old Friends Reunited

Rodloc suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the young man in front of him in shock.
Although he was circulating his energy, he was not in samadhi. How could he not be prepared and bet on a young man when facing the Jetronian ninjas?
With one move!
Only one move was used to kill a ninja who had reached the late stage of Dark Vigor.
What an incredible power this was! Not to mention that he was injured, even in his prime before the injury, it was impossible.
Could it be that this young man had already reached the Grandmaster level?
But at his age...
It was said that one level higher than Grandmaster was Innate Realm. If one reached beyond the Grandmaster level, one could rejuvenate his youth. Could it be...
Rodloc couldn't stop his random thoughts.
Suddenly, he heard Astyre shout, "The power of Returning Pill has a limited duration. Why are you still standing there in a daze?"
Rodloc came to his senses at last. Then, he hurriedly closed his eyes and activated his True Energy again. This time, there were no distracting thoughts.
It was two hours before Rodloc opened his eyes. He felt comfortable and full of energy. He hadn't felt this way in years since his injury.
Rodloc raised his hand toward Astyre and said, "Hi, Grandmaster! May I know how to address you?"
"I'm Astyre Lopez, but I am not a Grandmaster."
"Could you be practising Taoism?"
"Something like that..."
"Ah, all right! Hi, Taoist priest Lopez!"
"We are not talking about becoming a priest, so there is no need to address me like that. You can call me by my name."
"Um..."
Sensing how relaxed and calm Astyre talked to him, Rodloc felt the former was a remarkable man. He was unlike those in the world who competed for fame and wealth and practiced martial arts all their lives just for others to obtain the title of Grandmaster.
"Oh! If that's the case, I'll call you Astyre since I'm older than you. How about you address me by my name?"
"Sure." Astyre said casually, "Now I'm going to insert the golden needle through your acupuncture points to open up your Balance Meridian."
Rodloc's eyes lit up, and he said, "Okay, thank you!"
Astyre asked Rodloc to sit down and pick up his fishing line from the ground, "I don't have a needle with me, so I'll borrow your fishing line."
Then, he used his fingers to pinch the fishing line into sections gently. There was a total of thirteen areas.
Soon, he pinched one of them, flicked his fingers, and the fishing line shot out like a needle, piercing Rodloc's Stomach Meridian. Then came the second and third, and soon, the thirteen fishing lines were like needles piercing into the thirteen acupuncture points. Each was inserted with different depths, with the tail ends looking stiff and trembling.
Rodloc was stunned when he saw this miraculous acupuncture technique.
He just used his inner strength to throw out the fishing line and pierce the wrists of several gangsters. He looked experienced, but compared with Astyre, he was far behind. Not to mention the accuracy of entering the acupuncture point, it was unheard of to say that this soft fishing line could still be as strong as a needle after not holding it. It was all about the True Energy that had been inserted into it and did not disperse.
Also, the order and techniques of these thirteen acupuncture points... Were they the legendary Spirit Gate Thirteen Needles?
Rodloc finally believed that he met a noble person today, and it was probably the luckiest time in his life.
Astyre's technique was skillful, and he quickly completed a golden needle pass through the acupuncture point. He pulled out all the fishing lines, threw them away, clapped his hands, and said...
"Okay, your injury is no big deal. Based on your foundation, it will be enough to take good care of you for half a year. If you want to speed it up, I will give you a prescription, and you can take it for half a month. After half a month, I will I'll give you one more injection, and you'll be fine."
Rodloc was greatly shocked and said gratefully, "I have been injured for nearly ten years, and all the famous doctors in the world have been unable to do anything. I didn't expect that you could cure the disease as soon as you took action, Astyre. You're one of the godly doctors!"
Astyre gave him the names of several local medicines, told him the usage and dosage, and asked him to return and take the medicine according to the prescription. He then asked, "I will give you an injection in half a month. Where should I look for you?"
Rodloc said, "I live in Quillara. I will come to Heartvale City to pick you up when the time comes. Leave me a phone number."
Astyre took out the Nokia phone that had been used for more than ten years and exchanged numbers with Rodloc.
Before leaving, Astyre saw Rodloc pondering as if he had something to say, so he asked, "Mr. Quinton, is there anything else?"
Rodloc said, "The Lawrence family in Heartvale City is also famous. I wonder if there is any misunderstanding between you and the Lawrence family? I also have some friendships with Desmaius. If necessary, I can talk to them."
"No need." Astyre answered faintly, "It's just a small matter, and I can handle it myself."
Rodloc wanted to say something more but didn't say it after all. He knew very well that some of the trivial things Astyre said were not necessarily trivial to the Lawrence family.
Looking at Astyre's leaving figure, he sighed softly and said, "Desmaius, oh! You have offended such an expert. You can only pray you don't get retribution!"
…
After leaving Crystalline Lake, Astyre returned to his childhood home. Unfortunately, more than ten years had passed, and things had changed. The old, dilapidated houses had disappeared and were replaced by neat, high-rise buildings. The dirty village roads had become clean main roads.
Astyre stood on the street and looked at the row of clean and tidy shops. He was not sure where he lived.
He was about to leave when a girl came out of the restaurant opposite. Astyre thought she looked familiar. When the girl saw him, she stood there blankly.
After a while, the girl asked timidly, "Are you Astyre Lopez?"
Astyre's heart skipped a beat, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Scarlett?"
"You are Astyre, aren't you?" The girl jumped up with joy, rushed to him, and made a hugging gesture. Suddenly, she felt something was wrong, and her pretty face turned red. She said, "Astyre, where have you been these years? Folkin and I miss you so much."
The girl named Scarlett Dawkins was Astyre's childhood playmate. At that time, the two families were neighbors and made a living by picking up garbage. There was also an orphan named Folkin Moore who lived in the same courtyard. Scarlett was two years younger than Astyre, and Folkin was two years older. He always regarded himself as the eldest brother and cared for them both well.
Astyre thought of Scarlett and Folkin, and his heart warmed. He said, "I miss you too. Hey, where is the courtyard where we used to live?"
"It has been demolished long ago!" Scarlett smiled and continued, "Astyre, you haven't returned for so many years! You can't even recognize it anymore. The city is changing a lot now, and it looks different yearly. It's a pity that the house is not ours. Otherwise, we could have divided the grand demolition fee."
Astyre nodded. The old house was demolished, so he didn't think about it anymore.
"How have you been these past few years?"
"It's very good. Folkin is the manager of the bar. He's living a good life now."
"Haha! He's now a manager! How great it is!" Astyre sighed and asked, "What about you?"
"I... I was admitted to university and am still working and studying to earn tuition." Scarlett was a little shy, pointing to the small restaurant, and said, "Well, I work in that restaurant during the day and occasionally go to Folkin's place at night, doing a part-time job at the bar. Astyre, have you eaten now? I'll take you to a restaurant."
Without any explanation, he pulled Astyre toward the small restaurant.
Astyre didn't refuse, and he happened to be hungry.
The restaurant's owner was a fat middle-aged man who looked kind and honest, which relieved Astyre.
The boss heard that he was Scarlett's long-lost friend, so he asked the chef to cook a few dishes and even gave her a half-day off to accompany Astyre for a walk after dinner.
While Astyre ate, he listened to Scarlett talk about his life in the past ten years.
"Astyre, don't just ask me things. What about you? How are you these years? What are you doing now?"
Astyre couldn't talk about spiritual matters because Scarlett didn't understand it. Hence, he could only avoid it and reply, "I haven't found any job yet."
"Oh, I see..." Scarlett was a little embarrassed. She looked at Astyre's clothes and couldn't help but ask with concern, "Are you still picking up trash?"
Astyre couldn't help but smile. "Of course not. I don't have a job for the time being. Don't worry. I will make a lot of money soon. Scarlett, you have been admitted to college. From now on, I will cover your tuition fees and living expenses."
Scarlett laughed happily and responded, "You and Folkin both said the same thing. All right! I know you both are doing important things. I can earn my tuition by myself, so you can just focus on your work."
Astyre also smiled. He thought this girl was so cute, as innocent and kind as she was thirteen years ago.
Scarlett said she would take him to Folkin's bar in the evening, and maybe she could help him find a job there.
In her eyes, Folkin was now considered a big shot. At least he could talk to many big shots. It would be no problem to find a job for Astyre.
But Scarlett didn't know that Folkin, whom she admired, was in trouble.