At this moment, Zhang Pingfan also received the system's notification that the task had ended.
"Ding! System prompt: All tasks have been completed, and you will be teleported back to Pingfan City!"
Zhang Pingfan smiled and said, "Elder Jin, look after my Heavenly God Sect well. When I return, it won't be just me alone!"
"Master, please rest assured. As long as I, Elder Jin, can still breathe, the Heavenly God Sect will surely flourish on the Divine Realm Continent!"
"Good, with your words, I am relieved!"
A few seconds later, Zhang Pingfan and the people he brought had all disappeared from everyone's sight.
After Elder Jin saw Zhang Pingfan and the others disappear, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally, he's gone. Being here with the Master puts too much pressure on us!"
"Indeed. He's so powerful, I always feel that if we accidentally anger him, he'll turn us into meat paste!"
"Cough, cough, you can't relax just because the Master has left. Improve your strength as quickly as possible. Looking at the Master's demeanor, he might unify the world. With our current strength, we're still no match for that organization!"
"Elder Jin, are you referring to that guy?"
"Who else could it be? Disperse now, and everyone go cultivate!"
Zhang Pingfan and his group returned to Pingfan City, finally reappearing in the familiar city.
"Hu Han San is back!"
Zhang Pingfan shouted loudly in front of his statue.
He had stayed long enough in the desolate place known as the Divine Realm Continent.
Hearing the familiar voice, everyone turned to look. The Village Chief indeed appeared at the location of the statue. The Village Chief, who had been missing for nearly two months, had returned.
"The Village Chief is back! The Village Chief has been gone for two months. We thought he had been eliminated by the system!"
"The monstrous Village Chief is back. I wonder what kind of trouble he'll stir up next!"
"I heard that the Four Great Families have been suppressing the Village Chief's guilds lately. Now that the Village Chief is back, he'll probably settle scores with them!"
"The Four Great Families are too wealthy. Out of the total 69 hidden professions, the Four Great Families hold 40 of them. They're truly monstrous!"
"Exactly. The Four Great Families have immense financial power. The three major guilds and the Eternal Mythology Guild are no match for them. If it weren't for the Village Chief's disciples being so fierce, the Four Great Families would have likely crushed all the game guilds!"
Listening to the discussions around him, Zhang Pingfan already knew what had happened.
Recently, he had been constantly asking Dou Youyou if there were any problems. Dou Youyou's feedback had always been that everything was fine, and the Four Great Families hadn't done anything excessive. It seemed this little girl had lied to him.
Soon, the news of the Village Chief's return spread like wildfire among the players.
After the Village Chief had disappeared for a while, someone had posted on the forum discussing why he was gone.
Some people had even analyzed it with great detail.
Now that the Village Chief had returned, he had proven everyone wrong.
"Village Chief Returns to Pingfan City After Two Months of Disappearance!"
"The Village Chief is back, and he's going to settle scores!"
"That Man is Back, and the Four Great Families are Trembling Now!"
A flood of headlines all spoke of the Village Chief's return.
At this moment, Zhang Pingfan could finally see the news within the sect. After going to the Divine Realm Continent, he had been completely isolated from this side.
"Is it true that the Village Chief is back?"
"Yeah, there have been several false reports like this before!"
"Missing the Village Chief for the 63rd day. Village Chief, where did you go? Have you abandoned us?"
"The Village Chief has really appeared, right in front of the statue in our Pingfan City!"
"Can it really be true? I heard the Village Chief violated the game rules and was deleted by the game system. How can he return?"
"Village Chief, can you see our messages? Please reply quickly!"
"Village Chief, you're making us anxious! We've been brutally suppressed by the Four Great Families lately. Those guys are too rich. As expected, wealth and power are not to be trifled with!"
At this time, the Village Chief's disciples also heard the news and began to speculate.
They had already received news from Dou Youyou that their master was just out on a mission, so they weren't worried, but they hadn't expected him to return so suddenly.
"Master is back? Senior Sister Youyou, is this true?"
Dou Youyou also looked surprised. Wasn't it said that there were still a few days left? Why did he return so suddenly?
"Master, are you back?"
Dou Youyou tried to send a message to Zhang Pingfan using the master-disciple system, and indeed, it went through this time.
"I'm back, but I didn't expect you all to be suppressed so severely. With your abilities, this shouldn't be the case!"
Dou Youyou blushed.
"We're actually fine, but the gap between ordinary players and them is too large. After all, they're all paying customers. Most of us here are free-to-play players, though there are some big spenders. But compared to them, the difference is too great, so our overall strength is still inferior!"
"Alright, since I'm back, there's no problem. Call everyone to gather at my small courtyard!"
"Yes, Master!"
At this moment, Ritian had returned to his doghouse.
"I'm exhausted. I never want to go to that godforsaken place called the Divine Realm Continent again. It's much more comfortable here!"
"If the Master tells you to go, why are you complaining so much? Even if it's a cesspool, you have to go down!"
"Stinky Koi, haven't seen you for months, can't you say something nice?"
"It's best if we never see each other again!"
"...I can't be bothered to argue with you. The Master is back, that's all that matters!"
The small courtyard once again fell into silence.
Zhang Pingfan returned to the small courtyard with Hei Huang.
Hei Huang couldn't wait to check on his medicinal herbs and tea leaves.
Fortunately, they were growing very well. Someone must have been watering them daily.
Hei Huang breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing this, Zhang Pingfan said, "Don't worry, I made Youyou water them every day, so they won't die!"
"Master, you're so thoughtful. I was so excited about Master helping me reach the peak of a ninth-tier War God that I forgot about it!"
"It's okay, didn't you achieve the feat of becoming a peak ninth-tier War God now?"
"Thank you for your rebirth, Master!"
"It's no big deal, go do your work now, trim these herbs!"
"Yes, Master!"
Within a few minutes, Dou Youyou and the others rushed in.
The one who rushed in at the forefront was Fatty, who hugged Zhang Pingfan's leg with tears streaming down his face.
"Master, I thought you didn't want me anymore! I thought you had given up on us, and I've been on edge for two months, thinking I'd never see you again!"
Zhang Pingfan rolled his eyes. He never expected the usually simple-minded Fatty to have such a side.
"Didn't I tell you? I was going out on a mission!"
"But the rumors outside were so fantastical, saying you were deleted by the system and would never appear again, Master~"
Seeing Fatty wiping his snot and tears on his pants, Zhang Pingfan wanted to push him away, but the guy clung to him tightly.
This caused the other disciples who were watching the commotion to burst into laughter.