232: Chapter 233 Young Master!

"Boom!"

In that instant, dozens of mainstream social media platforms and hundreds of news portals across the Great Han Nation and globally were hit by a traffic surge like a volcanic eruption, causing them to crash with a wail of system failure!

At this moment, who knows how many people dropped their phones in front of their screens, and how many high-end office buildings echoed with irrepressible gasps and screams!

Ten seconds after the sound of the Heavenly Dao echoed, major well-known forums in the Great Han Nation and mainstream overseas social media networks fell into white screens and deadlocks one after another.

But even with pages crashing constantly, it could not suppress those few pinned hot searches that were bolded, blood-red, and even accompanied by servers flashing red lights, sweeping across the global internet world in a near-maniacal fashion!

[Duke title conferred in half a month! The greatest miracle in history is born!]

[The record for the fastest Duke title conferred is born! Great Han Nation Zhou Yun refreshes the historical upper limit!]

[The youngest Duke in Great Han! The youngest Duke in the world! The fastest Duke title in history!]

[Born from a barren F-Rank small city, how did he counter-attack and be crowned "Duke of Flower City" in just over half a month?!]

For a time, the atmosphere of global online communities became somewhat manic.

"Crazy! This is absolutely crazy! This is the Duke status of a lower-level City Lord! Ordinary people might not even touch this threshold after developing for ten or even decades, and he only just finished the trial! Half a month?!"

"I remember him! The first place in the global newcomer trial on the day of the college entrance exam! But it's been less than twenty days! Ordinary City Lords probably haven't even secured one city, yet he directly annexed nineteen cities and pushed himself into the Ranks of the 'Great Han's Sixteen Dukes'?!"

"Who said there are no cheats?! This! This is a living cheat!!"

"Born from an F-Rank abandoned small city, what kind of Heaven-Defying novel protagonist is this coming to reality?!"

"What about those wealthy Geniuses who started with S-Rank and A-Rank small cities? No way, right? How can they not even compare to an F-Rank small city start?!"

...

Not only were netizens going crazy, but the strategic bureaus and Heavenly Dao intelligence analysis departments of major overseas powers were also plunged into unprecedented hysteria at this moment.

Inside the Sunset Empire's New World Command, many senior strategists looked at the golden miracle in the live broadcast, their faces filled with disbelief:

"Something is wrong! How is it possible..."

"18-year-old Duke... Jesus!"

"The previous intelligence was definitely incomplete! Investigate! Use every means! Must submit all hidden intelligence on this 'Zhou Yun' within one hour!"

...

The Great Han Nation's official highest command center had alarms and phone rings merging into a deafening roar.

Emergency memos flew across the desks of core ministers like falling snowflakes.

The highest officials of the Defense Department, Civil Affairs Department, and Development Department didn't even have time to tidy their clothes before holding an emergency video conference in the top-secret conference room.

"The youngest Duke of Great Han has descended; this is a heavy weapon of the nation and the greatest miracle in history!"

"Immediately activate the highest level of Level 1 airspace and ground control for Jianghai City! Absolutely no spies from any overseas forces are allowed near Duke Zhou!"

"Highest security clearance lockdown! Raise the security level of Duke Zhou's family to the nation's highest standard!"

"Becoming a Duke at 18 is incomparable to any previous top new City Lord in the world! Absolutely no carelessness! No amount of attention is too much!"

...

And in the center of Jianghai Square, spiritual rain petals tinged with light gold and pale pink were still falling in abundance.

The spiritual rain was cool, falling onto the thirsty stone ground, instantly transforming into dots of lustrous halo before dissipating, leaving behind a refreshing fragrance.

In countless nearly frozen fanatical camera shots, that slender figure, completely wrapped in flowing golden particles and mysterious character halos, was stepping forward unhurriedly.

"Quick! Film it! Quickly!"

"Damn it, the exposure is turned to the lowest, and I can still only capture a golden silhouette!"

"What kind of power is this? Even professional spectral defocus lenses can't penetrate it!"

...

The reporters in the front row of the cordon were sweating profusely, their fingers pressing on the buttons of expensive equipment until they almost sparked.

Their expressions were fanatical, but strangely, in this dense crowd, not a single person dared to actually cross that fragile cordon.

There were no violent mana fluctuations on Zhou Yun, and he didn't even emit a trace of oppressive aura.

But when he walked slowly while wearing that brilliant golden halo and the phantom of the silver crown, everyone could clearly feel an invisible nobility that went deep into the bone marrow.

That was the Duke status of a Heavenly Dao lower-level City Lord, ruling over millions of living beings.

Mortals, when facing such an existence, would instinctively feel awe, and even their breathing would become cautious.

Zhou Yun lowered his eyes, looking through the golden rune particles circling his body at the dense, fanatical crowd in this steel forest.

He had no intention of stopping for any interviews, just slightly turned his head, and showed a gentle smile to the crowd.

Then he lifted his foot and continued to walk forward.

"Whoosh—"

The crowd, as if brushed by an invisible breeze, automatically retreated to both sides like a tide, making way for a straight and clean wide path.

Zhou Yun passed through the crowd unhurriedly, walking all the way to the side of the road outside the square.

At this time, a red taxi was parked on the side of the road.

The car window was half-lowered, and the middle-aged driver inside was wide-eyed, staring dumbfoundedly at Zhou Yun manifesting from the golden halo.

Pedestrians and security personnel passing by noticed Zhou Yun's gaze directed here, their expressions changed abruptly, and they hurriedly stepped forward to whisper a scolding to the driver:

"Why are you so oblivious! Didn't you see Duke Zhou walking this way? Hurry up and move the car, don't block Duke Zhou's path!"

The driver, startled by this shout, suddenly came to his senses, his face deathly pale, and he scrambled to turn the car key, preparing to shift gears and step on the gas to escape.

But before he could even shift into gear, a sleeve, faintly visible in the golden flowing light, had already gently rested on the front passenger door.

Zhou Yun bent down slightly, looking at the uneasy driver through the half-open window, his handsome face looking incomparably gentle in the refracted golden light:

"Sir, can you give me a ride?"

A plain and simple sentence, yet it made the driver's movements instantly freeze.

He stared blankly at the handsome face close at hand, his brain buzzing.

The world's youngest Duke, the pillar of the Great Han Nation!

Actually... asking him if he could give him a ride?

"Ah... Ah! Yes! Of course! Duke Zhou, please get in... No, no, no, I'll open the door for you! I'll open the door for you!!"

The driver was so excited that his voice became a bit shrill, he hurriedly got out of the car and personally opened the passenger door for Zhou Yun.

Watching the noble golden silhouette bend down and sit into the red taxi, the surrounding media and citizens who originally wanted to crowd forward had red eyes.

"Damn it! If I had known I could get this close to Duke Zhou, I would have parked my car in the middle of the road to take a spot today!"

"Did this driver's ancestral grave smoke with good fortune or what!"

"Damn! What kind of dogshit luck!"

"Such a good thing actually happened to him?!"

...

"Vroom~~"

The red taxi drove away from the square amidst the roar of the engine.

And almost the next second after the car left, the temporary containment lines around the square quickly closed.

The swarming media cars were politely but firmly blocked in place, and the staff responsible for maintaining order repeated "Please do not chase" and "Please keep your distance," forcibly blocking back those lenses and microphones that were about to rush out of the isolation zone.

In the car.

The driver sat ramrod straight, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, the veins on the back of his hands slightly protruding due to the exertion.

His face was flushed red, his eyes glancing at the central rearview mirror from time to time, opening his mouth several times, but in the end, he didn't dare to say a word.

Zhou Yun withdrew his gaze from the familiar street scene passing by outside the car window, noticed the driver's nervousness, and spoke gently:

"Sir, don't be nervous, just drive at your usual speed."

"Yes! Yes! Duke Zhou, don't worry, I drive very steadily. I've been running in Jianghai City for more than ten years, absolutely safe!"

The driver replied loudly, somewhat flattered.

Ten minutes later, the car turned into an old street in the North City District of Jianghai City.

This was already some distance from the square, the buildings on both sides were low, half-dried clothes hung on the laundry poles by the side of the road, and the steamer at the breakfast shop at the entrance of the street was still emitting white steam.

The overly dazzling golden runes on Zhou Yun also gradually faded during the journey, leaving only the last faint light traces of the silver crown phantom.

"Screech~"

The car finally stopped steadily at the entrance of the old street.

Zhou Yun pushed open the car door and got out, took out his phone and asked: "Sir, how much is it? Can you scan me?"

"Oh my! Duke Zhou, what are you saying?"

The driver was so scared he almost jumped out of the driver's seat, waving his hands repeatedly,

"Being able to give you a ride is the most glorious moment of my taxi driving life! If I take your money, I'll be scolded to death by my wife when I get back!"

Before Zhou Yun could say anything more, the driver had already shifted gears and darted out like a gust of wind, as if afraid that Zhou Yun would force him to pay.

Zhou Yun stood at the street entrance, watching the red tail light disappear into the traffic in the blink of an eye, and shook his head helplessly.

He didn't expect that just after returning to Blue Star, he would owe a favor.

Fortunately, he had already noted down the taxi's license plate number.

Withdrawing his gaze, he turned and walked towards his family's fruit shop located deep in the street.

However, the moment he walked to the shop entrance, his footsteps paused slightly.

The fruit stall, which should have been piled with fresh fruits and noisy at this time of day, was not only closed today, but even the heavy gray rolling shutter door was pulled down tightly.

Zhou Yun's heart tightened slightly.

He couldn't help but think of the slightly obscure warning his father, Zhou Tianhao, gave him before he left last time.

On this Blue Star, which lacks Spiritual Qi but has undercurrents surging, to what extent has the Wang Group extended its reach?

Father stayed behind alone, could it be that he encountered some trouble again?

Thinking this way, he hurriedly fished the key out of his pocket and inserted it into the keyhole.

"Clatter—"

The gray iron door was pulled up by him, making a dull and harsh metallic friction sound.

However, just after the iron door rolled up a bit, his muscles suddenly tensed, and a sharp look flashed in his handsome eyes.

The light inside the door was very dim.

But it was still possible to see clearly that in this not-so-spacious shop, seven or eight tall, tough-looking men in black suits were standing quietly!

Their eyes were as sharp as hawks, and they exuded a fierce aura!

This scene instantly connected with his recent memory.

The same suits!

The same ferocity!

Locked by these people's gazes, he almost instinctively wanted to use the Kings Army.

However...

"Xiaoyun?"

At this instant, an extremely familiar, yet slightly astonished middle-aged voice suddenly came from the tea table in the deepest part of the shop.

Zhou Yun's breath suddenly stalled.

Following the voice, his gaze crossed those few stern-faced men in suits and saw a middle-aged man with a resolute face sitting upright at the tea table.

It was Zhou Tianhao!

"Dad?" Zhou Yun's lips moved slightly, and he spoke in astonishment.

Zhou Tianhao looked at his son, whose silver crown phantom had not yet completely dissipated and whose body was still left with faint golden brilliance, and was also stunned for a full two seconds.

Immediately, with an almost instinctive speed, he silently slid a notebook, which was densely written, on the tea table into the drawer.

At the same time, he scolded the seven or eight burly men in suits in the shop who were still maintaining a combat posture towards Zhou Yun with stern expressions:

"One by one, what kind of airs are you putting on with these old faces? My son! Don't you recognize him? Call him!"

Once these words were spoken, the suffocating murderous aura in the air instantly dissipated without a trace.

The seven or eight suit-wearing thugs who were just like gang killers with terrifying auras had the fierce looks on their faces vanish in an instant, replaced by a kind of near-sycophantic and fawning smile.

"Swish!"

The seven or eight burly men in suits moved in unison, bowing a solid ninety degrees towards Zhou Yun at the door.

Accompanied by the crisp sound of fabric rubbing violently, a deafening and full-voiced shout rang out in the shop:

"Young Master!!"