"How could there be issues with the medical competition? Why didn’t anyone notice?"

Sun Zhuangjia quickly questioned.

"Because no one cared before. Just like now, the medical competition is officially over, and the top ten list is out. Who would pay attention to the lives or deaths of Tang Ming and others?"

Zhang Chuming sighed, "Plus, after the arrangements on Netherworld Road, even the families and friends of those geniuses believed they had simply succeeded, never realizing these people had disappeared."

Frowning, Meng Xianjun looked at Zhou Xiaoqian. If he weren’t particularly close to Tang Ming and already suspicious before, he would have assumed Tang Ming and the others lost the competition and returned home since the results had been announced.

"Additionally, upon investigating previous top ten finalists of the medical competition, we discovered their memories had been altered. They have no knowledge of what happened after the finals, and due to the elapsed time, even I can’t restore their memories."

Zhang Chuming continued, looking expectantly at Zhou Xiaoqian, "This young lady’s memory was altered not long ago. I should be able to restore it."

"No, no, the timeline doesn’t match with what you’re saying."

Meng Xianjun paused in silence, shaking his head with doubt, "The medical competition has been around for a long time, and the Li siblings only rose to prominence in recent years. There’s a huge time conflict."

"You... you’re really sharp."

Zhang Chuming looked at Meng Xianjun with suspicion and sighed helplessly, "Okay, I admit there are discrepancies, but the information is scarce.

I only know that someone once captured experts from Netherworld Road. Through interrogation, it was discovered that Li Miaokong and Li Miaoyun were pursued ten years ago, precisely during the period of the medical competition."

To avoid being hunted, the siblings mingled with the finalists to enter the finals’ venue.

But since no one knows where the finals are held, they managed to survive. Had it not been for the mystery, their lives would’ve been in jeopardy against the martial world.

In other words, during the previous medical competition, the Li siblings gained an unimaginable boost, founded Netherworld Road, and continued the competition’s tradition."

You’ve probably noticed that this competition’s process differs completely from the past, and that’s the change brought by the takeover of Netherworld Road?"

"Indeed, Director Guo and Teacher Huang Di also said this medical competition is unlike before."

Zhou Xiaoqian quickly nodded in agreement.

"The head of Imperial University also mentioned significant changes in the competition’s structure."

Meng Xianjun nodded with confusion, looking puzzled at Zhang Chuming, "I actually knew nothing of this."

"Ten years, while not too long or too short, isn’t enough for everyone to notice Netherworld Road’s actions. Even if someone does, how many will investigate?"

Zhang Chuming hesitated, his face becoming solemn, "The medical competition has a long-standing history, and every decade, a batch of outstanding medical talents goes missing.

I suspect someone is engaged in certain research, needing medical talent for aid. But until now, the culprits merely conducted research quietly, which is why they remained undetected.

However, in the last decade, with the sudden rise of the Li siblings, investigations revealed the secret, pointing directly at the medical competition.

Not everyone with altered memories is beyond recovery. We’ve restored a contestant’s memory from the last competition, and through his description and analysis of the finals’ venue, we concluded it was a very antiquated ancient city, housing forces capable of creating a hidden force." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Hiss—"

Upon hearing this, Meng Xianjun gasped. The notion of creating a hidden force meant nurturing powerful martial generals.

Looking at Netherworld Road’s power now, the force created was not just any martial general.

"Why should I trust you?"

After a moment of silence, Meng Xianjun still felt uneasy.

"You don’t have to believe me. I can find other top ten members to gather information. But having already started a collaboration with Tang Ming, I’d rather avoid unnecessary trouble."

Zhang Chuming shrugged indifferently.

"What are you guys even talking about? I don’t understand anything. Where did Tang Ming go?"

Zhou Xiaoqian, looking baffled, asked.

"Alright! I believe you, but don’t play tricks. Even if the Exorcism Order is mighty, I’m not afraid."

Meng Xianjun nodded solemnly.

"How did you know..."

Zhang Chuming looked at Meng Xianjun in surprise, then smiled, "Rest assured, I only want to understand where Netherworld Road brought those people, gain a basic understanding of that place, and then conveniently help us explore what’s happening. I won’t harm this girl."

With that, Zhang Chuming raised his hand, summoning a black and white energy, channeling it into Zhou Xiaoqian’s body, then closed his eyes to sense it.

An hour later, Zhou Xiaoqian regained her memory, recounting the events in the ancient city.

"As expected, Netherworld Road is up to something. Their memories must have been altered by that old man."

Zhang Chuming looked at Meng Xianjun with a grave expression, "We’ve always been searching for the location of Netherworld Road’s activities but never found it. The only clue is that every ten years, they bring a large batch of talents into their base, yet we still cannot determine the specific location of their headquarters."

"You mean that ancient city is Netherworld Road’s headquarters?"

Meng Xianjun frowned, "But from Xiaoqian’s description, their venue is a medical facility filled with modern equipment. It seems different from what you’ve described, with nothing resembling a tomb or lair?"

"Hehe, did you notice Zhou Xiaoqian called that structure a medical tower? Where does the ’tower’ come from?"

Zhang Chuming grinned as he asked.

"You mean they’re on the first layer of the tower?"

Meng Xianjun’s expression changed slightly.

"Hey, what tower? Isn’t that just a flatbread-like building? How does it resemble a tower?"

Sun Zhuangjia couldn’t help but interject.

"Who told you a tower must be upward in structure?"

Zhang Chuming glanced at Sun Zhuangjia, "It’s clear now, all we need to do is reunite with Tang Ming, and we should be able to find Netherworld Road’s headquarters, and understand what exactly they’re up to."

"My goodness! No wonder Traditional Chinese Medicine is declining. Among the nine of us, only two are Traditional Chinese Medicine students, the rest are Western Medicine contestants. If such results are published, it would significantly hinder the development of Traditional Chinese Medicine."

Zhou Xiaoqian’s face paled, "Could Tang Ming be in danger? What should we do now?"