Book 4, Chapter 193: Getting Some Guidance On His Path
Book 4, Chapter 193: Getting Some Guidance On His Path
Yao Zhiyi was taken aback. “Is that so? You killed his disciple?”
After some thinking, he figured out a likely scenario of what could have happened. “This concerns the continuation of the school, so I don’t think Master Fenghe will mind. Even if he does, he will have to pretend that he doesn’t care.
“His disciple was the one who approached you, wasn’t he? If that’s the case, then there’s nothing to say about that. His disciple wasn’t skilled enough, so he can’t blame anyone for his death. What were you supposed to do, offer your neck to him?”
Suddenly, he stopped talking, as if someone was talking to him. A moment later, he said, “The Intelligence Department of the World Ring Defense System just received news that the Linacrox Union once approached Fenghe Shou, possibly to recruit him, but we don’t know the results of the meeting.
“He might have asked for you so that he can negotiate with us and ask for benefits. That would be great. The worse situation would be if he didn’t ask us for anything and joined the Linacrox Union instead. That would be a bad thing for us.
“It’s not because of his strength, but because the islanders treat martial arts masters as gods, and this thought is deeply embedded in them. If we can make him side with us, it’ll be a great help in winning over the hearts of the islanders. It’s also going to be easier for us to push our work forward in the island nations.
“Besides, Two Coins Isle is located in a crucial spot. It’s right at the center of our territory. If we let the Linacrox Union grab him and stick this thorn in our side, it’s going to be a pain in our arses. We need to do our best to draw him to our side.”
Chen Chuan considered this before asking, “What about the other martial arts school masters on the other islands? What do they think about this?”
Fierce Wave School, Windforest School, and Serene Radiance School each had a martial arts master, and Fierce Wave School was not the only one forced to make a decision. Windforest School and Serene Radiance School had to make it as well.
“Windforest School is definitely going to walk to the very end with the Linacrox Union. Crimson Gold Island—that’s where the school is, by the way—is within the reach of the Linacrox Union’s influence,” Yao Zhiyi replied.
“Their disciples have always worked closely with Ferris Wheel. A lot of them are also working in the Linacrox Union. The two have deep ties, so the possibility of Windforest School joining us is slim to none.
“As for Serene Radiance School... I can’t say. They haven’t said a single word. If you can open a path with Fierce Wave School, then even if the other schools join the Linacrox Union, it won’t matter. Fierce Wave School is the closest to us. We should focus on getting what we can, then think about the rest.”
Chen Chuan nodded. “I think I understand now.”
“Good that you do. I need to go back now. Even though the former royal family hasn’t done anything, Mr. Xue has left, and I’m worried about Xiao Wan holding the line alone,” Yao Zhiyi said.
“Okay,” Chen Chuan replied and hung up.
After some careful thinking, he decided that he couldn’t delay this and gave the Department of Administrative Affairs a heads-up.
He had intended to train above the sea, but now, he decided to make do with training in his house. After all, an update could come at any moment, so he had to be reachable.
By the time afternoon came, the Department of Administrative Affairs and the World Ring Defense System didn’t send any word back, but Chang Dong called him. “Branch Leader Chen, Mr. Zhuan came back from the merged space and said he’d like to meet you.”
“Oh? He’s back?” Chen Chuan was quite surprised.
***
Zhuan Liang had walked in the direction of the artifact’s light, but since he hadn’t recovered fully from his injuries and wanted to conserve his energy, he didn’t rush to the light. After a while, he discovered that the light kept moving around, so he ended up walking around in the merged space for a long time, and by the end, the light even disappeared on him.
Fortunately for him, at that time, a large number of soldiers from the World Ring Defense System entered the merged space, so Zhuan Liang hitched a ride on their airship and came back.
“Mr. Zhuan is currently in the warehouse in the industrial area in the southern part of the city,” Chang Dong added.
“Alright. I’ll go over right now,” Chen Chuan said.
He immediately left and drove his car to the warehouse. On his way there, Qiao Yang called him and said that they got him a house in Majestic Light District. It had all sorts of facilities that were built specifically for martial arts masters. They even got him an airship mooring point, so it would be easier for him to travel around.
Chen Chuan, of course, knew that they were tactfully giving him a suggestion on how he should travel in the future. Speaking of which, his old house was indeed no longer suited for him. While he didn’t have any problems doing mental training there, martial arts training was a problem. Even if he held himself back, the space was too small, so it really was time for him to move out.
He told Qiao Yang that he would get the paperwork done to claim ownership of the house once he had time.
After driving for a little over an hour, he left Central City and arrived at the warehouse. Chang Dong was already there. Upon seeing him, he opened the door.
Chen Chuan thanked him once he stepped out, and Chang Dong smiled. “Mr. Zhuan is waiting for you inside.”
The warehouse door was quite old, but when he went in, he found that the spacious and empty warehouse had been renovated. There was a bulletproof partition along with metal staircases and steel passages. After taking a look around, Chen Chuan walked up the right staircase.
He found Zhuan Liang sitting on a sofa on a metal platform with a rather badly damaged black mask. There was a tea set on the coffee table between two curved sofas.
Zhuan Liang stood up and shook his hand. “We were really happy after learning that you became a martial arts master. Congratulations, Branch Leader Chen.”
“Thank you. Without your support, I wouldn’t have been able to progress so quickly,” Chen Chuan answered.
“We’re all part of the faction, so it’s only right for us to support each other, but there’s a limit to how much we can help you. You’re the one who ultimately managed to get there. Please sit,” Zhuan Liang said with a smile.
Chen Chuan nodded. Once he sat down across from Zhuan Liang, he asked, “What happened to Zhao Zhenye after you came back, Mr. Zhuan?”
“Zhao Zhenye got hurt, so he should be practicing a secret technique. Before mastering it, I don’t think he’ll show his face again. Are you worried that he’ll attack the military base? He won’t. It didn’t seem like he was working for the imperial army, so he won’t do something so troublesome.
“Besides, even if he does, it won’t be so easy. Once we control a place, aside from setting up forts, we also set up a large number of rituals.
“Due to the environment in the merged space, the ritual materials they use, and some artifacts, the rituals’ effects are very strong.
“With their air, martial arts masters can reduce their energy expenditure for a certain amount of time and fight without worry. If they can’t win, they can use their advantage of fighting in their base to retreat with ease.
“As for the soldiers, since they usually have to stay in the forts, they’re built really sturdy, and it’s going to be tough breaking them all down. Even if he uses up all his strength, he might be unable to do it. There’s no point for a martial arts master to waste their energy on them. If he joins hands with the imperial army to attack the forts, our martial arts masters can circle to the back and launch an ambush or attack some weak points. So, unless either side loses their top fighters, it’s impossible for a battle to commence properly.
“I heard that the informants from the World Ring Defense System used a long time to figure out the imperial army’s rituals. Then, they used an artifact to lure Wei Guochan out before sending a martial arts master skilled in rituals to destroy them. This is how we managed to destroy the base.”
That must’ve been Mr. Xue.
Zhuan Liang continued, “The World Ring Defense System may have set up a plan, but the imperial army didn’t make any mistakes and were really careful. They even got Zhao Zhenye to cover up for their weaknesses. If the government hadn’t predicted that they could do this and called upon us to help, the imperial army may have lost the artifact, but not suffered a major loss.”
“At the end of the day, they lost because they lack top combatants,” Chen Chuan commented.
“Exactly. They lost mainly because their number of martial arts masters is lower than ours. If both of them had stayed in the base and refused to come out, things would have been more difficult, though. They could have just left whenever things looked bad, and once we also left, they could have returned. But the moment they split up, they revealed a major hole in their defense. We immediately seized it and tore the place down,” Zhuan Liang explained.
He seemed to be really excited about this, but then he brought a hand up with a stony face and rapped at the mask on his face before clearing his throat. “I went off topic. Let’s talk about you.”
He schooled his face and met Chen Chuan’s gaze. “You submitted a request for guidance to the headquarters. After we came back, the headquarters told us about it, so we decided to use the chance to answer your request today. Do you know anything about the path you’re going to take or any plans?”
“I’ve read up on it and have decided to take the path of the human form,” Chen Chuan replied.
Zhuan Liang smiled. “That path is easy to get into, but hard to master. The faction will be happy about you making this choice. All the major factions in the country have their own areas of strength and expertise.
“The refined training faction are experts of the path of the other form, because most of their leaders and elites are descendants of court officials from the old era. Most of the old files and knowledge are in their hands. That’s why no other faction can compare to them in this path.
“As for the fusion faction, their knowledge of the mental form is unmatched, because a lot of them were successors of the national religion. Some of them appear to have also established long-term communications with existences from the other world.
“Due to our beliefs and past traditions, the purity faction has more knowledge of the human form than the other factions, so we can give you a lot of useful help. Even if you deviate from the path during your training, we can think of a way to salvage the situation.”