Star Gate

Chapter 432: Secrets (III)

“Who... are you?” Li Hao’s heart shook. Was the old man really just a deputy director general?

“Me?” Deputy Zhou smiled. “Don’t worry, I mean you no harm. Not just me, but the entire provincial government means you no harm. Neither I nor Director General Zhou wish to see any mishap befall you. I tell you this only to help you understand... and not be hoodwinked by certain people.”

“Director Hou?” Li Hao frowned. “The director wants nothing more than to claim the Black Tortoise Seal. So this means that he wants to do something to me too?”

“That’s not necessarily it, just that Hou Xiaochen has bigger ambitions than most. It’s normal for him to have his own thoughts. He wants to leverage this opportunity to set foot into the next stage. The director doesn’t wish to live out the rest of his life like the rest of us. Thus, he’s been raising the greatest fuss in Silver Moon over these years.”

Li Hao was already repeating a litany of fuckity fuck fucks to himself. What the hell?! So the internal dispute in Silver Moon is centered on Hou Xiaochen and the provincial government? So that argument they had before wasn’t an act, but an actual disagreement? And Deputy Zhou is representing the government in this conversation because he doesn’t want me to help Hou Xiaochen get the Black Tortoise Seal?

The young man understood the situation now! No wonder this old man insisted on a walk in the middle of the night to say all these things to him. This was employing both logic and emotion to prevent Li Hao from being a spear in someone else’s hand. But who knew if the provincial government wasn’t trying to do the same?

If he believed the deputy, that would create a rift between him and Hou Xiaochen. If Li Hao could take the Black Tortoise Seal and decided not to, that might cause another set of problems. Maybe all of this was to move against Hou Xiaochen instead!

Li Hao’s litany of internal swearing grew more varied. Damn it, there were no good people here! They were all making trouble for him in the dead of night. However, these words did give rise to second thoughts in the young man’s mind. Perhaps this was exactly what the deputy wanted; he might also represent Director General Zhao.

The deputy had specifically mentioned Yuan Xingwu’s arrival. Was that to warn Li Hao away from Yuan Xingwu, or to express that the provincial government didn’t trust the man?

A headache throbbed at Li Hao’s temples, but he quickly discarded everything he’d just heard. Screw all this! He had his plan of attack. If He Yong and Hong Yitang joined the expedition, then he would stick to their sides like glue. Forget Hou Xiaochen and the others. He Yong and Hong Yitang were also powerhouses and he’d saved them once. That they hadn’t attacked him then most likely meant that they wouldn’t attack him at all. They would protect him even better knowing that he could help them suppress what they didn’t want.

So all of you can forget tricking me! Li Hao cursed silently. I’m going to be with two powerhouses and I’ll have Ole Hong erupt with full glory at key moments. A Hong Yitang at full strength might even be stronger than Hou Xiaochen. One down was one less to worry about then. I’ll kill you all!

Mmhmm, he wouldn’t do anything to Hou Xiaochen so long as the man didn’t do anything to him. After all, the director had truly sheltered Li Hao and Yuan Shuo. That was not a facade. There was no need to make an enemy out of Hou Xiaochen for the sake of an unfamiliar Deputy Zhou.

Li Hao was much more at ease when he sorted his thoughts out. I have two backers and I recently found them by myself! None of you know about them, eh?

Those two knew that the young man could help them suppress undesired states, and that each incident further strengthened their locks. They would likely be very willing to help Li Hao so long as there were sufficient mysterious power stones around that the young man could make use of.

Deputy Zhou grew resigned when the young man continued to be quiet. This kid could really keep himself in check! They arrived at the camp he spoke of moments later.

An extremely dignified middle-aged man in his forties walked out to greet them. He was Yuan Xingwu, meaning that he’d been in his twenties when he became Yuan Shuo’s disciple. That was an older age to be accepted as a disciple. Li Hao had only been eighteen when he joined Yuan Shuo.

No, he hadn’t even been eighteen and had felt he was old enough already. Was Yuan Xingwu really as old as he looked?

Li Hao said nothing despite the thoughts running through his mind. Was there a mistake somewhere? But this man was indeed a Nova.

Li Hao wasn’t mistaken; Yuan Xingwu looked older than he was, but he was close to Li Hao’s estimations. He was thirty-eight this year and had become Yuan Shuo’s disciple when he was twenty-three. However, he’d possessed some martial foundations then and wasn’t a complete rookie like Li Hao.

Neither did it count as him joining Yuan Shuo as an already trained individual. Yuan Xingwu was yet to become a Slayer when he was twenty-three. The supernatural had just begun its rise in that age and progress was difficult for martial masters. Arduous training that led to establishing oneself as a Slayer in one’s twenties was a respectable showing.

On the other hand, Yuan Shuo had only prepared to bide his time for a short while. Who would have thought that it’d turn out to be more than ten years in the small backwater of Silver City?

Yuan Xingwu had been given the Yuan surname from Yuan Shuo. The eldest disciple lost his parents at a young age and was thus regarded as a natural harbinger of disaster. Despised for his misfortunes, he didn’t even have an official name until Yuan Shuo accepted him. Yuan Shuo shared his surname with his disciple and also gave him the name of xingwu—revitalizing martial dao.

The name bore a significant meaning. Martial dao was already showing signs of decline then. Bestowing his first disciple with such a name reflected Yuan Shuo’s unique thoughts.

Li Hao observed the man through his visor. He’d never heard his teacher mention this man, but had heard of Chen Yuhua a few times. That Yuan Xingwu had made it to Nova meant that he had a certain amount of experience in the supernatural domain. Perhaps he’d crossed over many years ago. Li Hao frowned, but didn’t think more on that.

Everyone had their own paths. Persisting with martial dao might not have been a good choice in that age. When even Yuan Shuo had been bottlenecked at Sunderer of Hundreds, where did that leave others? Veteran martial masters like Sky Sword had chosen to set foot into the supernatural, so taking this step wasn’t necessarily a mistake.

Yuan Shuo wasn’t opposed to crossing over to the supernatural either. He hadn’t been against that path for Li Hao and had even been ready to become supernatural when he was a Dominator. It was only later that he discovered the great drawbacks to this field and gave up the plan, also warning Li Hao not to take that step.

Yuan Xingwu spoke, interrupting Li Hao’s thoughts. “You can just summon me if you have need, Deputy Zhou. There is no need for you to go to the trouble of making a trip in the middle of night.”

“No worries, I’m just stretching my legs!” the deputy laughed. “I’m here to see General Yuan as a representative of the provincial government. I have certain things to discuss with the general.”

“This way, please!” Yuan Xingwu welcomed the deputy into the tent without further word. Li Hao also made to enter, but a Solar blocked his way.

“This is the Silver Moon Guard that’s escorting me...” Deputy Zhou smiled.

“That means he’s one of Director Hou’s, isn’t he?” Yuan Xingwu frowned faintly. What was the deputy doing, bringing one of the Guards as his bodyguard in a meeting with him, nonetheless!

“It’s fine, the Silver Moon Guards have a complicated background. Not everyone there is deathly loyal to Hou Xiaochen. This Guard is a descendant of a friend and has always been on good terms with me.”

Yuan Xingwu gestured to his man, permitting Li Hao into the tent. The young man didn’t care if he was inside or not, but he might as well listen in on the meeting since he was here.

......

There was almost another world inside the tent—it was very spacious. The two men sat across from each other; Li Hao stood behind the deputy, a quiet and still figure.

“I’m here on behalf of Director General Zhou with three questions. So long as General Yuan gives me a straightforward answer, the provincial government and Commander Yuan won’t have any opinions about what you do.”

“Please go ahead!”

“Firstly, have the Skystar Troops come here to prevent Hou Xiaochen from taking the Black Tortoise Seal?”

Yuan Xingwu frowned, then nodded. “Yes! This is not my personal desire, but orders from upstairs. As part of the military, the Skystar Troops must follow orders.”

“Good!” Deputy Zhou laughed. “Secondly, will you be taking the the Black Tortoise Seal if you can remove it?’’

“Yes, we will take it with us if we can claim it.” Yuan Xingwu readily admitted his intentions without any attempt to conceal his thoughts. “Because if we can touch it, that means the Black Tortoise Seal is just an ordinary origin weapon!”

“Thirdly, Orange Moon and Yellow Moon might give up hunting Yuan Shuo and come here instead. Will the Skystar Troops kill them if you encounter each other in the ruins? Granted, chances are low that you can do so.”

“We will if circumstances permit!” Yuan Xingwu rumbled. “But if circumstances do not permit and taking action will lead to the deaths of my brothers... I will not risk their lives!”

“Very well, I understand now.” Deputy Zhou smiled. “If you don’t mind, could you answer something off topic?”

“Please speak frankly, Deputy Zhou.”

“Li Hao might come as well and enter Battle Heaven. Will you risk your own life to save him if he runs into trouble?”

“Does Deputy Zhou care deeply about this?” Yuan Xingwu frowned. Did this have to do with the provincial government?

“I am just curious because Li Hao is a very bold person and easily opts for a risky decision. His feud with the three great organizations runs deep. I’m worried that the Skystar Troops will create some unnecessary trouble if they act haphazardly.”

Yuan Xingwu pondered the question. “My answer is the same as before. I can take the risk, but I won’t have the others do so. Li Hao is my junior brother in name, but I am unfamiliar with him. I am duty-bound to save him, but my brothers have no reason to lose their lives for a stranger!”

“Mmhmm, very well!” Deputy Zhou concluded his questioning and rose to his feet. “That is all I have.”

Just three questions—or four, rather. No one knew what Yuan Xingwu was thinking now, whereas Li Hao was very calm. He wasn’t surprised by the responses and even felt that there was no need for the other to save him. Yuan Xingwu was right, they weren’t familiar with each other. In fact, it was the young man’s first time hearing of this name.

If it was up to him, he might’ve replied with, “I’ll save him if I can and I won’t if I can’t”. Therefore, Li Hao didn’t find anything inappropriate with the response. However, had Deputy Zhou asked this to demonstrate that Yuan Xingwu did not bear kind intentions toward Li Hao?

If that was the case, then the deputy’s efforts would be in vain.

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