Chapter 627: Section 414: Investigating “Hen Fa
Before Ice Eagle arrived, Lan Zao and Shuang Tu successfully returned to the clinic ahead of schedule.
Lan Zao had not lain in the sickbed long when he heard footsteps.
Soon, the door was pushed open.
Shuang Tu entered first, followed by Ice Eagle, and then the Human Race leader.
Lan Zao hurriedly sat up, his heart pounding, with a stern face.
“Don’t be nervous, young man, lie back down,” Ice Eagle quickly waved his hand, laughing heartily and soothingly.
“Ice Eagle Gang Leader.” Lan Zao spoke, his voice hoarse.
Ice Eagle approached the bed: “Don’t be so formal, young man. I should be thanking you for saving my life.”
But Lan Zao shook his head: “I heard that you also saved me. It was on the ship when I was still unconscious.”
As Lan Zao said this, he instinctively glanced at the Human Race leader.
He was unaware that the Human Race leader was actually part of his group, but he did indeed learn this information from the Human Race leader.
The Human Race leader’s room was only a wall away from his ward.
For the mission in Anqiu, although the Human Race leader didn’t want to reveal his true identity to Lan Zao, frequent contact with Lan Zao was beneficial and harmless to him.
Therefore, the Human Race leader often visited, chatting about this and that, probing Lan Zao’s identity.
During this time, Lan Zao also informed the Human Race leader about his name ‘Hen Fa’ and his origins.
Lan Zao exchanged a few words with Ice Eagle.
Essentially, Ice Eagle was offering comfort, and Lan Zao was responding.
Finally, Lan Zao suddenly said: “Ice Eagle Gang Leader, thank you for bringing me here to heal. As for the medical expenses, I will repay you.”
Hearing this and seeing Lan Zao’s rigid expression, Ice Eagle was reminded of some things the Human Race leader told him before and confirmed Lan Zao’s intentions.
Lan Zao wanting to repay the medical expenses meant he wanted to distance himself from both Ice Eagle and the Saber Gang.
Ice Eagle’s expression did not change; he remained warm and controlled the pace of the conversation.
He was already old, having stepped down from the position of the Saber Gang Leader, and now had to take the helm again—a unique life experience.
The Human Race leader, standing behind him, stared at Ice Eagle’s back with flickering eyes.
To some extent, Ice Eagle was even more difficult to deal with than Teng Donglang. In his prime, Teng Donglang did not like to hide his intentions, while Ice Eagle was an old fox, inscrutable through his words and expressions.
Lan Zao maintained a cautious and reticent demeanor, his face always rigid.
Ice Eagle, however, seemed to have an endless stream of conversation topics.
Yet, in the end, he still uttered that sentence: “So, young man, are you interested in working under me?”
Lan Zao immediately shook his head, a sigh of relief in his heart. It had finally been asked, and such a conversation was too torturous.
He quickly apologized and explained his wishes: he had saved Ice Eagle by chance and also sought the help of the Saber Gang to escape Snowbird Port. Now, having arrived at Flower Skirt Island and experienced a Bloodline Awakening, everything could begin anew, and he wished to strive on his own!
Having heard this, Ice Eagle still smiled amiably, but the Human Race leader hmphed coldly, scolding Lan Zao for his ingratitude.
Ice Eagle stopped the Human Race leader’s scolding, soothing Lan Zao with a few words, and before leaving, he left a message: Lan Zao need not repay the treatment costs; it was all fate.
After leaving Lan Zao’s ward, the Human Race leader accompanied Ice Eagle downstairs.
“Gang Leader, this youngster Hen Fa really doesn’t know what’s good for him!” The Human Race leader was still angry.
Ice Eagle shook his head, laughing softly: “It’s understandable. Young people want to carve out their destiny, especially after a Bloodline Awakening. It’s a good thing to have such spirit. That’s what I appreciate about him.”
Saying this, Ice Eagle sighed: “It’s a pity we can’t even save ourselves now. If it were the Saber Gang of old, I wouldn’t need to ask him; Hen Fa might have offered to join on his own.”
The Human Race leader quickly comforted Ice Eagle, claiming that the Saber Gang would regain its former glory.
As the two walked into the main hall on the first floor, the Human Race leader said: “Gang Leader, Hen Fa is indeed a good seed. I heard from Doctor Shuang Tu about the examination results. His Bloodline has been completely purified—it’s at 100% concentration.”
“He’s a solid Silver Level, and since we saved him, should we just let him go?”
Ice Eagle glanced at the Human Race leader: “The Saber Gang has a lot to rebuild. Hen Fa is talented and of course we want to recruit him. But now is not the right time. Get to know him first. During this time, continue to build rapport with him and find out more about his affair.”
The Human Race leader quickly acknowledged: Understood.
Then, as if it were an afterthought, he urged: “But our treatment will eventually end. Once he’s healed, I’ll have no reason to stay here. And it’s the same for Hen Fa. Although he’s currently Bronze, the powers on the island will also value a future Silver Level.”
Ice Eagle nodded, not revealing the next steps, but reminded the Human Race leader that his priority was also healing, and recruiting Hen Fa was just an ancillary task.
The Human Race leader promptly expressed his concern for the future of the Saber Gang, his urgency, and promised to have a good talk with Hen Fa about the Saber Gang’s heritage and bright future after returning.
“That’s enough, don’t see me out,” Ice Eagle stood at the entrance of the clinic, waving for the Human Race leader to go back.
Spring Boxer was leaning against the wall beside the door and came over to meet Ice Eagle.
Although Ice Eagle was also Silver Level, he was old after all, and his real power lay in his Gold Level giant slaves. Unfortunately, his only Gold Level giant slave had his head chopped off by the Snowbird Port City Lord.
Flower Skirt Island was yet another unfamiliar environment.
So, when Ice Eagle went out on operations, he was usually personally guarded by Spring Boxer or Xiong Ju.
Spring Boxer made a greeting to the Human Race leader and gradually left the medical center with Ice Eagle.
On the way, Spring Boxer spoke up, “I think the Human Race leader’s injuries have mostly healed, and he can be fully discharged from the hospital. He’s the most suitable for handling daily gang affairs. He’s also the best at dealing with these small matters.”
Ice Eagle smiled faintly, “What, you’re impatient with managing gang affairs after just a few days?”
“Gang affairs might seem trivial, but they’re actually very important.”
“I know your old style, even though you’re a leader, you almost always delegate the gang affairs you’re responsible for to your deputy. But that won’t work now, the gang needs you to handle these matters.”
Ice Eagle stopped in his tracks and turned back to look at Spring Boxer, speaking earnestly, “I’ve already aged.”
“The next Gang Leader of Saber Gang will be you.”
“If you can’t even manage gang affairs, how can you shoulder such an important responsibility?”
Spring Boxer gave an “ah” of surprise, showing a troubled expression.
He had never been interested in this position.
Where could Ice Eagle be unclear about his personality? He said again, “You also know that there might be traitors among us now. Do you want the position of Gang Leader to fall into the hands of a traitor?”
“Of course not!” Spring Boxer blurted out, “But…”
“In my view, Xiong Ju isn’t likely to be the traitor. He’s a strong fighter, but his personality doesn’t suit being a traitor.”
“And the Human Race leader, he’s always been very loyal to the gang.”
Ice Eagle shook his head and continued walking forward.
Spring Boxer quickly caught up and heard Ice Eagle say, “Without a way to confirm who the traitor is, we must maintain a restrained suspicion of everyone.”
“Xiong Ju, the Human Race leader, they might all be possible, even Hen Fa.”
“Hen Fa?” Spring Boxer was surprised, as he knew some information about Hen Fa, “He shouldn’t be, right?”
“He isn’t one of us from Saber Gang.”
“He isn’t even from Snowbird Port but from Flower Skirt Island.”
“If I were Snowbird Port’s City Lord, I’d definitely arrange former members of Saber Gang to be lying low near us.”
“Besides, Hen Fa is unwilling to join us, isn’t he?”
As Spring Boxer leaned against the wall, he overheard the conversation between the Human Race leader and Ice Eagle in the main hall.
“But we can’t exclude him from suspicion either.” Ice Eagle shook his head slightly and sighed once more, “Fortunately, we can investigate him.”
“Investigate?” Spring Boxer was puzzled.
Ice Eagle explained, “He comes from Flower Skirt Island and has fled to Snowbird Port. And in Flower Skirt Island, we precisely have our own people.”
“Our Saber Gang still has survivor factions?” Spring Boxer grew even more curious.
Ice Eagle shook his head, “More accurately, they’re connections, Teng Donglang’s connections.”
“This person, you know him too.”
“Who is it?” Spring Boxer quickly asked.
Ice Eagle said a name.
Spring Boxer was shocked, “What, Bald Uncle? He’s now the Gang Leader of Axe Gang?”
Being close to Flower Skirt Island, Spring Boxer also knew that the largest gang there was Axe Gang.
But he hadn’t imagined that the Gang Leader of the Axe Gang would be Bald Uncle from his memories.
That was Teng Donglang’s old comrade. Although the two usually didn’t get along and each found the other disagreeable, when it came to combat, they would desperately save each other’s lives, trusting each other with their backs, and their camaraderie was very deep.
“Bald Uncle didn’t go back home to farm?”
Ice Eagle sighed, “We retirees from the soldier life can never truly return to an ordinary life. On the battlefield, we can sleep soundly to the sound of bombs exploding. To lie in a soft bed and peacefully spend a day of peace is actually our nightmare. The habit of fighting is ingrained in our marrow, we are accustomed to using Martial Power for survival. He, much like Teng Donglang, is a Golden Level, and has an even more hot-tempered personality than Teng Donglang, unsuitable for a structured life. His current position is actually quite normal.”
Spring Boxer blinked and nodded repeatedly, acknowledging Ice Eagle’s words.
Ice Eagle said, “Next, I will send a message, asking the Gang Leader of Axe Gang to investigate Hen Fa’s background.”
“There are quite a few Communication Demon Beasts on Flower Skirt Island.”
“If all goes well, in a few days we should receive a reply.”
Flower Skirt Island.
Zi Di, carrying a generous gift, and Zong Ge together arrived at the headquarters of Axe Gang.
Once they declared their intentions for the visit, they were led inside the compound.
“Long Fu… he actually came to us personally!” The Gang Leader of Axe Gang’s face darkened.
“Father, we didn’t kill him in Cold Wind Valley. Now we can activate the Magic Array in the compound and give it a try!” The Gang Leader’s son, Fu Zhao, was full of murderous intent.