Chapter 539: Chapter 314: Continue to be a Lone Wolf
Ke Qingshan’s voice, altered to sound unnatural, was stiff but carried a persuasive charm that was hard to refuse.
The shadow was cast face-to-face upon the screen, still not revealing its form, seemingly waiting for Mu Fan’s response.
“You’ve said so much, the gist of it being that Mountain Mist Association will also become one of these powers in the future?”
“Wrong, it is at the very moment these decaying powers erode each other’s lives that we shall rise anew! Seats are fixed, resources are fixed, without the old leaving, the new cannot come. Now, Mountain Mist Association needs fresh blood like yours. If you join, you can make any demand and also use the organization’s power to better accomplish what you wish to do.”
After he finished his final words, silence fell behind the screen.
Clearly, Ke Qingshan was waiting for Mu Fan to speak.
To join or not to join?
Wealth and power seemed readily available, as spoken from the other’s lips.
“Thank you for the invitation, but I have decided not to join.” Mu Fan paused only briefly before giving his answer.
“Why!” The metallic voice carried the other’s question and a certain detachment.
“I only trust myself,” Mu Fan said calmly, his gaze fixed on the screen, “If the Mountain Master has nothing else, I shall take my leave now.”
“It seems Mr. Mu Fan’s mind is made up. I, Ke Qingshan, shall not insist. The door now is only half closed, the remaining half awaits the day you change your mind. After all… I hope we won’t become adversaries in the future.”
Ke Qingshan’s voice was unfluctuating, as if the two had just met, but his last sentence sounded quite ominous.
Mu Fan’s eyes narrowed slightly, respectfully retorted, “Thank you for the Mountain Master’s kindness; I shall take my leave now.”
“No need to see me out.”
The light behind the screen dimmed and gradually faded to black, and Ke Qingshan’s shadow disappeared.
Until the end, Mu Fan had not seen Ke Qingshan’s real face.
After Mu Fan left, a soft mutter came from the deepest part of the room: “You still have one last chance…”
Unfortunately, Mu Fan could no longer hear it as he walked out of the room, through the rocky entrance, and saw Yuan Rui standing upright.
Clearly, Yuan Rui had seen him too.
“Mr. Mu Fan, I will take you back.”
No superfluous words were spoken, as if the Mountain Master had already informed this seemingly old-fashioned young man through some means.
It was still the same floating car they returned on, moving swiftly back along the road they came, with buildings and trees flickering intermittently in view.
Mu Fan sat alone in the back seat, the atmosphere in the vehicle eerily tranquil.
As they were about to reach Dingchuan Academy, Mu Fan finally looked ahead and asked, “Mr. Yuan Rui, were you a soldier?”
“I was,” Yuan Rui answered with a smile, then got out to open the door for Mu Fan.
As Mu Fan got out of the vehicle, the young man with sharp and resolute eyebrows bowed slightly, “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
Yuan Rui watched Mu Fan’s figure until it disappeared at the academy entrance, then turned and got back into the car.
The floating car quickly vanished into the traffic.
After Mu Fan was out of sight, he looked at the ground, clacking his teeth.
“Black, track that floating car, keep tabs on the two inside, monitor all their information.”
“Their counter-surveillance awareness is very high. They have just entered an underground area with no monitoring. I can’t guarantee the tracking results,” Black straightforwardly stated, evidently the man named Yuan Rui was highly skilled in tracking and counter-tracking.
“No problem, help me check if there are records for Ke Qilian and Ke Qingshan. The Mountain Master just now claimed to be the son of the former Army Group Commander.”
Mu Fan was now headed to the library, choosing relatively secluded routes along the way, having other plans shortly.
“Ke Qilian exists, the former Commander-in-Chief of the Federation’s first Army Group. His records are presently sealed, but according to some information leaked on public networks, it appears he was involved in past political struggles of the two Councils and the alternation of military power. Ke Qilian was undermined in obscurity and died in discontent.”
“And Ke Qingshan?” Mu Fan asked.
“No record of that person, Ke Qilian’s only son, Ke Xingyan, died in battle at the border seven years ago.”
Sigh…
Then why would they say that?
“There’s also unofficial news that Ke Qilian might have an illegitimate son who has never shown himself.”
Black’s information began to gather bit by bit, and Mu Fan seemed to see a hidden illegitimate son emerge from the shadows with a gaze full of hatred after the decline of the Ke family.
The mindset of the other party couldn’t possibly be normal for someone developing an organization, their words were tinged with dissatisfaction towards the Federation, making it impossible for Mu Fan to agree to their terms.
Mu Fan, having just joined the academy, was well aware of his role.
With Black’s presence, his best choice was to continue being a lone wolf!
“Black, estimate their age.”
“Unable to estimate, eldest son Ke Xingyan was 32 years old when he died seven years ago, and there is currently zero information about Ke Qingshan. We just breached the Yunlan Mountain Villa’s system and found that his information isn’t recorded there. Should we add Ke Qingshan to the surveillance list?”
“Add him, and include the Mountain Mist Association too. I always feel their intentions go beyond just that,” Mu Fan murmured to himself.
After doing all this, Black asked, “Mu Fan, the room you entered earlier had strong electromagnetic shielding, and I didn’t get any information. What exactly did the Mountain Master tell you?”
“He invited me to join the Mountain Mist Association, but I refused.”
“It’s good that you refused. A commander of the Shadow Fleet could never be subordinate to someone else!” Hearing Mu Fan’s response, Black surprisingly agreed.
This was indeed to the taste of this intelligent life.
“Exactly, even you think so—there’s no way I’d join,” Mu Fan said with a chuckle.
“Make yourself clear, what do you mean ‘even you think so’? Don’t pets have rights?”
“Because you’re not a person…”
Mu Fan remarked.
Black fell silent momentarily, struck a second time by Mu Fan.
“Teasing your faithful intelligent life like this could provoke public outrage.”
“What public outrage?” Mu Fan glanced at his watch; it was only 3 PM, and there was still time for the next part of his plan.
“I might not be able to restrain myself from releasing all those photos of Xiaoxi that you took secretly.”
“…”
Mu Fan halted in his tracks, suppressing the feeling of suffocation rising in his chest, then emotionlessly stared forward and said, “I take back what I just said.”
“Ahahaha~ This is another victory for the great intelligent life!” Black’s wild laughter echoed in Mu Fan’s ears, and he gritted his teeth, wanting to put his earpiece on mute. But considering what he had to do next, he held back.
“Alright, back to business. Black, look up advanced moves from the Soglier series. Time is pressing, and I need to master as many Mecha skills as possible before the competition.”
Mu Fan looked up at the majestic library building in front of him, having arrived at his destination.
Arc Light Step Forward Slash—although he had just gone through a virtual combat, it wasn’t real combat, so he couldn’t claim to have mastered it.
However, upon seeing the prototype of the Extreme Special Soldier in the Nautilus Warehouse, the tension of the upcoming competition suddenly overwhelmed him.
The best way to help Nuonuo would be to surprise her during the competition.
Thinking of that girl whose eyes crinkled when she smiled warmed Mu Fan’s heart.
“What a diligent young man! Query completed, under A-level authorization, the Soglier series has seven advanced moves.”