Chapter 606: A New Storm
Old Woods thanked Xia Fei profusely as he escorted him out of the room. Though no one had any clue about the result, everyone knew at that moment that Xia Fei had truly succeeded in solving the fractal geometry and that the answer he got had been accepted by Old Woods.
This was a mystery that had stumped countless experts, with plenty of sleepless nights burned up, yet it took the young Xia Fei a handful of hours to solve it. It was simply unbelievable!
Mu Qianling spat at the side. He had come up with thousands of ways to deal with Xia Fei, but never had he thought that Xia Fei’s answer would actually be correct! As such, all the odious plans he came up with were rendered useless, and he could only watch Xia Fei leave unscathed.
Collecting that unremarkable box, Xia Fei bade farewell to Old Woods even as the crowd roiled in their shock and suspicions.
Regarding Old Woods’ wish for Xia Fei to study the song that his daughter had left behind, Xia Fei still ended up refusing. Though it was interesting to solve the mystery, he would also end up spending a lot of his time doing so. Seeing that the second cycle of examination was about to begin for the Dragon Ascension Conclave, time happened to be the one thing Xia Fei lacked.
“Quick. Let’s leave,” Zanian Feng said uneasily. It was as if he did not wish to stay for even a second longer. His head was lowered as he made to leave the Law Enforcement Board ahead of both Xia Fei and Wolf Shunye.
“Brother Zanian’s most afraid of that old freak by the surname of Xia. About a little over a month ago, Zanian and Xia Zonghai were playing a game of chess and he accidentally won against the freak. After that match, the old freak made a din the entire day about having a rematch with him, asking to continue where Zanian won while stating that Zanian intentionally let him win when it happened. It created quite a troublesome situation,” Wolf Shunye explained.
Xia Fei nodded. “Someone who’s so difficult to deal with? No wonder Zanian isn’t willing to stay here longer than he has to.”
“Right? That old freak is famed for being completely unreasonable, and even our president steers clear from him if they happen to cross paths.” Wolf Shunye sighed. It seemed like he deeply sympathized with Zanian’s situation.
“B*ST*RD!”
An explosive yell suddenly rang from behind them, and that big bearded face of Wolf Shunye instantly turned pale, as a hand reached over to clutch his chest.
The two turned around and saw a fairly paunchy old man briskly cutting a diagonal path as he walked over with a half-smile, his meaty palm grabbing hold of Wolf Shunye by his shoulder.
“Have you seen that b*st*rd from the Feng family these past two days?” the old man asked gruffly.
Wolf Shunye shuddered as he meekly answered, “Grandfather Hai, the Feng family is currently hosting the Dragon Ascension Conclave, and Zanian is very busy ”
“Is that so?” The old man stroked the spa.r.s.e goatee on his chin.
*Smack*
Without another word, Xia Zonghai immediately slapped Wolf Shunye’s head. This caused the tall and robust young man to stagger from the blow, nearly falling flat on the ground.
“Do you take this old man as a fool? The initial a.s.sessment of the Dragon Ascension Conclave ended today! How dare you try to pull a fast one on me!”
*Smack smack smack smack!*
The old man treated Wolf Shunye’s head like a basketball, slapping the latter as if he were dribbling a ball. When done, he gave Wolf Shunye’s big bushy beard under his chin a good tug, the pain squeezing out tears from the Gigawolf.
Xia Fei gulped. This old man in front of him was truly rude and unreasonable.
“I heard that Woods came, so I’ll go and catch up with him first today. Tomorrow afternoon, you’d better find that friend of yours for me, or else… Hmph!”
Throwing Xia Fei a side-eye, Xia Zonghai asked, “Why do you look familiar, kid? Whose family’s b*st*rd are you?”
“I’m from Yu family… and you must be mistaken, elder. We’ve never met before,” Xia Fei hurriedly answered with great courtesy. Though he did not have a beard under his chin, he still inadvertently held a hand over it.
“Oh, the Yu family… Is Yu Jiang, that old goat, still not dead?”
“He’s still not dead,” Xia Fei blurted out, instantly regretting what he said the moment the words left his mouth. No matter what, the Old Yu Jiang was still the family patriarch, and what he said was nothing short of disrespectful.
Finally getting away from the old freak after much effort, Xia Fei and Wolf Shunye exited the Law Enforcement Board compound and ran off to the corner of the street. Xia Fei had always been bold, yet for some reason, all he felt was his heart beating wildly when he saw Xia Zonghai as cold sweat flowed freely down his back.
Zanian beckoned them from behind a corner of a wall, looking like he had narrowly escaped death.
“You actually fled by yourself! You dared to call yourself a friend?!” Wolf Shunye was rubbing his still hurting chin as he spoke.
Zanian expressed a round of apology, and also agreed to treat Wolf Shunye to a big meal before he managed to appease the Gigawolf. As for the agreement with Xia Zonghai tomorrow, Zanian would not go even if it meant his death. Since he could not afford to offend the old man, all he could do was avoid him.
The three left in the direction of the Dragon Ascension Martial Hall, off to retrieve the war armor Edgeless.
“What’s inside the box that Old Woods gave you? Take it out and let us all have a look,” Wolf Shunye had one hand around Xia Fei’s shoulder as he said, acting like they were very close.
Xia Fei was in a bit of a pickle. He had no idea what was inside the box, either, and it would be troublesome if word got out had he really gotten some precious treasure. Carelessness had always been the cause of anyone losing their fortune.
Zanian gave Xia Fei a wink and changed the topic. “Gigawolf, do you know Edgeless, that suit of war armor of Busey?”
“Edgeless? That top-notch war armor made by the Fig Corporation?”
“That’s right. It’s now in Xia Fei’s hands. Want to see it with your own eyes?”
“Of course, I do! Very much so! My family also has armor from Fig Corporation, but it’s too bad that the d*mn, old fogey won’t let me even look at it,” Wolf Shunye said in frustration.
The three chatted idly as they walked down the main street, while attentive individuals around could not help begin hypothesizing what relation Xia Fei shared with the Wolf family.
“Just what sort of animosity have you bred with the Mu family? It looks like Vice-president Mu was picking on you especially,” Wolf Shunye asked curiously.
“I don’t know, either.” Xia Fei shrugged. “This matter has vexed me for a very long time. Previously, I gave the young lady Mu Fuping a hand, and that caused them to roll their eyes at me everywhere I went. If I knew that this would happen, I wouldn’t even care about them.”
Zanian Feng burst into laughter. “Do you really not know?”
Xia Fei frowned. “Not at all.”
Zanian straightened his face as he whispered, “It’s like this. After you saved Mu Fuping and disappeared, she went back to bug her family about looking for you. Relations.h.i.+ps in this circle are very superficial, so the Mu family doesn’t really care about your disappearance. That’s why she ended up mentioning how she has feelings for you due to the urgency of the matter, so now you’re in this situation.”
“Actually, you can’t really blame Miss Mu. She hasn’t experienced much of the world, so she didn’t weigh the pros and cons of her actions. Strictly speaking, what she said had benefited you in the short term, but it actually ended up hurting you for the long term. Forget the Mu family; there are even more members of the other great clans who harbor animosity toward you.”
Xia Fei was slightly surprised, not saying a word.
Though Wolf Shunye was somewhat thick, he was still someone born into the Nine Great Clans, so he furrowed his brows, too, the moment he heard Zanian’s account.
“What Brother Zanian said isn’t wrong. Here in the Law Realm, marriages are often arranged, especially among the great clans. It’s a tool used to foster relations.h.i.+ps, and Mu Fuping, that la.s.s, has practically shoved you into harm’s way!
“She’s the direct granddaughter of the Mu family, so even we of the Wolf family are planning to arrange a match for her. Several disciples in our clan have even gotten into a fight over it. It would be fine if Mu Fuping didn’t have the status she had, but now it’s too late. These people are suspicious, so even if you say that there’s nothing between you two, you’ve made enemies already.”
Xia Fei was speechless. Mu Fuping was truly a case of kind intentions gone awry. It was no wonder why there were always looks of ill intent thrown his way; to think that this was the reason for everything. If Zanian did not mention this, Xia Fei would still be clueless about everything.
“Forget it. I still understand Mu Fuping; she’s just a lady who knows nothing about the world. If I were to bear a grudge on her, that would instead mean that I wasn’t magnanimous enough. After all, her original intention is out of kindness.” Xia Fei sighed as he said this.
Zanian said, “Best if you think like that. Actually, this isn’t unsolvable. Once you join the Dragon Ascension, I dare to guarantee that no one will dare have any funny ideas toward you.”
Wolf Shunye added, “Zanian’s absolutely right. The Yu family can’t protect you, and it’ll be a matter of time before these people act on their plans against you. You’ll be safe only if you make it into Dragon Ascension. Forget the fact that there’s nothing between you and Mu Fuping; even if there’s really something, they can only just glare at you.”
Zanian and Wolf Shunye let out a great laugh with a tinge of immorality, as Zanian pointed out. “What Gigawolf said isn’t a bad idea at all. Mu Fuping has taken the initiative to look for you many times and has shown a fondness for you. Why don’t you just take her in once you join the martial hall?”
……
Dragon Ascension Martial Hall’s backyard, North Ridge Warzone.
This warzone was the area where the warriors would be practicing their martial arts techniques daily. A set of approximately two-meter tall war armor slowly rose from the thick metal alloy ground, and it was none other than the Edgeless war armor!
Wolf Shunye’s eyes turned green, a silly grin plastered across his face as if he was over the moon. He could not stop himself from walking over and running his finger on the cold metal surface.
“Edgeless! It really is Edgeless! You’ve definitely hit the jackpot this time! To think the war armor belonging to one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Dragon Ascension would end up in your hands. Had I known that this was the prize, I would definitely have joined in the a.s.sessment as well and fight it out with you!” Wolf Shunye said with great excitement.
Zanian said, “Great Clans not needing to join the initial a.s.sessment is our way of showing care to you all. Honestly speaking, Xia Fei really risked his life to obtain Uncle Busey’s Edgeless. Had you joined, there’s no guarantee that you would’ve cleared it. Besides, the prize for the second cycle won’t be anything less than Edgeless, so you’ve still got a chance.”
Wolf Shunye did not care for that, though, vehemently complaining about the rule that Great Clans did not require to partic.i.p.ate in the initial a.s.sessment.
Xia Fei made his way over to Edgeless and pushed a b.u.t.ton on the war armor’s arm.
*Ping ping ping*
Edgeless’s armor plates, thin like a cicada’s wings, automatically changed shape and instantly enveloped Xia Fei in its protective embrace.
Though it was hard war armor, Edgeless did not give the slightest c.u.mbersome feeling when worn. The ergonomic design of the armor was so perfect that it felt like none of Xia Fei’s movements was restricted in the least.
Testing the armor by moving his arms, Xia Fei marveled. “Not bad. It’s even stronger than the liquid war armor I have and can even feel a measure of a.s.sistance with every move I make.”
Zanian nodded. “The engine on the back of the war armor is very powerful. It not only grants you the ability of s.p.a.ce flight but also increases the power of your attacks. A single move of your arm and the mechanical frame will move accordingly, able to boost your strength by approximately 30%.”
Xia Fei squatted and the twin quantum engine behind him blasted into activation!
*Whoosh*
Xia Fei penetrated through the clouds like a rocket, going past the atmosphere and right into the stars!
This was Edgeless! A top-notch set of war armor, which allowed its user to achieve s.p.a.ce flight like a wars.h.i.+p by itself!
…
Spending about an hour to get used to Edgeless, Xia Fei’s psych.o.m.otor skills were excellent, and the armor hardly wasted much of his strength.
The two quantum engines, Edgeless contained allowed him flight in addition to what the average war armor provided.
This was no ordinary flight, either, but true s.p.a.ce flight like that of a s.p.a.ce-faring wars.h.i.+p!
As long as Xia Fei willed it, he could easily shuttle from planet to planet without the use of any wars.h.i.+p, and that level of freedom was something indescribable.
Storing Edgeless away, Xia Fei returned to Yu family in preparation for the second cycle of examination next month.
His newly obtained spatial compa.s.s allowed Xia Fei to travel directly to Roaring Tiger Park. The utilization of the tool was very simple, only requiring him to enter the coordinates. A simple tap of confirmation activated it.
The Roaring Tiger Park was silent, with not a soul in sight. Even the two Beast Kings were nowhere to be found.
Xia Fei knitted his eyebrows together as he could vaguely sense the unusual atmosphere around him.
“Xia Fei! Xia Fei!” Gu Dong came das.h.i.+ng out of the office, apparently very fl.u.s.tered.
“What happened?” Xia Fei asked severely.