Syracuse stood out among his colleagues in the merchant"s guild, managing to get a position at the small council which had only ten seats in total. When the humans were finally liberated, the ten on the small council and the factions that they represented would be the dominant force.
w.a.n.g Tong could have denied anyone"s audience, except for Syracuse.
"Lord w.a.n.g Tong, on behalf of my family, I want to say thank you for all the good things you have done," Syracuse said emotionally. He knew from the start that w.a.n.g Tong would succeed, and what a smas.h.i.+ng success it was. w.a.n.g Tong"s achievement was so unprecedented that it sounded like a story from a legend. Looking at the young man in front of him, Syracuse registered that w.a.n.g Tong hadn"t changed at all, and he still had no clue had the latter was thinking behind that thin veil of a smile.
"We are old friends, Syracuse. No need to be so polite."
Syracuse smiled faintly. He knew very well that w.a.n.g Tong had all the major faction wrapped around his fingers. Not only were Zambrotta"s Knight units and the Kaedeians under w.a.n.g Tong"s service, but Lie Jian was also beholden to the earthling boy. Amongst all of w.a.n.g Tong"s loyalists, the technology committee spearheaded by w.a.n.g Tung was gaining more influence on Mars by the day despite its nascency. With this much support backing him up, no one on Mars would be able to rival w.a.n.g Tong"s authority.
However, it was not a secret to Syracuse that w.a.n.g Tong"s ambition on Mars was limited. If there were one person who could liberate the humans on Earth and the Moon, it would be him.
"Lord w.a.n.g Tong, etiquette is only reserved for a real hero of Mars like yourself. On behalf of the Syracuse family, I would like to let you know that we are at your beck and call." Syracuse said with the utmost sincerity. He knew that the young man in front of him was the de facto ruler of Mars. Syracuse had dug into w.a.n.g Tong"s past and found out that not only Admiral Samantha was w.a.n.g Tong"s princ.i.p.al, but also his lover, or so said the rumors.
"I appreciate your offer. After the war is over, your family will be rewarded the most handsomely." w.a.n.g Tong knew it was time to cue in his promises to seal the deal.
"Thank you, my lord! " Syracuse said as calmly as he could. However, his trembling voice had betrayed the overwhelming joy inside him. w.a.n.g Tong had displayed his power during the fight with Moye, and this power had cast an enormous fear-evoking shadow over everyone during peacetime. Syracuse scarcely dared to speak in a loud voice in front of this man"s shadow.
"I hope all the other merchant groups would be as cooperative as you are."
"I will make sure they are," Syracuse answered.
It was w.a.n.g Tong"s casual mark, but to Syracuse, there was nothing casual about anything that came out of the former"s mouth. w.a.n.g Tong would need a fleet to ferry the Martians to the Earth and the moon, and the thing about large fleets was that they were expensive. Although w.a.n.g Tong had Lie Jian and Michaux"s support, it would not be enough, and he would need support from the merchants.
w.a.n.g Tong"s remark had made the merchants on Mars take a long hard look at their situation. They soon realized that helping him was not a sacrifice, but an investment. If w.a.n.g Tong succeeded, they would be paid back handsomely. Therefore, there was no reason not to help him; it was sound business after all.
Syracuse was the only businessman w.a.n.g Tong had received, and it had pushed the reputation of the Syracuse family to a new height. Many merchant factions used all tricks they could think of to bring Syracuse closer. The wanted to know what w.a.n.g Tong had discussed with him and what would be the fate of the merchant guild on Mars.
Unlike during the peacetime, there were many methods, including but not limited to, violence, for w.a.n.g Tong to retaliate against people who dared to oppose him. Since the Martian businessmen, except for Syracuse, had missed their only opportunity to win w.a.n.g Tong"s favor, their hopes lied on Syracuse, the only connection between the business community and w.a.n.g Tong.
w.a.n.g Tong was anointed sainthood in the Divine Mastery Sect. He was the holiest saint of all saints: the Saint Savior. The followers of the sect had started the rumor that w.a.n.g Tong was the savior ever since he had evoked the miracle while he was at the Divine Mastery tower. By then, he had performed more miracles than anyone could count, among which, the most important of all was killing the Dark Lord. It was exactly as the Divine Master had prophesied.
It had been only ten days after w.a.n.g Tong had killed Moye, but the savior had already disappeared after his job was done. However, in every corner of every Martian city, people raised toasts in his name, and banners depicting his face were hung everywhere.
w.a.n.g Tong"s meeting with Zambrotta was carried out in a relaxed atmosphere. w.a.n.g Tong knew he couldn"t afford to be vague with Zambrotta, who would be in charge of most of the matters on Mars while he was gone. If w.a.n.g Tong were not specific and to the point, he would cause confusion among the Martians.
"Nice to meet you! Is this our first time meeting each other?" Zambrotta said with an approving smile.
"In person, yes. But, I saw your brilliant fight five years ago. "
"Haha, I am still grateful for Einherjar Wannabe"s teachings on that day," Zambrotta said politely. He knew that both w.a.n.g Tong and the mysterious War G.o.d were over level thirty, if not super Einherjars. What was even more impressive about w.a.n.g Tong was that he was not only a powerful METAL warrior, but also a deadly mastery caster.
However, if w.a.n.g Tong were to pick a fight with Patroclus, which he very likely would, who would prevail?
"Haha…Mr. Wannabe was also very impressed by your skills. There are still many things left to be finished on Mars, and I will appreciate your continued support." w.a.n.g Tong said seriously. Dark ones were one thing, but Patroclus was another. The battle against the Divine Lord wouldn"t be easy.
w.a.n.g Tong had improved his cultivation over the five years, and so had Patroclus. With the advantage of a strong body, Patroclus had an even greater potential than w.a.n.g Tong. In addition, after sitting on the Zerg throne for five years, Patroclus" strategic thinking had also improved by leaps and bounds.
"Will do!" Zambrotta announced with conviction. He was tempted to ask about the War G.o.d"s whereabouts, but he thought better of it. He registered that the forces behind w.a.n.g Tong and the War G.o.d were way beyond his comprehension, just like the Blade Warrior.
Greetings over, Zambrotta and w.a.n.g Tong then discussed the current state of affairs. The situation on Mars was contained and improving by the day. However, there was still a heavy presence of Zerg fleet in Mars" outer s.p.a.ce. Despite their numbers, the Zerg fleet was disorganized due to lack of authority. With the help of the Confederation"s last armada, humans should be able to push those Zergs out of the way sooner or later.
After that, they also discussed topics of cultivation at length. Although Zambrotta was much more senior than w.a.n.g Tong, he acted more like the student during the conversation. This might be Zambrotta"s only chance to chat with a super Einherjar, so he showered w.a.n.g Tong with questions.
Ever since Zambrotta had entered the Einherjar level, his cultivation had practically stopped improving. But, despite his age, he had not given up the hope of reaching a higher level.
"Once you have reached the Einherjar level, your power becomes less of a determining factor in leveling up. You need to learn to borrow the natural force around you." w.a.n.g Tong said with a smile. His words had hit the mark and evoked a fleeting moment of epiphany in Zambrotta. Zambrotta closed his eyes, trying to grasp the meaning again.
"Then what?" Zambrotta asked.
w.a.n.g Tong answered with only a smile, seeing which, Zambrotta said timidly, "Excuse me for being greedy."
w.a.n.g Tong shook his head. "It"s not a secret, and I am willing to share it with you. However, I don"t think it"s the right time for you to know yet. It might slow you down than help you."
Zambrotta nodded; w.a.n.g Tong was right. Patience was the biggest virtual when it came down to cultivation.
At that moment, a knock on the door broke Zambrotta"s train of thoughts; it was Brenda. "Dad, can I have a moment with w.a.n.g Tong along?"
Zambrotta"s eyes glinted like an old fox as he smirked, "Hehe, sure! My daughter thinks I am too old to hear her conversation. Sorry for getting in your way, darling. Haha."
Before Brenda got mad at Zambrotta, he had disappeared behind the door, shutting the door quietly and locking it before he left. "How should I call you? w.a.n.g Tong? Savior? The Divine Angel?" Brenda asked slyly and sarcastically.
w.a.n.g Tong cracked a smile. "Whatever you like." Brenda didn"t answer, not knowing what to say. w.a.n.g Tong looked at Brenda and exclaimed. "You look great in those military uniforms. You should be on the recruitment ad. Haha...Young men would flock into our ranks if they saw your face."
Brenda was amused by w.a.n.g Tong"s words. "You"ve got a sweet mouth. Tell me, how many hearts have you broken?"
w.a.n.g Tong shrugged, "I am innocent."
"Jerk! Those two medics were head over heels for you, and you just ignored them."
Little did w.a.n.g Tong know that he had become the public idol among Martian girls. Surrounded by the gorgeous faces and the smartest minds, w.a.n.g Tong was powerful and mysterious; handsome and romantic; a character straight out of the most popular female genre books such as "My bossy handsome boss," "Fifty Shades of love" and "Dusk-light."
w.a.n.g Tong shrugged again and then said, "Well, I don"t know what to do either."