Chapter 502 The Situation and the Change
The straight-line distance from Baoji City to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center was no more than 1,000 kilometers.
But the trip took Li Mu five whole hours by riding his flying broadsword.
At his flying speed, he could have covered a distance of 20,000 kilometers in five hours.
That was why it was a little weird.
And on the way, Li Mu paid special attention to the view around him. To his disappointment, even though the Third Eye was opened, he didn’t find anything unusual.
The news released by the government earlier claimed that because of the burst of sunspots, the magnetic pole on the earth had affected the aircraft navigation device, so it made air travel impossible. Yet, that explanation clearly did not hold water, for Li Mu’s flying broadsword was not equipped with any electronic navigator.
The most obvious phenomenon was that once he rose from the earth and went into the sky, the spatial distance was stretched out by some mysterious force or s.p.a.ce law. Even Li Mu could not see what it was, which made the whole thing a bit creepy.
The distance of 1,000 kilometers was stretched to more than 20,000 kilometers, which was 20 times longer.
This meant that any aircraft on Earth could only fly at 20 times its original fuel storage or at 20 times its original speed to complete a usual journey.
But it was obviously impossible.
And this weird change also caused the flight to become the most dangerous and time-consuming way of transportation, which was left far behind by the high-speed rail and even highway travel.
Li Mu had also considered another possibility. Since such an absurd change happened to occur right after the Vanguard returned to Earth, it was hard to say whether the Vanguard had nothing to do with strange change.
In the early hours of the morning, at the Farming Hotel in the downtown of Jiuquan City, Li Mu met Su Cuo, the female officer who came to pick him up.
“According to the arrangement of the chief, from today on, I am your secretary.” Su Cuo made a military salute to Li Mu.
She was wearing a dark blue-and-gray air force uniform, which was well-cut and outlined her beautiful figure. Against the military uniform, this woman in the army had a kind of beauty that ordinary women did not have.
Li Mu nodded.
That was actually a good arrangement.
What he planned to do called for communication with the military. It could not be better to have Su Cuo, an acquaintance, as the agent of the military. At least, he and she could communicate more smoothly.
Li Mu could tell that the military had attached great importance to him.
“The high-ranking leaders intended to meet you in person. But given that the current situation is somewhat complicated and confusing. Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the military are under great pressure, so they have no time to come here. I hope you can understand.” Su Cuo said, cautiously phrasing her words.
Li Mu smiled and said, “Of course I understand. I never consider myself some kind of special figure, especially in this respect… Well, according to the military plan, what do I need to do next?”
Su Cuo said, “Don’t you want to go to Mount Qilian first and have a look at the place where Master Li appeared that day?”
Li Mu shook his head and answered, “I’m in no rush.”
If the old faker really left some traces or clues, other people could not easily destroy them and Li Mu would find the clues sooner or later. As the old faker had disappeared for such a long time, Li Mu felt no need to hurry. He reckoned he’d better solve the military affairs first. The national crisis was the most urgent thing after all.
Su Cuo said, “Mu, thanks for your understanding… Then I’ll introduce the current situation to you first. Here it is. Due to the matter of the Vanguard, the area within a radius of 50 kilometers around the entire satellite base is now under security control, and our country is under tremendous pressure…”
She roughly described the big picture. Then, she added, “Two days ago, based on the result of the initial negotiation of the various nations, the military already delivered the members of the science team on the Vanguard back to their own countries. However, some problems surfaced. On their way back to home escorted by the military force from their own countries, the members of the science team were attacked before they even stepped out of Jiuquan City. Kerey was killed. Victor and Susan went missing. The situation deteriorated in an instant. Andrew and the rest of the team were forced to return to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. These days, the governments of their countries are quite upset about the loss of their members that occurred in our territory. They hope we can send our own force to escort them out of our country.”
Speaking of this matter, Su Cuo looked a little sad.
The killed Kerey, and the missing Victor and Susan were all members of the imperial examination team on the Vanguard. They had gone through thick and thin together with her, and so they had a deep friends.h.i.+p. Yet, such a tragedy had happened to them. As their friend, she was angry and doleful.
Li Mu also remembered the faces of these three people. He was taken aback to hear that such a thing had happened.
“Did this happen after the transfer of personnel?” Li Mu asked.
Su Cuo confirmed with a nod.
Li Mu said, “In that case, all the countries should take responsibility for the safety of their people. Why should we be liable instead? Didn’t those countries send martial arts masters to protect their own members?”
“The masters sent by each country have suffered heavy casualties.” Su Cuo began, “According to all kinds of information and intelligence we’ve obtained, some terrifying super masters had hidden in the dark and killed the team members from those countries.”
“Super masters? How strong are they?” Inquired Li Mu.
Su Cuo said, “At least in this world, they are the top ones. They are also very proficient in a.s.sa.s.sinations. With the help of men with superpowers, it’s impossible to defend against them… Of course, none of them is a match for you, but I suggest you not underestimating them.”
Li Mu hummed in agreement but did not say a word.
Su Cuo went on, “The most important thing is, there may be moles inside all parties. Because the attackers seem to know very well about our transfer of personnel, the retreat routes of the teams from each country, as well as the level of strength of the guards.”
Li Mu furrowed his eyebrows.
Once there was a hidden traitor involved, it was undoubtedly the most troublesome thing to deal with.
“What else did you find out?” Li Mu asked again.
He was quickly hatching a plan to deal with the situation, so he needed to ask for more information. This did not mean that he found the problem tricky. On the contrary, to Li Mu, all he only needed to do in the face of any situation was to overcome the tricks with his strength. In the face of absolute power, every problem would be no problem.
What he was trying to figure out was through what kind of method could he quickly handle the current problem and solve it once and for all.
Su Cuo said, “There are signs that some terrorists from the Middle East, who are also martial arts super masters, have sneaked into Mount Qilian. Since the environment started changing, several terrorists became super masters. That must have something to do with their rabid mentality… Among them, the three super masters called Dessert Camel, Machete, and Crude Oil are the most horrible ones. They can totally rank among the top 20 cultivators around the globe. They’ve given the governments of all countries a great headache. The governments tried to catch them with joint hands several times but all failed. The various countries suffered a lot instead. According to our intelligence, it is very likely that Dessert Camel and Machete have already slipped into Mount Qilian. And they might have something to do with the attack the team members just got.”
As she said this, she handed over an electronic instrument, which recorded the photos and files of the cultivators in the world powerful enough to launch this attack, including their preferred Cultivation Method, fighting skills, temperament, and so on.
With a quick glance, Li Mu noted that the file was divided into two parts. The first part was information about domestic experts, while the second part was about 68 foreign experts, including the horrible terrorists from the Middle East. The file was quite detailed.
He looked through all of it and basically bore all of it in mind.
“Did those terrorists sneak in also for the Vanguard?” Li Mu asked casually, “When did these people get so interested in outer s.p.a.ce?”
Su Cuo said, “They believe that there is a secret hidden in the Vanguard that can help them wash the evil from the world. They regard it as a gift given to them by the G.o.d from outer s.p.a.ce and so it must be possessed by them.”
Li Mu said, “So, is it true that the matter about the Vanguard has already been disclosed?”
Su Cuo nodded and then explained, “Some important organizations and high-level officials on Earth have already learned it. It’s hard to hide this kind of thing. You can’t blame the military for not doing a good job in keeping it a secret. After all, when the Vanguard entered the atmosphere that day, it caused such a scene that it alerted the national surveillance department in all countries. Moreover, these days, some countries have deliberately spread the news. By this time, all the important figures on Earth already know that there are forces from outer s.p.a.ce hidden in the Vanguard, and so all the forces are rus.h.i.+ng towards it like moths flying into a flame.”
“What’s the military’s att.i.tude then?” Li Mu returned the electronic instrument to Su Cuo and asked, “Do you want me to escort those members abroad?”
Su Cuo shook her head and said, “That’s not what I’m here for. As long as our country still can, the government will arrange some experts from domestic martial arts sects to do it. We still have to negotiate with other countries. The most urgent task is to find Dessert Camel, Machete, and other terrorists hidden in the dark, as well as some super experts who bypa.s.s our customs and sneak into the country to destroy and overturn the country on someone else’s orders. We need to find them as soon as possible and then finish them off.”
Li Mu nodded. Then, he said, “That’s easy. If they really entered our territory, it’ll only take me three days tops to kill them all.”
Su Cuo was very surprised. She repeated, “Three days?”
“What’s wrong? Is that too long?” Li Mu asked.
“No, no, no. As long as we can deal with these people within half a month, the military will be very satisfied.” Su Cuo explained in a haste.
“If the military can lead these people to the place within a radius of 500 kilometers, and the time I need is even shorter. I can perhaps finish the job in half a day,” Li Mu suggested.
Su Cuo took a deep breath and said, “I have to report to the military again. Tell them that we probably need to adjust some strategies… But, Mu, are you really sure about it?”
“100% sure,” replied Li Mu.
Su Cuo said, “Okay, I’ll report this to the military right away.”
She dialed a coded channel in Li Mu’s presence and pa.s.sed on the message.
A few moments later, Su Cuo’s specially made military cellphone received a message. She read it at once and then said, “By the way, Commander Fan said there is another issue he needs to discuss with you. The event in the Ecological Lily Garden Hotel has spread all over Jianghu after Ling Hezi went back. Nowadays, the domestic martial arts society is talking about you feverishly. People’s reactions are very vehement. Though our government has taken some measures to keep such sensational event within a certain area, and there won’t be any news about it in the public, the reactions of the True Spirit Sect and the Star Observing Sect, which are two of the Seven Sacred Sects, are quite hot. According to reliable sources, the two sects are planning to hold a Martial Arts Society a.s.sembly soon to seek justice from you.”
Li Mu gave a smile and did not speak.
To tell the truth, he really did not care a d.a.m.n about the Seven Saint Sects.
“Now that they don’t want to take it easy, let them come to me,” Li Mu said.
Su Cuo knew that this would be his answer, so she added, “This time, the country wants to take this opportunity to sort out the martial arts forces and bring them to the control of the official organs. It won’t be long before people from the Seven Sacred Sects and some other powerful forces begin to come to Mount Qilian. You will perhaps meet them then. And these people may unite to make things difficult for you.”