A World Worth Protecting

1

After seeing Li Wan’er off, Wang Baole felt a headache. The mastermind that was in hiding made him feel that the matter was urgent. Thankfully, he felt that he had an advantage, as, after all, it was merely a Dark Servant. From that term, it could be seen that in the eyes of the Little Missy, that person was just a servant, while he was the master.

That thought made him feel a sense of relief.

<em>That is nothing much. I still have Little Missy. If anything doesn’t go well, I’ll get Little Missy to help, and suppress that servant!</em>

<em>However, if I were to engage the help of Little Missy, I’ll have to put in some effort to convince her. </em>Wang Baole was deep in thought about the matter, and also felt that his life was filled with challenges. He had to depend on himself for everything in order to remove all obstacles through his own effort.

With that sentiment, Wang Baole began thinking about how he could coax Little Missy. At that moment, Lin Tianhao also sent a voice transmission requesting to visit Wang Baole to report the details of the investigation, as well as the results of the investigation of the various zones.

Due to the frequency of Wang Baole going into seclusion, his residence had become his office to a certain extent. Soon, Lin Tianhao arrived. Having stuck with Wang Baole for a considerable period of time, Lin Tianhao had changed from the person he was back in the Dao College. Right now, he was no longer as arrogant and quiet, and instead was dependable and experienced.

However, that was just an image he put on in front of Wang Baole. In reality, when he was in the company of others, Lin Tianhao didn’t speak much. His quiet demeanor hadn’t disappeared and was simply buried deep in his bones. To others, he was like a poisonous snake, and the relationship that he shared with Wang Baole meant that if he protected Wang Baole’s interests, he could protect his own as well. Therefore, names like ‘lapdog’, ‘crazy dog’, and ‘poisonous snake’ were often applied to him by people who were unhappy with Wang Baole.

Right now, as he arrived, Lin Tianhao first poured a cup of tea for Wang Baole, placing it in front of him. Then, he stood in front of him instinctively, without even thinking that it didn’t match his status or that he was trying to get into Wang Baole’s good books. Instead, he felt that as a subordinate, he should reciprocate the things that the superior he respected had done for him, and the act of pouring a cup of tea reflected the respect he had for his superior.

Wang Baole was also accustomed to this treatment. Therefore, he took a sip of tea as he listened to Lin Tianhao’s report.

“City Lord, there were no abnormalities found during yesterday’s inspection of the area…”

“In addition, the inspection of the various regions in the entire city has been completed. The data acquired, as well as the conclusion, are detailed here…” As he reported, Lin Tianhao passed a jade slip to Wang Baole.

“In the six regions of the new city, the people who cultivated the Art of Longevity are unevenly distributed. Most of them are located in Chen Mu’s autonomous zone, followed by that of Fang Jing’s. It is then followed by my zone, then Mayor Kong Dao’s, and lastly Mayor Jin’s… As for Mayor Wen Huai’s region, there is no one cultivating the Art of Longevity at all, which seems weird…” With that, Lin Tianhao looked as if he was bewildered. It appeared that he felt that the findings were bizarre and unimaginable.

Hearing that, Wang Baole also felt somewhat confused. After looking at the data listed in the jade slip, he realized that just like Lin Tianhao had reported, there ranged from tens to hundreds of thousands of Art of Longevity cultivators in the various zones, but none at all in Wen Huai’s zone.

It might be a little too much of an exaggeration to say that there were none of them at all, but since there were no records, it meant that in reality, the number of people who cultivated the Art of Longevity was extremely low. If not, even if the data was faked, it wouldn’t be possible to be fabricated to this extent.

“What’s going on? Wen Huai is capable.” Wang Baole was curious. He thought that he had perhaps belittled Wen Huai, and he swept his gaze at Lin Tianhao.

Lin Tianhao had a weird expression on his face. He hesitated for a moment and began to speak softly.

“I have tried to find out the details of the matter, but… Vice Mayor Liu Daobin would like to invite you to take a look at the situation by yourself…” Lin Tianhao knew the reason behind the matter. After all, he was in charge of handling the intelligence, and if it were in a different scenario, he would definitely not have passed on Liu Daobin’s message.

However, right now, he felt that it would be better for him if he were to be more cautious around people like Liu Daobin. There was no point in offending or tricking him on a whim, as he felt that he saw a brand new face of Liu Daobin through this incident.

“Oh?” Wang Baole laughed. He recalled that Liu Daobin was now Wen Huai’s assistant. Liu Daobin didn’t send a voice transmission directly to him and instead leveraged on the outcome of this incident to invite him for an on-sight investigation through the proper procedures. Wang Baole was not at all opposed to that, as he had also wanted to see for himself what exactly was going on in Wen Huai’s zone.

Therefore, arrangements were made. Since it was an official visit, many people were sent. A notice was also given to Wen Huai beforehand, informing him to make preparations to receive Wang Baole.

An hour later, accompanied by Lin Tianhao, Wang Baole and company arrived at Wen Huai’s autonomous zone with much fanfare. When they reached, Wang Baole and Liu Daobin were already waiting to receive them. Having seen Wang Baole from afar, and even before Wen Huai said anything, Liu Daobin had already run forward, greeting Wang Baole a distance away. He was extremely agitated and spoke loudly.

“Daobin hereby greets the City Lord! City Lord, please allow Daobin here to speak my mind. It is such a surprise to see you, and I have so much to say that I would like to seek your approval to express my thoughts!” Liu Daobin’s voice could be heard in all directions. Wen Huai, who was scolding Liu Daobin for moving so quickly under his breath. He had originally wanted to greet Wang Baole as well, but after hearing what Liu Daobin said, he was slightly taken aback. He began thinking about whether Liu Daobin had any dirt on him and had wanted to take the chance to report against him.

Wang Baole, who was initially approaching from afar with a smile on his face, suddenly had a flash across his eyes the moment he heard Liu Daobin’s words. Even Lin Tianhao and company, who were following behind him, were somewhat shocked.

“Daobin, speak your mind, whatever it is!” With huge strides, Wang Baole approached Liu Daobin, helping him up as he spoke amiably.

Liu Daobin was so agitated that he was trembling a little. Looking at Wang Baole, his voice reverberated, filled with excitement.

“City Lord, Daobin would like to seek forgiveness from you. When I saw you approaching from afar, I was indeed taken aback and was a little delayed in greeting you. I haven’t seen you for so long and felt a little adrift when I suddenly noticed you. It was as if I had seen a god, one that was so handsome that it surpassed every single person in the entire Federation. The thought that such an extraordinarily handsome individual was my City Lord made me so excited that I wasn’t able to maintain my image, and for that, I would wholeheartedly accept any punishment you give me!”

Hearing Liu Daobin’s words, Wen Huai’s eyes widened as he gasped. It was as if he had just seen a different side of Liu Daobin. He wasn’t the only one who felt this way. Regardless of whether it was Wen Huai’s subordinates or Lin Tianhao and company, everyone who heard what Liu Daobin had just said was surprised. They all looked at Liu Daobin with bewilderment, and many were cursing him for being shameless under their breaths.

Even Wang Baole was shocked. He was thick-skinned, but even he felt embarrassed hearing what Liu Daobin had just said. Despite that, satisfaction and pleasure arose in his heart naturally upon hearing Liu Daobin’s words. He was extremely satisfied, but on the surface, he remained stoic and even chided Liu Daobin.

Liu Daobin hurriedly accepted Wang Baole’s scoldings, and a look of relief appeared on his face. He felt that Wang Baole’s criticism towards him was an honor, and he didn’t forget to curry Wang Baole’s favor after Wang Baole was done chiding him.

“You’re right, City Lord. City Lord, you carry great responsibilities on your shoulders, and your legacy impacts everyone from past to present. Your future is also vast and full of hope! Daobin here is direct in my words, and I couldn’t hold back the words in my mind, and that was why I revealed everything that I was thinking in my heart.”

Upon hearing that, Lin Tianhao gasped. He felt that the threat that Liu Daobin posed towards him had grown even stronger. As for Wen Huai, he threw several more glances at Liu Daobin. As he cursed Liu Daobin under his breath, he also felt jealous. He thought about how he was Liu Daobin’s direct superior but was immediately disregarded by him the moment he saw Wang Baole. He had also never heard Liu Daobin say something pleasing to him before…

Coupled with that sentiment, Wen Huai also felt even more helpless as he thought about the situation in his autonomous zone. He felt so embarrassed that he didn’t want to be responsible for bringing Wang Baole on a tour of the zone. Liu Daobin, on the other hand, also seemed to have no intention of inviting Wen Huai along. Liu Daobin took the initiative to accompany Wang Baole, taking on the responsibility of introducing the autonomous zone to him.

In this way, the group of people gradually entered the autonomous zone after Liu Daobin’s exaggerated act of currying Wang Baole’s favor. They had only just entered the zone when gasps of shock emerged from the mouths of the visitors, and they widened their eyes.

What made them so surprised was that in the autonomous zone, there were two giant sculptures erected on either side of the main pathway. The sculptures were both of Wang Baole!

Wang Baole was taken aback once again. He looked at Liu Daobin, who was full of respect for him, and then back at the surrounding buildings. He looked confused but didn’t say anything. Instead, he continued walking down the path, and that was when his mind, as well as that of his followers, began to buzz noisily with activity.

In that autonomous zone, there was an uncountable number of sculptures of Wang Baole, and they were all of varying sizes… There was one every few hundred meters, each of them in a different pose, all of them trying to showcase how heroic Wang Baole was!