Chapter 210.2 – King’s Road
Saint Mongol City…
How the great cities was distributed in the Federation required immense planning, and there were reasons for them to be placed at their current location. Ordinary folks would simply call these great cities by their common names such as "Stuart City", or " Seer Holy City". These cities had been christened so as they were where cities where the greatest families of the federation were situated in. For hosting the strongest families in the Federation, these cities should no doubt be powerful as well! However, that particular line of reasoning was totally wrong.
Of the ten greatest cities in the Federation, not a single one of them was named after a family. Saint Mongol City was one prime example, having hosted over ten aristocratic families. Although on an individual scale, none of these families are comparable to a titan such as the Stuart family, they were no less inferior if they pool their strengths and resources together. The interactions between such power houses with its own system of checks and balances along with the development of relationships of dependency between the aristocratic families formed the foundations for the ten great cities of the Federation like the Saint Mongol City.
The Assassin Family was one of the top aristocratic families in Saint Mongol City. When compared to the other families, they might only be ranked as average. However, due to their enormous fame and reputation that did not seem to fade, they owned residences and land that span over ten acres in the centre most regions of the city. This was a testament to the power they held in Saint Mongol City.
Atop the highest floor of one of their more established residences, a youth was standing outside a pristine office. He had wait for over ten hours outside before finally receiving permission to enter the office.
"Young master Ma Dong, please come in!"said the old steward in a formal tone, with a smile etched upon his face. He held himself with an air of subservience, revealing no emotions in his demeanor or his face.
Ma Dong adjusted his clothes before stepping in, those ten hours spent waiting posing no impact on his spirit and mental state. Before coming over, he had already prep himself both mentally and emotionally. In fact, he had not expected that his request to meet the family leader would be approved.
Reading the subtle changes in expressions and reading body language was one of the most basic skills that every merchant should possess. There were many things that can be gleamed without saying a word and mastering this skill was quintessential in identifying the truth simply from observing any minute changes in behaviour and body language.
Ma Dong seemed to be bornt for this role, and had a natural talent in this skill, as though bestowed by the heavens themselves. Before, he may have been unable to showcase his abilities due to him being in low spirits or confused; but now, he was devoid of any fear or dread!
The doors of the large hall were pushed open, revealing an expansive conference table with numerous cups of tea on it. All of the teas had already turned cold, and yet none of them had been cleared away. This signified that a meeting had just taken place, the contents of which undoubtedly having no relations whatsoever to the youth. The matters of Tianjing were simply too small an issue to be discussed by the family.
Ma Dong was greeted with a few familiar faces, while he only met the others perhaps once or twice before. All of them were surrounding a short lean man with a head full of snow white hair sitting in the centre of the conference room. He stared over with narrowed eyes, his mind evidently on other matters on hand. His eyes that typically shone with wisdom were now dim with worry. This was the family leader of the Assassin Family, the king of assassination that struck fear into the hearts of people whenever his name was mentioned: Motu Assassin.(still thinking of how name him)
The elders of the Assassin Family were all seated around the conference table. If it was Ma Dong of the past, he might not be able to catch his breath under the enormous pressure that bore down on him. However, the current him was able to walk forward without a hint of hesitation in his steps.
"You have five minutes to explain your presence." commanded Motu Assassin in an indifferent tone. As he spoke, the other elders continued to Ma Dong down with stares, increasing the pressure upon it such that it now felt like mountain pressing down on him.
A minute ago, Ma Dong might still have had some reservations about his actions. However, at this very point in time, Ma Dong came to a realization that he had just been given a sliver of chance. If he had no chance at all, he would have gone unnoticed before the eyes of the leader!
The corner of Ma Dong's mouth lifted up in a ghost of a smile before he proceeded to greet his audience with respect. "Esteemed family leader and elders, I have come before your presence for one reason and one reason only. I would like to have a chance to prove to all of you that I can bring an even greater contribution for the family."
Everyone here knew about the matters of the branch in Tianjing. This was just a distribution of the rights done by their internal affairs. No one dared to defy it and yet, this brat before them had actually said such a thing…
"What grounds are you basing this on?" an elder suddenly spoke out.
Staring calmly at the family leader sitting at the centre position, Ma Dong replied, "I possess the noble bloodline of Assassin."
Ma Dong's voice was brimming with so much confidence and bravery that even he himself could not believe it. He had truly said it out! Yes, if Wang Zhong was able to do it, so could he!
Each of the elders' expression were distinct from the rest. To them, this issue was something not worth discussing about. Almost as one, everyone in the room looked towards Motu Assassin, as though trying to tell him that there basically was no need to waste time on a wimpy brat.
Shooting a glance at Ma Dong in an indifferent manner, Motu Assassin replied, "Saint Mongol City will have a large scale auction event in a month's time. You and Teslan will each hand in a plan about the event. We will then determine which has a better plan If you win, Tianjing will be yours. If you lose, you will lose everything."
This came as a surprise to Ma Dong. In fact, it went better than expected. They did not set one that would be impossible for him to do! That was something worth celebrating about. Just like what Wang Zhong had said, how could one know whether it would succeed if one had not given it a shot!
Looking at the back of the retreating Ma Dong, a sliver of brilliance flashed within the eyes of the elder that had just spoken out.
"Little Fifth."
"Yes?"
Motu continued speaking with his indifferent tone, " You can help your nephew. However, do not create trouble for this side. Do you understand?"
Ma Dong's fifth uncle nodded his head in acknowledgement. Only when he had left did the old steward standing at the side walked over with a teapot in his hand. Pouring a fresh cup of tea for the old man, he spoke with a smile on his face, "Master decided to give him a chance in the end."
"This opportunity is not mine to give. It is something that he had fought hard for," replied Motu with a complicated expression in his eyes.
☀
A few days had past since All Mouthy King's fight with Divian. Even so, the torrent of discussions revolving around the fight did not show the slightest signs of slowing down. On the contrary, many new discussions had came up in various forms, continuing to spread the enthusiasm even after the fight had ended a couple of days ago.
The Brother King Clan had continued to expand at a terrifying rate. In many discussions, the most prevalent question on everyone's mind had shifted from "Who was stronger, All Mouthy King or Divian?" to "What's the true identity of All Mouthy King". This was the question that everyone was dying to figure out. His victory over Divian had sealed the thought that All Mouthy King was a hidden ace from one of the aristocratic families that was attempting to rush through the CHF.
However, this theory was full of flaws. If Brother King was the trump card of some aristocratic family that was preparing for the CHF, there was no reason to reveal such an important killing tool like the Laforag Infinite Slash Cross Wheels. Additionally, the idea of using this method to enter the evaluation of the Hall Division was quite far fetched and simply implausible if he was from an aristocratic family. It is true that the only way for ordinary people to enter the Hall Division evaluation was through the OP system. However, for those big aristocratic elites who access to the higher ups of the Federation, there were many ways for one to enter the Hall Division. Therefore, there was no need to purposefully use a place like the OP which was catered for the masses to become famous.
This issue continued to be the point of contention for many debates until the appearance of a particular video.
It was a video created by Chen Yu'er who held the title of "The King's Path". As an official of the OP, she had gone through every single competition that All Mouthy King had underwent ever since he had first stepped into the OP. Based on what she had gathered, she then proceeded to compile together parts that she deemed to be meaningful.
The starting picture of the video was extremely mournful and miserable. Being killed, being killed, and still being killed!
On the black and white screen, Brother King had used his fragile body to perform his own form of a 365 degree skill with no blind shot, where fanciful technique would lead to one seeking death. The deaths that Brother King had gone through were already glorified to an art. Every single action he undertook were being displayed as artworks that were crafted masterfully. When it came to the point when he was about to be killed, little Yu'er set the mournful and heart rending song, "Only, you", as the background soundtrack. The image paired with the song struck all who saw the video in the heart, causing rivers of tears to stream down their faces.
This continued till the song ended and the video transitioned to a more upbeat set of videos.
From Brother King finding back his self-confidence from the body of "The future gun king" to him initiating numerous kinds of counter attacks. The background music was switched to a
light and cheery tune that grew increasingly spirited. This continued till it depicted the defeat of Divian, when the strength and explosiveness of the music created an immense contrast as opposed to the misery before, warming the hearts of everyone watching.
The instant the video appeared, it immediately shot up to the second place. It only lost in ranking to the specialized analysis done by Laura. However, the numbers of views that the video had kept climbing higher and higher.