Chapter 429: The Third World Constraint!
Translated: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
As Wang Liang recounted his journey, even Wang Chong found himself shaken to the core. Before the boundless ocean, the strength of a warrior seemed insignificant.
Wang Liang's narrative let Wang Chong know that he had probably underestimated the dangers of an ocean voyage. Back then, even at his lowest, Wang Chong had never journeyed on the ocean.
The largest ships, the strongest guards of the clan, and the backing of Wang Clan… Wang Chong had thought that these things would be enough for him to rest easy, but in retrospect, he realized that he had been too simpleminded.
Unlike the land, the ocean was changing every moment.
If one fell into the ocean, even the most powerful warrior would end up dead. And one was not confronting only the might of nature. One also needed to deal with the complexities of morale and human nature.
Lack of food, awful conditions, no sight of land for more than half a year, and no guarantee that one would even be able to return to dry land—it was these circumstances which were most liable to provoke the ugly side of the human heart.
In the most dangerous periods, Wang Liang had needed to simultaneously deal with three factions or more, and each faction wanted to kill him and take his place.
Even the cook on his ship had carried such ambitions.
Everyone was complaining and blaming him. Everyone believed that he was wrong and wanted to replace him and take over the rest of the fleet.
"…There's something else that I need to tell you. The matter of the 'Meteoric Metal' has already been exposed!" Wang Liang suddenly said.
"What!"
Wang Chong's pupils constricted and his chopsticks stopped in midair. The Meteoric Metal was extremely important and could not be revealed to outsiders easily.
Otherwise, those factions seeking out the meteorites would cross the ocean like a school of carp moving down a river.
The Meteoric Metal was an existence comparable to the Hyderabad ore. Moreover, there weren't just one or two of these pieces of Meteoric Metal, but a vast quantity sitting outside on those islands across the sea.
This sort of secret would be enough to tempt any of the great clans and trigger mad carnage on the ocean.
The secret of the Hyderabad ore was already exposed, and it had been the Yao Clan and King Qi that had found out. If even the Meteoric Metal were to be exposed not long after its discovery, it would be a massive blow to his cause!
"…But there's no need for you to worry. I already helped you take care of it. Other than me, no one else in the fleet knows," Wang Liang said lightly, sipping his wine.
"Took care of it?"
Wang Chong was struck dumb.
"Haha, it is a very long journey from those islands to the mainland!" Wang Liang casually said.
Wang Chong felt like he could smell the thick scent of blood in Wang Liang's voice. He raised his head and began to carefully to size up this former idler of his clan. Only then did he realize that Wang Liang didn't just have weather-beaten skin, but also a resolve and determination in his eyes that Wang Chong had never seen before.
No! He had seen it…
It was when the Wang Clan had fallen and everyone had been rendered homeless. At their moment of greatest despair and dejection, that always-weak cousin stepped forward and used that frail body of his to protect the entire clan!
In those desperate straits, his cousin's face had exactly this sort of expression.
…No! Even the cousin from back then did not compare to the one sitting in front of him now.
Wang Chong truly found it difficult to imagine what sort of trials could hone his cousin to this state in only half a year.
And he had no idea how many stories were hidden beneath that indifferent face.
Unimaginable…!
Wang Chong sighed in his heart.
His cousin had grown up!
He had always wanted to help the people of his clan, help them mature and help them succeed. But he hadn't imagined that the first person to mature would be his older cousin, Wang Liang.
The current Wang Liang was as steady as a rock, composed, persistent, decisive. He gave off an aura of trustworthiness and reliability.
Although he was still not powerful in terms of martial arts, Wang Chong was well aware that his cousin's expertise had never been in that field.
The current Wang Liang had reached the state that Wang Chong had envisioned and was truly able to hold his own.
…Perhaps, in the future, I can let him handle all of the clan's business!
This thought flashing through Wang Chong's mind left him incredibly relieved.
Although his cousin looked incredibly rough and not all like that young scion from before, this had been the price paid for maturity!
Compared to the price that might have to be paid in the future, it was very small.
"I've truly troubled you this time. This restaurant belongs to our clan, and there's a bathroom here. I've already prepared a change of clothes for you after you've finished washing. Once you've finished eating, take a bath and rest up. Then once your mind has recovered, you should visit Aunt and Uncle. They've probably been waiting for you for a long time," Wang Chong suggested.
"Mm."
Wang Liang nodded.
"I've been gone for so long, so I really should take a rest. And besides, it will be very difficult to get there without the monsoon winds. As for you, your goal this time will be even bigger, so you'll definitely attract the notice of some ambitious people. And once I clean up those evil-minded people in the fleet, those clans backing them definitely won't back down without any results.
"There are probably going to be endless probes from the various factions. Once the secret of the Meteoric Metal is exposed, people will rush toward those islands like a swarm of locusts. I think that this will be your primary concern."
Wang Chong silently agreed. This was something that couldn't be avoided.
The Wang Clan had paid such an enormous price, spending a million taels of gold, recruited so many people, and organized such a large fleet that was at sea for so long… It would be strange if this didn't attract any attention.
"There's no need to worry. I've already made plans," Wang Chong indifferently said.
Whether it was the Wang Clan, his big uncle, or the Zhang Clan, they were all too obvious. So Wang Chong had never planned to put the Meteoric Metal in any of those places.
Wang Chong had already decided that when the night came, he would begin transporting those meteorites to Deflecting Blade Manor.
With a top-notch expert like Li Siye standing guard, these meteorites would be safe for now.
The fleet had just returned, and the stir that it had created was too great. He would need to wait a while for the waves to settle and for prying eyes to look elsewhere. The matter of the Meteoric Metal would naturally fade from notice with it.
When that time came, it wouldn't be too late to restart his plans.
"Since you've already made plans, I can relax. As for the members of my fleet, there's no need for you to worry. It's not like every one of them could remember the course of the voyage. Without my navigation map, even if they did have ambitions, they wouldn't be able to find that place. Moreover, the majority of them only know that we found a sort of massive stone on those islands, but they have no idea what those stones are for. Even if there are some people who went behind my back and investigated those stones, discovering that there was metal inside, they would never know that this was Meteoric Metal.
"In addition, in this period of time, I'll keep them in check!"
Wang Liang had a dignified air as he spoke.
Wang Chong nodded and stood up, saying no more.
His cousin's methods were already rather meticulous, so there was no need for any more input on his part. In the future, he would finally have another person in the Wang Clan that he could talk business with.
"Cousin!"
Right when Wang Chong was ready to leave, a voice came from behind him. Wang Liang had put down his wine cup and chopsticks, and his eyes were fixed on Wang Chong, a strange look shining in them.
"That Meteoric Metal… what do you plan to do with it? …And don't tell me that you plan to start a business!"
Wang Chong was frozen for a moment, and then he finally turned around. He looked at his cousin as if he was meeting him for the first time.
He had done many things since his reincarnation, but everyone would just be surprised at his performance or praise his competence.
His older cousin Wang Liang was the first to ask him what he wanted to do.
This voyage had unquestionably matured him, allowed him to perceive many things.
"Haha, you'll find out in the future!"
Wang Chong chuckled and turned back around. Walking down the stairs and out the door, he swiftly vanished in the vast world of snow.
Wang Liang watched in a daze, but a faint smile eventually crept onto his lips.
At times, the lack of denial was admission, and the lack of an answer was an answer.
Wang Liang had already managed to confirm some of his speculations from Wang Chong's words. His feeling had been on the mark. This younger cousin of his really was up to something.
The Hyderabad ore, the Meteoric Metal…
Though he had matured and gained a greater understanding of the human mind and nature, he was still utterly perplexed by this cousin of his.
There were far too many puzzling things about him.
But no matter what he did, desired, or schemed, there was one thing that Wang Liang could be sure of: Wang Chong had always been protecting his clan.
He meant no evil for the clan.
This was enough!
Thus, no matter what he did, even if he planned to usurp the throne, Wang Liang would not try to stop him!
"…The snow is really coming down!"
As he listened to the howling of the wind outside, Wang Liang took a pot of warmed wine to the window. Opening the window and looking out at the storm, he watched as a slender figure walked alone through the wind and snow, quickly vanishing.
……
Time passed in a flash.
Rumble!
A slender figure was seated atop a snow-capped mountain. Thunder rolled and the world seemed to twist. The chaotic and monstrously terrifying energy of the world flooded unstoppably down onto the mountaintop.
Crrsssh!
The piled snow, jolted by this energy, began to rustle down. And at this moment, Wang Chong heard a voice at his ear that he had not heard for a long time.
【Congratulations, user, for passing the third World Constraint. You have consumed 40 points of Destiny Energy. You have 24 points of Destiny Energy remaining.】
【Next World Constraint: 9 months. Required Destiny Energy: 60 points. In addition, with each successful passage, user's Gold Organs and Flood Dragon Bone will be strengthened. Strength will increase in direct proportion with number of successes!】