Monster Cub Live Stream – CH57

Chapter 57

Feng Wu looked a little helpless, but he still cooperatively nodded. “Mm. Exciting. And pretty novel too.”

That only made Lin An’an grin even wider as he lightly caught hold of his hand.

The layout of the office building had not changed at all from years ago. Feng Wu led Lin An’an through it with practiced familiarity, all the way to the elevator doors—then suddenly stopped.

“What’s wrong?” Lin An’an tilted his head. The moment he saw the familiar look on Feng Wu’s face, he instantly understood why.

Even entering the elevator required identity clearance. Feng Wu rubbed at his brow, sent Modexin a message, and told him to come down and get them.

Modexin’s office was on the top floor, the same floor where Feng Wu’s old office used to be.

After coming downstairs, Modexin pretended to pick something up on the lower level before stepping back into the elevator, even deliberately waiting an extra two seconds.

Once inside Modexin’s office, Feng Wu and Lin An’an deactivated the invisibility function on their wristbands.

Modexin asked, “Boss, what is it?”

Feng Wu nodded and told him about the speculations he and Lin An’an had made regarding the Zerg.

Modexin’s brows immediately drew together. “The Zerg issue has been under the Second Legion’s control for the past few years. Every time it came up at meetings, the only report the Second Legion ever gave was that the Zerg had shown no unusual movement for the time being.”

Interfering too much in another legion’s affairs could easily intensify the conflict between the two legions. On top of that, the First Legion currently had only Modexin stationed here, and one man’s energy was limited. There was no way he could keep an eye on everything, so he had never dug too deeply into the Zerg matter.

“I’ll split off some people to investigate it in secret.” Modexin rubbed at his brow. “Boss, when will you be back?”

Feng Wu looked at Lin An’an. After thinking for a moment, Lin An’an said, “Not too long.”

Xia Yuanhan was not a patient person. With his plans being disrupted again and again, he would definitely reveal an opening sooner or later.

And as long as they managed to grab hold of Xia Yuanhan’s weakness, Lin An’an would no longer need to keep hiding in the shadows, nor would Feng Wu and the others need to continue lying low on Sin Star.

Modexin nodded. “All right.”

He looked like he wanted to say something more, but just then the optical computer on his desk projected an alert: “Beep—Second Legion, Yu Jin, requests a call. Accept?”

Modexin frowned. “Yu Jin? What’s he calling me for?”

Instinctively, he looked toward Feng Wu. Feng Wu nodded at him. “Play it by ear.”

With that, he lightly caught Lin An’an’s hand, and the two of them stepped back into an inconspicuous corner of the room, reactivating their invisibility wristbands.

After adjusting the camera angle to make sure that corner would not be caught on screen, Modexin finally accepted the call.

Yu Jin’s figure appeared on the light screen.

Lin An’an had heard Feng Wu and the others mention Yu Jin’s name many times. He had also heard the name “Yu Jin” from his own second brother before.

He knew that Yu Jin had originally been the Second Legion’s deputy commander, and only recently rose to commander after the former commander of the Second Legion died unexpectedly.

As for whether the previous commander had stood on Xia Yuanhan’s side, Lin An’an did not know. But Yu Jin’s stance was perfectly clear.

Yu Jin looked like a very smooth, worldly man. He wore a smile at all times, yet that smile made people uncomfortable—it seemed packed with calculation and self-interest, without a trace of sincerity.

“Commander Yu.” Modexin gave a slight nod. “Calling me so suddenly at this hour—is there something you need?”

Yu Jin chuckled. “Can’t I call Deputy Commander Mo if there’s no urgent matter? Can’t it just be considered a little relationship-building between the two legions?” He seemed to stress the word deputy a little, whether on purpose or not. “Is that not allowed?”

“If it’s just relationship-building, military meetings are more than enough,” Modexin said with a slight frown. “Commander Yu has only just taken over his post, and I imagine your affairs are quite busy. If there’s nothing urgent, I suggest you put your energy toward matters that are actually meaningful.”

Yu Jin laughed softly. “Then tell me, Deputy Commander Mo, what exactly counts as something meaningful?”

“Standing your post, guarding the Empire’s borders, acting as proxy commander of the First Legion for Marshal Feng Wu…” Yu Jin kept that smile on his face, but a sharpness had crept into his eyes. “Then tell me—does trying to become the official commander of the First Legion count as a proper matter in your eyes?”

Modexin’s face darkened. “Commander Yu, what exactly are you implying?”

Yu Jin said, “What I’m implying—does Deputy Commander Mo truly not know?”

Modexin let out a cold laugh. “My apologies, Commander Yu, but I still have matters to attend to. I’m afraid I can’t continue indulging you.”

He was about to hang up, but through the light screen he saw Feng Wu, still hidden in the corner, suddenly show him a hand signal.

At just that moment, Yu Jin spoke again. “Deputy Commander Mo, there’s no one by my side, and there’s no outsider by yours right now either. So let’s drop the roundabout nonsense and speak plainly.”

“If I remember correctly, you’ve been serving the First Legion for more than ten years now, haven’t you?” Yu Jin’s gaze turned thoughtful, as if he were sincerely considering things for Modexin’s sake. “Marshal Feng Wu has been on Sin Star for years. He’s clearly there in person, yet still refuses to hand over authority. You do a commander’s work, shoulder a commander’s responsibilities for him, and yet your title remains only that of a deputy.”

“Modexin, regarding the commander’s seat of the First Legion—have you truly never once been tempted?”

Modexin’s expression shifted slightly, and he raised his voice sharply. “Commander Yu, do you know what you’re saying?”

Yu Jin watched his expression closely for a moment, then smiled.

That reaction from Modexin only made him more certain.

If Modexin had truly never wavered, he would not have reacted so strongly to just a few words. This kind of anger almost looked like bluster hiding guilt.

“There’s no need to get so worked up, Deputy Commander Mo,” Yu Jin said with a smile. “You can think over what I’ve said today at your leisure. In a few days, at Eldest Prince’s birthday banquet, I’ll speak with you again. You can give me your answer then.”

“But I still hope you’ll think it over carefully. In my opinion, your strength and seniority are no worse than Marshal Feng Wu’s. Are you really content to remain beneath him forever?”

A flicker of hesitation flashed across Modexin’s face. Though he hurriedly masked it, Yu Jin still caught it.

The smile on Yu Jin’s face widened. “You should know—Alpha Syndrome already has a cure now. Marshal Feng Wu could return to the First Legion at any time. If you don’t take advantage of the fact that his attention is still elsewhere and gather the First Legion fully into your own hands, then once he returns to the Empire, what will you have left to compete with him?”

“Opportunity does not wait for anyone, Deputy Commander Mo. I’ll be waiting for your response.”

Beep.

The call ended.

Modexin lifted a hand and rubbed his face. The struggle and wavering expression on it vanished instantly. “Damn it, I really wanted to punch him in the face.”

Lin An’an, standing off to the side, was dumbfounded.

He suddenly thought of Xiong Yingjun and Si Youlin. One had played the role of the overbearing “Bear family elder” like it was second nature, the other had disguised himself as the black-robed mysterious man without a single flaw, and now Modexin could be added to the list.

“Wolf Bro,” Lin An’an said in a dazed tone, “when you guys were training, did you also have classes like An Actor’s Self-Cultivation or something?”

The corner of Feng Wu’s lips lifted. “No. But learning how to disguise yourself as someone else is a compulsory course for military academy students.”

Lin An’an suddenly understood. No wonder every single one of them had such good acting skills.

Modexin asked, “Boss, what do we do next?”

Feng Wu thought for a moment. “Since he’s taken the initiative to extend an olive branch to you, accept it. Let’s see what he really wants.”

They had been worrying over not having an opening to get close to Xia Yuanhan, and now Yu Jin had practically delivered them one on a silver platter. It was like someone handing over a pillow the moment sleepiness hit.

Modexin frowned. “And if he really asks me to betray you?”

Feng Wu said, “Then betray me.”

“…All right then.” Modexin pressed at his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Of course he understood Feng Wu’s meaning—play along and string Yu Jin along, and if possible, use him to dig Xia Yuanhan out as well. Even so, Modexin still felt exhausted just thinking about it.

“Being commander really isn’t a job for human beings. It’s too damn tiring.” Modexin let out a long sigh. “If you don’t come back soon, I’m seriously tempted to throw the whole burden down and walk off.”

Feng Wu knew he was only complaining and would never actually abandon the post, so he simply said, “You’ve worked hard. Once the X Galaxy matter is over, I’ll give you a long vacation.”

Modexin’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Feng Wu raised a brow. “Since when have I ever failed to keep a promise?”

Modexin laughed. “That’s true.”

After they returned to the residential area, Feng Wu brought Lin An’an up to the top floor.

“This is an independent training level,” Feng Wu said. “There’s less than a week until the birthday banquet. Over the next few days, I’ll teach you some basic self-defense.”

But Lin An’an said, “Self-defense techniques can wait a bit. What I need to improve right now is strength.”

In the world he had once lived in, he had learned quite a few self-defense and combat techniques. His physical strength had not been weaker than that of an ordinary soldier.

But after returning to this world, his physical strength had clearly fallen short. Having skill without strength was his most fatal weakness.

Feng Wu frowned lightly. “Strength can’t be built in a day or two.”

“I know.” Lin An’an nodded. “With my current techniques and strength, I can get away easily enough if it’s an ordinary person. But against someone stronger, I’d be in trouble—let alone the people around Xia Yuanhan.”

This would be a long-term process. At most, some medicine could be used to enhance the training effects, but there were no shortcuts.

Feng Wu gave a quiet hum. Then, suddenly, he took Lin An’an’s hand and slipped a ring onto his index finger.

The ring’s design was simple, but unexpectedly beautiful.

Lin An’an raised his hand and stared at it for a moment. When he caught the faint flicker of ability-force across it, realization dawned on him. “A defensive tool?”

“Yes.” Feng Wu nodded. “It can block three fatal attacks and will activate automatically if it detects danger.”

As he spoke, he brushed a finger lightly across the ring, touching some hidden mechanism. In the blink of an eye, the ring vanished from sight.

It had to be Brother Mo’s ability, Lin An’an thought.

The ring was still on his finger, the cool touch distinct. He rubbed it gently, and a strange anticipation suddenly rose in his chest.

If the next ring Wolf Bro gave him could go on his ring finger instead, that would be nice.

Too busy staring at his own hand, Lin An’an didn’t notice that Feng Wu had been watching his expression the whole time, a thoughtful look passing through his eyes.

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