Chapter 154: The Moment He Landed, His Sword Was Unsheathed and Pointed Straight at the Lu Family
The first step Li Mu had to take was to distinguish the good families from the bad.
For example, when it came to this Lu Family, Li Mu’s first impression of them was definitely not good.
So he asked, “Deputy Commander-in-Chief An, how does the price of the Spiritual Energy Concentrate the Abyss-Suppressing Army purchases from the Lu Family compare to the market price?”
An Xing smiled helplessly.
“In the name of exclusively supplying the Abyss-Suppressing Army, they raised the quality of the Spiritual Energy Concentrate they sell to us somewhat.”
“But the price is nearly thirty percent higher than the market price!”
“And according to our actual testing, that slight improvement in quality is simply not worth the extra money.”
“However, the Abyss-Suppressing Army is now in a difficult position.”
“If we refuse to purchase from them, it will greatly impact the cultivation improvement of the soldiers in the Military District.”
“If we turn around and purchase from the market instead, then route it back to the Abyss-Suppressing Army in a roundabout way...”
“Once the Lu Family discovers it, not only will we have violated the contract, but we will also lose face completely and suffer ridicule that cannot be washed away!”
Li Mu smiled.
“So in other words, the Military District was schemed against by the Lu Family?”
An Xing’s old face actually reddened slightly.
He smiled, sighed, and shook his head. That was as good as admitting it.
Li Mu laughed inwardly.
He wondered just how high the quality of the Lu Family’s high-quality Spiritual Energy Concentrate was.
Could it be higher than his Qi-Gathering Pills?
During the month at Tiger Roar Camp, Li Mu had used Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills as rewards.
In any case, when the Tiger Roar Army soldiers used them, the results were excellent. Their feedback was much better than that of ordinary high-quality Spiritual Energy Concentrate.
Over the course of a month, Li Mu had harvested one batch of low-grade herbs roughly every four days on average.
For the Qi-Gathering Pills alone, each batch produced around four to five hundred pills, about the same as the Low-Grade Body-Solidifying Pills.
On average, he naturally harvested one batch of high-grade medicinal herbs every ten days.
The sweet rain had almost all gone toward the medicinal herbs for the Jade-Pure Bone-Cleansing Pills and Ghost-Axe Destiny Pills.
After deducting the 1,700 Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills and 900 Low-Grade Body-Solidifying Pills consumed by the Tiger Roar Army, the remaining 700-plus Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills and 1,800-plus Low-Grade Body-Solidifying Pills were all with Song Chuhe.
The Tiger Roar Army still needed to continue using them.
As for Li Mu’s Storage Ring...Lying inside were 120 High-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills and High-Grade Body-Solidifying Pills, 98 Earthvein Spirit Blossom Pills, 170 Jade-Pure Bone-Cleansing Pills, and 9 S-Grade Ghost-Axe Destiny Pills.
His slaughter in the Divine Elephant Nation had allowed Li Mu to obtain a large number of Destiny Spirit Crystals.
It was just that their quality was too poor. There were thousands of Destiny Spirit Crystals below B-Grade.
There were more than three hundred A-Grade Destiny Spirit Crystals.
There were nine S-Grade ones.
Li Mu was too lazy to waste medicinal herbs to refine those three hundred-plus A-Grade ones.
As for these nine S-Grade ones, even after refining them, Li Mu did not know whom he should give them to.
However, he naturally could not take them out directly to help Wanren Military District right now.
The quality of his pills was too high, and the quantity was too small.
If he took out a single High-Grade Qi-Gathering Pill, he might frighten An Xing into a mishap. Besides, it would not solve the problem at its root.
Moreover, Li Mu’s contributions had to be meaningful.
He gave Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills to the Tiger Roar Army because the Tiger Roar Army was Li Mu’s own foundation.
They were soldiers who had resolutely followed Li Mu when he was leading troops at a dangerous border and had no one available, disregarding the danger of the frontier.
They were all his soldiers.
As for Wanren Military District, he still did not understand it yet. Once he had established himself and needed to open up the situation, the pills would certainly come in handy.
As for the Lu Family, they would probably be the first to receive his blade.
Seeing that Li Mu stopped asking questions, An Xing took the initiative to say, “If we investigate Tong Longyi, we will definitely find some clues linking him to the Lu Family.”
“However, this matter should not be dug into too deeply for the time being.”
“As for the specific extent, we need to judge according to the situation. We cannot provoke the Lu Family into desperation all at once. Otherwise, the consequences will be somewhat difficult to predict.”
Li Mu smiled and said, “Do not worry. As long as Wanren Military District is prepared to struggle against corrupt families, that is enough.”
“I will also grasp the proper limits and will not make things too difficult for you.”
“Besides, did you not say that the Lu Family has been developing extremely rapidly over the past two years?”
“Combined with the tricks they have used against the Abyss-Suppressing Army, they are currently at the height of their power. They cannot possibly be the type to swallow losses.”
“As long as Tong Longyi draws even a trace of blood from the Lu Family, the Lu Family will probably bare its fangs and counterattack me very quickly.”
“I will just wait and see what move they make.”
After Li Mu finished speaking, he cast his gaze toward the scenery outside the car window, his face relaxed and admiring.
An Xing looked at Li Mu’s side profile and could not help sighing inwardly.
The younger generation was truly formidable...At eighteen years old, Li Mu had come alone to another city.
The moment he landed, his brilliance burst forth. He cut down the local tyrant, and the edge of his sword pointed straight at a quasi-first-rate family.
The key point was that he had even said he had a sense of proportion!
Waiting for the Lu Family to make a move was clearly a sign that he already had a plan in mind and would respond to all changes by remaining unchanged.
It would not be excessive to say he was a seasoned politician with both strength and background.
It would also be correct to say he was a spirited young hero with justice in his heart!
Only An Xing’s old bones had to suffer.
Li Mu felt confident.
But An Xing had no confidence at all.
He had no idea what the outcome would be after accompanying Li Mu in this madness.
The military vehicle traveled along the highway straight toward the Fortress at the Abyss entrance.
The functions of Fortresses in cities everywhere were more or less the same. They were all transit stations for entering and leaving the Abyss, as well as gathering points for Martial Artists.
Li Mu followed An Xing onto a military elevator, which descended straight down.
After passing through several hundred meters of surface strata, the Abyss below suddenly opened up before them.
Li Mu actually smelled a hint of plants.
The enormous Military District below had been built on a plain with flourishing vegetation.
As far as the eye could see, the grass was lush and green. Although there was still no sunlight, the sunlight projected in through the Abyss entrance seemed to have been strengthened.
The light was at least twice as bright as the Abyss in Ironhand City.
At most, it felt like cloudy weather, with a bit of haze mixed in.
Moreover, among the transparent elevators traveling back and forth, there were very large numbers of Independent Martial Artists moving in groups of three or five.
Some were going to the Abyss to accept missions.
Some had just returned from the Abyss.
Compared to Ironhand City, this could be called spectacular.
Seeing that Li Mu’s eyes were filled with amazement, An Xing smiled and explained, “Abysses like those in Linyuan City and Bloodpool City are called Verdant Abysses.”
“Verdant Abysses have many fixed resources. Usually, just maintaining the Sweep Missions around these resource development zones is already a heavy burden.”
“Moreover, the frequency at which monsters appear every day in Verdant Abysses is very high.”
“They are unlike the ‘Ruined Abyss’ in Ironhand City, where monsters are so sparse.”
“That is why many Independent Martial Artists participate here.”
“This Vacuum Zone was supposedly a vast forest when humanity first descended.”
“It was only after we cleared and leveled it that we stationed troops here. All the plants blocking the surrounding line of sight were flattened.”
“That is how we have this boundless field of vision now.”
Li Mu nodded repeatedly, then suddenly asked, “By the way, Deputy Commander-in-Chief An, is the Verdant Research Institute inside our Military District?”
When An Xing heard this, he immediately laughed.
“Hahaha, you want to ask about Deputy Commanding Officer Wang’s daughter, that girl called Wang Yinhuan, right?”
An Xing pointed toward a tall building in the southern part of the Military District.
“There. That place is the Verdant Research Institute.”
“I heard that it was all thanks to her and you that the Mother Crystal of the Living Crystal was discovered.”
“Originally, the Research Institute of Bloodsea Military District had taken a liking to her and wanted to admit her as an exception.”
“But Deputy Commanding Officer Wang could not bear to let his daughter go too far away, so he did not let her go. That is why she came to the Verdant Research Institute instead?”
Li Mu smiled and nodded.
“That is right. But Yinhuan is indeed attending university in Linyuan City too.”
“It saves her from being transferred back and forth.”
An Xing asked in a seemingly casual manner, “Oh, so that is how it is. We have arranged a residence for you in the Military District.”
“What are your plans for today...?”
Li Mu said, “Oh, I promised her that I would go find her before dinner. She wants to take me to eat and tour Linyuan City’s sea view.”
“I might not return to the Abyss tonight.”
“I also need to find a place to live above ground. There is no need to arrange anything in the Military Residential District. I can find one myself.”
Li Mu had not thought too much about it. This had been his original plan.
He was still not used to living in the Abyss. After staying at Tiger Roar Camp for a month with no internet and no entertainment, he had been stifled quite enough.
Although there was internet in the Military District, it was still not as comfortable as above ground.
He truly did need to find a place above ground.
After An Xing heard this, however, he revealed an expression that said, “This old man understands everything,” and chuckled dryly.
It made Li Mu blush a little.
This old fellow was somewhat improper...
Li Mu suddenly thought of something and asked, “By the way, Deputy Commander-in-Chief An, given my current situation, what position would be most suitable for me to compete for in the Military District?”
An Xing was delighted. It seemed Li Mu was already planning to be temporarily transferred over.
That made sense. Since he had already drawn his blade against the Lu Family, he was definitely going to transfer over temporarily.
“Mm... With your qualifications, the highest position you can compete for is Deputy Commanding Officer.”
“As it happens, in about a month and a half, the current Deputy Commanding Officer may be transferred away.”
“You can familiarize yourself with the situation and give it a try.”
Li Mu shook his head with a slight resistance.
“A position like that ties me down too much, and it requires frequent participation in battle. It is not suitable for me.”
An Xing froze.
He did not even want to become Deputy Commanding Officer?
“Then there is nothing higher for the time being. Half a level below that, Wanren Military District’s Head Instructor position is currently open for competition.”
Slap!
Li Mu clapped his hands.
“That works!”
The first person he had come into contact with when he entered the Military District had been Qin Zhanye.
Qin Zhanye was an Instructor in the Military District. According to Qin Zhanye, the work was not heavy. The main responsibility was training and improving new recruits and veteran soldiers.
Together with the Cultivation Arts Faculty, it was one civil role and one martial role.
As for training, once one had figured out a training model, it would enter an automatic operating mode.
Qin Zhanye usually had to constantly find things to do in order to prevent others from seeing that he was almost going insane from idleness.
Li Mu remembered that he had even mocked him back then. No wonder Pearl Military District’s combat power was so poor.
It turned out the Instructor was no good.
If one was weak, one had to train more!
Most importantly, this position’s military post was not low, and its authority was extremely great.
The corners of An Xing’s mouth immediately twitched wildly.
After all that, it was not that Li Mu thought the Deputy Commanding Officer position was too low. He really was afraid of trouble.
But the Head Instructor position was not something one could get just by moving one’s lips!
Although this position was half a level lower than Deputy Commanding Officer, it was a genuine hard-strength position!
It was a job teaching people how to fight!
Its requirements for personal strength and prestige were even higher than those of the Deputy Commanding Officer.
Otherwise, who would submit to you?
“You need to think this through carefully. You have only just arrived. If you compete for this position and actually win it, it will still be very difficult for you to open up the situation.”
An Xing spoke earnestly and sincerely.
These words already belonged within the scope of personal friendship. An Xing only gave this reminder because of Wang Longcheng.
Li Mu did not say too much.
“It is fine. I will familiarize myself with things for a few days first, then casually compete for it and give it a try...”