31: Chapter 31 Disguised Trials

Commander Li's gaze darkened slightly as he raised his hand to answer the phone. The earpiece instantly transmitted a high-ranking official's slightly angry voice, carrying a hint of helplessness and accountability: "Li Chen, your subordinate warrior Wang Guo willfully engaged in a private fight in Cangnan City today, damaging urban infrastructure and provoking local aristocratic families. The Cangnan municipal team has collectively submitted a joint petition to lodge a complaint, and the public opinion has already reached the headquarters!"

"A crowd of municipal officials accused Wang Guo of relying on his military status to run amok, oppressing the locals, and ignoring federal laws. They demanded that the headquarters strictly hold him accountable and provide an explanation!"

The accountability from the other end of the phone was clear and direct, and the pressure hit him head-on. Clearly, the city had already unified its narrative, turning right and wrong upside down to portray Wang Guo as an overbearing and tyrannical warrior who bullied others by leveraging power.

Hearing this, Wang Guo immediately opened his mouth to defend himself, but Commander Li raised his hand to signal him to stop.

Li Chen's expression remained calm and unhurried. He methodically explained everything to the other end of the phone one by one, revealing the entire sequence of events from beginning to end.

He detailed the entire process: how Ye Feng secretly instigated Lu Ren's divine kingdom to invade and intentionally crippled Lin Ye, and afterwards went so far as to hire black-market desperadoes to ambush and kill two enrolled students in a bustling alleyway, resulting in Wang Hu being heavily injured and on the verge of death.

He further emphasized that black-market assassins had colluded with otherworldly remnants for years. This targeted assassination of martyrs' orphans and legion descendants was by no means a simple juvenile personal grudge; hidden behind it was a huge threat that could shake the military's morale and infiltrate the Federation.

"My teacher, Wang Guo did not provoke without reason. Rather, the younger generation was persecuted with lethal intents, had nowhere to lodge complaints, and lacked evidence to hold the murderer accountable, which was why he acted on a momentary impulse to seek justice."

"The Cangnan municipal team only looked at the surface chaos, deliberately ignoring the core vicious incidents of children being assassinated and black-market crimes being committed, and banded together to favor local aristocratic families. This action is truly unfair."

This detailed and thorough statement, well-reasoned and progressive layer by layer, instantly punctured the one-sided complaint from the Cangnan municipal administration.

The high-ranking official on the other end of the phone fell silent for a long time. All anger dissipated, replaced by a deep sense of understanding.

As a top-tier figure in the theater of operations, he naturally knew the difficulty of the Pioneers Legion guarding the borders, understood even better what the assassination of martyrs' orphans and legion descendants meant, and saw right through the petty schemes of the local aristocratic families banding together to apply pressure and distort the truth.

He also knew Lin Ye's father, Lin Qingfeng.

However, public opinion had already formed, and the joint petition was making a huge momentum. The headquarters had to give a public disciplinary result to appease the public opinion of the local officialdom, maintain the balance of federal authority and responsibility, and absolutely must not let rumors of 'the legion practicing favoritism and warriors being overbearing' spread.

"I know the whole story, and the fault does not lie with Wang Guo." The high-ranking official's tone softened, yet his attitude remained firm. "But the rules are laid out on the table; private fights destroying property and high-tier provocations are established facts. If he is not punished at all, it will be difficult to silence the public criticism, and it will only make more people criticize the legion for bullying the weak with its strength."

"There must be a public disciplinary result to give an account to the outside world."

Li Chen had anticipated this long ago, and his expression remained calm. He smoothly offered a solution, his tone resolute and composed: "Teacher, punishment is fine, but it must not chill the hearts of the border-guarding soldiers."

"As it happens, the Federation has newly detected a low-risk secondary otherworldly realm, which requires the legion to send personnel to garrison, explore, reclaim land, catalog resources, and clear out external hidden dangers. This exploration mission was originally finalized to be fully undertaken by our legion, and the slots were reserved long ago."

"Why not publicly announce that Wang Guo, due to willful private fighting and rule-breaking provocation, has been penalized to lead a team on an expedition to the otherworldly realm, execute the exploration mission, and redeem himself through meritorious service."

As soon as these words were spoken, the other end of the phone instantly understood.

How was this a punishment? It was clearly the most decent protection and stepping stone!

Although otherworldly exploration was a field mission, a low-risk world basically had no fatal high-risk hazards. Instead, it was rich in resources and filled with opportunities everywhere, making it a training opportunity that countless warriors fought over.

This move was merely an official rhetoric for the outside world. It could appease the municipal public opinion, give enough face to the local officialdom, and at the same time smoothly protect Wang Guo, allowing him to avoid the current whirlpool of right and wrong in Cangnan City and stay away from the Ye family's secret calculations.

Furthermore, it would allow Wang Guo to settle his state of mind and hone his strength through the exploration mission, achieving multiple goals at once.

"Feasible." The high-ranking official immediately made a final decision. "Execute according to your plan, publicly announce the disciplinary result, and there is no need to hold anyone accountable internally. Just fully guarantee the advancement of the exploration mission."

Hanging up the phone, the heavy atmosphere inside the office completely dissipated.

Li Chen turned his head to look at Wang Guo beside him, his expression returning to normal as he said indifferently: "Did you hear that? Outwardly, you are embarking on an expedition carrying crimes, but in reality, you are dodging the spotlight and reaping opportunities."

"The spiritual Qi of this new world is rich and the otherworldly fierce beast resources are abundant, which is extremely suitable for tempering the divine kingdom and raising your realm. You will lead the team there to properly settle down; that is far better than entangling yourself in grudges in Cangnan City and needlessly stirring up trouble."

Wang Guo completely breathed a sigh of relief. The grievance and unwillingness in his heart completely dissipated, and then his face turned solemn as he bowed to receive the order: "This subordinate understands! Thank you, Commander, for your protection!"

He knew clearly in his heart that if Commander Li had not sat in command to apply pressure and mediate layer by layer, today he would have at best been stripped of his post and investigated, or at worst escorted into the Disciplinary Department, making it simply impossible to get away so easily.

"I can leave, but Lin Ye and Xiao Hu..." Wang Guo frowned slightly, still unable to put his mind at ease regarding the two children.

Once he went far away to the otherworldly realm for exploration and could not return to Cangnan in the short term, the Ye family would definitely take advantage of his absence to uninhibitedly target Lin Ye and Wang Hu and launch secret attacks.

Seeing his concerns, Li Chen nodded slightly, his tone resolute: "You can set out on the expedition with peace of mind."

"I will arrange elite dark guards of the legion to personally guard the two children twenty-four hours a day, secretly clearing away all hidden murderous intentions in the dark to ensure they are safe and sound."

"During the citywide simulation league half a month later, I will also have people monitor it the entire way, and will never allow the Ye family to pull any shady little tricks again."

Having obtained this promise, Wang Guo completely set his mind at ease.

With the legion's high-level backing and the protection of elite dark guards, no one in Cangnan City could easily touch Lin Ye and Wang Hu anymore.

"When do we set off?" Wang Guo asked in a deep voice.

"Three days later." Li Chen spoke indifferently. "Get packed properly, hand over the affairs at hand, and lead the team on the expedition. This storm has temporarily come to an end, but the grudges are not yet resolved. When you return from exploration, it will be the time for you to settle accounts with the Ye family and end all grudges."

Wang Guo nodded heavily, a trace of cold sharpness flashing across the depths of his eyes.

Temporary concession was not admitting defeat, but merely biding one's time.

His temporary departure from Cangnan seemed like a penalized distant journey, but in reality, it was jumping out of the chess game.

Meanwhile, Lin Ye, who remained in Cangnan City, had already shouldered all the sharpness alone, quietly awaiting the peak duel of the league half a month later to face Ye Feng's crazy counterattack head-on.

Inside the hospital ward, warm and cozy soft light enveloped all directions. Top-tier medical instruments operated slowly, and a steady stream of pure energy continuously nourished the injuries of Lin Ye and Wang Hu.

Leaning against the soft head of the bed, Lin Ye listened to Liu Yun recount the reasons behind Wang Guo's overseas dispatch. There was not the slightest surprise in the depths of his eyes, only a calm sense of understanding.

His mind was crystal clear, and he instantly saw through the essence of this so-called 'punishment'.

Said to be an expedition carrying crimes, it was actually the deliberate protection of Wang Guo by the legion's high-ranking officials.

Undercurrents were currently surging in Cangnan City. The Ye family held a deep-seated hatred and was hiding in the shadows, while the municipal team deliberately favored local aristocratic families. If Wang Guo stayed in the city, he would only continue to fall into the whirlpool of public opinion and political maneuvering, being restricted at every step.

Going far away to the otherworldly realm for exploration seemed like being punished to leave one's homeland, but in reality, it was jumping out of disputes and avoiding disasters. Moreover, he could use the rich resources of the new world to consolidate his cultivation base—it was undoubtedly disguised training.