I Have Infinite Skill Points-Chapter 503 Anxious Vine Country
"Didn’t I interrupt your private time?" Yu Ruoyun walked out of the elevator, a smile gracing her face. Several months had passed since they last met, and her aura had grown even more enchanting.
Before graduation, Yu Ruoyun had an air of pure innocence, typically dressed in either a long one-piece dress or a T-shirt and jeans. Half a year after graduating, all traces of her student days had vanished from her face.
Now, with subtle workplace makeup, even her simple attire couldn’t conceal her stunning, captivating figure.
"What private time? It’s more like the world of an otaku and a fujoshi," Wang Lan chuckled. "Want something to drink?"
"No need. It’s so late already. You’re not going to skip inviting me to dinner, are you?"
"Does that even need to be said? Oh, do you have any intelligence from Vine Country?"
"There isn’t much. Vine Country has repeatedly stated they weren’t responsible, even claiming the one controlling the Six-winged Golden Cicada isn’t from Vine Country. Everyone knows the Six-winged Golden Cicada is Vine Country’s national treasure."
"Over these years, ninety percent of the vast benefits Vine Country has reaped were attributable to the Six-winged Golden Cicada. The seven Golden Cicadas, when combined, are said to have the combat power of the Star Soul Realm. However, the King of Vine Country’s statement implies there might have been a mishap with the Six-winged Golden Cicada. This suggests it’s no longer controlled by anyone from Vine Country."
"At least not entirely!" Wang Lan mused in response.
"Actually, I’ve been trying to figure it out too. I don’t see any benefit for Vine Country in doing this. Even if there’s friction between our countries, it ultimately boils down to a struggle for benefits. But if Vine Country was truly behind the incident in the Cloud Sea space, that’s not friction—it’s a declaration of war. There’s no advantage for Vine Country in that," Jiang Xinyu added curiously.
"It’s more than just ’no advantage.’ When we approached Vine Country for discussions, their King was so frightened he immediately sought protection from the United Nations. Vine Country wouldn’t dare to do such a thing; all the UN member countries know this. But the fact that it happened is undeniable, so two objectives must be met."
"Vine Country must pay a sufficient price; otherwise, Jade Country cannot answer to its citizens or its Star Martial Warriors. This price must be substantial. Second, we must thoroughly investigate the truth. If Vine Country wasn’t responsible, we still need to apprehend the actual culprit."
"I understand," Wang Lan nodded slightly.
"Look at you, grilling me about the mission the moment I arrive, completely ignoring Xinyu. Xinyu, I heard you broke through to the Star Sea Realm? Well done! You broke Wang Lan’s record."
"A few days ago, I heard Wang Lan broke my record, and it annoyed me for days. Now that you’ve broken his too, I feel much better..."
"My Star Sea Realm isn’t a proper one; I can’t compare to yours..." Jiang Xinyu said, laughing behind her hand.
"You’ve definitely got that wrong. If other Star Sea Realm Star Martial Warriors heard you, they’d probably be sulking. Huh? You’ve already started cultivating ’Supreme Goodness Like Water’?" As Yu Ruoyun hugged Jiang Xinyu’s arm, the Cultivation Technique within her resonated, and she knew instantly.
"Yes, I’m practicing it, but unfortunately, I haven’t even grasped the basics yet, let alone reached the first level," Jiang Xinyu replied.
"I practiced for over a year and only reached the first realm. ’Supreme Goodness Like Water’ requires the Star Sea Realm just to start. What more could you ask for? How about this, Xinyu: I’ll hold you while you sleep tonight? Stimulated by our shared origin, you might just master the basics by morning," Yu Ruoyun offered.
"Well..." Jiang Xinyu glanced at Wang Lan.
"It’s not like it’s contagious, nor does the principle of ’being influenced by the company one keeps’ apply here," Wang Lan retorted with an unconcerned laugh. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞
It was a quiet night.
That night, the sky above Modu City was starless, while the Demon Clan’s night market blazed with brilliant lights. That night, Yu Ruoyun stayed at Wang Lan’s home in Phoenix Plaza for the first time. But that night, Yu Ruoyun found it hard to sleep.
Covering her ears with her hands couldn’t stop the sounds from the next room from penetrating the walls. The problem was, Yu Ruoyun’s hearing was overly sensitive. This was especially true after she joined the General Staff Department, where she had even learned the Five Divine Powers to ensure she could see and hear everything around her.
Now, with her acute hearing, the only way to block out the noise was to physically plug her ears.
That animal... It’s been almost two hours. AWOO— She bit down on the pristine white pillow, looking very much like a possessed husky.
"Did you not sleep well last night?" The next day, the two of them drove to Modu City Airport. Neither Jiang Xinyu nor anyone from the Tianjian Bureau came to see them off; it was just the two of them.
Looking in the rearview mirror, Wang Lan saw Yu Ruoyun yawning repeatedly, her makeup appearing a tad heavier than usual.
"Yes. Did you sleep well?" Yu Ruoyun asked through gritted teeth, her tone tinged with a strong hint of sourness.
"Me? I slept perfectly fine, right through till morning. Anyway, we’re heading to Vine Country to investigate today. There’s no point overthinking before we even start. Until an investigation is conducted, any further thoughts are just speculation."
"You think I couldn’t sleep last night because I was thinking about the mission?" Yu Ruoyun’s voice was somewhat grim, and she spoke slowly, each word seemingly difficult.
"What else could it be?"
"Nothing!" Yu Ruoyun crossed her arms, leaned back against the rear seat, and closed her eyes. Wang Lan glanced at her in the rearview mirror, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Vine Country was located southeast of Jade Country, bordering Jade Country’s Cloud Sea region, Titanium Kingdom, and Nest Country. It was a perennially rainy and humid land where Buddhism flourished. Vine Country’s tourism industry was highly developed and heavily reliant on Jade Country. Consequently, numerous flights departed for Vine City daily. The flight Wang Lan and Yu Ruoyun were on included three tourist groups.
Two hours later, the plane landed smoothly and uneventfully at Mancheng Airport. Stepping out of the arrivals area, they spotted an efficient-looking woman holding a sign with "Wang Lan" and "Yu Ruoyun" written on it. They approached her.
"Major General Wang Lan, Colonel Yu Ruoyun, I am Liu Yun, envoy stationed in Vine Country."
"Ms. Liu, a pleasure to meet you. I am Wang Lan, and this is Yu Ruoyun."
"Please, come with me. I’ve already arranged your accommodations at the embassy." They got into Liu Yun’s car, which crawled slowly through the congested streets.
"I thought Modu City was congested, but I didn’t expect Vine Country to be this bad," Wang Lan joked, breaking the silence in the car.
"Vine City has a population of only 5 million, less than a quarter of Modu City’s, yet its area is about one-third of Modu City’s. Vine City has fewer than 200,000 registered cars, while Modu City has 9 million. By that ratio, Vine City shouldn’t be more congested than Modu City," Yu Ruoyun chimed in.
"Of course, that assumes road planning like Modu City’s. In Modu City, elevated highways can reach every district, every business center, and even every residential complex. But Vine City has only one elevated ring road highway."
"Moreover, Vine City’s tourism and street vendor economies are thriving. Out of its 5 million residents, at least 500,000 operate roadside stalls, and hundreds of thousands more solicit tourists on the streets. Even if there were only one car on the road, it would be a crawl to get through crowded areas."
"It would be a miracle if it wasn’t congested."
After about an hour and a half, they finally arrived at the embassy. Wang Lan faintly sensed more than a dozen gazes fixed on him.
Once inside the embassy, Wang Lan relaxed slightly. "It seems Vine Country is very wary of us, assigning over a dozen Star Sea Realm Star Martial Warriors to keep us under surveillance."
"How could they not be nervous? Your arrival practically determines Vine Country’s fate. If your investigation implicates Vine Country, the United Nations will also impose sanctions. Vine Country’s political system might even have to be rewritten."
"Then... Envoy Liu, do you believe Vine Country is responsible?"
"I... I can’t say for certain. If the King of Vine Country has any sense at all, he absolutely wouldn’t do such a thing. But who can guarantee he hasn’t lost his mind?"
"True. But judging from Vine Country’s evasive responses, it seems they’re hiding something."
"I looked into this a few days ago, and it does seem peculiar. It’s certain that Vine Country possesses the Six-winged Golden Cicada. However, intelligence reports indicate there are seven of them, yet only one has been seen publicly in recent decades."
"That suggests my guess is likely correct," Wang Lan said, his eyes glinting sharply. "Vine Country’s Six-winged Golden Cicadas have gone missing, leaving only one Golden Cicada. But Vine Country’s interests are intrinsically linked to the Six-winged Golden Cicadas. To protect those interests, they’ve gone to great lengths to conceal the loss of the other cicadas."
"That seems to be the case. And after this incident, they can no longer hide it, so..."
DING-A-LING-A-LING— The phone rang suddenly. Liu Yun picked it up and began speaking rapidly in an incomprehensible language. After a considerable time, she hung up.
"The King of Vine Country is hosting a banquet tonight and has invited us."
"It seems Vine Country is quite anxious."
"They’re not just anxious; they’re more anxious than we are. They’re desperate to get a feel for our position," Liu Yun said with a slight smile, taking two cups of coffee from the machine.
"Their anxiety won’t help them, though. It’s like facing execution: whether you stick your neck out or shrink back, the outcome is the same. Even in the best-case scenario, Vine Country will have to forfeit decades of benefits."
"What should I wear to the banquet? Is it a formal court event? I didn’t bring any formal wear," Yu Ruoyun interjected.
"No need for that. You brought your military uniforms, didn’t you? Just wear those. We didn’t come as welcome guests, so we might as well act the part of unwelcome ones."
「Elsewhere, in the royal palace of Vine Country」
The middle-aged King of Vine Country paced nervously, having dismissed his attendants. He wandered aimlessly through the garden.
Perhaps in the eyes of many citizens, the problem Vine Country currently faced was a minor one. After all, many high-ranking officials knew that the Six-winged Golden Cicada that attacked Jade Country was not controlled by the State Preceptor, but by that traitor.
Since the traitor betrayed Vine Country, it naturally had nothing to do with Vine Country. But how could confrontations between nations be so simple? The Six-winged Golden Cicada is a divine artifact of Vine Country; the nation must bear responsibility for this incident. Besides, how did that traitor enter the Cloud Sea Pioneer Space? Surely not through legitimate channels from Jade Country?
If this issue were pursued, it would ultimately reveal that Vine Country failed to report the loss of the cicadas. Now that trouble has arisen, can they simply claim the cicadas were lost long ago? Would anyone believe that? The spatial collision during El Nino gave the traitor an opportunity to enter Jade Country.
Even if the final investigation favors Vine Country, they must still compensate Jade Country for its losses. Otherwise, Jade Country’s wrath will make life unbearable for Vine Country. They know Jade Country’s methods well. A direct, open conflict isn’t what’s feared; it’s the slow, agonizing death by a thousand cuts.
They kill you bit by bit, and you can only watch helplessly.
What should I do...
"Father!" An ethereal voice interrupted the King’s thoughts. He looked up to see his youngest daughter, Princess Chaxi, hailed as the Flower of Vine Country and the nation’s beloved goddess.
