Starting Cultivation in Wasteland-Chapter 578 - 448: To Kill or Not to Kill

When the A-level guard perceived, Kushnier didn't react at all but instead lifted his glass and took a delicate sip.

Hearing the other's question, he finally lowered the glass and casually said, "The wind is a bit strong."

The A-level guard furrowed his brow, "Is it not safe? Then I'll send someone to check, old three..."

"No need," Kushnier replied indifferently, "If I can't perceive it, sending you out won't help..."

Qu Jianlei waited a while longer, until a strong gust of wind blew by, then he took the opportunity to enhance his perception.

This time, he could intermittently sense the conversation inside clearly.

It wasn't until the banquet ended that Qu Jianlei was entirely sure Kushnier hadn't noticed him.

Initially, he couldn't understand it; this guy's spiritual power should be slightly stronger than Steve's.

But after thinking it over, he realized that Kushnier was rather sloppy in how he did things, far less cautious.

This Supreme Realm merely breaks some shackles of the human body, a collective term for those who possess this state.

Even within the Supreme Realm, differences are immense, referring not only to combat power but also to operation or combat style.

Every supreme being is different, each possessing a distinct personal style.

So Granny Jia's evaluation of Steve wasn't wrong—"cautious", encapsulates it perfectly!

However, besides that, Qu Jianlei also figured out what the meeting between these two was about.

In the first half of the banquet, he gathered some related emotions but didn't know the details.

Luckily, Kushnier and Kleis had met once before, and that meeting wasn't particularly friendly.

Thus, this meeting, in the earlier part, both sides exchanged some pleasantries.

Neither were in their impulsive years anymore; a bit of courtesy, even if it doesn't improve relations, can ease the atmosphere.

The main content of the negotiation appeared in the latter half.

For this, Kleis activated the electromagnetic interference device, explaining briefly to Kushnier beforehand.

Seeing this, Qu Jianlei raised his brow, and as the interference device was switched on, he slightly increased his perception.

The subtle vibration of the electromagnetic interference device could mask some spiritual fluctuations.

Thus, he was able to clearly learn that Kushnier hoped for an additional star gate at Star No. 4's port.

At the inspection point at Star No. 4's spaceport, people from Star No. 3 couldn't take the lead, so another checkpoint was needed.

Once the starship took off, it must pass through the star gate to begin interstellar navigation.

Since the star gate is located in space, the people from Star No. 3 are responsible for inspection, which shouldn't provoke too strong a resistance.

If the starship had to leave once airborne, those insisting on not passing through the star gate have the right to take any action.

This request seemed obvious; anyone daring to break through the checkpoint wouldn't have a good outcome.

However, the most crucial point was securing acknowledgment from Star No. 4's government.

If acknowledgment wasn't required, anyone could set up star gates and checkpoints for fee... inspection.

In reality, it's almost impossible for Star No. 4 to accept this request; even space is near Star No. 4.

Kushnier's request was hoping to gain Kleis's support in agreeing to construct the star gate.

Yet, how could the third-in-command be easily fooled? With a few perfunctory words, he didn't give a definitive answer.

Until the end, the supreme whispered something softly to him, and Kleis's brow slightly raised.

Unfortunately, the voice was too faint, making it impossible for Qu Jianlei to risk increasing his perception further.

Still, no matter what, Kleis was intrigued and agreed to consider it.

The two didn't reach an agreement in the end, but it was apparent both were willing to continue negotiations.

As Kushnier left, he was still riding the high-powered motorcycle, despite the strong wind, seemingly enjoying it.

Qu Jianlei hesitated slightly about whether to initiate an attack.

Ultimately, he gave up because he lacked enough confidence.

While discussing matters, Kushnier's vigilance wasn't very high, perhaps due to his trust in Kleis's defense capabilities.

However, now riding the motorcycle, his spiritual power was continuously released, not withdrawn.

His speed exceeded three hundred kilometers, yet he could deftly weave through traffic, thanks to his spiritual power's release.

Qu Jianlei even had a slight suspicion whether this guy was releasing his spiritual power just to race.

No matter what, if the opponent is racing on the highway and the confrontation couldn't be swiftly resolved, it'll quickly draw attention.

Furthermore, the nature of it would become much more severe, and in time the Academy would have to undergo a thorough inspection.

Can a single strike succeed? Qu Jianlei wasn't arrogant enough to believe so.

Kushnier, being Supreme, once involved in an accident, people should be concerned about the level of damage to infrastructure.

If he could only inflict a minor wound on the Supreme, he'd count himself satisfied.

So why did he think he could swiftly resolve the battle?

If he couldn't ensure a decisive blow, it was better not to kill!

Qu Jianlei had been tracking for some time and discovered that the other party was heading towards the Fourth War Zone Headquarters, so he returned to the academy without hesitation.

However, this matter could not be let go so easily, so the next day, he found Bellini.

"Contact Gradi and say I have some information to discuss with her face-to-face."

Bellini seemed a bit unhappy at the news, "You seem to find me quite convenient to use."

"Because she's your student's aunt, I don't have her contact... Alright, two thousand silver coins."

Approaching evening, Gradi arrived at the academy, first went to the library, and then to the cafeteria.

Finally, she found Qu Jianlei in the dormitory area, and she was a bit displeased.

"I looked for you all over, your work attitude could use some improvement... Can't this be communicated via wristwatch?"

As if you'd ever given me your wristwatch number, Qu Jianlei replied indifferently, "If it were convenient to use the wristwatch, I'd contact you directly!"

"Of course, if you don't want to hear it, you can leave now."

"You always have such a big mouth," Gradi chuckled, then naturally said.

"If it's valuable, of course I want to hear it. Are you in some kind of trouble?"

Qu Jianlei replied without hesitation, "It's not me, it's you who might be in trouble. I'm just a bit short on cash lately."

Gradi tilted her head and thought for a moment before nodding, "Information? Then let me assess the value of your information."

Qu Jianlei straightforwardly stated, "Kleis has been making some small moves recently, are you aware of them?"

"Kleis?" Gradi was taken aback, then laughed, "Do you misunderstand my abilities?"

"That's a friend of my husband's boss, Hoyel. Does telling me this help at all?"

"If it's useless, then forget it," Qu Jianlei waved his hand, making a guest sending-off gesture.

Hoyel would consider Kleis a friend? Don't be ridiculous. Don't insult one's intelligence like that.

"Well... alright," Gradi pondered for a moment and nodded, "But I need to contact my husband first."

Seeing her heading towards the door, Qu Jianlei raised his voice slightly, "Remember, my information is expensive."

He didn't want her to think he was playing some game like using one to strike another, so he had to act cash-strapped.

Gradi got in touch with her husband, Hertman, who, upon hearing, unhesitatingly stated: You can never have too much information about Klaus.

However, Gradi came back, pointing to the wristwatch on her hand, "The call wasn't disconnected."

"My husband wants to listen too and might ask a question."

"Don't even think about it," Qu Jianlei sternly refused, "If I could talk via the wristwatch, would I still need to call you for a face-to-face discussion?"

"Rest assured, Mr. Panda," Hertman's voice came from the wristwatch, "This is a planetary-level dedicated secure line."

He spoke with great confidence, being the Guard Captain of the planet's first Vice Planet Governor.

Qu Jianlei wasn't completely reassured, and he asked in a deep voice, "Can it guard against Star Realm-level eavesdropping?"

"What have you gotten yourself into," Hertman couldn't help but mumble upon hearing that.

After a while, he spoke again, "Alright, added three more encryptions, even the Star Domain Military Headquarters would have a hard time cracking it."

Qu Jianlei grinned upon hearing that, "Good, that's exactly who I'm guarding against."

"The Star Domain Military Headquarters?" Hertman asked with unconcealed surprise in his voice, "What on earth have you done?"

Qu Jianlei replied irritably, "If I really did something, could I still be talking to you now?"

There was no sound from the wristwatch. Gradi waited for a bit before speaking up, "It seems quite serious. Go on."

Qu Jianlei cleared his throat lightly, "Have you noticed that Kleis has been getting closer to the military lately?"

Gradi waited a bit longer, found her husband still didn't respond, and had to answer.

"Kleis getting closer to the military isn't really unexpected, is it? He does care about the military's support."

Qu Jianlei didn't know if she was playing dumb, but he had no intention of keeping it a secret.

"What if he's interacting with the military outside of Star No. 4? And what if it's the Supreme?"

"Are you saying..." Something instantly popped into Gradi's mind, "Do you mean that crazy guy?"

Qu Jianlei casually smiled without answering.

But soon, he heard Hertman's response, "They've met once, but it didn't seem very friendly."

As expected of a Guard Captain, not only did he care for his boss but also kept an eye on the boss's adversaries' every move.

"News travels fast," Qu Jianlei nodded, then abruptly changed the subject, "What if they've met more than once?"

Hertman was speechless for a moment, evidently, he only had intel on that one meeting.

If they had met several times but concealed it from others, only showing one time, it would be a big issue.

Even a fool would know if the first talk didn't go well, how could there be any follow-ups?

Hertman was silent, and Gradi didn't know what to say, as the topic had exceeded her capacity to handle.

After a while, Qu Jianlei broke the silence with a light cough, "How much is this information worth?"