In the Conference Room
Lu Chengwen sat there in a daze for a long ti, then finally raised his head and said, "Damn it! A bunch of delivery guys! Born of the sa root, why tornt each other so cruelly?"
The various Kuo Kings were puzzled.
"What root? What's he talking about?"
The Strategist spoke up, "President Lu, you really need to take this matter seriously. Their full na is the Ancient Martial Practitioners' Accord Organization. They hold the power to manage, supervise, punish, and even adjudicate over all officially registered sects worldwide."
"They have that much authority? And they call themselves an 'Accord Organization'?"
"Exactly! Their northern branch is even called the Northern Accord."
"The... Northern Accord?" Lu Chengwen muttered angrily, "Even the na sounds ridiculous!"
The Strategist continued, "Not only can they issue warrants, capture, and sentence martial practitioners, but they also have the authority to govern local martial sects and clans. They can even conscript combat power to serve their purposes at any ti. Their strength is incredibly fearso."
Lu Chengwen clenched his teeth, "Do they have any hard rules?"
"There are three major ones!"
"The first is that martial practitioners cannot use martial arts to interfere with the lives of ordinary people, such as engaging in comrcial activities or profiting through illegal ans. Violations are severely punished and may implicate others."
"For example?"
"For instance, if Iron Kuo King uses martial arts to trade in illegal goods or drugs for massive profits and gets caught, he would be executed, and all his assets confiscated. Furthermore, his master and organization would also face collective punishnt. Even his family would undergo strict investigations. If they are found to have accepted his money or supported him, they would face the sa level of punishnt."
Lu Chengwen nodded, "This makes sense. Martial practitioners are too powerful. If they break the law or get involved in comrcial disputes, it could cause huge damage to public safety and the economic environnt."
"The second rule is that martial practitioners cannot establish sects on their own. To establish a new sect, they need to apply for approval, possess qualifications recognized by the Accord, and accept managent, supervision, and periodic inspections."
Lu Chengwen nodded again, "This sounds a bit restrictive, but in modern society, it's understandable. If there were random sects popping up everywhere, it would lead to chaos and be difficult to manage."
"The third rule is that all sects, clans, and rogue practitioners must strictly abide by the 'Martial Arts Non-Proliferation Treaty'."
Lu Chengwen stared at the Strategist, "They act like they're ready to proliferate. What do they even have to proliferate!?"
"That's not what it ans," the Strategist explained. "In the martial world, there are so core secrets, manuals, and techniques that are incredibly destructive and have always been strictly controlled."
"But if these rare and core resources were lost, it would be a huge blow to the ancient martial arts heritage of China. So, they allow families, sects, or individuals who hold these resources to keep them privately. They can also pass them down according to family rules or sect regulations."
"However, the number of people taught, the intervals of transmission, and the specifics of who is practicing and to what level must all be truthfully reported and registered."
"This ensures that the core martial arts secrets don't spread uncontrollably. They call this the 'Martial Arts Non-Proliferation Treaty'."
Lu Chengwen started counting on his fingers, "Don't break the law or disrupt the normal order of the world; don't establish random sects, creating a ss in the martial arts world; and don't spread dangerous, high-level techniques..."
Lu Chengwen said, "I don't break any of these rules!"
The Strategist hesitated for a mont, "But now you have the Four Kuo Kings, as your Strategist, and Hua Xue-ning backing you. In their eyes, you've essentially already established a sect!"
Lu Chengwen widened his eyes, "Even this is not allowed!?"
"All of us have martial arts skills. You're also a martial practitioner yourself, and you run a multi-billion-dollar corporation. Using martial arts skills to achieve business goals... isn't that... perfectly normal?"
Lu Chengwen realized sothing.
"So, now I'm like a scholar dealing with soldiers. Even if I'm right, I can't explain it to them, huh?"
The Strategist shook his head, "They're just observing right now. They probably don't have concrete evidence of any criminal activity on your part."
Lu Chengwen's eyes widened, "What criminal activity!? Just... organizing you guys to work under ... that's considered a cri?"
Everyone nodded.
Lu Chengwen was utterly frustrated. "If I go to them, register, and officially set up a sect... then I can't run my business anymore, right?"
The Strategist said, "Sects or families can collaborate with businesses, hold shares, and invest, but they cannot directly participate in managent or operations. So... this issue is unsolvable. Unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Unless you beco as influential as the Huo Family!"
"Yeah! Why can the Huo Family blatantly employ martial practitioners? I really want to know."
The Strategist explained:
"First, because they're incredibly wealthy. If their corporation were to have issues, the consequences would be massive, potentially affecting national oil prices or even sparking wars. So, the Northern Accord protects them."
"Second, because their core business is oil, which is vital to the national economy. To ensure strategic stability and energy security, they qualify for protection from the Accord."
"Third," the Strategist continued, "their family is deeply tied to the martial arts world. They likely have family mbers holding key positions in the Northern Accord. That's why they enjoy protection from martial practitioners."
"I'm building houses too! That's part of the national economy and people's livelihoods!"
The Strategist laughed, "By that logic, a lot of companies capable of hiring martial practitioners would qualify. Besides, you're just building houses. And let's not even ntion your reputation as a cunning businessman..."
Lu Chengwen felt utterly defeated.
In his own world, even a delivery guy struggles to get a good review.
But here, the delivery guys were more influential than the President of the United States!
The strategist explained, "Their businesses extend far beyond just this. They have investnts all over the country and even globally. The food delivery industry is just like... their internal spy network, akin to a beggars' sect, simply used for intelligence gathering."
Lu Chengwen was dumbfounded.
These people were terrifying!
This seed even scarier than large secret organizations or the SkyNet system!
Now I understand why those organizations and SkyNet are always so secretive, sneaky, and on the run—it's because there's a monstrous entity like this looming over them.
Lu Chengwen sat in silence for over ten minutes.
Everyone in the monitoring room remained quiet as well.
It was clear that Lu Chengwen was deep in thought.
He was contemplating ways to resist the overreaching delivery company.
Finally, Lu Chengwen let out a breath and said, "Stop overthinking it. Go do what you need to do. If NATO wants to ss with , I'll deal with them myself."
The others silently gave Lu Chengwen a thumbs-up in their hearts.
Lu Chengwen stood up and said, "This organization clearly has issues at the grassroots level of managent. The top level probably operates rationally, but the lower-level minions are just too troubleso to deal with! If you encounter them, don't escalate conflicts. Push everything onto . Let them co find !"
"Boss... Isn't that dangerous for you? Your skills aren't exactly great," soone said hesitantly.
"Exactly! We're not just sitting around for nothing. If we push all the trouble onto you, won't that make us useless?"
Lu Chengwen replied, "I'm just trying to prevent you guys from escalating things to an irreconcilable level! Otherwise, even if we're in the right, we'll end up being wrong! That's it—just do as I say!"
Lu Chengwen stood straighter and declared, "If they don't pick a fight, I'll let them live in peace for a few days. But if they dare to stir up trouble and ss with —"
Clenching his teeth, he snarled, "I'll twist off their heads and use them as chamber pots!"
...
Everyone felt infuriated.
Lu Chengwen, you're too arrogant!
You know we're here just looking for trouble, yet you dare say such things?
They all turned to look at the chairman.
The chairman chuckled, "That'll do."
The manager frowned deeply. "We've gathered enough intel on Lu Chengwen. I think we can arrest him now!"
The secretary shook her head. "Do you even know how extensive his influence in the slum districts is? No one dares touch him right now."
The manager retorted, "So are we just going to let him roam free?"
The chairman sighed, "Even though Lu Chengwen's words are bold, from what I've gathered, he hasn't violated the Martial Arts Convention, nor has he used ancient martial arts to gain illegal profits. On the contrary, he acts more like a victim, worried that we'll target him."
He turned to look at everyone. "Isn't that right?"
The secretary nodded, "Based on Lu Chengwen's reactions, his understanding of the martial arts world is limited, and the strategist has further misled him. He's already preconceived that we're a bureaucratic hamr looking to stir up trouble wherever we go."
The manager said, "But his sect is ambiguous, and his lineage unclear—this, in itself, is a major taboo. If he wants to practice, he must register with us, report his movents, and undergo regular inspections as per the rules."
The secretary frowned and shook her head. "I don't think he'll comply easily."
"Then he leaves us no choice. We'll eliminate him directly!"
The chairman laughed. "The solution isn't just a binary choice between elimination and legitimization. Lu Chengwen's situation is unique; we need to handle it uniquely—just like the case with Long Aotian."
"But isn't Hua Xue'ning one of Long Aotian's guards? Why would she be with Lu Chengwen?"
The chairman nodded. "That's exactly what concerns . Long Aotian himself is already a major headache. If word spreads in the martial arts world about his dominating aura, I fear every sect will start plotting."
"And recently, SkyNet operatives have been spotted in Snow City, along with a few corpses—this also troubles ."
The secretary added, "Also, Lu Chengwen's team includes the Four Great Lumps and the strategist... This whole thing is bizarre. It makes no sense! Is he the Snow City branch leader of a larger organization? Why are these people so obedient to him?"
Xiong Panpan comnted, "I feel like everything revolves around Long Aotian! He should be our primary focus!"
The chairman nodded in agreent.
Cui Hao volunteered, "I'm willing to monitor Long Aotian!"
Cui Jinyuan imdiately objected, "No, no, let do it."
Cui Hao frowned. "Why?"
Cui Jinyuan stamred, "Because... I'm more familiar with them."
Cui Hao was puzzled. "Wouldn't it be better to send soone they don't know?"
Cui Jinyuan got flustered. "I said I'll go, so I'll go!"
The chairman said, "Jinyuan, be cautious of Luo Shiyin's Five-Colored Illusionary Eyes. Long Aotian's subordinates are no pushovers—they're all inheritors of extraordinary abilities."
Cui Jinyuan blushed. "Yes, I understand."
The chairman sighed, "As for Lu Chengwen..."
Xiong Panpan chid in, "Don't send ! He's disgusting!"
The chairman chuckled. "Didn't I just say not to act impulsively or jump to conclusions? Lu Chengwen has his strengths. You should observe how he handles things; maybe you'll learn sothing."
Xiong Panpan wanted to argue, but the chairman glared at her.
"This is an assignnt! What do you think this is, a matchmaking event? Picking and choosing?"
Xiong Panpan pouted pitifully, "Fine, fine! I'll go, alright?"
As she stared at the screen showing Lu Chengwen, Xiong Panpan bit her lip and muttered, "I'll find a chance to beat you to death!"
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