Under One Person: Dressed as Lü Liang, with vests all over

"Then what can you do?"

Gao Gen stared intently at Lü Liang, awaiting his reply.

Lü Liang smiled and said, "As far as I know, that restriction is to prevent them from revealing the details of the ritual."

"But just because it can't be said doesn't mean it can't be done directly."

Gao Gen's eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly realized what he meant and asked, "You mean, you want Ruan Feng to hold that ceremony directly?"

"Pretty much," Lü Liang continued. "The best approach is for us to prepare the sacred objects needed for the ritual and the person who guards the Eight Gates and wields the Five Elements, so that he only needs to be responsible for guiding the ritual steps."

"In this way, it doesn't matter if the restriction prevents the other party from reproducing the ritual. After all, it is we who reproduced the ritual, and Senior Ruan Feng only participated in a very small part."

As Gao Gen listened to Lü Liang's words, his eyes grew brighter and brighter, which was very noticeable in the moonlight.

But his excitement didn't last long. Soon, he turned his gaze to Lü Liang and said:

“This method does sound feasible, but if so, Nguyen Phong himself must agree to participate.”

"Unfortunately, even Qu Tong, who has been keeping watch over Ruan Feng for three years, cannot guarantee that he can persuade Ruan Feng. So where does your confidence come from?"

Hearing the question, Lü Liang's expression remained unchanged, and he continued calmly:
"I dared to ask this question because I was prepared."

"Oh?" Gao Gen adopted an attitude of being all ears.

Lü Liang pointed to the three people present and slowly said:
"The Eight Extraordinary Techniques have a fatal flaw. This is something that not only we can feel, but Senior Ruan Feng must have felt as well."

"Moreover, as far as I know, practitioners of the Six Treasures Immortal Thief can obtain energy from all things in nature. Therefore, in their eyes, 'humans,' who are the most intelligent of all things, are the most delicious food in the world. They have to fight against the desire to 'eat people' every moment... This kind of pain is even greater than the other eight extraordinary skills."

"If there were a way to solve this problem, he would probably be more than happy to do so."

Lü Liang smiled.

“Previously, it was inconvenient for Senior Ruan Feng to appear in public, but since Xu Xin became the new head of the Tang Clan, the company and the world of supernatural beings have made their attitudes toward the original Thirty-Six Thieves clear, and he no longer needs to hide.”

"Besides, we're giving him a ride, so he might even thank us."

Seeing Gao Gen's eyes flicker slightly, clearly indicating he was somewhat tempted, Lü Liang raised an eyebrow and continued:

"Qu Tong's trump card... is that Old Wang, isn't it?"

"how do you know?!"

Gao Gen's pupils contracted, and he once again showed a look of surprise.

“I told you, I have my own sources of information.” Lü Liang shrugged easily. “Using someone Ruan Feng knows to persuade him, hmm, that’s a good idea. However, I have a better candidate here.”

Upon hearing this, Gao Gen's gaze deepened, and he murmured with emotion:

"Qu Tong lost to you, it's not unfair... Ha, her most prized intelligence-gathering ability seems to be nothing compared to yours."

Lü Liang shrugged and asked with a smile:
"So, senior, you agree to my proposal?"

Upon hearing this, a thoughtful look flashed in Gao Gen's eyes.

When he first revealed himself, he never expected things to develop to this point.

But he had to admit that he was indeed somewhat tempted by Lü Liang's suggestion.

He told Lü Liang those two sentences only a little over a month ago, and Lü Liang's progress was already about to surpass his.

Perhaps this cooperation is more beneficial than he imagined...

……

After a moment of silence, Gao Gen finally nodded.

Upon seeing this action, both Lü Liang and Wang Ye revealed a hint of a smile.

Gao Gen's agreement to cooperate means that there is one more person to guard the Eight Gates, and we can also get the two sacred objects from Qu Tong... The progress of the reenactment ceremony has been accelerated!

"Then thank you very much for your support, senior," Lü Liang said politely, cupping his hands in greeting.

"Heh." Gao Gen chuckled softly, his tone tinged with a hint of mockery. "If I hadn't agreed, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to leave so easily today."

Lü Liang shrugged and smiled without saying a word.

Gao Gen narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze falling on Lü Liang, and said mockingly:

"To lure me out, they directly disrupted the All-Tong meeting, letting so many forces watch a grand show. Such a big move... tsk tsk, how could I afford to offend them?"

"You flatter me, senior," Lü Liang replied casually.

Gao Gen's gaze remained fixed on Lü Liang. "Of course, this is only one of the reasons why I am willing to cooperate with you."

“The more important reason is—I sensed it the first time I met you; your temperament is very similar to Wugensheng's. Perhaps you really can recreate that ritual…”

Upon hearing this, Lü Liang raised an eyebrow; this wasn't the first time he'd heard this claim.

He tentatively asked, "How is it similar?"

"temperament."

Gao Gen gave the same answer as Xu Xin and Zhang Xuan.

"A detached, indifferent attitude towards the world?" Lü Liang countered, using Zhang Xuan's words.

“Yes, that’s definitely the kind of vibe.” Gao Gen nodded with slight surprise. “Your description is very apt.”

"Moreover, you are all like the true All-Sex."

As he spoke, Gao Gen's voice carried a hint of amusement:

"Although I used to despise Quanxing, I was a member of Quanxing for a long time, so I still have some understanding of the sect."

"The infamous Quanxing was not originally created to do evil."

"The essence of 'preserving one's nature' is to safeguard the original, innate nature that life begins with... One would not pluck a single hair to benefit the world, nor would one take a single hair to harm the world..."

"You can stir up a storm of people's hearts just to lure out one person, and yet you can leave unscathed without harming a single one. You really have some of the style of the ancestors of Quanxing."

As Gao Gen spoke, he tossed something towards Lü Liang.

"Alright, let's stop here for today. This is from Qu Tong. You can communicate by injecting Qi into it. Use this when you need to contact me... See you on Nathan Island."

Lu Liang reached out and took the communication ring. When he looked up again, he found that Gao Gen's figure had disappeared from the spot.

……

"It's time for us to go."

Lü Liang put away his communication ring, turned to look at Wang Ye, and teased:

"Old Wang, you're about to meet your grandmaster uncle. Is there anything you'd like to say?"

"Hey Lao Lü, why do you look so gloating..."

"You've misunderstood..."

The sounds of their laughter and their figures gradually blended into the night.

Half an hour later.

Outside the conference room, Zhao Fangxu heard Erzhuang's voice again in his earpiece.

"Mr. Zhao, I've found something."

"Have you found them?" Zhao Fangxu asked immediately.

"Road surveillance cameras captured the fake Ron and his fake assistant, but they have already left Beijing."

"The other party suddenly appeared in the surveillance camera, it seemed more like they were deliberately telling us that they were leaving."

"Mr. Zhao, do you think this might be a smokescreen they've put out? Maybe they're still lying in wait, preparing to cause trouble..."

Zhao Fangxu frowned. "Anything is possible. Erzhuang, you keep an eye on things over there."

As he spoke, he turned to look at Xu Si beside him: "The most urgent task now is to ensure the smooth conclusion of this meeting. After all, the people in the conference room are all prominent figures from various countries, and we cannot keep them locked up indefinitely."

"It's time to give an explanation for what happened tonight."

……

ten minutes later.

In the large conference room.

After hearing Xu Si's account, everyone showed complicated expressions.

The way they looked at Ron Keller was tinged with schadenfreude, which infuriated Ron.

He declared in a stern voice, "What that person said before was utter slander! It was defamation!"

Faced with Ron's impassioned words, the high-ranking officials of various factions politely echoed him a few times, but how much of that echoing was genuine was hard to say.

As the people in the conference room slowly left, Zhao Fangxu had already arrived on the tenth floor.

He nodded slightly to King Nathan, who was surrounded by three Nathan guards.

"Your Majesty, I am very sorry, we failed to capture Elijah."

King Nathan shook his head, a gentle smile appearing on his lips.

“Elijah’s actions have surprised me. He may have been planning this for a long time, so it’s not surprising that he had a way to get away. This is not your responsibility.”

"It's wonderful that you understand," Zhao Fangxu said politely, then advised, "Wang, given the current situation, I suggest you stay in China for a while. We can provide you with protection."

King Nathan shook his head again:
"Zhao, thank you for your kindness, but as king, I cannot cower here."

“Since his goal is the Divine Tree, he will naturally return to Nathan Island.”

"Moreover, Behemoth and his men may soon land on the island. I must take Nathanwei back to defend our island and our sacred tree."

“As king, I cannot abandon the people of the island. Without the sacred tree and the people of the island, my kingship is meaningless.”

"From the day I was chosen by the divine tree, this has been my mission."

"So, I have to go back."

Zhao Fangxu finally nodded. "In that case, we will respect your wishes."

“Thank you for your understanding. If possible, I hope to set off as soon as possible,” King Nathan said.

Zhao Fangxu nodded again, then beckoned to Zhang Chulan standing to the side and gave the order:
"Chu Lan, take some men and escort King Nathan to the airport."

"No problem, Mr. Zhao!"

……

Half a day later.

Headquarters of Nadutong, Chairman's Office.

"Come in."

Zhang Chulan pushed open the door and entered. He turned around, closed the door, and leaned over to the desk to report:
"Mr. Zhao, Nathan Wang and his entourage have boarded the plane, and everything is going smoothly."

"That's good."

Zhao Fangxu nodded and continued looking down at the documents in his hand.

But soon he realized that Zhang Chulan was still standing in the same spot, showing no intention of leaving.

Zhao Fangxu raised an eyebrow and asked:

"What, is there anything else?"

Upon hearing the question, Zhang Chulan immediately walked forward with a grin, stood in front of Zhao Fangxu's desk, and requested:
"Mr. Zhao, are you planning to send someone to the island? Why don't you let me go?"

“We are indeed going to send an observation team. My original plan was for Bo Ren to lead the team,” Zhao Fangxu looked up at Zhang Chulan, “but if Chulan wants, I can change it—”

“President Zhao, how could I possibly take over Chairman Huang’s job!” Zhang Chulan interrupted Zhao Fangxu with an incredulous look, then forced a sincere smile, “Hehe, actually I wanted to bring Sister Bao’er to the island in a private capacity.”

"Oh?" Zhao Fangxu raised an eyebrow. "You want to go to Nathan Island for personal reasons?"

Zhang Chulan nodded. "President Zhao, I won't hide it from you anymore. I do want to go to Nathan Island because of Bao'er's background."

"Last time, didn't we speculate that Qu Tong was behind the incident on Nathan Island? Qu Tong did this because there are things on Nathan Island related to the Jia Shen Rebellion."

"So, I want to go and see."

Zhang Chulan continued:
"If I go to the island as an observer, I can't do anything except protect myself. So I'd rather go with Bao'er in a personal capacity."

Zhao Fangxu pondered for a moment and said in a deep voice, "Chu Lan, I understand your thoughts, but as representatives of the domestic supernatural forces, we must consider all aspects when doing things."

"Because of Lü Liang's meddling, this meeting has become quite lively."

“Behemoth’s men ran into trouble here, and Elijah was never caught… Rumors are circulating that the assassination and the true and false king incidents were all orchestrated by our All-Knowing Group.”

“They say that Nathan’s tentacles have reached out to Nathan Island, and that we want to turn King Nathan into our puppet and take control of the Divine Tree.”

"The current situation is very sensitive, and we can't act rashly."

Upon hearing Zhao Fangxu's words, Zhang Chulan was not discouraged; instead, a smile appeared on his lips.

He leaned forward and winked at Zhao Fangxu, saying:
"Mr. Zhao, since we've already taken this stigma, why don't we just make it a reality?"

"Didn't they say we were going to take control of Nathan Island? Why don't we just do as they wish!"

"Chu Lan," Zhao Fangxu cleared his throat and said seriously, "Our entire organization has always pursued harmony and stability..."

“I understand, I understand.” Zhang Chulan immediately nodded in understanding. “Hehe, we, the All-Knowing Ones, are not like Behemoth. We are here to stop Behemoth.”

"Speaking of which, King Nathan has an Eastern face, so rounding up, he's practically one of us."

"How can we just stand by and watch her be bullied by Behemoth's men?"

"We at Nadutong cannot be the ones to actively disrupt the situation, but if someone makes the first move, then we can certainly intervene as a force for maintaining peace!"

After giving a passionate speech, Zhang Chulan looked at Zhao Fangxu with shining eyes:

"Mr. Zhao, do you think my understanding is correct?"

"Ahem! I didn't say anything."

Zhao Fangxu coughed twice, his face still bearing an upright and dignified expression, but his eyes revealed obvious admiration.

Some things can be "real," but not "famous."

Zhang Chulan is indeed a very perceptive child.

……

At this moment, Zhang Chulan thought to himself: President Zhao is quite easy to talk to.

What he and Zhao Fangxu said just now was the truth, but not the whole truth.

Because, on his way back to the headquarters of Nadutong from the airport, he received a communication from Lü Liang.

From Lü Liang, he learned that on that island, there was not only a group of thirty-six thieves who possessed the Eight Extraordinary Skills, but also another key figure.

If he could successfully bring that person back, he could use that person to exchange with Old Master Lu Jin for the sacred artifact left behind by the Trinity Sect.

After all, living people are more important than inanimate objects.

And once they obtained that sacred relic...

Thinking of this, Zhang Chulan turned his head to look at Feng Baobao beside him, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

They are not far from recreating the ritual and figuring out Bao'er's background. (End of Chapter)