Full-Time Martial Saint

Chen Cong lowered his head and drank the tea in his hand, not in a hurry to express his opinion.

Ultimately, the Ning family helped Ning Yuhang because they asked him for the favor, but as for the sworn brotherhood... Chen Cong felt that Ning Yuhang should have known about it beforehand.

From Tuesday until now, a period of four or five days, he hasn't revealed any information, presumably not intending to leave himself any room for maneuver, betting that he wouldn't be able to refuse in front of Old Master Ning.

However... Chen Cong felt that this idea probably didn't come from Ning Yuhang.

Although Ning Yuhang, born into a family of officials, is somewhat shrewd, he is ultimately too inexperienced to do this.

Slowly setting down his teacup, Chen Cong said with a faint smile, "I'm flattered by Grandpa Ning's high regard. My family is of modest means, and becoming sworn brothers with Yu Hang would be a great honor for us. Perhaps... you'd like to reconsider?"

Ning Zhenshan had been paying attention to his expression, and upon hearing this, he couldn't help but laugh.

"I heard from Yu Hang that you were previously a student in the key class of the Cultural Academy of Xiangcheng No.1 Middle School, but now you have transferred to the Martial Arts Academy. You also have an amazing comprehension in martial arts, which is truly rare."

"As the old saying goes, 'One can govern the country with pen and conquer the world with sword;' this is the kind of person who can be a pillar of the state."

"I won't lie to you today, the Ning family values ​​you as a person, not your family background."

Ning Zhenshan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and praised without reservation, "I've been in politics for decades, and I'm quite good at judging people, to say the least."

"With your temperament, character, and talent in martial arts, the Ning family might need to rely on you in the future, haha..."

His words, spoken with a half-joking sincerity, made Chen Cong feel very comfortable.

Sometimes people are like that. When someone is very frank about "I just want to take advantage of you" and wants to cooperate with you for mutual benefit, you may not feel too disgusted.

In just a few words, Chen Cong had roughly figured out the pros and cons of becoming sworn brothers with Ning Yuhang, and had made a decision in his heart.

As soon as Ning Zhenshan finished speaking, he followed up by saying, "I didn't expect Grandpa Ning to value me so much. I'm so ashamed."

"In that case, I'll do whatever you say then, I have no objections."

Upon hearing Chen Cong's personal agreement, Ning Yuhang's worried expression instantly turned into a smile, and he exclaimed excitedly, "That's great!"

Ning Zhenshan nodded with a smile: "Okay, but you should inform your parents about this first. It's only right and proper that they know in advance."

"I'll arrange the sworn brotherhood ceremony. You guys go have fun first."

……

As soon as the two came out of the corridor outside the courtyard, Ning Yuhang immediately apologized: "I'm sorry, Chen Cong, I should have told you about this beforehand, but Grandpa..."

Chen Cong gently shook his head: "The old man wanted to test me. It wouldn't be fun if he told me beforehand."

Ning Yuhang smiled somewhat awkwardly: "Grandpa has always been like this, but... he seems to really like you."

"The admiration he showed in his eyes just now is something he only does when he's with Ning Shuang."

Ning Shuang?

Chen Cong frowned slightly and asked, "Is that the girl who was standing next to the old man just now?"

Ning Yuhang nodded and said, "She is my third uncle's daughter, a specially recruited student at the Star Weapon Research Institute of Kyoto University, and she is only sixteen years old this year."

"Although martial arts are flourishing in this era, Grandpa said that the Ning family is a family of scholars, and the cultural heritage must not be broken. Therefore, he values ​​Ning Shuang more than his other brothers and sisters."

"Tonight's business dinner can be said to have been specially organized by the old man for Ning Shuang."

"Oh?" Chen Cong asked, somewhat puzzled, "What exactly will we be discussing at the dinner?"

Business banquets usually have a theme so that guests can prepare relevant information in advance.

Chen Cong hadn't expected that the main character of the Ning family's business dinner tonight would be that little girl named Ning Shuang from earlier.

Ning Yuhang thought for a moment and said, "You know about star artifacts, right?"

Chen Cong nodded.

Having taken Ma Xinhua's advice, he borrowed some relevant books from the school library and has already brushed up on a lot of knowledge related to the world of martial arts.

Star weapons are short for space weapons.

With the arrival of the fusion realm, alien monsters are rampaging. Traditional firearms can still be effective against first and second-tier fusion realm monsters, but they become somewhat useless against third-tier and above beings.

Monsters of level three and above either have extremely high defense or extremely high speed, and their vitality is so strong that they can withstand the bombardment of ordinary missiles.

Blue Star also possesses nuclear weapons, but those weapons have long been taboo. In fact, many countries that possess nuclear weapons have voluntarily destroyed their stored nuclear weapons, simply because at the beginning of the fusion world, when the order of the entire Blue Star was about to collapse, a country released a terrifying nuclear warhead on the fusion world battlefield.

The final outcome was that although the nuclear bomb killed tens of thousands of fused monsters, the radiation energy caused the surviving fused monsters on the periphery to rapidly mutate, becoming even more ferocious and powerful than before.

As the epicenter of the nuclear explosion, the Saint Francis region has become a paradise for numerous fusion monsters due to the residual radiation. Today, that area has become one of the most terrifying forbidden zones on Earth.

Since the "Saint-Fran Disaster," the nations of Earth have gradually abandoned their previous technological paths and slowly found new research directions in alien races and fused realms.

Starry Sky Weapons primarily originate from the ruins of the Fusion Realm or powerful alien monsters; they are extremely powerful and mysterious entities.

In recent centuries, through various analyses of existing star artifacts, countries have developed super materials such as "T-series alloys," "Phantom series alloys," and "elemental resonance materials," which can be used to forge armor and weapons for warriors.

Unfortunately, to date, no individual or force among the nations of Blue Star, including the Martial Peak Hall and the Green Mountain Martial Academy, has been able to research the specific forging methods of Star Weapons, nor have they been able to replicate genuine Star Weapons.

"So, tonight's business dinner is related to star artifacts?" Chen Cong thought for a moment and asked with some interest.

If the theme of the banquet is indeed related to celestial artifacts, then my trip won't have been in vain.

Ning Yuhang nodded slightly: "Ning Shuang has a research project that has entered the experimental stage. After obtaining the consent of her supervisor and Kyoto University, she plans to build a laboratory in Xiangcheng, and may also build a supporting production workshop."

"As you know, star artifacts are high-end technology. Although the Ning family has some resources, they can't support it alone."

"The main purpose of this banquet is to find some reliable forces to join us. On the one hand, it's to share the risks, and on the other hand..." Ning Yuhang paused, chuckled, and continued, "It's easy to be jealous if you eat it all yourself. If we share the cake, everyone can live in peace."

Chen Cong couldn't help but nod after hearing this.

After so many years of open and covert struggles among various forces in Xiangcheng, almost all industries have been divided up.

The rise of a new industry, which involves high-end items like star artifacts, means that all the prominent figures in Xiangcheng probably want a piece of the pie.

Although the Ning family is backed by the Kyoto University Star Weapon Research Institute, even a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake. If other forces do not benefit, there will definitely be a lot of trouble in the future.

Having spent so many years in officialdom, Old Master Ning was well-versed in its intricacies.

"Alright, we don't need to worry about this. Once the research institute and factory are settled, I'll go find Ning Shuang and see if I can get her some cool gadgets for us!"

Ning Yuhang smiled and patted Chen Cong on the shoulder, saying, "Since we still have some time, I happen to have some questions about boxing techniques. Let's find another place to talk about it."

Chen Cong nodded and walked with him toward the small courtyard next door.