Brass Dragons in the Dragon World

After Friedrich arrived in China, he quickly made contact with the Heaven and Earth Society. He did not understand the situation in China and simply regarded the Heaven and Earth Society as an underground organization similar to the Secret Society.

At the request of the Secret Society, Friedrich acquired antiquities related to the Dragon Clan in China. The Heaven and Earth Society naturally possessed these antiquities, but most of them were family heirlooms and could not be sold.

So the demon slayers in the Heaven and Earth Society tried every means to get some useless scrap paper or particularly dangerous alchemical tools to sell to the Secret Society, in order to cheat... no, to exchange for some funds.

"So you're treating the Secret Service like a sucker?"

Ander felt he had made the right decision to kidnap this guy, as he had actually heard something so interesting.

Angers, standing to the side with a dark expression, recalled that for a period of time, the antiquities that came from China were either scraps of paper covered with mad ramblings or extremely dangerous alchemical artifacts.

For example, terracotta figurines that can kill, or Hanfu (traditional Han clothing) that can strangle someone if worn.

At the time, the Secret Society thought they had struck gold. He and Menek spent that time fighting against those alchemical artifacts, only to find that they were unusable. All they could do was try to kill anyone who got close to them.

"So that's how it is..."

Angers looked at Chu Hao in front of him. The Secret Party had been kept in the dark by that guy Lu Shanyan from the very beginning. They were being taken advantage of without even realizing it, and a lot of wealth had been lost for nothing.

"We are willing to sell foreign goods; that is a blessing for you foreigners."

Chu Hao clearly felt no remorse for swindling money from the secret service; swindling foreigners was called robbing the rich to help the poor.

Ander ignored Angers, who seemed about to explode; he hadn't finished listening to his story yet.

"How did Friedrich get involved with the dragon veins?"

The story continues. Friedrich wasn't someone who didn't know his stuff. After being swindled out of a lot of money by the Heaven and Earth Society, he probably realized what was going on and suggested going to Beijing to find some older items.

The Heaven and Earth Society couldn't just grab a fat sheep and fleece it. Just then, the old witch escaped from Beijing, and the Heaven and Earth Society wanted to take advantage of the foreigners' influence to establish a base in the capital.

Friedrich and the Heaven and Earth Society hit it off immediately, and he followed a group of them northwards.

Meanwhile, the demon slayers, having amassed a fortune, began their plan to destroy the dragon vein. After purchasing explosives and firearms, they suddenly realized they had forgotten something very important.

Where exactly is the dragon vein?

"So you don't even know where the dragon vein is?"

Ander shouted out loud, "What has the Heaven and Earth Society been doing for the past few hundred years? Drinking tea and slacking off?"

Chu Hao avoided Ander's gaze and explained:

"The Qing demons are capturing demon slayers everywhere, and many lineages have been broken. How can we find the dragon vein?"

In China, due to the imperial court's widespread capture of mixed-race individuals, many families of demon slayers were destroyed, their lineages were largely broken, and even those who wanted to learn about dragons had nowhere to go.

The most educated member of the Heaven and Earth Society was Lu Shanyan, who graduated from the Tongwen Guan in Beijing. By later standards, he was at most a bachelor's degree holder, and his studies were mainly in English translation. His knowledge of dragons was far inferior to that of Angers.

So these mixed-race people who hadn't even finished elementary school had no idea how to find the dragon vein. Then someone suggested, "We don't have much education, but there happens to be an educated person here."

Therefore, Friedrich, an archaeologist with high academic qualifications and knowledge of dragons, became the only candidate to find the dragon vein.

"You're really so comfortable letting a foreigner help you find the dragon vein?"

“There are brothers watching him, and besides, we haven’t told him openly.”

Chu Hao explained that, at his behest, the Heaven and Earth Society secretly revealed information about the dragon vein. Friedrich was indeed fooled. After searching day and night, Friedrich decided to go to Tongwan City, which was the most likely location.

After hearing the whole story, Ander couldn't help but sigh:

"Lack of education is truly terrifying..."

Chapter Twenty-Two: Magic Isn't Free

In the Western-style living room, Angers and André listened to Chouchou recount stories of the past.

Upon hearing that Friedrich had gone to Tongwan City to search for the dragon vein, he couldn't help but ask:

"Didn't you try to stop him?"

"No, we thought we'd let this foreigner scout ahead first. Anyway, he's not one of our own, so we won't feel bad if he dies."

Upon hearing this, Angers finally couldn't hold back any longer. In his view, the Heaven and Earth Society should bear at least half the responsibility for the complete annihilation of the Secret Society.

Do you know who I am?

Angers asked

“You are a fellow member of the Fryth family, one of those secret agents.”

Chu Hao answered honestly.

The next second, Angers appeared in front of Chu Hao, a folding knife held to his neck.

"Since you already know, why..."

Chu Hao stiffened his neck, looking as if he could kill or torture Chu Hao at will.

"It was Fu's own choice to go and explore the dragon vein; you may kill him if you wish."

The folding knife trembled against Chu Hao's neck, cutting through the skin and drawing a drop of blood.

Angers remained silent for a long time, then a flash of light appeared...

Chu Hao's restraints were severed by Angers.

Chu Hao did not get up, but continued to sit in the chair and move his wrists.

"I thought you were going to kill me."

Angers shook his head and walked back to his original spot.

"To kill Friedrich, we need some helpers."

A smile appeared on Chu Hao's poker face as he slapped his thigh and said, "Welcome to the team."

Have you forgotten about me?

Ander watched a bizarre scene unfold. Angers suddenly tried to kill Chu Hao, and then the two suddenly cooperated, leaving Long completely baffled.

However, he still remembered what he was supposed to do.

"Hey Chu... Xiong, I'm asking you, you want me to help you blow up the dragon vein, right?"

"Exactly."

Chu Hao nodded repeatedly, his neck joints making a cracking sound.

"Is there any compensation?"

Chu Hao was somewhat surprised by Ander's snobbishness and explained:

"Mr. Lu..."

"Just call me Ander."

I'm getting a little confused by being called Mr. Lu all the time, so I prefer to call him Ander.

“Mr. Ander, destroying the dragon vein was Brother Lu’s lifelong wish. As his elder, don’t you want to inherit it…”

"He is him, and I am me. Don't try to intimidate me with any family feuds or national hatred."

Chu Hao never expected that Ande would be so shameless, completely disregarding Lu Shanyan's last wish.

"Without the dragon vein, the Lu family can now expand and multiply without worry..."

"I'm not even married, and you're telling me this?"

Ander didn't care whether the Lu family would have more descendants; he only cared whether the future protagonist could be born.

What exactly do you want?

Chu Hao began to doubt whether the prophecy brought by the 'real man' with his life was correct. This Lu Ander was very strong, but how could he be such a treacherous person who would betray his principles for personal gain?

“Kid, let me tell you, just because Angers agreed to your request doesn’t mean I did.”

Ander adopted a carefree attitude. He knew that even if his goals aligned with those of the Heaven and Earth Society, he couldn't work for free, especially since the Heaven and Earth Society had come to him for help.

"Your Heaven and Earth Society must have a lot of good stuff, right? You probably won't be able to use it after destroying the dragon vein, so why not give it to me?"

Chu Hao looked troubled. The only things that Ander could call treasures were those ancestral alchemical artifacts.

“Senior Ander, the Demon-Slaying Hall of the Heaven and Earth Society is not limited to my Chu family. Those treasures are all family heirlooms of other families.”

Ander looked displeased. He thought, "You think you can hire him without spending a penny? Are you kidding me?"

"But I can give you all the treasures of the Chu family."

Ander's brow relaxed. Even one family would do. He knew how wealthy these mixed-race families were when he was in Germany.

Take the Kassel family of Meneke Kassel, for example. Their ancestors were from the old Roman Plain Purple Banner, and their family had so much gold that it could cover the floor, and all kinds of gems and antiques were piled from the warehouse floor to the ceiling.

Ander still has a bunch of various gems in his storage bag, all of them quite large, which Angers took from the vault in Kassel.

Even one would be fine. Unlike those evil dragons, Ander prefers to acquire wealth through his own labor. If the Chu family were as wealthy as the Kassel family, no, even if they were only one-tenth as wealthy as the Kassel family, it would be enough for him to build a comfortable dragon's lair.

But blinded by wealth, Ander forgot one thing: the Heaven and Earth Society was chased like dogs by the Qing Dynasty, and even the money to blow up the dragon vein had to be earned by Lu Shanyan by selling antiques. How could they possibly compare to the Cassel family, whose wealth was comparable to that of a country?

Ander didn't think about these things. He stood up with a smile, walked to Chu Hao's side, put his arm around his shoulder, and said:

“Brother Chu, you’re being too polite. Since blowing up the dragon vein is my nephew’s wish, how can I, as his second uncle, just sit idly by?”

Ander took an Angers coat from the rack next to him and handed it to Chu Hao.

"Come on, it's not good to be naked in the middle of winter."

Chu Hao, still not used to Ander's change, mechanically took the coat and held it in his hands, explaining:

“My Word of Power is: Blazing Sun, which shines through the skin, so I don’t wear a shirt most of the time.”

Ander then realized that Chu Hao was actually a human flashbang, and it was quite remarkable that a grown man could possess such a powerful word.

"Okay, let's continue talking about compensation."

Ander tossed the coat from Chu Hao's hand to Angers and quickly changed the subject.

"You can get your payment after it's all over, but you have to let me inspect the goods and get a good look at them."

Chu Hao saw through Ander's thoughts and, without hesitation, immediately replied:

"All the treasures of my Chu family are in Shanghai. If you have time, I can take you there now."

When Anders and Angers arrived in Shanghai, it was still noon, but now the moon was bright and the stars were few; it was almost midnight.

Ander didn't care about time; when it comes to making money, everyone works from dawn till dusk.