Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 301 - 294: Yalunte’s New Task

Chapter 301: Chapter 294: Yalunte’s New Task

"We said, we would never lie to you," Wang Xu stated.

"Then why didn’t you tell me before?" Yalunte raised his voice, as if complaining that Wang Xu had caused them to miss the opportunity to recognize each other.

"Mr. Yalunte, we’ve already taken your promise. You’re not allowed to acknowledge your child now!" said Wang Xu with a stern face.

"There’s no reason a child and father shouldn’t acknowledge each other. Where’s he right now, I want to see him!" Yalunte said loudly, his emotions running high.

"Mr. Yalunte, do you really want to break our agreement?" Wang Xu stepped back with a frown.

Yalunte stared back at him coldly. The suddenness of everything left him reeling. He’d been told, without any preparation, that he’d met his own biological son already, but was immediately warned not to acknowledge him. It left him feeling deceived.

"Mr. Yalunte, acknowledging your child now doesn’t benefit the both of you," said Wang Xu coolly.

"Why not?" Yalunte shot back coldly.

"What do you plan to do with your child? Have him wander around with you? Can he bear to leave his comrades? Can he adapt to your way of life?" Wang Xu’s words hit Yalunte hard. He had only thought about recognizing his child, not considering what to do afterwards.

Right, what would happen after he and Cheng Ziang recognized each other? If he took Cheng Ziang away against the headquarters’ wishes, could he really adapt to such a wandering lifestyle? Could he bear leaving his comrades?

No matter what, for Cheng Ziang, the headquarters had raised him. Although they had their own intentions, this was still his home. Deep down, he considered himself a person of Earth rather than an Otherworlder.

"Ziang is well cared for here and considers himself an Earthling at heart. Mr. Yalunte, how do you plan to deal with him if you take him away? Have him wander with you? I believe Princess Lin would be very happy if Ziang stays here. Are you willing to let him suffer with you?" Wang Xu asked sincerely.

"You should have brought the child back to me after he was born. You’re only looking to control me by using him!" Yalunte argued heatedly.

"If we’d brought him to you, how could you have provided for him? Don’t forget, Mr. Yalunte, you’re a fugitive from Odelanqi and a renegade from the Church of Light. Were you going to let him join you in a life full of endless pursuit?" Wang Xu’s voice grew louder and firmer. The strong tone had Yalunte stunned and left him speechless.

"You always think we killed Princess Lin and used your child to force you to work for us. Then tell me, Mr. Yalunte, if you hadn’t approached us, do you think your child would have survived?" Wang Xu pressed, his voice stern. This time, Yalunte lowered his head, unable to meet his gaze.

Taking a moment, Wang Xu took a deep breath and continued: "This project is costly. The cost of every child who is successfully born and raised is astronomical. You always think we’re using you. So I ask, is it our duty to raise your child, to let him grow up safely, to teach him to read, to teach him to fight and make him a capable person?"

"The money you’ve earned in the past twenty years working for us doesn’t even cover half of our investment. Mr. Yalunte, it’s no concern to us if you want to leave and cut ties. But if you want to take Ziang away, you have to repay all the money we’ve invested in him. If you don’t value our relationship and feel that we are using the child to force you, then let’s talk about money, which is straightforward!" Wang Xu looked at him, his voice cold.

As Wang Xu said, hiring Yalunte to serve them was a normal employment relationship. He performed tasks and the headquarters paid a commission. Their only benefit to him was that they would care for his child to adulthood.

Yalunte lowered his head, silent for a long time before finally speaking in a subdued voice, "I’m sorry, Chief Wang Xu. Please forgive my rashness. I just miss my child so much, so I got a bit emotional..."

Looking at Yalunte’s dejected appearance, Wang Xu couldn’t help but sigh. He stood up, walked over to him, patted his shoulder and said, "We’re about the same age, there’s no need for formalities. Yalunte, I hope you understand that you’re an old friend of the headquarters. We won’t let you suffer. As for the child, it’s best if you don’t get involved for now."

"Can I go see him?" Yalunte asked all of sudden, looking up at Wang Xu.

"That..."

Before Wang Xu could answer, Yalunte said, "Don’t worry, I’ll abide by your rules. I won’t reveal myself to him, but, I really want to see him."

"I’m sorry, they’re out on a mission," Wang Xu said apologetically.

"Where did they go?" Yalunte asked anxiously.

"That’s classified," said Wang Xu.

"Wang Xu," Yalunte called out to him. He then knelt halfway down, admitting his inferiority, then pleaded, "Please, let me see him once, just once."

Wang Xu tried to help the old swordsman up, but he wasn’t one to be easily moved. He sighed, and after giving it some thought, he patted Mr. Yalunte’s shoulder, "Go eat something, change your clothes, and I’ll delegate their tasks to you!"

"Really?!" Mr. Yalunte sprang from his seat, excitedly asking.

Wang Xu stepped back, looking at him irritably before adding, "Listen well, your job is to support them. There are no rewards for this mission, and you can’t drink on the job anymore!"

"Alright, I’ll leave immediately!" Mr. Yalunte said hastily.

"Yalunte, can you listen to me?" Wang Xu shouted from behind him, then said helplessly.

Eventually, Mr. Yalunte complied with Wang Xu’s requirements. After eating a full meal, taking a bath, and changing his clothes, his handsome appearance, which was previously obscured by grime, shone bright and golden, drawing everyone’s attention.

Yalunte was handsome and old enough, with a beard stubble and blonde hair tied into a ponytail, emanating a rugged charm only older men would have, attracting a lot of glances from the maids.

"You clean up pretty good," Li Si brought a horse over to him, sizing him up before remarking.

Even though Mr. Yalunte was significantly older, Li Si found himself getting along quite well with the old man.

"Impertinent brat!" Mr. Yalunte took the reins, retorting.

"Be careful, this horse belongs to Headquarters, you can’t sell it again!" Li Si warned.

"Relax, I won’t drink during this mission!" Mr. Yalunte reassured him, waving his hand.

"Here, this is your mission fund. The boss said even though there’s no reward, there’s still a mission fund." Li Si handed him a bag full of gold coins.

"This much?" Mr. Yalunte weighed the bag of gold coins in astonishment.

"The boss audited your mission fund and rewards last time and found they had been drastically reduced, so he increased your allotment this time." Li Si explained candidly.

"Thanks!" Overwhelmed with gratitude, Mr. Yalunte instinctively looked towards the office. Wang Xu was standing at the door, watching the two of them. Seeing Mr. Yalunte looking over, he couldn’t help but break into a smile.

The reason Wang Xu wanted Mr. Yalunte to find the Advance Team wasn’t out of soft-heartedness, but because he believed the Advance Team could use more manpower.

With a large-scale military mobilization like this one, the Advance Team could find itself in danger. So he figured it would do no harm if Mr. Yalunte lent a hand, as long as they manage to meet up.

As for Mr. Yalunte and Cheng Ziang’s issue, Wang Xu believed Mr. Yalunte to be trustworthy. After all, even if he recognized Cheng Ziang now, it wouldn’t benefit him in any way. Based on Wang Xu’s understanding of Cheng Ziang, the latter wouldn’t leave the Advance Team casually, so there was no need to worry about Mr. Yalunte taking him away.

What worried Wang Xu was the military operation of the Joint Command Department. According to the Ministry of Defense, their troops would be deployed to Yazhi City later this month at the earliest. Regarding whether to send troops or not, the Ministry of Defense was still at odds. They urgently needed information from the Otherworld to assess the danger of mobilization.

Everything that was meant to happen would happen eventually. Wang Xu vaguely remembered the Second Otherworld War 30 years ago, during which he was still young. The war didn’t benefit both sides, but rather created countless tragedies.

Luo Chuan, who was full of vigour and vitality, joined the war and ended up leaving a pitiful child behind, forever freezing his young life at the age of 29.

Then there was Aniya, who joined the war only to be sold as a slave, suffered inhumane treatments, eventually dying while with child.

If this war were to start again, how many tragedies would take place?

Yawning, Wang Xu concluded his pointless lament. A few days ago, the Advance Team had sent some intelligence asking them to look into the legends of the continent. He had just written to the headquarters to send a few experts in Otherworld history, to study the mythology of the Otherworld.

"God who blesses people, and sets the gateway between heaven and earth..." Just as he opened the book of myths, he couldn’t help but read along.