Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 417 - 410: From Otherworld to Space

Chapter 417: Chapter 410: From Otherworld to Space

Just as the two men were whispering, the door suddenly creaked open. Quickly moving aside, they saw Lin Wei standing at the door, watching as a downcast Luo’er left the room.

"What..." Wang Xu turned his head to look at Lin Wei with a puzzled expression as he watched Luo’er’s retreating figure.

"Suspend him for a month, then send him to the confinement room!" Lin Wei ordered sternly with his hands behind his back.

"Understood, I’ll take care of it right away!" Li Si instinctively saluted before turning around to follow Luo’er.

"Wang Xu," Lin Wei stepped forward and lightly patted his arm, lowering his head as he spoke, "find him a larger confinement room. Don’t let him touch anything for a month."

"Oh," Wang Xu stared blankly at him, then snapped back to reality, understanding his meaning. He eagerly nodded, "I understand, I’ll arrange it right away!"

For Lin Wei, a larger confinement room was code for Wang Xu to confine Luo’er in a manor where he wouldn’t be free to run around. In essence, Lin Wei was allowing Luo’er to have a break and rest at the previous secret base.

When it came to Luo’er, Lin Wei genuinely couldn’t be harsh. Each time he wanted to punish him more severely, he would involuntarily think of Luo’er’s father. His stern resolve would immediately dissipate.

Although his scolding was fierce, he wasn’t heartless enough to punish Luo’er. For now, he wanted him to lay low until the group had dispersed. Afterwards, the Advance Team could return to their work.

Ever since the end of the third Otherworld War, the significance of the Advance Team had dwindled. The headquarters’ main focus currently was establishing a good relationship with the Church Court and strengthening their cooperation.

The emergence of the new Otherworld Gate had altered the Mingming Plan. Previously, the headquarters had painstakingly brought Otherworlders from Australia and sent them to Haiya Academy. The considerable financial and energetic resources this process consumed were astonishing. The presence of the Otherworld Gate near Shenghua Academy provided them with a new idea.

If they could activate the Otherworld Gate leading to Shenghua Academy, then they could transport Otherworlders unimpeded, thereby expanding the scope of the Mingming Plan.

Consequently, after the appearance of the second Otherworld Gate, the Mingming Plan was revised. Haiya Academy, originally the primary base of the Mingming Plan, was relegated to secondary importance, and Shenghua Academy took its place.

However, controlling the Otherworld Gates meant starting with the Otherworld. The reason the headquarters wanted to strengthen cooperation with the Church Court was their interest in Lipei’s Otherworld Gate. They hoped that the Church Court, as their partner, could help them reopen the Otherworld Gate in Lipei and even lease Lipei to them, allowing headquarters to fully command an Otherworld Gate and end their dependence on the Australian Otherworld Gate.

However, at present, the relationship between the headquarters and the Church Court hasn’t reached the stage where giving up territory casually can be considered. The preferred method to encourage the Church Court to give up land is to create a situation where they owe the headquarters favors.

At present, the relationship between headquarters and the Church Court is limited to, "I will help you secure votes at the United Nations, and you provide me support in the Otherworld." The report from the Advance Team suggests that the Church Court had mixed feelings about its exchanges with headquarters.

Nevertheless, the headquarters is experienced in resolving such issues. After all, didn’t they successfully handle the anti-cooperation faction among the high-peak dwarves led by Ronisca?

First, they needed to demonstrate the benefits of cooperation to the Church Court to further warm their relationship. The Church Court’s promise to the Advance Team to hunt down Fu’en clearly indicated they were willing to show favor, but Luo’er’s team ended up wasting this opportunity, which infuriated Lin Wei.

With respect to the Space Administration, it’s already chaotic enough inside the headquarters, and Lin Wei doesn’t want them to add to the confusion.

"Chief, may I inquire about the matter concerning the people from the Space Administration?" Wang Xu hesitantly asked in his presence.

"Ask," Lin Wei looked him up and down before saying, "You’re a military sergeant. You don’t have to be so polite with me."

"Why does the Space Administration suddenly have an interest in the Otherworld? Shouldn’t their main focus be on space?" Wang Xu asked, looking perplexed having received the permission.

"The Space Administration proposed a rather ambitious plan when they heard about the Otherworld Gate near Shenghua Academy. They want to use the Otherworld Gate to put humans in space," Lin Wei explained after a moment’s silence.

"How are they going to use the Otherworld Gate to reach space?" Wang Xu asked, astounded.

"I’m not sure. They need Fu’en to provide the foundation for their theory. If Fu’en can confirm the correctness of their theory, they’ll submit the plan to the government. We might have to collaborate with them," Lin Wei confirmed.

"So, that’s why they desperately need Fu’en?" Wang Xu asked, stunned.

"Yes," Lin Wei sighed, "Honestly, I’ve always felt that Fu’en isn’t particularly important, and he’s not the only one in the Otherworld capable of opening Otherworld Gates. But there’s no harm in letting the Advance Team follow the lead. However, once the Space Administration gets involved, we no longer have jurisdiction over Fu’en. The success or failure of the Advance Team directly impacts the interests of our headquarters."

"So what does that mean for us now?" Wang Xu asked hesitantly.

"I’m here because of this matter. Tighten the reins on your team and don’t spread unnecessary information. It’s better to keep some things to ourselves. The last thing I want is for the Advance Team to be sent back because of this. Luo’er is a rare talent. Without him, a lot of work would stall," Lin Wei admonished.

"Why not just bring in Murong Squad?" asked Wang Xu.

"No way," Lin Wei shook his head and said, "Never mind that their experience doesn’t come close to Luo’er’s team, the key point is that I can’t trust them. To some extent, we’ve seen Luo’er grow up since he was a kid. We should know what kind of person he is. It’s a lot more reassuring to use him than anyone else."

"Should we notify the Church Court?" Wang Xu enquired.

"Forget it. Our relationship with them isn’t that good at the moment anyway; let’s just leave it be. If there isn’t any issue, keep Luo’er and his team confined and don’t let them wander around. When there’s an opportunity to cooperate with people from the Church Court, then let the Advance Team move out," Lin Wei advisedly said.

"I see!" Wang Xu nodded.

"Well, I’ve said everything I needed to say. I need to get going now before the C.I.A start trailing me!" Lin Wei sighed.

"Right, stay safe!" Wang Xu nodded and said.

"The same goes for you guys. Hire more mercenaries for protection. We can’t let what happened last time happen again!" Lin Wei instructed.

"I understand, I will attend to it immediately!" Wang Xu nodded respectfully.

After finishing his sentence, Lin Wei hurriedly left. Watching his retreating figure, Wang Xu couldn’t help but muttered to himself, "At the end of the day, he’s got a bark worse than his bite. I actually thought he would send Luo’er back. Seems like he’s the type who’s inclined to protect Luo’er."

What surprised Wang Xu the most was Lin Wei’s attitude toward Luo’er, which was much better than he expected. Lin Wei evidently didn’t forget the kindness that Luo Chuan had shown him in the past, so he didn’t make things overly difficult for Luo’er.

Having seen off Lin Wei, Wang Xu went straight to the confinement room. This was the place where Tangmo was previously confined, and now it was Luo’er’s turn.

Luo’er was sitting in a chair with his head down, silent. Wang Xu walked in and he just raised his head to glance at him, then resumed his dejected state.

"You’re being quite obedient this time." Wang Xu gave a smirk looking at Luo’er.

"If I did something wrong, of course I should be punished..." Luo’er replied, head still bowed down.

"You’re someone who lets your mood affect me," Wang Xu sighed lightly and opened the door, "Let’s go, no need to stay here anymore!"

"Where are we going?" Luo’er picked his head up and asked with a surprised expression.

"The chief said he wants to give you a bigger confinement room." Wang Xu replied.

"Are they sending me back to Earth?" Luo’er’s heart sank at the possibility of his repatriation.

"All right, all right. They’re not sending you back to Earth. They just want you to change your environment!" Wang Xu said, looking a little exasperated at Luo’er’s panic.

"Where to?" A sigh of relief washed over Luo’er upon learning he wouldn’t be sent back.

"The chief wants to change your confinement room. How about that vacation estate you guys stayed at before?" Wang Xu asked with a laugh.

"Vacation? But I’m suppose to be confined..." Luo’er asked blankly.

"This is what the chief meant. He wants you to be confined at the estate. Just think of it as getting a month off," Wang Xu explained.

"But, wouldn’t this defy the discipline? The chief ordered me to..." Luo’er hesitated.

"You really are a thick-headed one, can’t even figure out this much. Even though the chief scolded you severely, he didn’t actually want to punish you. What more can be done after the rebuke. Just relax for a month, it should also be a good way to lay low for a bit," Wang Xu laughed as he said this.

"Is this really what the chief meant?" Luo’er asked, looking a little fearful.

"Of course! Or else do you think I would have disobeyed straight out?" Wang Xu retorted.

"Well, so I’m... I’m not being punished?" Luo’er asked, then hesitantly stepped out of the confinement room.