Chapter 438 437: Heading to Thunder Marsh

When Jiang Long heard what Minister Hu said, he was furious. He genuinely had no idea what the man was talking about.

"What are you talking about? I don't get it," Jiang Long said. "I'm incredibly busy. I really don't have time for this."

He'd spent the entire day trying to figure out how to protect Zhou Qianfan. He never imagined a problem would crop up with Old Hu.

"You didn't help me?!"

"Help you with what? I'm in over my head as it is. How could I possibly help you?"

But something felt off. Old Hu was asking if he had helped him, not trying to chew him out.

This meant there was more to it.

"What happened?"

Old Hu explained what happened on the phone. Jiang Long's jaw dropped, and it took him a moment to recover.

"Old Hu, I don't have that kind of power to help you. Maybe you should be thanking Mu Lin. It was probably him who helped you, though I have no idea how he did it."

After Jiang Long finished, Old Hu was completely stunned.

"Jiang Long, are you kidding me? That young man is just a doctor. It's normal for him to be good at saving lives, but there's no way he could have anything to do with my job transfer, right?"

"Are you telling me a mere doctor has more influence than you, a team leader in the esteemed Military Suppression Bureau?"

Jiang Long was struck dumb for a moment. He just remembered that he was still trying to protect Zhou Qianfan on Mu Lin's behalf.

'If Mu Lin had the power to influence Old Hu's position, couldn't he just protect Zhou Qianfan directly?'

"You're right. I was probably overthinking it. Maybe some big shot noticed your abilities and decided to promote you."

Jiang Long sighed. "I'd be lucky to understand even a third of what goes on in politics. If you've truly been noticed by a major figure, then that's your good fortune!"

Old Hu was overjoyed, but years of navigating bureaucracy had taught him to keep his emotions hidden.

He then thought for a moment and asked, "When is your team leader coming back? With him gone for so long, the Nanjiang Military Suppression Bureau is a complete mess, an absolute joke."

"Many of the captains are using the Bureau's authority for personal gain. I've seen countless cases myself."

"The situation is simply terrible," Old Hu reprimanded with a stern face.

Jiang Long replied, "He should be back soon. I think he's in the East Sea recently. He'll probably return once he's finished his business."

「Mu Lin took a train to East Sea Province and, after a few transfers, arrived in a small city bordering Thunder Marsh.」

The small city had a pier from which one could travel into Thunder Marsh.

According to Luo Wanqing, there was an island within Thunder Marsh where Thunderstruck Wood was relatively common.

Mu Lin figured he should be able to find the Thunder Fruit on the island. Luo Wanqing had said Thunder Marsh was a deserted place, so a slow search shouldn't be too difficult.

But he had a strange feeling. This small town was far too bustling, and all the inns were full.

'This is completely different from a "deserted place"!'

Mu Lin found a restaurant to eat, and it too was crowded with people coming and going. Mu Lin didn't mind. He found a spot, sat down, and started to eat.

Suddenly, another customer approached, looking Mu Lin up and down.

"Excuse me, have you been to Hidden Sword Manor before?"

'What's going on?' Mu Lin thought. 'I'm outside of Nanjiang. How could someone recognize me here?'

The young man said excitedly, "Hello, my name is Pei Yuliang. I'm from Di Yang."

"Back at Hidden Sword Manor, my grandfather and I also wanted that ore, but you unfortunately outbid us for it."

Mu Lin thought for a moment and then remembered.

"Ah, yes. But it's a pity—the ore contained Frost Marrow, so your grandfather wouldn't have been able to use it anyway."

The young man said, "Is that so... That's why we had to come to Thunder Marsh to try and find a piece of Thunderstruck Wood for him. It should have a similar effect."

Mu Lin nodded at Pei Yuliang. "Hello, I'm Mu Lin."

Pei Yuliang grinned at Mu Lin. "You're older than me, so I'll just call you Brother Mu!"

Mu Lin gave an amiable smile. There was no point arguing about things like that.

Pei Yuliang smiled. "Brother Mu, are you sitting at this table alone? Why don't you join us for dinner?"

Mu Lin glanced at Pei Yuliang's companions. They were all impeccably dressed and carried themselves with an air of importance.

'Eating with people like this probably won't be very pleasant,' Mu Lin thought.

He was a simple man with simple tastes, and that was that.

He was about to politely decline when, unexpectedly, a girl from the group looked Mu Lin up and down with disdain.

"Pei Yuliang, don't just bring any riffraff into our circle. If you want to treat him, then treat him separately. Don't put on an act here."

The girl's face was full of contempt. A single glance at Mu Lin told her he wasn't from some powerful, wealthy family, so he shouldn't even think about squeezing his way into their circle.

Resources were scarce enough as it was; there might not even be enough for them. There was no way they were sharing with him.

Pei Yuliang's expression turned quite sour. The situation was extremely awkward.

That girl hadn't left him with a shred of dignity.

He had only gotten excited because he'd met someone else from Nanjiang Province, which was why he'd thought to invite Mu Lin to eat with them.

But he ran into trouble immediately; he couldn't believe the girl had shut him down like that.

Mu Lin said, "Don't feel bad. I was going to decline anyway. You go on ahead. I'm fine just grabbing a quick bite."

Pei Yuliang asked, "Brother Mu, do you know how to use Thunderstruck Wood?"

"Of course," Mu Lin replied.

Pei Yuliang was ecstatic. "Then if I find another piece of Thunderstruck Wood, could I ask you to treat my grandfather?"

Mu Lin asked, "The old man is injured?"

"Yes!"

"Pei Yuliang, how much longer are you going to talk? You're so noisy, it's annoying!" the girl scolded. "If you waste any more time, you can go eat with that beggar!"

Mu Lin gave Pei Yuliang a meaningful look. "We'll talk later."

But Pei Yuliang turned to his companions and said, "I've run into someone from my hometown. You guys go ahead and eat. I'm going to eat with him!"

Pei Yuliang's other companions had already been sizing Mu Lin up. They'd come to the same conclusion as the girl; in short, they all looked down on him.

Pei Yuliang added, "Brother Mu, don't mind them. They're all from the East Sea. They're a lot more particular than us folks from Nanjiang."

'If it were me,' Mu Lin thought, 'I wouldn't have put up with that. I would have slapped them across the face long ago.'

But this was Pei Yuliang's choice, so it wasn't his place to say anything.

"Thunder Marsh is so dangerous. Why did you come yourself? Can't you just buy a piece of Thunderstruck Wood on the market?"

Pei Yuliang said, "Thunderstruck Wood is incredibly rare, and what little exists is mostly held by the major families. Whenever a piece appears, it gets bought up almost instantly. Being so far away in Nanjiang, we don't even get a chance."

"To make sure I can actually get my hands on a piece, I had no choice but to come to Thunder Marsh myself. Even though it's dangerous here, the chances of finding Thunderstruck Wood are much higher than anywhere else."

"Unfortunately, for some reason, the place has been packed with people lately. All the inns are full."

Mu Lin narrowed his eyes. A large crowd meant a great treasure was about to appear, and they were all here for it.

When thinking of a great treasure related to thunder, the first thing that came to mind was the Thunder Fruit.

Thunderstruck Wood might sound rare, but for the major powers, buying it just meant letting it sit in a warehouse.

Keeping it out of others' hands was far more valuable than everyone being able to use it.

"Do you know what this 'good thing' is?"

"My friends said it might be something extremely valuable."

Mu Lin felt a flicker of interest. Perhaps it really was the Thunder Fruit.

"Brother Mu, are you also here looking for treasure?"

Mu Lin said, "That's right. Why else would I come here?"

Pei Yuliang sighed. "Ah, I'm afraid you're in for a disappointment. The island in the middle of Thunder Marsh has already been sealed off by a major power from the East Sea. No one is allowed to enter without their permission."

'Huh?' Mu Lin had genuinely not heard anything about this.

"For real? People can just do that? The island isn't private property. What right do they have to seal it off?"

Pei Yuliang said, "That's what my friends told me. They're all from powerful families in the East Sea. Although they aren't involved in the blockade, their information network is very good. They told me it was done by a super-powerful faction."

"They've sent a lot of Grandmaster-level experts to lock the whole place down. You have to be one of them to even get close. Otherwise, they'll kill you on the spot."

"Tyrannical. That's truly tyrannical!" Pei Yuliang said with endless sorrow.

Mu Lin smiled faintly. "Indeed. But are the local authorities really doing nothing about it?"

Pei Yuliang gave a bitter laugh. "Brother Mu, what could they possibly do?"