A Dish Best Served Cold (The Man In Rage)

Chapter 2219 Shocking Ye Qingtian To The Core

“What?”

“War God, Sword Saint, and King of Fighters are going to participate in Dragon Gate Project as well?” © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

“Doesn't that mean we'll have three less spots for ourselves?”

A loud commotion broke out among the crowd after hearing about the participation of War God and the others.

Even so, they knew better than to complain about the arrangement.

After all, War God had done a lot for the country, so it would only be fair to grant him a spot in Dragon Gate's training even if he didn't get chosen.

That showed how effective Dragon Gate was at boosting one's power, as a person like War God wouldn't have been tempted by it otherwise.

The black Dragon Gate closed once again and went back into the ground right after Chen Jiuzhou finished making his announcement.

The crowd then dispersed as everyone left to make their preparations for the next day.

As the people left, Chen Jiuzhou noticed Ye Fan standing next to Ye Qingtian.

“You're still here, Chu Tianfan? I must say, you have some guts remaining in Mount Yan after hurting my subordinate! Did you really think I wouldn't dare kill you?” Chen Jiuzhou shouted with an icy-cold and murderous look in his eyes.

Ye Fan wasn't about to back down, either. “Feel free to go ahead and try.”

The tension in the air skyrocketed as the two stared each other down.

“Jiuzhou, have you forgotten what Moryana said? We cannot afford to have any mishaps now that Dragon Gate Project has entered its critical stage. Besides, Ye Fan only came over to Mount Yan to observe Dragon Gate Project out of curiosity. He has no ill intentions,” Ye Qingtian explained in an attempt to de-escalate the situation.

His explanation worked as Chen Jiuzhou stopped giving Ye Fan a hard time after hearing that.

“What's the matter? Does he want to participate in Dragon Gate training as well? If so, then that's perfectly fine. After all, we came up with Dragon Gate Project in order to strengthen the martial arts world of China, to begin with. Chu Tianfan may have disobeyed War God Castle's orders, but he is still a citizen of China. If he wishes to participate in this Dragon Gate training, War God Castle would be more than happy to grant him a spot in this training exercise.”

Chen Jiuzhou's sudden act of kindness caught both Ye Qingtian and Sword Saint completely off guard.

They were not expecting him to be so generous when it came to Dragon Gate training.

“Hahaha! I'm glad you feel that way, Jiuzhou! One must be able to let go of past grudges and see the bigger picture in order to achieve success. That is how you become a great leader. In order to rule a country, a king must first accept all of its people without discrimination. We feel safe handing China's martial arts world over to you.”

War God and Sword Saint both had relieved smiles on their faces.

Chen Jiuzhou simply kept quiet and flashed them a meaningful smile in response.

He then stopped asking Ye Fan to leave War God Castle and went off to take care of other things.

“Ye Fan, you should learn a thing or two from Jiuzhou on how to manage your personal grudges. Putting your individual strengths aside, having such a magnanimous mindset is crucial to achieving success in life. Do you have any idea how valuable a spot in this Dragon Gate training is? A wealthy merchant once offered Jiuzhou ten billion to purchase a spot for his son, but Jiuzhou turned him down. Even so, he has offered you a spot even without me asking him to. That shows how much he cares about China's future,” Ye Qingtian said with a relieved smile after Chen Jiuzhou left.

“Do you really think Chen Jiuzhou is that kind-hearted? He definitely has ulterior motives behind that offer of his!” Ye Fan replied with a sneer.

“How could you say that, Ye Fan? Jiuzhou was kind enough to grant you a free spot in this training! Not only do you not thank him for it, but you're also accusing him of having ulterior motives?” Ye Qingtian asked with a frown.

Instead of answering his question right away, Ye Fan glanced about before whispering, “Are you free tonight, War God? There are some things that I would like to discuss with you in private.”

Still displeased with Ye Fan's attitude, Ye Qingtian turned him down. “I have a meeting later, so I'm afraid I won't have time for you tonight.”

“What I want to discuss concerns the survival of this country and possibly even the rest of the world. It's up to you whether you come to see me or not,” Ye Fan said calmly and walked out of War God Castle before Ye Qingtian could even respond.

Ye Qingtian froze in shock after hearing those words.

It didn't sound like he was joking, but Chu Sect had been destroyed, and Chu Yuan is dead. Peace has finally been restored to the martial arts world, so what could possibly threaten the safety of our country?

“I think you should go see him, Ye. Chu Tianfan isn't the kind of person to joke about such things,” Sword Saint advised.

“All right.” Ye Qingtian nodded and headed over later that night.

The two then headed over to a restaurant and found themselves a table by the window.

“Well? Go on, then. What is the true purpose of your visit to Mount Yan?” Ye Qingtian asked after ordering some food and drinks.

“What I am about to tell you may sound ridiculous, but I hope you will believe me for the sake of this world's safety,” Ye Fan said.

Ye Qingtian was already feeling nervous just by hearing that.

“I suspect that the so-called 'Dragon Gate' is a conspiracy and the source of a disaster that threatens to destroy the world. Those who train in Dragon Gate have all been imprinted with a spirit seal that will turn them into puppets.

With a solemn look on his face, Ye Fan then proceeded to tell Ye Qingtian about his suspicions.

Ye Qingtian was so shocked by what he heard that he leaped to his feet.

“A conspiracy by Symborsus? Controlling people like puppets? This is utterly ridiculous! There's no way that's possible! Ye Fan, do you even realize what you're saying? Let's first put aside your absurd accusation of Dragon Gate being the forbidden door and the source of some huge disaster. I can't believe you actually think our seniors above the Empyrean Ranking have been turned into Symborsus' puppets! This is simply not possible! Have you forgotten the cultivation level of Moryana, Asura, and the others? They're all god realm masters! Nothing in this world could possibly enslave god realm masters!”

Ye Qingtian's intense reaction was partially due to the shocking nature of Ye Fan's words.

After all, the modern martial arts world believed in the Empyrean Ranking faithfully and saw those at the top of it as their leaders.

If such powerful individuals were to become Symborsus' puppets, then Symborsus would have the entire world at its fingertips.

Symborsus could even use War God Castle as its weapon.

“War God, I assure you that everything I said is true, and I have the Chu family's ancient books to prove that. I believe that Chen Jiuzhou only agreed to let me participate in the Dragon Gate training because he wanted me to be imprinted with a spirit seal and become one of Symborsus' puppets,” Ye Fan said solemnly, but Ye Qingtian shook his head stubbornly in response.

After taking a moment to calm down, Ye Qingtian replied, “I know you're not joking, Ye Fan. However, your suspicions are, as the word suggests, merely just suspicions. I don't think there is a being powerful enough to control the spirits of god realm masters, and I certainly don't believe that Moryana and Jiuzhou are trying to harm our country. Besides, if this terrifyingly powerful being does exist, why would it cultivate fighters and enslave people? What could be the motive behind that? It makes no sense at all. If it is powerful enough to control multiple individuals from the Empyrean Ranking, then destroying the world should be a piece of cake for it. There's no reason for it to go through so much trouble just to destroy the world, is there?”