292 One Step Away! (1/2)
The man who had just turned around and revealed his face to Wang Baole was… the giant tree mutation that he had crossed paths with multiple times, and whose road to the Nascent Soul realm had been wrecked by him!
Roaring waves of emotions stirred within Wang Baole, and his breath quickened. He retreated hurriedly, but the doors behind him had been shut. Some sort of array formation had obviously been set up in the room. Wang Baole retreated right up to the doors as beads of sweat dripped profusely from his forehead. He realized he had nowhere to run. His heartbeat started beating rapidly. His face tried to contort into a smile, though it would have been better if he had wept on the spot.
He was going crazy inside his head. Even in his wildest dreams, he wouldn't have expected to see the giant tree again when he arrived at Mars… the giant tree's presence meant one thing. It was clear that he… was the Martian Deputy Governor!
He was scared out of his wits. Wang Baole was prepared to whip out his Dharmic Armament. The gears in his head spun madly. He shouted immediately, in a strangled voice.
”Deputy Governor, I'm of the four Dao Colleges. I've received orders from the Federation President to be deployed here. Don't… don't you do anything rash.”
The giant tree stared frostily at Wang Baole. He observed Wang Baole's actions and could tell the latter was extremely shocked and was prepared to fight for his life. He narrowed his eyes.
”It never occurred to you that the Federation President would grant me a legitimate identity, am I right? I'm now officially a member of the Federation, and the Deputy Governor of the Martian Colony.”
”Do you know why?” the giant tree asked casually. Wang Baole saw that the giant tree had no intentions of fighting him and released a sigh of relief, though he didn't lower his guard.Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
He recovered from his shock quickly. Since the giant tree had been appointed Deputy Governor, he wouldn't easily harm him so openly. Wang Baole began to sense something amiss about his Martian deployment.
The giant tree must have something against me. He must have done something! Wang Baole moped. He sighed inwardly. He couldn't ignore the giant tree's question, though. He decided to bite the bullet and play along.
”Why…”
”Why? You're asking me why?” A fire was suddenly lit in the giant tree's eyes. He glared at Wang Baole and forced the words out as he clenched his teeth.
”It's because I was only one step away from the Nascent Soul realm. One step away. One step away! With my cultivation and fighting abilities, I'm not only capable of taking on the post of the Deputy Governor, but the post of Governor is also within my reach!” The giant tree glared at Wang Baole. His words reverberated in the chambers, sending shivers down Wang Baole's spine.
His scalp went numb. He had grown nervous when he had heard the giant tree mention ”one step away” the first time. The second time he had said it, Wang Baole had been twitching in his skin. The third time, Wang Baole had hovered on the verge of tears. He no longer wanted to remain on Mars. He wanted to return home to Earth…
The giant tree glared frostily at Wang Baole. He appeared to be cold and filled with rage, but, in reality, his inner emotional state had been calm like an undisturbed lake since Wang Baole entered the room. Everything he was showing Wang Baole was a deliberate act. He noticed the look on Wang Baole's face and heard his thumping heartbeat. An imperceptible frown appeared on his brow, and something flickered in his eyes. Conclusions formed swiftly in his mind. He snorted.
”Your mission has been decided. I don't want to see your face again!” the giant tree said. He lifted his right hand, and a jade slip flew towards Wang Baole.
As soon as Wang Baole caught it, the doors behind him swung open. A force erupted from the jade slip and flung him out of the room before the doors slammed shut.
The giant tree ignored Wang Baole. As the doors slammed shut, the furious expression on his face vanished instantly, and a look of consideration took its place. He had no part in deciding Wang Baole's deployment to Mars.
In fact, if it were possible, he would like to keep the connection he had with Wang Baole a secret. Those were his exact thoughts when he had stood before Duan Muque and indirectly protected Wang Baole. Wang Baole was the equivalent of the fruit to him, his last chance at attaining the Nascent Soul realm.
If everything were to go according to his plan, he would have waited. He would wait until he gained the Federation's trust before making a move on Wang Baole. He would swallow the young man whole and bring his own body to perfection. He would use this chance to attain a breakthrough in his cultivation and achieve the Nascent Soul realm.
He never expected the Federation to issue orders for Wang Baole to be transferred to Mars. It was as if they were presenting Wang Baole to him on a silver platter, and he couldn't help but be suspicious.
Duan Muque, are you trying to test me? Aren't you afraid that I'll just wing it and devour Wang Baole, attaining the Nascent Soul realm? The giant tree frowned. He had developed an instinctive wariness of Duan Muque after the events in the Mystic Luna Realm. The man was unfathomable. He couldn't discern his thoughts.
After a long while, the giant tree took a deep breath. He had decided. He decided to maintain the status quo. Regardless of what Duan Muque had planned for him, he would be safe as long as he didn't take the bait.