The Almighty Ring

Lockseed invited Jiang Fei forward to greet the rest of his so-called ‘friends’, “Come, don’t be so reserved. We’re all friends here.”

“Rais, I think we may have struck an aetheryte mine! We don’t need to do anything else! Just showing our faces amongst this crowd is enough!” huffed Lucius excitedly.

They had only just walked further into the building and had already greeted many people. Even though Lockseed and Jiang Fei were the only ones shaking hands and greeting others, both Rais and Lucius were spellbound.

Only people who came from real power and authority were worthy of showing up at this game session. Though there was no way they were as prestigious as Lockseed himself, they were still of substantial status.

Compared to them, Rais and Lucius were mere plebeians. Be that as it may, they were seniors and uncles by a distant relation. Showing up here with Lockseed and Jiang Fei was seen as an accomplishment better than any fat cheque.

Lucius and Rais were being extremely careful with their demeanor. Every once in a while, they would offer a handshake to those who had shaken Jiang Fei’s hand. After that, they would simply dismiss themselves, pretending to be busy with something else. Others could only gawk in awe.

From their perspective, Lucius and Rais had truly struck gold. No one expected plebeians like them to actually know Lockseed!

This caused reputable traders to change how they saw the two. Some now elevated them to a higher position, while others even considered nominating them as the inheritor of their family’s fortune!

Elite traders knew that inheritors didn’t have to be skilled or powerful. One could always hire others to run their businesses or find someone to teach them. Being the best trader in the Trade Federation was all about how wide of a social circle one had. The traders saw that one aspect as the key to keep their businesses from collapsing.

Rais and Lucius were well aware of that, which is why they had wanted to be Jiang Fei’s companions. Right now, their job was done. All they had to do now was wait for these famous traders to spread the word about their appearance with Lockseed.

The dice has been cast, and it would not be long until their names were pushed to the top as consideration for inheritors of family fortunes.

Lockseed was famous because he was one of the most important people in the Trade Federation. Anyone that was close enough to him would surely be able to protect their businesses for at least several millennia. As long as their family doesn’t do anything stupid, they would last for generations.

Jiang Fei noticed the sneaky movements of the two, but he couldn’t care less about them. To be completely honest, they were nobodies. Lockseed would not even deign to talk to them! As long as they weren’t stirring up trouble, Lockseed would let them do whatever they wanted.

“Ah Fei, follow me! My friends are sitting over there,” said Lockseed invitingly. His tone and the words he chose grew more and more intimate.

“Hoho, General Lockseed, what is this game about? Who is present here?” asked Jiang Fei.

Lockseed explained, “Mhm. This game is nothing more than a get-together session hosted by the military guys. I see it as just another social gathering, a means to relax oneself after being in the battle for too long. My second in command told me this.

“Since I am in Hyur, I might as well get together with the other commanders and relax for a change. And since you are going to work with them, I thought it would be appropriate for you to get to know them as well.”

“Oh? Am I being assigned to a fleet?” asked Jiang Fei anxiously.

He thought it would take the Federation a few more days to find out more and make their decision. It seemed that they were more efficient than he had anticipated.

What Jiang Fei did not know about was the initial decision to put him aside, away from the frontlines. However, upon discovering his identity as Theon’s disciple, the Federation thought that it would be safe to instate him as one of them.

As a disciple of Theon the Plunderer, Jiang Fei could not have been a spy sent by the Valsalrian Army. The great plunderer had stolen from the Valsalrian Army, and if that was a ruse, the Valsalrian Army must have done so knowing they were taking a great risk. Plus, in terms of cost, Aino literally had forked out the most.

Once they confirmed that Jiang Fei was not a spy, the Trade Federation now wanted to deploy him as soon as possible. Despite having very few men, Jiang Fei’s personal army was strong, the combat level of the weakest among them was already over 200,000.

The next step was to have Jiang Fei fight the Valsalrian Army. Once he had killed one of them, he would never be able to return to the Valsalrian Army. Then, the Federation would obtain an important asset, and perhaps even Theon himself would side with them.

Theon the Plunderer—that was a name that had never once intrigued anyone in the Federation. But everyone now knew that he had been able to steal two of Aino’s strongest ships without having to fear any kind of retaliation! Such an impressive person would be a priceless addition to the Federation’s pool of talents.

“Correct. I would like you and your fellow men to rest and recuperate on Hyur for a few days first. Next week, I will assign you to my own 5th Hydrid Fleet. In time, I plan to have you be the commander of the 5th Hybrid Fleet!” explained Lockseed, attempting to lure Jiang Fei to stay with the Federation.

“Thank you! I will do my best! I hope I can be at the frontlines as soon as possible!” said Jiang Fei happily.

He was excited by the prospect of finally going to war against Aino, to school him on the consequences of crossing him!

A Hybrid Fleet was not a personalized fleet, as evidenced by the name. However, Jiang Fei was wholeheartedly content with that as his army was more of an infantry unit. Their true prowess lies in physical combat, not space wars.

As part of a Hybrid Fleet, they would be called in if there was a need to deploy on enemy land. Instead of calling it a Hybrid Fleet, the 5th Hybrid Fleet was technically an infantry transport unit.

Once the chitter-chatter was over, Lockseed led Jiang Fei and the others into a large, grand hall.

“Oh! If it isn’t the general! You’re finally here!”

A large fleet of military officers stood from their seats and rushed over to Lockseed’s side to greet him.

Taking a step back from the welcoming party, Lockseen introduced Jiang Fei to them, “Sorry for being late. It is gratifying to see all of you well. By the way, I want all of you to meet a new friend. This is Jiang Fei and he will be your colleague as the commander of the 5th Hybrid Fleet. I hope that all of you will cooperate with each other well.”

“Oh my, you must be talented to be able to command a fleet at such a tender age!”

“That’s true. When I was his age, I was still crawling on the ground, digging into god knows where!”

“How nice it is to still have youth!”

…

Once Lockseed took a step back from the limelight, Jiang Fei was immediately showered with praises. Some were genuine, while others were simply thinly-veiled contempt.

They were not as happy as they sounded to know that someone as young as Jiang Fei could be a fleet commander. Either he was truly talented or he must have pulled some strings to get his position.