Chapter 141: So It Was Her!

Chu Xiao greatly admired Yuan Rui’s fierce spirit. Although Yuan Rui had done some heinous things in the past, he still understood the weight of national loyalty. If everyone in Jiuzhou were like him, the Dark King would surely be defeated.

Yuan Rui was also eager to join the army. Since Chu Xiao did not despise him for his blemished past and even wanted him to serve, Yuan Rui was both surprised and excited. Chu Xiao’s name was already legendary throughout Jiuzhou.

No one in Jiuzhou, young or old, was unaware of Chu Xiao’s reputation. To serve under him felt like a blessing from a past life. Without hesitation, Yuan Rui enthusiastically agreed.

He was then sent to the recruit camp. Military life was harsh, especially at his age, and the training was grueling. Fortunately, Yuan Rui was in excellent physical condition.

When Chu Xiao returned to the villa, Wang Lulu had already prepared dinner. Sitting at the table, Chu Xiao found he couldn’t eat, his mind consumed with thoughts of who was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

“Brother Xiao, what are you thinking about? Hurry and eat before the food gets cold,” Wang Lulu urged, noticing his dazed expression.

Chu Xiao snapped back to reality and saw that everyone else had finished eating, leaving only Wang Yan, Wang Lulu, and himself. He picked up his bowl, took a few bites, and left the table.

After dinner, Chu Xiao accompanied Del to inspect the area around the villa, a now habitual routine. He noticed a new fruit stall among the usual street vendors.

Chu Xiao suspected it was a spy’s signal post. He asked Del to buy some fruit. As usual, Del first purchased items from other stalls, asking questions, then approached the fruit stall.

“How’s business lately?” Del asked.

“Small-scale trade, not much money. I just arrived from another place recently,” the vendor replied.

Del nodded lightly, inquired about prices, and bought some fruit. However, the vendor’s clumsy weighing raised suspicion. A seasoned fruit seller could estimate weight by feel; this was clearly a novice.

Chu Xiao refrained from alarming the vendor. Back at the villa, he contacted Zhang Hua to trace the vendor’s background. After a while, Zhang Hua messaged back that no information could be found.

This confirmed Chu Xiao’s suspicion: the vendor was a mole for the Dark King. In this world, if even Zhang Hua couldn’t find any record, the Dark King must have used special means to erase it.

No one but the Dark King could accomplish that. Chu Xiao ordered close surveillance of the vendor’s every move.

Half a month later, the Dark King prepared to resume the assault on Oqiang. Upon receiving this news, Del immediately informed Chu Xiao, urging him to deploy troops and thereby force the traitor to make a move.

Chu Xiao organized his forces and tasked Wang Yan with closely monitoring Mu Keyan’s actions. Wang Yan observed Mu Keyan go upstairs, change clothes, draw back the curtains, and stretch—but her fingers trembled slightly.

Wang Yan suddenly realized it was Morse code. Mu Keyan had been using Morse code to communicate with the outside world all along, explaining why Wang Yan had not noticed anything suspicious about her.

Wang Yan shared this with Chu Xiao. Meanwhile, the fruit vendor under surveillance made a move, pulling out a specially modified phone to send messages to the Dark King but was caught red-handed by Chu Xiao’s men.

The message read: “Chu Xiao plans to deploy troops but will retreat in twenty minutes!”

However, this evidence alone was insufficient to implicate Mu Keyan directly. It only proved the vendor was transmitting messages, not that Mu Keyan was the source.

Chu Xiao ordered the fruit vendor arrested and used every means to extract the identity of the person relaying messages to him. Mu Keyan’s face visibly changed, betraying panic.

“What is there left to say about these traitors? They all deserve to die!” she declared.

Suddenly, Mu Keyan drew a gun from her waist and fired at the fruit vendor’s chest. Luckily, Chu Xiao’s quick reflexes allowed him to throw his phone, striking Mu Keyan’s wrist.

Although the shot veered off slightly and missed a fatal blow, Mu Keyan was seriously injured. Chu Xiao immediately ordered for her to be rushed to the hospital, willing to spare no expense to save her.

“Are you trying to silence witnesses? Are you really the Dark King’s inside agent?” Chu Xiao’s voice was low but thunderous, chilling everyone present. Mu Keyan felt a cold shiver run down her spine.

“N-no, that’s impossible. I hate those who serve the Dark King as lapdogs!” she stammered nervously, her speech faltering. It was the first time Chu Xiao had seen Mu Keyan so fearful—as if terrified of the fruit vendor surviving.

Chu Xiao bent down to pick up the phone from the ground, scrolling through messages that detailed their movements. His anger surged—how could some people abandon their dignity to serve the Dark King?

Yet this also gave Chu Xiao a valuable advantage. Using the phone, he sent a message to the Dark King, falsely reporting that he had returned safely to the city, intending to deceive him.

He then ordered Del to instruct their troops to prepare for a pincer attack and told Mu Keyan to call the forces to ready themselves for an assault on the Dark King.

Mu Keyan, seeing no alternative, called the troops to prepare for battle, while secretly trying every means to alert the Dark King.

Soon after, Chu Xiao’s phone rang—it was the hospital. He learned that the fruit vendor had died despite efforts to save him. The loss of this last lead was a heavy blow.

At that moment, Wang Yan and Mu Keyan began arguing, and the quarrel turned physical. Chu Xiao intervened to ask what had happened.

“Brother Xiao, just in time! We caught the mole red-handed!” Wang Yan handed the phone to Chu Xiao. It turned out Mu Keyan had tried to seize the phone back. On the screen were two words: “Retreat now!”

It was Mu Keyan’s phone. All eyes were filled with hatred as they looked at her. Mu Keyan trembled uncontrollably, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.

“Mu Keyan, you were caught with the evidence. What do you have to say? What did the Dark King offer you to betray us and become his lapdog?” Del snarled, eager to tear her apart, but Chu Xiao stopped him.

Chu Xiao intended to hand her over to the American authorities. Mu Keyan suddenly knelt before him with a thud.

“Please spare my life. I was blinded by greed. The Dark King promised that if I helped him conquer Jiuzhou, I would become the ruler of the Four Nations!”