I Have a Dice Left by a God

Chapter 677 - 269: A Friend Arrives from the Holy Land

Guiyun Pavilion.Today it was Li Xin treating. After parting ways with Patir, he arrived early, arranged the dishes, and not long after, people like Long Ji, Hong Ye, Qin Donglai, and Fu Yu all showed up.

Having fought side by side, the atmosphere was even more harmonious. It was obvious that everyone had gained an extra measure of respect for Li Xin and no longer treated him as a junior.

"Captain Li, this time you did a beautiful job, really gave our Night Patrol a fierce boost in prestige." Qin Donglai laughed.

"Qin-ge, just call me Ah Xin."

"Old Qin did the right thing. Friendship is friendship, but from now on you’re the representative of our Night Patrol. Respect where it’s due." Long Ji said. He was the most senior; on his way here he had already reminded the others they couldn’t keep treating Li Xin like a kid. From preparations to planning, this entire operation was first-class. Handing the Night Patrol over to Li Xin’s leadership was also a matter of course.

"We don’t divide by age or seniority. The brothers have already talked it over; from now on we’re following you!" Wen Xingtai said. "Now that we have our own source of funding, we won’t be kicked around by the Church Court and the Cabinet anymore."

"Old Xing, it’s one thing to complain in private, but that attitude won’t do." Long Ji said. "In name and in strength, the Night Patrol can act high-profile, but we have to carry ourselves low-profile. Captain Li even went to get prior authorization from the Metropolitan for this operation. The whole action left no hidden trouble. He may be young, but he’s steady as hell when it comes to doing things."

Everyone looked at Li Xin in surprise; they hadn’t expected him to pay attention even to such details. Although the Metropolitan usually didn’t bother with Night Patrol affairs and hated it when they went asking for money, in name he was still their supervisor.

"Honestly, I don’t think we need to go head-to-head with the Church Court and the Cabinet. Even with the Black Market income, it’s only been a short time, and there are plenty of places that need money. We should keep crying poverty the way we always have." Li Xin said with a smile.

Long Ji and the others looked at each other; Mao Feng suddenly slapped his thigh. "That’s sharp. We were just thinking we’d finally shaken off the days of bowing and scraping. Tsk, this is good. We should still cry poor, otherwise they might fix their eyes on this slice too."

"Right. If they cut back or cut us off using this as an excuse, what would they use to boss us around?" Hong Ye said.

Li Xin smiled and told everyone about the first round of income and how he planned to allocate it. Each main squad would get a decent share, more than enough to relieve their immediate crises, and the reward fund he was setting up would give Night Patrol members a lot more drive. Maybe most people wouldn’t actually get a payout, but their mood and sense of being valued would be completely different.

Emotional value is actually very important.

How could anyone have objections? They’d never imagined Li Xin would really put all the money out for distribution. At his age people usually want to enjoy themselves and show off; they’d thought it’d be good enough if he just made a token gesture. Long Ji and the others were shaken. Even they might not have managed this, and the key to all of it was getting the Gold Market under control; otherwise there was no way the collection would have gone so smoothly.

"I heard that Hundred Martial Hall basically doesn’t hand over their Silver Market share at all. Looks like they were all cowed by that Immortal." Hong Ye sighed.

"They didn’t pay before?"

"On paper, Hundred Martial Hall collects a portion, but in reality those big Silver Market organizations only make a token show of it. Later they stopped paying altogether. Hundred Martial Hall is just a local snake; they don’t have much pull in Dao Yuan, and the people they station in other countries’ Black Markets hardly have any presence." Hong Ye said. Her White Dove unit managed some of the Night Patrol’s overseas members.

"Then they should be paying more. Doing business on our Dragon Capital turf—how can we let them act like big shots?" Li Xin curled his lip. He’d still been too soft-hearted.

"There’s a long road ahead. The Silver Market organizations really do have clout. If we build a solid relationship, it’ll be a big help for our investigations. Come on, a toast to our Captain Li."

"Thanks for the support, seniors!" Li Xin raised his cup.

"There are no seniors here, only brothers and sisters!" Hong Ye said. The rules had to be set: from now on, everyone would be moving forward under Li Xin’s lead.

After a few rounds of drinks, Li Xin asked how they were handling Li Chao’s Red Flood Dragon Squad.

Long Ji smiled slightly. "Right now the deputy captain of Red Flood Dragon is acting captain. As for the details, Hong Ye, you explain."

Hong Ye nodded. "Captain Li, Li Chao hasn’t betrayed the Night Patrol. His long-standing contact with Hundred Martial Hall is because he’s on a mission."

Hong Ye explained. This mission had been in place for many years, dating back to when Jiang Wu was still around.

"Regarding the disaster prophecy about Dragon Capital, our Life Masters divined that it was related to Hundred Martial Hall. So we’ve always wanted to infiltrate them. And Hundred Martial Hall has always tried to poach our people. Li Chao is straightforward by nature and has a lot of complaints about the Night Patrol’s condition, so he became their breakthrough point. Li Chao just went with the flow and got inside. This time we used the opportunity to drive him out, because the prophetic time is drawing near. Only this way can Li Chao possibly find out what Hundred Martial Hall is actually plotting." Hong Ye said.

Only then did Li Xin understand. He was very sensitive to people. Even though he hadn’t had much contact with Li Chao, he could still feel that Li Chao’s recognition of him didn’t seem like an act. He’d thought it was just very good acting.

"We had no choice. Only the people present know about this. If it leaks, Li Chao’s life will be in danger." Long Ji said.

Li Xin certainly understood how serious this was.

"On the outside, we’ll keep condemning Li Chao. For the time being we’ll have to wrong him a bit. As for Red Flood Dragon’s treatment, we’ll temporarily cut it in half; that’s better optics." Fu Yu reminded them.

"That’s fine. If we’re acting, we need to make it convincing. There are plenty of old foxes in Hundred Martial Hall."

"Does the Church Court know?" Li Xin asked.

Long Ji shook his head. "It’s limited to us. Tasks we reported in the past leaked very quickly. The Church Court is pretty messy inside right now."

"I’m planning to start a newspaper soon, the Freedom Daily, which can serve as our Night Patrol’s voice." Li Xin said. "Managing the entrances and exits of the Black Market is also a hefty stream of income. Before, they drank; now they’ll sell newspapers. Everyone entering has to buy a copy. At the same time, we can publish various needs in it, including case-related ones."

Long Ji and the others had never imagined such things. Traditional Night Patrol members only knew how to work diligently and cautiously.

"Also, we’re far too short on manpower. Besides improving the待遇 of our outer-circle personnel, I’m planning for us to recruit across the major Canon Law Schools together. Canon Law Schools are full of talent. Those who meet our requirements can be sent together to the Celestial Principle Academy for training. This is still just a plan—I’ll discuss it with them first."

Long Ji and the others’ mouths hung open. Was this really something the Night Patrol could do?

Indeed, most of the Night Patrol backbone came out of the Canon Law Schools, but if it weren’t for youthful hot blood and disillusionment with the world, how many Canon Law students would choose the Night Patrol? Let alone talk of Celestial Principle Academy training.

They all knew about Li Xin’s connection to Secretary Kathy, but that didn’t seem related to the Celestial Principle Academy.

"Can it work?" Hong Ye asked, a bit expectant but also worried. They were desperately short-handed; fewer and fewer people were willing to do Night Patrol work nowadays.

"I think it’s doable. Once we raise the待遇, there are quite a few people in the Canon Law Schools with ideas of their own. At least at the Tranquility Canon Law School it’s feasible; Dean Chen is a very forward-thinking dean." Li Xin said. "As for the Celestial Principle Academy, I’m reasonably confident there too."

"The Holy Word Technique of the Celestial Principle Academy is different from the Church Court’s, but it’s just as effective. If we can build a relationship with them, it’ll be a huge help for the Night Patrol." Long Ji said.

"Why dress it up so nicely? Damn it, the Priests at the Churches have worse tempers and bigger egos than the Bishops. Every time we ask them for help it’s like pulling teeth, and they charge through the nose!" Mao Feng muttered.

"I’ll talk it over with Mordo about this." A thought sparked in Li Xin’s mind. This was a great opportunity for the Celestial Principle School to practice Unity of Knowledge and Action. Real knowledge comes from practice. What can you build shut up in a room all day?"

"Who’s Mordo?" Mao Feng froze.

"The dean of the Celestial Principle Academy, a Three-star Grandmaster. His strength might even surpass the Metropolitan’s." Hong Ye’s eyes shone. The Night Patrol had finally gotten a capable person who was on their side.

"Damn, Captain Li, I’ll drink to you. From now on you’ve got to look after our Dark Falcon squad. The North District is poor, messy, and full of trouble. We’re in dire need of a helping hand."

It turned into a heavy-drinking session. Li Xin was besieged from all sides and refused no one, but they didn’t drink too late; everyone still had things to do the next day. Hong Jiu and Qin Donglai escorted Li Xin home.

Li Xin’s arrival had brought hope to the Night Patrol, but previously they hadn’t had any grand expectations. They’d just thought that with slow cultivation Li Xin could inherit the Night Patrol’s mantle. They hadn’t expected that at his age, once Li Xin made a move it would already be at this level—he could lead the Night Patrol in great strides forward.

No one thought Li Xin was bragging. Their experience in the Black Market had made it very clear: what Li Xin did was absolutely more impressive than what he said.

Previously, the Night Patrol only discussed things and acted collectively, with Long Ji and Jiang Wu at the core. But Long Ji had seniority and Jiang Wu had the position; neither could truly pull everyone together. Li Xin was different. In him, they saw a familiar figure from the past.

Governor Luthor. Back then, he too had been this full of passion, this omnipotent.

When they reached his doorstep, a thin, small young man was squatting by the door, with a piece of luggage beside him.