Chapter 659 640: Mulholland Drive

"Haha, with those words, old brother, I can rest assured."

Battle Abyss Pavilion smiled. Wang Zongzheng's words didn't sound like a direct agreement, but he could read between the lines. Wang Zongzheng was willing to accept the Zhan Family's involvement in Wang City. Only then did Battle Abyss Pavilion address him as "old brother," a sign that their official family business was concluded. From here on, they were speaking as brothers, with no vested interests involved.

However, Battle Abyss Pavilion had misunderstood another layer of meaning. Given his relationship with Wang Zongzheng, the Zhan Family's entry into Wang City was practically guaranteed. He assumed Wang Zongzheng couldn't give an immediate answer because the Wang Family still needed to discuss the details internally—specifically, how much of a profit share to offer the Zhan Family. Although the Wang and Zhan families were allies for generations, their interests aligned in many ways, Wang City was a virgin territory with limitless potential. The earlier one established a foothold, the greater the rewards. A great family had to consider every angle; some things couldn't be casually conceded with a simple mention of their long-standing friendly cooperation.

But in truth, Wang Zongzheng was completely bewildered. From what Battle Abyss Pavilion had said, his good-for-nothing, useless grandson, Wang Rencai, had seized control of Wang City by backing a local family—all without a shred of support from the Wang Family!

'How is that possible!'

Wang Zongzheng had cleaned up Wang Rencai's messes countless times. Who knew the boy's incompetence better than he did?

Wang Zongzheng's dislike for Wang Rencai wasn't just because the boy was such a disappointment; his idiot father had also brought immense shame to the Wang Family.

'But Battle Abyss Pavilion would never joke about something this serious…'

After seeing Battle Abyss Pavilion off, Wang Zongzheng immediately summoned Wang Shifeng back.

"Go get to the bottom of this!"

Wang Shifeng nodded hurriedly, secretly pleased. He didn't believe for a second that a punk like Wang Rencai was capable of anything. 'Nine times out of ten,' he thought, 'the old man arranged it all himself.'

'This so-called investigation is just a pretext.'

Besides sending Wang Shifeng to investigate, he also summoned Wang Shihao, the head of the Wang Family's intelligence network, "Good Listening."

Wang Shihao was Wang Zongzheng's eldest son and a strong contender to become the next Patriarch.

"Regarding Wang City… Good Listening has no concrete intelligence. This is my failure. Father, I await your punishment."

As for Good Listening's failure to gather intelligence on Wang City, Wang Shihao proactively knelt to admit his fault.

"This isn't your fault. I myself said to abandon Wang City. Besides, with the Yuan Family's old ancestor having returned, it was correct for Good Listening to focus its efforts on Haojing." Wang Shihao's attitude put Wang Zongzheng at ease. Although they were father and son, Wang Shihao held a degree of independence when it came to clan authority. Yet, every time he met with Wang Zongzheng, he would perform a full kowtow as a sign of deep respect. Even if he understood the motive behind his eldest son's prostration, it was better than the alternative.

After a moment of contemplation, Wang Zongzheng spoke again. "As for Wang City, I want you to quickly investigate the whole affair from beginning to end. See if there are other powers pulling the strings. I'll give you a deadline: report back to me by breakfast tomorrow."

Everyone in the Wang Family, from top to bottom, knew exactly what Wang Rencai was—or wasn't—capable of. There was only one possible explanation for the situation in Wang City: some other power was operating behind the scenes.

Wang Shihao left the study, his face a mask of confusion. 'Wang Rencai… no, he goes by Wang Meng now…' He actually did have some information on the boy. Although Good Listening's primary focus was Haojing, its information-gathering network in the other regions never ceased its operations. Wang Meng's new status as a Guest Master of the Divine Artifact Pavilion was a piece of intelligence he had seen just recently. He had been stunned at the time. 'That good-for-nothing kid... how could he possibly have connections to the Divine Artifact Pavilion, let alone land a prestigious position like Guest Master?' He had figured the boy must have some sly tricks up his sleeve, that aside from chasing women, he was also skilled at currying favor.

Unlike others who were in disbelief, Wang Shihao was rather charitable toward his nephew. Or perhaps, it was more that he had faith in the Wang Family's name. If Wang Rencai was leveraging their reputation, it wasn't entirely impossible he could achieve something.

But he never imagined it had only been a few days. Wang Meng had transformed from an Artifact Refining Master into one of the supreme controllers of Wang City. This... it was simply beyond what Wang Shihao could psychologically accept.

「Meanwhile, in Wang City.」 Wang Meng was seeing Zhan Yingluo off on her way back to Haojing.

Zhan Yingluo's face was a thundercloud. "This is how you're seeing me off!"

"Heh, this is far enough," Wang Meng said nonchalantly, his eyes drifting to the other end of the street, where a fierce-looking, burly man was staring intently at him.

"I wasn't expecting you to see me off for miles, but couldn't you at least walk me to the city gates?" Zhan Yingluo kicked resentfully at a small pebble on the ground. She really didn't want to go back to Haojing, but... she'd only delayed her return by a few days, and her third brother had actually made a huge fuss and come all the way to Wang City to find her.

"Stopping here is convenient for a trip to the Divine Artifact Pavilion," Wang Meng said.

Zhan Yingluo's eyes went wide. So the only reason he'd walked her this far was because it was on his way to the Divine Artifact Pavilion… It was just a matter of convenience!

"Hey, you're unbelievable!"

"All right, it's time for you to go."

Zhan Yingluo was suddenly at a loss for words. Even the anger that had just flared up in her mind vanished. She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "When are you coming back?"

Wang Meng smiled, knowing she meant back to Haojing. "Maybe soon. Do you want me to come back?"

"You'd better not come back! I'm leaving!" Suddenly, Zhan Yingluo's mood brightened considerably...

Wang Meng watched the party escorting—or rather, extraditing—Zhan Yingluo disappear into the distance before turning to head toward the Divine Artifact Pavilion. He truly did have business there. There were some finer points from his last discussion on forging techniques with Yang Qi that could only be truly grasped through hands-on practice in this world.

However, just as he reached the corner at the end of the street, Wang Meng stopped in his tracks.

A subtle intent had begun to lock onto him. By stopping, he had just managed to evade it.

Wang Meng turned to see a man with a dignified air waiting for him, dressed in deep blue brocade. The man's gaze held an undisguised challenge. More importantly, Wang Meng had never seen anyone in Wang City who radiated such a sense of power.

Instead of avoiding him, Wang Meng walked forward to meet him.

"Wang Meng?" The man smiled, revealing pearly white teeth and an air of intense confidence.

"The one and only. And you are?" Wang Meng already had a guess.

"Mulholland Drive," the man said with a smile.

In the blink of an eye, the two had relocated to a quiet bamboo grove where leaves fluttered down, still damp with morning dew.

"Impressive courage. Not bad. It seems the rumors about you were wrong."

Mulholland Drive stopped and sized up Wang Meng with keen interest.

"Truth and falsehood are often intermingled," Wang Meng said calmly.

Mulholland Drive was taken aback, then smiled. "It doesn't matter. Past, present, future... I only care about the future. I originally planned on just beating you to a pulp, but you don't seem half-bad. Past, present, and future—that's three moves. Prepare yourself."

As he spoke, an invisible, ice-cold energy surged from Mulholland Drive's body. The Way of the Future—Intent Lock!

Wang Meng smiled, his figure flashing in and out of view. "The future is never guaranteed. I prefer to focus on the present. Living life to the fullest is how one proves their true self."

"Excellent! Watch out!"

Mulholland Drive let out a long laugh. His intent couldn't lock onto Wang Meng's true form at all, only a series of illusions. Without that lock, his imposing aura alone was useless for an attack.