Chapter 393: An Invitation from Longdu

After celebrating his son’s one-month-old milestone, Chen Qingdi suddenly received a call from two War Gods, Central Wu Earth and Ji Earth. He dropped everything and rushed to Longdu.

Before Chen Qingdi could even book a ticket, a private helicopter suddenly landed on the rooftop of his building.

Armed personnel in uniform disembarked. His wife, Shen Mingyue, led his relatives to escort Chen Qingdi to the rooftop, where they saw the leader of the armed men salute him.

“Captain Liang Tao of the Dragon Guard Team’s Third Squad, a unit under the Dragon Country Watcher, here to escort the Lord Imperial Physician back to Longdu!”

This Captain Liang Tao was actually part of the Lord Imperial Physician’s personal Imperial Army and had always been tasked with protecting him in secret.

However, Chen Qingdi had so many outstanding disciples and followers that these men were rarely needed, so their job was quite relaxed.

But today, they had received strict orders: ensure Chen Qingdi’s safety and maintain absolute secrecy, no matter what.

Chen Qingdi quickly raised his hand to return the salute, then swiftly lowered it. Only after his hand was down did the other man’s hand gently fall from the brim of his cap.

“Thank you for your efforts, Captain Liang. Let’s depart at once!”

He knew that if a summons came from the Dragon Pearl, it was either the Dragon Lord or another important figure who needed him. In such a situation, no matter what he was doing, he had to return at the first possible moment.

He gave Shen Mingyue a few brief instructions, entrusting everything there to her authority.

As the mistress and lady boss of all of Chen Qingdi’s forces, Shen Mingyue was well-respected by everyone. She said gently, “Go on to Longdu and don’t worry. You don’t need to be concerned about things at home. I’ll be here waiting for you to come back.”

The two shared a gentle hug, then Chen Qingdi boarded the helicopter, and it rose into the air.

Shen Mingyue felt that the warmth of the past month or so had been like a dream. Now, the dream was over, and he was gone.

Tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks. Just then, the Shuang’er sisters came to her side and supported her.

“He’ll be back soon, Shen. Don’t you worry. Taking good care of things here at home is the best way to support him.”

The wind was strong on the rooftop, so it wasn’t a place to linger. The three of them hurried back to the living room.

On the helicopter, someone handed Chen Qingdi a file and told him to finish reading it during the flight, as he was to have an audience with Long Shou afterward.

It was an internal intelligence briefing.

It stated that the people on the continent across the great ocean had suddenly released a statement: a drug their research team had developed to combat Parkinson’s disease was, in fact, completely ineffective. They offered their sincerest apologies for the confusion this caused consumers worldwide.

And then… that was it.

‘The people around me aren’t cleared to know these secrets,’ he thought to himself, ‘so I can’t share my thoughts with anyone.’

‘Long Shou doesn’t have Parkinson’s, though. Could it be that some other important high-level figure took this so-called miracle drug? Could there be side effects?’

The thought of that inconclusive intelligence briefing made his brow furrow into a tight knot.

The statement had offered a hypocritical apology, but as for compensation—how to provide it, how much—not a single word was mentioned.

In Chen Qingdi’s estimation, they had probably only compensated a few influential figures in their own country. As for everyone else? Too bad.

It was a classic case of “better you than me.” As long as they were fine, they couldn’t care less if a deluge drowned the rest of the world.

There were plenty of people who bootlicked the nations across the ocean, always going on about how “science has no borders.” In reality, while science itself might not have borders, scientists certainly did. And so did technology.

Anything they had that you didn’t became a pressure point they could exploit, a vulnerability they could squeeze whenever they pleased.

And they’d ask, “What are you going to do about it?”

Chen Qingdi slammed his fist hard onto the table in front of him.

“Damn it! I won’t take this!”

The outburst gave Liang Tao quite a scare.

“Lord Imperial Physician, who’s offended you now? Just say the word, and I’ll make sure to give them an unforgettable experience!”

Chen Qingdi gave a bitter smile. “It’s not about you, it’s something else. You’ve had a long day too, Captain Liang. We still have a while before we reach Longdu. Why don’t you get some rest?”

‘There’s no point in just sitting here speculating wildly,’ Chen Qingdi decided. He pushed aside all distracting thoughts, leaned back in his seat on the aircraft, and fell asleep.

By the time he woke up, the helicopter was already circling over Longdu.

A moment later, it was positioned above a specific floor of a building, where it hovered before descending.

On the rooftop, numerous fully-armed security personnel were already waiting. As the helicopter landed, they snapped to attention and saluted.

As Chen Qingdi disembarked, another security detail immediately took over, escorting him from the rooftop into the main building.

After entering the secure zone, he was required to pass a facial scan, fingerprint verification, and an iris scan.

Once his information was verified, a cold, mechanical voice announced from above: “Welcome back to the team, Lord Imperial Physician!”

Inside this zone was yet another team of guards. Chen Qingdi first went to a changing room, where he removed his street clothes, both inner and outer layers, and handed them over to professional staff for disinfection and storage.

Then, someone immediately brought him a fresh set of clothes, and he changed into a sterile suit designed for medical practitioners.

Just then, Murong Qinghai, Long Shou’s chief steward, walked over.

“Cyan Emperor, follow me.”

After all, in this secure zone, the operating principle was to not ask what shouldn’t be asked, not say what shouldn’t be said, and not discuss secrets in public spaces.

Therefore, Chen Qingdi kept all his questions bottled up inside. He knew that once he reached the designated area, he would be told everything he needed to know.

Sure enough, he was led into a room with an extremely high security clearance. The surrounding glass was all bulletproof.

Inside, many experts in sterile suits had already gathered. It looked like they were preparing for a group consultation.

Chen Qingdi looked over and saw a dignified, elderly man standing there.

He quickly stepped forward and saluted. “Long Shou!”

Long Shou patted his shoulder and motioned for him to sit beside him.

“Cyan Emperor, you’ve been living among the people for some time now. Have you seen or heard anything of note?”

Chen Qingdi spoke about how he had organized a group of medical personnel to form the first medical team on Xiake Island in the South Sea.

Long Shou nodded. “I hadn’t expected your benevolence to have extended all the way to the small islands of Haijiang. On behalf of the three armed forces of the Dragon Country, I thank you.”

Chen Qingdi replied, “It’s what any qualified doctor should do!”

The experts standing nearby looked at Chen Qingdi with a mixture of admiration, envy, and even a little jealousy.

Chen Qingdi was well aware of this, but he paid it no mind.

‘These days, the only way to avoid causing trouble is to do nothing at all. The moment you try to accomplish something, you’re bound to offend someone.’

For instance, by pushing for affordable medicine, he had offended countless bigwigs in the medical industry.

Those people had even tried to organize a boycott against him, and some had even hired paid trolls to slander his name online.