Chapter 1639: The Arrival of the Mysterious Man

Over the next two days, Fredhardt remained in constant contact with the Xiya government, coordinating every detail of Harland’s upcoming mission to restore the contaminated regions.

Xiya had requested Harland’s assistance as soon as possible. Every passing hour allowed Bael’s poison to spread farther across the country, leaving more forests withered, more rivers polluted, and more towns abandoned. Their desperation was evident in every message they sent.

Even so, Fredhardt refused to compromise on security.

Knowing that Zhao Li Xin would personally lead the operation, he imposed a long list of conditions before approving the deployment.

The Xiya government is required to provide a safe landing site, build several layers of military protection around the purification zone, and restrict access around Zhao Li Xin to maintain the secrecy of the mission’s itinerary.

Every route, accommodation, and emergency evacuation plan was reviewed repeatedly to eliminate any potential issues. Under normal circumstances, such demands would have prompted lengthy negotiations.

But this time, President Zhang Yu Wei accepted every one of Harland’s conditions without hesitation. Facing a rapidly worsening crisis, they didn’t have time for lengthy negotiations. As long as Harland was willing to help, Xiya country was ready to cooperate fully.

Zhao Li Xin was originally supposed to leave two days later. However, he chose to wait until the third day. Although the doctor had declared Lory and the twins to be in perfect health, he insisted on staying until her condition improved and her emotional state stabilized. Only after he was certain Lory’s condition was stable did he agree to leave.

Leon was chosen to accompany Zhao Li Xin. As Harland’s military commander, he had taken part in numerous joint military exercises with the Xiya Nation over the years. Through those exchanges, he had built strong professional relationships with many of Xiya’s senior military officers, including its current Minister of Defense.

Lucas believed Leon’s presence would help facilitate communication and strengthen cooperation with the Xiya government throughout Zhao Li Xin’s mission, allowing diplomatic and military matters to proceed far more smoothly while Zhao Li Xin focused on the purification effort.

After all, everyone was aware that Zhao Li Xin preferred to keep social interactions to a minimum. He was reserved by nature, valued efficiency over ceremony, and rarely spoke more than necessary to anyone outside Lory’s circle.

Leon’s presence allowed him to leave diplomatic formalities and military coordination in capable hands, sparing him from unnecessary pleasantries and allowing him to devote his full attention to the mission.

When everything was finally ready, the delegation departed aboard one of Harland’s private aircraft rather than an Arcem transport. Their destination was Xiya, a nation located nearly halfway around the world.

Even aboard Harland’s fastest private jet, the journey would take approximately eight hours. Inside the aircraft, Zhao Li Xin had just finished his phone call with Lory.

His usually aloof features were softened by unmistakable warmth as he listened to her voice. "You should get some rest, wife," he said gently, "Don’t stay up too late, okay... Yes, I love you too." Only after hearing her response did he end the call.

He slipped the phone into the inner pocket of his dark gray wool trench coat with an unhurried motion. As he turned his gaze toward the window beside him, the warmth on his face evaporated, as though carried away by the passing clouds outside.

The tenderness lingering in his eyes vanished without a trace, replaced by an icy indifference. His expression settled into perfect composure, as calm and cold as the surface of a frost-covered lake. Not a hint of the affection he had shown only moments before remained, as though he had become a different man.

Seated across from him, Leon couldn’t help glancing in his direction. Dressed entirely in dark colors, a black turtleneck beneath a tailored dark gray wool trench coat, paired with black trousers, Zhao Li Xin possessed an elegance that was almost unreal.

His long, silky black hair fell loosely over his chest, framing a face so strikingly handsome that he resembled a vampire prince straight out of one of the fantasy comics Leon used to read when he was a child.

Sometimes, Leon found himself wondering how this dark, brooding man had crossed paths with their cheerful and lovable Princess. The contrast between them couldn’t have been greater. Lory was gentle and serene, like moonlight on a quiet night.

She smiled often, and she had a way of looking at someone as though she could see straight through them and accept them nonetheless. She was the kind of person who made anyone want to be close to her.

Zhao Li Xin, on the other hand, carried an air that kept the world at a distance. His presence was like a drawn blade—cold, sharp, and dangerous. People might be drawn to his striking appearance, but anyone who dared to meet his eyes would instinctively keep their distance from him.

Leon then remembered Fargo had once told him. Lory had once said that Zhao Li Xin had changed a lot compared to how he used to be. The Zhao Li Xin of today was far more patient and much more willing to open his heart than he had been in the past.

If that was true, Leon couldn’t help but wonder what kind of man Zhao Li Xin was.

He became even more curious about how a cold and detached man like Zhao Li Xin had fallen so deeply in love with their Princess. It wasn’t because Leon believed Lory was unworthy of such devotion, quite the opposite.

it just that...he had met few men like Zhao Li Xin before, men whose hearts seemed forged from cold steel, untouched by emotion and unmoved by the world. They were the kind of people who appeared unbreakable, impossible to sway no matter the circumstance.

Even if such a man claimed to love someone, Leon had always believed he would never know how to love properly. His love would inevitably become possessive, suffocating, and merciless, born from a desire for control rather than genuine tenderness. A man like that, he thought, could never build a healthy or lasting relationship.

Yet Zhao Li Xin had proven him wrong.

Against all expectations, he loved Lory in a way few people ever could. His affection was unwavering but never suffocating. He respected her without becoming distant, protected her without trying to cage her, and trusted her without the slightest hesitation.

Though his love ran deep enough to consume him, he never allowed it to become a chain around her ankles.

Leon found himself wondering what they had gone through together to reach this point. What hardships had they endured? What had Zhao Li Xin experienced that transformed a man who seemed carved from ice into someone capable of loving with such quiet warmth, unwavering trust, and extraordinary devotion?

"Excuse me, sir. May I ask you something personal?" Leon asked, unable to suppress his curiosity.

Zhao Li Xin shifted his gaze from the window to Leon. "You may," he replied in the same flat, detached tone he had always used.

Leon hesitated for a moment before speaking. "What is it about our Princess that you love the most?"

Zhao Li Xin’s brows gradually furrowed. He glanced at his watch before saying, "We still have six hours before we arrive. It isn’t much, but it should be enough."

He leaned back in his seat, his gaze drifting toward the endless sky beyond the window, "I’ll give you the summary."

He straightened his posture with the solemn composure of a lecturer about to begin a lesson.

"..." Leon fell silent as a terrible premonition suddenly crept over him.

One Hour Later...

Leon had no choice but to pretend to be asleep to escape Zhao Li Xin’s lecture on everything he loved about Lory. At first, Leon had assumed Zhao Li Xin was joking.

He wasn’t.

For an entire hour, Zhao Li Xin spoke without pause, calmly and methodically listing every reason he loved his wife, as though delivering the most important lecture of his life.

Wasn’t this man supposed to be taciturn and aloof?

Yet whenever the topic was Lory, he seemed to have an endless supply of words. The cold, detached man everyone knew disappeared completely, replaced by a husband who could talk for hours about the woman he loved.

Leon silently swore that if he ever found himself alone with Zhao Li Xin again, he would never make the mistake of asking such a question a second time.

______________________________________________

A few hours later, the aircraft began its descent. Moments later, the pilot’s calm voice echoed through the cabin, announcing their arrival at a small military airport in Pearl Glaze, one of Xiya Nation’s border cities.

As the cabin doors opened, the welcoming party was already waiting on the tarmac. A line of soldiers in crisp Xiya military uniforms stood at attention, while several officials in impeccably tailored suits waited nearby, their expressions betraying a mixture of anticipation and restrained hope.

Leon was the first to disembark.

He descended the aircraft stairs with the steady confidence of a seasoned commander. His posture was straight, his steps unhurried yet commanding. Without uttering a word, he radiated an imposing presence that naturally drew every eye toward him.

A distinguished man in a dark suit stepped forward with a warm smile. As Xiya’s Minister of Defense, he extended his hand in welcome.

"Welcome to Pearl Glaze City."

Leon accepted the handshake with a firm, courteous grip.

Standing beside the Defense Minister was a dignified middle-aged woman. She offered a polite smile before extending her hand as well., "Thank you for coming," she said sincerely. "Your assistance means more to us than words can express."

She was Xiya’s Minister of the Environment. Although she greeted Leon with all the courtesy his rank deserved, her hopeful gaze instinctively drifted past him, settling on the man descending the aircraft behind him.

Zhao Li Xin stepped down the stairs at an unhurried pace, each measured stride calm and unassuming. His expression remained as placid as ever, betraying neither excitement nor concern, as though the gathering of high-ranking officials and soldiers awaiting his arrival was of little consequence.

The weight of countless hopeful gazes seemed unable to disturb his composure in the slightest. He carried himself with effortless elegance, his detached demeanor making him appear almost untouchable, like a man who stood apart from the world’s noise and expectations.

Yet it was precisely that quiet confidence that made everyone present instinctively straighten their posture, their attention drawn to him without even realizing it.

"Mr. Zhao." The Minister of Defense stepped forward and extended his hand in greeting.

Already wearing a pair of black gloves, Zhao Li Xin calmly reached out and returned the handshake. His grip was firm but brief, his expression as unreadable as ever.

"Mr. Knoxvilled told us that you could help us," the minister said, unable to hide the hope in his voice.

Zhao Li Xin’s gaze shifted past the welcoming party toward the aircraft behind him, "It isn’t me," he replied evenly, "It’s him."

His words caused everyone to instinctively turn toward the plane.

Another figure emerged from the cabin.Clad from head to toe in flowing white robes, the man descended the stairs with measured, silent steps.

A deep hood cast a shadow over his face, while a white mask concealed the rest of his features, leaving nothing visible but a pair of calm, inscrutable eyes.

An air of mystery surrounded him, making him seem almost otherworldly.The officials exchanged bewildered glances as they looked at the mysterious man. Only Zhao Li Xin remained indifferent.

The mysterious figure was Jade. Just moments before the aircraft had begun its descent, Zhao Li Xin had quietly summoned him from the Mystique Realm.