“Did you really have to point that out to him? I was about to tell him that later anyway…” The more Kong Rong spoke with Kraft, the more he got the feeling that the State Agents would need to have a major overhaul of their database’s security.
What was even more irritating was that this particular employee of Jin was too elusive. After their help against the Loopa Ooofpa, Kong Rong had naturally been curious to find out more about him, yet to his shock, there were no records of him, no fingerprints, nor any pictures of Kraft in any CCTVs.
It was impossible for a person to not exist in a world full of cameras pointing at the public 24 hours a day. But through some effort, Kraft was able to evade them as if he did not exist to the cameras at all. With his rights and powers, Kong Rong could bring Kraft in for questioning, but after seeing Jin’s powers and the extent of what that guy was able to do, the State Agent strongly felt that it would have been counterproductive to do so. (But perhaps, now that they are in ‘good’ terms, he could probably catch him and see how he escapes. That way, Kong Rong might be able to improve on the compound’s security.)
“I believe it’s a little fair that my boss knows your true identity and understands that the underlying reason for you to perform that taboo oath was because of your job. Perhaps then, he would appreciate your sacrifice even more. But honestly, in hindsight, I believe you would think that it was such a foolish move once Jin decides to open up.” Kraft sniggered, and Kong Rong did not know whether this fox was genuinely helping him or just being a little sarcastic.
“Then, what is the real reason for you helping me then? If you are out to kill me, I understand why you need to collect intelligence in the shop before striking.” Jin asked with a wary expression to the dismay of Kong Rong. Kong Rong had initially thought of ways to try to explain and perhaps disguise his intentions quite a number of times before meeting Jin for a face to face conversation. But eventually, he guessed telling the truth does not hurt either. (Especially when that fox was looking over his shoulders.)
“I didn’t lie when I said that I was interested in the last surviving member of the Royal Panda Clan and wanting to know what he would do. It might be my job to ‘clean up’, but I am against killing someone for the off-chance they might do something bad in the future. When I checked you out, your record was less than stellar. Your performance in school was slightly above average and even your choice of university, as well as module, was nothing extraordinary. You never committed any crimes, and you had no achievements at all either. Yet, the archives had shown that for some reason the ‘chosen’ Royal Panda Clan members gained superpowers only once the previous generation of selected Royal Panda Clan members had passed away.” Kong Rong started to explain.
“So, when you created that dungeon supplier store, we decided to close an eye despite the perfect forging of that licence. We even questioned the people who reviewed and issued that dungeon supplier license for you and they said you met all the requirements, stating you had sufficient ability that the aptitude tests were not needed to be a dungeon supplier.”
“That is because he had alibis, duh. How can you close an eye if he did the paperwork properly?” Kraft yawned at Kong Rong’s reasoning, and Jin felt that Kraft must actually have had a hand in this. He just did not know when his fox comrade did it since Jin knew that the System had created the licence without manipulating anything but the database from the start. (Perhaps, Kraft found out certain loopholes and closed them when he was ‘recruited’ by Jin.)
“I was sceptical, yet after my colleagues tried the dungeons while I watched from afar, all of them reported that it was indeed top-notch quality. I trusted them since some of them were intensively trained in such dungeon instances. Even though they purposely suppressed their levels for the dungeons, there were times they really felt they should increase their levels to work out properly.”
“So if your colleagues did that, there was a good chance that your surveillance operation might get detected…” Jin pointed, and Kong Rong nodded his head. “Is that the reason why you never once participated in the dungeons, so that your identity as a State Agent as well as your powers wouldn’t be revealed?”
“Erm, well. Yeah, it’s something like that. Still, I had tons of fun looking for optimal ways to beat your dungeons. Who knows, maybe I will actually go through them one of these days.” Kong Rong said as he coughed a little and returned to the topic.
“After watching you for a while, we noticed that you managed to handle trouble by yourself. It all culminated in that fight of yours against the Rat Triad Boss. A few colleagues and I happened to be in the area watching out, and I admit that I ordered them to hang back. At that point, we were certain that the Rat Triad Boss could kill you. In that case, our mission would be completed, and we only would have to worry about the cleaning up.”
“It’s a bit far fetched but are you the people who pushed the Rat Triads against us?” Jin questioned, and Kong Rong shook his head.
“I swear that we did not have anything to do with it. All we did was to observe you, and check if you would show any signs of wanting to succeed your grandfather. You just happened to have occupied the exact area they had taken a liking to. In other words, plain economic forces. Still, I think that it would be a great idea for the future.” Kong Rong answered half-jokingly.
“You managed to exceed expectations when you defeated Wo De Tian. Granted the Triad nowadays mostly uses their faction’s power to intimidate others instead of fighting them, yet his grade was still something not to be sniffed at.”
“For you to go against authority while utilising friends in high places wisely revealed to us that you might be a little more cunning than we had estimated you to be. Anyway, the real deal-breaker for us was the creation of the Tree Mall and most importantly, your willingness to retain the shopkeepers from the district.”
“How is that a deal-breaker?” Jin did not understand the rationale.
“He is basically calling you a goody-two-shoes. Most businessmen would never even inherit failing business. And from a business perspective, they were bound to fail within the next decade or two. Their food was mediocre at best, the products they sold were so-so, and some of the services they provided were just meh until you came in to change it all.” Kraft shook his head, at his master’s cluelessness.
“Yes, my team and I saw how you managed to change their circumstances almost instantly, and we started to think that your ability to create dungeons was making an impact on people. Also in the previous situation where you had those portal machines, we managed to keep it under wraps, even though certain countries are still enquiring about it because of the impression it made in easing transport. That rapid response allowed us to transport supplies in very quickly, saving a lot of time and people.” Kong Rong said before looking right into Jin’s eyes.
“So, with all that good you did, would it be ridiculous of a reason to see the rise of a fallen clan worthy to fight not just one but all twelve Royal Zodiac Clans? And by fight, I mean beating them at their game and rising up to the top. Break the notion that the Royal Zodiacs should always be the superior one.” Kong Rong replied, and when Jin and Kraft heard it, they looked at each other and chuckled together.
Kong Rong just looked at the two who were laughing so heartily at his lofty goal and waited for an explanation. He expected them to be more surprised or even just curious why he as a State Agent would do that.
“Should we?” Jin asked Kraft blatantly after he stopped chuckling.
“I do not see a reason not to. He did make that dubious but beneficial oath for you. At least at the moment, we can be sure that he is an ally. He could have killed you early on, but that did not happen so I guess we should respond to his …hmm supposed mercy with appropriate gratitude.” Kraft shrugged with a wide smile.
Being able to recruit Kong Rong into the System would not just add a powerful cultivator to their midst, but provide a network of high levelled expertise that Jin solely needed if he wished to continue on his way to become the number one dungeon supplier.
