"Marshal, why are you so certain?"


    Bulaiteig looked at Lin Jiaoyang with curiosity and couldn’t help but ask.


    Lin Jiaoyang laughed heartily and said, "Look, the little girl he’s with has the surname Zhao. Based on your investigation, they boarded the ship from Iserlohn…" Seeing Bulaiteig about to interject, Lin Jiaoyang continued, "Don’t say this still needs confirmation. The information you’ve gathered already confirms it. The royal family of the Zhao Song Empire naturally bears the surname Zhao, just as our Chu Tang Empire’s emperor bears the surname Chu, and the king of the Sun Wu Kingdom bears the surname Sun. That’s the first point."


    "This Yun Yi works at a mech company and is highly skilled. The Yun Yi from the Zhao Song Empire was a mech genius, invincible on the battlefield. Generally, someone who can be called a mech genius must have an extraordinary passion for mechs. And to be a skilled mech pilot, besides a solid foundation in martial arts, one must also understand mechs. Like you, for example. If you were to work as an intermediate-level repair technician now, you could probably handle it, right?"


    Bulaiteig nodded confidently. In the past, when military affairs weren’t too busy, he would spend a lot of time studying mech-related knowledge.


    "So, a skilled mech pilot must possess knowledge about mechs. The only difference is how much they know. Think about it. If the Yun Yi from the Zhao Song Empire suddenly found himself in a place where he couldn’t use mechs, where would his passion for mechs shift?"


    Bulaiteig immediately understood and nodded heavily. He realized that if he were in such a situation, his first choice would probably be to work at a mech company too.


    "Heh." Lin Jiaoyang seemed to guess what Bulaiteig was thinking and smiled. "That’s the second point. The third point, and the most crucial one, explains why his martial arts level dropped from Level 8 to Level 7!"


    "Why…" Bulaiteig couldn’t imagine any situation that would cause a martial artist’s level to drop. Even if someone suffered severe injuries or had their dantian destroyed, they would either be unable to cultivate or remain at their previous level. It was impossible for their martial arts level to decline.


    Lin Jiaoyang seemed to be reminiscing about something. After a moment, he said, "This is also thanks to the fact that I was able to enter the royal library in my youth and read many books. In the history of the Galactic Empire, the ancestors of the Zhao Song Empire were once granted a martial arts manual called ''The Righteous Qi of Heaven'' by the emperor of the Galactic Empire at the time. I found the name of this manual grand and became interested, so I looked into it. After several days of searching, just as I was about to give up, I finally found an introduction to this manual in an ancient book."


    "This manual is indeed incredibly powerful and has immense benefits for cultivating one’s physical constitution. Such a high-level manual is on par with our Lin family’s ''Twelve Floors of Ice and Fire,'' each with its own advantages. However, this manual has one unique feature: if someone who has practiced other martial arts switches to this manual, their entire cultivation will drop to the level of Level 1 or 2. After more than a year of diligent practice, it will gradually recover. If I were the empress of the Zhao Song Empire and entrusted my daughter to Yun Yi, I would certainly give him ''The Righteous Qi of Heaven'' as well!"


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    "So, connecting the previous points, can’t you figure it out now?"


    Bulaiteig pondered deeply. After a few minutes, he suddenly understood and hurriedly said, "Could it be that Yun Yi accepted the final entrustment before the fall of the Zhao Song Empire, bringing the empire’s last bloodline with him, and after enduring life-and-death trials, finally arrived in Chu Tang?"


    As he spoke, Bulaiteig suddenly remembered his own father, that stubborn and proud Tanyak man who, after narrowly escaping death, left the Tanyak Star System and wandered among the stars, ultimately rushing toward the sun in despair…


    Unconsciously, Bulaiteig began to feel a sense of goodwill toward Yun Yi. Combined with the fact that Yun Yi had protected Lin Moxue, Bulaiteig even felt an urge to meet him immediately.


    "What should we do about him?"


    Bulaiteig’s heart suddenly turned cold as he thought of the ugly politics he had witnessed. He feared that Lin Jiaoyang might capture Yun Yi and the Zhao girl, treating them as rare commodities to be hoarded.


    "Heh, we don’t need to do anything to him. Let him continue as he was, and we won’t interfere. In fact, I’d like to see what kind of astonishing feats the once-dominant mech warrior of Iserlohn will achieve in the Chang’an system."


    As he spoke, a look of anticipation appeared on Lin Jiaoyang’s face.


    "Pass down the order: immediately seal all the information about Yun Yi and classify it as an SS-level confidential file. Erase all traces of Yun Yi’s activities in Iserlohn, including his journey to the Chu Tang Empire. Also, silence all personnel in the Military Intelligence Division who investigated this matter. I believe you’ve handled memory erasure before, right? No issues?"


    "Yes! No issues," Bulaiteig responded. Memory erasure wasn’t anything unusual. All personnel who joined the Military Intelligence Bureau often had their memories of certain investigations erased afterward using specialized equipment, which caused no physical harm. An SS-level classification meant that, apart from the emperor and a few top officials like the marshal, no one had the authority to access such secrets.


    "Heh, after all, the Zhao Song Empire and the Chu Tang Empire are both descendants of the Han. This is the least I can do for them. Remember, don’t tell anyone about this, not even the emperor."


    "Yes!"


    "One more thing." Lin Jiaoyang glanced at the two photos on the table, then turned his gaze away and said to Bulaiteig, "Tomorrow, personally take Moxue back to Chang’an Fourth Star and escort her to school. Sigh, ever since Moxue fell ill, she’s grown increasingly distant from me. But I can sense that she still sees you as an older brother; her illness hasn’t changed that. When you have time, talk to her properly. To be honest, I regret it a bit. If I hadn’t pushed her so hard those years, she wouldn’t be like this now."


    Bulaiteig wanted to comfort Lin Jiaoyang, but his somewhat awkward nature left him struggling for words. After thinking for a while, he could only say, "Yes!"


    At lunchtime, the six of them gathered again. It seemed to have become a habit for them to meet here every day after school. Yun Yi didn’t mind it either. For him, why settle for ordinary food when he could enjoy delicious meals? Moreover, every meal was paid for by Chris, so he didn’t have to spend a single cent.


    As for Chris, the cost of these meals was a drop in the bucket compared to his monthly allowance. In this closed-off school with no entertainment venues, there weren’t many places to spend money anyway.


    Their Class 15 had just completed a periodic exam the day before, and today the results were handed out. The group immediately gathered to compare their scores.