Chapter 39: Chapter 39, The Fire Holder
In fact, up to now, Gu Hang still couldn’t be sure whether Yan Fangxu’s entrapment was part of Hodgson’s warning.
If it was, then the capabilities of the Primordial Wrath Owl Sect were rather significant. Not only did they wield the Storm Sorcery bestowed by the Evil God they worshipped, but they could even control those mutant monsters to some extent?
But to say it wasn’t would be too much of a coincidence.
He had also wondered, could this possibly be a case of luring the tiger away from the mountain?
Surrounding Yan Fangxu, drawing away the main forces from the camp to rescue him, and then attacking the camp?
But soon, Gu Hang discarded the idea.
Not very likely.
If his enemies were simply those mutant monsters, it seemed those creatures didn’t have the intellect for it.
If his enemies were the cult, or even worse, certain individuals within the Alliance Government, then destroying Gu Hang’s camp wouldn’t be of much value to them. After all, whether Gu Hang was causing trouble for the cult members or the Alliance Government, his main reliance was always his power as the Governor.
As long as he was alive, what did it matter if his camp was destroyed? Those people’s troubles would not lessen one bit.
Of course, it wasn’t entirely impossible. If the rescue troops sent by Gu Hang weren’t led by him personally, then the enemies might take the opportunity to kill him by attacking the camp.
And if he personally led the rescue team, he would have to be prepared to face an ambush.
No matter how one looked at it, the situation was complicated.
But Gu Hang was not one to dwell on issues.
Since the challenge had arrived, he would meet it head-on.
…
Within Revival City, Hodgson sat in his wheelchair, gazing at the entire city through the large glass window of his office.
Truthfully, Revival City wasn’t particularly large, nor did it have many tall buildings. The planning of the buildings and roads within the city was orderly, a sound foundation laid by the first Governor when establishing the Alliance.
However, after so many years, although the inner city still looked decent, the outer city clinging to the perimeter of the city walls, and considerably larger, was chaotic. Hundreds of thousands, nearly a million people, depending on the city for their existence, yet unable to live within the city walls, formed vast slums.
There, lacking planning and order, everything was a mess. Sewage ran openly, supplies were scarce, and living conditions were harsh. These issues hung over the area, an undesirable sight not fitting for a capital city of an Alliance planet.
Many Alliance Councilmen and inner city residents disliked those displaced persons. They believed these people brought chaos, and considered the slums a breeding ground for filth.
But the smarter ones clearly understood that Revival City in fact could not do without those people.
The displaced living in the outer city consumed the worst and least food, with hardly any clothes to cover their bodies and their dwellings haphazardly constructed. The inner city did not pay them for any public services or welfare benefits, yet they labored in the most grueling jobs, receiving only a dismal amount of compensation, just enough to keep them alive.
Without them, how could the inner city residents live comfortably? How could those councilmen earn wealth far exceeding their contributions?
Therefore, these smart individuals occasionally displayed their compassion generously. They offered more work, distributing charity to the displaced, as if they were truly saving them.
But they had no intention whatsoever of seeking welfare for those who barely counted as residents.
Letting nearly a million displaced live a better life? That was simply unthinkable. Inner city residents were still dissatisfied with their own lives not being good enough, so how could they spare the energy to care for the outer city’s displaced? Their only kindness was allowing fewer to die.
The even smarter ones might see the crisis lurking in the lowly, broken houses beyond the city walls.
Under those submissive and numb expressions, was there not also rage?
Indeed, the fire had burnt numerous times before. But the sparks were too feeble. The sporadic resistance was either crushed under the immense inertia of the deformed system or scattered in the face of armed police.
In summary, these sparks had not yet become the inferno that could consume everything.
But that day would inevitably come. What was needed was a fuse, what was missing was a firebearer.
Hodgson was acutely aware that he belonged to ‘the smarter ones’. He could see all of this, but his wisdom ended there. He could not find a solution, nor did he have the ability to unite and consolidate everyone. He couldn’t even control the Alliance Council.
There were those in the Council who secretly supported the Cult, unbeknownst to him;
There were those who dared to attack the goods bound for the Governor, which he could not stop;
The endless obstacles when mobilizing military police to investigate the Cult, combined with endless debates and queries in the Council, left him exhausted.
More than once, he felt that he had truly grown old.
But he dared not step back.
The investigation into the Cult was originally an order from the Governor, meant to stir Revival City’s political scene. However, as he delved deeper, he began to sense that something was amiss: The fuse he had feared, the firebearer, seemed to have already emerged.
“Grandfather.”
Lambert Hodgson pushed open the doors to the office.
Hodgson did not turn around, merely asking, “Is there a result?”
“We have still not located the whereabouts of the supplies. Councilwoman Marlene has denied the supplies passed through her hands. Two agents responsible for this line have vanished; in the outer city, we’ve found many Rage Owl statues, supposedly originating from a relief station. A group of police attempted a search there but sparked a minor riot among the vagrants, returning empty-handed. When we deployed more forces, the place had already been torched…”
Hodgson sighed deeply, “This time, we are in serious trouble.”
Lambert agreed with his grandfather’s assessment, and for that reason, felt somewhat helpless.
He asked, “We thought it was just the Governor giving us problems, but as we kept investigating, it really sent chills down one’s spine. Those Cult followers are planning a big event in Revival City, but we still don’t have any clear intelligence… What do we do next? The Governor could very well be attacked; shouldn’t we offer support?”
“Who should we send? I can’t even be sure that the ones we dispatch won’t turn out to be the same ones attacking his Excellency the Governor. The Governor himself might think the same and wouldn’t trust us easily.”
“Then we must make our stance clear,” Lambert insisted, “I’ll go, leading a squad of absolutely trustworthy men.”
“Do you understand what this means?”
“I do, it means we’ll face the Governor’s suspicion and be considered by those Council members as completely siding with the Governor, getting squeezed from both sides.”
Despite speaking of grave consequences, Lambert’s tone grew firmer as he went on:
“But I’ve come to understand what you meant when you said ‘only the Governor can save this world’ last time. We can’t be sure if this Governor is the right one, but at least right now, he seems a bit different from his predecessors. He’s chosen a path the previous Governors dared not take; he has the support of a Starship that previous Governors lacked. I want to try. If he isn’t the Governor we’re hoping for, I’ll do everything in my power to help him become one.”
“We don’t have much time to wait for more Governors; the whole planet is yearning for revival, the sooner the better. I would rather contribute now instead of continuing to wait in silence. Being a catalyst for the times is far more meaningful than waiting for the times to change before frantically jumping on board.”
The young man spoke of his grand ideals in front of his elder, who just quietly watched him.
After a long while, Hodgson let out a long breath, “I’m quite old now, living to this age in this wasteland, I have lived enough and can’t make bolder decisions. You’ve always been better than your father, if that’s what you want to do, then go ahead and do it.”