Chapter 285: Philosophy

After Gardner Martin's butler, Faustino, led Lu Mian into the room, he didn't leave, but opened his arms and said with a smile:

"Welcome, new brother."

Are you also a member of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order"? Lu Mian was a bit surprised first, then felt it was a matter of course.

The butler is the master's eyes, ears, hands, and feet. It is unlikely that Gardner Martin could hide many secret things from the butler. Therefore, either he developed the butler into a member of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order," or he found a member of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order" to be the butler.

Lu Mian's gaze swept over Faustino's slightly graying temples, relatively sunken eye sockets, and light blue eyes, and returned the hug:

"Thank you."

Faustino, who had a relatively serious temperament and dressed close to a butler, walked to the dining table and pulled out a chair on the west side, saying to Lu Mian:

"You sit here."

Lu Mian nodded gently and sat down in a relaxed state, just as if he had returned to his own home.

Of course, thanks to Aurora's teaching, he didn't raise his legs or have the habit of resting his two feet on the edge of the dining table.

Faustino sat down next to Lu Mian and explained simply:

"Wait a moment, a few more brothers are coming."

A quarter of an hour later, the remaining "Iron and Blood Cross Order" members arrived. Under Faustino's introduction, Lu Mian hugged them one by one.

They were:

Vincent Lorin, who represented Gardner Martin in the operation of the Rister Docks. This person was under thirty, didn't wear glasses, had black hair and blue eyes common in Intis, looked scholarly, had a thin figure, and his hair was neatly combed back, not much different from common company employees. Lu Mian intuitively felt that he wasn't a Beyonder of the "Hunter" pathway, which made him feel a bit confused—how did he pass the vigilante link?

Parsifal, who helped Gardner Martin manage the yard and freight company. His appearance was that of a middle-aged man seen everywhere. His brown hair was neither long nor short, slightly messy, and his brown eyes carried a smile that seemed quite approachable. Once they were devoid of emotion, they would make people feel very cold and afraid to get close;

Albus, who didn't seem to be responsible for specific affairs and seemed to walk in the dark. His hair seemed to be dyed with a little red, his brownish brows and eyes were very sharp, and he was an overall good-looking young man who didn't seem to be likable;

And there was an acquaintance of Lu Mian, "Bloody Palm" Black of the Savar Party.

This manager of the Honest Market was in his thirties, wearing a formal suit, with brown hair and blue eyes, a round face, and a gentle smile on his face, always smoking a cigar at a slow pace.

Lu Mian had always suspected that there was an official member of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order" inside the Savar Party, representing Gardner Martin's will to secretly monitor the various movements of the Market District and the Savar Party, but he didn't expect that it would be the "Bloody Palm" Black, whose presence was very thin.

He originally thought it was Baron Brignais or "Rat" Christophe—he felt that the latter might have served as an observer in the last transaction.

Now looking at Black again, Lu Mian felt that he and Gardner Martin had a somewhat similar temperament.

Counting Faustino and himself, the number of "Iron and Blood Cross Order" members present had reached six.

Lu Mian used to slander that "the Savar Party, such a regional gang, actually has five or six Beyonders, isn't it too much?" But now, he thought it was a matter of course.

As a secret organization with a history of two or three hundred years, the "Iron and Blood Cross Order" having such a foundation was normal, even if it was just its peripheral branch, it would enjoy many resources.

After greeting each other, the butler Faustino introduced the things on the table to Lu Mian:

"In the next ritual, the wine glass is our weapon, it can also be a cannon, red wine is ordinary explosive, white wine is high-efficiency explosive, food is material, knife and fork are sharp swords..."

Lu Mian listened quietly, feeling more and more that there was something wrong with the brains of this group of people.

Is this too self-conscious?

Or, does this have any mystical significance?

After Faustino finished speaking, Gardner Martin, who had changed into a tailcoat, walked into this room.

He wore an iron cross medal inlaid with a red gem on his chest and stood at the east end of the long dining table, opposite the six members sitting at the west end.

*Swish*, the five members other than Lu Mian stood up at the same time, very neatly.

Yo... Lu Mian, while making a sighing sound in his heart, followed and stood up.

"Good evening, 'Chief'." Faustino, Black, and others asked for greetings without distinction, and Lu Mian was a beat slower.

Gardner Martin pressed his right hand down, signaling everyone to sit down, and then said with a smile:

"Wait for the 'Supervisor' to come, and then we will officially start the ritual.

"Charles, I'll tell you first what the core layer you are about to join represents."

Gardner Martin looked into Lu Mian's eyes, and his tone gradually became serious:

"We all belong to a secret organization, a secret organization with a history of several hundred years.

"It's called the 'Iron and Blood Cross Order'."

Lu Mian didn't deliberately show surprise or astonishment. After all, that was a relatively ordinary name.

The dark red-haired young man sitting at the edge of the dining table, Albus, opened his mouth, seeming to want to say something, but was glared back by Gardner Martin.

This "Chief" of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order" moved his gaze back to Lu Mian's face:

"Nearly three hundred years ago, several big figures jointly established the 'Iron and Blood Cross Order'. They believed that gods were just more powerful Beyonders, and no matter from which aspect, even the weakest Beyonder was essentially different from ordinary people.

"Our philosophy is that no matter what way you obtain extraordinary power, you should be recognized and get corresponding status and treatment, riding above ordinary people. But the two major churches and the government only want to recognize the Beyonders they cultivate and stipulate that extraordinary power should be exposed to ordinary people as little as possible.

"This is a behavior that violates nature and the historical trend. We must change it.

"This also means that we must be enemies with the government and the two major churches, but you don't need to fear. We have enough powerful strength and true demigods.

"In the future, if the two major churches are willing to let the extraordinary appear in the world and are willing to recognize the status of wild Beyonders, it's not that we cannot cooperate with them."

Simply put, the ultimate goal is to overthrow the government, establish a country where Beyonders serve as management personnel at all levels? Lu Mian interpreted Gardner Martin's words from his own perspective.

Gardner Martin's gaze swept over the six "Iron and Blood Cross Order" members sitting opposite, and he smiled again:

"Our 'Iron and Blood Cross Order' power is mainly concentrated in Intis, of which more than one-third is in Trier. You have also seen that just in the Market District, we have so many brothers who are not weak, and more Beyonders are indirectly dominated by us.

"I am the 'Chief', responsible for leading you and handling various affairs in the Market District. Above me are several branch presidents, who can also be called 'Deputy Legion Commanders'. Each of them is a true, powerful demigod.

"Above the branch president is the president of our 'Iron and Blood Cross Order', also called the 'Legion Commander'. He is mysterious and terrifying.

"Below me are 'Non-commissioned Officers'. After our brothers in the Market District exceed ten, I will appoint two 'Non-commissioned Officers' to help me manage. 'Non-commissioned Officers' can obtain more resources and more powerful help."

Are you playing an army game? Lu Mian guessed from the names of different levels of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order."

Gardner Martin looked at the door and said:

"Besides these, we also have multiple 'Supervisors'. Each 'Supervisor' acts independently, patrolling the jurisdiction of different 'Chiefs'.

"In the future, if I have a problem and show abnormalities, you must find the 'Supervisor' at the first time and report the situation to him. Similarly, if you find that the 'Supervisor' has done abnormal things, tell me immediately."

Speaking of this, Gardner Martin's smile was a bit playful as he said to Lu Mian:

"Charles, I'll introduce you to the 'Supervisor' responsible for the Market District, Olsen."

Lu Mian, with a hint of doubt, followed Gardner Martin's finger and cast his gaze toward the door.

The next second, a thin and tall man wearing a blue vest and a black suit walked in from outside.

That man had short brownish-red hair, brownish-red eyes, a pair of thick brows, and a dense and messy beard, looking like a male bear that had been hungry for a long time.

Lu Mian's pupils dilated instantly, recognizing who the "Supervisor" Olsen really was.

He was that trader, the trader who had met Lu Mian, Christophe, and Simon underground!

Lu Mian clearly remembered that he was a monster, only having a head and a blood-stained spine left, being chased by another headless monster, both of which were very dangerous. But now, he had come to the ground and appeared in Gardner Martin's home!

Lu Mian couldn't help but look at Olsen's hands, seeing the relatively white skin and the small leather suitcase being carried.

Does he have a body again? Did he and that headless monster merge into one? Lu Mian looked at Olsen walking to Gardner Martin's side with thoughts flying.

He began to suspect that the two monsters he met when completing the transaction were phantoms created by Olsen, and he himself didn't have any abnormalities.

Since the transaction was a test, it wasn't too surprising that the monster was fake.

But that wasn't too realistic, right? Lu Mian looked suspiciously at Gardner Martin and Olsen, each taking a high-footed glass, and said to everyone present:

"Load the explosive!"

Albus, Parsifal, and other members of the "Iron and Blood Cross Order" followed suit by placing a stemmed glass in front of them and pouring in red wine with an alluring hue.

So this is loading the explosives? Lu Mian recalled Faustino saying that the wine glass was a weapon or cannon, and the red wine was the explosive.

After he finished "loading the cannon with explosives," Gardner Martin said loudly:

"Stand up!

"Hold your weapon in your right hand!"

The next second, everyone stood up and placed their right hands on the stemmed glasses filled with a fair amount of red wine.

"Raise your weapons!" Gardner Martin issued a new command.

At the same time, he raised his glass to chest level.

Lu Mian clicked his tongue in wonder while imitating the actions of the surrounding members.

(End of chapter)