Lu Siya pursed her lips and said, "Isn't he your friend? How would I know? But has he been in need of money lately?"
Meng Chao was a little stunned. "Why do you say that?"
"Half a month ago, he came to me and said that he wants to cash in the mining rights for the Red Radiance Jade mine," Lu Siya said.
"You know that the amount of Red Radiance Jades under Raging Waves is astonishing. Even if the grade of the crystals dropped after the explosion last time, they're still enough for us to mine for decades.
"I don't intend to go back on my word. I won't give Qin Hu a single copper coin less than he deserves. The dividends he gets every year are enough for his family to live comfortably for a few lifetimes.
"But he wants to sell the mining rights for decades in one go. Of course, he wants to sell them at a very low price."
"How could that be?"
Meng Chao was stunned. "Right now, Superstar is doing well. He shouldn't be living too carefreely as the second shareholder. Besides, he's lost his powers, so he doesn't need to buy expensive cultivation resources. Why would he sell off a treasure trove that can last for decades in one go?"
Meng Chao thought about it for a while before he called Qin Hu and asked him about the Broken Star Club.
"Great Club Leader Meng, you finally have time to listen to my report?"
Qin Hu grinned at the other end of the phone, but the area around him was very noisy. Someone was shouting, "Director Qin, Director Qin!"
Meng Chao frowned. "Mr. Hu, what are you doing? Why would the Broken Star Club …"
Why would they attract a large amount of donations and cultivation cabins?
"Ah, I'm at the headquarters of the Broken Star Club. If it's convenient for you, come over and talk to me. I can have dinner with the directors tonight!" Qin Hu said loudly.
"The … headquarters?"
Meng Chao became even more puzzled.
The Broken Star Club was an organization that made reservations. It was originally located in the old lecture building of Agricultural University's martial arts course, which was where the martial arts refresher courses were held. Even though there were fewer cultivation cabins, the place was rather spacious, and it was very convenient for them to teach the Ultimate Style.
When did they set up a headquarters? Was there a need for it? Who paid for it?!
"I'll go take a look as well."
Once Meng Chao hung up, Lu Siya said with great interest. "Qin Hu is quite interesting sometimes."
Meng Chao frowned. "Is he?"
"Of course, don't underestimate him."
"On the surface, he's just the vice captain of Tiger Fang and a normal hunter. Right now, he's lost his powers and doesn't seem to be able to turn things around.
"But now that I think about it, at that time, there were plenty of people who went underground, and the two teams practically all died, including all the Heaven Realm elites aside from me. But he managed to survive despite being at the peak of Earth Realm, and he even obtained his own fortuitous encounter.
"Do you think this is just a coincidence?"
Meng Chao thought about it.
"Everyone has their own merits."
"Qin Hu's strength is his beast-like instincts. He can always stand on the winning side. In ancient battlefields, he's known as a lucky general. I'd like to know what he calculated to be more valuable than the mining rights to the Red Radiance Jade mine for decades." Lu Siya continued.
Based on the address Qin Hu gave them, they arrived at a factory area in the northern suburbs of Dragon City. It was a dilapidated warehouse.
One of the large warehouses was currently being renovated. The exterior walls were painted with flour, and the words "Broken Star Club" were written in a flamboyant style on the white walls. They were also decorated with signboards and neon lights.
The interior of the warehouse was divided into five floors. It was still being renovated, and there were renovation materials everywhere. Workers went in and out, and the noise was endless.
"Qin Hu …"
Meng Chao did not expect that the headquarters Qin Hu mentioned would really be a standalone building.
Even though it was just an old warehouse being renovated, Dragon City was short on space, and the rent for such a thing was astronomical.
He exchanged a glance with Lu Siya, and they walked in.
The original warehouse was now the first floor of the Broken Star Club's headquarters. It was an exhibition hall, or rather, a room of honor. The walls were covered in photos and newspaper clippings.
Meng Chao went over to take a look and found that they were all heroic deeds of broken-star superhumans.
Many of the broken-star superhumans were normal citizens. They only awakened to supernatural abilities during critical moments of life and death to protect their families and homes.
Naturally, when they reached a breakthrough in battle, they would kill monsters that were far stronger than them and become heroes that caused a stir.
By the looks of it, Qin Hu had gathered news reports about hundreds of broken-star superhumans and placed them here in an earnest manner. In an instant, all the broken-star superhumans' sense of honor was stimulated.
And right in the middle was a newspaper clipping of Meng Chao killing a Bloody Moon Wolf King during the practical test of his national college examination.
"…"
Meng Chao's face turned slightly red.
"Leader Meng!"
"Leader Meng, you're here!"
"Leader Meng, you've done a great deed for all broken-star superhumans by creating the Broken Star Club!"
When the broken-star superhumans saw Meng Chao, they strode forward and hugged him passionately.
Over the past few months, Gu Jianbo had been training in isolation. Most of the time, Meng Chao, his true disciple, was the one who taught the most broken-star superhumans the basic techniques of the Ultimate Style.
Meng Chao was also the one who created some of the cultivation videos and the Ultimate Style's livestreams.
Hence, he was very familiar with quite a number of broken-star superhumans. But lately, he had been busy with the murderous pets in Blessed Paradise and had not contacted them for more than half a month.
In the face of the passionate broken-star superhumans, Meng Chao still could not understand what was going on. He could only ask them where Qin Hu was.
"Director Qin is on the third floor. He's having a meeting with the other directors. Let's lead the way. This place is still being renovated. There aren't any railings on the stairs. It's a mess."
The broken-star superhumans led the way while Meng Chao followed behind them. He wondered, 'When did the Broken Star Club gain a few directors? Oh, I think Qin Hu mentioned it last time. But my mind was filled with Giant Sandworms, so I didn't pay attention to it.'
By the looks of it, Qin Hu had managed the Broken Star Club well. The first floor was the honor room, the second floor was a buffet restaurant, the third floor was a hall and a small meeting room, and the fourth and fifth floors were cultivation centers. Even though they were still being renovated, they were much better than before. They were rather formal and imposing.
But it was still the same question. Where did the money come from?
Meng Chao went to the third floor in a daze.
The door to the meeting room had not been fixed yet, and there were no office tables or chairs inside. Everyone sat on a few wooden boxes for the meeting.
While he was at the staircase, Meng Chao heard Qin Hu's loud voice. "I don't have anything else but one thing. I've always been warm-hearted since I was young. I spend money like water, love my hometown, and am willing to contribute to the people in my hometown!
"This time, I'm indebted to all of you for thinking highly of me. Even if I have to sacrifice my life, I will definitely fight for the welfare, development, and dignity of the broken-star superhumans!"
Meng Chao could not listen to it anymore and strode in.
When he looked around, he sighed in relief.
Fortunately, he knew the other directors sitting on the wooden boxes. He had come into contact with them when he taught them the Ultimate Style some time ago. They were the backbone of their respective industries. They worked diligently and were good citizens who played their part. They should not be fooling around with Qin Hu.
"Leader Meng, you're here!"
Qin Hu's eyes lit up, and he was the first to clap his hands. "Everyone, let's welcome him!"
Clap! Clap! Clap! The directors clapped.
Meng Chao felt a little troubled. "You don't have to be so polite. You're all seniors in your respective industries. Besides, I'm just a vice leader, and this vice leader is also —"
"We were just about to talk to you about this," Qin Hu interrupted him.
"Leader Ma wants to resign from his position, and we've talked about it. We've come to the conclusion that you're the second leader of the Broken Star Club, and no one else but you!"
Meng Chao was stunned. "What?"
"This is what happened. Leader Ma said that he's from the Red Dragon Army. Once the war becomes tense, it'll be difficult for him to find time to serve the Broken Star Club. Besides, while the Red Dragon Army doesn't forbid members from joining normal social organizations, the Broken Star Club is getting bigger. It'll be inappropriate for him to be the leader," one of the directors explained.
"So, he wants to resign from his position as the leader and only stay as a normal member. From now on, we'll have to rely on you, Leader Meng."
"That's right, Leader Meng. The Broken Star Club has always been formed by many broken-star superhumans to learn the Ultimate Style. You're Mr. Gu's true disciple, and you've been actively promoting the Ultimate Style in society. You're also a standard broken-star superhuman. Aside from you, who else can be the leader?"
"That's right. Most of the broken-star superhumans have watched your cultivation videos and livestreams, and they've slowly begun to figure out the secrets of cultivating branch meridians. We heard that you were the one who came up with the idea to create the cultivation cabins for the Ultimate Style. You helped us open a brand new path of cultivation. If we don't trust you, who else can we trust?"
The directors started talking at the same time.
Meng Chao coughed dryly and scratched his head. "We'll talk about this later. Right now, I have something urgent to discuss with Director Qin. Please wait for a while, okay?"
Before the others could react, Meng Chao dragged Qin Hu out of the meeting room and pushed him into a toilet that had not been renovated yet. Then, he locked the door.
"Mr. Hu, you didn't go behind my back and collect membership fees, right?" Meng Chao asked with a dark expression.
Qin Hu widened his eyes. "What membership fees?! What nonsense are you spouting?!"
Meng Chao thought about it and asked, "You didn't use the name of the Broken Star Club to swindle people, get sponsors, or get membership cards that cost a lot, did you?"
"…"
Qin Hu sighed. "Brother Meng, am I really that bad in your eyes? We're friends who have gone through life and death together!"
"Then I don't understand," Meng Chao said curiously.
"Where did you get the money to build the headquarters of the Broken Star Club? Did you really pay for it with your own money?"
"Of course I sold everything I had and paid for it with my own money. What else could I have done?" Qin Hu retorted.
"…"
Meng Chao stared at Qin Hu for half a minute. The more he looked at him, the more awkward he felt. He felt that the face in front of him was really strange, and he could not put his finger on it.
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