Chapter 89: Star Soul (The Big Dipper)

Once inside the room, Lin Fan said nothing at all. He simply threw himself onto the sofa, one leg crossed casually over the other.

It had to be said: working for the state had its advantages. Food and lodging were all paid for by the authorities; all one had to do was carry out the assigned mission properly.

Lin Fan knew this well. Back when he was with Falcon, whenever he went out on assignment, no matter the outcome, all expenses were covered by the country. If he completed the mission, he would even receive a bonus. But now he felt no attachment to any of that. In his heart, he was no longer one of Falcon’s men. He was the boss of Dragon Soul Mercenaries. What he needed to do now was avenge his parents, and at the same time lead Dragon Soul, step by step, to the summit of the world.

“Kid, about what happened back then…” Lin Haotian sighed and slowly began.

But before he could even finish, Lin Fan cut him off. “There’s no need to bring that up anymore. Let the past stay in the past. If you came to see me, just say what’s on your mind.”

Lin Haotian knew that although his nephew said the matter was past, in his heart it could never be crossed so easily. If it really were behind him, his tone would never be this indifferent.

“As the leader of Dragon Soul, you should be familiar with the organization called Star Soul, right?” Lin Haotian no longer pressed that subject and went straight to the point.

Star Soul was one of the most secretive organizations in the world. Because it had very few members, only eight in total, and rarely carried out any large-scale operations, not many people knew it existed. But some of the world’s long-established organizations still had information on it.

All eight members of Star Soul were Chinese. Their leader was known as the Purple Star.

The Purple Star was said to be the ruler of the celestial art of fate. Scholars throughout the ages regarded the Purple Star as the Emperor Star, and thus anyone whose life palace was governed by it was said to possess the bearing of an emperor. The Purple Star was also called the Pole Star. Its very name was the Star of Sovereigns. It was blessed with noble helpers throughout life. The seven stars of the Big Dipper revolve around the Pole Star through all four seasons. If the heavens were a funnel, then the Purple Star would be the tip of that funnel.

The other seven were strictly named after the Big Dipper. In modern terms, they were Celestial Pivot, Celestial Jade, Celestial Pearls, Celestial Authority, Jade Balance, Open Yang, and Shaking Light. In ancient terms, they were Greedy Wolf, Giant Gate, Prosperity, Literary Star, Pure Chastity, Martial Star, and Army Breaker.

Aside from their leader, the Purple Star, the other seven stars each possessed unique abilities. After every killing, they would definitely leave behind a black card covered in scattered stars, and at the center of that card was a large white character meaning “soul.” The great organizations of the world were all familiar with Star Soul’s black cards, but knew very little about the organization itself. What they understood was only superficial information.

Lin Haotian slowly recounted everything he knew about Star Soul, all the while staring unblinkingly at Lin Fan, as if trying to read something from his face. Unfortunately, beneath the slight fringe over his forehead, Lin Fan’s phoenix eyes looked straight ahead, and his entire face was calm beyond calm. No one could possibly guess what he was thinking.

Seeing that his uncle had finished, Lin Fan stretched, a faint smile touching the corner of his mouth. “Why are you telling me all this? Don’t tell me you think I’m one of Star Soul’s people?”

“Isn’t that so?” Lin Haotian asked mildly in return.

“If you’re determined to believe that, then anything I say is useless,” Lin Fan shrugged, his lips curling as though he had no intention of arguing over it.

“Kid, Star Soul only has eight people, so there isn’t much information on them. But the state can be certain that there is some inevitable connection between Star Soul and Dragon Soul. You’re the leader of Dragon Soul now—if not you, then who else should I ask?” Lin Haotian clearly did not believe Lin Fan’s words. If he wanted this nephew of his to admit he belonged to Star Soul, then he would need ironclad proof. Otherwise, it was all for nothing.

What Lin Haotian did not know was that no matter what he said, no matter how persuasive he was, Lin Fan would never admit he was one of Star Soul’s people—and certainly not its leader, the man codenamed the Purple Star.

“I do know a little, but only that much,” Lin Fan said lightly. “Dragon Soul Mercenaries has several hundred times the manpower Star Soul does. What, you don’t think the two organizations are family just because they both have the word soul in their names, do you?”

“That’s not quite the point. Dragon Soul’s former captain, Han Feng, once hinted that he wanted to hand Star Soul over to the state. Since you’re Dragon Soul’s captain now, if I don’t come to you, who else should I look for?” Lin Haotian kept his gaze fixed on Lin Fan, trying once again to catch something on his face. Unfortunately, Lin Fan disappointed him again.

“If Han Feng agreed to it, then you should have gone to him. It’s not as though I want to hand Star Soul over to the state. Besides, I’m not Star Soul’s leader, so why are you asking me?” Lin Fan excused himself with just a few words.

“You… you know full well Han Feng is dead. Where am I supposed to find him?” Lin Haotian was getting anxious. One of the tasks the state had given him this time was to determine whether Star Soul was really in Lin Fan’s hands. Yet Lin Fan’s answer clearly left this captain of the Falcon special forces completely at a loss.

At the mention of Han Feng, a flicker of sorrow and remembrance passed through Lin Fan’s eyes.

After completing a mission in Country M and being abandoned by the state, it was Han Feng who had saved him and brought him back to Dragon Soul. Later, after living there for a while, Lin Fan gradually came to love the life of a mercenary.

Back then he was only twenty-one. Han Feng would often teach him how to navigate the world and deal with people, and would personally take him out on missions. Little by little, Lin Fan’s talent as a mercenary came fully to light. Every mission assigned to him, he completed well. Not only was he excellent in combat, he was also astonishingly well liked throughout Dragon Soul.

Han Feng was not a martial arts master, but he was an outstanding commander. From him, Lin Fan learned many things he could never have learned in Falcon.

Alas, heaven is jealous of talent. During one battle, Han Feng was accidentally shot and killed. Before he died, he handed Dragon Soul over to Lin Fan, and also placed the mysterious organization Star Soul into Lin Fan’s hands.

Perhaps Han Feng had once considered giving Star Soul to the state. But after he saved Lin Fan and learned that Lin Fan had been abandoned by the country, he changed his mind. He believed he would not be wrong about the man: Lin Fan would surely take Star Soul and Dragon Soul to an even higher level.

In truth, Dragon Soul was a large mercenary organization, while Star Soul hid within Dragon Soul. In other words, among Dragon Soul’s members were eight people who belonged to Star Soul, and those eight also belonged to Dragon Soul. Whenever urgent missions arose, Star Soul would appear in the world as a separate organization. But ever since Lin Fan took over Dragon Soul Mercenaries, Star Soul had rarely shown itself to the outside world.

“That doesn’t seem to have anything to do with me,” Lin Fan said, gathering his emotions and smiling faintly.

“Since you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t ask anymore.” Lin Fan was no longer one of Falcon’s men, and Lin Haotian knew that pressing further would yield nothing useful. It would be better to speak of something else.

“That would be best. You should tell me about my parents instead,” Lin Fan said. He would absolutely never admit that Star Soul was in his possession. Even if the state found out one day, he would never hand it over.

In truth, even if Lin Fan gave Star Soul away for free, the state would not be able to use it. Every member of Star Soul was his brother in life and death—people like Martial Star Mo Fei, for instance, or Prosperity Star Zhang Lei. How could men like that ever be used by the state?

“Yan’er told me that you already know about the ancestral sword of the Lin family,” Lin Haotian said slowly.

Lin Fan said nothing, only nodded slightly.

Lin Haotian continued, “Nine years ago, a man suddenly appeared and sought out your father, offering a very high price to buy that sword. Your father refused. Later, there were other inexplicable people who came to speak to your father about the Violet Sword. Your father felt that something was off, so he called me back and asked me to take the Violet Sword away. Fearing something might happen to your parents, I hid the Violet Sword in a safe place and rushed back that very night. In the end, I was still one step too late.”

He had not expected the family heirloom sword to truly be the Violet Sword. Some time ago, Xu Qiang had told Lin Fan that the Pujiang Group was buying up Violet Swords at a high price, and that had made Lin Fan feel as though he had caught hold of a clue.

“You want to know what kind of sword the Violet Sword really is, don’t you? Otherwise, why would so many people have gone looking for your father?” Lin Haotian said meaningfully when he saw Lin Fan about to speak.

P.S. Please add this book to your shelf! As the word count of this novel continues to grow, it will definitely not disappoint everyone!