During the two days the delegation spent preparing for departure, news of the battle between Chen Chuan and Crossal rapidly fermented and continued to spread outward.
In truth, this news caused scarcely a ripple among the Federation's middle and lower classes. This was because the West Coast Faction did everything in its power to manage public opinion, while the East Coast Party likewise sought to handle the matter quietly without trumpeting it abroad.
Both sides were concerned that the incident might stoke nationalist sentiments or rebellious backlash, which could adversely affect their negotiations with Great Shun.
Beyond the Federation and its spheres of influence, however, they had no way to exert effective control.
Yet none of that could impact them.
In this world, let alone the flow of information between countries, even center cities were like isolated information islands. The general public's awareness of international affairs relied almost entirely on a handful of global publications and information relayed through branch offices of transnational mega-corporations and government institutions.
Thus, for the middle and lower classes, the Federation only needed to keep public opinion under control within the territory where its authority reached.
At the upper levels, however, it was a completely different story. The news spread at incredible speed. Within two days, Chen Chuan's portraits and dossier landed on the desks of rulers and executives across nations and mega-corporations worldwide, drawing tremendous scrutiny.
It was an event they had no choice but to treat with extreme vigilance. That Chen Chuan could destroy part of a Dongxuan View martial artist's power head-on meant that even if he did not possess the full combat capacity of a Dongxuan View martial artist, he wielded comparable destructive force.
Crucially, most Dongxuan View martial artists held senior positions due to their overwhelming martial might and had long since signed specialized high-level accords. These accords not only restricted their actions—preventing reckless disruption of global security—but also established treaties distributing shared interests. Without such measures, no leadership of any country or corporation could sleep soundly at night.
Because of their daily cultivation and immense combat power, such martial artists often remained at the Ring of the World, far from ordinary society. But Chen Chuan was an exception.
His realm was merely the Longevity View, yet he commanded martial strength approaching that of a Dongxuan View martial artist, and as of now, he met none of the benchmark criteria covered by those accords. This meant he was bound by no rules or restrictions while possessing destructive power capable of threatening the security of nations. An uncontrollable danger like this was all the more terrifying, enough to leave major global powers feeling thorns at their backs.
Major countries and their leaderships found themselves debating: should they revise the existing accords and standards?
***
On January 25th, the Great Shun delegation concluded their visit to Veia State Center City, departed their temporary quarters, and arrived at the train station, seen off by Great Shun corporate executives and enclave representatives based in the Center City.
Just as they were about to board the train, a car drove up in the distance.
Chen Chuan sensed something immediately. Looking over, he saw Rossard step down from the car, yet the people around seemed completely blind to him.
He exchanged a brief word with those nearby and walked over alone. As he moved through the crowd, not a single one of the eager onlookers noticed him either.
When he reached the front of the vehicle, Rossard stepped forward to greet him. He gave a military salute first, then said, "Mr. Chen, I've come to see you off. And... to thank you."
Chen Chuan said, "Mr. Rossard, if you're referring to the battle the day before yesterday, there's no need to thank me. I truly was prepared to grant your wish back then. If anyone deserves your thanks, it would be Mr. Crossal."
Rossard's expression turned slightly subtle.
Speaking of thanks, he really did have Crossal to thank. Originally, having been defeated at Chen Chuan's hands, all the prestige accumulated over his lifetime would have been lost, and he would likely have ceased to be a hero of the Federation—for the Federation could never accept a hero who had suffered defeat.
Still, back then, he had been ready to lay down his life, so he hadn't cared about such things. Yet who could have imagined that even Crossal would fall to Chen Chuan? Viewed in that light, wasn't his own loss only natural?
At least within his circle of acquaintances, few people brought him up anymore. Most of the talk was about Crossal, and it didn't look like that fervor would die down anytime soon.
After these thoughts flashed through his mind, he composed himself and said earnestly, "What I want to thank you for, Mr. Chen, is precisely that you were willing to fulfill my wish back then. I feel deeply ashamed that you had to bear the subsequent storm of trouble in my stead. If I had died then, I wouldn't have had to dwell on it anymore. But I am still alive, so I must offer you my apologies and my gratitude."
He gestured behind him, and an assistant brought a case forward. "These are a small token of my apology to you, Mr. Chen: some items for cultivation, as well as a few minor things. I hope you will accept them. Oh, and this—"
Taking the ceremonial sword he had worn during their duel from his assistant's hands, he supported it in both palms and presented it to Chen Chuan. "Mr. Chen, I believe this belongs to you. You weren't able to take it with you that day, so I've brought it to you today."
Chen Chuan glanced at it, reached out, and accepted it naturally. "Then thank you," he said.
Had it not been for Crossal's interference that day, this would have been his trophy to begin with.
Rossard said, "This is the ceremonial sword I wore during the Federation's founding ceremony. While it isn't a mutated weapon, it holds some commemorative value."
Chen Chuan looked at it. If so, it was indeed well worth keeping in his collection. "I'll take good care of it," he said.
After handing over the sword, Rossard showed a hint of relief. He extended his hand and said, "Mr. Chen, I hope we'll have the chance to fight side by side in the future."
Chen Chuan reached out and shook his hand. "There will be chances. Farewell, then, Mr. Rossard."
"Farewell. Safe travels."
Chen Chuan nodded to him, exchanged a parting greeting, and turned to leave with the case.
Rossard watched him walk all the way to the train before saying to the people beside him, "Let's head back."
Returning to the car, his face was no longer its usual solemn, heavy mask, but bore a trace of relief.
During his battle with Chen Chuan, he had faintly glimpsed that gateway. In that moment, there truly had been a sliver of opportunity to break through.
Yet the opportunity was fleeting, and once missed, it was gone forever.
Having realized this, he had let it go completely. Now that he no longer carried that burden and had cast it all behind him, he felt an unprecedented sense of ease and liberation.
***
After pulling out of the station, the train traveled south along the rails; it would skirt the Central Split-Ridge Mountains before heading toward the seat of the Federation's central government in the northeast.
Inside the train compartment, Chen Chuan first placed Rossard's ceremonial sword into a weapons case, storing it properly, before pulling the other case over.
Opening it, he found it packed with cultivation resources suited for a Longevity View martial artist, evenly divided between body and spirit cultivation.
There was a substantial quantity of materials. Even for him, using them freely, they would probably last about a month. Moreover, their quality was exceptionally high, the best he had seen recently.
He pondered for a moment. If he guessed correctly, these were likely intended for Rossard's personal cultivation; as a Founder of the Federation, Rossard would have received state quotas for such items.
Using these as an apology... yes, he could feel the sincerity behind it.
Closing the case and setting it aside, he noted that these supplies would nicely offset his recent cultivation consumption.
There was also another shipment of resources from back home that Delegation Leader Jiang had requested for him. He had telegraphed earlier asking that they be delivered directly to the Federation's capital, where he could receive them upon arrival.
He picked up a magazine from the table and began reading. These were publications from the East Coast. Quite a few covered the martial arts circle, though none touched upon limit-breaking force; most were entertainment and trade periodicals, so he flipped through them quickly.
However, a few exploration magazines caught his interest, causing his gaze to linger longer.
The compartment door slid open, and Gao Ming walked in. Seeing the contents of the magazine in Chen Chuan's hands, he smiled; in his memory, Chen Chuan had always had a penchant for adventure travelogues and expedition tales since childhood.
Sitting across from Chen Chuan, he passed over a publication. "Cousin, someone from the Martial Artists Council sent me this today."
"What is it?"
"The Martial Artists Council's internal assessment of your current combat rating."
Gao Ming pushed up his glasses. "This analysis report will be distributed to governments and mega-corporations around the world to be integrated into an overall evaluation—the prevailing international rating system for martial artist influence."
Chen Chuan took it. He knew that due to information gaps, no institution could produce a fully detailed, objective appraisal of a martial artist. Consequently, nations and mega-corporations relied primarily on influence as their most direct metric.
This method had become the internationally accepted benchmark. Yet even without comprehensive data backing it, that did not mean a preliminary evaluation of a martial artist's combat ability was entirely impossible. For a martial artist, individual combat power remained the core focus above all else.
In reality, influence encompassed quite a few factors, but among the five major components, individual combat power stood paramount. For while influence did not equate directly to combat power, combat power was undeniably the single greatest driver of influence.
The other four components were international renown, factional affiliation, participation in major events and civic activities, and finally personal rank and standing within one's home nation.
Each category carried different weightings and score caps. The cap for individual combat power could reach over three hundred points.
Participation in major events and civic activities had a cap of around two hundred, while the rest ranged between one hundred and one hundred fifty. Notably, however, these numbers were not rigid; they could be adjusted to some degree based on specific circumstances or needs.
Chen Chuan unfolded the publication. To him, the other categories were mere superficialities; individual combat power was what truly mattered. That was the only section he needed to see. Lowering his eyes, he quickly found the Martial Artists Council's assessment of him.
Chapter 1170