Two days later, the Federation government pledged to launch an investigation into the attack on Delegation Leader Xie.
Meanwhile, Chen Chuan received word from Shingorō that the unrest surrounding the Non-Body style gyms was gradually subsiding, and the Federation citizens gathered in protest outside had already dispersed.
Public opinion was cooling down as well. The Strategic Affairs Department was clearly no longer pushing the issue, which showed that Delegation Leader Xie's earlier arrangements had been effective, and the Federation government had begun exerting pressure on the Strategic Affairs Department.
This also brought about an unexpected development. Because the Non-Body style martial arts gyms had achieved a clean sweep in the bouts against the rival gyms, a flood of new students came to enroll.
This was especially true among Federation citizens of Eastern Continent descent. For a long time, the Non-Body style gyms had operated under Cui Xuanhui's banner. However, this man had an abysmal reputation among overseas Eastern Continent people. Aside from a handful of foreigners from the Outer Ocean who held him in some admiration, the vast majority loathed him with a passion.
Now, with all the recent commotion, everyone knew the gym had passed into the hands of a martial artist from Great Shun. Moreover, since arriving in the Federation, this martial artist had defeated one formidable opponent after another, and even a veteran Federation martial artist had lost to him in a public duel.
In their eyes, the gym's commanding performance this time was entirely due to this martial artist taking charge. Such a view actually had little logical basis, being merely an expression of ethnic sentiment, yet it happened to align with the facts.
After learning of the situation, Chen Chuan discussed it with Delegation Leader Xie and agreed that moving forward, they should still find ways to enroll local Federation citizens as well.
It was not about courting the Federation government's approval—if they wanted to target the gym, they would target it regardless—but out of political and practical considerations, doing so could garner broader public support.
As for the day-to-day operations, he had no need to manage them; that would be handled by the delegation and the professional team dispatched from Great Shun.
He would only be responsible for the martial techniques. After all, the establishment was under his name, and a share of the annual profits would belong to him, so he was willing to contribute appropriately.
That being the case, since everyone now knew the Non-Body style had been completely transformed, it was a good opportunity to change its name. Over the past two days, by contemplating the application of the spirit visage and combining it with the data provided by Alu, he had formed several new concepts. Spending half a day, he synthesized them into a martial arts technique manual that linked the fundamentals all the way to advanced levels.
On the cover of this manual, he wrote eight characters: "Seek the Divine Heart within; innovate and sever the past." He then had it delivered to the martial arts gym.
Shingorō and the others immediately understood his intent. The very day they received the manual, they took down the name "Non-Body" and replaced it with "Divine Heart."
With this branch leading the change, the other branches would soon follow suit once they received the manual or guidance from instructors sent from the capital.
With matters regarding the martial arts gyms settled, he turned his attention back to the seed.
He could sense that over the past two days, the seed had remained motionless in one spot. Judging by the location, it should be an island within the Great Inland Lake of Cuiklan.
Since where the seed had gone was the Primordial Sect's "storehouse of materials," barring any surprises, it was likely attached to some sort of "ritual material."
It was likely not yet time to hold the ritual, so it was simply waiting there. However, this delay suggested that the upcoming ritual would be of a higher caliber, increasing the chances that he might glimpse what he wanted to know.
All he had to do was wait patiently.
That afternoon, he received an invitation sent by the Federation government's Foreign Affairs Department.
It was for a welcoming banquet held in their honor. The reception was of a very high level, and several members of Congress hailing from the West Coast would be in attendance.
The First Delegation primarily negotiated with the East Coast elites, whereas the Second Delegation focused heavily on the West Coast, seeking to secure greater legal and political benefits for Great Shun's companies and organizations there. Moreover, rumors had it that Crossal would also attend; if so, it was necessary for Chen Chuan to go.
The main issue was that they had no martial artist of comparable caliber on their side, and having equivalent martial power made a world of difference compared to lacking it.
The following afternoon, all invited members of the delegation boarded their designated vehicles and headed for the Foreign Affairs Banquet Hall in the South Wing of the Aurelian Palace.
This time, Chen Chuan sat in the last vehicle alongside Wei Chang'an and others, while the car ahead that he was originally meant to ride in carried a figure formed by the relic.
This was partly to test the relic's capabilities to see if it could deceive the Federation security systems or someone like Crossal, and partly to take necessary precautions.
Although he did not fear a sudden ambush from the Primordial Sect, since even Gao Xinjian had warned him to be wary of them, it was prudent to prepare a countermeasure.
Earlier, he had also utilized the conscious entity within his external implant to help draft a contingency action plan, which had been distributed to every escort guard. Now, everyone clearly understood how to act in various scenarios.
In the back seat of the car, Wei Chang'an looked left and right, remarking, "Even though the Federation's East Coast isn't as chaotic as the West Coast, why do I feel like it's even more dangerous?"
Chen Chuan replied, "Because the West Coast lays everything out in the open, like swarming flies that you can always see. The East Coast, on the other hand, is like an undercurrent beneath a river. You can't see it on the surface, and until it surges up, you never know what lurks below."
Wei Chang'an shook his head. "I'd never been abroad before and thought things in Great Shun were bad enough, but arriving in the Federation, it doesn't feel much better."
Great Shun and the Federation were both world powers; he shuddered to imagine what smaller countries were like right now.
Chen Chuan said, "Right now, countries around the world are preparing for the impending upheaval. With all their resources concentrated there, the people's livelihoods are naturally neglected. Many nations can only maintain basic operations. In fact, without the central cities, things might be even worse."
Wei Chang'an sighed. "Yeah, that's true." After a moment's thought, he pulled out a notebook and began writing something in it.
Chen Chuan glanced over. "What's this?"
Wei Chang'an said, "My dad sent a telegram telling me to be sure to share everything I see and hear in the Federation when I get back, so he can brag about it to his colleagues. So I'm writing everything down to commit it to memory."
Chen Chuan gave a slight nod. "Uncle Wei certainly knows how to share."
Meanwhile, up ahead, numerous formally dressed security personnel were waiting for the convoy to approach, occasionally communicating through their cochlear worms.
Many among them had taken on commissions from the task force, tasked with completing the ritual that the Primordial Sect had left unfinished that day.
According to Eros's assessment, conducting this ritual evaluation at the banquet was inadvisable. By then, the target's vigilance would be exceptionally high. Furthermore, if anything went wrong, it would cause a grave diplomatic incident, and they could not afford the consequences.
Carrying it out en route had a much higher feasibility and was far more discreet.
Every operative involved in this mission held official status as a Federation government employee. After all, many public departments in the Federation were permitted to serve the public so long as it did not conflict with governmental directives.
Through this approach, the Primordial Sect could conceal itself completely. Even if investigated afterward, the trail would never reach them.
To the operatives, this was not an assault, merely a non-offensive ritual, so they believed nothing would go wrong.
In truth, however, it was not devoid of risk; under certain circumstances, things could become dire, which the active conscious entity Eros had specifically highlighted in the mission report.
Yet the operatives paid it no mind. Nothing was entirely without risk, and in every report Eros issued, there was never an absence of extreme edge cases. They had long grown accustomed to it.
After waiting for more than half an hour, the operatives received word that the delegation's motorcade was approaching.
The mission leader notified all members, "Intelligence from ten minutes ago indicated the target is in the third vehicle. Check once more when they reach the inspection checkpoint. Once confirmed, act immediately. We have less than two minutes."
Over the communication channel, acknowledgments confirming that each team was in position came one after another.
The motorcade soon arrived, slowing down before the checkpoint to undergo inspection by the field devices along the road.
All the operatives appeared to be looking straight ahead, but in reality, their eyes were glued to the first few vehicles.
As vehicle after vehicle passed, one operative saw the target in the third car and immediately initiated the ritual.
In an instant, a ritual field mingled into the inspection field, spreading outward and falling upon Chen Chuan's manifested figure.
Around the manifested body, an overflowing brilliance emerged that could only be seen by martial artists using their Heavenly Eye.
Seeing the glow of the ritual ignite, the operatives instantly grew thrilled, for this signaled that the ritual had successfully gathered the field data they sought.
The figure manifested by this relic not only looked indistinguishable from a real person on the outside, but it could also reflect the true condition of its master's body. How much of that physical state was displayed, however, was entirely up to the master; manifesting a purely mental body was no problem at all. This was precisely where the value of a second-class relic lay.
The entire motorcade consisted of more than thirty vehicles, spanning roughly a kilometer from front to rear. Sitting at the very tail end, Chen Chuan immediately sensed an abnormality.
Others might not have known what it was, perhaps dismissing it as a fleeting illusion or a passing gust of air. But having a deep understanding of such rituals, he recognized it immediately: it was virtually identical to the field ritual he had witnessed during the sacrifice on the river.
Without question, this was the Primordial Sect's handiwork.
His eyes flickered slightly. In a flash, his mental power locked onto every participant in the ritual within several kilometers. Tapping his boundary credential, he transmitted the coordinates to each squad member and said, "Plan B, execute!"
In the front seat, Gui Zihan closed his eyes as a powerful surge of mental force radiated outward.
At the same time, vehicle doors flew open, and all the armed escort members surged out in every direction.
Chapter 1190