Inside the flagship of the Great Shun delegation, the leaders and deputy leaders of the First and Second Delegations were gathered together, flanked by several aides assisting with records and paperwork.
Before returning home, they still had many matters to discuss and process. They needed to exchange opinions and conduct evaluations on various situations in the Federation, and certain documents had to be promptly destroyed after review. As such, they could hardly afford to idle away their time on this homeward voyage.
Just then, a notification came through their boundary credentials:
"Section Chief Chen is boarding the flagship."
Because Chen Chuan was among the delegation's senior personnel and held visitation clearance, the inactive conscious entity had already granted him entry access when issuing the notification.
Upon hearing this, Delegation Leader Xie smiled and said to the others present, "Section Chief Chen deserves immense credit for how smoothly the Second Delegation was able to accomplish its mission. He bore the brunt of so many matters with his own two hands; without him, there were surely many obstacles we could never have overcome."
Delegation Leader Jiang said, "I have looked into it in detail, and Section Chief Chen is indeed a great contributor. While in the Federation, we didn't have much chance to converse, but now we have an opportunity for a proper chat."
Chu Zhixian sat in an armchair to one side, a teacup resting beside his hand. His face bore no expression. Across from him sat Tu Haisheng and Deputy Delegation Leader Lu, the two of them chatting pleasantly.
The doors to the main lounge opened, revealing a tall, upright figure. Chen Chuan walked in from outside. Seeing his arrival, the delegation leaders all rose from their seats.
Chen Chuan first greeted everyone, then turned his gaze to Delegation Leader Xie and Delegation Leader Jiang in the primary seats.
Noticing this, Xie's eyes flickered slightly, and he spoke first. "Section Chief Chen, has something brought you to see us?"
Chen Chuan spoke frankly: "Delegation Leader Xie, there is a matter I must attend to. I need to leave the delegation for a period of time."
Delegation Leader Jiang looked at him, his expression gradually turning grave.
Chu Zhixian chimed in from the side: "Section Chief Chen, I must remind you that we are currently on our return journey. Doing this would seem to violate discipline."
Delegation Leader Xie, however, spoke in a firm voice: "Section Chief Chen, I approve. I am the leader of the Second Delegation, and I will take responsibility for whatever happens. From this moment forth, you may leave at any time."
Chu Zhixian looked at him. "Delegation Leader Xie—"
Delegation Leader Xie cut him off directly, answering sternly, "Deputy Delegation Leader Chu, this is an internal matter of the Second Delegation."
Chu Zhixian frowned and said nothing more.
Delegation Leader Jiang spoke up at this moment: "Delegation Leader Xie, on our return journey we are one single team without distinction between us. How about this—allow me to state my position as well."
He looked at Chen Chuan. "Section Chief Chen, as the overall person in charge of this delegation, I hereby declare that you have completed your duties. You are no longer a member of this delegation. Therefore, from this moment on, whatever you do has nothing to do with the delegation."
Chen Chuan understood the meaning behind those words. It meant he was no longer bound by the delegation's discipline—his shackles had been undone. Delegation Leader Jiang might not know exactly what he planned to do, but he had likely guessed that whatever it was concerned the Federation.
"Only, Section Chief Chen, you must remember," Delegation Leader Jiang continued, watching him, "regardless of whether you are a member of this delegation, you remain a part of Great Shun. If you encounter any trouble, remember to contact us in time."
Chen Chuan looked up at him, nodded to Delegation Leader Jiang and Delegation Leader Xie, then nodded politely toward Deputy Leaders Lu and Tu before turning and walking out.
Chu Zhixian suddenly sensed that something was amiss. Initially, he had objected purely out of instinct, but now he felt Chen Chuan was very likely about to take action.
Was it related to the recent negotiations? Yet that seemed improbable; it was virtually impossible to disrupt or stop that affair. Even if Chen Chuan truly meant to do so, it would be nothing short of throwing his life away.
He looked toward Delegation Leader Jiang. During the earlier negotiations, although the delegation had agreed in an official Great Shun capacity not to meddle in the affairs of the Tianji Sect, they had left an opening: if nongovernmental forces from Great Shun intervened, the authorities would not interfere.
At first, he had considered leaving this loophole entirely meaningless. Unlike the Federation, Great Shun possessed no civilian force capable of disrupting Federation plans; it would have been far better to trade that concession for something of tangible benefit to Great Shun.
Yet no matter how hard he had tried to persuade him, Delegation Leader Jiang had refused to concede the point. Could what Chen Chuan was about to do be connected to this?
The thought filled him with immediate unease. Ordinary people might not be able to interfere with the Federation's operation, but where Chen Chuan was concerned, nothing could be ruled out.
The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed, until he could no longer sit still. Finding an excuse, he said to the colleagues present, "I have some matters to attend to. Please excuse me for a moment."
Delegation Leader Jiang glanced at him and smiled. "Very well. Remember to return shortly, Deputy Leader Chu; there are matters here that still require your presence."
"Of course."
Chu Zhixian offered an apology, rose, and departed toward his quarters. Along the way, he turned off his boundary credential. Upon reaching the telegraph room, he had his aide watch from the side while he stepped inside.
He wanted to send a telegram to the Federation to warn them to stay vigilant and ensure no one disrupted the achievements of the bilateral negotiations. These talks would serve as one of his future political bargaining chips; he could not permit any mishaps.
However, before he had spoken more than two sentences to the operator and before the telegram could be formally transmitted, an orderly entered from outside.
"Sir, Delegation Leader Jiang has ordered that, for the security of the delegation, starting immediately and until our arrival in Center City, no external communication is permitted for anyone, save for internal information sharing."
The telegraph operator immediately halted his actions.
Chu Zhixian glared at the orderly in displeasure. Having served him for so long, did the man not understand his intentions? Even with such an order, could he not have stalled for just a moment?
Yet when Chu Zhixian saw the two armed personnel flanking the orderly, he paused. "The leader's concern for security is understandable," he said. Turning to the operator, he added, "Never mind sending it." With that, he walked straight out.
His aide hurried to catch up.
After leaving the flagship, Chen Chuan returned to his own airship. At that moment, a prompt chime suddenly sounded on his boundary credential:
"Honored delegation member, welcome back."
He realized at once that the fleet had entered the coverage zone of Great Shun's Skyline field signal. The recently deployed inactive conscious entity was extending its greetings.
Because they were still in the disputed, undefined waters between the two nations, it did not use an official title. Yet if conflict were ever to erupt between both sides, this would undoubtedly confer a remarkable strategic advantage.
He looked out across the sea. Dense storm clouds covered the sky, as though rain were imminent. After advancing a bit further, the fleet should cross into Great Shun territory.
After watching for a few moments, he tapped his boundary credential and sent a message to all the members of his guard squad, instructing them to temporarily follow Delegation Leader Xie's directives. Then he headed inside his airship.
Stepping into the cabin lounge, he walked up to the luggage rack, took down his trunk, and set it on a table. Undoing the latches, he opened it to find a suit of protective clothing neatly arranged at the very top.
Distinct from his official uniform, this suit of protective clothing had been custom-made for him before setting out, incorporating numerous materials he had gathered or traded for in the Melded Lands. Up until now, he had never used it.
This time, he was heading to the Tianji Sect in a personal capacity, so he would not wear Great Shun official attire.
He removed his uniform coat, folded it neatly, and set it to one side, then took out the protective suit and put it on.
In form, the protective garment resembled a trench coat with a high collar, a belted waist, and long skirts. Once donned, it lent his frame an even taller, more commanding presence.
After fastening the final button, he draped an outer black cloak over his shoulders, slipped on protective gloves, and lastly drew out a glazed mask from within, slowly fitting it over his face.
Rows of data flickered across the mask's display before his eyes, streaming information from his implants. In conjunction with Hongfu later on, it would serve its purpose.
Although it might not necessarily come in handy, there was never any harm in being thoroughly prepared.
He equipped all his secondary weapons, slotting each securely into place. His gaze shifted, catching sight of a golden book. After a moment's thought, he picked it up, packed it away on his person, and finally reached out to take the Xuejun Saber from the weapon rack beside him.
Amid the fluttering of his long red ribbon, he stepped out of the cabin.
This time, he brought along everything he could carry, leaving behind only the external implant. No one but him could use the device anyway, and leaving it stored with his other valuables posed no problem.
Stepping out onto the airship's open-air terrace, faint wisps of shimmering light and flames manifested around him as his figure gently ascended into midair.
The Tianji Sect was located in the Federation's Central Territory. If he flew directly across their mainland, word of his movement would almost certainly leak, inviting interception. Thus, he planned to detour across the Federation's southern maritime expanse before cutting north. Though it meant a much longer journey, it would allow him to evade nearly all prying eyes.
He called out, and with a rush of beating wings, Chaoming swept down from above, wheeling and circling around him.
Chen Chuan said to it, "Our path may be rather long this time, but it won't take too much time."
Chaoming let out a resonant cry, its sharp call so piercing that it drowned out the churning waves and the rumbling engines of the fleet.
The commotion drew the attention of those aboard the airship fleet. Delegation Leader Jiang and the others stood up one after another, gazing at the figure suspended in midair, while many delegation members crowded against the viewing ports.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Chen Chuan rose slowly. Once he reached the heights of their vision, a burst of brilliant vaporous light erupted around him, coalescing into a straight, ascending beam that pierced toward the heavens like a drawn sword. With a swift whoosh, he vanished into the dense layer of clouds, which instantly roiled with lightning-like flashes of radiance.
Moments later, the spot where he had passed seemed to detonate. Amid flashing luminescence, a colossal, abyssal cavity churned open within the clouds. Flapping its resplendent plumage, Chaoming let out another piercing screech, tore through the atmosphere, and plunged inside. Across the sea and sky, only rumbling reverberations like thunder lingered in everyone's ears, refusing to fade for a long, long time.
Chapter 1292