Chen Chuan tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter, and glanced through it. Inside was a passage written in fluid, elegant Great Shun script.
Judging by the familiar spiritual power lingering upon it, Meteora had penned it himself.
Right at the opening, the letter explained that this had been written just before he advanced to a higher tier, entrusting this letter and a few items to a friend worthy of reliance and trust.
He checked the date on the letter—ten days ago. Factoring in the spiritual power imbued in the ink, it was not hard to conclude that Meteora had likely crossed that boundary by now.
In truth, from the day Meteora had displayed his true might in the Federation Capital, he had already become impossible to retain in this realm.
From the records left behind by the Tianji Sect, Chen Chuan had learned that crossing beyond that tier of power was irreversible. Furthermore, the holders of other higher-tier powers would probably never permit such an entity to linger behind.
As for why it had dragged on for these past few months, he surmised Meteora had been handling and handing over his remaining affairs.
He smoothed the letter flat and read on.
Meteora stated that he had already designated the next delegation head. He believed his comrades shared the same ideals and would shoulder the heavy responsibilities of the International Investigation Delegation without hesitation.
Yet he also admitted candidly that the power of the new head and the current members was relatively limited.
He revealed that the successor he had chosen this time was merely a Secret Palace martial artist, not a Throne.
Although Secret Palace martial artists already ranked among the world's apex, holding an equal dialogue with global nations and transnational conglomerates would be nearly impossible. Their future plight could be foreseen as exceedingly difficult.
Therefore, he hoped that if feasible, Chen Chuan could assist the delegation whenever circumstances permitted.
Even without Meteora asking, Chen Chuan would have done so anyway.
Only by safeguarding the Ring of the World could they slow and better resist incursions from the world across. In this regard, his interests aligned with those of the investigation delegation.
Without the delegation, there was no telling how many would cast off all restraint. This was no joke: stripped of external oversight, smaller nations were extremely likely to defect to the world across when the Great Impact arrived.
To the ruling upper strata of certain small nations, defecting to the opposite side was virtually no different from being controlled by major powers—if they were doomed to be puppets either way, why not seek an even more powerful backer?
In the latter half of the letter, Meteora reflected on his past principles, conceding that the path he had once chosen was flawed.
He should not have viewed the delegation merely as an independent clique, standing in isolation to oppose the outside world.
He wrote that through Chen Chuan, he had seen that even among the various nations of today's world, there were still comrades worthy of trust who could be entrusted with great tasks.
He believed that even the Grand Alliance back then had never fought alone. Only because it trusted and rallied more capable, idealistic individuals was it able to coalesce into a mightier force.
He did not shy away from the hard truth, writing that it was precisely his own conservatism that had led many in the current delegation to turn increasingly insular, elevating the survival and standing of the delegation above the ideals it was meant to uphold—which had already deviated from the original spirit of the Grand Alliance.
He added that perhaps his departure was not a bad thing, as it might bring about fresh change for the delegation.
Chen Chuan did not actually believe Meteora had been wrong in the past, and he could understand why Meteora had made that choice.
If they had not banded together and closed ranks, the delegation might long ago have been infiltrated by nations across the globe, or even reduced to a mere tool of the great powers. Ultimately, it all stemmed from a lack of sufficient strength.
At the end of the letter, Meteora bestowed upon him the title of Honorary Delegation Member. He also mentioned leaving behind a nameplate through which Chen Chuan could contact him at any time should the need arise.
After reading, Chen Chuan folded the letter and returned it to the envelope. Feeling around inside the pouch, he brought out a metal emblem sealed within a bio-membrane bag.
It bore the insignia of the International Investigation Delegation.
In essence, this object was rather similar to the jade plaque Heavenly Master Lu had given him back then.
He considered this: Meteora had not passed these items through private channels, but had delivered them to the Great Shun government, which then forwarded them to him. This was an unmistakable public endorsement of personal support.
Pondering slightly, he stowed the emblem away.
Aside from this, there were other items inside the pouch, none of which seemed ordinary. However, looking through them in the car was inconvenient, so he resealed the pouch.
Before long, the executive car arrived back in front of the main building of the Ministry of National Security. Ren Xinshan glanced at his watch and said to him:
"Commissioner Chen, I need to head back. There will likely be an important meeting shortly. As for whether to annihilate the Former Imperial House, I imagine we'll have a result soon. The moment there's news, I'll inform you right away."
Chen Chuan agreed, bid him farewell, and stepped out of the car, turning to walk up the steps.
The situation was undoubtedly developing in the direction envisioned by the Enterprising Faction; the Conservative Faction should no longer be able to stop it.
The upper political landscape was not divided into just two factions—there were many weighty moderates as well. As long as their support was secured, the goal would not be hard to achieve.
Moreover, this time the overarching trend was clear: strategically, they were already in a position where an offensive was inevitable, and the costs of passive defense were no longer acceptable to the various factions.
Back in his office, he took out the items from the sealed pouch one by one, discovering an ice-flake-like crystal.
Upon inspection, it was a Class II relic, specifically a support tool. Its function was quite straightforward: whenever something he needed or something advantageous to him appeared nearby, it would emit intense heat and light to alert him.
Though useless in direct combat, it was immensely practical. In particular, if they could wipe out the Former Imperial House in one stroke, he would inevitably search for the resources he needed to advance.
Some of these would certainly be hoarded away in secret locations by the imperial household; if they could not be extracted through interrogation, he could rely on this relic to locate them.
Putting the crystal safely away, he sifted through the remaining items and found several international travel credentials along with dedicated communication frequencies.
Combined with his honorary title, these items ensured that if an unrecorded rift passage opened in another country, he could directly participate in investigations and rectify the situation without needing prior clearance from the delegation. In reality, all of this was predicated on his own strength; without corresponding power, possessing them would be meaningless.
Yet there was one key benefit: when negotiating the upcoming restriction agreements, these credentials would have to be taken into account. Since they carried international recognition, they would allow him to shed quite a few constraints.
All in all, each of these items offered some measure of value and assistance to him.
After examining everything and tidying up the items, he poured himself a glass of dew and waited quietly.
Only three hours later, the telephone on his desk began to ring.
He reached out, picked up the receiver, and held it to his ear. "Chen Chuan speaking."
Ren Xinshan's voice came through: "Commissioner Chen, the higher authorities have approved the decision to wage all-out war on the Former Imperial House and eradicate them. The formal decree will be issued shortly.
"To secure our gains and guarantee the safety of strategic strongholds, we need you to proceed to the convergence zone as quickly as possible. The official documents and necessary auxiliary items will be dispatched to you right behind."
Chen Chuan replied, "Understood."
He set down the receiver, glanced out the window, and drained the dew in his glass in one gulp. Then, collecting the gear he had prepared beforehand, he left the office. Reaching the ministry's plaza, he looked up at the sky.
With a booming roar, he turned into a flash of platinum light that soared into the heavens, vanishing beyond the far horizon in the blink of an eye.
At that exact moment, Zhan Jiyue was speaking with Vice Chairman Zhu, who oversaw primary affairs, at the Purist Faction headquarters.
"Vice Chairman Zhu, I believe we should keep pushing. The people in the Nature faction aren't inflexible. As long as they haven't made their final decision, we still have hope."
Vice Chairman Zhu replied, "Old Zhan, I'm willing to back you, and personally I'm willing to support Committee Member Chen. But you're being too naive.
"Both the Refined Practice School and the Convergence faction are currently fighting for this recommendation right. Their investments are no less than ours. The Nature faction already turned us down once; changing their minds now is an uphill battle. We simply have no chance of competing against them."
Yet Zhan Jiyue persisted, "But as long as they haven't submitted the slot to the higher-ups, there's still an opportunity. This quota is of vital importance. Are we just going to give up like this?"
Vice Chairman Zhu sighed in exasperation. "Old Zhan, you really are stubborn." After a moment's thought, he looked up and said, "Fine. I agree to grant you some more support. Whatever supplies you need, I'll have them approved. Whoever you need to see, you'll have to speak with them yourself. That's the most I can do."
Zhan Jiyue said at once, "Thank you, Chairman Zhu!"
Vice Chairman Zhu gave him a wry look. "Enough of that for now. Let's talk about something else. What about that... pinball tournament game you mentioned earlier?"
Zhan Jiyue answered, "Yes. That is also a card I'm confident can sway the Nature faction.
"I don't believe we should only know how to approach things through martial force and politics. We ought to try making breakthroughs on other fronts as well."
"Mhm, do as you see fit."
Vice Chairman Zhu wasn't particularly interested in this, but fortunately he wasn't one to tie his subordinates' hands. Whatever resources he could provide, he would, and whenever trouble arose, he would be the first to step forward and shoulder the responsibility.
Just then, someone hurried over from outside, holding up a telegram. "Vice Chairman Zhu, urgent telegram!"
Vice Chairman Zhu promptly took the telegram. Upon reading it, he shot to his feet, eyes gleaming. "Good, excellent!"
It could be said that ever since Anbei Dao announced its entry into Skyline, he had been waiting for this very news.
Zhan Jiyue also vaguely guessed what it was and looked toward Vice Chairman Zhu, who looked back at him, invigorated:
"The higher-ups have decided to launch an all-out war against the Former Imperial House! They are issuing an emergency call-up for stationed martial artists from every discipline. Committee Member Chen has already set off for the convergence zone—we must give him every bit of support we can!"
Chapter 1395