323: Chapter 323 Visits from All Sides

On the west side of Shanhai City, inside a massive palace covering hundreds of thousands of square meters.

"Welcome home, honored Highness."

Just as Zhang Huaiyuan returned to the temporary resting place arranged for him by the Council, a chorus of synchronized, sweet voices rang out.

Even though he was mentally prepared, he was still shocked for a moment.

Looking around, over a thousand young women, who were breathtakingly beautiful by humanoid aesthetic standards, were dressed in distinctive attire and bowing respectfully.

—Of course, these details could be ignored.

Under the effect of True Sight, Zhang Huaiyuan could tell at a glance that this entire palace was built with extremely rare materials.

The floors were polished from top-tier Spirit Stones from the cultivation side, swirling with a special, beneficial magnetic field invisible to the naked eye.

Some of the furniture, like the armrests of chairs and tables, seemed to be crafted from a precious plant known as the "Enlightenment Tree"; just standing nearby made one's brain feel exceptionally clear and active.

Other decorative ornaments were also rare treasures seldom seen.

On the nearest counter lay an ink-jade colored bearer crystal card with a face value of 100 billion time coins.

"Tsk... what a grand gesture."

Zhang Huaiyuan waved his hand, signaling the young women to withdraw. Then, he brushed his right wrist and chuckled:

"Statue of Liberty, take over the access permissions here."

"Takeover complete. Three suspected intrusion vulnerabilities found and thoroughly patched. Sir, everything within this palace is now under strict confidentiality."

A light screen lit up, and the main form of the Statue of Liberty, with hair like silver liquid light trails, descended gracefully from the sub-space. Her tone seemed to carry a hint of lightness:

"There is also a temporarily constructed advanced laboratory here, seemingly converted from another room, prepared specifically for you. It seems they have requests of you, Sir."

"Indeed."

Zhang Huaiyuan looked down at the scroll given to him by "Mo" and raised an eyebrow slightly:

"I roughly scanned it. It includes eight Level 6 civilizations, 17 Level 5 civilizations, and two Level 4 civilizations. They likely have entangled interests with those twelve Council members, asking me, both overtly and covertly, to look after them."

"And what are your intentions, Sir?"

"Clear water yields no fish."

Zhang Huaiyuan stepped forward, picked up the bearer crystal card with 100 billion time coins, and smiled indifferently:

"Before I came, Third Senior Brother told me that if there are benefits, I should take them. This shows that the Association tacitly permits the existence of such rules. Since that is the case, as long as it is not too excessive, there is no need to tear the mask off."

"Besides, those Scholars in the Association are all people of great wisdom. Since they allow such rules to exist, there must be a reason for it."

"As a passerby, it is better for me to do as the locals do."

"Sir, you are as insightful as ever."

The Statue of Liberty breathed a slight sigh of relief, and the expression on her face relaxed significantly.

She knew far more about this place than Zhang Huaiyuan did.

With the current preparations, if a direct conflict were to arise, it would be difficult to deal with twelve Senior Scholar-level beings at once without leaving any repercussions. It might even expose her own existence; after all, those were not ordinary Sixth Realm beings, but the elite of the Association.

"By the way, have the materials on those battle records been organized?"

After simply familiarizing himself with the environment, Zhang Huaiyuan found a suitable room and prepared to start working.

"Of course, Sir. I have categorized all the records. A small portion of the footage that had become invalid for 'certain' reasons has also been restored."

"Oh?"

Zhang Huaiyuan glanced over, somewhat surprised. If these images had issues, there was no doubt that those Council members had tampered with them.

Those were Senior Scholars!

How long had it been? The Statue of Liberty already had the ability to crack the methods of a Senior Scholar?

"This is all thanks to you, Sir."

The Statue of Liberty said with a composed expression:

"The new algorithm you provided perfectly adapted to my core, allowing me to complete my evolution in a short time."

"Is that so..."

Am I that amazing?

Zhang Huaiyuan recalled the algorithm he had created with uncertainty.

"But it's a good thing regardless. I'll study it properly after this matter is settled."

Zhang Huaiyuan shook his head and turned his gaze to the categorized battlefield record materials.

Although he respected the rules here, as a Special Envoy, if he discovered issues of principle, such as falsification of assessment difficulty, he could not turn a blind eye.

"Let's begin."

...

On the other side, just as Zhang Huaiyuan entered a state of work, the various civilizations that had been keeping a close watch on this Association Special Envoy also began to take action.

At the entrance of the palace, a man dressed in a silver star-studded robe was fawning and smiling ingratiatingly at a woman beside him.

"Seventh Sister, your brother is truly at his wit's end this time. You must help me! I have signed a military order with Father Emperor. If I cannot complete this, this throne is basically out of my reach."

"I will try, Fifth Brother."

The woman beside him shook her head: "However, I am not sure if Junior Classmate Zhang will agree to see us at this juncture. When we spoke earlier, he was still... Never mind, let's not talk about that. Since we are already here."

"Hehe, thank you, Seventh Sister. That you are willing to come with me is enough."

The silver-robed man breathed a sigh of relief and said repeatedly.

According to the original news, there would be a banquet later, prepared by the Shanhai City Council to welcome the arrival of the Special Envoy.

It would be the perfect time to approach the Special Envoy at the banquet.

However, the latest news was that the Special Envoy had declined the banquet invitation. With no other choice, he could only ask his Seventh Sister to come along.

He hoped that the other party would be willing to see him for the sake of their friendship as classmates.

"Junior Classmate Fang, you are here too."

At this moment, a familiar voice rang out from behind.

Fang Qingran turned back to look and saw Talix, who had participated in the academic competition with her earlier, following behind an old man with a massive head.

He looked quite helpless, with a hint of embarrassment in his eyes.

Clearly, he had also been brought by the elders of his clan to play the emotional card.

She smiled helplessly as well: "Yes, Senior, just like you."

"Fifth Prince, I trust you have been well. Your Silver Splendor Empire is quite lucky; I heard that the Seventh Princess and this Special Envoy have a close relationship."

On the other side, the big-headed old man also saw the two and greeted them familiarly.

The faction he belonged to was not in the same distribution zone as the Silver Splendor Empire, and there was no conflict of interest, so they were polite on the surface.

"Likewise, Elder Mo."

The Fifth Prince of the Silver Splendor Empire nodded in acknowledgment, then looked around; many familiar faces had gathered.

Clearly, other factions had received the news and were rushing over.

"More and more people are coming. You first or me first?"

"You arrived first, you go first."

Elder Mo's eyes flickered, and he stepped back half a step.

"Very well."

The Fifth Prince nodded and was just about to step forward to pay a visit when the palace gates suddenly opened. A woman in palace attire walked out gracefully, swept her gaze over the representatives from the various civilizations, and smiled:

"The Goddess has decreed that the Master is in seclusion and is not receiving guests for the time being. Please wait patiently."

...