https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-315-The-World-is-a-Shoddy-Production/12551222/
Chapter 316: First of the Celestial Ladder
Chapter 316: First of the Celestial Ladder
"We have already informed various nations of the intelligence regarding the Qian Yuan Association through diplomatic channels." Li Hui replied.
Ji Xinghuo asked, puzzled, "Is that all?"
"What else can we do?" Li Hui sighed helplessly. "The APAC does not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries. We can only let them deal with it themselves. Although it's definitely too late to prevent the attack, we can at least help clean up any remaining threats."
Seeing that Ji Xinghuo still looked worried, he smiled and added, "You don't need to worry too much. The Qian Yuan Association is at its most dangerous when it lurks in the shadows. Now that they've exposed themselves, the harm they can cause has diminished greatly."
"I hope so," Ji Xinghuo nodded.
Unknown enemies are always the most dangerous. No matter how strong the Qian Yuan Association may be, they are but a drop in the bucket compared to the might of a nation.
Regardless of the stances of individual countries, the existence of the Qian Yuan Association will not be tolerated by international relations, be they good or bad.
Moreover, anyone with some insight can guess that the Winged People are behind the Qian Yuan Association, despite the absence of any mention of them in the intelligence.
Apart from Ye Tongjun, Su Qingqiu, and a few others, the captured swordsmen had no contact with the Winged People. They operated independently and were only connected through a single chain of command. Yet, despite being members of the Qian Yuan Association, they had never even heard of it and knew nothing of its connection to the Winged People.
Even the high-ranking members who had interacted with the Winged People lacked concrete evidence.
"Without conclusive evidence, we won't make any baseless accusations in our reports," Li Hui said. "Now is not the time to openly antagonize the Winged People."
Ji Xinghuo could understand this approach.
So far, the Winged People of the Tianyu Royal Court had maintained a detached stance and had no conflicts with Earth.
If this information were made public, it could spark a wave of anti-Winged People sentiment globally. Some politicians, in their eagerness to gain power, might pander to the voters and make reckless statements, ultimately being swept along by public opinion and causing uncontrollable consequences.
With Earth's current strength, it could only defend itself. In the Star Realm, it stood no chance against the might of the Tianyu Royal Court.
Just those three Star Shepherds were enough to instill despair.
Moreover, it was still unclear whether the Qian Yuan Association had the backing of a faction of the Winged People or the entire Tianyu Royal Court.
If Earth were to mistakenly treat the entire Tianyu Royal Court as an enemy just because of the actions of a few Winged People, it would be a grave mistake.
Ji Xinghuo turned off the intelligence report and remembered something.
"Director, Shen Yucheng said that the Qian Yuan Association might control one of Earth's stargates. Which one is it?"
The intelligence report didn't mention it.
"We're not sure yet," Li Hui shook his head. "We suspect it's either the 'Immortal City Stargate' or the 'Bloemfontein Stargate'."
"What about the Bhopal Stargate?" Ji Xinghuo asked, curious.
"It's a possibility, but the probability is lower compared to the other two," Li Hui explained. "Although the South Asian Union is not particularly powerful, they have autonomy and are divided into three factions internally, making it difficult for the Qian Yuan Association to infiltrate them. It would be easier to target stargates controlled by weaker governments."
Ji Xinghuo disagreed, "Their aggressive response and speed of reaction yesterday didn't seem like a typical self-defense counter-attack."
"Yes," Li Hui nodded. "We've considered that as well. The Qian Yuan Association's influence is likely at play here."
As Ji Xinghuo was about to say something more, Li Hui continued, "Regardless of the situation with the Bhopal Stargate, it won't have a significant impact. All stargates lead to Olympia, and we will work with other countries to tightly control the Olympia Stargate."
He let out a cold smile.
"The South Asian Union has harbored immense hostility towards our country since its formation. We will resolve this issue once and for all, and the stargate is just a side matter."
"What?" Ji Xinghuo was taken aback.
The amount of information conveyed in that single sentence was staggering.
Li Hui remained calm and collected. "The South Asian Union should never have existed in the first place. We've simply been biding our time, and now we have a reason. The Head of State already has a plan in motion."
Ji Xinghuo's heart raced.
The full name of the APAC was the "Asia-Pacific People's United Community." When it was first established, its territory wasn't nearly as vast as it is today.
Over time, it gradually expanded, encompassing Siberia, Central Asia, Australia, and most of Asia and the western Pacific coast. Now, with the exception of the South Asian Peninsula, the APAC had truly lived up to its name.
The formation of the South Asian Union was a direct response to counter the influence of the APAC.
The reason for their hostility was obvious.
Ji Xinghuo asked, "When will we make our move?"
"The preliminary work began over a decade ago," Li Hui replied without hesitation. "Now, we're just waiting for the right opportunity. It will definitely happen within the next three years, and you will be involved as well. Just wait for further notice."
"Yes," Ji Xinghuo acknowledged.
He felt a mix of excitement and unease.
On the diplomatic front, the APAC claimed to never interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, yet it was secretly planning wars.
However, if another country became part of one's own, then its internal affairs would naturally become one's own internal affairs, thus not violating their own diplomatic policies.
The 23rd century was an era of great contention.
From high-ranking officials to ordinary citizens, all humans shared a consensus: Earth must be unified under a single government to reduce internal strife and allow humanity to rise as a powerful force in the Star Realm.
Therefore, Ji Xinghuo did not oppose war. It was a necessary growing pain on the path to global unification.
He only hoped that the intensity of the war could be minimized to reduce unnecessary losses.
Ji Xinghuo and Li Hui conversed for over an hour, during which Ji Xinghuo learned many secrets that were inaccessible to the general public.
Ji Xinghuo didn't hesitate and chose to not get involved.
After all, the Head of State had already mentioned that his position as Deputy Director was just a title, and he didn't need to participate in the day-to-day work.
After bidding farewell to Li Hui, Ji Xinghuo said his goodbyes to Zhou Yishang before leaving.
"I'll walk you out."
Zhou Yishang accompanied him downstairs and suddenly said, "I've already received the notification. Congratulations on your promotion to Deputy Director. We're now on the same level!"
Ji Xinghuo sensed Zhou Yishang's admiration and a hint of emotion, and feeling that he might be a little envious, he smiled and said, "You know I'm just a figurehead and don't actually handle any affairs. Just treat me as a Xuanyuan Swordsman, that's all."
"You really know how to comfort people," Zhou Yishang said, feeling relieved to see that Ji Xinghuo's attitude towards him remained unchanged.
After a few seconds of silence, he couldn't help but exclaim, "I never would have imagined that in less than three years, you would have come this far!"
Three years ago, Ji Xinghuo had only been a novice Extraordinary.
Now, Ji Xinghuo had stepped into the core of the country's power structure, and his status was clearly above his own.
"I always keep in mind the support you've given me, Director Zhou," Ji Xinghuo said sincerely.
Zhou Yishang patted him on the shoulder without saying a word.
As Zhou Yishang saw him off, Ji Xinghuo boarded the maglev car and drove out of the parking lot of the Sword Bureau headquarters. Only after the car had disappeared from sight did Zhou Yishang let out a soft sigh, his expression complex, before returning upstairs.
Upon returning home, Ji Xinghuo was greeted by Zhao Manying.
"Have you met with the Head of State?"
"Mm," Ji Xinghuo nodded, not elaborating further on the matter. Seeing that she had already changed into a set of neat training clothes and looked to be in excellent condition, he asked, "Are you preparing to use the expansion artifact to fuse with the foreign species tonight?"
"I can't wait any longer. Help me guard the process," Zhao Manying said, her face full of anticipation.
"Alright, then go ahead and start."
Zhao Manying entered the cultivation room, while Ji Xinghuo sat outside, constantly scanning the surroundings with electromagnetic induction to ensure her safety.
In fact, there wouldn't be any danger.
Their greatest enemy, the Qian Yuan Association, had already been eliminated, so they no longer had to worry about their safety within the country.
While keeping an eye on Zhao Manying's progress, Ji Xinghuo opened the projection screen and browsed the information on the network in silent mode.
At the same time, he took out his phone and chatted with his family in their group chat.
Seeing that Ji Xinghuo had appeared online, his family members were all very excited and expressed that they would come over immediately. Ji Xinghuo didn't refuse. Before they arrived, he took out some items from his dimensional pocket and placed them in a shoe box, setting it on the table.
Not long after, everyone arrived.
"Third Brother!"
As soon as Ji Xinghuo opened the door, he heard Liang Qiufeiyan's happy shout and smiled, "Come in, quickly."
His eldest sister, Ye Dongyun, second brother, Zhong Ming, and fourth brother, Wang Zizheng, had all arrived.
All five family members were present.
After seating themselves on the sofa in the living room, Ji Xinghuo served them drinks, only to find that everyone was staring at him intently, their eyes full of curiosity. He couldn't help but smile and ask, "Why are you all looking at me like that?"
The four siblings looked at each other, and Zhong Ming sighed, "We all feel like this isn't real."
"Yes!"
Liang Qiufeiyan nodded like a little chicken pecking at rice, "Third Brother, you're so amazing now. It feels like we're dreaming."
Ye Dongyun and Wang Zizheng shared the same sentiment.
"What's going on?"
Ji Xinghuo was a little perplexed.
The last time he returned, hadn't his siblings already known about his strength and talent? Why were they suddenly acting like this, leaving him baffled?
"You don't know yet?" Zhong Ming realized something, "Just now, on our way here, the Celestial Ladder was updated."
Ji Xinghuo immediately understood what had happened.
He logged into the ADC's official website on his phone and opened the Celestial Ladder, only to find that the first name on the ladder was none other than Ji Xinghuo's! Zhao Manying, who had previously been at the top, was now in second place.
"Third Brother, you're at the top of the Celestial Ladder now!" Wang Zizheng, who was usually reserved, looked very excited. In the past, he had been obsessed with virtual games, and almost every game had a leaderboard, with countless players striving to get on the list.
Wang Zizheng was a "pro gamer," and no matter what game he played, he was always a regular on the leaderboards.
He knew exactly how amazing it felt to see your name at the top.
Those were just leaderboards in virtual games, which couldn't compare to the real Celestial Ladder. Yet, his third brother had reached the pinnacle of the Celestial Ladder, surpassing hundreds of billions of ordinary people and tens of billions of Extraordinaries worldwide!
Being at the top of the Celestial Ladder meant being the first person below the legend tier.
However, with this update, ADC had added a phrase to Ji Xinghuo's profile: "First among those below the Celestial King."
They also attached a video to the profile.
Ji Xinghuo opened the video and only needed to glance at it to know its source. It was footage of him rushing out of the Bhopal Stargate Fortress, breaking through the air defense system of the Hindi Kingdom, and flying back to his home country, all of which had been captured by high-speed cameras.
It was unclear how ADC had obtained the video, but after analyzing it, they had placed him at the top of the Celestial Ladder.
At that moment, the news was spreading like wildfire across the global network.
(End of Chapter)
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