After learning from the woman named Bang Ni that the entire itinerary was up to him, Hua Zhen simply cut out the visits to the two major research and military bases.
The reason was simple. They would never put anything truly valuable on display for him to see. Even if he visited, he would not gain any worthwhile intelligence. Rather than waste the time, he might as well stroll around the Federal Commercial District, take in sights that only existed in science fiction movies, and pick out gifts for Lian Xi.
The Central Federation District's megacity looked completely different by day than it did at night. Its seductive nighttime splendor gave way to a simple daytime elegance, like a young girl out for her morning run, utterly captivating.
The intricately arranged buildings did not seem the least bit out of place against the sky. Everything was neat and orderly. Standing among them and looking up, Hua Zhen saw layers upon layers of elevated bridges connecting the towers, densely packed like twisting tree roots.
Beneath those "roots," either suspended in midair or built upon the ground, were residential areas. The houses came in all kinds of strange shapes—round, square, hexagonal—and looked remarkably novel.
Within this giant city, this enormous sci-fi machine, people went about different tasks along invisible tracks of their own. Yet every one of them was like a component in that machine, contributing their share to their region, their nation, and even the entire Fellinton Civilization.
Their faces were filled with happy smiles. Clearly, they were extremely satisfied with their lives. There was none of that melodramatic nonsense from television dramas—glamorous on the surface but dark within, with ordinary people oppressed by their rulers and living miserable lives. The entire civilization was the same inside and out, genuinely consistent through and through.
The quality of a nation could be seen quite clearly from the cohesion and sense of belonging among its common people. The same held true for a civilization. Setting aside the Fellinton leaders' disloyal ambitions toward the Angel Civilization, at least as far as the ordinary citizens of their own civilization were concerned, they were qualified leaders.
Ambition was difficult to judge as either good or bad. Were the leaders of the Fellinton Civilization wrong to secretly research Super Genes behind the Angel Civilization's back? No. They were not.
Just as Balo, the Director-General of the Heavenly City Civil Protection Office, had said aboard the Tiangong Ship, anyone could understand their actions from another perspective. They had discovered scarce and precious resources, yet had to offer them up to others. They wanted to develop, yet were restricted by others.
When it came down to it, they simply did not want to be ruled by hegemony. They wanted their civilization to develop further in this chaotic era and possess the strength to say no.
Likewise, Old Angel King Hua Que was not wrong either. If he wanted to enforce hegemony, he could not allow subordinate civilizations to possess the power to resist. They had to live obediently within the boundaries he had set. Otherwise, they were deemed to harbor treacherous ambitions.
Both sides had their own reasons, so who was truly in the wrong? At a time like this, perhaps only two words could answer that question—weakness!
Weakness was the original sin. That had been an eternal truth, especially in this chaotic age. Whoever had the bigger fist was truth. The Angels were stronger than Felinton, so even if Felinton had its own reasons, it was still wrong and deserved the punishment and judgment of its "overlord" civilization.
Sure enough, no world could escape Survival of the Fittest!
Thinking this, Hua Zhen looked through the rim of his glass at the famous figures chatting and laughing in the hall, as well as the graceful beauties around them. A trace of mockery curled at his lips. Of all these people, I'm afraid most of them have no idea what their civilization is about to face, do they?
Heh, who exactly was the mole? Was it the kind-faced and amiable Huo Er? Or Ya Erman, who radiated righteousness?
Hua Zhen smiled as he lightly clinked glasses with a minor Federation leader, then drained the wine in one gulp.
The day's "inspection" came to an end, and night quietly fell. The grand welcome banquet, hosted by Ke Li and the other Five Great Leaders, had already been underway for some time.
The banquet was held at an upscale club in the Central Federal District called Pattheid, a name derived from the word for paradise. Here, no matter who you were or what status you held, as long as the club deemed you qualified to enter, you could enjoy its most distinguished treatment. Otherwise, you would be turned away at the door.
After being refused entry, no one dared threaten the place with lines like, "I'm the son of some major consortium," "My father is so-and-so," or "I'm the Region Chief of such-and-such district."
They would politely nod in acknowledgment and then carefully lead their people away. The reason no one dared cause trouble here was simple: the club's owner was Dai Wei, the leader of the Southern Federal District—the entertainment emperor of the entire Federation government.
Pattheid was just like its name: dreamlike and beautiful. Its floor was seamlessly pieced together from a special crystal glass, with five-colored flowing lights shifting around it and shadowy gleams flickering endlessly. Two staircases spiraled upward along the walls, perfectly joining the open-air VIP platform on the top floor. Below, in a spacious hall spanning nearly a thousand square meters, every entertainment facility imaginable—and unimaginable—was available.
Beautiful women dressed in vivid colors acted as dealers... no, as attendants. Wearing dazzling light wings on their backs and standing on miniature flying devices, they circled through the air like elves. Accompanied by gentle music, they poured wine and served food to the guests. The fragrant breeze they stirred carried a faintly sweet scent throughout the entire club.
Anyone visiting Pattheid for the first time would feel as though they had entered an unreal world. It was crystalline, magnificent, ethereal, and pure, like a world made of glass.
Unlike last time, when he had been ignored during Old Angel King Hua Que's birthday celebration, Hua Zhen was the star of the evening today. A major figure from the Tiangong Ship like him was someone the minor Federation leaders would never have the qualifications to meet in their entire lives. Naturally, they treasured this rare opportunity. They took turns stepping onto the VIP platform to pay their respects, arriving in an endless stream. Flattery and ingratiation were unavoidable.
Ke Li and the other Five Great Leaders introduced them to Hua Zhen one by one. As time passed, his initial composed smile turned into perfunctory "Mm-hm" and "Ah, yes" responses. Once the novelty wore off, all that remained was boredom.
The one who best knew how to handle things was Gus. He raised a hand to stop those still trying to come forward, then looked toward Ke Li and the other leaders surrounding Hua Zhen. His tone seemed casual, but it was actually an order. "His Highness is tired. Let's end the welcome banquet here."
Hua Zhen said nothing, but secretly gave him a thumbs-up. Then, when the corner of his eye caught Andre stuffing his face like there was no tomorrow... several veins throbbed on his forehead.
How many years has it been since you've eaten decent food? Doesn't the Tiangong Ship have enough food for you to be acting like this? What an embarrassment! If he had not been mindful of his status, he would have already gone over and kicked that idiot.
"Oh dear, I got so caught up in being happy." Ke Li slapped his forehead and turned to Hua Zhen with an apologetic expression. "Third Prince, please forgive our oversight..."
On the other side, Dai Wei called over an attendant. "Hurry and have someone prepare the suite on the top floor. His Highness needs to rest!"
"There's no need for the trouble..." Hua Zhen waved a hand. "I'm already used to where I'm staying at the garrison. If I change places again, I won't sleep well."
Dai Wei did not insist. "In that case, I'll have someone escort Your Highness back."
The Third Prince of the Tiangong Ship was about to leave, and the send-off began as well. Surrounded by the crowd, Hua Zhen walked out of Pattheid and boarded the small spacecraft that had been prepared in advance.
After returning to the garrison, he stretched lazily. Honestly, the whole day had been incredibly fulfilling. It was much more fun than staying on the Tiangong Ship, especially when he had been extravagantly splurging in the Federal Commercial District. With a card in hand, he could buy whatever caught his eye. Things he had never been able to do in his previous life had somehow become possible here.
As though remembering something, Hua Zhen flipped his wrist and retrieved a pendant. Under the room's lights, its dazzling colors immediately came into view. Platinum and colored gold complemented each other perfectly, blending classical mystery with modern nobility. The two-tone design exuded a distinctive style. It was the gift he had specially chosen for Lian Xi in the Federal Commercial District.
"I really want to see what Lian Xi will look like wearing it. She'll definitely be beautiful..." A smile formed at his lips. He had been away from the Tiangong Ship for less than two days, yet he already missed that girl a little.
Bang!
The door was suddenly slammed open from outside, and Gus rushed in with an anxious expression. "B-Bad news, Your Highness..."
"What the hell are you doing? You scared me!" Hua Zhen shoved Gus aside, returned the pendant to the Dark Plane, and frowned. "What's got you in such a panic? Did something happen with Ke Li?"
"N-No..." Gus said with an expression like he was constipated. "Your Highness, we... we left A Lie at the club..."
"..." Hua Zhen was instantly dumbfounded. "W-What?! Didn't he leave with you?"
"I thought he would follow..."
"Oh, for..." Hua Zhen clutched his forehead and roared, "What are you standing around for? Hurry up and drag him back here!"
"Yes, Your Highness. I'll send someone right away..."
"You go yourself!"
Gus said helplessly, "I'll go right away, Your Highness..."
Hua Zhen was furious. Without anyone watching that tiger-brained fool, who knew what he might do? If A Lie got into a fight with Ke Li and the others ahead of schedule, would their plan to strike from within and without not go straight down the drain?
"Just wait until you get back, I'll..."
Bzzz~
At that moment, a faint sound suddenly reached Hua Zhen's ears. Feeling puzzled, he looked toward the transparent card resting on the table.
Black "mucus" poured out from the card. Before long, it had gathered into a large puddle that looked disgustingly revolting. Soon, it changed again. After squirming and writhing for a while, it finally piled together into the form of a man.
When Hua Zhen saw who it was, he could not help but freeze. "It's you!"
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