After barely an hour of peace aboard his own Armed Warship, Ronan was summoned by an emergency order and returned to the North District Command Headquarters flagship, the Qingshui.
He was fairly familiar with the place by now. Following the order's instructions, he went straight to a small conference room behind the bridge. Inside, on a floating chair, Grand Duke Zhiping was waiting for him.
This was Ronan's first time being "alone" with Grand Duke Zhiping in the real world. His eyes swept over that plump, pale face and the square, many-edged hat atop his head, then he respectfully lowered his head, eyes to nose, nose to mouth, mouth to heart, waiting for the man to speak.
The man opposite him did not beat around the bush at all and asked directly, "Someone says you're a Celestial from the Shadow Domain in disguise. Explain."
When a Grand Duke delivered such an "accusation" to someone's face, anyone's heart would have skipped a beat.
Ronan's expression did not change. Calmly, he asked in return, "Was it Mr. Yilan Shang who said that?"
"You're asking me?"
"My apologies, Your Grace. I only wanted to confirm the source and background of the information, so I can explain more easily afterward."
Grand Duke Zhiping waved a hand lazily. "Let's say it was. Explain."
Ronan responded at once. "The reason Mr. Yilan Shang had this misunderstanding is because the real Shadow Celestial he sent, 'Backpack,' attempted to assassinate me, using my identity as a springboard to assassinate Lady Wei."
"But when 'Backpack' made his move, I countered and killed him. After that, in accordance with Lady Wei's request, I temporarily disguised myself as that 'Backpack' and maintained contact with Mr. Yilan Shang, while delaying his instructions to prevent him from changing methods and continuing to cause