The light of the tattered banner blazed fiercely.
From high above, it looked like a brilliant spark of starlight rising amid darkness and ash-fire, scattering its radiance.
Yet within that immense projection, everyone looked higher, toward the terrifying shadow that shrouded and obscured all of Quancheng.
"It's already too late."
From the darkness came a soft sigh. "The Miasma of the Four Seas has converged. With the Existing Fiend as its pillar, all of Quancheng is sinking into the shadow of the vortex.
Lu Changsheng is gambling—gambling that he can withstand Tao Cheng's Celestial Origin assimilation, gambling that he can fulfill his ambitions. I told you long ago: once that madman wins a round, he'll want to win another. Once he gets a taste of it, he'll only want more. When has he ever known when to stop?"
"Then what are you still dawdling for?"
Among the five seats surrounding the projection, an agitated middle-aged man asked, "Sky Rail's legacy is being misused, and the Federation keeps sending inquiries.
You've made it look as though we deliberately violated the T5 Agreement.
When Sky Rail collapsed, who knew there was still a Myriad Manifestations Engine lost outside?"
"Dumping another mess in our laps?"
A doctor-like figure in a white coat and mask spoke slowly. "The T5 Agreement hangs around our necks like a dog collar, nearly strangling us. We've spent all these years as decorations, with barely any business each day. We review and review without understanding a thing, then when something goes wrong or someone gets sick, they remember us—Doctor, hurry and save me... What were you doing before?"
"There's even more troublesome news—"
The irritable middle-aged man said slowly, "Two minutes ago, an emergency communication line between the Federation Central City Council's Emergency Office and the Empire's Senate was