Led by one of his subordinates, Xu Yi and Eto'o arrived at a reception center the Xinfei Merchant Guild had established in the heart of its Main Base.
The moment he stepped through the door, Xu Yi felt as though the atmosphere had frozen. The enormous reception hall was unbelievably quiet; he could even hear every step of the two waitresses, despite their deliberate efforts to tread softly.
Apart from those two waitresses, almost no one in the hall made any substantial movements. Whatever they were doing, everyone looked exceedingly cautious, as if afraid of breaking the deathly silence.
Everyone's gaze drifted, deliberately or otherwise, toward two groups seated opposite each other in the hall. The members of those groups, however, had their eyes fixed firmly on the other side. It took no effort at all to sense the explosive tension between them.
Eto'o frowned as he surveyed both groups. His gaze settled on the delegation from the Malo Empire Military Department that he had brought here. He walked over and asked them a couple of questions in a low voice, then turned toward the other group with an odd expression.
Only after seeing Eto'o move did the group on the right notice Xu Yi and the others arriving. A man seated in the middle raised his hand in greeting.
"President Xu, you're back."
Xu Yi smiled and nodded to him. "Lord Russell, didn't you say you wouldn't arrive until the day after tomorrow? What brings you here today?"
Russell, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Candel Empire Navy's Staff Headquarters, glanced at the members of the Malo Empire Military Department seated opposite him and snorted. "If we hadn't come two days early, how would we have discovered these unexpected guests?"
His tone was steeped in sarcasm, and his expression