Sandiko's voice was quiet, but the meeting room was so silent that everyone heard him. Their expressions shifted almost in unison.
Xu Yi remained calm, even passing him the untouched glass of water beside him.
"Calm down. Take your time and explain."
Sandiko took the glass and drained it in one gulp. He coughed hard twice, caught his breath, then held the paper in his hand out toward Xu Yi again.
"Mr. President, it's news from the Sark Kingdom."
"The Sark Kingdom?" Xu Yi gave Sandiko a somewhat surprised look. After a moment's thought, he nodded and unfolded the paper.
There were only two lines on the slip of paper, and it looked perfectly simple. Yet after scanning it, Xu Yi could not help looking astonished.
"The Sark Kingdom's Magic Research Institute has officially announced that its development of the Mana Cannon has succeeded. Mass production of Mana Cannons is expected to begin in the near future."
It was just one short sentence, but its implications were extraordinarily far-reaching.
First, the Sark Kingdom's Magic Research Institute had successfully developed a Mana Cannon. That alone was shocking news that was certain to cause a sensation.
Military Magic Machinery had always been the exclusive preserve of the Xinfei Merchant Guild. Although the Lampari Kingdom and the Rulson Kingdom had acquired some manufacturing technology for Military Magic Machinery through transfers from the Xinfei Merchant Guild, all of it covered only the most basic, commonplace equipment. It could certainly improve the strength of the two kingdoms' armies, but it was nowhere near comparable to the Military Magic Machinery the Xinfei Merchant Guild could produce.
Among the more advanced types of Military Magic Machinery in the Xinfei Merchant Guild's possession, Mana Cannons were a particularly important category. In Xu Yi's plans for the development of