At 3:00 PM, the national highway near Biyou Village was blocked by roadblocks.
A convoy of three armored vehicles, escorted by twelve Humvees, entered the temporarily closed road area.
Every ten meters along both sides of the road, armed police officers stood at attention, the 'bang bang' of their rifle butts striking the ground sounding like mechanical pendulums striking a suffocating rhythm under the overcast sky.
As the convoy reached the hills surrounding Biyou Village, four helicopters roared past.
The air blasts from the rotor blades bent the poplar trees along the roadside, and fallen leaves and dust formed a yellow curtain in the air, clearing a strict passage for the convoy.
The chief sat in the back of the armored car, his fingertips lightly stroking the armrest inside.
The windows of this specially made vehicle are three inches thick, enough to withstand an RPG attack, but they are now completely obscured by dark curtains.
Only the satellite screen on the roof was lit up, transmitting real-time road conditions ahead.
"Three minutes to reach the village entrance."
The guard's voice came through the walkie-talkie.
The chief nodded, raised his hand to adjust the collar of his Zhongshan suit, ensuring that he would not make a mistake in his appearance during the meeting.
Before long, the convoy stopped in front of the archway of Biyou Village.
Eight bodyguards dressed in black combat uniforms got out of the car first, spreading out in a fan shape to protect the vehicle.
The CEO stepped out of his car, supported by two personal secretaries, followed by more than a dozen entourage members in suits.
At the village entrance's threshing ground, villagers who were working were now cordoned off.
Behind the crowd, a temporary base consisting of medical vehicles, communication vehicles, and special vehicles is being set up.
Zhang Chulan and the others received orders in advance to wait at the village entrance.
Ma Xianhong stood under the archway, a corner of his white robe fluttering in the breeze.
Hoshino stood beside him, her long gray hair falling to her waist, the mark between her brows gleaming faintly in the twilight, like an amethyst set in pale jade.
Behind the two, the villagers of Biyou Village spontaneously lined up, but under the watchful eyes of the authorities, they remained silent as cicadas in winter. Only the chirping of cicadas in the old locust tree at the village entrance broke the oppressive silence.
"Sir, we've been waiting for you."
Hoshino spoke, her voice like a clear spring striking a rock, which even drowned out the hum of the helicopter in the distance.
"Mr. Hoshino."
The chief extended his hand, "We were delayed on the way; it looks like it's going to rain."
Hoshino grasped the chief's hand, and the warmth of his palm made the chief pause slightly.
The touch was no different from that of an ordinary person; the fingertips even had slight calluses, like the marks left by years of holding a pen or working.
"The rain is definitely coming."
Hoshino let go of her hand, looked up at the low-hanging clouds, and saw that the distant hills had been tinged with gray-blue by the rain.
"But we can talk after we have a cup of tea."
He gestured to the side, Ma Xianhong had already turned and walked into the village.
The chief followed Hoshino across the threshing ground, his leather shoes crunching softly on the rain-soaked straw.
The attendant followed closely behind, the briefcase buckle making a soft clinking sound.
Zhang Chulan stood by the cordon and nodded to Hoshino, while Feng Baobao squatted beside a poplar tree root, teasing a wet cricket.
"The roads in the village are difficult to travel on and are still under construction!"
Hoshino avoided a protruding stone slab and pointed to a hillside in the distance.
The newly built stone wall there had not yet been plastered, revealing the uneven bricks and stones.
The chief nodded. "Is this your first stop here? Are you finding it comfortable?"
"It's nice, quieter than I expected." Hoshino smiled. "My world is always filled with the smoke of battle; I can't even sleep peacefully."
As they spoke, the group arrived at a small courtyard made of blue bricks.
There are faded Spring Festival couplets pasted on the wooden door. The word "Thai" written across the horizontal line "Guotai Minan" is missing the upper left half, revealing the old paper underneath.
Ma Xianhong pushed open the courtyard gate, and the wind chimes under the eaves rang out with a clear, crisp sound.
It was made of dried lotus pods and copper bells strung together, making a soft tinkling sound as it swayed in the draft.
"This place is simple, please forgive me, Chief." Ma Xianhong stepped aside to make way.
The main room was simply furnished, with a bamboo tea tray on a square table and pale green tea leaves floating in four rough porcelain bowls.
Hoshino raised his hand to indicate that the head of the table should take the seat of honor, and then sat on a bamboo chair, his long hair falling to his waist, casting a grayish-white shadow on the back of the chair.
The attendant stood at the door, but was invited by Ma Xianhong to wait in a side room.
Only the chief's personal secretary remained in the inner room, standing by the window pretending to watch the rain, but actually keeping a close eye on what was happening inside.
"This tea... has a sweet aftertaste." The head chef picked up the bowl; the fragrance of jasmine was mixed with a faint, almost imperceptible Yakumi.
"My older brother sun-dried these last year, saying they're good for the lungs," Hoshino said with a smile.
The chief tea master gently blew on the floating tea leaves in his bowl. "Drinking this tea with the sound of rain evokes a bit of the ancient poet's sentiment of 'Let's try new tea with newly kindled fire.'"
Hoshino poured water into the kettle. "Of course," he said, "During war, even a sip of hot water is a luxury."
"Oh?" The chief chuckled. "Judging from what Mr. Hoshino is saying, are wars frequent in another world?"
"It's not that frequent!" Hoshino put down the teapot and said, "The continent has been in conflict for thousands of years, and friction between the major powers has never ceased."
"Nearly a century ago, the continent was constantly at war with families. Later, two supreme rulers united them, forming villages composed of families, which brought a brief period of peace."
The chief asked, "Two supreme experts? That sounds like a creation myth from your world, so why do you call yourselves a village?"
In the historical logic of Blue Star, the convergence of power often gives rise to higher forms of social organization such as city-states, governments, and federations.
According to Hoshino, since the 'family' is linked to the 'superhumans'...
The settlements formed by the "strongest unified families" should have had a grander structure and name, so why did they choose to be based on the seemingly loose form of "village"?
This contradicts his understanding of the logic that "the gathering of the strong will inevitably lead to a major trend."
Intuitively, I felt that the naming of the "village" must conceal a unique lineage of an alien civilization that differed from that of Blue Star, but I couldn't quite grasp the deeper secrets behind it.
Hoshino, however, felt that the chief was overthinking things.
"It's just a name. You can think of it as a sect in your world's novels, mainly responsible for handling conflicts in the extraordinary world."
Similar to ninja villages and sects, both are aggregates of extraordinary power.
Sects recruit talented individuals and maintain their existence through the inheritance of cultivation techniques and master-disciple relationships. Villages in the Shinobi World incorporate ninja clans into their systems, train combat power through the Ninja Academy, and balance resource allocation through a mission system.
Both established parallel supernatural orders outside of secular regimes, such as the relationship between sects and the imperial court, and between villages and daimyo, depending on which side was more powerful.
"So, in your world, **'s status must be quite low!"
"Not entirely. The relationship with the village leader depends mainly on the leader's personality."
The relationship between the Shinobi World, the government, and ninja villages is essentially a dynamic balance of power between supernatural forces and secular authority.
In the Shinobi World, the relationship between the daimyo (representing the powerful) and the ninja villages is not fixed, but depends on the village leader's style of governance.
When hardliners are in control.
Like Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage of Konoha, who used overwhelming force to intimidate the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, placing the village's will above all else.
Ninjas directly participated in high-level decision-making and even indirectly took over military and intelligence systems, creating a situation where 'villages were strong while the government was weak'.
At this time, the daimyo's function was more focused on logistical support, similar to a resource vassal of the village.
When moderates are in power.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, as an example, he proactively negotiated tax rates and task assignments with the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, positioning the village as a 'super security force hired by the state'.
While retaining the right to personal freedom, the symbolic authority of the daimyo is acknowledged.
Both parties clarify their rights and responsibilities through a contract, forming a symbiotic model of "villages protecting the nation, and the nation supporting the villages".
At the heart of this relationship lies the balance of power and the choice of leader. The village's military strength determines its bargaining chips, while the leader's governing philosophy determines the stance in the game.
As Hoshino said, the term 'village' is just a facade; at its core, it represents a 'low-cost, high-resilience' survival framework that an extraordinary civilization has developed on a continent with limited resources.
This approach avoids internal strife caused by excessive centralization of power, while also enabling the rapid consolidation of forces in the event of war.
This is similar to the power dynamics between city-states and lords in the history of Blue Star, but due to the absoluteness of extraordinary power, it presents a more direct characteristic of interdependence between the strong and the weak.
According to Hoshino's account, the chief gained a basic understanding of the power structure of the Shinobi World.
Centered around the Five Great Villages, supplemented by small and medium-sized ninja villages, secret organizations, and secular governments, the region presents a diverse landscape of 'core confrontation and peripheral dependence'.
Later, they discovered a dimensional war.
The Five Great Villages united to form the " Shinobi Alliance " and launched the " War Council " to coordinate operations across the entire region.
By integrating resources to advance the " Resurrection Plan " and the " Puppet Plan," while simultaneously opening up technology sharing and establishing a unified military academy, the aim was to complete cross-system combat readiness within three years.
A wartime power structure was constructed, featuring the synergy of extraordinary power and technology, and the coexistence of old and new orders, in order to cope with the impending spacetime crisis.
To be honest, it was only in the Chief's eyes that the power structure of the post-era era began to exhibit characteristics of civilization.
Before the Shinobi Alliance, that world was more like a jungle survival system dominated by savagery and violence, lacking a systematic civilization.
The chief set down his teacup, tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and asked, "Mr. Hoshino, in your opinion, what role should Blue Star play in this dimensional war? A bystander, or a casualty?"
Hoshino said slowly, "Given the current situation on Blue Star, it's probably difficult to remain uninvolved. The fact that I was able to arrive here through the Dragon Vein coordinates means that invaders from other dimensions can also track the existence of Blue Star."
As he spoke, a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.
"In the universe, the coordinates of civilization are never shelters, but lighthouses."
The chief's fingers suddenly stopped on the table, his knuckles turning white from the force.
My worst fears came true.
When a civilization is at its end, the most dangerous thing is never a defeated army, but the instinct for survival.
From the moment Hoshino set foot on this planet, Blue Star could not escape this dimensional war!
What chilled him even more was the unspoken deeper meaning in Hoshino's words.
The Shinobi World's true chances of winning against the invaders are worrying; the so-called "establishing a retreat route" is merely a euphemism for a civilization's escape.
The fact that Blue Star is 'undeveloped' makes it an excellent choice.
It can serve as a springboard for invaders to step into a new universe, or it can be used as a buffer zone by both sides, becoming a expendable resource in a protracted war.
The chief remained silent for a long time, his fingertips tracing the rim of the teacup, his eyes swirling with complex emotions.
At this moment, Hoshino suddenly said seriously, "Chief, today I formally represent the Shinobi Alliance to sincerely invite Blue Star to become a strategic ally."
"Your world can serve as a logistical hub and technical partner, while the Shinobi Alliance will bear the main pressure on the front lines. This is a win-win situation, and the only way to survive."
What do you think?
The atmosphere inside the room suddenly froze, with only the sound of rain growing more urgent.
The chief looked up and stared at the mark between Hoshino's brows. The faint light flickered in the rain, like a supernova about to explode in the depths of the universe.
The Shinobi Alliance's 'invitation' was essentially trying to drag Blue Star onto the same perilous ship.
On the surface, it is a strategic alliance, but in reality, it is a way to incorporate Blue Star's technological potential and human resources into the Shinobi World's war system amidst the vortex of dimensional war.
Hoshino's so-called "bearing the pressure head-on".
However, they were merely using the Shinobi World's fighting power to delay the invaders and buy time for Blue Star to transform its technology.
The so-called logistics hub on Blue Star is actually meant to provide energy, supplies, and even manpower for cross-dimensional warfare, becoming a resource pool for the two sides in their power struggle.
This relationship appears to be equal.
Once the defenses of the Shinobi World collapse, Blue Star will lose its only barrier and be directly exposed to the invaders' path of devouring it.
Even more cruelly...
Regardless of the outcome of the war, Blue Star, due to its deep involvement, is likely to become the primary target of the invaders' retaliation.
The so-called 'way out' is nothing more than choosing the slower one between two kinds of destruction.
Unless... the Shinobi World achieves final victory.
But even Hoshino himself probably can't guarantee that this is possible.
The chief looked down at the shimmering reflection in the tea, and after a long while, he slowly spoke.
"Mr. Hoshino, Hua Country is merely a small part of this Blue Star and cannot represent the entire planet in making decisions."
The air inside seemed to freeze, with only the wind chimes on the eaves making a soft, clear sound in the draft.
Hoshino seemed to have seen through the chief's strategy of shirking responsibility.
"As far as I know, although your world's ' United Nations ' nominally represents the entire globe, the real decision-making power is always in the hands of 'five people'."
"And you, being one of those five, in my opinion, can still represent them!"
The chief looked up at Hoshino, whose gaze was calm as a mirror, reflecting his own tense expression.
Even so, any decision that involves all of humanity takes time!
The current situation leaves him no choice but to be cautious.
History has proven time and again that when one side faces a life-or-death situation, the line between 'cooperation' and 'plunder' becomes blurred.
If Blue Star refuses to cooperate, there's no guarantee that the Shinobi Alliance won't take extreme measures against Blue Star to secure their escape route.
War is the most direct way.
After all, the Shinobi Alliance could not tolerate a potential "uncertainty or hidden danger" existing outside the system.
As a conduit connecting the two worlds, the Shinobi World cannot afford the risk that Blue Star, after refusing to cooperate, might use the Dragon Vein coordinates to reverse its connection to the invaders' camp.
Even the slightest possibility is unacceptable.
This loss of control over the 'two-way channel' could plunge the Shinobi World into a desperate situation, besieged from both sides.
Therefore, the most direct way to eliminate potential threats is to incorporate Blue Star into the war system or completely eliminate the threat.
Of course, this is also to ensure that they can retreat into this universe without any hindrance after being defeated!