The mission members reacted much like the Federation, gathering in small groups and peering out of the portholes at the enormous, dreamlike, and distinctly polarized Xuanhuang Star.
"I never imagined the Federation's capital planet would be like this..."
Among the accompanying personnel, only a few were from the Military Department who had previously observed the Federation up close on the outskirts of the battlefield, but had never ventured so deep into the heart of the Federation.
If this was the case for those in the Military Department, it was even more so for the other members of the mission.
The two civilizations are in conflict with each other and have shielding facilities. Astronomical equipment can only see the basic outlines of the planets, not their actual shapes.
"Is their population really that small?" someone couldn't help but ask.
As far as the eye could see, most of Xuanhuang Star was occupied by the central storm belt, with cities only existing at the poles. In contrast, the four habitable stars of the Empire had sizable populations, which were relatively evenly distributed.
"No," said a scholar who was familiar with the relevant information. "Land in the Federation can be bought with money, so most of their population lives on other habitable planets, while the largest habitable planet has the fewest inhabitants."
"What a waste! It's so empty, with no servants around. What's the point?"
"That's different. I heard the Federation uses robots."
The mission members were very excited and couldn't help but discuss it in hushed tones.
Some people occasionally glanced at the front of the ship, at the figure standing alone in front of the largest viewing window.
The other person stood silently by the porthole, gazing at the Federation starry sky; they had been watching for a long time.
At this moment, a handsome young man's eyes flickered. He carefully tidied his clothes and hairstyle, and hesitantly walked towards the front of the ship.
However, as soon as he got close, a figure blocked his way.
With silver hair cascading down his shoulders and icy blue eyes, he was the 'special advisor' personally selected by the emperor to join the mission.
The young man paused, then frowned. "Why are you blocking my way?"
"Her Majesty doesn't want to be disturbed by irrelevant people," Xu Yuan said, emphasizing the word "irrelevant people."
The commotion over here, where the discussions about the Federation had ceased, was now completely focused on this place.
The young man blushed with anger. "You! You can't represent His Majesty, so what right do you have to say such things!"
"What do you think?" Xu Yuan smiled smugly, turning his gaze to the figure that remained motionless by the window.
The spaceship was full of Awakened, and their commotion did not escape the notice of the other members of the delegation, let alone the Emperor, who was considered the most powerful.
The fact that the other party is aware of what Xu Yuan is doing but has not stopped him represents a tacit approval.
The young man realized this as well. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but faced with Wen Jing's indulgence and Xu Yuan's seemingly out-of-place attitude as the empress, the rest of his words stuck in his throat. In the end, he could only turn around and leave angrily.
The other members of the delegation watching from a short distance exchanged gloating and relieved glances: thankfully they hadn't gone up and humiliated themselves.
"Just a substitute. It's His Majesty's sentimentality that he waited until..." The young man turned around and drank a cup of wine.
His companion quickly covered his mouth, saying, "Stop talking."
After a brief interlude, the topic returned to the Federation. However, most of the delegation members shared the same sentiment as the young man: they all disliked this stand-in. Relying on his resemblance to the deceased consort of the new emperor, he acted arrogantly and would eventually be rejected!
Throughout the entire ordeal, His Majesty the Emperor never looked back.
He simply gazed at the starry sky outside the window, oblivious to everything behind him.
*
The airport of the Xuanhuang Academy is now under complete martial law.
On the 30-kilometer-diameter docking platform, the silver-white Federation honor guard stood in neat square formations, their armor reflecting a blinding light.
Around the platform, thousands of tiny unmanned cameras are suspended in the air like a swarm of mechanical bees, all with their lenses pointed at the central reception passage.
The entire Federation live streaming network is already ready.
On every habitable planet, in every city, countless people are watching this live stream, even across planetary distances, with a delay of only a few minutes at most.
Finally, the Empire's spaceship slowly landed in the center of the platform.
The jet-black hull contrasted sharply with the surrounding silver academy buildings. A large door shimmering with golden light opened on the streamlined hull, and the gangway slowly descended.
The moment the hatch opened, all the media groups controlled their own drones to move forward—every single one of these groups had upgraded their equipment for this live broadcast since the announcement of the Emperor's visit to the Federation.
The next moment, a figure appeared at the hatch.
A black dress, flamboyant red hair, and turquoise eyes.
The live stream cameras didn't miss a single detail.
Viewers across the entire Federation saw this face through the live stream.
Weiluo Thran, now the Emperor of the Empire, is also the first Emperor in history to set foot on the lands of the Federation.
Upon seeing this young face, many Federation citizens suddenly realized that this emperor had only taken a little over a year from awakening to ascending the throne.
But those deep eyes, and the aura naturally exuded by a top-tier expert, made those present feel afraid to look directly at them.
At this moment, a number of Awakened have gathered in the Starry Vortex Restaurant of the Ochre Soil Academy.
Some are current students, and some are alumni who have already graduated.
As the largest center for Awakened on the planet, many Awakened who graduated from Ocher Soil still remain active in the academy.
"Wow! They're here! This is the Emperor of the Empire! He's so young!"
Wan Ling cried out in surprise and reached out to slap Yu Yang across from her.
While Yu Yang was eating with his head down, she accidentally slapped the back of his head, and with a 'thud,' his implanted prosthetic eye fell out.
Wan Ling nonchalantly picked up his eye and stuffed it back into its socket. "Stop eating and watch the live stream first!"
"Speaking of this emperor of the empire, he gives me a sense of familiarity."
"He's the emperor of an empire, I don't know what made you so familiar with him." Yu Yang covered his eyes. "You cripple, at least wash yourself, you've got vegetable leaves in there!"
"I took a picture!" Wan Ling his hand on the table and laughed.
For the largest number of F-rank Awakened, injuries and disabilities during Ancient Wilderness explorations are commonplace, and visits by the Imperial Emperor to the Federation are a distant dream.
On Qinglang Star, in the headquarters of major conglomerates.
Ji Shuang sat in her private lounge, wearing the combat uniform representing the group's exploration team members, her gaze fixed on the figure on the screen.
"It seems..." she couldn't help but murmur.
But then she rubbed her temples, trying to stop thinking about such pointless things.
Among the exchange students from the same district as Ji Shuang were Song Zhi and Xia Yun.
Both come from wealthy families, but due to their Wilderness Body attributes, they can only hold ordinary high-ranking positions within their respective families. Currently, they mainly operate in Qinglang.
Watching the live stream now, I felt a sense of familiarity, but I quickly came to my senses and began to Analysis and calculate the changes in the commercial landscape after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the empires.
From four years ago to today, many people still remember that person.
Even those who remember her can no longer mention her name.
On the platform, the Imperial delegation walked the red carpet under the watchful eyes of the entire Federation and arrived in front of the receiving group.
The establishment of diplomatic relations between the two civilizations was carried out with utmost solemnity and caution by both the imperial delegation and the Federation reception team.
To receive the Emperor of the Empire, the Federation's reception delegation was naturally of extremely high caliber, including numerous heads of wealthy families with congressional titles and key officials from various confidential departments. It could be said that all the bigwigs of the Federation on Xuanhuang Star were gathered here.
The acquaintances who once competed against Wen Jing in the Freshman League, such as Mo Lan, Luosi, Rong Feng, Colin, now all have their own identities and positions.
However, when they meet again now, they are completely unrecognizable.
As the top echelon of Federation power, Dean Xuanhuang and Dean Ailin were naturally in charge of this reception delegation.
She stepped forward, a polite smile on her face, "Welcome to the Federation, Your Majesty."
"Thank you for your invitation." Wen Jing nodded politely and shook hands with her.
This scene was immediately captured by countless cameras.
After letting go, Wen Jing looked at Fu Yuan beside him.
A hint of surprise flashed in Fu Yuan's eyes, but in such a serious diplomatic setting, he couldn't possibly use his mental power to probe anything, so he quickly extended his hand.
Wen Jing also shook hands with him.
The three deans stood together, and Yifan, seeing this, smiled warmly and was about to reach out his hand.
Then Wen Jing withdrew his hand.
The others at the scene, who had initially thought the emperor was being very enthusiastic, were now completely dumbfounded.
The emperor's position in the empire is above all others. According to the Federation's system, only S-rank individuals can be on the same level as her. Normally, in this kind of situation, she only needs to shake hands with Ailin. It would be a great show of respect for her to shake hands with Fu Yuan next to her. No one could say anything if she didn't shake hands with Yifan.
However, the deans of the three Federation academies overlooked one...
Yifan maintained his expression as if nothing had happened.
Seeing this, Dean Ailin stepped forward to ease the awkward situation. "Your Majesty must be tired from your journey. We have prepared a reception area for you and the delegation. This way, please."
Wen Jing withdrew his gaze from the distant storm belt and nodded to her. "Thank you for your trouble."
Guided by the reception team, the imperial delegation boarded the hovercar and headed deeper into the Xuanhuang Academy.
The live stream cameras followed the convoy until it disappeared into the reception area.
The remaining staff members dispersed, pondering the Emperor's attitude just now.
Could it be that they look down on Yifan's qualifications? He's also a veteran B-rank Awakened, though not as good as Ailin or Fu Yuan, is he really not worth their attention?