It was the 26th of April, two days after the Fu-Mu Entity’s propagation.

Chen Chuan stood in front of the window in his room in the Arcane Palace and faced the blinding morning sun.

At that moment, he was watching the recommended news reports in his Realm Pass. Practically all of them were about Ferris Wheel’s destruction, and most of the public regarded the act negatively.

After the Fu-Mu Entity finished propagating and the domain interference disappeared, the municipal government immediately learned about what had happened.

They harshly criticized and denounced the Department of Administrative Affairs and the other departments. They also employed a lot of the media outlets they owned to talk about how the Department of Administrative Affairs had infringed upon the business world’s interests and used force to crush companies.

The media outlets said that such actions caused many businesses to feel uneasy and wonder whether the government of Jibei Road’s Central City could protect them and ensure public safety. They also demanded the Department of Administrative Affairs to give them an explanation for what had happened.

Some of the politicians even suggested that the chief secretary should come out to explain his actions and apologize. The departments should also amend the emergency response plan to make sure nothing like this ever happened again.

But the Department of Administrative Affairs did not react, though it didn’t seem like it was because they couldn’t do anything to fight back. It felt more like they were preparing while waiting for something.

Since the Department of Administrative Affairs had taken the initiative to destroy Ferris Wheel, it seemed unlikely that they had no response and backup plan to deal with the backlash.

The municipal government knew that, but had to state such a stance, because they represented the companies and local forces’ interests. They could not stay out of this matter.

In a while, Chen Chuan exited the news platform. All the voices repeating the same thing disappeared, and all that was left was the sound of the wind brushing against his face.

He looked at a distant part of the city and felt as if his mind had also traveled there.

Over the past three days, Chen Chuan had been capturing and devouring pure essence, and he could sense that the barrier standing in his way was getting weaker.

But the pure essence he got over the past few days wasn’t as much as the amount he got on the day when it first arrived. Even when Chen Chuan projected his mind into the other world, he had to wait for a long time to capture a single wisp.

Pure essence had likely started spreading to other parts of the Great Shun Republic and even the whole world, just like Chen Bitong had said. That was why the amount Chen Chuan got had lessened.

Besides, some people should be working hard to close up the gap in the World Ring now. It was because of this that Chen Chuan hadn’t slept over the past few days. He spent every second capturing pure essence to devour more of it.

But while the gap could be closed, it wouldn’t be able to stop the temptation in people’s hearts.

Once something happened once, it was bound to repeat.

It would have been better if this had never happened, but after it had been proven to work, someone was bound to try it again. After all, in the past, they hadn’t been able to see a path forward, but now, they knew that they had another choice.

Chen Chuan looked at the bright sun above him and felt the omnipresent light on his skin. This must have been what Chen Bitong wanted. He didn’t just want a gap in the World Ring. He wanted to create hope.

Chen Chuan stood by the window for a little longer, then returned to his training room. After absorbing so much pure essence and quintessence, he had to convert them into his own strength.

He trained the entire morning. When it was almost noon, he received a voice message from Advisor Pei, asking him whether he was free to talk.

Chen Chuan replied to him, and they agreed to meet in two hours.

At around 1 p.m., Chen Chuan walked out of the training room, took a shower, changed his clothes, and went downstairs.

The moment he stepped out of the Arcane Palace, he saw a familiar car driving toward him. When it arrived in front of him, the car window wound down slowly, and Advisor Pei waved at him from the backseat. “Come on in, Captain Chen.”

Chen Chuan went over, opened the car door, and settled in. Then, the car started moving slowly to the flyover.

“Have you read the news over the past few days?” Advisor Pei asked.

“I did. They’re all criticisms and denouncements,” Chen Chuan remarked.

“Which means that we did the right thing.” Advisor Pei laughed.

The car got on the flyover, and he said, “The higher-ups asked me to get your thoughts on Chen Bitong’s punishment. They’re interested in your opinion.”

Chen Chuan turned to him. “What’s their decision?”

“They’d like to say that he died a hero. It’s the best outcome for everyone. It’ll protect his reputation and give a proper explanation regarding his death,” Advisor Pei said with a sigh.

After days of investigation, the World Ring Defense System should have figured out what Chen Bitong was trying to do.

However, they didn’t want to reveal it, whether it was because the information was confidential, or whether it was out of consideration for other things. Either way, more people and things would get involved if they revealed it.

It was best for Chen Bitong to die a hero. Then, they wouldn’t need to worry about affecting the army’s morale. Many of the people related to the matter would also be appeased.

But the higher-ups didn’t know what Chen Chuan thought of the situation. After all, if this matter was settled like that, Chen Chuan’s feat of defeating Chen Bitong would be wiped off. With any other martial artist, they could just make do with giving them a heads-up and offering them some compensation, but when it came to Chen Chuan, they needed to consider his thoughts on the matter.

Aside from being really strong, he had played a key role in every mission assigned to him during the Fu-Mu Entity’s propagation, especially when he delivered the final blow from the sky. Thousands of people had seen it that day. As things continued snowballing and the impact of the matter spread, Chen Chuan gained quite the positive reputation among low-ranking soldiers. He was completely unaware of it, the higher-ups had to weigh things carefully.

When Chen Chuan didn’t give an answer immediately, Advisor Pei said, “Don’t worry, Captain Chen. I’ve already spoken to the World Ring Defense System. We’ll give you proper compensation.”

Chen Chuan didn’t actually have any thoughts about this. It was the best outcome out of every possibility he conjured in his head. “Let’s do as the higher-ups wish.”

Advisor Pei relaxed.

Then, he looked straight into Chen Chuan’s eyes. “By the way, I need to tell you something else. The Department of Administrative Affairs is going to stress the necessity for the operation, as well as the need for justice. For that, they will need a representative for the news reports they’ll publish later on.

“Since Chen Bitong passed away, someone needs to fill the void he left behind. You’re the most likely candidate.

“This isn’t a bad thing for you. Think about why the higher-ups didn’t get rid of Chen Bitong, even though they knew that there was something wrong?

“Was it due to a lack of evidence? No. It was because he had influence and a lot of connections. We needed irrefutable evidence against him. Otherwise, his influential friends would have pulled him out. The soldiers’ morale might also be affected.

“If you take his place, you’ll get a boost in reputation, but you’ll also need to shoulder the responsibilities that come with it. That’s why we’ll respect your decision. If you don’t want to, we won’t force you.”

Chen Chuan wasn’t interested in this. Once someone was put on a pedestal, people would pay attention to their every move. His actions would be affected and restrained, and that wasn’t what he wanted.

In his mind, personal strength was the most important thing, not empty titles. Once he was strong enough, he wouldn’t need to accommodate other people. Instead, it would be the other way around.

When Advisor Pei saw that he wasn’t interested, he didn’t force Chen Chuan to take up the offer. He skipped the topic and went on to talk about something else. “ I have something else that will definitely make you happy. Because of your contributions, the World Ring Defense System is going to give you three months’ leave. You can take the time to rest. If you want to go to other Central Cities or visit other countries, we can give you permission to do so.”

That made Chen Chuan stare at Advisor Pei.

“Did something happen?” he asked. Even if they decided to let him rest, there was no need to specifically suggest that he leave.

Advisor Pei sighed before saying, “You did really well, so it’s likely that you will get targeted from now on.

“The municipal government will place special attention on your actions and look for ways to defeat the Department of Administrative Affairs through you.”

Chen Chuan considered it before saying, “Thank you for letting me know. I understand.”

The car drove around for a bit before Advisor Pei sent him back to Martial Valor University. After Chen Chuan got out of the car and was about to go back inside, he saw a contact ID flashing on his screen.

It was Yu Lie, so he answered it after giving it some thought. “Lieutenant Colonel Yu, how can I help you?”

“Sorry to bother you, Captain Chen, but someone would like to meet you. Do you have a minute?” Yu Lie asked.

“Is it someone from the National Ad Hoc Special Operations Committee?” Chen Chuan went straight to the point.

After a brief pause, Yu Lie gave a straightforward answer. “Yes, but don’t worry. I promise you that this man just wants to meet you and tell you some things. He has no ulterior motive. If you feel worried, you can tell the others where you’re going.”

Yu Lie’s promise wasn’t all that reliable, but Chen Chuan didn’t have anything to be scared of.

Based on what Advisor Pei told him, things with Chen Bitong had pretty much been settled, so it was impossible for anyone to bring up his case for review again. The man shouldn’t be trying to meet him for that.

If the National Ad Hoc Special Operations Committee kept pestering him, Chen Chuan wouldn’t be able to avoid them. It would be better for him to meet them and listen to what they had to say. Then, he could think of a way to deal with them.

“If that’s the case, let’s meet. I have time now,” he said. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

“Okay. They will pick you up right now. Just wait for a bit.” Yu Lie quickly ended the call.

Chen Chuan wrote a report about it and handed it to Wu Quan. Five minutes later, three armored cars drove over and stopped in front of him. One of the doors opened, and Yu Lie came out.

He went to Chen Chuan and looked at him with a complicated gaze before saying, “Mr. Chu is waiting for you in the car, Captain Chen.”

He stepped aside and gestured for him to go in.

Chen Chuan cast a glance at the car, straightened his hat, and walked over.