Chapter 719 - 543: Taking Office: Speaker of the Alliance Supreme Council

However, despite his satisfaction, he was also a bit puzzled.

After all, news of the battle in the Eastern District must have already reached the West and South Districts. Logically, there was no reason for the West and South Districts to be this calm.

At the very least, couldn’t a few of the Strongest have shown up for a demonstration of power?

But they did nothing at all.

It was more than a little strange.

"Oh, as long as it went smoothly!" Wu Qingjing’s heart relaxed. He then added, "Things are relatively smooth over here, too. A few tens of thousands of the three-hundred-thousand-strong Eastern District alien army died. As for the remaining two hundred thousand or so, the Fairy Dragon Bai Fei... oh, wait, that’s not right. Xu Zilan set up a camp for them outside the city."

"Hmm. Has there been any movement from the West and South Districts in the last three days?" Gao Neng asked with a nod.

"None! Three days ago, the Alien Race Alliance Armies in the West and South Districts suddenly retreated completely. Since then, there’s been no movement. However, I’ve already sent people to the West and South Districts to investigate. We should be getting some general news back in the next day or two," Wu Qingjing replied.

"Teacher, you don’t need to report this to me, do you?" Gao Neng said with a small smile.

"And why not? We’ve already discussed it. Once you returned from retaking the Eastern District, we would hold the official election for the new Speaker!" Wu Qingjing replied with a smile of his own.

"Your term isn’t over yet, Teacher. There’s no need to rush, is there?" Gao Neng demurred politely.

"So, you’d rather wait a few more months?"

"On second thought, let’s not wait."

"You little brat... I’m still the Speaker, you know. Is it really appropriate to be eyeing my position so blatantly?" Wu Qingjing grumbled.

"Can’t be helped. As the saying goes, the new waves push the old," Gao Neng said, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards.

"And here I thought you were actually going to be modest for a moment." Wu Qingjing sighed, at a loss for words.

"But I was being modest just now, wasn’t I?" Gao Neng asked with a look of pure innocence.

"Heh!" Wu Qingjing scoffed.

Just then, Qin Jianfei, Shen Changsheng, and other commanders from the Military Department approached. Without any unnecessary words, they directly rendered a military salute to Gao Neng.

Gao Neng immediately returned the salute.

"I, Qin Jianfei, in the name of the Commander-in-Chief of the Military Department, and by the authority of the Military Committee, do hereby formally appoint Gao Neng as a General of the Alliance!" After speaking, Qin Jianfei gave a slight wave of his hand.

Immediately, someone stepped forward, presenting a golden medal and a set of three general’s stars on a tray.

Gao Neng smiled.

The person who had stepped forward was Chen Bai.

Chen Bai’s face was pale.

Ashen, even...

"Salute!"

"The rite is complete!"

The Military Department’s ceremonies were always simple.

Though a more formal rank conferment ceremony would be held later, from this moment on, Gao Neng was a General of the Alliance.

"Thank you for your hard work, Captain Chen." Gao Neng glanced at the captain’s insignia on Chen Bai’s shoulder. ’Indeed, not everyone is as outstanding as I am.’

’Case in point: Chen Bai.’

’He’s been at it for so long, and he’s still just a captain.’

’A hopeless case.’

Gao Neng lamented internally.

Next, of course, it was Shen Ning’Er and Fang Tangtang’s turn.

Shen Ning’Er received the rank of Lieutenant General. For an eighteen-year-old young woman, this was a historic first in the Military Department’s hundred-year history—second only to Gao Neng himself.

As for Fang Tangtang, her contribution on the Eastern District Battlefield—setting off an atomic bomb—was not insignificant, and she received an exceptional promotion to Major General in the Military Department.

A sixteen-year-old Major General!

Fang Tangtang was quite satisfied, to say the least. She made sure to flash her new Major General’s insignia in front of Chen Bai for a full ten minutes.

...Chen Bai was speechless.

’Such is life.’

’I’m not even thirty yet, a captain in the Military Department. Barring any surprises, I could be promoted to Major within the next one to three years.’

’A major at thirty, is that so bad?’

’It’s not bad at all! It’s great, even!’

’You could even call it outstanding.’

’But in front of this pair, Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang, I feel an unbearable sense of shame. And worst of all, they’re both so damn smug about it.’

’Is there any justice in this world?!’

"Captain Chen, don’t be discouraged. Keep working hard, put a little pressure on yourself, and maybe you’ll have a breakthrough," Gao Neng said, patting Chen Bai’s shoulder.

As a General of the Alliance, he felt it was his duty and responsibility to encourage his fellow officers.

"Thank you, General Gao! I will definitely work hard!" Chen Bai didn’t dare to protest in the slightest. After all, Gao Neng’s rank was simply too high now.

A General of the Alliance!

And, barring any surprises, he would soon be elected Speaker of the Supreme Council.

With that kind of status, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call him the most powerful person in the Alliance.

"Right, and don’t feel too much pressure. After all, talent... is something you’re born with," Fang Tangtang chimed in, supposedly to relieve his stress.

...Chen Bai’s eye twitched.

’In the future, events like this...’

’I’m definitely not coming!’

’Absolutely not!’

...

The Eastern District was successfully retaken.

The over two hundred thousand strong Eastern District Alliance Army naturally returned home.

Next, preparations began for the official election of the Speaker of the Supreme Council.

Coming on the heels of a glorious victory, such a grand event naturally had the citizens of the entire Alliance buzzing with excitement, because they could all guess the election’s outcome.

"Gao Neng is going to be the Speaker!"

"An eighteen-year-old Speaker... That’s incredible!"

"He has my vote, anyway!"

"..."

The anticipated voices of opposition never materialized.

The entire population of the Alliance seemed to collectively ignore the fact that Gao Neng was of half-Dragon Race blood. Not a single voice rose in opposition.

Even Liangshan and Guo Xin, who had always opposed him, chose to remain silent.

The reason was simple: Gao Neng’s achievements were too monumental.

The battle in the North District!

He had defeated the two-hundred-thousand-strong North District Alliance Army, successfully brought over twenty races from the North District to his side, and, in the battle for the Eastern District, defeated the Six-winged Archangel Tianzang and the Beast Race Sword Saint.

With achievements like these, who would dare to object?

And who would even want to?

The preparations for the Speaker’s election lasted for five days.

The Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Districts each made their proposals, ultimately putting forward one person to run against Gao Neng in the election for Speaker of the Supreme Council.

After all, they had to go through the motions, right?

The nominated candidate understood this as well.

During his election speech, he simply shouted, "I urge everyone to give your full support and cast your vote for Councilor Gao Neng!"

His desire for self-preservation was strong indeed.

Amidst this landslide of support, Gao Neng was elected the new Speaker of the Human Alliance’s Supreme Council by an absolute majority.

The citizens of the Alliance erupted in cheers!

The entire City of Hope was immersed in an ocean of celebration.

Meanwhile, during those five days, there was still no movement from the West and South Districts.

It wasn’t until the scouts Wu Qingjing had dispatched returned from the West and South Districts that a shocking piece of news finally reached his ears.

"What?!"

"You’re saying several cities on the border of the West District... are completely empty?!"

"Yes!"

"And the South District?"

"It’s the same over there! All the cities we visited were completely deserted. We didn’t dare venture too deep, so we returned at once to report!"

"..."

Several cities, empty!

This news was utterly bizarre.

Like the Human Alliance, the alien races also depended on resources to survive. Without them, how could they have possibly evolved to their current state?

But now?

Not only had the West and South Districts refrained from interfering on the Eastern District Battlefield, they had actually abandoned several of their own cities.

’What is going on?’

After considering it carefully for a moment, Wu Qingjing decided to convene a Supreme Council meeting at once. After all, the new Speaker’s official inauguration wasn’t for another week.

Besides, even if he was no longer the Speaker, he was still the honorary chairman of the Supreme Council.

"Speaker Wu, must we really convene the Supreme Council right now? Gao Neng is in the middle of preparing for his wedding to Shen Ning’Er," the Secretary General whispered.

"A wedding? When?"

"The invitation says it’s three days after Gao Neng takes office as Speaker. So, ten days from now," the Secretary General said, handing an invitation to Wu Qingjing.

"That little brat... He sure works fast, doesn’t he?"