Chapter 396 - 287: Hanging Head

Jinling City, five hundred meters from the Jinling Grand Hall, stood the Pseudo-Government’s Administrative Headquarters.

The site was originally the Examination Office of the previous dynasty. It was later expanded by the Phoenix Army to serve as their administrative headquarters.

After the Neon invasion and the fall of Shangjing, Lin Quelan had announced her succession as the Grand Marshal of the Divine Land and designated this place as the Grand Marshal’s Military and Political Department. Now, with the Pseudo-Government’s formation imminent, the site had been expanded once more and named the Administrative Headquarters, appearing even more stately.

At the main gate stood two ornamental pillars, each over ten meters tall. They were carved with dragons and phoenixes and made entirely of white marble, reflecting a dazzling light under the sun.

Above the gate, a horizontal plaque bore five words crafted from gilded bronze: "The World Belongs to All." It, too, glittered with brilliant golden light in the sun, making it exceptionally eye-catching.

Within the compound, seven flags fluttered in the wind—six belonging to the Six Nations, with the Pseudo-Government’s banner flying in the very center. The architecture emulated a Western garden style, complete with sculptures, rockeries, flowerbeds, and ponds. Just past the entrance stood a large, white marble lion spouting a continuous stream of spring water from its mouth.

It was the very picture of wealth and splendor.

The site’s selection was anything but random. Its strategic topography, along with the layout of its buildings and scenery, perfectly aligned with the natural principles of Feng Shui. It gathered wind and collected Qi, and was protected by an Array, making it a truly rare and auspicious location. Merely being within its bounds made one feel refreshed, serene, and clear of mind.

However, of the three cosmic talents—favorable time, geographical advantage, and human harmony—the human element is the most crucial. People can alter any Feng Shui, but no Feng Shui can truly alter people.

A humble dwelling can be made noble by the virtue of its resident, just as an auspicious location can be used to harbor filth and corruption.

At this very moment, a large crowd of dignitaries, celebrities, and media reporters who had just fled the Jinling Grand Hall were all gathered here. Troops from the Pseudo-Government and the Six Nations had been mobilized, surrounding the entire Administrative Headquarters in an impenetrable, heavily guarded perimeter.

Many of these people, while not top-tier Martial Artists, held immense influence in both the Divine Land and the Six Nations. If any one of them came to harm, it would cause significant trouble.

BOOM!! BOOM!!

Terrifying rumbles echoed continuously, and the ground trembled violently. The entire Administrative Headquarters building was shaking, forcing everyone to gather in the spacious plaza outside, too afraid to go indoors.

They could clearly see, in the direction of the Jinling Grand Hall, a pillar of wind, lightning, and fire soaring into the sky, with dark clouds gathering above it. The scene was like something out of an apocalypse, far beyond their imagination.

Then, from their vantage point not far away, they caught glimpses of the storm unleashed by the pillar’s explosion and the terrifying, hundred-meter-wide devastation caused by the eruption of Primordial Qi.

They couldn’t believe that someone had actually dared to force their way into the founding ceremony—a place where so many terrifyingly powerful masters had gathered. And that this person had done it all alone.

What was even more frightening was that this single individual had managed to trigger such an earth-shattering battle.

At this point, not even the mind-calming effects of the Array within the headquarters could dispel the anxiety and terror in their hearts.

"Who in the world was that man?! How could he cause such a massive commotion?!"

"I don’t know. I’ve never heard of him. From the look of his face, he seemed very young. Does the Divine Land still have someone like that? I hope this doesn’t turn into a major disaster."

"Marshal Dino and Admiral Viktor are there, along with so many elite masters. It should be fine, right?"

"..."

Most of the dignitaries and celebrities from the Western Continent had entered the Divine Land after the Battle of Shangjing, during the period of Zhao Xuanqi’s silence. Thus, they knew little about him and were completely baffled.

The reporters from various nations gathered there weren’t idle either; they were all trying to find out Zhao Xuanqi’s identity.

However, being outside the circles of the Warlords’ elite masters, their knowledge of Zhao Xuanqi was limited.

"That man is the President of the World Martial Arts Conference. He’s also the one the resistance organizations call the ’Qilin Divine General.’"

But among so many dignitaries and celebrities, there were bound to be some who were familiar with Zhao Xuanqi.

As soon as this news spread, it sparked a wave of discussion among the crowd. While the name Zhao Xuanqi might have been unknown to them, anyone in the Divine Land had surely heard the title "Qilin Divine General."

Wasn’t that just a legend? Rumor had it that he was just a piece of resistance propaganda, that the real person had died long ago in the Battle of Shangjing. Otherwise, if such a powerful figure truly existed, how could the Capital City have fallen back then?

"Do not panic. It is merely a small, unexpected inconvenience," an elderly Caucasian man said faintly. He leaned on a cane, wore a monocle, and was dressed in an exquisite suit. "As for this ’Divine General,’ he is nothing more than propaganda cooked up by the Divine Land resistance. With no hope for the future, they cling to the past and place their faith in legends. But legends are meant to be broken. We simply need to wait quietly for good news." He possessed an air of authority without being angry, clearly a man long accustomed to holding a high position. Even now, he remained calm and composed.

"That’s right. They’re just legends. This is nothing more than the last gasp of the Divine Land’s resistance."

Hearing this, the people from the Six Nations seemed to regain some of their confidence and began to settle down.

But just as the tense atmosphere on site began to ease, a commotion suddenly erupted among the troops guarding the perimeter of the headquarters, causing everyone’s freshly relaxed nerves to tense up again.

"Fire!! All units, open fire!!"

Suddenly, a loud roar came from the troops on the perimeter, followed by the sound of firearms discharging and artillery shells exploding like a raging tempest.