"So there are truly those who fear no death," Huahua muttered beside him, astonished. Gu Xiechen smiled faintly, his right hand casually reaching out towards Zu En's massive palm. "A peak Six-Star Venerable? Hmm, the four Grand Commanders of the Bloodfang Adept Corps are also at this level, right?"

The faces of Zu En and the Divine Martial Duke stiffened. Gu Xiechen's slender, soft hand—a hand one would only expect to see on a peerless beauty—gently enclosed Zu En's bear-paw-like grasp. The Grand Yin Profound Aura surged into Zu En's body like a breached dam. With a few crisp cracks, a layer of thick, several-inch-deep white profound ice rapidly coated Zu En's outer surface, freezing his body instantly from the inside out.

Retracting his right hand, Gu Xiechen produced a white handkerchief and wiped his palm, casually tossing the cloth dozens of zhang away. He looked at the dumbfounded Divine Martial Duke and spoke word by word: "Too impolite. Is this how a First-Rank Marshal of the Thunder Martial Kingdom shakes hands, with a sweaty palm? Filthy, truly filthy!"

The Divine Martial Duke stared at Gu Xiechen as if he had seen a ghost. Zu En was a peak Six-Star Venerable; for such a formidable adept to be frozen so effortlessly, what level of power must Gu Xiechen possess? The previously composed and supremely arrogant Divine Martial Duke staggered back several steps. He forced a dry laugh: "My apologies. Regarding Zu En's rudeness, and everything that has transpired before, I, representing the Thunder Martial Kingdom, offer you our sincerest apologies!"

The Divine Martial Duke bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle, holding the position for a full fifteen seconds before slowly straightening up.

The envoys from the other twelve nations, and the envoys from the one hundred and fifty-nine other nations, all followed suit, bowing deeply. With Zu En’s single move having failed, everyone suddenly understood what kind of entity Gu Xiechen was—a being whose power bordered on the mythical, a Seven-Star Grand Venerable existing only in legend! He was a monster that should only appear in ancient tales!

Gu Xiechen’s strategic value was perhaps no less than the entire planetary defense system of the Yafike Kingdom! The defense system could only offer passive defense, but a Seven-Star Grand Venerable—well, imagine if Her Majesty, Queen Fuya Ming, were to become displeased one day and use a small vessel to airdrop such a monster into the capital of some nation. The rest needed no further explanation; one could guess with their hindquarters what a terrifying scene of apocalypse that would unleash!

Zu En, the peak Six-Star expert, was no match for Gu Xiechen in a single move! How many lives would it take to resist the assault of a Seven-Star Grand Venerable? Ten Six-Star Venerables? One hundred? One thousand? Ten thousand? Hmm, did the entire Spiral Star Field even possess ten thousand Six-Star Venerables when all its Four-Star civilizations were aggregated?

The Divine Martial Duke’s attitude towards Gu Xiechen shifted instantly. He approached Gu Xiechen with a flushed face, like a young girl seeing her crush for the first time, stepping forward robustly. He seized Gu Xiechen’s hands with both of his own, shaking them enthusiastically and intimately: "Venerable Xiechen Gu. On behalf of the Thunder Martial Kingdom, I firmly believe that under your leadership, the Dokor Federation will certainly receive the punishment it deserves!"

Gu Xiechen watched the Divine Martial Duke, neither warm nor cold. He spoke lightly, "Oh? Is that so?"

The Divine Martial Duke burst into loud laughter. He turned to the envoys of the other nations and chuckled, "Do you all agree with what I said?"

The envoys instantly surged forward in a clamor. They poured out praises for Gu Xiechen, agreeing that the Duke’s words were entirely correct. Some praised his handsome looks, others his ethereal grace; some lauded his commanding presence, others his powerful physique; some described him as dashing, others as exceptionally suave. One envoy declared that if he had a daughter, he would marry her to Gu Xiechen. A female envoy went further, pressing her chest directly against Gu Xiechen’s body, her eyes shimmering with rampant desire, perfectly embodying the phrase, "A talented scholar attracts a virtuous lady."

Even with Gu Xiechen’s supreme cultivation, he was flustered by this group of glib-tongued envoys. Faced with this group clinging to him like sticky candy, Gu Xiechen could neither fight nor scold them. His mind went blank as he watched the female envoy’s chest draw ever closer to his body.

At that critical juncture, Penghua appeared as miraculously as a lighthouse in the dark night or a ferry across a sea of suffering. He thrust his own chest forward fiercely, colliding squarely with the female envoy’s. The envoys behind them surged forward, and the female envoy—who was quite attractive and possessed a fiery figure—let out a delicate cry as her limbs wound around Penghua’s body like leeches. Her crimson lips pressed against Penghua’s with the speed of a shooting star.

On a hidden balcony on the third floor of the palace, Fuya Ming angrily drew a light sword. She hissed, "The envoy from the Kaifei Republic—I will kill her!"

Jin sighed languidly and said helplessly, "Sister Fuya, look closely. The one being held in that unlucky envoy’s arms is that… that attractive one."

Fuya Ming paused, then raised a pair of binoculars to look. She then smiled like a blooming orchid in spring: "Oh, Venerable Penghua is a good person. Well, I plan to bestow a noble title upon him. What do you think? Venerable Xiechen is fortunate to have a friend like him!"

Jin rolled her eyes, tilting her head away to mutter to herself, "Is that so? Why do I feel like Venerable Penghua is taking advantage of the situation?"

Right in front of Gu Xiechen, Penghua wrapped his arms around the envoy from the Kaifei Republic, and a cold, blood-tinged tongue darted out with a hiss, plunging into the female envoy’s mouth. This supremely romantic French kiss, tinged with a slight sense of suspenseful horror, left the surrounding envoys completely stunned. It was a full five minutes before Penghua and the female envoy simultaneously pulled their heads back with a sharp snap, their lips stretching an astonishing three cun long before they finally separated.

Gu Xiechen stared at Penghua, dumbfounded. Penghua vigorously rubbed his lips, his right hand naturally settling on the female envoy's hip. He smiled rapturously, "My dear, I know of a marvelous resort estate in the Glory Capital of Yafike, an asset of the Yafike Royal Family. Heh, I would love to spend a few unforgettable, wonderful days with you there. What do you say?"

The female envoy from the Kaifei Republic, suddenly seeing Penghua and then glancing at the strangely mocking yet pitying looks from the envoys of the other nations, let out a series of blood-curdling screams.

Gu Xiechen frowned. He swiftly clamped a hand over the Kaifei envoy’s mouth and roared, "Be quiet! Penghua and I were trained by the same master; he also possesses Seven-Star strength!"

The envoy's screams ceased abruptly. Her gaze immediately flooded with a soft, lingering spring tide again. She leaned her entire body into Penghua’s embrace, saying with great coyness, "Oh, Venerable Penghua, Alisa will obey your every command. I know that resort estate; it is the most beautiful estate in the Star Alliance!"

Penghua threw his head back and laughed three times, then, holding Alisa, he vanished into the ground with an Earth Evasion technique, leaving the crowd. Among the retinues of the envoys present were Five-Star and even Six-Star adepts, but not a single one saw how Penghua disappeared. The shocked adepts immediately relayed this information to their respective envoys, causing all the envoys to look at Gu Xiechen with an even more complex air.

Gu Xiechen looked at these envoys and nodded with satisfaction. Although Penghua’s actions were somewhat absurd, they perfectly demonstrated the strength he commanded. Having first stunned these envoys, his subsequent moves would be much easier.

Just then, Fuya Ming sent a message to Gu Xiechen.

"A First-Rank warship calling itself a Primordial-Grade Warship is requesting permission to land on Yafike. Xiechen, is this the fleet your subordinates summoned?"

Unconsciously, Fuya Ming’s address to Gu Xiechen had shifted from the formal "Venerable Gu" or "Venerable Xiechen" at the beginning to the current simple "Xiechen." The address was growing increasingly intimate and affectionate.

"Yes, it’s the fleet summoned by Holm and Linghu—my flagship that was lost in subspace. Fuya, tell them to land directly at the Royal Palace landing field and deploy the Yafike Royal Guard. I want the soldiers of Yafike to witness what true soldiers, what true warriors, really are!"

Fuya Ming smiled, and Gu Xiechen’s order was immediately transmitted.

Gu Xiechen looked at the eager envoys and gently waved his fan, chuckling, "Gentlemen, I have a proposal. After we destroy or capture all the Dokor Federation’s warships, each of our nations will dispatch a ground force not exceeding ten thousand soldiers to launch an attack on the Dokor Federation. This assault will last for three days and three nights by Star Alliance standard time. After three days, we will divide the spoils we are due from the Dokor Federation campaign based on the actual combat results achieved by these forces. How about it?"

Gu Xiechen’s proposal was novel. Each nation sending an attack force of no more than ten thousand ground troops against the Dokor Federation? Such an attack would minimize damage to the Dokor Federation's territory and maximize the preservation of its wealth. Dividing the entirety of the Dokor Federation’s assets based on the proportion of results achieved over three days was very fair!

A novel and fair proposal, put forth by Gu Xiechen, a Seven-Star Grand Venerable whose peer possessed the power of a Seven-Star Grand Venerable—the envoys unanimously agreed to the plan. With the endorsement of the Thunder Martial Kingdom and the other thirteen nations, even if more countries arrived later to claim a share, they would be unable to shake the foundation of Gu Xiechen’s plan.

With the rough terms of the plan settled, under the guidance of the Yafike ground navigation station, the Primordial-Grade Warship broke through the atmosphere and slowly glided above the Yafike Royal Palace.