The moment Liu Hui heard Li Lian had committed suicide, he was utterly stunned and quickly asked, "Li Lian killed herself? How could she do that?"

Images of Li Lian diligently assisting him with his affairs flashed before his eyes. Although he had suspected something was amiss with her, he never expected to return only to hear the news of her suicide.

De Sheng stated, "Boss, the morning after you disappeared, Li Lian slit her wrists in her room. By the time we found her, she had bled out too much to be saved."

Hu Xian'er pulled a letter from her pocket and handed it to Liu Hui, saying, "Water Buffalo, this is the suicide note Li Lian left for you."

Liu Hui took the note with trembling hands and unfolded it to read.

"Boss, I have failed you; I can only offer my life to atone for my sins!"

"Boss, there is a signal emitter taped inside your clothes, and I have already relayed the data on the modified seaplane to the organization."

"Boss, thank you for always treating me so well. For so many years, you were the only one who truly saw me as a human being. It is a pity that our positions are different; I was destined to be a despicable betrayer. I betrayed you in this life, but if there is a next one, I pray to become a dog by your side to cleanse the sins of this existence!"

"Boss, I belong to an organization called 'Lotus.' The 'Lotus' organization is a secret cell under the 'Dragon Slaying Society.' Our purpose is to use honey traps to acquire crucial intelligence from our adversaries. I was ordered to remain hidden by your side, waiting for the opportune moment to obtain classified intelligence regarding the Starry Sky Group. To gain your trust, the organization kept me dormant for years, never expecting that the moment they activated me, it would be to take the Boss's life."

"Boss, we members of the 'Lotus' organization share one common trait: the character 'Lian' (Lotus) is appended to our names. Boss, in the future, if you encounter any beautiful women whose names contain the character 'Lian,' you must be extremely cautious!"

"Boss, finally, I must say once more: I am sorry. And farewell!"

Liu Hui stared at Li Lian's suicide note, his face turning ashen. He slammed the letter onto the table before him with such force that the table frame buckled, startling everyone below.

"It’s that Dragon Slaying Society again? We haven't settled the score from the last encounter, and now they dare provoke me again, costing Li Lian her life," Liu Hui thundered in fury.

Sensing the situation escalating, Hu Xian'er quickly grasped Liu Hui's arm. "Water Buffalo, please calm down. We still have many pressing matters to deal with; perhaps we should address those first before anything else!"

Liu Hui took several deep breaths, forcibly suppressing the grief churning inside him, and then said, "Fine. Tell me, what exactly happened on 'Starry Sky City' while I was away."

All eyes immediately turned to Wu Yuanjia. Wu Yuanjia cleared his throat and stood up to speak.

"Boss, eight days ago, you suddenly lost all contact with 'Starry Sky City.' We were all frantic. We immediately mobilized all our satellite resources, searching the sea within a two-hundred-kilometer radius of 'Starry Sky City' for any sign of you, but alas, we found nothing. No one knew where you had gone."

Liu Hui replied, "I was out attending to some private matters, and my seaplane crashed on the water, which is why my return was delayed. I apologize for worrying you. Manager Wu, please continue."

Wu Yuanjia explained, "While the Boss was missing, everyone was deeply anxious, so we brought Miss Xian'er out to take command of the overall situation at Starry Sky Group. After much deliberation, we decided to dispatch the two super-submarines stationed beneath 'Starry Sky City' to search for the Boss in the ocean. Concurrently, four modified hover-combat aircraft, capable of prolonged flight and engagement, were also sent out to search for you. Furthermore, to ensure the security of 'Starry Sky City,' Lin Yuan proposed informing Commander Zhou Tengyun, who was stationed in Africa, about the events here."

Zhou Tengyun interjected, "Boss, upon receiving the news, I immediately led five hundred of our most elite mercenaries onto the 'Starry Sky Three' super-submarine overnight, and we arrived back at 'Starry Sky City' by the morning of the third day."

Liu Hui nodded. "And then?"

Wu Yuanjia continued, "After Commander Zhou arrived, under his defense protocols, the security of our 'Starry Sky City' finally became truly impenetrable. After two days of searching, we still had no trace of the Boss. Then, around noon on the third day, two large US Navy warships suddenly appeared near the outer waters of 'Starry Sky City,' anchoring about one hundred kilometers away and commencing intelligence reconnaissance on us. On the fourth day, Japanese and Russian naval vessels also arrived here. Simultaneously, the Chinese negotiation team, which had been in talks with us in Hong Kong, abruptly canceled negotiations and withdrew entirely. On the fifth day, Chinese warships also appeared in our outer waters. By the sixth day, Philippine warships had also positioned themselves nearby. Our satellite surveillance indicated that more naval vessels from the five nations were advancing toward our location in the distance."

Liu Hui sneered, "The US, Japan, Russia, China—these countries either have vast wealth, immense military power, or massive populations; they are all world superpowers. It's understandable for them to come to 'Starry Sky City.' But that small nation, the Philippines, dares to loiter near our 'Starry Sky City'?"

Wu Yuanjia confirmed, "Yes, we weren't clear why the Philippine navy was here. However, late on the evening of the sixth day, we detected numerous unidentified experts infiltrating 'Starry Sky City.' These experts were all at the peak of the Innate Realm, and they were attempting to reach our scientific research institute. But before they could make a move, Commander Zhou apprehended them all."

Liu Hui rubbed his nose and asked, "This tactic again? Does our scientific research institute specifically attract the hatred of our enemies? Someone is always trying to cause trouble for it. By the way, which nation do those martial arts masters belong to?"

Wu Yuanjia responded, "These martial artists included Caucasians, East Asians, and Africans. We have interrogated them, and they confessed their origins. They all came from the five surrounding nations. Their collective goal was to unite and seize the high-end technology within our Starry Sky Scientific Research Institute."

Liu Hui chuckled, "This is quite interesting. Do these nations think we are paper tigers, daring to provoke us?"

Wu Yuanjia reported, "On the morning of the seventh day, the Philippine warship suddenly approached us. We immediately issued a warning, but the Filipinos claimed they were nearby apprehending pirates, suspecting those pirates had entered 'Starry Sky City,' and demanded we hand over the pirates immediately, or they would board to conduct their own search."

Liu Hui coldly laughed, "These Filipinos are fools. The warships of those major powers haven't made a move, yet they dare to lead the charge. I wonder what they were fed to grow up."

Wu Yuanjia chuckled, "Indeed, they were clearly betrayed by other nations and tricked into acting as a decoy. We responded that the sea within one hundred kilometers of 'Starry Sky City' is our territorial water, and any aircraft or warship entering without our permission would be subject to attack. However, these Filipinos are clearly deranged; although they halted their warships, they sent two seaplanes, attempting to fly over to 'Starry Sky City.' When warnings failed, we used our electromagnetic cannons to destroy those two Philippine aircraft."

Seeing the worried expressions on everyone present, Liu Hui knew this issue was destined to become troublesome. He asked, "They entered your territorial waters without permission; shooting them down was correct. What happened next?"

Wu Yuanjia gave a wry smile. "Boss, after we shot down the Philippine planes, the US military sent us a diplomatic note stating that 'Starry Sky City' is not land, meaning any claim to territorial waters is void. Moreover, even if there were territorial waters, the extent could not exceed 22 kilometers. Since we destroyed their planes eighty kilometers away from 'Starry Sky City,' our action was illegal. The US Navy demanded we immediately clear the airspace so they could pursue the pirates who supposedly fled onto 'Starry Sky City'; furthermore, we must compensate the Philippines for their losses, and they insisted that you personally appear to discuss certain matters with them. They warned that if we failed to comply, unpleasant consequences might follow. Following the US note, Japan, Russia, and the Philippines also sent us equally strong diplomatic notes with identical wording."

Liu Hui inquired, "What was China's reaction?"

Wu Yuanjia replied, "China, however, sent no diplomatic note; they maintained a silent vigilance in the outer waters. But when we attempted to use them to ease relations with the US side, they stated they were merely passing by and could not casually interfere in the internal affairs of other nations, thus claiming they could not assist in contacting the US military. They simultaneously informed us that if the US, Japan, Russia, and the Philippines attacked 'Starry Sky City' and we could not hold on, they would cover the evacuation of our assets, while strongly demanding a direct dialogue with you."

Liu Hui laughed, "China is playing a shrewd game, exerting no effort but aiming to acquire our massive wealth in the end. However, the fact that they all demand a personal meeting with me means they already know I left 'Starry Sky City' and that you lost contact with me. They are simply testing you to confirm whether I am indeed on 'Starry Sky City' or not."

Wu Yuanjia conceded, "Boss, we understand their intentions and their ulterior motives, but we absolutely cannot agree to any of their demands. Seeing our lack of response, these four nations issued an ultimatum at noon today, requiring us to reply to their diplomatic notes before midnight tonight, or they will personally come to 'Starry Sky City' to discuss the specific issues with the Boss."