Chapter 2 The Next Day

The next morning, Cui Zhongcheng brought Gu Shen to the Hua Zhi Building.

The ninth floor underground.

The last time he brought Gu Shen to Hua Zhi, they went to the seventh basement level, which displayed valuable extraordinary sealed items. Although the highest rating only reached C-level, it was still shocking.

And this time... they were going to the ninth basement level.

Clearly, the implementation of the Awakening Act was, in Zhao Xilai's eyes, an extremely important and confidential matter.

The elevator doors opened, revealing that the facilities on the ninth floor underground were clean and tidy, with a huge electronic screen, a huge desk, and dozens of cubicles piled high with documents.

"These are paper copies of the different revised versions of the bill." Cui Zhongcheng led Gu Shen through the aisles stacked with documents. "'New World' is an organization founded single-handedly by Councilor Zhao, secretly working beneath the Hua Zhi Building. Currently, the enactment of the law is being blocked at every level. No one can see the future, because the battlefield has not yet reached Dadu."

"Those working here are legal professionals selected from the best in Dongzhou. Among them are industry leaders with experience in successfully promoting several bills. This is an elite force that cannot be ignored. Once the Council throws a stone into Dadu, they will be like a blockbuster bomb."

Cui Zhongcheng paused and said, "Actually, the purpose of their joining 'New World' is very simple..."

"Once the bill passes, the world will be changed," Gu Shen murmured.

"Exactly. They joined the New World to fight for the New World."

Mr. Cui lowered his eyes and spoke softly.

He led Gu Shen through a long corridor, finally arriving at the office door. After knocking three times, there was no response. However, Cui Zhongcheng only waited politely for a few seconds before directly pushing the door open with Gu Shen.

"Hey."

He greeted them concisely.

The target of the greeting was a gaunt man buried in a sea of documents. His white shirt was loose as he hunched over his work, not even raising his head. But from the few details that could be seen, the man's health was not good. He was sallow and emaciated, and three monitors stood precariously amidst the documents on his desk, each displaying a different working interface.

"Lao Xing, let me introduce a new member." Cui Zhongcheng said, "Special Envoy from the Tribunal, Gu Shen."

Lao Xing, who hadn't moved at the sound of knocking, frowned slightly after hearing the words "Tribunal" and "Special Envoy," and slowly raised his head. He squinted, sizing up the young man before him.

His vision was blurry.

It wasn't until Cui Zhongcheng squatted down, stood up again, found a pair of glasses from the pile of documents, and helped him put them on that Lao Xing's world became clear.

The gaunt and weak man slowly said, "The Tribunal has considerable law enforcement power under certain circumstances, but it has no say in the matter of promoting the bill. So the stationing of a Special Envoy is actually of no help to the advancement of the bill, unless he himself is a special existence with a certain influence and status... This young man is too young. He doesn't look like a scion of a family from Nagano, and his clothes are authentic and simple, so he's obviously not from Zhongzhou either."

"The only explanation I can think of for this Special Envoy is that he's a relative of some big shot, arranged to enter 'New World' to broaden his horizons." Lao Xing looked at Gu Shen, very tactful but neither humble nor arrogant, and introduced himself, "My name is Xing Yun, the person in charge of 'New World'. You can also think of me as the project head of the ninth floor of the Hua Zhi Building."

A relative of a big shot?

That's quite an accurate description.

Before Gu Shen could speak, Cui Zhongcheng introduced him.

"Gu Shen, Councilor Zhao hopes that he can witness the glorious moment when 'New World' promotes the bill."

Councilor Zhao arranged for him to come in through the back door...

Xing Yun was a little surprised, but immediately realized.

He spoke in a low voice, his eyes gradually lighting up and his speech becoming faster and faster. "Councilor Zhao wouldn't throw an olive branch to a young man from the Tribunal for no reason... Obviously, Mr. Gu has someone else behind him. There are too few people in Dongzhou who can make Councilor Zhao look up to them. Within the Tribunal, the only one I can think of is Grand Arbiter, 'Towering Tree.'"

"Gu Shen is Zhou Jiren's closed-door disciple." Cui Zhongcheng rarely made a joke. "Stand up and shake his hand. This can be regarded as indirectly shaking hands with Mr. Tree."

Xing Yun suddenly stood up from behind the desk piled high with documents, his imposing manner startling Gu Shen.

And when Xing Yun strode to Gu Shen, this weak man suddenly changed his aura.

He bowed slightly, extended both hands, and said very humbly, "Mr. Gu, your teacher is the senior I admire the most, without exception... During the war in Beizhou, I, as a survivor, was fortunate enough to see Towering Tree take action."

What the hell.

Does an unreliable guy like Zhou Jiren really have zealous fans all over the place?

This was indeed beyond Gu Shen's expectations.

He appropriately expressed a mixture of "surprise" and "flattery," shaking hands with Xing Yun. The other party's hands were strong and warm.

This should be a very enthusiastic man.

"I will convey your message." Gu Shen said seriously, "The old... Teacher will definitely be very happy if he knows."

"Thank you." Xing Yun retracted his previous expression and asked with a solemn expression, "I heard about the impeachment incident. Many people in the council are eyeing the position of Grand Arbiter... Is Mr. Tree still doing well?"

Gu Shen was stunned and said, "He's... doing okay."

"But the situation is not so easy, right? Otherwise, he wouldn't have contacted Old Zhao, who is not from the Tribunal faction." Xing Yun said with a smile, "In fact, I have been thinking for a long time about how your teacher can defeat Zhu Wang in the next Grand Arbiter election. This topic is feasible and can be operated on. It would be even better if you could pass it on. I look forward to cooperating with Mr. Tree."

"Wait..."

Gu Shen was a little confused when he heard this.

He looked at Cui Zhongcheng, who had a faint smile on his face, obviously not planning to say anything and just wanted to watch the fun.

"This is my business card. My contact information is on the back. I will have a period of free time after the bill event." Xing Yun said sincerely, "I'll say it again... I look forward to cooperating with Mr. Tree."

"Alright. Stop selling your business."

Cui Zhongcheng said lightly, "Bullying this child because he's a newcomer who hasn't heard of your stinky reputation as 'Grave Ghoul,' you actually dare to hand out your business card. Gu Shen is a real 'S' level. With his authority, he can check your ancestors' records for eighteen generations in the deep sea."

Xing Yun smiled sheepishly, without the slightest hint of shame on his face.

"Grave Ghoul..."

Gu Shen took the business card and heard Chu Ling's voice in his ear.

"Xing Yun is this man's real name. He used to work in Nagano City and was the promoter of several important bills in the council, but he didn't have real power or status. He's called 'Grave Ghoul' because he proposed the establishment of the 'Pure Grave' bill, which is used to bury those who have made special contributions, that is, powerful transcendent individuals."

Before Gu Shen went out, he would put a tiny earpiece, half the size of a fingernail, in his ear.

He could clearly hear Chu Ling's voice, which also made it easier for Chu Ling to establish a connection with him at any time.

Pure Grave... he had heard it more than once.

This seemed to be a very special place, but what was so special about it?

"The transcendent individuals who died originally had a slower rate of dissipation of their transcendent source matter than ordinary transcendent individuals. When they are sent to the Pure Grave, these source matter undergoes an incredible change, no longer dissipating, but autonomously condensing against the laws of physics."

The first half of the sentence was still within Gu Shen's understanding, and he thought it should be so... The more transcendent source matter one carries, the slower it dissipates when one dies.

But the second half was unexpected.

In the Pure Grave, the transcendent source matter would not dissipate, but would entwine and intertwine with each other?

"The establishment of the Pure Grave has made Nagano City's position extremely stable. It possesses an incredibly vast amount of transcendent source matter... Certain heavy-duty transcendent weapons that require the consumption of source matter to activate have become almost negligible in cost for Nagano City to use. This is already a brave and skilled 'city.'" Chu Ling used the retro word "city" to describe Nagano, "What's more... Gu Changzhi is still slumbering here. The bill has been entangled for many years, and this is the reason."

"The Dongzhou Council's decisions cannot bypass Nagano."

"And Nagano has always been ambiguous, so Dadu is watching cautiously... Everyone is waiting for Gu Changzhi to wake up, but after watching year after year, the possibility of Gu Changzhi waking up is getting smaller and smaller."

"If there were no Pure Grave, perhaps the controversy over the bill would be much smaller."

"In the end, everyone began to resent the guy who promoted the 'Pure Grave' bill." Chu Ling said, "That is, the man in front of you, Grave Ghoul. The Pure Grave bill has affected the interests of many people, and there are many people in the council who hate him and want to get rid of him."

So... Grave Ghoul ran to Dadu?

And Zhao Xilai took him in.

The genius who promoted the Pure Grave bill is now responsible for the final blow of the "Awakening Act."

Favorable timing, geographical advantages, and popular support.

The advancement of the bill... seems to have gathered all the necessary elements.

"Actually, according to the current progress, there will be no more twists and turns in the Awakening Act." The Grave Ghoul, who had returned to his desk, said softly, "We have already arranged for the nomination of alternate councilors within the council. Madam Lu Nanzhi only needs to accept this nomination and express her attitude towards the Awakening Act at a critical moment... This war will be settled."

The Grave Ghoul clasped his hands together.

He stared at the documents in front of him and gently blew a breath.

A crooked piece of paper, originally tottering, struggling to maintain its balance.

This breath caused the documents to completely lose their balance—

"The flames of war have been burning for too long, and now everyone has reached the point of exhaustion. A little push is all it takes to tip the scales of victory."

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