The Era of Gods
Chapter 428 - 428: 428

Chapter 428: 428

A small Void Ship shaped in a sleek streamlined design emerged from the flagship and descended gracefully into the Floating City, landing gently on the central platform under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

Grandfather and the Zhang Clan Leader simultaneously approached the ship’s entrance with an ostensibly leisurely yet extremely rapid pace. As a puff of pale blue mist sprayed from the door, which bore the military’s insignia, the hatch opened, and two guards clad in high-ranking military armor stepped out.

Field-grade officers are qualified to oversee a territory and are already considered high-ranking; they are entitled to have their own guard details, just the number of guards varying accordingly.

Generals are referred to as commanders and, as long as they possess actual authority and rank, are local bigwigs, like those overseeing an entire Crystal Wall Universe.

Although Lin Xiao held the rank of Elite Major, his treatment was equivalent to that of a higher-ranking brigadier general, and thus he too was addressed as a commander.

Moreover, he held an elite rank, which in practice was one big grade above the regular ranks, comparable to a high-star general.

The military’s upper echelons were predominantly composed of elite ranks, with almost every division commander and above holding an elite rank.

That’s not to say that regular ranks didn’t have the opportunity to hold high positions, but the military prioritized elite ranks when promoting to significant military offices. However, regular rank officers who achieved great feats could also be converted to elite ranks.

In other words, for those who held high positions, even if they were not originally of an elite rank, they would generally be promoted to an elite rank once they accomplished a feat worthy of such a promotion. That’s why all the high-ranking bigwigs were of elite ranks, and if they weren’t initially, they would be eventually.

Sun Zhenhua was a regular colonel, ranking five grades below Lin Xiao, which was one of the reasons why he was so deferential.

After a row of guards emerged, a murmur of doubt arose among the crowd; something about the decorum seemed amiss.

“Surely a mere fleet captain doesn’t warrant such high protocol?”

The Zhang Clan Leader and Lin Youde made eye contact, both detecting the bewilderment in each other’s eyes.

“Could it really be a bigwig arriving?”

Regardless, the military ship was real, the soldiers were real, and whoever came, they would welcome.

Clear on this point, the crowd continued to anticipate the emerging figures in the swirl of pale blue mist at the ship’s doorway.

A total of five figures, by their stance, it was evident that four surrounded the one in the center. As the chill mist dissipated, revealing the five in the flesh, it was apparent that some recognized them, their faces showing extreme surprise.

Grandfather and the Zhang Clan Leader almost simultaneously advanced a step, eager to introduce themselves before their old rival:

“Commander Sun, your presence in the Heya Plane is a shining honor to our Lin Family. I am Lin Youde, the Lin Clan Leader, and I warmly welcome your arrival.”

These words…

Lin Xiao ran his hand across his forehead, feeling goosebumps forming there.

Next to him, Lin Xu’s expression was also somewhat unusual.

But he understood; to him, still in the ivory tower of academia, hearing such flattering words was sickening. Yet, outside the ivory tower in the real world, such formalities were necessary.

You might not want to say them, and perhaps others might not even want to hear them, but if you want to get by in life, some things need to be endured.

If you don’t say them, the Zhang Clan Leader would rush to speak.

There’s an old saying: the leader may not remember who greets him every morning, but he will remember who does not.

You can’t stay in the ivory tower forever; eventually, you have to enter society, and by then… you’ll often hear this kind of talk!

Now an Elite Major, Lin Xiao held a high position and would likely hear these words often; he had to get used to it.

Colonel Sun scanned everyone present, pausing briefly as his gaze swept over Lin Xiao, then settled on the two outstretched hands in front of him. Smiling, he reached out to shake Lin Youde’s hand.

Grandfather’s smile broadened, while the Zhang Clan Leader forced a stiff yet radiant expression.

Following the handshake, they were escorted to the previously vacant main podium on the other side, where they took their places. The younger generations of both the Zhang and Lin families gathered around, and Colonel Sun, hands before him, looked at them and spoke:

“As part of my routine inspection, I happened to hear about the contest between the Lin and Zhang Clans of the Heya Plane and found it quite intriguing. I’ve come to watch with interest. I hope nobody minds.”

“Not at all, not at all,” the crowd waved their hands in unison, with the Zhang Clan Leader quickly responding:

“Having Commander Sun officiate is an honor for our Zhang Family. We cannot welcome you warmly enough. How could we possibly mind?”

Upon hearing his old rival’s words, Grandfather hastily added:

“The Lin Family has long wished to invite Commander Sun, but fearing to disturb you, we reluctantly gave up the idea.”

His face was a picture of regret and helplessness. If Lin Xiao didn’t know that his family had no connection, he might actually have believed it was true.

Indeed, a shrewd operator—he’d say anything to anyone, depending on whom he was addressing.

Commander Sun chuckled and gestured dismissively:

“You’re mistaken, Lin Clan Leader. Next time you have such an interesting event, feel free to come to me.”

????

With question marks all around, not only did the Zhang Clan Leader pause, even Grandfather was momentarily stunned; the script had gone awry. He tried to add:

“Commander Sun, what do you mean by that?”

Sun Zhenhua replied with a smile:

“Lin Clan Leader, next time you have an event of interest, do come replace me. I’ve taken a liking to this one.”

The Zhang Clan Leader’s complexion instantly shifted, as he heard the anxious voice of his eldest son:

“Father, something’s not right. How did that old fox Lin Youde manage to forge a connection with Commander Sun?”

He frowned deeply in thought, his gaze flickering across his old rival and Colonel Sun, and whispered in transmission:

“No, the old man didn’t team up with Commander Sun.”

“Then how could Commander Sun…”

“It was Commander Sun who took the initiative to extend an olive branch to the old man!”

“How is that possible?”

“Yeah, how is that possible.”

He was utterly baffled, but it wasn’t the time to think. He quickly said to Colonel Sun:

“So Commander Sun likes this sort of thing. Today happens to be the day of the gambling duel between the Zhang Family and the Lin Family. What’s better than timely? How about letting Commander Sun officiate this duel as the notary?”

“Father, isn’t Commander Sun showing goodwill to the old geezer? Why should he be the notary then? Wouldn’t that be disadvantageous for us?”

The Zhang Clan Leader scolded:

“Fool, having Commander Sun as the notary has to take his reputation into account and not be too biased. We still have a chance. If we continue to let Captain Li be the notary, his subordinates won’t need to care about status or face, only to execute the commander’s wishes. By then, if he’s biased toward us, it would be difficult for us to win.”

Meanwhile, Lin Youde, who was still puzzled and frantically trying to figure out how his family had gotten involved with Commander Sun, immediately caught on after hearing his old rival’s words. But after contemplating, he didn’t know how to respond.

Just now, Colonel Sun showed inexplicable good intentions, even expressing interest in this kind of duel. He couldn’t oppose it now, could he?

However, to everyone’s surprise, Colonel Sun refused the Zhang Clan Leader’s proposal. He waved his hand and said:

“Since you had already invited the Captain of the 7th Action Fleet to officiate this duel, how can I overstep and intervene? Let the Captain of the 7th Action Fleet preside over this.”

The Zhang Clan Leader’s face darkened while Lin Youde’s brightened, as their expressions became stark opposites.

But, just as before when the grandfather couldn’t speak up, the Zhang Clan Leader also couldn’t persuade you to join, bottling it inside.

The expressions of the members of both the Zhang Family and the Lin Family were the same as their respective clan leaders, with some joyful and others gloomy.

Zhang Clan Leader Zhang Yan returned to his platform with a blank face. His sons gathered around, and the eldest son said in a low voice:

“Father, don’t worry. We are overall stronger than them. Even if Captain Li is completely biased towards the Lin Family, it will still be an even match. Let’s boost the Morale of our participants. Even if we’re in a situation like the one in the horse race of Tian Ji, as long as the other three members of our family win one match, besides Taihua and Zecheng, we will win this duel.”

“Moreover, Captain Li might not be entirely biased toward them. My son will now contact Captain Li, even if it costs…”

He suddenly turned to look at the people behind Colonel Sun, who was chatting and laughing with the Lin Clan Leader, and exclaimed in surprise:

“Where is Captain Li? Why hasn’t he shown up?”

As he said this, the others also realized, looking around.

Zhang Clan Leader Zhang Yan felt a bad premonition and hurriedly called out to Colonel Sun:

“Commander Sun, may I ask, where is Captain Li?”

Colonel Sun pretended to suddenly remember and slapped his forehead, saying:

“I forgot to mention something to you all. Captain Li has been transferred back to the base. The Captain of the 7th Action Fleet has been replaced. One of the purposes of my visit today is to announce the appointment.”

He suddenly gestured in a certain direction and warmly called out:

“Captain Lin Xiao, please come over here.”

All eyes turned towards the direction he was gesturing at, landing on the utterly surprised Lin Xiao.

“Me?”

He pointed to his own nose with disbelief. He was genuinely surprised, still wondering how Colonel Sun was going to help the Lin Family cheat, not expecting this move.

Someone from behind pushed him out, and while the grandfather was surprised, he was also pleased. He waved his hand, and a gentle, invisible force brought him over. Looking at his grandson and then at Colonel Sun, he asked with disbelief:

“Is Captain Lin Xiao the one Commander Sun is speaking of?”

Colonel Sun smiled and nodded:

“Of course, it’s Captain Lin Xiao.”

At the same time, a secret message transmitted in Lin Xiao’s ear:

“Chief, what do you think about this arrangement? You act as the notary and set the rules for this duel.”

“This move is pretty cunning…”

It was completely beyond his expectations.

But thinking about it, this arrangement was indeed workable. It perfectly solved his problem and he could show off a bit in the process.

At least now, everyone from both the Lin Family and the Zhang Family was gaping at him as if they had seen a ghost. His mother was even more stunned, her eyes widened in disbelief, and it took her a while to grasp what was happening. She turned to her husband and asked:

“When did our son become a captain?”

Lin Haolin was calmer and quickly processed the shocking news. However, while he might understand what happened, he was still clueless about the situation.

Compared to the members of the Lin Family who were shocked but at least received good news, for the Zhang Family, Colonel Sun’s words were like a bolt from the blue, leaving them momentarily stunned before someone shouted out:

“How is this possible!”

“What’s so impossible about it!”

Lin Xiao unapologetically agreed with Colonel Sun’s suggestion.