Boom!
Golden light shattered. All seven Hyper Douluos of the Sea God Legion were blown away, tumbling backward through the air.
"The Sea God Seven Saints Array? That's it?" Xia Hong clapped her hands, then turned to the seven toppled Hyper Douluos lying on the ground and said, "Come on, let's go. I'm just a little police officer—if you have anything to say, go explain it to the bigwigs in the Federation."
By the time Xia Hong arrived at the Mingdu Parliament Hall, the meeting was already over.
Only a few high-ranking members of the Federation remained, waiting for her arrival.
These included the Speaker of Parliament, the Vice Speaker, the Minister of National Defense, Central Legion Commander Yu Guanzhi, Northwest Legion Commander Dong Zi'an, the Minister of Police—Heavenly Judge Douluo Lang Tian—the Intelligence Bureau Director, the head of the Federation Academy of Sciences, and the Governor of Mingdu.
"Officer Xia!" As soon as Xia Hong appeared, these top officials all stood up.
"Leaders, what's the matter you called me for?" Xia Hong asked, knowing the answer but feigning ignorance.
"Officer Xia, you've likely received the order from Heavenly Judge Douluo. We want to ask you—if we offer full, unconditional cooperation, how confident are you in retrieving Eternal Heaven?" the Speaker asked solemnly.
"That depends on the methods we use." Xia Hong smiled confidently. "If we use all means, I'm one hundred percent sure."
"One hundred percent?" The Speaker frowned. "We believe in your strength, Officer Xia, but we must be wary of Shrek Academy acting like a cornered animal. Eternal Heaven is the most powerful among the three Rank-12 God-Slaying Fixed Installation Soul Cannons. If Shrek Academy becomes desperate and detonates Eternal Heaven, the consequences would be unimaginable."
"Our stance is that if we can't guarantee retrieving Eternal Heaven safely, then we should detonate it within Shrek Academy. No matter what, we can't allow them to launch it at another city," Dong Zi'an said coldly.
"That's one way to handle it, but we're not quite there yet," Xia Hong smiled. "When I say 'all means,' I'm referring to utilizing the power of the Spirit Pagoda. Shrek Academy is definitely on high alert right now. If any top federal officials enter Shrek City, they'll immediately become vigilant. But the Spirit Pagoda's headquarters is already located inside Shrek City—having them take action ensures foolproof execution."
"That does make sense. However…" Yu Guanzhi furrowed his brows. He still remembered Long Tianwu's words.
With Tang Sect and Shrek Academy having been destroyed by two Rank-12 God-Slaying Cannons, the Spirit Pagoda now stood as the unrivaled dominant force.
Currently, the Spirit Pagoda had reached a pinnacle of power, with influence surpassing even that of the former Shrek Academy.
And with Leng Yaozhu and Leng Yulai's recent meteoric rise in strength…
The Spirit Pagoda's influence was already close to rivaling the entire Sun Moon Federation.
If the Spirit Pagoda got hold of Eternal Heaven and refused to return it to the Federation, it would be even harder to recover.
"Don't worry. In Heavenly Phoenix Douluo's eyes, Eternal Heaven is nothing," Xia Hong looked at Yu Guanzhi and understood his concern. "She doesn't care about Eternal Heaven. To her, it's useless."
"But it's Eternal Heaven! Who wouldn't covet it?" Yu Guanzhi protested.
"If you want to think that way, there's nothing I can do. I've offered you a solution—whether you take it is up to you." Xia Hong said flatly.
Yu Guanzhi froze, suddenly realizing—aside from Xia Hong's plan, there really wasn't any other workable option.
"Alright, then be more specific. As long as we can retrieve Eternal Heaven, we'll cooperate with you unconditionally," Yu Guanzhi said.
"Unconditionally?" Xia Hong asked curiously.
"As long as you can get back Eternal Heaven, we'll cooperate with no strings attached," the Speaker confirmed with a nod.
"Good. Then get Heavenly Phoenix Douluo from the Spirit Pagoda here. We need to work out a plan together," Xia Hong said.
"No problem, I'll contact her right away." The Speaker nodded. To his surprise, Leng Yaozhu was already in Mingdu.
Soon, Xia Yi, Leng Yaozhu, and Leng Yulai appeared in the Federation Parliament Hall.
"Your Holiness the Saintess, we've invited the Spirit Pagoda representatives. You're not part of the Pagoda, and moreover, you used to be part of Shrek Academy—as well as the Pavilion Master of the Sea God's Pavilion. You cannot enter," the guards said as they blocked Yali.
Although Yali had already left Shrek Academy, given the current conflict, it was impossible for the Federation to let her attend this secret meeting.
"You should wait here for a bit," Xia Yi glanced at Yali. She truly wasn't suited to be involved in this.
She had often been caught between Shrek Academy and the Federation—or between Shrek and the Spirit Pagoda—fitting in with neither side.
Now that she'd finally withdrawn from Shrek, dragging her back in again would be unfair.
"Heavenly Phoenix Douluo, Dark Phoenix Douluo, Master Xia Yi," the Federation leaders stood up again as Xia Yi and the others entered.
"No need for formalities. Please sit," Leng Yaozhu said as she and the others sat beside Xia Hong. In a serious tone, she said, "I just heard about the disappearance of Eternal Heaven. I didn't expect Shrek Academy to be so bold, even daring to target Eternal Heaven. Tell me what happened. If you need anything, just ask."
To deter enemies, Long Yeyue hadn't kept Eternal Heaven's location a secret.
As soon as she returned to Shrek Academy, she secretly leaked the information to various major factions—that Eternal Heaven was in Shrek Academy's hands.
Xia Yi and Leng Yaozhu had only just received the news.
"Now that Vast Sea Douluo and the War God Temple powerhouses have defected to Shrek Academy, we're worried that a hardline stance might push them to the edge. We dare not launch a direct assault. So we're hoping the Spirit Pagoda can help the Federation retrieve Eternal Heaven," the Speaker explained the situation and asked solemnly.
"Heavenly Phoenix Douluo, do you have any ideas?" the Speaker asked.
"What do you think?" Leng Yaozhu turned to Xia Yi.
"If I were you, I'd immediately arrest all the family members and clansmen of the defected War Gods—and of the Sea God Legion—take all their top officials' families into custody, including Chen Xinjie's relatives, and execute them all by firing squad after a week," Xia Yi said calmly to the high-ranking officials.
"No. The Federation abolished collective punishment," the Speaker said firmly.
"Even if collective punishment is abolished, they participated in stealing Eternal Heaven. That's a capital offense," Xia Yi said indifferently.
"There's no way their families were involved in that! Even if they were, maybe just one or two—not the whole family," the Speaker retorted.
"That depends on how you interrogate them," Xia Yi shrugged. "Actually, this whole thing is a good thing for the Federation. You can now officially label Shrek Academy as a traitorous organization—just like Tang Sect. That gives you the perfect excuse to purge all of Shrek Academy's power within the Federation."
(End of Chapter)