On the grand plaza outside the magnificent building known as “the pantheon,” the capital of the Galactic Empire and the Tianyu Senate, Yu Lian, dressed in a pitch-black night combat suit, looked at the high-ranking imperial officials dressed in their finest attire around him. For a moment, he felt like a vulture that had stumbled into a peacock cage.
...Or rather, a fiend that had broken into the Garden of Eden?
Hmm, I like that description. It fits my character!
Yes, his attire, his appearance, his overall look, everything about him was out of place with his surroundings. More importantly, he was currently standing in the center of this magnificent plaza, with no place to hide anywhere around him. And not far from him, a squad of patrol soldiers in retro golden armor was passing by.
They were like living fossils from the cold weapon era, also exuding an aura that was out of place with the entire historical background. But it had to be admitted that the armor on those people was indeed very beautiful, luxurious but not ostentatious, elegant with a hint of majesty. Tall and burly figures encased in golden armor, bathed in the glow of the morning light, looked like divine soldiers descended from the highest heaven.
Of course, no matter how luxurious the armor, it couldn't deny the fact that they were just decorations!
No choice, in this idealistic universe, everyone likes these retro styles, especially in the Empire. And it also had to be admitted that wearing such a magnificent outfit indeed served an ceremonial purpose.
Furthermore, their armor was decorative, but the long spears they held, which were also very ornate, were not! They looked like spears, and could indeed pierce military armor like paper, but the spear tips could fire beam cannons at people.
Those were Atomic Light Spears, the symbol and emblem of the Empire’s Star Realm Knight Order. However, in fact, this weapon had appeared many times in ceremonial occasions, and could be considered part of the street display.
Yu Lian knew that those patrolling the grand assembly hall were either Star Realm Knight squires or scions of major noble families. They formed the “Morning Palace Holy Guard,” responsible for guarding and ceremonial duties at various important occasions in Tianyu. For these young elites of the Empire, the reserve of the ruling class, this was naturally a duty filled with a sense of sacred honor.
...It is said that the Mustard Seed World is different from a spiritual treasure trove. It is a world infinitely close to the real world, somewhere between reality and the Void Realm. Although this world is illusory, and everything in it is naturally constructed, it has a very mysterious and unbreakable connection with the material world.
Any intruder from the material world, if their spiritual cultivation reaches a certain level, might be able to bring things from this “fake world” back into reality.
Thinking of this, Yu Lian couldn't help but size up the Atomic Light Spears in the hands of the Morning Palace Holy Guard.
Only this kind of elegant, imposing, yet powerful weapon suits me! Although the ones in their hands are mere foot soldier equipment, far inferior to the specially numbered, sharp one I snatched from that Knight Commander, they are better than nothing.
But, just as he thought this, the Morning Palace Holy Guard seemed to sense something, stopped in their tracks, and looked in Yu Lian's direction.
The high-ranking officials and nobles, whose flow of people was like weaving around Yu Lian, also stopped. The vivid expressions on their faces all stiffened at that moment, as if they had turned into puppets, and they all turned their heads to look over.
In that instant, Yu Lian suddenly became the focal point of tens of thousands of emotionless gazes.
Behind those gazes were tens of thousands of faces devoid of all expression, stiff as cheap wooden puppets. There seemed to be no emotion in their eyes either, only a calm, flat gaze in Yu Lian's direction, not even a blink of an eyelash or eyelid.
These imperial ruling elites, about to enter the pantheon, seemed to have been stripped of their emotions by an invisible supreme existence; and so, in the world they inhabited, time and space also seemed to have been stripped away.
This was a rather sanity-draining scene, causing Yu Lian's little heart to even pause for a moment. Fortunately, experienced as he was, this was not the first time he had encountered this situation.
Before those emotionless gazes could undergo an irreversible negative change, Yu Lian directly activated his Mind Shield, wrapping all his emotions beneath an invisible psychic barrier formed by psionic energy.
Time began to flow again. Everyone Present seemed to regain their souls, life, and emotions. They no longer paid attention to Yu Lian, re-integrating into this world that had become vibrant once more.
“...” Yu Lian let out a long sigh, once again confirming that the creator of this world must be a scoundrel.
He did not belong to this world, so any slight disturbance would cause him to be directly excluded. And after being excluded, his body and soul would definitely not be intact.
Smart people would retreat now, but since he had already entered, if he were to flee in disgrace, Yu Lian was sure he would never feel at ease in his entire life.
Yu Lian looked up at the golden angel statue suspended in the sky, and also saw a light screen “held up” by the angel's supporting gesture, which displayed the time as “August 12, 2784, Morningstar Era, Imperial Calendar; August 12, 674, Galaxy Common Era. 10:00 AM.”
Yes, this was the arrogant Empire. Except for diplomatic occasions, they would always use two ways to denote time everywhere, and the Imperial Calendar would always be placed before the Galaxy Commonwealth.
The next moment, the light screen “held up” by the angel statue changed from displaying time to a huge advertisement: “Blue Aikejiani, a paradise of noble quality!”
...Well, from this perspective, the Imperial nobles weren't that arrogant after all.
However, the year 674 of the common era, this year seemed vaguely familiar, something big must have happened, right? Yu Lian pondered for a moment, then followed the crowd towards the massive domed building in front of him.
This building was somewhat like a giant mushroom inverted on flat ground, yet it was certainly the most spectacular mushroom Yu Lian had ever seen.
It was estimated to be a thousand meters high, which was not particularly exaggerated in the space age. There were several buildings even taller than it in this imperial capital suspended in space. However, considering its overall appearance was a perfectly round hemisphere, its scale was imaginable.
Yu Lian observed the surrounding crowd, but since they were all ancients from a century and a half ago, he didn't recognize anyone for a while. These people's attire was exquisite but not ostentatious, not like attending a casual gathering, but more like a major official event. Pure humans accounted for over seventy percent of those Present. A few strangely shaped alien races mingled in the crowd, noticeable but, wrapped in special Imperial ceremonial robes and adorned with ornate Heavenly Gate emblems, they inexplicably blended in harmoniously.
It had to be harmonious! Their existence was a symbol that races and civilizations occupying half of the galaxy were like one family under the rule of the great Morningstar Royal Family!
They should be the Senators and Members of the Imperial Two Houses of Governance. The former were nominated by the Heraldry Institute and the Privy Council, or personally appointed by the Emperor, mostly great nobles from famous families, or retired high-ranking officials and generals. The latter were elected by citizens and nationals, and theoretically should come from all social strata.
5,000 Senators and 30,000 Members formed the “supreme” legislative and supervisory body of the Empire.
The reason for the quotation marks is that the Emperor of the Empire had the unlimited right to veto parliamentary bills and to directly dissolve the parliament. At the same time, the Privy Council was only responsible to the Emperor himself.
Although in quotation marks, they were after all theoretically one of the highest organs of power in the Empire. Theoretically, only for very important issues would they gather together.
Yu Lian was quite interested in today's meeting topic. Also, like an invisible ghost, directly blending into the grand assembly hall to watch how the Imperial Senators and Members engaged in verbal battles, scheming, and brewing overt and covert plots that would make the common people of half the universe ecstatic and miserable, was quite interesting. However, he simply did not have that much time. The Mind Shield's activation time was limited, and if he didn't want to be torn to shreds by these people who could transform into unspeakable monsters, he had to speed up.
Earl Salwen, and perhaps Duke Karlsa II, what kind of legacy and information did they leave for future generations?
Yu Lian sped up and quickly entered the main gate of “the pantheon.”
However, as he passed through the main gate, his steps were still cautious. He carefully observed the two ten-meter giants, like bronze statues, and was ready to resist or even flee at any moment.
Fortunately, the two Colossus showed no movement, looking purely like statues.
This made Yu Lian breathe a slight sigh of relief.
After entering the hall, he didn't have time to admire the elegant and solemn interior decoration, or the spacious and magnificent hall. He eagerly extended his perception.
To be honest, if he hadn't mastered “Spiritual Vein Circulation,” Yu Lian truly wouldn't dare to perform such “mana-consuming” operations while maintaining a Mind Shield. From this alone, Uncle Wang's teacher was indeed worthy of being a generation master in the field of superhumans, whose name would go down in history. It was understandable why his disciples and grand-disciples would later become the martial backbone of Earthlings.
Deep spiritual perception extended even further in this Mustard Seed World, which was between the Void Realm and the material world.
In Yu Lian's senses, the vivid people and events around him, the magnificent backdrop of the pantheon, the grand plaza outside the hall, and the unobstructed view of the city, all seemed to fade into black and white, stripped of their color. Only a faint light calmly flickered deep within the assembly hall, yet it was too easy to overlook.
Yu Lian again felt danger, and also felt the attention gathering towards him. He quickly retracted his spiritual perception and walked slowly in that direction.
At this point, he already felt a bit of fatigue, which was a warning of excessive mana consumption.
He didn't hesitate, continuing to maintain the Mind Shield, but dared not activate his perception again, quickly moving towards the direction of the light he had previously detected. He jumped walls, climbed through windows, ascended stairs; in short, he took whatever route was fastest and most convenient. Anyway, he wasn't worried about being seen.
Twenty minutes later, he finally reached the indoor domed garden on one side of the Grand Council Chamber.
In this fragrant, blooming courtyard, Yu Lian slowed his steps. His experience told him that in this kind of fake world, the prettier the place, the more deceptive it would be.
Perhaps the bushes nearby were master pugilists, perhaps the wall of crystal roses would breathe fire, perhaps the water lilies in the lake would launch missiles; or perhaps, the two figures standing in the lake would suddenly turn into unspeakable Void Realm monsters, eager to completely devour him.
Yu Lian pressed his hand on the Lightsaber at his waist and walked a few more steps forward. This time, he finally saw the appearance of the two people clearly.
One was naturally his “old acquaintance,” Earl Salwen.
The other, as expected, was the relatively unknown “country lord,” the thirty-first Tangheisser Duke, Karlsa II—suspected to be the creator of this massive Mustard Seed World, or at least one of them.
The two were whispering, but their voices clearly reached Yu Lian's ears.
“The overall situation is set. We have already failed,” Earl Salwen said to the Duke. His tone and expression were very calm, even with a hint of playfulness and self-mockery, as if he had only lost a pleasant game.
“Is there no room left at all?” Compared to him, Duke Karlsa’s expression was more solemn.
“Just now, the Imperial Judge has already occupied the Prime Minister's Office. This was ordered by the Privy Council. But, the master of the void crown has not yet returned to his position, so under what name can the Privy Council mobilize the Judge?”
Duke Karlsa said unwillingly, “What about the Knight Order...?”
“Oh, Karlsa, sometimes I really want to pry open your head and put some of my brain cells in. It's come to this, and you're still hoping for their strength! The glorious and noble Star Realm Knights are so glorious and noble because they always stand on the side of the victor!”
The Duke wanted to retort, but he stammered for a moment, and in the end, only a heavy sigh formed.
“What should we do?”
“My historical mission is over. Face your fate calmly. However, preserve enough legacy, and await our descendants to begin the next round of contest. Our predecessors have gone through more than a dozen cycles, and they have always persisted. Our descendants will continue.”
“No, I mean, specifically how?”
“You go back, return to your territory, and be a harmless local lord on the border. Up until now, this matter has nothing to do with you.”
“What about you?”
“Me? I am also a member of the Senate! Of course, I will return to that assembly hall and cheer for the return of the void crown!”
Yu Lian finally realized which historical moment he was in.
