Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
However, although the ancient experts thought that way, they did not have enough theoretical knowledge to express their opinions and interests clearly. After all, they had jumped from the ‘feudal era’ to an information society with abundant productivity. A few years ago, they had been fighting hard for
the feudal sovereignty on a continent. It would be too much if they were asked to make decisions on the unpredictable dominion of the sea of stars.
They, as well as the experts of the ‘New Four Sectors’ who had agreed to send troops, all looked at the same person—Di Feiwen, who used to be the deputy commander of the Black Wind Fleet and was now the president of the ‘Boneyard—Ultimacy Development Committee.
Of all the experts present, only one of them was sincere enough to help the imperium at any cost. It was undoubtedly the Immortal Cultivator of the former imperium, Di Feiwen.
No. The word ‘original’ was redundant. To this moment, Di Feiwen had not abandoned his identity as a citizen of the imperium and an Immortal Cultivator. He still kept the ambiguous ‘dual nationality’.
Di Feiwen’s experience and his position today reflected the unpredictable ups and downs of fate.
A hundred years ago, he was just an ordinary deacon of the Infinite Commerce Alliance. At that time, the Infinite Commerce Alliance was just an ordinary business alliance in a remote world of the imperium. It was just a loose association where countless small merchants huddled together for warmth,
shivering in the clutches of the imperial power and the nobles.
He had merely relied on his bloodline from the Black Wind Sector to first become the liaison between the Black Wind Sector and the Infinite Commerce Alliance. Then, he gradually became the manager of the Infinite Commerce Alliance’s resource delivery to the Black Wind Fleet. In the end, he turned into
the vice commander of the Black Wind Fleet.
However, it was not the right time for him to be the vice commander-in-chief. It was the moment when the defense line of the Black Wind Sector was riddled with holes, when the starships of the Black Wind Sector were fleeing in panic, and when the situation was desperate.
If that were not the case, he would not have been appointed as the deputy commander-in-chief despite his background as a merchant and a logistic officer who knew nothing about fleet command and the sea of stars.
When the Black Wind Fleet rushed to the edge of the sea of stars with tremendous resources, nobody was optimistic about the future of the fleet, much less Di Feiwen himself.
The untamable ‘Black Wind King’ was not willing to be manipulated by anybody. Even the Divine Martial Emperor at that time could not command him, not to mention the Infinite Commerce Alliance and Di Feiwen.
At best, Di Feiwen was the master of Night Brightness and the Dark Night Family. A loyal God of Wealth, including Di Feiwen himself, thought so, too.
All he needed to do was to manage the resources of the entire fleet. As for the specific strategies and tactics, he had no say in them at all. Of course, he did not have too many private soldiers to command more power.
‘When the Black Wind Fleet was almost annihilated in front of the Star Glory Federation, Di Feiwen’s fate hit rock bottom. He was about to die a graveless death among the dark stars.
Right then, fate played an absurd joke on him.
Dark Night Brightness—including all the most fanatical militarists and warmongers in the Black Wind Fleet—was dead. The remaining survivors had scattered in the sea of stars and lost all their will to fight. They were all at a loss and wouldn’t let go of their last hope. Even Di Feiwen, the God of Wealth
who never had much prestige, could recruit and command them easily.
The Star Glory Federation did not have such a big appetite, either. After devouring the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet, they had no choice but to grant him the right to ‘rebellion on the battlefield’. He was welcomed with a decent peace and a planet with abundant resources, which used to be Boneyard.
But now, Ultimacy had become their base for rest and recovery.
This was the beginning of Di Feiwen’s good luck, but it was far from the end of his meteoric rise.
According to common logic, Di Feiwen’s actions were a complete betrayal of the imperium. Although he, as the ‘defeated general’, had been able to lead the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet and live in the federation for a long time, gradually integrating into the federation and becoming a high-ranking
general in the federation, he was an unforgivable traitor in the eyes of the Imperium of True Human Beings. He was going to be pinned to the pillar of shame, skinned, and skinned.
But that was the logic of the four electors’ families.
The ‘New Empire’ governed by the revolutionaries apparently had different views.
In order to consolidate their power, the revolutionaries had to find powerful allies in the sea of stars. They were even willing to cooperate with authentic Cultivators. They could even turn a blind eye to the identity and belief of ‘Vulture Li Yao’ and grant him the title of ‘Black Wind King’. Why would they
care about the past of Di Feiwen and the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet?
In fact, as the sole intermediary between the Star Ocean Imperium and the federation, Di Feiwen and the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet were getting more and more important day by day, and their status was soaring, too.
The officials of the new empire and the new federation both ignored the awkward identities of Di Feiwen and the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet. The new emperor, the young lion who was in desperate need of external help when he had just ascended the throne, even granted the title of ‘Second Class
Marquis’ to the former peddler as a reward for his ‘loyalty’ and ‘mutual bravery’.
A second-grade marquis. A second-grade marquis of the Imperium of True Human Beings!
A hundred years ago, countless experts from the noble families of the four electors would not have been granted the title of ‘Second Class Marquis’ even if they had spent their entire lives fighting against each other.
Even during the counterattack of the Star Ocean Imperium, during the special period when the titles were distributed in batches like hats, to wear the Medal of the Sun and the Moon, which represented a second-grade marquis, on one’s chest, one would have to make real contributions and be forged with
tons of iron and blood!
If all the second-rank nobles of the Star Ocean Imperium learned that Di Feiwen had been living a happy life on Boneyard with the remnants of the Black Wind Fleet, they would definitely crawl out of their coffins in fury. Even if they were burnt to ashes, their ashes would be condensed again.
However, since he knew that his identity was quite complicated and that his stance was quite awkward, Di Feiwen kept a low profile after he was granted the title of second marquis of the Star Ocean Imperium. He also showed more ‘loyalty’ to the Star Ocean Imperium. In the remote negotiations between
the Star Ocean Imperium and the Star Ocean Imperium, he stood firmly on the Star Ocean Imperium’s side and slashed the negotiators of the Star Ocean Imperium multiple times, helping the Star Ocean Imperium exploit a lot of precious technologies.
Di Feiwen was very clear that the life and wealth of the Black Wind Legion and himself depended on the federation, not the imperium.
The stronger the federation was, the more important they were to the imperium, and the more valuable they were.
If they helped the imperium to deal with the federation, or even annihilate the federation, it would be the time when the imperium would investigate the crimes of the ‘shameless rebels’. All the nobles would be beheaded.
Di Feiwen had made his stance very clear. A sensitive topic such as an expedition to the center of the sea of stars was not something that a general of two identities such as himself could interfere with easily.
Therefore, at the beginning of the meeting, Di Feiwen had been sitting straight with his eyes and nose lowered, as if he were an old monk meditating. His mouth seemed to be zipped, and he was determined to keep silent until the end.
He even ignored Han Baling’s undisguised gaze.
Speaking of which, Di Feiwen was quite close to the ancient experts, especially ‘Han Baling’, the king of the Ghost Qin Grassland.
Most of the ancient experts were not pure Cultivators, especially the ambitious ‘classical militarists’ such as Han Baling. They were more interested in the Great Dao of Cultivation in the imperium than in the seemingly gentle system of Cultivators in the federation.
In order to cure the famine, plague, and other diseases caused by the population explosion of the Ancient Saint World, as well as to develop Boneyard on a large scale, the federation had shipped a lot of immigrants from the Ancient Saint World to Boneyard to live. As a result, Di Feiwen and Han Ba Ling
had a lot of work opportunities.
Han Baoling was different from Yan Liren and Master Bitter Cicada. He was very ambitious in politics and was keenly aware of the ambiguous relationship between the federation and the imperium. He also knew the reason for Di Feiwen’s meteoric rise. Also, it was true that the two of them were on par
with each other. After only several years, they had formed a close, political alliance.
Right now, the ancient Saints craved for a glorious war to improve their position in the federation, but they did not have a clear reason to refute Bai Kaixin’s questions. Therefore, they pinned their hopes on Di Feiwen.
It was possible that Di Feiwen was trying to make friends with the giants of the new worlds such as the Ancient Sacred World in order to keep the ‘old federal system’ in check so that the remnants of the Black Wind Legion would have a stronger independence and a brighter future.
But right now, with everybody watching, it was even more inappropriate for him to reveal his thoughts.
It was not until Ding Lingdang, the Speaker of Parliaments, looked at him with her sharp eyes that a bitter smile appeared on his face.
“General Di, the imperium is your hometown. If the federation really sends troops to the center of the sea of stars, you will have to play an important role, including the cooperation of the federal army and the imperial army, the safety of the federal army, and… the negotiation of the treaty and the
conditions after the victory. You will be of great help.
Ding Lingdang asked straightforwardly, “What do you think about the concerns that Chief of Staff Bai raised just now?”
This was forcing him to tear off the pretense of uncertainty and ambiguity.
Di Feiwen sighed in his heart. For some reason, he recalled his life in his hometown of the Star Ocean Imperium a hundred years ago.
It was not necessarily a warm, beautiful memory.
But no matter how dark and cold it was, it was still his hometown!
“It’s been a long time since I commanded a fleet. No. I should say that I’ve never commanded a fleet before. I’m probably the most incompetent ‘flotilla commander-in-chief in the universe, aren’t I? Naturally, Chief of Staff Bai has the final say in the military decisions.
Di Feiwen smiled and said, “From the bottom of my heart, I’ve always been a businessman. I’m just a petty merchant who buys low and sells high.
“As a businessman, I would like to ask you a question.. If a businessman wants to sell his umbrella at a high price, should he choose a sunny day or a rainy day?
