Chapter 2436: Huo En's Shock

Xia Duo is a person who considers the big picture, but he also does not wish to put himself in an unfavorable position for the sake of the big picture; he tries his best to avoid "no-win" choices from the very beginning.

If it is unavoidable, he also has his own judgment.

Just as Xia Duo was thinking about whether to leave now, Lawrence sent word that he had already declined all banquets and exchanges in Akaola and was rushing to Seventon at the first opportunity.

If Xia Duo had been hesitant before, Lawrence's news immediately made the decision for him; he was not prepared to wait here meaninglessly any longer, as he had already shown sufficient sincerity.

The attitude of Jilan High Tower made him feel disappointed, and now he was leaving.

But just as Xia Duo walked out of the Reception Room, before his body had fully emerged, the Magic Net in front of him fluctuated, and a middle-aged man with a handlebar mustache appeared before Xia Duo—

It was Huo En.

"Lord Xia Duo, I apologize for only just receiving the news; I rushed back the moment I heard."

Huo En blocked Xia Duo's path, his gaze sincere and his attitude earnest; for a moment, Xia Duo could not tell the other party's true intentions, though in reality, there was no need to delve into it.

He hesitated for a moment and stopped, but could not help but retort, "Since Your Excellency Huo En is so busy with official business, why bother coming to see me again?"

Did they really think that just because there was a Mythallar Ruins at home, they would definitely be able to research a usable Mythallar?

"For you personally, you are very much in favor of the concept of Sustainable Development you proposed, and even a small portion of individuals in the Tower are willing to accept it, but the whole formed by these individuals has new demands."

Huo En's tone was somewhat tight; he had revealed things but also hadn't, and Xia Duo understood that he would likely be unable to ask anything more from the other party.

If New Seventon disappeared just after being unveiled, no matter the reason, it would damage the authority of the Tower.

Huo En nodded affirmatively and stated an unspoken rule that had long been prevalent within the Tower and was actually widely known by those outside it: "Within the Tower, as long as the majority agrees, it is useless even if individuals object."

For individuals within the Tower, damaging the Tower's authority might even bring them benefits, but for the Tower as a whole, it was an inevitable loss.

"This is also a major matter concerning the survival and development of countless people in the future, which is why I rushed over as soon as I received the news, hoping Lord Xia Duo can understand."

Huo En was very interested in the bargaining chip Xia Duo mentioned; the only possibility he could think of was the Floating City Mythallar, as in his view, New Seventon was only missing a Mythallar compared to Xia Duo's Chang'an City.

There were so many lords in Netheril with Mythallar Ruins at home, yet he had never seen any territory build even the simplest Mythallar before the Seventon Mythallar appeared.

"Lord Xia Duo, I imagine you already know the result of the negotiations between Master Yinaole and the Tower, but what I want to say is that the Tower is not a monolith; every High Tower, and even every individual, has their own thoughts."

Huo En specifically mentioned Yinaole, wanting to tell Xia Duo that both things he spoke of existed, and the other matter was not just a perfunctory remark.

But Xia Duo's subsequent actions almost overturned Huo En's perception.

Not to mention a ready-made Mythallar, the hidden dangers were too great.

【Xiaoxiang App search "Spring Gift" for new users to receive 500 book coins, old users receive 200 book coins】 As he spoke, Xia Duo asked Huo En about the Spellcasting Permission Level within the Mage Tower; in reality, he could ignore the spellcasting restrictions of Jilan High Tower, but doing so would be too frightening.

It couldn't be that there was some new news regarding the Demon Descendants, could it?

This was the will of the collective and the organization; even a Great Arcanist acting as a Controller would find it difficult to change it by their own strength alone.

This was also the main reason why Yinaole's previous attempt to trade with the Floating City had been met with little interest from the Tower.

Aside from the Tower sharing it voluntarily, it mainly relied on the "old friend" Laruian from Evereska.

But the Tower was already on the path of research; the previous Mythallar in the ground-level Seventon City was one such practice, and he did not believe Xia Duo could produce anything better.

Thinking of this, Xia Duo suddenly asked: "Your Excellency Huo En, was the urgent matter you just went to handle related to the Demon Descendants?"

"So that's how it is."

Seeing that Huo En had even spoken of things that would be impossible to mention under normal circumstances, Xia Duo realized that the other party having been tied up by some urgent matter was likely true, but he could not fathom what urgent matter the Tower could have, given they had even produced a Floating City.

"Yes."

This was originally something Xia Duo had initiated, but it was instead used by him to counter-question Huo En; Huo En was caught off guard for a moment, stunned for several seconds before he smiled bitterly and spoke:

Regarding what Huo En said, Xia Duo was actually not unfamiliar with it at all; in his hometown, wasn't there a saying: "There are only individuals who betray their class, there is no class that betrays its class interests."

"Your Excellency Huo En, what do you want to tell me?"

"Lord Xia Duo, you have misunderstood."

"Over these years, we have united through the Seville Covenant and, on that basis, generated more and more stable interest connections, but in the end, we are not one."

The Northland Alliance had established a targeted dialogue and cooperation mechanism because of the Demon Descendant issue, but Xia Duo had not joined that newly established department, so he was always a bit behind in terms of the timeliness of receiving news.

Huo En spoke with hidden meaning, but Xia Duo did not want to go around in circles with him, instead directly peeling back that layer: "Is it because New Seventon has already appeared before the envoys of the various Northland countries?"

Xia Duo was noncommittal upon hearing this; although from Huo En's current performance, it seemed there was no element of acting, and there was even a hint of undisguised anxiety in his eyes, Xia Duo also had his own attitude.

"Demon Descendants?" Huo En's eyes were somewhat blank, but the next moment he reacted and hurriedly said, "It is not the Demon Descendants, but it is indeed an urgent matter."

Besides, there was one most critical issue, which was that when it came to Mythallar research, Elves were far superior to humans; if it could not be understood thoroughly, even if they obtained a new Mythallar, the Tower could not easily use it on a Floating City.

While inviting Xia Duo into the Reception Room, Huo En explained to him, "I was indeed handling a very urgent non-official matter just now, but I have since heard about Lord Xia Duo's proposal from Master Yinaole."

"I understand; when the teacher came over before, some things might not have been able to be explained clearly, so now I have come to re-introduce my bargaining chip."

Thus, he returned to the main topic: "Your Excellency Huo En just mentioned the Tower as a whole; can I understand that as long as the overall interests are sufficient, even if individuals object, it is of no avail?"

"Yes."

After obtaining the Spellcasting Permission Level, Xia Duo pointed directly into the void between the two; at the same time, under the macro perspective guided by that finger, the Magic Net changed rapidly within this square inch. Huo En nodded with difficulty, "People of the Tower mostly rely on the Tower as a whole, because it is only through the existence of the Tower as a whole that they have their current status; any behavior that might harm the Tower as a whole will not be accepted by them, even if such behavior is beneficial in the long run."