Chapter 2988: Visitors from Foreign Realms, A Difficult Path Home

————I am working on it, it will be a bit late~

————

"Mage Pulitatisi, a pleasure to meet you!"

Xia Duo had not expected this mysterious dragon to have actually become the teacher of the Delake Territory lord; this made his heart sink involuntarily. Being able to become the local lord's teacher clearly could not have happened recently.

I fear they have already been here for a while. Thinking deeper, has this fellow already transmitted the existence of the Main Plane back to the Holy Golden Dragon Empire?

At this moment, Xia Duo wished more than anything that this mysterious dragon was a local dragon, not an extraterrestrial one. A local dragon could at least be won over by resolving historical issues; if it were an extraterrestrial dragon, things would likely be difficult.

"Councilor Xia Duo, a pleasure."

Pulitatisi also greeted him calmly, then looked at the noisy streets around them and offered a suggestion, "This is not a place for conversation. Why don't we go to the Government Hall to talk?"

He did not suggest going to the Mage Tower; that was unrealistic, so he chose the nearby Government Hall, a place that could provide a reception area.

Xia Duo naturally had no objection to this; he also did not want to discuss those confidential matters on the street. He gave Huo En a look, and then agreed.

Seeing the other party's attitude was quite calm before meeting, shouldn't the most important thing to do now be to invite the other party to join the Mage Tower or the Seventon Council?

After speaking, I looked at Xia Shao again and asked tentatively, "Two Councilors, you shouldn't mind if Ruier comes over later, right?"

As for Pulitatisi, he knew that Xia Shao and Pake were looking for him. Whether out of wishful thinking or a defensive mentality, he could not take the initiative.

"Don't be anxious. Aren't you curious about where the other party's Bloodline Technology comes from? Is it possible that in the eyes of your Mage Tower, there is only that one technology?"

I do not know how much time passed, but in the end, it was Xia Shao who first broke the silence, "I have some understanding of the high-level mages of Netherese, yet I have never heard of the existence of Mage Pulitatisi. I wonder if Your Excellency comes from the South, or from Imaska?"

He knew his own origins, but precisely because he knew, he was even more cautious.

Although Xia Shao was somewhat surprised that this dragon cared so much for his student, he had no intention of making things difficult for Ruier anyway. Moreover, with Ruier absent, some topics did not need to be deliberately avoided.

"He is here to receive the two Councilors. Pake, didn't you say there was an important experiment that hadn't been finished? Go tidy up the Laboratory first, then come to pay your respects to the two Councilors."

"Since the Delake Territory lord has important matters to attend to first, then go handle them. Pulitatisi Mage can host us here."

……

"Even if I told you my origins, you might not necessarily understand them. Why must you keep pursuing this! I have already said, I am currently just a homeless wandering mage."

But Xia Shao was noncommittal. There were indeed many Spells in this world that could distinguish lies. Just now, he himself had judged that the other party was not lying, but there also existed Spells in this world that could evade lie detection.

He really could not understand why Xia Shao had to dwell on the other party's origins. Even if he asked clearly, what could he do? Could it change anything? This was clearly impossible; it would be better to remain ignorant.

After these words, the Reception Room fell into silence again. Xia Shao hoped that Pulitatisi would take the initiative to reveal his background, but Pulitatisi did not dare to take the initiative because he did not know how much the Netherese side knew about him.

It was just that it was too late to regret it now. He hesitated for a moment and added, "Everything I said is true. I have no ill will toward Netherese."

Silence should not have been the theme of this meeting. Pake looked on with anxiety. In fact, he did not care at all about the other party's background. As long as the technology was real and they were willing to share it, that was enough; everything else was superfluous.

Without waiting for Pake to urge him again, Xia Shao spoke once more, "Since Mage Pulitatisi intends to stay in Netherese, isn't it only natural to make a clean break with the past? If you are unwilling to reveal even a little bit of your background, then we truly must suspect your intentions in coming to Netherese!"

Xia Shao hesitated on how to open the conversation. He couldn't just ask the other party if they were from the Holy Golden Dragon Empire, or ask if they had mastered the ultimate technology of the Bloodline Domain, right?

"Lord Xia Shao—" Pake could not help but urge via Mind Link.

Xia Shao did not point out the other party's dragon identity from the start, but instead questioned and probed as if they were human.

Currently, the human nations in the Main Plane capable of cultivating high-level mages are mostly Netherese in the Northland, Imaska in the East, and Calimshan in the South.

Therefore, one can listen to the other party's words, and one can believe the surface, but if one were to believe them completely, that would be too naive. To entrust the safety of an entire Plane to someone else's sincerity—and verbal sincerity at that—is simply ridiculous.

"He is not lying," Pake said in the Mind Link.

To this, Pulitatisi's answer was—

There is no absolute spear and shield. Knowing that the other party might be from the Holy Golden Dragon Empire, Xia Shao directly assumed that the other party possessed Spells to evade lie detection.

"I am indeed not Netherese, but I am also not from those two places. I am just a homeless wandering mage. If Netherese does not mind my past, I am willing to become a Netherese."

Even from the fact that the other party was always unwilling to reveal their origins, he had actually already begun to believe that the other party harbored ill intentions.

Xia Shao used his own existence as an example, reminding the other party that one's background would not be an obstacle to integrating into Netherese, but at the same time, he pointed out, "Easterners have existed in the Main Plane since ancient times and have already proven themselves. Your Excellency's origins, however, make it impossible for us to feel at ease!"

Constantly being questioned, Pulitatisi could not help but feel a bit annoyed, but thinking of the Forbidden Restriction that had not yet dissipated around them, he forced himself to calm down. Had he known he would encounter this situation, he should not have chosen Netherese to settle down.

Xia Shao could not easily reveal the existence of the Holy Golden Dragon Empire and could only use the fact that the other party might possess more secrets to soothe Pake's anxiety. But in doing so, Pake would inevitably urge him to take the other party down directly.

Subsequently, the two, led by the Delake Territory lord Pake, arrived at the Government Hall just one street away. Upon entering, Pulitatisi gave his student a suggestive look and then said:

"In my hometown, there is an old proverb that says 'Heroes do not ask their origins.' At the beginning, I was not Netherese either, only arriving here due to an accident, but now I have settled down here and become a true Netherese."

With Xia Shao speaking, Ruier naturally would not insist on staying. After leaving in a hurry, the remaining three then entered the Reception Room.

It was just that Xia Shao wanted to try again, to avoid making a misjudgment. Whether it was misjudging the other party's goodwill or misjudging their origins, both could potentially cause hidden dangers for the future.

Unlike when they were outside, after both sides sat down in the Reception Room, for a time, not a single person spoke. Pake was because there had been a prior agreement that this trip would be led by Xia Shao; if Xia Shao did not speak, he would naturally not take the initiative to say anything.