Chapter 528: The Most Distant Friendship

Bei Mo Si Ke Han stared at the secret letter in his hand, pondering for a long time, then took a deep breath and, like a balloon being filled, slowly rose to his feet.

Although the land he governs may be the worst piece in all Sun Moon, a place outsiders say is only fit to be relegated to the "barbarians".

But one who does not plan for ten thousand years is unfit to plan for a moment; one who does not consider the whole picture is unfit to govern a single region.

Since even in the old Sha North kiln caves, a picture of the aircraft carrier Le Ke Xing Dun could be hung.

Thus, it is only natural that, even while he sits at the edge of the world, he possesses an extremely detailed world map.

Standing before this treasure, which is protected by several layers of magical wards, he extended his hand, letting his fingertips brush over a vast expanse of land, crossing the northern realm of Sun Moon over countless mountains and rivers, all the way to the distant southern kingdom.

As a ruler who built a brand‑new nation through unity and recognition, the Khan actually longs for a reliable and trustworthy ally.

Not for any other reason; although the two sides appear to be mutually responsive, only the patient knows how bitter the Huanglian truly is.

This tug‑of‑war has become overly prolonged; the inexperienced Bei Mo Si still lacks depth and is about to collapse.

Even though the Deep Forest, a thieving rogue, has organized numerous privateer ships near the western coast, the incensed Lingxi Kingdom has become heavily biased toward the steppe in trade.

But even favoritism has its limits; the Golden King is not exactly a "good person", and his willingness to cede a portion of profit is already generosity at the level of cutting flesh to feed eagles—he would never engage in a loss‑making trade.

Therefore, even if the Khan exhaustively searches for valuable items and only purchases those for which no substitutes can be found—essential commodities that must be obtained…

Relying solely on these small trades that can be conducted only a few times a year, it is indeed hard to melt the three‑foot‑deep chill.

As for the choice of this ally…

Since they are all beast‑people, all of steppe civilization, all "foreign barbarians", the Khan's first consideration naturally is the wolf king He Chi Na, who resides in the distant south.

But when the wolf king brandished his slaughter blade, attempting to build his realm through terror, the Khan struck He Chi Na from the list.

There is no way; under a slaughter blade, there is no room for two kingdoms, nor for two sovereigns. Bei Mo Si has suffered enough; there is no need to ally with a future enemy.

Then there is the Hui Guang Kingdom, which shares the same enemy with him…

To be frank, the Great Lion scolds the Hui Guang vermin more often than he scolds the Deep Forest executioners.

After all, even if the Deep Forest folk are terribly bad, they are merely bad; their behavior is logically sound, and their decision‑making is definitely forward‑looking.

In contrast, Hui Guang is just an iron scrap that shows no reaction even when cut with a dull knife—truly no better than a stray dog by the roadside.

As for the Lingxi people…

Although they came of their own accord, and are very enthusiastic toward the steppe, conducting trade with great diligence.

But the Great Lion truly finds these merchants unreliable, so he only maintains trade relations without further advancement.

However, he does maintain good private ties with the Golden King, ensuring smooth communication between the highest levels of the two nations and trying to avoid misunderstandings.

Fine, then fine.

All the respectable forces on Sun Moon Star have been screened; they are either iron scrap or untrustworthy, leaving Bei Mo Si with no choice.

But now, at the moment when the Beimosi Khanate could be declared to be entering chronic death, the High Tower Community appeared.

In fact, in the Khan's prior understanding, the Barbarian Plains were already considered within the wolf king's sphere of influence.

After all, no matter what, it's still a piece of meat; given He Chi Na's temperament, he couldn't possibly refuse it.

Consequently, a group of spontaneously appearing Pioneers swiftly seized the entire forest, uniting the local Tribes of all sizes, forming a multi‑faction alliance called "High Tower", and even the wolf king stepped onto Hui Guang's land a step ahead—by means of civilization.

"Civilization…"

One can only say that the Golden King's private ties with the Khan are truly strong, or that a great leader even when an enemy is still shown respect—especially when interests are involved?

Thus, among this shipment are some items the Golden King personally gave him, including a Winchester M1887 from the Barbarian Plains.

Without magic, no talent required—anyone, even a large rooster, as long as they can pull the trigger, can use it to kill a professional.

Even if it can only kill a low‑rank professional, striking a high‑level professional like him would leave not even a mark.

But the barrier is virtually nonexistent; the fact that it is already mass‑produced—a property that can be called god‑defying—is enough to cover all shortcomings.

Think about it—if one possessed such a weapon, the war at the beginning of the year would certainly not have ended in a mutually disastrous draw.

At least!

He is confident he can eliminate that damned third prince, turning the Deep Forest crown princes' originally balanced triangular power into a water‑and‑fire clash between two strong forces.

He forces the Lion‑Heart King, an utterly hypocritical sovereign, into a subordinate role, diverting all eyes that watch the north and gaining a bit of development opportunity.

But unfortunately, he did not have it at the time.

So…

The Lion‑Heart King paced around the table once, then sat back down, picking up a pen shaft soaked with ink.

"Now that things have come to this, we must at least try!"

Thus, a few days later, while Lingxi merchants were still busy in the Barbarian Plains comparing prices, seeking ways to sell high and buy low to bring more wealth home for their hidden benefactors,

the White Eagle Port still saw a small fleet bearing the Lingxi royal flag arrive amid the eager crowd on the shore.

Although through the light sea mist, one could see from afar a person in an opulent fitted tuxedo standing on the deck, seemingly eager to disembark.

Strangely, the person appeared hurried yet actually didn't seem that urgent.

Because he kept waiting for the dockworkers to secure the gangway, then let his entourage clear the way first, only then did he slowly step off the ship and shake hands with the High Tower Community official who was to receive him.

"Greetings! My respected High Tower Community friend, I am a messenger from the Lingxi Kingdom, bearing our king's warmest greetings and sincerest respect, having crossed countless mountains and rivers to finally arrive here."

The messenger's speech had extremely exaggerated tonal fluctuations and severe trailing sounds, but this was not a deliberate act of silliness.

Because even his somewhat comical attire follows the oldest ceremonial regulations of the Sacred Tree Kingdom, and is of the highest specification.

If placed on Earth, it would be equivalent to a fully authentic Zhou rite from the Tang dynasty—top‑tier quality.

Indeed, this is a solemn diplomatic occasion, indicating that the Lingxi Kingdom has resolved to formally establish relations with the High Tower Community. Thus, the messenger's early appearance signifies Lingxi's high regard for High Tower.

And completing the entire protocol before disembarking shows that Lingxi still maintains its poise, reflecting an equal diplomatic relationship.

However, despite all the twists and turns, it ultimately amounts to that same empty, pretentious chatter.

"Our kingdom yearns to share wisdom with you all, exchange magic, and jointly explore the unknown mysteries of this planet."

"Indeed, the High Tower Community likewise looks forward to finding a trustworthy friend, hoping our cooperation will bring prosperity to both sides!"

Everyone is seasoned; you say a word, I reply, instantly striking a pose that could be described in a press release as 'the two sides' representatives conversed amiably, reaching considerable consensus.'

But when they were busy showing off their acting to each other, leaving the harbor in the cheerful atmosphere and preparing to move to the banquet hall.

In an unnoticed corner, one member of the envoy party slipped away from the group and skillfully walked to a corner of the harbor.

Since the visitors are envoys representing the Golden King, the Lingxi merchants naturally have to send a sufficiently weighty representative to respectfully receive the envoys.

And according to the previous order, this representative is none other than the Lingxi Kingdom Academy of Magic's Flight Department professor, the kingdom's baron, the great adventurer, an old friend of the High Tower Community—Lord James Saint Crystal.

As the man in the Lingxi Kingdom who currently knows the most about the Pioneers, James now has changed into an Earth‑style outfit.

In short, a black suit, paired with sharply‑lined sunglasses, and his white hair neatly combed back.

No kidding, the old fellow swaggered to this stop, truly giving off a Hollywood‑style burnt‑out veteran vibe.

But since it was the king's command, he quickly performed a bow before the spy.

"Your Excellency, thank you for your effort; does His Majesty have any orders for this old man?"

"Yes. Under His Majesty's recommendation, Bei Mo Si Ke Han has expressed an intention to establish diplomatic relations with the High Tower Community and has already begun selecting suitable envoys."

"However, to avoid unnecessary conflicts and misunderstandings, before that you still need to recommend someone to the High Tower Community again."

???

James immediately furrowed his brows upon hearing that; after all, a recommendation meant using Lingxi's credibility to vouch for Bei Mo Si.

That left him a bit bewildered; diplomacy is no trivial matter, and if this goes wrong… the risk would be huge!

Just on personal connections, His Majesty is willing to go this far?

Ugh, that Lionfolk Khan can't be a succubus in disguise, or maybe transforms into a maiden at night…

Perhaps realizing how odd the order was, the Golden King also wrote two letters in addition to the verbal instruction.

One was intended for the High Tower people, the other for him to read immediately.

James, his face solemn, opened the letter addressed to himself, read it twice, then in front of the spy burned it to ash.

"Understood. I will not disgrace the royal command and will see the mission through to the end!"

Afterwards, whenever James chatted with senior members of the High Tower Community at social gatherings, especially council members who held the floor, he would inevitably bring up topics concerning Lingxi trade.

"People of Lingxi Kingdom love doing business; our trade partners are everywhere. Hehe, you are undoubtedly the most important and closest, but after you, the second is actually a place called the Beimosi Khanate; they…"

"Ah, brother, you don't know Bei Mo Si? No worries. Speaking of Bei Mo Si, they're a hard‑pressed people located at the northernmost tip of our Sun‑Moon Star, a frozen land that borders the Deep Forest…"

"Exactly, they've been at war forever! No choice; the Deep Forest folk are naturally bandits, fighting year after year, turning the Beimosi Khanate's orcs into miserable wretches."

"However, their Khan truly is a good person, and the orcs' character is decent as well; they're internally very united, far higher than that bunch from the Wasteland, and with our Majesty's goodwill, we've been trying to support them."

"But the Deep Forest folk are so vile, downright vicious, so our single family can't handle it. I hear the Khan is now seeking reliable allies to fight the evil Deep Forest people, but in my view, this is a precarious matter!"

"Given the current situation, everyone is struggling; who dares to go head‑to‑head with the Deep Forest folk, sigh…"

Although his specific phrasing and wording differ, it will inevitably progress layer by layer until he hints at "a beauty in the north."

Finally, while talking to a councilor who claimed to be from the Foreign Affairs Bureau, the other asked the long‑awaited question.

"Personally, I think any good person is worth uniting with. I wonder, Mr. James… do you have any connections?"

Here it comes!

But since this is a diplomatic setting, even if it arrives, we must wait a moment first.

Thus James showed no expression on his face; instead he opened a move, leisurely swirling as if practicing Tai Chi.

Of course, that's a pleasant way to put it; bluntly, it's a sticky, ambiguous flirtation.

It's like a woman daring to drink alone in a bar; until the final moment you can never be sure of the outcome, the level is unattainably high.

So why does the old mage James understand this so well, and what happened to him in his youth?

Councilor: "Far from benevolent!"

James's hand made his scalp tingle, not out of fear; being a diplomat, he isn't scared of such petty cleverness.

Rather, he was speechless—speechless that he still had to laboriously steer the conversation back so that a "connection" could be extracted from James's mouth.

As for that connection, it goes via Lingxi, using their sea routes and vessels to relay messages from the far north to the far south.

Although a round trip takes at least half a month, it's still better than groping along the Deep Forest coastline oneself.

"Alright, I do have an intention to communicate, but the High Tower is a community; I cannot decide for others."

"Understood, I can comprehend."

He gave James an ambiguous signal, and the official returned to the Foreign Affairs Bureau.

Subsequently, from the Foreign Affairs Bureau to the High Tower Council, the player and the important NPCs who had slipped into councilor positions held several closed‑door meetings.

In the end, because his seniority was sufficient but his strength insufficient, relegated to a pure mascot, he simply also took on the seal of the council chair, the dog‑village chief Da Huang.

The High Tower Council officially announced that the community has decided to dispatch a joint trade delegation; while conducting the first direct trade, they will also launch a series of diplomatic visits to Bei Mo Si, hoping to forge greater consensus.