Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 277 - 196: Silver Lotus Flower

Chapter 277: Chapter 196: Silver Lotus Flower

When Earth Wolf Twelve sent another message, the afternoon meeting was already drawing to a close.

Blue Star had unanimously passed the application to join the Sixteen Star Summit and become the first new council star in recent decades; the Third Prince, as their representative, had delivered his vision for a future of peaceful development and mutual benefit with the various planets.

All the cosmic news agencies reported the news as a headline in real time, and by that evening, the entire universe knew the Third Prince’s name.

A young diplomat, yet with mature political thoughts.

The Third Prince left the meeting surrounded by a crowd. The other planetary council members had already booked private rooms in the banquet hall; they didn’t want to waste the dinner hour, and in the time to follow, they were able to discuss future trade cooperation and political stances with the young prince.

After waking up, Earth Wolf Twelve also actively sought communication with Duan Mingyuan.

"You motherf**ker!"

The moment the call connected, that was the familiar tirade that came through.

Duan Mingyuan also heard the sound of water; apparently, someone was taking a shower while this interstellar cowboy made the call.

The rage and anguish in Earth Wolf Twelve’s cursing were mixed with remorse.

"Cowboy, this is the consequence of leaving your post to drink during working hours, especially when you were drinking with someone from the Eastern Battlefront," Duan Mingyuan commented indifferently as he moved the phone a little further away.

"I’ve drunk with her before, dammit!"

"You never shared your true thoughts with her before, Cowboy. According to big data statistics, over eighty percent of ’knife-edge endings’ are caused by both parties not being frank enough, turning into people speaking in riddles to each other," Duan Mingyuan replied.

Given the awkward relationship between Earth Wolf Twelve and the Mocking Pigeon, Duan Mingyuan had already foreseen the tragedy about to unfold in the future.

By the time the interstellar cowboy had finally clarified his feelings in a lengthy letter, he had already embarked on a journey to Hot Sand Star. Despite the Mocking Pigeon rushing her fleet to the Hot Sand Star Zone at the earliest opportunity, all she found waiting for her was the endless expanse of sand.

Duan Mingyuan was firmly against such a future, especially one that involved the crew of the Ranger.

"You—!"

"Cowboy, search your heart, what are you really unsatisfied with now?" Duan Mingyuan retorted.

"Unsatisfied? Of course, I’m unsatisfied, I have a lot of complaints!"

"Such as?"

"Such as, this is taking advantage of someone’s plight!"

Earth Wolf Twelve’s anger had not subsided, accusing them of taking action against him while he was drunk and powerless—a violation of a fair fight. "Normally, I should be the one on top!"

The outcome was not in question, but the process was deeply problematic.

"That’s a private issue between you two, and you should resolve it yourselves," Duan Mingyuan said.

He was just a doctor and couldn’t intervene in such detailed matters. "The afternoon meeting has already concluded, the night is still long, and it is up to you to resolve the specifics. Good luck."

Another case had been resolved, and it was time for the Medical Health Team to clock out.

He hung up the phone, dismissing Earth Wolf Twelve’s indignant grand statements.

He hadn’t taken many steps before he was blocked by an unwelcome visitor.

Compared to the last time they met, Garoya had become much more distant, maintaining a stiff, formulaic smile even as her expression remained rigid, and she kept a distance of over five meters from him.

"You left in such a hurry last time that I didn’t even have the chance to say goodbye."

Duan Mingyuan took the initiative to break the somewhat awkward silence; his recent social energy had grown stronger. In the past, he would have probably just nodded to Garoya and quickly walked away, going about his business.

He disliked socializing after work and preferred to lie at home and scroll through videos during his rest periods.

"There was an emergency on my ship last time, a project I was handling ran into some issues."

Garoya continued to tell lies that neither believed, all to preserve their dignity.

In truth, if her superiors hadn’t explicitly ordered her to make this trip, she would have been decidedly unwilling to deal with Duan Mingyuan again.

Bad luck is contagious, and Duan Mingyuan was the most "toxic" kind.

After leaving Blue Star, bad luck continued to haunt her for a long time. The projects she handled all ran into more or less trouble, making her past half-month incredibly difficult.

"Mr. Mingyuan, you haven’t had dinner yet, have you? Today, the Chamber of Commerce has set up a banquet in the dome restaurant of the Gear Hotel. The committee hopes I can personally extend to you an invitation. The Chamber’s senior members are very keen on this summit and the unforeseen changes on Mechanical Star, deciding to come in person to witness the summit and to prevent further incidents," she said.

As she spoke, the space above the Mechanical Throne once again thundered.

The summit’s council members, like frightened birds, reached the window to look toward the source of the sound, and when they saw the massive shadow overhead, their faces changed.

The night sky above was lit by the flagship’s lights, casting shadows on the land of the Mechanical Throne that resembled a blooming Silver Lotus Flower.

At that moment, a stir went through the crowd.

They clearly recognized the meaning behind the Silver Lotus Flower, and after a brief shock, they even unconsciously lowered their voices out of an abundance of caution.

"The current head of the Silver Lotus Family is very interested in your exploits and wishes to have a personal conversation with you. The time is set for 19:30 tonight; once the head is ready, we will proceed to the top-floor terrace."

Garoya handed over the silver-edged invitation to Duan Mingyuan and quickly walked away after completing her task, not wanting to spend another moment alone with Duan Mingyuan, leaving him confused and standing in place.

He had never heard of the Silver Lotus Family, though from Garoya’s implications, he could guess that they were high-level members of the Chamber.

For this, he had no choice but to seek external assistance and relayed what had just happened to the Third Prince.

The Third Prince had indeed noticed the arrival of the flagship and, perhaps influenced by the atmosphere around him, also spoke in a lowered voice that sounded sneaky.

"The family is the true owner of the Chamber. I didn’t expect them to come as well," said the Third Prince.

He muttered, "Do you remember that story? The ancestors of the Shan Clan People once made a high-stakes wager with the Trade God He Ya, and they lost their planet in that gamble."

"I remember."

"The Silver Lotus Family descends from that bloodline. However, they have always kept themselves well hidden, hardly ever appearing in public."

With this layer of mystery, an infinite imagination about the Silver Lotus Family arose, along with countless rumors and speculations.

But across every planet and civilization, a basic consensus has been reached.

——The family controls half the universe.

And now, they are striving to possess the entire universe.

"The person you are about to meet is the wealthiest individual in the universe."