#431 - Closer to Beihai

Xu Ming returned to Wudu, not simply by flying on his own.

Xu Ming was just a Dragon Gate Realm cultivator, not yet possessing the ability of those above the Fifth Realm to break through the void.

Moreover, the distance between the North Sea and Wudu was extremely far. If Xu Ming were to fly there himself, it would take him a year or two to arrive.

By then, forget about returning to the Wu Kingdom to report to the Martial Emperor; by the time he returned, the Four Seas would probably have already erupted in war.

Therefore, Xu Ming used a flying boat provided by the North Sea.

In just two months, Xu Ming was about to return to the Wu Kingdom.

Xu Ming first sent a message via flying sword into the Wu Kingdom, expressing that he would be returning soon and providing a relatively accurate estimate of his arrival time. Otherwise, returning so abruptly would be considered a breach of etiquette.

When Xu Ming arrived at the gates of Wudu, he personally witnessed the Martial Emperor leading the civil and military officials to greet him.

Among the civil and military officials, everyone was present except for Wu Yanhan, even including Mr. Xiao.

All the civil and military officials were eagerly waiting. When they saw a flying boat approaching, their eyes lit up.

Seeing this grand scene, Xu Ming naturally knew that they were welcoming him, but wasn't the scale and ceremony a bit too much? This looked like the reception for a king or marquis…

Xu Ming quickly put away the flying boat and descended.

“Your subject, Xu Ming, pays respects to Your Majesty,”

Walking to the Martial Emperor, Xu Ming respectfully bowed.

“Hahahaha, Champion Xu need not be so polite.” The Martial Emperor looked approvingly at the young man he admired most and personally helped him up. “I have been waiting for Champion Xu for quite some time!”

“Your Majesty coming to the gates of the imperial capital in person, this subject is truly apprehensive,” Xu Ming slowly straightened his back.

“What is there to be apprehensive about?” The Martial Emperor appeared very generous and said in a loud voice, “Sir Xu has devoted himself to the Wu Kingdom. This time, Sir Xu's mission to the North Sea has resulted in friendly relations between the North Sea and the Wu Kingdom. This is a great achievement! I shall reward you! Reward you handsomely!”

When the Martial Emperor said the words “reward you,” he pointed at Xu Ming with emphasis, and his voice was even louder, as if the Martial Emperor wanted to say this to all the civil and military officials.

Upon hearing this, the other civil and military officials exchanged glances.

They knew that His Majesty greatly favored this young man and that Sir Xu's mission to the North Sea had earned him great merit for the Wu Kingdom.

It was only right that Sir Xu receive a reward.

However, the problem was that His Majesty had said it so solemnly in front of everyone. This time, the reward would probably not be small. It was very likely that Sir Xu would be directly ennobled as a marquis or appointed as a prime minister.

His Majesty had been waiting for this opportunity for too long.

After all, they had long heard that His Majesty wanted to bestow a kingship or marquisate upon this champion, but the champion had not had any substantial achievements, making it difficult to do so.

Now that Sir Xu had gone on a mission to the North Sea and made such outstanding contributions, all the officials in the Wu Kingdom knew that, based on these merits, being ennobled as a marquis was definitely not a problem.

His Majesty was even conveying a signal to everyone— “From now on, Xu Ming is completely my man! All of you with ulterior motives, be careful!”

After all, back in the Rootless Secret Realm, some people had instructed cultivators to assassinate Sir Xu.

That incident not only aroused His Majesty's wrath, causing him to search the entire imperial capital, but also aroused the common people's shared hatred.

“Sharing Your Majesty's burdens is this subject's duty,” Xu Ming continued to be polite.

To be honest, Xu Ming was also a little worried in his heart.

Receiving the emperor's favor was not a bad thing. Countless officials would risk their lives to gain the emperor's attention.

However, the problem was that when a person received too much attention from the emperor, it was not entirely a good thing.

“Xu Ming, you don't need to be so polite. Come, come, come, get on my carriage. I want to hear all about what happened in the North Sea these days. What they told me wasn't enough!”

As he spoke, the Martial Emperor had already pulled Xu Ming onto the carriage.

Seeing this scene, many officials felt a mixture of emotions in their hearts.

Riding in the same carriage as the emperor.

The last person to have this treatment was the current Prime Minister, Xiao Mochih.

But now it was Xu Ming.

And if he remembered correctly, Xiao Mochih was Xu Ming's enlightenment teacher.

A teacher for a day is a father for life. This kind of teacher-student relationship is too strong.

When the time comes, the power of the “Xiao faction” will become larger and larger, and it will probably be truly unstoppable.

Xu Ming was polite for a few words, but under the Martial Emperor's insistence, and since the Martial Emperor had said the words “Could it be that my esteemed minister does not like to ride with me?”, Xu Ming could only get on the carriage.

On the carriage heading to the palace, Xu Ming told the Martial Emperor everything that had happened in the North Sea during these days, in great detail.

Of course, Xu Ming definitely couldn't tell the Martial Emperor about his relationship with the Dragon Queen.

The Martial Emperor listened to Xu Ming's narration without saying a word, as if he was thinking about something.

If Xu Ming guessed correctly, the Martial Emperor should be thinking about the current situation of the Four Seas.

The Martial Emperor might even be thinking about whether to go all in on the North Sea now.

After all, the Four Seas were very chaotic now, and it was possible that they would be in a state of chaos for a long time. If the Martial Emperor directly bet on the North Sea, if the North Sea could succeed, the return for the Wu Kingdom would be huge.

However, the problem was that the Martial Emperor did not know what the North Sea's ambitions were.

From what Xu Ming said, the North Sea wanted to control the East Sea, but did the North Sea want to unify the other two seas? This was questionable.

And from the Martial Emperor's mouth, Xu Ming also learned that the North Sea had actually sent a letter long ago.

The Martial Emperor showed this letter to Xu Ming.

This letter was written by the Dragon Queen herself. The letter clearly stated that Xu Ming's help to the North Sea during the Four Seas Grand Ceremony was immense, and the North Sea was willing to use Xu Ming as a bridge to establish a deeper friendship with the Wu Kingdom.

At this time, Xu Ming understood why the Martial Emperor was so happy to see him and shouted loudly to reward him.

For so many years, the North Sea had only established superficial friendships with other dynasties and sects at most.

In reality, the Wu Kingdom was the first force that the North Sea had established diplomatic relations with.

With the support of the North Sea, the Wu Kingdom's voice among the ten major dynasties of the human race would be much louder.

It was just that.

Xu Ming felt uneasy looking at the words “deeper friendship” written on the letter.

He always felt that this deeper friendship seemed to have another meaning.

“It's a pity, the Dragon Queen has no children, and I only have one daughter, so there is no way to get closer to the North Sea through marriage.”

As he spoke, the Martial Emperor sighed and then looked at Xu Ming.

“Xu Ming, do you have any ideas?”