263: Chapter 263 Everyone's too eager to improve.

White Jade Capital, Guild Hall.

Before the "huaxia: map of ten thousand li of mountains and rivers" that spanned the entire wall, the atmosphere was solemn.

Mist flowed slowly across the scroll, and a golden dragon-shaped fortune resided over the map of the Divine Land, exuding a heart-pounding majesty.

Everyone's gaze, filled with shock and inquiry, fell upon this civilized wonder that could be called a miracle.

Lin Miao, Mu Xi, and Liu Ming were the first to complete their mission reports, being concise and to the point.

Director Li Guoan nodded, his deep gaze sweeping over the three of them as he calmly uttered four words: "You did very well."

There was no excessive praise, but this single sentence was enough to make the three steadfast Dragon Scale members feel a heartfelt sense of exhilaration.

Subsequently, everyone's attention focused on Chen You.

Chen You recounted the entire process of the trip to Japan without reservation, including the shocking secret of the Thunder Ancestor's descent and how a single snort forced back the Heguo Heavenly God.

"...That's how the situation is."

When the title "The Heavenly Venerable Manifesting Thunder, Sound, and Primordial Essence of the Nine Heavens" left his mouth, the entire command center became so quiet a needle could be heard dropping.

Even for this group of experts and high-level officials who were used to seeing great storms, their minds were shaken at this moment, their faces filled with disbelief.

So... there really are gods!

Although the immortals throne had summoned Second Son of the Heavenly God when establishing the guild territory, that was, after all, inside the Source Realm.

Regarding the truth or falsehood of Second Son of the Heavenly God, it had only been speculation.

This time, it was in the real world! It was seen by Chen You with his own eyes!

"No wonder... no wonder that so-called Amaterasu Omikami fled so decisively!"

A young researcher clenched his fists excitedly, his voice trembling.

This news was even more heartening than the flattening of the Yasukuni Shrine itself!

"Then... will the Japanese God Realm seek retaliation?" someone voiced their concern.

Hearing this, tactical team leader Zhang Yunhai's eyes flashed with a sharp light.

He shook his head and said in a heavy voice, "On the contrary, this represents absolute safety."

He analyzed logically: "Since the Thunder Ancestor has appeared and taken a stand, it is equivalent to drawing a clear red line between mortals and gods."

"As long as they aren't stupid, they will never dare to cross that line again."

"Otherwise, what awaits them will be a true war of gods, and they would have zero chance of winning."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded one after another, the doubts in their hearts swept away.

They did not know that at this moment, the Japanese God Realm, "Takamagahara," had essentially become a magnificent cage where entry was permitted but exit was not.

Director Li Guoan did not let the conversation linger too long on the matter of gods.

That was a game on another level; for now, they had more important matters to handle.

His finger pointed to the magnificent scroll on the wall.

"Little Chen, is this the Source Realm's final stance on this incident?"

"Yes." Chen You nodded; only now did he calm down to carefully observe the map.

Reminded by Director Li Guoan, he immediately discovered the strange point that Academician Liu Sicheng and others had already noticed—this huaxia: map of ten thousand li of mountains and rivers was incomplete.

The entire map was pieced together from two sections, one large and one small.

The large piece was the familiar outline of the Divine Land, with towering mountains and surging rivers.

The smaller piece, in the shape of islands, clearly represented Japan, whose fortune he had plundered.

At the junction of the two sections, that golden crack, though subtle, was incredibly clear.

It was like a scar that would never heal, yet also like a warning that could burst open at any time.

Further out at the edges were blank areas shrouded in thick clouds and mist.

"The system is..." Chen You frowned as a bold thought welled up in his heart.

"It wants me... to annex more civilizations?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the meeting room fell silent once again.

Everyone looked at the blank areas shrouded in mist, their expressions becoming complex.

The Source Realm, or rather the existence behind it, seemed to be using this most intuitive method to encourage or even entice Chen You to embark on a path of conquest.

"If it gives you another 'monarchs heart' next time, then the meaning will likely be very obvious."

Director Li Guoan's tone was flat, revealing no emotion.

Chen You's heart skipped a beat.

Indeed.

To activate "Ruling the World" in the real world again and plunder national fortune, one must have a mythological item of the caliber of the monarchs heart.

This was almost an open scheme.

Give you supreme benefits, then point out a path for you; whether to take it or not is entirely up to you.

"But... this is too sensitive." Social relations expert Pan Yu pushed her glasses up, her expression grave.

"This time Japan brought it upon themselves, and we had a righteous cause. But what about other civilizations?"

"If we launch real-world wars for no reason, what's the difference between us and bandits? We cannot bear the pressure of international public opinion."

Everyone nodded; this was indeed a major problem.

Huaxia had never been an aggressive civilization.

To have them actively attack other countries for the sake of in-game rewards touched everyone's bottom line.

For a moment, the atmosphere was somewhat heavy.

The huaxia: map of ten thousand li of mountains and rivers, which should have symbolized glory and victory, now looked like a Pandora's box, filled with unknown temptation and danger.

Just then, Director Li Guoan, who had been silent, suddenly smiled.

He picked up the teacup in front of him, blew gently on it, and said slowly, "You all have let your thoughts run into a dead end."

Everyone was stunned and looked at him in unison.

Chen You also cast a questioning look.

Director Li Guoan put down his teacup and tapped his fingertip lightly on the table.

"There is another possibility."

He paused, his deep gaze sweeping across everyone present, finally landing on Chen You as he said word by word.

"The Guild Hegemony War is about to begin in five days."

"Tell me, if we 'harvest' the fortune of other civilization guilds as well, would this scroll... also expand?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire command center instantly fell silent.

All the experts widened their eyes as if struck by a bolt of lightning; an unprecedented and incredibly bold idea began to grow wildly in their minds.

That's right!

Why must they fight to the death in the real world?

The Source Realm itself is a perfect 'proxy battlefield'!

There, there are no concerns about divine intervention, no pressure from international public opinion—only the purest clash of strength!

"Hiss..." Zhang Yunhai slammed his hand against his glasses, his breathing becoming rapid.

"Feasible! It's theoretically completely feasible! The Source Realm exists based on civilizations, and guild territories themselves are the concrete manifestation of civilization fortune in the Source Realm!"

"Plundering guild fortune is equivalent to plundering civilizations!"

"But there are still risks!" Data Team Leader Sun Feng added.

"If we fail, then this ability might be lost forever."

"I have a somewhat immature suggestion..." Social relations expert Pan Yu raised her hand, her eyes shining.

"Could we... do some outsourcing?"

Everyone: "?"

Pan Yu explained excitedly, "What I mean is, we don't necessarily have to take the field ourselves to make enemies of all the guilds."

"For example, we could sponsor Moon Gods Radiance and let them go fight Titan Temple."

"When they are both exhausted, we can step in and reap the benefits, swallowing the fortune of both houses in one go!"

"This is called... strategic investment!"

In an instant, the vibe of the entire command center changed drastically.

A group of top experts who were usually rigorous and solemn now looked like a bunch of black-bellied military strategists who had found a new toy, with all sorts of tactics like "vertical and horizontal alliances" and "driving the tiger to swallow the wolf" emerging one after another.

Chen You's eyelids twitched as he listened.

Good grief, the war hasn't even started yet, and you've already arranged all Thirty-Six Stratagems?