CHAPTER 756: HUMAN COUNCIL HQ

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The rest of the flight went smoothly, and Cedric wasn’t surprised.

He knew that the attempt earlier was just a probe. They were just testing the people around him; they haven’t unleashed a serious attempt yet, and they’re not expecting the previous attempt to succeed anyway.

They did send an army his way. Luckily, Philip was there to handle things; otherwise, this trip could’ve been delayed even longer.

Cedric also wouldn’t be surprised if the enemy knows that he’s being escorted personally by an Empyrean too, and so long as Philip is here, they probably wouldn’t dare.

But that’s also the key to their next move. Nobody could expect Philip to remain beside Cedric for the rest of time. Eventually, he’s going to leave, and Cedric will be vulnerable again.

However, that’s a problem for the future.

For now, they arrived at the Human Council HQ, which serves as the core governance of the entire Heavenly Star Chaos Realm.

The Human Council HQ was an extremely large continent, one whose size could almost rival that of an entire universe.

It’s hidden behind an enchanted space, and said space was heavily guarded, although not obviously. Even with Cedric’s miraculous eyes, he could barely sense the defenses hidden all around the space that hid the realm.

Not just anybody could come here. Just like entering the Altus Sky Solar System, one would have to go through several background checks before they’re allowed entry here. And even then, they can’t expect to be treated as an important guest here.

Upon successful entry, any human would instantly feel awed by the sight. This isn’t just because of the sheer size and grandness of the place. It’s because the luck and destiny of the human race were concentrated here.

Without a doubt, the Human Council HQ is one of the most important places within humanity’s kingdom. If it were to be destroyed, it would be a huge blow to the vitality and existence of the race, and that’s not an exaggeration.

All who came here, regardless of status or strength, must show humility in respect to the solemn dignity of the Humanity and its council. Anything less will be considered disrespectful and might even result in immediate execution.

Was this unreasonable? Maybe. But disrespecting the dignity of the human race was a sin in this place, and such sinners cannot expect mercy.

Even Philip, as an Empyrean, cannot just come and go as he pleases here. The only reason why he’s allowed this time was because he’s connected to Cedric, who’s the actual guest of honor here.

"Welcome to the Human Council HQ, Lord Dawnbringer," Sir Thomas said as he took the lead. "Please follow and allow me to give you a brief tour of this place."

Cedric had no problems with that, so that’s exactly what he did, accompanied by Philip and his bodyguards, of course.

He had a feeling that almost everybody who saw him here recognized him immediately. Still, regardless of recognition or not, they still sent out probes to him numerous times as he passed through the entrance.

In other places, this behavior would’ve been seen as disrespectful and rude, but here, it’s normal. Everybody has to be alert and cautious regardless of the identity of whoever passes through those doors.

They would rather be rude and disrespectful to their guest than be complacent and doom the entire race by letting the enemy in.

Cedric didn’t mind. He understood why they’re doing this. Besides, Sir Thomas had already warned him when they were still on the ship.

They successfully passed through without any problems, but this doesn’t mean that the surveillance ended right there. It’s given that they’d be under constant observation throughout the duration of their stay here. They can’t even expect privacy even as they use the comfort rooms; that’s how tight the security here is.

But if one could ignore this feeling of being watched, the scenery beyond the gates was mighty impressive.

Cedric felt like he entered a massively upscaled museum. Wherever he looked, he saw pieces of history preserved behind glass; each piece contained an ancient air that permeated every square inch of this place.

Even the tiniest rock here was steeped in rich history and destiny, making everything here extremely valuable to humanity.

Cedric never felt so safe and secure ever since coming to the Primitive Universe. Only this place made him feel this way. Furthermore, he could also feel any negativity within him dissolving under the radiance of humanity’s luck and destiny.

Mere exposure to this environment was beneficial to his life evolution. Although it’s not much, if he could stay here for as long as possible, his gains will eventually accumulate and become extremely valuable.

Without a doubt, this place was the Holy Land of Humans. And anybody would be very lucky to be here.

Sir Thomas did his best to introduce the sights as they passed through them. He didn’t introduce them one by one because it would take them months or even years before they’re done, and they don’t have that much time. He generalized instead, and if Cedric was interested in a particular piece, that’s only when he’d properly introduce it to him.

But even as he generalized the categories of the pieces here, it still took them three days to finish the tour. And it’s only after that that they moved on.

Sir Thomas led Cedric and his entourage deeper into the HQ. More specifically, where the operations that scaled all over the entire chaos realm were taking place.

Cedric was greeted by an army of busy people and the flashing lights of the machines and systems operating like a symphony. None even batted an eye in their direction, presumably because they already know that they’re here.

Sir Thomas led them past this place, treating them like they didn’t exist at all.

Then, he paused before a set of huge doors leading somewhere deeper into the HQ.

"Only you can go past these doors, Lord Dawnbringer. We can only wait here for you. Please go on; they’re waiting for you," Sir Thomas urged.

Cedric looked briefly at Philip and his bodyguards, who nodded at him. He nodded back in understanding before approaching the door.

It didn’t open for him. He also didn’t see any machines that need to scan his identity or anything, nor any mechanism that will be triggered on his approach. These doors were just a set of giant doors made with incredibly precious metals that are also steeped in human history, luck, and destiny.

Since the door wasn’t parting for him, it’s clear that he had to do it the hard way.

He stretched out his arms and braced before pushing the doors open. He let out a soft snort at the resistance, but he pushed on anyway.

The loud groan of the doors reverberated throughout the place. Some of the workers on the opposite side of the room even paused their movements for a bit to watch as he pushed the doors open.

Others won’t know this, but this was a test.

It’s not like these doors lacked security measures; the ones they had were just different.

Of course, these doors were heavy. It was made using alloys of the heaviest and sturdiest metals one could find in the entire chaos realm. Furthermore, these doors had a natural gravitational pull of their own. The doors were like magnets with opposite poles, and the attraction between those poles is what’s keeping them shut.

Pushing past that is the test that Cedric must pass to gain audience with those waiting on the other side.

Aside from him, many have come here to participate in this test, and only a handful were able to rely on their sheer efforts alone to push past these doors; others had to be let in after trying and miserably failing, much to their shame.

And just like Cedric’s performance throughout the tournament, he made this look easy too. It didn’t even look like he was exerting himself just to open the doors. They could see the attempt but not the struggle.

Eventually, Cedric pushed the doors wide open. Like, actually and completely wide open, setting up a new record for those who attempted the same before him.

But Cedric couldn’t care less about that even if he knew. He wasn’t here for a pissing contest.

So, after pushing the doors wide open, he walked inside with the doors closing behind him.

Boom!

The closing of the door emitted a strong force that caused an explosion; the aftershock caused strong winds that made his clothes and hair flutter.

But again, Cedric didn’t care. He continued on his way as if he didn’t notice that at all.

He’s now walking in a large tunnel surrounded by cascading lights. As he followed the road leading deeper in, small light orbs lit up as he walked past them, illuminating his way and the path before him.

The tunnel went on for a while before he eventually found himself walking out to a large open space.

That’s when he saw them...

Seven people sitting on unique thrones, all looking down at him, their expressions filled with varying reactions.

"You stand before the Human Council, Dawnbringer."