Chapter 527: Old Boy Network

Amurong's words were contentious, but they had achieved their desired effect.

The authorities of the world federation had been concerned with whether or not Amurong was guilty of the crimes Hong Tianqi had accused him of—now, he had deftly changed the topic toward seizing control of Zhang Lie's research.

All of the Milky Way was hoping to see this mysterious recipe, after all.

Even so, Amurong didn't get off scot-free—not everyone was so easy to fool.

"Isn't it despicable of Amurong to be trying to attack the Zenith Dojo while Zhang Lie was fighting off the monarch of stars?"

"Regardless of the justification, this is behavior unbefitting of the presiding authority of the world federation—shameless, petty, and despicable."

Zhang Lie had garnered quite a few fans throughout the Milky Way, and they continued broaching the subject of Amurong's crimes.

Not only was Amurong accused of attacking the Zenith Dojo and attempted kidnapping, he had even instigated others to do so on his behalf. Yesterday, the highest court of the world federation had detained Amurong for investigation, and he had had to pay heavy bail to even host his press conference.

There would be a court of law to try him for his actions, and his reputation and amount of resources available to him dipped sharply. Nevertheless, considering what he had amassed over the years, he wouldn't be put down quite so easily.

One scandal wouldn't be enough to topple him from his vaunted position,

and he would be largely shielded from his actions because he had acted through an intermediary. Amurong had recruited the services of the best lawyer in the world federation, and he would soon emerge free from the morasses of court.

Nevertheless, Hong Tianqi surely would not let him go easily. If Amurong wanted to stabilize his position, he had to fend Hong Tianqi off somehow—and the four prime races as well.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The four prime races were cooperating with Zhang Lie to obtain limit-breaking potions amenable to their respective races, and they had no intention of going easy on anyone who dared to meddle with their plans.

Fortunately for Amurong, he wasn't working alone. As the presiding authority of the world federation, he had plenty of politicians and businessmen on his side.

The attack on the Zenith Dojo reached a new peak of publicity as Hong Tianqi released all the evidence he had obtained on Amurong's illicit activities.

He had long tried to gather evidence on Amurong's machinations and plotting, and he had amassed a veritable stash by this point. Some pieces of evidence were concrete, and others were circumstantial; nevertheless, Hong Tianqi released it all.

No one could have imagined that the presiding authority of the world federation had gotten his hands so dirty. The release of all that information landed the world federation in a crisis of faith: the public had lost their trust in a cornerstone of their society.

The world federation had neither its own army nor power in its own right, only the trust of the masses. That Hong Tianqi had chosen to release his cache of evidence in spite of this was a disastrous blow.

Hong Tianqi wasn't finished. In a stunning proclamation, he declared that he would found a new world federation.

The entire galaxy was abuzz. Amurong's reputation was more or less ruined for the short term, but the corporations that worked closely with him and depended on him for beneficial partnerships naturally had to protect him. They launched smear campaigns against Hong Tianqi, accusing him of acting against the greater good.

Hong Tianqi himself wasn't alone; behind him stood the four prime races and countless other subordinate races like the blood demons, all of whom were counting on Zhang Lie to obtain their race-specific limit-breaking potions.

Once again, Amurong publicly requested that China and Zhang Lie share the recipe for the limit-breaking potion for the good of all.

Even now, Amurong didn't regret what he had done. These limit-breaking potions had the power to shape the future of the galaxy. If he didn't control this power, it would soon be used against him.

That was why Amurong had taken such a grave risk.

Indeed, Amurong's predictions were accurate. Hong Tianqi's coalition, built upon the strength of these limit-breaking potions, loomed over Amurong's old boy network.

The schism between the two halves of the world federation grew even more pronounced. On one side was Amurong and his team of politicians and mercenaries from all over the galaxy.

On the other was Hong Tianqi, the four prime races, and all sorts of subordinate races. Everyone knew that Hong Tianqi was unconditionally supportive of Zhang Lie, and they were essentially proxies of each other.

Amurong had attacked the Zenith Dojo, and in doing so, roused Hong Tianqi's ire. Zhang Lie's supporters wouldn't take this lying down.

The subordinate races who had sided with Hong Tianqi viewed this as an investment to get in Zhang Lie's good graces.

They were counting solely on Zhang Lie for his limit-breaking potions. If something were to happen to Zhang Lie before he could obtain any results, they would go home empty-handed and devoid of whatever investment they had made.

As a result, Hong Tianqi found more and more supporters on his side.

If not for Amurong's tireless efforts all these years in solidifying his connections with the largest corporations in the galaxy, he would have lost all his influence already.

Even so, as these races continued heaping pressure on Amurong, he felt as though he were on a raft amidst a gathering storm, barely able to keep himself afloat.

He was very glad that Zhang Lie hadn't made any further progress in his research with the alien races. If that were to happen, Hong Tianqi's forces would consolidate, and his would be crushed by their onslaught.

Amurong feared the fruits of Zhang Lie's research, the power of the limit-breaking potions he had devised. Just the promise of that name alone had resulted in the support of countless alien races all over the galaxy.

In terms of reputation, Amurong couldn't stand up to Zhang Lie. Zhang Lie had just raided a sura empire, and his renown and reputation had instantly reached its apex.

From every perspective, it looked as though Amurong was on the losing end; if he didn't turn the tides, all that awaited him would be death and destruction...