Chapter 657: Returning to Ninglan New City and the Celebration Ceremony
“Ninglan New City has now become the iconic city of the Ninglan Realm, with its radiation range covering not only Ninglan New City itself but also the surrounding areas, three shelters, and three havens, forming a joint area of the Ninglan Realm.”
“I’ve heard that due to the rapid development of Plant Technology, the internal development speed of Ninglan New City is now comparable to that of the outside world, where our Witch Academy is located in Magic Capital.”
“And also… With the realization of manned airships, the resource circulation among the major shelters has accelerated, and we have started attempting exchanges and resource sharing with those shelters outside the Ninglan Realm…”
“Um… Sister Xiao Han, I’ve heard that many of the shelters in the Expanding Realm were assisted by you. Is this true?”
“Sort of, I just helped them plant a Wanlian Main Network Tree.” I explained.
“Just that… How is that possible? The Plant Network is currently promoting your achievements everywhere, which cannot be summarized by just planting a tree… Um… Could it be that someone is using your name, Sister Xiao Han…”
“No, it’s hard to explain it to you. If you really want to understand, you can think of it as all of them being my clones.”
“Clones? How could there be such a terrifying Clone Spell! Spread all over the Expanding Realm… Wait? Those who went out exploring recently and said they met you, could it be that they all met your clones?” Luo Yun suddenly thought of something and asked in disbelief.
“Maybe, my clones have indeed been discovered by quite a few people.” I nodded and said, “But that’s not the point. Are there any new developments in Ninglan New City?”
“Oh! There’s more…” Seeing that I didn’t want to waste time on this topic, Luo Yun immediately changed the subject.
“Sister Xiao Han, your support group’s development in Ninglan New City… You don’t know, actually many people greatly admire your achievements.”
“Of course… Because of your strength and continuous miracles, your support group now stands as a large entity capable of competing with organizations like the All-purpose Association in the Ninglan Realm. If you are willing to return and lead everyone, I believe they would be more than willing… Of course, Sister Xiao Han, you also understand… some matters cannot be rushed…”
“Why, should I not rush? Is the support group being suppressed badly?”
“No, that’s not it… The support group, while established in your name, is essentially not a formal organizational entity, but rather a loose group.”
“However, due to Senior Millien’s leadership, the support group has established deep collaborative relationships with many organizations. If you suddenly decide to take over completely, it may cause discomfort among the members of the support group, as most of them are merchants who rely on your reputation to operate, and their principles are quite flexible…”
“I don’t intend to return and take over these matters completely. I’m not interested.” I interrupted Luo Yun’s next comment, revealing a tone of indifference.
“Really? Thank you for understanding, Sister Xiao Han.” Luo Yun seemed a bit surprised. “Regarding the use of your name by the support group, there are rumors that you agreed to it, but we have been unable to find direct evidence… Would you mind…”
“I don’t mind, as long as they don’t do anything foolish, I won’t interfere.” I looked at Luo Yun, noticing that she seemed overly invested in this matter. “Luo Yun, you seem very concerned about the future of this group, even wanting to know my thoughts so directly.”
“Ah? Is that so… Did I show it too obviously?” Luo Yun realized her overstep. “Sorry, I just really hope the support group can continue, and I’m worried it might bring you trouble. As a member myself, I fear everyone’s efforts might go to waste…”
“Fear just means you all aren’t doing well enough.”
“Sister Xiao Han is right, but… actually, one reason for the slow development of the support group is that it hasn’t received your acknowledgment. While privately it’s unclear who spread the word that you acknowledged the existence of the support group, such rumors, no matter how widespread, can never compare to your own confirmation.”
“You want me to return to Ninglan New City and publicly acknowledge it, right?”
“Yes! We have been waiting for this day for a long time! If… If you are willing, Sister Xiao Han!”
“I’m good with it, as long as you don’t let me down.” I said.
As I chatted casually with Luo Yun, a scene in the distance quickly caught my eye.
From above, looking down, the area that was once covered in vegetation had now developed into a connected urban area. The construction of roads also reflected the process of civilization reconstruction.
The closer I got, the more I could see manned airships in the sky forming orderly lines, traveling towards distant shelters and newly established cities for resource circulation.
Moreover, the closer I approached, the more I could see students riding brooms, wandering in the sky.
During the time I wasn’t paying attention, the news of my presence in the Ninglan Realm quickly spread across the Plant Network.
So when I appeared in Ninglan New City, I was met with the most grand welcome.
The ones welcoming me were members of the support group; of course, upon hearing the news of my return, various organizations also sent members to welcome me.
After all, my reputation now was such that they could not ignore it. Having the Wanlian Main Network Tree spread throughout the entire Expanding Realm, connecting nearly all human gathering places via the Plant Network, provided an undeniable push for the reconstruction of the civilization in the Expanding Realm!
As long as one’s mind is not clouded, it is impossible for anyone to take a stance against the trend during this moment.
Before long, the City Lord of Ninglan New City, Ninglan Qiuyue, also held a grand welcome ceremony for my return.
Such a grand event indeed shocked me and made me realize how important the things I had been doing were.
In fact, at the beginning, I was only thinking about myself.
Mastering the information flow of an entire Expanding Realm sounds exciting just to think about. Moreover, it’s self-evident what kind of knowledge and nourishment this could bring to the Great Knowledge Tree.
Not to mention, I had spread the order of my own domain throughout the entire Expanding Realm. Even saying that I completely controlled the Expanding Realm would only be a slight exaggeration.
But all the deeds I had done also brought convenience to everyone, which is an undeniable merit, so I could accept their praises.
However… these cumbersome and grand ceremonies are indeed troublesome, but even just showing up counts as giving enough face.
Of course, this welcoming ceremony wasn’t just hosted by Ninglan New City; various organizations, academies, and my support group also participated.
Their rare consensus at this moment was to use this opportunity to build a platform for various groups to come together and communicate.
Whether it’s the large organizations wanting to connect with me, student groups from other academies, or small groups and individuals wanting to expand their network through this platform, they took advantage of my aversion to trouble to complete this welcome ceremony. I merely made an appearance and didn’t even say much, yet no one dared to say I was being disrespectful; they were just glad I said nothing.
As this citywide welcome ceremony concluded, several explosive pieces of news began to circulate.
First off, Teaching Assistant Xiao Han officially acknowledged the name of the Xiao Han Support Group.
Without any guarantees, nor any subsequent actions, some might find it confusing, but those who understand know that this is the biggest promise given by Teaching Assistant Xiao Han!
Providing an official name signifies that the support group has received the protection of Teaching Assistant Xiao Han. Even if no promises were made, no one was foolish enough to think that she wouldn’t back them up. But if the support group indeed fell to the point of needing to rely solely on Teaching Assistant Xiao Han for support, it also symbolized the imminent collapse of the group, as she wouldn’t need a group that only brings burdens.
Furthermore, since Teaching Assistant Xiao Han did not leak any follow-up arrangements for the support group, it also equates to giving them the maximum autonomy.
This was also why many within the support group breathed a sigh of relief; they were all adults, and benefits were the eternal foundation for collaboration.
Teaching Assistant Xiao Han is famously stringent on matters of benefit distribution, so it’s normal for people in the support group to worry about this.
After all, no one wants to be the fool.
Of course, if this was merely about the support group, the next matter pertains to the more profound development of the Expanding Realm.
Concerning the maintenance rights of the Wanlian Main Network Tree… and the transmission of civilization information.
During this period, there had indeed been a fixed team dedicated to maintaining the Wanlian Main Network Tree, but these were merely temporary authorizations.
However, once this issue is formally put forward, it will require a formal and professional team.
Currently, one of the two Wanlian Main Network Trees in the Ninglan Realm is under study by a group of instructors, while the other one requires maintenance. But with the development of manned airship technology, it won’t be long before maintenance personnel for the Wanlian Main Network Trees will need to be busy traveling all over the Expanding Realm.
No one believes this is a thankless job; being among the first batch of Plant Network maintenance personnel in the Expanding Realm carries enough remarkable status. Furthermore, with the openness and development of the Plant Network in the future, working within this network and its related industries will contain immense profit.
Although many question what qualifications Teaching Assistant Xiao Han has to authorize the maintenance of the Wanlian Main Network Trees, as she is just a tree planter, no one dares to say it to her face, but only dares to anonymously write emotional expressions on the Plant Network.
Then these people get ridiculed, and various memes and viral phrases mocking them emerge.
For instance: “Xiao Han is just a tree planter.jpg.”
Moreover, the declaration from instructors they were hoping for did not arrive, since to those unaware of the truth, the Wanlian Main Network Tree is regarded as a product created by the combined efforts of the instructors, and only instructors are qualified to authorize it.
Though, in my view, they are indeed partly correct; I built the framework of the Wanlian Main Network Tree, the basic systems and order were also established by me, but all the subsequent content and functional improvements across different fields were continuously refined by those instructors.
However, regardless of how the issue unfolds, it continues to pass through wave after wave of heated discussions.
Meanwhile, I was still inquiring about this year’s college entrance examination.
After all, it was time to resolve some matters.
The college entrance examination is the most important period of the year in the Main World, no exceptions.
This is a unified assessment conducted globally, where every Extraordinary Academy radiating to a realm will plan numerous examination locations and send professional upperclassmen in advance to set up the examination rooms.
Moreover, during the examination period, it’s not just simple proctoring with anti-cheating signal blockers, but involves multiple layers of Extraordinary methods of preventing cheating.
At the very least, there must be upperclassmen with mental strength covering the entire examination room.
Subsequently, the proctoring methods rely on what each realm’s Extraordinary Academy employs.
For example, the Witch Academy would provide spellbooks for monitoring areas that cover the entire examination venue, and the Earth Vein Operating System would record Earth Vein information at any time to ensure there’s no cheating.
And these methods are never disclosed; ordinary people taking the entrance exam have no idea how to prevent them and, even if they knew the methods, have no means to cheat.
Moreover, those Extraordinary students responsible for proctoring need to sign Witch Contracts to completely eliminate any possibility of misconduct.
“Sister Xiao Han, why have you suddenly become interested in the college entrance examination?”
Members of the support group were quite puzzled by my desire to learn about the college entrance examination, as this was a thankless task.
Although, this was an official task released by the academy, and the task rewards were quite rich, it truly wasn’t significant for upper-tier students.
In fact, many teaching assistants don’t even bother to take on such tasks.
“There’s someone I care about in this batch, and I plan on going to see.” I responded vaguely.
However, I was quite satisfied with the intelligence they had collected for me.
If I were to search for this information on the academy’s website, I could only obtain some official processes, but many details were not described and lacked experience. Even with Earth Vein Identification Technique, faced with such unanchored information, broadly searching through the Earth Veins would also be quite troublesome.
The one speaking to me is an intelligence member of my support group.
Interestingly, within the support group, there was even a self-formed intelligence team, but the role of acquiring information is indeed crucial for a large organization.
Moreover, they were willing to serve just me, deliberately forming a subgroup in this intelligence team specifically to provide information for me, and their loyalty is in the form of Witch Contracts.
And all I provided was their small team’s Great Knowledge Seed.
“Sister Xiao Han… Regarding the college entrance examination, this requires signing a strict rule-based contract for the entire process. If you wish to use this identity to provide convenience for that individual… I’m afraid it won’t be possible…”
“I’m just going to take a look. How could I be unaware of the seriousness of the college entrance examination?”
“It’s my mistake to mention it.”
“It’s alright; you’re right to remind me. There shouldn’t be anything else in Ninglan New City, right? If not, I’m preparing to head back to the academy. By the way, which instructor is in charge of issuing the proctoring tasks? Would that instructor mind if I went to see her?”
“The instructors responsible for these tasks are generally the rotating year directors of the lower grade levels. However, Sister Xiao Han, if you don’t recognize her, you can find your previous instructor Lina; you know, she was the year director who taught you before, and she might be able to help you.”
“Thanks.”
I also stood up, preparing to look for Instructor Lina. It had been a while since I last saw her.
The most vivid impression I had of her was during that time when she discussed world script theory with me.
At that time, I felt quite apprehensive. Sister Bai was bustling around to help me, but in the blink of an eye… all of that seemed inconsequential now.
“By the way, Sister Xiao Han!”
“What else is there?”
“There is indeed one more thing. Not long ago, a teaching assistant brought back a business card for you. She hopes to invite you to meet her sometime. Her name is Fu Xinglan, and she is a teaching assistant from your batch.”
“Fu Xinglan… oh, her.” Upon hearing that name, I quickly recalled. I exchanged answers during the written test; she was a member of the All-purpose Association, but now she must be a pillar of the organization since she became a teaching assistant. I wonder if that witch from the Witch Secret Realm Association, Tracy, has been as fortunate as her to become a teaching assistant?
“Since she is looking for me, let’s meet. Can you help arrange that?”
“Of course, it would be my honor.”
