Just as he was about to speak, Lü Yingyue cast him a cold glance. 

“Don’t worry, I have authorization. Under the Federation’s precedent, when a governor falls in the line of duty during a crisis, the cities of that province may hold their own vote to elect a successor. All the signatures are here.” She tossed him a thin sheet of paper. “If the format is wrong, I’ll have Xu Chaoxian write you another one!”

The envoy hurriedly caught it and examined it carefully with trembling hands. As he looked over the signatures, all of which had clearly been prepared in advance, he couldn’t even speak. By the time he reached the name and official seal at the bottom, he nearly coughed up blood. “Isn’t this… somewhat… improper?”

Lü Yingyue turned to look at him in puzzlement. “Is it?” 

Beneath her foot lay a freshly severed head. Under the dirt coating its face, traces of a young woman’s features could still be seen, but the eerie allure that had once bewitched minds and distorted reality was gone.

“Given the situation, does Central City still have any insights to offer regarding the situation in Haizhou?” Lü Yingyue asked. “Please, Special Envoy, speak freely.”

The envoy fell silent, too terrified to utter another word.

“That’s what I thought.” Lü Yingyue nodded and waved everyone away impatiently. “Since none of you have anything to say, there’s no need to trouble yourselves over a remote province like ours.” 

The creature’s head shattered...