# 1188
Chapter 1189: Representatives' Gathering
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Jinian sat down at the desk, clearing her throat somewhat awkwardly.
Lin Qiye sat across from her, his expression slightly微妙 (complicated). "So, you left me at the archives, said you were going to handle important business, and went to a host club?"
"I didn't I just promised them before leaving 【Utopia】 that I'd come find them for drinks when I got back. I'm keeping my word and honoring the appointment! That's important business!" Jinian said with a serious face.
Lin Qiye stared at her for a moment, then sighed heavily:
"Forget it, it's not the first time I've caught you doing this... Back when we were in the Japanese 'Human Enclosure,' I already got used to it.
More importantly, how's Zhou Ping's situation going?"
Jinian coughed a few times, her expression gradually turning serious: "That's exactly why I'm here to see you... Do you remember what I told you before about the channels for gathering information?"
"I remember."
"It's starting."
"'It'?"
"It's a gathering." Jinian said calmly, "A special gathering that only divine representatives can attend."
Lin Qiye's eyebrows rose slightly.
"Divine representatives are indeed rare within Great Xia, but not so much in the迷雾 (Mist). With so many divine kingdoms in the world, some gods have special needs and don't want to appear personally, so they find humans from 'Human Enclosure' or other places, grant them power, and use them to achieve certain goals.
According to our Oath Society's records, there are currently fifty to sixty documented divine representatives that have appeared in the Mist.
These divine representatives come from different divine kingdoms, possess different intelligence, information, or specialty items from their divine kingdoms. Every year, some of them约定 (agree) to hold secret meetings at a certain location to trade with each other and get what they need."
Jinian slapped the table, thinking of a very vivid metaphor:
"Think of it this way—if the gods of the various divine kingdoms are like the consorts in an ancient emperor's harem, then this gathering is like a group of the consorts' personal maids secretly gossiping among themselves.
Which consort is pregnant recently, which one has fallen out of favor, and which one has lost the pet bird she's been raising...
Here, you can hear all kinds of strange and wondrous gossip from the harem, though you need to pay a price, like treasures or information of equal value."
Lin Qiye: ...
What kind of brain would come up with such an odd metaphor?
Lin Qiye muttered internally, then spoke: "So, you think I can find clues about Zhou Ping here?"
"Zhou Ping is the only human in the world to ascend to godhood as a Great Xia sword immortal. No matter where he goes, he'll become the center of attention. Since he's been active in the Olympian region recently and there are so many Olympian divine representatives, someone is bound to know something about him."
Lin Qiye nodded slightly. "Sounds good... However, aren't divine representatives supposed to represent the gods behind them? There should be conflicts of interest between them. Would they really be able to gather so peacefully?"
"You're overestimating the relationship between gods and their representatives." Jinian shook her head. "The vast majority of gods and representatives only have a mutually exploitative relationship. Gods treat representatives as tools to achieve their goals, and representatives treat gods as a source of power.
Of course, there are exceptions. For example, you and Michael have no interest exchange at all... In fact, some gods simply treat their representatives as toys."
Images of Loki and Si Xiaonan flashed through Jinian's mind.
She paused, then continued: "There are indeed conflicts of interest between representatives, but those are their private affairs and have nothing to do with the gods behind them. And even if conflicts exist, they rarely appear at gatherings, because offending other representatives easily makes you a target for joint attacks.
At gatherings like this, everyone is there for trading purposes. The general rule is to keep a low profile."
"I understand. Where's the gathering location? When should I go?"
"The location changes every year, but for our Oath Society, finding this information isn't difficult... This year's location isn't too far from here. I'll send you the map, and tomorrow afternoon I'll have He Lin go with you."
"Is he also a divine representative?" Lin Qiye asked, surprised.
"No, but each representative can bring one attendant into the venue. Attendants don't participate in discussions or trades—they can only wait outside." Jinian explained,
"This gathering has many secret rules and agreements. You have no experience, so going alone could be dangerous. He knows a lot of intelligence and can be useful in critical moments."
"Alright." Lin Qiye nodded.
...
The next afternoon.
As agreed, Lin Qiye arrived at the foot of the central tower in 【Utopia】. He Lin had been waiting there for quite some time.
Since only divine representatives could attend the gathering, Baili Pangpang, Cao Yuan, An Qingyu, and the others couldn't go and could only wait in 【Utopia】 for news.
"So soon we meet again." Lin Qiye smiled. "How do we get there?"
"There's a dedicated ascent submarine at the top. I'll operate it."
He Lin walked familiar with the situation to a certain floor of the central tower, input commands, and opened a pixel door.
In the spacious and bright space, a circular pool appeared before Lin Qiye and He Lin.
He Lin tapped a few controls on the panel, and the pool's surface immediately began to ripple. A few seconds later, a black pixel submarine surfaced. On the side of the submarine was a unique three-digit serial number.
"How many submarines like this do you have?" Lin Qiye asked curiously.
"Not many, about five hundred or so." He Lin said while performing his checks. "But under normal circumstances, they're rarely used. For truly important missions, we always take the president's yacht. These small submarines were experimental works the president made before building 【Utopia】."
Lin Qiye followed He Lin and climbed into the submarine. After closing the hatch, as the submarine powered on, the two of them gradually sank into the deep sea.
The submarine wasn't large, but it had more than enough room for two. Through the periscope set up inside the cabin, Lin Qiye could see the deep, dark seawater rolling endlessly ahead.
Under He Lin's control, the pixel submarine steadily rose, then paused briefly to allow the hull to adapt to the water pressure changes, before continuing to ascend...
After about twenty minutes, 【Utopia】 completely disappeared from Lin Qiye's view. Their position was gradually approaching the sea surface.
Once the top of the submarine broke through the water's surface, Lin Qiye reached out to open the hatch.
He climbed out of the hatch and stood on the submarine's surface. Mist swirled all around him, and as far as his eyes could see, there was no end in sight.