The system handed me over to the state.

Bronya didn't particularly like the word "vase," especially when used to describe herself and Seele, but she had to admit that they probably couldn't offer any real help in this diplomatic mission, namely, providing protection or deterrence for the diplomats.

Hmm... it can also help create goodwill towards them for the live stream of this meeting.

It makes people who like to look at beautiful women feel good about us, for example, thinking that the other person is so beautiful, so they must not be a bad person.

Chapter 372: An Alliance Across the Universe

"Hello, Ms. Bronya, it's been a long time."

This time, the two men in charge of diplomatic work, Ji Yu and Zhu Zhiwen, met with Bronya and Seele at the entrance of the teleportation room.

"Hello, both of you. I'm entrusting this meeting to you. Also, let me introduce you. This is my partner, Seele."

The two glanced at Seele and saw surprise in each other's eyes. However, Shenzhou is a very inclusive country, and as long as it does not violate the law or humanity, it can be tolerated.

All they could do was offer their heartfelt blessings to Seele and Bronya regarding their love.

"So, shall we set off?"

Zhu Zhiwen asked, and Bronya nodded, "Of course, let's go. Also, this time Su Su has sent four guards for us."

A soldier in power armor stood up straight beside him. "Gentlemen, I am Hongxiao, the person in charge of the escort for this meeting. Today, the four of us will provide escort services to ensure your safety during the upcoming meeting."

"Hello, Comrade Hongxiao, I'm entrusting the rest to you. Let's set off!"

Next, the group entered the teleportation room. The world passage to China had already been established, and a temporary teleportation base had been set up in China to handle world exchanges with China and provide channels for future trade of goods and technology.

The teleportation process is also very simple: stand up straight, don't move around, and after 10 seconds, the teleportation will be over. Then you can do whatever you want.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the teleportation is about to begin. Please do not move. Thank you for your cooperation. We wish you a safe and pleasant journey!"

Teleportation, commence!

A dazzling light enveloped the group, and after the light faded, the teleportation room returned to its empty state.

Once Bronya's vision gradually returned, they found themselves on a huge teleportation platform.

The platform was far too large for the number of people in it. Bronya was puzzled. Was this place for transporting troops? Why was it so big?

I opened my goggles and scanned my surroundings. There were many people nearby, and a large number of armed troops were stationed there. The surrounding environment was a forest, but it wasn't man-made. It was a teleportation platform built in the natural environment. They like to hide things in the mountains.

It seems that even though they are from different worlds, the two countries like to do almost the same things.

Have we arrived?

Zhu Zhiwen looked around at the empty surroundings and was a little puzzled. Why was there no one here?

At this moment, Bronya's goggles detected the movement of the people. After removing the goggles, she said, "They've arrived. Don't panic. They've probably just finished a teleportation. It's their first time teleporting people, so they're probably a bit cautious and nervous."

A few minutes later, several people walked onto the platform. Bronya could clearly see that when they saw them, the people paused for a moment before continuing to walk towards them.

Was it because you saw Hongxiao and the other three?

That makes sense, since Hongxiao and his group of four were wearing power armor, making them noticeably more conspicuous than themselves.

"Excuse me, are you diplomatic envoys sent by China?"

The man who stepped forward was dressed in a sharp black suit, and his expression and movements were very cautious. Zhu Zhiwen decisively stepped forward, extended his hand to introduce himself, and stated the identities of everyone.

The other party then smiled and shook hands with Zhu Zhiwen, saying that they had been looking forward to their arrival for a long time.

As Bronya left the platform, she saw people in the distance filming with cameras, as well as some neatly dressed reporters wearing badges that looked like press cards.

Could this be... a live stream?

Bronya was somewhat alarmed. Had the Celestial Empire directly informed the public about their existence and the parallel world?

"Gentlemen, please follow me. I will take you to the hall first. Whether you want to rest and tour the area first, or start the meeting directly, is up to you."

When this question came up, Zhu Zhiwen subconsciously turned to look at Bronya. Bronya turned her head away, indicating that she hadn't seen anything and knew nothing. Zhu Zhiwen could only smile and say, "Let's have the meeting first. After the meeting, we can take our time to tour and rest. Besides, it will give us time to think about revising the subsequent treaties, won't it?"

The other party smiled and nodded in agreement, so the group went directly to the conference room. For the rest of the journey, Bronya did not see any reporters or cameramen, but instead saw fully armed Chinese soldiers.

As Hong Xiao and his group, clad in power armor and making heavy thuds with every step, passed by these soldiers, Bronya could see a hint of tension in their eyes.

The pressure is really strong. Is that why Su Su let Hong Xiao and the others come along?

Upon entering the conference room and taking her seat, Bronya noticed that the Celestial Empire had only sent two people, unlike them who had sent a whole group.

Hongxiao had two men guard the door, while the other two stayed inside the conference room; of course, their weapons were put away.

Bronya pulled Seele to sit at the end of the conference table to make her stance clear and to make it clear that they would not participate in the meeting, but would only listen in.

The Chinese side also had some doubts about Bronya and Seele's actions, especially the man who was responsible for welcoming them. He had seen Zhu Zhiwen look at Bronya, and he had a feeling that Bronya was the one in charge or decision-maker for the Chinese side this time.

"So, where do we begin?"

The other party took a deep breath, looking slightly nervous, and introduced themselves. After hearing the introductions, Bronya understood why only these two people had been sent: one was the current Minister of National Strategic Defense of the Celestial Empire, and the other was the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Let's get straight to the point.

With a smile on his face, Zhu Zhiwen took out the document. "This is a document that our Shenzhou side prepared in advance. It includes some regulations after the establishment of the alliance, as well as our mutual assistance later on."

"All of this has not been finalized yet. As the third member country when our alliance was first established, we highly value your opinions."

"A third member state?"

The other party was stunned for a moment, quite surprised. Why was it third? They originally thought it might be later, but they didn't expect it to be third.

However, Zhu Zhiwen thought the other party's surprise was because they thought he was the third instead of the second, so he explained: "Before you, we had dealings with a world that was destroyed by an apocalyptic catastrophe. Only two organizations and hundreds of thousands of humans survived. Even so, we still regard them as member states. I hope you can understand that."

The moment those four words, "apocalyptic catastrophe," were uttered, the expressions on the faces of the two people from the Celestial Empire turned uneasy. This was definitely not a good thing...

Chapter 373: Hidden Things

The meeting did not proceed particularly smoothly. The Chinese side was quite hesitant, partly because of the wars that China had experienced and the apocalyptic catastrophe that another member country had suffered.

This shocked and worried the two of them. Would the future of China suffer such a situation?

But is China truly seeking friendly cooperation and alliance with the intention of forming a genuine alliance? Is the friendliness they see now truly what it represents?

Therefore, the meeting ended temporarily after three hours. The two representatives from the Celestial Empire were simply unable to make a quick decision and could only seek help from the higher-ups. Thus, time was needed.

Next, the group was arranged to rest at this temporary base, where they also had special guest rooms.

After entering her and Seele's guest rooms with Zhu Zhiwen and the others, Bronya first activated the scanning function of her goggles. After confirming that there were no listening devices or hidden cameras in the rooms, she went to the rooms where Zhu Zhiwen and Hongxiao were resting and scanned them one by one. Only after confirming that everything was fine did she return to her own room.

"Sister Bronya, has the Celestial Empire informed its people of our existence? There are so many people below."

Seele stood by the window, pointing to the crowd outside. Bronya walked over and stood beside Seele. They could see a large crowd surrounding them, mainly reporters, but...

"Who are those people?"

Bronya pointed out some strange people in the group of reporters. Several young men dressed in white martial arts uniforms were standing in the outer area.

"I don't know, but she must be a martial artist, right? Like Sister Fu Hua?"

Bronya rubbed her chin. Subconsciously, she felt that things weren't that simple. Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Zhu Zhiwen opened the door and stood in the doorway, asking, "We just received an invitation from the Chinese government. Their most authoritative central media outlets want to interview us. Would you like to come?"

"The media... what type of interviews?"

"That's roughly the purpose of our visit here, some things about our world. Of course, the war part needs to be concealed, as required by the Celestial Empire."

"And there's one more thing, um... a top martial arts master from the Celestial Empire wants to have a... competition with us."

Bronya froze, turning to look at Seele, who blinked. "Is it...those people?"

"Those people?"

Zhu Zhiwen was puzzled, and Xi'er nodded, "Bronya and I just saw some people wearing martial arts uniforms standing on the outside. They must be the disciples of that martial arts master."

"Also, Uncle Zhu, I wonder if there are any mysterious forces in China?"

This is something that Seele has always been curious about: whether the Celestial Empire possesses some mysterious power. Originally, China was just a peaceful and ordinary world, but it gradually became magical due to the existence of contractors and the system.

Now, Seele naturally begins to wonder if any mysterious power exists in this world.

Zhu Zhiwen pondered for a moment and shook his head. "We haven't received any relevant information or details yet. Let's wait and see for a while. If we do get some, we don't need to be afraid. Our psychic users and psionic developers are no weaker than them. Besides, we have you all."

Yes, China still has them.

Bronya remained silent, arms crossed. Shenzhou still had them now, but what about the future? She didn't think she could keep up with Shenzhou's pace forever, especially in the Great Cosmic Era. At that time, she estimated that a round trip might take several days or even months.

This situation will likely improve significantly once space jumps become available.

"Let's go then, but as usual, we won't participate directly. We'll just stand backstage while you get interviewed."

Bronya maintained the same attitude. She was curious about what questions the media in this world would ask, and whether any reporter would make any outrageous statements, but she didn't want to be the one being questioned.

So she chose to stay behind the scenes and watch quietly without saying a word.

"Okay, let's go then. Is there anything I need to remind you of?"

Zhu Zhiwen asked, but Bronya shook her head. Was there anything else she needed to ask? Just do what you're supposed to do and answer what you're supposed to answer.

However, she seemed to have actually remembered something...

"There really is one thing. When we conduct the interview, if that martial arts master wants to challenge us, let Hongxiao and the others go."

The power armor worn by Hongxiao and his group is not something that ordinary people can wear. Many of the armor's functions and auxiliary effects require the user to have extremely strong neural reaction capabilities. If an ordinary person were to use it, they might end up losing an arm or a leg. Therefore, Hongxiao and the others have undergone genetic optimization.

So, if we let Hongxiao compete with that martial arts master, we should be able to see the other party's strength and... whether mystical abilities exist in this world.

On the way, Seele asked curiously, "Sister Bronya, are you planning to test the waters through Uncle Hongxiao and the others?"

Without hiding anything, he nodded in acknowledgment, "Yes, don't you find it strange? The parallel worlds of Shenzhou that we've encountered so far all have their own unique worldviews: the world of the ruins where the Little Dragon AI resides, the world of mechs fighting monsters, and the Shenzhou world ravaged by collapse."

"In addition to us, the system, the contractors, and the completely different historical processes, these are all unique aspects of each world's Shenzhou."

"But, besides the fact that our historical process is different from ours, do you think there's anything special about China? Does it have a very peaceful and ordinary feel to it?"

Seele blinked, puzzled. "But isn't peace and tranquility a good thing? Other worlds have their own wars, and the lives of their people aren't absolutely safe. Shouldn't encountering a peaceful and stable world like this be a good thing?"

Bronya paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "You're right, this is indeed a good thing. However, we can't be complacent. My intuition tells me that the Celestial Empire is still hiding something from us, and those things they are hiding could very well become the biggest change in this meeting."

"I don't think so. Doesn't the Celestial Empire also want to form an alliance with us? Besides, at the meeting, they only raised questions about the content, and didn't directly reject it."

Seele still thought it was unlikely, but Bronya shook her head, reached out and patted Seele's head, "The Celestial Empire isn't necessarily a monolithic entity. There are supporters and there will always be opponents. But let's see how things go later."