"Mr. Zhou Yan, hello. We are sent by Young Master Ye Bufan to pick you up," a group of men in black suits, wearing sunglasses and the uniform attire of the Dragon King family, said respectfully as they approached Zhou Yan.
"Find a hotel to stay in first. I won't be leaving in a couple of days. I need to attend a trade fair," Zhou Yan instructed.
"Yes, we will follow your arrangements," the Dragon King family members quickly replied.
Zhou Yan was then escorted into a high-end car worth billions and driven towards the largest hotel in the port.
A crowd watched the Dragon King family members, asking curiously, "Who is this person? Such a grand procession. Is he a celebrity?"
"You're so ignorant. These are all people from the Dragon King family, and that young man is probably an important figure in the family."
"I know who that is! It's Zhou Yan!"
"How is that possible? Didn't Zhou Yan die? How is he back?"
"It really is Zhou Yan. Zhou Yan actually returned alive from the deep sea core!"
"I'm posting on my Moments! I want the whole world to know our number one is back."
"The photos I took earlier might be useful. I believe the TV stations will be very interested!"
...
The news of Zhou Yan's return to the Divine Dragon Nation quickly dominated the trending searches, causing the platform to crash temporarily. The trending search officials were baffled, as such an event hadn't happened in a long time.
They immediately activated backup servers and increased capacity tenfold. After a few minutes of network downtime, everything returned to normal.
In an instant, the entire world knew of Zhou Yan's return, and there were already reports of him staying in a certain hotel.
Unfortunately, no one could get close. The Dragon King family had booked out the entire hotel to ensure Zhou Yan would not be disturbed.
The news of Zhou Yan's return was soon confirmed to be true, and the authorities also announced that Zhou Yan was indeed alive.
It was they who had deliberately spread the news of Zhou Yan's death to ensure his safe departure from the deep sea core. Now that Zhou Yan had returned, there was no need to conceal it.
While the outside world was focused on Zhou Yan, he was busy constructing buildings in his territory.
These pirate territories were rich in materials, suggesting they had plundered many people.
As for Locke's demigod subordinate and those above the seventy-seventh heaven, they were all thrown into the celestial prison.
Only after their loyalty reached its maximum would Zhou Yan release them and acknowledge them as part of his territory.
Two days later, Hai Ning sent a message to Zhou Yan, stating, "The trade fair will be held at six o'clock this evening."
"I will be there on time," Zhou Yan replied.
Afterward, Zhou Yan checked the time and stayed in his territory until four o'clock. He then took a bath in the territory's hot spring before leaving and teleporting to the hotel.
Upon arriving outside, Zhou Yan inquired, "Do you know the location of the trade fair?"
"It has already been arranged for you," they replied.
"Thank you," Zhou Yan said.
"You're too kind. You are our Dragon King family's friend, and this is what we should do," replied the strong individuals from the Dragon King family.
Despite the countless reporters outside the hotel, none could get close. They had all been intercepted by the Dragon King family's guards. Even after Zhou Yan's vehicle departed, the reporters were unable to speak a word to him.
An hour later, Zhou Yan arrived at the venue punctually. Outside, he saw Hai Ning, who had been waiting.
Upon seeing Zhou Yan, Hai Ning hurried forward and said, "You're finally here."
"Just in time, no delay," Zhou Yan replied.
"You're cutting it rather close. Let's go in," Hai Ning said.
Zhou Yan nodded and then said to the Dragon King family members, "Then I'll trouble you to wait here."
"This is what we should do. If you need anything, just command me," one of the Dragon King family members said, handing Zhou Yan a mobile phone.
"Alright," Zhou Yan replied, taking it, and walked into the venue with Hai Ning.
Hai Ning said enviously, "Your relationship with the Dragon King family is truly close. It must be because of Ye Bufan, the next heir of the Dragon King family, right? I heard you are very good friends."
That was one reason, but the greater reason was Zhou Yan's talent and strength, which were enough to earn the support of the Dragon King family. Hai Ning understood this very well.
"We entered the academy together and got along well, so we became good friends," Zhou Yan explained.
"If I asked you to introduce me to someone from the Dragon King family someday, you wouldn't mind, would you?" Hai Ning asked.
"Of course not," Zhou Yan agreed.
Although Hai Ning's Hai Tian Group was quite impressive and large, it was in no way comparable to top-tier family enterprises like the Ye family. They were not on the same level.
If he could cooperate with the Ye family, it would be excellent news for Hai Tian Group.
As the two entered the trade fair, it began shortly after. Hai Ning stayed by Zhou Yan's side, continuously introducing him to things.
Hai Ning was very smart and did not waste words, always helping Zhou Yan. Zhou Yan asked, "Actually, I can browse alone. If you have anything you need to buy, you don't need to accompany me."
"Don't worry, my only task today is to accompany you to buy things. I'm not responsible for anything else," Hai Ning replied directly.
"This must be your father's arrangement, right?" Zhou Yan asked.
"Who else but him?" Hai Ning nodded.
"You could have refused," Zhou Yan said.
"No, I'm happy to do it," Hai Ning smiled.
"Then as you wish," Zhou Yan did not mind.
Hai Ning then observed how Zhou Yan made his purchases. She had some understanding of Zhou Yan's affairs, but seeing it firsthand was still shocking and astonishing.
When Zhou Yan arrived at a material display shop, he pointed at a few items and said, "Except for these, pack everything else for me. The quantity is unlimited."
"Certainly," the material vendor said happily.
Hai Ning's initial shock turned into numbness, and she gradually became accustomed to it.
A girl approached Zhou Yan, intending to bump into him deliberately, but Zhou Yan dodged, causing her to fall directly to the ground.
"Ouch!" The girl fell to the ground, a little hurt.
"Liu Siqi," Hai Ning said upon seeing the person, understanding her intention. "You want to interview Zhou Yan, but you don't need to do it like this."
"You're... Hai Ning," Liu Siqi said, feeling a bit awkward after seeing Hai Ning. "If I had known you were with Zhou Yan, I wouldn't have done this. It hurts so much."
"So, you're a reporter," Zhou Yan understood. "I'm not interested in accepting interviews. Besides, I'm not someone worth interviewing. You'd be better off reporting on things that are beneficial to society."