Barbaro's psychological advantage over An Kui quickly disappeared as the Iridium Star Commander, Xu Lanzhou, refused to attend the Snow Dragon Alliance meeting because the Iridium Star United Empire had no intention of joining such an alliance or being commanded by it.
Although Barbaro had known from early on that the people of Iridium Star had no plans to join the alliance, such an action was truly a snub to the Snow Dragon Alliance, making many representatives of civilizations within the alliance itch to curse out loud.
Xu Lanzhou was not one to beat around the bush. She had come under the orders of Bai Zhongqi, and those orders did not include fostering good relations with the Snow Dragon Alliance. Iridium Star saw no need for this, as the United Empire's eyes were already devoid of entities at such a level.
Yet, this still deeply offended the Snow Dragon Alliance.
