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Han Hao explained, then added, "Besides, I wouldn't dare to put on airs with anyone but you. Even the King of Nation of Valor wouldn't dare to put on airs with a peerless expert who has killed a Nascent Spirit Transformation cultivator. A martial artist of Brother Si's level will be respected wherever he goes, even by the ruler of a country."

Although Sea Continent is not the kind of world where martial arts are revered, and everyone does not engage in production but only thinks about cultivation, martial arts are indeed the primary profession, and martial arts are also the primary productive force.

However, the martial arts profession is not so superior as to be unique. Just like in the Celestial Empire, although being an official is the highest profession, not everyone wants to be an official, and many of the grassroots staff in government agencies are also miserable.

Si Ming knew that the other party was referring to his achievement of killing the Vicious Qi Evil Spider, but he did not become proud because of this flattery. After all, compared with the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King, the Vicious Qi Evil Spider was only a minor leader and not worth mentioning.

The best results go unpraised, like wearing fine clothes in the dark, unknown to anyone—how lonely!

"Your Majesty flatters me."

Si Ming made a modest remark, then told Han Hao about the Divine Pillar and asked him to help remind Nation of Valor.

"It's nothing. There's a traditional ceremony for a new emperor to speak with leaders of various countries upon his ascension. I'll take this opportunity to mention it to the King of Nation of Valor." Han Hao readily agreed, then, as if struck by a sudden thought, chuckled, "For a neighbor with such a poor relationship to extend an initial greeting like this will surely garner their attention."

At this moment, a courtier reminded him, "Your Majesty, the rest time is almost over. Next, you will be receiving the Duke of Ming."

"So soon! I haven't even had afternoon tea and snacks yet!"

"Your Majesty, there is no such arrangement," the courtier replied matter-of-factly, without any sign of fear or trepidation.

"Let me say one more thing," Han Hao turned to Si Ming and thanked him, "I heard that you and your companions intervened that day to stop the Imperial Army Guards from fighting amongst themselves, saving more than three hundred civilians. I must thank you for that; it was all my oversight."

Upon hearing this, Si Ming immediately revealed a mercenary expression. "If you really want to express your gratitude, then show us something tangible. You think you can just let things slide with a simple thank you? There's no such thing as a free lunch. You are now the head of state, and your every move represents the face of France. You need to demonstrate the demeanor of a leader; only then will you achieve the effect of spending a fortune to buy a horse's bones."

The courtier, unable to bear it any longer, was about to speak up to warn him, but Han Hao, who had anticipated this, raised his hand to stop him.

"I knew you wouldn't be so polite. Luckily, I was prepared. I remember you once mentioned the National Guardian Divine Skill to me..."

"What, is there really such a martial art?" Si Ming became interested.

"There is no such thing as the 'National Guardian Divine Skill,' but there is indeed a martial art related to the royal family. Brother Si should have heard about the late emperor's qi deviation due to practicing martial arts. In fact, this martial art was obtained by the Taizu Emperor through a fortuitous encounter. The Taizu Emperor also achieved the Spirit Transformation because of it, and was nicknamed 'Hundred Primordial Qi.' But strangely, the Taizu Emperor did not pass on this martial art, and even never mentioned it."

The late emperor was a martial arts fanatic. He ordered people to collect information on the life and deeds of the founding emperor and consulted various sources, including some royal secrets, to deduce the location of the founding emperor's extraordinary encounter. He then personally led a team to investigate and ultimately succeeded in obtaining the martial art...

As you know, the late emperor became obsessed with practicing martial arts day and night, but instead of mastering the divine skill, he suffered a qi deviation and died young.

Si Ming asserted, "Clearly, there's something wrong with this martial art."

Han Hao said, "Everyone thinks so too, so my second brother and I haven't touched this cultivation technique. But a few days ago, while sorting through the late emperor's belongings, I discovered that the late emperor was actually practicing a fragment of a manual. This cultivation technique is incomplete, so I overturned my previous conclusion. Perhaps it's not a problem with the technique itself."

"These fragments are of no use to me, especially considering the precedent of people going berserk due to cultivation deviation."

"I know, so the key is what follows. In the days before and after my ascension to the throne, news of 'auspicious omens' came from all over the country," Han Hao chuckled. "This is a traditional practice; anyway, it's either completely fabricated or deliberately forged, so I didn't pay much attention. But when I ordered people to sort through the reports the day before yesterday, we discovered that one of the locations where the 'auspicious omens' appeared was exactly where the founding emperor had his extraordinary encounter, and also where the late emperor obtained the incomplete martial arts manual. So I sent people to investigate on-site and confirmed that the extraordinary phenomenon had indeed occurred."

So what you mean is...?

"If Brother Si is interested, why not go to that place to investigate yourself? Perhaps you can obtain the complete set of cultivation techniques, just like the founding emperor."

Si Ming looked intrigued. "Oh, that makes sense. I happen to have some free time lately... I wonder what this technique is called?"

"The Primordial Non-Empty True Scripture"

Chapter 512 New Equipment

"The 'Primordial Non-Empty True Scripture' has a name so similar to the 'Supreme Plain Decay True Scripture' that it's obvious to anyone with a brain that it must also belong to the Super Martial Dao category. The France founding emperor must have been worried about the dangers of practicing Super Martial Dao, which is why he didn't leave it to his descendants. The previous French emperor dared to practice it with just a fragment of the scroll; it would be strange if he didn't suffer a qi deviation."

Si Ming obtained new information from Han Hao and quickly formed a guess about this mysterious cultivation technique.

Murong Qing said, "According to Daoist School teachings, the first stage from Wuji to the birth of heaven and earth is called the Five Primordial Elements, namely Taiyi, Taichu, Taishi, Taisu, and Taiji. Among them, Taiyi represents the enlightenment of Tao, symbolizing the world's transition from 'stillness' to 'movement,' while Taiji is the Tao's derivation into all things. Taichu, Taishi, and Taisu are the process from Wuji to Taiji, which also represent the birth of Tao."

"The beginning of primordial energy is that which has not yet taken form; the beginning of form is that which has not yet acquired substance; the beginning of substance is that which has not yet formed a complete body. Therefore, it can be simply summarized as: the beginning of primordial energy represents primordial energy, the beginning of form represents spirit, and the beginning of essence represents essence, which are precisely the three elements of primordial energy, spirit, and essence."

Si Ming pondered, "In other words, this 'Primordial Non-Empty True Scripture' is likely related to Internal Cultivation techniques. That makes sense; the France leader's nickname was 'Hundred Primordial Qi,' clearly describing his profound Internal Cultivation, a hundred times greater than 'Primordial Unity.' It seems I need to take this treasure hunt seriously."

Internal Cultivation has always been Si Ming's weakness. Even though the upper limit of the "Blazing Yang Battle Art" has now been raised to level fourteen, giving him the possibility of further progress, after this period of cultivation, Si Ming has found that the cultivation speed of this technique is really too slow.

Even though the solar energy he can now absorb is no longer limited to the surface of his body and can extend to a radius of ten zhang, it is still too slow because the total amount of True Qi does not increase at a constant rate, but rather there is a leap in improvement every two levels.

Of course, Si Ming's subjective opinion is that the cultivation speed of "Blazing Yang Battle Art" is very slow. Objectively speaking, it is not much different from the cultivation speed of ordinary techniques. However, "ordinary" is equivalent to "mediocre". This means that if Si Ming wants to break through from level eleven to level twelve, he will need three to five years of accumulation. If there is no bottleneck, it will take five to seven years of cultivation from level twelve to thirteen.

At this rate of cultivation, by the time he breaks through to the Spirit Transformation, it will be too late. Forget about having a harem; he could just become a Magister.

For Si Ming, this "Primordial Non-Empty True Scripture" is undoubtedly a great hope to make up for his shortcomings. Judging from past experience, although the Super Martial Dao series of techniques always have one hidden danger or another, their effects are very significant. They can turn the rotten into the miraculous, and the benefits and risks are really the same.

Murong Qing suddenly said, "Third Prince... the current Emperor is truly extraordinary. Despite having ascended to a high position and hearing flattery from others day and night, when I saw him today, he showed no arrogance whatsoever, remaining cautious and prudent as if walking on thin ice. How much self-discipline does that require!"

Si Ming considered the other party's behavior and nodded in agreement. "That's true. Speaking of which, I once read the information about him collected by the Mohist Knight Guard. It said that in his youth he was dissolute, frequenting taverns and brothels, a gambler, womanizer, opium addict, and drunkard all at once. He was a playboy, indulging in wine, women, money, and power, living a life of debauchery. It wasn't until he learned that he had a chance to compete for the throne that he immediately reformed and gave up his gambling, womanizing, opium, and alcohol addictions! At that time, the person in charge of intelligence gathering in the Mohist Knight Guard commented that he would definitely achieve great things in the future, because someone who could be so ruthless to himself and had such a strong will to give up so easily could not possibly fail to accomplish great things."

"He even has such a past..." Murong Qing was still somewhat unable to let go of it, "But it also doesn't explain his behavior today. It's precisely because he endured for so long in the past that he should be even more unrestrained after getting what he wanted. Under what circumstances can a person continue to restrain himself after achieving success?"

Si Ming thought for a moment and said, "You're right. Even the most self-disciplined person should experience the joy and satisfaction of success. But I don't see these emotions in him. Aside from rare possibilities such as physiological abnormalities caused by training or a natural lack of emotion, logically speaking, it's possible that he doesn't consider himself successful, or that ascending the throne is just a stepping stone to success for him, a process rather than a result."

Murong Qing continued, "Moreover, his real goal is probably more difficult than seizing the throne, which is why he doesn't take this matter seriously... It seems he truly intends to eliminate noble privileges, rather than abandoning them after they've served their purpose. This is tantamount to overthrowing an entire class. After all, a noble without privileges is just a nicer title. Although the noble class is not as powerful as the aristocratic families and landlords, there is still a considerable overlap. If he tries to snatch food from the tiger's mouth, I'm afraid it will result in bloodshed."

This struggle will only be more intense than the struggle for the throne. After all, the struggle for the throne is ultimately just a battle between two people. Neither Han Hao nor Han Kun has been granted a fiefdom and has been confined to Faxian City. At most, it involves the forces behind them. But the elimination of noble privileges involves the fundamental interests of the nobles. The nobles cannot simply accept it without resistance.

On a deeper level, this is a struggle between the common people and the aristocracy, and regardless of who wins or loses, both sides will pay a heavy price.

If Han Hao were to truly choose this path, the road ahead would inevitably be fraught with difficulties and obstacles. From this perspective, ascending the throne would indeed be merely a preliminary battle. If he did not become the Emperor of France, he would not even be qualified to participate in this struggle.

Si Ming, "Forget it. To put it bluntly, it's ultimately a matter for another country, and it has nothing to do with us. Revolutions always involve bloodshed. Although I also look down on nobles, this is different from a struggle for the throne. Given our status, it's difficult for us to get involved. Otherwise, we could easily be blacklisted by the rulers of other countries... At most, we can ask Martial Uncle Xiao for help again."

Using methods like disguising your identity as before might fool those who are reasonable and have evidence, but if they don't want to reason with you, they will simply refuse to let you enter the country, and there's nothing you can do about it.

However, Xiao Xuan has now officially formed an alliance with Han Hao. Han Hao promised that the France market would be open to Xiao Xuan's small border country, and that it would be tariff-free trade, which should bring about a leap in economic prosperity to that barren land.

Moreover, this junior master already disliked the so-called aristocratic families. If Han Hao asked him for help, he would be happy to eliminate these parasites who suck the blood of commoners.