Color

The next day, at dawn.

After countless years, the Yilan-Tai'er people saw the morning sun rise again. The sun rose in the east, its light shining through the hazy clouds, and the sun, rising from the sea mist, was reflected in pairs of silent, gazing eyes.

After half a day and a night of busy work, the ancient survivors and the officers and soldiers of the Azure Fleet were separated and settled on two large islands. After the turmoil, people longed for stability. As the elder brother who was in charge of them, Kang De's primary task was to find a way to improve the mood and stability of these prisoners and prospective henchmen.

This method is far too simple for China people.

A warm house and soft bedding can help anxious and confused people fall asleep peacefully, relax their minds, and use sleep to soothe all doubts and anxieties.

Delicious, springy, and smooth instant noodles are a delicacy of our time. Egg droplets float among them, and the exquisite flavor of spices spreads down the throat with each big bite, permeating the heart and soul. Biting into a piece of ham leaves a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth. Biscuit biscuits are cooked into a thick porridge, and with the addition of pickled vegetables, it is incredibly salty and savory.

Each person also receives a small dish of bright red, spicy sauce resembling black gold; some lucky individuals might even find a piece of dried meat in it – an absolute delicacy.

Needless to say, the remnants of the Yilan-Tai'er were left bewildered by the food, and even the officers and soldiers of the Azure Fleet were questioning their very existence.

After all, although the other world already has food preservation technology, it relies on magic, especially at sea where conditions are harsh. It can only be provided exclusively to officers. Ordinary sailors can only enjoy fresh food on a few occasions. Under normal circumstances, they still have to drink light beer and eat corned beef and military Biscuit.

--The Biscuit here aren't the kind like the Qing Shi calcium milk Biscuit.

Instead, they used grains ground into powder, added baking soda, and water, then baked them. The Azure Fleet, being the main fleet, received better treatment, so their baked Biscuit contained sugar, salt, butter, and chopped nuts, which sounded quite good. However, they had to be crushed with the handle of a scimitar or soaked in water to soften them before being spread with ground corned beef and eaten. As a result, the complaining naval soldiers called them "tooth files."

When Kang De heard about this, he gave the prisoners of the Azure Fleet an extra meal, adding a Biscuit to each person's breakfast. When the sailors put the Biscuit in their mouths with disgusted looks, they went crazy.

Biscuit you can bite into, its deliciousness instantly fills your taste buds, and your mouth involuntarily begins to chew, the crunching sound filling your head—it's so pleasant! I never knew Biscuit could taste so good!

The freshest Biscuit they had ever eaten in their lives had never been this crisp and delicious.

Moreover, the evil Earthlings, well-versed in human nature, engaged in despicable instigation—the type and flavor of the Biscuit were distributed completely randomly, and each person received only one cookie.

Soldier A probably ate calcium milk Biscuit, Soldier B ate Master Kang scallion-flavored crispy biscuits, Soldier C ate Yuen Long egg rolls, and Soldier D ate "Oli Gei"—okay, that's it.

A long table with dozens of people might only have one or two people eating the same thing.

Moreover, they were scattered and ate separately in the cafeteria. After returning to their dormitories, the Biscuit that the eight people in each dormitory might eat were all different.

They would engage in lively discussions, they would dream with envy, and they would have wildly high expectations.

After enjoying this breathtakingly delicious meal, the soldiers were still immersed in a complex mix of emotions, wondering, "Are those Distant Harbor living such a comfortable life?" And so, Kang De's multi-layered scheme began.

As the prisoners returned to their quarters in the camp to rest, someone knocked on their door.

The person who entered was a kind-looking colleague from the fleet.

The moment I opened the door, I was greeted with a warm hug, "Brothers, you've been through so much!"

These sailors, who began roaming between camps and visiting their comrades, were former members of the suicide squad—the same guys who had been sent to the Broken Isles to steal relic materials and attract Kang De's attention for various reasons.

They had previously been captivated by Kang De, treated to good food and drink, and Kang De's sugar-coated bullets were loaded into the 1130 close-in weapon system and fired wildly at these ignorant and pitiful creatures. The high-intensity persuasion and education work was remarkably effective, and the blind loyalty of these "progressives" to the Council plummeted.

Kang De himself attached great importance to the psychological preparation and surrender efforts for this special force; no one understood the Council's naval system better than them.

The "ideological education work" against them is getting stronger every day. For example, the big-character poster that was used to attack the Council last night, as well as the related video materials, causes and consequences and "top secret internal truths", were also shown and explained to these activists at the same time.

Faced with a wealth of detailed, well-reasoned evidence, these angry traitors learned the whole truth—including why the Council sent them to fight Kang De to the death, and why they were willing to let the Azure Fleet abandon its honor and reputation in order to seize those materials.

The councilors clearly treated the Azure Fleet as a scapegoat, and their elaborate schemes turned into a huge joke—the ancient remnants who broke the seal launched a massive offensive, and the Azure Fleet, which had paid a heavy price to complete its mission, almost lost its life under the Forbidden Spell.

All the causes and consequences, everything, was nothing more than the Council's short-sighted, despicable, and shameless scheme.

And the result?

The Arcane Council gained nothing, while the Azure Fleet suffered heavy losses. The fleet's spirit was gone, the commander lost all prestige and became disheartened, and many of his comrades died in the attack of the ancient remnants. This once elite fleet with unparalleled honor has completely lost its fighting power. Even if the warships and organization are restored and the fleet size is rebuilt, it will only become a third-rate weak force.

Kang De laid all of this out in the open for those "progressives".

Everyone who saw it was corrupted by darkness.

The more loyal they were before, the more disappointed they were now. The information and evidence provided by Kang De were logically sound and extremely reasonable, leaving no room for doubt. These elite fleet members who were betrayed the earliest abandoned their last illusions in extreme resentment and disappointment, broke their oaths, and swore allegiance to the new leader.

Such Council was no longer worthy of their continued service.

Driven by extreme disappointment and resentment, and also by the fanaticism of converts, they immediately took action following Kang De's instructions, initiating an operation to try to subvert and recruit the entire fleet.

This action was named an "uprising".

Comparing the list of prisoners of war to the entire fleet's list, they discussed and decided overnight, and based on their understanding of the crew members of each ship, they created a list of different ranks.

Council who is upright, who is greedy, who is mediocre and indecisive, who has the highest prestige, who will be tempted by interests, and who will be stubborn, blindly loyal, and degenerate.

After breakfast, they began to carry out their plan.

Each person was assigned their own goal, and armed with their honed speaking skills and persuasive techniques, they knocked on the doors of every dormitory room.

This invisible war of poaching began the moment the Azure Fleet surrendered. According to the confessions and accounts of the "progressives," Horus and A Fu established a big data system encompassing all personnel of the Azure Fleet and assigned rooms based on their personalities.

The crew members were completely unaware of this; they simply assumed that the dormitory assignments were randomized to prevent acquaintances from colluding and causing trouble. That was the only level of their intelligence they could reach.

But they soon discovered that their roommates were all surprisingly honest and kind people, and they shared similar personalities and interests, making them easy to talk to and very comfortable.

--Of course, a small number of people will find that their roommates are all inexplicably wicked, cunning, and habitual liars.

The "active defectors" who were incorporated into the propaganda team completely ignored this small group of people.

Their main targets were those who were easy to win over and persuade. As for the tough nuts and bad guys, the decision of the persuasion discussion committee was to "let them rot in the corner," to serve as negative examples for everyone to see. In Horus's words, it was to "see the fate of the stubborn elements who resist reformation."

After they entered the house, they did not rush to denounce the Council or expose the conspiracy.

Instead, he chatted amiably, asking who else was in his family, and then used his own experience as an example, saying that His Highness Kang De was a kind and compassionate monarch who forgave those who had offended him but sincerely repented, so everyone had nothing to worry about.

Think about the good meals you had last night and today—do you think this is food for prisoners?

Almost everyone who heard the question immediately shook their heads. Even the most discerning person would not lie and say the food was bad. Thinking of the delicious taste that lingered on their lips and teeth, and the plight of the pirates and criminals imprisoned in the naval dungeons, they naturally felt some gratitude and respect for Prince Kang De.

After all, they had all witnessed the despairing scene of the Forbidden Spell crashing down. Even the most arrogant person wouldn't think that Prince Kang De was kind to them because he was afraid of the Council's retaliation.

When the conversation turned to food, the topic naturally shifted to Biscuit, instant noodles, and dried meat.

Almost everyone was still thinking about the Biscuit they had eaten that day, and even more so about the dozens of other kinds of Biscuit they hadn't tried. After getting these gluttons to reveal this desire, the speakers chuckled and began the first step in localizing the Versailles alien world.

"Oh dear, those are called calcium milk Biscuit. They taste best when soaked in milk, but they get cloying if you eat too many, since they're a bit dry. Oreos are the same, the black and white ones, they're a bit too sweet. To be honest, those are just snacks; once you eat too many, they're not all that great..."

The expressions on everyone's faces changed from envy to astonishment.

Ultimately, it turned into a little girl watching someone eat Dior ice cream.

A thousand words in my heart have been condensed into one sentence—listen to this, is this even human language?

But they soon discovered the key point.

--Brother Dai, so you've eaten a lot of good food, huh?

Upon hearing this, the speaker smiled happily—"Yes, of course I've eaten a lot, and now I can eat whatever I want. Can you guess why I can eat so much?"

A small number of quick-witted people thought to themselves, "Why? Of course, it's because you went to lick Kang De's ass. Damn it, you really came here to persuade him to surrender."

But the smarter a person is, the less likely they are to speak their mind. Like most people, they pretend to be envious and ask naively, "I don't know, why?"

The speaker gave them an unexpected answer, "Because I have work points."

He pulled out the necklace hanging around his neck; it was a steel plaque with his name written on it, along with a series of mysterious and enigmatic dots that seemed to contain infinite secrets.

According to him, this was proof of identity. Possessing this badge proved that he had a name with His Highness Kang De. It was a contract that meant His Highness Kang De would provide him with basic security and a livelihood, and he had to repay that by working, doing things, and receiving rewards.

Even as prisoners of war, one could sign such a contract to serve His Highness Kang De as a captive, whether by clearing ruins, cleaning the island, or building fortifications. Those with special talents, such as craftsmen, mages, and engineers on the ship, could voluntarily contribute more using their expertise.

The reward received is work points.

You can redeem a variety of exquisite products exclusively provided by His Highness Kang De.

Needless to say, there's a wide variety of delicious food to eat; as long as you have enough work points, you can eat as much as you want.

In addition, there are alchemical creations of the Dragon of Cathay, including but not limited to the radio that everyone listened to late last night before it was taken away, watches with various cool functions, exquisite picture books, and melodious wonders that can play a variety of pleasant music.

There are even many other experiences—the enormous flying machines soaring through the sky, the powerful weapons—which, while not available for exchange among prisoners, can be tried out.

At this point, the speakers all expressed their longing for it.

"Besides that, have you ever heard of 'games'? A huge hall with all sorts of game machines, big and small, that you could only buy with work points, and we went crazy playing them..."

Accompanied by the vivid and engaging narration, everyone was deeply captivated. Everything the Cathayan offered was something they had never seen or heard of before—so fresh and irresistibly alluring.

Following the pre-planned persuasion techniques, the speaker will let out a heavy sigh after delivering this.

The children, bewildered by the explanation, asked why. The answer was, "Actually, everyone's busy working, but we only earn a tiny amount of work points, just one-third of the standard for regular workers in the Distant Harbor. Plus, there are many restrictions on what we can buy, since we're prisoners... we once opposed His Highness Kang De."

In other words, ordinary workers from impoverished backgrounds in the Distant Harbor earn twice as much as they do for the same job.

The prisoners, already fantasizing about being quickly incorporated into Prince Kang De's army and working in exchange for work points to eat and drink to their hearts' content, immediately felt resentful upon hearing this. They dared not complain to Kang De, but they had other targets to vent their anger on. "We're just following orders; otherwise, who would dare to oppose Forbidden Spell magician?"

The speaker stopped short of revealing the truth, not immediately relaying it to the Council: "Sigh, who can argue with that? It's just that I feel a bit resentful... You know the Azure Fleet, right? They surrendered to His Highness Kang De even earlier than us, and they're now part of the Shogunate Navy, earning military merit points, not work points!"

These military merit points are more durable than work points, and they offer discounts on many items, which is a heavy blow to prisoners who can only earn one-third of the work points.

After all, for the same job, they can buy one pack of Biscuit, while the Azure Fleet can buy seven or eight packs...

Damn it, why?

The speaker vividly recounted, "Have you heard of Alset? He served in the Azure Fleet, but his mentor passed away, leaving him stuck at the mid-level mage level, basically with no hope for the future. But what happened? He joined Prince Kang De's forces and is now the leading interrogation expert and a member of the Traitor Suppression Society in Distant Harbor..."

His Highness Kang De not only entrusted him with important responsibilities but also found him a new mentor. The various magical resources that could be exchanged for military merit points also inspired the ambitious Scourger to seek upgrade rituals.

"You guys have no idea, not only does this guy have power armor, but His Highness Kang De also personally crafted a shotgun for him—don't know what that is? Let me tell you, it's way more useful than a staff, and this guy carries it around everywhere all day..."

That thing, "much better than a staff," has a holographic sight engraved with life detection spells, a miniature lightning ray magic device on the left rail, a Radiance Spell tactical tube on the right rail, a 710mm long barrel engraved with Blazing Flame enchantment arrays, and a birchwood combat staff with a lightning core hanging below it. The stock also contains activation arrays for seven kinds of buff spells, which can be activated at will when firing from the shoulder.

Rumor has it that some naval colleagues witnessed Alset wielding this shotgun in a combat demonstration, and the scene was reportedly extremely chaotic, "Like a mad dog roaring and howling."

Everyone listened as if to a foreign language, their faces showing envy and exclaiming, "Wow, that's wonderful!"

They were really envious.

The speaker never mentioned anything about persuading surrender, but all his words and speaking techniques conveyed this message silently.

--To be His Highness Kang De's dog would be the greatest honor.

"They will remember this wholeheartedly, very soon."

Kang De stood atop the mountain, overlooking the camp below. The ideological work was underway. Although he couldn't understand the language of Yilan-Tai'er for the time being, he had no intention of letting go of the thousands of well-trained elite officers and soldiers of the Azure Fleet.

"The Broken Isles are isolated overseas, beyond the reach of the Council. I will recruit and reorganize this force that has lost its honor and courage, transforming them from the inside out into my own shape."

"That's true," Horus said, "But you seem to care about them too much."

Kang De did not answer, but pondered for a moment, then asked, "Horus, what do you think of us and the Council?"

Iron Son answered without hesitation, "A war is inevitable."

"Yes, that's also my judgment. The Azure Fleet incident has reinforced my views and opinions," Kang De asked. "War is simple, even victory is simple, so what is difficult? Ending a war is difficult, and the aftermath and follow-up work are also difficult."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "When we Council in the future, to what extent will the war end? What are the objectives of the war? What are the war strategies? Massively killing the Council's manpower and destroying their war potential is not in our or the Mortal World's interest. So how do we make them submit? How do we get them to voluntarily join our war effort?"

Horus replied, "The answer from Hearts of Iron is a puppet state."

"That's right." Kang De glanced at the camp, where countless seeds were being sown and waiting to sprout; he wanted to brand this army with his own mark.

The Fire Thief chuckled softly.

"How many of these people do you think would be suitable to be members of parliament?"

The Yilan-Tai'er incident has eloquently demonstrated that the Arcane Council, currently ruled by the Starry Sky Council, is incapable of properly Council represents the direction of advanced technology with its ideological awareness and historical responsibility. The two sides are now irreconcilable enemies and war is inevitable.

So...

It's time to change their colors.

The Azure Fleet is just the beginning.

"Both the army and navy, remember the first tenet of the Ministry of Peace..." Kang De said calmly, "--To seek peace, one must first prepare for war."

"Yes," Horus and A Fu answered together, "Let's begin formulating war plans."

A short while later, the Distant Harbor cable rang. "Tina?"

Her Highness replied, "The Arcane Council officially issued a statement to the world, condemning Distant Harbor's unwarranted detention of the Azure Fleet, demanding the immediate release of the entire fleet, and requiring you to travel to Tula Xiaye to apologize. Otherwise, the Council not rule out taking any extreme measures."

Kang De chuckled, "Anything else?"

"The Starry Sky Council has released details about Yilan-Tai'er to the world. They claim that saving Yilan-Tai'er was an agreement between the Council and the remnants, and that Yilan-Tai'er's attack on the Azure Fleet was because the remnants, angered by your blatant attack, perceived it as a trap and launched an indiscriminate attack in self-defense, resulting in heavy losses for the Azure Fleet. Everything is your responsibility."

"The council declares that you must apologize and compensate for this, and release the ancient people of Yilan-Tai'er who were coerced by your force. The ancient people have the right to choose any life they want, and should not be used as bargaining chips to win over individual countries. You must release the innocent people who were oppressed by your power."

"Furthermore, they declared your conquest of the Broken Isles illegal, all property on the islands belongs to the Broken Isles, they have funded the establishment of an exiled organization on the Broken Isles, claiming all ownership rights to the original interests of the Broken Isles, Starry Sky Council demands that we immediately and unconditionally withdraw our troops..."

Kang De laughed and said, "Otherwise?"

"Otherwise, they will take every possible measure," Tina whispered, "Including cutting off trade, terminating all spell patent licenses, forcing all spellcasters serving the Distant Harbor to sever their contracts and return to the Council, and these measures could very well extend to the entire Goth."

"Wow!" Kang De exclaimed, "How scary!"

Her Highness asked, "... So, what should we do?"

"Move out," the Fire Thief said without hesitation. "Aokexindun is on his way."

He chuckled coldly a few times, "Tell the Ministry of Plenty and the West Goth Company to prepare for a trade war with the Arcane Council, to let them know what dumping is... Three hours later, convene a Shogunate meeting. The next challenge has arrived; external pressure will drive our national machinery to turn. The next strategic enemy is the Arcane Council."

Meanwhile, in the Holy Capital, within the palace, the Emperor gazed at the numerous intelligence letters laid out on the table—representing recent major events that had captured the attention of the entire world.

The winds of change are blowing across the continent once more. Ancient people are stirring up trouble. It turns out to be a long-lost legendary Civilization that still possesses immense power and has inherited the knowledge and essence of its peak period.

They are now in Kang De's hands.

This troublesome name refers to the Cathayan, who have turned the world upside down with their Forbidden Spell, spatial abilities, and alchemical skills... They are unpredictable, capricious, and of unknown origin.

Kang De proposed an alliance.

They pledged to conduct joint research and share Yilan-Tai'er's generous gifts.

But the Grand Speaker's letter lay before him.

"I heard you tried to recruit Kang De and reach an understanding with generous terms such as land grants and the continuation of his bloodline."

The Grand Speaker's words pierced his heart like a knife.

"And Kang De, it seems, wouldn't even bother to give you a perfunctory response."

"Your intelligence chief must have told you that more than one person saw the Elf Queen openly appearing in the Distant Harbor, and that she was extremely close to Kang De."

"Think about it, if Twilight Moon's offensive were to extend from Distant Harbor to the entire continent, if the powerful elves' national strength were to complement Kang De's, what would happen given your old grudge against Kang De?"

"And don't forget, the reason why Cathay was cut off from the mainland was because the Elves sealed off the Grand Line. What would happen if the Grand Line reopened? Behind Kang De are actually two powerful nations."

You can fawn over him, but he won't even look at you.