The Kingdom

Reducing taxes was already enough to set all of Black Stone City celebrating. At first, Carl had considered whether to exempt them from taxes forever. But then she thought better of it. Although she came from the Holy Alliance and was naturally on friendly terms with the Radiant Church, she had never truly joined it. That meant that once her territory grew to a certain size, it would threaten the very foundations of the Holy Alliance's rule. A falling-out with the Holy Alliance was inevitable sooner or later.

After all, a force led by an ordinary Peak Saint Realm expert counted as a top-tier power in the Holy Alliance. But the Radiant Church alone had at least five experts of the same level, not to mention the reinforcements it could call upon. However, if the leader were a top-tier Peak Saint Realm expert—or even at the Saint Realm Limit—then no kingdom in the Holy Alliance could stand against Carl unless the Radiant Church intervened in person.

The Radiant Church intervening in person to deal with a top Saint Realm expert in her territory?

That would be like cutting off its own roots. If things went on like that, would Saint Realm experts in the future have only two choices: join the Radiant Church or leave the Holy Alliance? If so, the Holy Alliance would never be able to grow.

Black Stone City.

A powerful Saint Realm leader, generous military pay, and extremely low taxes. On top of that, Carl had promised that all residents of the Sky Wind Kingdom would be exempt from taxes for three years. These three things quickly fostered a strong sense of unity among the people of Black Stone City. They all hoped they could live forever under such a leader, because generous military pay meant a powerful army.

And with a powerful army and a powerful leader, the kingdom would be peaceful. No one would bully them at will. That alone was enough to make the residents of the Chaotic Territory, who had suffered through years of war, yearn for such a life.

At the same time, after seeing the changes in Black Stone City, many commoners from the surrounding areas chose to move there.

Half a month after Black Stone City raised its new banner atop the city walls.

Luo, the steward chosen by most of the people, was reporting on the state of Black Stone City to the imposing leader before him.

Although Carl had established the Sky Wind Kingdom, her territory currently consisted of only Black Stone City. It was nowhere near the level of a kingdom or even a principality. It had not even reached the level of a commandery beneath a province.

"Lord, Black Stone City now has a population of 130,000. Including the residents of the many villages and towns around it, the population under Black Stone City's rule now exceeds 700,000. The army is also expanding rapidly. We now have five regiments, the highest-level unit in the military, with a total of 9,000 soldiers," Luo said respectfully.

Carl listened from her seat above and merely nodded. After waving Luo away, she began to ponder.

She had no loyal followers in Black Stone City. The people working for her now were all temporary recruits. Even the former chief steward had only been appointed because he seemed decent, had lived in Black Stone City for a long time, and had once served as an aide to the previous lord.

I still need to recruit some administrators I can trust.

Carl knew a thing or two about management, after all. She was a ruler herself, even if she often delegated authority.

I'll start by picking a few promising people from the army and training them to become officers. Once the territory reaches Level 3, Black Stone City will be the foundation of my future.

Carl had given the matter a great deal of thought before coming to the Chaotic Territory. As a Saint Realm expert, she would be fine as long as she did not truly offend other experts of the same rank. They could all coexist peacefully. Even though the Chaotic Territory had been at war for thousands of years, the fighting was not intense enough to affect Saint Realm experts.

As long as I don't completely ban proselytizing, the churches will take some of the available slots, but that won't affect me. For now, I should avoid offending either of the two churches.

A complete ban on proselytizing would mean making enemies of both churches for good. It would be an outright rejection of them, and anyone who could not be a friend would naturally become an enemy.

Carl did not need to go as far as Linley. She only had to set some limits. For example, no more than thirty percent of a city's residents could follow a church. That way, even if the Radiant Church and the Dark Church spread their faith through Carl's territory, they would simply have to compete with each other.

It was like saying, "I know you're coming, and I'll let you proselytize as a courtesy. But you should show me some courtesy, too: you can only have thirty percent." Whether the churches considered thirty percent of the population worth pursuing was their concern. Carl had shown them respect, and in turn, both churches would have to show her respect.

After all, only the War God and the High Priest had the power to completely forbid others from practicing their faith within an empire.

A few days later, after careful consideration, Carl selected five regiment commanders. They were of average ability, ranging from Level 4 to Level 5. Those who had reached Level 6 could take important posts in a commandery, while Level 7 experts were strong enough to serve as city lords. Carl understood that.

There were five in all: three Level 4 Warriors and two Level 5 Warriors. The two Level 5 Warriors had been the former commanders of Black Stone City's City Guard and Royal Guard.

After selecting the five, Carl went to the territory system's list of registered residents and chose five of the lowest-ranked Level 3 Warriors. She revoked the territory benefits they had received and gave their five slots to the new commanders.

Carl did not care too much about the five men's personalities or character. Her rules were clear: first offense meant punishment, a second meant expulsion, and failure to change meant execution. That was what she expected of them.

She was strict, but she also offered them ample compensation.

After the five men left, Carl did not stay long in Black Stone City. They were her military foothold in the city, while Luo would carry out the strategy she had laid out.

About a hundred miles northeast of Black Stone City stood a valley. Its name was unknown, and there were no other cities within a hundred and fifty miles. Carl settled there.

The Laws of Wind were vast and boundless. After improving her talent, Carl had long yearned to spend a great deal of time immersed in them, carefully comprehending and absorbing their mysteries.

Black Stone City was already quite close to the Dark Forest. That was the main reason so many powerful experts did not want to occupy the nearby cities. Every few to ten years, a beast tide would sweep through. Those truly powerful had no need to risk their lives for a little comfort.

In a valley a thousand meters across, Carl sat cross-legged atop the canopy of a large tree. A gentle breeze brushed her face, and the treetop swayed with the wind. Carl's body rocked lightly, like a leaf.

On her back was a three-foot-long sword, two fingers wide. To many warriors, a weapon of that size would be no more than a small dagger, but this was the quasi-divine weapon Phoenix Cry that Carl had bought from the Mall.