Mystic Azure Lotus

"Boss, will these people really obediently do as they're told?" Da Niu voiced his doubts.

"They will!"

Bai Fan answered with utmost certainty. Then, wrapping an arm around Da Niu's neck, he turned and instructed Goudan and Monkey behind them.

"Goudan, Monkey, I'm leaving this place to you. I hope that when the two of us return next time, we'll see a Republic Empire running steadily."

The two set off shoulder to shoulder toward the territory of the Star Luo Empire. Their journey to Star Luo Empire was about to begin.

Outside the Heavenly Screen.

Xue Ye had just awakened when he saw the scene of the Balak Kingdom submitting to Bai Fan on the Heavenly Screen. He was so furious that he spat out a mouthful of black blood.

"Someone, quickly! The Emperor's condition has taken a turn!" A minister beside him hurriedly called for the imperial physicians.

Unexpectedly, after spitting out the black blood, Xue Ye's complexion became somewhat rosier. Without the slightest hesitation, he issued an order.

"Kill Yuwen Huai'an's entire family. I want Xue Qiu to suffer a fate worse than death!"

"From this day onward, any woman in the empire who is unfaithful will be executed immediately!"

Xue Ye could make such an absolute declaration because he had realized something: an empire was a massive machine.

He and the noble ministers shared a symbiotic relationship. He did not need to forcibly monitor them, or the outcome would only be counterproductive.

When one's abilities did not match one's ambitions, the most important thing was to first stabilize what one already had.

What was more, the Heavenly Screen had already revealed Yuwen Huai'an's dissatisfaction with the Heaven Dou Empire. Yuwen Huai'an had long since died of illness, and no one knew whether he had left behind any ticking bombs within the Heaven Dou Empire.

With the Star Luo Empire's support, Zhang Jiao and his people soon captured a city of their own.

"Big Brother, what do we do next? Although the Star Luo Empire is helping us on the surface, this will become a hidden danger sooner or later!"

"Heh, there's no need to worry. They're merely a bunch of brutes. Their way of thinking can only come up with the scheme of letting the snipe and clam fight."

"Starting today, use part of the gold, silver, and treasures we seize to buy food. Keep the rest for me."

His subordinate's expression darkened somewhat. "Boss, shouldn't we first establish an empire of our own? We need these treasures to build our empire."

"Who told you I planned to build an empire first?"

"Lord Bai Fan on the Heavenly Screen established the Republic Empire first!"

Zhang Jiao roared, "Fool! Is our situation the same as theirs on the Heavenly Screen? Do we have top-tier strength like a Soul Saint? The empire is conscripting able-bodied men and collecting ironware. Our circumstances are even harsher than those on the Heavenly Screen. Every step we take must be considered again and again."

"We have no room to retreat. Behind us lies a bottomless abyss!"

"Remember this: people must have thoughts of their own. Other people's methods and paths may not suit us. We must forge a path that belongs to us."

"You may leave for now. Remember, we do not need to establish order yet. What we need to do is stir up these commoners' emotions and expand our ranks!"

After his subordinate left, Zhang Jiao stood with his hands behind his back, staring at the Heavenly Screen as he asked himself, Why can't I meet subordinates like Da Niu, Goudan, and Zhu Youcai?

"Heh, so what if I don't have subordinates like them? So what if the conditions are harsher? I, Zhang Jiao, am inferior to no one. I alone am enough to win this struggle!"

The Faith Red Lotus unconsciously emerged behind Zhang Jiao. At that moment, his powerful conviction nourished the Faith Red Lotus within him, and pure Soul Power swept through his entire body. His Soul Power immediately reached Level 20.

Zhang Jiao's hair had now turned white. Though he possessed lofty ambition and a resolute expression, his grizzled hair still gave him the air of someone in his twilight years.

Logically speaking, even though the system had taken twenty years of Zhang Jiao's lifespan, his current state at forty or fifty years old should not have made him look so aged.

Inside the Heavenly Screen.

"Boss, what exactly are the two of us here in the Star Luo Empire to do this time?"

"Cause destruction and relocate people," Bai Fan answered Da Niu succinctly.

Bai Fan snapped his fingers, and a group of youths dressed in ghillie suits emerged from the surroundings.

"How are things going?"

"Reporting to the boss, the poor have gathered at the edge of the Star Luo Empire and are waiting at all times for your arrival."

"Well done!" Bai Fan patted each of their shoulders. "You've worked hard these past few days. After today, your mission will be complete."

"It is no hardship to serve the empire!" the group answered in unison.

That was right. The information Bai Fan had revealed to the people of Spirit Hall last time had not been false. He truly was preparing to make a move against the Star Luo Empire.

However, Bai Fan did not intend to confront them head-on. He had his own ideas.

The first step was to transfer the Star Luo Empire's lower-class commoners into the Republic Empire, expanding the empire's scale.

As for the second step, it was what Bai Fan and Da Niu were about to do.

Having received Bai Fan's orders, Little Golden Dragon headed alone toward where the poor were gathered, preparing to take on the transportation work.

It was worth mentioning that Little Golden Dragon was currently the continent's first External Beast Martial Soul. It possessed its own consciousness.

Even in the original story, after Yu Xiaogang broke through Level 30, Luo Sanpao had already shown faint signs of evolving.

Little Golden Dragon had now treated Immortal Herbs like an all-you-can-eat buffet. Its potential was surely far beyond Luo Sanpao's potential limit in the original story.

As the saying went, there were no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Masters.

Bai Fan was not useless, and neither were Little Golden Dragon or Luo Sanpao. So who exactly was the useless one? What a difficult question to guess!

The group split into two routes. Bai Fan led Da Niu toward the cities surrounding the Star Luo Empire.

Da Niu's World-Crossing Sacred Lotus worked with Bai Fan's World-Destroying White Lotus, continuously bombarding the Star Luo Empire's cities.

Whenever the Star Luo Empire prepared to retaliate, Bai Fan and Da Niu would mysteriously vanish.

The moment the Star Luo Empire relaxed, the two began bombarding again. When the Star Luo Empire prepared to strike back, the two instantly disappeared.

In a desolate wilderness.

"Boss, your methods are truly incredible. They can't even catch a glimpse of us!"

Two azure lotuses spun on the ground behind them, and each of their foreheads bore an azure lotus mark.

This azure lotus was something Bai Fan had developed during his last period of secluded cultivation.

At the time, Bai Fan had desperately experienced and comprehended laws in order to unlock more varieties of lotuses.

By chance, he recalled the Daoist Purification Divine Incantation from memories of his previous life.

"Heaven and earth are naturally ordered; foul qi disperses. Within the cave lies mystic emptiness, bright and vast primordial origin."

At first, Bai Fan could not grasp the principle within it, until he remembered that familiar Daoist saying: "Man follows Earth, Earth follows Heaven, Heaven follows the Dao, and the Dao follows nature."

That saying itself contained the order of the universe. With the Radiant World Golden Lotus as his foundation, Bai Fan slowly began to comprehend the true essence of Daoism. In the end, he succeeded in understanding it and created the Mystic Azure Lotus.

"Wash away filth and impurity, cleanse the mortal dust."

"Mystic Azure Lotus, enduring for a thousand years!"

These past few days, Bai Fan had been using the Mystic Azure Lotus's abilities.