"Interesting. This is the first time someone has blatantly lied to praise me." Lothaire's lips twitched, forcing a sarcastic smile to hide her inner turmoil.
"You can use ambition to disguise yourself, but you can't fool everyone. You created a new religion and distorted people's beliefs not because of ambition, but because you have ulterior motives." Han Xiao smiled.
Han Xiao knew little about the Lothaire before him, but in his previous life, in the Silver Revolutionary Army version, players had collected a lot of information about Lothaire. After recognizing Lothaire, Han Xiao recalled this information, a significant portion of which was about Lothaire's past experiences. She had told others about her past deeds, and although she hadn't told the player where her hometown was, she had mentioned what she had done there and her motivations.
Based on this information, Han Xiao knew that Lothaire's true motives had nothing to do with ambition; she did not manipulate faith for power. Han Xiao understood Lothaire better than she understood herself.
Those who can become key members of the Silver Revolutionary Army possess not only exceptional abilities but also a restless spirit and unique ambitions.
Lothaire's heart skipped a beat. This was the first person to see through her disguise. She quickly suppressed her shock and regained her composure with vigilance and alertness—a habit she had cultivated over the years. She thought to herself, "Black Star has only met me twice, yet he's saying these things out of the blue. He must have something on his mind... He's definitely exaggerating. How could he possibly know what I'm thinking..."
The true motives behind establishing a sect and gathering believers remained her deepest secret, which Lothaire never told anyone else, and she didn't believe Black Star could guess.
Reynold also turned to look at Han Xiao, his eyes filled with suspicion. Could it be that his sister had some other hidden story?
"Your ability is to subtly reshape a person's mindset. The effect is not drastic, and you cannot completely control others according to your will, but you can instill all sorts of ideas in them."
Han Xiao, with an air of confidence, slowly said, "Thoughts are intangible, yet they are like the strings that control a puppet, influencing every aspect of an individual. Whether someone is loyal or rebellious, passionate or hypocritical, cheerful or gloomy, largely depends on their thoughts. The same environment can create different people, also because of their thoughts."
As he spoke, he pointed to the composed Lothaire and smiled faintly, "The new ideas you've bestowed upon them through your abilities are highly contagious. In the eyes of the regime in your homeland, your ideas are a virus, but in my view, they are a seed—a seed that can reverse the course of development for an entire nation of thousands."
"You..." Lothaire's expression changed drastically.
Before she could react, Han Xiao continued speaking at a leisurely pace.
"The racial character of a civilization depends partly on its innate nature and partly on the traditional ideas passed down from ancient times. These are beyond the control of later generations and will change autonomously at various stages of history. Ultimately, these historically inherited ideas will be integrated into the blood of this race, becoming their spiritual foundation. History only happens once; a race has no second chance... or rather, no chance at all. From a macro perspective, the culture and character of this civilization are almost random, finding a result that may not be the optimal solution amidst infinite variables. Of course, perhaps there is no optimal solution at all."
"I call you Reformer because I know that you established a sect in your homeland not for power, but to reform your own race." Han Xiao smiled slightly. "To be honest, I admire your ambition. What you want to reform is not any particular regime or system, but the culture, thought, and spiritual pursuits of the entire race, thereby changing the very essence of the race!"
The news came like a hurricane, shocking Reynold. He stared at Lothaire, mouth agape. If what Han Xiao said was true, his sister's actions were simply unbelievably grand.
Lothaire was stunned, as if struck by lightning, her face filled with disbelief.
Han Xiao smiled inwardly. These were all the motives that Lothaire herself had stated in her previous life, and now she was using them to fool the person in question, and the effect was phenomenal.
He paused, then continued, "Reforming the system and the regime are not as far-reaching as changing the fundamental spirit of the entire race. Many problems are human problems; character determines destiny. This principle also applies to a civilization when there are no external forces influencing it."
"History is already set. In the process of development, a civilization has virtually no opportunity to actively change its inherent character. Your actions, however, are using power and religion to implant new ideas into the ethnic group, giving them the opportunity to change. This is your 'racial transformation plan'."
Han Xiao stroked his chin. "Well, but you're just an individual within this group. In the eyes of others, you have no right to change everyone's mind. Everyone is marked by historical traditions during their growth. You cannot challenge the deeply rooted traditions passed down for thousands of years, so you become a heretic, a sinner."
In his view, Lothaire's behavior was practically a path to sainthood!
Han Xiao couldn't help but secretly criticize Lothaire —denying history and the inherited national spirit, you're so nihilistic, your thoughts are too dangerous, locking you up wouldn't be a problem at all.
However, this woman's idea wasn't entirely wrong... Han Xiao's eyes darted around. He thought that if there had been no Old Kong Old Meng in his previous life, and no Confucianism, then the ideas passed down by people thousands of years later would be different, and the logic of how to conduct oneself in the world would also change to some extent.
"And the simplest way to change the spirit of a group is through religion or a school of thought. So you chose to establish a sect, gather believers, and subtly change people's fundamental character. That's your true motive." Han Xiao stared intently at Lothaire with great interest. "I wonder if I'm right?"
Lothaire's hand trembled, she took a deep breath, and looked at Han Xiao with a complex expression.
"You're right..." Lothaire's tone was low, completely unlike her previous nonchalant demeanor. Only then did Han Xiao faintly see the aura of a pope from her.
She looked directly into Han Xiao's eyes, her gaze unwavering, and said in a deep voice, "I'm not particularly noble. My parents and Reynold's parents died in a political protest. The Cecil Civilization has disappointed me time and time again, which is why I wanted to change some things... You're right, I don't have the right to change the fundamental spirit of an entire race, and they may not even need me. But if no one takes the pressure to do something extraordinary, nothing will change. I've founded the sect for many years, and I've only managed to change the character of a small group of people. Through doctrine and superpowers, I've encouraged them to be positive, to seize the present, and to become better. As long as the sect continues to be passed down, even without my superpowers in the future, these ideas will become increasingly ingrained in people's hearts. It's just a pity that it has caused a backlash..."
After so many years of hardship, Lothaire harbored deep suspicion towards everyone. Her sharp tongue and cynical attitude were her protective disguise, because there was too much deceit and too many people trying to take advantage of her. She had once resolved never to open her heart to anyone, and even if she suffered misunderstandings, she would not defend herself.
But now, for the first time, Lothaire opened up to an outsider.
She gazed at Han Xiao, a complex mix of emotions rising within her—surprise, relief, and a touch of relief at finding a kindred spirit. These were her deepest secrets, never told to anyone else, yet Black Star had seen through them so easily, revealing her true thoughts. It was the first time Lothaire had met someone who understood her so well, almost causing her to lose her composure.
Reynold stood speechless, staring at Lothaire in disbelief, looking her up and down as if he suspected his sister had been switched. He couldn't imagine Lothaire having such lofty ambitions; it was as if she wanted to reach for the heavens and stand shoulder to shoulder with the sun.
Han Xiao was secretly thrilled when he saw Lothaire admit it.
This fertilization method works just as well as before. That's how the Silver Revolutionary Army tricked her in her past life!
Achoo!
On Planet Aquamarine, Bennett suddenly sneezed.
After Lothaire finished speaking, the room fell silent. After a moment of conversation, Han Xiao tapped the table and took the initiative to speak.
"So what are your plans for the future? Cecilis, you can't go back now. You're nominally a prisoner of Amethyst. I've bailed you out, but you can't just run around."
Upon hearing this, Lothaire turned and glanced at Reynold, then smiled gently, "I understand. After all that, you still want me to stay."
"You're talented, and I like talented people."
Han Xiao naturally had no reason to deny it.
"Since my brother works for you, I suppose even if you're using me, you won't go too far. Fine, you used your connections to save me, so I owe you a favor. My brother is my brother, and I won't use him to repay your favor. Besides, I don't have much fighting ability; I'm definitely no match for someone as important as you..."
Lothaire stretched, resuming her nonchalant attitude, winked at Han Xiao, and deliberately gave him a suggestive look, "Since there's no escaping it, I have no choice. You can use my body as a tool, use it as you like, don't be shy."
"Good."
Han Xiao nodded without showing any emotion, but inwardly he thought to himself, "That arrogant jerk is still pretending. Do you think I can't see that +80 points of goodwill? Would it kill him to just honestly say he's grateful? Would it kill him to say he's grateful?"
With the biggest issue resolved, Han Xiao instructed Reynold to take Lothaire to rest and eat something to replenish her nutrition. Having been imprisoned for many years, Lothaire's body was quite weak and she urgently needed to recover.
After the two left, Han Xiao remained alone in the hall, tapping his fingers on the sofa as he pondered how to best utilize Lothaire's unique talent.
Lothaire's abilities are very suitable for ideological construction. He thinks they can be used to strengthen the corporate culture of the Black Star Army and cultivate slogans such as "Let the Glory of the Black Star spread throughout the galaxy" and "May the Black Star rise as usual." There are also specialized talents in the War Realm who carry out ideological and cultural construction.
"So, Lothaire can serve as a political commissar?"
Han Xiao excitedly touched his lips.
Let the leeks thrive through spiritual development...
This is just a high-performance compound fertilizer!
"Moreover, her abilities are quite unique. In the future Silver Revolutionary Army might still be eyeing her. I can't keep such an ambitious person around forever. So, if she becomes a core member of the Silver Revolutionary Army like in my previous life, I might be able to build a good relationship with them and avoid becoming their enemy."
The Silver Revolutionary Army could become a major storyline in a game is naturally impressive. Although Han Xiao had no desire to join them in rebelling against the three major cosmic civilizations, he also didn't want to be their enemy.
Perhaps through Lothaire, they could discover the Silver Revolutionary Army's whereabouts before they even rise up, and then take preventative measures.
Han Xiao thought it over and felt that there was nothing wrong with his approach, then opened the panel.
In the task list, the [Reformer] task has already been completed, and the rewards have been obtained. A fully-formed Reynold Character Summon Card is currently sitting on the panel.
[Character Summon Card - Reynold: [Perfect Mechanical Sense] - Total Mechanical Affinity x1.4, this effect directly affects the total value; when using Mechanical Force- enhancing machine, the quality of that machine is temporarily increased by 1-2 tiers, up to a maximum of pink rare quality; all Mechanic Class active skills, the actual effect is level +4 by default, can exceed the level cap, the effect lasts for 16 hours, and the usage limit is 0/3 -- in your senses, every machine is a world of ecological balance]
"It can be used three times, each lasting sixteen hours, which is quite long-lasting. It seems that this type of character card effect also takes into account the production cycle of machinery, so it can be used for both combat and manufacturing."
Han Xiao was quite satisfied. With the effect of this character card, crafting orange-grade equipment would be no problem. He just needed to complete the blueprint quest and obtain the silver legacy blueprint.
After watching the results again, Han Xiao became increasingly envious of Reynold.
I really want the official [Perfect Mechanical Sense] perk...
Sigh, we're not the same!
After rescuing Lothaire, Han Xiao and Reynold split up. Reynold took Lothaire back to headquarters to settle her in, while Han Xiao piloted his spaceship away from the Colton Star Cluster and headed to the location of the blueprint mission.
Neither the affairs of the Black Star Army, Verna, nor Lothaire were as important as his job change quest. Only by improving his strength could he maintain his current foundation. With the job change quest showing signs of completion, Han Xiao put aside his other work and focused on the job change.
Just as Han Xiao left the Colton Star Cluster, a pair of eyes were watching his every move from the shadows where he couldn't see.