The power of godhood descended upon the Yulan Continent.
Jason looked up toward the north of the continent, toward the O'Brien Empire.
"Wow, Cesar has become a god. It seems that beating him up before actually helped him break through his bottleneck."
Jason is already Midgod, and his divine sense can completely cover the entire continent. Of course, the War God and the High Priest are probably unaware of this yet.
"That guy is so unreliable, getting beaten up is actually a good thing for him. Besides, harassing Monica, anyone with a bad temper would have chopped him up long ago."
He didn't care at all whether he had left the other person with psychological trauma.
Or rather, Jason now doesn't consider these Saint-level and Lowgod as his opponents at all; he treats them merely as passersby. The fact that he shows them the most basic respect and doesn't kill them indiscriminately is a testament to the fact that his values from his previous life still remain.
Over the past thousand years on the Yulan Continent, Jason has been gradually changing.
Jason withdrew his divine sense; he was now in a castle in the Rhine Empire.
This place is quite far from Bloodshadow Valley and Rhine City, because some of the higher-ups in the Rhine Clan felt it wasn't appropriate for members of the Four Ultimate Warrior Clans to live directly in the core area of their family.
The Saint-level had no objections, but the operation of the nation still needed to pay some attention to worldly opinions. If rumors such as "the imperial power has fallen into the wrong hands" or "the Four Ultimate Warrior Clans have usurped the throne" circulated among the people, it would be a significant blow to the nation.
Therefore, Barek, who was appointed by the current Emperor of the Rhein to be in charge of this matter, chose an abandoned castle far away from the capital and Bloodshadow Valley, and renovated and expanded it.
Jason sat in the main seat, with Monica and Barek beside him. Below the audience were members of the Baruch Clan, Hyde Clan, and Bolei Clan.
The Baruch Clan only had one member, Wharton;
The Hyde Clan has four members, three of whom are the Vincent father and sons who appeared in the original work; the other is an elderly man, the younger brother of the previous Hyde Clan patriarch and Vincent's uncle. In his sixties, he has reached Sixth-level Warrior status solely through his physical abilities, and may reach level seven in his lifetime, which is quite remarkable for a member of the Purple Flame Warrior Clan. This man does not appear in the original work; it is unknown whether he was separated from his family during the original storyline or was abducted by the Radiant Church at that time.
The Bolei Clan was small, only seven people in total. When they were found, they were a hereditary guard family in a small duchy, protecting the Grand Duke for generations. But in reality, it was just a different way of periodically harvesting their wealth.
Jason took his seat, and a dozen or so people, including His Highness, knelt down on the ground.
"Lord Jason."
Jason waved for them to rise. "The reason I brought you to the Rhine Empire, and the truth behind the decline of your Four Ultimate Warrior Clans, have already been told to you on the way. Whether you believe it or not is not important; you can investigate for yourselves once you reach the Saint-level."
I've already mentioned the conditions for providing you with shelter and helping you activate your bloodlines. I hope you'll abide by them; otherwise, you'll be severely punished—you cannot refuse."
"We are willing to pledge our loyalty, and we would never dare to disobey it in this lifetime."
Jason had no intention of giving them any choice. Of course, the constraints he set for them weren't that strict either; they were just very basic moral guidelines. If they couldn't even abide by such basic requirements, then they deserved to die.
"Furthermore, given your direct allegiance to me personally, I plan to form a knightly order, tentatively named the Four Directions Knight Order,' composed of members selected from your Four Ultimate Warrior Clans. For now, Felix Bolei of the Bolei Clan will serve as acting leader. The order will be formally established once the remaining bloodlines of the Armand clan and the other Four Ultimate Warrior Clans are all present."
Felix Bolei, whose hair was already turning gray, stepped forward and knelt on one knee. "Your subject will do everything in his power to serve you, my lord."
Felix Bolei was the previous patriarch of the Tiger-Striped Warrior Clan, and he was seventy-two years old. Because relying solely on physical enhancement to follow the path of a warrior offered little improvement in lifespan, his face had already begun to show signs of aging at the age of seventy. Even after activating his bloodline and reaching the peak of level seven in human form, it was impossible to change the old man's appearance in a short time.
Jason valued him primarily because he had served as a battalion commander on the battlefield in his early years, giving him considerable experience.
As for Veronica, she said that since she had already left the Baruch Clan, she would no longer get involved in this matter; and as for Monica, a girl, Jason was unwilling to let her do these things, at most he would arrange for her to have an inspector position in the future, in charge of the discipline of this knightly order.
Jason nodded. "The remaining positions in the Knights will be decided later after I discuss them with the acting Grand Master. Also, your three families are now Withering in number, so you should pay more attention to the upbringing of your descendants. I will assign a few magicians from the Rhine Clan to provide you with some talent testing equipment and cultivation potion formulas."
Also, each of you should have a copy of the educational books used by the Rhine Clan, and you are required to read them all! This is very important!
The educational books Jason was referring to were, of course, some humanities and history books that he had modified from his political and history textbooks from his previous life.
"As for the banquet, let's talk about it when the Knights are officially established. You can just get together on your own these next few days."
After giving a few brief instructions, Jason left.
"It's not enough to force your family's descendants to read the moral education books you compiled; you want to extend this to the Four Ultimate Warrior Clans? Do you want them all to become saints?"
Outside the castle, Veronica mocked Jason, believing his moral and ethical books were completely unsuitable for the strife-ridden Yulan Continent Jason.
"Like the Rhine Clan, the Four Ultimate Warrior Clans possess talents far exceeding those of ordinary people. In the Divine Plane, this gap would be easily bridged by external conditions and endless time. However, in the Material Plane, this imbalance could easily escalate into social division. Don't forget, the Dark Forest Lord is still overseeing things on the continent."
Moreover, in my opinion, those who "have the heart of a strongman" will go further on the path of cultivation, while those who only wield their swords against the weak will never become strong. They all have good aptitude, and I don't want them to become people who rely on their talents to bully the weak." This is a principle that Jason has always adhered to.
While a clear understanding of the Dao is not entirely applicable in this world, it is not entirely meaningless either. To become a strong person, a stable worldview is very important, especially for those who reach the level of Highgod or above, where temperament and comprehension are even more important than so-called talent.
Of course, Jason's moral education books weren't that strict; Linley in the original work basically met the criteria. However, compared to the Saint-level on the continent that treated ordinary people like ants, the requirements given in the book were practically equivalent to those of a "saint."
Actually, it wouldn't matter if Jason didn't make these demands. Beirut isn't obsessive-compulsive, keeping an eye on who on the continent breaks the rules every day; whether the Saint-level Domain of the Yulan Continent becomes Deity-level or not is none of Jason's business.
However, Jason felt it was necessary to do something for the continent, both for the public and for himself.
Endless time will dilute the memories and worldview of past lives, and also wear down the ambition of this life.
Maintaining a strong humanity, and thus preserving the heart of a powerful being, is crucial for Deity-level, and for this lawless world.