The next morning at court, all the ministers bowed low in greeting.
"You may rise!" Ian Song, clad in a black dragon robe, sat high on the dragon throne and raised his hand in a gesture of support.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." All the ministers responded in unison.
The empire had just been founded and everything was in need of rebuilding, so there were countless matters to handle. As a result, this morning court session lasted more than three hours before finally adjourning.
Still, a few important decisions were made at today's court.
First, household registration: in modern terms, it means creating a population registry and issuing identity cards to every citizen of the empire. With a registry and ID cards, the empire could manage its people much more effectively.
Second, founding schools: as the saying goes, education starts with the young. Only by instilling loyalty to the emperor and love of country in children from an early age could the empire endure and thrive.
Ian had a hunch that if he could get these two things done right, the Grand Martial Empire’s national strength and stability would rise sharply—and naturally, the qi-luck within his body would expand as well.
Although qi-luck was a power bestowed on him by Heaven and Earth, it was undeniable—qi-luck was truly formidable, already comparable to a Martial God.
If he just focused on cultivation, even after another hundred years he might never reach the Martial God realm.
And since wiping out the Demon and Monster Races required overwhelming force, Ian could only choose to strengthen his qi-luck instead.
Besides household registration and founding schools, Ian also pushed for vigorous development of agriculture and commerce, and established a new department—the Heavenworks Institute.
In terms of raw power, the Human Race couldn’t match the Demon and Monster Races, so brute force alone wouldn’t cut it. That’s why Ian decided to pursue science and create a batch of high-tech weapons.
The Heavenworks Institute was just getting started, with only a dozen or so members. Ian immediately handed over the formula for black gunpowder and the method for making hand grenades, telling them to research and refine these weapons.
A few days passed in a flash. Under the Cabinet’s direction, household registration and school construction proceeded in an orderly fashion. After several days, the Holy Capital and its nine satellite cities had completed their population registries.
Currently, the Holy Capital itself had a population of over 110 million, and the nine satellite cities together added another 100 million.
Honestly, those numbers were pretty terrifying.
School construction was moving slower. For now, only ten primary schools had been built in the Holy Capital, and any child from five to twelve could attend for free.
With household registration and schools showing early results, Ian could feel the qi-luck in his body growing again. In other words, his theory that strengthening the nation would also strengthen his qi-luck was proving true.
"Your Majesty, there’s someone outside the palace claiming to be your father!"
A female palace official came to report.
That’s right—a female official, not a eunuch. Ian had no intention of introducing eunuchs into this world, so all the palace attendants were women.
Ian was startled when he heard this. Activating his Clairvoyant Vision, he looked outside the palace gate—and sure enough, he saw the travel-worn Yellow Mountain.
With a flicker of his body, Ian used the Art of Great Teleportation and instantly appeared outside the palace gate.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!"
All the palace guards immediately knelt and saluted.
"No need for all this ceremony. Rise, everyone!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ian walked up to Yellow Mountain with a smile, bowed respectfully, and said, "Your son Ian greets his father!"
Seeing Ian in a dragon robe, radiating imperial authority, Yellow Mountain was overcome with emotion.
A quarter of an hour later, in the inner courtyard of the palace.
"Dad, why didn’t Mom come with you?" Ian asked.
"Sigh."
Yellow Mountain let out a heavy sigh. "Your mother wanted to come with me, but your Great-Grand-Master wouldn’t allow it!"
"Great-Grand-Master wouldn’t allow it?"
Ian’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he felt a vague sense of danger rising in his heart.
Trying to keep his tone calm, Ian said, "Well, Dad, now that your son is emperor, you don’t need to go back to Oblivion Peak anymore. Why not stay here and enjoy a life of ease? As for Mom, I’ll send people to bring her here!"
"I’m afraid that’s not possible," Yellow Mountain shook his head.
"Why not?" Ian pressed.
Yellow Mountain looked embarrassed. "I came this time on your Great-Grand-Master’s orders—to persuade you to dissolve the empire!"
"What? Dissolve the empire?" Ian was stunned, then sneered. "Why would Great-Grand-Master want that?"
At this, Ian remembered that during the Heaven-sacrifice ceremony, the Mistveil Martial God’s projection had also demanded he dissolve the empire.
So, one Martial God wanted this—and now two Martial Gods want it?
What was their real reason?
Wasn’t having a powerful Human Race a good thing?
Yellow Mountain looked even more embarrassed. "Your Great-Grand-Master says that founding an empire will provoke the jealousy of the Demon and Monster Races, and bring disaster upon our people!"
"Heh!"
Hearing this, Ian couldn’t help but laugh. If he wasn’t worried about hurting Yellow Mountain’s pride, he’d have cursed the idea outright. In the past, the Human Race was split into countless sects—even with the Military Council, they were still a scattered mess.
Now, by founding the empire, Ian planned to gradually unite the Human Race’s strength. Only by being strong could they face external threats without fear.
And the Oblivion Martial God’s logic, translated bluntly, was: 'You can’t get too strong, or your enemies will get jealous and attack you. So, to avoid being attacked, you should cripple yourself in advance—to put your enemies at ease!'
If the Oblivion Martial Saint dared say that to his face, Ian would absolutely roast him without hesitation.
The next moment, Ian looked at Yellow Mountain. "Father, what do you really think?"
Yellow Mountain hesitated for a while, then finally said, "Honestly, I don’t agree with Great-Grand-Master’s reasoning either. But he’s still my master, and a disciple can’t defy his teacher’s orders. So, I have to follow his command and try to persuade you. He even promised that if you agree to dissolve the empire, he’ll take you as his disciple!"
"Heh!"
Ian laughed again, his opinion of the Oblivion Martial God dropping even further. Seriously, using my dad to pressure me into dissolving the empire—just to make us fall out as father and son? And that bit about accepting me as a disciple?
Does this young master look interested?
Ian took a deep breath and said to Yellow Mountain, "Dad, let me be honest with you! I didn’t found the empire for power or luxury—I did it to lead the Human Race in wiping out the Demon and Monster Races once and for all. So, there’s absolutely no way I’ll dissolve the empire. In fact, I plan to make it even stronger!"
Yellow Mountain didn’t seem surprised by Ian’s answer, but he looked a little disappointed. "Son, I’m proud you’re doing this, but I’m still a disciple of the Oblivion Martial God. So I can’t openly support you. When I return to Oblivion Peak, I’ll beg your Great-Grand-Master to reconsider."
"Father, I really think you should stay here instead!" Ian said thoughtfully.
"No, I have to go back and report!" Yellow Mountain shook his head.
Ian nodded. "Alright, if you insist, I won’t force you. But even if you have to leave, at least stay for a few days. Besides, your three daughters-in-law are all waiting to meet their father-in-law!"