After leaving the underground world of the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, Huo Yuhao, as promised, had Marshal Xie Long release the Heavenly Soul Imperial Family. Considering the long-accumulated public anger, Wei Na had no choice but to leave the territory of Heavenly Soul with the former emperor and a group of nobles.
The political changes in the Heavenly Soul Empire quickly spread throughout the continent. Under Huo Yuhao's best efforts to control the narrative, the matter of his intervention in the empire's conflict was suppressed, but what wall under heaven is truly airtight? Some spies from other empires who had come to observe the battle still brought the news of Huo Yuhao's appearance in the Heavenly Soul Empire back with them.
For a time, the name Huo Yuhao once again stirred up a considerable storm among the imperial families of the major empires, causing panic among the princes and nobles.
Such a lawless Demon King who harbored hatred for the powerful and noble had already become a huge threat to secular imperial power.
However, even Shrek Academy had been destroyed at Huo Yuhao's hands. How were the other empires, which lacked many Super Douluo or even ordinary Titled Douluo, supposed to respond?
Thus, for the first time, the major empires of the continent had a common goal because of the Demon King Huo Yuhao, and they began to intensively discuss ways to deal with him...
—
Sun Moon Empire, Crown Prince's bedchamber.
Xu Tianran leaned quietly in a lounge chair, listening to the reports from his subordinates.
Beside him, Gou Luanshi gently massaged his shoulders, a glint occasionally flashing in his eyes.
"The People's Republic of Heavenly Soul? So, this Huo Yuhao intends to pull down all the princes and nobles of every country on the continent."
Hearing the spy's report, Xu Tianran sneered. Huo Yuhao's action seemed righteous and grand, but in reality, it was of little significance. After all, the feudal ideology of the empire had been deeply rooted in the people of Douluo for tens of thousands of years. A group of unruly commoners with nothing but a slave mentality in their bones, what did they know of democracy?
"Luanshi, how are the arrangements on your end?" Xu Tianran asked casually, without opening his eyes, to Gou Luanshi beside him.
"Reporting to the Crown Prince, the stage for the Sea God's Fate Blind Date Convention has been set up. This subordinate will arrange for all those proud daughters of heaven from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy and the Illustrious Virtue Hall who are associated with Huo Yuhao to be at this convention. The next step is to lure the lord into the urn." Gou Luanshi chose his words carefully and replied.
Xu Tianran nodded. Although the Sea God's Fate Blind Date Convention in Rising Sun City was just a prelude to the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament, it was also an opportunity to gain many benefits for the empire.
This event, beautifully named the Sea God's Fate Blind Date Convention, was actually a plan to pull the rug out from under the other empires by using the deeply patriotic younger generation to win over the young talents from those empires. Moreover, hidden within this seemingly overt plot of the Sun Moon Empire was a covert conspiracy.
Xu Tianran believed that after the other empires detected this overt plot, they would definitely send their true prodigies to use this stage to scheme against the Sun Moon Empire and poach outstanding talents from their side.
In the end, modern warfare was a competition of not only national strength and financial resources but also, most importantly, manpower. Gou Luanshi, being a transmigrator, knew very well that only those pillars of the state could continuously innovate in soul tool technology and lead the empire towards a more distant future.
However, Rising Sun City was not a place one could come and go as they pleased... unless the other empires were willing to sit back and watch this convention proceed smoothly, successfully siphoning off fresh blood from the various nations of the continent.
Therefore, the other empires would inevitably dispatch real talents to disrupt the situation, and this would inevitably lead them into Gou Luanshi's trap.
This was the yin-yang double plot that Gou Luanshi had proposed to Xu Tianran. When he first proposed it, it had even received high praise from Xu Tianran. The utility of the Shrek brand name had exceeded his expectations. Which young person on the continent didn't want to find a good partner at Shrek's Sea God's Fate Blind Date Convention? Weren't young people just fond of things like love and romance?
"Well done. The Hands of the Nation's Protector have all been recalled, right?" A smile finally appeared on Xu Tianran's face, though it contained a hint of murderous intent.
"This subordinate has already arranged them in the four directions of Rising Sun City. If any key targets from other empires come, not a single one of them will be able to leave Rising Sun City." Gou Luanshi replied.
"And what if that Huo Yuhao comes?" Xu Tianran deliberately posed this question to Gou Luanshi.
"Rest assured, Crown Prince. Your humble servant has already contacted Elder Kong to lay down a linked soul tool defensive array. As long as the Demon King Huo Yuhao dares to come, the hundreds of level-nine stationary soul cannon shells we have deployed will instantly blast him to dust." Indeed, as soon as Huo Yuhao was mentioned, Gou Luanshi's eyes instantly became much gloomier. Although he had matured a lot by following Xu Tianran these past three years, the cruel images of Huo Yuhao stabbing him in the heart, knife after knife, in his previous life, were still unforgettable.
In this life, he wanted Huo Yuhao to die without a burial place!
"Well done. Your methods are becoming more and more brilliant." Xu Tianran raised a hand towards Gou Luanshi, palm down.
Gou Luanshi immediately understood. He quickly came before Xu Tianran, allowing his hand to rest on top of his head, and bowed, kneeling on the ground.
Xu Tianran spread his prosthetic legs and then closed his eyes in enjoyment.
A trace of disgust flashed deep in Gou Luanshi's eyes, but it quickly returned to normal as he gently lowered his head between the Crown Prince's prosthetic limbs.
An expression of comfort instantly appeared on Xu Tianran's face. Ever since he had become impotent, coupled with the lack of a trustworthy female assistant by his side, his personality had gradually become twisted.
Gou Luanshi could almost hear the Crown Prince's moans. His eyes, hidden between those mechanical legs, were full of mockery. Whether in his past life or this one, he was very good at dealing with such powerful patrons and wealthy masters.
He firmly believed that if a person lived in this world and didn't even know how to be a sycophant, they might as well drown with their pride.
Xu Tianran, just enjoy it for now. When you are about to unite the world, everything you have will be mine!
Thinking of this, Gou Luanshi became even more diligent, to the point that Xu Tianran even had the illusion that he was still capable.
Of course, Xu Tianran did not know his thoughts. With someone like Luanshi, who had a similarly malicious mind, it was easier for him to find inspiration from the collision of their thoughts.
The Xu Tianran of this life was clearly more cruel and ruthless than in the original timeline!
I wonder how that girl is doing now? Where is she busy... Xu Tianran suddenly remembered the girl he had caught a glimpse of the last time he went to the Illustrious Virtue Hall to negotiate with Jing Hongchen. Her skin was so tender it looked like water could be squeezed from it, and the faint smile that occasionally graced her gentle, pretty face had almost made him freeze on the spot.
He had a gut feeling, as if that girl should have been his woman, his crown princess!
But why, why had he been so careless at that time and encountered the greatest disaster of his life? He had survived by a stroke of luck, but he had lost his four limbs, and also his ability as a man.
He hated it so much. He wished he could immediately string up all the remaining candidates for the throne and execute them by slow slicing! It was this group of "good brothers" who had made it impossible for him to possess such a beauty!
At this thought, the grip of his mechanical hand pressing on Gou Luanshi's head tightened slightly, causing the latter's face to flush red.
Since he couldn't have it, then he would destroy it all!