Sun Moon Empire, Mingdu.
Although it is currently wartime, it has not affected the prosperity of Mingdu in the slightest; in fact, it is even more prosperous than it was during the Soul Master Competition four years ago.
The reason for this is naturally Zhang Lexuan's Merit.
Since Zhang Lexuan ascended the throne, in addition to quelling rebellions externally, she has also been implementing a series of reforms internally.
The first priority was the development of Mingdu, and the first thing Zhang Lexuan did was to wipe out Mingdu's underground forces.
Of Mingdu's three major underground forces, the Xishui Alliance, the Pingfan Alliance, and the Audu Chamber of Commerce, only the Xishui Alliance was directly annihilated; the other two were reorganized, disbanded, and distributed to different regions, preventing them from becoming a major power.
Why such differential treatment? The reason is simple: the Xishui Alliance was backed by the Holy Spirit Church, and Xu Tianran needed the Holy Spirit Church's power, but Zhang Lexuan did not.
In fact, when Zhang Lexuan first stabilized the Sun Moon Empire, Ye Xishui once came to her, wanting to cooperate with Zhang Lexuan, but Zhang Lexuan flatly refused her.
Rejected, Ye Xishui was enraged and tried to attack Zhang Lexuan, but was startled away by the Demon Emperor Quan Er and has not appeared since.
Because of Ye Xishui, Zhang Lexuan immediately launched a purge, determined to eliminate all Evil Soul Masters lurking in the Sun Moon Empire's army and other institutions.
It was in this context that the Xishui Alliance was annihilated, and the wealth they had accumulated in Mingdu for decades was all collected by Zhang Lexuan into her private coffers.
At the same time, most of the Evil Soul Masters in the Sun Moon Empire's army were also eliminated, with only a small number of powerful ones luckily escaping, but they no longer dared to openly show themselves in the Sun Moon Empire.
Because the current Sun Moon Empire is no longer in the era of Xu Tianran; it belongs to Zhang Lexuan.
As for the other two underground forces, the Pingfan Alliance and the Audu Chamber of Commerce, their main backers were the great nobles of Mingdu.
These great nobles, upon learning that Zhang Lexuan intended to clear out Mingdu's underground forces, very wisely handed over the two forces to Zhang Lexuan in exchange for their own safety.
One must say, they were very perceptive.
Zhu Ziyang flew over Mingdu, where the anti-aircraft system was completely useless in front of a god.
He swaggered into the imperial palace, and with a sweep of his divine sense, he found his target.
At this moment, Zhang Lexuan, who was reviewing memorials in her study, felt something, looked up towards the door, and met Zhu Ziyang's eyes as he walked in.
Silence, then a gust of wind carried away a few pages of paper, followed by the sound of bodies colliding as Zhang Lexuan and Zhu Ziyang embraced.
"Congratulations, Ziyang!" After a long embrace, Zhang Lexuan slowly spoke, her pretty face showing longing and joy, completely devoid of the Empress's composure and elegance.
"It's so late, why are you still working?" Zhu Ziyang asked, tenderly caressing Zhang Lexuan's face.
"The Empire has gained such a large new territory, and there are many affairs to handle.
Fortunately, I am now a Limit Douluo, full of energy, so even if I don't rest for a month, it's not a problem at all," Zhang Lexuan said with a smile.
She didn't explain too much to Zhu Ziyang, because she knew that since Zhu Ziyang appeared here, he must have come after making inquiries.
"How can this be!" Zhu Ziyang's face immediately darkened upon hearing this, and he said, "Even a Limit Douluo is still a person, and as long as they are a person, they must have a regular routine!
Listen to me, no more overtime today, rest first!"
"Mhm, mhm!" Zhang Lexuan felt Zhu Ziyang's concern, and her heart was very warm.
Likewise, after another year apart, she had many things she wanted to tell Zhu Ziyang and was in no mood to work overtime.
So, she went with the flow, linked arms with Zhu Ziyang, and walked towards her bedchamber.
Inside the Empress's bedchamber, after a passionate embrace, Zhu Ziyang held Zhang Lexuan, leaning against the beautiful bed, and spoke softly.
Zhang Lexuan's pretty face was still flushed, her beautiful eyes still filled with passion, her head resting on Zhu Ziyang's shoulder, and her jade fingers gently slid across Zhu Ziyang's chest.
She exhaled like an orchid and said, "This time, you won't be going into seclusion again, right?"
"Mhm." Zhu Ziyang nodded, playfully toying with her jade, and said, "In the coming days, I plan to commute between Mingdu and Shrek City.
We'll have plenty of time together, hehe."
As he spoke, Zhu Ziyang couldn't help but let out a soft, heart-stirring chuckle, causing Zhang Lexuan's heart to suddenly skip a beat, and then her eyes became hazy.
"Where are Huang Huang and Jing Jing?" After their intimate moments, Zhu Ziyang finally remembered that he was a father, so he asked.
"They're both two years old; they haven't slept with me for a long time," Zhang Lexuan said, giving Zhu Ziyang a sidelong glance.
"They're sleeping in the side hall right now, probably dreaming.
They'll be overjoyed when they see you tomorrow."
"I hope so; after more than a year, will they still remember me?" Zhu Ziyang said rather helplessly.
"Don't worry, the babies are very smart," Zhang Lexuan said with a proud look on her face.
"They can already speak fluently with others!"
"Is that so? As expected of my children!" Zhu Ziyang heard this and did not doubt Zhang Lexuan's words in the slightest.
Instead, he had a smug expression, taking all the credit for himself.
"Yes, yes, yes, my Ziyang is the most outstanding." Zhang Lexuan looked at her man's childish behavior and immediately said with a doting expression.
Although her words carried a hint of teasing, the love in her eyes almost overflowed.
The two chatted from children to military matters.
Zhang Lexuan told Zhu Ziyang about the Sun Moon Empire's upcoming military operations, which were no different from the original plan.
They planned to first digest the Tianhun Empire, then launch a decapitation strike against the Douling Empire, which would be in about half a year.
The Douling Empire is the weakest of the four nations on the Douluo Continent and has the weakest cohesion; its establishment was originally a result of compromise.
At that time, the Heaven Dou Empire experienced an internal split, with the current Tianhun Empire's royal family, the Wei family, raising an army in rebellion.
The Heaven Dou royal family, the Xue family, suppressed the rebellion with force but suffered continuous defeats.
The Wei family successfully reached Heaven Dou City, and then, under the protection of several great nobles of the royalist faction, fled the imperial capital, journeying west.
Finally, they engaged in a decisive battle with the Wei family in Lingdou City, the current capital of the Douling Empire.
The decisive battle ended with the Wei family's complete victory, but the Wei family failed to smoothly unify the Heaven Dou Empire because the Star Luo Empire intervened.
Although the Star Luo Empire could not completely destroy the Heaven Dou Empire's strength in one fell swoop, it still had the power to cause trouble.
With their support, the utterly defeated Xue family actually managed to establish a foothold in Lingdou City, and then, in conjunction with the Star Luo Empire, repelled the Wei family.
The Wei family lost the best opportunity to unify Heaven Dou, and the Xue family, with the support of the Star Luo Empire, gained enough strength to contend with the Wei family.
The split of the Heaven Dou Empire became a foregone conclusion.
Soon after, the Tianhun Empire was established by the Wei family, and the Douling Empire was established by the Xue family.
The Star Luo Empire became the biggest winner of this Heaven Dou civil strife, beginning to encroach upon the Douling Empire and the Tianhun Empire.
According to the Star Luo Empire's plans and power at the time, it could have annihilated Tianhun and Douling and unified the Douluo Continent within a century.
As a result, the Sun Moon Empire arrived... cough cough, I've strayed too far.
Although the royal family of the Douling Empire is still the Xue family, the actual power is held by the five great nobles.
The Emperor and the royal family are more often just puppets and symbols; nearly ninety percent of the Douling Empire's army and Spirit Master forces are controlled by the five great nobles.
The decapitation plan formulated by the Sun Moon Empire targeted both the Douling royal family and the five great nobles.
The five great nobles were the primary targets; by controlling them, the Douling Empire would be unable to form effective resistance for a short period, which would greatly shorten the time for the Sun Moon Empire to annex the Douling Empire and save a considerable amount of military power.
As for the Douling royal family, they were a secondary target; although they were puppets, they were still the royal family.
Mingdu already had one Tianhun Empire Emperor; wouldn't it be good to have another Douling Empire Emperor?
Zhu Ziyang did not interfere much with the plan formulated by the Sun Moon Empire; the plan was good, and the Sun Moon Empire now had the strength to implement it.
"By the way, where is Nannan? Why don't I sense her aura?" Zhu Ziyang asked in confusion.
"Nannan went to the Yue Nan Islands to inherit a God Position," Zhang Lexuan said.
"Counting the time, she's been gone for a month now; she should be in seclusion at this point."
"I see, that's good news," Zhu Ziyang said, a surprised smile on his face.
"Mhm!" Zhang Lexuan nodded in agreement.