Liu Shu's strength spread throughout the entire continent. During the last month, the only thing they heard was one news report after another of the Abyssal Void Nexus bases being destroyed.
One by one, the outer cities were destroyed and then conquered, the land was purified, and the people living there were exterminated.
According to informants, the number of casualties was already in the hundreds of millions. After all, the Abyssal Void Nexus was the power with the most population. The reason was that humans were the main race. With humans' ability to multiply and their disregard for leaving space for nature, there were almost 2 billion people spread across the continent.
Many people who initially supported Liu Shu's actions began to change their opinions after a while. There were groups who were asking for mercy for them, having forgotten the chaos and disasters they had caused in the past.
These people were excessively empathetic and thought that whatever chaos Liu Shu caused was enough to teach the Abyssal Void Nexus a lesson. Of course, Liu Shu ignored them.
"Ignorant people who quickly forget…" Liu Shu felt strange animosity towards these people. "If they were in power, wouldn't these people cause the ruin of the entire continent just to appear righteous?"
She understood the nature of intelligent species. Liu Shu had already ruled them for decades and, therefore, studied them deeply. She knew that there were people who couldn't take that last step in important matters, feeling pity and sympathy for their enemies in that last stretch, which was the most important.
However, history taught Liu Shu a different lesson. She had read many books, she had studied many military strategies, and she had also learned about politics and many other subjects. With her mind full of knowledge, she understood that ruthlessness and decisiveness were what separated a good ruler from an excellent one.
Some people would become dissatisfied, some people would blame her for being too cruel, and others would think that she didn't have a heart. But did they ever think that extermination of enemies was part of what she needed to do?
Seeing that their lover's mood was turning for the worse, Harmonixia picked up the Avatar and placed her butt on her soft thighs. "What's wrong, Lian'er? Are you feeling uncomfortable again?"
Liu Shu looked up at Harmonixia's shifting colored eyes and complained. "I just… feel stuffy in my heart."
"Oh my! That's not good." Harmonixia's hand shamelessly groped Liu Shu's abundant chest, deforming it like dough. "There, there. This will surely help with my Lian'er's stuffiness."
Liu Shu deadpanned, but her lips were starting to twitch as the ticklishness spread around her body. "It's just… why are people becoming sympathetic to the Abyssal Void Nexus people? I understand that not everyone on the other side has values different from ours. But I can't go person to person, trying to understand each and every one of them, before accepting them into my society, right?"
Liu Shu sighed, her mood complicated. "It only takes one of them becoming someone important and having different views to cause conflict and division inside the nation! What if, in the future, cults and other different powers that praise the Abyssal Void Nexus appear within my domain? It's too difficult to help them unlearn the propaganda they've been fed all their lives."
Harmonixia and the other three were silent. To be fair, they didn't care. For them, Liu Shu was their priority, and if it was to make Liu Shu happy, they didn't mind becoming irredeemable villains or heroes whose bravery would be sung through the millennia. So, they couldn't relate to the people feeling empathetic for the innocent in the Abyssal Void Nexus.
Verdantia spoke, her head resting on Liu Shu's soft thighs. "Love, those people have never experienced… War. They don't understand how deeply rooted evil can be in a person. Therefore, they look at others in an idealistic way."
Liu Shu listened.
"So, for example, they can't think of someone pulling out roses or killing trees just because. They don't understand that there are some people who would burn down a Life Tree just for the fun of it. They don't understand that there are beings who would feel excited at the thought of slaughtering others."
"Hm…" Liu Shu looked at the people who were complaining. It was true that some shared those qualities; they were people who had lived in her domain safely for a while. Of course, there were exceptions.
Tempestria added softly. "Where there is intelligence, there will be conflict. Regardless of the level of intelligence, some will give priority to one thing over others because rationale is not the only thing guiding their physique."
"Rationale…" Liu Shu muttered and added. "Emotion."
"Yes." Tempestria sat by Harmonixia's side and played with Liu Shu's hair. "Even when someone knows that something is… better, they won't accept it if it doesn't feel right for them."
Liu Shu understood this principle. Experiments have been conducted in the past to ask humans whether they would like to become Sylvans if given the chance.
Logically speaking, a Sylvan is better in all aspects. They are longer-lived, and their wisdom can accumulate further thanks to their long life. Their strength is superior to others at the same Level, and they are born with the ability to give birth to other species besides Sylvans.
And yet, some humans said that they preferred being human. When asked for a reason, Liu Shu read that the answers were something like, "I wouldn't give up my humanity in exchange for power." And other similar answers that were not based on logical arguments but on pure emotional value.
They were not "incorrect" answers. Because something was logical, it didn't mean it was correct. Nevertheless, Liu Shu found it interesting how deeply complex and confusing thoughts could be.
Looking over at the area where around 1,000 people were protesting, Liu Shu noticed that none of them had lost their titles for protesting. This was normal, though. 'They are not thinking of betraying me. They just feel that my actions are incorrect, so they want to help me see and correct my ways to what they think is correct.'
However, she couldn't do so. Liu Shu had already decided to be ruthless. She needed to be ruthless if she wanted to take over the world and become the
Flor appeared in front of the group. Her body was small, but there was not a single person who didn't know who the red-haired fairy was. With her tall figure for a fairy, elemental aura, and queen-like demeanor, Flor's presence was enough to bring an average person to their knees with just a look.
"What is the meaning of this?"
Her tone was cold and angry. Flor knew how difficult it was for Liu Shu to cause death to this extent. Her baby was gentle by nature; she even protected them, the Rose Fairies, during her first years of life. A World Tree was a creature that usually asked for an equal exchange, but Liu Shu had always given much more than they could return.
It was the same for her current citizens. Instead of sending her armies, which she had every right to do, Liu Shu was doing an extermination on her own volition.
Everyone understood that, with just one sentence, Liu Shu could send them all to help her defeat the Abyssal Void Nexus. No one would complain, and everyone would fight with their lives on the line.
However, nothing like that happened. With her newfound strength and knowing that she was basically undefeatable as long as she regenerated from the injuries, Liu Shu decided to purify the corruption with her own strength.
To be honest, if Liu Shu ever showed even a trace of hostility toward the people protesting, Flor wouldn't need to move. The World Trees and Life Trees in the entire continent were quite literally glaring at the people complaining about Liu Shu's actions.
For them, the Abyssal Void Nexus represented a natural enemy. It was the power that sought to corrupt them and force them to submit. So, defending them was provoking the anger of all "large" flora.
"Lady Flor! Lady Heavenly Willow has gone too far!" A person, seemingly the leader, spoke with a righteous expression.
Flor's face was cold as ice, but she still allowed them to speak up. "How has she gone too far? Do you feel too protected inside her domain? Do you feel that your necessities are too well met, so you feel suffocated? How has Liu Shu gone too far? Can you explain it to me?"
The people around were looking over with many different looks. Some were sneering, others sighing, and others were curious.
"T-That's not the point!" The person leading shouted. "There are people in the Abyssal Void Nexus who should not be judged this harshly! Lady Heavenly Willow is being too ruthless with her ways!"
Flor's expression didn't change. "So what?"
"H-Huh?"
Flor's face was full of indifference as she spoke. "Who are you to complain that your World Tree is being too ruthless while defending you? Do you want her to take care of your emotions while fighting a war that will decide the future of the entire World? She is our leader. She is the one who makes life within her domain as easy as it is. She, who sacrificed her own peace and fought alone for everyone, is carrying the sins of everyone! And for what? For someone like you, who has never participated in a single war, to come out and complain!?"
Flor wanted to be calm, but the more she spoke, the more indignant she felt for her baby. "You are lucky that Liu Shu told me not to retaliate towards all of you, or I would've thrown you to an ant nest so that you are useful for once in your lives!"
By the end of her emotional burst, Flor's surroundings were swirling like a hurricane of Aether Mana, her face clearly angered beyond normal bounds.
Everyone looking at the angered Flower Fairy gulped, not daring to make a single sound. Taking a deep breath, Flor looked at them and snorted. "You can continue chanting whatever you want. But the day you think of betraying Liu Shu, pray that you don't fall into my or Ignatia's hands."
Then, she flew off, creating a large shockwave while leaving a trail behind her.
The people protesting were honestly scared. So, many of them scurried away, not daring to complain anymore. People were animals that followed the "trend." So, when a few left, others left, and at the end, only those convinced that they were correct were left behind.
Still, with their numbers, continuing would be nothing but a farce. So, they ended up dispersing.
Liu Shu observed everything and never intervened. She just looked away after they dismantled, her gaze looking over to the place where her roots were causing a massacre of millions..
'...Sigh.'