Could she really only rely on force to achieve unification?
It seemed so. That was indeed her plan, and Bibi Dong thought the same way.
Weren't they both planning to become gods and then use absolute strength to unify the continent?
But right now, she did not want to reveal anything about the matter of ascending to godhood.
"Right, Xiao Lin—you're the grandson of Grandmaster Xiao Yan. What do you think? Do you have any suggestions?"
Qian Renxue humbly sought advice and instead asked for Xiao Lin's opinion.
Hearing this, Xiao Lin pursed his lips, a little speechless.
Fortunately, he knew something about the art of 'dragon-slaying government', so he shared what he understood with Qian Renxue.
"First, if the Spirit Hall wants to unify the continent, it must have enough righteous justification. This righteousness needs to be something that directly strikes at the weakness of the two empires."
"For example, the two empires never provided cultivation resources for commoner soul masters. It was only under pressure from the Spirit Hall that they reluctantly allocated some funds, allowing commoner soul masters to train without burdening their families."
"So you could promote a slogan like: 'After unifying the continent, the military expenses of the two empires will be redirected to awakening martial spirits for ordinary people, and providing more funds so they can cultivate with peace of mind.'"
Xiao Lin paused, realizing something sounded off.
Was the Spirit Hall genuinely willing to pay for commoner soul masters?
Or was it simply trying to recruit commoner soul masters to gain support for unification?
Hopefully this wouldn't lead to a future perception of:
"The best days commoner soul masters ever had were when the two empires still existed."
Another issue was that in a world where individuals can become strong enough to move mountains and fill seas, it was nearly impossible to enforce a system where the powerless ruled over the powerful.
Unless ordinary people also possessed means to kill top-ranked powerhouses.
So even if the Spirit Hall truly unified the continent, would things really improve afterward?
A thousand years later, when resources are insufficient, would the powerful simply seize resources from common people?
Thinking further—during Huo Yuhao's era, there seemed to be more soul masters than there were now.
Yet awakening a martial spirit back then required huge amounts of money.
Perhaps over ten thousand years, the ordinary population had almost entirely died off.
The poor never last three generations—because after three generations, they're dead.
The remaining population mostly had soul master aptitude, so even without free awakenings, the number of soul masters still exceeded current times.
The more he thought, the more wrong things felt, so Xiao Lin simply stopped thinking.
If resources here were lacking, they could just take them from the Sun–Moon Empire later.
Qian Renxue unifying the continent couldn't possibly make things worse than before, right?
One had to trust the wisdom of future generations.
"Xiao Lin?"
Seeing Xiao Lin lost in deep thought for so long, Qian Renxue softly reminded him, waving her hand lightly to bring him back.
"Where was I? Oh, right—second, the Spirit Hall must ensure fairness and justice, and provide ordinary people with the opportunity to rise in status."
Xiao Lin understood: since this world had people so strong they could ignore most rules—
Then it was necessary to guarantee the most basic fairness for normal people.The strong could enjoy some privileges, but in exchange, they must also shoulder greater responsibility.
Providing a legitimate path for commoners to rise might give most of them hope for a better future.
"That's all I know."
Xiao Lin was not a professional strategist; he was clearly aware of his limits.
So he had only one requirement:
Things must not become worse than in the original timeline.
Anything else—after he became a god—he might be able to make the continent fairer himself.
"That's more than enough. Thank you for your advice."
Hearing Xiao Lin's words was like opening Qian Renxue's Ren and Du meridians. She felt an instant awakening.
Perhaps because she had long been involved in Heaven Dou Empire's government affairs, she understood Xiao Lin's words deeply.
From her perspective, these suggestions would be invaluable in helping her gather faith once she became a god.
Since it would help her divinity, rejecting the advice was impossible.
"Regarding the unification of the continent, I will think more deeply about it."
Qian Renxue nodded, then smiled lightly and continued:
"Since you've chosen to join my faction, once I unify the continent, I'll grant each of you territories. They won't be as large as duchies, but sufficient. Is that acceptable?"
Xiao Lin and the others naturally had no reason to refuse.
Seeing their agreement, Qian Renxue continued:
"There is another matter—the god examinations can begin soon."
"Today, I'll go to the Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou City to find an Angel statue and communicate with the Angel God. Then you can receive the Angel God's divine assessment."
"And I can help you remove the evil power from that external spirit bone."
Having said everything, Qian Renxue placed a Spirit Hall token and Xue Qinghe's token on the table.
"When you're ready to begin the divine assessment or remove the external spirit bone, use these tokens to find me."
"I look forward to our next meeting."
With those last words, Qian Renxue smiled and left the room.
Next, she needed to carefully nurture Xue Ke. Even if her poisoning scheme was exposed, Xue Ke could still become the Heaven Dou Emperor.
"Brother Lin, I suddenly feel like… I don't really hate Qian Renxue anymore."
Not long after Qian Renxue left, Tang San finally spoke in the silent room.
He looked confused. Normally, he would have acted immediately and taken revenge.
But now…
"This is normal. The matter itself had nothing to do with her, and didn't she just help us obtain the god test?"
"Becoming stronger through the divine assessment is certain; I'm just unsure whether we'll receive the Angel God's power."
"If not, we'll go to Sea God Island. You can inherit the Sea God instead—that will likely give divine power to resurrect your mother."
Xiao Lin patted Tang San's shoulder."Don't overthink. The mastermind might be someone else entirely."
"Besides, a win–win cooperation isn't bad."
"Brother Lin, I know… I just…"
"Brother Lin… do you think my mother can be resurrected? Will I ever see her again?"
Tang San's face revealed deep longing mixed with fear and anxiety. He looked lost.
"Don't worry."
"Yes, Brother San, don't worry. We'll help you."
Xiao Lin smiled and encouraged him. Xiao Wu hugged Tang San's arm firmly, her delicate face full of determination.
"Thank you, Brother Lin… thank you, Xiao Wu… thank you both…"
Tang San's eyes filled with emotional tears. With their support, he no longer concerned himself with the cooperation with Qian Renxue.
If the real mastermind existed, he would avenge his mother no matter what.
Tang San silently made his resolve.
"Brother Lin, will I be able to participate in the god test?"
Suddenly Xiao Wu asked curiously.
She was a soul beast in human form. What if the Angel God disliked her?
Dislike would be minor—but if her identity was exposed…
"Right, Brother Lin! Xiao Wu's identity absolutely can't be exposed!"
Tang San became nervous. They couldn't abandon Xiao Wu.
"We'll wait for Uncle Hao to arrive, then we'll take the divine assessment. If we're exposed, we just run."
Xiao Lin didn't want to overthink. Heaven Dou City wasn't Spirit Hall's territory anyway.
(End of chapter)