Gu Xuan did not linger long on Sea God Island. After staying with Ning Rongrong and the others for a single day, he bid farewell to Bo Saixi the next morning and departed.
With his current strength, a single use of his fourth soul skill brought him directly back within the gates of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Aside from Gu Rong and Chen Xin, no one else sensed a thing.
When the two Elders saw their granddaughters-in-law return, they were overjoyed, completely forgetting about Gu Xuan. Ning Fengzhi and Ning Rongrong had also been separated more than they had been together these past few years, and he missed his precious daughter dearly. He promptly handed over all administrative duties to Gu Xuan and went off to enjoy his time with her.
Having been away for three months, Gu Xuan returned to find that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan had systematically arranged all the previous plans; now, he only needed to give the order. During those three months, Heaven Dou City and the Heaven Dou Empire had fallen entirely under the control of the clan's personnel. The various kingdoms and duchies now existed in name only.
Under the leadership of Golden Crocodile Douluo, Spirit Hall was also gradually being refined according to the plan designed by Ning Fengzhi and Gu Xuan. They aimed to completely eradicate the numerous flaws and corruptions left behind by Bibi Dong.
Now that Gu Xuan was the Regent, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan essentially had the final say in the Heaven Dou Empire. Since the empire was moving in a positive direction, the commoners below were actually quite supportive. After all, they were citizens of the empire; regardless of who was in charge, they didn't really care as long as their lives were made better.
However, the various kingdoms and duchies under the empire's jurisdiction didn't think this way. Accustomed to acting like local tyrants, they were naturally unwilling to accept the empire's move toward unification. They spread rumors wildly among the commoners, claiming the Prince-Regent wanted to monopolize the empire's power and attempting to impeach Gu Xuan.
What they didn't expect was that Heaven Dou City had long since become Gu Xuan's domain. Those who were disobedient had already been dealt with under various charges. Naturally, these charges were entirely factual; even the families of the two top officials, the Marquis of Black Leopard and the Marquis of Wind Chime, held evidence beneath them that would be enough to warrant their extermination.
But because they knew how to read the situation, they had quickly purged the unclean members of their clans during the few months of Gu Xuan's regency and declared their absolute support for the Prince-Regent. After all, it was better for the family scumbags to die by their own hands than to become leverage for others. It was precisely because of their intelligence that these two families became the empire's most powerful officials.
Osler and Yu Feng played a key role in this, as they had been close friends and classmates with Gu Xuan in the past.
Gu Xuan organized the materials in his hands, summarizing and categorizing each piece of information before beginning a series of arrangements. The first priority was to completely unify the Heaven Dou Empire, then march the troops against the Star Luo Empire. Once Star Luo was taken, the entire continent would basically be in his pocket. As for the remaining sects, large or small, if they were unwilling to submit to the empire, their final end would be destruction.
Gu Xuan truly wanted a world where a hundred schools of thought contended, but the prerequisite was that it had to be within his territory. Only those who chose to submit to the empire could be considered a part of it.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan currently had a staggering eight thousand Soul Masters available, four thousand of whom came from those captured during Spirit Hall's Soul Hunting Operation. Leaving one thousand Soul Masters to guard the sect, the remaining seven thousand were divided among several Titled Douluos. They temporarily formed seven War God Legions, accompanied by a million-strong army, to invade the Star Luo Empire from seven different routes.
This was necessary because, under its iron-fisted rule, the Star Luo Empire was currently very unified. It was essentially impossible for them to surrender without a fight unless they were defeated with thunderous momentum. Only in this way could the people of Star Luo feel the power of the Heaven Dou Empire led by Gu Xuan, allowing their hearts to truly submit when the time came to absorb them. After all, commoners were not Soul Masters; using the same methods meant for Soul Masters against them wouldn't necessarily yield the best results.
The seven armies were led respectively by Ghost Leopard Douluo, Snake Lance Douluo, Spirit Kite Douluo, Porcupine Douluo, Giant Axe Douluo, Mountain-Splitting Douluo, and Spirit Armor Douluo. Dugu Bo became the Commander-in-Chief of the three services, overseeing the entire operation.
By now, the nine Titled Douluos from Spirit Hall had completely submitted to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Under the miraculous effects of the Fragrant Marrow Refinement Liquid, each of them had broken through boundaries they hadn't touched in years—or even decades—increasing their rank by one level. Combined with the clan's terrifying power, they simply chose to submit entirely. After all, what did it matter who they worked for? Although their status in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was slightly lower than it had been in Spirit Hall, the benefits provided were very real. As the saying goes, he who understands the times is a wise man. Since the clan treated them with sincerity, they naturally wouldn't be ungrateful.
Because the Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluos possessed a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, they were also heavily utilized. They joined a hunting squad composed of Gu Rong and Chen Xin, separating from the main army to assassinate powerful Soul Masters of the Star Luo Empire who intended to resist to the bitter end, eliminating opposition from the top down.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the four lower sects that had submitted to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan also joined the ranks this time. They were responsible for following a team led by the trio of Zuo Yi, Mi He, and Long Wu to find the location of the Clear Sky Clan and persuade them to surrender. Although the Clear Sky Clan was in seclusion, they were once one of the Upper Three Sects; leaving such a hidden threat behind was not something Gu Xuan wanted. Regardless of whether Yu Yuanzhen and the others could take down the Clear Sky Clan, the first step was to find their mountain gate and pin them down. Once Gu Xuan unified the continent, he could slowly deal with those secluded powers.
All these mobilizations naturally required time. According to Gu Xuan's estimation, preparing the army and provisions would take at least a month. Therefore, after finishing the deployments, he headed for the Sunset Forest. His conversation with Asura's divine will was still fresh in his mind, and he wanted to see if Dugu Yan had received Asura's trials. Ning Rongrong and the others remained at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan to spend time with their families after being away for so long.
After Zuo Yan met with Shui Bing'er and Zuo Yi, the two headed to Skywater Academy. Zuo Yi was currently overjoyed; as a grandfather, he was very happy his grandson could find such an excellent partner. Moreover, the old man Zuo Yi seemed to be experiencing a second spring of his own. His wife had been gone for over ten years, and he hadn't remarried, but after Spirit Kite Douluo submitted to the clan, he felt he could try again.
Zuo Yan was quite open-minded about it, and since Spirit Kite Douluo was quite impressive herself, having her as a step-grandmother seemed fine. The grandson even encouraged the old man to pursue her, promising to give him a massive red envelope if he succeeded! Zuo Yi's looks weren't bad; having broken through to the Titled Douluo realm, he looked like a middle-aged man in his early forties, which only added to his charm.
Though Spirit Kite Douluo was female, she had never been in a relationship. Combined with Zuo Yi's silver-tongued flattery over the past few months, the two seemed to have made some progress. However, when Spirit Kite learned that Zuo Yi's grandson was already twenty-two, her favorable impression of him vanished instantly.
'I'm giving you my "first blood," and you have a grandson who's already looking for a wife?'
'Get lost!'
***
Gu Xuan couldn't help but laugh when he heard about Zuo Yi's predicament, though he didn't interfere too much since it was a private matter. When he arrived at the Sunset Forest, he found Dugu Yan sitting cross-legged at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Eight soul rings—two yellow, one purple, three black, and two red—were quietly hovering around her.
Dugu Yan was currently at Rank 80 and was in the process of absorbing her eighth soul ring, which was a hundred-thousand-year ring. Seeing this, Gu Xuan's worries faded. The fact that she could absorb an eighth ring without leaving the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well proved that Asura had indeed chosen her as his successor. He just wondered how that old geezer Asura had tested her during the days he was away.
(End of Chapter)
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