All Things Are Contracts

In the Thousand Charms Empire, Empress Luo Shenyu once again entered the forbidden area. A powerful aura surged from the thatched cottage, and Luo Shenyu’s beautiful eyes gleamed with excitement.

“Success.”

Soon after, a middle-aged woman walked out. Though dressed in coarse cloth, she couldn’t hide her elegant and noble bearing.

“Greetings, Master. Congratulations on breaking through to the True Realm. From now on, our Thousand Charms Empire also has a True Realm expert,” Luo Shenyu said happily.

Mu Fanchan felt the energy within her body. Her originally nearly exhausted lifespan had now increased by a full two thousand years. Profound Beings lived for five hundred years, Spirit God Realm for a thousand, and True Realm for three thousand. She had reached an entirely new level.

“You’ve worked hard all these years,” Mu Fanchan sighed, caressing Luo Shenyu’s pretty face.

“However, Master, a major event occurred yesterday. I need your decision,” Luo Shenyu’s expression suddenly turned serious.

“What matter is so significant that even you can’t decide?” Mu Fanchan asked, puzzled.

Luo Shenyu explained, “Yesterday, we received the Goddess’s Decree from Thunder Lord, ordering us to reactivate the Ancient Revering Formations and relocate as many people as possible from outside the formations to within them. It’s said that the Nightmares have found a way to counter the Illumination Towers, which can no longer protect humanity.”

Mu Fanchan’s face tensed, “So this day has finally come. My senior brother once told me that although the Illumination Towers are profound, they might not be able to protect humanity forever. Our Thousand Charms Empire isn’t as vast as other countries. We have fifty-two cities in total, with only twenty-four within the formations. The other twenty-eight cities are outside. Let’s have them all relocate within the formations. All these years, I’ve remembered my senior brother’s warning, so I had you maintain our kingdom’s population and not expand blindly. Can twenty-four cities accommodate the population of fifty-two?”

Luo Shenyu thought for a moment and said, “It’s possible. After all, our kingdom’s population isn’t that large. However, many people will likely be lost during the relocation process, and the people in these twenty-four cities will have to give up many benefits. I fear they won’t accept it easily.”

“Hmph, they’ve been living comfortably on fertile land, eating and drinking to their heart’s content. At this critical moment, they’re unwilling to make sacrifices? This is basic national policy; they have no choice,” Mu Fanchan resumed her usual decisive temperament.

“I understand, Master. I’ll issue the decree immediately,” Luo Shenyu hurried off, as this matter couldn’t be delayed.

Similar scenes played out in all twenty-four cities of the Thousand Charms Empire.

“No, this forest has been my Wang family’s foundation for a hundred years. How can you just take it away?” a wealthy merchant howled in anger.

“All under heaven belongs to the sovereign. Wang Han, I’m here to inform you, not to negotiate. This is the highest-level government order; everyone must obey!” a general said. For twenty-four cities to accommodate the population of the original fifty-two, many mansions and wild lands had to be utilized. These landowners were the primary targets.

In other cities, implementing the decree was equally difficult.

“Our ancestors have lived here for a thousand years. Why should we abandon our heritage and relocate to other cities?”

“Yes, we can take our gold and silver, but what about our good fields? Without land, how will we make a living?”

News of several cities being annihilated by Nightmares hadn’t spread yet, but the administrative order for relocation had already been issued.

The Thousand Charms Empire was vast with a sparse population, so relocating people within the formations wasn’t difficult. But other countries weren’t so fortunate.

“Your Majesty, according to our calculations, the thirty-six cities within the formations can at most accommodate three times their current population. Any more would be unsustainable. This means at least twenty million civilians must be abandoned,” a finance minister said in the Rising Sun Kingdom’s court.

“Abandon twenty million civilians? If this gets out, I fear I won’t be able to face our ancestors or our people,” the Rising Sun Kingdom’s ruler said, looking troubled.

“Your Majesty, the cities within the formations can’t support that many people, and our kingdom’s major grain-producing cities are also outside the formation areas. Not only is it a question of whether the cities can accommodate so many people, but also whether food production can keep up. Even if everyone tightens their belts, we can’t feed that many,” another official said.

“Your Majesty, since the Nightmares are targeting large cities protected by Illumination Towers, why not let those who can’t relocate within the formations disperse to various places and survive in village form? We can find ways to provide illumination stones. According to current intelligence, ordinary Nightmares still fear illumination stones,” someone suggested.

“Your intelligence is outdated. Just last night, over a dozen villages outside a city in the Eastern Kingdom were all slaughtered. Even the patrol troops barely escaped with one or two survivors. This time, the Nightmares aren’t just causing small disturbances; it’s a large-scale attack. Letting people leave the cities to live in scattered villages is no different from asking them to commit suicide,” someone argued.

“Then what do you suggest? The cities within the formations simply can’t accommodate that many people. Staying in the cities is waiting for death, and dispersing to villages is also waiting for death.”

“Enough, stop arguing!” The Rising Sun Kingdom’s ruler rubbed his temples. “For now, it seems we can only relocate as many people as possible within the formations. I don’t have a perfect solution. The question is, who should be relocated within the formations, and who should be abandoned? By the way, what’s the Eastern Kingdom’s policy?”

“Your Majesty, I’ve inquired. They’re in the same situation as us, unable to protect everyone. So… contractors are the first priority, then women and children. As for the elderly without contracts, I’m afraid they’ve been directly abandoned,” an official reported.

The Rising Sun Kingdom’s ruler nodded. Contractors were the main force against Nightmares and should be preserved as much as possible, while children represented the future. Only those elderly who hadn’t awakened contract power could be sacrificed. Although inhumane, there was no other choice.

“Implement the same policy. Sigh, I wonder if Thunder Lord and the others can find out why Nightmares no longer fear Illumination Towers. Only by solving the problem at its source can we truly break the deadlock. It’s fortunate that spirit stone veins have been discovered within our borders. Maintaining the Ancient Revering Formations won’t be a problem; they should have stored plenty of spirit stones over the years,” the Rising Sun Kingdom’s ruler finally decided.

In the Eastern Kingdom’s Academy Town, three days had passed since the city annihilations. It seemed that even Nightmares had to pay a price and rest after forcibly blocking Illumination Towers. At least after those two cities were destroyed, there were temporarily no new victims. However, Nightmare attacks on scattered villages had become much more frequent than before, with many outlying villages being completely wiped out.

Now, the Academy Town was in complete chaos. According to the Eastern Kingdom emperor’s regulations, the Academy Town also had to accept populations from surrounding cities not covered by formations. Every day, large numbers of people entered the city, making it more crowded by the day.

“Let me in, let me in,” an elderly man with silver hair desperately tried to push into the city.

Two soldiers blocked him, “Sorry, old man, according to regulations, you can’t enter the city.”

The old man pleaded, “I know, I know. I just want to see my grandson one last time. Please let me in.”

“No, old man. Don’t make this difficult for us,” the soldiers ignored the old man’s request. According to regulations, people over fifty were not allowed to enter unless they were contractors.

“Make way, make way,” a convoy approached, and people cleared a path. The old man’s eyes lit up. With surprisingly agile movements, he climbed onto the top of a vehicle, then in a few quick steps, leaped over the city gate and ran inside.

“Not good, he got into the city. That old thing, he’s causing trouble for us,” the two soldiers looked panicked.

“We can’t leave our posts. Notify the guards inside the city to catch him. We must make an example of him,” the two soldiers could only notify people inside the city to catch the man.

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