The Linhai Palace, the central hub of the entire Linhai State, is now under the joint administration of Lei Qian and Gao Benli.
Upon entering the Linhai Palace, the two men headed directly to the central area of the vast complex.
Not only does the Linhai Palace serve as the administrative center for managing Linhai State, but it is also their residence. Additionally, the branch of the Tiangong Department for Linhai State is also located here.
The palace was built on the site of an ancient ruin, and the Imperial Army guards the palace, which resembles a fortress, both inside and out, with the Protectorate Army providing assistance.
In the surrounding forests and lakes, the Beast Army also lends a hand, turning the entire area into an impenetrable stronghold.
At the center of the Linhai Palace lies a secret chamber, with only a square table inside. Above the table, two tactical mirrors hover quietly, and the small chamber is covered with bright yellow array patterns.
This chamber is located directly under the pillar of golden light that soars into the sky from the Linhai Palace.
Lei Qian and Gao Benli took their seats, familiar with the procedure. Each pricked their fingers, letting a drop of blood fall onto the tactical mirror, followed by a thread of their soul force.
The tactical mirrors verified their identities, and upon confirmation, a faint yellow soul force enveloped Lei Qian and Gao Benli.
As the glow surrounded them, the two men slowly closed their eyes, merging their consciousness with the soul force.
In the former capital of the Qin Dynasty, now the Hua Xia Empire's temporary palace, the grand royal palace had been completely renovated. The Hua Xia Hall, supported by nine dragon pillars, now stood atop a high white jade platform, with a dragon throne and a phoenix seat placed prominently.
Ye Xin sat on the phoenix seat, watching quietly as she awaited their arrival.
Before her, several tactical mirrors hovered in the air within the Hua Xia Hall, aligned side by side.
The Hua Xia Hall, also situated under a pillar of golden light, emitted waves of soul force that flowed from above into the tactical mirrors, filling the hall with an ethereal presence.
As the energy entered the mirrors, bright yellow soul force began to coalesce into several ghostly figures within the hall.
When Lei Qian and Gao Benli opened their eyes, they were no longer in the secret chamber of the Linhai Palace but in the Hua Xia Hall of the Imperial Palace.
Nearby, other familiar figures—Qin Wushuang, Mei Qiuhan, Leng Wuyi, Feng Huabin, and Jia Gong—gradually materialized, each one appearing in turn.
As their ghostly forms solidified, they opened their eyes and looked toward Ye Xin, who sat on the phoenix seat.
"Your Majesty!" they all greeted in unison, bowing respectfully to the young woman who sat regally above them.
Mei Qiuhan glanced at the dignified and solemn young woman and couldn't help but sigh inwardly at how unpredictable the world could be.
But she also admired Ye Xin's abilities, for she had managed to organize such a vast realm with remarkable efficiency—no small feat.
"The reason I've summoned everyone here through the tactical mirrors is to discuss the situation in the southern region of the South Nine States," Ye Xin began, and Lei Qian and Gao Benli nodded inwardly, having anticipated this.
The situation had indeed worsened, and they could not rely solely on Lin Qian. They needed to make their own preparations.
"Since His Majesty entered the underground world, we've had no word from him, though his life token remains intact, indicating he is not in danger. The sudden collapse of the entrance has prevented us from following him and understanding the situation."
"But the situation has worsened, and we must prepare for the worst. If, in a year and a half, His Majesty has not resolved the situation and returned, we will need to relocate everything from the southern region of the South Nine States to the newly acquired forty-nine states."
Ye Xin's decision met with unanimous approval, as the worsening conditions in the southern region of the South Nine States had taken everyone by surprise.
The Hua Xia Empire now had forty-nine states from the former Qin Dynasty, Qi State, and Wei State, more than enough to accommodate the people from the South Nine States.
This was Ye Xin's contingency plan.
The discussion proceeded swiftly, as Ye Xin's style was efficient and focused on getting things done in the shortest time possible.
The administrators of the South Nine States reported on the situation to those in charge of the forty-nine states.
In reality, the main challenge they faced was not the availability of space but rather the logistics of moving the populace.
For soul warriors, traveling to another state was easy; they could simply fly there.
But what about the common people?
Lin Qian's departure had come just as he was about to introduce his so-called "transportation plan." Most people didn't even understand what this "transportation plan" entailed.
According to Lin Qian's description, once the plan was implemented, commoners could easily travel between states for leisure.
Unfortunately, with Lin Qian absent, they only knew the name "transportation plan" and nothing more.
While Ye Xin and the others were troubled by these issues on the surface, Lin Qian remained unaware that the situation aboveground was becoming increasingly urgent.
The space-time disruptions made it impossible for Zhuge Ming to contact the surface world, so Lin Qian had no idea that the situation in the southern region of the South Nine States was deteriorating rapidly.
At that moment, having finished training Yue Liqun, Lin Qian stretched his muscles and walked into his room, preparing for his daily cultivation.
As for Yue Liqun...
"Wow, His Majesty really did a number on you, huh?" the demon sneered as he watched Yue Liqun crawl out of the courtyard, looking rather pitiful. "Didn't His Majesty give you some medicine? If you take it and heal up, you'll be fine, right?"
"His Majesty said that crawling back in this battered state is also a form of tempering and cultivation," Yue Liqun replied, his eyes filled with determination as he recalled the scene of the Blackhorn King devouring his wife. He crawled to the edge of the floating courtyard and then let himself fall straight down.
With his soul force depleted, Yue Liqun had no energy left to fly and plummeted directly to the ground below.
Thud!
Fortunately, Yue Liqun's body was tough enough that the fall from such a height didn't cause much damage.
Yue Liqun firmly believed in Lin Qian's words, so he refused to heal his injuries and instead crawled all the way to the temporary courtyard where Fu Deqing was currently staying.
This courtyard had been hastily built outside the gathering place. For someone as strong as Fu Deqing, cutting down spirit trees to construct a courtyard was a simple task.
The only downside was that it didn't look particularly nice.
"Disciple, what happened to you?" Seeing Yue Liqun crawling in, Fu Deqing hurried over to help him into the courtyard.
"This is cultivation!" Yue Liqun responded with fervor, pulling out a crystal vial, downing the medicine inside, and immediately sitting down to cultivate.
The next day, Lin Qian stretched his body in the courtyard, while the demon standing guard at the gate curiously asked his emperor, "Your Majesty, was crawling back like that really part of cultivation?"
"Of course not," Lin Qian quickly replied, worried that the demon might foolishly try to follow suit. "That guy disrespected me before. If I don't punish him properly, I won't be able to sleep at night!"