Chapter 549: Elevation

Just as anxious as Fakunduo was Yanyi, one of the three giants of the Holy Storm.

He had originally thought that the Auduin Kingdom would fall into a period of chaos due to the loss of its king, and that a war of succession might even break out.

Yet he still underestimated Luoning's influence; not only did the war of succession not occur, but the chaos itself lasted for less than half a month.

Today, not only has the Auduin Kingdom returned to normal, but many nobles are attacking Telixiya as if they had taken stimulants.

Although he and Tailuo actively incited the Feilunsibao Principality and the Vila Principality to rebel, holding back the forces of the Gistana Duchy and Wushan Territory.

However, the frontal assault on Moore City failed, and the Black Thorn Principality is under immense pressure facing the Noble Allied Forces from Shuangfeng Ridge and Red Pine Castle.

"If I had known, Selandier and I should have developed in the shadows for a longer time instead of rushing to occupy the Molten Duchy."

Developing in the shadows and waiting until reaching a certain level of strength before making a move would have resulted in a better situation than the current one.

The only blame lies in the intelligence they received at the time, which stated that there were not even a few Sun-level individuals on this continent, causing Yanyi and the others' confidence to inflate.

Now that his right-hand men are both dead, and it is impossible for him to sail across the Storm Sea back to the New Moon Continent to bring reinforcements, the situation is exceptionally difficult.

Moore City.

Upon returning to Wubei City, Luoning heard from Tangmu that Ruidar and Maiken had already captured this city, so he immediately rushed there without stopping.

He closed the population register in his hand, and long-awaited prompt text appeared before his eyes:

【"Population Prosperity" achievement reached, Attribute Point +30000, Energy Essence +60000】

The population of Moore City plus its surrounding towns totals over 160,000; combined with the 100,000-plus population of large cities like Mist City and Watchtower, the number of subjects in Luoning's territory has now exceeded the one-million mark, satisfying the final tier of the 【Population Prosperity】 achievement.

Luoning glanced at the achievement panel; there was one less achievement task he could perform.

Now, only the three achievement tasks of Famous Throughout the World, King of Slaughter, and Gongchengluedi can provide him with additional Attribute Point income.

But it is clear that these three are also nearing their end.

Luoning opened the Attribute Panel; after nearly three months of accumulation, plus this achievement reward, his Attribute Points and Energy Essence had accumulated to 30,825 and 64,650 points respectively.

He consumed all his Attribute Points, raising his strength to a new level:

【Level】: 10-Legendary Knight (40000/40000); 10-Legendary Archmage (16857/60000)

As Luoning felt the surging power within his body, he also noticed that more than half of the soul-binding chains on his soul had been devoured.

"Now my Knight cultivation has reached the Legendary Peak, while my Magician cultivation is still short by more than 40,000 Attribute Points."

He glanced at the achievement panel; if he could capture another large city with a population of over 100,000 next, he would be able to complete the 【Gongchengluedi】 achievement and obtain 20,000 Attribute Points.

However, this is still not enough.

Next, he must either hunt a Legendary or become a king to quickly replenish the missing portion, cross the Legendary realm, and become a Sage.

After Luoning finished thinking about his own affairs, he set about allocating the Energy Essence.

Ruidar has now become a Legendary, one of only three Legendaries on Aoerlante; relying on his special secret techniques, he should be able to compete with Yanyi, so he does not need points for the time being.

As for Kaierluosi, at its current Level 8 late-stage level, it is perfectly sufficient for leading the charge in sieges. Considering that upgrading it to Legendary would require over 100,000 Energy Essence, Luoning can only give up for now.

Therefore, this Energy Essence is better suited for investment in Maiken and Aierlong.

Considering that Maiken is responsible for the eastern front, Luoning decided to prioritize raising Maiken's strength to the Sun-level, then invest the remainder in Aierlong.

However, the accumulated Energy Essence this time is over 60,000 points; according to Luoning's estimation of the values, it should be more than enough to raise both Aierlong and Maiken to Level 9.

"Ruidar."

"My Lord, you speak!"

"The frontal war is left to you. In addition to our own troops, the nobles on this list will also join the frontal allied forces, all of whom you will command and mobilize."

As Luoning spoke, he handed the list agreed upon that day at the Golden Feather Palace to Ruidar.

"How to fight, where to fight, I can leave these decisions to you, but my requirement remains the same as before: try not to harm innocent civilians, and maintain the mindset of making it easy to govern after taking over. Of course, for those who stubbornly resist, you must still be ruthless when necessary!"

Ruidar took the list and glanced at it; there were over thirty nobles of various sizes on it, and the troops involved should be quite numerous.

"My Lord, I expect to stay in Moore City until the end of March, and then I will lead the troops to clear out the surrounding small cities before considering moving south."

Luoning nodded, "No need to rush the march; proceed steadily. We cannot have the cities we just captured fall into chaos the moment we leave. Although I am eager to bring my troops to the gates of Dragon City, waiting another two or three years is no problem at all."

Ruidar indicated he understood.

In fact, fighting and stopping like this, reorganizing military affairs, and taking over new territories—two or three years is actually not Along time.

If the opponent resists fiercely, causing a significant impact on logistics and the army, two or three years might not even be enough.

Luoning actually wants to grasp both attacking and developing, bringing his methods of governance to every place he passes.

During this time, Wubei Territory has also brought up a batch of new officials who will successively take on the roles of Administrators in the new territories, bringing Luoning's governance philosophy with them.

"There is one more point I want to mention."

Luoning pondered slightly and said: "Starting from the next battle, we can allow the nobles of the enemy countries to surrender and pledge allegiance to me, but I only allow them to retain the property within their respective castles; their fields and industries will all belong to me."

"Besides that, regardless of whether they are a Viscount or a Count, as long as they surrender to me, they will all be reduced to ordinary Free Citizens, enjoying only remuneration."

Ruidar raised an eyebrow and said with a smile: "Then Pulaxiduo is truly a lucky one."

Although Pulaxiduo also has no title, he is still the Governor of Watchtower, managing the affairs of this city.

Luoning did not take back much of the Carmen Family's fields and industries either.

"His surrender happened during a special period, and it has its own particularities in how it is handled."

Luoning laughed: "However, once we establish a new country, the situation where noble fields are everywhere must be changed. Even if I confer titles to nobles later, I will limit the size of their territories, land, and power."

Ruidar was secretly shocked; that Luoning could say this clearly meant he had considered it in his heart.

"My Lord doing this is contrary to the current noble class."

Ruidar reminded him, "Although your strength is formidable, policies ultimately have to be executed by people at the lower levels. If the majority are dissatisfied, I fear the implementation will not be effective."

Even if Luoning's strength is great, the human heart is always unpredictable, and there is never a shortage of people who feign compliance while acting in opposition.

Luoning laughed: "I didn't expect you to see this level; I always thought you didn't like engaging in politics."

"Haha, after all, I was also a high-ranking noble in my previous life."

Luoning nodded slowly, "You are right, but we have enough time. Reform, after all, is something that can be pushed forward bit by bit if we extend the timeline."

This is the same principle as boiling a frog in warm water. (End of chapter)