Kingdom of Ash
Prince Mori returned to his homeland after nearly two months.
But for some reason, he looked at the universe before him, which should have been familiar, and felt a sense of unfamiliarity.
Compared to the Dragon Star Empire universe, returning here feels like stepping into another world.
He even felt a particular sense of 'disgust' inside.
It's not that he hates this place, but rather that he hates the current state of affairs here.
I hate the rules here.
They despise those in power here and the system they have established.
Why?
During his time in the Xiaolong Interstellar Empire, he didn't stay idle like his sister; he went to find and study a lot of relevant information about the Xiaolong Interstellar Empire.
He had a strong learning ability, so he studied the entire history of the Dragonflight Interstellar Empire in almost a month.
He knew.
In the JF-17 universe, long ago...
The Dragon Star Empire is also a very underdeveloped place, not even a T4 technological civilization.
In the entire universe, most places were not as developed as they are now, and the average level has now surpassed their Ash Venerable Kingdom, and even the entire Venerable Civilization universe!
At least in terms of living standards, the mortality rate in the JF-17 universe has decreased significantly in recent years.
You might be wondering why the JF-17 space swarm has been fighting all these years.
If there's a war going on, why is the death rate still decreasing?
Is there a problem with this data?
Prince Mori was also puzzled at first.
But after consulting detailed information, he came to a conclusion.
It seems that the history of the Dragon Star Empire is a history of war; wherever they went, war followed.
But look at how long those wars lasted.
They are all very short.
Unlike their usual wars, which can last for decades or even centuries once they start, these are not like wars.
Such a long period of time would naturally result in a large number of casualties, directly or indirectly caused by the war.
However, the wars brought about by the Dragon Star Empire are often direct and swift.
Directly means launching an attack on important military targets, often important military hubs such as starports, stargates, and military bases, as well as places like the capital system.
"Fast" means ending the war in the shortest possible time. Every war waged by the Dragon Star Empire is very short, with an average duration of no more than a year.
With such a short war duration, the impact on basic living conditions was naturally minimal.
Even some planets far from the war zone may not have realized that a war had taken place before being notified that their universe may have changed hands.
Another point is that the Dragon Star Empire directly or indirectly controls a universe.
They will not resort to the ruthless and exploitative methods of other interstellar civilizations, nor will they kill the goose that lays the golden eggs to seize the resources of this universe.
This method allows the victor to acquire a large amount of resources in a short period of time, recover from the losses caused by the war, and sometimes even make a fortune.
However, for the defeated territories, for a long time to come, poverty, resource shortages, and the plundering or destruction of production tools will lead to many natural and man-made casualties.
But the Dragon Star Empire will not do that.
They never do things that kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.
They will only take and control an appropriate portion, leaving enough resources for the locals to live on, and may even help them develop their livelihoods, thereby gaining long-term benefits.
As for those who are only nominally affiliated with the Xiaolong Interstellar Empire, due to certain regulations of the Xiaolong Interstellar Empire and out of consideration for their feelings, they will no longer wantonly oppress the lower classes.
While the Dragon Empire has not explicitly stated this point, it has only declared that it does not support extreme acts of enslavement, extreme acts of massacre, etc.
These actions will be one of the key factors in which the relevant departments of the Dragon Star Empire choose to invest and cooperate.
Because of these reasons, the residents of the interstellar territories that the Dragon Empire came into contact with actually saw an increase in their quality of life under these circumstances.
After these characteristics were discovered.
Prince Mori's previous ideas have undergone a radical change.
War, sometimes, can actually inspire a better life of peace.
The Ashes Lord's Kingdom is now in a terrible state, just as his sister had said.
In this situation, the only way to completely change the Ash Lord Kingdom is to overturn everything here.
Only with external help can the Ashes Lord Kingdom be completely transformed.
And this help is naturally a clear source of water.
This naturally refers to the system of the Dragon Star Empire and its vast resources.
Thinking about all this, Prince Mori became completely certain of his thoughts.
He was determined to help his sister complete her plan, even at a terrible cost.
At this moment, he is in a starport, waiting to meet some people.
He didn't actually know who these people were.
He was simply following his sister's instructions to do some things upon returning to the Ashbringer Kingdom.
For example, posting job advertisements on a certain media outlet, or sending messages to certain communication websites, that's all.
All he had to do was wait there.
This is a restaurant located on the edge of a corner, offering views of outer space.
This galaxy is one of the busiest starports in the Ash Venerable Kingdom.
However, the level of activity here is not even comparable to some second- or third-tier star system ports he has seen in the Xiaolong universe cluster.
Time passed little by little.
Prince Mori was getting impatient while waiting.
Finally, someone sat down next to him.
This is an unremarkable appearance; it's just a very common look among them.
"What number do you like?" the other person asked Prince Mori directly.
Forty-four.
Upon hearing this answer.
The man stood up: "Come with me."
After saying that, he walked towards the restaurant's kitchen without looking back.
Prince Mori caught up at this point, and then he noticed that the man was wearing clothes similar to those worn by the chefs in the restaurant's kitchen.
After following this person, who turned left and right, he suddenly stopped in front of a gate.
"Go in," the man said, pointing to the half-open gate.
Prince Mori glanced at the man; the man's gaze was indifferent, revealing no emotion whatsoever.
Prince Mori took a deep breath and went inside.
Initially, it was a rather long corridor, very narrow, only wide enough for one person to pass through, and only one person high.
Prince Mori tiptoed slightly, feeling as if his head was about to touch the thing above him.
The whole space really gives people a very uncomfortable feeling.
Fortunately, Prince Mori eventually came out.
What comes into view is a very bright and spacious space.
He looked back at the narrow corridor, then at the bright hall in front of him.
It's really hard to believe that such a place is hidden here.
"Please sit, Your Highness Prince Mori." Someone appeared beside Prince Mori without him noticing, startling the prince.
When Prince Mori saw the man's face clearly, he was even more stunned.
This is a woman, one-eyed.
He also had a prisoner's brand on his face.
He knew this person.
He was once the most wanted criminal in the Ash Venerable Kingdom, and had participated in plotting to assassinate the Venerable. Before that, he had also assassinated many nobles and royalty in the Ash Venerable Kingdom.
However, he was reportedly arrested and sentenced to death almost twenty years ago after a trial.
How could someone who should have died more than twenty years ago end up here?
This surprised him.
You must have many questions.
I will answer your questions shortly, but you need to sit here for now.
"Since that official sent you here, you should trust me unconditionally," the wanted woman said with a smile.
Prince Mori swallowed hard, but still sat down in the chair that the wanted criminal had pulled out.
"How...should I address you?" Prince Mori asked cautiously.
"Just like how the outside world calls me, Madam Poison?"
Or perhaps, a heart-corrupting being.
"Either is fine," the wanted woman said with a slight smile.
"If... it were my sister, what would she call you?" Prince Mori asked a peculiar question.
This surprised her.
She glanced at the man in front of her, then replied, "She will call me Feng Lan Hua."
Windflower.
This is one of the most common flowers in their universe. It has an excellent growth rate and can survive in almost any place where there is life.
"Wind Orchid".
"This is her favorite flower," Prince Mori suddenly said.
He remembered that this was her favorite saying.
There are many of these flowers on her home planet.
She said that these flowers are very resilient, and even if she doesn't take care of them and goes away for a few years, they can still grow very well when she comes back.
So she really likes this flower.
"This is the name she gave me."
I've long forgotten its former name.
When you saw me just now, did it remind you of what happened back then?
I should have been executed long ago.
Why would a dead person be here?
Feng Lanhua said with a light smile, "Back then, I was indeed arrested."
At that time, I also thought I was going to die.
She found me.
She asked me if I would be willing to live again for her.
She shared her thoughts.
Very naive.
But for some reason, when I looked into her eyes, I actually felt a little flutter in my heart.
Later, she replaced me with someone else, and from the outside, it appeared that I was indeed dead.
She didn't immediately ask me to do anything; she just had me stay by her side.
She said, "I can leave anytime."
As for whether I'm willing to help her, that's my decision.
