Outside South City Gate A black rod sent the red-haired figure flying, smashing him against an Evis Spatial System Land Fortress that was spewing flames, breaking the majestic machine and scattering flames and fragments around, General Corvey leaped forward and landed in front of the red-haired man, coughed lightly, glanced at the fresh blood on his palm, and rasped, "Any resistance is futile now." While they spoke, a blond man wielding a radiant giant sword slowly approached from behind the red-haired man. "Two against one is not the act of a hero." Bloodied, Kroswei propped himself up with a silver folding long sword, slowly stood from the crater he had created, and looked up at Corvey, "Corvey, if you still possess the courage for heroics and chivalry you once had, face me one-on-one. Our injuries are similar; it wouldn’t be taking advantage of me." Fiss, who was not far away, raised his head, looked at Corvey, and opened his mouth as if to give advice. It was clear that the opponent was driven to a dead end and wanted to trade one for one. Corvey looked at Fiss, shook his head, and lifted the black rod in his hand, his gaze shifting to Kroswei, "Come on." Kroswei looked up at Corvey, a smirk forming on his lips. Then, without any warning, he lunged forward, raising his silver long sword, and swiftly slashed towards Corvey’s chest. Corvey stood still, holding the rod. With a crisp sound, their weapons collided, and Kroswei appeared behind Corvey. Corvey coughed out blood, slowly lowered the rod in his hand, supporting his body. As he coughed lightly, a ’clang—’ echoed from behind, and the silver long sword shattered into pieces. The gaping, crimson wound almost tore half of his body apart, blossoming on Kroswei’s chest before he staggered and fell forward to the ground. "General Corvey, are you alright?" Fiss quickly walked over, looking at Corvey, who had coughed up blood. Corvey shook his head, turned back, and looked at Kroswei who lay on the ground, slowly losing his life. Fiss looked at everything, his mouth slightly ajar, apparently wanting to inquire, then he seemed to realize it involved Corvey’s secret, so he closed his mouth. "There’s actually nothing special," Corvey coughed lightly, "Back in my fighting days, I frequently got such severe injuries. Over time, with frequent injuries, one naturally learns to use the body’s remaining strength more effectively. Plus, my Talent Sequences inherently greatly enhance bodily strength. Over time, the disparity just emerges." He looked at Kroswei on the ground and sighed softly, "Fighting to the last moment, he truly was a qualified soldier." Amid rising and falling gunfire, Fiss stood by his side, looking at the sky-covered flames and the remnants of a colossal Sky Behemoth that had crashed outside the city gate, engulfed in flames. Corvey pulled a slightly damaged communicator from his pocket and pressed the button. "Kroswei is dead, lay down your weapons, surrender immediately." "Kroswei is dead, lay down your weapons, surrender immediately." Soon, hoarse voices of persuasion to surrender began echoing amidst the continuous bombardments, resonating across each segmented battlefield. The sounds of continuous gunfire gradually quieted down as one weapon after another was discarded on the ground. No one bothered to question whether the commander was really dead; besieged from both front and back, the Evis Space System Mercenary Corps had already collapsed, and everyone merely needed a reason, a plausible reason to legitimately end the battle. As night fell, everything gradually returned to silence, leaving only the flames from the giant mechanical wreckage burning fiercely in the evening breeze, casting reflections of light and shadows upon the grand high walls. Lunsar looked up at the blood-soaked elderly man in front of him, smiled awkwardly, and said, "No one, of course no one, you can sit anywhere you like." Then he reached out to hang up the still-dialing phone and asked with a smile, "So, the situation in North City has been resolved?" As he spoke, Lunsar glanced at the ruby-encrusted staff in He Ao’s hand, vaguely recognizing the ruby on the staff, but couldn’t immediately recall where he had seen it. "Just a minor issue," He Ao sat down in front of Lunsar, resting his blood-stained golden staff against the glass curtain wall, and looked at Lunsar, "So what’s the ’Legislator’s’ secret medicine formula?" In that instant, the jumbled thoughts followed the marker He Ao had placed in Lunsar’s mind and transmitted into his own brain. [Talent Sequence 168: Legislator] [Main Material: King Lion’s Brow Gemstone, Thousand-Year Stalwart Willow Heartwood] [Auxiliary Materials: 100 grams of Flame Bird’s fresh blood, 1200 grams of spring water above 50 degrees Celsius, and one spine from a Phantom Spring Fish.] [Preparation Method: Crush the Phantom Spring Fish spine, mix it with the Flame Bird’s fresh blood, and wait for 30 minutes. Then, add the Thousand-Year Stalwart Willow Heartwood into the blend and wait for 50-70 minutes until the Heartwood is completely charred by the Flame Bird’s blood. Place the King Lion’s Brow Gemstone into the resulting liquid until it is fully enveloped. Afterwards, pour in the spring water, simmer over low heat for two hours, filter, separate by settling, and collect the clear liquid from the bottom layer.] [Promotion Ceremony: Lead the passing of at least one law that affects millions of people.] "Mr. Mayor Linen, please rest assured," At this point, Lunsar raised his head, looked at He Ao, and smiled, "The formula for the secret medicine is in an absolutely safe place, and of course, if you intend to continue collaborating with us, this won’t be a problem." He Ao looked at him calmly, "Have you prepared enough materials for concocting the secret medicine?" Lunsar smiled, "The materials are also in a safe place." Some materials were in the hands of the Prisoners’ Gang in South City, some materials were in an underground safe at 175 Knorr Street in Saint Ilan District, with the password being the reverse spelling of ’Nord’. The sound of cannon fire from the south gradually faded, seeming to signify the end of the battles. Lunsar looked at He Ao, pausing slightly, "It seems you are the ultimate victor of this war. I don’t know how you repelled both the Kopes Mercenary Corps and the Evis Space System Mercenary Corps and dealt with Scott’s Rebel Army, but we are open to negotiations," He picked up the cocktail on the table and took another sip, "You know, we at the Nord Consortium, unlike the Evis Space System bigwigs with gunpowder for brains, are in finance. Wealth, money, those are what we pursue." He looked at the interested elderly man in front of him, took a deep breath, and continued slowly, "Mr. Mayor Linen, you have already proven your absolute dominion and supreme authority in this city. We can expand our collaboration further, "You dislike the monopoly that the Evis Space System and Kopace Mining hold in Yilan City, and coincidentally, so do we," He paused, carefully observing He Ao’s expression, and continued, "We can introduce other mining consortiums and industrial consortiums to you––Redel Mining, Rockville Energy Group, and more. They are all eager to enter Yilan City and work together to create a harmonious and upward market atmosphere." "So, at what price are you planning to ’sell’ Yilan City to these ’other consortiums’?" He Ao looked at him with a smile. "Mr. Mayor Linen, we are certainly sincere in serving you," Lunsar slowly took a deep breath and continued, "Even if you manage to deal with the armed attacks from Kopace Mining and Evis Space System this time, they won’t simply let it go," he said. "They will definitely resort to more methods, and you will need some ’collaborators’ to help you withstand their pressure. Likewise, these collaborators will also need the market of Yilan City. "We can help you bridge connections and stabilize your rule." He looked up at He Ao, "We can provide you with the formula for ’Legislator’ and Secret Medicine, so you could sit on the throne of mayor of Yilan City, being re-elected term after term, becoming the undeniable ’ruler’ of this city. "Wealth, strength, power – you name it, you can have as much as you want. If you wish, we can also help you find the Talent Sequences that follow the ’Legislator,’ seek the opportunity that could elevate you to an Angel, immortal and undying." "Didn’t you want me to step down before?" He Ao looked at Lunsar with a smile, "And how do you guarantee my authority when the city council is still under the influence of Kopace and Evis Space System?" "I think Mayor Lin En knows Yilan City better than we do," Seeing that He Ao seemed genuinely interested in his proposal, Lunsar smiled, "But we also happen to know some confidential information that others don’t, which could help you rule Yilan City." The headquarters of Evis Space System had a detailed list of senators they had bribed, and the bribery list of Kopace was on the personal computer of the arrested chief executive officer of Kopace Mining’s Yilan branch. Feeling the information transmitted from Lunsar’s mind, He Ao paused, smiling as he watched the man before him. "Of course, this information might be time-sensitive," Lunsar looked into He Ao’s eyes, slightly uneasy, and continued, "If Mr. Mayor decides to cooperate, we can also send you this information as soon as possible." "Alright, I can work with you," He Ao placed his hand on the table, calmly looking at the slightly surprised and hopeful man before him, "But I have one condition." "Mr. Mayor, just say it," Lunsar took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, his face radiating uncontrollable joy as he looked at He Ao, "Whatever your condition may be, we will do our best to satisfy it. Nord is always full of sincerity toward its collaborators." "No need for such grand gestures; my request is simple, one you can easily fulfill," He Ao looked at Lunsar, rasping, "I want your support for my reforms, to lead by example in de-monopolization and combatting financial hollowing out." Lunsar looked at the elderly man before him, his expression quickly changing from expectancy to astonishment, then to incomprehension, and finally, he took a breath, his voice slightly raised, "Mayor Lin En, you might not realize what you are saying. I must remind you, your reforms are neither beneficial for the Federation’s economy nor for market development." He was persuading Linen to cooperate with them, not to join him in his own rebellion. He Ao looked at him, his tone steady, "The Consortium’s economy? Whose market? A monopolized market?" "Mayor Lin En, are you still going to be obstinate?" Lunsar’s hand pressed on the table, his gaze cold as he looked at He Ao, "Did you come here specifically to mock me?" "I am very serious about discussing these terms with you," He Ao calmly watched him, smiling, "Didn’t you say we could discuss anything? Is it that you can negotiate only when it’s in your favor, but not when it’s against you?" "Linen, you really are beyond reason," Lunsar took a deep breath, then looked at He Ao, slowly pulling a silver pistol from his pocket, "There’s an adage you might not have heard, ’A strongman imprisoned, even the jailers can taunt him; an old, dying lion, even a hare can pluck at his beard,’" He raised his head to look at the blood-soaked He Ao, lifting the pistol, "Indeed you are immensely powerful, but look at yourself now, your body is exhausted, yet you still came here alone, hoping you will repent your arrogance in hell." He Ao looked down at the silver pistol in his hand, which seemed to be a powerful C-level Extraordinary Item. Lunsar himself was a D-Rank Transcendent, and with a C-level Extraordinary Item, his actual combat capability wasn’t weak either. He Ao sighed softly, picking up a golden cane beside him, slowly said, "Decree: Rebels shall die." At that moment, Lunsar finally recognized what the ruby on the cane really was, but he no longer had the chance to speak again. Under his incredulous, wide-eyed gaze, his arm, originally pointing the gun at He Ao, slowly turned back, pressing the silver muzzle against his own chin. At that moment, He Ao had already stood up, picked up the crystal pocket watch on the table, and walked towards the exit of the bar. A crisp gunshot sounded behind him. He Ao opened the pocket watch in his hand, looked down, and saw that the World Tree emblem on the watch had dimmed, and the effect of the pocket watch had long expired. A myriad of sharp pains, like ants biting, layered intensely across his body, but he seemed unaffected, still calmly stepping outside. By the time he reached the entrance of the bar, the rain outside had gradually ceased. A group of stout men in black suits leaned against a sedan, watching He Ao nervously. They were Lunsar’s guards. They hadn’t noticed He Ao when he had entered, but after Lunsar fired the shot, they had quickly reacted. They picked up their guns, aimed at He Ao, and pulled the triggers. Accompanied by a series of crisp sounds, they held the firearms to their own heads, and bullets pierced through their skulls. Blood flowed with the rainwater down the quiet street. Only a few who had not fired their guns trembled, looking around at everything. They clutched their guns but dared not touch the trigger again, just trembling as they watched He Ao. He Ao slowly walked past them, his tone calm, "Decree lifted." At this moment, he paid no attention to the guards and instead looked up at the surrounding night sky. In the deep darkness, unseen by the guards, the entire world seemed to flicker under the disturbance of some twisting power, strands of twisted and deep lines emerging from behind the curtain of rain, then quickly disappearing back into it. In the distance, at the city’s edge, amidst tall buildings, a gigantic human-shaped illusion appeared from the night, then walked through the city, scanning over it as if searching for something. Eventually, that gaze focused on He Ao. He Ao raised his head to meet the gaze of the illusion situated between the buildings. Their eyes connected, yet it was as if they didn’t. Twisted murmurs and mad ravings echoed in He Ao’s ears, dissipating as if responding to footsteps approaching from the boundless dimensions. The world around him flickered once more, and everything seemed to return under the dark night. The gentle raindrops fell on the ground, making a clear sound. The golden cane in his hand trembled slightly, seemingly disturbed by the abrupt scene that had flashed before him. He Ao gently grasped the cane, raised his hand, and dialed a number. Mid’s voice appeared in his ear. Behind him were chaotic and noisy voices, seemingly reorganizing the personnel and equipment under Scott’s command. "Dispatch two troops, surround Yiwis Space System Headquarters and Kopace Mining Headquarters," He Ao spoke calmly, "Move fast, seize all equipment, let no one escape, and connect every computer to the North City intelligent system." Mid immediately replied, "I’ll handle it right away!" After hanging up the phone, He Ao looked up at the spot in the sky where the illusion had disappeared. The whirring of engines sounded behind him, and the surging flames dispersed the mist. A floating warplane bearing the Mayor’s Guard’s White Jasmine Emblem slowly landed behind him. With intricately detailed jade patterns, the brass cane struck the puddled ground, bursting forth glistening droplets.