Chapter 1977: 21: Reborn—Pioneering the Empire

The western development of the Empire had actually started since Zhao Xing first came to the Lai Chixing Empire, and it has been over seven thousand years now. The initial plan included only three large-scale Starry Sky Ancient Roads, with merely over twenty small to medium-sized ancient roads.

As of today, there are seven large Starry Sky Ancient Roads, with more than a thousand small and medium-sized roads.

Upon entering the Primordial Realm, he once went to Stacked Realm Mountain to ponder over the secret realm, where he encountered ’Tao Yang,’ the first disciple of Emperor Hongshan, deep in thought. Five Poison Emperor had even scolded Tao Yang as a waste right in front of Zhao Xing.

When the Empire, Ancient Hill, Reincarnation Temple, Academic City, Ancient Country Alliance, and Primordial Heavenly Palace, the six super forces, jointly embarked on development, Zhao Xing had a fixed match with Du Yun to decide the stakes.

When he actually took part as a Sea Communication Envoy, it was already three thousand years ago, and there were seven large Starry Sky Ancient Roads.

After his conversation with Emperor Hongshan ended, Zhao Xing immediately started looking for relevant materials to sort out the timeline.

"It is now the 1197th Solar Year of Wilderness 2 Epoch, only 2585 Boundary Star years remain until the Desolate Third Epoch."

"The resolution of the Stacked Realm Mountain issue accelerated the development of the seven great roads, but the difficulties in developing the Desolate Domain are not limited to a single Stacked Realm Mountain. Furthermore, the expansion of small and medium-sized roads has not been as smooth as anticipated; the challenges remain glaring compared to the pace of the past epoch, almost indistinguishable."

"The application of high-end theories to low-end scenarios still has a long way to go; even in the highly developed Red Star Empire, many areas continue to rely on primitive manual mining."

"The large ancient roads are officially managed by the six super forces; the development rights for small and medium-sized roads are granted to noble lords and smaller forces."

"Countries are able to develop without regards to cost as it concerns survival issues; both Emperor Red Star and Guluo River must establish a connection to Si Yue Desolate Domain. However, individual forces must weigh their costs carefully."

In his capacity as a Sea Communication Envoy, Zhao Xing retrieved financial data from the Star Mirror.

It showed the profits and losses of unofficially contracted developers of Desolate Domain over the course of seven thousand years.

Ninety percent of families within the Reincarnation Realm (forces) have sustained losses! The extent of the losses varies, with even Emperor Level families have roughly only ten percent profitability. Moreover, the stronger the family, the greater the loss.

In contrast, eighty percent of families within the Tao Domain Realm (forces) are profitable.

Why has such a scenario emerged?

The first factor is Emperor Red Star’s deliberate strategy.

Desolate Domain development inevitably accrues costs, which come from two fronts: partial cooperation with the other five great forces can share these costs.

The second front is domestic expenditures, and for domestic expenditures, the Emperor’s principle is: do not exploit the poor.

The second factor is that the development plan for Desolate Domain itself constitutes a long-term investment.

Families in reincarnation realm forces have longevity on their side; they anticipate a longer-term future. They have long since prepared for upfront losses.

Frankly speaking, it is commendable that one in ten family forces are profitable today.

Normally, these large families are unlikely to attain profitability within millennia.

The occurrence of profitability on the data curve is mainly attributed to the discovery of a Spirit Void Origin Realm on the Sea Passage Ancient Road, reviving exploration efforts slightly.

Even so, the Origin Realm is divided among the six super forces; the personal gain is minimal, unable to withstand the colossal expenditure, especially since only one Origin Realm has emerged across seven roads, solving none of the broader issues.

Although the Empire is vast, its internal hierarchies have remained quite entrenched over the years, where forces in Reincarnation Realm lose money, those below Reincarnation Realm turn a profit, a condition largely brought by the Emperor’s deliberate approach. The rise of new strata can invigorate the Empire, alleviating internal conflicts.

"If the Empire had not cooperated with the other four super forces and had not achieved temporary peace with the Demon Race, the fiscal pressure on the Empire now would have been hundreds of times greater."

Zhao Xing’s gaze continued towards the Annihilation Star Corridor.

"The rights standards for Annihilation Star Corridor classify it as a medium road, subcontracted by Carlos Family, Manin Family, Blue Ice Yang Family, and Haihe Ji Family, with Carlos Family taking the lion’s share at sixty percent, the other three families sharing forty percent."

"The Manin Family, Blue Ice Yang Family, Haihe Ji Family aside, merely lord-level families, yet why is the Carlos Family, a Demigod Family, struggling too? Oh, now I understand."

After scrutinizing the list, Zhao Xing was suddenly enlightened.

The Carlos Family may be a Demigod Family, but it is also extensively large, encompassing various branches.

In this case, the family overseeing Annihilation Star Corridor is the fifth-generation descendant of Carlos Duke, a branch in the northern part of the Empire, situated in the Ruyin Star System.

Ruyin Carlos, an Emperor Level Mechanical Master, which registered as having dozens of siblings, although most of them are just average with the highest barely at the lord-level, are mostly mediocre, Ruyin Carlos stands out as the most capable.

"It seems this Ruyin Carlos has run into financial pressure," Zhao Xing chuckled. The Annihilation Star Corridor itself is indeed a tough nut to crack.

Thousands of years of development haven’t seen a glimpse of hope; only a few minerals have been extracted, truly tests one’s patience.

Yet Zhao Xing wasn’t clear on the specific reasons behind the sale, nor the degree of the counterpart’s intent to sell.

Merely from the public data of the Ruyin Star System, seeing Ruyin Carlos can hold on until the Third Epoch doesn’t say much. Thus, there ought to be other underlying reasons.

"Captain, are you there?" Zhao Xing immediately reached out to Yang Baihe, a high-ranking member of Star Fire.