Chapter 1978: 21: Reborn—Pioneering in the Empire! (Part 2)

"What’s the matter? You don’t have another task for me, do you?" Yang Baihe’s face appeared on the Star Mirror with some reluctance. "Let me be clear, I’ve already taken a vacation, a long one. I won’t be fighting to the death anytime soon."Yang Baihe was really spooked by Zhao Xing.

He discovered that in the three missions he collaborated on with Zhao Xing, although he got promoted and made a fortune each time, every one of them was a near-death experience.

Now that Yang Baihe had reached the lord-level and held a high position, he no longer had the spirit to risk his life. Now, he just wanted to find a Daoist couple, continue his lineage, and enjoy life.

"Hahaha, don’t worry, captain. I just want to ask a few questions." Zhao Xing explained the situation to Yang Baihe.

"Ruyin Carlos, huh? I know about him, he’s a tough character." Yang Baihe said, "Even though he’s the fifth-generation grandson of a demigod, he wasn’t favored at the beginning—oh, I mean, not at all favored. Before he reached the Reincarnation Realm, the Carlos Duke didn’t even remember this grandson existed."

Zhao Xing nodded. It wasn’t such a rare thing.

Jing Yan was a prince of the Beiye Star System, after all, but the Beiye Emperor didn’t remember having such an offspring either.

Since the Carlos Duke was a demigod, he should have been preoccupied with breaking through to the God Realm, just like Guluo River, especially since it was already the fifth generation.

"This man rose to prominence in the Tao Domain Realm. First, he killed eight siblings with inheritance rights in honorable duels before driving away seven of his blood-related seniors and acquiring their debts, using commercial means to exile them to the Baguli Wilderness."

"Therefore, he smoothly inherited the Suckling Calf Library wealth left by the Carlos family, about a million Five Emperors’ Money."

The Suckling Calf Library was similar to a family fund. When big families split, they typically use similar means to help the next generations rise. Similar concepts include Reincarnation Treasures and Reincarnation Restoration Quotas.

"After reaching the Reincarnation Realm, he never voluntarily reincarnated once, making him relatively strong and young for an Emperor-level." In the Red Star Empire, there is a rule about Reincarnation Restoration: all existing positions and territories aren’t inherited, and many positions quickly fill in once vacated. So not reincarnating means you keep your accumulated connections.

Actually, many young emperors undergo ’Reincarnation,’ but it’s really just the True Spirit exiting to undergo tempering. Usually, they’ll maintain synchronization between their flesh and soul, unless faced with life-threatening danger, making reincarnation the only option."

"I’ve heard about Ruyin Carlos abandoning the Annihilation Star Corridor too."

"That place is a tough nut, seven thousand years without a glimmer of hope. They can just dig out a bit of ore, which left Ruyin Carlos quite despondent."

"And at that time, the Transmission Building had reopened. Making money from that was likely better than developing the wilderness, so it was normal to give up."

"Does that mean he actually has financial pressure? Do you know the specific reason, captain?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Hold on a moment." Yang Baihe suddenly disappeared from the Star Mirror and reappeared about two days later. "A long time ago, you asked me to investigate, and I did find something."

When Zhao Xing was still in the Origin Realm, Great Zhou had suffered losses at the hands of the Carlos family. However, no solid evidence was found at the time, so the conflict didn’t escalate and was left unresolved. But Yang Baihe did investigate the cause back then.

Knowing more from his elevated position, he quickly found some leads.

"Ruyin Carlos’s financial pressure probably comes from creating a mechanical treasure for his next True Spirit Tribulation." Yang Baihe said, "This treasure requires a huge investment of wealth, and it’s somewhat urgent."

"Seven hundred thirty-five years ago, Ruyin Carlos killed more than fifty million slaves on his territory, including two to three thousand citizens of the Empire. Because of this, he was investigated by Star Fire, and it concluded that Ruyin Carlos experienced an unconscious True Spirit loss of control, killing these people in his sleep."

"Given his privileged status, after Star Fire’s investigation, punishment was left to the Military Department to decide, and ultimately, the case was sealed in secret, only resulting in a fine."

"Killing in one’s sleep?" Zhao Xing clicked his tongue, "Isn’t that using people for the Blood Refining Technique and Artifact Refining?"

Yang Baihe shrugged: "Star Fire indeed suspected that it wasn’t just a simple case of going berserk, but the other party handled it well. By the time the investigators discovered it, most of those people were already registered as slaves. For those secondary citizens not of Great Zhou killed, punishment wasn’t severe for people of their status."

"Star Fire only has investigative authority and not the power to enforce. However the Military Department’s legal tribunal decides, that’s how it is; we can’t interfere."

Zhao Xing also understood that for Emperor-level powers, such a petty matter was nothing. Secondary citizens comprised of stowaways, aliens, and criminals weren’t protected by the Empire.

No matter how many secondary citizens Ruyin Carlos killed, he only needed to pay some fines. The penalty was for affecting a few thousand Imperial citizens, but those were on his land, which wouldn’t really hurt him either.

Zhao Xing and Yang Baihe chatted for a while, roughly confirming one thing: Ruyin Carlos, this Emperor-level figure, was very eager to sell, even desperately so.

After confirming this, Zhao Xing asked, "Captain, are you interested in some investment?"

Yang Baihe raised an eyebrow: "You want to take over the development rights of the Ancient Star Path?"

Zhao Xing nodded: "Exactly, but I can’t handle it alone. You should know I’m very short on cash."

Of course, Yang Baihe knew. Zhao Xing owed money to three emperors, and it wasn’t a small amount.

What he didn’t understand was why Zhao Xing still wanted to jump into this hole when even the four big families had given up.