Stepping on the demon door, the witch becomes the strongest.

Chapter 762: Yan Yu is going to take control of the government
The attitude of the successive witch kings in the southern border towards the State of Lu was: the first one was hostility, the second one was submission, the third one was hostility, and the fourth one was submission again.

To put it simply, it is switching back and forth between disobedience and filial piety.

With the previous experience in mind, the Lu Kingdom's Privy Council certainly wouldn't let down its guard just because the Sorcerer King surrendered. Was he truly submitting to the Lu Kingdom? He simply had to bow before the five Golden Core True Immortals.

However, on the first day the new Witch King Hu Minghua arrived in Pingjing, he made a heavy treaty:
The southern border offered land.

Simply put, all the wizard lords in the southern border wrote a joint letter and asked the new wizard king to pass it on, hoping that the territories under their rule could join the Land Kingdom in the form of an autonomous region.

Expanding territory is the highest goal of the rulers of the Lu Kingdom. It is a platinum-level achievement that will make one famous both during his lifetime and after his death. Therefore, many prime ministers in the cabinet were quite tempted by it.

But after careful analysis, I felt that it was not feasible.

Because the entire modern social structure of the Southern Territory has completely collapsed. The initial investment costs of rebuilding a system of order far outweigh the expected benefits later on. Furthermore, given the Southern Territory's capricious attitude of repeatedly surrendering and rebelling, it's very likely that just as you're helping them establish a framework, they'll turn against you and rebel again.

The name and the reality must match. Having a name without substance is like pretending to be rich and has no meaning.

Seeing that the Lu Kingdom seemed to have no interest, Hu Minghua proposed to change it to a tribute system: the Lu Kingdom would recognize the power status of many forces in the southern border and provide protection when necessary, and the wizard lords would regularly provide the Lu Kingdom with practice resources to express their submission.

This is relatively easy to accept, but the specific details need to be finalized.

For example, regarding the issue of "providing protection when necessary." What constitutes "when necessary"? Is it up to you to determine, or us? The Lu State's opinion is that this should be carefully and accurately determined and confirmed by the Lu State, taking into account the actual situation. After all, the Lu State boasts five Jindan Zhenren, all experts in international warfare and well-versed in this area.

Another example is "regularly providing cultivation resources to Lu." What should be provided, how much, and should they provide directly, or should we draw up a list? Lu's opinion is that they should, of course, provide the list, and the Southern Territory should provide it on demand. After all, Lu has five Jindan Zhenren, who play a vital role in maintaining international peace and stability. As a part of this peaceful status quo, the Southern Territory naturally has an obligation to meet the resource needs of these Jindan Zhenren.

The new Wizard King, Hu Minghua, stated that Lu State, with its five Golden Core True Immortals, was the "Big Brother" of East Asia. He was right and reasonable, but he hoped to have a conversation with the most powerful of these five, Yan Yu, the Divine General of Lu State.

When Yan Yu arrived in Pingjing and learned about Hu Minghua's request from the envoy of the Privy Council, he also began to make secret plans.

No, what do you want from me?
Are you testing whether there is any remaining Sun True Sword Intent in me?

Back in the southern border, he'd struck a terrifying blow, instantly slaying the omnipresent Luotouba. The corpse-contaminated area stretched across the Changshan Mountains, terrifying many sorcerer lords. It was understandable that he'd want to test this.

However, when Yan Yu was undergoing tribulation later, he never used his sword intent again until he was at his wit's end. Therefore, the international community generally speculated that the Sun True Darkness sword intent was gone. Of course, he himself had no intention of continuing to use the power of others to bully others.

Let's take a step back and say that even if I don't have the sword intent, wouldn't I still be the world's number one Jindan level person?
Who dares to kill me? Who can kill me?
Yan Yu came to the conference room and met the new Witch King Hu Minghua.

Hu Minghua was a middle-aged man, slightly overweight, with dark skin, looking like he was of South Asian descent. Of course, his ancestral home was in Lingyou Province, which had been verified by the Lu Kingdom.

"What do you want from me?" Yan Yu asked directly, not intending to play coy with the Witch King.

Some people at home need to overcome tribulations, some need to be suppressed, some need guidance, and some need to reach the Golden Core level. I am very busy too, okay?

Hu Minghua immediately smiled and said enthusiastically:

"I'm here on behalf of the Southern Territory, hoping to reach an agreement with the Jindan cultivators of Lu Country. First, we must mutually non-aggress and cooperate in friendship. Second, we can offer our cultivation resources in exchange for the Jindan cultivators' recognition and protection."

"Yes, I know." Yan Yu said impatiently, "So why don't you go to the cabinet..." Before he finished speaking, he suddenly reacted.

What was he talking about? He wasn't talking to "Lu Guo," but to "Lu Guo's Jindan cultivators"! In other words, Hu Minghua didn't believe the ministers in Lu Guo's cabinet could make the final decision. He felt that Yan Yu, the strongest Jindan cultivator, was the one whose words truly mattered!
Such a thought is actually quite reasonable. The modern social structure and order of the Southern Territory has completely collapsed, degenerating into a jungle world where the strong prey on the weak. The emperor is chosen by those with the most powerful military forces. So, judging the Lu Kingdom by one's own standards, one would naturally believe that the mortal cabinet is merely "puppets" and that the Golden Elixir Master is the "emperor behind the scenes."

Big mistakes.

Such a misconception reveals that the sorcerer lords of the southern border lack even the most basic international perspective. How could these transcendents, whose minds are preoccupied with cultivation and combat, possibly govern the country effectively?

Yan Yu was too lazy to explain anything to him, and just emphasized:

"My position and attitude are completely consistent with the cabinet. If you want to talk to me, you are wasting my time. Go talk to the cabinet."

"I understand, I understand." Hu Minghua smiled humbly, "I understand that the cabinet can fully represent your opinions. Once the agreement is drafted, I will send you a separate copy. I'll be grateful for your continued attention to the affairs of the Southern Territory in the future. It's not that I want to waste your time, but in this regard, we in the Southern Territory can't trust anyone except you."

Yan Yu:………………

!

It felt like a foreign general was trying to bypass the court and express his loyalty to the emperor alone.

Yan Yu really didn't want to say any more to him, so he just stood up and left.

"This new Wizard King is absolutely crazy." He called Chen Tianming and reported, "He's trying to sow discord between me and the cabinet!"

"Perhaps it's not provocation," Chen Tianming said slowly. "If you and the cabinet disagree on the southern border, who will you ultimately listen to? In other words, if you act on your own and launch an attack on the southern border, the first thing the cabinet will do is issue a formal order for you to take action. From this perspective, it's only natural for them to confirm your position."

"You're joking." Yan Yu ignored Old Taishan's probing and simply corrected him, "I've always strictly followed Lu Guo's orders. I follow orders and never overstep the boundaries. How could I possibly disagree with the cabinet?"

"That's true." Chen Tianming laughed. "Besides, the Privy Council will fully consider your opinions before making a decision for the sake of democracy, so there will definitely be no disagreements."

Fully absorbing my opinions means that when the opinions are inconsistent with mine, you should take the initiative to adjust them to be consistent with mine, right?
Yan Yu was speechless. He had no interest in power, and wouldn't arbitrarily dictate to others, much less interfere in the foolishness of a layman interfering with the experts. Even when he did offer suggestions, they were purely out of a sense of offering advice, not a threat like, "If you don't listen to me, I'll do this and that."

As for the cabinet attaching great importance to my opinions, that's the cabinet's own choice! Why do you make it sound like I'm trying to control the government? Oh, there are so many bad people, always assuming that others are as bad as they are!

"Forget it, let them think whatever they want." Yan Yu finally said, "Anyway, everything I do is for the country and the people, and I have no regrets!"

"Of course." Chen Tianming continued with a smile, "I didn't say you weren't. But often, even if you've never thought about it that way, as long as you're in that position, there will naturally be people who will try to figure out what you're really thinking, no matter what you say on the surface."

"What a hassle." Yan Yu sighed.

"You have to get used to it," said Chen Tianming.

(End of this chapter)