Lin Qian, deep within the underground world of the ancient forest, was still unaware that he had earned the title of "Benevolent Martial Emperor" in the Southern Territory. His mind was preoccupied with Zhuge Ming's suggestions on how to utilize the Transformation Fruit.
Never had Lin Qian expected that what was once considered a poison for the human race could instead become the key to realizing his dream of nationwide evolution.
After consuming the Transformation Fruit, its effects were not immediately apparent below the Nirvana Realm. At most, it would cause a slight decrease in soul power and limit one's ability to sustain long battles. This was a minor issue. However, once a person reached the Nirvana Realm, the disparity became glaring. A lack of soul power would prevent them from fully utilizing powerful soul techniques with their Yuan weapon. Even basic techniques would be severely restricted.
Furthermore, the thickened meridians would limit the flow of soul power, reducing its potency, which naturally led to a mismatch between power and realm. The flaws became even more pronounced at the Void-Breaking Realm, where the insufficient soul power made prolonged flight impossible and greatly diminished speed. It completely undermined the grace and ability expected at that level.
However, as Zhuge Ming proposed, this wasn't a major concern. In the future, the citizens of the empire only needed to consume the fruit until they reached the Forming Origin or Nirvana Realm. Moreover, Zhuge Ming had noticed during his observation of Wang Gang that after taking the cleansing potion, Wang Gang's meridians and dantian were not only restored but also became tougher than before.
If Wang Gang had cultivated normally, his meridians and dantian would never have reached such a level of strength. This was all thanks to the combination of the Transformation Fruit and the cleansing potion. Therefore, by appropriately using the Transformation Fruit and cleansing potion together, it was possible to rapidly enhance the cultivation of the entire population.
Although the process would be painful, those who were unwilling to endure a bit of suffering for greater strength would hardly be worth considering.
"In fact, Your Majesty, I already have two strategies in mind for utilizing the Transformation Fruit!" At that moment, Zhuge Ming spoke up again, eager to share his thoughts with Lin Qian.
Lin Qian nodded, encouraging Zhuge Ming to continue. "If you have good ideas, Chancellor, please share them."
"Yes!" With Lin Qian's approval, Zhuge Ming explained, "The first strategy is to have people consume the Transformation Fruit to lower the difficulty of cultivation, and then use the cleansing potion to restore them to normal."
"In this way, we can quickly improve the strength of the populace without any side effects. However, this method is more suited for the general public."
"But what if we could fuse the effects of the Transformation Fruit with the cleansing potion? Could we create a potion that strengthens the meridians and dantian of soul martial artists?"
After Zhuge Ming finished speaking, his eyes lit up, understanding the significance of what he was proposing.
There were indeed elixirs in the world that could enhance one's natural aptitude, but they were incredibly expensive. Lin Qian also possessed such potions, but they were too costly to be used on ordinary soul martial artists. However, if the Transformation Fruit and cleansing potion could be combined to strengthen the meridians and dantian, greatly enhancing one's power, this would be equivalent to improving one's natural aptitude.
In the future, not only would Wang Gang's power match his realm, but he would also be stronger than most at his level. With enhanced meridians and dantian, cultivation would be even easier, effectively raising his aptitude. Most importantly, this solution was extremely cost-effective.
Whether for the general populace or soul martial artists, the cost of this method was low enough for widespread use, making it invaluable to the Huaxia Empire.
This meant that Lin Qian's goal of nationwide evolution could now be implemented, and the Huaxia Empire would become a force to be reckoned with.
When the entire population reached the Nirvana Realm, the number of Void-Breaking Realm and Life-and-Death Realm experts, and even Awakened Realm masters, would be unimaginable.
"Let's keep the nationwide evolution a secret for now. If word of this gets out, the Huaxia Empire might face an all-out assault from the entire continent!" Lin Qian mused aloud after careful consideration.
In his previous life, the Huaxia Empire had become too powerful, prompting other players to unite against it. At that time, Lin Qian wasn't even interested in conquering territories—he had been treating a national war game as a simulation game!
In his previous life, the Huaxia Empire's various metrics were nearly all at the top of the leaderboards. Lin Qian's spending on loot boxes had become so excessive that the game company had to shut down the servers for an emergency update, limiting how many boxes could be opened each month.
But it was too late by then!
The six commanders of the empire had been drawn from those boxes, and Lin Qian had nurtured them to dominate the server. The two beast generals, Dragon King Ao Zun and the Great Sage Sun Wukong, were acquired in later events, and they were one of a kind—once someone obtained their permanent battle beast cards, the event would end.
In fact, Lin Qian's Huaxia Empire still had many other powerful generals and beast generals sealed away, no less formidable than the commanders and the two beast generals. The only reason they hadn't been deployed in his previous life was due to the game's restrictions, which allowed only nine top-tier units to be active at the same time, including the player!
But things were different now—there were no game company rules in this world!
Those sealed powers were already in the process of being unbound, and their weapons were being upgraded as a priority.
As Lin Qian pondered this, his consciousness drifted into the depths of the Huaxia Empire's capital, where a series of figures lay in slumber. These were the powerful units acquired from various past events.
"Finally, no more need to choose which eight units to deploy. I wonder when the seals will break." Lin Qian observed the intricate array patterns on their bodies, feeling a mix of anticipation and gratitude as his consciousness receded.
"I just hope the seals break soon. Could it be tied to my cultivation level?" Lin Qian murmured as he returned to watching Wang Gang, who was still writhing on the ground. "I wonder if Lü Bu and Zhao Long will fight when Lü Bu emerges. That would be interesting."
Though Lin Qian entertained the thought, he couldn't confidently predict who would win. The event that had brought Lü Bu into being had been just as intense as the one that had brought forth Sun Wukong.
Back during the Three Kingdoms-themed event, the officials had originally planned to release characters like Zhao Yun, Guan Yu, and Zhuge Liang. But since Lin Qian's commanders had become so famous, and many players associated Zhao Long, Guan Yi, and Zhuge Ming with them, the developers decided to cancel the release of those unique character cards out of respect for their star player. This decision had become a popular topic of discussion among other players.
Now, with no restrictions on deployment, Lin Qian was confident that no one could stand against him or the Huaxia Empire once the seals were broken!
While Lin Qian was lost in thought, Wang Gang, who had been rolling on the ground, finally stopped. Drenched in sweat, he slowly stood up, exhaling deeply as the surrounding spiritual energy surged into his body like a tidal wave.
Seeing this, Lin Qian's face broke into a smile because he knew—it had worked.