This was a coup d'état.
It was relatively peaceful, although some casualties were unavoidable.
The surrender of the Old Emperor means that, apart from the Holy Spirit Church, the last remaining force in Mingdu with any ability to put up a fight has been defeated. Judging from the few unplanned Level 9 fixed-position soul-guided cannons, even though he was betrayed by the guardian deity of the Sun Moon Empire, he still had a certain ability to resist. After all, before this, he was the supreme ruler of this Empire.
Everything is proceeding smoothly.
The old emperor, accompanied by his daughter Xu Tianzhen, the future emperor, went to a side hall to give some instructions.
Then, he volunteered, dragging his aged body, to set off with Kong Deming to various parts of Mingdu. Their main purpose was to persuade the various factions in the Sun Moon Empire court, some generals and civil officials, and even the princes. The two old men shared the same goal: to hope that this earth-shattering change could be successfully overcome, after all, this was their home.
The old emperor did not want any more meaningless casualties to occur.
He did not want his loyal subordinates, who had followed him for many years, to pay the price of their lives for him, an old man who had already surrendered. Now, most of the people in the Sun Moon Empire's court were his former coup d'état.
An Zhen had no objection to this; he had no interest in killing the weak, and they were all excellent working people.
Centered on the Sun Moon Imperial Palace, An Zhen planned to send out all the high-end combat forces of the Sun Moon Empire who had signed contracts, in order to completely and thoroughly take control of Mingdu.
Whether it's the official forces of the Sun Moon Empire, the "wild" powerful individuals, the Empire's noble class, or those so-called underground forces, the first step is to announce the coup to them, telling them that they now have a new master. The second step is to gain complete control.
The first one is simple, but the latter is for Eight-Ring Soul Instructor or Spirit Douluo and above.
Persuade the other party, and if they resist, defeat them, capture them alive, and then sign a contract.
An ordinary founding emperor would not treat his subordinates and various domestic forces in this way. There is a big difference between subordinates and slaves who cannot even control their own lives, and others would certainly not want to do so either.
But the situation is different in An Zhen's case.
This new Empire was not conquered by him and his allies, nor by promises of various benefits, but by his absolute power.
An Zhen had no interest in getting to know each of them individually and then promising them benefits to work for him. It was more efficient to do it this way, since they were enemies from the start anyway.
Once he controls this power, the Sun Moon Empire will operate according to his will.
" The Sunset Water Alliance, one of the three major underground forces in Mingdu, is the organization that Holy Spirit Church is impersonating. First, use force to intimidate them and prevent them from making any trouble. After that, I will personally deal with those guys from Holy Spirit Church," An Zhen instructed.
The Evil Soul Masters are a big variable, not because of their strength, but because these guys are a group of terrorists and psychopaths. I had only read about their deeds in books before, but after personally experiencing the Death God Emissary mission.
These guys are truly a bunch of beasts.
An Zhen desperately wanted to eliminate these guys who could cause a massacre at any moment.
But the usual methods cannot be used to deal with these guys.
Before dealing with the Sunset Water Alliance, we must first eliminate the strongest members, especially Leaf Evening Water and Dragon Xiaoyao, the two Limit Douluos, as well as the two leaders and deputy leaders.
To give a simple example, if An Zhen wiped out the Sun and Moon Royal Family, what would the three Beast King Soul Guidance Legions do? They might support some individuals outside who possess even a small amount of royal blood. They might seek revenge against An Zhen, even if it's a futile effort. Or they might try to negotiate.
However, it is absolutely impossible for them to massacre the people of the Sun Moon Empire.
Because this is their hometown, they all have certain bottom lines.
But Evil Soul Masters are different. If the Sunset Water Alliance were to attack them and launch a purge against Evil Soul Masters, those powerful Evil Soul Masters outside, along with that madman Leaf Evening Water, would actually dare to do so. They hadn't acted before only because of organizational constraints, their fear of the Sun Moon Empire, and their need for a legitimate identity from the Sun Moon Empire. But once things come to a head, those guys would absolutely commit heinous crimes.
The Sun Moon Empire isn't limited to Mingdu. The people in other places will be in danger. As for sending out Ninth-Level Soul Engineers, aside from Kong Deming, sending anyone else into the Leaf Evening Water would mean absolutely no chance of survival.
The Evil Soul Master cannot be eliminated piecemeal.
It must be uprooted!
First, take down those few most powerful Evil Soul Masters, and then use the entire Empire to absolutely suppress and annihilate them.
"Grandpa," An Zhen looked at Jing Hongchen, "see if there's anything else that needs to be added."
This was An Zhen's first time handling political affairs.
Some people aren't good at this.
"There is one more thing." An Zhen looked at the many powerful figures of the Sun Moon Empire, "From now on, Lord Hongchen will serve as the Grand Preceptor of the Sun Moon Empire and concurrently as the Prime Minister of the Sun Moon Empire."
As for whether there are any problems or regulations regarding having the same person hold these two extremely powerful positions, that's not important, because this is a notification, not a discussion.
Many Ninth-Level Soul Engineers looked at Jing Hongchen with some surprise.
Although there were many clues indicating that this True Hongchen was closely related to Jing Hongchen, everyone thought that was just to conceal his identity. Could it be that this person is really Jing Hongchen's grandson?
A series of gazes seemed to fall unintentionally on Laughing Hongchen standing to the side.
The Ninth-Level Soul Engineers recalled the feeling when their spiritual sea was invaded.
They're both grandsons, but the difference is quite significant.
Laughing Hongchen: I always feel like someone is talking badly about me behind my back.
"There are some." Jing Hongchen nodded gently, the happy look on her face never disappearing since she left the house.
During his lifetime, the Hongchen Family truly became the number one family in the Sun Moon Empire, directly surpassing the Sun Moon Royal Family.
An Zhen finalized the general outline, while Jing Hongchen filled in the details.
Whether it's political affairs or understanding of Mingdu and the entire Sun Moon Empire, Jing Hongchen, as the head of Mingde Hall, is more knowledgeable and skilled in these areas than An Zhen.
"Hmm." An Zhen nodded gently, and the black-haired boy looked at Xu Tianzhen beside him. The girl stood there obediently, sunlight shining on Xu Tianzhen's fair profile, her large, bright eyes staring blankly at the ground, somewhat absent-minded. She had been like this ever since the Old Emperor had taken her away and explained some things to her.
"Your Majesty?" An Zhen asked.
Only when a hand was placed on Xu Tianzhen's shoulder did the girl raise her head as if waking from a dream.
"ah?"
"Um..." Upon seeing An Zhen, Xu Tianzhen instinctively took a small step back, as if she was afraid of him, but dared not leave his control because of his intimidation. The girl's timid voice rang out, "Whatever you say goes."
An Zhen:...
I feel even more afraid of him now.
I remember this girl used to be quite lively.
An Zhen glanced at the Old Emperor.
I feel like it's the other person's fault.
He was out dealing with the powerful figures of the Sun Moon Imperial Palace and hadn't paid attention to the conversation between the father and daughter. Considering the Old Emperor's previous thoughts, it's not hard to guess that he might have acquired a strange image in Xu Tianzhen's eyes.
"Then let's get to work," An Zhen said to the group.
"yes."
Compared to before, this time there was noticeably less resistance in the crowd's voices. The Sun and Moon Scepter was returned to An Zhen, and Kong Deming and the Old Emperor left together. Of course, there were still some who strongly resisted, or rather, were unwilling to accept this outcome, such as Xu Tianran. An Zhen's solution was to imprison him until order was restored in the Empire, after which Xu Tianran could begin working diligently in his assigned post.
The main hall suddenly became empty.
Only An Zhen, Xu Tianzhen, and the Smile Meng siblings remained.
"Brother Zhen." Glancing at the only other woman present besides her, Meng Hongchen affectionately linked arms with An Zhen. "What do we do next?"
"Dealing with Mingdu might take some time. But we don't need to do it ourselves." An Zhen pondered for a moment. Mingdu was too vast, and the relationships between the various factions were intricate, but that was all. These matters could be handled by his subordinates; An Zhen had no intention of doing it himself. If he had to do such things personally, then those guys were truly useless.
"Then Xu Tianzhen will ascend the throne, restore order to the Empire, and take control of the entire Sun Moon Empire." This step is not difficult, after all, Mingdu is about to be taken over, possessing most of the Empire's high-end combat power, and with the cooperation of the Old Emperor, it's enough to let Grandpa and the others do it.
Aside from the primary purpose of collecting faith, the remaining task was to deal with the Holy Spirit Church.
An Zhen skillfully pulled Meng Hongchen into his arms, placing his hands on the girl's slender waist. Inhaling her familiar scent, An Zhen said softly, "Those of you who need to rest should rest, and those of you who need to cultivate should cultivate. For you and Xiao at this stage, your focus should be on growth."
"Hmm."
Meng Hongchen's voice was somewhat downcast, "I feel like I can't help you with anything, Brother Xiaozhen."
Laughing Hongchen nodded gently.
One has to admit that the gap between him and his younger brother is widening. Although these things were accomplished through the efforts of others, the fact that he could command powerful people to do these things for him is already quite remarkable.
"No." An Zhen shook his head, a meaningful smile on his face, and his hand, which was on the girl's waist, moved upwards. "Sister Xiaomeng isn't someone who can't help me with anything."
Meng Hongchen:!
The scent of the opposite sex enveloped Meng Hongchen's senses. A large hand touched the girl's skin through two layers of clothing. Meng Hongchen, who was being held in An Zhen's arms, suddenly felt her calves go weak.
"Let's go." An Zhen stopped his somewhat mischievous behavior and did nothing out of line. Although Sister Xiao Meng did not object, they were still outside. An Zhen helped the beautiful silver-haired girl up. "Let's go see the Sun Moon Imperial Palace's treasury. There should be quite a few things we can use there."