Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 billion people

Chapter 145 Consciousness Projection, Q-version Xia Mingyu
Martha's Territory, Wheat Field Village.

At noon, the sky was clear and blue.

The azure sky was illuminated by the sunlight, stretching from the horizon to the very end of the eye.

Xia Mingyu stood in front of a large wheat field planted with lush green wheat seedlings, with village chief McKen and a group of young villagers in linen clothes, holding sickles and ready to harvest behind him.

"Hoo." He took a deep breath, bent down and slowly placed his hand on the soft, warm soil that had been baked by the sun.

The next moment, countless black flames erupted from Xia Mingyu's body, shooting straight into the sky, like a raging torch that could burn through the sky!
Centered on this point, the atmosphere trembled, and surging air currents blew in all directions, producing a deafening roar.

Hua Hua Hua.

The villagers behind him were blown about as if by a gale, but fortunately no one was unlucky enough to fall on the sharp sickles in their hands.

"My lord's magical power has increased significantly since the last time I came here. It is truly a talent as dazzling as the sun!"

Berg, the only one standing still, looked at the astonishing scene before him and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

The sense of security he had felt after being promoted to Morning Star had vanished. He had to work even harder to become stronger so as not to fall behind His Highness.

Otherwise, if he, as a servant, still needed His Highness to protect his safety, he might as well just slit his own throat with a sword.

rustling.

That was the wondrous sound made by countless wheat seedlings growing rapidly in the wheat field.

Their stems grow segment by segment at a visible speed, like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, and their leaves unfold, split, and overlap.
In just a few seconds, the verdant waves engulfed everything in the wheat field, and then the straight green stalks gradually turned golden, presenting everyone with a magnificent, boundless expanse of golden wheat waves.

"This is unbelievable!!"

Even on his second visit, the shocking scene still sent a chill down the spine of McCann, the village chief of Wheatfield Village.

Meanwhile, the other villagers, witnessing the bountiful harvest for the first time, had already knelt down and proclaimed it a miracle.

No one knows better than these farmers in the fields how much effort it takes to grow those golden wheat crops.

Weeding, watering, sowing seeds, composting—the work is never-ending, but my hands and feet are often so tired that I can't move them, and my skin is covered with cuts from the sharp wheat stubble, which often get new wounds before they've even healed.

That's why, faced with the sage's feat of conjuring a vast golden wheat field with a wave of his hand, they even began to believe that the sage was an incarnation of a god.

Otherwise, how could someone be so perfect, as selfless and kind as a living saint?
"Village Chief McKen, time is tight. Please have your villagers harvest faster. One-tenth of the harvested wheat will be left to them."

Having released all his magic in one go, Xia Mingyu, supported by Anlia, whispered his instructions.

“As you command, Your Excellency,” McKen replied with utmost respect, his back almost bent to his knees.

Subsequently
"You brats, did you hear what the Sage said?!" McKen turned around and roared at the villagers behind him.

His expression was fierce, and his attitude was almost a complete reversal compared to when he was in front of Xia Mingyu.

"Everyone, give it your all! If anyone dares to slack off, I'll let the whole village know he's a lazy bum, and then no good girl will ever want to marry him."

"Let's go, harvest the wheat!"

hoo hoo hoo!
With bloodshot eyes, the young villagers brandished their sickles and rushed into the wheat fields, working tirelessly like oxen.

Berg, wielding two sickles, vanished into the endless wheat field in a blur.

Click click click.

Large swathes of wheat stalks fell down.
With the villagers' hard work and the assistance of the extraordinary Berg, the collection and weighing of all the wheat ears were finally completed as dusk fell.

In the village warehouse.

"Is it a total of eight thousand twenty-one pounds?"

Xia Mingyu listened to the village chief's report and fell into deep thought.

He remembered that the last time he used his full power of the Five Grains Abundance ability here, he only produced about five thousand pounds of wheat.

If that's the case, then his magical power has increased by at least three-fifths compared to half a month ago?!

Although Xia Mingyu knew that his magical power had indeed surged after he accomplished the great feat of saving Twilight City and mobilized the people's desire to gather 100,000 units of power to release the Heavenly Punishment Dragon Thunder Judgment Ekus, the number was still too astonishing.

"A normal mage would need at least three to five years of meditation to increase their magic power this much, but I only needed less than half a month."

Xia Mingyu suddenly felt that his talent on the path of magic was no less than that of Tamerlan on the path of knighthood; both were equally unparalleled and unmatched throughout history.

If he can maintain this growth rate, let alone ten years, he can start preparing for an uprising within three years, raising his arms high and raising the banner of resistance against the Gluttonous King.

“McKen, give one-tenth of the harvested wheat to the villagers who harvested it, and put the rest in the warehouse.”

After temporarily suppressing his intense emotions, Xia Mingyu spoke.

He needed to store the wheat in the inner space of the Spark of Fire as soon as possible, and then share it with Dolores, who was far away in the North.

"Yes, sage."

north.

The sky was overcast, and the leaden-gray clouds, like a soaked sheepskin robe, pressed heavily on the boundless snow below.

The snowflakes fell gently, landing on the girl's smooth face and bringing a slight coolness.

"We've finally arrived."

Looking at the somewhat dilapidated village in front of her, Dorothy murmured to herself.

After setting off at dawn and traveling for half a day, she successfully arrived at the village of Binglu, which was in the midst of a severe famine.

After hesitating for a moment, she quietly went inside.

Compared to its dilapidated exterior, the interior of the village presents an even more desolate and lifeless scene.

At the entrances of the thatched houses on both sides, children could be seen lying on the ground, staring blankly at the sky.

Their bellies bulged strangely, their skin stretched and gleaming, like water-filled sheepskin sacks.

Even the whites of their eyes had a pale yellow tinge, like those of dead fish. Pressing a finger on their swollen arms would leave a bluish-white indentation that would slowly spring back after a long time.

This tragic scene left Dorothy deeply shaken.

Especially knowing that, no matter what, these children, carrying hope and love, would be rescued by their parents at all costs, and if the children all ended up like this, it would mean that those parents...
They had either starved to death or had completely lost their freedom and dignity, becoming slaves who were bullied and tortured by everyone.

"Damn it." Dorothy gritted her teeth, her clenched fists digging her nails deep into her palms.

Even when she was seriously injured in the battle against the named monster in the past, she only frowned slightly and did not feel any pain. But now, she felt as if she had sunk into an endless deep sea, entangled in seaweed in a dark bay, suffering the torment of drowning and being unable to breathe.

In the past, she mostly stayed in Snow Sheep Village to practice her swordsmanship. Although she would occasionally learn about the suffering of the people of the North from conversations with other knights and from the pleas of village chiefs who came to her for help, no amount of words could compare to the shock she felt from seeing it with her own eyes.

At this moment, Dolores finally understood why her father, Grand Duke Mason, had abandoned his comfortable position as king of the duchy and, knowing the consequences, still rebelled against the Gluttonous King. He must have witnessed the same, or even more tragic, scene in his own territory back then!

No true lord could tolerate such a humiliation, more terrifying than death.

"This is the first day of the oath. Icefield Fortress is still a long way from here. I need to continue my journey before nightfall today to have enough time to assassinate Lucas."

"But if I want to save these children, I must wait for His Highness to send relief food. However, His Highness did not tell me the exact time. If it arrives on the second or third day..."

Dorothy was caught in a dilemma.

She began to regret why she hadn't sworn the oath for more than a few days. If she had sworn the oath in Mason's name, the noble protection she received might have shattered if she had violated it!
However, she simply couldn't ignore the children with their blank stares and walk away.

Perhaps she could return here after killing Lucas, but by then someone would definitely have starved to death in the snow.

Even if only one child dies as a result, Dolores will feel guilty.

"It's just a blessing, I can just give it up. If Crimson Flame can be upgraded from a commoner's blessing to Radiant Moon, so can I!"

Dorothy hardened her heart and made a decision: she would wait until His Highness sent relief food to save the children before setting off to kill Lucas.

Even if her noble protection were to crumble as a result, she would have absolutely no regrets.

Because her father had told her that true nobility lies not in the protection bestowed upon one's head, but in one's superior character and sense of responsibility.

The girl distributed the remaining dry rations from her bag to the swollen children around her, then found a corner, leaned against the wall, sat down, and silently began practicing her breathing techniques.

On the other side, looking at the bags of wheat piled up in the warehouse, Xia Mingyu also began to work.

"Sparks of life, put them away," he shouted, holding up the ring.

The next moment, a crimson circular light hole suddenly appeared in front of him, just like the scene when Ekus opened the warehouse, only the hole he opened was larger and a different color.

This scene left Xia Mingyu speechless.

Tsk, he thought that as long as he shouted "collect," the ring would flash red light and collect all the wheat like the Golden Horn and Silver Horn capturing Sun Wukong.

"McKen, call someone to come and move the grain!" Xia Mingyu called out helplessly towards the door, scratching the back of his head.

Tapping.

Following the sage's instructions, the young farmers carried sacks of wheat into the red cave of light.

Only after the warehouse was empty again did Xia Mingyu return to the carriage with satisfaction. After instructing Anlia to take good care of his body, he activated the Starfire Link ability.

"A single spark can start a prairie fire," he murmured with his eyes closed.

The next moment, Xia Mingyu's consciousness traversed that long distance with the speed of light, rushing towards another connection located in the far north.

Dorothy was immersed in practicing the Lion King Breathing Technique when she suddenly felt a warm sensation on her right earlobe.

She took off the emerald green earring, and saw that the emerald green gemstone set in it was sparkling with green light.

Immediately afterward, before she could figure out why, she saw a phantom figure slowly emerge from the gem.

"Dorothy, I'm here," the black-haired youth said with a smile.

Dolowei: “???”

The girl hurriedly stood up from the ground, and a flash of magic shook off the snow on her legs, and a blush appeared on her fair face.

If she had known His Highness would come, she wouldn't have sat on the ground like a man; it was too inelegant.

Although after the age of ten, she never learned the etiquette and dance that a noble lady should learn.

"Your Highness, welcome."

Dorothy placed her right hand on her left shoulder and bowed deeply to His Highness.

"Your Highness, what's wrong with you looking like this?"

Then, looking at the tiny chibi version of Xia Mingyu floating in the air in front of her, the girl asked curiously.

His Highness's state at this moment was very strange. Not only was his figure illusory, but his body size had also shrunk to a few tens of centimeters tall, which could be easily grasped with one hand.

Well, kind of cute.

Unlike the majestic and benevolent prince in the palace, the current prince reminded Dolores of the seven rose dolls that the tailor had meticulously crafted for her when she still lived in the castle.

“My body remains in the Southern Territory, but my consciousness has traveled to the Northern Territory through the connection I gave you,” Xia Mingyu explained.

Then, looking at the children lying slumped on the ground around him, their bodies swollen and unbearable to look at, his brows furrowed deeply.

Such a tragic scene, which even hell might not produce, is commonplace in this vast land of the North.

It's truly infuriating! I wish I could hang all those lords' heads on the city walls and slaughter them until the blood flowed like a river!

Xia Mingyu's heart was burning with murderous intent, but he remained calm on the surface.

He'd save his useless anger for the enemy; when facing his comrades, he still wanted to present himself as someone who could be relied upon.

Perhaps it's clumsy, perhaps it's hypocritical, but it can always make one's companions feel a little more at ease.

"Dorothy, it seems that no one else can see me except you. In that case, take out the food I brought and distribute it to these children immediately."

“I have already shared the space inside the connection between the two of us.”

Xia Mingyu quickly spoke up, saying that he never wanted to see these children go hungry again, not even for a second.

Upon hearing this, Dorothy immediately channeled magic into the emerald on the ear clip in her hand, and a green light hole slowly opened.

She carefully reached her hand into the cave of light and took out a heavy bag.

She opened the bag, and the sight of it full of slightly yellow flour made her so excited she almost jumped for joy.

"Your Highness, thank you for your help. With this bag of food, Ice Deer Village can hold out for several more days," Dorothy said with a face full of gratitude.

However, this expression of gratitude made Xia Mingyu look puzzled.

"What are you talking about, Dorothy? How could I only bring one bag of food? I have hundreds more bags in my storage space, but only the first few bags are flour, the rest are wheat."

Dorothy: "!!!"

After a moment of stunned silence, the girl finally understood the meaning behind His Highness's words and excitedly hugged the chibi version of Xia Mingyu, spinning him around in the air.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" The girl's smile was as beautiful as a poem, completely devoid of the solemnity she had shown when they first met.

Unfortunately, His Highness was already dizzy from the shock, which felt like a roller coaster ride on Earth, and had no time to pay attention.

(End of this chapter)