Douluo: Peerless Black Tortoise Moon God

Chapter 327 Yan Shaozhe: Issues Shrek Academy's Recruitment Order, Summoning Outstanding Graduates Back to the Sea God Pavilion
News from the Douling Empire spread quickly. Xu Tianxi, who was checking the fourth batch of criminals, suddenly received a lot of information from Xu Jiujiu, and his expression became very strange.

"The Emperor of Douling invited nobles of earl rank and above from across the country, as well as exiled nobles from the three great empires, to a banquet in Lingdou City. During the banquet, a signal was given by smashing a cup, and a large number of Soul Masters charged out. The cries of the nobles echoed throughout Lingdou City..."

"Except for a very few powerful nobles who were spared, the rest of the nobles were either beheaded or driven into the moat to drown... Is this some kind of spiritual diving competition?"

"Because many of the nobles killed were fond of wearing crystal ornaments, their jewelry sparkling and dazzling, many citizens of Lingdou City called this night 'Crystal Night.' What on earth is that all about?"

The more Xu Tianxi read the intelligence, the more wryly he felt. He had to admit that the evil soul masters were extremely efficient. If this continued, the nobles of the Douling Empire would go completely mad.

From now on, only Shrek City remains a haven for nobles on the entire Douluo Continent. The Douling Empire's methods are even more extreme than those of the three great empires.

Beneath the window, Xu Jiujiu rested her elbows on the table, supporting her cheek, a faint smile playing on her red lips, and teased:

"I now realize that the Douling Emperor's methods are the most ruthless. He has announced the abolition of the noble system, confiscated all noble property, and sent Soul Master experts to accompany the army to conquer all powerful noble fiefdoms."

"In the Douling Empire, there are several noble families that keep titled Douluo, but without a master, these Soul Masters are of little use except for fighting alone. They are either killed in conquest or flee towards Shrek Academy with their noble descendants."

"Logically speaking, such a big commotion should have caused chaos in the Douling Empire, and many people would have taken the opportunity to rebel. However, the Douling Emperor was too ruthless, slaughtering all the Xue family members except for his own lineage, regardless of age or gender. Some people who wanted to rebel had no one to support them."

"Moreover, the emperor never left the palace again after that day. Some people who wanted to assassinate him could not find an opportunity. Those who left any clues were instead killed along with their entire families and their heads were displayed to the public."

By this point, 95% of the civil and military officials in the capital had been killed. Only a very few powerful nobles saved their lives by relinquishing their titles and surrendering all their wealth. Emperor Douling then announced a free martial soul awakening program nationwide. What do you think?

Xu Tianxi pondered for a moment, then said sincerely, "This is a place where the bones of nobles and officials have been trampled on. After this, there will be very few people on the Douluo Continent who would dare to become nobles."

Regardless of the Holy Spirit Cult's original intentions, objectively speaking, they have done some good things, which can be considered a case of fighting poison with poison.

Once the nobility is completely wiped out, Shrek's value in uniting the people will plummet to its lowest point. In just one or two generations, the common people will no longer believe in Shrek.

After all, without nobles there to boast about their achievements every day, who would know who Shrek Academy and the original Seven Devils were? The commoners who were starving didn't have time to think about such things.

Xu Tianxi's thoughts drifted, and he said, "However, it's not that the Xue family royal family is completely wiped out. There is still one in the Xuanming Sect. The current sect leader's wife is the youngest sister of the previous emperor. In terms of seniority, the current Douling Emperor is Xu Sanshi's cousin."

After a long while, he glanced sideways with a suspicious look in his eyes and asked, "Do you want them to fight the Xuanming Sect again?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? It's just that she was lucky and didn't live through this massacre."

Xu Tianxi shook his hand and pondered, "This news makes me seem indecisive and ruthless enough. I can't fall behind. From now on, I should also start targeting the domestic nobility..."

Xu Jiujiu was startled by his sharp gaze that flashed from time to time. She quickly grabbed his wrist and reminded him urgently, "The nobles in your country are not so easy to kill. Don't forget that you are also a Duke of Zhenguo."

“That’s right. I’ll start by cutting down the nobles. From now on, I will hand over 94% of my salary. All nobles who acquire property will have to pay 94% of their taxes, not a penny less.”

Without hesitation, Xu Tianxi stated his plan: reform should start with himself, and no one, from top to bottom, should be allowed to escape.

"Wasn't it 90% not long ago? How did it drop to 94%?"

“That’s called keeping up with the times. I haven’t taken 99% yet. Haven’t I already left them more than 50%?” Xu Tianxi said seriously.

Xu Jiujiu was startled, his expression changing several times, and asked again, "What about the others? I remember that the Master of Mingde Hall is also a Duke, right? He can still use the ceremonial regalia of a Prince."

"He can just use public funds to reimburse his expenses if he needs anything. What does he need so much salary for? He has to pay taxes."

Xu Tianxi waved his hand, indicating that the Hongchen family was no exception and that everyone starting with the Hongchen family would have to pay the heavy tax.

"Tax avoidance is also possible. If someone is willing to use their own money to do things for the empire, such as building bridges and roads, mining rare metal mines, constructing water conservancy projects, researching new soul tools, or providing disaster relief, they can get tax reductions. Even having a family member join the army is an option..."

But from now on, the fundamental tax of 90% must be implemented without exception!

"We've killed so many members of the royal family, and now the national treasury is full. It's time to take some action. Many projects that benefit the country and its people should be launched. Anyone who dares to raise prices or obstruct important matters at this time will have their entire family confiscated!"

Xu Tianxi's eyebrows slanted upwards towards his temples, and his eyes shone like bright stars, revealing an unwavering will. Clearly, he had been inspired by the actions of the Holy Spirit Church next door and was about to take resolute action.

Xu Jiujiu looked at him for a long time, sighed softly, and wrote all of this down, preparing to send it back to China and hand it over to Xu Jiawei. Informing Xu Tianxi of the intelligence and asking for his opinion reflected both Xu Jiujiu's own thoughts and Xu Jiawei's intentions; the purpose was to gauge the prevailing sentiment.

As expected, Xu Tianxi is now going to increase the stakes significantly. For a long time, people have suspected that if things continue like this, the nobles of the Sun Moon Empire will have to pay to buy titles.

"Wait... Could it be that he intends to do this to force many nobles to give up their titles?"

A sudden inspiration struck Xu Jiujiu. She suspected that Xu Tianxi was trying to completely destroy the aristocratic system, but his methods were relatively milder than those of the Douling Empire.

While pondering, Xu Jiujiu suddenly asked, "By the way, how are your soul spirit forces doing? I heard they've already chosen a location outside Mingdu and started construction?"

Xu Tianxi nodded and said, "Yes, the Civil Engineering Soul Guidance Team is very efficient. They have already set up the basic framework, and it is estimated that it will be completed in another three months."

During this period, Xu Tianxi would occasionally go there to check on the construction work of the "Heavenly Court". On weekdays, Ji Juechen, the cold-faced god, and Xu Sanshi were in charge of supervising the construction, and the civil engineering work was quite efficient.

After thinking for a long time, he tentatively asked, "Are you still short of money? How about we invest some too?"

Xu Tianxi raised an eyebrow and said with a strange expression, "I don't lack money right now. I have quite a lot of savings over the years. But if you want to invest, that's fine with me. We'll slowly draft the rules later."

Gold Soul Coins are something that the more the better, and it's great that people are willing to invest in them for a long time. The Star Luo Empire must be rich now.

We are grateful for the gifts from the princes and nobles of the two great empires.

……

Shrek City, Seagod's Lodge.

Zhuang Yusheng sighed with each step, Bei Bei beside him, and said bitterly to Yan Shaozhe, who had his hands behind his back:
"Shao Zhe, they're gone. This time, we've taken out quite a bit of our savings from all these years."

Yan Shaozhe's body trembled slightly, and with a bitter laugh in his voice, he asked, "How much did you give this time?"

"The Body Sect compensated us with 250 million gold soul coins and 20 soul bones, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School compensated us with 150 million gold soul coins and 15 soul bones, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan compensated us with 300 million gold soul coins and 30 soul bones. Our academy's soul bone reserves are almost empty, and our funds are becoming very tight."

Zhuang Yusheng lowered his head, his face showing displeasure: "When Prince Xueyu heard that we were going to issue a Shrek Academy summons to recall outstanding graduates from the continent, he used the excuse that many graduates from the Heavenly Soul Empire held high positions in their country to make outrageous demands on us, asking for 500 million gold soul coins and a large number of soul bones. This is simply outrageous!"

Shrek City has extremely high tax revenue, earning hundreds of millions of gold soul coins every year, but its expenses are also huge, leaving little surplus at the end of the year. This time, it has been a devastating blow.

As for the soul bones, I'm not too worried; there are plenty in the Sea God Pavilion's cultivation rooms.

It took so many resources to calm things down. Zhuang Yusheng was so angry that he was about to go crazy. When had Shrek ever suffered such humiliation?
"And the result?" Yan Shaozhe's shoulders were already trembling. His face, which Bei Bei and Old Zhuang could not see, was a mixture of grief and indignation, red and white.

Beibei replied, "We bargained for a while and finally decided to put up 300 million gold soul coins and ten soul bones as collateral. The rest will depend on how many seniors the Heavenly Soul Empire will bring back."

Yan Shaozhe gave a bitter laugh and said sarcastically, "When our teacher was still alive, at the height of our power, the royal families of every empire treated us with utmost respect. But now, seeing that we've fallen on hard times, even a prince dares to come and extort Shrek Academy. It's truly outrageous!"

Zhuang Yusheng sighed, "I have no fighting power left. Shrek Academy only has you as their Super Douluo level fighter. Of course, they are no longer afraid of me. I think they no longer take Shrek Academy seriously."

"Hopefully, this time, enough children will return from the three great empires. As long as the Sea God Pavilion can produce a few more Super Douluo, Shrek Academy will still be Shrek Academy, and will not be underestimated!"

Beibei stood to the side, her expression shifting, as if she wanted to say something, but she remained silent.

He had heard Zhang Lexuan say that most of Shrek Academy's most outstanding students had chosen to stay at the school over the years... As for why there were still no new Super Douluo even though they stayed at the school, that was another question.

Beibei was confident that she could cultivate to that level, but that would be decades from now.

"Alright, it's good that things are settled. Old Zhuang, Bei Bei, now that the core members of Shrek Academy are here, announce to the public that Shrek Academy is facing a life-or-death crisis and issue a summons to all graduates on the mainland to return to the Sea God Pavilion."

Suppressing his anger, Yan Shaozhe picked up a pen and wrote down the general contents of Shrek Academy's summons, then handed it to the two men.

"I heard that the royal family of the Douling Empire has also gone mad. Now is the time for us to stand up and withstand the pressure. Shrek Academy will stand firmly with them."

(End of this chapter)