Cornflower Witch

Chapter 423 The Path of the Future

A month later, the underground world of Asura District had undergone a dramatic transformation. The previously scattered small groups had all been conquered and incorporated into a unified administrative system by the two leaders.

In response to this situation, the local police not only did not stop it, but turned a blind eye and tacitly allowed it.

If they were scattered small groups, they would have to conduct difficult investigations and figure out the complex relationships involved in the numerous cases. But now that they are unified, they only need to contact the leaders of the underworld to easily get the results, reducing many troublesome processes.

“Lord Hedra, the Spider Woman wishes to pay her respects.” Sitting in the tidy hall, Siltiah had just finished listening to reports from all sides when Four Fingers came over and asked in a low voice.

“The Spider Woman…” Hiltiya recalled and pondered this former chieftain.

"Yes, after your encounter with the vampires, she was also implicated and subjected to a thorough investigation by the authorities. She handed over most of her forces and has been confined to her mansion for the past few months, not daring to show her face."

"However, she also learned about you through some channels, so she wants to see you and get your approval to make a comeback," Four Fingers explained the other party's purpose.

“I remember that among the four major leaders in the past, ‘Vertical Eyes’ was mainly involved in smuggling and identity fraud, while ‘Spider Woman’ was mainly involved in human trafficking and running brothels, right?”

That's right.

“Then let’s not meet. I don’t like people like that.” Hiltiya shook her head.

Although Four Fingers wanted to say that the other party had promised many benefits, seeing Hilti's expression, he knew that this young lady had already made her decision and would not easily change it.

“Then I’ll go and reject her.” He immediately changed his tune.

Just as Fourfinger was about to walk out of the hall, Hilti called him back again.

“Tell her to give up certain ideas in the future, otherwise…” Hilti wanted to say some threatening or punitive words, but she herself was not very good at those bloody and frightening things.

"You decide what to do," the girl sighed softly, feeling that sometimes she wasn't ruthless enough.

"Rest assured, Lord Hedra, we understand what you mean." He made a knowing gesture with four fingers.

Isn't this what the leaders of the underworld do? Warn, punish, establish authority. If it weren't for this black-haired girl, Four Fingers wouldn't be seen as an easy person to get along with by the majority of laborers. Instead, it would be a name that carries a terrifying aura, inspiring fear and pressure.

What makes these lawless orcs obey is not through old-fashioned lecturing, but through the intimidation of beatings and slashes. However, now that Hilti has improved many rules, their methods have become slightly gentler.

A few days later, the 'Spider Woman' had to urgently sell off her property in the Asura district and then leave the place she had occupied for decades with a small number of her confidants.

There are various rumors circulating about her departure.

"Have you heard? The Spider Woman was kicked out by that lord overnight because she offended Miss Hedra."

"Is that so? But the version I heard was that the Spider Woman knelt down and begged Miss Hedra that day, but was slapped more than a dozen times. She couldn't take it and ran away on her own."

"Ah, is that so? It seems so. That 'Young Lady of the Black Griffin' is not a gentle and soft-hearted person. She has tortured and killed many orcs in the past. It is said that she personally cut off the Fire Boar's arm. Even so, the Fire Boar is still convinced by her. It can be seen that she is very capable."

"Of course! Now, 'Four Fingers' and 'Fire Pig' have been forcibly united under her pressure. Don't they remember that they were mortal enemies before? If they can make peace like this, then that 'unprovoked Black Griffin' must be even more terrifying."

The truth is not always accepted by people. Just as people are more willing to believe that Hedra, who can bring both 'Fire Pig' and 'Four Fingers' under her control, must be a more ruthless and powerful dark young lady, rather than a gentle and quiet girl.

"However, on the other hand, since that young lady consolidated the power of the two leaders, the streets of Asura District are indeed much safer now. Thefts and robberies that used to be common are now much less frequent."

"The chaotic phase should be over, but that young lady will go to the 'Tetis Academy' sooner or later. It's hard to say how long things can be maintained after she leaves."

"Although she is a bit scary, having someone like her is actually a good thing for us."

Time slowly passed, and Hilti had only one month left to stay in the Asura district.

……

Hiltiya didn't have much time left in the Asura district. In the time before she left, she traveled to various neighborhoods in the Asura district to investigate and record the local situation.

This includes, but is not limited to, the local population composition, income level, living environment, interests, safety situation, industrial facilities, etc.

She collected and organized this information, bound it into a book, and then further refined and integrated it. The various aspects of the Asura District gradually became clear to her.

This super academy area, which accommodates nearly 70,000 people annually and has a permanent population of around 500,000, gradually reveals a large-scale education system model, which involves supplying a large amount of food, providing salaries for teachers and laborers, supplying resources, and ultimately producing a large number of qualified third-tier mages.

Compared to the Woodland Alliance's scattered education system, the centralized education system greatly improves efficiency, reduces resource consumption, and makes it easier to identify geniuses from a large population base through large-scale enrollment.

If the Woodland Alliance is still in the form of an ancient handicraft workshop, then the Mage Alliance already has the prototype of an industrial assembly line.

However, the Mage Alliance itself does not seem to fully recognize the advantages of this system. Due to historical inertia, the traditional kingdom system is still preserved in non-core areas, and many high-level mages themselves come from these kingdoms. Although they themselves become powerful superhumans, their family members and descendants may not necessarily achieve the same success.

The kingdom's aristocratic system provides a superior living environment for their families and descendants, freeing them from the arduous labor of commoners. This is why the Mage Alliance has little incentive to fully implement this system. Even though it benefits the organization, individuals still prefer to retain the current binary system.

However, in Hilti's view, this model will eventually come to an end.

The Mage Alliance adds three-tier mages every year, and their families and descendants all want to obtain noble status. However, the kingdom's capacity to support this is limited. These expanding noble groups do not pay taxes, which will eventually lead to the kingdom's financial collapse.

However, the Mage Alliance is not without solutions. The workshops under various schools of thought bring in a lot of revenue, which can make up for this financial gap. In addition, if the tax revenue really becomes insufficient, the Mage Alliance may start to expand outwards and launch wars under the instigation of the radicals.

This would not only acquire a large amount of new land and resources, but also deplete some of the excess mage noble class.

In addition, regarding the orcs.

It is obvious that orcs have a low status in the Mage Alliance. They are not naturally suited to the training model and study methods of mages and cannot enter the upper echelons of the Mage Alliance. However, orcs are more resilient than humans and have even lower 'human rights', so they can be made to work with lower wages and treatment. This has resulted in a large number of labor positions in the city being filled by orcs.

This disparity in treatment and human rights was initially accepted by the orcs because they had no better options. However, it became a question whether their offspring would willingly accept this differential treatment after birth.

If the orcs do not approve, then these orc laborers who occupy various cities are a hidden destabilizing factor. They will lie dormant when the Mage Alliance is strong, but once the Mage Alliance faces challenges and crises, and goes downhill and into a trough, they will erupt with resentment.

Humans who become extraordinary are ultimately a minority in the population; the vast majority are just ordinary people. It usually takes two or three ordinary people to defeat one orc of the same kind. At that time, the huge number of orcs will become the gunpowder that ignites the Mage Alliance.

This is a problem for the Mage Alliance, and it's also a problem that the Woodland Alliance will face in the future. However, the Woodland Alliance is currently in a stage where it consists of relatively scattered and independent small groups, without a strong centralized management approach. This has resulted in friction and conflict being kept to a very small extent.

No wonder there are only a handful of dynasties in history that have unified the entire continent. The earliest Blood Dynasty relied on the 'blood transformation' ritual to bring powerful superhumans from all sides into its own system and control a vast territory through a feudal aristocratic system. Because the blood royal family has a special bloodline suppression on the transformed blood descendants, this enabled their rule to support such a huge structure.

Another example is the 'Golden Honey Dynasty'. It is said that in the center of the dynasty, there was a golden sacred tree where Si Chen, the 'Moth', lived. The tree bore fruit that flowed with golden honey. Many nobles and lords of the Golden Honey Dynasty needed this 'Golden Honey Fruit' to improve themselves and purify their bloodlines. The path they cultivated was also controlled by Si Chen, the 'Queen Bee of Prosperity', so they were exceptionally loyal.

The last example is the 'Sun Dynasty,' which is still a prosperous dynasty today. Because of the 'Corona Dragon's' blessing, the dynasty was able to prosper, and the royal family, with dragon blood flowing in their veins, naturally became the rulers of the dynasty. Rather than saying that the dynasty was well-governed, it is more accurate to say that all parties submitted to the power of the 'Corona Dragon' and dared not challenge it, thus accepting the framework and constraints of the Sun Dynasty.

The Mage Alliance's idea is not wrong. Perhaps only by giving birth to 'Sichen' can the Fourth Continent be truly unified, allowing the organization and school of thought to be passed down stably.

There are many ways to solve problems. If Hiltiya thought of using her past life's experience to resolve social conflicts from the bottom up and establish a large, well-organized system, then the Mage Alliance thought of learning from the experience of its predecessors, solving problems from the top down, suppressing conflicts with overwhelming power, and building a new prosperous dynasty.

Sitting at her desk, Hilti quickly wrote down her analysis and insights from this period of time, and then reviewed them again.

When people imagine things in their minds, they often overlook a lot of details. Once they organize these details into specific action steps and coping strategies, many problems will be exposed.

Looking at the analytical framework she had written, the girl gently shook the quill pen with her fingers, the tip of the quill brushing against her chin, bringing a slightly hard touch.

After pondering for a while, Silti continued writing.

If we want to bridge the gap between orcs and humans, what methods should we use to get them to accept each other, see each other as brothers, and respect and unite with one another?

Offering preferential treatment or benefits? While this may bring people closer in the short term, it can lead to dissatisfaction if the benefits stop being offered or if the level of appreciation decreases. Moreover, over time, one party may easily take it for granted and feel no need to express gratitude.

If there's no benefit, why stay together and unite? With such obvious differences in appearance and physique, it's impossible to consider them as one of our own kind; it would naturally create a sense of separation.

Hiltiya leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and pondered.

No wonder racial unity has been a difficult problem throughout history, to the point that some extremist factions want to solve it once and for all.

Should we resolve this through religious means? Hiltiya recalled the former 'Silver Glow Church'. 'Melelanco' had rallied a large number of tribes around her and established a massive church organization by quelling the 'Raven Rebellion'. If it weren't for the interference and interruption of the 'Golden Honey Dynasty', she would probably have naturally become the 'Radiant Moon' Divine Star.

The words 'Sichen', 'Daotu', 'Dynasty', and 'Race' are strangely linked together, creating a subtle connection.

If, if one day she wanted to become the new 'Sichen', how would she achieve it? This thought suddenly surfaced in Xilutiya's mind, then slowly dissipated and was buried in a corner.

The road ahead is still long, and I'm only just getting started.

Hiltiya shook her head, dispelling some distant thoughts, and began to write a comprehensive set of organizational rules for the future underground world of the Asura District. These rules included how to evaluate and employ people, how to allocate the extracted commissions, how to ensure the longevity of this framework, and how to protect the interests of everyone involved, so that these lowest-level laborers could obtain the most basic dignity and safety net.

The current rules are certainly imperfect and must be continuously verified and improved in subsequent implementation. I believe that one day we will gradually approach the scene and world that Hiltiya hopes for. In that case, her efforts and hard work will not have been in vain, and she will feel at peace and satisfied.

Even if she could gain unparalleled freedom, the experience of wandering through a desolate and gloomy world versus strolling through a beautiful world full of blooming flowers would still be completely different.

She sincerely believed that she could only find peace of mind when her environment and the world around her improved; otherwise, the so-called tranquility was just another form of escapism.

Self, mind and body, and the world are inseparable.

The dynasty, the path, and the celestial celestial bodies are all interconnected.

(End of this chapter)