Chapter 128 - 112: Wrapping Up

Chapter 128: Chapter 112: Wrapping Up

With a single command, backed by Liu Hetong’s cooperation and Zhang Ji’s call to action, the Capital City underwent a world-shaking transformation.

Many long-dormant sects in the martial arts world now gathered to aid the coup.

The Capital City’s law enforcement bureau collapsed first, followed swiftly by the occupation of the broadcasting department. The national assembly, ministry of defense, ministry of foreign affairs, and others all but surrendered on the spot.

Once these key departments were under Control, the rest hardly mattered.

There was no meaningful resistance throughout the entire process.

With an insider like Liu Hetong cooperating and controlling the narrative, and with the lingering impact of Zhang Ji’s prior display of absolute force, very few were foolish enough to resist.

And any who did were swiftly crushed.

「July 4th.」

Zhang Ji arrived in the Capital City with Yu Qi. Liu Hetong was already waiting, along with Ma Rui and a host of titans from the martial arts world. Some of the disciples who had scattered when the Five Elements Sect disbanded had also been partially regrouped.

"Is everything ready?" Zhang Ji asked Liu Hetong as they walked.

"They’ve been brought under Control. We’re just waiting for you to pass judgment," said Liu Hetong.

"Pass judgment? What’s there to judge?" Zhang Ji sneered. "There’s no need for excuses, nor do we need to stand on some magnificent moral high ground. It’s simply because I’m stronger and I won. That’s it!"

"We still need to let the people understand right from wrong," Liu Hetong said tactfully.

His underlying meaning was that they had to placate the common people to some extent. Otherwise, it would be difficult to silence the masses, which would complicate their future rule.

"That’s not necessary. Facts don’t change with lies, and I don’t need them to judge my rights and wrongs," Zhang Ji said.

He didn’t care.

’My rule over you has nothing to do with you.’

’A bunch of weaklings should just obediently accept being plundered and exploited. That’s all there is to it.’

’This world has always been this way.’

’Now that he stands on high, playing the role of a god, it might even be fairer for these mortals.’

’Because looking down from his position, everyone is the same.’

’He had truly achieved equality for all.’

.....

The motorcade drove all the way to the Xiao family’s residence, the home of Assemblywoman Xiao Ning.

The residence was surrounded by armored robots, and the members of the Xiao family inside were unable to leave.

Xiao Ning had also been brought under Control, but she was not here. Instead, she was being held at the national assembly building.

There had been no meaningful resistance.

The assembly members were not a monolith.

Zhang Ji made a few promises, and they turned on one another.

"Bring out the important ones," Zhang Ji ordered.

Liu Hetong carried out the order, and soon, several of Xiao Ning’s descendants were dragged out.

Her son, grandson, daughter-in-law, grandson’s wife, and a few other key family members were all there.

The oldest was over seventy; the youngest, merely four or five years old.

Zhang Ji said, "Have the Five Elements Sect members do it. Keep the heads. We’ll show them to Xiao Ning later."

"Zhang Ji... the child... we don’t have to, do we?" Yu Qi summoned her courage, grabbing Zhang Ji’s arm as she hesitated.

"Then you do it," Zhang Ji said to Yu Qi. "Go on down. You kill the child."

"I..."

Terror filled Yu Qi’s eyes.

Zhang Ji said coolly, "They were the ones who drove us to a dead end. They forced our sect to disband and drove our Sect Leader to death from anguish. They schemed to make Gu Zhenchuan, who was so good to you, take an Immortal Ascension Pill. She suffered a fate worse than death in the throes of addiction before finally dying a miserable death. They killed Li Long Daoist, Elder Zheng, Elder Liu, Elder Wang, and countless other disciples. This child may be innocent, yes, but his crime is being born into the wrong family. It’s just like us, back when we joined the Five Elements Sect. It’s simply a matter of which side you’re on."

"Remember this: there’s no absolute good or evil in this world. Most of the time, it’s just about choosing a side!"

The Five Elements Sect disciples had already acted.

Amidst the curses of the Xiao family members, blood splattered across the ground.

They weren’t tortured much. It was done cleanly.

Perhaps they were worried about angering Zhang Ji, so they opted for efficiency.

The child was left alive, as Zhang Ji had already ordered Yu Qi to be the one to do it.

Yu Qi stepped out of the car.

She couldn’t bring herself to do it. But then she remembered the Sect Leader’s kindness, Gu Shuangshuang’s kindness, and their deaths...

SQUELCH!

A single Crane Peck.

It was as if karma had come full circle.

Tears and snot streamed down her face. She felt an urge to vomit. The torment of her conscience, the agony of violating the very foundation of her humanity, left her limp. She collapsed to the ground.

Zhang Ji nodded slightly.

’Letting her remain naive and innocent wouldn’t necessarily be a good thing for her.’

’The world is a complex place. People have to grow up.’

’As a Martial Artist and a fighter, to survive in this world, you must have the heart to be ruthless, to kill, and to struggle.’

’Wanting a life without conflict and struggle? Not even a Buddha can achieve that!’

...

In addition to the Xiao family, the Yin family, the Lin family, the Ye family, the Huang family, the Lv family, and the Kang family were all purged.

Many people died in the Capital City that day.

Many died in the purge simply because they were relatives, associates, or had once benefited from these families.

By any normal logic, many of them would be considered innocent.

But Zhang Ji didn’t care.

’When has a change in leadership ever been bloodless?’

’If you must blame something, blame your own rotten luck.’

Meanwhile, he had already notified Zhou Hao, Shen Han, and Chen Anhe to return to the country.

It wasn’t for any particular reason.

He just wanted them to have a chance to take revenge with their own hands and vent their frustrations.

....

「July 6th.」

The National Assembly Hall, Eastern Extreme Country.

At the head of the assembly hall, Zhang Ji sat on the high dais in the chairman’s seat, eating roast duck with rice.

The hall below was packed with people. The seven assembly members were all present, along with representatives from various other sectors.

Not far from them was a small mountain of severed heads.

Most belonged to the families of the seven assembly members, or to their relatives, associates, and other deeply-entrenched faction members.

"You demon! You tyrant! You’re doomed to a bad end..."

Suddenly, someone stood up and shouted a curse. They even tried to throw something from their seat at Zhang Ji, but a Martial Artist from the Southern Dao Sect intercepted it before it got close.

The man was instantly seized and silenced.

Zhang Ji paused his meal and beckoned with his hand.

Liu Hetong scurried to Zhang Ji’s side like a secretary.

Speaking into the microphone, Zhang Ji said, "His family and friends must be quite lonely. Send them all to keep him company."

As he spoke, the silence in the assembly hall deepened, and an unseen, bone-chillingly murderous aura spread throughout the room.

"Isn’t that going a bit too far? It will make governing more difficult..." Liu Hetong cautiously suggested.

Zhang Ji put down his chopsticks and looked calmly at Liu Hetong.

In that instant, an immense Spirit pressure washed over Liu Hetong. His vision went dark, sweat poured from his brow, and the oppression was so great he could barely breathe.

SLAP!

Liu Hetong slapped himself hard across the face.

He knocked out two of his own teeth.

"My apologies. I overstepped," Liu Hetong said.

Zhang Ji smiled and patted his shoulder. "I’m not a tyrant. You don’t have to be afraid. You can voice your opinions; it’s not like I’m unreasonable. Since we can’t kill too many people, we’ll just kill his family. We’ll let his friends live."

Zhang Ji actually thought Liu Hetong had a point.

At this stage, he lacked a competent administrative team. If he killed too many, getting things up and running later would be much more difficult.

Even building a few cultivation sites would probably be a hassle.

Still, he needed to put Liu Hetong in his place.

This fence-sitter had certainly picked the right side this time, but Zhang Ji still hadn’t forgotten his past behavior.

Besides, he didn’t want Liu Hetong’s power to grow too great.

’Otherwise, instances of deceiving superiors and concealing information would likely become endless. Wouldn’t that make him just a brainless clown with a bit of power?’

"You are merciful," Liu Hetong mumbled, his words slurred.

Down below, many people trembled in fear, while others breathed a sigh of relief.

The seven original assembly members’ faces were ashen. However, they had already endured the initial shock of seeing the pile of their families’ heads, and had mentally steeled themselves to some degree, so for now, they were just barely holding themselves together.

Only Kang Youhui was different. He was slumped in his chair, his life force fading rapidly.

The health monitor beside him indicated his heart was about to stop.

A physician hurried forward to give him an injection, reviving him.

"Don’t die too soon. It’s not over yet," Zhang Ji said to Kang Youhui with a smile.

"Junior... you... have won..." Kang Youhui said slowly. "If... you consider yourself a saint... then give us a quick death..."

He had no other desire now. He just wanted to die.

’He had planned to clear the path for the younger generation, to help them rise to power.’

’But now, not a single one of his descendants remained.’

Zhang Ji had been too ruthless. He had previously declared, "Lay a wheel on its side. We won’t kill anyone shorter than that."

"A saint?" Zhang Ji scoffed. "Then you’re in for a disappointment. I’d fight a dog over scraps. My heart is as small as the eye of a needle. I’m no saint; I’m a villain. But later, I can define myself as a saint. I just have to rewrite history a little, make myself look grand and righteous. That’s all it takes."

’This was the essence of history.’

’Where were there ever any true saints?’

’The strong replace the weak.’

’The timely replace the obsolete.’

’The strong, the fit—they survive. The weak, the unfit—they die.’

’Whoever survives, whoever wins in the end—they are the saints.’

Hearing Zhang Ji’s words, Kang Youhui trembled with such rage that he was on the verge of death several times.

But the doctor beside him was truly skilled, somehow managing to keep him from dying.

"Not bad," Zhang Ji said, giving the doctor a thumbs-up.

The doctor nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

He understood that with that one sentence from Zhang Ji, his future was now limitless.

On July 7th, Zhou Hao, Chen Anhe, and Shen Han returned.

Zhang Ji handed the seven still-living assembly members directly over to them.

Zhou Hao and Chen Anhe had seen their share of such things and acted decisively, killing their targets without fanfare.

Shen Han, however, was far more imaginative.

He was the one who dealt with Yin Daiyu, Lin Kang, and Xiao Ning.

These three were connected to the deaths of Li Long and Gu Shuangshuang—one, a respected senior brother, and the other, the unattainable senior sister he had secretly admired.

The way he vented his anger this time was rather inhuman.

"Isn’t this... bad for him?" Zhou Hao said to Zhang Ji.

Zhang Ji replied, "He just needs to let it all out. Bottling it up would be worse."

Hearing this, Zhou Hao didn’t know what else to say.

In the end, the three were not left with intact corpses.

Shen Han forced them to take Immortal Ascension Pills. He broke their arms and legs, gouged out their eyes, and pulled out their teeth, making the three of them experience what Gu Shuangshuang had once suffered.

They couldn’t even bite their own tongues to end it. All they could do was desperately thrash and struggle... then Shen Han prepared a strong acid to "relieve" their suffering...

’This kid has the makings of a Jinyi Guard,’ Zhang Ji thought.

.....

「July 10th.」

The Eastern Extreme Country officially announced the restoration of its monarchy.

The name of the new Monarch of the Eastern Extreme Country: Zhang Ji.