Chapter 157 - 137: Saint King Council

Chapter 157: Chapter 137: Saint King Council

The Ultimate Fighting tournament ended with a grand performance.

The tourists were allowed to go sightseeing.

Of course, ordinary people didn’t dare get too close.

Only the powerful fighters were able to get a true close-up look.

A video of the battle between Zhang Ji and the four Saint Kings was edited and played around the clock in the Supreme Capital.

At the same time, invitations were sent out from the Supreme Capital in Zhang Ji’s name to the many fighters who had come to compete.

Some fighters were eager and excited upon seeing the invitation.

Others were worried and anxious.

And a few were conflicted, hesitant, or even angry.

But no matter what they chose, none of it mattered.

From the moment Zhang Ji and the others displayed such power, the mortals beneath them were destined for only one outcome.

To accept their rule!

.....

The Supreme Capital.

In a room at the very top, which had been set up like a conference hall, there was a long table with a projector at its head and some drinks and other items to the side.

Zhang Ji was seated in the place of honor, and three of the four seats below him were already occupied.

Giles was still in the bath, being assisted by attendants.

Zhang Ji had insisted on it.

He really couldn’t stand the smell.

Soon, Giles emerged from the bathroom, his fur completely blow-dried, and wearing a new set of clothes.

"These clothes are so comfortable! What are they made of?" Giles asked, tugging at them as he squatted on his chair.

At two-point-three meters tall, he towered over the short old man, Cyril, even while squatting.

"Jade-thread. It’s a material just developed by the [Physics Department]. It can’t be mass-produced yet. If you want more, it’ll have to be custom-made," Zhang Ji said casually.

"Now that everyone’s here, let’s talk. What are your plans?" Ferguson asked.

Zhang Ji nodded slightly and said, "The world is ruled by the strong. I assume none of you have an issue with that, do you?"

No one refuted this opening statement. Zhang Ji had already conquered them; there was nothing to say in the face of such overwhelming power.

"Our world is too chaotic. On this small Origin Star, with a population of twenty billion, there are over five hundred countries. How ridiculous is that?"

Zhang Ji activated the projector, displaying a world map on the screen. He continued, "The universe is so vast, yet human civilization is still mired in such inefficient internal conflict. How can we ever leave our mother planet like this? We need to unify. In this modern era, information is widespread and transportation is convenient. It’s not like ancient times anymore. The basic conditions for unification have been met.

Archaeological evidence shows that extraterrestrial civilizations have reached Origin Star long ago. Not only that, but there are also traces of visitors from other worlds. Our world is not as peaceful as we imagine.

As pioneers at the forefront of the evolutionary path, we have both the duty and the right to shoulder the fate of humanity’s future, to unite the human race, and to guide our civilization toward a grander, more prosperous future..."

"So, after all that talk, you just want to rule the world, right?" Giles suddenly interjected.

Zhang Ji glanced at him, not with killing intent, but with fighting spirit.

Giles remembered the punch that had taken him down and promptly shut up. His gaze shifted to the ceiling as he remarked, "This ceiling is really nice. You can tell it’s made of stone."

"It’s metal," Zhang Ji replied nonchalantly, then said, "Alright, I’ll skip the pleasantries. In short, I plan to form the Saint King Conference. I will be the Chairman, ranked as the Supreme, and all of you will be the Saint Kings, assisting me in unifying the world’s various factions.

My desire to rule the world is real, but so are the crises facing human society. As the stronger ones, if we don’t unify human civilization and guide its development, it will take many wrong turns.

Given the grand trajectory of history, unification is inevitable. Since we have the power, we should bring it about sooner..."

"Power shouldn’t just be about being powerful. You’re right. This strength should indeed carry a greater mission," Cyril said.

He was the one who agreed most with these words.

He was even older than Tran, and in his long life, he had experienced and witnessed a great deal.

At one point, he had even been in the upper echelons of power.

But humanity’s inherent flaws made the system sluggish, full of internal restraints driven by self-interest.

In Cyril’s view, for human civilization to truly advance, there had to be a sufficiently powerful existence presiding over and unifying all systems.

That existence would not be shackled by the systems below it, but would have absolute control over them. Then, any command given would be executed without question.

Of course, this being also needed to have a sufficiently grand and correct vision. They couldn’t just mess around, or it would lead to a different kind of disaster.

And the current Saint King Council clearly had such a vision.

"A Saint King, you say? Interesting!" Ferguson said with a smile.

He was young and already had a desire to dabble in power.

Even if Zhang Ji hadn’t suggested this, after his recent breakthrough, he would have tried to emulate Zhang Ji and conquer a country or two for himself.

"I’m getting a bit old. I’m afraid I won’t be much good at these things..." Tran said.

He just wanted to live a peaceful life with his descendants. He had little desire to get involved in ruling the world.

"As a Saint King, you will be supreme. You won’t have to do anything. Once the structure is stable, you might not even need to act. The Saint King Council is the seat of absolute power. The purpose of our military strength is simply deterrence," Zhang Ji told Tran. "You can live however you want in the future. No one will interfere with your life. On the contrary, you’ll enjoy the benefits that come with power and rapidly increase your own strength."

"What about our duties?" Giles asked.

"I’ve already said it. Unification is our duty. Once we’ve unified the civilization, we’ll naturally shoulder the responsibility of protecting it," Zhang Ji said. "Do you want to see your own Origin Star destroyed by outsiders?"

"My Origin Star? Does that mean I can plant more bananas?" Giles’s eyes lit up as he spoke.

Zhang Ji stared at Giles, then glanced at Tran, and couldn’t help but sigh.

He’d always considered himself politically inept, but compared to these two, he felt like an absolute genius.

"Just focus on eating your bananas from now on. I’ll call you when the aliens invade," Zhang Ji said, exasperated.

Giles was clearly not suited for a decision-making role. He was only good for applying force.

By clowning around like this, Giles was obviously expressing his own desires.

He didn’t want to do any of the brain-work.

It wasn’t that he was stupid or lacked tact. That ape was as cunning as they come!

"Now then, let me show you the rough draft of the unification plan."

As he spoke, Zhang Ji switched the projection to a pre-made video and began to explain.

"This Ultimate Fighting tournament wasn’t just about fighting. I also planned to use it to screen for talented individuals to help us govern. Their other skills might be lacking, but as long as their Combat Power is high enough, that’s all that matters. These people will become our powerful executive branch..."

....

「Origin Star, Year One of the Supreme Era.」

「The first day of the second month.」

The news of the Saint King Council’s formation was first announced to the world through the Dragon Country and the Roman Country.

They also directly stated their vision of unifying the world.

Naturally, many factions and countries expressed their opposition and condemnation.

But it was meaningless and useless.

This was merely a notification.

Some of the smarter countries, like the Color Cluster Country and Guning Country, had already picked a side.

They declared their complete submission to the rule of the Supreme and the Saint King Council.

Hasting had personally seen the traces of destruction; he did not want Zhang Ji and his group to do the same to Guning Country.

Even if they refused, Zhang Ji could simply kill Guning Country’s royal family and upper echelons and install a new ruling class.

With that kind of power, overthrowing a nation couldn’t be easier.

An organization like a country only exists because of belief.

The common people don’t care who their ruler is.

As long as Zhang Ji and his group had enough power to eliminate the ruling class, they had the ability to rule any faction.

With the major powers falling in line, many smaller nations also rushed to surrender.

Zhang Ji and the four Saint Kings didn’t handle the administration themselves; they handed everything over to their core team.

Next, they would dismantle all the countries. On Origin Star, the concept of a nation would no longer exist.

They would become the "Origin Civilization."

The former countries would be divided into various regions, each with a designated administrator and an Ascended-level fighter as military support.

On average, each Ascended-level fighter would be responsible for a region roughly half the size of the Dragon Country.

For the sake of stability, order, and peace, the series of rules that followed were incredibly complex and tedious to formulate.

Fortunately, Zhang Ji didn’t have to wrack his brain over these things.

He only needed to make decisions on key issues.

The rest was all delegated to his subordinates.

Orlando, Liu Hetong, and their team were now busier than ever.

They were tasked with establishing new orders and rules, as well as drawing up lists of those who resisted.

The current resistance didn’t even require the Saint Kings to act; plenty of people under them were willing to help. However, Zhang Ji still planned to let Giles stretch his legs a bit.

.....

「February 14th.」

Ron Country.

It was a mid-sized, developed nation.

After receiving the Saint King Council’s notice, they were among the first to express condemnation and resistance.

In their ruling class’s view, no matter how strong the Saint Kings were, they were no different from the nuclear bombs of the old world.

Unification had costs. The price of starting a war was high. They saw the notice as a mere deterrent—a ploy to demand protection money, the opening act of a negotiation.

But they never expected that Zhang Ji and his group were serious.

That day, above the capital of Ron Country, a ninety-meter-tall, red-furred Divine Ape roared as it weathered missile fire, tore down the entire palace, and climbed to the top to grab two fighter jets, crushing them on the spot.

The scene ended on an image of it standing in the center of the capital, angrily beating its chest.

Back in the Supreme Capital, the corners of Zhang Ji’s mouth curled up as he remarked with a sigh, "It’s a shame it wasn’t helicopters. Couldn’t fully replicate the classic scene."

Although he couldn’t fully replicate the classic, the deterrent effect was more than enough.

On the night after the battle, ninety percent of the opposition factions now chose to surrender.

They expressed their willingness to accept the rule of the Supreme and the Saint King Council.

As for the rest, they either hadn’t reacted yet or had descended into internal chaos.

But none of that mattered anymore. In two months at most, the initial integration would be complete. At the very least, unification in name would be achieved.

The next step was to dispatch the Ascended-level fighters with their respective executive teams to garrison the regions. With military power in place, there would be no more obstacles to executing orders, and the framework for world unification would be essentially complete.