In the imperial palace, the Great Demon King stood on a high platform, overlooking the Imperial Palace of the capital, untouched by the war. This massive structure, the most fortified and pivotal center of power in the empire, had been captured without shedding a drop of blood.
Han Kexin approached from behind, accompanied by Ophelia, who was dressed in the imperial robes. Ophelia had now become Emperor Frelio XVII. There was no sign of dissatisfaction or coercion on her face; instead, she exhibited an expression of compliance and submission.
This scene, if seen by the aristocracy, would undoubtedly astonish them. After all, the former Duchess of the North, known as the Ice Queen Ophelia, was once a figure of proud and cold demeanor, who would rather break than bend. Even in death, such a figure would not likely yield.
Yet, within just a few days of captivity by the Great Demon King, she seemed to have fully accepted her role as a puppet empress, as if she had been completely replaced. However, Ophelia had not been swapped. The drastic change in her was simply due to the effect of Han Kexin's Permanent Charm. This "Permanent Charm" is one of Han Kexin's most powerful abilities, capable of imprinting a permanent psychic mark on any target weaker than her.
Under Zhang Nu's directive, Han Kexin applied the Permanent Charm to Ophelia. After being affected by this potent ability, Ophelia became unwaveringly loyal to the Chaos Federation and the Darkness City, her way of thinking completely altered from before. She wouldn't realize anything was amiss.
Zhang Nu glanced over the information of his new subordinate:
[Imperial Emperor: Ophelia] Level 6 mythic unit
Ophelia's strength was initially that of a Level 6 monarch. However, since her coronation as the emperor, she astonishingly became a Level 6 mythic. This was due to the tradition where each new emperor must receive coronation and blessings in the temple, recognized only with the Frelio royal bloodline. Successful coronation would bestow the strength of the empire's spirit upon the emperor. Being an emperor was more than just a title and status; it was a powerful enhancement that could push a top-level Level 6 monarch further, thus elevating Ophelia to an mythic level of strength.
By then, Ophelia was not far behind Han Kexin in terms of capability. Although the Succubus Queen had absorbed Wil's Hero crystal and gained continuous growth, she was far beyond her initial breakthrough to Level 6, her power remained at the mythic class.
The likelihood of successfully deploying Permanent Charm on a target of the same rank and level, especially when the overall power difference was substantial, was not typically high. But considering Ophelia's current situation, her psychic mark remained unaffected. This was expected as once a psychic imprint was successfully applied, it was unlikely to be shed regardless of the target's level of growth, as it fundamentally altered the cognitive processes of a sentient being.
Zhang Nu asked, "What's the situation now?"
Ophelia replied, "Your Majesty, the empire has temporarily quelled the chaos, but in the east, west, and north territories, some nobles and other forces are still attempting to rebel and declare independence."
Han Kexin smiled and said, "The empire is restructuring and going through a complete overhaul of the system. These traditional nobles, still entrenched in their old ways, are the primary beneficiaries of the previous order. It's inevitable that some shortsighted fools resist the changes."
Zhang Nu nodded. The territorial nobles around were unlikely to willingly hand over their lands. He hadn't received a notification of having fully conquered the empire yet, presumably because of these stubborn resistors.
The Demon King stated directly, "I will leave the Abyssal Dragon Legion to assist you. You must resolve these rebels within a month."
Ophelia responded softly, "Thank you, Your Majesty. With the support of your Dragon Legion, we should need no more than fifteen days, not a month. These rebels are hardly a significant threat."
Zhang Nu was pleased with her confidence. Fifteen days to stabilize the empire was indeed swift. Securing the empire quickly would not only bring substantial rewards from the newly conquered regions but also allow more time for development and fortification against potential threats from other areas.
With the fall of the Thunder Empire, Zhang Nu's true power could no longer be concealed. He anticipated that moving forward, almost every Hero and Demon King would keep a close watch on Darkness City. The most elite Heroes might even collaborate to challenge him. In the end, though Zhang Nu was a formidable Level 6 legend, facing a coalition of the top ten Heroes without absolute certainty of victory posed a significant risk, he wasn't entirely sure he could handle them.
For this reason, in the upcoming period, Zhang Nu planned to prepare on two fronts. One was to swiftly integrate resources, enhance his military, and assimilate the vast area and resources of the Thunder Empire. The other was to urgently boost his own abilities, such as unlocking his final talent and advancing to Level 7, to ensure thorough preparedness.
As he contemplated these plans, Han Kexin reported another update, "By the way, the other task you assigned to me is also nearly complete."
After conquering the capital, it was inevitable to plunder the spoils of war. The Thunder Empire, an empire with nearly a billion people and thousands of years of history, surely had substantial reserves in its capital. These resources would be vital for the development and construction of Darkness City. Upon entering the city, Zhang Nu had instructed Han Kexin to secure the accessible treasures for mitigating wartime losses and funding reconstruction efforts.
Zhang Nu immediately inquired, "How much in spoils have we secured so far?"
Han Kexin replied, "We have preliminarily tallied the reserves in the national treasury and the royal treasury. It looks like we have at least the equivalent of five hundred billion standard continental currency in reserves. If converted to Demon Ging gold, that's about fifty billion."
Hearing this figure, even Zhang Nu gasped. He had anticipated that the treasury of a prospering, flourishing empire with nearly a billion people would not be modest. Yet, the actual amount still shocked him. If this haul was converted entirely into gold, it would amount to a staggering fifty billion Demon King gold. If used to recruit abyssal dragons, imagine how many could be added.
The wealth of the empire was truly formidable!
However, Zhang Nu was aware that this was only the savings from the national and royal treasuries. The empire's assets were not limited to merely currency and gold. If the value of various gems, crystals, materials, equipment, and the wealth amassed from the confiscation of assets from the millennial families in the capital were included, the total spoils of war could very well be equivalent to around one hundred billion Demon King gold. Such an enormous figure, even for Zhang Nu, represented an astonishingly astronomical sum.