Chapter 318
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Chapter 318: Making a Choice
"Country Lord, I choose the second option!"
Just when everyone was torn with uncertainty, a robust man stood up.
Yi Chen felt a bit surprised.
Then he relaxed.
It was War City, who he had previously decided would be the commander of the Military in the Great Flame Kingdom and was still in the observation period.
"I will give you five more minutes. In five minutes, anyone who chooses the second option should stand up. If you do not stand up within five minutes, it will be considered that you chose the first option."
Yi Chen didn’t want to waste time waiting for each person to decide.
Time was pressing.
Some people no longer hesitated and gradually stood up.
Others still chose to remain on the ground.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, five minutes passed.
In the entire hall, among the three thousand fake heavy criminals, half chose to stay in the Great Flame Kingdom.
The other half still lay on the ground, choosing to leave.
Yi Chen’s expression remained calm.
This result was within his expectations.
No one could understand why he set the punishment for staying higher than the punishment for leaving.
If the punishment for staying had been lower, the vast majority would have chosen to remain for the sake of strength realms and longer lifespans.
In contrast, with the punishment for staying being higher, leaving actually seemed better.
Strength realms could still be learned upon returning to the human federation; it would only be slightly slower than what could be learned here in the Great Flame Kingdom.
No one could grasp Yi Chen’s thoughts.
That was because, among the fake heavy criminals present, although they were elites among the elite of the human federation, none had the foresight to possess the ability to foresee the future.
The Great Flame Kingdom needed talent, but those who made serious mistakes must face corresponding punishments.
Only in this way could Yi Chen let the past go unpunished.
As for those fake heavy criminals who chose to leave, after losing their realms, their future would involve punishment along with the human federation.
Relaxing the punishment conditions was simply because Yi Chen did not want many fake heavy criminals to be forced to stay due to overly harsh punishments.
The Great Flame Kingdom did not need such people.
“Now that you have made your choice, it is time to disable your realms!”
Yi Chen said calmly.
Everyone displayed faces filled with conflict and struggle.
To disable their realms meant that years of hard work would be destroyed in an instant.
However, none of them had the courage to resist or refuse.
Knowing Yi Chen’s personality, they understood very well that anyone who dared to refuse would certainly be killed by One Sword.
They gritted their teeth, suppressing their reluctance, and began to abandon their cultivation, trying their best to not harm their Qi Seas.
In just a few minutes, all over three thousand fake heavy criminals had abandoned their cultivation.
"Stop resisting!"
With a thought, Yi Chen activated the Soul Searching Technique, sending his divine consciousness into the minds of the fake heavy criminals.
Everyone was astonished, realizing that Yi Chen intended to extract memories, not using any equipment, but rather a self-created skill that could retrieve memories.
Yi Chen worked very quickly; facing a group without any strength realms who had given up resistance, he successfully extracted all of their memories in just over an hour.
"You all can leave now. Regardless of whether you choose to leave or stay, make sure to sort out your relationships in the Great Flame Kingdom."
Yi Chen waved his hand: "Especially those who choose to leave, you should know what to say and what not to say."
"On the side of the Political Council, since six Vice Councilors have chosen to stay, you should take some time to discuss and draft an announcement, so that those fake heavy criminals who haven’t been discovered yet know the results and can prepare for their departure."
"For a few who have extremely strong reasons to want to stay, you may consider agreeing."
A group of fake heavy criminals, somewhat confused, bowed and left the hall.
They felt various emotions.
It was hard to define what they were feeling at that moment.
Some felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
Others felt lost and dejected.
Yi Chen knew that the truth could make them suddenly furious; it had always hung over their heads like a sharp sword, making them restless.
No one knew when this sword would suddenly strike down.
Today, the shoe dropped.
Everything finally settled down.
Some people let out a huge sigh of relief.
Others felt disappointed that they had spent years and gained nothing.
And some were unsure if their decision was right, feeling anxious about their gains and losses.
Yi Chen’s divine consciousness found Bai Ruo Xin on the side of the palace: "Recruit a batch of fake heavy criminals who chose to stay, and let them join the Intelligence Organization. They will be responsible for identifying those fake heavy criminals who have not yet joined the Great Flame Kingdom, gathering them all together to be sent back to the human federation."
According to the information provided by Bai Ruo Xin and what he had collected in the human federation, the number of fake heavy criminals could be as high as around twenty thousand.
Although Bai Ruo Xin had been secretly investigating the identities of the fake heavy criminals, there were still some who slipped through the net and went undetected.
In addition, there were many others who had not yet joined and were waiting for an opportunity to join the Great Flame Kingdom in other tribes.
Regardless of their talent and capabilities, Yi Chen did not intend to keep any of them.
Whether they were lurking without action or had not joined the Great Flame Kingdom, it meant they had not made any significant contributions to the Great Flame Kingdom, or even that they were not citizens of the Great Flame Kingdom.
In Yi Chen’s eyes, they only had one choice, which was to leave.
However, for those fake heavy criminals who had once been citizens of the Great Flame Kingdom and truly wanted to stay due to love and friendship, Yi Chen could reluctantly accept their choice if they were willing to pay the corresponding price.
"Alright!"
Bai Ruo Xin responded.
Yi Chen didn’t think much more about it.
The middle and upper ranks of the Political Council were almost cleared out entirely; all their titles were stripped and they were demoted to second-class citizens. The Military was not much better off.
In addition, many in the middle and upper ranks chose to leave, suddenly creating a large number of vacant positions.
Once this matter was announced, it would definitely cause a huge uproar, shrouding the entire Great Flame Kingdom in various rumors and speculations.
Panic among the people was inevitable.
However, these were issues that the Political Council had to worry about.
While he processed the extracted memories, he awaited the swamp crocodile’s arrival.
…
Outside the palace, in a luxurious carriage, the high priest waited leisurely for Lou Xing to come out.
Although he did not know why Yi Chen suddenly called so many people into the palace, given his status, he could easily find out that most of those summoned were exceptionally talented geniuses.
When the Country Lord suddenly summoned a group of geniuses to the palace, it was undoubtedly a good thing.
Although the high priest felt frustrated that Zhong Ren and Feng Yue, his competitors, were included in the summons, his overall mood was still positive.
However, soon, as the fake heavy criminals came out one by one, each with a look of confusion and gloom, he sensed something was amiss.
Could summoning a group of geniuses to the palace possibly be a bad thing?
"Xing’er!"
Seeing Lou Xing, who also wore a dazed and lost expression, the high priest’s heart raced, and he quickly hopped out of the carriage and rushed forward.
Looking at the high priest with genuine concern, a glimmer of brightness flickered in Lou Xing’s dim eyes.
His mood suddenly brightened.
Compared to the other fake heavy criminals, he was undoubtedly the luckiest.
While he had lost everything, he also had a father who held a high position, even if his reputation was not very good.
Initially, he had wanted to stab this father to death while he slept with One Sword.
But after more than seven years, he had slowly come to accept and acknowledge this father.
