After stepping outside, the group arrived in Qiao Xing's courtyard, a place very familiar to Lu Luo. For a long time, he had practiced his swordsmanship and cultivated here. During the period of his swordsmanship enlightenment, Qiao Xing had given him significant help. It was also during that time that Qiao Xing's systematic guidance helped Lu Luo's combat system gradually mature, his swordsmanship reaching a level that did not fall short of the extraordinary skills of the Church in the Inner Ring.

"Those days were indeed quite nostalgic," Lu Luo remarked emotionally, while Nightmare Demon, Noah, and Qiao Xing had already walked to the center of the courtyard.

Nightmare Demon kicked at the bricks jutting out from the ground, as if organizing her next words or perhaps brewing the current atmosphere. She, Noah, and Qiao Xing stood in a triangular formation. Although none of them spoke, their auras began to rise gradually.

In other places, such an oppressive presence might seem like a matter of superstition, but for these three individuals, it had completely materialized. Nightmare Demon's oppressive presence took the form of a black fog, filled with a dangerous aura yet exuding an evil charm. Noah's oppressive presence was like streams of data, which naturally blended, simulated, and neutralized the powers of the other two. Lastly, Qiao Xing's was simple: his oppressive presence was like tangible golden Holy Radiance, sharp and resilient.

The auras of the three were unique, but Noah's was undoubtedly the strongest. More than four hundred years of Dark Energy accumulation had brought Noah's strength to an unimaginable level. Perhaps he hadn't broken through to the Ninth Tier in terms of rule limitations. However, his Dark Energy foundation was definitely the strongest among all Exotic Species.

Next was Nightmare Demon. Her aura was more aggressive than Noah's, brimming with combativeness, essentially signaling her defiance towards everyone. Qiao Xing's was simpler. His aura was the smallest in volume, yet also intensely aggressive. His demeanor seemed to declare: "Whoever messes with me, I'll fight them to the death."

The oppressive presence of the three began to affect their surroundings, chaotic powers spreading around. No other sound of life could be heard in the courtyard; not the chirping of insects nor the calling of birds—all had completely vanished. Even the clouds in the sky seemed to sense the imposing bearing of the three top combatants. They gradually dissipated, revealing the moon that had been hiding behind them. The moonlight illuminated the courtyard and also slightly relieved the oppressive atmosphere between the three, allowing a certain someone shivering nearby to breathe a sigh of relief.

The big shots have finally calmed down a bit. Lu Xiaoluo, should I offer to make tea for them?

"I feel... maybe not!" Lu Luo dared not speak, but at that moment, the three powerhouses did not seem to care about his presence.

Nightmare Demon was the first to speak to Qiao Xing, and right off the bat, she posed a very substantive question: "Lord Qiao Xing, will you stand with the Fourth Ring, or with the Inner Ring?"

Lu Luo's breath hitched; this question struck right at the heart of the current distribution of power in the Fourth Ring! The Eastern Fourth Ring had essentially already fallen under Nightmare Demon Lu Xiaotian's control. With Hunters and a large number of guards, Lu Xiaotian could now fully integrate the productivity of the entire Eastern Fourth Ring. This would allow for the complete restoration of production and social order in the Fourth Ring. Once order was restored, other areas could be expanded upon, such as nurturing more core forces. Training human-Exotic Species hybrids or hiding selfish additions in the Cultivation Techniques of the newcomers would then become much easier.

But before she did these things, Nightmare Demon had one hidden concern to eliminate: the Church of the Fourth Ring. The Church's position in the Fourth Ring was very awkward right now, and even the Believers within felt the same way. Most of them were people of the Fourth Ring, and Believers were somewhat different from ordinary Fourth Ring denizens. Believers had a certain status but were not considered people of the Inner Ring, so these Believers were also uncertain about their future.

If it were before, Nightmare Demon might have considered destroying or dispersing the Church, gradually extracting its personnel. Only in this way could the Church's influence on the Fourth Ring be somewhat diminished. But now things were different; Qiao Xing had returned. As the Archbishop of the East Ring, Qiao Xing held a pivotal status. Moreover, his strength and abilities were quite special, and he shared many similarities with her father, Ludie. Qiao Xing's personal will could largely represent the will of the entire East Ring Church. In the hearts of the current Believers of the Fourth Ring, Qiao Xing's status could almost be compared to that of the Pope. As for the Judgment Chief, Bai Qingshuang, well... the Judgment Chief meant squat; there wasn't even a Tribunal in the Fourth Ring. Most people didn't know jack about the Judgment Chief.

It was precisely because of Qiao Xing's unique status, as well as his special abilities, that Lu Xiaotian had come tonight. Of course, she also took the opportunity to see what sort of 'medicine' the old fellow Noah was selling in his 'gourd.'

Faced with Nightmare Demon's question, Qiao Xing did not remain silent for too long. "If you want to know my attitude, it depends on what you plan to do next!"

Qiao Xing's answer was somewhat ambiguous. He did not indicate that he would definitely stand with the Inner Ring, nor did he indicate that he would fight for the Fourth Ring. Throwing the question back at Nightmare Demon to understand what she wanted to do next was Qiao Xing's choice.

Nightmare Demon frowned slightly. Actually, she hadn't decided how the Fourth Ring would develop next. Or rather, when it came to societal development, Nightmare Demon did not know much. It really wasn't her fault. Even though she had acquired a lot of human knowledge through various channels, her time was not ample. Nightmare Demon had only been an Eighth Order Monarch for about two years. Before that, she had always been in a state of conquest, fighting and waging war everywhere in the world of Exotic Species. This state continued until she had completely taken control of the entire Fifth Ring Zone. The establishment of the Red and White Castle brought it to an end. Only after establishing the Red and White Castle did Nightmare Demon gain channels to accumulate knowledge about human society.

But two years just wasn't enough. Even if she could acquire human knowledge, she had no way to find books about social development, establishing political power, law, governance, and similar topics. Such things, as a general rule, were considered contraband in the Fourth Ring. Only those who were truly connected to the Inner Ring might have a chance to access such knowledge. Nightmare Demon was mighty, but she was not a deity. So for her, this task was simply impossible.

However, Nightmare Demon was not entirely without solutions. There are specialists for every field, and specific tasks require specific people. She didn't understand societal construction, development, politics, or law. One could say she was utterly clueless about these fields, but it was fine as long as someone else did. For instance, Lu Luo, whom she had specially called over...

"Lu Luo, come over here."

"Ah? The weather is nice tonight, the moon is even out."

"Lu Luo, come over here!"

Lu Luo appeared completely unwilling, not moving an inch. Nightmare Demon frowned slightly, then suddenly put on a pitiful expression. "Have you forgotten my father's will? Have you forgotten he asked you to take care of me?"

"Do you still need me to take care of you?"

I'm not coming over, so what! My boss is right here; I don't believe you'd dare to touch me. What could you possibly do?

Seeing the Observer's hint, Lu Luo's eyes lit up. Right, with Qiao Xing here, what was there to be afraid of? Emboldened by this thought, he stared defiantly at Nightmare Demon. His boss was Qiao Xing, the esteemed Archbishop of the East Ring. Would he be afraid of an Exotic Species? Holding onto that thought, Lu Luo sneakily glanced at Qiao Xing, only to find that Qiao Xing had already turned his head away, pretending not to know him.

"Damn! What does this guy mean?"

The Observer is entering hibernation mode. Host, please save yourself.

Lu Luo hadn't spoken yet when Noah, at the side, interjected, "Mr. Lu Luo, Miss Nightmare Demon is asking you a question. As a matter of politeness, you should answer, shouldn't you? Besides, I too am curious about your answer. After all, when it comes to societal structures, humans are the ones most familiar with them!"

Lu Luo looked at Noah uneasily. Is the old robot aligning himself with Nightmare Demon? That wasn't right; he had interacted with both Nightmare Demon and Noah. Although both were Eighth Order Exotic Species, they always seemed to be in an asymmetrical state. It wasn't impossible for two Exotic Species Monarchs to cooperate; for example, the Stone Mother and Noah had collaborated many times. But Nightmare Demon was different; she had, through her words and actions, shown that she looked down upon those old Exotic Species Monarchs. That attitude shouldn't likely lead to an alliance with Noah, should it?

Now that three bigwigs were staring at him, the pressure Lu Luo felt was immense!

"Lu Xiaotian, aren't you going a bit too far? Using your status to bully me—aren't we good friends anymore?"

Lu Xiaotian pouted. Just a moment ago, he was all high and mighty, and now he's claiming to be good friends? This Lu Luo was certainly adept at advancing and retreating.

"Of course, we're still good friends, but as a good friend, shouldn't you give me some advice?" Lu Xiaotian dragged Lu Luo into the middle of the yard. "Alright, I am aware of your abilities. I've visited your Circular Base a few times, and it does have something to it. If the development of the social industry in the Fourth Ring were handed over to you, Lu Luo, what would you do?"

Lu Luo wore an expression of bitter hardship. The Fourth Ring's development handed over to me? Isn't that a joke? "Isn't that burden a bit too big?"

"It's not too big. I believe you can manage."

Not just Lu Xiaotian, but Noah, and even Qiao Xing himself, all showed a hint of expectation. Although they were very powerful, they were still confused about the future development of the Fourth Ring. Noah perhaps had his own theories, but they actually leaned more towards the exploitative doctrines of the Inner Ring. Compared to that, he was more eager to find out if there was a more reasonable development policy.

Seeing the expectant eyes of the three bigwigs, Lu Luo suddenly felt... I'm about to show off! The feeling was quite exhilarating.

Lu Luo activated overclocking mode and used the Observer to sort out his thoughts. His expression then became gradually serious. "Establishing a new social order may sound simple, but actually doing it is difficult, very difficult. To discuss the development of the Fourth Ring, we can't avoid talking about the ruling issues of the Inner Ring."

"Don't rush, explain in detail!" Lu Xiaotian raised her hand.

But this time, Lu Luo didn't bother to be polite with her and went straight into teacher mode. "The rule of the Wasteland Alliance isn't completely based on capitalism. The true core of the Inner Ring is resources and power! And by resources, I don't mean food and water, but Dark Energy resources. After taking over many production lines, I discovered that the shortage of food and water is deliberately created by the people of the Inner Ring. But Dark Energy is different; its availability is determined by nature, not by human will. Even with humanity's strong productive forces, there's no way to control the production of Dark Energy.

"In the past, the Inner Ring's greatest advantage had been Dark Energy. It was precisely because of its ample and safe supply of Dark Energy that the Inner Ring had been able to continuously build up its military power. But now, that advantage has completely vanished. After the Dark Energy Mutation, the Fourth Ring's Dark Energy levels have become on par with the Inner Ring's. Dark Energy is the true core resource. Without the advantage of this resource monopoly, the Inner Ring's control over the Fourth Ring can be said to have weakened substantially.

"The Fourth Ring's population advantage is very clear, while the Inner Ring's limited scope means it cannot support a large population. So, if the Fourth Ring acquires enough resources and develops steadily, its future scale could absolutely surpass that of the Inner Ring."

At this point, Noah interjected, splashing cold water on the idea. "But achieving 'steady development' right now doesn't seem that easy. Forget it, continue speaking. I'm listening."

Lu Luo nodded as well. "Indeed, it's not easy. For the Fourth Ring to rise, it must be based on those words: 'steady development'! I'm not capable of solving the problem of military force; that's up to you. But regarding the Inner Ring, I still have some insights to share. I've read many books from the Inner Ring, and from these books, I've gleaned some information.

"Currently, in the Inner Ring, the alliance between the Parliament and the Church has created a formidable Trinity system encompassing administration, faith, and military force. Using overwhelming military force as the foundation of its rule, its influence radiates across the entire Wasteland Circular. I used to think this model was rather primitive, but upon reflection, I realized just how incredibly stable it actually is! Under this Trinity model, as long as there are no major upheavals in the world, this form of governance could potentially continue indefinitely."

Just as Lu Luo was saying this, Noah, the chatterbox, started to interject again. "But unfortunately, this world is not unchanging! The change in Dark Energy presents an opportunity for transformation. And I believe that humans, as the civilizational representatives of the Wasteland Circular, should not confine themselves to one small corner like this. The world is not so narrow. It is vast, with expansive regions still worth our discovery and exploration. Actually, my goal is simple: I want to create a world where Exotic Species and humans can coexist. So, I'd like to hear your opinion, Lu Luo."

Why does this old robot love to interrupt so much? Lu Luo looked at Noah. The words Noah had spoken were indeed beautiful, but the ambition behind them was utterly unconcealed. Moreover, Lu Luo had always been skeptical about Noah's ultimate goal, suspecting it was not merely about establishing order.

"A world where Exotic Species coexist with humans? That's quite the utopian dream!"

"Do you think there will be a problem?" Noah asked, seeing that Lu Luo did not fully agree with his idea.

By this time, Lu Luo no longer felt like hiding his thoughts. "The idea of Exotic Species and humans coexisting, well, it's quite idealistic. But I find human nature to be very pragmatic, while reality is often harsh and unyielding."

"Lu Luo, are you implying that humans and Exotic Species will never be able to coexist peacefully?"

"I can't be 100 percent certain, but I'd say I'm about 99.8 percent sure. 'Those not of our race are bound to have different hearts'—this is an ancient saying among humans. The struggles between races mostly end with the extinction of one, or its complete domination by the other. For humans and Exotic Species to coexist peacefully, both sides would need reasonable cultural and habitual integration. Based on the current relationship between humans and Exotic Species, that's just an impossibility."

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