While talking, Su Changfa took out a new badge from his Cosmos Ring and handed it over to Li Yao solemnly, holding it with both hands.
Li Yao took the badge and gave it a look. This badge was carved out of some kind of emerald green jade. Spiritual energy lingered around the badge, circulating endlessly. Right in the middle of the badge were three streaks of golden lightning radiating in all directions. It was exactly the same as the emblem on the Three Stars Lightning Flag. On the left and right side of the badge were a saber and a sword.
"Green card?"
Li Yao scratched the surface of the badge and felt that it was absurd.
"Yes. The so-called 'green card' represents the right of permanent residence in the Imperium of True Human Beings. It is a privilege that foreigners from beyond the territory of the Imperium can barely get."
Scratching his long beard, Su Changfa shook his head and said, "Every green card has been issued with the utmost caution. I took advantage of a tiny loophole in the policy and treated Fellow Cultivator Li as a native of the planet. Then, when this place becomes the territory of the Imperium, Fellow Cultivator Li, as a native, will naturally have the right of permanent residence and automatically become a subject of the Imperium!
"However, 'subjects' and 'citizens' are different. Only 'citizens' are the masters of the Imperium and enjoy the right to decide the direction of the civilization of mankind. Only then can they enjoy the ever-changing, unparalleled Cultivation arts, techniques, marrow crystals, magical equipment, Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, and all kinds of other resources in the Imperium!"
Li Yao thought of something and asked, "How do you turn from 'subjects' to 'citizens'?"
"The word 'citizen' represents the highest glory and the most important responsibility. It is not something that can be accepted easily! Even the Immortal Cultivators born and bred in the Imperium do not immediately enjoy the identity of citizens when our spiritual roots are awakened! We still have to fight for the Imperium and the civilization of mankind. On one hand, we have to make great contributions. On the other hand, we have to prove that we have a strong body, keen wisdom, and calm thinking abilities. Only after we are qualified to participate in politics will we be granted the identity of 'citizens'! "
Su Changfa was very proud of the citizenship system of the Imperium of True Human Beings. The other two Immortal Cultivators felt honored, too. Their faces were glowing. "In our Imperium, the citizens are divided into twenty levels, not according to their bloodline or wealth but according to their personal abilities, Cultivation, and contributions!
"All citizens have the right to vote and make decisions. However, the higher one's level is, the greater the contribution they make to the country, and the greater the right to make decisions will be. One vote from a high-level citizen is very likely to carry more weight than a hundred votes from a low-level citizen!
"The supreme Holy Emperor is at the peak of the civil system. He will also prove his legitimacy to rule the universe with his strength, wisdom, and courage!"
"As a matter of fact, ever since Blackstar the Great's era, our leaders preferred the honorific 'First Citizen' more than 'His Majesty'. 'Emperor' is based on his bloodline, and 'First Citizen' is based on his own strength!"
Li Yao was stunned. "So, as long as somebody is stronger than the Wuying family, the royal family of the Imperium, they can replace them anytime?"
Su Changfa grinned hideously. "Theoretically speaking, yes. Whoever is not scared of death can taste the emperor's iron fist at any time!"
Li Yao clicked his tongue. "Why is there such a system?"
Su Changfa sneered. "Even if there is no such system, when the royal power declines, won't the ambitious schemers rise in the chaos?"
Li Yao was immediately rendered speechless.
"If we get to the bottom of it, strength is everything in this world! The Imperium does not believe in the divine right of kings! Under the guidance of Blackstar the Great, the royal family trained more crazily than anybody else, and the competition was crueler. Only by making greater contributions and sacrifices to the Imperium and the civilization of mankind could the honor of 'First Citizen' be protected forever!
"We are a new Imperium in the sea of stars, which is entirely different from the decadent old Imperium in the traditional sense!"
Pausing for a moment, Su Changfa pointed at the green 'green card' in Li Yao's hand and said, "The citizenship system of the Imperium is very fair, open, and just. Any contribution you make to the Imperium and the civilization of mankind will be transformed into 'contribution points'. With the contribution points, you can exchange for corresponding techniques and magical equipment to earn more contribution points. When you accumulate enough contribution points, you will be able to exchange for citizenship of the Imperium and climb up one level after another!
"According to your Cultivation, you will be given corresponding 'initial contribution points'. In the future, you will receive additional contribution points every time you level up, even if it's a minor level improvement or if you learn a new technique!"
"Also, when the contribution points are calculated in different levels, they have to be multiplied by a weighting factor. There is a very complicated and precise calculation method!
"I won't explain the tedious calculation process. All in all, the higher your level is, the faster you will be able to accumulate contribution points. For Cultivators in the Core Formation Stage such as Fellow Cultivator Li, you will certainly earn contribution points much faster than Cultivators in the Refinement Stage and the Building Foundation Stage!"
Li Yao nodded quickly in his heart. Such a contribution point system could indeed stimulate everybody's enthusiasm to pledge loyalty to the Imperium. Even a foreign Cultivator from outside of the Imperium of True Human Beings such as himself was intrigued!
"Specifically speaking, how am I going to earn contribution points?"
Li Yao pretended to be impatient.
"Hehe. Fellow Cultivator Li, you are worried that you cannot become a citizen of the Imperium, aren't you?"
Su Changfa said with a smile, "Don't worry. Great contributions are right before your eyes. Fellow Cultivator Li, you can reach out your hand and grab them!
"You will explore the primeval battlefield with us. As long as you make any discoveries, you will be able to exchange them for tremendous contribution points!
"After that, Fellow Cultivator Li will take us to the Flying Star Sector … What comes next will depend on your operation, Fellow Cultivator Li. If everything goes well, I'm afraid that you will soar into the sky and become a new noble of the Imperium!"
The muscles on Li Yao's face twitched violently. Gradually, he put on a greedy smile.
He understood what Su Changfa meant.
As long as he helped the Imperium swallow the Flying Star Sector, the contribution points would naturally be astronomical!
"Look!"
Fearing that he was still worried, Su Changfa tapped on his green card softly, triggering a 3D operation interface that contained his name, level, fingerprint information, auricle information, and brainwave information. Together, they constituted a unique identification telepathic thought.
"Don't underestimate this tiny green card. It is carefully crafted by the best refiners of the Imperium. Dozens of soul marks of the experts of the Imperium are engraved on it. Every green card cannot be duplicated, tampered with, or destroyed! Right now, your identification system has been branded on it. It belongs to you now! You can rest assured now, can you? "
Li Yao blinked and pretended to be confused. "Rest assured about what?"
"In the beginning, weren't you worried that we would kill you after the job was done, Fellow Cultivator Li? But right now, your identification system has been engraved on the green card, proving that you are a subject of the Imperium. So, you are not someone that we can kill easily! "
Su Changfa explained. "The information on every green card will be sent back to the homeland of the Imperium for investigation in the future. If it is discovered that we have killed a subject of the Imperium in the Core Formation Stage, we will certainly be held accountable!"
"Huh?"
Li Yao blinked and asked in confusion, "Isn't it a law of the Imperium that the strong prey on the weak, and the winner is the king? Can't we kill someone to keep their mouth shut?"
"Blackstar the Great drafted the Magna Carta of the Imperium in person, which explains the concept of 'the strong prey on the weak' in detail!"
Su Changfa smiled. "It's not that we cannot kill someone to keep their mouth shut, but it depends on the situation!
"For example, in such a mission to explore a relic, if we ask a silly boy to take the lead and kill him to keep his mouth shut after the treasure is discovered, it may seem that we will be able to take all the benefits, but the price is that we will lose our credibility and the reputation of the Imperium. If such a thing goes on, who will dare to cooperate with the Imperium?
"Trading long-term interests for short-term interests, and more importantly, trading the overall credibility of the Imperium for our personal benefits, is certainly an intolerable behavior!
"There are so many ancient relics in the sea of stars, the three thousand Sectors, and so on. We can't just think about taking all the benefits this time. If we ruin the reputation of the Imperium and make everyone not believe in the Imperium, we will deserve to be killed!"
"Therefore, in the Imperium of True Human Beings, there is also the Law of Ancient Relics Exploration to protect the corresponding rights of the 'silly boy'!"
Li Yao was rather dazed.
Su Changfa burst into laughter and patted his shoulder warmly. "Fellow Cultivator Li, I told you a long time ago that we stand for justice and truth. We are absolutely different from the general evils!
"As long as you pledge your loyalty to the Imperium sincerely, the Imperium will be generous, merciful, and trustworthy. You will not suffer any losses!"
Li Yao was greatly moved and nodded his head quickly.
But he secretly sneered.
That was a nice way to put it. Was it not because they had found greater value in him that they had cast a long line to catch a big fish?
In the beginning, when he pretended to be unconscious, they had discussed cutting him into pieces for studies!
Also, Su Changfa had told the other two Immortal Cultivators that the 'Black Wind Fleet', which was marching toward the Flying Star Sector aggressively, would probably kill them all and claim the fruits of their exploration.
Wouldn't it be contradictory to the 'contribution point system' that Su Changfa talked about?
Perhaps, when Blackstar the Great founded the Imperium of True Human Beings, he had indeed established a relatively fair, strict, and efficient system, which was as perfect as Su Changfa described.
However, after a thousand years, even the most solid system was gradually corroded and riddled with holes.
The interest groups such as the 'Black Wind Fleet', which boasted tremendous strength and were fearless of death, could still bargain with the emperor and override the system!
As a result, after Su Changfa and his companions discovered such a fat piece of meat, they did not have the courage to establish the space gate and let the Black Wind Fleet in at all!
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