Li Yao sighed in his heart.
The real situation of the social class in the Imperium was too different from what he had imagined before he came to the center of the cosmos.
At that time, he had stupidly looked forward to the Imperium of True Human Beings being a Cultivator whose people were living in agony, who hated those in power to their guts, and who would certainly have a lot of followers as long as he raised his arms and called for help.
The reality was too complicated. The Cultivators of the Imperium were mixed. Even General Lei Chenghu, a soldier of the Imperium who was better off in the foul environment, had a great misunderstanding about the true path of the Cultivators.
"I only need to tell you two things, and you will basically understand General Lei Chenghu's personality."
Li Linghai said, "Firstly, General Lei Chenghu's eldest son once worked in the military and used the starships of the Thunder Fleet to smuggle assets.
"In fact, it couldn't have been more normal. Most of the fleets of the Imperium were the private troops of the nobles and warlords in the first place. It was only natural that they were used however they were used.
"Besides, after General Lei Chenghu went bankrupt and cut off all the connections with the forces in his hometown and came to the frontline, he became a floating duckweed that had no foundation. The only thing that he owned was the fleet.
"The assets allocated by the Council of Elders were perhaps enough to maintain the normal functioning of the fleet, but what about the resources for his own training?
"Therefore, almost all the fleets at that time, especially the Deep Sky Fleets that boasted the ability to cross Sectors and cruise in space, were more or less running their own 'businesses'. They were a mixture of battle groups, carriers, and privateers.
"It was sort of an open secret. Even the Council of Elders could only turn a blind eye to it.
"In the meantime, after General Lei Chenghu learned that his eldest son was using the fleet for personal gains, he publicized the matter to the public and sent his eldest son to the military court selflessly, demanding that his eldest son be sentenced to death according to the military law of the Imperium a thousand years ago!
"Later, it was the Council of Elders, who were greatly shocked, that mediated and 'pardoned' his eldest son, which saved his eldest son's life. But since then, his eldest son had been burdened with an eternal stain, and he was never promoted to the highest leadership of the 'Thunder Fleet' again.
"The Thunder Fleet is a super elite troop that General Lei Chenghu has been working on for a hundred years. It is the most powerful armed force in the Imperium other than the private troops of the four Kurfürsten. It is definitely not an act that he is so harsh on his eldest son. He is truly selfless and unambitious."
Li Yao exhaled slowly.
This General Lei Chenghu's noble character was truly … not to mention Xiuxianists, even among Xiuzhenists, it was extremely rare.
At the very least, many big shots in the military of the Xing Yao Federation were deeply involved in politics and business. Although they would not resort to smuggling with the fleet of the Federation, they certainly could not do what General Lei Chenghu did, either.
"Secondly, General Lei Chenghu's second son was an Immortal Cultivator at the middle level of the Core Formation Stage in the beginning. In order to break into the 'Jin Dan' level, which is of paramount importance, a lot of resources were naturally required."
Li Linghai continued, "He knew his father's temper and did not dare play tricks in private. So, he simply reported it to the leadership of the fleet dutifully.
"For the general nobles and warlords, when their own flesh and blood were trying to break into the Jin Dan level, they would naturally devote as many resources as they could, even ten times more than the resources of the poor families, in order to increase the odds of success and reduce the risk of mental derangement.
"However 'fair and impartial' they were, they should've at least allocated the right amount of resources according to the standards established by Blackstar the Great in the past, shouldn't they?
"After all, breaking into the Jin Dan level was good for both the Thunder Fleet and the entire Imperium even if one was a top-tier expert.
"However, General Lei Chenghu withheld his own flesh and blood's application for resources without approving it. He was not even willing to give a single 'Jin Dan activation drug' to his youngest son. He even forbade him to break into the Jin Dan level time and time again!"
Li Yao was dazed. "Why?"
"General Lei said that he knew his own son best. His youngest son's talents were mediocre, his aptitude was mediocre, and his body structure was extremely poor. He was not a material for training at all and was destined to be a 'hominoid'."
Li Linghai explained, "As it turned out, it was his family who secretly consumed tremendous resources to cleanse his youngest son's veins and nerves and stimulate his spiritual root without his knowledge. Eventually, with astronomical crystals and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, his youngest son finally reached the Core Formation Stage.
"Although his youngest son became an Immortal Cultivator in the Core Formation Stage, it was still a serious waste considering that so many resources were consumed for nothing. If those resources were not wasted on his youngest son but distributed to the 'right people', say, those who were born in the poor class but had high potential in training, it was possible that ten Core Formation Stage cultivators or one Yuanying Stage cultivator would've been raised.
"Right now, his youngest son overestimated himself and tried to break into the Jin Dan level. According to his repeated evaluations, the odds of success were very low and no higher than 5%. In most cases, tremendous resources would be wasted again and the overall interests of the Imperium would be harmed.
"The so-called true path of immortality is to break the deceitful, hypocritical ethics of the old days and allocate the precious resources to the right people in the coldest and most ruthless way so that the entire civilization could move forward at a high speed.
"In short, only the strong are qualified to receive resources. The weak do not deserve them at all, and they should not waste any resources at all.
"His youngest son was a weakling and a piece of garbage. It was already his greatest concession as a father that he did not allow his son to live the rest of his life as a 'hominoid'. As the commander of the Thunder Fleet and a general of the Imperium of True Human Beings, he would not allow such a waste of resources to happen again.
"Therefore, he hoped that his youngest son would completely give up on the idea and keep his Cultivation in the middle level of the Core Formation Stage in peace. Then, with such a capability, he could sacrifice himself and serve the country loyally!"
Li Yao was dumbfounded. "Huh?"
This General Lei Chenghu was a bit too … unreasonable, wasn't he?
Although 'optimal allocation of resources' was indeed the truth for the civilization of mankind to continue in the dark universe, such an approach was truly cruel!
"Don't think that General Lei is just bragging."
Li Linghai said casually, "That's exactly what General Lei thinks, says, and does.
"He had defended the frontline for a hundred years and made countless contributions. The Council of Elders never owed him anything in terms of contributions or resources, and they hoped to win him over with a high salary. Therefore, both in the name of the Council of Elders and in the name of the four Kurfürst families, too many resources and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures were given to him as rewards, gifts, or allocations.
"If he had kept all those things, even if they were piled up by force, his offspring and his bloodline would've been raised into experts above average.
"But he only kept one-tenth of them for himself and his family at best. The other ninety percent were all sent to the bottom-level soldiers in the frontline and to the officers and soldiers who were born in poverty and did not have enough resources but distinguished themselves in battles.
"After a hundred years of selfless training, a lot of officers in the fleets of the expedition army in the frontline have received General Lei's favor. Some of the officers whose fate was changed because of the favor a hundred years ago have even climbed to the leadership of their own fleets. General Lei's prestige is half earned through fighting, and the other half is earned through such efforts."
Li Yao was greatly moved. He was dazed for a long time before he asked, "Then … what happened to General Lei's youngest son later?"
"He died."
Li Linghai said casually, "Although General Lei forbade his youngest son from breaking into the Jin Dan level time and time again, in a world where the strong prey on the weak, who can resist the temptation to be stronger? General Lei's youngest son collected resources in secret and risked his life to break into the level. In the end, he was mentally deranged and died.
"It is said that he was not killed on the spot when he was mentally deranged. If tremendous resources were invested, it was still possible to save him. But it was General Lei who pronounced the death of his youngest son in person. General Lei said that it was unnecessary to waste the resources of the country for such a lofty, incompetent, and incompetent piece of garbage whose mind was controlled by ambition.
"General Lei said that while looking at his youngest son's face. Soon after he finished his sentence, his youngest son vomited blood and died."
Li Yao was already soaked in cold sweat after hearing that.
"What kind of Immortal Cultivator is he?"
He asked in disbelief again.
"That's what a real Immortal Cultivator should be like. That's what the true path of immortality should be like!"
Reverence and admiration popped up in Li Linghai's eyes again. "If he were not such a selfless and honorable man, how could he have led the civilization of mankind to break the siege of darkness? How could he have boasted that the true path of immortality was definitely more advanced than the true path of the Cultivators?"
Li Yao did not want to argue with Li Linghai on the topic. Pondering for a moment, he said, "All in all, I've already understood that this General Lei Chenghu is indeed a critical mission in the military and even the entire Imperium. If he can be rescued successfully and he supports the reformists wholeheartedly, there will be hope for the cause of 'Honor the Majesty and Settle the Rebellions'!"
"Yes. In the past, General Lei still had illusions about the Council of Elders. We never dared to get in touch with him, much less reveal our real strength and purpose to him."
Li Linghai narrowed his eyes and declared resolutely, "But right now, we have nowhere to go. As the saying goes, an arrow on the bow must be shot out. No matter what the price is, we must rescue General Lei Chenghu!"
"Then, where has General Lei been invited to 'assist in the investigation'?" Li Yao asked.
Li Linghai glanced at Li Yao weirdly and said, "You just breached the beehive prison in Manjusaka, the City in the Sky.
"However, the defense of the beehive prison is among the top five in the entire Imperium.
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