Zhou Fan was wearing a magnificent robe of golden silk intricately embroidered with a coiled golden dragon. The dragon seemed alive, and it was exuding an aura of majesty and tranquil power.

Her appearance matched the splendor of the robe.

Zhou Fan's face was exquisite, exceptionally beautiful, with bright and deep star-like eyes. Her gaze seemed capable of seeing through one's soul.

Her eyebrows were long and arched, giving her an imposing demeanor.

Today, however, her face was extremely cold as if shrouded in frost. As soon as she appeared, a bone-chilling coldness enveloped the area, leaving everyone present trembling in their boots.

When Zhou Fan arrived, Li Yue and his group dared not act recklessly. They immediately stopped what they were doing and bowed slightly. Around them, the crowd also hastened to bow in respect.

The bustling street suddenly fell into an eerie silence.

Prime Minister Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

If Zhou Fan hadn't arrived, the situation would have spiraled out of control.

Zhou Fan ignored the respectful bows of the Great Zhou elites around her. She calmly walked over to the table where Ye Guan and Ye An were seated and sat down.

Glancing at Ye Guan and Zang Gang beside him, Zhou Fan's gaze paused on Ye Guan. A faint sense of déjà vu stirred within her.

Ye Guan's expression remained calm as he took a sip of his beer.

Retracting her gaze, Zhou Fan turned to Ye An and smiled. "This is our first meeting, isn't it?"

Ye An fixed her gaze on Zhou Fan. "I'm here for an explanation. Your people tried to silence me—kill me, even. I cannot tolerate that."

Zhou Fan turned to look at Zhou Di on the ground. When Zhou Di met her gaze, his expression changed drastically, and his eyes became filled with desperation and pleading.

Zhou Fan nodded slightly. "Sister, this matter is my fault. I failed to discipline my subordinates."

Ye An stared at Zhou Fan. "This empire and the Guanxuan Universe are both vast, so it's impossible for there to be no issues at all. However, I want to see how you're going to resolve this one."

Just then, Li Yue roared, "Young lady, show some respect! The Empress of the Great Zhou stands before you—"

Ye An raised her hand—

Swoosh!

—And Li Yue was instantly pinned to the spot by a spear.

The Great Zhou clan elites were furious. They got prepared to strike, but Zhou Fan abruptly stood up and exclaimed, "Guards!"

Boom!

At her command, nearly a thousand elite Shence Army materialized around them.

Zhou Fan's face was expressionless. "Zhou Di has committed severe violations of the Guanxuan Laws. He is to be executed immediately. Carry out the sentence now!"

The crowd was stunned.

Execute him immediately?

Zhou Fan turned toward a Shence Army Commander standing nearby. "

Hmm?

"

The commander's face turned pale. He hesitated for a moment before approaching Zhou Di.

The terrified Zhou Di let out muffled cries.

Li Yue suddenly stepped forward and bowed deeply. "Your Majesty, a-are you really going to execute the Fourth Prince?"

Zhou Fan looked at him.

Li Yue stammered, "Y-your Majesty, even if the Fourth Prince is at fault, he's still a member of the imperial family. Despite that, you've actually decided to execute him rather than help him, even though he was humiliated by these people?

"Aren't you worried that your actions might chill the hearts of the people?"

"Don't worry," Zhou Fan stared at Li Yue. "I'll make sure that you'll accompany him."

A flash of killing intent crossed her eyes as she coldly commanded, "Guards, execute Li Yue and his followers as well. Execute them now."

Li Yue and his group were dumbfounded.

The Shence Army Commander dared not hesitate. He approached Zhou Di and, after a brief pause, drove his spear mercilessly into Zhou Di's forehead.

Swoosh!

Zhou Di's eyes widened as blood gushed from his brow.

Meanwhile, the Shence Army troops charged at Li Yue and his group.

Li Yue finally realized that he was in danger. He turned to Zhou Fan in terror and muttered, "Your Majesty, you…"

Zhou Fan remained expressionless.

Although Li Yue and his followers were elites from prominent families and clans within the Great Zhou, their strength was nowhere near that of the Shence Army.

The moment the Shence Army made a move, a massacre unfolded.

Thousands of them had been preparing to attack Ye An earlier, and in just ten breaths, they were all slaughtered. There were so many corpses that their blood soaked the streets.

The people of the Great Zhou were dumbstruck.

Although Zhou Yan and Chen Xiao were spared, they were utterly paralyzed with fear.

They could never have imagined that the Empress of Great Zhou would go to such lengths. They hadn't anticipated that she would kill her own brother and slaughter so many of the Great Zhou's elite families and clans.

Had she gone mad?

At the table, Ye An stared at Zhou Fan without speaking.

Zang Gang's eyes turned red upon seeing so much blood. She licked her lips and tried to bite her own tongue to devour it, but Ye Guan promptly stopped her.

"Hang the bodies here on the gates of the Imperial City," Zhou Fan commanded.

The soldiers obeyed without hesitation.

Soon, thousands of corpses were hung on the gates of the Great Zhou Imperial City, leaving onlookers pale in horror.

On the street, Ye An stared at Zhou Fan for a while. Then, he took out a kettle and placed it in front of her, along with a pack of instant noodles and a bottle of beer.

Zhou Fan opened the beer, took a sip of it, and said, "Not bad."

Ye An nodded. "It's from the Milky Way."

Zhou Fan nodded in understanding and replied, "I can't be blameless as well."

"No," Ye An retorted, "As I said, managing an empire and a universe this vast is no small feat. Mistakes are inevitable. If every leader resigned at the first sign of trouble, the world would descend into chaos."

Then, Ye An turned to Ye Guan, asking, "Am I right?"

Zhou Fan looked at Ye Guan with surprise.

"You're right." Ye Guan nodded. He turned to Zhou Fan and said, "This problem isn't unique to the Great Zhou and the Guanxuan Universe. Every civilization is bound to face similar issues. What are your thoughts on this, Miss Zhou?"

Zhou Fan asked, "May I know your name, sir?"

Ye Guan stayed silent.

Ye An replied in a matter-of-factly way, "Call him Ye Goudan[1]!"

Ye Guan and Zhou Fan were both speechless.

After a brief moment of silence, Zhou Fan said, "The core of the conflict between the civilizations and the Guanxuan Universe lies in this known universe's relative weakness.

"The Guanxuan Universe does have top-tier powerhouses, but they're rarely present, and most people don't know about them. This means that they aren't that strong of a deterrent.

"Truth be told, every civilization respects strength. If they believed that the Guanxuan Universe could easily destroy them, they would naturally submit to it."

Ye Guan was silent. This was indeed the case. The Guanxuan Universe's top powerhouses rarely appeared, leaving its overall strength unconvincing to other civilizations. Meanwhile, the lower and middle ranks were still lacking in power.

Zhou Fan added, "Of course, this cannot be resolved overnight. The Guanxuan Universe is developing rapidly, but raising the overall strength of a civilization takes time. There is, however, a temporary solution."

Ye Guan asked, "What is it?"

"The Academy Master."

Ye Guan frowned. "The Academy Master?"

Zhou Fan nodded. "As long as the Academy Master's strength is formidable enough and his reputation is widespread, he can deter the other civilizations from making any trouble."

"Right now, the issue is that the Academy Master's fame is mostly confined to the territories of the Guanxuan Universe. Beyond that…" Zhou Fan trailed off.

Ye Guan fell silent. Indeed, he had encountered many strong individuals from other civilizations, and most of them were top-tier powerhouses. He had killed many of them, so his name couldn't spread outside the Guanxuan Universe.

Zhou Fan added, "This, too, takes time. The Academy Master not only needs to grow stronger personally, but he must also elevate the overall strength of the Guanxuan Universe. As the universe's strength grows, so will its reputation, and the Academy Master's fame will naturally follow."

"It's going to take a lot of time," Zhou Fan added.

Ye Guan nodded. "Indeed."

Zhou Fan turned to Ye An. "I have some matters to attend to. Let's have dinner together tonight."

Ye An agreed. "Sure."

Once Zhou Fan was out of sight, Ye Guan muttered, "Sister, this world is too complicated."

Ye An replied calmly, "Finding it difficult now?"

Ye Guan nodded.

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Managing a universe wasn't as simple as being invincible. Human nature was complex. The policies could be good for those at the top, but they would often be distorted by the time they reached the bottom.

Ye An said, "Father is smart. He passed the burden to his son. Do you want to do the same?"

Ye Guan laughed. "Our Yang Family has a habit of passing trouble to our children. And that cycle stops with me."

Ye An seriously asked, "This is your path, isn't it?"

After a long pause, Ye Guan said, "It is."

Ye An nodded. "Grandfather established Order, but he didn't walk that path. Father did the same. If you succeed, you'll surpass them both."

Ye Guan smiled. "Really?"

Ye An nodded and stood up. "Come on, let's take a walk."

Ye Guan pulled Zang Gang along and followed her.

***

Elsewhere.

Zhou Fan returned to the Imperial Palace.

Prime Minister Yuan, hesitating behind her, finally spoke. "Your Majesty, some members of the noble families and clans are spreading rumors outside, claiming that you only care about the Guanxuan Universe and not the Great Zhou…"

Zhou Fan said calmly, "What do you think?"

Prime Minister Yuan sighed. "Your Majesty is saving the Great Zhou."

He knew that if Zhou Fan hadn't made a move, Ye An would have erupted in fury, and the consequences would have been far more devastating.

Zhou Fan indifferently remarked, "They claim I only care about the Guanxuan Universe and not the Great Zhou. They are not lying. The Great Zhou is part of the Guanxuan Universe.

"In the future, this known universe will belong to the Guanxuan Universe!"

Prime Minister Yuan hesitated. "But those noble families and clans…"

Zhou Fan flatly replied, "Kill them. Kill another bunch of them, and then hang them all on the city walls."

1. Ye Dog Egg ☜