Abyss Solo

"Will they tell me the truth? They humor me, deceive me, treat me like a mascot, an actor, displaying me in front of the Empire's public."

The Old Emperor's expression grew increasingly sullen.

"I dare assert, there's only one way to become a real Emperor and regain control of the Emperor Guard."

"And that's to dismantle that round table."

"I know, it sounds insane, as they are all my elders and a terrifying force that holds nearly all resources of the Empire, there's only one way to defeat them, Hanton, as you said, to destroy them... destroy them practically."

"Tell me, Hanton, how did you know the location of that old man's body?"

Yang Ming replied: "The Faya people gave me a batch of data... probably two months ago."

"What? Faya?"

The Old Emperor was startled.

Yang Ming shrugged:

"Your Majesty, haven't you noticed? The Faya people are quite dissatisfied with the current situation of the Sherman Empire. Otherwise, during the Empire's expedition to the New Federation, the Faya people wouldn't have directly ordered the Free Federation and the Guel Alliance to launch attacks against the Imperial Expeditionary Army."

"The Empire's likelihood is too low."

"That's how I see it."

The Old Emperor frowned in deep thought, clasping his hands behind his back, he began to pace back and forth.

Yang Ming quietly waited beside him, his thoughts increasingly active.

Emperor-Sherman family-Elder Court, Military Department and other departments of the Empire, this is the Empire's core power system.

Most of the time, the Emperor is only symbolic, symbolizing that this country is a monarchy, not the people's and the liberty camps', thus passively increasing the people's tolerance to exploitation, while also somewhat enhancing the efficiency of this regime system's operation.

The primary conflict within the Empire has always been between the noble class and the civilian class, a long-accumulated powder keg.

This internal unrest of the Empire can be said to be Yang Ming's endeavor of [pre-war accumulation], further ignited by Sister Li."

At this moment, the Empire is extinguishing fires everywhere, which will intensify public distrust of the Empire, making people feel pressured about safety.

To pursue this route of internal turmoil within the Empire, continuous stimulation of the Imperial nobles and populace is necessary, leading to absolute opposition between them, and this widespread unrest is just a foundation.

This is part of the Challenger plan's content."

Yet now, Yang Ming, maneuvering within the Empire's power center, has discovered a shortcut."

The shortcut originates from a crack—between the Emperor and the Sherman family.

But Yang Ming equally understands that the Emperor is unreliable; this old man at heart is merely a mediocre Prince, only because he currently holds certain power, his inner desires are madly expanding.

He's neither a competent individual nor a good ally.

Yang Ming can only use the Emperor but shouldn't place too many chips and bets on him.

"Hanton, have you told anyone else these words?"

"No, Your Majesty," Yang Ming answered with his hands clasped, as if the flag of Faya Civilization rose above his head, "I think this isn't good news for the Empire, and my understanding is, the Faya people provided me with this intelligence to protect myself, as they look down upon certain decayed individuals within a low-dimensional human civilization."

"This is indeed a good opportunity to deny their legitimacy."

The Old Emperor muttered to himself, then looked at Yang Ming again, smiling:

"Alright, let's not dwell on this topic for now, it's hard to discuss thoroughly in such a short time, let's take a stroll around here, the scenery is quite nice."

Yang Ming nodded with a smile.

This Old Emperor is clearly a slow thinker, unable yet to devise any effective plan."

There's no rush, slowly waiting, he now has sufficient patience.

...

Yang Ming and Daphne's residence was arranged in the former Daphne's bedchambers within the Imperial Palace module."

When Yang Ming returned here, it was already deep night on the Emperor Star, the bedchamber remained quiet, with only a few maids moving around, arranging furniture and decorations."

Daphne was not resting.

She wore a thin, sexy, fitted fishtail dress, appearing casually with long hair, meticulously groomed and emitting a seductive fragrance."

When Yang Ming reached the bedroom, she emerged from the bath, smiling gently and offered a slight bow to Yang Ming.

"You've worked hard."

Yang Ming laughed: "Hmm, are there many such rituals in the Sherman family?"

"No, it's just that it seems very gentle."

Daphne gracefully moved forward, helping Yang Ming remove his formal attire, then bowed to remove his military boots, handing them to a nearby maid.

Yang Ming enjoyed the service of the Empire's Princess, feeling a slight sense of strangeness in his heart."

Yang Ming turned over to lie on the bed, asking, "During the time I accompanied His Majesty, did anything happen?"

"Which aspect specifically?"

Daphne sat by the bed, watching Yang Ming tenderly.

"The unrest across regions."

"As of now, the unrest has been suppressed, it took less than a few units of Galaxy Time for the turmoil within the Empire to temporarily calm down."

Daphne had clearly been following these matters, and her information was thoroughly arranged.

"But this suppression is military suppression, the discontent of the people has not disappeared, the conflicts have merely been pressed down, not resolved."

"To give a simple example, this is just increasing the pressure on a potentially explosive can."

"The most pressing issue now is how to stabilize the people's sentiment within the Empire, I've just noted that many political commentators and scholars are saying, if you could stand out, half of the pressure in the Empire's public opinion field would be reduced."