Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 242: Li Yulong Declares Himself Emperor
Kaiping County’s administrative center, Luquan Prefecture—Li Yulong sat high in the central seat, with Li Liang seated to his left. The two were listening to reports from their subordinates.
After hearing the report, Li Liang couldn’t help but exclaim, “Father, we should send troops to assist. Otherwise, it will be very difficult for my younger brother to withstand an army of a million alone.”
Li Yulong did not respond immediately but remained deep in thought. After a long silence, he finally smiled and said, “A million-strong army? If there were truly a million soldiers, all united with a single will, then they would indeed be terrifying. But the so-called million-strong army we are dealing with now is nothing more than a rabble—nothing to worry about.
Moreover, after this battle, the various warlords will lose two to three-tenths of their fighting strength.
This is the perfect opportunity! I shall ascend the throne, perform the imperial rites, and establish my reign as Emperor!”
Upon hearing this, Yang Zhong immediately stepped forward to dissuade him. “Master, this must not be! There is an old saying: ‘Build high walls, stockpile grain, and delay proclaiming kingship.’ It is too soon to declare yourself king.”
Li Yulong stood up proudly, his back straight as a pillar of white jade supporting the sky. “There is another saying: ‘Hesitation in times of decision leads to chaos.’ Now is the perfect opportunity! If we miss this chance, it will be extremely difficult to find another like it in the future.
If power is fragmented among multiple factions, and their strength is evenly matched, then of course, we should ‘build high walls, stockpile grain, and delay proclaiming kingship.’
However, if we hold an absolute advantage while our enemies are at an absolute disadvantage, then we should strike swiftly, cutting through the chaos in one decisive move. If I am to declare myself Emperor, then I must act with imperial resolve!
I have already made my decision. The name of my dynasty shall be ‘Tang,’ symbolizing prosperity, vastness, and flourishing strength. Luquan Prefecture will serve as the imperial capital for now, though we may move it later as needed.
I shall be the Grand Ancestor. Li Liang shall be the Crown Prince. Li Xian shall be ennobled as the Virtuous King and will govern Anyang. Li Wei shall be appointed Grand General and will temporarily oversee the defense of the imperial capital.
Within the Tang Empire, we shall adopt a dual-governance system. Anyang shall be under the rule of the Virtuous King, and no one shall interfere in its administration.”
The sheer dominance of Li Yulong’s words electrified the entire room. Everyone straightened their backs, their eyes shining with enthusiasm. Founding ministers of a new empire could enjoy far greater fortune and blessings—often twice as much as in ordinary circumstances. For example, in a nation the size of Great Xia, the founding ministers could typically reach the Nascent Soul stage in cultivation. However, in a country ten times the size of Great Xia, founding ministers could ascend to the Soul Transformation stage!
As long as the empire was established, their cultivation would advance significantly. Compared to painstaking cultivation with uncertain results, this was a much more promising path!
Just then, a guard suddenly entered. “Report! A messenger has arrived from Anyang, bringing three thousand bottles of rare treasure.”
Treasure? Bottles? Since when could treasures be measured in ‘bottles’?
Many people were confused, but Li Yulong’s eyes lit up instantly, and he immediately ordered the messenger to be brought in.
Soon, Cheng Jiming entered, leading ten men, each carrying a finely crafted sandalwood box. Arriving before the throne, Cheng Jiming cupped his hands and reported, “Master, the young master has sent me to deliver 3,000 bottles of Foundation Establishment Liquid for your inspection.”
“Foundation Establishment Liquid?” The assembled officials exchanged bewildered glances.
“I’ve heard of Foundation Establishment Pills—have you ever heard of Foundation Establishment Liquid?”
“Never!”
Three thousand bottles of Foundation Establishment Liquid—it sounded impressive, but could it possibly compare to three thousand Foundation Establishment Pills? That would be utterly insane.
But the reality was even more shocking than they imagined.
Li Yulong opened a bottle, tasted a drop, and immediately evaluated it. “Not bad. Excellent, in fact. The medicinal efficacy is almost equivalent to a high-grade Foundation Establishment Pill. Just 10 milliliters of this liquid holds nearly twice the potency of an average Foundation Establishment Pill. How much can Anyang currently produce?”
Cheng Jiming answered immediately, “One thousand bottles per day, each containing 10 milliliters.”
“The price?”
“The market price is set at 100,000 taels of gold per bottle.”
Foundation Establishment Liquid? The surrounding officials’ eyes shone with greed. Every family had children, after all! As for the 100,000 tael price tag—well, that was for outsiders. Surely, it would be much cheaper internally.
As expected, Li Yulong then asked, “What is the production cost?”
Cheng Jiming glanced around and finally spoke hesitantly. “Less than ten taels of gold.”
In truth, he wanted to say that it cost less than one tael of silver.
Creak… Even Li Yulong couldn’t help but grit his teeth. This cost was simply too shocking. This was Foundation Establishment medicine—no, it was even superior to Foundation Establishment Pills—and yet its production cost was less than ten taels of gold?
The main ingredients of the Foundation Establishment Pill: century-old Purple Lingzhi, century-old Immaculate Flower, and century-old Earth Spirit Ginseng. None of these spirit materials cost less than thirty to fifty thousand taels. Some people also use the demon cores of demonic beasts for alchemy, which costs around one hundred thousand taels. The base cost of a single Foundation Establishment Pill is roughly around one hundred thousand taels of gold.
However, in reality, one hundred thousand taels of gold is merely the cost price. The actual selling price often exceeds three hundred thousand taels, and even then, it is difficult to obtain. Besides their rarity, there is always a failure rate in alchemy.
Fortunately, Li Yulong was well-traveled and knowledgeable. He quickly calmed himself and asked, “How will we conduct transactions in the future?”
Business is business. Even though they were father and son, Li Yulong could not simply take whatever he wanted.
Cheng Jiming finally let out a sigh of relief. “Ten taels of gold per bottle. But if sold externally, the price cannot be lower than one hundred thousand taels of gold.”
Li Yulong calculated briefly and said, “I plan to proclaim myself emperor in ten days, right when a million-strong army besieges Anyang. I will need twenty thousand bottles of Foundation Establishment Liquid.”
“That’s possible,” Cheng Jiming agreed without hesitation. At present, Foundation Establishment Liquid was being produced at a rate of fifty liters per day, which equated to five thousand bottles. This production rate was rapidly increasing. Once the production line was completed, the output wouldn’t be five thousand bottles per day but five thousand liters instead. Well, that was a long-term goal.
After Cheng Jiming left, Li Yulong scanned the room. “Everyone, do you want Foundation Establishment Liquid?”
Everyone present was quick-witted and immediately swore an oath to keep everything they had learned today an absolute secret. Once they had all sworn, Li Yulong finally smiled. “I, Li Yulong, am not an unreasonable person. Here, each of you will receive five bottles—how you use them is up to you.”
“In the future, Foundation Establishment Liquid will be distributed as part of your salaries. First-rank officials will receive ten bottles per year, with amounts decreasing by rank down to the third rank. Officials below the third rank will instead receive increased gold salaries but no liquid rewards.
However, each year, the top one hundred officials below the third rank will be selected and awarded.”
As days passed, for the next ten days, Anyang continued to deliver around two thousand bottles of Foundation Establishment Liquid daily. Both in Anyang and Kaiping County, the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators was skyrocketing.
In just a few days, Anyang had assembled an elite force composed entirely of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Each soldier was fully equipped, not only with high-grade magical artifacts but also with low-tier magical treasure-grade flying swords. In addition, they carried various talismans, grenades, and firearms—each was essentially a sniper.
Kaiping County, of course, could not match the extravagance of Anyang, but it still managed to organize two elite forces of around ten thousand men each, all at the Foundation Establishment level. They, too, were fully armed with magical equipment.
This setup was already considered extremely luxurious, but in comparison to Anyang, it seemed somewhat lacking. Nevertheless, Li Yulong was quite satisfied.
As the countdown ended, the eleventh day finally arrived. At midday, Ling Zhifeng personally traveled from Anyang to Kaiping County to preside over the enthronement and the Heaven-worshipping ceremony. Everything was still in its early stages, and even Li Yulong lacked an official Taoist master, so he temporarily borrowed Ling Zhifeng from Li Xian.
Noon was approaching…
Dressed in a golden robe, Li Yulong was reviewing intelligence reports: the million-strong army had begun mobilizing, Jin Nation was starting to act restlessly, and neighboring countries were eyeing the situation with interest.
As he read, Ling Zhifeng suddenly shouted, “The time has come—worship the Heavens!”