This layer is temporarily transparent 86 Followers 1st Floor "Savagery always destroys civilization, but after that, civilization will replace savagery." In the headquarters temple of the Dark Church within the Thirteen-Star Domain, Black Jack—wearing a triple obsidian crown, leaning on a staff, clad in a black velvet robe cinched with a golden belt, with a rosary made of ruby, sapphire, and emerald beads around his neck, and eighteen gemstone rings adorning his fingers—held forth before the supreme beings of the dark creatures gathered in the temple hall.

Ten oak long tables were neatly arranged within the temple, covered with crisp white tablecloths. Whale oil blazed in the pure silver candelabra, emitting an ambiguous, warm fragrance that illuminated the temple hall brightly. Exquisite porcelain tableware was laden with various fine wines and dishes, their aromas rising in tendrils to gather near the hazy statues of gods and demons at the hall's apex, forming a misty ambiance.

With a mere wave of his hand, a cascade of glittering jewels appeared. Black Jack gazed contentedly at his dazzling hand, then deliberately handed his staff to the demure, long-lashed maiden attending him. He slowly picked up a small sliver of otoro sashimi with ivory chopsticks.

Hundreds of the highest-ranking figures among the dark creatures—the Grand Chieftains and Patriarchs—stared intently at Black Jack. Emulating him, they grabbed the ivory chopsticks before them, adopting an equally slow and deliberate air of nobility, and tentatively lifted a piece of rich, fatty fish belly.

Of course, for massive dark creatures like the Minotaur Grand Chieftain and Patriarch, their dining tables, cutlery, and even their ivory chopsticks were custom-made. The chopsticks were carved from entire tusks, and the sashimi on the porcelain plate before them weighed at least two pounds—it was practically a neat slab of fish meat!

With studied elegance, Black Jack dipped the sashimi onto his small side dish of wasabi and placed it in his mouth, chewing silently. He chewed with such refined grace, savoring the taste.

Thus, the hundreds of powerful dark creatures slowly began to chew the wasabi-laced sashimi. A few whose sensory systems were particularly acute shed hot tears—they had added far, far too much wasabi.

Swallowing the morsel with a soft gulp, Black Jack set down his ivory chopsticks and slowly dabbed his clean lips with a napkin. In unison, all the dark creatures gracefully picked up the napkins before them and lightly wiped the corners of their mouths. For races as large as the Minotaurs, their napkins were the size of other folk's bedsheets.

"Distinguished sirs, you are all of noble blood, descendants of the gods!"

Black Jack tilted his neck slightly and spoke softly. "In the entire universe, no one possesses lineage as noble as yours, Your Excellencies."

All the dark creatures nodded repeatedly. Indeed, after Black Jack’s reminder, they realized their lineage was beyond description in its nobility! Descendants of the gods—they were direct descendants, and among them, the purest in blood, the strongest in power, and the mightiest in authority.

"With such noble blood," Black Jack stated calmly, "you should possess a corresponding aristocratic bearing."

"These few days spent among you, I, your humble servant, have shown you many things, allowing you to grasp that the development history of the Human Civilization of the Earth Federation is a historical process where civilization replaces barbarism, and progress supplants backwardness."

Black Jack gently spread his hands, adopting a rakish posture, and cast a gaze upon the assembly that made the dark creatures’ faces burn with shame. "It is hard to imagine that even after countless millennia of development, you still cling to social systems of feudal farming, feudal herding, and feudal serfdom."

All the dark creatures drooped their heads. Yes, it was truly embarrassing.

After decades of conflict with the Radiant Church, in the early years, the armies of the dark creatures roared, eager to fight the Angel Legions to the death. But as Black Jack gradually introduced them to novelties, their desire for war slowly waned. By recent years, they had even begun to imitate the airs of nouveau riche aristocrats.

These dark lords now wore high-end brand underwear from the Earth Federation and silk pajamas when resting. They used hot wax to remove excess body hair, and high-tech whitening products made their once coarse skin fair and smooth. Compared to young lasses, they had even learned to use condoms when intimate with their women if they wished to avoid leaving a trace—rather than kicking the woman out after she became pregnant, as before.

The lords' habits had become civilized—perhaps even excessively so.

In the past, when eating, a piece of roast meat and a clay pot of broth constituted a lavish meal. Having a few pieces of fruit for dessert was a sign of a truly refined race. Their ancestors had lived this way for myriads of years, and these dark creatures had lived the same way; if nothing unexpected occurred, their descendants would continue thus.

But now? Their tables featured French baguettes—whole-grain bread made from wheat bran. Every meal must begin with an appetizer, either a salad made from fresh greens or a few slices of delicious cured fish. The main course must be paired with fine wine—mind you, fine wine, not the homemade ethanol used by the dark creatures as a primary component for incendiary bombs.

The Earth Federation boasted many wonderful traditional wine brands, which the dark lords readily embraced. More refined races, like the Foxmen and the Blood Kin, preferred red wine, white wine, and Champagne. The more robust races, such as the Minotaurs and the Giants, had developed a taste for vodka, Erguotou, and Shaodaozi. Of course, there were exceptions. Why had the comparatively backward and savage Earthlings achieved such astonishing change in such a short time?

The dark creatures wrestled with this question. Their various races had spanned countless millennia, and they had lived as their ancestors did, with almost no variation. Their wisest individuals had pondered this issue for ages, yet arrived at no conclusion.

All eyes fixed upon Black Jack, hoping he would offer an answer.

Waving the napkin in his hand, Black Jack sprang up, hopping onto the table, gesticulating wildly as he shouted: "Because of gold coins! Because of gold coins! Because of gold coins! Because of banknotes! Because of banknotes! Because of banknotes!"

"Desire! It is all desire! It is the desire to pursue gold coins that has stimulated such rapid change!"

"For gold coins, they will stop at nothing; for gold coins, they will give everything; for gold coins, they can destroy everything or invent everything. To profit from the lustful, Earthlings invented brothels. To profit from the hungry, Earthlings invented restaurants. To profit from their voyaging kin, Earthlings invented steamships."

Taking a deep breath, Black Jack spat as he declared: "To ensure their manufactured brilliance fetches a higher price, to get more users to purchase the coffins they build, the biggest coffin proprietors among the Earthlings even united to instigate two World Wars!"

"At the root of it all, everything is for money! That is why there is desire, and that is the driving force behind progress!"

"And, my noble sirs, do your people possess pursuit? Do they possess desire?"

"Yes, of course they do! But how primitive their pursuits are, how devoid of future prospects!"

"Oh, the so-called title of 'Warrior of the Clan' that they chase—is that title worth anything?"

"They chase the so-called most beautiful woman in the clan! But with ample money, beauties can be bought at will!"

"Their pursuits are primitive, naive, and contradict the dialectical thinking of physiological and productive relationship evolution."

The faces of all the dark lords flushed hot. Indeed, this seemed to be the way of the younglings in their clans.

No, it was all dark creatures! Generation after generation, hadn't their development only been for vanity titles, for snatching a few beautiful maidens? Generation after generation, hadn't their advancement only been to win face and capture females?

But can money change everything?

No, money alone cannot change everything, but Black Jack's theory of money can!

Waving gold coins wildly, Black Jack roared: "Everything must change! Everything must be changed!"

"The primitive, backward life of farming and herding is unsuitable for the mighty you! Establish your kingdoms! Establish your own societal rules and systems! Establish a complete framework, establish a strict, effective hierarchy of classes! That is the most important thing!"

"A nation is a car, and money is the gasoline that makes the car run faster and farther! Once you possess a complete nation, money can reign supreme! With a complete social structure, once all your kin understand the benefits of money, they will strive to earn it."

"When the initiative of every individual is heightened, Your Excellencies, you will surely flourish."

Under the enthusiastic gazes of the lords, Black Jack formulated a complete set of social rules for their tribal alliance.

The Emperor of the Empire would be jointly elected by the various tribes, supplemented by a complex arena combat system. The Emperor would change every 60 years. The Emperor would hold the absolute right to life and death over all imperial subjects. The Empire's nobility would possess a certain—note the word, certain—exemption right.

The original alliance of dark creature races functioned as an equal confederation; they would unite against external enemies and work together to face threats. But with the structure of the Dark Empire, which Black Jack was maliciously designing, conflicts would inevitably erupt among the various dark creature races soon enough. Who wouldn't want to become Emperor? Who wouldn't desire the power of life and death over other races?

Black Jack meticulously planned every aspect of the Dark Empire's institutions. His system was guaranteed to make the dark creatures fight amongst themselves, plunging them into endless internal strife. Once all the dark creatures accepted the concept of the Dark Empire, they would be doomed—they would never again be able to function as a cohesive, powerful entity.

And Black Jack, shamelessly using his years of practical experience in operations as justification, appointed himself the Imperial Minister of Finance for the Dark Empire.

The dagger was drawn. All of Black Jack's hard work and tremendous effort over these decades to transform the dark creatures were for this very day.

The Minister of Finance of the Dark Empire—and a Minister with no term limit!

With Black Jack's methods, it wouldn't take long before the countless subjects of the Dark Empire became indentured servants.

The mere thought of commanding tens of billions of dark creatures to work like beasts of burden, generating wealth for him—this grand, unprecedented plan made Black Jack tremble with excitement.

It was perfect; it was utterly villainous. Let these muscle-brained, foolish dark creatures become his laborers.

Because Black Jack had served them diligently over the years, displaying unique capabilities and charm, the dark lords—who had no concept of finance or economics, knowing only the most rudimentary rules of barter—easily passed the resolution appointing Black Jack. Black Jack successfully became the Minister of Finance of the Dark Empire.

Two months later, when Gu Xiechen secretly came to find Black Jack, the construction of the Dark Empire was largely complete.