The commoners timidly raised their heads.

The figure of the Southern lord entered the people’s eyes, the bonfire burned in the night, illuminating the side face of the gray-haired youth.

This leader was neither as fierce and tall as the commoners imagined, nor did he have the rumored sharp teeth, two heads, and three pairs of arms.

He was young, handsome, with a serious expression. Perhaps it was his standing on higher ground, surrounded by soldiers, that gave the youth a distinguished aura the commoners had never seen before.

"Stand up! There has never been a noble lord worshipped on the land of the Ark Territory!"

Lin Lan reminded once again, slightly increasing the intensity in his tone: "I am not a lord! Neither are the warriors! And neither will you be in the future!"

Lin Lan didn’t intend to be a tyrant free to command at will.

Facing curses, disasters, and even the end that devours civilization, what he needed was a group of people who understood the essence of survival, not ignorant slaves.

If the people of the Ark are to carry the legacy of the giant civilization towards the sun’s blessing, they must possess enough willpower and their own beliefs!

The commoners stood up in confusion, completely unaware of the intentions of the prominent figure before them.

Lin Lan gazed into the people’s uneasy eyes, carefully choosing his words.

He noticed that the closer to the Northern Border Royal Court, the more timid and humble the kingdom’s commoners became.

The distorted kingdom system had tamed them into lambs ready for slaughter, skinned and dissected when alive, and their souls used as fuel for the Celestial Calamity after death.

Many commoners from the Eastern Border or Northern Border would even voluntarily offer their blood and flesh, willingly becoming the guard dogs of the nobles, raising their butcher’s knives against their companions, and taking pride in it for generations.

Becoming their master was easy, but changing their deeply entrenched mindset was a monumental task.

It’s time to shatter this notion!

Lin Lan didn’t have time for gradual change, Ark would use the most forceful methods, propelled by blood and fire to advance civilization, even if the path was paved with countless corpses.

Lin Lan paused for a moment, clearing his throat.

"Listen well, from now on, everything related to ’Lion Heart’ is our enemy!"

He announced loudly, his tone resonating powerfully: "Lion Heart Royal Court is the source of the Blood Plague tragedy, Lion Heart nobility are the vicious dogs raised by the Royal Court. As long as these scoundrels in human skin exist in this world, the people of the kingdom will always live in the shadows of death!"

"Therefore, they are all targets we must eliminate in the future!"

At this moment, Lin Lan’s words were as cold as winter’s ice: "At the same time, Ark Country will also start clearing the Blood Plague disaster left by Arthur, we will never allow the so-called ’former King’s calamity’ to continue plaguing the world!"

Many elders turned pale upon hearing this, their bodies trembling, aware that those caught in disputes among the powerful never ended well.

If Lord Roland were to fail, everyone would surely face the most tragic outcome.

But some young people, including Yuna, clenched their fists instead.

Because the warriors under Lord Roland were truly strong...

They would even voluntarily go to places shrouded by the former King’s calamity, using incredibly terrifying golden flames to kill those fearsome beast tides, giving them an unprecedented sense of security.

As for the ’elite troops’ of the noble lords, they had been cleaned up long ago by Jay with the warriors.

Lord Roland’s words seemed to ignite a spark in the young people’s eyes.

"Lord... Lord... Please... Please allow me to remind you..."

At this moment, an elder stepped forward, displaying a fearless expression, gritting his teeth and trembling: "Without the noble lords, we will surely starve to death..."

"Oh? Why then?"

Lin Lan smiled, seemingly encouraging the other to continue.

"It’s... it’s the noble lords who give us land to cultivate, allow certain people to fish by the sea, and protect the merchants who pay taxes..."

The elder stammered: "Without the rules set by the lords, people will surely deceive each other, snatch food from one another, cut each other down, I’ve seen it myself, the world would fall into chaos, it would fall into chaos..."

If the Southern lord didn’t become the esteemed king, without the supreme Royal Court, without the management of the noble lords, people wouldn’t know fear, wouldn’t know what the correct rules are...

Oh lord! How terrifying that would be!

Old Pete simply couldn’t imagine the terrifying chaos of such a world.

As these words were spoken, the militias around Shattered Star showed a look of helplessness.

In fact, logistic personnel from the Southern Territory had long instilled in Eastern Border commoners Lord Roland’s practices, the Priests preached daily until dry-mouthed, but many older commoners were more stubborn than expected.

And Ed had strictly forbidden soldiers to have any conflict with blameless commoners.

A few days ago, a hot-headed young Decurion scolded the ignorant old man and was immediately reprimanded by Jay.

The warriors looked up but found that the usually firm Lord Roland was neither angry nor scowling at Old Pete.

The gray-haired youth instead showed a remarkably focused expression, as if seriously considering the other man’s opinion.