The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

2932, The Blue-Eyed Boy
Tatooine, the planet at the edge of Hutt space in the outer ring sector of the Milky Way.

This planet, a paradise for space pirates, adventurers, smugglers, mercenaries, and bounty hunters, has never changed.

Even though the Fourth Empire once extended its rule to this area, and even though the Hutts were gradually integrating under the leadership of the Gorensla family, the status quo of Tatooine remained unchanged.

Although the location is easily accessible, it is too remote... and the natural environment is harsh, with almost no natural resources.

It's not that there are none at all, but rather that the resources produced by Tatooine are completely useless in this interstellar age—low-strength, low-quality metal ores, and some chemical ores that can only be used for working fluid combustion, nothing more.

Moreover, Tatooine has a small population, but a huge transient population. Often, a planet with hundreds of thousands of inhabitants can increase to millions the next day.

The official population of Tatooine is currently listed as 200,000. But who knows when that data was collected, or where it came from?

Perhaps they were in an exploration spaceship, and they made a rough estimate after scanning the planet.

Therefore, this planet is almost strategically meaningless, and even the Fourth Empire never had a plan to completely occupy Tatooine.

Even now, Tatooine remains part of the Hutt space, and the Hutt Gorensla family merely maintains the status quo there.

Tatooine remains a lawless planet.

Over twenty years ago, Tatooine had two main cities—Mos Esley and Mos Espa. However, the long-running civil war among the Hutts brought even more war refugees to Tatooine.

Tatooine now has five cities, as well as many smaller villages and settlements.

Another important reason why this place can accommodate a larger population is the development of atmospheric modification technology by the Fourth Civilization.

Some civilian-grade equipment flowed into Tatooine and fell into the hands of some incredibly wealthy smuggling tycoons who used it to improve their living conditions, which in turn improved the planet's environment considerably.

Another, more direct method, is to transport icy asteroids from outer space and drop them onto Tatooine.

More water evaporation makes the planet's atmosphere thicker; it also adds a type of metallic particle that is lighter than Tatooine's air, which greatly increases the reflectivity of the planet's atmosphere, making the illumination from the two stars in the Tatooine system less deadly.

……

On Tatooine, outside the port of Mos Espa.

Here stands a rather simple house, square in shape, probably around 300 or 400 square meters. In this place where there is absolutely no urban planning, and basically whoever has the biggest fist can build a very large house, this simple house is, in a way, a symbol of power.

A boy of about twelve years old was slowly performing various poses in the yard, while Jing Fang stood beside him giving instructions.

“Remember, what you’re holding is a 1-meter-long lightsaber. Feel it, wield it,” Jing Fang said.

The boy had a pair of lake-blue eyes and was very handsome. He followed Jing Fang's words and slowly gestured, but then sighed and said, "No, Teacher Jing Fang, I clearly have nothing in my hand, so why should I pretend to have something? And you even told me it's 1 meter long."

Jing Fang smiled and said, "You can do it. Use your heart to feel it, not your eyes. Your eyes will deceive you, but the Force won't. Treat the Force as part of your body and extend it out—one meter long, no more, no less." "I'll try..." The boy closed his eyes, exhaled a long breath, and continued to slowly gesture.

Jing Fang nodded in satisfaction and said, "That's right. Feel the Force, let the Force tell you what you're holding. Then tell me, what can you touch from a distance of one meter?"

The boy did not answer, but continued gesturing.

Jing Fang was slightly moved, but he didn't say anything. It was obvious at this moment that the young man had already sensed it.

However, at that moment, he suddenly felt a strange tremor! He looked sharply at the boy's empty hand and saw that as the boy slowly moved his hand, a shallow scratch appeared on the ground!

The scratch was very shallow, exactly one meter from where the boy's palm extended! It made it seem as if he were really holding a wooden stick!
Jing Fang took two steps back, his eyes gradually turning to horror.

In fact, he himself had outstanding talent in the Force. Back then, he and the Dream Sisters were selected from Dawn and sent to train with the Jedi Order.

Even though he believed his talent was far inferior to that of the monstrous Dream Sisters, he was still an outstanding individual even among Force-sensitive individuals.

However, the boy in front of him shattered all his common sense about the Force!

He had just begun to sense the Force in the way Jing Fang had taught him, and he was not only able to sense it, but also able to materialize the power of the Force, drawing a mark on the ground out of thin air!
So, if his Force is further trained, will he be able to condense a sword blade with his bare hands?
Over here, the boy was completely absorbed in it, slowly gesturing and dancing as if he were actually holding a lightsaber.

But just then, the door to the house was suddenly kicked open, and a slightly deep female voice came from outside, "We've got a job, apprentices! This is a big deal! If you do a good job, your master will take you to the planet Murkana to eat their seaside cuisine! Hahahaha!"

Startled by the voice, the boy opened his eyes, looked at his hands in confusion, then at Jing Fang, and asked, "I...I don't have anything in my hands?"

"No." Jing Fang shook his head with a smile.

“But… I feel like I really have a stick in my hand, exactly one meter long,” the boy said.

"Is there class?" Arden-Lin walked in, looked at Jing Fang and the boy, and asked, "How are you doing? Are you settling in well here, Luke Skywalker?"

The young man known as Luke Skywalker quickly performed an ancient salute to Arden Lynn, a gesture of respect from the time before the Jedi Order split.

In this world, only Arden-Lin, who has been asleep for more than 20,000 years, would use this etiquette, and she also used this etiquette on her disciples.

“Just now, Teacher Jing Fang was teaching me how to conjure a stick using the Force. I think I’m starting to understand it…” Luke Skywalker said.

Arden-Lin glanced at the scratches on the ground and immediately understood. She patted Luke on the shoulder and said, "Well done. Anyway, take a rest, pack your gear, and we'll set off tomorrow."

She nodded to Jing Fang again and said, "You too... compared to those troublesome guys, you're really the most reliable one."

Jing Fang's face flushed slightly. He looked deeply at Arden-Lin, gazing at her healthy, tanned skin and her striking yet beautiful face. He took a deep breath and said, "This is also thanks to your excellent teaching, Master." (End of Chapter)