I am an incredibly handsome man, and my fiancée refuses to call off the engagement even at the cost

Umir disappeared.

Gu Yan took the Demon Refining Pot out of her Purple Mansion, added several more seals to it, and then threw it back into her Purple Mansion.

Thinking of the wound on his primordial spirit that still wouldn't heal, he wanted to kill Umir. The day he could completely control the Demon-Refining Pot, he would unhesitatingly refine that guy until his soul was scattered, condemning him to eternal damnation!

Gu Yan examined her inner spirit and gritted her teeth.

Then he took out all seven Myriad Soul Banners. The seven Myriad Soul Banners shrank in size and floated in front of Gu Yan. Gu Yan cast a spell on one of the Myriad Soul Banners, and the banner emitted a blood-red light. Countless memories surged towards Gu Yan. Gu Yan was reading the memories of the newly acquired souls.

He can read the memories of any soul he collects himself, but he cannot read the memories of souls collected by his predecessors.

The purpose of reading the memories of these newly acquired souls is to find information about what they possess, such as the Yuanhun Fruit.

However, with so many new souls added, reading through the memories of all of them was quite mentally taxing. Fortunately, she could quickly recover by taking Blood Spirit Pills. Gu Yan took the pills and recovered while muttering to herself, "Huh? The effects of this medicine are stronger than before..."

The auxiliary materials and techniques remained the same, so it could only be that Tan Yue's blood had undergone some kind of mutation. Could it be that every time he was brought to the brink of death, his blood would undergo a certain degree of mutation? As soon as this thought occurred to her, Gu Yan wanted to try bringing Tan Yue to the brink of death again inside the Panlong Tower.

However, he eventually gave up the idea of ​​conducting the experiment and decided to deal with the affairs of the Yue Kingdom first.

Although Gu Yan became the King of Yue, he never thought of governing the country himself. He believed that the prime minister and civil and military officials could handle such matters.

To sideline him? To turn him into a puppet ruler? He's the only Spirit Emperor in the entire Yue Kingdom, what does he have to fear? Before absolute power, any scheme is futile. In the nineteen continents of the Mi Luo Continent, the strength of a nation is determined by its top-tier Spirit Masters.

The Twelve Empires, for example, each possess no fewer than five Spirit Emperor Realm experts. Ordinary countries, like the Yue Kingdom, might have only one or two Spirit Emperor Realm experts at most. As for smaller countries, the highest-ranking cultivators within their borders are only at the Spirit King Realm.

If Gu Yan doesn't become the King of Yue, the Yue Kingdom will soon become a small country, or be immediately divided up by other countries of similar status.

Having read the memories of King Gu Lan of Yue and others, Gu Yan's first order was to release the loyal and innocent people imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison. After Gu Lan ascended the throne, he had almost killed off most of the loyal ministers of Yue, but there were still some whom Gu Lan did not want to die, so he imprisoned and tortured them.

These people are the excellent labor force that Gu Yan needs.

Then Gu Yan granted a general amnesty, releasing all slaves, a large number of displaced people who had revolted, and others who had been imprisoned because of Gu Lan's tyrannical policies. He also had them released.

Then he killed more than a dozen of Gu Lan's trusted confidants.

Gu Lan's confidants are just like him, utterly wicked. Gu Yan can't stand them. Keeping these guys around is a waste of resources. Let them die and serve her in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.

Gu Yan abolished all of Gu Lan's policies. Instead of issuing new decrees, he restored the policies of the previous Yue king.

Gu Lan was a beast, and so were his son and grandson, yet his father was a wise ruler. Good bamboo produces bad shoots; the previous King of Yue was usurped and murdered by Gu Lan's own son.

Gu Yan didn't have time to develop new policies, so he directly reinstated the decrees of the previous Yue king.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

One month later.

Inside the Imperial Study, Gu Yan, dressed in a black robe, sat before a screen, reading a letter. The Imperial Study was very quiet. To his left stood the Grand Commander Huo Yun, and to his right stood the Grand Eunuch Su Sheng. In the center stood Gao Changqing, who had just been reinstated as Prime Minister.

Huo Yun secretly glanced at Gu Yan, who was reading a letter. He had thought that this new king, who could refine billions of souls into his own weapons, must be a more tyrannical ruler than Gu Lan. However, he did not expect that the first thing he did after ascending the throne was to release all the loyal ministers and generals in the prison and restore them to their original positions.

Then, a general amnesty was declared, slavery was abolished, the decrees of His Majesty Gu Yue were restored, and all laws of the tyrant Gu Lan were abolished.

Although this new emperor often secludes himself and does not show his true face, and even his voice is probably fake, the Yue Kingdom has changed. Although it will take a long time to restore its former prosperity, this new king has given everyone new hope.

The Yue Kingdom finally had hope.

Huo Yun suppressed his excitement.

Gu Yan looked down at the letter in his hand. It was a letter from the king of the neighboring Song Kingdom. The letter first gave him a very polite greeting as the new King of Yue, and then offered a lot of flattery before getting to the point.

In his letter, King Song said that Gu Lan, that scoundrel, had seized thirty-six cities from the Song Kingdom during his reign, and now that he was dead, he requested that Brother Li return those thirty-six cities. If they were not returned, then he would have to ask Empress Fuyao to uphold justice.

After Gu Yan finished reading, she asked Prime Minister Gao Changqing:

"What does Minister Gao think?"

Like Huo Yun, Gao Changqing was a veteran of three reigns; he was already the prime minister during Gu Yue's reign. This Prime Minister Gao looked to be about sixty years old, with a slight beard on his chin. He was slender, had a refined and scholarly air, and a serious expression.

During Gu Yue's reign, he frequently thwarted Gu Lan's plans, repeatedly advising Gu Yue that the Third Prince was inherently cruel and unfit to inherit the throne. After Gu Lan successfully usurped the throne, the Gao family was exterminated. However, Gao Changqing did not die; Gu Lan deliberately prevented his death, intending to make him suffer a fate worse than death.

Gao Changqing had been tortured in the prison for decades and thought he would spend the rest of his life there. Unexpectedly, he had the opportunity to come out and continue to serve as an official and the country.

"This move by the King of Song is probably at the behest of Empress Fuyao," Gao Changqing said.

Gu Yan asked, "Why does Prime Minister Gao say that?"

"Duan Qi, the Grand Priest of the Song Kingdom, is at the early stage of the Spirit Emperor Realm, just like His Majesty. He was defeated by Gu Lan thirty years ago, so my Yue Kingdom seized thirty-six cities from the Song Kingdom. Gu Lan, that tyrant, was just killed by His Majesty, and the King of Song dared to ask His Majesty for cities. If it weren't for Empress Fuyao's support, where would Duan Qi, as the Grand Priest, get his confidence?" Gao Changqing said.

Gu Yan asked again, "Oh? Is Empress Fuyao targeting me?"

"The Fuyao Empire is the most powerful country in Qizhou. Which of the rulers, big or small, in Qizhou, dares not to submit to the Fuyao Empire after taking the throne? His Majesty has not expressed this to the Empress since his accession to the throne. I'm afraid the Empress is dissatisfied," Gao Changqing said.

That's right, Gao Changqing's guess was very accurate.

King Song didn't have the confidence to provoke Li He, the new King of Yue. After all, his chief retainer hadn't fully recovered from his injuries yet, so how could he dare to provoke a Spirit Emperor Realm expert who was even stronger than Gu Lan?

But Empress Fuyao was unhappy. Gu Lan was dead, but this Li He hadn't even come to pay tribute yet—what a scoundrel!

Although she supported Gu Lan in the past, she didn't actually care about Gu Lan's life or death. Her support for Gu Lan stemmed from his obsequious behavior. Empress Fuyao was completely unconcerned about how Gu Lan wreaked havoc on the Yue Kingdom.