landbeastnovel Chapter 42: Breakthrough in Strength
Chapter 42: Breakthrough in Strength
Thanks to the surge in the number of legendary knights, the power feedback from the "rising tide lifts all boats" attribute flooded into Li Ang's body like a tidal wave, naturally helping him break through the bottleneck and step into the realm of intermediate fighter.
Feeling the surging battle qi power within his body, Li Ang was overjoyed.
Within the kingdom, a mid-level fighter is considered a minor expert, capable of withstanding attacks from thirty or forty heavily armored soldiers on the battlefield without being defeated.
"The 'Starry Breathing Technique,' a secret technique passed down in the Kingdom of Grant, truly lives up to its reputation as one of the most advanced knight breathing techniques on the continent."
As Li Ang circulated his inner energy and his cultivation level stabilized, he looked inward and was astonished to find three miniature star-like vortexes condensing in his dantian. Each radiated a different luster and slowly rotated, displaying extraordinary mystery.
"My strength has increased, but my faith points are almost depleted!"
Li Ang glanced at the Faith value in the system panel; its growth had been extremely slow recently.
The successive organ modifications have consumed a large amount of faith points, and now only 10,000 to 20,000 faith points remain!
"To stabilize my realm, I'll have to spend Faith Points and reset the cooldown of the [Rising Tide] skill! These Faith Points really don't last long!"
"Once Edmund brings a new batch of prospective knights, we'll have to spend Faith Points to buy more time to use the [Medical Servant]!"
Li Ang felt a sense of urgency.
..................
Tester's taxation order has reached the eastern border of the Kingdom of Grant—the provinces of High Furnace and Obsidian.
Countless people began to suffer profound hardship.
Commoners who failed to pay the exorbitant taxes were skinned alive and shaved of their bones by Tester's retainers, and then hung on the city walls as a warning to others.
Many merchants suffered even more; their hard-earned wealth, accumulated over generations, was confiscated by the governor's guards.
Minor nobles and lower-ranking officials were not spared either.
Tester's "tax supervision team" was greedy and took the opportunity to add layers of extra charges to line their own pockets.
A lord, renowned for his virtue in the countryside, knelt before his ransacked hall, pleading with the tax inspector: "My lord, the tax burden is far too heavy! I could not raise the money even if I sold everything I owned! Besides... handing over such a vast amount of wealth and resources to foreign tribes, isn't that just feeding the enemy's claws? Once they are strong enough, what will we use to resist their next invasion?"
The tax inspector's face was ashen, unmoved, his voice cold and hard as stone: "This is national policy! It is a peace treaty that Lord Tester painstakingly signed with the foreign envoys! If you do not pay in full, you will be breaking the treaty. When the foreign army invades and our land is shattered, can you bear such a heinous crime?"
Having said that, he waved his hand, and his men began an even more thorough looting, like bandits.
The slightest obstruction, and the swords immediately clashed.
Of course, there was no shortage of spirited men in the local armies of the provinces.
Under such harsh taxes, many of these soldiers' families went bankrupt, collapsed, and suffered a series of tragedies!
The families of these soldiers did not die under the swords of foreign invaders, but they fell dead before the tax collectors' whips—the father was beaten to death for failing to pay the "poll tax," the sister was taken away to pay off debts and her whereabouts are unknown, and the ancestral home and land were seized by force...
"That traitorous foreign minister is a real scoundrel!"
"What kind of treaty is this?! It's completely emptied us of our flesh and blood, handing us over to a foreign race!"
"Rather than being driven to death by taxes, let's fight the alien race! If one person can't kill them, then two, three! At worst, ten of us can take down one alien!"
Within the military camp, suppressed anger surged like a volcano, rising in the low growls and roars of the lower-ranking soldiers, ready to erupt at any moment.
................
In the governor's offices of several provinces, some mid- to high-ranking military officers also spoke out vehemently: "The tax policy proposed by Cabinet Minister Tester is excessive!"
"Seeking peace with the eight alien races isn't the right approach! Even if it involves financial and material reparations, there should be limits! Who can tolerate such boundless indulgence?"
The civil officials who had previously adopted a surrender-oriented attitude were now extremely dissatisfied.
Tester's tax inspectors were becoming increasingly brazen in the provinces.
Tester's original instructions to them were: do not provoke nobles of rank above viscount, and do not provoke mid-level officials of rank above centurion!
However, after arriving in the provincial capital, these subordinates, who were used to being arrogant in the capital, were now in a different province!
They completely disregarded the local nobles and officials.
These retainers and guards, under Tester's influence, had long since become corrupt and unruly!
They added layers of charges and took kickbacks at each level. In the end, these retainers scattered throughout the provinces arbitrarily expanded the threshold for tax collection to include: nobles of earl rank and above, and high-ranking officials similar to commanders of ten thousand or above in the military.
Even some audacious retainers dared to provoke high-ranking officials such as local earls, deputy commanders of military units, and deputy governors of town halls.
"Hand over the gold coins! Hand over all valuable magical materials, ores, and food! Otherwise, you will be punished for treason by resisting taxes, and your entire family will be executed!"
This unbridled plunder finally touched the deeply entrenched core interests of the major provinces and localities, igniting a raging fire of anger within the ruling class.
"Damn it! Even if it were a foreign invasion, we local nobles wouldn't normally suffer this much loss!"
"Governor, Cabinet Minister Tester is far too arrogant! Please report this to His Majesty the King; Tester must be severely punished!"
Inside the provincial governor's mansion, a group of officials and representatives of local nobles were filled with indignation, their roars echoing throughout the hall.
Due to the long-standing poverty and weakness of the Kingdom of Grant, the local army and most civilians were extremely afraid of those foreign races, especially the middle and upper races.
There is a very powerful "surrender faction" within the kingdom!
People would often abandon their armor and flee as soon as they saw the approaching alien warriors.
Now, Tester's servants and personal guards are "playing" a hundred times more ferocious than the alien race!
Throughout the kingdom, the voices of the "surrender faction" instantly dwindled to their lowest point.
.............
Steward Mike hurriedly reported the recent boiling public discontent to Li Ang.
"Your Majesty, Tester's taxation has already resulted in the deaths of at least ten to twenty thousand people, displaced millions, and caused widespread resentment! My palace guards are currently under 24-hour surveillance of Tester!"
"With His Majesty's command, Tester can be executed in secret!"
"Manager Mike said confidently."
Li Ang waved his hand: "No rush. The people of the Kingdom of Grant need a true fighting spirit! As for Tester, his death is not far off!"
After saying this, Li Ang handed Mike a parchment book that he had copied and compiled in his spare time. It contained the historical events and commentaries of "Zheng Bo Ke Duan Yu Yan" translated into the language of this world.
"Take some time to study history. As the chief steward of my court, Mike, you need more wisdom!"
Li Ang smiled and said.